Handrail mechanism and baby carriage including the same

Abstract

An armrest mechanism includes: a housing; an armrest connection pivotally connected to the housing and adapted to connect an armrest, such that the armrest can pivot relative to the housing between a pop-up position and a depressed position; and an elastic member connected to the housing and the armrest connection, wherein the elastic member applies a biasing force to the armrest connection, such that the armrest is held in the pop-up position by the biasing force alone.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an armrest mechanism and a stroller incorporating the armrest mechanism. Prior Technology

[0002] A stroller is a widely used vehicle in daily life. A stroller typically consists of a frame, wheels, a seat, and armrests. The frame forms the main framework of the stroller, the wheels are mounted under the frame to provide mobility, the seat is mounted on the frame for the child to sit on, and the armrests are located in front of the seat to provide support and some protection for the child.

[0003] In existing technology, armrests are generally divided into rigid armrests, which are fixed armrests made of rigid materials such as plastic, and soft armrests, which are armrests formed by flexible materials such as fabric suspended in front of the seat. In some environments, there is a need for a new type of armrest that falls between rigid and soft armrests. This armrest can be made of rigid materials, but also has a certain degree of mobility to provide a more comfortable environment for children sitting in the seat and to facilitate children getting in and out of the stroller. More specifically, it is desirable for the armrest to be able to move under pressure and automatically return to its original position after the pressure is removed. Summary of the Invention

[0004] According to an embodiment of the present invention, an armrest mechanism includes: a housing; an armrest connection portion pivotally connected to the housing and adapted to connect an armrest, such that the armrest can pivot relative to the housing between a pop-up position and a depressed position; and an elastic member connected to the housing and the armrest connection portion, wherein the elastic member applies a biasing force to the armrest connection portion, such that the armrest is held in the pop-up position only by the biasing force.

[0005] According to one embodiment, the handrail is adapted to receive an external force toward the downward position, which alone can overcome the biasing force of the elastic element and force the handrail to pivot from the spring-up position to the downward position.

[0006] According to one embodiment, the elastic element is a spring, and its two ends are respectively connected to the housing and the handrail connecting part.

[0007] According to one embodiment, the armrest connecting part is pivotally connected to the housing via an armrest pivot, and the elastic element is a torsion spring wound around the outer periphery of the armrest pivot.

[0008] According to one embodiment, the elastic element is a block-shaped or honeycomb-shaped elastic material.

[0009] According to one embodiment, the housing is provided with at least one housing positioning petal, the armrest connecting portion is provided with at least one armrest positioning petal, and the elastic element is disposed between the housing positioning petal and the armrest positioning petal.

[0010] According to one embodiment, the elastic element abuts against the housing positioning flap and the armrest positioning flap.

[0011] According to one embodiment, the armrest connecting part and the housing are fastened to each other by an armrest box and a housing box, the armrest positioning petal is formed in the armrest box, the housing positioning petal is formed in the housing box, and the elastic member is accommodated in the armrest box and the housing box.

[0012] According to one embodiment, near the annular inner sidewall of the housing, a housing positioning flap protrudes from the bottom wall of the housing toward the armrest box to form a housing positioning flap; near the annular inner sidewall of the armrest box, a armrest positioning flap protrudes from the bottom wall of the armrest box toward the housing to form a armrest positioning flap.

[0013] According to one embodiment, a stroller includes: a frame; wheels located below the frame to provide a direction of travel; a seat frame disposed on the frame and including side frames extending along the direction of travel of the stroller; and a handrail mechanism disposed on the side frames. Simple Explanation of the Diagram

[0014] Figure 1 illustrates the structural frame of a children's vehicle according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

[0015] Figure 2 illustrates the structural frame of a children's stroller according to a first embodiment of the present invention, wherein the frame and wheels have been removed to clearly show the seat frame and armrests.

[0016] Figure 3 shows a partial enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 1, with the removable outer shell of the seat side shown in exploded form.

