GRIPPER FOUNDATION

Abstract

A gripper foundation is disclosed comprising a conventional mattress foundation which is encased within foundation upholstery. The foundation upholstery contains a sheet material which covers the entire top surface of the foundation, the sheet material having a raised pattern printed thereon which creates a high coefficient of friction with the bottom of a mattress surface or a bed sheet contained therebetween. The raised pattern may cover the entire top surface of the foundation, only a portion of the top surface, such as the perimeter portion, or other alternate configurations. The raised pattern may also take on a variety of patterns such as a plurality of diagonal lines, a plurality of straight lines, a plurality of diamonds or squares, or any other such pattern. The gripper foundation eliminates the need for any type of mechanical bed sheet retainer or additional pad or frictional surface which is to be positioned between a foundation and mattress.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS

There are no applications related to this application.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to mattress assemblies and more specifically to a mattress foundation having a raised surfaced for gripping bed sheets which are tucked between a mattress and a mattress foundation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The use of bed coverings and associated methods of retaining bed coverings to a mattress are known in the art. For example, there are several mechanical devices which are directed to holding or retaining bed sheets to a mattress assembly. U.S. Pat. No. 7,467,428 describes a clamping device which is attachable to the end of a bed cover to secure the cover beneath a mattress. U.S. Pat. No. 7,007,325 is directed to a series of interconnected fastening means connected to the side of a mattress which engage with a series of stretching bands with fastening means attached to the mattress bedding. U.S. Pat. No. 6,907,628 describes a plurality of clips attached to a slat around which bed sheets are wrapped and contained therein.

Another method of retaining bed sheets to a mattress assembly is by the use of friction. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,051,388 describes a pair of cover members, one member encasing a mattress and the other member encasing a box spring wherein each cover member contains friction enhancing portions which engage the other member and retain bed sheets therein. U.S. Pat. No. 5,542,137 is directed to a contour skirt for a mattress which is provided with a high friction inner surface to hold a sheet firmly in place within a mattress assembly. U.S. Pat. No. 5,033,139 describes a securing device or sheet of material that is placed at the foot of a bed between a mattress and box spring, the securing device having a high coefficient of static friction for holding a bed sheet in place.

There exists a need for a sheet retaining device that is integral with a mattress assembly such that it does not have to be installed or positioned in a precise location within the assembly. There also exists a need for a sheet retaining device that does not include any extra parts or components that must be purchased separately. There also exists a need for a sheet retaining device that will not move out of position or require any periodic maintenance or re-positioning.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The gripper foundation of the present disclosure and related inventions is described, in one embodiment as having a foundation with a substantially rectangular frame, and a wire grid supported above the frame by an array of wire springs which are secured to the wooden frame. The entire frame is covered by sheet material, the top surface of which contains a raised pattern having a latex coating.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective cut-away view of a mattress and gripper foundation.

FIG. 2 is a top view of the gripper foundation of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the gripper foundation of FIG. 2 in the direction of arrows 3-3.

FIG. 4 is a top view of an alternate embodiment of the gripper foundation.

FIG. 5 is a top view of an alternate embodiment of the gripper foundation.

FIG. 6 is a top view of an alternate embodiment of the gripper foundation.

FIG. 7 is a top view of an alternate embodiment of the gripper foundation.

FIG. 8 is a top view of an alternate embodiment of the gripper foundation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED AND ALTERNATE EMBODIMENTS

The gripper foundation 20 as described in the present application is a typical mattress foundation with a top surface having a raised grid or pattern, which creates a textured gripping surface. The gripping surface 22 creates friction between the foundation 20 and a flat mattress sheet, mattress pad, dust ruffle, or any other material which is tucked between the foundation and the mattress 24, thereby preventing unintentional removal of the material from between the foundation 20 and the mattress 24.

Conventional mattress assemblies typically include a mattress supported by a foundation or “box spring”. Foundations are provided to give support and firmness to the mattress as well as resilience in order to deflect under excessive loads. Foundations are typically composed of a rectangular wooden frame, a steel wire grid supported above the wooden frame by an array of steel wire springs such as compression type springs which are secured to the wooden frame. The foundation is substantially rectangular matching the size of the overlaid mattress. The top and bottom surfaces of the foundation are covered with a thin layer of fabric. This covering is typically inexpensive sheet material, as this material is not visible from the outside of the mattress assembly. The sides of the foundation may be covered with better quality fabric or upholstery as this portion of the foundation is visible from the outside of the mattress assembly.

