Patent Publication Number: US-2019191785-A1

Title: Swaddle

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The instant disclosure relates to apparatuses with improved air flow and comfort. In particular, the instant disclosure relates to baby swaddles with improved air flow, comfort, and securement. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure relates to baby swaddles and other child usable objects. Swaddling refers to the practice of wrapping infants in blankets or fabrics to restrict the movement of the infant&#39;s limbs. Many parents find swaddling to have a calming effect on the baby, and therefore employ swaddling as a means to reduce crying and to assist the baby in sleep. In addition, swaddling can be used to keep the baby in the supine position during sleep to reduce the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). 
     Conventional swaddle techniques utilize a square blanket folded into triangular shapes to hold the baby within. The blanket is folded into a triangular shape and the baby is positioned near the center of the triangle long edge. The triangle point to the left or right of the baby is laid across the baby and tucked under the baby, and then the opposite triangle point is then wrapped over that and tucked in to the pre-wrapped portion of the blanket. This way, the baby&#39;s arms are locked into place. The parent can elect to have the baby&#39;s arms down, or up near the baby&#39;s mouth. Oftentimes, the third point of the triangle located at the baby&#39;s feet is folded up prior to the wrap of the left or right triangle point. Experts caution that the legs should remain free to move to lower the risk of developmental hip disorders. 
     There are several issues in properly swaddling a baby. First, the swaddle should be secure enough so that the baby cannot wiggle out of the swaddle. This not only improves the experience for the baby, but ensures the baby won&#39;t fall out during transport. Second, the swaddle should laterally secure the baby, but also allow the baby&#39;s legs to move freely. 
     Third, for preferred breathing conditions, no part of the swaddle material should be in contact with the baby&#39;s face. Infants usually breathe through their nasal passages. However, during crying or in the event their nasal passages are blocked, infants may breathe through their oral cavities. Mechanical resistance suffocation takes place when respiration is interrupted if these passages are both blocked externally by an object. When respiration is interrupted, CO 2  levels in the blood rise. The body&#39;s response to this elevation in CO 2  levels is to attempt more rigorous respiration. If the agent of suffocation is not removed, the incident may be fatal after two or three minutes. Further, breathing CO 2  or other dangerous gases may be a possible cause of SIDS. Conventional swaddle designs may attempt to keep extraneous portions of the swaddle garment away from the baby&#39;s face, but even they do not adequately address mechanical resistance and buildup of CO 2 . A need exists for a swaddle that reduces the risk of suffocation in the event the swaddle material comes in contact with the face of the baby. 
     Although the exact causes of SIDS remain unconfirmed, overheating is another suspected cause. Overheating may be caused by over-bundling, too much bedding material, or the wrong kinds of materials in an infant&#39;s bedding. Additionally, some infants sweat heavily during the deepest part of their sleep cycles and can wake up wet from the accumulation of sweat. Babies spend more time in the deepest part of the sleep cycle than do children or adults, and are therefore more susceptible to waking up wet. Heat coupled with accumulated moisture can be a cause of heat rash and/or prickly heat. Currently available swaddle garments do not adequately address overheating and sweating. Therefore, a need exists for a swaddle design that reduces the risk of overheating, and allows for sweat to evaporate from the body. 
     For at least these reasons, a need exists for a new swaddle garment that addresses breathability, heat regulation, and peacefulness. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present disclosure is directed to a swaddle for a baby. According to one embodiment, a baby swaddle includes a pod for receiving a baby. The pod includes a zipper having first and second catches, first and second pockets and first and second arm holes. The swaddle also includes first and second wings for wrapping around the pod. The second wing has a hook and loop fastener for fastening to the first wing. The baby can be placed inside the pod using the zipper and the baby&#39;s arms can either be placed in the first and second pockets, through first and second arm holes or retained within the pod The first wing wraps around the pod and the second wing wraps around the pod and attaches to the first wing via the hook and look fastener to securely and snuggly swaddle the baby. 
