Abstract:
The invention concerns a stroller with a child seat comprising an undercarriage and at each side of the undercarriage a bracket that can be coupled to the child seat whereby the brackets are adjustable to different angles of inclination so that the child seat can be positioned at different angles. In accordance with the invention at least one bracket has a sensor pin that can be pushed by a child seat mounted on the undercarriage from a first position to a second position whereby with the sensor pin in the first position the bracket can be adjusted to all available angles of inclination and with the sensor pin in the second position the bracket can be adjusted to a limited number of one or more predetermined angles of inclination.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present application claims priority from European patent application no. 07104255, filed Mar. 15, 2007, the content of which is incorporated herein by reference. 
       FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    The invention concerns a stroller with a child seat ( 2 ) comprising an undercarriage ( 8 ) and at each side of the undercarriage a bracket ( 4 ) that can be coupled to the child seat whereby the brackets are adjustable to different angles of inclination so that the child seat can be positioned at different angles characterized in that at least one bracket ( 4 ) has a sensor pin ( 40 ;  53 ) that can be pushed by a child seat ( 2 ) mounted on the undercarriage ( 8 ) from a first position to a second position whereby with the sensor pin in the first position ( 53 ) the bracket can be adjusted to all available angles of inclination and with the sensor pin in the second position ( 53 ′) the bracket can be adjusted to a limited number of one or more predetermined angles of inclination. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    Such a stroller is known, for instance from EP 0827890. The disadvantage of the known stroller is that the child seat can tilt to all inclination angles independent of the type of child seat that is mounted on the undercarriage. The bracket is suitable for tilting a child seat suitable for older children for instance over 60 degrees. Tilting a child seat for young children over this angle might lead to dangerous situations which is undesirable. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    In order to overcome this disadvantage the stroller has a child seat ( 2 ) comprising an undercarriage ( 8 ) and at each side of the undercarriage a bracket ( 4 ) that can be coupled to the child seat whereby the brackets are adjustable to different angles of inclination so that the child seat can be positioned at different angles characterized in that at least one bracket ( 4 ) has a sensor pin ( 40 ;  53 ) that can be pushed by a child seat ( 2 ) mounted on the undercarriage ( 8 ) from a first position to a second position whereby with the sensor pin in the first position ( 53 ) the bracket can be adjusted to all available angles of inclination and with the sensor pin in the second position ( 53 ′) the bracket can be adjusted to a limited number of one or more predetermined angles of inclination. 
         [0005]    The child seats that are coupled on the bracket can activate the sensor pin. If a child seat moves the sensor pin to the second position the tilting angle of the bracket is for instance limited to one angle, for instance if the child seat is a carry cot, or to two angles if the child seat is a seat for a young child. If the child seat is for older children the child seat does not move the sensor pin to the second position and the child seat can be tilted to all available angles. 
         [0006]    In accordance with an embodiment the stroller includes a bracket ( 4 ) which is designed such that the sensor pin cannot move from the first position ( 53 ) to the second position ( 53 ′) unless the bracket is in the limited number of one or more of the predetermined angles of inclination and whereby a first child seat, that is for instance intended for older children, is designed such that it can be coupled to the bracket with the sensor pin in both the first or the second position and a second child seat, that is for instance intended for very young children, is designed such that it can only be coupled to the bracket if the sensor pin can move to the second position. 
         [0007]    In this way it is ensured that a child seat for which the bracket has to be in a predetermined inclination angle can only be coupled to the bracket if the bracket is in that predetermined inclination angle. 
