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Joint of a foldable bed for babiesRelated Patent Categories: Beds, Crib, FoldingJoint of a foldable bed for babies description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20060021136, Joint of a foldable bed for babies. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a joint of a foldable bed for babies, more particularly one, which is structured in such a way that damage thereto is prevented owing to improper actions of the user in folding and stretching the bed, and that rod parts of a frame of the bed, which are connected with the joint, will be more steadily held in position. [0003] 2. Brief Description of the Prior Art [0004] Referring to FIG. 12, the applicant in the present application was granted U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,229 B1 on Mar. 20, 2001, which disclosed "A Joint Of A Foldable Bed For Babies". The joint includes: [0005] a main body 1 having a curved top portion 13, two side plates 11, 12 extending downwards from the curved top portion 13, to which two adjacent ones of rod parts 4, 4 of a frame of a bed are pivoted at inward ends, and gaps 17 next to two ends of the curved top portion 13; [0006] a pressing block 2 up and down movably held between the side plates 11, 12; the pressing block 2 having two engaging trenches 22 on two sides facing respective ones of two ends of the main body 1; [0007] a spring 24 positioned between the top curved portion 13 and a top of the pressing block 2 for biasing the pressing block 2 downwards to a lowermost position; and [0008] two supporting members 3, 3 held between the side plates 11, 12 and on two sides of the pressing block 2, and pivoted to the side plates 11, 12; each supporting member 3 having an engaging bar 32 on a first end for engagement with a corresponding engaging trench 22 on the pressing block 2; each supporting member 3 having a curved portion 34 formed on a second end substantially in an opposite direction of the first end for supporting a respective one of the inward ends of the rod parts 4 on when the bed is in a stretched position; the supporting members 3 having elastic plate portions 33 above the engaging bars 32 thereof. [0009] Thus, the supporting members 3 will be tightly pressed on respective ones of the engaging trenches 22 at the engaging bars 32 thereof to prevent the pressing block 2 from moving as soon as the rod parts 4 are pressed against the curved portions 34 of the supporting members 3 at the inward ends thereof owing to gravity after the bed has been stretched as well as after the pressing block 2 has been biased to the lowermost position by means of the spring 24, thus preventing the bed from folding. [0010] And, to fold the bed, first the main body 1 is slightly lifted such that the inwards ends of the rod parts 4 move to higher position to be away from the curved portions 34 of the supporting members 3; thus, the supporting members 3 will pivot automatically so as to be away from the engaging trenches 22 of the pressing block 2, no longer stopping the pressing block 2 from moving up. Then, the pressing block 2 is manually pushed to a highest position such that the supporting members 3 are free to pivot. Finally, the rod parts 4 are angularly displaced relative to the main 1 body towards an upright position where the inward ends of the rod parts 9 are the lowermost; thus the bed is folded. [0011] The above joint of a foldable bed is found to have disadvantages as followings: [0012] 1. One of the rod parts 4 can still be left in the horizontal stretched position in folding the bed because of improper action of the user. And, the user has to first push the pressing block 2 to the highest position again before he pivots the left-horizontal rod part 4 to the upright position because the pressing block 2 has been biased to the lowermost position by the spring 24 immediately after the user stopped pushing it. However, the user usually forces this rod part 4 to change angular position relative to the main body 1 without first pushing the pressing block 2. Consequently, the joint is damaged. [0013] 2. Although supporting members 3 are formed with the curved portions 34 for contacting the curved sides of the rod parts 4, the inward ends of the rod parts 4 still can't contact the curved portions 34 closely, and there is space in between. Consequently, the rod parts 4 are not steady enough when the bed is in the stretched position. SUMMARY [0014] It is a main object of the present invention to provide a joint of a foldable bed for babies to overcome the above disadvantages. [0015] The joint includes a main body, a pressing block, two supporting members, and two plate members. The main body, the pressing block, and the supporting members are basically the same as those of the prior joint, and the plate members are fitted on the main body, and formed with stopping bumps for making the supporting members keep the pressing block in the highest position as soon as at least one of the rod parts of the frame is angularly displaced to the upright folded position; thus, in case the user only successfully moves one of the rod parts, and leaves the other rod part in the horizontal position in his first action of folding the bed, the pressing block will still be kept in the highest position, and the latter rod part still can be easily pivoted towards the folded position without any obstacle, preventing damage to the present joint. Furthermore, the inward ends of the rod parts have plane bottom sides, and the supporting members have plane bearing sides for supporting the plane bottom sides on; thus, the rod parts are more steadily held in position when the bed is in the stretched position. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS [0016] The present invention will be better understood by referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein: [0017] FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of the joint of a foldable bed according to the present invention, [0018] FIG. 2 is a front view of the joint of the present invention, [0019] FIG. 3 is a top view of the joint of the present invention, [0020] FIG. 4 is a front view of the present joint, in folding action for the bed (step one), [0021] FIG. 5 is a front view of the present joint, in folding action for the bed (step two), [0022] FIG. 6 is a front view of the joint, after folding action of the bed, [0023] FIG. 7 is a side view of the joint, in folding action of the bed, [0024] FIG. 8 is a front view of the joint, when the bed is in partially folded position, [0025] FIG. 9 is a front view of the joint, while the pressing block is in the highest position after the bed is partially folded, [0026] FIG. 10 is a front view of the present joint, when the bed is being stretched, [0027] FIG. 11 is a side view of the present joint, when the bed is being stretched, and Continue reading about Joint of a foldable bed for babies... Full patent description for Joint of a foldable bed for babies Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims Click on the above for other options relating to this Joint of a foldable bed for babies patent application. ###  How KEYWORD MONITOR works... a FREE service from FreshPatents1. Sign up (takes 30 seconds). 2. Fill in the keywords to be monitored. 3. Each week you receive an email with patent applications related to your keywords. Start now! - Receive info on patent apps like Joint of a foldable bed for babies or other areas of interest. ### Previous Patent Application: Collapsible play yard Next Patent Application: Sleeping bag with integrated air mattress Industry Class: Beds ### FreshPatents.com Support Thank you for viewing the Joint of a foldable bed for babies patent info. 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