MATTRESS WITH A CAVITY AND AIRWAY CHANNEL
A mattress comprises one or more cavities disposed within the mattress. A filter assembly is removably mounted within the cavity at a first distance from the mattress' upper surface. One or more channels are disposed laterally within the mattress and connect the cavity to the mattress sidewall so that intake air is allowed in and exhaust air can escape. In one version an aroma assembly is also removably mounted within the cavity. Within the channels there may be disposed one-way valves to allow air to flow only in a first direction or a second opposite direction so that exhaust air is not mixed with intake air. A fitted sheet used in combination with the mattress may include a sleeve corresponding in size and location to the cavity, where the sleeve is made from an odorless washable material. The sleeve may be retained within the cavity by a plastic ring.
This patent application claims the benefit of priority, under 35 U.S.C. §119, of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/067,481, filed Feb. 28, 2008, entitled “Non Limiting Size State of the Art Mattress With at Least One (1) Functionally Shaped Cavity for Face or Back of Head.” This patent application also claims the benefit of priority, under 35 U.S.C. §119, of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/068,868, filed Mar. 10, 2008, entitled “Non Limiting Size State of the Art Mattress With at Least One (1) Functionally Shaped Cavity, Made in Varying Sizes and Shapes for the Face or Back of Head to Rest Without Mattress Interference.” The disclosures of each of the aforementioned priority documents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
FIELD OF INVENTIONThe present invention relates to mattresses, and in particular to mattresses with at least one cavity connected to a dedicated set of airway channels.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONBeds and mattresses are an important part of each individual's everyday life. A mattress' main function is to provide the individual a comfortable platform for a restful sleep. The construction of the mattress is important to the comfort obtained by the individual during their sleep. To achieve maximum comfort the mattress' construction should accommodate the various positions that a person might assume while resting on the mattress. These various positions include lying on the back, the left or right side, and the abdomen.
For some individuals, sleeping on their abdomen is the position which provides the most ideal comfort. However, conventional mattresses prohibit a full face-down sleeping position. As readily perceived, an individual encounters difficulty in inhaling fresh air with their face down on the conventional mattress. In order overcome this limitation of sleeping face down on a conventional mattress some people bend their neck so that their head rests to either side. Other people crook their elbow and place their forearm under their head to create a slight pocket of air between their face and the mattress. These approaches do not provide full satisfaction and fail to offer optimum comfort during the resting period of the individual.
By bending their neck, the individual's spinal column is not completely straight, and not in a natural position. Crooking the elbow can result in muscle strain and spasm. Each alternative position can result in less than optimal blood circulation. Without optimal positioning and comfort, the individual will assume new positions. This repeated change of position reduces the quality of sleep preventing the individual from achieving sufficient rest. Individuals could suffer stiff and sore necks, back aches, numb arms, and strained elbows. Sleep disturbances bring physical and psychological problems, e.g., tiredness, daytime sleepiness, and depression. These problems can cause a lot of daytime distress and disability, and can even lead to work disability. Individuals that suffer from these sleep disturbances experience a poor quality of sleep night after night without any resolution.
Missing from the art is a mattress that facilitates and accommodates an individual's desire to recline on their abdomen in a full face-down position. The present invention can satisfy this and other needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIn accordance with one aspect of the invention, a mattress comprises a mattress body having a first upper planar surface and a lower planar second surface connected by substantially perpendicular side walls. A vertical cavity is disposed within the mattress body extending from an aperture at the upper surface to the vicinity of the lower surface. A filter assembly is removably mounted transverse to the cavity vertical axis at a first distance from the upper surface. A first channel is disposed laterally within the mattress and has a distal end connected to a first opening in the cavity at a second distance from the upper surface which is greater than the first distance so as to be below the filter assembly, and a proximal end connected to an opening in the mattress side wall.
In one embodiment of the invention an aroma assembly is removably mounted within the cavity at a third distance from the upper surface which is greater than the second distance so as to be below the entrance of the first channel into the cavity.
In accordance with another embodiment of the invention, the mattress further comprises at least a second channel disposed laterally within the mattress and having a distal end connected to a second opening into the cavity at a distance between the first distance and the third distance, and a proximal end connected to a second opening in the mattress side wall. The two channels may enter the cavity at the same distance below the upper surface and at a position below the filter assembly.
