Abstract:
A play yard having a foldable lower frame with a locking joint is disclosed. The locking joint includes a latch that prevents the lower frame section containing the joint from folding unless the latch is intentionally released. The latch is biased into the latch position, but can be intentionally released when the play yard is erected or partially erected to complete folding of the play yard. The latch can be released when the play yard is fully erected or partially folded.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates generally to play yards, and, more particularly, to a play yard having a lower frame with a locking joint. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Folding portable play yards have become increasingly popular in recent years. Such play yards typically include an upper frame, a lower frame and fabric sides stretched between the upper and lower frames which, together with a fabric floor stretched across the lower frame, defines an enclosure for an infant or small child. Known play yard typically have three or four sides. 
     To facilitate storage and transport of the play yard, each side of the upper and lower frames typically includes two rails joined in the middle of the side by a joint of some sort. The joints in the upper frame of these devices are designed with a releasable lock to ensure the upper frame does not inadvertently fold. The joints in the lower frame of known prior art play yards do not include a positive lock, but instead rely on gravity to prevent inadvertent folding of the lower frame. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     In accordance with an aspect of the invention, a foldable play yard is disclosed. The foldable play yard includes an upper frame. It also includes a lower frame which has at least one joint to permit folding of at least a portion of the lower frame. The play yard also includes a floor supported by the lower frame. The at least one joint of the lower frame is displaced from a center of the floor. Additionally, the play yard includes a latch cooperating with the at least one joint to releasably prevent the at least a portion of the lower frame from folding. 
     In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a locking joint is disclosed for use with a foldable play yard having an upper frame and a lower frame. The locking joint includes a first joint member defining a first opening and a second joint member defining a second opening. The first and second joint members are disposed in the lower frame and are joined for pivoting movement between a first position and a second position. The first and second openings are substantially aligned when the first and second joint members are in the first position. The locking joint also includes a latch dimensioned to mate with the first and second openings to releasably secure the first and second joint members in the first position. 
     In accordance with yet another aspect of the invention, a foldable play yard is disclosed. The foldable play yard includes a foldable upper frame; a foldable lower frame having a first rail and a second rail; and a hinge joining the first and second rails for movement between an erected position and a folded position. The hinge and the first and second rails are substantially linearly aligned to define a lower edge of the play yard when the first and second rails are in the erected position. The foldable play yard also includes a latch cooperating with the hinge to selectively secure the hinge and the first and second rails in the erected position. 
     Other features and advantages are inherent in the disclosed apparatus or will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art from the following detailed description and its accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a play yard constructed in accordance with the teachings of the instant invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a view similar to FIG. 1, but showing the play yard in the process of being collapsed. 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the play yard of FIG. 1 in the fully collapsed condition. 
     FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the play yard of FIG. 1 with some of the fabric removed for purposes of illustration. 
     FIG. 5 is a top, partially cut-away view of a locking joint of the play yard of FIG. 1 with the latch in the secured position. 
     FIG. 5A is a partial cross-sectional view of the locking joint with the latch in the latched position. 
     FIG. 5B is a view similar to FIG. 5A, but showing the latch in a released position. 
     FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5, but showing the latch in the released position. 
     FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the locking joint of FIGS. 5-6. 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the locking joint of FIGS.  5 - 7 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     A play yard  10  constructed in accordance with the teachings of the invention is shown in FIG.  1 . Although for purposes of illustration, a particular play yard is disclosed and described herein, persons of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that the teachings of the invention are not limited to any particular environment of use. On the contrary, the teachings of the invention can be employed with any play yard which would benefit from the enhanced safety it offers. Thus, for example, although the illustrated play yard is a four-sided, rectangular play yard, the teachings of the invention can be used with play yards of any size and shape (e.g., three or more sides) without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. 
     The illustrated play yard includes an upper frame  12 , a lower frame  20 , and four upright posts  30  operatively coupling the upper and lower frames  12 ,  20 . Fabric sides  32  which, in the illustrated play yard, include mesh panels, are secured to the upper and lower frames  12 ,  20  in a conventional manner. When the play yard  10  is erected, the fabric sides  32  cooperate with a fabric floor  34  to create an enclosure for an infant or small child. To further support the floor  34  when the play yard  10  is erected, the play yard  10  is further provided with a pedestal  35 . The pedestal  35  is a cylindrical or conical structure with a flat bottom. It is preferably made of molded plastic and is rigidly coupled to the bottom of the floor  34  near its center by conventional fasteners such as rivets, glue, or the like. 
     The upper frame  12  of the illustrated play yard includes four sides, namely, two long sides  14  and two short sides  16 . Each of the sides  14 ,  16  of the upper frame  12  comprises two rails  36  which are pivotably coupled by a rail joint  38 . The rail joint  38  can be constructed in many different ways without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. By way of example, not limitation, the rail joint  38  may be implemented by the rail joint disclosed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/161,132, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,250,837, which is hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference. 
     The ends of the rails  36  opposite the rail joint  38  are pivotably coupled to a plastic comer housing  40 . Each of the comer housings  40  are coupled to one of the vertical posts  30  in a conventional manner. 
     Like the upper frame  12 , the lower frame  20  of the illustrated play yard  10  includes two long sides  24  and two short sides  26 . Also like the upper frame  12 , the sides  24 ,  26  of the lower frame  20  each includes two rails  46  which are coupled by a joint  50 . The ends of the rails  46  opposite the joint  50  are pivotally coupled to a support foot  52  in a conventional manner. (In the illustrated play yard, two of the support feet  52  include rollers to facilitate moving the play yard  10 .) By manipulating the joints  38 ,  50  of the upper and lower frames  12 ,  20  a person can change the state of the play yard  10  between an erected condition such as that shown in FIG. 1 and a folded condition such as that shown in FIG.  3 . Various intermediate states of folding are also possible as shown in FIG.  2 . When the lower frame  20  is in the erected condition, the rails  46  are substantially linearly aligned with their respective joints  50 . Each set of two rails  46  and a joint  50  define a lower edge (i.e., the lower perimeter) of the play yard adjacent the play yard floor when the play yard is erected. 
     In accordance with an aspect of the invention, the play yard  10  is further provided with a latch  80  cooperating with at least one of the joints  50  of the lower frame  20  to prevent the joint  50  from inadvertently folding. Preferably, each hinge or joint  50  of the lower frame  20  includes a latch  80 . Thus, while each hinge  50  is adapted to move with its associated rails  46  between an erected position (for example, the position of FIG. 1) and a folded position (for example, the position of FIG.  2 ), the latches  80  cooperate with their respective hinges  50  to releasably secure the hinges (and, thus, the connected rails  46 ) in the erected position. 
     The preferred locking joint  50  is shown in detail in FIGS. 7 and 8. For the purposes of defining a hinge, the locking joint  50  includes a first joint member  52  and a second joint member  54 . Each joint member  52 ,  54  comprises two flanges  56 ,  58 ,  60 ,  62  and a web  64 ,  65  joining the flanges  56 ,  58  or  60 ,  62 . Each of the flanges  56 ,  58 ,  60   62  defines a bore  68  which is sized to receive a pivot pin  70 . The webs  64 ,  65  and flanges  56 ,  58 ,  60 ,  62  are constructed such that the joint members  52 ,  54  can be partially overlapped and the bores  68  aligned go that the pivot pin  70  can join the joint members  52 ,  54  as shown in FIG. 8 for pivoting motion between the erected and folded positions. The pivot pin  70  is preferably implemented by a conventional fastener such as a rivet. 
     As mentioned above, the rails  46  of the lower frame are preferably rigidly coupled to the joint  50 . As most easily seen in FIGS. 5,  6  and  7 , this rigid coupling is effected by a pair of rivets  74 . Specifically, each pair of rivets  74  penetrates a pair of flanges  56 ,  58  or  60 ,  62  of one of the joint members  52 ,  54  as well as one of the rails  46  located between the flanges  56 ,  58  or  60 ,  62 . 
     For the purpose of enhancing the structural rigidity of the joint  50 , the joint  50  is further provided with a spacer  72 . As shown in FIG. 7, the spacer  72  is preferably implemented by a rigid cylindrical body having a central bore that is sized to receive the pivot pin  70 . The cylindrical spacer  72  has a length that permits it to fit between the two innermost flanges  56 ,  60  of the overlapping joint member  52 ,  54 . The spacer  72  functions to prevent the joint members  52 ,  54  from collapsing or deforming when subjected to a horizontal load (e.g., when kicked or otherwise struck from the side). 
     In order to define the erected position of the joint  50  by limiting relative pivoting movement of the joint members  52 ,  54  relative to one another, the flange  60  of the joint member  54  is provided with a lock protrusion  73 . As most easily seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, the lock protrusion  73  is located to engage the flange  58  of the opposite joint member  52  when the joint  50  is in the erected position. The abutment of the lock protrusion  73  and the flange  58  provides a support structure that ensures the load on top of the joint  50  is not carried by the latch  80 . 