A set of mattress bed sheets typically used in combination with a mattress assembly commonly consist of a flat sheet and a fitted sheet. The fitted sheet is applied directly over the top and side walls of a mattress, extending somewhat onto the bottom surface of the mattress. The corners of the fitted sheet are gathered and sewn together with an elastic-type material so that the fitted sheet securely grips each corner of the mattress and maintains a taut position across the top and side of the mattress surface. A person lying on the bed is typically laying with his/her body on top of the fitted sheet. A flat sheet on the other hand, does not contain elastically bound corners. A flat sheet is simply a square or rectangular piece of material that is placed over the fitted sheet. A person lying on the bed is typically lying beneath the flat sheet and above the fitted sheet. The ends of the flat sheet fall loosely around the sides of the mattress and are typically tucked under or inserted between the mattress and the foundation. These ends can easily be inadvertently slide out or removed from between the mattress and the foundation.

The gripper foundation 20 of the present disclosure and related inventions replaces the top layer of inexpensive sheet material of the mattress foundation with a sheet of gripper material 22. The gripper material 22 is integral with the foundation 20 and more specifically with the upholstery 26 encasing the foundation. The gripper material 22 is attached or preferably sewn onto the foundation upholstery 26 that covers all four sides of the foundation 20 and extends onto the bottom surface of the foundation where it is stapled or otherwise attached to the wood frame (not shown) of the foundation. The top surface 22 of the gripper foundation 20 comes in direct contact with the bottom surface of the mattress 24 or a bed sheet, mattress pad, dust ruffle or any other material which is placed therebetween. The top surface 22 of the gripper foundation 20, which in a preferred embodiment is made of a polyester material, contains a raised pattern 28, which contains a latex coating sometimes referred to as “puff print”. The raised print 28 may be coated with other materials having a high coefficient of friction with the cloth material typically used for making bed sheets. In one embodiment, the raised pattern 28 of the gripper foundation covers the entire top surface of the mattress foundation, as shown in FIG. 8. In another embodiment, shown in FIG. 2, the raised pattern covers most of the top surface of the mattress foundation, the exception being a border area that runs around the outside perimeter of the top surface of the foundation and extends from the edge of the foundation inward for approximately 1-1.5 inches. In still another embodiment, shown in FIG. 7, the raised pattern 28 only covers the perimeter of the foundation 20 from the edge of the perimeter inward for approximately 4 to 6 inches.

In a preferred embodiment, the top layer 22 of the gripper foundation 20 is extremely thin with a thickness for example of 0.019 inches. The raised surface 28 of the gripper foundation 20 has a height of approximately 0.013 inches. Therefore, the total thickness of the top layer 22 of the gripper foundation 20 is approximately 0.032 inches. The thin material and raised pattern 28 cannot be felt by a person laying prone on the top surface of the mattress. The raised latex print 28 can take on a variety of patterns or configurations, such as, straight lines, diagonal lines, raised squares, raised diamonds, etc. as shown in FIGS. 4-6.

The gripper foundation eliminates the need for any type of mechanical bed sheet retainer or additional pad or frictional surface which is to be positioned strategically between a foundation and a mattress.

It will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that numerous variations and/or modifications may be made to the invention as shown in the specific embodiments without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as broadly described. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Other features and aspects of this invention will be appreciated by those skilled in the art upon reading and comprehending this disclosure. Such features, aspects, and expected variations and modifications of the reported results and examples are clearly within the scope of the invention where the invention is limited solely by the scope of the following claims.

Claims

1. A gripper foundation comprising:

a substantially rectangular frame;

a wire grid supported above the frame by an array of wire springs which are secured to a wooden frame;

the entire foundation encased within a sheet material, the top surface of the sheet material containing a raised pattern having a latex coating.

2. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the sheet material is polyester.

3. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the thickness of the raised pattern is approximately 0.019 inches.

4. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the thickness of the raised pattern is approximately 0.013 inches.

5. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the top surface of the gripper foundation is approximately 0.032 inches thick.

6. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the raised pattern is in the form of a plurality of diagonal lines.

7. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the raised pattern is located around the perimeter of the top surface of the foundation only.

8. The gripper foundation of claim 1, wherein the raised pattern extends from end to end over the entire top surface of the foundation.

9. A gripper foundation comprising:

a mattress foundation which is completely encased within foundation upholstery, a top surface of the foundation upholstery comprising a sheet material having a raised latex coating arranged in a pattern and printed thereon, the top surface of the foundation upholstery being in direct contact with a bottom surface of a mattress placed thereon.

10. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the pattern of the raised latex coating is a plurality of diagonal lines extending across the top surface of the foundation in a first direction and a plurality of diagonal lines extending across the top surface of the foundation in a second direction.

11. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the sheet material is polyester.

12. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the raised pattern is approximately 0.013 inches thick.

13. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the sheet material is approximately 0.019 inches thick.

14. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the raised pattern covers the entire top surface of the foundation.

15. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the raised pattern covers only a perimeter of the top surface of the foundation from the outer edge of the foundation inward for approximately between 4 to 6 inches.

16. The gripper foundation of claim 9, wherein the sheet material is sewn onto the foundation upholstery.