[0017] Figure 4 shows a partial enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 1, with the armrest in the pop-up position.

[0018] Figure 5 shows a partial enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 1, with the armrest in the depressed position.

[0019] Figure 6 illustrates a side view of a children's stroller according to a second embodiment of the present invention, wherein the armrest is in a pop-up position.

[0020] Figure 7 illustrates a side view of a stroller according to a second embodiment of the present invention, wherein the armrest is in a depressed position.

[0021] Figure 8 shows a partial enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 6.

[0022] Figure 9 shows a partial enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 6, in which the shell, armrest, armrest connector, and elastic element are shown in exploded form.

[0023] Figure 10 shows a partial enlarged view from another angle of the pivot joint between the armrest and the shell of the stroller in Figure 6, in which the shell and the elastic element are shown in exploded form.

[0024] Figure 11 illustrates a perspective view of a children's stroller according to a second embodiment of the present invention, wherein the armrest is in a pop-up position.

[0025] Figure 12 shows a partial enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 11, in which the shell, armrest connection, and elastic element installed in the armrest connection are shown in exploded form.

[0026] Figure 13 shows a partial enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest and the seat frame of the stroller in Figure 11.

[0027] Figure 14 shows a perspective view of the shell of the children's car in Figure 11. Implementation

[0028] While this invention has been illustrated and described with reference to specific embodiments, it should not be limited to the details shown. Rather, various modifications to these details may be made within the scope of equivalents of the claims and without departing from the invention.

[0029] The descriptions of directions such as "front," "back," "up," and "down" used in this article are for ease of understanding only. This invention is not limited to these directions, but can be adjusted according to actual circumstances.

[0030] First, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to Figures 1-5. Figure 1 illustrates the structural frame of a stroller 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention; Figure 2 illustrates the structural frame of a stroller 100 according to the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein the frame and wheels are removed to clearly show the seat frame and armrest 130. The stroller 100 includes a frame and wheels below the frame. A seat frame is mounted on the frame for mounting a seat. The seat is not shown in the figure to show the structure of the seat frame more clearly. The armrest 130 is located at the front of the middle of the seat frame, forming an enclosing shape together with the seat frame. The armrest 130 can provide support for a child sitting in the seat and can also protect the child from accidentally leaving the stroller 100. The armrest 130 may include a horizontal section and a vertical section connected to both ends of the horizontal section, wherein the horizontal section provides the support function of the armrest 130, and the vertical section extends obliquely downward and backward to connect to the frame. In this embodiment, the vertical section of the armrest 130 is connected to both sides of the seat frame by an armrest mechanism. The handrail mechanisms on both sides can be symmetrical, so only one of the handrail mechanisms 130 will be described below.

[0031] In this invention, the handrail mechanism includes a housing 110, a handrail connecting portion 120, and may also include an elastic element 140. This will be described in detail below.

[0032] Referring now to Figure 3, which shows a partially enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest 130 and the seat frame of the stroller 100 of Figure 1, the removable outer shell 110a of the seat side is shown in exploded view. The shell 110 includes an inner shell 110b and an outer shell 110a, wherein the inner shell 110b is closer to the inside of the frame and is attached to or part of the frame, and the outer shell 110a is fastened to the inner shell 110b to form a complete shell 110 with internal accommodating space. An armrest mounting portion 115 is provided on the side of the outer shell 110a facing the armrest connection 120, the armrest mounting portion 115 including two opposing flat arms, which are generally parallel to the bottom wall of the outer shell 110a.

[0033] The handrail connector 120 is generally rod-shaped and has opposing free ends and pivot ends, wherein the free ends are connected to the vertical section of the handrail 130, and the pivot ends are connected to the housing 110. The pivot end of the handrail connector 120 is flat and is inserted between the two flat arms of the handrail mounting portion 115. The two arms of the handrail mounting portion 115 are provided with opposing housing pivot holes 111, and the pivot end of the handrail connector 120 is correspondingly provided with a handrail pivot hole (not shown) penetrating the pivot end. The handrail pivot 121 (FIG. 4) passes through the housing pivot hole 111 and the handrail pivot hole to form a pivotal connection between the handrail connector 120 and the housing 110.

