Foldable Sofa Mattress With Pivoting Spring Sections for Low-Profile Storage
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Solution Overview
Problem
Foldable mattresses struggle to balance comfort and compactness, often being too bulky for 'low profile' furniture designs, and existing collapsible spring systems compromise flexibility and stability for storage efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A foldable mattress design featuring pivotably joined spring sections with a transition section and biasing straps to maintain upright posture, allowing for efficient storage while providing a stable and comfortable sleeping surface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a thick, firm mattress is used to provide optimal sleeping comfort, then sleeping comfort is improved, but the mattress becomes too bulky to be folded into the space available in low profile furniture
Solution Approach 1:
The mattress is divided into multiple sections with different firmness levels. The head section uses softer materials for comfort, while the foot section uses firmer materials for support. This segmentation allows the mattress to provide optimal sleeping comfort in different zones without requiring uniform thickness throughout, enabling it to fold more compactly into low profile furniture.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the mattress are assigned different material properties and thicknesses. The head portion uses softer, more compliant materials while the foot portion uses firmer, more supportive materials. This local differentiation allows each section to perform its specific function optimally while reducing the overall bulk of the mattress when folded.
2Volume of moving object
If a thin, soft mattress is used to easily fold and store in low profile furniture, then storage compactness is improved, but sleeping comfort deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The mattress is segmented into multiple sections with progressively varying firmness levels from head to foot. This allows the mattress to maintain a relatively thin overall profile for compact storage while providing adequate support and comfort in each specific zone through localized material selection and construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The mattress employs composite construction combining multiple materials with different firmness properties - such as foam layers, fiberfill, and support cores - arranged in specific configurations. This composite approach enables the mattress to achieve both compact foldability and sufficient sleeping comfort by optimizing the combination and arrangement of different materials rather than relying on uniform thickness.
3Volume of moving object
If collapsible sinuous springs are used to reduce mattress thickness during storage, then storage efficiency is improved, but the mattress loses flexibility and stability for comfortable use
Solution Approach 1:
The mattress incorporates a dynamic support system where springs and internal structures can adapt their configuration between storage and use states. During storage, the mattress compresses to a thin profile; during use, the support elements expand and adjust to provide the necessary flexibility and stability for comfortable sleeping, allowing the mattress to dynamically respond to different operational requirements.
Solution Approach 2:
The mattress design allows physical parameters such as thickness, firmness, and structural configuration to change between storage and use states. The support system transitions from a compressed, space-efficient configuration during storage to an expanded, comfort-optimized configuration during use, with parameters like spring tension, layer compression, and structural rigidity being adjusted to match the operational state.
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 design enables a compact, comfortable, and stable foldable mattress that fits within smaller spaces, maintaining structural stability and comfort during use and storage, while being easily manufactured and cost-effective.
Implementation Method 1
collapsible sinuous springs that comprise some or all of the supporting springs in the mattress... the springs pivot about the wires comprising the grid so that the mattress upper surface is drawn closer and shifts longitudinally relative to the mattress lower surface
Implementation Method 2
The mattress includes a first section having coil springs, a second section having collapsible sinuous springs, and a transition section disposed between the first and second sections
Implementation Method 3
Straps are used to maintain the upright posture of the attached sections of collapsible sinuous springs when the mattress is unfolded and in use in its horizontal position while simultaneously preventing the brace assemblies within the transition section from displacing vertically
Data Source
AI summary
A foldable sofa mattress and method for storing within low profile furniture. The mattress includes a transition section disposed between different collapsible sinuous spring sections. The sinuous spring sections are pivotably joined to the transition section and the sections are affixed to upper and lower grids for support. A method for storing a foldable mattress includes the steps of providing a mattress with a transition section disposed between two collapsible sections, extending opposing pairs of straps from the transition section to each of the separate collapsible sections, and bending the mattress. The method further includes the steps of flattening the two collapsible sections, placing the flattened sections on top of one another, and storing the folded mattress in a cavity.