CN107028420B

CN107028420B - Air chamber unit, method of manufacturing the same, and air mattress

Info

Publication number: CN107028420B
Application number: CN201710023068.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 大野健太; 富永悠介
Original assignee: Paramount Bed Co Ltd
Current assignee: Paramount Bed Co Ltd
Priority date: 2016-01-13
Filing date: 2017-01-12
Publication date: 2021-11-02
Anticipated expiration: 2037-01-12
Also published as: JP2017124012A; TWI731006B; TW201733503A; JP6674779B2; CN107028420A

Abstract

The invention provides an air chamber unit which can shorten the transverse width of the cross section of each air chamber, increase the height, obtain sufficient sinking when alternately expanding and contracting, have good lying feeling and are easy to arrange, a manufacturing method thereof and an inflatable mattress. An air chamber unit (10) is constituted by a plurality of air chambers (1), and when the air chamber unit is manufactured, two sheets are linearly welded at a plurality of positions to form the air chambers. Further, a suspension portion is welded to an intermediate portion inside the oblong air chamber. The air chambers are connected by the welding part, and the air chambers are arranged to manufacture the air mattress easily and at low cost.

Description

Air chamber unit, method of manufacturing the same, and air mattress

Technical Field

The present invention relates to an air mattress in which a plurality of independent air chambers are arranged in a row along the longitudinal direction of the mattress and the air pressure of each air chamber can be independently controlled, and more particularly, to an air mattress suitable for a comfortable lying state of an alternately expanding and contracting type air mattress in which the air chambers are alternately and repeatedly expanded and contracted.

Background

The air mattress is divided into a plurality of air chambers (air chambers) in order to perform a pressure switching operation, which is a specific operation of the air mattress. The air cushion disclosed in patent document 1 is formed with three first to third air chambers along the upper and lower sides by combining four first to fourth sheets and bonding them in a dot shape. The air pressure in the lower third air chamber is maintained at a high pressure, and the first and second air chambers are maintained at a low pressure. In the air mattress described in patent document 2, the front and rear sheets are joined in the width direction of the mattress to form a plurality of cylindrical air cells extending in the width direction of the mattress. In the air mattress disclosed in patent document 3, a plurality of independent air chambers extending in the width direction of the mattress are connected to each other by a belt at ear portions formed at both ends of the air chambers, and the air chambers are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the mattress. The cross-sectional shape of the air chamber described in patent document 3 is an elliptical shape that is long in the vertical direction, and a horizontal portion called a suspension that divides the air chamber into upper and lower portions is provided in the middle of the air chamber.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document 1: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 2002-136396

Patent document 2: japanese patent laid-open No. 2007-082860

Patent document 3: japanese laid-open patent publication No. 10-005289

However, in the conventional technique described in patent document 1, since the upper and lower four sheets are bonded in a dot shape, the range of one air chamber extends over the entire placement area of the air mattress, and therefore, there are the following problems: when a user turns over the mattress on the air mattress and moves his body, the air flows greatly, which impairs the lying feeling of the user.

In addition, in an air mattress in which a plurality of air cells extending in the mattress width direction are arranged in a row in the mattress length direction as in patent document 2, the air cells are circular in cross-sectional shape, and therefore the ratio of the height to the lateral width in the cross-sectional shape of the air cells is limited. Therefore, there are problems as follows: if a sufficient height is to be obtained, the lateral width of the air chambers becomes too wide and the feeling of lying is deteriorated, and if the lateral width of the air chambers is made narrow, when a specific air chamber is contracted by the alternate expansion and contraction, the height of the adjacent air chambers becomes insufficient, and bottoming or the like occurs, and sufficient cushioning properties cannot be obtained, and the feeling of lying is poor.

