Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
ADJUSTABLE SEAT FOR BABY OR CHILD FLOAT
Related Application
This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. Section 119(e) to U.S.
Provisional
Application Serial No. 62/458,670 entitled "ADJUSTABLE SEAT FOR BABY OR CHILD
FLOAT," filed on February 14, 2017, which is hereby incorporated by reference
in its entirety
for all purposes.
Field of the Invention
This invention relates to boats or other flotation devices for babies and
small children,
and particularly to devices in which the baby or child is placed upright in a
seat that depends
from and is surrounded by a flotation device such as a buoyant ring.
Summary of the Invention
Floating pool and beach toys are often used to keep a young child, including a
baby or
toddler, floating in a seated position at the surface of a body of water while
preventing the child
from becoming submerged in the water. One example of a common floating pool
and beach toy
comprises a seat affixed to, depending from, and surrounded by a flotation
device such as an
inflatable ring. The child is placed on the boat or float by inserting his or
her legs into and down
through apertures in the seat, and the scat in cooperation with the flotation
device supports the
weight of the child and keeps the child afloat while the flotation device
rests on the water.
A seat of one fixed size may be suitable for a particular child at a given
time, but for a
smaller or larger child the seat may be either too low, too high, too large,
or too small for
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purposes of comfort and safety, relative to the flotation device. It is an
object of this invention to
provide a means for adjusting the dimensions of the seat so that it may
accommodate the small
child or a larger child. Moreover, for any particular child the seat may be
adjusted to match the
size of the child as he or she grows older and larger.
Description or the Drawings
Non-limiting embodiments of the present invention will be described by way of
example
with reference to the accompanying figures, which are schematic and are not
intended to be
drawn to scale. In the figures, each identical or nearly identical component
illustrated is typically
represented by a single numeral. For purposes of clarity, not every component
is labeled in every
figure, nor is every component of each embodiment of the invention shown where
illustration is
not necessary to allow those of ordinary skill in the art to understand the
invention. In the
figures:
Fig. 1 in perspective view a baby boat having a seat member attached to,
depending from,
and surrounded by a buoyant ring.
Fig. 2 is a front view of the baby boat of Fig. 1, showing the adjustable
strap extending
downward from the ring and continuing under the seat member.
Fig. 3 is side view of the boat of Fig. 1, showing the adjustment strap
extending around
the seat member from front to back.
Fig. 4 is a rear view of the baby boat.
Fig. 5 is a plan view of the bottom of the boat, depicting the seat portion
and the
adjustment strap.
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Fig. 6 depicts the front section of the adjustable strap, including the female
portion of the
connecting buckle.
Fig. 7 is an enlarged view of the rear section of the adjustable strap,
including the male
portion of the connecting buckle.
Fig. 8 depicts the two sections of the adjustable strap connected together by
means of the
buckle, with the rear section of the strap looped through the male portion of
the buckle.
Detailed Description of the Invention
Referring to Figure 1, baby boat 10 comprises a seat member 12 attached to and
surrounded by a buoyant ring 14. A shade or canopy 15 may be attached to the
ring in some
embodiments.
Turning to Figure 2, scat member 12 includes apertures or leg holes 16 for
receipt of the
child's legs. Adjustment strap 18, described more fully below, extends under
the seat member 12
from front to back, between the scat apertures 16, as better seen in Figure 3.
The seat member 12
may be made of a flexible nylon mesh material; other known flexible materials
are equally
suitable.
As seen in Figure 3, adjustment strap 18 is comprised of two section, front
section 20
attached to the ring 14 near the front upper edge of the seat member, and rear
section 22 attached
to the boat near the rear upper edge of the seat member (also see Figure 4).
Strap sections 20 and
22 may be connected or mated by a snap buckle 24 of conventional construction
that permits
adjustment of the overall length of the strap 18, as explained below.
Figures 4 and 5 also depict flexible pad 26, which is wider than the
adjustment strap 18
and includes a channel along its length through which strap section 22 may be
threaded. Pad 26
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may be slid along rear strap section 22 and positioned approximately at the
bottommost portion
of the seat 12 to provide extra support and comfort to the seated child.
The front section 20 of adjustment strap 18 is depicted in Figure 6 and is
attached to and
extends from the buoyant ring 14. The female half 28 of buckle 24 is attached
to the distal end of
strap section 20. Rear section 22 of adjustment strap 18 is depicted in
enlarged form in Figure 7.
The male half 30 of buckle 24 may be positioned along rear strap 22 to allow
adjustment of the
length of the adjustment strap 18. Rear strap section 22 is seen extending out
of pad 26 and
looping through an opening in male portion 30 of buckle 24. The distal,
unattached end of rear
strap 22A may be tucked into pad 26 as shown in Figures 7 and 8.
For a given child, strap 18 may be adjusted to a suitable length by
appropriately
positioning male portion 30 of buckle 24 along the rear strap section 22. By
adjusting the
position of the male portion of the buckle, the effective length of rear strap
section 22 may be
shortened or lengthened so that the child will be situated in a proper and
comfortable position on
the float. Of course, for a larger child the strap should be longer so that
the seat member 12 will
be larger and deeper, and for a smaller child the strap should be shorter,
thereby reducing or
condensing the size of the seat member.
Those skilled in the art may readily recognize various alterations,
modifications, and
improvements. Such alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended
to be within the
scope and spirit of this disclosure. Accordingly, the foregoing description is
by way of example
only and is not intended to be limiting.
From the description of at least one embodiment of the present disclosure,
various
alterations, modifications, and improvements will readily occur to those
skilled in the art. Such
alterations, modifications, and improvements are intended to be within the
scope and spirit of the
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disclosure. Accordingly, the foregoing description is by way of example only
and is not intended
to be limiting.
While several embodiments of the present invention have been described and
illustrated
herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision a variety of
other means and/or
structures for performing the functions and/or obtaining the results and/or
one of more of the
advantages described herein, and each of such variations and/or modifications
is deemed to be
within the scope of the present invention. More generally, those skilled in
the art will readily
appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations
described herein are
mean to be exemplary and the actual parameters, dimensions, materials and/or
configurations
will depend upon the specific application or applications for which the
teachings of the present
invention is/are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize or be able to
ascertain using no more
than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific embodiments of
the invention
described herein. It is therefore to be understood that the foregoing
embodiments are presented
by way of example only and that, with the scope of the appended claims and
equivalents thereto,
the invention may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described and
claimed. The present
invention is directed to each individual feature, system, article, material,
and/or method
described herein. In addition, any combination of two or more such features,
systems, articles,
materials, and/or methods, if such features, systems, articles, materials,
and/or methods are not
mutually inconsistent, is included within the scope of the present invention.
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