         [0008]    In accordance with an embodiment the stroller includes a support bar ( 6 ) that connects the bracket ( 4 ) to the undercarriage ( 8 ) at an adjustable angle with the bracket and a second support bar ( 7 ) is connected to the bracket at a continuously variable angle with the bracket. In this way the bracket is supported in a stable way whereby the undercarriage can be folded without having to adjust the bracket. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]    The invention is hereafter explained with reference to one or more exemplary embodiments with the aid of a drawing. In the drawing 
           [0010]      FIG. 1  shows a perspective view of a stroller comprising an undercarriage on which a child seat is mounted, 
           [0011]      FIG. 2  shows a schematic section of a first embodiment of a bracket connecting the undercarriage and the child seat, 
           [0012]      FIG. 3  shows a top view of the bracket of  FIG. 2 , 
           [0013]      FIG. 4  shows a bottom view of the child seat at the location where the bracket of  FIG. 2  is attached, 
           [0014]      FIG. 5  shows a detail of  FIG. 2 , 
           [0015]      FIG. 6  shows a partial cross section of the bracket of  FIG. 2 , 
           [0016]      FIG. 7  shows a schematic view of a second embodiment of the bracket of  FIG. 2  in two positions of the child seat, 
           [0017]      FIG. 8  shows a schematic view of a further embodiment of a bracket in two positions of the child seat, 
           [0018]      FIG. 9  shows a schematic view of a further embodiment of a bracket in two positions of the child seat, 
           [0019]      FIG. 10  shows a side view of a further embodiment of a bracket with a mechanism for limiting the tilting of the bracket in dependence of the properties of the child seat, 
           [0020]      FIG. 11  shows a perspective view of a bracket according to a further embodiment with a mechanism for controlling the possible tilt angles for various child seats, 
           [0021]      FIG. 12  shows a section of the bracket of  FIG. 11 , 
           [0022]      FIG. 13  shows a partial section of the bracket of  FIG. 11  a fixed tilting angle, and 
           [0023]      FIG. 14  shows a partial section of the bracket of  FIG. 11  at a setting whereby the child seat can be tilted to all available tilting angles. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0024]      FIG. 1  shows a stroller  1  with an undercarriage  8  and a child seat  2  connected thereto. For coupling the child seat  2  has a support  3  that is coupled to the undercarriage  8  by a coupling bracket  4 . In this embodiment the coupling bracket  4  is coupled by a first support bar  6  and a second support bar  7  to the undercarriage  8 . For enabling tilting the child seat  2  the coupling bracket  4  has a release button  5  which is described more extensively later. 
         [0025]      FIGS. 2 ,  4 ,  5  and  6  show a first embodiment of the coupling bracket  4  and its connection to the support  3  of the child seat  2 . The coupling bracket  4  is U-shaped and the ends of the legs of the U rest against the support  3 . The distance between the legs where they are connected to the support  3  is at least 80 mm. For positioning the coupling bracket  4  relative to the support  3  the support  3  has two cavities  12  on each side of the child seat  2 , which cavities  12  are shaped such that they narrowly enclose cams  13  which are on the ends of the legs of the coupling brackets  4 . The cams  13 , which have tapered sides to ease the positioning of the support  3  on the coupling bracket  4 , have a crest  9  against which a brace  10  of the cavity  12  rests when the support  3  is coupled to the coupling bracket  4 . Between the cavities  12  the underside of the support  3  forms a grip  16 . In a groove of the grip  16  a metal plate  15  is fastened with screws  14  to the underside of the support  3 . The ends of the metal plate  15  extend in the cavities  12 . At the end of a leg of the coupling bracket  4  a first hook  11  extends upwards between the two cams  13  and can hook around the first end of the metal plate  15  and at the end of the other leg of the coupling bracket  4  a second hook  17  extends upwards between the two cams  13  and can hook around the other end of the metal plate  15 . 
         [0026]    For maintaining an accurate position of the legs of the coupling bracket  4  they are connected by a connecting bar  32 . There is a considerable distance between these legs so that there also is a considerable distance between the positions where the support  3  is connected to the coupling bracket  4  so that after coupling the hooks  11  and  17  around the metal plate  15  possible play between the support  3  and the coupling bracket  4  or the hooks  11  and  17  and the metal plate  15  does not lead to undesired movements of the child seat  2 . 
         [0027]    The first hook  11  can rotate around a swivel pin  21  and is activated by a activating bar  23  which connects to the first hook  11  with a coupling pin  22 . The second hook  17  can rotate around a swivel pin  19  and is coupled to the activating bar  23  with a coupling pin  18 . The coupling pins  18  and  22  and the swivel pins  19  and  21  are located such that with movement of the activating bar  23  the first hook  11  and the second hook  17  counter rotate. The activating bar  23  is pushed by a spring  20  in a direction so that the activating bar  23  pushes the upper ends of the first hook  11  and the second hook  17  towards the metal plate  15 . 
         [0028]    For mounting the child seat  2  on the coupling bracket  4  the support  3  is positioned with its cavities  12  above the cams  13  and moved towards the coupling bracket  4 . The cams  13  position the support  3  accurately relative to the coupling bracket  4 . The metal plate  15  touches the top of the first hook  11  and the top of the second hook  17  and due to the shapes of the hooks  11  and  17  pushes the hooks outwards against the force of the spring  20  until they snap around the metal plate  15  and hold the brace  10  of the support  3  against the crest  9  of the coupling bracket  4 . For dismounting the child seat  2  from the coupling bracket  4  a hand is placed around each grip  16  and the activating bar  23  is pushed against the force of the spring  20  and the first hook  11  and the second hook  17  move outwards and the child seat  2  can be lifted off. 