On the other hand, in the air mattress in which a plurality of air chambers are separated from each other as in patent document 3, since each air chamber has an independent bag shape, it is possible to provide a suspension inside the chamber and make the cross section thereof a vertically long oval shape, and it is possible to increase the ratio of the height to the lateral width of the cross section of the air chamber, and therefore it is possible to narrow the width of the air chamber that is alternately expanded and contracted, to make the user comfortable to lie on the bed, and to increase the height of the air chamber and to sink deeply even when the height is reduced. However, since the plurality of cylindrical air chambers are separated from each other, in order to arrange the air chambers in a single layer in a state of a mattress, it is necessary to attach a belt in a loop shape in a mattress cover, for example, and fix the air chambers to the cover by passing the loops through the belt. Therefore, the manufacturing cost becomes high. In addition, if the air cells are not arranged in a loop in this way, the air cells often intertwine with each other, and the mattress cannot be inflated perfectly.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide an air chamber unit, which is capable of shortening the lateral width and increasing the height of the cross section of each air chamber, obtaining sufficient sinking during alternate expansion and contraction, and being comfortable to lie and easy to arrange, in an air mattress in which a plurality of independent air chambers are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the mattress and the air pressures of the air chambers can be independently controlled, a method of manufacturing the air chamber unit, and an air mattress.

The air chamber unit of the present invention is characterized by comprising:

an air chamber which is composed of a plurality of cylindrical bags and is formed by linearly joining two or more sheets at a plurality of positions;

a hanging portion formed to be joined to one of the sheets to vertically separate the inside of the cylindrical bag of each of the air chambers; and

and a closed end portion that closes both end portions of the air chamber in the tube length direction.

Another air chamber unit of the present invention is characterized by comprising:

a plurality of cylindrical bags formed by linearly joining two sheets at a plurality of locations with one sheet for hanging portions sandwiched therebetween; and

and a closed end portion that closes both end portions of the cylindrical bag in the tube length direction in the air chamber unit, the cylindrical bag being joined at a plurality of locations so as to be divided into a plurality of sections in the tube length direction of the cylindrical bag, thereby forming a plurality of air chambers in the tube length direction.

In addition, for example,

the closed end portion is formed by overlapping and joining end portions of the cylindrical bag in a vertically long state, and the formed overlapped joint portion is formed and trimmed in a shape having a locking portion for engaging locking portions of adjacent air chambers with each other to connect the adjacent air chambers.

The inflatable mattress of the invention is characterized in that,

the air chamber unit may be configured by any one of the air chamber units described above or may be configured such that any one of the air chamber units is arranged in a direction perpendicular to a longitudinal direction of the air chamber unit.

The method for manufacturing the air chamber unit of the present invention is characterized in that,

using a manufacturing apparatus having a lower mold member in which a plurality of pairs of vertical mold pairs are arranged with a certain interval between adjacent vertical mold pairs, the vertical molds of the vertical mold pairs being erected with a chamber width apart from each other, and an upper mold member in which the vertical molds are arranged so as to face the vertical molds,

the method for manufacturing the air chamber unit comprises the following steps:

placing a first sheet for an air chamber on the lower mold member in a state of being suspended between the longitudinal molds and between the adjacent longitudinal mold pairs, placing a plurality of second sheets for a suspending portion on the first sheet on the longitudinal molds so as to be laid between the longitudinal molds of the longitudinal mold pairs, and nipping and joining the first sheet and the second sheet between the longitudinal molds of the upper mold member and the longitudinal molds of the lower mold member; and

and a step of lowering the first sheet between the vertical dies of the vertical die pair of the lower die member so that the first sheet between the adjacent vertical die pair is positioned at the uppermost position, placing a third sheet for an air chamber on the lower die member, and nipping and joining the first sheet and the third sheet between the vertical dies of the upper die member and the vertical dies of the lower die member.

Another method of manufacturing an air chamber unit according to the present invention is characterized in that,

using a manufacturing apparatus having a lower die member in which a plurality of pairs of vertical dies are arranged with a certain interval between adjacent pairs of vertical dies, the vertical dies in the pairs of vertical dies are erected with a chamber width apart from each other, and an upper die member in which the vertical dies are arranged to face the vertical dies, wherein a first support portion for holding a sheet material is provided in an upper portion of the inside of the pair of vertical dies of the upper die member, and a second support portion for holding a sheet material is provided in a lower portion of the upper die member between the pairs of vertical dies,

a step of setting a third sheet for an air chamber between the first support portion and the second support portion, placing a second sheet for a hanging portion on the vertical die of the lower die member, and nipping and joining the third sheet and the second sheet between the vertical die of the upper die member and the vertical die of the lower die member;

lowering a second support portion of the upper mold member between the pair of vertical molds, and lifting the second sheet by hanging down a part of the third sheet between the first support portions; and

and a step of placing a first sheet for an air chamber on the vertical mold of the lower mold member, and nipping and joining the first sheet and the third sheet between the vertical mold of the upper mold member and the vertical mold of the lower mold member.

