Multiple coil spring and mattress including the same

Abstract

To provide a multiple coil spring which can adjust characteristics of a coil spring with a simple structure while avoiding friction between inner and outer coils and abnormal noise in the multiple coil spring, and to provide a mattress including the multiple coil spring.SOLUTION: A multiple coil spring comprises an outer coil spring and an inner coil spring disposed in an inner side of the outer coil spring. The multiple coil spring adopts means having a contact point at which the inner diameter side of the outer coil spring and an outer diameter side of the inner coil spring come into point contact with each other; and a fixing part for fixing the contact point.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a multi-coil spring, and more particularly to a multi-coil spring composed of an outer coil spring and an inner coil spring, and a mattress using the multi-coil spring. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, coil springs used in mattresses and the like naturally have a single spring constant as a single item. To adjust this spring constant, some have been made with double coils, one inside and one outside.

[0003] However, when using a double coil, the inner and outer coils rub against each other when expanding and contracting, which can cause noise and lower the quality. There are also methods that cover the inner and outer coils with cloth or other materials to prevent noise, but this has a complex structure and is not suitable for practical use. Therefore, there has been a demand for a multiple coil spring structure that can adjust the characteristics of the coil springs while having a simple structure and that does not cause abnormal noise or other degradation in quality.

[0004] To solve the above problems, a technical proposal has been made in Japanese Utility Model Laid-Open Publication No. 56-123157 (Patent Document 1). That is, Patent Document 1 proposes a technical proposal in which a small diameter coil spring is fitted inside a large diameter coil spring wrapped in a non-woven fabric or the like. However, according to this technical proposal, it is necessary to individually wrap the coil springs in non-woven fabric or the like, which increases the labor required and complicates the structure, and does not solve the above problems.

[0005] Therefore, the applicant came up with the idea of ​​whether it might be possible to adjust the characteristics of a coil spring with a simple structure while avoiding the friction between the inner and outer coils in a double coil and the resulting abnormal noise. He focused on a method of fastening the inner and outer coils together, and by bringing the outer coil spring and the inner coil spring into point contact and fastening the points of contact together to form a single coil spring, he developed a multiple coil spring with multiple spring constants, which led to the proposal of the ``multiple coil spring and mattress using a multiple coil spring'' according to the present invention. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 56-123157 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a multiple coil spring that has a simple structure and allows the characteristics of the coil spring to be adjusted while avoiding friction between the inner and outer coils and abnormal noise in the multiple coil, and a mattress using such a multiple coil spring. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a multiple coil spring consisting of an outer coil spring and an inner coil spring placed inside the outer coil spring, which has a contact point where the inner diameter side of the outer coil spring and the outer diameter side of the inner coil spring contact each other at a point, and a fixing part that fixes the contact point.

[0009] Furthermore, the present invention employs a means in which the spring constant of the inner coil spring is different from the spring constant of the outer coil spring.

[0010] Furthermore, the present invention employs a means in which the fixing portion is fixed by welding, resin dipping, or wrapping.

[0011] Furthermore, the present invention employs a means in which all of the contact points are fixed portions.

[0012] Furthermore, the present invention employs a measure in which the inner coil spring and the outer coil spring have different lengths.

[0013] Furthermore, the present invention employs a means in which the ends of the inner coil spring protrude from both ends of the outer coil spring.

[0014] Furthermore, the present invention employs a means in which the inner coil spring and / or the outer coil spring are made up of a plurality of coil springs.

[0015] Furthermore, the present invention provides a mattress using any of the above-mentioned multiple coil springs, which employs means for changing the characteristics of the multiple coil springs depending on the position on the mattress. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] According to the multiple coil spring of the present invention, by having a fixing portion that fixes the contact point, it is possible to minimize the points where the inner and outer coil springs come into contact, thereby making it possible to suppress friction between the inner and outer coils and the resulting generation of abnormal noise.

[0017] Furthermore, with the multiple coil spring of the present invention, the spring constant of the inner coil spring is different from the spring constant of the outer coil spring, making it possible to create a coil spring with three types of spring constants: areas where only the inner coil spring acts, areas where only the outer coil spring acts, and areas where the coil springs on both sides act in a superimposed manner.