     In order to releasably secure the joint members  52 ,  54  in the erected position, the joint members  52 ,  54  are provided with openings  78 ,  79  and the joint  50  is further provided with the latch  80  mentioned above. More specifically, each joint member  52 ,  54  has a flange  58 ,  60  which defines a through-hole or opening  78 ,  79 . The openings  78 ,  79  are positioned in their respective flanges  58 ,  60  such that, when the joint members  52 ,  54  are in their erected position, the openings  78 ,  79  are substantially aligned. In any other position of the joint members  52 ,  54 , the openings  78 ,  79  are not aligned and at least a portion of the flange  60  is positioned behind the opening  78  of the joint member  52  to thereby prevent the latch  80  from entering the opening  79 . 
     The latch  80  and the openings  78 ,  79  are sized to cooperate when the joint members  52 ,  54  are in the erected state to thereby prevent the lower frame  20  from inadvertently folding. In particular, the latch  80  includes a tab  82  which is dimensioned to mate with the openings  78 ,  79  when the joint  50  is in the erected state. When the tab  82  is simultaneously positioned in the openings  78 ,  79 , it creates an interference that prevents the joint members  52 ,  54  from pivoting relative to one another. As a result, the joint  50  is secured in the erected position and the joint  50  can only be folded by first withdrawing the tab  82  of the latch  80  from the openings  78 ,  79 . 
     To bias the latch  80  into mating engagement with the openings  78 ,  79 , the joint  50  is further provided with a spring  90 . As shown in FIG. 7, the spring  90  is preferably implemented by spring steel having a first end which is rigidly coupled to the joint member  52  by the rivets  74  and a second end which is rigidly coupled to the latch  80  by a fastener  94  such as a rivet. The spring  90  and the latch  80  are arranged such that the spring  90  biases the latch  80  into engagement with the openings  78 ,  79  when the openings  78 ,  79  are aligned. 
     For the purpose of preventing overloading and overbending of the spring  90  as well as to guide the movement of the spring  90  and the latch  80 , the joint  50  is further provided with a spring cover  96 . As shown in FIG. 7, the spring cover  96  includes a generally flat flange  9   8  and a cup portion  100 . The flange  98  is rigidly secured adjacent and against the spring  90  by the fasteners  74 . Thus, the cover  96 , like the spring  90 , is mounted to, and moves with, the joint member  52 . 
     The cup portion  100  is located at an end of the cover  96  opposite the flange  98 . The cup portion  100  includes a lower flange  102 , an upper flange  104  and a web  106  joining the upper and lower flanges  102 ,  104 . The web  106  separates the flanges  102 ,  104  by a distance sufficient to receive the spring  90  therebetween, preferably without frictional engagement between the spring  90  and the flanges  102 ,  104 . The flanges  102 ,  104  have a length selected to permit bending of the spring  90  to a degree sufficient to permit withdrawal of the tab  82  from the openings  78 ,  79 , but insufficient to overbend the spring  90  . In other words, contact between the web  104  of the cover  96  and the spring  90  limits the degree of bending to which the spring  90  can be subjected to thereby prevent damage to the spring  90 . 
     As mentioned above, the lower frame  20  preferably includes a locking joint  50  in each side of the play yard  10 . Thus, in the illustrated play yard  10 , there are four locking joints  50 . In order to selectively release the latches  80  from the openings  78 ,  79  of their respective joint members  52 ,  54  to release the joints  50  for folding, the play yard  10  is preferably provided with a plurality of straps  110 . As most easily seen in FIG. 4, the straps  110  are preferably sewn or otherwise secured to an undersurface of the center of the floor  34  adjacent and above the pedestal  35 . The opposite end of each strap  110  is coupled to a respective one of the latches  80 . 
     More specifically, as most easily seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, each latch  80  includes a flange  112 . The flange  112  defines an opening through which the strap  110  is looped. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the strap  110  is sewn or otherwise fastened upon itself to ensure the strap  110  and latch  80  remain connected. 
