The present invention relates to luggage, and more particularly, movable structures for stabilizing luggage with wheels.
Luggage cases have been combined with wheels at the bottom of the case to allow for easy transportation. Without the wheels, users had to carry their luggage in their hand or on their back; however, combining wheels with a luggage case allows a user to simply roll the luggage from place to place. The combined luggage and wheel design greatly eased the burden of carrying luggage, particularly for people with less strength and/or a physical limitation.
While the combination of wheels and luggage cases have greatly lessened the burden of travel, such combination has also led to an increasing phenomenon. Luggage cases have become increasingly more voluminous and capable of storing larger, and therefore, heavier loads. Although most users do not have any problems rolling a heavier and/or more voluminous luggage case from place to place, some users have experienced problems in attempting to stabilize a luggage case in an upright position.
Some upright rolling luggage cases include an expandable compartment that is located on the face of the luggage opposite from the wheels. When such a compartment is filled with objects, the center of gravity of the luggage case shifts, increasing the tendency for the case to fall over from it's upright position. Although many luggage cases have an expandable compartment, most such luggage cases do not have a structure to help support the additional off center weight.
Some luggage case designs have attempted to provide a solution to luggage cases with the tendency to fall from an upright position. U.S. Pat. No. 5,469,944 to Wang is directed to a swivel foot for travel bags in order to prevent the bags tipping forward. U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,842 to Tsai is directed to an activation of a support member that moves forwardly to prevent forward tipping. U.S. Pat. No. 5,044,476 to Seynhaeve is directed to front support wheels that can be moved to support the bag. U.S. Pat. No. 4,575,109 to Cowdery is directed to internally housed support legs. U.S. Pat. No. 5,758,752 to King et al. is directed to rear wheels that swivel to change the center of gravity.
Nevertheless, the luggage case designs discussed above are prone to damage because the support structures project beyond the edge of the case. Further, many such designs are prone to breakage because of the arrangement and/or structure selected. Thus, there is a need for a support structure for articles of upright rolling luggage cases that is easy to use, prevents inadvertent toppling, and is not prone to damage.
The present invention is directed to an article of upright rolling luggage including a luggage case having a bottom wall, a top wall opposed from the bottom wall, and a rear wall extending between a rear edge of the bottom wall and a rear edge of the top wall. The article of upright rolling luggage also includes one or more wheels rotatably mounted to a portion of the luggage case substantially at the rear edge of the bottom wall. Further included is one or more base members extending from the bottom wall and having one or more portions spaced apart from the wheel. One or more feet can be movably mounted to the base such that the feet are movable from a first position substantially adjacent to the bottom wall to a second position extending away from the bottom wall. The upright rolling luggage can also include an extensible luggage handle mounted adjacent to the rear wall of the luggage case.
According to one aspect of the invention, the base members can include an elongated body extending between opposing end portions and a foot can be pivotally attached to each of the opposing end portions. Additionally, the elongated body can extend in a direction generally parallel to the rear edge of the bottom wall where the feet are pivotally attached to the opposing end portions. Further, the one or more feet can extend a first distance from the bottom wall when moved to the second position and the one or more wheels can extend a second distance from the bottom wall where the first distance is greater than the second distance.
In one embodiment, an article of upright rolling luggage includes a luggage case having a bottom wall, a top wall opposed from the bottom wall, and a rear wall extending between a rear edge of the bottom wall and a rear edge of the top wall. The upright rolling luggage also includes one or more wheels rotatably mounted to a portion of the luggage case substantially at the rear edge of the bottom wall and one or more base members extending from the bottom wall at a location spaced apart from the one or more wheels. In such an embodiment, the base member(s) can include a ground engaging surface opposed from the bottom wall. The upright rolling luggage further includes one or more feet movably mounted to the base member. Each foot can be movable from a first position, where the foot is between the bottom wall and the ground engaging surface, to a second position where at least a portion of the foot extends in a direction away from the bottom wall and beyond the ground engaging surface.
In one arrangement, the article of upright rolling luggage can include an extensible luggage handle mounted adjacent to the rear wall of the luggage case. The base member can include an elongated body extending between opposing end portions. One foot can be attached to each of the opposing end portions.
In another embodiment, an article of upright rolling luggage includes a luggage case having a bottom wall, a top wall opposed from the bottom wall, and a rear wall extending between a rear edge of the bottom wall and a rear edge of the top wall. The article of upright rolling luggage also includes one or more wheels rotatably mounted to a portion of the luggage case substantially at the rear edge of the bottom wall. Further included is one or more base members extending away from the bottom wall and having one or more portions spaced apart from the one or more wheels. The base member(s) can includes an elongated body and a ground engaging surface opposed from the bottom wall. The article of upright rolling luggage also includes one or more feet movably mounted to the base. Each foot can be movable from a first position where the foot is between the bottom wall and the ground engaging surface, to a second position where at least a portion of the foot extends away from the bottom wall and beyond the ground engaging surface.
In still another embodiment, an article of upright rolling luggage includes a luggage case having a bottom wall, a top wall opposed from the bottom wall, and a rear wall extending between a rear edge of the bottom wall and a rear edge of the top wall. The article of upright rolling luggage can further include one or more wheels rotatably mounted to a portion of the luggage case substantially at the rear edge of the bottom wall. Also included is one or more base member(s) extending from the bottom wall at a location spaced apart from the wheel and one or more feet pivotally mounted to the base. The feet can be movable from a first position substantially adjacent to the bottom wall to a second position extending away from the bottom wall.
There are presently shown in the drawings embodiments which are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown.
