AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INNOVATION PATENT A TOY CONSTRUCTION SET The following statement is a full description of this innovation, including the best method of performing it known to me: A TOY CONSTRUCTION SET. This innovation relates to improvements in one type of educational toy. Toys for pre-teen kids, that are fun and also a challenge, and requiring both physical and mental application, have been with us for some time. Children are interested in a wide variety of play things. Toys, which encourages the child to assemble and erect shapes and structures, from a toy-set, usually made of moulded plastic pieces and in kit form, is the focus of this innovation. One popular example of a toy in the category just mentioned, would be a toy set made up of several batches of small plastic pieces with predetermined connecting areas. Youngster are encouraged to generally stack one piece on top of another in order to compose for example, a model dolls house. Another type could have slightly more flexible pieces, and its predetermined joining areas would allow one piece to clasp onto another with releasable tension or spin freely like a washer on a spindle. This type of toy encourages the building blocks method of stacking one piece on top of another but also uses the pieces more like connecting links or struts. This innovation is a toy-set like that just described. A toy-set, made up of roughly a hundred pieces which are the multiple replication of three individual pieces. The slightly flexible plastic pieces are designed to clasp-join with releasable tension with other pieces or used as a link and pin arrangement, allowing basic mechanical movement between them. There are eight distinct method of connecting any two pieces in the toy set. Furthermore, a conical indents specifically located on one of the pieces offers a pivotal point on which a shape (made up of toy pieces for example) could spin or balance on. A carousel, a spinning wheel, or an over-sized top, are a few of many ideas for the amusement and development of a child's imagination. In one form of the innovation the toy pieces could be moulded plastic, rubber or stiff cardboard. In another form of the innovation, two of the three pieces could be combined so that the toy set comprises the many replications of only two individual pieces. To assist with understanding the innovation, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which show one example of the innovation. Fig. 1 shows one example of the toy set according to this innovation. Fig. 2-9 shows the eight distinct methods of connecting the three pieces to each other. Referring to Fig. I it can be seen that the toy set comprises of mainly three individual pieces A, B & C, multiple copies of which completes the set. Piece A, looks like a Medallion size disc, made up of twelve spokes with arrowheads radiating from a circular hole in the centre. The hole is also recessed on both sides. Piece B is a slightly larger piece, shaped like a cross with short equal sides and has a similar round recessed hole in its centre as will as several elongated slots. And thirdly, piece C, which could be described as two cylindrical tubes that have evenly spaced slots and cut-aways along most of its length and joined together by a 'T-section' middle area. The three slightly flexible pieces have specific contours, slots and protrusions, which enables it to clasp-join with releasable tension to the others. There are eight distinct methods ofjoining between the above pieces, which will be further described with reference to Fig 2- 9. Fig.2 shows one method where piece A and piece B could be joined together with releasable tension edge to edge and in the same plane, via arrowhead like male/female contours 1& 2. It will be noted that piece A and piece B have the same overall thickness and flexibility. Furthermore, there is a tongue/grove arrangement 3 & 4, which adds support to the union. Fig.3 shows a second method where piece A could be clasp-joined to another piece A or to piece B, but with its planes at right angles to one another. Piece A has been described as having twelve 'spokes' radiating from a circular hole. The lower gap between these spokes has two small protrusions I & 2 which when pressed into the gaps of another piece A at right angles to each other or into similar slots with protrusions 3,4,5,6 of piece B also at right angles to one another, enables both pieces to clasp onto each other with releasable tension. Fig. 4 shows a third method where pieces A and B could be joined, if the pair of arrow-head like projection 1& 2 on piece A, is depressed towards each other and squeezed into rectangle slot 5 in piece B. The recessed area 6 & 7 which lies on both side of piece B, offers a filleted ledge onto which the respective semicircular groves 8, 9 that lie just behind the 'arrow-heads' can sit in. Similarly recessed circular hole10 & 11 of both pieces A & B can also accommodate pairs of 'arrowhead' projection like I & 2. Fig.5 shown here with cross-sections, describes a forth method where pieces A could join together with another piece A or with piece B, and also piece B with another piece B - broadside on broadside. They are held in place when a pair of small claw-like protrusions 3 & 4 are inserted