Patent Grant
7117655
This invention relates to the process of securing at least one web of insulator material to multiple spring assemblies.
At the present time, most mattress spring core assemblies are manufactured by a spring manufacturer who assembles the springs into a spring assembly. To save space and therefore reduce shipping costs, the spring manufacturer compresses multiple spring assemblies and ties them in a crate. The crates are shipped to a mattress manufacturer, who then uncrates the compressed spring cores, applies a primary insulator to the top and bottom surfaces of the mattress, and then applies conventional padding and upholstery to complete the mattress. In order to keep the mattress spring assemblies straight and avoid the mattresses top and bottom surfaces being permanently canted and distorted as the spring assemblies are compressed for shipment in a crate, there are rods inserted through the spring assemblies during the compression process. These rods function to prevent misalignment of the top and bottom surfaces of the spring assemblies during compression, which rods are then removed after compression and during shipment within the crate.
As an alternative to compression of the spring assemblies for shipment in crates, some spring assemblies are compressed and roll-packed while sandwiched only between separator plies of paper or plastic, which paper or plastic may be either discarded or reused, depending on the nature of the separating materials.
For instance, it is known in the art to roll-pack multiple spring assemblies or units for use in making mattresses by winding disposable paper or re-usable hessian around a mandrel and feeding the spring units successively into the nip between the growing roll and the traveling web material. The spring units are compressed as they are drawn into the roll, and the result is that the roll-packed spring assemblies have a much reduced volume as compared to conventionally stacked spring units.
Prior art roll packing machines compress and wrap spring assemblies in a single web of disposable paper or reusable material which separates the multiple layers of spring assemblies in a roll and maintains the spring assemblies in a compressed state for shipment from a spring manufacturer to a mattress manufacturer. The mattress manufacturer then must unroll the spring units and manually attach an insulator pad to at least the top and usually the top and bottom surfaces of each spring unit before adding conventional padding and upholstery to the unit to complete the mattress. The insulator pads prevent the conventional filling materials such as padding from falling between the wire gaps in the spring assembly. The manual application of these insulator pads is time consuming and costly because it requires an operator manually securing the insulator pads to the spring assemblies with hog rings or other fasteners.
Applicant's U.S. Pat. No. 6,357,209, which is fully incorporated by reference herein, discloses a method of packaging spring units in which at least one layer of insulator material is permanently secured to multiple spring units before the spring units and insulator material are roll packed. The roll packed bedding products are then shipped in a roll to a mattress manufacturer who unrolls them and applies padding or other filling materials before encased each spring unit in a fabric covering.
However, in certain circumstances, a mattress manufacturer may receive a roll of roll packed spring assemblies which do not have any webs of insulator material attached thereto. In such a situation, the mattress manufacturer must unroll the roll packed spring assemblies and subsequently apply at least one web of insulator material to each spring assembly before padding and/or filling materials are added and the product encased in fabric. Heretofore, this process has been manual, an operator hog ringing or otherwise securing at least one web of insulator material individually to each spring assembly. This manual application of the insulator pads is time consuming and costly because among other things, this process requires a skilled, trained operator.
Therefore, it has been one objective of the present invention to provide an automated method of quickly and easily securing at least one web of insulator material to multiple spring assemblies.
It has been a further objective of the present invention to facilitate and ease the manufacture of spring mattresses by a mattress manufacturer.
The present invention accomplishes these objectives with a method of applying at least one web of insulator material to multiple spring assemblies. Each spring assembly preferably comprises a plurality of interconnected coil springs. Each of the coil springs has an upper end turn, a lower end turn and a plurality of central convolutions therebetween, as is conventional. However, other types of springs including continuous bands of coil springs may be incorporated into the spring assembly in accordance with the present invention.
The method of the invention allows at least one web of spring insulator material to be secured or attached to a plurality of spring units or spring assemblies in an automated manner so as eliminate the need for an operator. The process of the present invention enables a mattress manufacturer to unroll multiple spring assemblies from a roll of roll-packed spring assemblies and feed them one at a time into a space or nip between guide rollers. Any type of unroller may be used in accordance with the present invention. Alternatively, the mattress manufacture may uncrate a crate of compressed spring assemblies and feed the spring assemblies one at a time into the nip one at a time for application of the web or webs of insulator material thereto.
