Travel cloud pillow
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing travel and throw pillows fail to maintain a soft and resilient texture over time, as they often become flattened, despite using various fills like foam, styrofoam beads, down feathers, and polyester fibers.
Innovation Solution
A pillow with a knitted cover made of a polyester-derived knit matrix and a crimped siliconized polyester fiber fill, where the outer cover is created using a warp knitting machine to produce a unique texture and the fill is made by melt spinning with crimps per inch, providing optimal deformation and pressure for a heightened sensory experience.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If traditional fills (foam, styrofoam beads, down feathers, polyester fibers) are used in travel pillows, then the pillow can be made soft and comfortable, but it becomes flattened over time and loses its resilient texture
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines hollow siliconized polyester fibers with a specific knit fabric structure to create a composite fill material that maintains both softness and resilience. The hollow structure of the fibers provides air pockets that enhance elasticity and prevent permanent deformation, while the siliconization process improves fiber resilience and prevents clumping, solving the problem of pillows becoming flattened over time.
Solution Approach 2:
The use of hollow polyester fibers creates a porous structure within the pillow fill. These hollow fibers trap air and provide compressibility while maintaining resilience, allowing the pillow to return to its original shape after compression. This porous structure prevents the pillow from becoming permanently flattened while maintaining a soft texture.
2Strength
If the outer cover is made with heavy knit fabric (180-280 gsm) to provide durability and structure, then the pillow maintains its shape, but it may reduce the soft and yielding feel
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies different fabric properties to different layers of the pillow cover. The outer layer uses a heavy knit fabric (180-280 gsm) for durability and structure, while the inner layers use lighter, softer materials to maintain the yielding feel. This gradient structure allows the pillow to have both structural integrity and softness to the touch.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent specifies precise parameters for the knit fabric including weight (180-280 gsm), stitch type, and yarn composition to optimize both structural integrity and softness. By carefully controlling these parameters, the cover maintains durability while preserving the soft, yielding feel that users expect from a travel pillow.
Data Source
AI summary
A pillow has a knit cover with a crimped siliconized polyester fill. The pillow is sewn into a spheroid shape, which can be adorned with any desired decoration, such as forming the pillow to resemble the head of a character. The outer cover is made of a polyester derived knit matrix in which the weft of the knit matrix has been scratched and raised to produce a nap averaging 2 mm in height. The outer cover is sliver knit on a warp machine to create a unique texture and feel. After knitting, the fibrous yarn is sheared to create a velvet-like pile. The fill encased within the spheroid is 100% siliconized polyester fiber that is created by melt spinning. The fiber has been crimped at an average 9 crimps per inch. The pillow contains no more than 70 grams of fiber per one inch of diameter. This ratio provides the optimal deformation and pressure for a heightened sensory experience.