Collapsible crib frame

Abstract

A foldable frame for use as an infant crib or child play yard comprising a generally planar, rectangular upper frame supported by a plurality of upstanding leg members preferably extending from respective corners of the rectangular upper frame, each leg member being connected to the upper frame by a respective hinge connection configured to permit movement of respective leg members between upstanding deployed positions for use and folded positions for stowing the frame, a pair of folding hinges disposed in opposing portions of the upper frame that permit folding of the upper frame, preferably once the legs have been folded, wherein the hinge connections further include latching mechanisms to maintain the leg members in at least the folded position and to prevent inadvertent movement therefrom.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application claims the priority benefit of U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 62 / 427,751 filed on Nov. 29, 2016.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]This invention relates generally to portable enclosures for infants, and more particularly to a leg-supported foldable frame for a crib or a play yard that may be collapsed into a comparatively compact space when not in use.[0003]Portable cribs and play yards are useful to contain and provide a safe environment for small children to sleep or play. These enclosures generally include side walls and a bottom floor made of fabric material or similar soft goods supported on a collapsible frame that allows them to be easily stored or transported.[0004]Portability of infant care accessories is an increasingly important consideration among consumers. While collapsible frames are well-known in the art, frames that are easily reconfigured or collapsed into a compact package continue to push ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]Accordingly, the present invention, in any of the embodiments described herein, may provide one or more of the following advantages:

[0006]It is an object of the present invention to provide a foldable frame for use as an infant crib or child play yard. The frame comprises a generally planar, rectangular upper frame supported by a plurality of upstanding leg members preferably extending from respective corners of the rectangular upper frame. The frame includes a pair of folding mechanisms disposed in opposing portions of the upper frame that permit folding of the upper frame. Each leg member is connected to the upper frame by a hinge connection configured to permit movement of respective leg members between upstanding deployed positions for use and folded positions for stowing the frame. The hinge connections include biasing mechanisms to urges the legs toward the folded or the unfolded positions to assist in folding or unfolding the frame. The hinge connections further include latching mechanisms to maintain the leg members in at least the folded position and to prevent inadvertent movement therefrom.

[0007]It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a foldable crib frame capable of compacting into a substantially smaller space when folded than is occupied in the unfolded configuration. The upper frame includes a pair of folding mechanisms disposed in opposing portions of the upper frame that permit folding of the upper frame thereby reducing its dimension by approximately half. The hinge connections are configured to enable the leg members to be folded inwardly and remain within a boundary defined by the upper frame when folded. The leg members may be curved to improve the compactness when folded.

[0009]It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a foldable crib frame comprising a rectangular upper frame supported by a plurality of upstanding leg members, each leg member connected to the upper frame by a folding hinge featuring a latching mechanism for retaining the leg members in a deployed configuration with a two-step latch release, and a pair of folding hinges in the upper frame enabling the upper frame to be folded that is durable in construction, inexpensive of manufacture, carefree of maintenance, easily assembled, and simple and effective to use.

Problems solved by technology

Awkwardly reconfigurable frames or latching mechanism and frames requiring significant space when folded do not meet consumer demands.

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