WO1996008185A1

WO1996008185A1 - Mattress subdivided into supporting zones

Info

Publication number: WO1996008185A1
Application number: PCT/CH1995/000195
Authority: WO
Inventors: Peter Wandfluh; Ernst Ottiger; Hansruedi Fellmann
Original assignee: Peter Wandfluh; Ernst Ottiger; Hansruedi Fellmann
Priority date: 1994-09-14
Filing date: 1995-09-06
Publication date: 1996-03-21
Also published as: CH687806A5; AU3251295A

Abstract

A mattress for a bed consists of a multiple pneumatic chamber system. The individual chambers are formed by supporting cells (10). Several supporting chambers (10) are gathered into a supporting unit (1) that forms a supporting zone (4-7) together with an underlying compensating chamber (2). The compensating chamber (2) communicates with the individual supporting cells (10) so that when they are subjected to a load the pressure is compensated. Pressure control and regulation are ensured by a pressure chamber (3) arranged in the foot supporting zone (7). This air-filled mattress ensures an optimum comfort during sleep, since each part of the body is appropriately supported and the hardness of each supporting zone (4-7) may be individually adjusted.

Description

Mattress divided into lying areas

The present invention relates to a mattress divided into lying zones for a bed according to the preamble of patent claim 1.

Optimal relaxation in the sleep phase is a great need for most people. This is proven by the innumerable variants of conventional spring and foam core mattresses. In order to be able to fully regenerate a tired body, the following anatomical requirements must be met: the muscles must be completely relaxed during the resting phase and the blood flow to the body must be uninhibited and uniform. However, this can only be achieved completely if a body support is achieved that does not allow any printing or support points. For example, a hollow cross should be trimmed as well as a deeply penetrating shoulder or buttock area. High quality mattresses, which should ensure a high level of sleeping comfort, are therefore divided into different lying areas. Each of these lying areas has a special structure and degree of hardness. So it will Shoulders supported differently than the trunk. However, this subdivision is very rough, since the known mattresses have a continuous spring or foam material. A more or less large hammock effect can never be avoided. The known conventional mattresses with their rough subdivision cannot meet the requirement for uniform support of the body. The hardness of the mattress is also specified. It cannot be changed and adapted individually. The combination with specially constructed mattresses or reclining frames hardly brings any improvement, since these can hardly be coordinated. A flexibility in the choice of the hardness of the mattress is also not achieved.

Waterbeds have been an alternative to conventional mattresses for several years. Although these often have individual, independent chambers, they cannot offer optimal sleeping comfort either. The adjustment of the chambers to the optimal hardness turns out to be a lengthy procedure, since water has to be added or drained off in each case. In addition, water beds have an unpleasant side effect: depending on the filling quantity, the water vibrates with every movement with weak damping. These vibrations also affect the sleep of the bed neighbors. Further disadvantages of the water beds are listed below: Water beds have a relatively large weight. The water must be chemically treated regularly and changed sporadically to prevent algae formation. prevent. Because of its high thermal conductivity, the water must also always be heated to a temperature in the region of the body temperature. Finally, the waterbed must be treated carefully, since even the smallest leak can leak water and damage the furniture.

In addition, from WO 90/03750 an air bed is known which has a plurality of pocket-shaped air chambers on the bed surface side, which are directly connected to one another and thus communicate with one another. A complex control system is available to regulate the pressure in the air chambers.

It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a mattress which overcomes the disadvantages mentioned above, can be individually matched to the user and can nevertheless be used in combination with conventional beds.

This object is achieved by a mattress with the features of claim 1.

Further advantageous embodiments emerge from the dependent patent claims and their meaning is explained in the following description.

The mattress according to the invention thus consists of a pneumatic multi-chamber system, the chambers being formed by individual carrier cells. This gives every part of the user's body optimal support. The carrier cells communicate with a reservoir, a balancing arm. This ensures an almost constant air pressure in the support element when using the mattress. Since there are several support elements, it is now possible to cushion different support sections under the body with different firmness. The mattress is also light and any leaks do not damage the mob leg or the room.

An exemplary embodiment of the subject matter of the invention is shown in the figures and explained in the following description. It shows:

Figure 1 is a schematic representation of a mattress according to the invention from the side;

Figure 2 is an illustration of the same mattress in the view from above, ie on the lying side;

Figure 3 shows a section of the same mattress from the side;

Figure 4 shows a section of another embodiment.

