US-12622529-B2 - Mattress top panel and mattress assemblies with improved airflow

Abstract

Vertically lapped nonwoven material is used without cross lapped nonwoven to provide enhanced breathability and comfort in mattresses by replacing foam material in one or more of, including all of top panel quilts, layers underneath the top panel quilts, and in side blocks which surround spring supports. The vertically lapped nonwoven may provide advantages in terms of cost, manufacturing ease, robustness in mattress design, while at the same time providing the user with a much more comfortable sleeping experience.

Inventors

• Sang-Hoon Lim
• Andrea Piana

Assignees

• TINTORIA PIANA US, INC.

Dates

Publication Date

20260512

Application Date

20230310

Claims (5)

1. 1 . A mattress, comprising: a top layer comprising a fabric layer, one or more fire retardant layers, and a bottom layer, wherein said fabric layer, said one or more fire retardant layers, and said bottom layer are assembled together with stitching passing through each of the fabric layer, the one or more fire retardant layers, and the bottom layer from a top to a bottom of the top layer; one or more layers of foam material; one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material positioned under the top layer; and a spring or foam support, wherein the one or more layers of foam material are positioned above the one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material, and wherein the one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material are positioned above the spring or foam support.
2. 2 . The mattress of claim 1 , wherein the top layer comprises one or more additional layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material which is assembled together with said fabric layer, said one or more fire retardant layers, and said bottom layer with said stitching passing through the one or more additional layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material.
3. 3 . The mattress of claim 2 wherein either or both said one or more additional layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material in said top layer, and said one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material under said one or more layers of foam material and above said spring or foam support comprise one or more synthetic or natural fibers.
4. 4 . The mattress of claim 1 wherein the top layer does not include polyurethane material.
5. 5 . The mattress of claim 1 wherein said one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven under said top layer comprise one or more synthetic or natural fibers.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation-in-part (CIP) application of U.S. Ser. No. 16/367,347 filed Mar. 28, 2019, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application 62/649,943 filed Mar. 29, 2018, and U.S. Provisional Application 62/718,602 filed Aug. 14, 2018, and the complete contents of these applications is incorporated herein by reference. FILED OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to mattress assemblies providing an improved airflow by utilizing vertically lapped nonwovens. BACKGROUND Most mattresses sold in the U.S. market contain foam layers to provide comfort to users. But conventional polyurethane foams, latex foams, and memory foams that are used for the mattresses do not provide a good breathability. As the result, many people experience body heat buildup and complain of “sleeping hot”. FIG. 1 shows an example of a conventional one sided mattress. The quilted top panel 11 is constructed of a ticking fabric under which is a layer of fire retardant (FR) fibers (usually in the form of nonwoven), a foam layer (usually polyurethane (PU) foam), and a thin nonwoven fabric (referred to as scrim). This quilted top panel rests on a foam layer 12 (usually PU foam) and a felt pad 13 that fits over spring units 14 and supporting bottom 15. The mattress is referred to as a one-sided mattress because the person using the mattress sleeps only on the side including the quilted top panel. Two sided mattresses are ones that a person can sleep on either the top or the bottom side because both sides have a quilted top layer and foam layer for the user's comfort. One example configuration of a two sided mattress is a quilted top panel 11, a foam layer 12, a felt pad 13, spring units 14, a felt pad 13, a foam layer 12, and a quilted top panel 11. Foam mattresses generally differ from conventional mattresses in that the spring support is replaced by different types of foam layers. FIG. 2 shows an example of a foam mattress. In construction, a top layer 21 (usually zippered cover) is positioned over a FR knit layer 22 (referred to as FR sock), and one or more foam layers 23, 24, 25 (one or more of which may be memory foam, latex foam, conventional PU foam, and convoluted foam). Variations can include different combinations of the foams, and spring units can be used instead of bottom support foam. FIG. 9 shows an example of those. FIG. 3 shows an exemplary mattress which has been cut apart by the inventors. FIG. 3 shows a one sided mattress with a quilted top panel which includes a foam layer therein, underneath the quilted top panel, there are four layers of foam and a felt pad. These are supported by spring members (similar to the configuration shown in FIG. 1). FIG. 4 illustrates the construction of one example of a quilted top panel for a mattress. In FIG. 4 there is shown a ticking fabric, a FR nonwoven, 2 layers of polyurethane foams, and a scrim, all quilted together. Korean Application KR 20140073966 to Wi describes a cushion material that purportedly can be used in a variety of applications. The cushion material includes vertically lapped nonwoven with fibers oriented in the vertical direction together with a cross nonwoven fabric oriented in the horizontal direction. Wi explained that the vertically lapped nonwoven is strong against the load in the vertical direction, but the fibers are easily broken in a side to side or oblique direction. Thus, Wi, by proposing a composite material of vertically oriented material and horizontally oriented material, hopes to provide a cushion material that provides better support and resilience properties. However, the solution adds cost for the additional cross-lapped nonwoven containing an elastic binder fiber as well as manufacturing time. Moreover, it adds another layer to the cushion which is less breathable in the crosswise direction. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION One aspect of the invention is to substitute one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven material for the one or more layers of foam traditionally used in the quilted top panel for a mattress. The nonwoven, in some embodiments, may be constructed from synthetic or/and natural fibers together with binder fibers, such as the elastic binder polyester fiber, low-melt or high-melt binder fiber, or combinations of these. To increase the density of the nonwoven, high shrink polyester fiber can be added to the blend. The lay up in the invented quilted top panel of a mattress would be a fabric ticking layer, under which is positioned one or more layers of FR barrier, under which is positioned one or more layers of vertically lapped nonwoven, under which is positioned a scrim layer, with the entire lay up being sewn together as a quilted top panel. In most embodiments, the quilted top panel will not include a foam layer; however, depending on the application, the quilted top may optionally also include one or more foam layers under or above the vertically lapped nonwoven la