Patent Publication Number: US-6341394-B1

Title: Sway device for a cradle

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to cradles and more particularly to a sway device for a cradle which facilitates an adult or a baby himself in swaying the cradle. 
     A cradle is indispensable to a family. There are various types of cradles on the market and the collapsible type of cradle is most popular. FIG. 1 shows a conventional type of collapsible cradle  10  which includes a foot member  11  under each of the four corners of the cradle, four collapsible transverse rods  12  which include hinge means  13 . This type of cradle does not include means to sway the cradle. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention has a main object to provide a sway device for a cradle to easily allow a cradle, either of the solid or collapsible type to be swayed. 
     Another object of the present invention is to provide a sway device for a cradle which can be fixed when the cradle is not swaying. 
     Accordingly, the sway device for a cradle of the present invention comprises four sway members fixed to the four lower corners of a conventional type of cradle. Each of the sway members has an inverse L-shaped foot means and a wobbler which is hingedly suspended from the sway member and has an arcuate bottom standing on the ground, which when an adult or a baby sways the cradle, it begins to swing to and from. If the cradle is not to be swayed the wobbler is fixable so that the foot means therefore stands on the ground. 
     The present invention will become more fully understood by reference to the following detailed description thereof when read in conjunction with the attached drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a collapsible cradle according to the prior art, 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment according to the present invention, 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view to show the sway device of the present invention, 
     FIG. 4 is a sectional view of FIG. 3, 
     FIG. 5 is an elevational view to show the sway device under the foot of a cradle, 
     FIG. 6 is a sectional view indicating that the wobbler is stopped from further leftward rotation, 
     FIG. 7 is an elevational view to show the cradle of the present invention in operation, and 
     FIG. 8 is a sectional view to show the wobbler fixed into the L-shaped foot means. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 of the drawings, the sway device for a cradle of the present invention comprises a plurality of sway members respectively disposed under four vertical posts of a collapsible cradle  20 . Each of the sway members includes an inverse L-shaped foot means  21  which has a vertical portion  211  for enabling the cradle to stand on the ground, a transverse portion  212  having a pair of grooved branches  213  and  214  perpendicular to each other for allowing a pair of lower transverse rods  23  of the cradle  20  to pivot by rivets  231 , a vertical cavity  215  in the top of the vertical portion for securing a vertical post  22  of the cradle  20  therein by rivet  221 , and a wobbler extending downward from an underside of the transverse portion  212  of the foot means  21 . The wobbler  30  includes a hollow interior extension  31  integrated with the transverse portion  212 , and a roughly sector shaped oscillator  33  pivoting on the extension  31 . The extension  31  has a lug  32  for pivotally connecting the oscillator  33  by rivet  321 , a plurality of longitudinal ribs  34  on opposite outer surfaces for reinforcement, a lateral wall  35  and an elastic plate  36  on the other side opposite to the lateral wall  35  (as shown in FIG.  4 ). The sector shaped oscillator  33  has a plurality of arcuate ribs  331 , a plurality of radial ribs  332 , a pair of lateral sides  333 , an apron  334  on an outer surface of which is a projection  335 . 
     Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, before operation, the oscillators  33  under the four lower corners of the cradle  20  face downward and their aprons  334  partially rest on the ground. When the cradle  20  swings to the left (as shown in FIG.  7 ), the oscillators rotate to the right and will be stopped from further rightward rotation by the lateral walls  35  of the extensions  31  at the right side of the cradle  20 . Contrarily, if the cradle  20  is swung to the right, the oscillators  33  will rotate to the left and be stopped from further leftward rotation by the lateral walls  35  of the extensions  31  at the left side of the cradle  20  (as shown in FIG.  6 ). This arrangement aims to prevent the cradle  20  from instability or toppling over. 
     Referring to FIG. 8, when the cradle  20  is not to sway and/or not in use, the user may rotate all the oscillators inward and collapse them into the extensions  31 . The projections  335  of the oscillators are checked by the elastic plates  36  of the extensions  31  from rotation and the vertical portions  211  of the L-shaped foot means rest on the ground. It is understood that the oscillators are readily released down from the elastic plates  36  if the cradle  20  is to be swayed again. 
     Note that the specification relating to the above embodiment should be construed as exemplary rather than as the limitative of the present invention, with many variations and modification being readily attainable by a person of average skill in the art without departing from the spirit or scope thereof as defined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents.