GB2438685A

GB2438685A - Folding stroller frame

Info

Publication number: GB2438685A
Application number: GB0610938A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Chuan-Ming Yeh; Youn-Fu You; Wei-Yeh Lee
Original assignee: Link Treasure Ltd
Current assignee: Link Treasure Ltd
Priority date: 2006-06-02
Filing date: 2006-06-02
Publication date: 2007-12-05
Anticipated expiration: 2026-06-02
Also published as: GB2438685B; GB0610938D0

Abstract

A folding stroller frame including a folding mechanism (2) interconnecting opposed side assemblies. The folding mechanism includes pivotally interconnected upper cross-members (21) distal ends of which are connected to the opposed sides assemblies and a corresponding pair of lower cross-members (22). A linking member (23) connects the cross-member interconnections. An actuating lever (34) has one end (341) situated adjacent a driving member (25) which is slidable on the linking member (23) and an opposite end displaceable by means of a connecting element (32) connected to an actuator (31). Intermediate parts of the actuating lever (34) and one of the cross-members (21) are connected by a connecting pivot (20). An arresting member (35) is spring biased against the actuator (31) to prevent inadvertent collapsing of the frame.

Description

FOLDING STROLLER FRAME

[00011 The present invention relates to a structure for a so-called umbrella-fold stroller, wherein a structure is provided to allow a user to release the stroller with a single hand for folding. The structure is conveniently operable as well as being labour saving for the user when the stroller is folded into a collapsed position for storing.

[00021 Strollers are designed for transporting babies.

Conventional strollers have a foldable structure so as to reduce their over all size when carried or stored.

[0003] Conventional foldable strollers 90 for example, as shown in Fig 1, have various types and forms and are divided into so-called transport strollers and so-called umbrella-fold strollers according to their collapsing mechanism.

Umbrella-fold strollers employ a frame utilising a pair of lower cross tubes 92 and a folding mechanism 93 so as to allow folding of the two sides of the frame 90 in a manner similar to an umbrella. The main purpose is to reduce the size of the stroller when carried or stored. When a conventional umbrella-fold stroller frame is folded, the folding mechanism 93 disposed at the bottom of the back of the frame is utilised so as to control the folding of the frame of the stroller.

[0004] The conventional folding mechanism 93 includes a pair of upper cross members 94, a pair of lower cross members 95, a vertical strut 96, a pair of bracing members 97, a driving member 98 and an actuation projection 99. When the frame 90 is folded, the folding mechanism 93 is folded by lifting the projection 99 using a top surface of a user's shoe. The strut 96 causes the upper and lower cross-members 94, 95 to fold simultaneously into inverted V shapes as a result of the driving member 98 pushing the upper pair of cross-members 97 upwardly. As a result, the two sides of the frame 90 move inwardly towards each other. Then, the user pushes a handlebar 91 of the stroller so as to complete the folding of the frame 90. When the user deploys the frame 90, the user steps on the projection 99 so that the cross-members and bracing members 94, 95 and 97 are opened up in an opposite manner to that described above so that the frame adopts its deployed configuration. With such a mechanism, the folding process is very inconvenient and the upper of the user's shoe may be damaged during the process.

[0005] The main object of the present invention is to overcome the inconvenience of folding a conventional folding stroller using ones foot and the problem of damaging ones shoes. The present invention provides a folding mechanism with an actuating lever and an actuator. A connecting element connects the actuator to the actuating lever wherein the actuator can be pulled to move the actuating lever by means of the connecting element, thereby forcing the folding mechanism to fold so that two sides of the frame are moved inwardly so as to come close to each other. Thus, a user can release the folding mechanism with one hand only.

[0006] In addition, the present invention provides an elastic or resilient element which assists the folding of the frame such that the user can easily and effortlessly push the handle bar forwards to fold the frame.

[0007] Moreover, the present invention provides an arresting member which can slidably move on the frame. The actuator is rotatable only after the arresting member has been released so that unintentional folding of the frame by the user can be avoided.