     The foregoing has outlined rather broadly the features and technical advantages of the present disclosure in order that the detailed description that follows may be better understood. Additional features and advantages will be described hereinafter which form the subject of the claims herein. It should be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the conception and specific embodiments disclosed may be readily utilized as a basis for modifying or designing other structures for carrying out the same purposes of the present designs. It should also be realized by those skilled in the art that such equivalent constructions do not depart from the spirit and scope as set forth in the appended claims. The novel features which are believed to be characteristic of the designs disclosed herein, both as to the organization and method of operation, together with further objects and advantages will be better understood from the following description when considered in connection with the accompanying figures. It is to be expressly understood, however, that each of the figures is provided for the purpose of illustration and description only and is not intended as a definition of the limits of the present disclosure. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       For a more complete understanding of the present invention, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which: 
         FIG. 1  represents the front side of a swaddle with wings open according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 2  represents the front side of a swaddle with wings closed according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 3  represents the back side of a swaddle with wings open according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 4  represents the back side of a swaddle with wings closed according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 5  illustrates the front side of a swaddle according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIGS. 6-10  demonstrate methods of swaddling a baby according to one embodiment of the present disclosure; 
         FIG. 11  illustrates the front and back of a swaddle according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Disclosed herein are various embodiments of a baby swaddle. According to the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 , there is provided a swaddle garment  100  having a rear garment section  144 , a front garment section  146 , and a pod  130  for receiving a baby. The pod  130  is sized to have extra-wide hip-healthy leg area. The rear garment section includes a left outer wing  150  and a right outer wing  152 . The right outer wing  152  includes a Velcro loop  153  and a Velcro hook  154 . The swaddle garment  100  also includes a zipper  160  with catches  162 ,  164  at both ends of the zipper. The swaddle garment  100  also includes pockets  170 ,  172  at the top end of the swaddle garment  100  in the pod  130 . The pockets  170 ,  172  allow for baby&#39;s arms to be positioned up in the pod  130  for self-soothing. The swaddle garment  100  also includes arm holes  190 ,  192  so the baby&#39;s hands and arms could be placed therethrough if chosen. As baby grows older, the arms being positioned out of the pod  130  helps baby reposition itself. The swaddle garment  100  can also include a harness slit opening in the back to insert a car seat or sleeper harness therethrough. 
     To swaddle a baby, the swaddle garment  100  is laid flat on a surface with front garment section  146  upwards, as shown in  FIG. 1 .  FIGS. 6 through 10  demonstrate the preferred swaddling process according to the embodiment shown in  FIG. 1 . The baby is inserted feet first into pod  130  as shown in  FIG. 6  with the zipper  160  open. In option 1, the caregiver may choose to put the baby&#39;s arms upward and hands into pockets  170 ,  172  so that the baby can self-soothe herself as shown in  FIG. 7 . The zipper  160  is then closed. Unlike traditional swaddles that keep a baby&#39;s arms by their side or across their chest, this position replicates the baby&#39;s behavior in the womb, allowing the natural arms up position and movement of their hands to the mouth to self-soothe. Typically, this position is used for the first few weeks after the baby is born. In this stage, the baby is still very curled up and prefers the position of holding hands near the face and does not like the hands pinned down. 
     In option 2, the caregiver may choose to place the baby&#39;s hands down by baby&#39;s side inside of the pod  130  for a traditional swaddle posture as shown in  FIG. 8 . The zipper  160  is then closed. As the baby enters the second month after birth, the baby is typically most comfortable with the hands in the down position. This can make a difference in sleep stretches. 
     In option 3, the caregiver may choose to place the hands and arms through the arm holes  190 ,  192  to outside of the pod  130  as shown in  FIG. 9 . The zipper  160  is then closed. When the baby is over 2 months or strong enough to roll over, this position is used so that the baby&#39;s arms are free to help baby reposition. 
     Referring to  FIG. 10 , in all three options ( FIGS. 7-9 ), the swaddle garment  100  is closed by first snuggly wrapping the left side wing  150  over the pod  130 . Then, the right side wing  152  is snugly wrapped over the pod  130  and over the left side wing  150 . The Velcro hook  154  secures the right side wing  152  over the left side wing  150  to secure the swaddle garment  100 . Because the wings  150 ,  152  are wrapped, they accommodate different sized babies. The Velcro hook  154  can be attached to the Vecro loop  153  when not in use to prevent accidental hooking to other objects. 
