GB2491552A

GB2491552A - Multi-purpose apparatus

Info

Publication number: GB2491552A
Application number: GB1103316.4A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Phillip Pain; Andrew Pain; Michael Pain; Robert Pain
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-02-28
Filing date: 2011-02-28
Publication date: 2012-12-12
Anticipated expiration: 2031-02-28
Also published as: GB2491552B; GB201103316D0

Abstract

The apparatus comprises a backrest 12, a seat 14 connected to the backrest via an axis around which the seat can move relative to the backrest, a rear wheel assembly 18 connected to the backrest via an axis around which the rear wheel assembly can move relative to the backrest, and a front wheel assembly 20 connected to the seat via an axis around which the front wheel assembly can move relative to the seat. The backrest 12 includes an opening 40 to receive the rear wheel assembly 18, and the seat 14 includes an opening to receive the front wheel assembly 20. The apparatus can be in a stroller configuration with the backrest 12 and seat 14 normal to each other, a bed configuration with the seat extended parallel to the backrest or a compact carrying configuration with the seat folded against the backrest with the wheel assemblies 18, 20 folded into the seat and backrest, e.g. as aircraft cabin luggage, the backrest having a cavity closed by a cover. Brackets are connected to the backrest 12 via an axis around which each can move and are connectible to the rear wheel assembly 18. A sunshade and parasol can be provided.

Description

DESCRIPTION

MULTI-PURPOSE APPARATUS

This invention relates to a multi-purpose apparatus. In a preferred embodiment, the apparatus is a car safety seat, pushchair, bed and beach sunshade all packaged into a small, lightweight suitcase.

It is common to push small children in a pushchair (also called a stroller). It is also common (and required by law in many territories) to carry small children in motor vehicles in a specially designed child safety seat. There have been a number of design attempts to combine these functions to a degree. Typically, such systems have a large, heavy trolley as their base.

These trolleys are standalone items and are usually manufactured from steel is tube. The other part of these systems is a child safety seat that can be secured to the trolley to make it into a pushchair or fitted inside a car to act as a child safety seat. If the seat is being used in the car, the unused wheeled trolley has to be stowed in the car and transported to the journeys end, thereby taking up precious luggage space.

It is therefore an object of the invention to improve upon the known art.

According to the present invention, there is provided a multi-purpose apparatus comprising a backrest, a seat connected to the backrest via an axis around which the seat can move relative to the backrest, a rear wheel assembly connected to the backrest via an axis around which the rear wheel assembly can move relative to the backrest, and a front wheel assembly connected to the seat via an axis around which the front wheel assembly can move relative to the seat, wherein the backrest includes an opening to receive the rear wheel assembly, and the seat includes an opening to receive the front wheel assembly.

Owing to the invention, it is possible to provide an apparatus that is a multi-purpose piece of equipment designed to make life easier for parents and more comfortable and safer for toddlers. It is a car safety seat, pushchair, bed and beach sunshade all packaged into a small, lightweight suitcase.

The apparatus includes a seat and the backrest is designed to hinge relative to the seat swab and this enables the apparatus to be transformed from a seat to a bed or a suitcase depending on the function that it is desired to be performing. The vertical sides of the seat swab and the backrest have been designed as load bearing pods and are used to house the pushchair wheels and their supporting frames. This means that there is no longer a need to have a large separate trolley because the wheels are housed inside the pods when not in use. By having the seat swab and backrest hinged and stowing the wheels into the side pods it is possible to fold the unit into a very compact space envelope. A fully functioning apparatus can be provided that results in a complete package small enough to be classed as walk on hand luggage for 95% of airlines, thereby making it a lot easier for parents to carry is all of the equipment needed for their child, for example when going on holiday.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a perspective view from above of the apparatus, Figure 2 is a perspective view from above of the apparatus in a different arrangement, Figure 3 is a perspective view from above of the apparatus in a further arrangement, Figure 4 is a perspective view from above of the apparatus of Figure 3, with the addition of a sunshade, Figure 5 is a perspective view from above of the apparatus in a yet further arrangement, Figure 6 is a perspective view from below of the apparatus, Figure 7 is a perspective rear view of the apparatus, and Figure 8 is a perspective view from above of a partial cut-away of the apparatus.

Figure 1 shows the multi-purpose apparatus 10, which comprises a backrest 12 and a seat 14 connected to the backrest 12 via an axis A around which the seat 14 can move relative to the backrest 12. The backrest 12 and seat 14 are connected by two separate hinges 16 that lie on the axis A and allow the seat 14 to be folded into various different positions relative to the backrest 12. The seat 14 can be releasably lockable in a plurality of different positions relative to the backrest 12. The user of the apparatus 10 can easily change the position of the seat 14 depending upon the current desired use to which the apparatus 10 will be put.

If the apparatus 10 is to be used as a pushchair or stroller for a child then the apparatus can be adjusted into the arrangement shown in Figure 2.

The apparatus 10 further comprises a rear wheel assembly 18 connected to the backrest 12 via an axis around which the rear wheel assembly 18 can move relative to the backrest 12, and a front wheel assembly 20 connected to is the seat 14 via an axis around which the front wheel assembly 20 can move relative to the seat 14. These two assemblies can be folded out from the apparatus 10 as the backrest 12 includes an opening to receive the rear wheel assembly 18 and the seat 14 includes an opening to receive the front wheel assembly 20.

A user can move the front and rear wheel assemblies into position so that the apparatus 10 can be converted from a car safety seat into a pushchair. The apparatus also further comprises a retractable handle 22 connected to the backrest 12 where the backrest 12 includes an opening to receive the retracted handle 22. The user can pull the handle 22 into position and can then use the apparatus 10 as a pushchair. The reverse process can be used to convert the apparatus 10 back from a pushchair to a car safety seat. The front and rear wheel assemblies can be stowed back inside their respective components and the handle 22 can be pushed down.

