Educational audio playback device including hidden graphical images located below pivoting button elements

摘要

A novel educational audio playback device is disclosed which, in the preferred embodiment, is in the shape of a simulated telephone. On the body of the apparatus are a plurality of buttons, each of the buttons having a hinged cover mounted thereon. These hinged covers have indicia on their front, this indicia, in the preferred embodiment, being letters of an alphabet. Upon the user opening the hinged cover, a simulated sound of a telephone ringing is generated and the associated button is exposed. On each of the buttons is a symbol or picture that is representative of a character, object or thing that is related to the letter of the alphabet on the hinged cover. The letter "H", for example, could contain a picture of a nursery rhyme figure, such as Humpty Dumpty. Upon the user depressing the associated button, an index is generated that tells a circuit or microprocessor where on the internal sound storage portion of the device is to be found the appropriate sound segment. In the proposed circumstance, a voice would introduce itself as Humpty Dumpty, would note that Humpty Dumpty begins with the letter H, and would, perhaps, recite some or all of the nursery rhyme. The two- step process involved assists in the user remembering the relationship between the letter indicia, and the symbol or character associate with it. Various alphabets could be displayed, with an appropriate symbology and various types of sound storage devices, such as Compacts Discs, audio tape, RAM or ROM could be used, and additionally the unit could simply be used as an audio playback device.