In a still further embodiment of the invention a first valve is disposed within the first channel and is configured to allow air to flow only in a first direction; and a second valve is disposed within the second channel and is configured to allow air to flow only in a second direction, wherein the first direction and the second directions are opposing directions. As a result, air will follow through one channel into the cavity for the user to breath and the air exhaled by the user into the cavity will flow out of the cavity through the other channel.
In yet another aspect of the invention, a fitted sheet is used in combination with the mattress with the cavity. The sheet comprises a sleeve corresponding in size and location to the cavity. The sleeve is made of an odorless washable material. A plastic ring may be inserted within the sleeve when it is located within the cavity so as to retain the sleeve within the cavity.
These and other aspects, features, steps and advantages can be further appreciated from the accompanying figures and description of certain illustrative embodiments.
The foregoing and other features of the present invention will be more readily apparent from the following detailed description and drawings of illustrative embodiments of the invention in which:
By way of overview and introduction, presented and described are embodiments of a mattress with a face cavity. The face cavity, made in varying sizes and proportions provides a comfortable fit with a user's face, enables sleepers to sleep flat on their stomachs while maintaining a straight spine from the lower back right through to the top vertebrae of their neck. A sleeper's spine is also maintained in a straight line if the user sleeps on their back and rests their head in a face-down position at the aperture of the cavity.
The cavity 110 can be a blind hole (i.e., it does not pass through the opposite or lower surface of the mattress), or it can completely traverse the entire thickness of the mattress. Embodiments where the mattress 100 is completely traversed by the cavity 110 may be reversible.
The immediate area of the cavity 110 and its surroundings can be lined with an odorless, washable material which can be made removable to facilitate cleaning of the cavity lining. The cavity 110 can be filled with a removable plug 112 as depicted in
The cavity 110 can be oval in cross section with the oval's long axis oriented to be parallel to a user's spinal column. In one embodiment, the oval has a width of 5″ and a length of 7″. However, the invention is not so limited, other sizes, shapes, and orientations of the cavity 110 are equally within the scope of the invention.
In
In one embodiment, where the cavity 210 has two or more channels 220 connected, a single one-way valve 214 is disposed within each of the channels. The one-way valves 214A, 214B are placed in opposing configurations so that upon a user inhaling, only one path opens between the cavity 210 and the external air. Similarly, upon a user exhaling another path opens. In this manner fresh air and exhausted air are not commingled. In one embodiment, a set of one-way valves 214A, 214B can be configured by placing a simple flap on opposing sides of a flange or stop internal to their respective channels 220. As air is inhaled, one of the valves will move away from the internal stop, and the complimentary valve will be drawn towards its corresponding internal stop.
The channel 220 is disposed through the interior construction of the mattress 200 to provide the cavity 210 with an air source external of the mattress 200. The channel 220 can be made by boring out the internal material of the mattress, or it can be made by disposing tubing, piping, or hoses through the mattress' internal material. As is understood by a person of ordinary skill in the art, all materials need to be fireproof, fire retardant, and fire resistant in accordance with government and industry requirements. In one embodiment, channel 220 is made from a flexible material such as plastic or rubber. Additionally, the flexible material forming the channel 220 can have corrugations along its length to increase its flexibility. Forming the channel 220 from flexible and/or corrugated materials will reduce the likelihood of creating uncomfortable hard spots within the mattress 200. In one embodiment, channel 220 is made from odorless material so as not to offend a user's sense of smell.
To maintain a circulation of fresh air in the channel 220, the diameter of the channel is made of sufficient size, and the length of the channel from the cavity 210 to the vent cap 224 is made sufficiently short so that exhaled breath reaches the outside of the mattress, and is not re-inhaled by the user. The channel 220 has enough volume to provide an air flow that accommodates the breathing needs of the user. In one embodiment, the cross-sectional diameter of the channel 220 is 1½×3.0 inches.