[0018] Furthermore, according to the multiple coil spring of the present invention, the fixing portion is fixed by welding, resin dipping, or winding fixing, so that fixing can be performed without using special construction methods, which contributes to simplifying the work.

[0019] Furthermore, with the multiple coil spring of the present invention, all of the contact points are fixed, so that the outer coil spring and the inner coil spring are integrated into one coil spring and can absorb the load, thereby increasing the repulsive force against the load and preventing deformation of the coil spring.

[0020] Furthermore, with the multiple coil spring of the present invention, by molding the inner coil spring and the outer coil spring to have different lengths, it is possible to create a coil spring that has at least two stages of repulsive force against a load from above.

[0021] Furthermore, with the multiple coil spring according to the present invention, the inner coil spring and the outer coil spring are each made up of a plurality of coil springs, which makes it possible to increase the number of contact points 4 without changing the height or diameter, and to increase the repulsive force of the coil spring itself.

[0022] Furthermore, with the multiple coil spring of the present invention, the ends of the inner coil spring protrude from both ends of the outer coil spring, so that loads from either side are first applied to the top surface of the protruding inner coil spring, and then to the multiple coil spring portion with the outer coil spring, allowing approximately the same load action to be exerted on both the front and back surfaces.

[0023] Furthermore, with a mattress using the multiple coil springs of the present invention, by changing the characteristics of the multiple coil springs depending on the position on the mattress, it is possible to distribute the strain on the body when the mattress user lies down to each part of the body. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] 1A and 1B are explanatory diagrams showing an embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention. [Figure 2] 1A and 1B are explanatory diagrams showing an embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing another embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention. [Figure 4] 10A and 10B are explanatory views showing another embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention. [Figure 5] 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of a mattress using multiple coil springs according to the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0025] The most significant feature of the multiple coil spring according to the present invention is that the point contacts between the outer coil spring and the inner coil spring are fixed. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, an embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0026] It should be noted that the overall configuration and the configuration of each part of the multiple coil spring shown below are not limited to the examples described below, but can be modified as appropriate within the scope of the technical concept of the present invention, i.e., within the scope of shapes, dimensions, structures, etc. that can achieve the same functional effects.

[0027] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of a multiple coil spring according to the present invention, where (a) is an overall perspective view, (b) is a top view, (c) is a side view of an outer coil spring, and (d) is a side view of an inner coil spring. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a multiple coil spring according to the present invention, where (a) is a side view of the multiple coil spring in an unloaded state, and (b) is a side view of the multiple coil spring when a load is applied from above. FIG. 3 is an explanatory view showing another embodiment of the multiple coil spring according to the present invention. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing another embodiment of the multiple coil spring according to the present invention, where (a) is an overall perspective view, (b) is a perspective view of an outer coil spring, and (c) is a perspective view of an inner coil spring. FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a mattress using a multiple coil spring according to the present invention, and more specifically, an explanatory diagram showing the spring constant (resilience) of the multiple coil spring used in the mattress. The multiple coil spring 1 according to the present invention is composed of an outer coil spring 2 and an inner coil spring 3.

[0028] The coil spring used in the present invention is a resilient member used in the mattress 6 and the like, and is arranged so as to exert an upward resilient force against a load mainly directed downward. The coil spring used in the present invention may be any coil spring having a helical cylindrical shape, and may be made using conventionally known techniques. The material from which the coil spring is made may be either a metal material such as hard steel wire or stainless steel, or a resin material such as plastic, and is determined depending on the characteristics of the product in which the coil spring is used. In addition, since both ends of the coil spring constitute the top and bottom surfaces of the coil spring, they are formed into a roughly ring shape so that both ends are perpendicular to the longitudinal direction, or rings of the same diameter as the coil spring are fixed to both ends. By using such a shape, the load applied from above can be received by the entire ring-shaped top surface, while the load can be evenly distributed from the entire ring-shaped bottom surface to the bottom structure, floor surface, etc. that comes into contact with the ring-shaped bottom surface, making it possible to prevent deformation or damage to the coil spring.