A further method of manufacturing an air chamber unit according to the present invention is characterized in that,

and a step of setting a third sheet for an air chamber on the first support portion and the second support portion, setting a first sheet for an air chamber on the vertical mold of the lower mold member, placing a second sheet for a suspension portion on the vertical mold of the lower mold member between the first sheet and the third sheet, and nipping and joining the first sheet, the second sheet, and the third sheet between the vertical mold of the upper mold member and the vertical mold of the lower mold member.

Effects of the invention

According to the present invention, since the air chamber unit including the plurality of air chambers is configured by linearly joining the plurality of cylindrical bags constituting the air chambers, the air chambers are connected to each other and joined to each other, and therefore, when the air mattress is assembled using the air chambers, an operation for arranging the air chambers is easily performed. Further, since the air chamber of the present invention has its interior divided into upper and lower parts by the suspension portion, the air chamber can be formed to have a height greater than a lateral width, and the amount of sinking of a person lying on his/her side can be increased, thereby improving the feeling of lying on his/her side.

Further, according to the manufacturing method of the present invention, the air chamber unit of the present invention can be manufactured with fewer welding processes than in the conventional art.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram showing an air chamber unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a view showing the same manufacturing method.

Fig. 3 is a top perspective view showing the shape of an air chamber unit according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 4 is a top perspective view showing the shape of the air chamber unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a bottom perspective view showing the shape of the air chamber unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 6 is a perspective view showing the shape of a portion of a lower surface lb of the air chamber unit according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 7 is a view showing a manufacturing process of the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a view showing an air chamber cell manufactured by a manufacturing process of the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 9 is a view showing a method for manufacturing an air chamber cell according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a view showing another method for manufacturing an air chamber cell according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a view showing a manufacturing process of the air chamber cell of fig. 10.

Fig. 12 is a view showing still another method for manufacturing an air chamber cell according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 13 is a view showing a manufacturing process of the air chamber cell of fig. 12.

Fig. 14 is a view showing still another method for manufacturing an air chamber cell according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 15 is a view showing still another method for manufacturing an air chamber cell according to the embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 16 is a view showing a connection portion of the air chamber.

Fig. 17 is a diagram showing the shape of the coupling portion.

Fig. 18 is a diagram showing the shape of a conventional air chamber.

Description of the symbols

1: air chamber

1 a: upper surface of

1 b: lower surface

1c, 1 d: end part

2: ear part

3: lower sheet

4: upper sheet

5: suspension part

6: welded joint

7: push button

8. 18a, 18b, 18 c: pipe

8a, 8b, 8 c: branching part

9. 9a, 9b, 9c, 9d, 9e, 9 f: air supply and exhaust port

10: air chamber unit

11: first sheet

12: second sheet material

13: third sheet material

20. 23: lower die

20a, 21a, 23 a: action mould

1: upper die

22a, 22b, 24a, 24b, 24 c: support part

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing an air chamber unit 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, fig. 2 is a view showing a manufacturing method thereof, fig. 3 is a perspective view showing an upper surface 1a of an air chamber 1 of the air chamber unit 10, fig. 4 is a perspective view also showing the upper surface 1a of the air chamber 1, fig. 5 is a perspective view showing a lower surface 1b of the air chamber 1 of the air chamber unit 10, and fig. 6 is a perspective view showing a lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 of the air chamber unit 10. As shown in fig. 1, the air chamber unit 10 is constituted by three air chambers 1, for example. Each air chamber 1 has a rectangular shape with a cross section approximately elongated in length, and is a rod-like bag-like chamber parallel to each other. Fig. 1(a) is a view of the air chamber unit 10 as viewed from obliquely above, fig. 1(b) is a view of the air chamber unit 10 as viewed from obliquely below, fig. 1(c) is a view showing one end surface 1c of the air chamber 1 of the air chamber unit 10 in the longitudinal direction, fig. 3 is a view showing the other end surface 1d of the air chamber 1 in the longitudinal direction, and fig. 4 is a view showing the upper surface 1a of the air chamber 1. Ears 2 are formed on both

