Patents Assigned to First Years Inc., The
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Patent number: 7044828Abstract: A breast pad has a wax-like medicament, such as lanolin, disposed on an exposed surface of an inner surface of the pad in only a limited region, leaving other regions of the inner surface has a permeable region free of the medicament.Type: GrantFiled: December 18, 2003Date of Patent: May 16, 2006Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Richard M. Foley, Kyle A. Nanna, Sherry Thomas
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Patent number: 6976604Abstract: A disposable child's drinking cup has a lid with a drinking spout defining multiple open holes sized to resist leakage in the absence of suction, such as by the development of surface tension at the holes, and to allow flow when suction is applied. The holes are formed during molding of the lid.Type: GrantFiled: October 5, 2001Date of Patent: December 20, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: James A. Connors, Jr., David E. Medeiros, George S. Dys
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Patent number: 6964572Abstract: A developmental toy for small children includes a contacting member is rotated by an electric motor and a controller that, in response to input from a sensor, signals the electric motor to move the toy from a starting position for an initial period of time in an initial direction and signals the motor to wait a resting period of time. If no further input is received from a child that is detected by the sensor within the resting period of time, the controller signals the motor to move the toy back in an opposite sense, toward the starting location.Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 2003Date of Patent: November 15, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventor: Joseph A. Cesa
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Patent number: 6954955Abstract: A device for stabilizing the position of an infant while sleeping including a substantially rigid basin assembly having three sides and a base and defining an open end. A basin cover conforms generally to the basin and defines a sleep space, sized and configured for holding an infant, the cover includes a fabric outer surface and at least one of the sides of the basin assembly comprises a plurality of standoffs extending into the basin assembly and defining recesses therebetween. The cover can have an air-permeable section overlaying the recesses to enable pneumatic communication between the sleep space and the recesses.Type: GrantFiled: June 10, 2003Date of Patent: October 18, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Joseph F. Brewin, Antonio S. Fernandes, Bryan R. Hotaling, Lawrence J. Salvo
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Patent number: 6928674Abstract: A swaddling blanket is provided which includes a tri-fold fabric sheet having a middle section with a pocket secured to an inner side of the fabric sheet on two adjacent sides to form a pouch for receiving an infant feet-first, the pouch being open on two other adjacent sides, and left and right sections bordering the middle section on opposite sides thereof and being of width sufficient to overlap an infant in the middle section pocket. The left and right sections carry cooperating fasteners arranged to releasably secure the left and right sections to each other when overlapped about an infant in the middle section pocket.Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 2003Date of Patent: August 16, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventor: Nijole Blackburn
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Patent number: 6923337Abstract: A drinking valve assembly includes an inner member with an aperture and an outer member with a movable drinking spout extending from an upper surface of the outer member. The inner member and the outer member of the drinking valve assembly form a channel extending from the aperture to a spout outlet. The outer member has an inner surface that contacts the inner member about the aperture to block flow along the channel with the spout in a first position, the inner surface of the outer member being displaced from the inner member in response to movement of the spout to a second position to enable flow along the channel.Type: GrantFiled: August 27, 2003Date of Patent: August 2, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: John A. Hession, James J. Britto
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Patent number: 6910594Abstract: A method of and apparatus for nursing in which a container is filled with milk. The container has flexible membrane forming a pouch for holding the milk. A rim defines a stable opening of the pouch, and a lid is secured to the rim to cover the opening. The container is inserted into a nursing device and the lid is opened to expose the milk. A nursing nipple is secured to the nursing device with the container disposed therein.Type: GrantFiled: November 19, 2002Date of Patent: June 28, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Richard M. Foley, James J. Britto, Ryan Shafer