1 to 3 show an embodiment variant of the mattress according to the invention. The lying device is referred to here as a mattress, although it differs significantly from the conventional mattresses. Since they are how this is used in combination with known bed frames or bed systems, this term is used.

The mattress according to the invention is divided into different lying areas 4-7. The number of lying areas depends on the embodiment. In this example, a head-lying zone 4, a trunk-lying zone 5, a leg-lying zone 6 and a foot-lying zone 7 are distinguished. The structure of the head, torso and leg lying zone, which are similar to one another, is described below. These three lying zones 4-6 each consist of a carrier unit 1 and a compensation chamber 2. The carrier unit 1 is arranged on the lying side, the compensation chamber 2 is located below it, that is to say on the bottom side. Carrier unit 1 and compensation chamber 2 have approximately the same base area. The compensation chamber 2 is, for example, a cavity made of a flexible plastic. In another embodiment, the cavity is made of a solid material, for example wood.

The carrier units 1 consist of a plurality of carrier cells 10. These carrier cells 10 are approximately cuboid, their rectangular outline having a short and a long side. Their dimensions are not essential to the invention. However, the smaller the carrier cells, the greater the number that can be arranged per square meter, which results in a finer division of the mattress. The carrier cells 10 are made of a body-neutral, flexible plastic and with a gaseous one Medium, especially air or nitrogen, filled, their internal pressure is higher than atmospheric pressure. The pressure in the carrier cells 10 varies from carrier unit 1 to carrier unit 1. Each carrier cell 10 is arranged on the compensation chamber 2 independently of its neighbors. It is preferably interchangeably connected to the compensation chamber 2. This allows easy replacement in the event of a leak. The carrier cells 10 of a carrier unit 1 are arranged in a defined pattern to one another so that they can optimally support every point of the body. In particular in the edge zones of the mattress, the carrier cells 10 are arranged such that their short sides are parallel to the edge of the mattress. The edges of the mattress have increased stability. This is necessary because the carrier cells do not have any adjacent neighboring cells on the edge on one side. The same arrangement of the carrier cells 10 is preferably present on the edges of the lying zone on which the support units 1 adjoin one another as on the edges of the mattress.

The carrier cells 10 are not directly connected to one another, so that air gaps or air channels 8 are present between them. The carrier cells 10 are preferably even spaced apart from one another so that the air channels 8 are continuous at least in the unloaded state.

Each support cell 10 is in a directly communicating connection with the associated compensation chambers 2 via passage openings 13. In one embodiment, these are Passage openings 13 are designed as a coupling element, which creates a sealing, form-fitting connection between support element 10 and compensation chamber 2. When the carrier cells 10 are loaded by the user, pressure equalization takes place between the carrier cell 10 and the compensation chamber 2. Since the compensation chamber has a much larger volume than the loaded carrier cell, a noticeable increase in pressure in the carrier cell can thus be prevented. The carrier cell therefore always has the same pressure and thus the same hardness under different loads. A membrane 11 is arranged in the communicating area so that the air exchange is damped. In this embodiment, the membrane 11 is located in the carrier element 10 and has the shape of an open-pore foam insert.

In another variant, a throttle is used in the communicating area between the carrier cell 10 and the compensation chamber 2.

The footrest zone 7 of the mattress is constructed differently from the lying zones 4-6 described above. On the lying side, it has a foam structure like the conventional mattresses, which is preferably made thinner. At the bottom, below the foam structure, there is a pressure chamber 3. This pressure chamber 3 communicates with the compensation chambers 2 by means of pressure regulating valves. This connection is not visible in the drawings. The pressure regulating valves work without external energy supply. The entire mattress is provided with a mattress cover 9 made of fabric, so that the user cannot see any difference to conventional mattresses. In order to ensure more comfortable lying comfort, the support cells 10 can have a coating 12 in the form of a molton flocking on the lying side.

It can also be seen in FIG. 1 that the individual lying zones 4-7 of the mattress can be brought to one another in different positions. This is made possible not least by the special arrangement of the support elements 10 on the edges of the lying zones.

The mode of operation of this bed filled with air now allows a completely relaxed lying position, as will be explained in the following. Since the body of the sleeper lies on individual support units and these have different pressures independently of one another, it is possible to cushion different support parts under the body with different firmness. Since the pressure of each carrier unit can be set individually, there are great possibilities for variation. The pressure conditions in the carrier cells can thus be adapted to the corresponding body weight of the user and his anatomical irregularities can be taken into account. The pressure is set via the pressure chamber in which the necessary air supply is stored. This pressure chamber can be used with both a hand and a Electric pump can be refilled. The tightness of the individual elements of the mattress is of great importance. Tests have shown that refilling the container is only necessary about four to six times a year. The operation is completely energy-free while using the bed.

