It has now been widely known for a number of years that infant sleeping on their front increase their risk of dying from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) or cot death as it is more commonly known. Although the causes of SIDS are mostly unexplained and it is difficult to quantify any associated risk factors, it is widely accepted that cot deaths are much more likely to occur when babies do sleep on their front or stomach, ie in a prone position.

Whilst it may be easy for a parent or guardian to ensure that when a baby is first placed into a cot or bed that the baby is initially lying on its back or side, it is almost inevitable that at some time during their sleep cycle, the baby may tend to roll onto its stomach of its own accord and risk cot death.

It is known for parents to use rolled up towels or blankets which are placed on either side of the baby so as to keep the baby lying either on the side or back position.

However, movement by babies such as stretching or kicking can easily lead to towels or blankets being displaced and even covering the baby's face causing overheating and possibly suffocation.

The applicant is also aware of the teachings of US Patent Nos 4672958 (Garman) and 5347669 (Neviaser) and UK Patent 2263631 (Constable), each of which disclose a form of body restraint for preventing an infant, which is lying on its back or side in a cot, from rolling onto its front or stomach. In particular, Garman teaches the use of a torso restraining device which is designed to fit over the lower torso region of a baby and which in combination with a restraining belt or strap prevent the baby from rolling onto its stomach.

However, all of these known prior art devices are not entirely satisfactory, having regard to wear comfort, too much or too little movement restrictions, and/or the danger of the baby becoming entangled with the restraining straps or belts which extend from the baby to opposite sides of the cot and fixed thereto.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an improved restraint means, in the form of a baby's sleep garment, which will not only prevent the baby from rolling over onto its stomach but which is also effective in preventing the baby from moving into an awkward position in the cot where one or more of the baby's limbs may become entangled with the side rails of the cot or with the tether portion of the restraint garment.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved infant sleepsuit restraint which is designed so that the baby, can move at least to some extent bodily sideways to either side of the cot or bed, while firmly held on its back but not rotate itself about a lengthwise axis.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an infant restraint sleep suit which is designed in the form of a jumpsuit which receives the torso and legs of the infant, with or without separate sleeves to accommodate the arms of the infant, wherein the circumference of the jumpsuit can be adjusted to accommodate different baby sizes.

It is a still further object of the present invention to provide an improved infant sleepsuit restraint which is designed to allow easy access to a baby when fitted therein, for facilitating nappy changes, without the need to remove the baby from the suit during the changing procedure.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Broadly according to this invention, baby restraint means for holding a baby in a sleeping position on its back on a mattress, comprises: a garment adapted to be worn by the baby and having a front panel and a back panel joined to the front panel so as to define a compartment therebetween for receiving the body of the baby, elongate restraining strap means arranged for fitment to the mattress so as to extend across the upper surface thereof in a tightened or taut condition, and in mating surface contact therewith, fastening means for releasably securing the terminal ends of said strap means, so that said ends are fixed with respect to one another, and connection means for attaching said strap means to the rear panel of said garment in a manner such that, with the strap means fitted to the mattress, both the garment and the baby received therein are prevented from substantially rotating about a lengthwise axis in a direction to either side of the mattress.

More specifically, according to this invention, there is provided restraining means for restraining a baby lying on its back on a mattress of a cot (or bed) from substantial rotational movement comprising: a garment adapted to surround the body of the baby, said garment having a front panel and a back panel, strap attachment means defining a guide slot extending across the back panel of the garment, an elongate securing strap or belt arranged to slidably pass through said guide slot and to extend to opposite sides of the cot mattress in mating surface contact therewith, and means for fastening the terminal ends of the strap or belt so that the strap or belt is retained in a taut condition in said mating surface contact with the mattress (or its bedding), arranged so that with the strap or belt in a fastened taut condition, a baby fitted within the garment and positioned on its back is prevented from rolling onto its front or stomach.

Desirably the securing strap is of a length such that it encircles the perimeter of the mattress and its terminal ends are arranged to overlap and attach to one another by quick release fastening means such as "Velcro" strips.

Alternatively the terminal ends of the strap can be firmly anchored to respective anchorages eg the upright rails of the cot, on opposite sides of the cot, each at a location below the upper edge of the mattress. This is designed to ensure that the strap, when tightened, bears firmly against the upper surface of the mattress (or bedding) and virtually eliminates the possibility of a limb of the baby, or even his or her head, from becoming entangled beneath the strap.

