Patent Application
20150028069
The present disclosure generally relates to an apparatus and method for elevating, supporting or carrying a child.
The present inventor has recognized that one problem to be overcome in conventional child carriers is the potential danger of a child's feet slipping through the open-ended stirrups of conventional carriers and the consequent risk of the child falling to the ground. Additionally, the conventional waist straps or belts of such carriers can become uncomfortable to the parent supporting a child in the carrier and in some cases the strap or belt may slip down. Conventional belts are especially prone to slippage under the repeated or “bouncing” loads applied to the belt when a child is carried by a user on a fast walk, for example.
The overall safety of a child carried in a carrier is important, but conventional methods to improve safety have not proved fully effective. The present subject matter can help provide a solution to these problems by providing features such as those described and claimed below.
This overview is intended to provide an overview of subject matter of the present patent application. It is not intended to provide an exclusive or exhaustive explanation of the inventive subject matter. The Description of Example Embodiments below is included to provide further information about the present patent application.
In an example embodiment, a child carrier apparatus for supporting and carrying a standing child by an individual is provided. The apparatus comprises a waist-belt assembly releasably securable about the waist of the individual in engagement with the individual's hips to prevent downward movement of the waist-belt assembly when the child is supported by the apparatus, and at least one step formation on the waist-belt assembly for supporting the child's feet or shoes when the child is carried by the child carrier apparatus.
The at least one step formation may be at least partially enclosed, or include a rigid base. In some examples, the at least one step formation includes deformable or semi-rigid material. Further, the at least one step formation may include a lip formation for engagement with the underside of the child's feet or shoes when the child is carried.
The waist-belt assembly may include a lumbar support formation to assist in bearing load and prevent slippage, and in some examples the profile of the lumbar support formation is adjustable.
Child safety straps, releasably securable to the waist-belt assembly, may be provided. The straps may be configured to be grasped over the shoulders of the individual by a child standing on the at least one step formation of the carrier.
The child carrier apparatus may also comprise a child torso harness which can be secured to the child safety straps.
The example embodiments are illustrated by way of example, and not limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings. In the drawings, which are not necessarily drawn to scale, like numerals may describe similar components in different views. Like numerals having different letter suffixes may represent different instances of similar components. The drawings illustrate generally, by way of example, but not by way of limitation, various embodiments discussed in the present document.
A child carrier apparatus 10 (also referred to herein as a carrier) for elevating, supporting and/or carrying a standing child 12 by a user 14 (also referred to herein as an individual) is described. In an example embodiment, the carrier 10 is designed to transfer the weight of the child 12 efficiently onto a load-bearing waist-belt assembly 16 around the waist of the user 14, thus transferring the load onto the hips and legs of the user 14 and not the user 14's back. A properly fitted waist-belt assembly 16 enables the user 14 to carry the child 12 without feeling the weight of the child 12 in the torso or upper limbs. In an example embodiment, the carrier 10 is designed to keep the user 14's arms free, as they do not contribute to the process of carrying the child 12. The carrier 10 is particularly suited to carrying children 12 who are already able to walk and support themselves with their own legs.
Reference is now made to
In an example embodiment, the at least one step formation 18 includes two adjacent platforms or surfaces secured onto or formed with an outer surface of the waist-belt assembly 16. In some examples, the at least one step formation 18 is formed integrally with the waist-belt assembly 16.
As illustrated in
In some examples, an elevated child 12 can be secured by one of the securing mechanisms described below, or a combination of such securing mechanisms. Example securing mechanisms include an arrangement in which the child 12 holds onto the user 14's shoulders, or hugs the user 14 around the shoulders or upper chest area. This arrangement can be seen in
In another example shown in
In another example embodiment shown in
With reference to
Reference is now made to
In an example embodiment, the stepping surface of the step 18 may comprise an additional material to provide a gripping surface for the base of a shoe. An appropriate material is one that has properties of gripping and engaging and contributing to a secure foot placement on the step 18, reducing or preventing accidental movement off the step 18. One example of such a material has physical properties similar to rubber, and may be patterned with tread for additional grip when the surface is wet.
In an example embodiment shown in
With reference to
In another example embodiment, the step(s) 18 at the rear of the child carrier apparatus 10 have a partially enclosed cup shape, the top of which may include an elasticated material. In one example, the child 12 can “jam” his or her foot into the toe cup, with the base of the step(s) 18 supporting the child's weight, while the sides and top of the elasticated cup restrict movement of the child's foot. The elasticated top of the cup may apply a degree of compressive force onto the child's foot or shoe, thus providing an enhanced frictional grip on the step 18 to help prevent the child's foot or shoe from easily slipping off the step(s) 18.
With reference to
The child 12 can wear a child torso harness 30 with the child torso harness 30 clipped onto the ends of the safety straps 24 to help secure the child 12 from falling backwards off the child carrier apparatus 10. In some examples, magnetic clips are used for convenient attachment of the child torso harness 30 to the straps 24, and these are described in more detail below.
As described elsewhere in this specification, the child carrier apparatus 10 may include flexible safety straps 24. In some examples, these straps 24 may be retractable. A retractable strap 24 may be provided on each side of the waist-belt assembly 16 in a strap winder housing (not shown) positioned near the front or buckle of the waist-belt assembly 16 (within easy reach of the user 14 when the child carrier apparatus 10 is in use) and approximately on the hipbone of the user 14. The retractable straps 24 may be configured to include hand loops or holds as described above.
When a child 12 is standing on a step(s) 18, the user 14 can pass a free end of each retractable strap 24 in turn up to the child 12 for the child 12 to hold. The user 14 can then “lock” each strap 24 from expanding any further using a latch, for example, provided at the side of each strap 24's respective winder housing. When the child 12 releases the strap(s) 24, the user 14 can operate the latch again to release the winder in the housing such that the strap 24 automatically winds up and recoils into the housing, thus putting itself away.
In another example embodiment, retractable self-locking straps 24 are provided on each side of the waist-belt assembly 16, which may generally be positioned and configured as described above, but in this example, the straps are retained in inertia reel housings. Other strap-locking arrangements are possible. As before, when a child 12 is standing on a step(s) 18, a user 14 can pass a free end of each strap 24 in turn up to the child 12 to hold. In normal use, the retractable straps 24 remain free-running and the child 12 can constantly adjust them by pulling more strap length out of the inertia reel housing, or letting the strap(s) 24 go to self-retract as described above. In this example, if the child 12 were suddenly to pull on a strap 24, either by grabbing it sharply or falling backwards, the pulled strap 24 would automatically lock. If a strap 24 is dropped, or let loose, it automatically rewinds into the housing.
Reference is now made to
In an example embodiment of a child carrier apparatus 10, lumbar support for the base of the user 14's back is provided. A lumbar support formation 36, shown in
In one example, such adjustment is achieved by means of an inflatable lumbar support formation 36. In this version, a user 14 is able to variably inflate the lumbar support 36, thus increasing or decreasing its profile to suit the user 14's lower back arch profile. The mechanism of inflation is provided by a simple blow valve (not shown) that can let the user 14 inflate a bladder within the lumbar support formation 36, or by a small hand crank, for example, that enables inflation or deflation of the lumbar support formation 36 while the user 14 is wearing the waist-belt assembly 16.
In another example embodiment, lumbar support adjustment is provided through the use of appropriately shaped insert elements included with the child carrier apparatus 10. The inserts can be used to vary the profile of the lumbar support formation 36 on the waist-belt assembly 16. In this example, the user 14 is able to variably add or remove inserts (not shown) to or from the lumbar support formation 36, thus increasing or decreasing its profile to suit a particular configuration of user lower back profile. The inserts can slide into pockets in the lumbar support formation 36 to increase or boost the profile of the support, or be withdrawn to the opposite effect.
Each of the non-limiting example embodiments described herein can stand on its own, or can be combined in various permutations or combinations with one or more of the other examples.
The above Description of Example Embodiments includes references to the accompanying drawings, which form a part of the Description of Example Embodiments. The drawings show, by way of illustration, specific embodiments in which the inventive subject matter can be practiced. These embodiments are also referred to herein as “examples.” Such examples can include elements in addition to those shown or described. However, the present inventor also contemplates examples in which only those elements shown or described are provided. Moreover, the present inventor also contemplates examples using any combination or permutation of those elements shown or described (or one or more aspects thereof), either with respect to a particular example (or one or more aspects thereof), or with respect to other examples (or one or more aspects thereof) shown or described herein.
In the event of inconsistent usages between this document and any documents so incorporated by reference, the usage in this document controls.
In this document, the terms “a” or “an” are used, as is common in patent documents, to include one or more than one, independent of any other instances or usages of “at least one” or “one or more.” In this document, the term “or” is used to refer to a nonexclusive or, such that “A or B” includes “A but not B,” “B but not A,” and “A and B,” unless otherwise indicated. In this document, the terms “including” and “in which” are used as the plain-English equivalents of the respective terms “comprising” and “wherein.” Also, in the following claims, the terms “including” and “comprising” are open-ended; that is, a system, device, article, composition, formulation, or process that includes elements in addition to those listed after such a term in a claim are still deemed to fall within the scope of that claim. Moreover, in the following claims, the terms “first,” “second,” “third,” etc. are used merely as labels, and are not intended to impose numerical requirements on their objects.
The above description is intended to be illustrative, and not restrictive. For example, the above-described examples (or one or more aspects thereof) may be used in combination with each other. Other embodiments can be used, such as by one of ordinary skill in the art upon reviewing the above description. The Abstract is provided to comply with 37 C.F.R. §1.72(b), to allow the reader to quickly ascertain the nature of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims. Also, in the above Description of Example Embodiments, various features may be grouped together to streamline the disclosure. This should not be interpreted as intending that an unclaimed disclosed feature is essential to any claim. Rather, inventive subject matter may lie in less than all features of a particular disclosed embodiment. Thus, the following claims are hereby incorporated into the Description of Example Embodiments as examples or embodiments, with each claim standing on its own as a separate embodiment, and it is contemplated that such embodiments can be combined with each other in various combinations or permutations. The scope of the inventive subject matter herein should be determined with reference to the appended claims, along with the full scope of equivalents to which such claims are entitled.
This patent application claims the benefit of priority, under 35 U.S.C. Section 119(e), to Fishwick, U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/858,735, entitled “Child Carrier Apparatus”, filed on Jul. 26, 2013 (Attorney Docket No. 3710.002PRV), which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 61858735 | Jul 2013 | US |
