1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the field of diaper bags and more particularly to diaper bags capable of being converted and used as an infant hip carrier.
2. Description of the Related Art
A copious variety of diaper bags and infant carriers exist on the market today. Such diaper bags normally include a shoulder strap that enables the bag to be carried over the shoulder or across the shoulder as the infant is held in the adult's arms. When carrying an infant long distances, such as in a park or in a retail store, it is common to place the infant in a carrier to assist the parent or guardian as he or she walks while carrying an infant or small child. There are a variety of carrier styles that provide several modes of carrying an infant or small child including in the front, on the hip, in a reclined position, or on the back of an adult.
Transporting an infant outside the home, often requires the parent or caregiver to bring along numerous items, such as diapers, a changing pad, wipes, extra clothes, food, and toys in addition to essential parent's or caregiver's valuables such as a wallet, keys, a cell phone, and the like. Trying to fit most of the child's and adult's belongings into a small pouch or pocket is impractical and at best inconvenient.
It is common to witness parents or caregivers juggle both a diaper bag and a carrier while getting tangled in multiple straps as they try to provide on-the-go care for their infant or small child. The result is that, many parents will either forgo the carrier or the diaper bag to simplify their journey outside the home. However, this is more of an unfavorable compromise than a solution.
Infants and small children are ‘high maintenance’ and leaving a diaper bag behind may result in ending an outing sooner than anticipated if for example, a child requires a new diaper, change of clothes, food, a favorite toy, etc. On the other hand, deciding to forgo or forgetting to bring a carrier can make it difficult to make a spontaneous trip to the mall, or a bookstore, or a short stroll on a beach or park because carrying an infant or small child is stressful on the back and arms without the assistance of a carrier especially when a stroller is not always practical such as on stairs, buses, airplanes, escalators, etc.
Furthermore, toddlers often wish to practice their newly acquired walking skills so a carrier device is not always needed, yet, the convenience of having a hip carrier right at ones finger tips is extremely useful.
What is needed is a diaper bag that selectively converts into an infant hip carrier without compromising access to various items stowed in the diaper bag.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a fully-functional, lightweight diaper bag that can be worn in two modes, either over or across an adult's shoulder.
It is another object of the present invention to provide such a diaper bag that can be quickly and easily converted into an infant or small child hip carrier without disturbing the items in the diaper bag, while maintaining full access to the items in the bag when used as a hip carrier.
It is yet a further object of the present invention to provide such a diaper bag that when converted into an infant carrier, provides comfortable support for the child's backside, legs, buttocks, and back.
These and other objects are met by the combination diaper bag and infant hip carrier invention disclosed herein that includes a pear-shaped bag structure with a front panel with a front opening formed thereon, a rear panel, two opposite side panels, a bottom panel and a flat top panel. Longitudinally aligned and attached to the front edge of the top panel is a flexible main cover that hangs downward over the front panel when the bag structure is used as a diaper bag. The front opening provides access to a main storage area located inside the bag structure. Suitable connectors are provided on the inside surface of the main cover and outside surface of the bag structure to hold the main cover in a closed position over the front panel.
Formed on the inside surface of the main cover is a pouch opening that provides access to an interior pouch formed inside the main cover. Located inside the interior pouch is an adjustable secondary strap. The opposite ends of the secondary strap are attached to the inside seams or edges of the interior pouch. When the bag structure is used as an infant carrier, the main cover is folded upward and the interior pouch in inverted so that the secondary straps are exposed.
Attached to the rear edge of the top panel is a waist flap that connects to a primary strap that extends either around the user's neck or shoulder when the bag structure is used as a diaper bag or around the user's waist when used as an infant carrier. When the bag structure is used as a diaper bag, the waist flap folds downward over the top panel. Disposed between the waist flap and the top panel is a means for selectively holding the waist flap in a downward position. When the bag structure is used as an infant carrier, the front and side edges of waist flap are detached from the top panel so that the primary strap may be worn around the user's waist.
When the waist flap is folded upward, the primary strap is extended around the user's waist, the main cover is then detached from the front panel of the bag structure and folded upward. The interior pouch on the main cover is pulled outward and fully inverted so that the secondary strap is exposed. An infant or small child may now be placed onto the top panel. As the infant or child is against the adult's torso, his or her legs are able to comfortably straddle the waist flap. The secondary strap is then pulled from the interior pouch and extended over the infant's head and over the adult's head and shoulder. The secondary strap is adjusted in length so that the main cover holds the infant or child closely against the adult's body.