     The zipper  160  has catches  162 ,  164  for zipping and unzipping the pod  130 . When placing the baby in the pod  130 , usually catch  162  would be used to unzip the zipper  160  and then rezip the zipper  160  when the baby is placed in the pod  130 . The zipper  160  extends below the wings  150 ,  152 . Thus even after swaddling as shown in  FIG. 10 , catch  164  can be used to upzip the bottom of the zipper  160  below the wings  150 ,  152  to open the pod  130  at the bottom. This allows a caregiver to change a baby&#39;s diaper without unswaddling the baby. The bottom catch  164  can also be used to open the pod  130  if baby is too warm. 
     The swaddle garment  100  could also use any suitable fastening means. For example, instead of a zipper, the swaddle garment  100  could use snaps or buttons. Likewise, instead of Velcro or hook and loop fasteners, the swaddle garment  100  could use snaps or buttons. 
       FIG. 11  generally illustrates the use and typical placement of instruction labels, care labels, warning labels and brand labels. 
     Generally, the swaddle garment  100  can be made of a soft, lightweight premium jersey activewear fabric with spandex that provides stretch and compression for a womb-like feel. However, babies are particularly susceptible to respiratory problems, in part because they have not yet developed the motor skills to clear breathing passages. According to another example embodiment of the present disclosure, the swaddle garment  100  may also comprise a breathable mesh-type material. 
     In one embodiment, the fabrics of rear garment section  144  and front garment section  146  may include any of a variety of breathable-type materials that provide breathable functionality. Breathable functionality refers to the ability of the material to allow air to substantially move effectively therethrough. As used herein, when air is indicated as substantially moving effectively through a material, it is meant that the material includes openings (e.g., mesh openings, open-framework, spaces between elements thereof, or even those that may not be visually perceivable openings but still allow a breathable function to occur) that do not impede air movement to an extent that would prevent a human being from breathing through (e.g., when a human&#39;s respiratory openings are in direct contact with a material) such a material in order to prevent suffocation and further that such openings are too small to permit an infant to insert a finger or toe therethrough. 
     Fabrics that can be used include, but are not limited to cotton, silk, polyester, nylon, and the like. In fact, one embodiment is made of 100% polyester fabric, polyester being versatile enough to be manufactured into the mesh fabric configurations described above. It should be noted that the scope of embodiments is not limited to any particular value for mesh size, thickness, thermal transmission, carbon dioxide dispersion, water vapor transmission, air permeability, and the like. Various embodiments include fabrics that provide breathability, even when placed over an infant&#39;s mouth and nose, but do not include holes in the mesh that are large enough to fit a finger or other appendage. In fact, any garment providing a breathable thermal mesh outer surface, a mesh or brushed inner surface, or even an inner liner that wicks moisture, is contemplated. 
     It will be recognized that the thickness of any of the materials may vary, as well as for other materials described herein. For example, more padding may create a softer more plush effect with slightly different breathability/ventilation properties, whereas less padding may create more breathability, more thermal transmittance, and less weight. 
     Additionally, any of the mesh-type materials herein may be configured as a breathable integrated mesh material in combination with one or more other material layers. For example, a mesh material may be used in combination with one or more layers of other material adjacent thereto. Such additional layers may be layers of cotton material, knit jersey material, and/or the like. Such additional material layers may provide additional benefits such as, for example, thermal properties with breathability. 
     Although the present disclosure and its advantages have been described in detail, it should be understood that various changes, substitutions and alterations can be made herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the design as defined by the appended claims. Moreover, the scope of the present application is not intended to be limited to the particular embodiments of the process, machine, manufacture, composition of matter, means, methods and steps described in the specification. As one of ordinary skill in the art will readily appreciate from the present disclosure, processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps, presently existing or later to be developed that perform substantially the same function or achieve substantially the same result as the corresponding embodiments described herein may be utilized according to the present disclosure. Accordingly, the appended claims are intended to include within their scope such processes, machines, manufacture, compositions of matter, means, methods, or steps.