Manual dexterity training device

1 . A manual dexterity training device, comprising:

an object defining a shape and a size, the object configured to be manually moved;

a container configured to readily and removably store the object, the container comprising:

an open face;

a side-A; and

a side-B,

wherein the side-A and the side-B are configured to be accessed through the open face;

a central vertical divider positioned within the container and separating the side-A from the side-B, the central vertical divider comprising:

a face-A adjacent to the side-A of the container;

a face-B parallel to and offset from the face-A, and the face-B adjacent to the side-B of the container;

an in-container section;

a protruding section adjoining the in-container section and extending from the container adjacent to the open face; and

at least a first hole formed in the protruding section and extending through the face-A and the face-B, the first hole configured to passingly receive the object;

a cover-A hingedly coupled to either: the face-A of the central vertical divider or to the container, the cover-A being configured to move between a horizontal position and a vertical position, the cover-A comprising:

at least a second hole extending through the cover-A and configured to passingly receive the object,

wherein the cover-A is coplanar to the open face of the container in the horizontal position, and

wherein at the vertical position, the second hole is aligned to the first hole of the central vertical divider;

a cover-B hingedly coupled to either: the face-B of the central vertical divider or to the container, the cover-B configured to move between a horizontal position and a vertical position, the cover-B comprising:

at least a third hole extending through the cover-B and configured to passingly receive the object,

wherein the cover-B is coplanar to the open face of the container in the horizontal position, and

wherein at the vertical position, the third hole is aligned to the first hole of the central vertical divider;

wherein the object is stored in the side-A and readily movable to the side-B by passing through the first hole formed in the central vertical divider, the second hole formed in the cover-A and the third hole formed in the cover-B, and

wherein the cover-A and cover-B are independently positionable to create multiple skill-level paths for transferring objects between the side-A and side-B.

2 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the container comprises a circular bowl.

3 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the central vertical divider is removably positioned within the container.

4 . The device of claim 3 , wherein the central vertical divider snaps into position within the container.

5 . The device of claim 1 and further comprising:

a second object that is larger than the object; and

at least a fourth hole extending through the face-A and the face-B of the central vertical divider, the fourth hole configured to passingly receive the second object.

6 . The device of claim 5 , wherein:

the first hole defines a first-hole diameter; and

the fourth hole defines a fourth-hole diameter that is larger than the first-hole diameter.

7 . The device of claim 5 , wherein the object and the second object are different marbles.

8 . The device of claim 7 , wherein the different marbles have color-specific sizes.

9 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the second hole in the cover-A and the third hole in the cover-B are color-coded to correspond with the object.

10 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the cover-A and the cover-B are magnetically held in the horizontal position and the vertical position.

11 . The device of claim 1 , further comprising a shoulder bracket removably attachable to the central vertical divider,

wherein the shoulder bracket is configured to promote shoulder mobility.

12 . The device of claim 1 , further comprising sound dampening pads positioned within the container.

13 . The device of claim 1 , wherein the container has a diameter of approximately twelve inches.

14 . A method for training manual dexterity, comprising:

providing a manual dexterity training device comprising:

an object defining a shape and a size;

a container configured to readily and removably store the object, the container comprising an open face, a side-A, and a side-B;

a central vertical divider positioned within the container and separating the side-A from the side-B, the central vertical divider comprising a face-A, a face-B parallel to and offset from the face-A, and at least a first hole extending through the face-A and the face-B, the first hole sized to passingly receive the object;

a cover-A hingedly coupled to either the face-A of the central vertical divider or to the container, the cover-A being configured to move between a horizontal position and a vertical position, the cover-A comprising at least a second hole extending therethrough and sized to passingly receive the object; and

a cover-B hingedly coupled to either the face-B of the central vertical divider or to the container, the cover-B configured to move between a horizontal position and a vertical position, the cover-B comprising at least a third hole extending therethrough and sized to passingly receive the object;

positioning the object in the side-A of the container;

selecting a skill-level path from a plurality of available skill-level paths for moving the object from the side-A to the side-B; and

moving the object from the side-A to the side-B through the selected skill-level path.

15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the plurality of available skill-level paths comprises:

a first skill-level path wherein the cover-A is positioned in the horizontal position, and the object is moved over the central vertical divider; and

a second skill-level path wherein the cover-A is positioned in the vertical position with the second hole aligned to the first hole, the cover-B is positioned in the horizontal position, and the object is moved through the second hole and the first hole.

16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the first skill-level path provides a beginner difficulty level, and the second skill-level path provides an intermediate difficulty level.

17 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising:

providing a plurality of objects having different sizes;

providing a plurality of holes in the central vertical divider, each hole sized to receive objects of different sizes; and

selecting objects and corresponding holes to create varying levels of difficulty.

18 . The method of claim 17 , wherein the objects comprise marbles having color-specific sizes, and the method further comprises selecting marbles based on color to determine the appropriate hole size.

19 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising timing the movement of the object from the side-A to the side-B to measure dexterity improvement over multiple training sessions.

20 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising progressively increasing the difficulty level by moving from skill-level paths requiring fewer precision movements to skill-level paths requiring more precision movements.

21 . A manual dexterity training device, comprising:

a container having an open face and defining a side-A and a side-B;

a central vertical divider positioned within the container and separating the side-A from the side-B, the central vertical divider comprising a face-A, a face-B parallel to and offset from the face-A, and at least one hole extending through the face-A and the face-B;

a cover-A hingedly coupled to the central vertical divider and configured to move between a horizontal position coplanar with the open face and a vertical position, the cover-A comprising at least one hole sized to align with the hole in the central vertical divider when in the vertical position;

a cover-B hingedly coupled to the central vertical divider and configured to move between a horizontal position coplanar with the open face and a vertical position, the cover-B comprising at least one hole sized to align with the hole in the central vertical divider when in the vertical position;

wherein the cover-A and the cover-B are independently positionable to create multiple skill-level paths for transferring objects between the side-A and the side-B, including:

a first skill-level path with both covers in horizontal positions allowing direct passage through the central vertical divider hole; and

a second skill-level path with one cover in vertical position and one cover in horizontal position requiring passage through two aligned holes.

22 . A manual dexterity training device, comprising:

a circular container having an open face and configured to receive objects for dexterity training;

a central vertical divider removably positioned within the container, the central vertical divider comprising:

a face-A and a face-B positioned parallel to each other;

a plurality of holes extending through both the face-A and the face-B, wherein each hole has a different diameter corresponding to objects of different sizes;

a protruding section extending above the open face of the container;

a pair of hingedly coupled covers, each cover movable between a horizontal position coplanar with the open face and a vertical position perpendicular to the open face, each cover comprising holes corresponding in size and position to the holes in the central vertical divider;

a plurality of objects having different sizes, each object sized to pass through a corresponding hole in the central vertical divider and covers;

wherein the objects are color-coded according to size, and the holes in the covers are color-coded to match the corresponding objects,

wherein the covers are magnetically retained in both the horizontal position and the vertical position;

wherein the device is configured to provide progressive difficulty levels by selectively positioning the covers to create different skill-level paths for transferring objects between opposite sides of the container.