Patent Application
20240349901
The invention relates to a mattress support. Further, the invention relates to a method for stacking mattress supports.
Mattress supports with folding legs and a rigid base, such as a steel base plate are well known. Such mattress supports are intended for use in emergency situations or temporary applications in emergency shelters. The disadvantage of these well-known mattress supports is that, due to the rigid nature of the steel base plate, a relatively thick top mattress must be used in order to provide sufficient comfort.
Another type of mattress support is known, for example, from patent document GB532573A. This describes a stretcher that is constructed from longitudinal and transverse beams formed from angle irons that are interconnected to form a frame, and between which a flexible support surface is attached. Attached to the frame are legs that can be rotated between an extended position in which the legs extend below the frame to position it at a height relative to a lower surface, and a collapsed position in which the legs are virtually contained within the vertical space of the frame. The two legs in a single pair are connected near their ends by a crossbar to facilitate simultaneous rotation of these legs.
The robustness of this type of foldable stretcher against deformation is low. In particular, resistance to warping of the frame members inwards due to high tension loads applied by or through a flexible support surface appears to be low (for example, when the mattress support is loaded with a heavy load, it is to be expected that the frame bends inwards). It is therefore desirable to provide a mattress support that can provide both a high degree of shape retention and comfort and can be stacked in a reliable and stable manner.
An alternative approach in the art is to obviate the combination of a support and mattress entirely, for example, from patent document FR 2666730. The stackable relaxation couch disclosed therein is a piece of furniture wherein the essential characteristics are as follows: it is rigid and resistant so that an enveloping canvas, tightly stretched below the frame by means of short elastics crossing eyelets, replaces slats plus usual mattresses, for supposed comfort. The stackable relaxation couches comprise rigid, immobile ground support elements that render such articles needlessly bulky and their ground support element vulnerable to incidental damage.
It remains an outstanding challenge to provide emergency use mattress supports that are light-weight and hence easy to manhandle, whilst also being comfortable to use and finally being able to be stored or transported in a volume efficient manner so that a large number of mattress supports can be transported in one aid truck.
For this purpose, according to a first aspect, the invention provides a mattress support with longitudinal beams, transverse beams, a flexible support material, rotatable coupling means, and at least one rotatable bracing element. The longitudinal beams extend next to and at a distance from each other, preferably orientated parallel to one another. The transverse beams are rigidly connected to the longitudinal beams at or near to the ends of the longitudinal beams, and together with the longitudinal beams form a main frame. The flexible support material is pre-stressed or stretched between the longitudinal beams so that it defines a surface corresponding to the upper surface of the frame. At least one rotatable bracing element is located under the flexible support material surface. As the flexible support medium is elastically deformed (stretched) towards the longitudinal beams, the flexible support medium exerts an inward force on the longitudinal beams and the rotatable bracing element or elements are configured so as to bear the stress resulting from this inward force along its length and keep the longitudinal beams apart at a constant rotatable element length. The rotatable coupling means are provided at both ends of the rotatable bracing element, and connect the rotatable bracing element to the longitudinal beams in a rotating manner around an axis of rotation directed transversely to the longitudinal beams and parallel to the flexible support material surface. The rotatable bracing element comprises a plastic deformation that extends in a direction perpendicular to the axis of rotation. The plastic deformation can be rotated around the axis of rotation between an unfolded operational position, in which the projection protrudes at right angles to the flexible support material, below the plane of the nominal bottom surface of the main frame to allow for deformation of the flexible support medium when the mattress support medium is in use (i.e. deformation due to the flexible support medium bearing the weight of a person), and a folded rest position, in which the projection is completely contained within a volume defined by the main frame (i.e. does not project below the bottom surface defined by the main frame).
