WAFFLE BLOCKS

Not Your Average Everyday Block

What's "Goin' On" in Here?

The WAFFLE BLOCK is a toy similar to a normal block but very different. The WAFFLE BLOCK is designed like a Tic-tac-toe board with two strips of plastic running horizontal while an additional two run vertically.

The design of the WAFFLE BLOCK allows a child to create not only a structure, but a structure which is more stable and sturdy. Construction done by WAFFLE BLOCKS can be moved from room to room after completion. This is because the pieces of WAFFLE BLOCKS can connect together more securely and not just be stacked on or near other pieces.

The Purpose and the Principle

The main principle behind the WAFFLE BLOCK is so children can gain an understanding of how buildings are designed and constructed. The child can experience first hand the process that an engineer can experience when they need to know how a building will stand or fall.

Let's imagine a child playing with the blocks. She creates a small structure with three walls and then builds a roof over it. Then she decides to add more 'floors' to the structure and the structure topples. Maybe only one wall collapsed and that caused it to fall or maybe the entire bottom 'floor' collapsed first. Either way, the child understands where she made her mistake and can go back and try to complete the structure again. This time she may grasp a better understanding and build her first 'floor' sturdier or larger to hold up the rest of her structure.

The Whole Shebang

One Individual WAFFLE BLOCK

(Shown to Approximate Scale)

What do you mean I can't EAT my WAFFLES?

A child would interact with WAFFLE BLOCKS similarly to normal blocks. The normal activity would be to build structures and tunnels and towers and bridges. The difference is that the design of the WAFFLE BLOCKS allows a child to integrate parts of his or her structure together. For example, if I built a structure with four walls out of the blocks, the roof could be attached to these walls using the exposed edges of the top blocks. These blocks would mesh with the roof blocks creating a completely attached structure.

In addition, the design of the blocks allows a child to build structures that are circular rather then just square. The design allows that the blocks can be connected to each other but they both do not have to be oriented in the same direction. Just by angling one of the blocks, the structure will begin to bend in one direction or another.

The Final Details

The WAFFLE BLOCK construction is very sturdy and would be able to handle a lot of usage. In addition, the blocks would be constructed of a nontoxic, safe plastic. The size of the blocks may not be appropriate for children under 3 so it is recommended that the ages of play by 4-9 years of age. For younger children it may be a good idea to create a WAFFLE BLOCK of a larger scale which can more easily be played with by children under 3 years of age.

The construction costs of the blocks would be the cost of the plastic to create the block so the approximate cost would be $0.25-$0.75 per block.

Created By Emile Lukasiak - Rapid Prototyping 39-245

January 29, 2002

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