FURNITURE FILLING

Abstract

A pillow and its method of creation are provided. The pillow, or other filled item, begins as a piece of fabric that is filled with a blend of discrete amounts of latex, and a volume of fiberfill. The blend of latex and fiberfill, as well as the form factor of each material, contributes to the properties of the filled item. Preferably, the fiber fill is polyester, but a number of suitable materials exist.

Claims

1. A pillow, comprising: at least one piece of fabric, wherein said at least one piece of fabric is fashioned into a half-open sleeve, and wherein said at least one piece of fabric is disposed with ornamentation; and a volume of a filling material, wherein said filling material comprises discrete amounts of latex and a volume of fiberfill.

2. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said fiberfill is selected from the group consisting of: 0.9 denier, 0.4 denier, and 1.8 denier or a combination thereof.

3. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said half-open sleeve has dimensions selected from the group consisting of: substantially 20 inches by substantially 26 inches; substantially 20 inches by substantially 28 inches; substantially 20 inches by substantially 30 inches; and substantially 20 inches by substantially 36 inches.

4. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said at least one piece of fabric is constructed out of cotton, polyester, nylon, lyocell, rayon, modal, spacer, or some combination thereof.

5. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are formed with the Dunlop method.

6. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are formed with the Talalay method.

7. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are non-uniform in size and non-homogenously interspersed with the fiberfill.

8. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said filling material is 50% discrete amounts of latex and 50% said volume of fiberfill.

9. The pillow of claim 1, wherein said filling material is 40% discrete amounts of latex and 60% said volume of fiberfill.

10. A method of making a pillow, comprising: obtaining an amount of discrete amounts of latex; providing a volume of fiberfill; blending said discrete amounts of latex with said volume of fiberfill for a predetermined amount of time in a substantially sealed chamber; dispensing, from said sealed chamber, said blended material directly into a sleeve; and sealing, said sleeve.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein said sleeve is sealed via an adhesive or by being stitched.

12. The method of claim 10, wherein said sleeve is comprised of fabric.

13. The method of claim 10, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are remnants from a separate latex foam synthesis.

14. The method of claim 10, wherein said sleeve is disposed with ornamentation.

15. The method of claim 10, wherein said pillow is sealed with a finish selected from the group consisting of: knife edge, corded, gusset, flange edge, and serged edge.

16. The method of claim 10, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are formed with the Dunlop method.

17. The method of claim 10, wherein said discrete amounts of latex are formed with the Talalay method.

18. The method of claim 10, wherein the step of dispensing, from said sealed chamber, said blended material directly into a sleeve occurs for approximately 11 seconds.

19. The method of claim 10, wherein said filling material is 50% discrete amounts of latex and 50% said volume of fiberfill.

20. The method of claim 10, wherein said filling material is 40% discrete amounts of latex and 60% said volume of fiberfill.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of an embodiment of the pillow of the present invention.

[0023] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a pile of the filling material used in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of one embodiment of the method of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] The preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings. Identical elements in the various figures are identified with the same reference numerals.

[0026] Reference will now be made in detail to each embodiment of the present invention. Such embodiments are provided by way of explanation of the present invention, which is not intended to be limited thereto. In fact, those of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate upon reading the present specification and viewing the present drawings that various modifications and variations can be made thereto.

[0027] Referring to FIG. 1, a perspective view of an embodiment of the pillow of the present invention is shown. Here, pillow 100 is shown. It comprises at least one piece of fabric 101 and filling material 103. As can be seen from this image, filling material 103 is not a homogenous blend. Rather, it is heterogeneous blend with the discrete amounts of latex retaining their shape, being surrounded by the remaining fiberfill. In various embodiments, filling material 103 can have different ratios (by volume) of discrete amounts of latex to fiberfill, such as 95:5; 75:25, 65:35; 60:40; 50:50; 40:60; 35:65; 25:75; and 5:95. This allows pillow 100 to have improved properties over a standard pillow.

[0028] For example, the highly-breathable nature of the latex allows a user of pillow 100 to remain cool. That is, pillow 100 is capable of retaining the temperature of the ambient environment, due to the ability of air to pass through pillow 100. When compared to a standard pillow, pillow 100 will retain the temperature of the ambient environment up to twice as long. Further, the discrete amounts of latex are dispersed throughout the volume of fiberfill. Discrete amounts of latex can have a number of different sizes. These discrete amounts of latex may range from 2-12 inches long, and are from 0.5 cm to 0.75 cm wide. These pieces of discrete latex may be known as latex noodles. This is due to the elongated rod-like shape formed by some of the discrete latex. However, other pieces of the discrete latex may have irregular shapes and have a flattened appearance as the pieces are wider than the rod shape.

[0029] By being dispersed throughout, despite the fact that the blend is not homogenous, the discrete amounts of latex add a higher level of support than pure fiberfill. Not only is there greater support, but due to the elastic properties of the latex, pillow 100 will regain its original shape more quickly than the pillows that exist today. Moreover, the nature of the discrete amounts of latex contained in the present invention, and the manner in which it is blended with the polyester fiberfill, the pillow of the present invention will retain its shape for a longer period of time than a polyester pillow.

