Abstract:
A stroller is provided which includes a chassis having first and second opposing frame elements; a seat suspended from said chassis by way of first and second support elements, wherein said seat includes upper and lower portions and is adapted to accommodate a child such that the back of the child rests against the upper portion and such that the legs of the child rest against the lower portion, wherein said first and second support elements are rotatably attached to said first and second frame elements, and wherein said first support element extends under said lower portion of said seat; and a motor which rotates said first support element.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    This application claims priority U.S. Ser. No. 61/659,275 (Mills), entitled “Infant Stroller and Swing Combination”, which was filed on Jun. 13, 2012, and which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0002]    The present disclosure relates generally to infant strollers, and more particularly to infant strollers that are also adapted to function as a swing. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE 
       [0003]    Baby carriages or strollers are well known and have a long history in modern society. Indeed, the first stroller was invented in 1733 by the English architect William Kent for use by the children of the 3 rd  Duke of Devonshire. Over the years, various improvements have been made to these devices. Many of these improvements have been concerned with making these devices more functional, durable, lighter, easier to manufacture, or easier to transport. 
         [0004]    U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,654 (Willis) discloses an example of a more recent stroller. The device depicted therein is a car seat/stroller assembly with a frame that pivotally accepts an infant car seat. Once the car seat is positioned in the frame, it can rock freely in a back-and-forth motion. Other examples or strollers which have a similar functionality may be found in U.S. Pat. No. 706,448 (Pender), U.S. Pat. No. 1,480,451 (Koch), U.S. Pat. No. 1,508,500 (Bingen et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 3,564,626 (Nelson), U.S. Pat. No. 5,099,528 (Wadman), U.S. Pat. No. 5,987,665 (Simantob et al.), U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,654 (Willis), U.S. Pat. No. 7,037,205 (Bowman), U.S. Pat. No. 7,100,724 (Haigh), U.S. Pat. No. 7,497,461 (Emerson), and U.S. D156,390 (Wenpetren). 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0005]      FIGS. 1-2  are illustrations of a prior art stroller. 
           [0006]      FIGS. 3-6  are illustrations of a first embodiment of a stroller in accordance with the teachings herein. 
           [0007]      FIG. 7  is an illustration of a second embodiment of a stroller in accordance with the teachings herein. 
           [0008]      FIG. 8  is an illustration showing the manner in which the first set of support elements attaches the seat to the chassis in the first and second embodiments embodiments. 
           [0009]      FIG. 9  is an illustration showing the manner in which the second support element attaches the seat to the chassis in the first and second embodiments embodiments. 
           [0010]      FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional illustration taken along LINE  10 - 10  of  FIG. 9 . 
         SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE 
         [0011]    In one aspect, a stroller is provided which comprises (a) a chassis having first and second opposing frame elements; (b) a seat suspended from said chassis by way of first and second support elements, wherein said seat includes upper and lower portions and is adapted to accommodate a child such that the back of the child rests against the upper portion and such that the legs of the child rest against the lower portion, wherein said first and second support elements are rotatably attached to said first and second frame elements, and wherein said first support element extends under said lower portion of said seat; and (c) a motor which rotates said first support element. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0012]    While the various devices disclosed in the prior art may be suitable for their intended purposes, these devices also suffer from various infirmities. In particular, many of these devices require manual operation, and hence are not well suited to hands-free operation by the caregiver of an infant. Other devices of this type are constructed as rocker/stroller combinations whose operation depends on the surface the device is positioned on. Still others are unduly complicated and difficult or expensive to manufacture. Furthermore, some devices, such as the device depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,654 (Willis), have an axis of rotation that is at or below the body of the infant. Such a disposition of the axis of rotation produces a rocking motion, rather than a swinging motion, that may be less conducive to relaxation for some infants. 
         [0013]    It has now been found that the foregoing infirmities may be overcome with a stroller of the type disclosed herein. In a preferred embodiment, this stroller has a seat which swings about an axis of rotation which is disposed above the body of the infant, and preferably at the height of a crossbar which extends over the seat. Unlike the device of U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,654 (Willis), in which the axis of rotation is disposed at or below the body of the infant and hence produces a rocking motion, this disposition of the axis of rotation produces a swinging motion which is deemed more suitable to relaxation for some infants. It will be appreciated that this design allows the swinging motion of the seat to be decoupled from the nature of the surface the device is positioned upon. Moreover, this construction provides a stroller that provides a swinging motion and that is amenable to an uncomplicated design which may be operated easily and manufactured inexpensively. 
         [0014]      FIGS. 3-6  show a particular, non-limiting embodiment of a stroller in accordance with the teachings herein. As seen therein, the stroller  201  includes a seat  203  which includes an upper portion  205  and a lower portion  207  and which is mounted on a chassis  209  by way of first  211  and second  213  sets of support elements. 
         [0015]    The stroller  201  is equipped with a front axle  215  and a rear axle  217 . The front axle  215  terminates on a first end in a first joint  219 , and terminates on a second end in a second joint  221 . A first wheel  223  depends from the first joint  219 , and a second wheel  225  depends from the second joint  221 . In some embodiments, the first  219  and/or second  221  joints may be equipped with manually activated wheel locks or other such devices that allow the stroller to remain stationary on a sloped surface. The rear axle  217  has third  224  and fourth  226  wheels attached thereto. 