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Patent number: 6840918Abstract: A portable, electric breast pump has an electronic controller adapted to track time and operate a solenoid to automatically maintain a predetermined suction and release rhythm as a function of time to mimic the natural sucking rhythm of an infant. Suction is produced by a continuously running diaphragm pump. A needle valve permits user vacuum level adjustment, but no other user control is required. A flapper valve in the top of the bottle reduces the suction rise time but incorporates a fixed amount of leakage to build a small amount of bottle pressure for pulling collected milk into the bottle during the release portion of the cycle. An improved bulkhead design helps to keep milk from entering the diaphragm pump if the unit is shaken or turned on its side.Type: GrantFiled: July 18, 2001Date of Patent: January 11, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: James J. Britto, Shiu Hung Li
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Patent number: 6834400Abstract: A child bath seat, placed within and attached to a bathtub, includes a seat body that includes both a seat and a retaining structure extending above the seat for laterally retaining a child seated in the seat body. The seat also includes a bracing structure that holds the seat body in an upright position. The bracing structure has a first end attached to the seat body, and a second end, defining a recess, for receiving an upper edge of a side of the bathtub. The bracing structure can be a clamp. The child bath seat can be adjustable to accommodate varying bathtub side widths and varying bathtub depths. The child bath seat can be suspended above or a portion of the bath seat can rest on the bottom surface of the bathtub.Type: GrantFiled: October 22, 2002Date of Patent: December 28, 2004Assignee: The First Years, Inc.Inventors: Kevin Zanardelli, James M. Buckley, Bruce P. Popek, Craig Bures, Thomas McDonald
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Publication number: 20040250347Abstract: A safety bed rail for preventing an individual from falling out of a bed including a frame of sufficient width to span a width of the bed and having left and right portions adjustably connected by a releasable latch defining a plurality of discrete frame widths corresponding to standard bed sizes. A bed rail panel is attached to one side of the frame and extends up from the frame a sufficient height to extend above a mattress placed over the frame. The frame includes side flanges that engage sides of one of the mattress and an underlying mattress support of similar width to the mattress with frame disposed between the mattress and the support. The flanges are widthwise adjustable to adjust the width of the frame over a limited distance with the latch connecting the left and right frame portions in a selected position.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 10, 2003Publication date: December 16, 2004Applicant: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Joseph F. Brewin, Bryan R. Hotaling, Lawrence J. Salvo, Tyrone Young
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Publication number: 20040249340Abstract: A breast pump provides multiple orientations of the pumping lever with respect to the breast shield. A breast pump includes a liner extending from the breast shield, through the suction chamber, and out of the suction chamber, which liner shields other components of the pump from contamination by the flow of milk through the pump during pumping operation. A breast pumping device includes a pumping lever for manually providing a cyclical vacuum within the suction chamber and an external pumping source, connected to the suction bell, that the user can activate to provide a cyclical vacuum within the suction chamber. A breast pump provides a smaller change in the grip width from when the lever is fully-extended to when the lever is fully-retracted, allowing more comfortable manual pumping.Type: ApplicationFiled: June 11, 2004Publication date: December 9, 2004Applicant: The First Years Inc.Inventors: James J. Britto, Richard M. Foley, Brian R. D'Amelio, Thomas A. Hagerty, Bryan R. Hotaling, James R. Varney, Jon R. Rossman
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Publication number: 20040245203Abstract: A nipple for a baby bottle includes both inner and outer separable members. The inner member defines a valve passage that can be selectively obstructed by a flap of the outer member. The outer and inner members have respective flexible membranes that define a holding chamber having the valve passage as an inlet and an aperture at the tip of the outer member as an outlet. The flap inhibits flow from the holding chamber through the valve passage when the outer member is compressed, and deflects away from the valve passage to allow the holding chamber to receive a fluid through the valve passage when the outer member is released.Type: ApplicationFiled: February 9, 2004Publication date: December 9, 2004Applicant: The First Years, Inc.Inventors: Edward J. Goldman, Malcolm E. Taylor, James J. Britto, John Depiano, Tuan A. Nguyen
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Publication number: 20040245258Abstract: A disposable child's drinking cup has a lid with a drinking spout defining multiple open holes sized to resist leakage in the absence of suction, such as by the development of surface tension at the holes, and to allow flow when suction is applied. The holes are formed during molding of the lid.Type: ApplicationFiled: April 5, 2004Publication date: December 9, 2004Applicant: The First Years, Inc., a Delaware corporationInventors: James A. Connors, David E. Medeiros, George S. Dys, James J. Britto, John A. Hession
