Snap fastener brace for child's car bed and the like

Oct. 10, 1961 s. linden 3,003,163

SNAP FASTENER BRACE FOR CHILD’S CAR BED AND THE LIKE

Filed March 4, 1959

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INVENTOR.

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Arr-vs

United States Patent Office

3,003,163

Patented Oct. 10, 1961

3,003,163 SNAP FASTENER BRACE FOR CHILD’S CAR BED AND THE LIKE

Samuel Linden, Swampscott, Mass., assignor to Bunny Bear Inc., Everett, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts

Filed Mar. 4, 1959, Ser. No. 797,096 1 Claim. (Cl. 5—315)

This invention relates to improved braces for articulated parts and especially to parts of children’s car beds, bassinets and/or seats which are collapsible and have to be set up with bracing for use, it being understood however that the invention may be employed equally as well in other structures where there are articulated parts which must be held distended at a given angle with reference to each other for use.

Objects of the invention are to provide a brace for 1, collapsible or foldable structures having parts jointed, which can be quickly and easily set between the parts across the joint to hold them distended; to provide a detachable brace which is less likely to be accidentally collapsed than the knee-type brace commonly in use; and to provide a brace which is simple, inexpensive and may be applied to conventional structures without modification of the latter.

As herein illustrated, the invention comprises a single link which is pivotally mounted at one end to a part at one side of the jointed parts, a first snap fastener member mounted on the distal end of the link and a second snap fastener member mounted on the part at the other side of the jointed parts, the second snap fastener member being adapted to snap fit with the first snap fastener member. In this manner, the single link may conveniently be connected across the pivoted or foldable joint joining two parts, when desired, for rigidly bracing the parts in a particular angular relation and yet may quickly and easily be detached to permit folding the parts.

In a more specific aspect, the invention includes a car bed or bassinet having a frame and foldable legs pivotally mounted thereon. A link is pivotally mounted at one end on each leg and at its opposite end mounts a first snap fastener member. A second snap fastener member is mounted on the frame adjacent each leg, and is adapted to snap fit with the respective first snap fastener member on each link. Thereby each link can be connected between a leg and the frame for bracing the leg in downwardly extending operative position, or, when desired, the links can be detached from the frame at one end for permitting folding of the leg. Alternatively, the braces may be pivotally mounted at one end on the frame and the snap fastener members may be mounted respectively at the other ends of the braces and on the legs, there being of course four such braces and four pairs of ' snap fasteners.

Other objects, advantages, and details of construction will appear in the following description which refers to the drawings in which ’ FIG. 1 is a side elevation view of the foldable car bed of this invention, with the legs distended;

FIG. 2 is a partial sectional view along along the line 2—2 of FIG. 1, showing the snap fastener parts engaged;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary section similar to FIG. 2 showing the snap fastener parts disengaged; and

FIG. 4 is a partial end view of the car bed.

Referring to the drawings, FIG. 1, there is shown a car bed 10 mounted between the front and back seats 12 and 14 of an automobile. The car bed includes a frame 16 which comprises a pair of rigid U-shaped members 18 and 20, disposed with their open ends adjacent and pivotally interconnected at their ends by rivets 22. An ear 24 near the end of each arm of the U-shaped member 18 overlaps the corresponding arm of the U-shaped member 20, adjacent the respective pins 22, thereby pre5 venting downward pivotal movement of the members relative to each other while permitting upward pivotal movement so that the frame may be folded when desired.

The frame is provided with a pair of foldable Ushaped leg members 26—26, which are each pivotally 10 connected at their open ends to the respective sides of the frame 16 near its opposite ends by rivets 28. The legs thus may be folded substantially parallel to the frame when not in use or for storage of the frame, or may be set up at angles to the frame for supporting 15 the latter on a flat surface. To hold the legs distended from the frame, each of the arms of the leg members 26—26 respectively, is provided with a link 30 which is pivotally connected at one end to the leg by a rivet 32. The other end of each link is provided with one com20 ponent of a snap fastener which comprises a cup-shaped button 36 (FIGS. 2 and 3), having an inturned edge 38 at its rim, and a rivet neck 40 by means of which the button is attached to the fink 30. The other component of the snap fastener comprises a cylindrical but25 ton 42 having a peripheral bead 44 and a threaded stud 46 for receiving a nut 48, by means of which the button is fastened to the frame 16 between the outside ends of the frame members 18 and 20 and the upper pivoted ends of the legs. The snap fastener components are 30 adapted to be engaged by forcing the lip 44 on the button 42 into the inturned edge 38 of the button 36 and when thus engaged, to hold the fink 30 across the leg joint for bracing the leg members in downwardly extending operative position.

In this maimer the legs 26—26 are held distended by one-piece detachable braces as distinguished from the usual knee-type braces which are prone to collapse. Since the links 30 form a triangle with portions of the legs and the frame, the legs will be rigidly braced, and 40 since the strain exerted upon the snap fastener members 36 and 42 is transverse to the direction of movement of the members necessary for separating the members from their snap fitting engagement, the fasteners will provide safe, long lasting connections.

As previously indicated, the legs 26—26 may be folded parallel to the frame 16 when the snap fastener members 36 and 42 have been separated. Separation of the snap fastener members requires that the button 36, as shown in FIG. 2, move axially relative to the button 42.

Preferably the link 30 is rectangular in transverse section, the broad side of the section being parallel to the bracing strain thereon and the short side of the section being parallel to the direction of movement necessary for separation of the buttons 36 and 42. As thus constructed, 55 the link will be rigid in bracing the legs but will readily flex to permit detachment of the brace. Preferably, the pivotal mounting of the links 30 by the rivets 32 can be loose for permitting separation of the buttons 36 and 42 without substantial flexing of the links.

The usual U-shaped suspending brackets 50—50 are pivotally mounted at either side of one end of the frame 16 for supporting the car bed from the back rest of the front seat of an automobile when the car bed is mounted between the front and back seats, as shown in FIG. 1.

It should be understood that, although a particular embodiment of the brace of this invention is here shown, this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claim. For example, although the link 30 is here shown pivotally 70 connected to a leg member, and the snap fastener components are shown mounted on the link and on the frame, the link could be pivotally connected to the frame with

3,003,163 snap fastener components being mounted on the link and on the leg. Moreover, the detachable brace provided by this invention can be readily applied to devices other than car beds such as chairs, tables, market carts and various other types of foldable or collapsible apparatus wherein it is desirable to brace pivoted members in operative position.