Preferably the guide slot is formed by means of a loop forming panel attached to the back panel of the garment in approximately the mid region of the baby's back. This also prevents the baby from sitting up in the cot. The panel may comprise a length of material, eg fabric which matches the fabric of the garment, stitched along its upper and lower sides to the back panel of the garment, with a transverse elongate slot being formed between the two panels and through which the belt or strap can slidably locate. The guide slot may also be formed by two or more separate loops spaced across the width of the back panel and attached thereto.

Desirably the garment is provided with means to adjust the circumference of the garment around the baby's upper chest area to restrain the movement of the baby with respect to the garment.

Desirably the adjustment means comprises a pair of short length adjustment straps each attached at one of its ends to a respective side of the garment, the two straps being arranged to extend across the front pane and overlap one another and be fastened together, eg by means of "Velcro" strips. Alternatively the adjustment means can be achieved by an elasticated portion sewn into the garment.

Preferably the garment is a jumpsuit wherein the front and back panels are joined to each other along their opposite vertical sides and along their bottom edges so as to define an enlarged pocket for receiving the baby's body, apart from its head and arms.

Preferably the bottom end of the jumpsuit contains a zip fastener to allow the bottom end to be conveniently opened when access to the baby's body is required, without the need to remove the baby from the jumpsuit.

Preferably the garment further includes two arm sleeves joined to the front and back panels, each adapted to accommodate an arm of the baby.

It is an advantage of this invention that a baby, when positioned in the restraining garment and lying on its back on a mattress in the cot, is firmly but comfortably held on its back and is unable to undergo any substantial rolling movement which would allow the baby to roll onto its stomach, yet at the same time be able to move horizontally sideways across the mattress, due to the slidable attachment between the strap and the garment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In order to more fully describe and explain the present invention, several embodiments hereof are described hereunder in some further detail with reference to and illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein: Fig 1 shows a restraining jumpsuit in use when a baby is lying on a cot mattress, according to a first embodiment of the invention; Fig 2 is a cross-sectional view of the jumpsuit shown in Fig 1 with its securing strap encircled around the cot mattress; Fig 3 is a front perspective view of the jumpsuit shown in Fig 1; Fig 4 is a rear perspective view of the jumpsuit shown in Fig 1; Fig 5 is a front elevational view of the jumpsuit of Fig 1; Fig 6 is a rear elevational view of the jumpsuit of Fig 1; Fig 7 is a front perspective view of a jumpsuit according to a second embodiment of the invention; while Fig 8 is a rear perspective view of the jumpsuit of Fig 7.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now to Figs 1 to 6 in detail, there is shown a baby 10 positioned in a cot 12 on its back on a cot mattress 14. The baby 10 is placed in a jumpsuit 16 which comprises a main body portion 17 which envelops the torso and legs of the baby 10, and left and right hand sleeves 18 for the baby's arms. The body portion 17 comprises a front panel 19 and a rear panel 20 which is joined to the front panel 19 along both sides and the bottom end of the body portion 17. The baby 10 is placed in the jumpsuit 16 by opening the front panel 19 of the jumpsuit, the opening being controlled by a zip 22 or other suitable fastener means, eg "Velcro" strips, to allow access to the jumpsuit. To ensure that the jumpsuit fits snugly around the baby 10, there is provided with a pair of adjustment straps 24, 25 that are attached to the lateral opposite sides of the jumpsuit 16 and which are designed to overlap each other and firmly attach to one another, eg by "Velcro" strips, secured to the ends of the straps 24, 25, thereby causing the jumpsuit to firmly fit around the chest area of the baby 10. This ensures that the relative position between the jumpsuit and the baby remains the same and the baby does not roll around inside of the jumpsuit.

The rear of the jumpsuit 16 has attached thereto, eg by stitching, a rectangular elongate panel 30 which forms a loop with the rear surface of the rear panel 20 so as to define an open ended guide slot 31 which extends across the rear panel 20 of the jumpsuit and through which slidably passes a substantially inextensible or non- stretchable securing strap or belt 32 which is of a sufficient length so as to completely encircle around the mattress 14 (or the cot base) under the baby, with the terminal ends of the strap or belt 32 being secured together in the mid region of the mattress on the underside thereof. To accommodate for different sizes of mattresses or cots, the securing strap or belt 32 includes a fastening means such as "Velcro" or snap fasteners, which enable the strap to be adjusted so as tightly encircle the mattress or cot according to the size of the mattress or cot. As shown in Fig 2, the terminal ends of the strap 32 overlap each other and are attached to each other by contact "Velcro" strips 33, 34. In lieu of "Velcro" strips, a fastening buckle may be used.

