DUVET COVER SYSTEM HAVING CUSTOMIZABLE VARIABLE PERFORMANCE
A duvet cover system having customizable variable performance includes a cover layer and a duvet insert received in a pocket of the cover layer. The duvet insert includes first and second insert portions that may be removably connected to one another along a junction such that the insert portions cover different sides of the bed when the system is spread over the bed. The first insert portion defines at least two quantifiable performance factors including a first thermal retention value and a first air permeability value, and the second insert portion defines at least two quantifiable performance factors in a similar manner. However, these quantifiable performance factors of the first and second insert portions are different from one another to provide the different sleep experiences desired by users on opposite sides of the bed. The system still provides the desired appearance of a conventional duvet when fully assembled.
The present invention relates generally to linens used with bedding and, more specifically, to duvet cover systems used with bedding in various contexts.
BACKGROUNDBlankets and comforters, such as down comforters, provide an extra layer of comfort and warmth to those who choose to use them while sleeping. For example, a down comforter provides more warmth and comfort as compared to sleeping under only a top sheet of a sheet set applied to a bed. However, because of the bulk/size of comforters and blankets, these bedding elements can be very difficult to properly clean. In order to diminish the need for direct cleaning and extend the life thereof, these blankets and comforters are often covered with (and/or inserted within) what is known as a duvet cover. The duvet cover protects the blanket or comforter while, at the same time, contributes an aesthetically appealing element to the bed when positioned atop the bed. There are many different versions of duvet cover designs available, each with different options for how the blanket or comforter is inserted or secured in position when in use on the bed.
Typically, the blanket or comforter inserted into a duvet cover is a single, unitary element that extends throughout a pocket defined within the duvet cover. The single piece blanket or comforter provides certain performance features to the duvet cover system. For example, a certain amount of thermal retention may be provided (which is measured as “CLO values” in the U.S. and “tog values” in European locales). Other performance factors such as air permeability/breathability and moisture wicking can also be provided by the blanket or comforter within the duvet cover. Thus, a different blanket or comforter can be inserted into a duvet cover to change the performance features such as when seasons change and cause a user to desire several different performance features (e.g., higher thermal retention in wintertime).
Many beds are sized to sleep two or more users, often with one user on each side of the bed. However, every user is unique in body chemistry and sleep preferences. In one example, one user may sleep better when warmer while another user may sleep better when cooler or when better air flow/circulation is present. The conventional duvet cover system designs offer only one set of performance features, which is often not desirable for one of the users of the bed. This often results in one of the users being uncomfortable under the duvet cover system, if not both (in cases where both users have compromised on some of the performance factors to make both users marginally comfortable). Therefore, it would be desirable to improve duvet cover systems to provide variable performance that can be configured for users desiring different performance features during sleep on a bed.
Several designs have been more recently produced in an effort to provide variable performance in a duvet cover system. For example, British Patent Application No. GB 2 369 293 to Dunn shows several duvet cover systems including one with separated pockets on a cover layer for receiving two half-blankets defining different thermal retention values, and another with two half-blankets (again, defining different thermal retention values) zipped together along their length before insertion into the pocket of a cover layer. In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,862,760 to Bradley et al. describes that two comforter sections defining different thermal resistance can be connected along an overlapped junction. Additionally, U.S. Pat. No. 8,707,480 to Graddy shows a multilayer blanket with a base layer and straps that enable addition of further blanket leaves/layers on either side of the bed, e.g., more or fewer blanket layers can be provided on the two sides of the bed.
These more recent designs continue to need improvement in the field of bedding covers. In this regard, the elongated zipper or overlap at the junction causes variations in thickness or a rigid connection that is discernable to users of the bed after the connected portions are placed within a cover layer. Designs like the one shown in the Graddy patent also fail to provide a consistent loft or thickness across the width of the bed, which means any duvet cover system using those types of designs will not provide the desirable aesthetic appearance of a conventional duvet. Notably, all the prior designs focus on adjusting only the thermal retention or conductivity of the sides or portions of the blanket/duvet. As a result, such designs have not found widespread adoption in the marketplace because they do not actually provide fully desirable and customizable sleep experiences for different users of the bed, plus they do not look or function sufficiently like conventional duvet cover system designs in the ways that users find desirable to maintain.
It would be desirable, therefore, to provide a new duvet cover system that addresses these and other drawbacks of conventional designs.