into small corresponding pairs of rectangular holes 9,10, 11, 12.. .which are found on the broadside of both pieces and central to the circular holes. The claw-like protrusions also have a half circle horizontal grove 13... running across its length and coincides with the recessed ledges 14... which are located on the insides of the rectangular holes of both pieces. Furthermore the rectangular holes are spaced at 30 Degree intervals central to the larger circular hole, which lie in the centres of both pieces A&B. Fig.6 shows a fifth way of joining piece A with piece B or piece B with piece B. Referring to the drawing, piece A and piece B has the same thickness and is substantially smaller than the width of the elongated slots 1& 2, which intersects at the centre of the recessed circular hole lying on the broadside of piece B. Piece A could be inserted exactly halfway into either slot I & 2, after pushing through slightly obstructing pairs of protrusions 3-4 & 5-6... which 2 drops back into accommodating cavities 7 & 8... specifically located directly across the circular hole on the broadsides of the inserted first piece. Furthermore the position of the inserted first piece can be varied slightly by once again displacing the protrusions apart, enough to rotate the first piece on its axis by fifteen degree intervals. The protrusions then pop back into new accommodating pairs of cavities 11, 12... that also lie directly across the circular hole and adjacent to the previous pair. Similarly if either of the four sides of cross-like piece B, were to be inserted into the larger elongated slot I & 2 of another piece B, the pair of protrusion 3-4 & 5-6 would be spread apart only to pop back between the specifically contoured cavities 9 & 10 so as to pinch hold the two pieces in place with their planes at right angles to each other. Also it can be seen that the depth to which piece B can be inserted into another piece B via the elongated slot 1 & 2 can be varied by three positions 13, 14 & 15 Fig. 7 show the sixth method of possible joining between pieces A, B & C. Piece C described generally as a pair of cylindrical 'tubes' joined by a 'T section' middle area. One tube (Green) has three evenly-spaced section removed for most of its length, leaving three evenly spaced ridges 3, 4 & 5. The ridges also have specific filleted groves. The other tube (blue) also have three evenly spaced ridges similar to the ones on the green tube along with several other narrow relief slots 8 & 9... The ridges on either tube can be jointly depressed and inserted into the circular recessed hole 1 & 2 of the first and second pieces. The holes as a result of the recess on both sides, have a narrow filleted ledge 10. 11 running along the inside of the holes, which lands in the three filleted groves located on the inserted ridges 3,4,5... of the third piece. Also these filleted groves have alternate depths 6, 7 allowing the first and second pieces to either sit relatively firmly with releasable tension in the shallow grove or turn freely in the slightly enlarged deeper one. Fig.8 demonstrates the 7th distinct method of union between Piece C and another piece C to form an extension. Referring to the drawing, piece C with its two adjacent slotted tubes green and blue and a middle section 3. One of the 'tubes'1 (green) of Piece C with its three evenly spaced 'ridges' is substantially smaller in diameter than the tube 2 (blue), which also have three evenly spaced 'ridges' and slots. Once again the flexible 'ridges' 4, 5 & 6 can be depressed and partially inserted into the corresponding tube-end (blue) of another piece C, so that the ridges 4, 5 & 6 land in the three accommodating slots, such that the groves on the three 'ridges' of one piece lines up with corresponding groves on the 'ridges' of the other partially inserted piece. Fig. 9 shows the eight and final method of joining Piece C with another Piece C but in a distinctly different way. If slot I which is located at the centre of the 'T-section', is placed diagonally across and at right angles to the respective slot of another piece C, both slots are wide and deep enough to accommodate the vertical rib 2 of both pieces enabling the two pieces to be brought together to form a cross as it were, with their axis' in the same plane. Two smaller projections 3 & 4... are displaced by horizontal ribbing 5,6 and pops back to holds the two in place. Also, the small cylindrical extrusion 7 on 3 the other side of the 'T-section', has a concave spherical indent 8 on its top end specifically located to accommodate one of the arrowhead-like tips of Piece A. It will be realised that the toy set according to this innovation is not restricted to moulded plastics and can be made from rubber. The claw-like protrusions mentioned in Fig. 5 could be cylindrical and have a mushroom head at the top instead of a horizontal grove running across its face. Instead of the filleted ridges located on the inside of the circular holes 8,9 described in Fig 7 as well as the slots 5 ... Fig 4, the holes as well as the slots, instead of being recessed on both sides, could be chamfered so as to form a crest all along the inside. The 'arrowheads' at the tip of the twelve spoke-like protrusions mentioned in Fig I could be mushroon-head-like. 4