Mechanical puzzle
Mechanical puzzles or thinking or mind games are a category of puzzle games, in which the solution of the problem must be done by manipulation of the entire building or any part thereof. The games are usually designed for a single player (known solitaire game). The goal is that the player sees through the principle of the object, rather than that he happens to come by the heuristic method of trial and error to the correct solution. They are therefore often used as an intelligence test or in the problem-solving training.
One of the most famous games is the patience of Ernő Rubik in 1974 invented Rubik's Cube. An ancient Eastern puzzle game Tangram is from China, which was invented between the 8th and 4th centuries BC. Probably the first recorded Western mechanical puzzle game dates from the 3rd century BC in Greece. Thereafter a variety of other games has been invented with the same gameplay.
History
A first handed down puzzle game Tangram, which was built between the 8th and 4th centuries BC in China. There must of platelets, which were cut out of a square, schattenriss like animals, ships or other shapes are laid.
The Stomachion is a document of Archimedes (3rd century BC), which has an Jigsaw to content. There are 14 parts to be joined to the square. In Iran, puzzle - locks were made in the 17th century. The next known games come from Japan. A book from the year 1742 mentioned a game called "Be Shona - gon Chie No- Ita ". 1870 or 1880 was an unsolvable puzzle game on the market, which became known as the 15 - puzzle. Today similar, but solvable puzzles are in the stores. 1820 the Tangram game in Europe and America has spread. The company Richter from Rudolstadt produced from 1882 large amounts of Tangram -like playing a variety of forms, the anchor puzzles. 1893 a book under the name " Puzzles Old and New" was released by Professor Hoffman. It contained, among other things, more than 40 descriptions of puzzles with secret opening mechanisms. This book became a kind of standard work for puzzle games. Modern editions exist for those who are interested. Even otherwise the turn of the 20th century was a time in which Mind games were all the rage. The first patents on puzzle designs have been registered. For example, in 1890 a game of Old W. Kruse, which consisted of 12 identical parts ( see figure). With the invention of cheap malleable materials such as plastic, the door to further possibilities was opened. Probably the best known and most successful worldwide Puzzle, the Rubik's Cube, not be possible without modern polymers.
Variants
Splicing Games
In this category the game is available in parts and it has to be generated a target shape. These games include the Soma Cube by Piet Hein and the pentominoes by Solomon Golomb, also problems where a number of parts have to be cleared in a (usually appearing too small ) box, and finally the group of laying puzzles with Tangram and the laying Playing anchor games. Furthermore, there is a puzzle series under the name of Happy Cubes, where two dimensional parts of 3 -dimensional objects can be assembled.
The image shows a variant of the packing problem by Dean Hoffman. Pack 27 cuboids with side lengths A, B and C in a box with sides of length A B C, where the following two conditions must apply: A, B and C must be different and the smallest dimension must be greater than. A possible variant for A, B and C are 18, 20, 22 The box must have inside dimensions of 60x60x60.
Modern machines such as laser cutters, make it possible to cut complex 2 dimensional puzzles made of wood or plexiglass. Of these possibilities is made lately increased use and designed games with exceptional decorative geometric patterns. Here the whole variety of possible regular surface distributions can be exploited.
Also the computer is helpful for new ideas. It allows the exhaustive search for solutions. With his help, the game can be designed so that it has the fewest possible solutions and is thus relatively complicated.
Working with transparent materials allows the puzzle, where the parts must be stacked. In the solution, then patterns, images or gradients must be visible. There are, for example, a game, which consists of a number of discs on which individual angle sections are colored differently. These disks must be stacked so that a color circle (red → blue → green → red) around the discs around is visible.
An easy to implement game is the nail game: It consists of a number of nails. The task specifies that all nails are to be carried by a single nail. The solution is a construction in which interlock the nails and then balancing on a nail head.
Disassembling Games
Puzzles in this category are to be normally open or cut into multiple parts. To this variety include the box with secret lock mechanisms, which must be opened by tasting the Knobelnde. Also, in this category also includes metal games where multiple parts are hooked into each other.
The two in the picture games are particularly well suited for the coffee table, as they pretend the player, but that it must be easy to disassemble. Many people get them not apart. The problem lies in the shape of the teeth: These are tapered, thus allowing the removal of only in one direction. This direction is in all parts of the same so that you can always move the parts just a little. One direction is blocked by his own tooth because this then infected by its conical shape in the eye of the previous part. In the other direction the own eye teeth in the next part gets stuck.
This category also includes the extremely popular in Japan boxes with secret opening mechanisms. These boxes contain more or less complicated, usually not visible, locking mechanisms, which eventually release a small cavity. The mechanisms range from barely visible panels that need to be moved over tilting mechanisms, magnetic locks, movable pins that need to be moved to a certain position with rotations to time closures in which the object must be held for a certain time in a position until a liquid has filled a vessel.