         [0029]    For swiveling the child seat  2  around a horizontal axis relative to the undercarriage  8  (see  FIG. 1 ) the coupling bracket  4  is provided with a first rail  30  along which a first arcuate slide  27  can move along an arcuate path. The radius of this arcuate path is at least half the distance between the cavities  12  and preferably more than 50 mm so that when swiveling the arcuate slide  27  has to travel a considerable distance and play between the arcuate slide  27  and the rail  30  does not lead to undesired movement of the child seat  2 . The first support bar  6  is connected to the first arcuate slide  27  and can rotate relative the coupling bracket  4  around the center of the arcuate path and thereby moves in an opening  31  of the outer circumference  4  of the coupling bracket  4 . 
         [0030]    For maintaining the child seat  2  in a desired swivel angle the first arcuate slide  27  has a plate  24  with holes  35  in which a catch  25  can be pushed so that the position of the first arcuate slide  27  is locked. The catch  25  has a pointed end that is pushed by a spring  37  in one of the holes  35  of the plate  24 . For retracting the catch  25  out of the hole  35  the catch  25  has a retraction pin  34  which slides along a sloped surface  33  of the release button  5 . By moving the release button  5  sideways in an opening  26  against a spring (not shown) the sloped surface  33  moves along the retraction pin  34  and pushes the catch  25  against the force of the spring  37  out of the hole  35  so that the first arcuate slide  27  can be moved along the rail  30  and the child seat  2  can be swiveled around a rotation axis formed by the centers of the arcuate paths of both coupling brackets  4 . 
         [0031]    A second arcuate slide  29  is in the first arcuate slide  27  and can move along a second rail  28 . The second support bar  7  is connected to the second arcuate slide  29  and extends through an opening in the first arcuate slide  27  and the opening  31  in the coupling bracket  4 . This makes a relative movement of the first support bar  6  and the second support bar  7  possible, which is for instance necessary when folding the undercarriage  8 . 
         [0032]    In the shown embodiment the first hook  11  and the second hook  17  couple to the metal plate  15  which is part of the support  3 . In another embodiment the metal plate  15  is replaced by pins around which the hooks  11  and  17  can couple in a similar way. Also the embodiment shows an arcuate slide  27  moving inside a C-shaped housing with inside the housing rail  30 . It is clear that other rail/slide constructions are possible, for instance whereby the arcuate slide surrounds a tube bent in a radius. 
         [0033]      FIG. 7   a  shows a second embodiment of the coupling bracket  4  whereby the coupling bracket  4  is connected with only the first support bar  6  to the undercarriage. In the shown embodiment the first support bar  6  is connected to the end of the first arcuate slide  27 , in other embodiments it is possible that the first support bar  6  is connected to the middle of the first arcuate slide  27  or any other location of the slide  27 .  FIG. 7   a  shows the situation whereby the support  3  with the child seat  2  is severely inclined,  FIG. 7   b  shows the situation whereby the support  3  with the child seat  2  is more or less horizontal. 
         [0034]      FIG. 8   a  shows a further embodiment of the coupling bracket  4  which is similar to the coupling bracket  4  described in the  FIGS. 2-6 , whereby the coupling bracket  4  is connected by the first support bar  6  and the second support bar  7  to the undercarriage  8 . In  FIG. 8   a  the support  3  and the child seat  2  are severely inclined,  FIG. 8   b  shows the situation whereby the support  3  with the child seat is more or less horizontal. 
         [0035]      FIG. 9   a  shows a further embodiment of the coupling bracket  4  whereby the coupling bracket  4  is connected by the first support bar  6  and the second support bar  7  to the undercarriage  8 . The first support bar  6  is fastened to one end of an arcuate slide  39  and the second support bar  7  is connected to a pivot  38  at the other end of the arcuate slide  39 . In this way the arcuate slide  39  is firmly supported by the first support bar  6  and the second support bar  7  which can rotate relative one another in an easy way. 
         [0036]      FIG. 10   a  shows a further embodiment of the bracket  4  whereby a child seat is supported by a first coupling surface  43  and a second coupling surface  41 . The first coupling surface  43  and the second coupling surface  41  form a flat plane. The first hook  11  extends above the first coupling surface  41  and the second hook  17  extends above the first coupling surface  43 . The movements of the first hook  11  and the second hook  17  are coupled by the connecting bar  23  which is moved by activating a button  42 . The bracket  4  has a C-shaped body in which the first arcuate slide  27  can move as described earlier. In this embodiment the arcuate slide  27  is provided with notches  46  in which a pin  45  can be moved by a spring  44  so that the arcuate slide  27  is locked in a position. By moving the release button  5  the arcuate slide  27  can slide in the bracket  4 . 
