Self inflating air mattress

Abstract

A mattress has cells with low air permeability envelopes. Check valves permit air flow into cell groups. An inflation structure expands within the cells when not loaded to cause the envelope to fill with air through the check valves. Another mattress has a cell with a primary bladder, a hollow inflation structure in the primary bladder, a secondary bladder in the hollow inflation structure. The inflation structure expands when not under load to cause the primary bladder to fill with air through the check valve. An air cell has a bladder, a check valve permitting air flow to the bladder, and an inflation structure that expands in the bladder when not under load to cause the bladder to fill with air through the check valve. The inflation structure is a cylindrical foam structure with a portion removed along a surface and a D-shaped hollow space within an upper portion thereof.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top perspective partially cutaway view of a non-powered mattress.

FIG. 2 is a top perspective view of the mattress in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an exemplary construction for representative cells of the mattress, wherein the cells have different amounts of foam filling.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view an exemplary construction of a single cell.

FIGS. 5A-5D are diagrammatic environmental side elevational views of the mattress at various stages of use.

FIG. 6 is a top perspective partially cutaway view of an optionally powered mattress.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an exemplary construction for representative cells of the optionally powered mattress, wherein the cells have different amounts of foam filling.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of an exemplary construction for representative cells of the optionally powered mattress, wherein one of the cells is inflated and another is deflated.

FIGS. 9A-9C are diagrammatic side elevational views of the optionally powered mattress, showing inner walls of alternating cells in three separate zones, wherein the inner walls are subject to alternating pressure inflation phases.

FIG. 10 is a graph of exemplary alternating cell pressures in head, seat, and foot zones of the optionally powered mattresses.

FIG. 11 is a graph of exemplary cell pressures over time of the non-powered and optionally powered mattresses.

FIG. 12 is a graph of exemplary cell pressures during various modes of operation of the optionally powered mattress and a conventional alternating pressure mattress.

Claims

1. An air-filled mattress, comprising: a plurality of cells, each cell having a low air permeability envelope;a plurality of check valves, each of the check valves serving to permit air flow into a respective group of the cells while preventing air flow from the respective group of cells, each group of cells comprising at least one cell; andan inflation structure within each of the cells, the inflation structure being reversibly compressible and tending to expand within the cell therein when unloaded to cause the low air permeability envelope to fill with air through a respective one of the check valves.

2. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, wherein the envelope is formed from a material to form a compliant sealed membrane.

3. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, wherein the inflation structure comprises a low density foam, wherein the foam has sufficient resiliency to inflate an evacuated one of the cells through a respective one of the check valves, while providing a low contribution to the compliance of the inflated cell.

4. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, wherein the inflation structure comprises a low density foam, wherein the foam has sufficient resiliency to inflate an evacuated one of the cells through a respective one of the check valves, and wherein the mattress has a plurality of zones, each zone comprising at least one of the plurality of cells, the cells of each of the zones differing from the cells of each of the other zones by an inflation volume defined by a configuration of the foam contained therein.

5. The air-filled mattress according to claim 4, wherein each zone has at least one of the check valves.

6. The air-filled mattress according to claim 5, wherein the mattress is divided into three separate pressure zones.

7. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, further comprising a high density foam surround, wherein the plurality of cells are disposed within the high density foam surround to provide user support.

8. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, further comprising a topper, the topper being situated above the cells to distribute the weight of the user on the cells.

9. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, further comprising a mattress cover, the mattress cover surrounding the plurality of cells, and providing an environmental barrier.

10. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, wherein the inflation structure comprises a hollow foam structure having sufficient resiliency to inflate the cells when deflated through a respective one of the check valves while providing a low contribution to user support provided by the inflated cell.

11. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, wherein the inflation structure comprises a foam structure having sufficient resiliency to return to the cells to a nominal state after compression of the cells and thereby draw in air through the check valves to inflate the cells, the foam structure of each of the cells being a foam cylinder insert having a common diameter, a volume of the cell being controlled by removing a portion the foam cylinder along a length thereof.

12. The air-filled mattress according to claim 1, further comprising a bladder within each of the cells, the bladder within each of the cells having an external port for selective inflation and deflation of the bladder under via an external tool.

13. The air-filled mattress according to claim 12, wherein the inflation structure comprises a hollow foam insert, the bladder being inserted within a hollow space of the foam insert, the hollow space being principally disposed within an upper portion of the foam insert close to a user support surface of the mattress.

14. The air-filled mattress according to claim 12, further comprising an alternating pressure controller, the alternating pressure controller providing at least two outputs for sequentially inflating and deflating the bladders of alternating cells, wherein the alternating cells within a pressure zone are associated with different ones of the check valves.

15. The air-filled mattress according to claim 12, wherein the bladder is formed integrally with the envelope.

16. The air-filled mattress according to claim 12, wherein the inflation structure comprises a cylindrical foam structure having a portion removed along a surface of the cylindrical foam structure, the bladder being within a D-shaped hollow space of the cylindrical foam structure in an upper portion of the cylindrical foam structure.

17. The air-filled mattress according to claim 16, wherein the air-filled mattress comprises three zones each comprising at least one of the plurality of cells, the cells being cylindrical and transversely disposed along a length of the mattress, the cylindrical foam structure in the cells in each of the zones differing cross in section to provide differential support for head, seat and foot sections of the mattress, and two alternating pressure zones, each comprising bladders of alternating ones of the cells along the length of the mattress.

18. An air-filled mattress, comprising: at least one cell having an outer wall forming a primary bladder that has a low air permeability;a check valve connected to the primary bladder, the check valve serving to permit air flow to the primary bladder while preventing air flow from the primary bladder;a hollow inflation structure within the primary bladder, the inflation structure being compressible and tending to expand within the primary bladder when the primary bladder is not subject to a load to cause the primary bladder to fill with air through the check valve;an inner wall within the hollow inflation structure, the inner wall forming a secondary bladder that has a low air permeability, the secondary bladder being within the primary bladder; anda check valve connected to the secondary bladder, the secondary bladder check valve serving to permit air flow from the secondary bladder to deflate the secondary bladder so the mattress can be used in a non-powered mode.

19. An air-filled mattress, comprising: at least one cell having an outer wall forming a primary bladder that has a low air permeability;a check valve connected to the primary bladder, the check valve serving to permit air flow to the primary bladder while preventing air flow from the primary bladder;an inflation structure within the primary bladder, the inflation structure being compressible and tending to expand within the primary bladder when the primary bladder is not subject to a load to cause the primary bladder to fill with air through the check valve, the inflation structure comprising a cylindrical foam structure having a portion removed along a bottom surface of the cylindrical foam structure, the inflation structure having a D-shaped hollow space within in an upper portion of the cylindrical foam structure.