Patent Application
20180310723
The present disclosure relates generally to infant cribs, and more particularly to multipurpose-style baby care systems including a crib along with baby feeding and hygiene compartments.
Slightly fewer than four million babies are born in the United States each year. Many parents are particularly concerned about every aspect of their baby's wellbeing as well as the convenience of caring for their newborn. Combination crib, small bathtub, and toilet unit systems are known in the field for the care of infants. However, there are limited crib systems that allow care givers to continually care for an infant while remaining within the same room or very close by to tend to the infant's needs.
It would be desirable to have a baby care system that allows parents and other care givers the convenience to continually tend to an infant under their care without having to leave the nursery where the infant is present.
According to some implementations of the present disclosure, a compact baby care system includes a baby crib assembly, at least one sliding storage drawer, and at least one utility cabinet. The baby crib assembly includes a left side panel, an opposing right side panel, a bottom panel, and opposing top and bottom horizontal rails extending between the left side panel and the opposing right side panel. The bottom panel is horizontally secured between the left panel and the opposing right panel. The bottom panel is configured to support a mattress. The opposing top and bottom horizontal rails having a plurality of horizontally spaced vertical slats extending from at least one top horizontal rail to at least one respective bottom horizontal rail. The at least one sliding storage drawer is underneath the bottom panel of the baby crib assembly. The at least one utility cabinet is attached to the left side panel or the opposing right side panel of the baby crib assembly via a connector. The at least one utility cabinet stores at least one of a feeding station and a changing station.
According to some implementations of the present disclosure, a method of assembling a compact baby care system includes providing a compact baby care system kit. The compact baby care system includes a combined baby crib and dresser unit, a baby changing utility cabinet, and a baby feeding utility cabinet. The combined baby crib and dresser unit includes opposing side panels and a plurality of wheels. A first panel of the opposing side panels supports a first portion of a first connector. A second panel of the opposing side panels supports a first portion of a second connector. The baby changing utility cabinet includes a first utility side panel and a plurality of wheels. The first utility side panel supports a second portion of the first connector. The baby feeding utility cabinet includes a second utility side panel and a plurality of wheels. The second utility side panel supports a second portion of the second connector. The baby changing utility cabinet connects to the combined baby crib and dresser unit via the first and second portions of the first connector. The baby feeding utility cabinet connects to the combined baby crib and dresser unit via the first and second portions of the second connector.
The foregoing and additional aspects and implementations of the present disclosure will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of the detailed description of various embodiments and/or implementations, which is made with reference to the drawings, a brief description of which is provided next.
The foregoing and other advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent upon reading the following detailed description and upon reference to the drawings.
While the present disclosure is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and will be described in detail herein. It should be understood, however, that the present disclosure is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed. Rather, the present disclosure is to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure as defined by the appended claims.
While this present disclosure is susceptible of embodiment in many different forms, there is shown in the drawings and will herein be described in detail preferred embodiments of the present disclosure with the understanding that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplification of the principles of the present disclosure and is not intended to limit the broad aspect of the present disclosure to the embodiments illustrated. For purposes of the present detailed description, the singular may include the plural and vice versa (unless specifically disclaimed); the word “or” shall be both conjunctive and disjunctive; the word “all” means “any and all”; the word “any” means “any and all”; and the word “including” means “including without limitation.”
According to some aspects of the present disclosure, an all-in-one baby station is described that provides a convenient, practical, multi-component system to meet the needs of a new parent. An all-in-one baby station can facilitate a baby care process for newborn babies that allows the care giver to remain in the room without having to leave or pick up the infant. Many new mothers find it challenging to tend to their babies, as the constant feeding and changing of diapers can be frustrating, such as when having to go outside the room where the aby is present to retrieve various feeding or cleaning supplies.
Aspects of the baby care system of the present disclosure provide ingenious, practical, and useful features including an all-in-one baby station including one or more of the following: a crib with incorporated drawers, a changing table or station, a dresser, a diaper disposal compartment, a feeding or milk dispenser compartment, and a baby hygiene compartment. This system can be a modular unit made of multiple modules that are attached to form a complete baby care system. Baby care systems, such as the ones described herein, provide numerous convenience options while allowing adequate storage space to keep all of the fundamental items needed to effectively take care of a new born baby without the need for a caregiver to leave the room.
In some aspects, a baby care system can include fitted drawers for storing baby food and wipes in addition to a separate diaper disposal holder and a separate milk dispenser holder. It is further contemplated that the baby care systems described herein may be constructed of solid wood for durability along with wheels for effortless portability. Other materials for constructing a baby care system are contemplated that provide similar durability and portability.
The advantages of the present disclosure include, without limitation, that it is a multipurpose crib allowing the user to address the needs of an infant at the same location as the unit. The said unit could offer versatility where groups of infants are being cared for as well as where a single infant is being cared for.
In certain aspects it is contemplated that the multipurpose crib or baby care system may be elevated above the ground on wheels for easy mobility. Variations in the shape, material, construction methods, and size of the baby care systems described herein are also contemplated, including variations to the base crib unit and the left or right compartments. Additional aspects include variations of many different holder features. For example, in one aspect the baby care system may include a holder for a traditional wipe warmer that allows a user to have a warmer rather than coil wipes.
Referring generally to
Referring now to
A first pair of interlocking brackets 161, 162 may be attached to an outside facing surface of the left side panel 101. A second pair of interlocking brackets (not shown) may be attached to an outside facing surface of the right side panel 102. The interlocking brackets may extend or protrude from the outside surface of the side panels 101, 102 or may also be at least partially embedded below the outside surface of the side panels 101, 102. The interlocking brackets may be elongated brackets and may also expand across an entire width of the side panels such as from one edge of the panel to an opposing edge. Alternatively, the interlocking brackets may only expand across a portion of the width of the side panels. More or fewer interlocking brackets are also contemplated. The interlocking brackets may be made of plastic, metal, wood, or any other material commonly used in furniture.
The center cabinet assembly 100 may include at least one sliding storage drawer 130 in the dresser unit at the lower portion of the assembly. As shown for example in
The crib and dresser unit 100 may also include a plurality of fixed or removable wheels 180 for easy transportation. The wheels 180 may be attached to the center cabinet assembly 100 and be further capable of locking into position such that the center cabinet assembly cannot be moved or rolled on the supporting floor surface. Decorative trim 190 can be added to the base portion of the center cabinet assembly 100 with solid fasteners.
In some aspects, the first pair of interlocking brackets 161, 162 on the left side panel 101 of the crib and dresser unit of the center cabinet assembly 100 are used to engage a respective pair of channels 261, 262 on a right side panel 202 of the exemplary left utility cabinet 200 that is illustrated in
In some exemplary implementations, the left utility cabinet 200 also may include a left side panel 201 that is attached to a front panel 203 and a back panel 204 using dowel and wood glue. The left utility cabinet 200 further may include a top panel 205 that is attached to the left utility cabinet 200 with hinge assembly 270 where the top panel 205 could operate in some aspects as a lid that opens up, allowing additional storage space 275 or top access to left utility cabinet 200. The additional storage space 275 can be retrofitted with a wipe dispenser holder feature useful for baby hygiene.
As shown in
The left utility cabinet 200 further may include a pull-out diaper disposal compartment 220 in a bottom portion of the cabinet 200, as further illustrated in
The left utility cabinet 200 may also include a plurality of removable or fixed wheels 280 for easy transportation, similar to wheels 180 described for the center cabinet assembly 100. The wheels 280 may be attached to the left utility cabinet 200 and be capable of locking into position such that the left utility cabinet cannot be moved or rolled on the supporting floor surface. Decorative trim 290 can be added to the top portion and the base portion of the left utility cabinet 200 with solid fasteners. In some implementations, the style of the plurality of decorative trim 290 of left utility cabinet 200 matches that of the plurality of decorative trim 190 of the center cabinet assembly 100.