The seat 14 of the apparatus 10 can be releasably lockable in a plurality of different positions relative to the backrest 12. The user of the apparatus 10 can change the position of the seat 14 depending upon the current desired use of the apparatus 10. Figure 2 shows the seat 14 in a position approximately perpendicular to the backrest 12 and Figure 3 shows the seat 14 in a position parallel to and extending away from the backrest 12. This shows the apparatus in a bed position, whereby the apparatus 10 can be used by a child in a sleeping position.

The position of the front wheel assembly 20 has also been adjusted to be parallel to the seat 14 and backrest 12. The front wheel assembly 20 is releasably lockable in a plurality of different positions relative to the seat 14.

For example, the front wheel assembly 20 is releasably lockable in a first position approximately perpendicular to the seat 14 (Figure 2) and a second position parallel to and extending away from the seat 14 (Figure 3). The front wheel assembly 20 also includes a footrest 24 connected to the front wheel assembly 20 via an axis around which the footrest can move relative to the front wheel assembly 20.

A further configuration of the apparatus 10 is shown in Figure 4. Here is the apparatus is arranged as in the "bed" position of Figure 3, but the apparatus 10 further comprises a sunshade 26 releasably connectable to the backrest 12, seat 14 and front wheel assembly 20. This sun shade 26 is supported by three U-frames 28 that are positioned at either end and in the middle of the sunshade 26. The sunshade 26 can be provided with windows 30 made of lightweight gauze material that allow the passage of air through to the interior of the sunshade 26. The apparatus 10 can also be provided with a parasol 32 that can be used in this configuration or when the apparatus 10 is being used as a pushchair.

As mentioned above, the seat 14 is releasably lockable in a first position parallel to and adjacent the backrest 12, a second position approximately perpendicular to the backrest 12 and a third position parallel to and extending away from the backrest 12. The first position is shown in Figure 5, which shows the apparatus 10 reduced to its smallest possible size, effectively folding the apparatus 10 into the size of small suitcase, suitable for carrying as hand luggage on an airplane. The backrest 12 includes a cavity 34 accessible via an openable lid 36. The cavity 34 can be used to store any suitable goods, such as the sunshade 26 and the U-frames 28. This means that all of the possible configurations of the apparatus 10 can be supported without the need for any additional storage of any components.

An underside view of the apparatus 10 is shown in Figure 6. The configuration of the apparatus 10 is similar to that shown in Figure 5, but with the handle 22 slightly extended. This shows how the apparatus 10 might be pulled along by a user, in a similar fashion to small suitcases that are provided with wheels at one bottom edge of the suitcase. The seat 14 is folded right back to be parallel and in contact with the backrest 12. The front wheel assembly 20 can be seen folded up into the seat 14 where it is positioned in an opening 38 within the seat 14.

Figure 7 shows a further view of the apparatus 10 when in the stroller configuration. The backrest 12 is provided with an opening 40 which is to stow the rear wheel assembly 18, when that is folded away. The apparatus 10 also further comprising a pair of brackets 42 that are connected to the backrest 12 is via an axis around which each bracket 42 can move relative to the backrest 12. Each bracket 42 is suitable for connecting to the rear wheel assembly 18.

Each bracket 42 is connected to the backrest 12 at a point close to a connection of the seat 14 to the backrest 12. The brackets 42 have a dual purpose, as they can be used to connect the apparatus 10 to a vehicle when the apparatus 10 is in the safety seat configuration of Figure 1.

Figure 8 shows more detail of the folding away of the front wheel assembly 20 and the rear wheel assembly 18 within the apparatus 10. The backrest 12 and the seat 14 have been partially cut away to show how the wheel assemblies are stowed within the apparatus 10 after they have been folded from the pushchair configuration to the safety seat configuration. The bracket 42 can also be seen in this Figure. The apparatus provides a compact, lightweight and versatile solution to the problem of providing a pushchair that can also function as a car safety seat, without the need to store any additional components elsewhere away from the apparatus 10.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A multi-purpose apparatus comprising: o a backrest, o a seat connected to the backrest via an axis around which the seat can move relative to the backrest, o a rear wheel assembly connected to the backrest via an axis around which the rear wheel assembly can move relative to the backrest, and o a front wheel assembly connected to the seat via an axis around which the front wheel assembly can move relative to the seat, wherein: § the backrest includes an opening to receive the rear wheel assembly, and § the seat includes an opening to receive the front wheel assembly.
2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the seat is releasably lockable in a plurality of different positions relative to the backrest.
3. Apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the seat is releasably lockable in a first position parallel to and adjacent the backrest, a second position approximately perpendicular to the backrest and a third position parallel to and extending away from the backrest.
4. Apparatus according to claim 1, 2 or 3, and further comprising a pair of brackets connected to the backrest via an axis around which each bracket can move relative to the backrest and suitable for connecting to the rear wheel assembly.
5. Apparatus according to claim 4, wherein each bracket is connected to the backrest at a point close to a connection of the seat to the backrest.
6. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a retractable handle connected to the backrest and wherein the backrest includes an opening to receive the retracted handle.
7. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the front wheel assembly is releasably lockable in a plurality of different positions relative to the seat.
8. Apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the front wheel assembly is releasably lockable in a first position approximately perpendicular is to the seat and a second position parallel to and extending away from the seat.
9. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the front wheel assembly includes a footrest connected to the front wheel assembly via an axis around which the footrest can move relative to the front wheel assembly.
10. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a sunshade releasably connectable to the backrest, seat and front wheel assembly.
11. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the backrest includes a cavity accessible via an openable lid.
12. Apparatus as hereinbefore described, and as shown in any one of the attached Figures.