SUMMARYTo achieve the above purpose, the present invention provides the following technical solutions, in one embodiment: a duvet cover system is provided for covering a bed is provided to allow for multiple users of the bed to have desirable sleep experiences. To this end, the system includes a cover layer configured to receive a fill layer in the form of a blanket or comforter. The cover layer is configured to at least substantially enclose the fill layer and provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the duvet cover system. The system further includes a duvet insert defining the fill layer. The duvet insert includes a first insert portion and a second insert portion removably connected to one another along a junction such that the first insert portion covers a first side of the bed and the second insert portion covers a second side of the bed when the system is spread over the bed. The first insert portion includes a first fill material having a first fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion, including a first thermal retention value and a first air permeability value. The second insert portion includes a second fill material having a second fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion, including a second thermal retention value and a second air permeability value. The quantifiable performance factors of the first and second insert portions are different from each other to provide different sleep experiences for users located on the first and second sides of the bed under the duvet cover system.
In one aspect, another of the quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion is a first loft amount generated by the first fill material and the first fill volume. The first and second loft amounts are substantially equal such that the duvet cover system defines a consistent aesthetic appearance on first and second sides of the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed.
In another aspect, the first and second insert portions are removably connected to one another by a plurality of fastening elements that are spaced apart from one another along a length of the junction. Each of the plurality of fastening elements further comprises a flexible strap extending from one of the first and second insert portions and a receiving aperture formed on the other of the first and second insert portions. The flexible strap extends through the receiving aperture and then is secured in position on one of the first and second insert portions to hold the first and second insert portions together. The plurality of fastening elements may be defined by at least one of: hook and loop fastener elements, ties, buttons, snaps and magnets.
In yet another aspect, the cover layer includes a single, unitary pocket configured to receive and substantially enclose an entirety of the duvet insert. In a further aspect, the first and second fill materials include at least one of: duck down, polyester, wool, kapok, soybean, silk and bamboo. The at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first and second insert portions may further include a loft amount, weight, and/or texture.
In another aspect, the first insert portion further includes a cover fabric that encloses the first fill material, and the second insert portion further includes a cover fabric that encloses the second fill material. The cover fabrics of the first and second insert portions help define the at least two quantifiable performance factors. For example, these quantifiable performance factors may also include wicking and/or temperature regulation. The cover fabrics for the first and second insert portions include at least one of: cotton, cotton blends, microfiber polyester, and Lyocell.
In a further aspect, the first and second insert portions are removably connected to one another by a plurality of fastening elements, which are defined by non-hardened or non-rigid materials such that a presence of the fastening elements along the junction cannot be detected by users located on the bed and under the duvet cover system. The first and second insert portions each defines a plurality of peripheral edges, one of which is located along the junction. The others of the plurality of peripheral edges do not include any fastening elements for connecting the first and second insert portions together. This configuration allows for the duvet insert to feel like a single-part, unitary blanket or comforter to the user, thereby providing a familiar and comfortable feel to the duvet cover system.
In one aspect, the cover layer includes a decorative pattern to provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed. The duvet cover system of the embodiments of this invention provide a fully customizable sleep experience with multiple quantifiable performance factors tailored to the specific users on the different sides of the bed, while simulating in look and feel a conventional duvet design in a desirable manner for users.
In yet another aspect, each of the first and second insert portions includes a fill identification element that identifies a performance specification defined by the at least two quantifiable performance factors for the insert portion. The fill identification element may take different forms, such as a label, or color-coded threading or portions of the first and second insert portions.
In another embodiment, a duvet cover system includes a cover layer configured to receive a fill layer in the form of a blanket or comforter. The cover layer is configured to at least substantially enclose the fill layer and provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the duvet cover system. The system further includes a duvet insert defining the fill layer. The duvet insert includes a first insert portion including a plurality of first quilt boxes defined by a first cover fabric, and a second insert portion including a plurality of second quilt boxes defined by a second cover fabric. The first and second insert portions are positioned such that the first insert portion covers a first side of the bed and the second insert portion covers a second side of the bed when the system is spread over the bed. The first quilt boxes are filled with a first fill material having a first fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion, including a first thermal retention value and a first air permeability value. The second quilt boxes are filled with a second fill material having a second fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion, including a second thermal retention value and a second air permeability value. The quantifiable performance factors of the first and second insert portions are different from each other to provide different sleep experiences for users located on the first and second sides of the bed under the duvet cover system. The first and second insert portions may be removably connected to one another along a junction, in one aspect, such as by fastening elements spaced apart from one another along a length of the junction.
Various additional features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the following detailed description of one or more illustrative embodiments taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate one or more embodiments of the invention and, together with the general description given above and the detailed description given below, explain the one or more embodiments of the invention.
