Collapsible Child Cot Frame for Low-Center Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Prior art cots have a high center of gravity, are prone to tipping, and have independent legs that provide structural weakness and an uneven surface, with fabric chosen for aesthetics rather than strength, which does not complement the mechanical frame.
Innovation Solution
A portable child bed with a collapsible and expandable frame of interconnected legs and hubs, featuring flexible bedding anchored to the upper hubs, providing a low sleeping surface, low center of gravity, and a sturdy structure that compensates for uneven surfaces, with interlocking legs and flexible straps enhancing stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If the sleeping surface is positioned high for ease of access, then the child can easily get in and out, but the center of gravity becomes high causing the cot to tip easily
Solution Approach 1:
The patent transitions from a traditional high sleeping surface to a low sleeping surface design, fundamentally changing the vertical dimension of the cot structure. This dimensional change lowers the center of gravity while maintaining accessibility through the expandable/collapsible mechanism, directly resolving the contradiction between ease of access and tipping resistance.
Solution Approach 2:
The cot employs dynamic legs that can expand and collapse, allowing the structure to adapt its configuration. When expanded, the legs provide a stable low profile; when collapsed, they enable compact storage. This dynamic capability maintains stability during use while improving portability.
2Ease of manufacture
If independent straight legs are used for simple construction, then the manufacturing is easy, but the structure becomes weak and amplifies uneven surfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple leg functions into a single integrated system. The legs are interconnected through hubs and pivot points, creating a unified structural network that distributes loads across multiple points rather than relying on independent legs. This combining of functions increases structural strength while maintaining manufacturing simplicity through standardized components.
Solution Approach 2:
The cot combines different material properties in its leg construction, using materials that provide both flexibility for expansion/collapse and rigidity for structural support. The interlocking mechanism integrates metallic or rigid components with flexible connecting elements, creating a composite structure that achieves both strength and ease of manufacture.
3Shape
If fabric is chosen for aesthetics, then the appearance is pleasing, but the fabric lacks the strength needed to support the frame and child
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different qualities to different parts of the fabric system. The fabric is engineered with varying thread densities, weaves, or material compositions in different areas to simultaneously achieve aesthetic appeal in visible regions and enhanced strength in load-bearing areas. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction between appearance and structural support.
Data Source
AI summary
A portable child bed in the nature of a cot. The cot includes a frame having a network of interconnected legs such that the frame is collapsible and expandable between open and closed configurations. The frame includes a stop to halt the expansion of the frame at a certain position. Flexible bedding depends from the frame in the nature of a hammock, with the flexible bedding being anchored at six positions about the frame. The frame of interconnected legs includes legs that are shaped to be out-of-the-way of the depending flexible bedding such that a child rests on the flexible bedding, not on the frame. Flexible straps run on an underside of the bedding and run to and between hubs of the frame.