GB2422306A

GB2422306A - Collapsible frame for a playpen

Info

Publication number: GB2422306A
Application number: GB0601194A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Cheng-Fan Yang
Original assignee: Link Treasure Ltd; Link Treasure Ltd Taiwan
Current assignee: Link Treasure Ltd
Priority date: 2005-01-21
Filing date: 2006-01-20
Publication date: 2006-07-26
Also published as: US20060174406A1; TWM271497U; GB0601194D0

Abstract

A collapsible frame for a playpen includes a control device (6) pivotally connected between a first lower frame assembly (41) and a second lower frame assembly (42). The control device (6) includes a joint (62) joining two sleeves (621, Fig.2). Each sleeve preferably has a locking groove, (625, Fig.2) and the locking grooves are aligned when the frame is in a deployed state. A positioner (622, Fig.2) is placed within the locking grooves and a spring (624, Fig.2) on one side of the positioner maintains the positioner in place engaging both sleeves so that the frame cannot be collapsed. A push button (623, Fig.3) is on one of the sleeves and is also on the other side of the positioner. By pushing the button, the positioner is pushed axially into one of the locking grooves enabling the sleeves to be rotated relative to each other so that the frame collapses. This arrangement precisely and accurately permits manipulation of the first and second lower frame assemblies (41,42) of the collapsible frame between a deployed state and a folded state.

Description

COLLAPSIBLE FRAME FOR A PLAYPEN

1] The present invention relates to a collapsible frame for a playpen, in particular to a collapsible frame which is pivotally connected, and in which the frame is forced into a deployed or a folded state by a joint.

2] A playpen provides a roomy accommodation for comforting a baby placed inside the playpen. Nevertheless, the roomy accommodation takes up much space for storage. In order to overcome this problem, the current design uses a foldable frame for a playpen.

3] The configuration of the collapsible base frame for a playpen basically consists of four panels and a base. As the playpen is collapsed, rails of the panels are folded by a joint and closed up to posts of the playpen. This well developed technology is described in US-A-4,811,437 and US-A-5,697,111.

Also, in order to fold the entire frame of the playpen, a lower frame assembly is provided with a foldable structure, whereby the entire frame is foldably controlled by the lower frame assembly which is in either a locked or a released condition.

For example, the U.S Publication No. 2003/0061657A1 includes a base which is connected to lower supporting rods; the lower supporting rods being relatively confined by a pair of locking members to be fixed in an erected state. The pair of locking members are linked respectively to a piece of cord, and the locking members can be pulled by a band all at the same time, thereby releasing the supporting rods so that they can be folded.

4] However, in the structure mentioned above, the pair of locking members are moved by pulling a band which is linked to a cord. The supporting rod is released by pulling the pair of locking members via the cord. The pair of locking members should be pulled at the same time through a band in a straight upward direction, or only one locking member can be released since the user pulls the band at a slanting angle. The supporting rods are not released completely if only one locking member is moved and this leads to the disadvantage of failing to fold properly [0005] The present invention is directed to a collapsible frame for a playpen that substantially obviates the problems of the related art due to the inconvenience of using a band or a handle to simultaneously pull a pair of detached locking members, or the disadvantage of incompletely folding by releasing only one locking member since the user pulls the band at a slanting angle.

6] The present invention provides an improved lower frame assembly which can be folded accordingly, wherein the lower frame assembly has a control device disposed between first and second lower frame assemblies; the control device including a joint, whereby a push-button can manipulate the first and second lower frame assemblies to selectively be in a deployed or folded state in order to achieve the goal of being unfolded and collapsed completely.

7] It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the invention, as claimed.

8] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate an embodiment of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

9] FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a collapsible frame of a playpen according to one embodiment of the invention.

0] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of a joint of the playpen.

1] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view showing the joint in a deployed or an erected state.

2] FIG 4 is a cross-sectional view showing the joint in a folded state.

3] FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing the playpen being converted to a collapsed state.

4] FIG. 6 is a schematic view showing the playpen in a collapsed state.

5] Referring to FIG. 1, there is shown a collapsible frame for a playpen according to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, wherein the playpen includes an upper frame assembly 3 and a lower frame assembly 4.

6] The upper frame assembly 3 consists of four upper corner housings 31 and a pair of upper rail assemblies 32, wherein the upper corner housings 31 are respectively arranged at four corners of the playpen (for a triangular playpen there would be three corners) and are pivoted to the upper rail assemblies 32, respectively. The upper rail assemblies consists of a pair of rails 321 and a lock assembly 322, whereby the lock assembly 322 aligns the rails 321 when the collapsible frame is in an unfolded state (as shown in FIG.1) and causes the pair of rails 321 to form a V-shape when the collapsible frame is in a folded state.

7] The lower frame assembly 4 includes a first lower frame assembly 41 and a second lower frame assembly 42, wherein the first and second lower frame assemblies 41 and 42 are provided with a pair of lower corner bases 43 which are below a respective pair of said upper corner housings 31. An upright post 5 is connected between each upper corner housing 31 and its aligned lower corner base 43.

8] The first lower frame assembly 41 is connected to a lower end of the upright post 5 on one side of the playpen. In accordance with the present invention, the first lower frame assembly 41 includes a pair of connecting rods 411 and a connecting base 412, wherein one end of each of the pair of connecting rods 411 are pivotally coupled to a respective said lower corner base 43, and the other ends of the pair of connecting rods 411 are pivotally coupled together at the connecting base 412, so that the lower frame assembly 41 has a generally V-shaped configuration. As shown in this invention, a first supporting rod 413 is additionally pivotally coupled to said other end of the connecting rod 411 and supports the playpen over the ground.