The term “rotatable bracing element” here denotes a rigid elongated body positioned between the two longitudinal beams of the mattress support, rotatably connected to these longitudinal beams at or near two opposite ends of the rotatable bracing element, preferably extending along a centre line running between the two longitudinal beams, and preferably primarily perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the longitudinal beams. A beam has a high stiffness (mechanical resistance) to forces acting inward along the centre line at the ends of the beam. The rotatable bracing element therefore provides a high resistance to transverse (inward) forces applied to the longitudinal beams by the stretched flexible support material and prevents the longitudinal beams from bending inwards when the flexible support material is under high stress. The expression “constant transverse length” in this context refers to a transverse distortion of the longitudinal beams that remains very small in relation to the total length of the main frame due to the presence of the rotatable bracing element(s). The resulting inward displacement is at most a few % (e.g. maximum 1%) of the length of the main frame.
In contrast to a rotatable bracing element, a support element, such as a foot or other leg assembly, is configured to support the main frame when the supporting element is in a support position, in which the major portion of the support element is extended beyond the volume defined by the main frame. A transverse connection between two legs, preferably near the free ends of a pair of legs (such as the transverse bars in document GB532573A), facilitates simultaneous rotation of pairs of legs, and can serve to hold the two legs together in the transverse direction when in the support position (i.e. when unfolded). However, a transverse connection between legs is far from an axis of rotation located directly between the longitudinal beams when the legs are in a support position (i.e. when unfolded), and thus provides little resistance to the inward compression forces exerted by a tensioned flexible support material on the longitudinal beams in the transverse direction towards each other.
According to this aspect of the invention, the rotatable bracing element is rotatable and extends almost directly between the longitudinal members, in both the folded and the unfolded state of the mattress support. According to this aspect, the rotatable bracing element is provided with a relatively small plastic deformation. The term “plastic deformation” here refers in a broad sense to a relatively small degree of displacement of a central area of the rotatable bracing element in a direction radially outward from the axis of rotation of the rotatable bracing element, with respect to the two opposite ends of the rotatable bracing element which are nearly coincident with the axis of rotation. Due to the presence of such a plastic deformation, the rotatable bracing element may have a slightly curved and/or radially displaced shape such that the radial displacement from the axis of rotation of the rotatable bracing element is greatest half-way between the two ends of the rotatable bracing element, and the radial displacement of the rotatable bracing element from the axis of rotation becomes progressively smaller for positions closer to the ends of the rotatable bracing element that are rotationally attached to the longitudinal members. Due to this plastically deformed shape, when the rotatable bracing element is in the unfolded position, there is additional space for the flexible support material to be displaced downwards (i.e. towards the axis of rotation) as compared to the folded position. This additional displacement of the flexible support material could be caused when the flexible support material bears a load, such as a person resting on the mattress support. The plastic deformation of the rotatable bracing element therefore confers the advantage that the flexible support material can deform more when in use, and consequently a thinner mattress can be used to confer the same degree of comfort as would be required by a stiffer mattress support material (such as a steel plate). Preferably, the rotatable bracing element possesses mirror symmetry with respect to a plane orthogonal to the axis of rotation of the rotatable bracing element.
The shape of the rotatable bracing element can be described by a function for the radially outward displacement from the axis of rotation of the rotatable bracing element, which depends on the transverse position along the axis of rotation between the two opposite ends of the rotatable bracing element. Preferably, this form function has a (not necessarily strictly) monotonic rising character between the first rotationally attached end and the central part of the rotatable bracing element, and a (not necessarily strictly) monotonic falling character between the central part and the other rotationally attached end of the rotatable bracing element. For example, the rotatable bracing element may have a curved or kinked concave shape. Alternatively, the traverse may be curved or kinked near the ends by a component in a direction of expansion away from the axis of rotation, and may be curved or kinked further towards the central part by a component in the opposite direction of expansion, such that the central part runs at a distance and almost parallel to the turning centre line.
The rotatable bracing element(s) span(s) a transverse width ΔY between the longitudinal beams. A central part of the rotatable bracing element forms an area which, in the unfolded operating position, is furthest below the level of the underside of the main frame, at a central internal distance ΔR along the bracing direction and in relation to the axis of rotation. In order to provide a good balance between sufficient space for vertical displacement of the flexible support material and sufficient compression stiffness of the rotatable bracing element, a ratio ΔR/ΔY between the central inner distance and the transverse width should satisfy 0<ΔR/ΔY≤1/10, and preferably 1/20≤ΔR/ΔY≤1/10.
The rotatable bracing element with plastic deformation can be rotated to the folded rest position, in which case it is completely contained within the internal volume of the main frame of the mattress support. As a result, the extension of the turned folded rotatable bracing element does not project below the top or bottom surface of the main frame. Preferably, the rotation angle of the rotatable bracing element between the unfolded and the folded positions is 90°. Because of the position of the rotatable bracing element in the folded position above the nominal plane tangent to the underside of the frame, which coincides with the level of the underside of the frame, several mattress supports can be stacked on top of each other. This advantageously results in a compact and stable stack of stacked mattress supports with a minimum stacking height. The underside of the main frame is determined by the underside of the longitudinal beams and/or the transverse beams. The underside of the main frame is further determined by the fact that this underside fulfils a support function when stacking mattress supports with the crossbeams folded down. The mattress supports can be configured so that both the longitudinal and transverse beams support the weight of a mattress support stacked above them. Alternatively, the mattress supports can be configured so that only some of the longitudinal or transverse beams support the weight of a mattress support stacked above them, for instance if both the longitudinal beams bear the weight of the mattress support stacked above them or both the transverse beams bear the weight of a mattress support stacked above them. The mattress supports can be stacked on top of each other with the longitudinal beams and/or their transverse beams, if necessary, enclosing the edges of the supporting surface and the corresponding fasteners with which the supporting surface is stretched between the longitudinal trusses.
The mattress support according to this first aspect is therefore robust in the state of use but stably stackable with low stacking height in the folded state. Such a robust stackable mattress support is excellently (but not exclusively) suited for temporary use, such as in emergency rooms in case of calamities. It can also be used for other temporary applications, such as large events, military or emergency service units and so on. The mattress support is ideally suited for mobile applications. The mattress supports can be kept ready in storage and transported while stacked. After all, the volume of a stack of such mattress supports is relatively low, while the stacks are also easy to move because of the stable shape of the stack. Due to the highly elastic nature of the flexible support material, user comfort is ensured even with relatively thin upper mattresses. This results in a further advantage: not only are the mattress supports themselves stackable in a relatively small volume when collapsed, but also these relatively thin upper mattresses. The total volume of mattress supports and top mattresses is therefore considerably smaller than the total volume of the known mattress supports and relatively thick top mattresses. This is density of mattress supports and upper mattresses is particularly advantageous when shipping aid supplies, where the limiting logistical factor is often available ship, air-freight or truck volume.
According to a further embodiment, the flexible support material extends at the level of the upper sides of the longitudinal beams in such a way that the longitudinal beams and the flexible support material are directly adjacent on their upper sides to the same nominal upper surface. This facilitates the placing of the upper mattress and optimises the available vertical space between the undistorted support and a nominal lower surface that touches the longitudinal beams at their lower ends. In a further embodiment, the longitudinal beams, the transverse beams, and the flexible support material surface are all adjacent to the same nominal upper surface on their upper sides, and the longitudinal beams and the transverse beams are adjacent to the same nominal lower surface on their lower sides. This allows the height of a stack of mattress supports to be minimised.
The rotatable coupling means can comprise a glide bearing, a slide bearing, an axial bearing, a thrust bearing, or a pivot bearing, respectively. These bearings may be ball or roller bearings. Preferably, the axial bearing, thrust bearing, or pivot bearing is provided as a slide bearing. Here, the rotatable bracing element is preferably in the form of a shaped tube or rod or profile capped by mutually parallel end faces, wherein the end faces are orthogonal to the axis of rotation (A). The axial bearing, thrust bearing or pivot bearing is arranged between each end face of the cross member and the adjacent longitudinal beam.
Preferably, the rotatable bracing element is provided with blocking means for temporarily blocking the rotatable bracing element in the unfolded use position and/or in the folded storage position. In particular, one end of the rotatable bracing element can have an end face and the corresponding longitudinal beam can have a counter surface, which end face and counter surface interact as a sliding pivot bearing. In connection with securing the rotatable bracing element in its blocked positions, the end face and the counter surface may have recesses or depressions which engage in a blocking manner in the storage position and/or in the working position of the rotatable bracing element.
