Self-induced dysarthria game

Abstract

A self-induced dysarthria game that forces communication of specially-chosen phrases or performance of other common or humorous tasks involving use of the cheeks or lips despite an induced speech impairment, so that players inevitably experience initial failure but must compensate to win. Game play may involve individual competition or team play. A mobile software application for enabling game play is also disclosed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for playing a game that simulates dysarthria, the method comprising the steps of:
 providing a table as a playing area, and a sand timer on said table;   appointing a plurality of players to one of a plurality of teams;   said plurality of teams each appointing one of its players to be a speaker;   providing a deck of playing cards each having a word or phrase written thereon;   randomizing the deck of playing cards;   dealing a playing card to an appointed speaker;   requiring said appointed speaker to self-induce dysarthria by insertion of a dental cheek retractor;   inverting said sand timer on said table;   requiring said appointed speaker to communicate the word or phrase written on the dealt playing card to their team mates before said sand timer expires despite said self-induced dysarthria;   awarding points to said appointed speaker if the team mates repeat the correct word or phrase written on the dealt playing card before expiration of the sand timer by understanding the speaker;   repeating the foregoing steps with the other teams;   tallying accumulated points on a tally card, said accumulated points being equal to the number of points earned by each member of the team.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said dental cheek retractor comprises an integrally molded component with left and right curvilinear troughs for seating and spacing a left and right sides of a mouth of said appointed speaker, wherein said left and right curvilinear troughs comprise an upper arch sized to saddle an upper lip of said appointed speaker, and a lower arch sized to saddle an lower lip of said appointed speaker, said left and right curvilinear troughs being connected by a resilient connector for maintaining an outward spring bias against said left and right curvilinear troughs. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein said method further comprises a predetermined number of rounds, wherein said steps of dealing, requiring said appointed speaker to self-induce dysarthria, inverting, requiring said appointed speaker to communicate the word or phrase, and awarding are undertaken by said appointed speaker from each team during each of said rounds. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3  wherein points are allotted per round and wherein said accumulated points equals the number of points scored during each said round for each team. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1  wherein each said word or phrase is paired with a predetermined number of points. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 5  wherein said predetermined number of points for varies based on a predetermined difficulty of said word or phrase. 
     
     
         7 . A method for playing a game comprising the steps of:
 providing a table as a playing area, and a sand timer on said table;   appointing a plurality of players to one of a plurality of teams;   choosing one player on each team to be an actor;   providing a deck of playing cards each having an interactive task to be completed;   randomizing the deck of playing cards;   dealing a playing card to an appointed actor;   requiring said appointed actor to self-induce dysarthria by insertion of a dental cheek retractor;   inverting said sand timer on said table;   requiring said appointed actor to complete said appointed task by interacting with their teammates while their speech is impaired despite said self-induced dysarthria before said sand timer expires;   awarding points to said team if the actor completes the task written on the dealt playing card before expiration of the sand timer;   repeating the foregoing steps with the other teams;   tallying accumulated points on a tally card comprising said accumulated points being equal to the number of tasks successfully completed by each of said actors.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein said one or more tasks includes one or more activities selected from the group comprising: blowing through a straw, sucking through a straw, using a noisemaker, blowing bubbles, drawing with a marker being held in a mouth of said one or more actors, drinking through a straw, singing, and holding a household item in a mouth of said one or more actors. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein said at least one actor comprises a first actor and a second actor, and wherein said second actor is chosen randomly by roll of one or more dice. 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , wherein said dental cheek retractor comprises an integrally molded component with left and right curvilinear troughs for seating and spacing a left and right sides of a mouth of said appointed speaker, wherein said left and right curvilinear troughs comprise an upper arch sized to saddle an upper lip of said appointed speaker, and a lower arch sized to saddle an lower lip of said appointed speaker, said left and right curvilinear troughs being connected by a resilient connector for maintaining an outward spring bias against said left and right curvilinear troughs. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 7  wherein each said task is paired with a predetermined number of points. 
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 7  wherein said predetermined number of points for varies based on a predetermined difficulty of said task. 
     
     
         13 . A system for playing a game utilizing an induced speech impairment, the system comprising: a deck of playing cards, a rules and instructions card, a collection of scoring sheets, a one-minute hourglass-type timer, a plurality of differently-sized speech impediment-inducing devices, and a compartmentalized box for storage. 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said deck of playing cards comprises a plurality of playing cards each having a word or phrase written thereon. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 13  wherein said deck of playing cards comprises a plurality of playing cards each having a task written thereon. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 13  further comprising one or more challenger dice. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 13  further comprising at least one additional component selected from the group consisting of: a noise maker, a straw, a marker, a container of bubbles, a clothespin, a necklace and a ping pong ball. 
     
     
         18 . A system for playing a game, the system comprising:
 at least one cheek and lip retractor; and   a mobile application configured to perform the steps of:
 soliciting user input of a variation of game play; 
 receiving input from a user of said variation of game play; 
 soliciting user input of a number of teams; 
 receiving input from said user of said number of teams; 
 soliciting user input of a name or designator for each said team; 
 receiving input from said user of same name or designator for each said team; 
 determining, based on the received inputs, an appropriate game card to present to said user; 
 presenting an image of said appropriate card to said user via a graphical user interface (GUI); and 
 repeating the foregoing steps with the other teams. 
   
     
     
         19 . The system of  claim 18  wherein said mobile application is further configured to perform the step of displaying a dynamic timer counting down a predetermined amount of time for one or more rounds of game play. 
     
     
         20 . The system of  claim 18  wherein said mobile application is further configured to perform the steps of
 soliciting user input of “Pass” or “Got it!”; 
 receiving user input of “Pass” or “Got it!”; and 
 presenting an image of an additional card to said user via said graphical user interface (GUI). 
 
     
     
         21 . The system of  claim 20  wherein said mobile application is further configured to tally a score for each team based on the number of “Got it!” inputs received from said team during said team's turn.