end surfaces

1c and 1d of the air chamber 1. The air chamber unit 10 including the ear portion 2 is manufactured as follows. As shown in fig. 2, the air chamber unit 10 shapes and trims the lower sheet 3 for air chambers to have three shallow bent portions, shapes and trims the upper sheet 4 for air chambers to have three deep bent portions, and welds the folded portion of the lower sheet 3 and the folded portion of the upper sheet 4 to form the welded portion 6. The inside of the deep bent portion of the upper sheet 4 is divided into two parts, and the suspending portion 5 is bridged and welded between the inner surfaces of the bent portions. Therefore, as shown in fig. 2(b), the cross-sectional structure of the air chamber unit 10 is basically such that a plurality of air chambers 1 having vertically separated air chambers are connected to each other by a welded portion 6 at the side surface of the lower air chamber. After the

sheets

3 and 4 are joined together into a tubular shape by the weld 6, the two ends in the longitudinal direction of the tubular shape are pressed in the horizontal direction to be overlapped, and the overlapped portions are welded to form the ear portions 2. Buttons 7 are provided on the ear portions 2 of one end surface 1c of the air chamber 1 in the tube length direction, and the ear portions 2 of the air chambers 1 can be connected by the belt by engaging the buttons 7 with the buttons provided on the belt.

Fig. 3 shows the other end surface 1d of the air chamber 1 in the tube length direction. Air supply/

exhaust ports

9d, 9e, and 9f are provided in the upper half of each end surface 1d of the air chamber 1, and the air supply/

exhaust ports

9d, 9e, and 9f are arranged on the end surface 1d with a slight vertical displacement from each other. The air supply/

discharge ports

9d, 9e, and 9f are air-tightly connected to branch

portions

8a, 8b, and 8c of the air chamber 1 through the air supply/discharge pipe 8, and the

branch portions

8a, 8b, and 8c communicate with the upper air chamber separated by the suspending portion 5 of the air chamber 1 through the air supply/

discharge ports

9d, 9e, and 9f, respectively. Thus, the air chambers above the three air chambers 1 connected to the pipe 8 via the

branch portions

8a, 8b, and 8c are independently subjected to air supply and exhaust control. Thus, the three air chambers 1 of each air chamber cell 10 are subjected to the air supply and exhaust control, respectively, and the air chambers 1 connected to the branch portion 8a, the air chambers 1 connected to the branch portion 8b, and the air chambers 1 connected to the branch portion 8c of all the air chamber cells 10 are subjected to the air supply and exhaust control in common at the same cycle and pressure, respectively. Therefore, every third air cell above the air cell 1 receives the same air supply and exhaust control as viewed from the whole air mattress. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the air chambers above the three air chambers 1 of each air chamber unit 10 may be connected in common by one pipe 8, and the air supply and exhaust control may be performed in common at the same cycle and pressure for the air chambers above the air chambers 1 of each air chamber unit 10. Thus, the air cells above the air cells 1 of the air cell unit 10 are independently subjected to air supply and air discharge control for each air cell unit 10 arranged in the longitudinal direction of the air mattress. Further, all the air chamber units 10 may be connected by one pipe, and the air supply and exhaust control may be performed for all the air chambers 1 at the same cycle and pressure.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 5 and 6, the air supply/discharge ports 9(9a, 9b, 9c) are provided on the lower surface lb of each air chamber 1, respectively, the air supply/discharge ports 9(9a, 9b, 9c) are used for supplying and discharging air to and from the air chamber below the air chamber separated by the suspending portion 5 of the air chamber 1, and the air supply/

discharge ports

9a, 9b, 9c are connected to the air supply/

discharge pipes

18a, 18b, 18c, respectively. Accordingly, the air pressure in the lower air chamber separated by the suspending portion 5 of the air chamber 1 can be individually controlled by the air supply/

exhaust pipes

18a, 18b, and 18 c. That is, the three

tubes

18a, 18b, and 18c are connected to the air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c, respectively, and the air supply/exhaust control is performed individually at independent cycles and pressures in the air chambers below the air chambers 1 by the air supplied and discharged from the

tubes

18a, 18b, and 18 c. Each air chamber unit 10 is provided with three air chambers 1, three

tubes

18a, 18b, and 18c that are individually controlled, and the air chambers below the air chambers 1 are also individually controlled for air supply and exhaust in the other air chamber units 10. Thus, the plurality of air cells 1 of the plurality of air cell units 10 arranged in the longitudinal direction of the air mattress receive the same air supply and air discharge control every two cells in the entire air mattress. The air supply/