In some aspects with a second utility cabinet, a similar arrangement to the first pair of interlocking brackets 161, 162 and the respective channels 261, 262 can be made on the opposite right side panel of the crib and dresser unit of the center cabinet assembly 100. For example, a second pair of interlocking brackets (not shown) on the right side panel 102 of the assembly 100 can be used to engage a respective pair of channels 361, 362 on a left side panel 301 of the exemplary right utility cabinet 300 that is illustrated in
In some exemplary implementations, the right utility cabinet 300 also may include a right side panel 302, a front panel 303, a back panel 304, and a top panel 305. The panels may be attached to the right utility cabinet 300 with dowel pins and wood glue. Alternatively, the top panel 305 may be modified to include a hinge assembly 370 where the top panel 305 operates as a lid that opens up, allowing additional storage space similar to space 275 or to allow access to through the top of the right utility cabinet. The right utility cabinet 300 may include a pull-out bottle maker compartment 310 illustrated in
The right utility cabinet 300 may also include one or more sliding utility drawers, e.g., 320, 330 in
The right utility cabinet 300 may also include a plurality of removable or fixed wheels 380 for easy transportation, similar to wheels 180, 280 described for the center cabinet assembly 100 and the right utility cabinet 200. The wheels 380 may be attached to the right utility cabinet 300 and be capable of locking into position such that the right utility cabinet 300 cannot be moved or rolled on the supporting floor surface. Decorative trim 390 can be added to the top portion and the base portion of the right utility cabinet 300 with solid fasteners. In some implementations, the style of the plurality of decorative trim 390 of left utility cabinet 300 matches that of the plurality of decorative trim 190, 290 of the center cabinet assembly 100 and the left utility cabinet 200.
Referring back to
In some implementations of the present disclosure, the center cabinet assembly 100, the left utility cabinet 200, and the right utility cabinet 300 are packaged or shipped separately as individual units for easy transportation. Once those individual units arrive their destination, they can be assembled into the compact baby care system 10. It is also noted that in some aspect the baby care system 10 is considered compact based on the baby care system meeting certain dimensions. For example, in one aspect of the present disclosure, a ratio of the combined width, W2 plus W3, of the left utility cabinet 200 and the center cabinet assembly 100 to the width, W3, of the center cabinet assembly 100 alone is between about 1.2 to about 1.6. In another aspect of the present disclosure, a ratio of the combined width, W3 plus W4, of the center cabinet assembly 100 and the right utility cabinet 300 to the width W3 of the center cabinet assembly 100 alone is between about 1.0 to about 1.5. In another aspect of the present disclosure, a ratio of the width, W1, of the compact baby care system 10 to the width, W3, of the center cabinet assembly 100 is between about 1.5 to about 2. In another aspect of the present disclosure, a ratio of the width, W1, of the compact baby care system 10 to the height, H, of the compact baby care system 10 is between about 1.6 to about 2.
In one exemplary aspect, the width, W1, of the compact baby care system 10 has a preferred maximum dimension of about 86 inches. In another exemplary aspect, the width, W2, of the left utility cabinet 200 has a preferred maximum dimension of about 20 inches. In another exemplary aspect, the width, W3, of the center cabinet assembly 100 has a preferred maximum dimension of about 52 inches. In another exemplary aspect, the width, W4, of the right utility cabinet 300 has a preferred maximum dimension of about 14 inches. In yet another exemplary aspect, the height, H, of the compact baby care system 10 has a preferred maximum dimension of about 48 inches.
While the present disclosure has been described with reference to one or more particular implementations, those skilled in the art will recognize that many changes may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. Each of these implementations and obvious variations thereof is contemplated as falling within the spirit and scope of the present disclosure, which is set forth in the claims that follow.
This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/602,578, filed May 1, 2017, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62602578 | May 2017 | US |
