Patent Application
20080127412
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a playyard for infants and children and, more particularly, to an improved playyard having improved features therein.
2. Description of the Related Art
A wide variety of playyards, which are also referred to as playpens and as playyards for children, have been designed, developed, and commercialized for many years. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,985,948. Playyards provide an enclosed safe environment in which a child can be placed to sleep or to play. Although conventional playyards are built in many shapes, they are generally rectangular in shape and include upper and lower frame assemblies supported by legs at each corner of the rectangle. Playyards can typically be folded for transport and storage. The present invention provides additional features to improve the usability of conventional playyards.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a playyard having (among other things): a structural member preferably made of tubular metal, steel, aluminum, etc. cladded in a non-structural, non-fabric material, preferably made of plastic or the like. The cladding preferably is made of material having some structural rigidity but which does not provide significant structural support to the playyard. More specifically, the cladding member may cover substantially all of the structural member visible from the exterior of the playyard. As stated above, the structural member may be made of tubular metal and the cladding member may be a molded plastic member. Additionally, the structural member may have an outwardly bowing curved shape and the cladding member may have a corresponding shape. The structural member may be a top rail, a bottom rail, or the like and is preferably a leg assembly which may be supported from a receiving surface by a wheel.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a central hub mechanism for the base of a playyard for children, including: a central hub; a diagonal member pivotably connected to the central hub; a retainer mounted within the central hub, the retainer being rotatable about a vertical axis between an engaged position and a disengaged position and the retainer comprising an extended portion; and an engaging member slidably extending from within the diagonal member and adapted to releasably couple with the extended portion of the retainer when the retainer is in the engaged position; wherein the releasable coupling of the engaging member with the extended portion of the retainer in the engaged position prevents pivoting of the diagonal member. The mechanism may further include a torsion spring, the torsion spring rotationally biasing the retainer in a direction causing the retainer to return to the engaged position. Additionally, the mechanism may further include a handle attached to the upper portion of the retainer. The mechanism may also include a compression spring contained within the diagonal member, the spring biasing the engaging member and causing the engaging member to extend from the diagonal member. The mechanism may optionally include a frame member, the frame member being rigidly connected to the central hub.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide an improved playyard for children including: a playyard and an integrally incorporated electronic device. The electronic device may be, but is not limited to, a music box, an infant/child monitor, a night light, a mobile, or a toy. The electronic device may be integrally incorporated, for example, into a storage console which is connected to the frame of the playyard or into a corner connector which attaches an upper frame member to a leg member.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide a hinge mechanism for a playyard for children, including: a main body; a first frame member and a second frame member pivotably connected to the main body, the first and second frame members each having an end portion extending into the main body; and a first pivot lock and a second pivot lock pivotably mounted within the main body, the first pivot lock having an engagement surface adapted to receive the end portion of the first frame member and the second pivot lock having an engagement surface adapted to receive the end portion of the second frame member; wherein the first and the second pivot locks rotate about a common axis.
More specifically, the hinge mechanism may further include a spring arranged to bias the pivot locks such that the engagement surfaces are pushed apart. The spring may be a torsion spring. The main body of the hinge mechanism may include two side plates connected by a intermediate curved portion. The hinge mechanism may include a handle that, when actuated by a user, acts upon the first and second pivot locks causing the pivot locks to rotate inward, thereby disengaging the first and second pivot locks from the end portions of their respective frame members.
Additionally, the first and second pivot locks may each include a first appendage and a second appendage, wherein the first appendage of each pivot lock includes the engagement surface and wherein the handle, when actuated, acts upon the second appendages of the first and second pivot locks causing their respective first appendages to rotate inward, thereby releasing their respective frame members.
It is an aspect of the present invention to provide an improved playyard for children, including: a playyard and an integrally molded hook on the playyard for suspending a bag. More specifically, the hook may optionally be located on a storage console portion of the playyard, on a member defining an upper extent of the playyard, or on a member defining a corner of the playyard. The integrally molded hook may have an outer surface matching the contour of the surrounding portion of the playyard. The integrally molded hook may include an inverted U-shaped slot, the slot defining a tab.
These and other aspects, along with advantages and features of the invention disclosed herein, will be made more apparent from the description, drawings, and claims that follow.
The foregoing and other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention, as well as the invention itself, will be more fully understood from the following description of preferred embodiments, when read together with the accompanying drawings, in which:
The leg members 108 are connected to the lower frame 110 comprising a centered cross segment, comprising two cross members 112; two diagonal segments traversing the distance between opposite vertical legs 108, each segment comprising two diagonal members 114/116; and a center hub mechanism 250 connecting to the cross members 112 and the diagonal members 114/116.
The leg member also preferably includes a cladding member 126 which partially covers the tubular member 120. In order to cover the structural tubular member 120, the cladding member 126 may be attached thereto in any of many ways known to those of ordinary skill in the art. As shown in
In one embodiment, the cladding member 126 extends around approximately 270 degrees of the tubular member 120 for substantially all of its length. In addition, the cladding member 126 extends to cover a majority of the wheel 122.
