Abstract:
A method for protecting a child from injury includes forming a carrier loop from an elongate strip of elastomeric material; applying the carrier loop to a perimeter edge of a furniture piece so as cover an adjacent portion of an upper surface and an adjacent portion of a side surface of the furniture piece; attaching a cushion bumper to an external surface of the carrier loop so that the carrier loop is disposed between the cushion bumper and the furniture piece, the cushion bumper having a thickness greater than the thickness of the strip. The longitudinal tension in the carrier loop may assist in attaching the carrier loop to the furniture piece. The strip may be a vinyl strip with a hardness of 30-60 Shore A and may be assembled from a plurality of connected segments. The furniture, carrier loop, and cushion bumper may form an assembly.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed generally the field of child safety cushions, and more particularly to a method and apparatus for attaching safety cushions to furniture without marring the furniture. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     It is well known that as children learn to walk, they have a tendency to fall down, sometimes against furniture. Also, it is well known that children playing in a house are not always careful and may trip, fall, or be pushed into furniture. Accordingly, there are a number of safety cushion products on the market for protecting children from furniture, and vice versa. One very successful example is a cushion known as a TODDLER EDGE KUSION brand table edge guard, model number 5004, made by Kidkusion, Inc. of Washington, N.C. This table edge guard is a long strip of cushion material with an L-shaped cross-section. The cushion material is placed around the upper perimeter edge of a table, such as a coffee table, so as to cover the table&#39;s underlying sharp perimeter edge. The cushion material is secured to the table by suitably placed double-sided tape. 
     While the above product works quite well for its intended purpose, the use of double-sided tape for securing the cushion material is sometimes undesirable, due to the tendency of the double-sided tape to mar or otherwise harm the surface of the furniture. For example, when the children have grown sufficiently, or the furniture is to be sold, the cushion material is removed. In removing the cushion material, the double-sided tape sometimes remains partially attached to the furniture, leaving a residual gummy deposit, and may discolor the surface of the furniture. The process of fully removing the double-sided tape may further damage the furniture. 
     As such, there remains a need for alternative designs of child safety devices for furniture that provide better protection against damage to the furniture when the safety device is removed. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The method of the present invention is directed to a method of protecting a child from injury typically comprising joining a first end of an elongate strip of elastomeric material to a second end thereof form a carrier loop; applying the carrier loop to a perimeter edge of a furniture piece so as cover an adjacent portion of an upper surface and an adjacent portion of a side surface of the furniture piece, the carrier loop covering at least substantially all of the perimeter edge; attaching a cushion bumper to an external surface of the carrier loop so that the carrier loop is disposed between the cushion bumper and the furniture piece, the cushion bumper having a thickness greater than the thickness of the strip. Preferably, the longitudinal tension in the carrier loop assists in the attaching the carrier loop to the furniture piece. The method may further include cutting a plurality of slits in the carrier loop such that the slits are proximate the corners. The strip may be a vinyl strip, preferably with a hardness of 30-60 Shore A, and may be assembled from a plurality of segments prior to the joining. The cushion bumper may have a generally L-shaped cross-section prior to the attaching and the strip may have a substantially corresponding cross-section to the interior surface of the cushion bumper prior to the applying. Further, the cushion bumper may hide substantially all of the carrier loop when attached to carrier loop. 
     An assembly used in the method above includes a furniture piece having a top, a side, and an perimeter edge therebetween; an elongate carrier loop of elastomeric material disposed proximate the perimeter edge so as to cover substantially all of the perimeter edge, the carrier loop having a thickness; and a cushion bumper attached to an external side of the carrier loop such that the carrier loop is disposed between the furniture piece and the cushion bumper, the cushion bumper having a thickness greater than the carrier loop thickness. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a safety cushion attached to a table in accordance with the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a sectional view showing the relationship between the table, the carrier loop, and the safety cushion of FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a carrier loop of suitable for the present invention. 
     FIGS. 4A-C show an overlapping splice, a butt splice with extra material, and an angled splice with simple tape, respectively, for joining ends of the strip forming the carrier loop of FIG.  3 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The following description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention will be in the context of a conventional wooden coffee table as an illustrative example of a relevant piece of furniture  10 . However, it should be noted that the present invention may be used with a wide variety of furniture, and is not limited to use with conventional wooden coffee tables. 
     As illustrated in FIG. 1, a table  10  typically has a generally flat upper surface or top  12 , bounded by corners  14  and supported by a plurality of downwardly extending legs  16 . A perimeter edge  20  is formed where the top  12  meets the table&#39;s side surfaces  18 . This perimeter edge  20  is typically a relatively sharp lip in profile (see FIG. 2) due to aesthetic and other considerations. In order to protect children from injury, a cushioned bumper  50  may be removably mounted to the table  10  so as to substantially, if not entirely, cover the sharp perimeter edge  20 . According to the present invention, the cushion bumper  50  does not primarily attach directly to the table  10 , but instead primarily attaches to the table  10  via an elastomeric carrier loop  30 . 
     The carrier loop  30  is formed from a strip  32  of elastomeric material, such as that shown in FIG.  3 . The strip  32  has a length L s , a thickness T s , a width W s , and respective ends  34   a , 34   b . As can be seen, the strip  32  is substantially wider than it is thick. The material of the strip  32  should be at least somewhat elastic in order to provide mounting tension, as described more fully below. In addition, the material of the strip  32  is preferably somewhat tacky, but is free of any adhesive coatings. Suitable materials include without limitation vinyl, thermoplastic rubber (TPR), and the like, particularly those with a hardness of 30-60 Shore A, and more preferably approximately 40 Shore A. Preferably, the material of strip  32  is clear, or at least translucent, so that the underlying perimeter edge  20  of the table  10  can be seen during installation. Further, while not required for all embodiments, the strip  32  may advantageously have an angled cross-section, such as an L-shaped cross section before assembly. 
     The carrier loop  30  is formed by the end user joining the respective ends  34   a , 34   b  of the strip  32  to form a loop  30 . The ends  34   a , 34   b  may be advantageously joined together directly, by splicing the ends together, such as in the form of an overlapping splice  36 , a butt splice  36 , or an angled splice  36  (see FIGS.  4 A-C). For instance, an overlapping splice may be used as shown in FIG. 4A, with suitable double-sided tape or adhesive (neither shown) disposed between the overlapping portions of the strip  32 . Alternatively, a butt splice as shown in FIG. 4B may be used, with additional material  37  added over the location where the ends  34   a , 34   b  meet and double-sided tape  38  or adhesive underneath the extra material  37 . Note that this extra material  37  may be portion of the strip  32  that has been cut off to properly size the resulting carrier loop  30 . Further still, an angled splice may alternatively be used as shown in FIG. 4C, with common single-sided adhesive tape  38  suitably disposed with the non-sticky side pointed away from the strip  32 . The angle of the angle splice may be across the thickness of the strip T s , and/or may be across the width of the strip W s . For all splices  36 , heat or other means may also be employed to fuse the end sections together if desired. 
     The discussion above has assumed that the strip  32  is a single continuous piece of material; and, indeed, this is a preferred arrangement. However, the strip  32  may be formed of a plurality of segments  32   a  that are joined together by the end user, if desired. Such segments  32   a  are represented by dashed lines in FIG.  3 . The multi-segment strip  32  may be advantageous for minimizing shipping requirements, but is disadvantageous due to the added complexity. 