[0034] In this embodiment, both the inner housing 110b and the outer housing 110a are strip-shaped components extending along the front-rear direction of the stroller 100. In one embodiment, the inner housing 110b has only a bottom wall and no side walls, while the outer housing 110a has a bottom wall and side walls surrounding the bottom wall. In other embodiments, the inner housing 110b and the outer housing 110a can have other shapes, as long as their shapes correspond to form an accommodating space. In other embodiments, the inner housing 110b may have side walls while the outer housing 110a may not have side walls, or both the inner housing 110b and the outer housing 110a may have side walls.

[0035] Referring to Figures 3 and 4, in this embodiment, the armrest mechanism includes an elastic element 140. The elastic element 140 is a tension spring, one end of which is fixedly connected to an elastic element fixing portion 113 inside the housing 110, and the other end is fixedly connected to an elastic element hole 122 in the armrest connecting portion 120. In this embodiment, the elastic element fixing portion 113 is a column rising from the bottom wall of the inner housing 110b towards the outer housing 110a. The elastic element hole 122 is located at the pivot end of the armrest connecting portion 120, closer to the elastic element fixing portion 113 than the armrest pivot 121. More specifically, when considered from the horizontal direction of the stroller 100, the elastic element hole 122 is located between the elastic element fixing portion 113 and the armrest pivot 121; when considered from the vertical direction of the stroller 100, the elastic element hole 122 is further away from the free end of the armrest connecting portion 120 than the armrest pivot 121.

[0036] In this embodiment, the elastic element fixing part 113 in the housing 110 is located at the front end of the housing 110. In other embodiments, the elastic element fixing part 113 may also be located at the rear end of the housing 110, in which case the corresponding elastic element 140 is configured as a compression spring. In all embodiments, the elastic element 140 is loaded to bias the armrest connection part 120 toward the pop-up position.

[0037] The operation of the armrest 130 mechanism of the present invention will now be described with reference to Figures 4-5. Figure 4 shows a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest 130 and the seat frame of the stroller 100 of Figure 1, wherein the armrest 130 is in the pop-up position; Figure 5 shows a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest 130 and the seat frame of the stroller 100 of Figure 1, wherein the armrest 130 is in the depressed position. As shown, when the armrest 130 is in the pop-up position, the free end of the armrest connection 120 is relatively far from the housing 110, and the elastic member hole 122 in the armrest connection 120 is relatively close to the elastic member fixing part 113 in the housing 110. When the armrest 130 is not depressed by an external force, the elastic member 140 tends to hold the armrest connection 120 in the pop-up position, and there is a limiting member (not shown) between the armrest connection 120 and the housing 110 to prevent the armrest connection 120 from rotating beyond the pop-up position. When the handrail 130 is pressed down by an external force, the handrail connecting part 120 overcomes the bias of the elastic element 140 and rotates to the pressed position. At this time, the free end of the handrail connecting part 120 is closer to the housing 110, and the elastic element hole 122 is farther away from the elastic element fixing part 113, causing the elastic element 140 to be stretched. It is easy to understand that when the external force disappears, the handrail connecting part 120 (and the handrail 130) will return to the pop-up position under the bias of the elastic element 140, thereby realizing the automatic reset function of the handrail 130.

[0038] The second embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to Figures 6-10. Figure 6 shows a side view of a stroller 200 according to the second embodiment of the invention, with the armrest 230 in the pop-up position; Figure 7 shows a side view of a stroller 200 according to the second embodiment of the invention, with the armrest 230 in the depressed position; Figure 8 shows a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest 230 and the housing 210 of the stroller 200 of Figure 6. Unlike the first embodiment, in the second embodiment, the armrest connecting portion 220 and the housing 210 are no longer interlocked by a flat pivot end and a flat armrest mounting portion 115, but are instead fastened together by an armrest box 225 and a housing box 215, as will be described in detail below.