         [0016]    The chassis  209  includes first  227  and second  229  opposing, and preferably complimentary shaped, telescopic frame elements which may be fixed at a particular length by way of a set of fasteners  275 . The fasteners  275  may be spring-activated protrusions which engage a series of apertures in the length of the first  227  and second  229  frame elements, or may be threaded fasteners. The first  227  and second  229  frame elements are adjoined on a first end by way of a handle  231 , and are adjoined on a second end by the front axle  215  by way of the first  219  and second  221  joints, respectively. The chassis  209  further comprises first  233  and second  235  struts. A first end of the first strut  233  is attached to the first frame element  227 , and a second end of the first strut  233  is attached to the rear axle  217 . Similarly, a first end of the second strut  235  is attached to the second frame element  229 , and a second end of the second strut  235  is attached to the rear axle  217 . 
         [0017]    The chassis  209  also comprises first  237  and second  239  crossbars. A first end of the first crossbar  237  is attached to the first frame element  227 , and a second end of the first crossbar  237  is attached to the first strut  233 . Similarly, a first end of the second crossbar  239  is attached to the second frame element  229 , and a second end of the second crossbar  239  is attached to the second strut  235 . 
         [0018]    Each of the first support elements  211  are generally S-shaped, and include a first end which is inserted into an aperture in a hub  261  (see  FIG. 8 ) disposed on a side of the seat  203 , and a second end disposed in an aperture in a rotatable hub  241  that is driven by one of the motors  251 . The particular embodiment depicted includes first and second motors  251  which are mounted, respectively, on the first  227  and second  229  frame elements. However, in some embodiments, only a single motor  251  may be utilized to drive one of the support elements  211 . 
         [0019]    A control interface  245  which is preferably equipped with a display and keypad is provided on the outside surface of one or both motors  251 , and may be utilized to control the operation of the motor  251 . The control interface  245  may be equipped with suitable logic, in the form of software or hardware, so that it is programmable and/or capable of implementing various modes of operation. For example, the control interface  251  may be adapted to swing the seat  203  in a slow, rhythmic manner so as to induce sleep, or with gradually reducing or increasing frequency. 
         [0020]    The configuration of the second support element  213  may be further appreciated with respect to  FIGS. 9-10 . As seen therein, the second support element  213  is generally U-shaped in geometry, and has a first end which is rotatably connected to the first frame element  227 , and a second end which is rotatably connected to the second frame element  229 . These rotatable connections may be implemented by way of a ball bearing assembly, a low friction coupler, or by other suitable means. The central portion of the second support element  213  (which is obscured by fabric in the views of  FIGS. 3-5 ) is secured to the seat  203  by way of a coupler  263  which releasably engages a latch  265  attached to the underside of the seat  203 . The coupler  263  includes a platform  267  (see  FIG. 10 ) which is rotatably connected to the second support element  213  by way of a connector  269 . A hook  271  is attached to the platform  267  and releasably engages the latch  265 . Of course, it will be appreciated that various other means may be utilized to attach the second support element  213  to the seat  203 . 
         [0021]    The stroller  201  in this particular embodiment is further equipped with a tray  273 . The tray  273  is provided with a series of indentations  253  adapted to hold beverages (e.g., bottles) or other such items. The tray  273  depends from the first  227  and second  229  frame elements by way of connectors  255 . The connectors  255  are rotatably connected to the first  227  and second  229  frame elements in such a way that the tray  273  is maintained in a horizontal position by gravity independently of the orientation of the stroller  201 . 
         [0022]    The stroller of  FIGS. 3-6  is further equipped with a storage compartment  261 , which may be made out of a mesh, cloth or other suitable materials. Two corners of the storage compartment  261  are attached to the first  227  and second  229  frame elements, and two corners are attached to the first  233  and second  235  struts. 
         [0023]      FIG. 7  illustrates a second particular, non-limiting embodiment of a stroller in accordance with the teachings herein. The stroller  202  depicted is similar in most respects to the first embodiment, but has a three-wheel configuration which may be more conducive to use in conjunction with certain activities, such as jogging. The wheels on the stroller  302  in this embodiment are preferably larger in diameter than the stroller  301  of the first embodiment, and are preferably mounted via quick disconnect levers. 
         [0024]    The stroller  201  of the first embodiment and the stroller  302  of the second embodiment have numerous advantages. For example, the configurations of the first  211  and second  213  support elements allow the seat  203  to be readily removed from the chassis and reattached in the opposite orientation (e.g., facing backwards instead of forwards). 
         [0025]    Several variations and modifications are possible to the foregoing embodiments. For example, the seat  203  may be replaced with a larger (preferably non-swingable) seat that attaches to the existing chassis  209 . This feature allows the stroller to be modified to accommodate a larger child so that the stroller does not have to be replaced as the child grows. 
         [0026]    Moreover, in some embodiments, the motor  251  may be battery powered. In such embodiments, a gearing mechanism may be provided which is activated by the motion of the stroller wheels, and which recharges the batteries which power the motor  251 . This feature allows the batteries to be recharged through normal use of the stroller. 
         [0027]    The above description of the present invention is illustrative, and is not intended to be limiting. It will thus be appreciated that various additions, substitutions and modifications may be made to the above described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention should be construed in reference to the appended claims.