Puzzle Making Process

There are various ways of cutting the joint lines of the puzzle pieces. Mainstream puzzles use a zero-piece edge style called "fully interlocking". "Comprehensive interlocking" is to connect several adjacent pieces together. If one of them is moved horizontally, all the connected pieces will slide in the same direction and will not be separated. Sometimes, the pieces are so tightly assembled that the whole piece will not fall apart when picked up.

Close-up view of the joining of puzzle pieces

The interlocking of the pieces is usually achieved by the protrusions and depressions on the edges of the pieces, and this splicing method is similar to the "tenon and mortise joint" in furniture production. The main body of the piece is a rectangle with the same size and form. Assuming that the two pieces that are closely connected to the left and right are respectively A and B, if the right edge of piece A has a protrusion A extending to the right, then the left edge of piece B must have a shape similar to that of piece B. A matches the depression B, and in order to make A and B lock each other, the end of the protrusion A is required to be wider than the end connected to the edge of the nail plate. This kind of protrusion in the form of a wide front and a narrow back is called a dovetail in traditional woodworking. We might as well call the protrusions and depressions of the puzzle pieces "tenons" and "eyes". However, if the dovetail tenon with the tip is made on the cardboard, it is easy to layer and damage the parts, so the tenon and the mortise in the puzzle are mostly round.

In some jigsaw puzzles (probably the most common one), all the pieces have the same shape, each piece has two mortise and tenon which are axially symmetrical, and the axes of the tenon and mortise are crossed.卄" glyph. In this way, zero slices and zero slices are always criss-crossed. In some puzzles, the tenon and tenon structure of each piece is different from each other, but usually the main body of each piece is also quadrilateral, with a tenon or mortise on each of the four sides.

Non-interlocking puzzles are generally divided into pieces by intersecting curves of various forms, and the edge of the piece is also a section of the curve. In fact, the puzzle of this mode is relatively simple, because the matching between zero pieces and zero pieces is mostly fixed, and it is easy to find adjacent zero pieces according to the curve shape of the edge. It's just that players are required to be calm when assembling such a puzzle, otherwise it is easy to mess up the part that has been assembled if they miss.

Interlocking puzzles with zero pieces of the same shape are considered to be the most difficult to assemble, especially those with softer colors and less pattern contrast, because there are often only very subtle differences between pieces.

Occasionally, there will be some puzzles with very strange layouts, which can bring more fun to players.

The overall picture of the puzzle is the most common, and the border of the picture is either a straight line or a regular decorative curve. In this type of puzzle, there are always some pieces that either lack a mortise and tenon on one side, or have a right angle. Players can easily place the frame out, so they often start from the corners when assembling. Of course, there are also some puzzles that deliberately make the corner pieces into a mortise and tenon to make the game more challenging. There are also some more childlike ideas, making the outline of the entire puzzle into small animals or other cute shapes. Because the contour lines are more tortuous and long, there are many more pieces on the edge than square puzzles, and it is easier to put together. This type of puzzle is of course more suitable for young players.

In recent years, computer and computer-controlled laser and hydraulic cutting equipment have also been used in the design and production of jigsaw puzzles. The application of new technologies has made the interlocking mechanism and part styles of jigsaw puzzles more sophisticated, and novel patterns emerge one after another.