[0029] The outer coil spring 2 is constructed from the aforementioned coil spring and is disposed on the outer diameter portion of the multi-coil spring 1 according to the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1(a), the outer coil spring 2 is formed shorter than the inner coil spring 3, and exerts a repulsive force from the combined inner coil spring 3 and outer coil spring 2 while supporting a load from above with a wider diameter than that supported by the inner coil spring 3.

[0030] The inner coil spring 3 is configured as the aforementioned coil spring, similar to the outer coil spring 2, and is arranged so that the outer surface of the inner coil spring 3 comes into contact with the inner surface of the outer coil spring 2. By making the outer periphery of the inner coil spring 3 substantially the same as the inner periphery of the outer coil spring 2, it becomes possible to arrange the fixing parts evenly in the circumferential direction. 1(b), the inner coil spring 3 is arranged so as to spiral in the opposite direction to the outer coil spring 2, thereby providing an abutment point 4 where the inner diameter side of the outer coil spring 2 and the outer diameter side of the inner coil spring 3 abut at a point. The inner coil spring 3 is formed to be longer than the outer coil spring 2.

[0031] When arranging the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3, by arranging them with their spirals in different directions, as shown in Figure 1(a), the inner diameter side of the outer coil spring 2 and the outer diameter side of the inner coil spring 3 come into contact at multiple contact points 4. By fixing the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3 at these contact points 4 to form fixing parts 5, a multi-coil spring 1 is formed in which the two coil springs are integrated. Furthermore, by fixing the contact point 4 as the fixed portion 5, it is possible to minimize the points where the inner and outer coil springs come into contact, thereby suppressing friction between the inner and outer coils and the resulting generation of abnormal noise.

[0032] The fixing method at the fixing portion 5 may be, for example, welding using metal, bonding with adhesive, dipping with resin (a processing method in which the part is immersed in liquid resin and then cooled to fix), fusion joining in which heat is applied to plastic to soften and melt it for fixing, or wrapping and fixing in which tape is wrapped around the fixing point, using methods using conventionally known techniques. In particular, by being fixed by welding, resin dipping, or winding, it is possible to fix without using special construction methods, which contributes to simplifying the work. Also, when the coil spring expands or contracts, the crossing angle of the fixing part 5 does not change due to the fixation, which may cause a load, but the amount of expansion and contraction of the outer coil spring 2 used as the coil spring depends on the height and number of turns of the coil itself. For example, even if the outer coil spring 2 has a diameter of 2 mm, a height of 50 mm, and four turns, it will only expand and contract by about 10 mm, and even when the maximum load is applied, it will be possible to expand and contract without putting a large load on the fixing part 5. Furthermore, when a resin material such as plastic is used as the material for the coil spring, instead of overlapping the outer coil spring 2 and inner coil spring 3, which are molded separately, and fixing the contact points by fusion welding or the like, it is also possible to employ a method in which the contact points are molded in a fixed state at the same time as molding the resin coil spring.

[0033] The spring constant, which indicates the repulsive force of a coil spring, is determined by the constituent material, diameter, length, and pitch, and is determined appropriately depending on the usage mode, installation location, concept of the product to be used, etc. By making the spring constant of the inner coil spring 3 different from the spring constant of the outer coil spring 2, it is possible to create a coil spring with at least three types of spring constants: a location where only the inner coil spring 3 acts, a location where only the outer coil spring 2 acts, and a location where both coil springs act in a superimposed manner. In particular, by making the spring constant of the inner coil spring 3 smaller than that of the outer coil spring 2, when a load is applied, a weak repulsive force is initially returned, but a strong repulsive force is returned when the load reaches the outer coil spring 2.