[00081 Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0009] One embodiment of the present invention has been illustrated in the drawings, but it should be pointed out that numerous modifications and variations can be made thereto, by those skilled in the art, without departing from the scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.

[0010] Fig 1 is a schematic rear view of a prior art umbrella-fold stroller frame in a deployed configuration; [00111 Fig 2 is a perspective rear view of a stroller frame according to the present invention; [0012] Fig 3 is a perspective side view of the frame of Fig 2; [0013] Fig 4 is a schematic rear view of the frame of Fig 2; [0014] Fig 5 is a schematic rear view of the frame of Fig 2 showing the first stage of the folding process; and [0015] Fig 6 is a schematic rear view of the folding mechanism of the frame of Figure 2 after it has been fully folded.

[00161 Referring to Figs 2 and 3, the present invention provides a single hand folding structure for an umbrella-fold stroller so as to allow a user to fold a frame of the stroller with a single hand, without using a foot to release the frame. The frame 1 may be deployed for use and folded for storage. The frame 1 includes front and rear leg tubes 11, 12 connected to each other, a joint mechanism 13, a pair of handle bars 14, a pair of seat tubes 15, a folding mechanism 2 and a pair of lower cross tubes 18. The lower cross tubes 18 and the folding mechanism 2 are pivotally coupled at a lower frame region between two sides of the frame for supporting the frame 1 of the umbrella-fold stroller. When the frame 1 is collapsed, the left and right sides of the frame are folded.

[0017] Referring to Figs 4 and 5, the folding mechanism 2 is pivotally connected between the rear leg tubes 12 of the frame 1. The folding mechanism 2 includes two pairs of upper and lower cross-members 21, 22 which may be made of steel, a linking member 23 which may be in the form of a conduit, a pair of bracing members 24, a driving member 25 and a prolecting member 26 pivotally interconnected. By means of the folding mechanism 2, reconfiguration between the deployed configuration and the folded configuration can be controlled.

[0018] The single hand release structure in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention includes an actuator 31, a connecting element 32, an actuation sleeve 33, an actuation lever 34 and a return spring 4 (see Fig 3). The actuator 31 is hand pullable and can be slidably or rotatably moveable on the handle bar 14 of the frame 1 or can be arranged, according to the height of the user or the frame, in an alternative location such as at an upper end of one of the rear leg tubes 12 or between one handle bar 14 and the associated rear leg tube 12 so as to be within arm's reach and facilitate easy operation [0019] In this embodiment, the connecting element 32 is a flexible wire having one end connected to the actuator 31.

The other end of the wire in connected to the actuating sleeve 33 which is capable of sliding on the rear leg tube 12. In addition, as shown in Figs 4 and 5, the actuating lever 34 is pivotally connected to one of the upper cross-members 21. One end of the actuating lever 34 is connected to the actuating sleeve 33 and the other end is a free end 341 and rests against the driving member 25 when the frame is deployed.

[0020] When the user pulls the actuator 31 upwards, the connecting element 32 and the actuating sleeve 33 are pulled upwards. As the end of the actuating lever 34, connected to the actuating sleeve 33, moves upwards the actuating lever 34 rotates about its free end 341 which rests on the driving member 25. The actuating lever 34 and adjacent upper cross-member 21 (obscured by the actuating lever 34 in Fig 2) are interconnected at intermediate points thereof by a connecting pivot 20. Accordingly, as the actuating lever 34 pivots upwardly about its free end 341 (see Fig 5) upward movement is transmitted to the upper cross-members 21 via the connecting pivot 20. As this occurs, the linking member 23 is drawn upwards via the connection to the upper cross-members 21. The two sides of the frame 1 are drawn close to each other as shown in Fig 6 so as to facilitate folding of the folding mechanism 2.

[0021] In addition, when the user pulls the actuator 31, the folding mechanism 2 is merely put into a foldable position, but none of the folding points on the frame of the umbrella-fold stroller frame will have moved significantly. If the user simply pushes the handle bar 14 at this time, each element of the frame cannot rotate in relation to the handle bar 14 so as to fold the frame 1.