A filter assembly 330 is disposed laterally across the cavity at a location below the concave surface. The filter 330 is removably mounted to the sidewalls of the cavity by recesses 350 located in the cavity sidewall which mate with corresponding projections 352 along the outer perimeter of the filter 330. Alternative approaches for removably mounting the filter 330 include mating screw threads and snap-fit mechanisms. At the bottom of the cavity 310 an aroma assembly 340 is removably mounted. The aroma assembly can introduce soothing aromas to enhance the user's rest, as well as act to adjust the humidity content of the air presented to the user for their personal comfort. An independent humidifying system (lacking aroma component can also be mounted within the cavity. Medicinal formulations can be introduced into the cavity's air through either the aroma assembly, the humidifying system, or the filter assembly. For embodiments of the cavity 310 that traverse the entire mattress, a plug 315 can be inserted to close off one end of the cavity 310.
An air channel 320 enters the cavity 310 at a point between where the filter assembly 340 and the aroma assembly 350 are mounted. As will be readily understood, for mattresses 300 which are reversible, the locations of the filter assembly 340 and the aroma assembly 350 are reversed.
A thin mattress in accordance with the embodiments described above, can be made to lie over a conventional mattress so as to provide a user with the benefits of the present invention is also within the scope of the invention.
Thus, while there have been shown, described, and pointed out fundamental novel features of the invention as applied to several embodiments, it will be understood that various omissions, substitutions, and changes in the form and details of the illustrated embodiments, and in their operation, may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Substitutions of elements from one embodiment to another are also fully intended and contemplated. The invention is defined solely with regard to the claims appended hereto, and equivalents of the recitations therein.
Claims
1. A mattress comprising:
- a mattress body having a first surface and a second surface substantially parallel to each other and connected by substantially perpendicular sidewalls;
- a cavity disposed within the mattress body and extending from the first surface toward the second surface;
- a first aperture defined where the cavity intersects the first surface;
- a filter assembly removably mounted in the cavity transverse to the extent of the cavity at a first distance from the first surface; and
- a first channel disposed laterally within the mattress, wherein the first channel has a distal end and a proximal end, said distal end being connected to a first opening in the cavity at a second distance from the first surface which is greater than the first distance, and the proximal end being connected to an opening in the sidewall of the mattress.
2. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein an aroma assembly is removably mounted within the cavity at a third distance from the first surface which is greater than the second distance.
3. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein the cavity extends completely from the first surface to the second surface and the mattress is reversible, and further comprises:
- a second aperture defined where the cavity intersects the second surface; and
- wherein the filter assembly is removably mounted transverse to the cavity at the third distance, and the aroma assembly is removably mounted within the cavity at the first distance.
4. The mattress according to claim 1, further comprising: at least a second channel, having a distal and a proximal end, disposed laterally within the mattress, said second channel distal end being connected to a second opening in the cavity at a distance between the first distance and the third distance, and the second channel proximal end being connected to the a second opening in the mattress sidewall;
- a first valve disposed within the first channel and configured to allow air to flow in a first direction; and
- a second valve disposed within the second channel and configured to allow air to flow in a second direction, wherein the first direction and the second directions are opposing directions.
5. The mattress according to claim 1, further comprising:
- a second cavity disposed within the mattress body;
- a respective channel disposed within the mattress body, the respective channel having a distal end connected to the second cavity and a proximal end connected to the sidewall; and
- the second cavity having disposed therein a respective filter assembly.
5. The mattress according to claim 4, further comprising a respective aroma assembly in said second cavity.
6. The mattress according to claim 4, further comprising:
- additional respective channels connected to the second cavity; and
- single respective valves disposed within each of the respective channels, wherein each respective valve is configured to allow air to flow only in one of the first direction and the second direction.
7. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein an area adjacent the first aperture and a portion of the cavity abutting the first aperture are lined with an odorless, washable removable material.
8. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein the cavity has an oval cross-sectional shape transverse to the extent of the cavity.
9. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein the channel is formed from flexible, odorless material.
10. The mattress according to claim 5, wherein an insertable plug is disposed within one of the first aperture and the second aperture.
11. The mattress according to claim 1, wherein the mattress body is an inflatable air mattress.
12. In combination with the mattress of claim 1, a fitted sheet comprising:
- a sleeve corresponding in size and location to the cavity, the sleeve being made of an odorless washable material; and
- a plastic ring insertable within the sleeve to retain the sleeve within the cavity.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 26, 2009
Publication Date: Sep 3, 2009
Inventor: Stewart S. Rudolph (Freeport, NY)
Application Number: 12/393,638
International Classification: A47C 27/00 (20060101); A47C 27/08 (20060101); A47G 9/02 (20060101);