[0030] Preferably, the fiberfill is polyester, but cotton and urethane foam are also suitable for use with the invention. In some embodiments, the fiberfill may have a denier of 0.2 to 2.0. In some embodiments, a combination of fiberfills having varying deniers may be utilized. Further, the fiberfill may be a micro-denier fiber. The fiberfill may also have anti-microbial properties. Such fibers may be impregnated with various metals (e.g. copper, silver, etc.) or may have an antimicrobial agent applied to the surface of the fibers or otherwise incorporated therein. Any sort of shredded or similarly eviscerated fabric is also suitable for use as the fiberfill of the present invention. Preferably, the discrete amounts of latex are non-uniform in size, however, in some embodiments the discrete amounts of latex are uniform in size.

[0031] FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of a pile of the filling material of the present invention. This filling material 105 shows numerous benefits in comfort, breathability, and cleanliness. Preferably, the filling material will be 50% by volume discrete amounts of latex 104, and will be 50% by volume of fiberfill. That said, the proportions can be changed to fit a user's personal needs. If a pillow is created with a greater than 50% by volume amount of discrete amounts of latex particles, the pillow will provide more support. If a pillow is created with less than 50% by volume amount of discrete amounts of latex particles, the pillow will be less rigid, and will exhibit less of the beneficial properties induced by the inclusion of the discrete amounts of latex particles.

[0032] In one embodiment, the filling material 105 contains 1.8 denier antimicrobial fiberfill (50% by volume) non-homogenously combined with discrete latex noodles (50% by volume). As noted above, other ratios may also be present of the 1.8 denier antimicrobial fiberfill and the discrete latex noodles. In another embodiment, the filling material 105 contains 0.9 denier fiberfill (50% by volume) non-homogenously combined with discrete latex noodles (50% by volume). As noted above, other ratios may also be present of the 0.9 denier fiberfill and the discrete latex noodles. In yet another embodiment, the filling material 105 contains 0.4 denier fiberfill and discrete latex in varying ratios.

[0033] FIG. 3 shows a flow chart of one embodiment of the method of the present invention. At step 201, an amount of discrete amounts of latex is obtained. Preferably, these discrete amounts of latex will be obtained as the remnants, or trimmings, from a synthesis of latex to be used for a different purpose. One benefit of this method, is that it incorporates scraps of latex that would traditionally be discarded, providing for a more sustainable method of production. As the trend for more sustainable industrial processes increases, this is highly desirable. This enables the method of the instant invention to benefit the environment, as it reduces the waste of other industrial processes. This repurposing also has the additional benefit of being able to acquire the discrete amounts of latex more cheaply than if the latex had to be custom-ordered. In one embodiment, the discrete amounts of latex are taken from the bulk-synthesis of latex foam mattresses. As the mattresses get trimmed to specification, removing any deviations from the desired size, those scraps are to be collected and used for step 201.

[0034] In step 202, a volume of fiberfill is provided.

[0035] In step 203, this fiberfill is blended with the obtained discrete amounts of latex. There are numerous suitable ways in which these materials may be blended. For example, the two may simply be stirred by a blunt object, or may be cut up by a sharp centrifuge-like instrument, similar to a tabletop blender. This is particularly important as typically these discrete amounts of latex come bundled together, and must be sufficiently opened up to provide the support generated by the present invention. The total volume of fiberfill/latex may vary from about 240 oz. to about 40 oz. depending on pillow size and fullness, and is more preferably 24 oz., 34 oz, or 38 oz.

[0036] Turning to step 204, one the materials, having been blended in the substantially sealed chamber, is dispensed from said substantially sealed chamber into a sleeve. Preferably, this process occurs for 11 seconds. However, this time can be adjusted to change the firmness of the pillow. For example, if more blended material is dispensed into said pillow, it will be more firm than if less material is dispensed into the pillow. Once the appropriate amount of material has been dispensed into the sleeve, it will be sealed, at step 205.

[0037] The sleeve may be sealed in a number of different ways such as single needle closure, knife edge, corded, gusset, flange edge, and serged edge. It may also be sealed with adhesive or with a re-sealable mechanism, such as a zipper or magnets so that the amount of filling material in the pillow can be varied by an end-user.

[0038] Although this invention has been described with a certain degree of particularity, it is to be understood that the present disclosure has been made only by way of illustration and that numerous changes in the details of construction and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention.

[0039] Various other components may be included and called upon for providing for aspects of the teachings herein. For example, additional materials, combinations of materials and/or omission of materials may be used to provide for added embodiments that are within the scope of the teachings herein. In the present application a variety of variables are described, including but not limited to components and conditions. It is to be understood that any combination of any of these variables can define an embodiment of the disclosure. Other combinations of articles, components, conditions, and/or methods can also be specifically selected from among variables listed herein to define other embodiments, as would be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art.

[0040] When introducing elements of the present disclosure or the embodiment(s) thereof, the articles a, an, and the are intended to mean that there are one or more of the elements. Similarly, the adjective another, when used to introduce an element, is intended to mean one or more elements. The terms including and having are intended to be inclusive such that there may be additional elements other than the listed elements.

[0041] While the disclosure refers to exemplary embodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the disclosure. In addition, many modifications will be appreciated by those skilled in the art to adapt a particular instrument, situation or material to the teachings of the disclosure without departing from the spirit thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the disclosure not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed.