WO2006046790A1

WO2006046790A1 - Sunshade assembly having a fastener

Info

Publication number: WO2006046790A1
Application number: PCT/KR2004/003136
Authority: WO
Inventors: Sung Bum Cho
Original assignee: Total Kids Corp
Current assignee: Total Kids Corp
Priority date: 2004-10-25
Filing date: 2004-12-01
Publication date: 2006-05-04
Anticipated expiration: 2007-04-25

Abstract

A sunshade assembly includes a sunshade and a fastener. The fastener includes a movable fastener body, a stationary fastener body, and a bolt assembly, so that the sunshade assembly can be firmly assembled with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of the baby carriage regardless of the shape or thickness of the canopy supporter or the handle frame. The sunshade assembly can effectively shield ultraviolet rays while disturbing neither views of the baby nor airflow into the baby carriage, can be easily assembled and disassembled with and from ,a canopy supporter or a handle frame of the baby carriage regardless of the shape or thickness of the canopy supporter or the handle frame, can be stored with a reduced size, can be carried and stored in an easy and simple manner, and can be used in various ways.

Description

SUNSHADE ASSEMBLY HAVING A FASTENER

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a sunshade assembly for protecting a baby or person seated in a vehicle such as a baby carriage or car from harmful ultraviolet rays .

Background Art In general, as it becomes sunnier, the probability that people go outdoors with their baby in a vehicle such as a baby carriage or a car rises. However, the sunnier it is, the more the ultraviolet rays are shed on the ground. As is well known, the ultraviolet rays may be a direct cause for not only skin damage or skin aging but also fatal diseases such as skin cancer and cataracts. Especially, it is necessary to pay more attention in order to protect a baby having a relatively poor skin protection capability from the ultraviolet rays.

For this reason, most baby carriages have a canopy attached to the side edges of the top portion of the handle frame of each carriage in order to intercept ultraviolet rays. Moreover, it is now an increasing trend that carriers or car sheets are equipped with a canopy for intercepting ultraviolet rays. However, according to the tendency to produce smaller and lighter baby carriages, most popular baby carriages are equipped with a semi-canopy which can cover over only a head of the baby seated in the baby carriage. A baby carriage having a canopy capable of covering over the entire hammock of the baby carriage, the canopy is designed to rotate along a semicircular trace to cover or open the hammock. Therefore, in this type of baby carriage, when the canopy is completely covering the entire hammock, the canopy may disturb the view of the baby and may even prevent ventilation of fresh air. Thus, it becomes impossible to prevent temperature increases in the baby carriage. Actually, it is frequently observed outdoors even on sunny days with a large quantity of ultraviolet rays that many users of the baby carriages cover the canopy partly over the hammock in order ^• to allow ventilation of fresh air into the baby carriage and prevent temperature increase in the baby carriage, instead of covering the hammock entirely.

The ultraviolet rays may do a more harm to a baby seated in a baby carriage that has no canopy. Many inventions have been made in order to eliminate or overcome such problems as described above. Several such inventions in relation to sunshades used for vehicles for carrying a baby will be described below.

Korean Utility Model Application No. 1997-0030797 discloses a sunshade for a baby carriage which pays main attention to a sunshade holder detachably assembled with a handle of the baby carriage to adjust an angle of a supporter. Korean Utility Model Registration No. 2000- 0022187 discloses a parasol for having a flexible tube formed at a middle portion of a shank of the parasol. Korean Utility Model Application No. 2000-0023705 discloses a holder for a parasol or umbrella, which enables the parasol or umbrella to be assembled with a baby carriage and easily direction-adjusted and carried by a user. Korean Utility Model Application No. 2001- 0018451 discloses a parasol holder of a baby carriage, which can hold a parasol for shielding sunlight for a driver of the baby carriage. Korean Utility Model Application No. 2001-0036327 discloses a light-shielding apparatus for a baby carriage, which includes a light- shielding part, a height adjusting rod connected to the light-shielding part, and a coupling means for detachably assembling the height adjusting rod with a handle of the baby carriage. The apparatuses of the aforementioned Korean inventions disclose technologies for shielding sunlight, the gist of which lies in assembling a parasol, etc., to a baby carriage or assembling a solid supporter for a sunshade to a handle frame of a baby carriage. However, the apparatuses of the aforementioned Korean inventions may have limitations in shielding ultraviolet rays according to the directions of the sunlight. It may be inconvenient for users to handle the apparatuses.