In the preferred embodiment, two of the four leg members 108 include wheels 122 attached to the lower coupling 124 as depicted in
Turning to
The engaging members 270 extending from the ends of the pivotably connected diagonal members 114 are held in the extended position by compression springs 272 contained within the pivotably mounted diagonal members 114. As a user pivots the pivotably mounted diagonal members 114 into their horizontal positions, the engaging members 270 are depressed into the pivotably mounted diagonal members 114 as they pass the extended portions 262 of the retainer. Once clear of the extended portions 262 of the retainer 252, the engaging members 270 return to their fully extended positions due to the force of the compression springs 272.
As shown in
The main body 202 is preferably constructed of metal and has two parallel side plates 201 connected by an intermediate curved portion 203. The side plates 201 provide support for the other components of the hinge mechanism 200 including the pin 217. Additionally, side plates 201 provide support for pins 215 which pivotably attach the horizontal members 104/106 to the hinge mechanism 200. Cover 209 is attached to the outer portions of main body 202
The pivot locks 204/206 are preferably composed of molded plastic. Each pivot lock 204/206 has two appendages 212/214 connected together to form an approximate right angle similar to an L-shape. When the hinge mechanism is assembled, pivot axes 216 of the pivot locks are coaxially located such that a single pin 217 runs through both pivot locks. The pivot locks 204/206 face outward in opposite directions such that one pivot lock's 204 lower appendage 212 extends to the left and the other pivot lock's 206 lower appendage 212 extends to the right when viewed from the front. To allow the pivot locks 204/206 to be located coaxially while facilitating linear alignment of the upper frame horizontal members 104/106, the pivot locks 204/206 are adapted to rotate one within the other. As such, one pivot lock 204 includes a central slot 218 within which the other pivot lock 206 rotates.
The upper appendage 214 of each pivot lock 204/206 includes a receiving surface 220 which is shaped to accommodate the end of a horizontal member 104/106 of the upper frame 102. Preferably, the receiving surface 220 is ledge which has a surface curvature complementary to that of the ends of the horizontal members 104/106.
The upper appendages 214 of the pivot locks 204/206 are biased outwardly by a torsion spring 210. The pin 217 about which the pivot locks 204/206 rotate also extends through the coil portion of the torsion spring 210, holding the torsion spring 210 in place. It is within the scope of the invention to utilize alternative means for biasing apart the upper appendages of the pivot locks 204/206, including compression springs and pieces of spring steel.
A handle 208 is located beneath the lower appendages 212 of the pivot locks 204/206. When the handle 208 is actuated by being pushed upwards, it pushes on the bottom of each pivot lock's 204/206 lower appendage 212 and forces each pivot lock 204/206 to rotate inward about the pin 217, thereby overcoming the force of the torsion spring 210 and releasing the end portions of the horizontal members 104/106 from the receiving surfaces 220 of the pivot locks 204/206. Once released from the receiving surfaces 220 of the pivot locks 204/206, the horizontal members 104/106 rotate freely about their respective pins 215. This permits a user to collapse the playyard for easier transportation and/or storage.
To set up the playyard for normal use, the user pivots the horizontal members 104/106 into their approximately horizontal positions. As the horizontal members 104/106 are pivoted into their approximately horizontal positions, the ends of the horizontal members 104/106 press against the angled outer surfaces 221 of the upper appendages 214 of the pivot locks 204/206. This causes the pivot locks 204/206 rotate inward against the force of the torsion spring 210. Once the horizontal members 104/106 are pivoted to the extent that their ends have reached the receiving surfaces 220 of the pivot locks 204/206, the pivot locks 204/206 rotate outward due to the force of the torsion spring 210 and engage the ends of the horizontal members 104/106. Once the pivot locks 204/206 have engaged the horizontal members 104/106 on the receiving surfaces 220, the hinge mechanism 200 is locked and the horizontal members 104/106 are fixed in their horizontal positions.
As shown in
In another embodiment, an electronic music box is included in an upper frame corner connector 128 shown in
As shown in
Following from the above description and invention summaries it should be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that, while the systems and processes herein described constitute exemplary embodiments of the present invention, it is understood that the invention is not limited to these precise systems and processes and that changes may be made therein without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims. Additionally, it is to be understood that the invention is defined by the claims and it is not intended that any limitations or elements describing the exemplary embodiments set forth herein are to be incorporated into the meanings of the claims unless such limitations or elements are explicitly listed in the claims. Likewise, it is to be understood that it is not necessary to meet any or all of the identified advantages or objects of the invention disclosed herein in order to fall within the scope of any claim, as the invention is defined by the claims and because inherent and/or unforeseen advantages of the present invention may exist even though they may not have been explicitly discussed herein.
