Abstract:
A restraining apparatus for a child consists of a frame with a back; the back of the frame has parallel back rods which can be adjusted lengthwise and a bottom foldably attached to the back by lockable hinges. The back and the bottom each have a foundation rod further comprising a stop. The apparatus also has a cover for the frame. The cover has an upper portion containing a plurality of slots, and a plurality of straps which fit removably through the slots to adjust to the height of the child to be restrained.

Description:
FIELD OF INVENTION 
     The invention herein disclosed relates to the field of child restraint, and more particularly, relates to an apparatus for restraining a child in a prefabricated seat not crafted to the size of the child to be restrained allowing the child the possibility of excess movement or even escape. 
     SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
     A new apparatus for restraining a child in a prefabricated seat is proposed. The new apparatus combines the security of a device, such as a high chair or a shopping cart seat, designed specifically to hold the intended child with the convenience of a portable child seat. Most child seats outside of the home are made to accommodate children of various sizes. Accordingly, many children can move with minimal restriction in these seats which inhibits an adult&#39;s freedom while dining, shopping, or engaging in various other activities outside of the home. 
     It is thought that an apparatus which can be attached to a prefabricated seat and adjusted to accommodate the height and weight of the child to be restrained will eliminate the problem of unrestricted child movement which inhibits adult freedom in a public setting. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the child restraining seat holding a child. 
         FIG. 2  shows a front perspective view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 3  shows a front view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 4  shows a rear perspective view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 5  shows a side view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 6  shows a side view of the adjustable frame of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 7  shows an exploded perspective view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 8  shows a sectional view of the frame back rod adjustment mechanism of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  taken along line  10 - 10 . 
         FIG. 9  shows a sectional view of an alternate embodiment of the frame back rod adjustment mechanism of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  taken along line  10 - 10 . 
         FIG. 10  shows a rear view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  with adjustment and restraining straps in place and the foundation rods and stop in an opening position. 
         FIG. 10A  shows an enlarged view of the foundation rods and stop of the child restraining seat shown in  FIG. 10   
         FIG. 11  shows a rear view of the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  with adjustment and restraining straps in place and the foundation rods and stop in a partially closed position. 
         FIG. 11A  shows an enlarged view of the foundation rods and stop of the child restraining seat shown in  FIG. 11 . 
         FIG. 12  shows the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  in a closed position. 
         FIG. 12A  shows an enlarged view of the foundation rods and stop of the child restraining seat as shown in  FIG. 12 . 
         FIG. 13  shows the child restraining seat of  FIG. 1  in a closed position with the back section of the frame folded over the seat. 
         FIG. 14  shows an exploded view of the child restraining seat as shown in  FIG. 13  for positioning in a seat carrier bag. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     An embodiment of the proposed apparatus for restraining a child is shown in the accompanying drawings. The apparatus  1  is designed to limit child movement in non-adjustable, pre-fabricated seating, such as high chairs, shopping carts, and bleachers. As shown in  FIG. 1 , the child restraining apparatus  1  has a frame  2  which has a back  10  and bottom  12 . The back  10  and the bottom  12  can also comprise a plurality of inner and outer rods. As shown the back  10  has inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16 . The bottom  12  can be comprised of parallel bottom rods  13 , each bottom rod being attached to a corresponding back rod  14  by a hinged  26 . The inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16  can be composed of aluminum, titanium, steel or any other light weight metal. Additionally, the inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16  can also be composed of plastic. 
     Referring now to the embodiment depicted in  FIG. 7 , the back  10  can be adjustable by sliding the outer back rod  16  movably over the inner back rod  14 . The bottom  12  can also be adjustable. The ability to adjust the back  10  and/or the bottom  12  of the apparatus  1  allows the apparatus  1  to accommodate children of varying ages and sizes. The outer back rod  16  can be held in place by a protrusion  18  which can be located on the inner back rod  14 . The protrusion  18  can fit releasably into one of a plurality of apertures  20  which can be located on the outer back rod  16 , as shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  2 ,  4 , and  5 . The protrusion  18  can be a compression spring loaded button  15  as shown in  FIG. 8 . Another embodiment of the protrusion  18  can be a cantilever spring button  17  as shown in  FIG. 9 . 
