Patent Application
20190053638
The field of the invention relates to a baby-changing mat. More particularly, the invention relates to a baby-changing mat of any one of a particular composition that enables a secure grip onto any number of flat surfaces. Furthermore, the baby-changing mat further comprises an inter-changeable strap, enabling a secure fastening of the baby during change, while also doubling as a strap to secure the mat in a rolled-up position.
Numerous devices have been previously designed for aiding mothers in changing their babies. However, most of these changing mats do not securely grip the top surface on which the mat is placed flat on. As a result, during change, the mats often slide in unpredictable directions, leading to a greater mess. Moreover, the siding of the mat can often lead to the baby rolling of the mat. As you can imagine, if the top surface on which the mat is placed on, is elevated, this can be a serious risk to the safety of the baby.
While the EZPZ (www.ezpzfun.com) manufacture a mat comprised of a rubber silicone material that enables a secure grip onto a hard surface, it is solely intended for placemats and plates. It is intended for children to be able to eat and reduce the risk of plates from sliding around. The mats are disposed on a top surface with a well or a plurality of wells intended for food storage. The placemats with plates do not have a flat, contiguous surface or are not of a dimension, thickness to support the size of a baby in a prone or supine position.
Most changing mats also lack versatility of lightweight construction and modularity for travel friendliness. Modularity with secure strapping with interchangeable connection to various types of duffel bags, backpacks, camping bags and sleeping-bags would significantly enhance user friendliness for travel, adventure and sports gear users. No commercially available changing mats are roll-able, strap-able, light-weight, and inter-connect-able.
The Poopoose changing pad (www.poopoose.com) is a contoured baby-changing pad comprised of a considerable amount of thick padding and swaddle-like strap to secure the baby during changing. However, the thickness of the pad prevents the pad from being roll-able. It is inconvenient to travel with or changing a baby outside the confines of one's home. Additionally, there are no interchangeable connectors to inter-connect with other travel accessories: duffel bags, backpacks, camping bags, sleeping bags, etc. What's more, the swaddle-like strap—while securing a baby during change—cannot interchange into a strap to secure the pad in a rolled position for easy stow or go. Finally, the Poopoose pad is not secure to the changing surface, and therefore, susceptible to sliding and risking accidents.
Rosenberg (U.S. Pat. No. 6,889,397 B2) discloses a baby changing apparatus. However, the method disclosed for securing onto a changing surface is crude and rudimentary: sticking agents disposed on the underside of the changing apparatus. Other embodiments describe a hook and loop method for securing the apparatus onto the changing surface. Neither method would truly anchor the mat onto the changing surface and resist sliding from the whimsical shifting of a baby during changing. Furthermore, Rosenberg discloses an enveloping retaining wall, in order to prevent a shifting baby from falling off the mat/changing surface. It still doesn't mitigate either the sliding of the mat, nor the shifting of an impetulant—or at the least, an active—baby.
For the above reasons, there is a void in the market for a secure-able, roll-able, strap-able, and inter-connectable baby changing mat. There is a need for a mat that is travel-friendly that can simply roll-out and create a secure grip onto a changing surface. Moreover, and most importantly, a baby should be secured in said mat and not be at risk for sliding and potentially falling off the mat. Finally, after use, the mat should be able to be rolled back up; securely fastened using the same strap to secure the baby; and easily stowed away or hooked onto a travel accessory.
These and other features and improvements of the present application will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the several drawings and the appended claims.
The present invention fills a void left behind by the current art and market. The present invention provides for a changing mat—in a modularized, universally integrated form—that forms a secure grip with a changing surface. It is an object of the invention to provide for an apparatus that a planar support mat when rolled out into a use position forms any one of a shape; said planar support mat with a top side and a bottom side; at least one of the top side and, or bottom side with at least a portion composed of any one of a silicone rubber material to form an immobilized contact with any one of resting surface; and the top side further disposed with a longitudinally extending fabric fastener on a first side and an opposable strap slidably disposed on an opposable strap guide on a second side, longitudinally extending therewith; and wherein said slidably disposed strap on the second side secures over a subject at any point of a body of the subject and engages with an opposable point of the longitudinally extending fabric fastener on the first side.
It is another object of the invention to provide for an apparatus that comprises a planar support mat with a top side and a bottom side; the bottom side with at least a portion composed at least one of a silicone rubber material and, or suction cup to form an immobilized contact with any one of resting surface; and the top side further disposed with a fastening element on a first side and a complementary fastening substrate on an opposable second side to secure over any point of a body of a subject.
In yet other aspects, the changing mat may be adapted with a monitoring system of a baby, in which the control circuit may be integrated within a home or facility Internet of Things network or a remote server, in order to enable analytics, contextual data, or intelligent automation of a power device integrated on the mat to engage the baby during a change. For instance, the mat may have an embedded pressure sensor—serving as the above-mentioned monitoring system—which relays baby positional data to inform the power device for actuation if necessary. Alternatively, the embedded pressure sensor may not be operably coupled to an actuator, but simply push baby positional information in the form of dashboard analytics to a parent's mobile device.
It is yet another object to disclose and claim an apparatus that comprises a planar support mat with a top side and a bottom side; the bottom side with at least a portion composed at least one of a silicone rubber material and, or suction cup to form an immobilized contact with any one of resting surface; and the top side further disposed with a protruding tubular sleeve, leveled horizontally in substantially a center or above a center position of the top surface of the mat, wherein the sleeve in the horizontal is substantially shorter in length then a width of the mat; and wherein a strap is slidably interposed within the sleeve, with a fastening element on a first side and a complementary fastening substrate on an opposable second side to wrap over and secure over any point of a baby.
