An estimated one-million newborns annually ride home from the hospital without protection of car safety seats, often because seats are too expensive. Many babies in seats are not correctly restrained because seats are not designed for newborns, and parents get little or no instruction. Premature babies have special problems and restraint needs not met by regular car seats. The Cradle-Safe concept was developed as an answer to these problems…and to achieve the goal of having every newborn correctly restrained in a car seat for the first ride home.
The patented Cradle-Safe concept has three configurations: a newborn car safety “starter seat” and general use carrier; a premature-infant “travel crib”; and a safety and comfort-enhancing modification for existing safety seats.
The design is in two parts: an outer energy insulating/absorbing “shell”, and an inner “bed” of energy absorbing surfaces which deform on impact to contain, orient, distribute and minimize intertial loads on-and thereby protect-the infant. Materials are plastic and/or fiberboard.
The Cradle-Safe concept represents a state-of-the-art advance in low-cost, effective protection for infants in cars.