US 4,982,466 · Granted 1991-01-08
The Air Mattress That Keeps Your Spine Straight
Imagine a mattress filled with thousands of tiny air pockets that can inflate to different pressures in different zones. This patent describes a smart air bed that pumps more air under your lower back and less under your legs, so your spine stays naturally aligned while you sleep—like having an invisible hand constantly adjusting support where you need it most.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers an air mattress with a grid of interconnected air cells organized into separate zones, combined with a control system that pumps different air pressures to different zones. What's protected here is the specific combination of the zoned cell structure and the airflow control mechanism that maintains spinal alignment while keeping pressure low enough to avoid tissue damage.
Why it matters
This patent represents a major step in medical-grade bedding technology. By automating pressure distribution across the body, it prevents pressure ulcers and promotes better spinal health—outcomes that matter enormously in hospitals, nursing homes, and for people with mobility issues. Leggett & Platt, a major furniture and bedding supplier, used this innovation to build a product category that blends comfort with therapeutic function.
Real-world use
Hospital and nursing home beds often use technology descended from this design, automatically adjusting zones to prevent bedsores and support recovery in patients who spend long periods lying down.
Original USPTO abstract
An air bed comprising an air mattress having a plurality of interconnected rows and columns of air cells divided into longitudinally isolated zones, and an airflow control system for supplying air at differing pressures to the zones such that a person reclining atop the mattress is supported and maintained in spinal alignment at subischemic applied pressures.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 4,982,466
- Filing date
- 1988-10-12
- Grant date
- 1991-01-08
- Assignee
- Leggett & Platt, Incorporated
- Inventor(s)
- HIGGINS; LARRY, SCOTT; TERENCE A., KAWASAKI; NOZOMU
- CPC class
- A47C27/10
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