Segmented Bed Support Structure for Natural Spine Alignment
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current bed designs fail to provide uniform support for different body parts, leading to unnatural spine bending when changing positions from side to back or vice versa, and existing pressure-relieving foam mattresses lack adequate support for prominent body regions while being expensive and difficult to breathe through.
Innovation Solution
A bed device with a load-bearing layer composed of multiple rigid sections and a layered bedding system, including a top mattress with springs, a sluggishly elastic layer, and a lower layer of pocket-spring springs, where the middle section can be raised and lowered to adjust support for prominent body parts like the hip, preventing the 'hammock effect' and ensuring natural spine curvature.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a raisable and lowerable head and foot end bed is used to provide support for the back, then comfortable sitting positions and correct lying position are achieved, but the recumbent person experiences incorrect and damaging bending of the spine when lying on the side
Solution Approach 1:
The bed is divided into multiple independently adjustable sections (head section, middle section, foot section) that can be raised or lowered separately. This segmentation allows the bed to adapt to different body positions and provide appropriate support whether the person is lying on their back or side, eliminating the harmful spinal bending caused by uniform elevation of head and foot ends.
Solution Approach 2:
The bed sections are made dynamically adjustable through raising and lowering mechanisms, allowing the bed configuration to change based on the recumbent person's needs and position. This dynamic adjustment capability enables the bed to provide correct support for both supine and lateral positions, resolving the contradiction between comfortable sitting position and prevention of spinal bending.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If pressure-relieving foam mattresses made of sluggishly elastic material are used to allow the body to sink down, then the material shapes itself to the body, but body parts which do not protrude receive less support and the material is expensive
Solution Approach 1:
The mattress is divided into multiple independent spring sections corresponding to different body regions (head, shoulder, hip, etc.). Each section can be independently adjusted to provide appropriate support pressure, ensuring that both protruding and non-protruding body parts receive adequate support while maintaining pressure relief where needed.
Solution Approach 2:
Different sections of the mattress have different load-bearing capacities and support characteristics tailored to specific body regions. This local differentiation allows prominent body portions to receive pressure relief while non-protruding areas maintain adequate support, resolving the contradiction between pressure relief and overall support strength.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If pressure-relieving foam mattresses are used to allow the body to sink down into the material, then the material shapes itself to the body, but it is difficult for air to enter between the mattress and the recumbent person
Solution Approach 1:
The mattress incorporates porous or permeable materials that allow air to pass through while maintaining the pressure-relieving properties. This porosity enables air circulation between the mattress and the recumbent person, resolving the contradiction between pressure distribution and air circulation.
4Strength
If a load-bearing layer composed of multiple rigid sections is used to provide different load-bearing capacity in different zones, then uniform support is provided against the body, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The load-bearing layer is segmented into multiple rigid sections with different load-bearing capacities positioned at specific zones (head, middle, foot sections). This segmentation provides uniform and differentiated support for different body parts while using standardized modular components that simplify manufacturing and assembly, balancing support uniformity with device complexity.
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 bed device provides uniform support and adjustable load-bearing capacity, preventing unnatural spine bending and ensuring comfort for various sleeping positions by distributing pressure effectively across different body regions, maintaining surface softness and allowing air circulation.
Implementation Method 1
pressure-relieving foam mattresses made of sluggishly elastic material. The sluggishly elastic material allows the body to sink down into the material, whereupon the material shapes itself to the body
Implementation Method 2
The spring units (6) preferably consist of helical springs enclosed by textile casings
Data Source
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AI summary
Bed device for creating support for a recumbent person by providing different load-bearing capacity in different zones in the bed. The device comprises a load-bearing layer (2), a bedding (3), and a device for raising and lowering a section of the load-bearing layer. The load-bearing layer (2) rests on a frame (10). The load-bearing layer comprises a plurality of different, mutually separate rigid sections (13, 14, 15). The bedding (3) is supported by and disposed on the load-bearing layer (2). Outer sections (13, 14) of the load-bearing layer (2) are disposed by the short sides of the bed and are fixedly arranged in the frame (10). That section (15) of the load-bearing layer which is disposed between the outer sections (13, 14) of the load-bearing layer in the middle portion of the bed can be raised and lowered in relation to the fixedly arranged outer sections (13, 14) by means of the raising and lowering device. The middle section (15) further has means (25) for preventing lateral and longitudinal displacement of the middle section.