Verzahnende objects
Verzahnende puzzles are for example the well-known Chinese wood knots. The task is to break down the game and then put it back together. Both actions can be complicated. In contrast to the assembling puzzles verzahnende puzzles have the property of not simply fall apart. The difficulty of this puzzle is given as the number of trains that are necessary during disassembly to remove the first part of the puzzle. The picture shows the known representatives of this category, the Chinese wood knots. This version designed by Bill Cutler, 5 moves needed before the first piece can be removed. The known history of these games goes back to the early 18th century. 1803 contained the catalog of ' Bestelmeier ' two puzzles of this kind also in the book by Professor Hoffman finds two verzahnende puzzles. Beginning of the 19th century the Japanese took the market for these games. They developed a variety of games in the form of animals, houses and other objects, while the development in the western region remained in geometric shapes. Lately, it has become possible to carry out with the aid of the computer analysis of complete sets of these Games. The beginning of this process has made Bill Cutler with his analysis of all the Chinese wood knots. From October 1987 to August 1990 35.657.131.235 different variants were analyzed. The calculations were performed on a plurality of computers and add up to a total processing time of 62.5 years. For other analyzes for other forms regularly get new amazing developments to light. The level rose to impossible for people to be detected sizes of up to 100 trains. The end point in this development is a game where you can double the number of trains by adding some parts. However, computer analysis has also promoted another development: Rotations of parts are not analyzable with the instantly available programs. Then various puzzles have been developed which require at least one rotation of the solution. These need to be re- released by hand. Puzzles without right angles are also not yet solved efficiently with computer programs at the moment. Stewart Coffin has developed since the 1960s, many games based on the rhombic dodecahedron with hexagonal or triangular strips. His games often have extremely irregular part shapes that fit then in the last step of assembling a regular object. In addition, the 60 -degree angle designs in which several objects have to be moved at the same time allow. The Puzzle " Rosebud " by Stewart Coffin marked a high point of this possibility. In this puzzle 6 parts must simultaneously from one extreme position where they touch only at corners, are moved to the center of the finished property back.
Entwirrspiele
A simple Entwirrpuzzle: Remove the string with two balls from wireforms!
The interlocking ring puzzle linear analog of the Chinese rings. Exponential number of solution steps corresponding to the ring number.
In contrast to the Chinese rings branched this puzzle is not linear.
As a sort of Entwirrspielen refers Vexiere in which two or more metal wires into each knotted to be disengaged from each other. Also, these games had their first widespread use in the late 19th century with the general puzzle craze. A large number of even now available perplexes their roots in this period.
The task at Entwirrspielen is usually to solve a metal loop or a loop of thread from an object. Topology plays an important role in these games. Simple representative of this category are yet to be resolved by random trial and error. More complex variants require repetitive solution patterns that bring a relatively high time claim with yourself with knowledge of the complete solution.
A salient kind of perplexes are ring puzzles, which include the Chinese rings. In these games, an elongated wire loop or loop of thread from a network of interlocking rings, loops and wires must be solved. The number of necessary steps is often exponentially with the number of interleaved barriers when they are linked linearly extending. There is to the Chinese wrestling history that have given their wives in the Middle Ages Knights this game so that the time was not long, while her husband was away. In contrast to the rings there are Chinese Entwirrspiele intermeshing obstacles which are not linear. The course of the Rings branches and is reunited with James Dalgetys such as Devil's Halo, so that the complexity of the solution is increased. The branching idea came up in 1970. James Dalgetys Devil's Halo was awarded the 1974 London Design Centre Award (Source: see web link).
Niels Bohr used a puzzle called entwined Tangloids to make his students the properties of the spin vividly.
Faltspiele
These puzzles a piece of printing paper must be folded so that a particular target image is obtained. In principle, one could Rubiks Magic fall into this category. Another, better example is shown in Fig. Fold so that the four squares are numbered without gaps next to each other, forming a square, the square piece of paper. This puzzle is pretty complicated.
Another Faltproblem has probably every home: leaflets and maps. Despite the apparent direction of the folds, it is sometimes surprising complicated, the paper again so together specify how it was delivered.
Enigma locks
Here are locks ( often in the form of a padlock ), which have an extraordinary locking mechanism. Task is to open the lock. In some castles but it is then more difficult to recover the original state. An example of a puzzle lock is the Himitsu Bako.
Confusing vessels
It is here to vessels with pitfalls. The task is to drink from the jar or pour without spilling the liquid. A possible design for a puzzle vessel can be seen in the picture. The neck of the container contains many holes which do not hinder normal pouring, but make the pouring impossible. Invisible to jigsaws a line is fitted through the handle along the top edge of the vessel to the spout. If now locked with one finger the opening at the upper end of the handle, you can drink by sucking on the spout liquid. Puzzle vessels are a very old form of games. Even the Greeks and Phoenicians established her vessels that had to be filled through an opening in the ground. In the 9th century it was in Turkey a variety of vessels, which were described in detail in a book. In the 18th century the Chinese also introduced such Drinkware ago.
Skill Games
This category does not include puzzle games, because more dexterity and endurance are required. The goal is often to maneuver small balls by gently tilting a box with transparent cover in a hole.
" Again, a ball must be shoehorned into a target! "
Games with motion effects
Games in this category require the repeated manipulation of the puzzle to bring the game in a very specific condition. Well-known representatives are the Rubik's Cube and the Tower of Hanoi.
The Rubik's Cube has led to an unprecedented boom in this category. The variants of objects are unmanageable. Next to cubes having dimensions of 2 × 2 × 2, 3 × 3 × 3, 4 × 4 × 4 5 × 5 × 5, 6x6x6 and 7x7x7 there are tetrahedra, dodecahedron, different types of cylinders. The different arrangement of the axes of rotation allows different puzzles with the same basic shape. Furthermore, one can obtain by removing layers from a cube cuboid games that take in manipulating various irregular shapes. Another game is the Master Ball.
This category also includes all sliding puzzles, in which one or more stones to be pushed to a certain place. The best-known representative is the 15 - puzzle. Games like Rush Hour or Sokoban are also among the sliding games.
The picture shows another, less well-known members of this genus of puzzle games. The game is also so simple that you can solve it with a little tasting and a few notes, in contrast to the Rubik's Cube, because he is too difficult to find a solution to try.