Safety bassinet adapter

Abstract

An adapter for a bassinet that enables a mother to easily access an infant therein and provides a safety feature to prevent the infant from falling out. The bassinet has a plurality of enclosure walls surrounding a floor, and one of the walls is convertible between the raised configuration and a lowered configuration. The bassinet adapter has a generally planar main platform that fits within the bassinet walls and is supported by a floor of the bassinet. A partial barrier wall extends vertically upward from a front edge of the main platform which is located just inside the convertible wall. The partial barrier wall projects upward from the lowered convertible wall to present a barrier to the infant rolling out of the bassinet. The bassinet adapter may be clipped onto a fixed front lip of the bassinet extending parallel to the convertible wall and lower than the convertible wall in the raised position.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A bassinet having:
 a plurality of enclosure walls mounted around a periphery of a floor for supporting a sleeping platform that present a complete barrier to a baby rolling off the sleeping platform when in a raised configuration, at least one of the enclosure walls being a convertible wall configured to move from a raised position to a lowered position at or below the level of the sleeping platform; and   a removable bassinet adapter having a generally planar main platform that fits on the floor and closely within the enclosure walls define by the bassinet, the adapter having a partial barrier wall extending upward about 90° from a front edge of the main platform so as to be positioned within the convertible wall, the partial barrier wall extending upward from the convertible wall in the lowered position to present a partial barrier to a baby on the sleeping platform rolling out of the bassinet.   
     
     
         2 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the partial barrier wall is padded. 
     
     
         3 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the enclosure walls define a generally rectangular shape for the bassinet having a length and a width, and the partial barrier wall has a length of between about 20-50% of the length of the bassinet. 
     
     
         4 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the partial barrier wall has a convex curved upper edge. 
     
     
         5 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of enclosure walls comprise a rigid rear wall and a pair of rigid abbreviated end walls which extend forward from the rear wall about half of a width dimension of the bassinet, and wherein a front wall is the convertible wall and is pivotally connected at opposite ends to the abbreviated end walls, the front wall extending about half of the width dimension of the bassinet on ends thereof and along a front length dimension. 
     
     
         6 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of enclosure walls comprise a rigid rear wall and a pair of rigid end walls which extend forward from the rear wall along a width dimension of the bassinet, and wherein a front wall is the convertible wall and is pivotally connected at opposite ends to the lower frame at front corners of the end walls to be moved from the raised position to the lowered position. 
     
     
         7 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the bassinet adapter further includes a pair of legs extending downward from the main platform for spacing the main platform up above the bassinet floor. 
     
     
         8 . The bassinet of  claim 7 , wherein the legs are pivotable relative to the main platform so as to be pivoted flat underneath and parallel to the main platform. 
     
     
         9 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the partial barrier wall is fixed in a 90° orientation relative to the main platform. 
     
     
         10 . The bassinet of  claim 1 , wherein the partial barrier wall is rigidly connected to the front edge of the main platform so as to be configured to pivot at least 270° from the position extending upward from the front edge to a retracted position lying underneath and parallel to the main platform. 
     
     
         11 . A bassinet having:
 a plurality of enclosure walls mounted around a periphery of a floor for supporting a sleeping platform that present a complete barrier to a baby rolling off the sleeping platform when in a raised configuration, at least one of the enclosure walls being a convertible wall configured to move from a raised position to a lowered position at or below the level of the sleeping platform, wherein the bassinet defines a fixed front lip extending parallel to the convertible wall and lower than the convertible wall in the raised position; and   a removable bassinet adapter defining a partial barrier wall extending upward about 90°, the partial barrier wall extending upward from the fixed front lip and above the convertible wall in the lowered position to present a partial barrier to a baby on the sleeping platform rolling out of the bassinet.   
     
     
         12 . The bassinet of  claim 11 , wherein the bassinet adapter is clipped onto the fixed front lip. 
     
     
         13 . The bassinet of  claim 12 , wherein the bassinet adapter is clipped onto the fixed front lip with spring-loaded clamps. 
     
     
         14 . The bassinet of  claim 12 , wherein the bassinet adapter is clipped onto the fixed front lip with clamps having threaded tighteners. 
     
     
         15 . The bassinet of  claim 12 , wherein the bassinet adapter has an arched shape with a convex upper edge and is clipped onto the fixed front lip with two clamps, one on each of two lower ends.