     Referring now to the embodiment shown in  FIGS. 2 ,  5 , and  6 , the parallel inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16  of the back  10  can be connected to the parallel inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16  of the bottom  12  by hinges  26 . The hinges  26  can be lockable. As depicted in  FIG. 6 , the lockable hinges  26  allow the user to control the angle between the back  10  and the bottom  12 . 
     As shown in  FIGS. 1 ,  2 , and  7 , the child restraining apparatus  1  can also have a cover  30 . The cover  30  can be composed of a washable, durable, material such as cotton or polyester. Additionally, the cover  30  can be padded. As shown in  FIGS. 2 and 4 , the cover  30  can contain an upper portion  44  and a lower portion  46 . The upper portion  44  and the lower portion  46  can be joined by connecting straps  45 . The upper portion  44  and the lower portion  46  can also be one continuous piece of material. The cover  30  can contain parallel sets of pockets  32  on both its upper portion  44  and its lower portion  46  as depicted in  FIGS. 2 ,  4  and  7 . The pockets can fit removably over the parallel inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16  of the back  10  and bottom  12  of the frame  2  as depicted in  FIG. 7 . The cover  30  can also be attached to the frame  2  by using Velcro or button closures or can have no attachment means. 
     Referring now to the embodiment depicted in  FIGS. 2 ,  3 , and  4 , the cover  30  can contain a plurality of restraining straps  34  and a plurality of attachment straps  36 . The attachment straps  36  allow the user to securely connect the apparatus  1  to the desired pre-fabricated seat. The attachment straps  36  can be secured using Velcro, button, snaps, or any other suitable fasteners. 
     Additionally, the cover  30  can also have a plurality of slots  38 , as shown in  FIGS. 3 and 7 . The restraining straps  34  can be attached to the posterior  40  of the upper portion  44  of the cover  30 , and the slots  38  can be positioned on the upper portion  44  of the cover  30 . Alternatively, the restraining straps  34  can be completely detachable from the apparatus  1  as shown in  FIG. 7 . The restraining straps  24  can be padded. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 2 , the restraining straps  34  can be placed through any of the plurality of slots  38  and connected to the anchor  48  on the lower portion  46  of the cover  30 . The child can then be placed into the apparatus  1  and held securely by the restraining straps  34  which are connected to the anchor  48  on the bottom  12  of the apparatus  1 , as shown in  FIG. 1 . The child is then secured in place without fear of the child disentangling himself due to a one size fits all child seat because the restraining straps  34  have been placed through the slots  38  which correspond to the height of the child to be restrained. 
     As shown in  FIGS. 11 and 12 , the restraining apparatus  1  can also be collapsible. After the apparatus  1  has been used to restrain the desired child, the child is then removed, and the apparatus  1  is ready to be collapsed for storage or travel. As shown in  FIGS. 4 ,  7 , and  10 , the back  10  and the bottom  12  of the frame  2  can have foundation rods  22 . The foundation rods can be perpendicular to the inner back rods  14  and outer back rods  16 . As shown in  FIGS. 10A and 11A , the foundation rods  22  can also contain a stop  24 . The foundation rods  22  can be folded by disengaging the stop  24  as depicted in  FIG. 11 . The foundation rods  22  can collapse inwardly, as in  FIG. 11 , or outwardly. The stop  24  can be a button or a switch which can be turned. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 12 , the apparatus  1  can be fully collapsed by pressing the hinges  26  together. The fully collapsed apparatus  1  can then be folded by moving the back  10  to meet the bottom  12  as shown in  FIG. 13 . The fully collapsed, folded apparatus can then be placed into the carrier  50  for transportation. 
     The embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings and described herein are exemplary of numerous embodiments that may be made within the scope of the following claims. It is contemplated that many other configurations may be used, and the material of each component may be selected from numerous materials other than those specifically disclosed. In short, it is the applicant&#39;s intention that the scope of the patent issuing herefrom will be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.