The present invention includes an article of upright rolling luggage that provides a solution to rolling luggage that has a tendency to topple. More particularly, the invention provides additional support for articles of rolling luggage with expandable front loading compartments that can shift the luggage's center of gravity, resulting in the increased tendency to topple. Nevertheless, is should be noted that the invention is not limited to rolling luggage with front loading compartments and can be used with any type, design, and configuration of rolling luggage.
The case 10 includes a bottom wall 35 and a top wall 40 opposed from the bottom wall 35. The bottom wall 35 and the top wall 40 can be generally parallel with each other as is known with most rectangular shaped luggage; however, the invention is not limited in this regard as either the bottom wall 35 or the top wall 40 can include curved portions that would not be considered parallel with each other. As used herein, the phrase generally parallel includes true parallel and slight deviations therefrom.
The case 10 further includes a rear wall 45 that extends between a rear edge 50 of the bottom wall 35 and a rear edge 55 of the top wall 40. The case 10 can also include a front wall 65 that extends between a front edge 70 of the bottom wall 35 and a front edge 75 of the top wall 40. Similar to the bottom wall 35 and the top wall 40, the front wall 65 and the rear wall 45 can be generally parallel with each other; however, such a configuration is not necessary. The luggage case 10 can be constructed of any suitable material, such as a cloth material, a webbed material, leather, hard plastic, and even metal. Further, it should be noted that the luggage case 10 can be constructed of multiple materials in combination, such as luggage case 10 will walls of cloth and edges of hard plastic.
The one or more wheels 15 can be rotatably mounted to a portion of the luggage case 10 substantially at the rear edge 50 of the bottom wall 35. Thus, the scope of invention includes variations having the wheels 15 rotatably mounted to the bottom wall 35, rotatably mounted to the rear wall 45, rotatably mounted in the general region defined by the junction of the rear wall 45 and the bottom wall 35, and rotatably mounted to the rear edge 50. The wheels 15 can be rotatably mounted with any suitable structure, such as on an axel coupled to the case 10. Additionally, the wheels 15 can be constructed of any suitable material such as hard plastic, rubber, and the like.
As shown in
The luggage case 10 can also include an expandable front compartment 60 that can be coupled to and/or included with the front wall 65. As is known in the arts, the front compartment 60 can be used for storing additional objects and can be extended outward from the front wall 65. When the front compartment 60 is loaded with objects, particularly heavy objects, the center of gravity of the luggage case 10 can shift towards the front compartment 60. Consequently, the shift in the center of gravity can result in inadvertent and unwanted toppling of the luggage case 10.
To add extra support to the luggage case 10 and prevent the luggage falling from an upright position, the luggage case 10 includes one or more bases 20 extending from the bottom wall 35 and having one or more portions spaced apart from the wheel 15. As shown in
The base 20 can have one or more feet 25 movably mounted to the base 20. In one arrangement, the feet 25 can be pivotally mounted to base 20 via pivot axel 110. Nevertheless, the invention is not limited in this regard as any movable coupling arrangement can be used. For instance, the feet 25 can be mounted to the base 20 with a hinge or with a ball joint. In another example, a foot 25 can be extensibly mounted to the base 20 and housed within a recess of the base 20 so that the foot 25 moves from a retracted position that is substantially adjacent to the base 20 to an extended position that positions the foot extended away from the bottom wall 35. For such an arrangement, any extensible structure can be used, including a telescoping arm that can extend and retract the foot 25.
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The base 20 can also include a ground engaging surface 82 that is opposed from the bottom wall 35. As the ground engaging surface 82 extends outwardly from the bottom wall 35, the ground engaging surface 82 can prevent the bottom wall 35 from engaging the ground. Thus, the ground engaging surface 82 can protect the bottom wall 35 from damage such as tears and/or scratches. The ground engaging surface 82 can include a durable material, such as a hard plastic or rubber, that is able to withstand wear and tear associated with dragging the ground engaging surface 82 along the ground.
Referring
Such an arrangement is illustrated in
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Such an arrangement is illustrated in
Such an arrangement is useful when the front compartment has been loaded, and consequently, the luggage case 10 center of gravity has shifted. Extending the feet 25 to the second position causes the luggage case 10 to lean and effectively supports the shifted center of gravity. Without the feet 25 in the second position, the shifted center of gravity may cause the luggage case 10 to fall from its upright position.
The luggage case 10 can also include an extensible luggage handle 30 mounted adjacent to the rear wall 45. The extensible luggage handle 30 can include elongated telescoping support members with a handle. Nevertheless, it should be noted that the invention is not limited in this regard as any suitable extensible luggage handle 30 that is known within the arts can be used. Additionally, the extensible luggage handle 30 can be constructed of any suitable material such as metal, plastic, or hard rubber.
The foot 25 can be designed to simply rotate on an axel from a retracted position as shown in
When a button 519 of axel 510 is depressed, the foot 25 can be unlocked. Depressing button 519 disengages the key 514 from a profiled bore 503 defined within the disc 502. In this unlocked configuration, the disc 502 can rotate freely about a shaft 516 because the key 514 is offset from the profiled bore. However, when the button 519 is released, the key 514 re-engages with the profiled bore 503 and the disc 502 is once again prevented from rotating because the key is engaged with profiled seat 520. Accordingly, the foot is locked and cannot be rotated. A cover plate 512 can be provided with a bore 524 for receiving the button 519 of the axel 516. The cover plate 512 can be secured to the fingers 506, 508 using screws 522. Alternatively, the cover plate can be secured to the fingers using electric welding, a suitable adhesive or any other fastener as would be known to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Referring now to
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According to one embodiment shown in
While the preferred embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it will be clear that the invention is not so limited. Numerous modifications, changes, variations, substitutions and equivalents will occur to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention as described in the claims.