The nip or distance between the guide rollers is preferably slightly less than the height of the spring assemblies so that each spring assembly which passes therebetween is slightly compressed. The result of the slight compression is that when each web of insulator material is applied, it becomes taught on the top or bottom surface of the spring assembly.
Each spring assembly preferably has a uniform depth defined by a generally planar top first surface and a parallel generally planar bottom second surface. The spring assembly has a longitudinal dimension or length defined by a pair of opposed parallel end surfaces and a transverse dimension or width defined by a pair of opposed parallel side surfaces. The longitudinal dimension or length is generally greater than the transverse dimension or width of the spring assembly as in most bedding products. However, a square spring assembly in which the longitudinal and transverse dimensions are equal may also have one or more webs of insulator material applied thereto using this inventive method.
The method of the present invention comprises feeding or introducing spring assemblies into a space or nip between a pair of guide rollers spaced from one another. The spring assemblies are preferably oriented with the longitudinal dimension of the spring assembly parallel the direction of travel so that a leading end surface of the spring assembly is first introduced between the guide rollers. However, the spring assemblies may be oriented in any manner without departing from the spirit of the present invention.
First and second web rolls of insulator material are preferably provided generally above and below the spring assemblies, respectively. The first web roll comprises a first web of spring insulator material, e.g., bonded fiber or non-woven fiber or other web material, wound about a core. Similarly, the second web roll comprises a second web of similar spring insulator material wound about a core. However, the webs of insulator material may be stored in other ways and at other locations. Each of the first and second webs of insulator material have a pair of opposed side edges defining a width of the web which is wider than the spring assemblies' transverse dimension. Each web across its width has a pair of opposed side portions and a central portion between the side portions.
The first and second webs of insulator material are each passed over a guide roller and located against the first and second surfaces of the spring assembly, respectively. The longitudinal dimension of the spring assembly is preferably parallel to the opposed side edges of the first and second webs of insulator material. However, the spring assemblies may be oriented such that the transverse dimension of the spring assembly is generally parallel to the opposed side edges of the first and second webs of insulator material.
Either before, during or after the process of being wound around a respective guide roller, a bonding material is applied to the inner surface of each of the side portions of each web of insulator material. The bonding material is preferably adhesive but may be other material such as, for example, a molten plastic material. The bonding material may be extruded or otherwise applied to the inner surfaces of the webs of insulator material.
The next step in the method of the present invention is to fold each of the webs of insulator material back upon itself around the top and bottom turns of the edgemost coil springs of the spring unit, respectively, so that the inner surfaces of the opposed side portions of each web of insulator material are located against the inner surface of the central portion of the web of insulator material. This central portion of each web of insulator material is located against either the top or bottom surface of the spring assembly. The bonding material is then allowed to dry, thereby securing the side portions of each web of insulator material to the central portion of the web of insulator material with the end turns of the coil springs trapped therebetween. In this manner, each web of insulator material is secured to the spring assembly.
In an alternative embodiment of the method of the present invention, the web or webs of insulator material may be secured to the spring assemblies after being folded. In this embodiment of the present invention, the side portions of each web of insulator material are welded, sewn or otherwise secured to the central portion of the web of insulator material at a securement station which is “downstream” of the location where the web or webs of insulator material are folded around the outermost end turns of the spring assemblies. Thus, in this embodiment the side portions of each web of insulator material are secured to the central portion of the web of insulator material after the web of insulator material is folded.
The final step in the method of the present invention is to cut the web or webs of insulator material between adjacent spring assemblies.
The spring assembly with the first and second webs of insulator material secured thereagainst constitutes a bedding or seating product to which padding may be subsequently applied before the product is encased in a covering. The web or webs of insulator material prevent the padding from falling between the wire gaps of the spring assembly.
These and other objectives and advantages of this invention will be readily apparent from the following description of the drawings.
