Patent Application
20080048482
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Before the present invention is described in greater detail, it should be noted that like elements are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the disclosure.
An infant seat assembly 5 of the present invention is shown in
Referring first to
The seat member 51 includes a seat body 511 having a front end and left and right sides, and a pair of side panels 512 extending respectively from the left and right sides of the seat body 511.
The retention member 52 includes a main section 521, and a pair of side sections 522 attached respectively to opposite sides of the main section 521. The main section 521 has a bottom end attached to the front end of the seat body 511 by, for example, sewing the main section 521 to the seat body 511. The main section 521 is formed with a pair of spaced-apart leg openings 523 through which legs of an infant or young child seated on the seat member 51 can pass. The side sections 522 are further attached to the side panels 512. In this embodiment, each of the side sections 522 is formed substantially as a right triangle having a hypotenuse side 525, and the hypotenuse side 525 is attached to the respective one of the side panels 512 by, for example, sewing the hypotenuse side 525 to the respective one of the side panels 512.
It is important to note that the attachment between the retention member 52 and the seat member 51 is not limited to sewing as described above, and other fastening means may be used, examples of which include buttons, zippers, and hook-and-loop fasteners. Through the use of such alternative fastening configurations, the retention member 52 may be completely removed from the seat member 51. For additional comfort, the retention member 52 may further include a fabric cover 526 that covers the main and side sections 521, 522, in which case only the fabric cover 526 or both the fabric cover 526 and the main and side sections 521, 522 may be attached to the seat member 51.
In the first preferred embodiment, the main and side sections 521, 522 of the retention member 52 are made of a rigid material, and the connections between the main section 521 and the side sections 522 are such that these elements stand upright from the seat member 51 as shown in
The tray 7 is disposed in front of both the seat body 511 of the seat member 51 and the main section 521 of the retention member 52. The tray 7 may be fixedly or removably attached to either the seat member 51 or to a predetermined location of the baby stroller. With the tray 7 thus disposed, a gap is formed between the seat member 51 and the tray 7. Further, with the retention member 52 positioned between the seat member 51 and the tray 7, movement into the gap by the infant or young child is prevented by the retention member 52. Hence, the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art are not encountered. Namely, there is no danger of the infant or young child becoming stuck between the infant seat assembly 5 and the tray 7 and thereby risking strangulation. A second preferred embodiment of the infant seat assembly 5 will now be described with reference to
Furthermore, when the retention member 52 is in the use position, the main and side sections 521, 522 of the retention member 52 cooperate to define the enclosed space 524. The tray 7 is disposed in front of the seat body 511 as in the first preferred embodiment, and the main section 521 of the retention member 52 stands substantially upright behind the tray 7 when the retention member 52 is in the use position.
In the second preferred embodiment, the main section 521 of the retention member 52 is further formed with a strap slot 520. In the case where the second preferred embodiment is applied to a baby stroller as shown in
The above-described infant seat assembly 5 of the present invention allows for an infant or young child to be seated on the infant seat assembly 5 with his or legs passed through the leg openings 523 in the retention member 52. With this configuration of the infant seat assembly 5, repositioning of the infant or young child when in a fully reclined position is not required. Furthermore, forward movement of the infant or young child sitting on the infant seat assembly 5 is fully arrested by the retention member 52 during abrupt stops and even if the seat belt 6 is not fastened or loosely adjusted. Finally, the retention member 52 may be used regardless of whether the infant or young child is seated upright or fully reclined. As described above, since the retention member 52 may be used even when the infant or young child is seated upright, the aforementioned drawbacks of the prior art are not encountered. That is, there is no danger of the infant or young child becoming stuck between the infant seat assembly 5 and the tray 7 (or in an alternative configuration, between the infant seat assembly 5 and a safety bar (not shown)) and thereby risking strangulation.
While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.