[0022] Referring to Fig 3, an elastic element 4 is disposed between the lower cross members 22. As the frame 1 is deployed, the elastic element 4 is stretched as the two lower cross-members 22 come into alignment with each other. As such alignment occurs, folding points of the frame pass so-called deadlock points. When the user releases the folding mechanism 2 as described above, the folding points pass back throughout the deadlock points and folding of the frame, including movement of the two sides of the frame 1 towards each other, is effected automatically by means of contraction or return elasticity of the elastic element 4. Therefore, the user can fold the stroller by a single hand action that is simple and largely effortless.

[00231 Further, in order to avoid inadvertent folding by the user by accidentally pulling the actuator 31, the present invention provides an arresting member 35 which is disposed slidably above the actuator 31. The arresting member 35 stops the rotation or movement of the actuator 31 when it is positioned closely against the actuator 31. The actuator 31 can be moved only when the arresting member 35 has been moved away from the actuator 31. The arresting member 35 is retained above and against the actuator 31 by the elasticity of a spring (not show). Therefore, as a safety provision, the user can never displace the actuator 31 unintentionally.

[0024] In an alternative embodiment, the elastic element 4 can be replaced by a torsion spring. By disposing the torsion spring device at the connecting point between the rear leg tube 12 and the seat tube 15, the return torsion can be utilised to release a locking device. Then, the rear leg tubes 12 and the seat tubes 15 can rotate to adopt a partially folded configuration of the frame 1. Subsequently, the user can push the handle bar 14 directly so as to complete folding of the frame of the stroller.

[00251 The above-mentioned preferred embodiments of the present invention are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. Modifications and changes may be made in p 7 -various embodiments of the present invention without departing from the scope of the present invention. The scope of the present invention is limited only by the language of the following claims.

Claims

Claims 1. A folding stroller frame comprising: right and left side

assemblies, with a folding mechanism disposed between the right and left side assemblies to control folding and unfolding of the frame between a deployed configuration and a collapsed configuration for storage; a hand releasing device for said folding mechanism which includes an actuator and an actuating lever, with the actuator located on the frame and the actuating lever pivotally connected to the folding mechanism, the actuator being connected to the actuating lever by a connecting element so as to displace the actuating lever to initiate collapsing of the frame; and an arresting member slidably disposed on the frame above the actuator that stops rotation of the actuator when the arresting member is retained above and against the actuator, the frame being arranged so that it can be folded into its collapsed configuration with one hand.

2. The frame of claim 1 wherein the folding mechanism includes an upper pair of pivotally interconnected cross-members and a lower pair of pivotally interconnected cross-members, distal ends of the cross-members being pivotally connected to a back side of the frame, the pivotal interconnections of the upper and lower cross-members being connected by a linking member along which a driving member is slidable, one end of the actuating lever being connected to the connecting element and the other end being positional adjacent the driving member, intermediate parts of the actuating lever and one of the cross-members being connected by a connecting pivot 3. The frame of claim 1 or 2 wherein one end of the connecting element is connected to the actuator and the other end thereof is connected to an actuating sleeve which is slidably mounted on the frame and has one end of the actuating lever pivotally connected thereto.

4. The frame of any preceding claim including a resilient means arranged to urge the frame towards its collapsed configuration.

5. The frame of claims 2 and 4 wherein the resilient means interconnects the cross-members of one of the pairs of cross-members.

6. The frame of claim 5 wherein the resilient means comprises a tension spring which is extended when the frame is in its deployed configuration.

7. The frame of claim 1 including a pair of pivotally interconnected cross-members, distal ends of the cross members being pivotally connected to opposite sides of a back of the frame, intermediate parts of the actuating lever and one of the cross-members being connected by a connecting pivot and one end of the actuating lever being displaceable by the connecting element, thereby rotating the cross- members by means of the connecting pivot past an over-centre locked configuration to initiate collapsing of the frame.

8. The frame of any preceding claim wherein the arresting member is resiliently biased against the actuator.

9. A folding stroller frame substantially as herein described and as shown in figures 2 to 6.