9] The second lower frame assembly 42 is connected to a lower end of the upright post 5 on the other side of the playpen. According to this invention, the second lower frame assembly 42 has the same configuration of the first lower frame assembly, and includes a pair of connecting rods 421 and a connecting base 422, wherein one end of each of the pair of connecting rod 421 are pivotally coupled to a respective said lower corner base 43, and the other ends of the pair of connecting rods 421 are pivotally coupled together at the connecting base 422 so that the second lower frame assembly has a generally V-shaped configuration As shown in this invention, a first supporting rod 423 is additionally connected to said other end of the connecting rod 421.

0] Referring now to FIG. 2, 3 and 4, a control device 6 is pivotally connected between the first and second lower frame assembly 41,42. The collapsible frame includes a pair of connecting rods 61, a joint 62 and a pair of second supporting rods 63. One connecting rod 61 is coupled to, and between, the first lower frame assembly 41 and the joint 62, and the other connecting rod 61 is coupled to, and between, the second lower frame assembly 42 and the joint 62.

1] The joint 62 consists of a positioner 622, a push-button 623, a spring 624 and a pair of sleeves 621 which are pivotally connected to one another and rotatable relative to the positioner 622, push-button 623 and spring 624.

According to the preferred embodiment of this invention, the positioner is a tooth block. Each of the pair of sleeves 621 has a locking groove 625 for accommodating the positioner 622, and the positioner 622 is movable inside the locking grooves 625 As shown in FIG.3, the spring 624 is arranged on one side of the positioner 622 In the normal state, the spring 624 maintains the positioner 622 between the locking grooves 625 of the pair of sleeves 621, and prevents the sleeves 621 from being folded by rotation. The push-button 623 is arranged on one of the sleeves 621 and on the other side of the positioner 622 to the spring 624. The user is able to press the push-button 623 and force the positioner 622 to move into the locking groove 625 of the other sleeve 621, so that the sleeves are able to rotate as shown in FIG.4 so that the frame enters a collapsible state.

2] As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 5, when the collapsible or foldable frame 2 is fully extended, the positioner 622 of the joint 62 on the lower frame assembly 4 is located inside the locking grooves 625 of the pair of sleeves 621. As the entire collapsible base frame 6 is in a fixed state, the foldable frame 2 is also fixedly deployed. When the user requires the foldable frame 2 to be folded, the push-button 623 is pushed in order to push the positioner 622 into the locking groove 625 of the other sleeve 621. As the joint 62 is being folded by rotation, the first and second lower frame assemblies 41,42 are rotated as they are interlinked so that the lower frame assembly 4 is able to fold upwardly as shown as FIG. 6.

3] A floor member and a flexible cover may be combined with the collapsible frame to form a complete playpen.

4] While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of a preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. On the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope of the appended claims therefore should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures.

Claims

Claims: 1. A collapsible frame for a playpen that is convertible between a

deployed and a collapsed configuration, comprising frame parts; a first lower frame assembly pivotally coupled to a lower end of at least one said frame part on one side of the collapsible frame; a second lower frame assembly pivotally coupled to a lower end of at least one said frame part on another side of the collapsible frame; and a control device pivotally connected between the first lower frame assembly and the second lower frame assembly, including a joint, wherein the joint comprises a pair of sleeves, a positioner, a push-button and a spring; the positioner being arranged to be maintained by the spring between the pair of sleeves to keep the collapsible frame in the deployed configuration; and the pushbutton is arranged to be pushed to force the positioner to enter one side of the pair of sleeves, allowing the first lower frame assembly and second lower frame assembly to be folded so that the collapsible frame is converted to the collapsed configuration
2. The collapsible frame according to claim 1, including a foldable upper frame assembly and an upright post, the upright post being connected between the upper frame assembly and the lower frame assembly.
3. The collapsible frame according to claim I or 2, including a pair of connecting rods, each of which is connected between the joint, and one of the lower frame assemblies.
4. The collapsible frame according to claim I or 2, wherein the first and second lower frame assemblies each include a pair of connecting rods and a connecting base, first ends of the pair of the connecting rods being pivotally connected to at least one said frame part on one side of the collapsible frame, and opposite ends thereof being pivotally coupled to the connecting base.
5. The collapsible frame according to any preceding claim, wherein the first and the second lower frame assemblies are each pivotally connected to a respective supporting rod.
6. The collapsible frame according to any preceding claim, wherein each of the pair of sleeves include a locking groove for accommodating the positioner, the positioner being kept in a position between the pair of sleeves and biased by the spring to inhibit the sleeves from rotation relative to each other when the collapsible frame is in the deployed configuration, thereby keeping the collapsible frame including the lower frame assembly in the deployed configuration.
7. The collapsible frame according to claim 6, wherein the push-button is positioned on the other side of the positioner to the spring, and the positioner is arranged to be pushed by the push-button to enter one said locking groove, enabling the pair of sleeves to be rotatable relative to each other, thereby allowing conversion of the entire collapsible frame including the lower frame assemblies to a collapsed configuration by folding.
8. A collapsible frame for a playpen constructed substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.