In an aspect of this sleeve conjoined mat, various types of fastening elements and complementary fastening substrates of the slidably interposed strap may be provided. For instance, s-hooks, c-hooks, buttons, zipper, fabric fastener (Velcro, etc.), magnets, etc., may all be disposed on at least one side of the strap as an attachment means to wrap and secure the strap over any point of a baby.
Aspects and advantages of this invention may be realized in other applications, aside from the intended application of juvenile products. Other pertinent applications that may exploit the aspects and advantages of this invention are, but not limited to: a changing mat for infirm adult patients in a supine or prone position; or as rehab-mat to secure pelagic patients in a supine or prone position.
Other aspects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description and the appended claims.
The drawings illustrate the design and utility of embodiments of the present invention, in which similar elements are referred to by common reference numerals. In order to better appreciate the advantages and objects of the embodiments of the present invention, reference should be made to the accompanying drawings that illustrate these embodiments. However, the drawings depict only some embodiments of the invention, and should not be taken as limiting its scope. With this caveat, embodiments of the invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings in which:
In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the invention can be practiced without these specific details.
Reference in this specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. The appearances of the phrase “in one embodiment” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Moreover, various features are described which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but not other embodiments.
The present inventor has realized that there is a need for an improved baby changing mat, void of any retaining walls or anchoring means, which could be universally secured to a plurality of surfaces and that can be easily rolled-up for easy carriage or stow-away. In addition, it enables a parent to change a baby in an efficient manner, reducing the potential for mess, or worse, the baby sliding off the surface.
In another embodiment, the bottom-side of the planar support mat 11 may be disposed with only a portion of the bottom-side being composed of any one of the rubber-silicone composition (also not shown). A single portion of rubber-silicone may be sufficient to form a secure contact between the planar support mat 11 and a resting surface. This would allow the remaining portions of the top-side and, or bottom-side of the planar support mat 11 being comprised of any material comforting on the skin.
In another embodiment (also not shown), the bottom-side of the planar support mat 11 may be disposed with an inconspicuous suction cup forming the secure contact between the planar support mat 11 and the resting surface. Any number of suction cups may be provided—in any number of positions of the bottom-side of the planar support mat 11.
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In some aspects, the mat 31, strap 35 or hooking element may be adapted with a monitoring system of the baby. In other aspects, a control circuit embedded in the hooking element or the actual fabric of the strap 35 and may be operatively coupled with a home or facility Internet of Things network or a remote server, in order to enable analytics, contextual data, or intelligent automation of a power device integrated on the mat 31 to engage the baby during change. In another instance, the surface of the mat 31, the strap 35, or the hooking element may have an embedded accelerometer—serving as the above-mentioned monitoring system—relaying baby movement data analysis or to inform a power device for actuation if necessary. Moreover, a RFID tag may be embedded within the mat 31, the strap 35, or the hooking element, relaying baby movement data to analyze or to inform the power device for actuation if necessary. In some embodiments, an electronic detection means may be operably coupled to the mat 31 and in communication with an interface means for transmitting the data from the electronic detection means to a storage means, wherein when executed by a processor, configure the organizer to cause any one of the following: transfer data over a network interface for analytics; actuate a motor; and cause playback of an auditory and, or visual cue. In yet other embodiments, the actuation of the motor coupled to a baby-distracting device and, or playback of auditory and, or visual cue may be done manually, at the control of the parent. Furthermore, baby movement or changing informatics may be delivered via a dashboard interface (baby height, weight, number of changes, and other infant health metrics).
In yet another alternative embodiment, the mat 31, strap 35, or hooking elements may be equipped with any one or a combination of an AC/DC power adaptor, and, or a power circuit to drive actuation of a baby-distracting device. In one aspect, a power circuit may be coupled to a motor, outputting a rotational or linear force on an array of balls encased in the planar support mat 31 delivering an ectodermal massage to any one of, or a combination of, a head, neck and or shoulder region. In other aspects, the power circuit may be coupled to a heating element disposed within the planar support mat 31, allowing for output of variable temperature. In yet other aspects, a power circuit may be coupled to a motorized or manual output of a rotational or linear force on a toy-like device suspended over the planar support mat 31. The power circuit may be coupled to at least one of a massage, heating element, toy-like device, and, or sensor output based on data input over a network, from any one of, or combination of, a user mobile device, wearable device, home Internet of Things, user-defined input history, and web automation service The mat 31 may be equipped with any one of or a combination of a wireless communication technology for interfacing a mobile device, for example, Wi-Fi connectivity, infrared, or Bluetooth means.
The terms and phrases as indicated in quotation marks (“ ”) in this section are intended to have the meaning ascribed to them in this Terminology section applied to them throughout this document, including in the claims, unless clearly indicated otherwise in context. Further, as applicable, the stated definitions are to apply, regardless of the word or phrase's case, tense or any singular or plural variations of the defined word or phrase.
The term “or” as used in this specification and the appended claims is not meant to be exclusive rather the term is inclusive meaning “either or both”.
References in the specification to “one embodiment”, “an embodiment”, “a preferred embodiment”, “an alternative embodiment”, “a variation”, “one variation”, and similar phrases mean that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least an embodiment of the invention. The appearances of phrases like “in one embodiment”, “in an embodiment”, or “in a variation” in various places in the specification are not necessarily all meant to refer to the same embodiment or variation.
The term “couple”, “coupled”, “coupling”, or any variation thereof, as used in this specification and the appended claims refers to either an indirect or direct connection between the identified elements, components or objects. Often the manner of the coupling will be related specifically to the manner in which the two coupled elements interact.