Further, the applicant has filed several applications including Korean Utility Model Application No. 2002-9069 and Korean Utility Model Application No. 2003-6097. Korean Utility Model Application No. 2002- 9069 discloses a sunshade for a baby-carrying vehicle, which includes an angle-adjusting device and a sunshade coupler. However, this sunshade is somewhat complicated to design, and therefore relatively expensive. Korean Utility Model Application No. 2003-6097 discloses an auxiliary sunshade for a baby carriage. This auxiliary sunshade can be handled in an easy and simple manner and has an excellent effect. However, this auxiliary sunshade has an elastic supporter which is indispensable for supporting the sunshade for a baby carriage and holding a clip. The elastic supporter prevents the auxiliary sunshade from being folded into a smaller size, thereby making it difficult to store and carry. Moreover, the clip has a fixed size which prevents the auxiliary sunshade from being employed in all kinds of baby carriages regardless of their size.

Concerning technology outside of the Republic of Korea, USP No. 5,542,732 discloses a combined supplemental shading and carrier apparatus for a canopied stroller, in which a fabric shade panel for shielding ultraviolet rays is arranged for attachment for overlapping and underlying the stroller frame and a pocket is positioned at the rear of the stroller. USP No. 5,975,558 discloses an adjustable shade for a stroller, which includes a top cover configured to attach to the integral canopy of the stroller, a front curtain coupled to the top cover, and first and second side curtains coupled to the top cover. USP No. 5,975,613 discloses a stroller shading device including a top panel, two side flaps, and a front flap, all of which are made of heavy cotton or cotton blend fabric. USP No. 6,012,756 discloses a cover made from UPF 50+ stretch knitted fabrics, which can be releasably attached to a canopy of a stroller while maintaining a shape of a skirt, in order to protect a baby in the stroller from the ultraviolet rays. USP No. 6,068,322 discloses equipment having a powered filter-unit, an air introduction port, and an air exhaust port, so as to ventilate polluted air and afford an infant protection against ambient air pollution. USP No. 6,155,628 discloses a sunshade assembly for a tricycle jogging type stroller, in which an upper end of a sunshade formed of flexible cloth-like mesh material is fixed to a canopy holder of the tricycle jogging type stroller by a pair of clips and a lower end of the sunshade is fixed to an axle of a front wheel of the stroller. USP No. 6,199,932 discloses a vehicle sunshade constructed of sun reflective mesh material, which is detachably assembled with a ceiling or a top supporter of an open cockpit vehicle such as a golf cart. USP No. 6,217,099 discloses a multi-layer protective shield for a stroller, which has an inflatable frame supporting a protective layer for protecting a baby seated in the stroller from rain or ultraviolet rays and a protective layer for protecting the baby from insects. Japan Patent Application No. 2000-337173 discloses a sunshade which protrudes forward from and is inserted in a canopy of a stroller. Japan Patent Application No. 2003-104209 discloses a sunshade hanging down like a curtain to constantly protect a baby from direct sunrays without adjustment of the sunshade.

The sunshades of the prior arts as described above may disturb the view of the baby, prevent ventilation of fresh air, have complicated constructions for their installation or mounting, can be employed only in a stroller having a canopy, can be employed only in a tricycle jogging type stroller, are intended to. be used only for ventilation, or can be employed only in an automobile . In other words, the conventional sunshades having complicated supporters or fastening frames in order to fix the sunshades to a handle of a baby carriage have too complicated a structure and are inconvenient to carry and store, so they are uneconomical. In the conventional sunshades having somewhat simplified constructions cannot reduce the entire volume of the sunshade and cannot be employed in all kinds of baby carriages regardless of the different sizes or shapes of canopy supporter bars or handle shafts of the baby carriages. Therefore, there has been a strong requirement for an economical sunshade which can effectively shield ultraviolet rays while disturbing neither the view of the baby nor ventilation of fresh air, can be easily assembled and disassembled with any kind of baby carriage, and has a reduced size when it is stored, so that the sunshade can be easily used, carried, and detachably mounted on the baby carriage.