Referring to the drawings and particularly
The spring assembly 10 is generally comprised of a plurality of coil springs 20, the coil springs 20 being secured one to another by means generally known in the art, such as helical lacing wires (not shown), for example. At least one border wire 21 may surround the assembled springs 20. As best illustrated in
As illustrated in
Each of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 has an inner surface 46 and an outer surface 48. As the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 are passed around the guide rollers 40, 42, the outer surfaces 48 of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 contact the guide rollers 40, 42. After the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 are secured to the spring assembly 10, the inner surfaces 46 of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 are located against the first and second surfaces 12, 14 of the spring assembly 10.
As best illustrated in
Referring to
As illustrated in
The webs of insulator material 28, 30 are unwound or unrolled from web rolls of insulator material 35, 36. Alternatively, the webs of insulator material may be unpackaged from a stack or pile or any other storage device or configuration. The webs of insulator material 28, 30 are passed around guide rollers 40, 42 before being located against the first and second surfaces 12, 14, respectively, of the spring assembly 10.
As illustrated in
The spring assembly 10 having the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 located thereagainst is then passed to a folding unit 70 which folds the side portions 54, 60 of each of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 around the end turns of the outer coil springs 20. More particularly, the inner surface 46 of the side portions 54160 of each of the first and second webs 28, 30 with the bonding agent 64, 68 deposited thereon are folded around the upper and lower end turns 22, 24 of the outermost coil springs 20 before being pressed against the inner surfaces 46 of the respective center portions 52, 58. The top and bottom end turns 22, 24 of the coil springs 20 comprising the longitudinal margins of the spring assembly 10 are trapped between the side portions and center portions of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30. In this manner the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 are secured to the coil springs 20 of the spring assembly 10.
The bonding agent is then allowed to dry such that the bonding agent secures the side portions 54, 60 of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 to the center portions 52, 58 of the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30.
As illustrated in
The insulator material used to cover the first and second surfaces 12, 14 of the spring unit 10 is generally a woven or non-woven material but may be any other flexible sheet of web material.
In one preferred embodiment, after the bonding agent drys, the first and second surfaces 12 of the spring assemblies 10 are covered with the webs 28, 30 of insulator material. After the webs of insulator material 28, 30 have been fixedly located against the first and second surfaces 12, 14 of the spring unit 10 by either the gluing or the welding methods as described above or any other conventional securement method, the spring assemblies 10 with the first and second webs of insulator material 26, 28 located there against are then passed to a cutter 70 which transversely cuts in a direction 72 the webs of insulator material 28, 30 at locations between adjacent, spaced spring assemblies 10.
The spring assembly 10 with the first and second webs of insulator material 28, 30 attached permanently thereto comprises a bedding or seating product 74 ready for shipment, for example, from a spring manufacturer to a mattress or seat manufacturer.
When the bedding or seating products 72 arrive at the mattress or seat manufacturer's facility, all that the manufacturer need do is unpack the products 72 and apply the necessary padding and upholstery material. The resulting bedding or seating product 72 having the insulator material permanently secured to its top and bottom sides is than ready for application of the appropriate padding and upholstery materials to complete the mattress or seat.
From the above disclosure of the detailed description of the present invention and the preceding summary of the preferred embodiment, those skilled in the art will comprehend the various modifications to which the present invention is susceptible. Therefore, I desire to be limited only by the scope of the following claims and equivalents thereof.
This patent application is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/143,377 filed May 10, 2002 entitled METHOD OF PACKAGING SPRING UNITS “, now abandoned” U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/143,377 is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/034,823 filed Dec. 27, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,467,239, entitled METHOD OF PACKAGING SPRING UNITS, which is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/712,503 filed Nov. 14, 2000, entitled METHOD OF PACKAGING SPRING UNITS, now abandoned. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/712,503 is a continuation-in-part application of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/397,337, filed Sep. 15, 1999, entitled “METHOD OF PACKAGING SPRINGS AND RESULTING PACKAGED PRODUCT”, now abandoned. All of the above-identified applications are fully incorporated by reference herein.
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| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20030110735 A1 | Jun 2003 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 10143377 | May 2002 | US |
| Child | 10354756 | US | |
| Parent | 10034823 | Dec 2001 | US |
| Child | 10143377 | US | |
| Parent | 09712503 | Nov 2000 | US |
| Child | 10034823 | US | |
| Parent | 09397337 | Sep 1999 | US |
| Child | 09712503 | US |
