Foam Spring with Reinforcing Layer to Reduce Damage and Weight
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing foam springs for pillows and mattresses are prone to damage during handling, exhibit unpredictable elastic behavior when compressed, and require high-density foam for stiffness, leading to increased weight and production costs.
Innovation Solution
A foam spring with a tubular resilient body featuring a reinforcing layer, such as fabric or non-woven material, applied over at least part of its axial length, which enhances resistance to damage and maintains shape under compression, allowing for better predictability and adaptability to user preferences.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of manufacture
If a foam spring is made without a reinforcing layer, then the manufacturing process is simple and cost-effective, but the spring is easily damaged during handling and assembling
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies a composite structure by combining foam material with a reinforcing layer (fabric or non-woven material) to create a foam spring that maintains both ease of manufacture and improved damage resistance. The reinforcing layer is applied to the foam layer to form a composite structure that prevents damage during handling while keeping the manufacturing process relatively simple.
2Strength
If high-density foam is used to achieve high stiffness, then the spring has sufficient structural rigidity, but the weight of the pillow or mattress increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure with foam layer and reinforcing layer to achieve the desired stiffness without requiring high-density foam. The reinforcing layer provides additional structural support, allowing the use of lower-density foam materials while maintaining the required spring stiffness, thereby reducing the overall weight of the mattress or pillow.
3Ease of manufacture
If a foam spring lacks a reinforcing layer, then production costs are lower, but the spring exhibits unpredictable elastic behavior when compressed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a composite structure combining foam and reinforcing layer to achieve predictable elastic behavior. The reinforcing layer provides structural stability that ensures consistent compression characteristics and predictable elastic response, while the foam layer maintains comfort properties, creating a balanced performance at reasonable production costs.
4Productivity
If a foam spring is made without a reinforcing layer, then the production process is faster, but special care must be taken during handling which slows down assembly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses a composite structure with foam and reinforcing layer that maintains high production speed while significantly improving handling ease. The reinforcing layer provides damage resistance that allows springs to be handled more casually during assembly operations, reducing the need for special care and slowing of the assembly process.
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 reinforcing layer improves the foam spring's durability and compressive stability, reducing production costs and enabling easier customization to user needs while maintaining comfort and reduced weight.
Implementation Method 1
a foam spring with a tubular resilient body made of foam... the tubular body comprises at least one tubular foam layer and at least one reinforcing layer applied to said foam layer
Implementation Method 2
when they are compressed in the axial direction, they tend to bulge out in a lateral direction... the spring has less tendency to bulge out when compressed
Data Source
AI summary
A foam spring for use in pillows, cushions, mattresses or the like, the foam spring having a tubular resilient body made of foam with holes extending inwardly from an outside surface to an inside surface, wherein the tubular body comprises at least one tubular foam layer and at least one reinforcing layer applied to said foam layer over at least a part of the axial length of the spring.