Buckling-Wall Cushioning Structure for Pressure Redistribution
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cushioning materials often fail to effectively distribute pressure evenly, leading to discomfort and potential damage when faced with irregularly shaped objects, as they tend to 'bottom out' under load, increasing pressure on specific areas.
Innovation Solution
A cushioning element featuring elastomeric buckling walls of varying heights, where shorter walls buckle first to redistribute load, combined with a stabilizing material attached to the taller walls to prevent collapse and maintain shape under pressure.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stress or pressure
If conventional cushioning materials are used, then they provide basic cushioning, but they bottom out under load increasing pressure on specific areas
Solution Approach 1:
The cushioning material is segmented into multiple walls of varying heights arranged in an array. Each wall acts as an independent cushioning element that can buckle separately, preventing the entire structure from bottoming out and redistributing pressure across multiple contact points.
Solution Approach 2:
The cushioning structure incorporates walls with different heights (first height, second height, third height) to create local variations in cushioning properties. Shorter walls buckle first under load to provide progressive cushioning, while taller walls remain standing to maintain structure, creating zones of different stiffness and compliance throughout the material.
2Strength
If walls are spaced close together, then structural support is maintained, but buckling is restricted reducing pressure redistribution
Solution Approach 1:
The material is divided into discrete wall segments spaced at specific distances from one another. This segmentation allows each wall to buckle independently while maintaining overall structural integrity through the interconnected foam matrix, enabling both support and pressure redistribution.
Solution Approach 2:
The wall spacing parameter is optimized to balance structural support and buckling freedom. Walls are spaced close enough to maintain structural rigidity and prevent collapse, but far enough apart to allow individual buckling events that redistribute pressure across the cushioning surface.
3Stress or pressure
If walls are spaced far apart, then buckling is easier enabling pressure redistribution, but structural support decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The cushioning structure combines discrete walls made of elastomeric material with a connecting foam matrix. This composite construction allows walls to be spaced farther apart for easier buckling while the foam matrix provides continuous structural support and prevents complete collapse between walls.
Solution Approach 2:
The spacing parameter between walls is increased to facilitate buckling and pressure redistribution, while the mechanical properties of the connecting foam are adjusted to maintain adequate structural support, creating an optimal balance between the two competing requirements.
4Ease of manufacture
If uniform height walls are used, then manufacturing is simplified, but localized buckling cannot occur reducing comfort for irregular shapes
Solution Approach 1:
The cushioning material incorporates walls of three different heights (first, second, and third heights) to create local variations in cushioning response. This allows the material to adapt to irregular shapes and distributed loads by enabling localized buckling at specific height levels, improving comfort while maintaining manufacturability through a repeating pattern.
Solution Approach 2:
The uniform repeating pattern of multi-height walls simplifies manufacturing through mold-based production, while the segmented structure with varying wall heights within each pattern unit provides the adaptability needed for localized buckling and comfort on irregular surfaces.
5Duration of action of moving object
If taller walls are used, then cushioning duration is extended, but peak pressure reduction is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The inclusion of shorter walls (second and third heights) alongside taller walls creates multiple stages of buckling. When load is applied, shorter walls buckle first to immediately reduce peak pressure, while taller walls remain standing to provide extended cushioning duration as they gradually deflect and buckle in sequence.
Solution Approach 2:
The wall height parameter is varied across three distinct levels to create a progressive buckling sequence. This parameter variation enables the material to reduce peak pressure through initial buckling of shorter walls while maintaining cushioning duration through the gradual deflection and subsequent buckling of taller walls.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution provides enhanced pressure distribution and comfort by allowing localized buckling at irregularities while maintaining overall shape, reducing peak pressure and preventing collapse, thus protecting both humans and objects.
Implementation Method 1
The elastomeric material comprises an elastomeric polymer
Data Source
AI summary
Cushioning elements having a top cushioning surface and a bottom base surface include an elastomeric cushion member and a stabilizing material. The elastomeric cushion member includes a first plurality of interconnected buckling walls having a first mean height and a second plurality of buckling walls having a second mean height. Each buckling wall of the second plurality intersects and connects to at least two buckling walls of the first plurality. A surface of the stabilizing material on a side thereof opposite the elastomeric cushion member defines the bottom base surface of the cushioning element. The first ends of the first plurality of interconnected buckling walls and the first ends of the second plurality of buckling walls define the top cushioning surface of the cushioning element. Methods of forming cushioning elements include securing a stabilizing material to ends of the first plurality of interconnected buckling walls.