Lever-Based Slatted Frame for Automatic Lumbar Support Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing mattress bases fail to automatically adapt to the varying body proportions and weight distribution of a resting person, leading to restless sleep and discomfort, with most solutions either requiring manual adjustment or resulting in an excessive height that limits design flexibility.
Innovation Solution
A base suspension system with lever arrangements that allow the shoulder and pelvis areas to sink under load, causing the lumbar area to rise, providing dynamic support and maintaining a lower overall height, while the lever lengths and spring mechanisms adjust to accommodate different body sizes and positions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If hydraulic or hydropneumatic means with tappets are used to dynamically adapt base elements to body geometries, then adaptability to different body sizes and positions is improved, but device complexity and height increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex hydraulic or hydropneumatic systems with a purely mechanical lever-based system. The levers (15, 51, 55) with pivot axes (27, 41, 53, 57) provide dynamic adaptation through mechanical advantage and geometric relationships, eliminating the need for fluids, pumps, or complex control mechanisms while maintaining adaptability to different body sizes and positions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic adaptation through movable lever arrangements that can pivot and adjust their configuration based on applied loads. The levers are not fixed but can change their effective length and angle of operation, allowing the base to dynamically respond to different body geometries and sleeping positions without requiring complex control systems
2Adaptability or versatility
If mechanically guided rollers with belts are used to dynamically adapt base elements, then adaptability to different weight loads is improved, but device complexity and height increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the complex system of guided rollers and belts with a simpler lever-based mechanical system. The levers directly translate vertical loads into the desired base element movements through their pivot geometry, eliminating the need for rollers, belts, and complex guidance mechanisms while maintaining the ability to adapt to different weight distributions
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts and eliminates the unnecessary intermediary components (rollers, belts, complex guidance systems) from the adaptation mechanism, retaining only the essential lever arms and pivot points that provide the required mechanical advantage and movement transformation
3Strength
If V-shaped levers with resilient arms are used to couple slat holders, then spring effect is improved, but compensating movement for evenly loaded slats is limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the base into multiple independently operable lever systems (shoulder levers 15, buttock levers 51, lumbar lever 55) that can move independently of each other. This segmentation allows each lever to respond to local loading conditions, providing compensating movement even when slats are evenly loaded, as each lever can adjust its position based on its specific load rather than being constrained by a uniform response
4Adaptability or versatility
If manual adjustment fittings are used to lower shoulder and seat areas, then adaptation to body geometry is improved, but ease of operation deteriorates due to required manual adjustment
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a self-adjusting system where the lever-based mechanism automatically adapts to the user's body geometry and weight distribution without requiring manual intervention. The levers respond passively to applied loads, automatically positioning base elements to support the user's shoulders, buttocks, and lumbar region, eliminating the need for manual adjustment while maintaining adaptability
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 system ensures comfortable support by automatically adjusting to body geometry and weight distribution, maintaining a lower height and allowing for dynamic adaptation to different sleeping positions, enhancing comfort and design flexibility.
Implementation Method 1
The base suspension (1) has two areas (11, 69) which can be loaded by a body, attached via a lever (15, 51, 55) or lever arrangement to the bars (5), in such a movable manner that when there is a load, the higher loaded area sinks and the lower loaded part rises
Implementation Method 2
The lever lengths and spring mechanisms adjust to accommodate different body sizes and positions
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
In a slatted frame, a load-dependent lowering of slats in the shoulder and/or buttocks area is effected by mounting the corresponding slats (9a - 9f) on lever arrangements (35, 25; 51, 55). The lever arrangements (35, 25; 51, 55) cause a lordosis support (69) to move in the opposite direction in order to provide support in the lordosis area of a person who is at rest.