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Patent number: 6802757Abstract: A toy includes a display component and an arrangement of opaque walls defining together with the display component a plurality of illuminable cavities separated from one another by the opaque walls. The opaque walls are disposed directly behind the display component. The illuminable cavities have associated light sources also disposed behind the display component and capable of illuminating the associated cavity to produce a corresponding visual effect visible from in front of the display component. At least two of the illuminable cavities are arranged to form multiple states of a single facial feature visible from in front of the display component with illumination states of the light sources of the cavities corresponding with the states of the facial feature that cooperate with other visible facial features to form a selection of discrete facial expressions.Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 2003Date of Patent: October 12, 2004Assignee: The First Years, Inc.Inventor: Joseph P. Sejnowski
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Publication number: 20040192166Abstract: A breast pad has a wax-like medicament, such as lanolin, disposed on an exposed surface of an inner surface of the pad in only a limited region, leaving other regions of the inner surface has a permeable region free of the medicament.Type: ApplicationFiled: December 18, 2003Publication date: September 30, 2004Applicant: The First Years Inc. a Massachusetts corporationInventors: Richard M. Foley, Kyle A. Nanna, Sherry Thomas
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Patent number: 6749582Abstract: A breast pump provides multiple orientations of the pumping lever with respect to the breast shield. A breast pump includes a liner extending from the breast shield, through the suction chamber, and out of the suction chamber, which liner shields other components of the pump from contamination by the flow of milk through the pump during pumping operation. A breast pumping device includes a pumping lever for manually providing a cyclical vacuum within the suction chamber and an external pumping source, connected to the suction bell, that the user can activate to provide a cyclical vacuum within the suction chamber. A breast pump provides a smaller change in the grip width from when the lever is fully-extended to when the lever is fully-retracted, allowing more comfortable manual pumping.Type: GrantFiled: April 30, 2002Date of Patent: June 15, 2004Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: James J. Britto, Richard M. Foley, Brian R. D'Amelio, Thomas A. Hagerty, Bryan R. Hotaling, James R. Varney, Jon R. Rossman
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Patent number: 6695678Abstract: A breast pad has a wax-like medicament, such as lanolin, disposed on an exposed surface of an inner liner of the pad in only a limited region, leaving other regions of the inner liner has a permeable region free of the medicament.Type: GrantFiled: March 25, 2003Date of Patent: February 24, 2004Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Richard M. Foley, Kyle A. Nanna, Sherry Thomas
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Patent number: 6692072Abstract: A booster seat comprises a base having a lower surface sized to rest upon a chair seat and an upper surface generally parallel to the lower surface, a seat back hinged connected to the base at a rearward portion of the booster seat and constructed to be folded toward and secured against the base for storage, an adjustable strap extending from the booster seat a length sufficient to secure the booster seat upon a chair, wherein the upper surface and the lower surface are spaced apart by at least about 1 inch when supporting a child weighing about 20 pounds thereupon to provide an elevated seating position, and wherein, with the seat back folded against the upper surface of the base for storage, the booster seat has an overall thickness, measured perpendicularly to the lower surface of the base, of less than about 3 inches.Type: GrantFiled: May 10, 2001Date of Patent: February 17, 2004Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Elizabeth Nelson, Gerry J. Kaeblein, Vincent J. DeSanto, John P. Kearney, Dana L. Padula, Kyle A. Nanna, Susan M. Grassel, James J. Britto
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Patent number: 6673036Abstract: A portable, electric breast pump has an electronic controller adapted to track time and operate a solenoid to automatically maintain a predetermined suction and release rhythm as a function of time to mimic the natural sucking rhythm of an infant. Suction is produced by a continuously running diaphragm pump. A needle valve permits user vacuum level adjustment, but no other user control is required. A flapper valve in the top of the bottle reduces the suction rise time but incorporates a fixed amount of leakage to build a small amount of bottle pressure for pulling collected milk into the bottle during the release portion of the cycle. An improved bulkhead design helps to keep milk from entering the diaphragm pump if the unit is shaken or turned on its side.Type: GrantFiled: October 13, 2000Date of Patent: January 6, 2004Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventor: James Joseph Britto
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Patent number: D502551Type: GrantFiled: May 1, 2003Date of Patent: March 1, 2005Assignee: The First Years Inc.Inventors: Bryan R. Hotaling, James R. Varney