US 5,642,546 · Granted 1997-07-01
The Wavy Foam Border That Made Air Mattresses Actually Comfortable
This patent describes the clever foam walls that run around the edges of air mattresses—the parts that keep the inflatable bladder from collapsing at the sides. By sculpting the foam with wave-like patterns, engineers made it soft to touch while still strong enough to support your weight, plus it lets air circulate so the mattress doesn't get hot and sweaty.
The plain-English version
What it protects
The claim covers a foam border wall designed with wavy, sinusoidal-shaped grooves carved into the upper surface (and optionally the bottom too). What's protected here is the specific geometry of those convolutions—the pattern and shape of the waves—combined with how they're integrated into a single foam piece that provides both cushioning comfort and structural support for an inflatable mattress bladder.
Why it matters
This patent matters because air mattresses before this were either rock-hard at the edges or collapsed when you leaned on them. By combining foam stiffness with clever wave-sculpting, Select Comfort solved a real comfort problem and likely contributed to the popularity of modern air bed technology as a mainstream sleep solution rather than just a camping novelty.
Real-world use
Every time you sink into the padded edge of an air mattress and feel it give way softly while still supporting you, that's the wavy foam design at work—keeping the bed from bottoming out while staying comfortable against your body.
Original USPTO abstract
A mattress with an inflatable bladder and an outer border wall to support the outer edges of the bladder. The present invention employs foam block border walls that include foam border elements with either an upper or an upper and a lower surface sculpted to present convolutions preferably having generally sinusoidal shapes in vertical cross-section. The convolutions allow for a sensation of softness when being deformed, and allow for ventilation of the inner surface, while at the same time, the foam element can be made of a single piece of foam that is of sufficient stiffness to support the outer perimeter surface of the bladder within the mattress.
Patent details
- Publication number
- US 5,642,546
- Filing date
- 1995-09-19
- Grant date
- 1997-07-01
- Assignee
- Select Comfort Corporation
- Inventor(s)
- SHOENHAIR; JOHN J.
- CPC class
- A47C27/148
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