Disclosure of the Invention Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the aforementioned problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a sunshade assembly for a baby carriage, which can efficiently protect a baby in a baby carriage, can provide a cool shade to the baby, can effectively shield ultraviolet rays while disturbing neither views of the baby nor airflow into the baby carriage, can be assembled with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of the baby carriage regardless of the shape or thickness of the canopy supporter or the handle frame, can be easily assembled and disassembled, can be stored with a reduced size, can be carried and stored in an easy and simple manner, and can be used in various ways.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sunshade assembly for shielding ultraviolet rays, which is assembled with a support frame of a vehicle for carrying a baby, the sunshade assembly comprising a sunshade and at least one fastener, wherein the sunshade includes: a sunshade body made from a textile fabric or a soft plastic which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays; and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion either wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape or forming the edge of the sunshade body without the rolled loop, and the fastener includes: a movable fastener body including a movable head and a movable bracket extending perpendicularly from the movable head, the movable head having side protrusions, movable side surfaces, and a movable body hole; a stationary fastener body including a stationary head and a stationary bracket, the movable head being seated in the stationary head, the stationary head having inner grooves, inner side surfaces, a stationary body hole, and a holding part, the stationary head being in sliding contact with the side protrusions of the movable fastener body, the inner side surfaces being in sliding contact with the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body, the stationary body hole having a shape and a size equal to those of the movable body hole, the holding part being assembled with the sunshade, the stationary bracket extending perpendicularly from the stationary head, having a shape corresponding to that of the movable bracket, and cooperating with the movable bracket to clamp the support frame of the vehicle; and a bolt assembly including a cylindrical screw portion and a knob, wherein the movable fastener body, the stationary fastener body, and the bolt assembly of the fastener can be assembled together or disassembled from each other by inserting or drawing the cylindrical screw portion of the bolt assembly into or out of the movable body hole and the stationary body hole, the movable fastener body can be assembled in opposite two directions to change an assembling structure of the fastener, a screwing rotation of the bolt assembly linearly slides the side protrusions of the movable fastener along the inner grooves of the stationary fastener body while maintaining the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body in close contact with the inner side surfaces of the stationary fastener body and maintaining a top of the movable head in close contact with the stationary head, so that the movable fastener body moves along an inner surface of the stationary fastener body to adjust an interval between the movable bracket and the stationary bracket, thereby enabling the movable bracket and the stationary bracket to clamp the support frame of the vehicle, and the sunshade is firmly assembled with the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener. According to the first embodiment of the present invention, the sunshade body has at least one circular eyelet, and the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a hook protuberance, so that the sunshade is assembled' with the fastener by fitting the hook protuberance into the eyelet by pressing the eyelet onto the hook protuberance.

According to the second embodiment of the present invention, the sunshade body has at least one male part or female part of a snap, and the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a corresponding male part or female part of a snap, so that the sunshade is assembled with the fastener in a manner equal to that of a snap. According to the third embodiment of the present invention, the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a sunshade-inserting part having a sunshade-inserting groove, so that the sunshade is assembled with the fastener by inserting the webbing portion of the sunshade directly into the sunshade- inserting groove.

In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a sunshade assembly for shielding ultraviolet rays, which is assembled with a support frame of a vehicle for carrying a baby, the sunshade assembly comprising a sunshade and at least one fastener, wherein the sunshade includes: a sunshade body made from a textile fabric or a soft plastic which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays; and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape, and the fastener includes: a movable fastener body including a movable head and a movable bracket extending perpendicularly from the movable head, the movable head having side protrusions, movable side surfaces, and a movable body hole; a stationary fastener body including a stationary head and a stationary bracket, the movable head being seated in the stationary head, the stationary head having inner grooves, inner side surfaces, and a stationary body hole, the stationary head being in sliding contact with the side protrusions of the movable fastener body, the inner side surfaces being in sliding contact with the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body, the stationary body hole having a shape and a size equal to those of the movable body hole, the stationary bracket extending perpendicularly from the stationary head and having a shape corresponding to that of the movable bracket; and a bolt assembly including a cylindrical screw portion and a knob, wherein the movable fastener body, the stationary fastener body, and the bolt assembly of the fastener can be assembled together or disassembled from each other by inserting or drawing the cylindrical screw portion of the bolt assembly into or out of the movable body hole and the stationary body hole, the movable fastener body can be assembled in opposite two directions to change an assembling structure of the fastener, a screwing rotation of the bolt assembly linearly slides the side protrusions of the movable fastener along the inner grooves of the stationary fastener body while maintaining the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body in close contact with the inner side surfaces of the stationary fastener body and maintaining a top of the movable head in close contact with the stationary head, so that the movable fastener body moves along an inner surface of the stationary fastener body to adjust an interval between the movable bracket and the stationary bracket, thereby enabling the movable bracket and the stationary bracket to clamp a portion of the sunshade body together with the support frame of the vehicle, thereby firming assembling the sunshade with the support frame of the vehicle. It is preferred that the sunshade includes an angle-adjusting hook, an angle-adjusting string, and a stopper, the angle-adjusting hook being assembled with an upper middle portion of the sunshade, which is assembled with the support frame of the vehicle, the angle-adjusting string being inserted through the angle- adjusting hook and clamped by a stopper.