In order to ensure the highest level of sleeping comfort, a programmable automatic pressure change can be carried out in the carrier cells during the rest phase. These changes in pressure change the posture of the sleeping person without waking up. For hotel beds or beds that are used by different people, print parameters can be saved or entered for the different lying areas according to a simple pictogram, for example hard, medium light.

The air channels between the carrier cells ensure that the mattress is ventilated and thus regulate the moisture balance. Since air is a good thermal insulator, there is no need for heating. On the contrary, the air filling ensures pleasant bed warmth.

Since the carrier cells are individually and interchangeably connected to the compensation chamber, only the defective carrier cell needs to be replaced if a leak occurs. Cleaning the mattress also turns out to be easier than with conventional mattresses because the mattress cover can be easily removed and washed.

FIG. 4 shows a modified variant of the carrier cells 10 '. This has an L-shaped cross section, two adjacent support cells 10 'being arranged such that they are mirrored to one another in such a way that they form a common cuboid outline. It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that other forms of carrier cells are also possible. Arrangements of the carrier cell other than those shown in FIG. 2 are also possible.

In a further variant, not shown here, the carrier cells are not arranged directly on the compensation chamber, but are only connected to it by hoses. In this case, the carrier units can be brought to one another in different positions without the compensation chambers. In this variant, the compensation chambers can have an inflexible shape.

In a further embodiment variant, which is not shown here, the pressure chamber is not arranged below the foot lying zone but below another lying zone.

In a further variant, the support cells in the edge zones of the mattress and the lying zones are not arranged with their short sides parallel to the edges but with their long sides. However, these carrier cells show in in this case a higher overpressure than in the other arrangement. These carrier cells are thus connected to at least one compensation chamber which is independent of the other carrier cells in the central region of the mattress.

Claims

claims

1. Mattress for a bed, which has at least one compensation chamber (2) and a plurality of support cells (10) arranged on the bed surface, which can be filled with a gaseous medium and are in communication with the at least one compensation chamber (2), characterized in that each Carrier cell (10) is connected to the at least one compensation chamber (2) via a passage opening (13) and thus has a direct communicating connection therewith and with other carrier cells (10) via this compensation chamber

(2) communicates.

2. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that a plurality of compensation chambers (2) are present and that in each case a number of the carrier cells (10) form a carrier unit (1), one carrier unit (1) each having a compensation chamber (2 ) forms a lying zone (4-7) and the carrier cells (10) of the carrier unit (1) are in direct communication with the compensation chamber (2) of the same lying zone (4-7).

3. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that in the communicating area between the carrier cell (10) and compensation chamber (2) at least one membrane (11) is arranged for flow insulation.

4. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that the at least one membrane (11) consists of an open-pore foam insert.

5. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that it has a pressure chamber (3) which is in communication with the at least one compensation chamber (2) by means of pressure regulating valves.

6. Mattress according to claim 5, characterized in that the pressure chamber (3) is arranged in a lying zone (7) of the foot region of the mattress.

7. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier cells (10) are arranged at a distance from one another, so that air gaps (8) are present between the individual carrier cells (10) at least in the unloaded state.

8. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier cells (10) are approximately cuboid.

9. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier elements (10 ') are approximately L-shaped, two adjacent carrier elements (10') being arranged so as to be mirrored to one another in such a way that they have a common rectangular outline. 10. Mattress according to one of claims 8 or 9, characterized in that the carrier cells (10,

10 ') have a short and a long side in the floor plan and are arranged in a defined pattern, the carrier cells being arranged in the edge zones of the mattress such that their short sides are parallel to the edge of the mattress.

11. Mattress according to claim 10, characterized in that in the edge zones of lying zones (4-7) the carrier cells (10, 10 ') are arranged such that their short sides lie parallel to the edges of the lying zones.

12. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrier elements (10) are made of a plastic film and have a coating in the form of a molton flocking on the bed surface side.

13. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that each carrier cell (10) with the at least one compensation chamber (2) is connected interchangeably by the passage openings (13) being designed as coupling elements.

14. Mattress according to claim 1, characterized in that each carrier cell (10) forms an independent unit from its neighboring cells.