     Once formed, the carrier loop  30  may be applied to the table  10 . The carrier loop  30  is placed around the perimeter edge  20  of the table  10 . Preferably, the carrier loop  30  is slightly undersized so that the carrier loop  30  must be slightly stretched longitudinally to fit the perimeter edge  20 . If so, then releasing the carrier loop  30  will cause the inherent tension in the carrier loop  30  to pull the loop  30  inward and assist in securing the carrier loop  30  to the table  10 . When fully applied to the table  10 , the carrier loop  30  preferably extends laterally over an adjacent portion of the top  12 , around the lip, and down an adjacent portion of the table&#39;s side  18 . See FIG.  2 . 
     It should be noted that the carrier loop  30  may be formed by the end user with the strip  32  already disposed partly or fully around the table  10 . For instance, the strip  32  may be roughly positioned around the perimeter edge  20 , and then the two ends  34   a , 34   b  joined to form the loop  30 . Thus, no particular sequence is required between the carrier loop  30  formation and the carrier loop  30  application to the table  10 . Further, in order to avoid bunching at the corners  14 , suitable slits  39  may be cut in the carrier loop  30 , proximate the corners  14 , to allow the upward facing portion of the carrier loop  30  to lie flat against the table&#39;s top  12 . 
     With the carrier loop  30  disposed about the perimeter edge  20 , the cushion bumper  50  may be added. The cushion bumper  50  is attached to the carrier loop  30  by placing it around the now-covered perimeter edge  20  and securing it to the carrier loop  30  with suitable adhesives or double-sided tape  52 . It should be noted that the cushion bumper  50  may be a single continuous piece, or may be formed from discrete segments cut to length. The cushion bumper  50  preferably has an angled cross-section (e.g., L-shaped) with an interior surface  54  that corresponds to the shape of the perimeter edge  20  and adjacent portions of the table top  12  and table side  18 . The cushion bumper  50  is formed from a cushioning material known in the safety field, and has a thickness T c  proximate the perimeter edge  20  that is significantly thicker than the strip&#39;s thickness T s , such as five to ten times as thick. Just by way of non-limiting example, the cushion bumper  50  may be Model 5004 TODDLER EDGE KUSION brand available from Kidkusion, Inc. of Washington, N.C. 
     It is intended that the carrier loop  30  is disposed between the cushion bumper  50  and the table  10 . As such, it is advantageous for the outer shape of the strip  32  forming the carrier loop  30  to pre-formed to correspond to that of the interior surface of the bumper  50 . Further, while the carrier loop  30  may be as wide as the bumper  50 , so as to be flush mounted to the table  10 , it may be advantageous in some situations to have the carrier loop  30  be of a width narrower than the bumper  50 . As such, the bumper  50  may extend laterally around the carrier loop  30 , and possibly touch the table  10 , but it is believed to be advantageous if the bumper  50  is spaced away from the table  10  across its entire lateral width, as shown in FIG.  2 . 
     The cushion bumper  50  advantageously extends fully around the perimeter edge  20  of the table  10 ; however, the approach of the present invention may also be used with the carrier loop  30  extending around the perimeter edge  20 , but with the cushion bumper  50  material limited to corner  14  locations. 
     It should be noted that while the illustrative discussion above has been in terms of a traditional four-sided wooden coffee table  10 , the table  10  may be configured differently (e.g., hexagon, round, etc.). Further, it should be noted that the carrier loop  30  and the cushion bumper  50  may optionally have a U-shaped cross sections before assembly so as to extend laterally over an adjacent portion of the top  12 , around the lip, down the table&#39;s entire side  18 , and around onto an adjacent portion of the underside of the table  10 , if desired. 
     The use of the carrier loop  30  to mount to the table  10  allows mounting of the cushion bumper  50  without risk of marring or otherwise damaging the table&#39;s surfaces  12 , 18 . The carrier loop  30  is held in place by its internal tension, and possibly through contact friction, but is not chemically adhered to the table&#39;s surfaces  10 , 18 . As such, the cushion bumper  50  may be removed by simply pulling the carrier loop  30  off the perimeter edge  20 , leaving an undamaged table  10 . 
     The present invention may, of course, be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the essential characteristics of the invention. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.