Tethered toy with safety disconnect and its associated method of operation

Abstract

A safety connector that is used on a tether, such as that of a tethered toy. The safety connector has two halves that can be selectively interconnected. The two halves are attached to separate sections of a tether. Once interconnected, the two halves of the safety connector remain attached until one of two circumstances occurs. In the first circumstance, the two halves of the safety connector will separate when a tension force is experienced in the tether that approaches the tensile strength of the tether. In the second circumstance, the two halves of the safety connector will separate when a minimal bending force is applied to the safety connector. Such a bending force occurs in the safety connector if the tether wraps around an object.

1 . A tethered toy assembly, comprising: 
 a tether having a first end and a second end;    a toy coupled to said first end of said tether;    a safety connector disposed between said first end and said second end of said tether, said safety connector separating said tether into parts when said tether experiences a force in excess of a predetermined maximum force.    
   
   
       2 . The assembly according to  claim 1 , wherein said tether has a first section and a second section, and said safety connector has a first half and a second half, wherein said first section of said tether is connected to said first half of said safety connector and said second section of said tether is connected to said second half of said safety connector.  
   
   
       3 . The assembly according to  claim 2 , wherein said first half of said safety connector separates from said second half of said safety connector when said tether experiences a force in excess of a predetermined maximum force.  
   
   
       4 . The assembly according to  claim 3 , wherein said first half of said safety connector and said second half of said safety connector can be selectively reconnected once separated.  
   
   
       5 . The assembly according to  claim 3 , wherein said first half of said safety connector separates from said second half of said safety connector when said safety connector experiences a force in tension that exceeds a predetermined maximum tension force.  
   
   
       6 . The assembly according to  claim 5 , wherein said first half of said safety connector separates from said second half of said safety connector when said safety connector experiences a bending force that exceeds a predetermined maximum bending force.  
   
   
       7 . The assembly according to  claim 6 , wherein said maximum tension force is greater than said maximum bending force.  
   
   
       8 . The assembly according to  claim 1 , wherein said tether is elastic.  
   
   
       9 . The assembly according to  claim 8 , wherein said toy is a ball.  
   
   
       10 . A method of severing a tether into multiple pieces when the tether wraps around an object, said method comprising the steps of: 
 providing a safety connecter having a first half and a second half that can be selectively interconnected, wherein said first half and said second half disconnect when a predetermined force is applied to said safety connector; and    connecting said first half of said connector to a first section of said tether and connecting said second half of said connector to a second section of said tether, wherein said first section of said tether separates from said second section of said tether when said safety connector experiences said predetermined force.    
   
   
       11 . The method according to  claim 10 , wherein said first half of said safety connector separates from said second half of said safety connector when said safety connector experiences a force in tension that exceeds a predetermined maximum tension force.  
   
   
       12 . The method according to  claim 11 , wherein said first half of said safety connector separates from said second half of said safety connector when said safety connector experiences a bending force that exceeds a predetermined maximum bending force.  
   
   
       13 . The assembly according to  claim 12 , wherein said maximum tension force is greater than said maximum bending force.  
   
   
       14 . A safety connector device for use along a tether, said device comprising: 
 a first section defining a recess, said first section being symmetrically formed around a first axis;    a second section defining a protrusion, said second section being symmetrically formed around a second axis, wherein said recess of said first section selectively receives and engages said protrusion of said second section, thereby interconnecting said first section to said second section; and    wherein said protrusion of said second section disengages and separates from said recess in said first section when said first section and said second section are oriented so that said first axis is not linearly aligned with said second axis.    
   
   
       15 . The device according to  claim 14 , wherein said first section and said second section form a cylindrical structure when interconnected.  
   
   
       16 . The device according to  claim 15 , wherein said cylindrical structure has a length of at least one inch.  
   
   
       17 . The device according to  claim 15 , further including pins extending through said first section and said second section for joining said first section and said second section to separate segments of a tether.