     To enable substantially simultaneous release of all of the latches  80  from their respective joint members  52 ,  54 , the play yard  10  is further provided with a handle  120 . As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the handle  120  is secured to the floor  34  adjacent the center thereof. Since the straps  110  are also secured to the floor  34  near the center of the floor  34 , the handle  120  and straps  110  are operatively coupled through the floor  34 . As a result, if a user lifts the handle  120  as shown in FIG. 2, the straps  110  will be pulled inwardly and upwardly. The inward movement of the straps  110  causes an inward movement of their respective latches  80 . If the movement is sufficient, the latches  80  will be pulled out of the corresponding openings  79  against the force of their respective springs  90  as shown in FIG.  6 . With the latches  80  so withdrawn, the hinge members  52 ,  54  of the lower frame  20  can be pivoted relative to one another to fold the play yard  10 . If, on the other hand, the straps  110  are released with the joint members  52 ,  54  in the erected position, the latches  80  will move back into their respective openings  79  under the influence of the springs  90  to again lock the joints  50 . The cooperation of the covers  96  and the springs  90  ensures the tabs  82  of the latches  80  remain aligned with their respective openings  78 ,  79 . 
     Persons of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate that, to release the joint  50  for pivoting motion, the latch  80  need only be moved a distance sufficient to remove the tab  82  from the opening  79  as shown in FIG.  6 . Thus, the cover  96  can be dimensioned to ensure that the tab  82  never fully exits the opening  78  to ensure the latch  80  always remains aligned with opening  78  without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. 
     Preferably, the latches  80  are structured such that they may be withdrawn from their respective openings  78 ,  79  when the play yard  10  is in the fully erected condition and when the play yard  10  is in a partially erected condition. For example, during a folding operation it may happen from time to time that one or more of the joints  50  will be locked while others are released. If this occurs, the strap(s)  110  associated with the locked joints  50  will be disposed at an upwardly inclined angle because the user will have lifted the center of the floor  34  to initiate the folding operation of the lower frame  20  (see, for example, the strap  110  shown in dotted lines in FIG.  5 B). Therefore, whereas when all of the joints  50  are locked and a folding operation is initiated, the strap  110  will be pulled inward with a large horizontal component of force (see, for example, the strap  110  shown in solid lines in FIG.  5 A), if a joint  50  remains locked while the others are folded, further force applied to the strap  110  associated in the locked joint will have a large vertical component and a small horizontal component (see, for example, the strap  110  shown in dotted lines in FIG.  5 A). Therefore, the latches  80  are preferably structured, and the springs  90  are preferably dimensioned, such that the latches  80  will release from their respective openings  79  even in the presence of a relatively small horizontal force component applied by the strap  110 . 
     Conversely, because the straps  110  are secured to an undersurface of the play yard floor  34 , when a child is positioned in the play yard a downward force will be applied to the straps  110 . As a result, the latches  80  are preferably structured, and the springs  90  are preferably dimensioned, such that the latches  80  will not release in the presence of a downward force below a threshold level. 
     More specifically, the latches  80  are preferably structured such that their flange  112  and tab  82  are disposed in different planes (see FIG.  5 A). The flange  112  and tab  82  are joined by a web  130 . As shown in FIG. 5A, the flange  112  and tab  82  are preferably disposed in substantially parallel planes and the web  130  is preferably positioned in a plane which is substantially perpendicular to both the flange  112  and the tab  82 . The springs  90  bias the webs  130  of their respective latches  80  into engagement with the flanges  58  of the joint  50 . As a result of this geometry, when a generally upward force is applied to the latch  80  (for example, by the strap  110  shown in dotted lines in FIG.  5 B), the upper front face of the web  130  forms a bearing surface against the flange  58  and the latch  80  will rotate in a clockwise direction to rotate the tab  82  out of the opening  79  (see FIG.  5 B). On the other hand, there is no bearing surface to promote counterclockwise rotation of the latch  80  when a downward force is applied to the latch  80 . 
     As shown in FIG. 7, the webs  130  of the latches  80  define bores for receiving the fasteners  94 . The web  130  is preferably located between the spring  90  and the joint member  52 . 
     Persons of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that, in the disclosed locking joint  50 , the latch  80  actually functions to block movement of the joint members  52 ,  54  in only one direction in FIG. 7, since the interaction of the flange  58  of the joint member  52  and the lock protrusion  73  of the joint member  54  prevents further downward pivoting when the openings  78 ,  79  are aligned to receive the latch  80 . As a result, although the openings  78 ,  79  are shown to be enclosed on all sides, they could be open to the top without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. Persons of ordinary skill in the art will also appreciate that the latches  80  could alternatively be used to block movement in both directions without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. 
     Although certain apparatus constructed in accordance with the teachings of the invention have been described herein, the scope of coverage of this patent is not limited thereto. On the contrary, this patent covers all embodiments of the teachings of the invention fairly falling within the scope of the appended claims either literally or under the doctrine of equivalents.