It is also preferred that the sunshade body has at least one eyelet and at least one suction bulb fitted in the eyelet, thereby enabling the sunshade assembly to be attached to a car window in a simple and easy manner.

It is also preferred that the sunshade includes a sunshade body made from a textile fabric which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape, so that the sunshade assembly can be easily twisted and folded in a shape of a digit ^Λ8' .

It is also preferred that the sunshade includes a sunshade body made from a hard plastic having elasticity and a capability of shielding ultraviolet rays and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, so that the sunshade assembly can be rolled when stored.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sunshade according to the present invention;

FIG. 2a is a perspective view of the sunshade folded into two small circles in a shape of the digit

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FIG. 2b is a perspective view of the sunshade folded in a shape of small overlapping circles;

FIG. 2c is a perspective view of the sunshade body rolled in a shape of a small cylinder;

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a fastener;

FIG. 4a is a lower perspective view of an assembled fastener; FIG. 4b is a perspective view of a fastener assembled with a canopy supporter shaped like a rectangular bar;

FIG. 4c is a perspective view of a fastener assembled with a stroller handle frame having a cylindrical shape;

FIG. 5a is a perspective view of a fastener having a hook protuberance;

FIG. 5b is a perspective view of a fastener having a female part of a snap; FIG. 5c is a perspective view of a fastener having a canopy-inserting part;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a fastener in which the movable bracket and the stationary bracket are disposed parallel to each other; FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a baby carriage in which a sunshade assembly according to the present invention is assembled with a canopy of the baby carriage;

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a baby carriage in which a sunshade assembly according to the present invention is assembled directly with handle frames of the baby carriage; and

FIG. 9 is a front view of a sunshade assembly- according to the present invention, which is assembled with a car window.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following description, the same elements will be designated by the same reference numerals although they are shown in different drawings . Further, various specific definitions found in the following description are provided only to help general understanding of the present invention, and it is apparent to those skilled in the art that the present invention can be implemented without such definitions . Further, in the following description of the present invention, a detailed description of known functions and configurations incorporated herein will be omitted when it may make the subject matter of the present invention rather unclear.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a sunshade 100. The sunshade 100 has a sunshade body 101 made from a textile fabric or a soft plastic which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays and can be easily twisted in a shape of a digit ^λ8' . Otherwise, the sunshade body 101 may be made from hard plastic which cannot be twisted but can be rolled and, thereby, maintain its shape.

The sunshade 100 according to the present invention has a construction which enables the sunshade 100 to be freely assembled with or disassembled from a baby carriage, etc. Therefore, the sunshade 100 preferably has a construction capable of reducing the size of the sunshade 100 for easy storage or carriage of the sunshade 100, although the present invention is not limited to such a construction. When the sunshade body 101 is made from a soft material which enables the sunshade body 101 to be easily twisted or freely folded, the sunshade 100 fixed by a fastener 400 does not have sufficient force capable of maintaining a particular shape on its own. A rolled loop 102 made from elastic steel is assembled with an edge of the sunshade body 101, so as to enable the sunshade body 101 to maintain a particular shape (i.e., a circular or an ellipsoidal shape) . The rolled loop 102 is wrapped by a webbing portion 103 made of a textile fabric, etc., to maintain a particular shape. The sunshade 100 having the aforementioned constructed can be twisted and folded in a shape of the digit ^Λ8', so that it can be reduced into a shape of a circle with a reduced volume (see FIG. 2a) for storage.

Further, when the sunshade body 101 is made from hard plastic which cannot be twisted but can only be rolled, the sunshade 100 can be rolled like a sheet of drawing paper to be size-reduced for storage (see FIG. 2b) .

Hereinafter, four types of sunshades of fasteners according to preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described.

According to the first embodiment of the present invention, eyelets 104 are formed by forming circular holes through upper portions of the sunshade body 101 and coupling iron sheets on inner circumferences of the circular holes. Each of the eyelets 104 is engaged with a hook protuberance 511 formed on a fastener top 500 by pressing the eyelet 104 onto the hook protuberance 511.

According to the second embodiment of the present invention, instead of the circular eyelets 104, male parts or female parts of snaps are formed at the upper portions of the sunshade body 101 while opponent male parts or female parts of snaps are formed at top surfaces of the fasteners 400, so that the sunshade 100 and the fasteners 400 may be detachably assembled with each other by snaps .

According to the third embodiment of the present invention, instead of the circular eyelets 104 or snaps, a sunshade-seating part 531 is formed at the fastener top 500, so that the webbing portion 103 of the sunshade 100 can be directly inserted in a sunshade-seating groove 532 of the fastener top 500.

According to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, when the sunshade body 101 is made from cloth, each fastener has a flat top without any separate pattern nor device, and brackets of the fasteners can fasten the upper end of the sunshade body 101 together with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage. Referring to FIG. 1, the sunshade 100 has an angle-adjusting hook 105 assembled with an upper middle portion of the webbing portion 103 of the sunshade 100, and an angle-adjusting string 106 is inserted through the angle-adjusting hook 105 and clamped by a stopper 107. The angle-adjusting string 106 is long enough to wrap around both sides of a handle frame of a baby carriage. When the angle-adjusting string 106 is pulled while the stopper 107 is pressed, the canopy of the baby carriage connected to the sunshade by the fasteners are pulled, so that the entire angle of the canopy and the sunshade can be adjusted. As a result, the angle of the sunshade connected to the canopy can be adjusted (see FIG. 7) .

When the sunshade of the invention is assembled with a baby carriage without a canopy, there may be an apprehension for a geometrically unstable structure in which the sunshade of the invention is supported at only two points. However, since the upper central portion of the sunshade connected to the angle-adjusting string 106 wound on the handle serves as a new supporting point, the sunshade is stably supported at three points (see FIG. 8) .

FIGs . 2a through 2c are perspective views of sunshade bodies which have been folded or rolled to have a smaller volume. FIG. 2a is a perspective view of the sunshade 100 folded into two small circles in a shape of the digit ^X8' after opposite two sides of the sunshade 100 are twisted 180° in opposite directions. FIG. 2b is a perspective view of the sunshade body 101 folded in a shape of three overlapping, circles due to the property of the elastic steel of the rolled loop, which is not bent inward but springs back when the sunshade body 101 twisted in the shape of two circles are bent inward. FIG. 2c is a perspective view of the sunshade body 101 made from hard plastic, which has been rolled like a sheet of drawing paper to have a minimal volume. The sunshade body 101 of FIG. 2c does not require the rolled loop 102 but has only the webbing portion 103 since it is made from hard plastic. The sunshade bodies having a reduced volume in the way as described above can be either fastened by a string or stored and carried in a small bag.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a fastener for fixing the sunshade to a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage. The fastener includes a movable fastener body 300, a stationary fastener body 310, and a bolt assembly 320. A cylindrical screw portion 321 of the bolt assembly 320 is inserted through a stationary body hole 311 of the stationary fastener body 310 into a movable body hole 301.

A nut portion 308 is formed inside of the movable body hole 301 so that the nut portion 308 is engaged with the cylindrical screw portion 321 of the bolt assembly 320. When a knob 322 of the bolt assembly 320 is rotated, the movable fastener body 300 is linearly moved forward or backward by the cooperation of the movable body hole 301 and the nut portion 308 engaged with each other. Here, side protrusions 302 formed at both sides of the movable fastener body 300 are engaged with and move along inner grooves 312 of the stationary fastener body 310. During the movement of the side protrusions 302, movable side surfaces 303 are in close contact with inner side surfaces 313 and the top surface of a movable head 304 is in close contact with the lower surface of a stationary head 314.

The movable fastener body 300 is guided along upper space inside of the stationary fastener body 310 while adjusting the interval between a movable bracket 305 and a stationary bracket 315.

That is to say, in a state where the movable fastener body 300, the stationary fastener body 310, and the bolt assembly 320 are assembled with each other, when the knob 322 is rotated clockwise, the movable fastener body 300 is moved inward along the inner side surfaces of the stationary fastener body 310 to adjust the interval between the movable bracket 305 and the stationary bracket 315 according to the shape or width of a handle frame or a canopy supporter of a baby carriage.

FIGs. 4a through 4c are lower perspective views of a fastener for illustrating states in which the fastener is assembled with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage. FIG. 4a is a lower perspective view of an assembled fastener 400. As described above with reference to FIG. 3a, when the bolt assembly 320 is rotated clockwise, the movable fastener body 300 is linearly moved forward into the inner space of the stationary fastener body 310. Then, the interval between the movable bracket 305 and the stationary bracket 315 is reduced to enable the fastener to firmly hold a body interposed between the movable bracket 305 and the stationary bracket 315. FIG. 4b is a perspective view of the fastener 400 assembled with a canopy supporter 420 shaped like a rectangular bar. When the canopy supporter 420 has a rectangular bar shape as shown, a left fastening surface 421 and a right fastening surface 422 are in close contact with opposite side surfaces of the canopy supporter 420 and apply force perpendicularly to the side surfaces of the canopy supporter 420, so that the fastener is firmly fixed to the canopy supporter 420.

FIG. 4c is a perspective view of the fastener 400 assembled with a stroller handle frame 430 having a cylindrical shape. When the fastener 400 is assembled with the cylindrical stroller handle frame 430, one contact point is formed between the cylindrical stroller handle frame 430 and a movable body bottom 431 or a stationary body bottom 432 and two contact points are formed between the cylindrical stroller handle frame 430 and a left cylinder-fastening surface 433 and between the cylindrical stroller handle frame 430 and a right cylinder-fastening surface 434. Therefore, the cylindrical stroller handle frame 430 and the fastener 400 are in contact with each other at three points when they are assembled with each other. Therefore, the fastener 400 can be firmly assembled with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage regardless of the diameter of the canopy supporter or the handle frame. A plurality of such fasteners as described above are used to assemble the sunshade 100 with multiple portions of the canopy ^' supporter or the handle frame. FIGs. 5a through 5c are perspective views for describing the fastener tops 500 of the fasteners 400 assembled with the sunshade 100. As described above with reference to FIGs. 4a through 4c, multiple fasteners 400 are fixed to multiple portions of a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage. Each of the fastener tops 500 is assembled with the sunshade 100. Each of the fastener tops 500 has a construction corresponding to each of the three constructions of the sunshade 100.

According to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which the sunshade 100 has the eyelets 104, each fastener top 500 has the hook protuberance 511 as shown in FIG. 5a. The hook protuberance 511 has a shape of a hollow cylinder having two or three cutout portions. Therefore, when each of the eyelets 104 of the sunshade body 101 is perpendicularly pressed onto the hook protuberance 511, a hook jaw 512 is elastically pushed inward while passing through the eyelet 104 and then restores its original shape to hold the eyelet 104. Here, it is preferred that the thickness of the eyelet 104 coincides with the height of a hook shank 513 without a clearance, so that the sunshade 100 can be firmly held by the fastener 400.

According to the second embodiment of the present invention, in which the sunshade 100 has male parts or female parts of snaps instead of the eyelets 104, each fastener top 500 also has a corresponding male part or female part of the snap, so that the sunshade 100 and the fasteners 400 can be detachably assembled with each other like the snaps. FIG. 5b is a perspective view showing a female part 521 of a snap formed on^' the fastener top 500.

According to the third embodiment of the present invention, in which the sunshade 100 does not have the eyelets 104 nor snaps, the sunshade-seating part 531 is formed at the fastener top 500, so that the webbing portion 103 of the sunshade 100 can be directly inserted in the sunshade-seating groove 532 of the fastener top 500. FIG. 5c is a perspective view of the fastener 400 having the sunshade-seating part 531 formed on the fastener top 500 of the fastener 400. When the webbing portion 103 of the sunshade 100 is directly inserted in the sunshade-seating groove 532, the sunshade 100 is elastically held by the sunshade-seating part 531.

According to the fourth embodiment of the present invention, in which the sunshade body 101 is made from an easily foldable soft material, each fastener may have a flat top without any separate pattern nor device. In this case, the upper end of the sunshade body 101 together with a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage can be held and fastened by the brackets of the fasteners. Then, the loop made from elastic steel enables the sunshade to maintain a particular shape by itself without preventing the airflow (not shown in drawings) . In the fastener 400 according to the present invention, the interval between the movable fastener body 300 and the stationary fastener body 310 can be adjusted by several millimeters to several centimeters, so the fastener 400 can be firmly assembled with the canopy supporter. FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a fastener in which the movable bracket and the stationary bracket are disposed parallel to each other. When the movable fastener body 300 and the stationary fastener body 310 are assembled as shown in FIG. 6, in which the movable fastener body 300 is rotated 180° from the states shown in FIGs. 4a through 4c, the movable bracket 305 of the movable fastener body 300 and the stationary bracket 315 of the stationary fastener body 310 disposed symmetrically to each other in FIGs. 4a through 4c are disposed in parallel to each other, so that the interval between the movable bracket 305 and the stationary bracket 315 can be reduced even below one millimeter. Therefore, the fastener having the construction as shown in FIG. 6 can be assembled with a very thin canopy supporter.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a baby carriage in which a sunshade assembly according to the present invention is assembled with a canopy 700 of the baby carriage. First, a plurality of the fasteners 400 are assembled with the canopy supporter of the baby carriage at a regular interval in the way describe above with reference to FIGs. 4a through 4c. The canopy supporter may have a shape of a cylinder or a rectangular bar and may have different thickness. However, the fastener may be firmly fixed to the canopy supporter by adjusting the interval between the movable fastener body and the stationary fastener body according to the thickness of the canopy supporter by rotating the knob of the bolt assembly. Then, the installation of the sunshade assembly is completed in a simple and easy manner by assembling the sunshade 100 with the fastener tops 500 of the fasteners fixed in the way described above with reference to FIGs. 5a through 5c. Then, the entire canopy together with the sunshade can be moved in order to form a proper shade by pressing the stopper 107 and pulling the angle-adjusting string 106 passing through the angle-adjusting hook 105 and wrapped around the handle frame. FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a baby carriage in which a sunshade assembly according to the present invention is assembled directly with handle frames of the baby carriage. First, the fasteners 400 according to the present invention are firmly assembled with proper portions of left and right handle frames 800 according to the method as described above with reference to FIGs. 4a through 4c, and the sunshade 100 is assembled the fasteners according to the method as described above with reference to FIGs. 5a through 5c, thereby completing installation of the sunshade assembly. Then, the angle-adjusting string 106 passing through the angle-adjusting hook 105 and wrapped around the handle frame may be pulled while the stopper 107 is pressed, so that the sunshade can be stably held at three points and can be moved in order to form a proper shade.

FIG. 9 is a front view of a sunshade assembly according to the present invention which is assembled with a car window 900. The shown sunshade assembly includes a plurality of suction bulbs 901 fitted in the eyelets 104, which enable the sunshade assembly to be attached to the car window 900 in a simple and easy manner. The sunshade assembly having the construction as shown in FIG. 9 can shield ultraviolet rays transmitting through the car window 900, thereby protecting a baby or an occupant in the car from the ultraviolet rays.

Industrial Applicability

As can be seen from the foregoing, the present invention provides a sunshade assembly which can be used regardless of the shape or thickness of a canopy supporter or a handle frame of a baby carriage. The sunshade assembly of the invention has a sunshade body s-lantly disposed above a baby in a baby carriage, so that the sunshade assembly can effectively shield ultraviolet rays without disturbing views of the baby nor airflow into the baby carriage. Also, the sunshade assembly can be reduced to have a small size, so that it can be easily stored and carried. Moreover, the sunshade assembly can be used in order to shield ultraviolet rays into an automobile by employing suction bulbs .

Especially, only one sunshade assembly according to the present invention can be used for various types of baby carriages by simply detachably assembling the sunshade assembly with a desired baby carriage. Also, the sunshade assembly according to the present invention has a relatively simple structure, thereby reducing the manufacturing cost and facilitating use of the sunshade assembly. Therefore, even users inexperienced at handling a tool can easily operate the sunshade assembly according to the present invention.

While this invention has been described in connection with what are presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments and the drawings, but, on the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and variations within the spirit and scope of the appended claims .

Claims

1. A sunshade assembly for shielding ultraviolet rays, which is assembled with a support frame of a vehicle for carrying a baby, the sunshade assembly comprising a sunshade and at least one fastener, wherein the sunshade includes: a sunshade body made from a textile fabric or a soft plastic which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays; and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion either wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape or forming the edge of the sunshade body without the rolled loop, and the fastener includes: a movable fastener body including a movable head and a movable bracket extending perpendicularly from the movable head, the movable head having side protrusions, movable side surfaces, and a movable body hole; a stationary fastener body including a stationary head and a stationary bracket, the movable head being seated in the stationary head, the stationary head having inner grooves, inner side surfaces, a stationary body hole, and a holding part, the stationary head being in sliding contact with the side protrusions of the movable fastener body, the inner side surfaces being in sliding contact with the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body, the stationary body hole having a shape and a size equal to those of the movable body hole, the holding part being assembled with the sunshade, the stationary bracket extending perpendicularly from the stationary head, having a shape corresponding to that of the movable bracket, and cooperating with the movable bracket to clamp the support frame of the vehicle; and a bolt assembly including a cylindrical screw portion and a knob, wherein the movable fastener body, the stationary fastener body, and the bolt assembly of the fastener can be assembled together or disassembled from each other -by inserting or drawing the cylindrical screw portion of the bolt assembly into or out of the movable body hole and the stationary body hole, the movable fastener body can be assembled in opposite two directions to change an assembling structure of the fastener, a screwing rotation of the bolt assembly linearly slides the side protrusions of the movable fastener along the inner grooves of the stationary fastener body while maintaining the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body in close contact with the inner side surfaces of the stationary fastener body and maintaining a top of the movable head in close contact with the stationary head, so that the movable fastener body moves along an inner surface of the stationary fastener body to adjust an interval between the movable bracket and the stationary bracket, thereby enabling the movable bracket and the stationary bracket to clamp the support frame of the vehicle, and the sunshade is firmly assembled with the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener.

