Infant sleep suit

• US 9,693,589 B2
• Filed: 04/22/2016
• Issued: 07/04/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/28/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cuddsy LLC
• Original Assignee: Baby Merlin Company
• Inventors: Howard, Robert C., Howard, Maureen A.
• Primary Examiner(s): QUINN, RICHALE LEE
• Application Number:
  US15/136,348
• Publication Number:
  US 20160235128A1
• Time in Patent Office: 438 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A41B 13/005 Babies overalls, e.g. bodysuits or bib overalls
• CPC Class Codes: A41B 13/065 with sleep positioning feature
• CPC Class Codes: A41B 13/08 Bodices
• CPC Class Codes: A41B 2400/20 Air permeability; Ventilation
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 10/00 Pyjamas; Nightdresses
• CPC Class Codes: A41D 11/00 Garments for children

Abstract

An innovative sleeping suit for infants, configured to provide warmth, a contained environment, and positive proprioceptive input, and thereby reduce neurological reflexive twitching or habitual waking patterns prevalent when infants are placed on their backs for sleeping and are not swaddled. The weighting in the suit is believed to reduce the neurological reflexive twitching and provides a swaddling effect to infants helping them to fall asleep and remain sleeping when on their backs. At least a portion of an anterior portion of the suit includes the weighting. The weighting may be accomplished by varying the thickness of the materials and/or quantity of layers of materials used on the anterior portion of the suit. The weighting may be distributed uniformly throughout the suit, the anterior portion of the suit, or can be strategically placed at proprioceptive target points along the anterior portion of the suit.

Claims

1. An infant sleep garment to help calm the Moro reflexes of an infant between the ages of about three to nine months old, when the infant is placed in the supine position for sleep, and is not swaddled, the infant sleep garment comprising:

a single one-piece garment including;

(a) an anterior and posterior side adapted to fit around the front and back, respectively, of an infant no younger than the age of about three months old, and no older than the age of about nine months old therein;

(b) an opening, disposed on the anterior side, adapted to receive the infant;

(c) a fastener, disposed on the anterior side, configured to close the opening;

(d) multiple layers of material bulk and weighting distributed selectively to the anterior side of the garment adapted to provide tactile weighting continuously against the body of the infant and to specific target points of the body of the infant at the hip and shoulder areas to (i) help provide the calming elements of proprioceptive input to aid in the infants sleep (ii) help limit the infant from raising his/her knees toward the stomach or bringing the knees together, thereby making it more difficult for the infant to roll over onto his/her stomach from a supine position, (iii) maintain a snug fit of the garment against the body of the infant at all times thereby maintaining resilient-tactile weighting continuously against the body of the infant to help diminish the Moro reflex from startling and waking an infant when sleeping or prevent an infant from falling back to sleep when woken, and (iv) help maintain the legs of the infant apart from each other to again help prevent the infant from rolling onto his/her stomach from the supine position, wherein the posterior side of the garment includes less layers of material bulk and weighting than the anterior side of the garment; and

(e) venting, adapted to counter heat buildup when the infant is wearing the garment, wherein the venting includes;

(i) a permanent and non-adjustable semi-circular scoop neckline sewn into the garment so that an uppermost-outer edge of the scoop neckline is adapted to reside at a level on the infant no higher than the infant'"'"'s upper-chest area, and below any portion of an infant'"'"'s neck when an infant wears the garment, wherein the scoop neckline is adapted to leave the upper chest and neck area of the infant permanently uncovered and exposed to air;

(ii) permanent sleeves and leggings including openings at each distal end of each sleeve and legging adapted to receive the hands and feet of the infant without covering them thereby exposing the hands and feet of the infant to air when placed in the sleep garment, wherein the distal end of each sleeve is adapted to be positioned above each wrist of an averaged-size infant between about three and nine months old when wearing the garment, whereby the extended openings are adapted to further expose an infant'"'"'s arm to air, while maintaining sufficient length and weighting in the arms to help prevent flailing of the arms during the Moro reflex that can prematurely wake the baby or prevent the baby from falling asleep; and

(iii) a securable-ventilation flap on the anterior side of the garment formed when the fastener to the opening is unfastened, wherein the securable-ventilation flap is adapted to expose the infant'"'"'s chest, and permit heat to escape the garment so that the infant does not overheat when wearing the infant sleep garment.

2. The infant sleep garment of claim 1, wherein the multiple layers of material bulk are comprised of at least first, second, and third layers of material, wherein the first layer of material is an inner most layer of material closest to an infant'"'"'s body, the third layer of material is an environmental layer, and the second layer of material is located between the first layer of material and the third layer of material.

