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Title: Amusement device
Claims: What is claimed is: 1. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen, a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, each of the manual control devices including a mounting plate positioned in the table top, each mounting plate covered by a portion of the top, a shaft aperture positioned below a portion of the mounting plate, a U-shaped bracket secured to the mounting plate and a portion of the electronic circuitry supported on the U-shaped bracket, a knob shaft rotatably mounted in the mounting plate and the U-shaped bracket and extending above the table top, said knob shaft connected to the portion of the electronic circuitry on the U-shaped bracket for controlling selected portions of the circuitry, and a knob mounted on the shaft exteriorly of the table top for operating the shaft, whereby a player turns the knob to move selectively an image across the screen. 2. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen, a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, said table top includes a recess adjacent to each of the manual control devices, each of said control devices including a mounting plate mounted in its respective recess, each manual control device having a shaft extending through the mounting plate and being connected to a portion of the electronic circuitry, and said top having a decorative sheet extending over the surface of the top and over the mounting plates to provide a continuous surface. 3. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen, a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, said table top includes a mounting plate recess adjacent to each of the manual control devices, each of said control devices including a mounting plate mounted in its respective recess substantially parallel to the surface of the table top, each manual control device having a knob shaft extending through its respective mounting plate and being connected to a selected portion of the electronic circuitry, a transparent glass positioned in the screen aperture in the center of the top, and said table top having a decorative sheet extending over the mounting plates and over the entire surface of the top to the glass and being on substantially the same plane as the glass to form a substantially continuous surface on the table top, said glass being sealingly secured at its edges to the top to seal closed the screen aperture, whereby the screen is visible exteriorly of the top but is protected from mechanical damage either by impact or by foreign materials by said glass. 4. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen, a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, the support includes a plurality of outwardly-extending feet formed integral with each other at a junction and an upright column secured to the junction of said feet, said housing secured to the upper end of the column, said table top extending outwardly of the housing to allow players to place their feet and knees below the table top, each of the manual control devices includes a mounting plate positioned in the top, each mounting plate covered by a portion of the top, a shaft aperture extending through a portion of the top positioned below a portion of its respective mounting plate, a U-shaped bracket positioned in its respective shaft aperture and secured to its respective mounting plate, a portion of the electronic circuitry supported on the U-shaped bracket, a knob shaft rotatably mounted in its respective mounting plate and its respective U-shaped bracket, each of said knob shafts connected to its respective portion of the electronic circuitry for controlling selected portions of the circuitry, and a knob mounted on each shaft exteriorly of the table, whereby a player turns a selected knob to move a selected image on the screen. 5. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen, a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, the support includes a plurality of outwardly-extending feet formed integral with each other at a junction and an upright column secured to the junction of said feet, the housing secured to the upper end of the column, said table top having a portion extending outwardly of the housing to allow players to place their feet and knees below the table top when seated, said table top includes a mounting plate recess adjacent to each of the manual control devices, each of said control devices including a mounting plate positioned in its respective recess and secured to the top, each manual control device having a shaft extending through the mounting plate and being connected to a selected portion of the electronic circuitry for controlling selected portions of the circuitry, a transparent member positioned in the screen aperture in the center of the top, said table top including a decorative sheet extending over the mounting plates over the entire upper surface of the top and abutting the transparent member to form a substantially continuous flat surface therewith, said transparent member being sealingly secured at its edges to the top to seal closed the screen aperture, whereby the screen is visible exteriorly of the top but is protected from mechanical damage. 6. An amusement device comprising, an upright support adapted for mounting on a floor, the support includes a plurality of outwardly-extending integral feet formed integral with each other at a junction and a substantially vertical column secured to the junction of said feet, a housing secured to and supported by the upper portion of the support at a selected height above the floor, the housing supported at the upper end of the column, said table top having a portion extending outwardly of the housing to allow players to place their feet and knees below the table top in a seated attitude, said housing being open at its uppermost position, a table top hingedly connected to the housing to allow the top to be raised for exposing the interior of the housing, said top having a screen aperture in its center, a cathode ray tube secured to the top and having a screen positioned adjacent to the screen aperture to allow the screen to be viewed exteriorly of the top, electronic circuitry mounted on the interior surface of the top and electrically connected to the cathode ray tube to reproduce an image of a ball moving across the screen and a plurality of paddle images for giving the appearance of a paddle striking the ball and returning it, a plurality of manual control devices mounted on the top and accessible from the exterior of the top to manipulate selected portions of the electronic circuitry to move the paddle images on the screen, said top includes a mounting plate recess adjacent to each of the manual control devices, said top having a shaft aperture extending through a portion of the top and communicating with each of said recesses, each of said control devices including a mounting plate securely mounted in its respective mounting plate recess, a U-shaped bracket secured to each of the mounting plates and positioned in its respective shaft aperture, a portion of the electronic circuitry supported on the U-shaped bracket, a knob shaft rotatably mounted in its respective mounting plate and the U-shaped bracket and extending exteriorly of said table top, each of said knot shafts connected to the respective selected portion of the electronic circuitry for controlling its respective portions of the circuitry to move a selected image on the screen, a knob mounted on each of the knob shafts exteriorly of the table, a transparent glass positioned in the screen aperture in the center of the top, said top including a decorative sheet extending over the entire surface of the top over the mounting plates and abutting the transparent glass to form a continuous surface, said transparent glass being sealingly secured at its edges to the top to seal closed the screen aperture, a coin control device mounted on the housing and electrically connected to the electronic circuitry to control the operation of electronic circuitry for the production of the images on the screen; said coin control device includes a coin receptacle within the housing, said coin receptacle has a receptacle cover mounted thereon, an arm pivotedly connected to the receptacle cover, and a coin lock releasably locking the arm to the receptacle to hold the receptacle cover onto the receptacle; a lock for releasably locking the top to the housing to control access to the interior of the housing, a speaker mounted in the housing and being electrically connected to the electronic circuitry for emitting a sound when a paddle image appears to strike the ball; and a draft assembly mounted in the housing for cooling the interior of the housing. Other info: Inventors: Runte, Robert Ralph (Buffalo Grove, IL, US) Application Number: 489081 Filing Date: 1974-07-17 Publication_date: 1976-02-24 Assignee: Fascination, Ltd. (Des Plaines, IL) Primary Class(es): 463/3 74/10R, 194/350, 232/15, 248/917, 348/836, 361/682, 463/46 Other Classes: US Patent Ref:
Other Refs: Other References: Chicago Tribune, 1-4-1971 - Dick Tracy. Radio Electronics, 4-1955. Radio Electronics, 6-1951, p. 102. | |