         [0037]    The movement of the arcuate slide  27  can be blocked by a locking plate  48  as is shown in  FIG. 10   b . This locking plate  48  can slide in a guide slot  47  inside the bracket  4 . The locking plate  48  has an opening through which a pin  40  extends so that the movement of the locking plate  48  and the pin  40  are coupled. The pin  40  extends above the second coupling surface  41  and can be pushed downwards against a force of a spring  50 . This pushing downwards is desirable when the child seat  2  that is placed on the bracket  4  is for instance a carry cot and it is desirable to prevent tilting. The spring loaded metal pin  40  extends above the second coupling surface  41  and is pushed downwards by the carry cot. For other child seats  2  there might be no requirement for limiting the tilting of the child seat  2  and the pin  40  extends into an opening in the child seat  2  and is not pushed downwards.  FIG. 10   a  shows this situation and the movement of the arcuate slide  27  is not limited by the locking plate  48 . 
         [0038]      FIGS. 11-14  show a further embodiment of the coupling bracket  4  in various positions of use. In this embodiment the coupling bracket  4  has a closed housing with cams  13  on top. A hook  52  is provided between the cams  13  for coupling and/or locking a child seat on the coupling bracket  4 . In the housing is an tilt position disk  54  (see  FIGS. 12-14 ) that is connected to the first support bar  6 . A ring  51  can rotate in and/or is supported by the tilt position disk  54 , the second support bar  7  is connected to the ring  51 . 
         [0039]    The tilt position disk  54  can rotate with its inner wall  66  around a circular guide  65  and has five fixed rotative positions in the coupling bracket  4  whereby for each position a lock pin  57  is in on of the notches a-e of the tilt position disk  54 . The lock pin  57  is mounted in the lock slide  55  that can slide between the lock guides  67 . A spring  68  pulls the lock slide  55  towards the center of the tilt position disk  54  so that the lock pin  57  is pulled in one of the notches a-e. A coupling lug  58  couples the release button  5  to the lock slide  55  and by moving the lock slide  55  against the force of the spring  68  with the release button  5  the lock pin  57  is pulled out of one of the notches. The tilt position disk  54  is then free to rotate over a limited angle. The lock slide  55 , a first limiting side  56  and a second limiting side  63  of the tilt position disk  54  limit this angle. 
         [0040]    The rotation of the tilt position disk  54  can be further limited by a slide  60 . A spring  59  pushes the slide  60  upwards so that sensor ridge  53  sticks out above the surface of the coupling bracket  4  and can be pushed downwards in a direction P to an activated position  53 ′ by a child seat mounted on the coupling bracket  4 . The slide  60  has a lug  61  that interfaces with a cam  64  or a positioning notch  62  of the tilt position disk  54 . In the situation that slide  60  is in the position as shown in  FIG. 12  the lug  60  prevents rotation of the tilt position disk  54  towards the position whereby the lock pin  57  is inserted in notch c, d and e and the lock pin  57  can only move in the notches a and b. The rotative positions of the coupling bracket  4  whereby the lock pin  57  is in the notches a and b are for use of a group  0 + seat on the stroller. The group  0 + seat has a ridge that pushes the sensor ridge  53  to the activated position  53 ′ when placed on the coupling bracket  4  whereby before placing the group  0 + seat on the coupling bracket  4  the tilt position disk  54  must be placed in the correct position (lock pin  57  above notch a or b) so that the sensor ridge  53  can be pushed to the activated position  53 ′. 
         [0041]    In the situation whereby the tilt position disk  54  is in the rotative position whereby the lock pin  57  is above notch c the lug  61  is inserted, when pushed downwards, in a positioning notch  62 , see  FIG. 13 . In that situation the tilt position disk  54  has a fixed rotative position in the coupling bracket  4  which is suitable for placing a carry cot as child seat, whereby the carry cot also has a ridge that pushes the sensor ridge  53  to the activated position  53 ′. It will be clear that it is not possible to place the group  0 + seat and the carry cot on the coupling bracket  4  if a cam  64  prevents the downward movement of the slide  60 : the sensor ridge  53  that cannot be pushed downward prevents the proper positioning and/or locking of these child seats on the coupling bracket  4 . If a child seat, for instance a stroller seat, has no ridge that interacts with the sensor ridge  53  it is possible to place the child seat on the coupling bracket  4  in all rotative positions of the tilt position disk  54 . By activating the release button  5  the coupling bracket  4  can be rotated for positioning the stroller seat in all five angular positions.