3. The infant sleep garment of claim 1, wherein the second layer of material is comprised of at least one of a synthetic material, natural material, beans, seeds, sand, and a blend of any of the foregoing materials.

4. The infant sleep garment of claim 1, wherein the third layer of material is comprised of at least one natural material, synthetic material, micro-fleece, and a blend of any of the foregoing materials.

5. An infant sleep garment for calming Moro reflexes in an infant between the ages of about three-to-nine months old when the infant is placed in the supine position for sleep, the preferred sleep position as recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics for the prevention of SIDS, and is not swaddled, the infant sleep garment comprising:

an anterior and posterior side adapted to fit around the front and back, respectively, of an infant no younger than the age of about three months old, and no older than the age of about nine months old therein, wherein the infant sleep garment is a single one-piece garment, and includes no buttons, or appliques that may present a chocking hazard if placed in an infant'"'"'s mouth;

an opening adapted to receive the infant therein;

a fastener attached to the opening;

permanent sleeves and leggings including openings at each distal end of each sleeve and legging adapted to receive the hands and feet, respectively, of the infant without covering them,

wherein the length of each sleeve is configured to end above the wrist of an averaged-sized infant between the ages of three and nine months old to allow for heat dissipation, and

wherein the length of each legging is configured to end above the ankle of an average sized infant between the ages of three and nine months old to allow for heat dissipation, and

wherein the opening and length of the sleeves are also adapted to allow the infant to push up if rolled into a prone position in order to permit the infant to raise his/her head and move his/her neck in situations where his/her air passage is blocked or impeded, and

wherein the leggings of the infant sleep garment are spaced apart from each other and adapted to maintain the legs of the infant separated so that the legs of the infant may not be as easily raised and thrown to the side by the infant, wherein the separated leggings are also adapted to help prevent the infant from rolling onto his/her stomach, which is not the preferred sleep position advocated by the American Academy of Pediatrics for infants within the target age of the infant sleep garment of about three to nine months old;

multiple layers of material bulk and weighting selectively distributed to the anterior side of the infant sleep garment are adapted to provide tactile weighting to the infant'"'"'s body and corresponding to proprioceptive-target points of the body of the infant at the hip and shoulder areas of the infant to (i) help provide calming elements of proprioceptive input to aid in the infant'"'"'s sleep (ii) help limit the infant from raising his/her knees toward the stomach or bringing the knees together, thereby making it difficult for the infant to roll over onto his/her stomach from a supine position, (iii) maintain a snug fit of the garment against the body of the infant at all times thereby maintaining resilient-tactile weighting continuously against the body of the infant to help diminish the Moro reflex that can startle and wake an infant when sleeping or prevent an infant from falling back to sleep when woken, and (iv) help maintain the legs of the infant apart from each other to again help prevent the infant from rolling onto his/her stomach from the supine position, wherein the posterior side of the garment includes less material bulk and weighting than the anterior side of the garment;

a permanent and non-adjustable semi-circular scoop neckline, wherein the uppermost-outer edge of the scoop neckline is adapted to reside at a position no higher than the infant'"'"'s upper-chest area, and below any portion of an infant'"'"'s neck away from his/her mouth so as to not impede his/her airway and provide, non-adjustable and permanent additional heat dissipation when an infant is placed inside the garment, and the opening is fastened by the fastener; and

a securable-ventilation flap on the anterior side of the garment when the fastener is unfastened, wherein the ventilation flap is adapted to expose the infant'"'"'s chest, and permit heat to escape the garment so that the infant does not overheat when wearing the infant sleep garment.

6. The infant sleep garment of claim 5, wherein the multiple layers of material bulk are comprised of at least first, second, and third layers of material, wherein the first layer of material is an inner most layer of material closest to an infant'"'"'s body, the third layer of material is an environmental layer, and the second layer of material is located between the first layer of material and the third layer of material on the anterior portion of the garment.

7. The infant sleep garment of claim 6, wherein the second layer of material is comprised of at least one of a natural or synthetic material, beans, seeds, and sand.

8. The infant sleep garment of claim 6, wherein the fastener is a double-zipper-fastening mechanism adapted to extend from the scooped neckline, away from the infant'"'"'s face, to a leg area of an anterior portion of the garment to allow for easy placement of the infant into the garment and removal of the infant the garment.

9. The infant sleep garment claim 6, wherein the third layer of material is comprised of micro-fleece or other synthetic material.

10. The infant sleep garment of claim 6, wherein the third layer of material is comprised of percale cotton or other natural material.