A Bassinet

The present invention relates to a bassinet.

Today there is an approach that babies need to be near their parents at all times. One article which discusses said issue is "Babies Need Their Mothers Beside Them" by James J. McKenna, Ph.D. Said article discusses the mutual benefits which are shared when one or both parents sleep alongside their babies. The baby receives protection, warmth, emotional reassurance and breast milk, while the baby regulates the mother's biology by more frequent feedings and nipple contact which change the mother's hormone levels that help to prevent a new pregnancy before the baby is ready to be weaned. The article also points out that this sleeping arrangement is supported by human experience worldwide. Furthermore, it cites studies suggesting that children who were "co-slept" become better adjusted adults.

There are known various bassinets such as "Arm's Reach Co-Sleeper Bassinet", which attaches to and under the mattress of an adult bed. Some drawbacks of said bassinet are that it makes it difficult for the parents to leave their bed at night, permits only one parent at a time to care for the baby, is physically large, and is expensive due to its elaborate construction. Another known bassinet is "Deluxe Snuggle Nest Baby Bed" which is a small portable sleeping unit which may be placed directly upon the surface of an adult bed between the parents. The drawbacks of said baby bed are inter alia that its partial walls do not extend to the full length of its mattress and said walls are made from a soft non-rigid material thus the protected area is made from a soft mattress which can be pressed easily by the parents' weight. Moreover the permanent partial walls do not allow the easy approach to the baby by either parent.

In view of the above, most known bassinets are not safe, are not convenient to use and are quite expensive.

It has thus been desirable to design a bassinet which overcomes the above

drawbacks.

The present invention thus relates to a bassinet which consists in a base which base is connected on both sides to walls extending substantially to them in a vertical/perpendicular position and wherein a rotatable part[s] is/are connected to the two walls by any suitable connecting means which part[s] extendjs] substantially parallel to the other set of sides of the base.

A bassinet of the present invention may be a bassinet per se or a crib, a cot, a cradle, nest, etc.

The base of the bassinet of the present invention may have any suitable structure such as being rectangular, square, elliptical, circular, oval or a combination thereof.

The bassinet of the present invention as a whole may have the same form and may be the same as the base, e.g. rectangular, square, elliptical, circular, oval or a combination thereof.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, should the base and the bassinet have substantially a rectangular form, the walls will be located along the narrow side.

The rotatable part[s] in accordance with the present invention may be any rotatable parts such as arms, bars, handles, straps, etc. For easy reference the present invention will be described herein in connection with arms. However it is not restricted to said structure.

Rotatable in accordance with the present invention may be rotatable per se or foldable, movable, liftable, raisable,

The rotatable arm[s] may consist of, however is not restricted to:

• one arm which may rotate substantially up to 180 degrees from one side to the other side of the base;

• two arms which may rotate substantially up to 180 degrees from one side to the other side of the base together or separately;

Said rotatable arm[s] may be connected with any suitable height to the walls by any connecting means in any part of said walls. However in a preferred embodiment of the present invention the arm[s] are connected to the upper part of the walls and their height is lower than the height of the walls.

The rotatable arm[s] may be connected to the walls by any connecting means which may enable the rotation, i.e. by axlefs] e.g. by at least one axle which is located on the wall of the bassinet and is inserted into the hole in the rotatable arm or vise versa, snaps, etc.

In a further embodiment the rotatable arm[s] may be locked to one or both walls in order to prevent the arm[s] from being lifted accidentally. Said lock may be for example a snap which is connected to the wall and a recess which is part of the arm[s]. In the locked position the snap engages the arm recess. The pressure on either part of the arm by either part of the body, e.g. by a finger, by a hand, etc. will release the bassinet and the arm may be lifted and thus opened. The lock mechanism may be on each side of the arm and corresponding wall or on part of the sides thereof. Further locks may be selected among pin and hole, Velcro, buckle, etc.

The bassinet may be designed as one unit or as several units which are connected to each other. The separate units may be connected to each other by any suitable connecting methods such as screwing, welding, pasting, pushing etc.

The bassinet in accordance with the present invention may be manufactured

from any suitable material, e.g. any kind of rigid material such as ABS, Polycarbonate (PC), Polypropylene (PP), etc metal, advantageously stainless steel; wood which may be covered by any suitable coating material such as varnish, lacquer, any kind of plastic; and combinations of the above, etc.

All parts of the bassinet may be cushioned from the inner side and/or the outer side by any soft material such as PU (Expanded Polyurethan) covered with fabric, rubber, etc.. Moreover said soft material may be the same material as that of the mattress, e.g. PU or rubber. The base of the bassinet may be cushioned by a mattress.

Further devices may be connected to the bassinet such as a movement (respiration) monitor, a lighting device, a mobile, etc.

The present invention may be used as follows:

1. The bassinet of the present invention is placed on any required place, e.g. on the parents' bed;

2. The baby is put into the bassinet and the bassinet is in the closed position, i.e. one or both arms extend parallel to the base and should be locked, e.g. should two arms be present, one or both arms are locked e.g. by a snap[s] on the wall[s] which catches the arm recess[es];

3. When one of the parents wants to take the baby and/or the mother wants to breastfeed the baby, he or she just has to lift the arm. Should a lock be present the lock should be opened, e.g. by pressure, e.g. by a finger or an arm, which will release the snap[s] from the recess[es], the arm will be lifted and the baby is near the parent; and

4. After the treatment of the baby is complete, the arm is closed and if

desired locked, as described in point 2 above;

In view of the above bassinet and method, it can be realized that the level of the parents' mattress and the baby's mattress is substantially identical and the parents do not need to raise themselves to carry themselves beyond any barrier such as a wall as in the known bassinets.

The present invention will now be illustrated with reference to the accompanying drawings without being limited by same. (Identical parts appearing in several drawings will be marked for sake of clarity by the same numerals).

Said drawings show:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of the bassinet of the present invention in the closed position;

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of the bassinet of Fig. 1 in the open position; and

Fig. 3 shows a connection between one arm of the bassinet and its wall.

The drawings are described hereunder as follows:

In Figs. 1 and 2 are shown bassinet 1 which consists of base 2 connected on both sides to walls 3; and wherein rotatable arms 4 which extend parallel to the other set of sides of base 2 are connected by any suitable connecting means 5 to both walls 3. Each rotatable arm 4 and base 2 are covered by soft material 6 and 6' respectively.

Bassinet 1 in accordance with this embodiment is provided also with movement (respiration) monitor 10 and lighting 11.

Baby 20 is also shown within bassinet 1.

In Fig. 2 arm 4 rotates into the open position.

In Fig. 3 is shown arm 4 having recess 12 which is caught by snap 13. Snap art of wall 3 of bassinet 1.