US504646A - Folding crib - Google Patents

Description

(Hommel.) A

J. G. ABBOTT 8v S. R. ROBINSON.

` FOLDING CRIB.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN G. ABBOTT AND SAMUEL R. ROBINSON, OF ANTRIM, NEW HAMPSHIRE.

FOLDING CRIB.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 504,646, dated September 5, 1893.

Application led October 8, 1892. Serial No. 443,171. (No model.)

.To aZZ whom t may concern.:

Be it known that we, JOHN G. ABBOTT and SAMUEL R. ROBINSON, of Antrim, county of Hillsborough, State of New Hampshire, have invented an Improvement in Folding Cribs, of which the following description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like parts.

Prior to this invention cribs for use of children have had head and foot boards hinged centrally to be folded, and the bed bottom has been made in two parts separated longitudinally along the longitudinal center of the bed and hinged to each side rail, each half of the bottom being composed of a quadrilateral frame covered by slats or otherwise and making a folding Slat-bottom, the inner long sides of each frame being adjacent to each other along the center of the crib when unfolded, making an unyielding center to the bed.

Our invention has for its object to improve the construction of this class of crib to make it lighter in weight, easier for a child, and less noisy, and yielding throughout the surface of the bed.

In accordance with our invention we have made the bed bottom of two like lI-shaped frames, the shorter arms of tbe frame being rigidly braced by diagonal braces extended from the one sidebar, thus leaving the central part of the bed open and unobstructed, and upon these II-shaped frames the open faces or sides of which face each other we have extended from short arm to short arm wire cloth having strong selvage wires, and we have connected the contiguous edges of the wire fabrics together, so that the wire cloth makes a suspension surface for the mattress, yielding in all its parts.

Figure l, is a plan view of a crib embodying our invention 5 and Fig. 2, is an enlarged view of a portion of the wire bottom, showing one form of device for connecting the adjacent selvage edges of the wire bottom. Fig. 3 is a perspective detail view of the supporting blocks carried by the head and foot boards, to be described.

The corner posts a, d and b, b are connected by side rails A and B in usual manner, and the inner side of each corner post is recessed substantially opposite the lower edges of the sidev rails to form a bearing for like journals c, c' and d, d at the opposite ends ot' longitudinally extended bottom bars C and I) having extensions or arms C', D', thus making two [shaped frames. The arms C', D', are fastened rigidly to the side bars substantially at right angles thereto at or near their ends and extend inwardly toward each other to the center line of the crib when the latter is unfolded, as shown in Fig. l, said arms being held in position against transverse strains by diagonal braces 3, 4, preferably mortised into both the arms and the side bars to give greater strength and rigidity to the two-part bottom frame formed thereby.

The head board is formed in two parts h, h hinged or jointed to each other at h2 and to the corner posts d', h', at g and g respectively, the hinges being so located that the two parts of the head board will fold inward and upon each other. In like manner, the parts f,f, of the foot board are hinged or jointed to each other at f2, and to the posts a, b at k, la, the parts of the foot board also folding inwardly and upon each other.

As herein shown the bed bottom is composed of two sections of woven wire fabric E, E', having selvage edges 5, 6, shown as formed of several strands of wire interwoven to make the outermost edges of the fabric. Each section is stretched over one-half of the supporting frame, and is secured thereto at the ends by cleats fm, m', attached to the outer edges of the arms C', D respectively, the fabric being bent down and over the edges of the arms and between them and the superimposed cleats.

If desired, staples or other suitable fastenings s may be inserted in the outer edges of the wire fabric to connect it to the diagonal braces, the outer longitudinal edges of the sections, however, being beyond the inner edges of the bottom bars, to thus support the bottom sections at their ends only, giving greater spring thereto.

The inner adjacent edges of the bottom sections may be connected, if desired, when the crib is in use, and we have shown herein a convenient form of fastener, see Fig. 2, it consisting of a piece of stout wire 7 bent at the ends in opposite directions to form an arm S and a hook 9, the part 7 being run through IOO several turns in the selvage of one section, the hook 9 engaging a link or mesh of the other section, the arm 8 resting against the surface of the first section, keeping the part 9 of the fasteners at substantially the same level or in proper position to engage the other section of the bottom.

lVire have shown three fasteners in Fig. l, but we desire it to be understood that more may be used, or fastenings may be dispensed with altogether, without departing from our invention. The outer edges of the arms C', D', when the crib is in use rest on suitable supports shown as notched blocks o, o', see Figs. l and 3 fastened to the inner sides of the head and foot boards, one'block being secured'to each half thereof said blocks forming rests or stops for the inner ends and under sides of the arms C', D', and their attached cleats m and m thus supportingA the ends of the bottom frame at their middle portions and also keepingthe head and foot boards fully extended, the arms'also bracing the crib to keep the frame more in place.

In the folding cribs as commonly constructed the center of the bed bottom is Vhard and unyielding, owing tothe rigid inner sides of the folding portions, and the rigid inner side is necessary in order to preserve the shapev and rigidity of the folding portion. By the use of the double L-shaped frames, however, we obviate the use of this rigid central por# tion, for the diagonal braces maintain the end arms rigidly in place relative to the attached side rails, and the bed bottom is suspended from said end arms. The center of the bed bottom is thus :made flexible instead of unyielding, and the bed is easy and yielding in all portions, a most useful and desirable result. Should the adjacent inner edges of the two bed bottom sections yield unequally the fasteners may be used to connect them', though it will frequently happen that the sections-will yield so equally that when the mattress is in place no fastenings will be necessary.

When it is desired to fold the crib the section having the fastenings is first raised, to thus remove the fastenings from engagement with the adjacent edges of the sections E', and then section E is raised, both sections being turned about its journals against the inner sides of the adjacent side rails. The head and foot boards are then turned in toward cach other by means of the hinges, as

described, the parts of said head and foot boards folding against each other and the npturned bottom frames, so that all the moving parts of the crib are inclosed by the corner posts and side rails.

Our invention is not restricted to the use of any particular woven wire fabric, but the crib has a bottom flexible and yielding along its center portions.

Having described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,

l. A folding crib having rigid side rails, and hinged head and foot boards, and supports secured to said head and foot boards, com-V bined with a two-part bottom composed of E- shaped frames, each frame being pivotally supported adjacent to one of the side rails, diagonal braces for the end arms of the frames, and an independent wire-fabric bottom-section suspended from the end arms of each frame, said arms resting on the supports when the crib is extended, substantially as described.

2. A folding crib having rigid side-rails, and hinged head and foot boards,'and supports secured to said head and foot boards, combined with a two-part bottom composed of E- shaped frames, each frame being pivotally supported adjacent to one of the side rails, diagonal braces for the end arms of the frames, an independent wire-fabric bottom-section suspended from the end arms of each frame, said arms resting on the supports when the crib is extended, and detachable fasteners to connect the adjacent free longitudinal edges of said sections, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN G. ABBOTT. SAMUEL R. ROBINSON.

lVitnesses:

Mrs. J. E. YENNEY, IDA M. DODGE.

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