[0039] Referring now to Figure 9, which shows a partially enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest 230 and the housing 210 of the stroller 200 in Figure 6, the housing 210, armrest 230, armrest connector 220, and elastic member 240 are shown in exploded view. As shown, the free end of the armrest connector 220 is provided with a generally cylindrical armrest box 225, which has a bottom wall and an annular side wall surrounding the bottom wall, wherein the bottom wall is generally parallel to the side direction of the stroller 200.

[0040] A cylindrical armrest pivot hole 221 rises from the center of the bottom wall of the armrest box 225. An armrest positioning flap is provided between this pivot hole and the side wall of the armrest box 225. In this embodiment, the armrest positioning flap is a block-shaped component rising from the bottom wall of the armrest box 225, having a fan-shaped cross-section in the direction parallel to the bottom wall and a flat side surface in the direction perpendicular to the bottom wall. The armrest positioning flap rises to a height exceeding the side wall to be inserted into the housing box 215 opposite to the armrest box 225. In this embodiment, two armrest positioning flaps are provided, namely a first armrest positioning flap 222 and a second armrest positioning flap 223, which are arranged circumferentially at 180-degree intervals in the armrest box 225. In other embodiments, the armrest positioning flaps may have different shapes, such as a flat plate perpendicular to the bottom wall. In other embodiments, the armrest positioning flaps may have different numbers, such as one or more than two.

[0041] Now refer to Figure 10. Figure 10 shows a partially enlarged view from another angle of the pivot point between the armrest 230 and the housing 210 of the stroller 200 of Figure 6, wherein the housing 210 and the elastic element 240 are shown in exploded form. As shown, the housing 210 is fixed to and extends from the seat frame. The housing 210 has a generally cylindrical housing box 215, which is opposite to the armrest box 225 and has the same dimensions. The housing box 215 also has a bottom wall and annular side walls surrounding the bottom wall. In this way, the housing box 215 and the armrest box 225 interlock to form a complete cylindrical placement space.

[0042] The housing 215 has a housing pivot hole 211 at its center. A handrail pivot 121 (as shown in Figure 4) passes through the handrail pivot hole 221 and the housing pivot hole 211 to form a pivotal connection between the housing 210 and the handrail connection 220.

[0043] The housing box 215 is provided with housing positioning petals 212 and 213, which are the same in shape and number as the armrest positioning petals 222 and 223. The housing positioning petals 212 and 213 rise from the bottom wall of the housing box 215 to exceed its side wall, and are thus inserted into the armrest box 225.

[0044] The armrest positioning petals 222 and 223 and the housing positioning petals 212 and 213 are staggered, and the sidewalls of the armrest positioning petals 222 and 223 and the housing positioning petals 212 and 213 can abut against each other to restrict the relative rotation between the armrest connection 220 and the housing 210. In other words, when the armrest connection 220 (and the armrest 230) is in the pop-up position, the armrest positioning petals 222 and 223 and the housing positioning petals 212 and 213 abut against each other to prevent the armrest connection 220 from rotating beyond the pop-up position (see Figure 8).

[0045] In this embodiment, the elastic element 240 is a torsion spring wound around the outer periphery of the armrest pivot 121, with one end abutting against the housing 215 and the other end abutting against the armrest box 225, and is loaded to bias the armrest connection 220 toward the pop-up position.

[0046] It is easy to understand that the handrail 230 mechanism in this embodiment enables the handrail 230 to be pressed down and automatically reset.

[0047] The third embodiment of this application will now be described with reference to Figures 11-14. Figure 11 shows a perspective view of a stroller 300 according to the third embodiment of the present invention, wherein the armrest 330 is in a pop-up position; Figure 12 shows a partially enlarged view of the pivot joint between the armrest 330 and the housing 310 of the stroller 300 of Figure 11, wherein the housing 310, the armrest connection 320, and the elastic member 340 installed in the armrest connection 320 are shown in exploded form; Figure 13 shows a partially enlarged cross-sectional view of the pivot joint between the armrest 330 and the housing 310 of the stroller 300 of Figure 11; Figure 14 shows a perspective view of the housing 310 of the stroller 300 of Figure 11. Most of the components of the third embodiment are the same as those of the second embodiment; only the differences between the two will be described below.