With the securing belt 32 in a taut condition with its inner surface bearing against the outside of the mattress 14 (or bedding), the baby 10 within the jumpsuit 16 is prevented from any appreciable rolling from one side to another, and in particular from rolling fully onto its side and front. To ensure that the baby cannot roll substantially onto its side, the strap 32 should engage two spaced apart portions of the rear panel of the jumpsuit, otherwise the baby will still be able to roll. Hence, it is most advantageous for the ends of the guide slot 31 to be located in proximity to the opposite sides respectively of the garment 16 to restrain the garment against any appreciable rotational movement, and to ensure that the rear panel 20 is held firmly flat across its full width (or nearly so) against the mattress 14.

Thus one can see that the strap 32 is used to form a loop around the mattress or cot and by ensuring that the loop is of a tight but yet comfortable fit and engages two different locations of the jumpsuit 16, the baby is substantially prevented from rolling onto its side or front. The baby can however slide horizontally across the mattress to either side thereof, by virtue of the ability of the jumpsuit 16 to slide with respect to the strap 32.

Desirably the width of the slot 31 is selected so that there is limited upward or downward sliding movement of the garment (with respect to ends of the mattress 14) relative to the strap 32. This prevents the baby 10 when lying lengthwise of the mattress from sliding any appreciable distance either up or down the mattress.

The use of a releasable strap or belt 32 along with the adjustment straps 24, 25 means that easy and quick access to the baby is available in case of medical or other emergencies. In addition, both the jumpsuit, the sewn on straps 24, 25, and the securing strap or belt 32 can be made of suitable material which is washable and which at the same time provides comfort and warmth for the baby.

The feature of the adjustment straps 24, 25 allows the jumpsuit to be of one size and therefore accommodate babies of different ages. The sleeves are designed to allow the baby free movement of its arms.

Referring to the embodiment shown in Figs 7 and 8 of the drawings, the jumpsuit 40 is similar to that shown in the first embodiment described hereinabove, except in this case, the garment is sleeveless while its lower end is provided with a zip opening 42 which allows quick and ready access to the baby, eg when sleeping, in order to change a soiled nappy or diaper, and avoids having to disturb the baby by taking him or her out of the garment. The adjustment straps 24, 25 and the attachment of the securing strap or belt 32 are identical to that described in the first embodiment and hence no further explanation of those parts is required. As in the first embodiment, the securing strap 32 completely encircles the mattress of the cot and is pulled tightly therearound, with its terminal ends overlapping and being fastened to one another.

It will be appreciated that with the securing strap 32 attached to the jumpsuit 16, 40 in the mid back region of the baby, the baby will be also be unable to move to a sitting position within the cot. It will also be appreciated that with the securing strap 32 being tightly held against the mattress, it is virtually impossible for a limb or head of the baby to work itself between a portion of the strap and the mattress. Any entanglement of a limb or the baby's head with the strap 32 could result in an injury to the baby.

It is important to note that other variations of the invention, although not hereindescribed, may fall within the spirit and scope of the present invention. For example the baby's jumpsuit could be adapted as trousers to hold individually the baby's legs. The terminal ends of the securing strap could be adapted to be separately attached to opposite sides of the cot and not extend fully around the mattress perimeter. In this case, however, it is still important for the separate strap portions to bear firmly against the upper surface of the mattress so that there are no gaps between the strap portions and the mattress. In a further variation, the securing strap, instead of slidably passing through an open ended sleeve or loop affixed to the rear panel of the jumpsuit, the strap can be fixedly attached to the rear panel, eg by stitching, at spaced apart locations thereon. With this arrangement, the strap and the garment would be permanently fixed to another. The tether strap may also be formed as two separate strap lengths, each affixed at one end to the rear panel of the garment.

In yet another variation, the adjustment of the jumpsuit around the baby can be achieved by the use of elastic or snap fasteners.

A brief consideration of the above described embodiments will indicate that the invention provides for a very simple yet effective baby restraint device which will prevent a baby from not only rolling over onto its stomach which could cause breathing difficulties, but also from moving into awkward positions in the cot which might otherwise cause accidental injury or stress.