2. The sunshade assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sunshade body has at least one circular eyelet, and the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a hook protuberance, so that the sunshade is assembled with the fastener by fitting the hook protuberance into the eyelet by pressing the eyelet onto the hook protuberance.

3. The sunshade assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the sunshade body has at least one male part or female part of a snap, and the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a corresponding male part or female part of a snap, so that the sunshade is assembled with the fastener in a manner equal to that of a snap.

4. The sunshade assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein the holding part of the stationary head of the fastener includes a sunshade-inserting part having a sunshade-inserting groove, so that the sunshade is assembled with the fastener by inserting the webbing portion of the sunshade directly into the sunshade- inserting groove.

5. A sunshade assembly for shielding ultraviolet rays, which is assembled with a support frame of a vehicle for carrying a baby, the sunshade assembly comprising a sunshade and at least one fastener, wherein the sunshade includes : a sunshade body made from a textile fabric or a soft plastic which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays; and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape, and the fastener includes: a movable fastener body including a movable head and a movable bracket extending perpendicularly from the movable head, the movable head having side protrusions, movable side surfaces, and a movable body hole; a stationary fastener body including a stationary head and a stationary bracket, the movable head being seated in the stationary head, the stationary head having inner grooves, inner side surfaces, and a stationary body hole, the stationary head being in sliding contact with the side protrusions of the movable fastener body, the inner side surfaces being in sliding contact with the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body, the stationary body hole having a shape and a size equal to those of the movable body hole, the stationary bracket extending perpendicularly from the stationary head and having a shape corresponding to that of the movable bracket; and a bolt assembly including a cylindrical screw portion and a knob, wherein the movable fastener body, the stationary fastener body, and the bolt assembly of the fastener can be assembled together or disassembled from each other by inserting or drawing the cylindrical screw portion of the bolt assembly into or out of the movable body hole and the stationary body hole, the movable fastener body can be assembled in opposite two directions to change an assembling structure of the fastener, a screwing rotation of the bolt assembly linearly slides the side protrusions of the movable fastener along the inner grooves of the stationary fastener body while maintaining the movable side surfaces of the movable fastener body in close contact with the inner side surfaces of the stationary fastener body and maintaining a top of the movable head in close contact with the stationary head, so that the movable fastener body moves along an inner surface of the stationary fastener body to adjust an interval between the movable bracket and the stationary bracket, thereby enabling the movable bracket and the stationary bracket to clamp a portion of the sunshade body together with the support frame of the vehicle, thereby firmly assembling the sunshade with the support frame of the vehicle.

6. The sunshade assembly as claimed in one of claims 1 through 5, wherein the sunshade includes an angle-adjusting hook, an angle-adjusting string, and a stopper, the angle-adjusting hook being assembled with an upper middle portion of the sunshade, which is assembled with the support frame of the vehicle, the angle-adjusting string being inserted through the angle- adjusting hook and clamped by a stopper.

7. The sunshade assembly as claimed in one of claims 1 through 5, wherein the sunshade body has at least one eyelet and at least one suction bulb fitted in the eyelet, thereby enabling the sunshade assembly to be attached to a car window in a simple and easy manner.

8. The sunshade assembly as claimed in one of claims 1 through 5, wherein the sunshade includes a sunshade body made from a textile fabric which has a high capability of shielding ultraviolet rays and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, the webbing portion wrapping a rolled loop made from elastic steel in order to enable the sunshade body to maintain its shape, so that the sunshade assembly can be easily twisted and folded in a shape of a digit ^λ8' .

9. The sunshade assembly as claimed in one of claims 1 through 5, wherein the sunshade includes a sunshade body made from a hard plastic having elasticity and a capability of shielding ultraviolet rays and a webbing portion formed along an edge of the sunshade body, so that the sunshade assembly can be rolled when stored.