Chairs and seats – Supplemental seat
Reexamination Certificate
2002-09-23
2004-06-08
Cranmer, Laurie K. (Department: 3636)
Chairs and seats
Supplemental seat
C297S014000, C297S060000, C297S332000, C297S344210, C297S344240, C280S020000, C280S047360
Reexamination Certificate
active
06746079
ABSTRACT:
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
Not Applicable.
REFERENCE TO A MICROFICHE APPENDIX
Not Applicable.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates and provides a means to a folding seat assemblage to be attached to any typical luggage cart that carries baggage, packages and goods for travelers at airports, as well as ship, train and bus terminals.
The invention utilizes the seat folding function and general arrangements of prior art, including U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,205 from the same inventor, and adds optional arrangements and attachments to ensure additional safety for the user, and permits practical means for modifying a wide range of cart designs in existence without requiring them to make major changes to their present design, in order to accomodate the use of a seat for a tired traveler. Optionally, if so desired , two seats may be added to the cart, used independently, one on each side.
Presently, almost all airports, as well as train, bus and ship terminals have available for the travelers luggage carts to help them convey their bagage about the terminals to ticket agents and various objectives while waiting for their transportation to arrive or leave. During these long waiting periods they are obliged to stand, sometimes without any place to rest during extended hours. Recent security problems have increased the wait time and produced long lines of passengers without access to chairs or seats during these periods. In addition, often times a flight would be cancelled or delayed as passengers with small children or the aged must wait standing tiredly since frequently there are no seats available and the carts they use have no provisions for resting during their long delayed wait.
The present invention has risen to mitigate and/or obviate the afore described disadvantage of the present luggage cart available to the public in that it contains only provisions for carrying passengers' suitcases, bags and parcels, but no provisions for the passengers' personal comfort, i.e., seating while waiting in the terminals.
Presently, the luggage carts available in the market at the various terminals contain no provisions for seating the tired waiting traveler. Some patents, however, show equipment handling systems including carts with seats, but all such patents are designed, operate and configured quite differently from the present invention, as will be discussed below:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,865,710—Wilson-Hyde, Step Aerobic Platform, shows a seat mounted on an aerobic platform and does not attach to a cart. It does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,695,246—Chim Ho Thai, Seat Device Attached to Baggage Handcart, shows a seat supported by a single center tubular leg to a horizontal seat plate. The plate can rotate about a pin axis and is mounted on the two wheel L-shaped handcart frame whose lower projecting leg supports the baggage, and whose vertical leg contains two wheels at the bottom for wheeling the luggage and the top of this same member is where the traveler handles the handcart and tilts it at an angle to retain the loaded luggage. This patent does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,237,924—Reiland et al, Shopping Cart with Internal Seat, shows a shopping cart with a seat and basket attached to the front end of the cart and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,826,892—Kratzenberg et al, Push Luggage Cart, shows a handcart that contains no seat and only a basket and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. D315,904—Adamson et al, shows a luggage cart containing no seat and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,439,239—Chung-shiu Su, Collapsible Luggage Cart, shows a collapsible cart and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,733,877—Pastien, Cart Apparatus with Improved Handle, shows a cart with an improved handle design that does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,381,870—Muellner, Versatile Cart Apparatus, shows a cart that contains a fixed aft facing seat or tray and the seat is mounted in a manner that the vehicle can move with the person on it and will roll. The seated person seats high on the cart frame. This patent does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. D263,127—Muellner, Luggage Cart with Adult Seat, shows the design of a cart with an adult seat fixed and mounted in the cart frame in a manner that the person seats very high on it, and the cart can move or roll while the person is seating. This patent does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,887,927—Kurek III, Folding Handle Device, shows a folding device that rotates around the eye of a vertical stud that contains a compression spring to retain the handle in the vertical or horizontal position, and it does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,547,205—Cabedo, Luggage Cart with Attached Seat, shows a four wheel cart that contains a folding seat mounted on the cart structure. The seat is manually rotated to the stow position and the push handle is rotated manually to a vertical position for head clearance. The function of both operations are not connected in the above Patent, while the present invention interconnects these two functions: the up and down movement of the seat, and the rotation of the handle. In the present invention, when optionally a seat is installed on the back of the cart, it is rotated up and down with the cart push handle. In the above Patent the seat is plain, while in the present invention the seat is spring loaded, helping to lift it upward to its stow position, and the rotating push handle is different as it has an extension arm to interface with the seat lift linkage and also contains a double pivot capability to permit laying over 180 degrees forward to clear a container or basket whenever same is part of the cart. In addition, in one embodiment of the present invention, it also shows one or two seats on the side of the cart. In the Cabedo Patent, the seat is supported by two vertical legs interconnected with a cross bar, while the present invention utilizes a single bent support for the seat load. The Cabedo Patent guide link slides up and down the cart structure frame, while the present invention utilizes a fixed pivot to retain the horizontal guide link. There is also a major difference on how to support the weight on the seat: the Cabedo Patent supports the load with a diagonal truss member and two vertical tubes, while the present invention utilizes only a guided bent vertical tube to support the seat. The basics of the two inventions are different and the referred to Cabedo Patent does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,460,215—Chamberlain et al, Folding Seat Assembly, shows a folding seat assembly that folds against a wall, and the linkage and folding hinge assembly does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,257,211—V. Willoughby, Seat, shows a seat that folds against a wall and the hinge assembly and support frame are mounted differently to the seat and in the folded up position the seat is locked up against the wall in such way that it does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,213,360—Chin-Feng Lin, Push Car, shows that this patent is primarily a two wheel frame that contains a flexible seat for a baby on a luggage hand car, and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,073—Hung-Hsin, Tractive Baggage Handcart, shows a two wheeled handcart that comprises a travel case, a tractive retractable device on back of said travel case, a tie belt and a foldable chair, and it does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,811—Cheng, Trolley with a Foldable Seat, shows a foldable seat assembly mounted on a hand cart and the seat support assembly contact the soil by means of two pair of stands, and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,170,709—J. T. Shackel, Utility Carts, shows a seat mounted and fixed on the front part of an utility cart and does not apply to the present invention.
U.S. P
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