According to one embodiment, the rotatable bracing element and the rotation means have a maximum thickness in a direction transverse to the centre of rotation and transverse to the direction of plastic displacement R have maximum thickness dimensions which are no more than the inter-plane distance between the underside of the flexible support surface and the underside of the main frame.
Because of the limited maximum dimension of the rotatable bracing element mentioned, it is sufficiently thin that it can be fully enclosed in the space bounded by the aforementioned nominal flat surface along the underside of the longitudinal beams, by the flexible support material surface, which is at rest or not deformed, and by the inner side walls of the longitudinal beams, which are oriented towards each other (i.e. facing inwards). This relatively thin block-shaped or plate-shaped space proves to be sufficiently high or thick to accommodate the rotatable bracing element, at least when arranged in the stacking position. The rotatable bracing elements can be completely folded in. In this case, the rotatable bracing elements do not form an obstacle when stacking the mattress supports.
In a further embodiment, the rotatable bracing element seen in a cross-section perpendicular to the axis of rotation has a height dimension defined in the direction of deformation (i.e. radial direction away from the axis of rotation), and the height dimension is greater than the above defined thickness dimension. By increasing the height with respect to the thickness, the stiffness of the transverse beam against bending loads along the radial direction can be increased, without reducing the stowability of the folded transverse beam inside the above space.
In a further embodiment, the axis of rotation of the rotatable bracing element can intersect the longitudinal beams at a position essentially midway between the underside of the longitudinal beams and the flexible support material surface. This facilitates complete enclosure of the transverse beam within the space underneath the bearing surface and above the underside of the longitudinal beams.
According to one embodiment, the longitudinal beams of the mattress support may be provided with ground support elements that are connected to the longitudinal beams. Such a ground support element may be provided with one or more supporting devices (such as ground support legs or ground support frames) that are movable between an operative position, projecting downward in relation to the main frame (i.e. toward the ground), and a collapsed position in which the one or more ground support devices are wholly contained within the space determined between the flexible support material surface, the level of the underside of the main frame (or, in other words, by a plane along the underside of the main frame), and the inward facing surfaces of the longitudinal beams.
The ground support element may also include a transverse connecting beam. The rotatable bracing element and the ground support element(s) may be offset by their respective pivot axes in the longitudinal direction of the longitudinal beams, the distance between them being greater than the sum of the internal central distance of the rotatable bracing element and the length of the ground support element. A ground support body constructed in this way may also be included entirely within the said space under the load-bearing surface.
The ground support element may be equipped with blocking devices for blocking the support bodies in their folded position.
An embodiment is conceivable in which the ground support element(s) and two profile sections fitted at the ends of the ground support element are attached to the longitudinal beams.
According to a further embodiment, at least one ground support bracing element (e.g. a strut) may be provided between a ground support element of the ground support device and a longitudinal beam. This ground support bracing element (e.g. a strut) and the longitudinal beam together may have a stop for determining the extended position of the support body. Furthermore, the strut may be rotatably connected to the ground support element and may cooperate in a sliding manner with a sliding track provided on the longitudinal beam.
The flexible support material surface extends along a plane enclosed by the main frame of the longitudinal and transverse beams and is elastically stretched in a direction parallel to that of the transverse beams between the longitudinal beams in such a way that it can support a mattress and a person lying or sitting on it. This flexible support material surface is elastically deformable in all directions along the stretched surface and is elastically deformed by stretching of the surface in outward directions along the surface and orthogonal to the longitudinal beams. This ability to deform elastically along the stretched surface confers the advantage of providing dynamic comfort during use, avoiding excessive hardness in any one area or sagging in others. The presence of rotatable bracing elements according to the invention makes it possible to place the supporting surface under high stress. According to one embodiment, the elastic support material is elastically deformed by an applied force in the direction parallel to the transverse beams towards the longitudinal beams, fixed to the longitudinal beams and the applied force removed. This results in a mattress support in which the elastically deformed mattress support material exerts a total inward force equal to the force applied to elastically deform the support material, in an inward direction parallel to the transverse beams and orthogonal to the direction of the longitudinal beams. Preferably the inward force is between 200 and 40000 N, more preferably between 1000 and 30000 N, yet more preferably between 10000 and 27500 N and most preferably between 20000-25000 N. The transverse force with which the longitudinal beams are pulled towards each other by the flexible support material may increase further when a person rests on this flexible supporting surface. The relatively high horizontal pre-tensioning of the mattress support material limits the vertical down-movement of the mattress support material when a load is loaded onto the matters support material (i.e. a person of 120 kg). This confers the advantage of providing superior macro-comfort for a person using the mattress support with a thin mattress (<100 mm thickness), both in a resting position and in dampening the impact of forcefully sitting down on the mattress support. The flexible support material surface is preferably formed by a network of interlocking helical springs. More preferably, the flexible support material is formed by a network of interlocking helical springs in which the direction of coil progression is orthogonal to the longitudinal beams. Such a network, when elastically deformed/stretched across the longitudinal beams exerts an inward force on the longitudinal beams. The rotatable bracing elements are excellent at bearing this inward force, in particular when rotatably connected to the longitudinal beams by slide bearings. Other elastic sheet-shaped flexible support materials can also be used, such as a pre-stressed elastic fabric (for example, from a network of elastic yarns) or elastic sheet (for example, a perforated breathable sheet of rubber with an inlay). The rotatable bracing elements are preferably configured to bear a load of 50 to 20000 N, more preferably 250 to 15000 N, yet more preferably 2500 to 13750 N, even more preferably 5000 to 12500 N and most preferably 5500 to 7500 N.
Preferably, the flexible support material surface is air permeable. Air permeability is defined as “the volume of air in cubic centimetres (cm3) which is passed through in one second through 100 cm2 of the fabric at a pressure difference of 10 cm head of water”. Air permeability is measured using the Frazier test method in accordance with ASTM D737 (2018).
According to one embodiment, the top or bottom of the main frame may have protrusions that protrude from the top or bottom of the entablature. In addition, the underside or top of the main frame may feature recesses that are recessed relative to the top or bottom of the main frame. The protrusions and recesses of mattress supports stacked directly on top of each other can be configured to cooperatively stabilize stacked mattress supports and prevent lateral displacement of stacked mattress supports. Preferably, these protrusions and recesses are configured to interlock. More preferably these protrusions and recesses are suitably shaped and smoothly curved, to reduce the risk of damage to the contact surfaces.
In one embodiment, the longitudinal and transverse beams are made of extruded aluminium profiles, and the rotatable bracing elements are formed of bent aluminium tubing. In an alternative embodiment, the beams and rotatable bracing elements are made of steel.
According to a second aspect and in accordance with the advantages and effects described above, the invention provides a combination of at least two mattress supports according to the first aspect. This combination can be formed by means of a process for forming a stack from at least a first mattress support and second mattress support, wherein the process comprises: —rotating the rotatable bracing elements about the corresponding axes of rotation to bring the first and second mattress bearers into the folded stacking positions, and —placing the second mattress support with a lower side of the main frame on top of an upper side of the main frame of the first mattress support. In the resulting combination of mattress supports, the underside of the main frame of an upper mattress support rests on an underlying mattress support, such as on the upper side of the main frame of an underlying mattress support. However, it is also possible that the underside of an upper frame rests on elements that are still above the upper side of the underlying main frame, such as the attachment elements of the support.
The following non-limiting examples of the invention will be described in light of the accompanying schematic drawings of
The drawings are for illustrative purposes only and do not serve to limit the scope of protection conferred by the claims.
The main frame 29 of the mattress support 10 in this example also includes two rotatable bracing elements 13a, 13b. Furthermore, the mattress support 10 has an elastic flexible support material surface 14 which is elastically deformed by stretching between the two longitudinal beams 11a-b. For the sake of clarity, the flexible support material surface 14 is only partially depicted. In this example, the tensile stress on the elastic support material 14 is about 100±2 Newtons in the transverse directions ±Y (outward relative to the respective longitudinal beam 11) per centimeter in the longitudinal direction X. As a result of this tensile stress, the cross members 13 are loaded under pressure (by bearing a load) which acts primarily in the inward transverse directions ±Y.