As shown most clearly in
Use of several descriptive terms, such as top, bottom, head, foot, side, upwardly, downwardly, horizontal, and/or vertical, for example, as it pertains to/describes the system 10 and its components, is from the viewpoint of when the system 10 is laid out on the bed 20, unless otherwise noted.
Returning with reference to
Also shown in
With continued reference to
The spacing apart of the fastening elements 42 avoids creating a highly-rigid connection along the junction 40 that could then be discerned by users of the duvet cover system 10. Likewise, the use of flexible straps 44 and receiving apertures 46 in this embodiment allows for the removable connection of the first and second insert portions 16, 18 to be made without necessitating hardened or rigid materials to be used. As a result, the plurality of fastening elements 42 is configured to be indiscernible to users of the system 10 thanks to the lack of hardened and/or rigid materials along the junction 40. This arrangement for coupling the first and second insert portions 16, 18 is desirable because users will feel like the system 10 encloses a conventional one-piece blanket or comforter, thereby not adding any potential discomfort or unusual feel to the sleep experience when using the system 10.
Further details of the connection made by the fastening element 42 and the first and second insert portions 16, 18 are shown in
Similarly,
The amount of the first and second fill materials 52, 56 may be diminished along the peripheral edges of the first and second cover fabrics 50, 54, thereby resulting in the narrowed thickness profile along the junction 40 even with the first and second insert portions 16, 18 partially overlapping in that region as shown in the cross section of
Furthermore, the generally low profile of the junction 40 and the fastening elements 42 and the formation of such fastening elements 42 from non-rigid and non-hardened materials prevents users of the bed 20 and system 10 from discerning or feeling these elements when sleeping or laying under the fully-assembled system 10. This again is desirable because one of the objectives of the present invention is to simulate the look and feel of a conventional duvet while providing the improvements in sleep experience that has not been achieved by prior designs. The junction profile and the loft factors shown most clearly at
The flexible straps 44 and receiving apertures 46 are alternated as shown in
Also shown in
With reference to
On the left graphical plot in
To this end, consider an example where a first user A desires a high thermal retention and low air permeability while sleeping, while a second user B desires a low thermal retention and high air permeability while sleeping. In a conventional design focused solely on thermal retention value, one solution would be to fill a first insert portion for first user A with polyester microfiber and fill a second insert portion 18 for second user B with silk. As shown on the left graphical plot in
With reference to
Now turning with reference to
Each of the quilt boxes 92 on the first insert portion 216 is joined to adjacent quilt boxes 92 by the stitching 90, and each of these quilt boxes 92 is filled with the fill material and weight designed to provide the set of quantifiable performance factors desired at the first insert portion 216. As set forth above, a label or some other type of fill identification element 80 may be provided to show to a user the performance specifications of the first insert portion 216. Similarly, each of the quilt boxes 96 on the second insert portion 218 is joined to adjacent quilt boxes 96 by the stitching 94, and each of these quilt boxes 96 is filled with the fill material and weight designed to provide the set of quantifiable performance factors desired at the second insert portion 218, these typically being different from the set of performance factors for the first insert portion 216. A fill identification element 80 in the form of a label is also provided at the second insert portion 218. Accordingly, the duvet cover system 210 of this embodiment continues to provide the desirable aesthetic appearance of a conventional duvet while also enabling customized, desirable sleep experiences for different users.
It will be appreciated that other embodiments of the system similar to the one shown in
While the present invention has been illustrated by a description of various embodiments and while these embodiments have been described in considerable detail, it is not the intention of the applicant to restrict or in any way limit the scope of the appended claims to such detail. Additional advantages and modifications will readily appear to those skilled in the art. Thus, the invention in its broader aspects is therefore not limited to the specific details, representative apparatus and method and illustrative example shown and described. Accordingly, departures may be made from such details without departing from the spirit or scope of applicant's general inventive concept.
Claims
1. A duvet cover system for covering a bed, the system comprising:
- a cover layer configured to receive a fill layer in the form of a blanket or comforter, the cover layer also being configured to at least substantially enclose the fill layer and provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the duvet cover system; and
- a duvet insert defining the fill layer, the duvet insert including a first insert portion and a second insert portion removably connected to one another along a junction such that the first insert portion covers a first side of the bed and the second insert portion covers a second side of the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed,
- wherein the first insert portion includes a first fill material having a first fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion, including a first thermal retention value and a first air permeability value, the second insert portion includes a second fill material having a second fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion, including a second thermal retention value and a second air permeability value, and the quantifiable performance factors of the first and second insert portions are different from each other to provide different sleep experiences for users located on first and second sides of the bed under the duvet cover system.
2. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein another of the quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion is a first loft amount generated by the first fill material and the first fill volume, another of the quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion is a second loft amount generated by the second fill material and the second fill volume, and the first and second loft amounts are substantially equal such that the duvet cover system defines a consistent aesthetic appearance on first and second sides of the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed.
3. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the first and second insert portions are removably connected to one another by a plurality of fastening elements that are spaced apart from one another along a length of the junction.
4. The duvet cover system of claim 3, wherein each of the plurality of fastening elements further comprises:
- a flexible strap extending from one of the first and second insert portions; and
- a receiving aperture formed on the other of the first and second insert portions, the flexible strap extending through the receiving aperture and then being secured in position on the one of the first and second insert portions to hold the first and second insert portions together.
5. The duvet cover system of claim 3, wherein the plurality of fastening elements is defined by at least one of: hook and loop fastener elements, ties, buttons, snaps, and magnets.
6. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the cover layer further comprises a single, unitary pocket configured to receive and substantially enclose an entirety of the duvet insert.
7. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the first and second fill materials include at least one of: duck down, polyester, wool, kapok, soybean, silk, and bamboo.
8. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first and second insert portions further include a loft amount, weight, and/or texture.
9. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the first insert portion further includes a cover fabric that encloses the first fill material, the second insert portion further includes a cover fabric that encloses the second fill material, and the cover fabrics of the first and second insert portions help define the at least two quantifiable performance factors.
10. The duvet cover system of claim 9, wherein the at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first and second insert portions further include wicking and/or temperature regulation.
11. The duvet cover system of claim 9, wherein the cover fabrics for the first and second insert portions include at least one of: cotton, cotton blends, microfiber polyester, and Lyocell.
12. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the first and second insert portions are removably connected to one another by a plurality of fastening elements, which are defined by non-hardened or non-rigid materials such that a presence of the fastening elements along the junction cannot be detected by users located on the bed and under the duvet cover system.
13. The duvet cover system of claim 12, wherein the first and second insert portions each define a plurality of peripheral edges, one of which is located along the junction, and wherein all others of the plurality of peripheral edges do not include any fastening elements for connecting the first and second insert portions together.
14. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein the cover layer includes a decorative pattern to provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed.
15. The duvet cover system of claim 1, wherein each of the first and second insert portions includes a fill identification element that identifies a performance specification defined by the at least two quantifiable performance factors for the insert portion.
16. A duvet cover system for covering a bed, the system comprising:
- a cover layer configured to receive a fill layer in the form of a blanket or comforter, the cover layer also being configured to at least substantially enclose the fill layer and provide a desired aesthetic appearance to the duvet cover system; and
- a duvet insert defining the fill layer, the duvet insert including a first insert portion including a plurality of first quilt boxes defined by a first cover fabric, and a second insert portion including a plurality of second quilt boxes defined by a second cover fabric, the first and second insert portions being positioned such that the first insert portion covers a first side of the bed and the second insert portion covers a second side of the bed when the duvet cover system is assembled and spread over the bed,
- wherein the plurality of first quilt boxes are filled with a first fill material having a first fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion, including a first thermal retention value and a first air permeability value, the plurality of second quilt boxes are filled with a second fill material having a second fill volume to thereby define at least two quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion, including a second thermal retention value and a second air permeability value, and the quantifiable performance factors of the first and second insert portions are different from each other to provide different sleep experiences for users located on first and second sides of the bed under the duvet cover system.
17. The duvet cover system of claim 16, wherein the first insert portion and the second insert portion are removably connected to one another along a junction.
18. The duvet cover system of claim 17, wherein the first and second insert portions are removably connected to one another by a plurality of fastening elements that are spaced apart from one another along a length of the junction.
19. The duvet cover system of claim 16, wherein another of the quantifiable performance factors for the first insert portion is a first loft amount generated by the first fill material and the first fill volume, another of the quantifiable performance factors for the second insert portion is a second loft amount generated by the second fill material and the second fill volume, and the first and second loft amounts are substantially equal such that the duvet cover system defines a consistent aesthetic appearance on first and second sides of the bed when the duvet cover system is spread over the bed.
Type: Application
Filed: Feb 15, 2019
Publication Date: Aug 20, 2020
Inventor: Richard Stewart (Mason, OH)
Application Number: 16/276,742