[0034] The abutment points 4 are fixed by the fixing parts 5, so that the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3 are linked together, and the spring constant below the uppermost fixing part 5 is a spring constant C obtained by adding the spring constant A of the outer coil spring 2 and the spring constant B of the inner coil spring 3. Note that it is possible to fix all of the abutment points 4 or to selectively fix some of the abutment points 4, but by fixing all of the abutment points 4 to the fixing parts 5, the spring constant A of the outer coil spring 2 becomes approximately the same as the spring constant C. Furthermore, by making all contact points 4 fixed parts 5 and increasing the spring constant of the outer coil spring 2, the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3 are integrated into one coil spring to receive the load, which increases the repulsive force against the load and also makes it possible to prevent deformation of the coil spring.

[0035] As shown in Figure 1(a), this multiple coil spring 1 has an inner coil spring 3 that is longer than the outer coil spring 2, so that when a load is applied from above, the inner coil spring 3 first absorbs the load and returns a repulsive force. If the load subsequently exceeds the load capacity of the inner coil spring 3 and reaches the top surface of the outer coil spring 2, the repulsive force of the outer coil spring 2 will be exerted in addition to the repulsive force of the inner coil spring 3.

[0036] Also, as shown in FIG. 3, a configuration in which the ends of the inner coil spring 3 protrude beyond both ends of the outer coil spring 2 may be considered. By adopting this configuration, the load from above is applied to the top surface of the inner coil spring 3A that protrudes upward from the outer coil spring 2, thereby exerting the effect of the multiple coil spring according to the present invention. If the lower end 3B of the inner coil spring 3 is placed on the top surface side, the inner coil spring 3A that protrudes upward and the inner coil spring 3B that protrudes downward will naturally be interchanged.

[0037] When forming the inner coil spring 3 and the outer coil spring 2, it is also preferable to fix multiple coil springs to one ring and use them as one coil spring, as shown in Figure 4(a), that is, to form the inner coil spring 3 and the outer coil spring 2 each from multiple coil springs. By configuring the inner coil spring 3 and the outer coil spring 2 with a plurality of coil springs, it is possible to increase the number of contact points 4 without changing the height or diameter, and also to increase the repulsive force of the coil springs themselves. For example, if two coil springs of the same diameter and shape are arranged facing each other (180°) as an outer coil spring 2 (Fig. 4(b)) and an inner coil spring 3 (Fig. 4(c)), the contact point 4 when the multiple coil spring 1 is formed will be increased, and the multiple coil spring 1 will exhibit at least twice the repulsive force compared to a multiple coil spring 1 consisting of a single inner and outer coil spring.

[0038] The operation and function of the multiple coil spring 1 having the above-described structure will be described with reference to FIGS. 2(a) and 2(b). First, a load is applied from above to the tip of the inner coil spring 3, which is the tip of the multiple coil spring 1. The inner coil spring 3 responds with a repulsive force to the load, which acts from the top surface of the inner coil spring 3 to the fixed portion 5a. In addition, at the same time that the inner coil spring 3 contracts toward the fixed portion 5a, the inner coil spring 3 and the outer coil spring 2 below the fixed portion 5a (inner coil spring 3 + outer coil spring 2) also contract downward as they become one unit (one coil spring). Furthermore, if a load that exceeds the repulsive force exerted by the inner coil spring 3 is applied to the multiple coil spring 1, the load will be simultaneously applied to the top surfaces of both the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3. In this case, the multiple coil spring 1 will simultaneously return the repulsive force of the inner coil spring 3 plus the repulsive force of the outer coil spring 2 to the load, and will contract downward overall. These actions and functions enable the repulsive force against the load to be multi-staged, and even when a large load is applied, the repulsive forces of the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3 are exerted against the load, and the burden caused by the load is borne by the entire coil spring formed by integrating the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3, thereby achieving the excellent effect of exerting a large repulsive force against the applied weight.