As mentioned above, the bag structure is pear-shaped with a narrow, top panel and a lower wide bottom panel. Formed inside the bag structure is a main storage area and an optional lower, horizontally aligned bottom pocket. Also formed on the bag structure are two side pockets and a rear pocket designed to hold various items needed when caring for an infant, such as diapers, wipes, extra clothes, food, and toys, as well as adult's valuables such as keys, wallet, and cell phone. The bag structure's pear-shaped design, the shape of the main cover with an interior pouch, the use of a waist flap attached along one edge to the top panel with a primary strap attached thereto, and a secondary strap attached at is opposite ends to the inside surface of the interior pouch, allows an adult to place or remove items from the bag structure regardless of how the bag structure is used.
Shown in the accompanying
The main cover 30 includes an interior pouch 32 that houses an adjustable secondary shoulder strap 50. The opposite ends 52, 54 of the secondary shoulder strap 50 are securely attached to the opposite corners of the seam between the pouch 32 and the main cover 30. When used as a diaper bag, the primary strap 40 is placed over the shoulder so that the bag structure 12 hangs downward against the user's leg or hip as shown in
Also, when used as a diaper bag, the waist flap 35 is folded downward over the top panel 26 of the bag structure 12. The front edge of the waist flap 35 is held in position with a slide connector, a snap connector or hook and loop connectors. The portion of the primary strap 40 attached to the waist flap 35 is horizontally aligned thereby enabling the primary strap 40 to be extended upward and disposed in a flat configuration over the shoulder.
To use the device as an infant carrier, the front edge of the waist flap 35 is detached from the bag's top panel 26 and folded upward to enable the primary strap 40 to be converted into a waist strap capable of being worn around an adult's waist. Male and female slide connectors 42, 43 are attached to the ends of the primary strap 40 to hold the primary strap 40 around the adult's waist. The connectors 38, 39 are disconnected so that the main cover 30 may be folded upward and extended above the bag structure 12. The pouch 32 in the main cover 30 is pulled outward and fully inverted so that the secondary strap 50 is exposed. The secondary strap 50 is then adjusted in length and extends around the user's neck so that the main cover 30 is held upward and over the user's chest. The main cover 30 may now act as a back support for an infant sitting on the top panel 26 of the bag structure 12 as shown in
As shown in
Formed on the front panel 16 is a front sleeve pocket 28. Attached to the opening 29 of the sleeve pocket 28 is an optional slide connector. Formed adjacent to the bottom panel 24 of the bag structure 12 is a bottom pocket 63. A sliding connector 65 is used to close the opening 64 to the bottom pocket 63. Formed on the opposite side panels 20, 22 are two side pockets pockets 21, 23, respectively. Each side pocket 21, 23 may be selectively opened or closed while an infant 92 is being transported. Formed on the back panel 18 of the bag structure 12 is a narrow sleeve pocket 63 designed to hold a folded blanket or diaper.
As stated above, formed on the main cover 30 is an interior pouch 32. As shown in
In the preferred embodiment, the bag structure 12 measures approximately 20 inches in height, 9-18 inches in width (upper portion, lower portion, respectively), and 6 inches in depth. The top panel 26 measures approximately 9 inches in width and 4 inches in depth. The main pocket 60 is sufficient in size to accommodate diapers 94 as shown in
The bag structure 12 is made of any washable durable material, such as 500 denier cotton or polyester with an internal liner made of nylon or nylon/cotton blend, etc. During use, diapers 94 are placed on edge inside the main pocket 60.
In compliance with the statute, the invention described herein has been described in language more or less specific as to structural features. It should be understood, however, that the invention is not limited to the specific features shown, since the means and construction shown is comprised only of the preferred embodiments for putting the invention into effect. The invention is therefore claimed in any of its forms or modifications within the legitimate and valid scope of the amended claims, appropriately interpreted in accordance with the doctrine of equivalents.
This patent application is based on the provisional patent application Ser. No. 60/669,710 filed on Apr. 8, 2005.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3297119 | Viol | Jan 1967 | A |
4068786 | Taniguchi | Jan 1978 | A |
D253135 | Fontana | Oct 1979 | S |
5224637 | Colombo | Jul 1993 | A |
5292042 | Yamaguchi et al. | Mar 1994 | A |
5492256 | Ive | Feb 1996 | A |
5529230 | Smith | Jun 1996 | A |
5657912 | Nakayama | Aug 1997 | A |
D388954 | Nakayama | Jan 1998 | S |
5711466 | Kataoka et al. | Jan 1998 | A |
5934528 | Higuchi | Aug 1999 | A |
6325259 | Tharalson et al. | Dec 2001 | B1 |
20060113337 | Yoshie et al. | Jun 2006 | A1 |
Number | Date | Country |
---|---|---|
2260687 | Apr 1993 | GB |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
20070175934 A1 | Aug 2007 | US |
Number | Date | Country | |
---|---|---|---|
60669710 | Apr 2005 | US |