[0048] In the third embodiment, the elastic element 340 is not a torsion spring, but a block-shaped or honeycomb-shaped elastic material. The elastic element 340 is filled in the housing box 315 and the armrest box 325 around the armrest pivot 121, and abuts against the side walls of the housing positioning petals 312 (or 313) and the armrest positioning petals 322 (or 323) on both sides. When the armrest connection 320 (and the armrest 330) moves toward the downward position, the elastic element 340 is compressed to provide a biasing force to provide an automatic reset function for the armrest 330.

[0049] Although the invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, the terminology used is descriptive and exemplary, and not restrictive. Since the invention can be embodied in many forms without departing from its spirit and essence, it should be understood that the above embodiments are not limited to any of the foregoing details, but should be interpreted in the broadest sense within the scope defined by the claims. Therefore, all variations falling within the scope of the claims or their equivalents should be covered by the claims.

[0050] 100, 200, 300: Children's strollers 110, 210, 310: Shell 110a: Outer shell 110b: Inner shell 111, 211, 311: Housing pivot holes 113: Elastic element fixing part 212, 312: First shell positioning flap 213, 313: Second shell positioning flap 115: Handrail Installation Department 215, 315: Housing box 120, 220, 320: Handrail connecting part 121: Armrest Pivot 122: Hole of elastic element 221, 321: Armrest pivot holes 222, 322: First handrail positioning flap 223, 323: Second handrail positioning flap 225, 325: Armrest Box 130, 230, 330: Handrail 140, 240, 340: Elastic components

Claims

1. A handrail mechanism, comprising: case; An armrest connection is pivotally connected to the housing and adapted to connect an armrest, such that the armrest can pivot relative to the housing between a pop-up position and a depressed position; And an elastic element connected to the housing and the armrest connection, wherein the elastic element applies a biasing force to the armrest connection, so that the armrest is held in the pop-up position only by the biasing force.

2. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein the handrail is adapted to receive an external force toward the pressed position, the external force alone being sufficient to overcome the biasing force of the elastic element and force the handrail to pivot from the pop-up position to the pressed position.

3. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein the elastic element is a spring, and its two ends are respectively connected to the housing and the handrail connecting portion.

4. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein the handrail connection is pivotally connected to the housing via a handrail pivot, and the elastic element is a torsion spring wound around the outer periphery of the handrail pivot.

5. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein the elastic element is a block-shaped or honeycomb-shaped elastic material.

6. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 1, wherein the housing is provided with at least one housing positioning petal, the handrail connecting portion is provided with at least one handrail positioning petal, and the elastic member is disposed between the housing positioning petal and the handrail positioning petal.

7. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 6, wherein the elastic element abuts against the housing positioning flap and the handrail positioning flap.

8. The handrail mechanism as claimed in claim 6, wherein the handrail connecting portion and the housing are interlocked by a handrail box and a housing box, the handrail positioning flap is formed in the handrail box, the housing positioning flap is formed in the housing box, and the elastic member is accommodated in the handrail box and the housing box.

9. The armrest mechanism as claimed in claim 8, wherein the housing positioning flap protrudes from the bottom wall of the housing toward the armrest box near the annular inner sidewall of the housing box; and the armrest positioning flap protrudes from the bottom wall of the armrest box toward the housing box near the annular inner sidewall of the armrest box.

10. A children's vehicle, comprising: Frame; Wheels are located below the frame to provide a direction of travel; A seat frame, disposed on the frame and including a side frame extending along the travel direction of the stroller; and an armrest mechanism as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9, disposed on the side frame.

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