[0039] Next, the operation of using the multiple coil spring 1 as a component (internal resilience material) of the mattress 6 will be described. Typically, a mattress (single type) contains around 400 to 650 coils, which are evenly spaced to provide a stable resilience. By using multiple coil springs 1 as the coils used in such a mattress 6, the inner coil springs 3 exert a small repulsive force when a small load is applied, but when a large load is applied, the repulsive force is exerted by the entire multiple coil springs 1, i.e., the outer coil springs 2 and the inner coil springs 3, so that the mattress does not sink in significantly, which is an excellent effect. Furthermore, because each of the multiple coil springs 1 arranged in the mattress 6 supports a load independently, it is possible to reduce the strain (repulsion force) on parts of the body when the user of the mattress 6 lies down by changing the characteristics (spring constant) of the multiple coil springs 1 according to the position on the mattress 6. For example, as shown in Figure 5, by making the head, shoulders, and leg areas slightly less repulsive and changing the characteristics to make the lumbar area more repulsive, the mattress 6 allows the user's head, shoulders, and leg areas to sink down, but prevents the lumbar area from sinking down too much, naturally allowing the user who sleeps on their back to maintain an ideal sleeping position.

[0040] One possible use of the mattress 6 is a product in which both the front and back sides can be used as the surface of the mattress 6. In such a case, as shown in Fig. 3, coil springs are used in which the ends of the inner coil springs 3 protrude beyond both ends of the outer coil springs 2, so that on either the front or back side, a load from above is applied to the top surfaces of the inner coil springs 3A protruding upward from the outer coil springs 2, thereby exerting the effect of the multiple coil spring 1 according to the present invention. Furthermore, when the back side of the mattress 6 is turned to the front, the inner coil springs 3A protruding upward and the inner coil springs 3B protruding downward are naturally interchanged.

[0041] The basic configuration and operation of the multiple coil spring 1 according to the present invention have been described above, but the present invention is not limited to the configuration shown in the above embodiment or the drawings. For example, by arranging another coil spring outside the outer coil spring 2, it is possible to create at least three stages of repulsive force and disperse the repulsive force and impact in response to a load.

[0042] As described above, the multiple coil spring 1 according to the present invention has the outer coil spring 2 and the inner coil spring 3 fixed at the fixing portion 5, thereby becoming a coil spring with multiple spring constants, and it is possible to adjust the characteristics of the coil spring while suppressing the generation of friction and abnormal noise caused by contact between the inner and outer coils. When such a multiple coil spring 1 is used in a mattress 6, the resilience prevents the mattress from sinking too much in response to the load, thereby reducing the burden on the body of the user when lying down and contributing to maintaining a good sleeping position. [Industrial Applicability]

[0043] The present invention relates to a multi-coil spring having a multi-layer structure with inner and outer coil springs, the spring constant of which can be adjusted by fixing the respective contact points, and because the coil spring has a simple structure that reduces abnormal noise without degrading quality, it can be used not only for mattresses, but also as the internal structure of chair seats and other shock absorbing members. Therefore, it is believed that the "multi-coil spring and mattress using the multi-coil spring" according to the present invention has great industrial applicability. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1 Multiple coil spring 2 outer coil springs 3 inner coil spring 3A Inner coil spring (upper) 3B Inner coil spring (lower) 4 Contact point 5 Fixing part 5a Fixation part (top) 6 Mattresses

Claims

1. The spring comprises an outer coil spring and an inner coil spring disposed inside the outer coil spring, an abutment point where the inner diameter side of the outer coil spring and the outer diameter side of the inner coil spring abut on each other at a point; and a fixing portion for fixing the contact point.

2. 2. The multi-coil spring of claim 1, wherein the spring constant of the inner coil spring is different from the spring constant of the outer coil spring.

3. 2. The multiple coil spring according to claim 1, wherein the fixing portion is fixed by any one of welding, resin dipping, and winding.

4. 2. The multiple coil spring according to claim 1, wherein all of the contact points are fixed portions.

5. 2. The multi-coil spring of claim 1, wherein the inner coil spring and the outer coil spring have different lengths.

6. 6. The multi-coil spring according to claim 5, wherein the ends of the inner coil spring protrude from both ends of the outer coil spring.

7. 2. The multi-coil spring according to claim 1, wherein the inner coil spring or / and the outer coil spring are / is comprised of a plurality of coil springs.

8. 7. A mattress using a multi-coil spring, comprising the multi-coil spring according to claim 1, and the characteristics of the multi-coil spring are changed depending on the position of the mattress.

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