Each of the rotatable bracing elements 13 are attached to the longitudinal beams 11 by its two ends. The rotatable bracing elements 13 of this embodiment are positioned according to a mirror symmetrical distribution with respect to the centre of the longitudinal beams 11 in the longitudinal direction X, in order to be able to absorb the transverse tension of the stressed flexible support material surface 14 with an even distribution of rotatable bracing elements in the X direction. In this example, the two rotatable bracing elements 13 are positioned at about ⅓ and ⅔ of the length of the longitudinal beams 11. The rotatable bracing elements 13 are fixed at both ends to the longitudinal beams 11a-b by rotation means 15a-d. The rotation means 15 enable the respective rotatable bracing element 13 to be rotated relative to the main frame 29 around the its axis of rotation A.
In their operational position, the rotatable bracing elements 13a-b have a downward curving shape which determines a plastic deformation 16a-b. In
In the illustrated embodiment, the mattress support 10 is also provided with two ground support element 30a, 30b, with pivoting ground support bodies 31a, 31b. These ground support bodies 31 enable, in the unfolded state, the main frame 29 to be positioned stably and at a non-zero support height ΔZ0 in relation to a supporting ground surface. In this example, a height ΔZ1 of the main frame 29 with longitudinal beams 11a, 11b and transverse beams 12a, 12b is in the order of a few tens of millimeters, for example about 50 millimeters. In addition, the support height ΔZ0 in this example is of the order of a few hundred millimetres, for example about 250 millimetres. In the unfolded state, the rotatable bracing elements 13 extend in relation to the nominal lower surface of the main frame 29, with a distance in the centre of the order of several tens of millimetres.
The example in
The end face 23 and the counter surface 24 have protrusions 25 or recesses 26 which, under the influence of the force exerted by the flexible support material, mutually engage, both in the operating position shown in
The flexible support material 14 is stretched between the longitudinal beams 11, and is situated with a lower surface 17 at a plane distance ΔZ2 above a plane aligned with the underside (lower surface) 18 of the longitudinal beams 11. A block or plate-shaped internal space 40 is formed between the lower surface 17 of the flexible support material 14, the plane aligned with the underside 18 of the longitudinal beams 11, and inward facing (opposing) sides of the longitudinal beams 11. This internal space 40 provides enough space to accommodate the folded rotatable bracing element 13, such that in its resting position it does not project beneath to the plane aligned with the undersides 18 of the longitudinal beams 11.
Both the rotatable bracing elements 13 and the ground support bodies 31 of each mattress support 10 in the stack are, when collapsed, completely contained in the internal space 40 between the lower surface of the flexible support material 14 and the plane aligned with underside 18 of the longitudinal beams 11 of the corresponding mattress support. As a result, it is possible to stack a plurality of the shown mattress supports 10 flat on top of each other, with the stack having a relatively low total height ΔZt. This total height ΔZt is only equal to the sum of the thicknesses ΔZ1 of the longitudinal beams 11 and/or the transverse beams 12 of the mattress supports 10 stacked on top of each other, whichever the greater.
When the ground support elements (30) are connected to the longitudinal beams (11), and provided with one or more ground support bodies (31) and movable between an operative ground support position, projecting downwards in relation to the main frame (29), and a folded position in which the ground support elements are at least partially accommodated in the internal space (40) defined between the underside (17) of the flexible support material (14), the underside (18) of the main frame (29) and the inward facing side surfaces (19) of the longitudinal members (11), this confers the advantage of providing a compact design, which by extension, facilitates protection of moving components during transport. Preferably all the ground support elements (30) are connected to the longitudinal beams (11), and provided with one or more ground support bodies (31) and movable between an operative ground support position, projecting downwards in relation to the main frame (29), and a folded position in which the ground support elements are at least partially accommodated in the internal space (40) defined between the underside (17) of the flexible support material (14), the underside (18) of the main frame (29) and the inward facing side surfaces (19) of the longitudinal members (11).
In a preferable embodiment, the ground support elements (30) a movable between an operative ground support position, projecting downwards in relation to the main frame (29), and a folded position in which the ground support elements are wholly accommodated in the internal space (40) defined between the underside (17) of the flexible support material (14), the level of the underside (18) of the main frame (29) and the inward facing side surfaces (19) of the longitudinal members (11). Preferably, all the ground support elements (30) a movable between an operative ground support position, projecting downwards in relation to the main frame (29), and a folded position in which the ground support elements are wholly accommodated in the internal space (40) defined between the underside (17) of the flexible support material (14), the level of the underside (18) of the main frame (29) and the inward facing side surfaces (19) of the longitudinal members (11). By wholly accommodating the ground support elements (30) in the internal space (40), this confers the further advantage of providing a yet more compact design, which by extension, facilitates yet greater protection of moving components during transport. Since no movable part is outside of the internal volume 40 in this second folded position, they are protected from accidental or unavoidable impact which may occur during shipping or handling a mattress support according to the present disclosure.
As shown in
Unlike in the embodiment according to
Each rotatable bracing element 113a, 113b is rotatable with respect to the main frame 29 around a corresponding axis of rotation Aa, Ab and in a corresponding direction of rotation da, @b. In the resting position of the mattress support 110 shown in
The rotatable transverse member 213 is in this example embodied as a hollow tube formed of flat and interconnected walls, which together have a rectangular shape with rounded corners, seen in cross-sections perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the rotatable bracing element 213. In this example, the thickness dimension D1 is defined as the distance between the outward surfaces of the two side walls 243, 244. In cross sections near the rotation means 215, the axis of rotation A is located in the middle between these walls 243, 244, and also at approximately equal distance from top wall 245 (i.e., at distance 1/2-D1 from each of these walls 243-245). Here, the diagonal distance D3 from the axis of rotation A to corner 246 (where walls 243 and 245 merge) is sufficiently small to fit within the available height between the axis of rotation A and the underside of the flexible support material 214, if the rotatable transverse member 213 is rotated from the use position to the rest position. In alternative embodiments, the rotatable transverse member may also have other flattened cross-sectional shapes and/or may be solid.
In the rest position shown in
It will be understood that the above-described embodiments are only described by way of example and not in any limiting sense, and that various modifications and adaptations are possible without going beyond the scope of the invention and that the scope is only determined by the appended claims. For instance, the ground support elements (30) may be provided as interconnected rods that form parallelepipeds, wherein two opposite faces of each parallelepiped are parallel with the plane of the upper side of the main frame of the mattress support. Herein, the rods are rotatably attached to the mainframe so as to allow the parallelepiped to be moved from a first position in which the parallelepiped is in a flattened form and accommodated wholly in the internal space (40) defined between the underside (17) of the flexible support material (14), the underside (18) of the main frame (29) and the inward facing side surfaces (19) of the longitudinal members (11) to a second operative (downward extended) ground support position in which the parallelepiped is arranged so that the rods defining the lowest face of the parallelepiped may engage the ground. Other geometries may be readily envisaged, such as wire frames defining a pyramid (those with a triangular base are typically called Eiffel legs, through the Eames DSR chair of 1951) or a frustum (square, hexagonal, etc).
In the examples in
Furthermore, the mattress supports in the examples shown in
The reference figures in the claims are for illustrative purposes only and should not be regarded as limiting for the interpretation of the claims. For the sake of brevity, similar reference numbers corresponding to similar elements of described embodiments are indicated in the claims only by their last two digits (i.e. without hundreds) where correspondences with multiple embodiments apply. This does not suggest that these claim elements refer only to elements of the description that correspond to a last two digits. For example, the reference numeral (13) in the claims should be read as (13; 113; 213) where this correspondence is applicable. The applicability of several similar reference figures in the claims follows from a comparison with the figures and the description. In cases where a claim focuses on a specific embodiment, specific reference numbers with hundreds are used in the claims (e.g. 213).
Similar reference numbers used in the description to indicate similar elements (but only differences in hundreds) are implicitly included.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2029050 | Aug 2021 | NL | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/NL2022/050484 | 8/23/2022 | WO |