discharge ports

9a, 9b, and 9c of the lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 are disposed slightly offset from each other along the longitudinal direction of the air chamber 1. This is to arrange the three tubes along the lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 while keeping the three tubes as linear as possible. The three air supply/

discharge ports

9a, 9b, and 9c provided on the lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 may be connected to each air chamber unit 10 by a single air supply/discharge pipe, thereby performing air supply/discharge control in common. In this case, the air supply and exhaust control is performed with the same cycle and pressure in common to the air chambers below the air chambers 1 of each air chamber unit 10. Thus, the air cells below the air cells 1 are subjected to independent air supply and exhaust control for each air cell unit 10 arranged in the longitudinal direction of the air mattress. Further, all the air chamber units 10 may be connected by one pipe, and air supply and exhaust control may be performed for all the air chambers 1 at the same cycle and pressure. In the case where the three air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c are connected by one pipe, the positions of the air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c do not need to be offset in the longitudinal direction of the air chamber 1, and the air supply/exhaust ports are arranged in a line in the longitudinal direction of the air mattress. Further, although the air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c are provided in the lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 in the embodiment of fig. 5 and 6 for the pressure control of the air chamber below each air chamber 1, the present invention is not limited to this, and the air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c may be provided in one end surface 1c of the air chamber 1, for example, in the same manner as the pressure control of the upper air chamber shown in fig. 3.

Further, by providing the holes in the suspension portion 5, the upper and lower air chambers of each air chamber 1 can be made to communicate with each other, and the pressure control can be performed in the same mode for the upper and lower air chambers of each air chamber 1. In this case, any one of the air supply/

exhaust ports

9a, 9b, and 9c and the air supply/

exhaust ports

9d, 9e, and 9f may be provided.

Next, the operation of the present embodiment configured as described above will be described. A plurality of air cell units 10 shown in fig. 1(a) are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the air cells 1, and as a whole, an air mattress is configured in which the plurality of air cells 1 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction (the longitudinal direction of the air mattress). At this time, the buttons 7 of the adjacent air chambers 1 of the adjacent air chamber units 10 are engaged to connect the adjacent air chamber units 10 to each other. Alternatively, the buttons provided on the belt are engaged with the buttons 7 provided on the ear portions 2 of all the air chambers 1, whereby all the ear portions 2 of the air chambers 1 can be coupled by the belt. As shown in fig. 3, a pipe 8 is attached to an end surface 1d of the air chamber 1 via the air supply/

exhaust ports

9d, 9e, and 9f so as to communicate with the upper air chamber partitioned by the suspension portion 5 in the air chamber 1, and air supply/exhaust control is independently performed for each air chamber 1 on the upper air chamber of the three air chambers 1 of each air chamber unit 10 through the pipe 8 and the

branch portions

8a, 8b, and 8 c. As shown in fig. 5 and 6, the lower surface lb of the air chamber 1 is provided with one air inlet/

outlet

9a, 9b, and 9c for each air chamber 1, and the air inlet/outlet 9 is connected to the respective air inlet/

outlet pipes

18a, 18b, and 18 c. Thus, the air supply/discharge control is independently performed for each air chamber 1 in the air chamber 1 below the air chamber 1. The air supply/discharge pipe is connected to an air supply/discharge pump, and controls the pressure of the upper and lower air chambers in each air chamber 1 of each air chamber unit 10. The air cells above and below the air cells 1 are individually subjected to pressure control for each air cell 1 and for each air cell in each air cell unit 10, all the air cells 1 located on the head side of the mattress in each air cell unit 10 are subjected to the same pressure control in all the air cell units 10, all the air cells 1 located on the foot side are subjected to the same pressure control in all the air cell units 10, and all the air cells 1 located in the middle are subjected to the same pressure control in all the air cell units 10. The pressure control mode is an example, and the pressure control mode of each air chamber 1 may be various according to the purpose of pressure control of the air mattress.

In the present embodiment, in each air chamber unit 10, all the air chambers 1 belonging thereto are connected by the weld 6, and even if the individual air chambers are arranged independently by the tape attached to the cover as in the conventional technique described in patent document 3, the air chambers do not intertwine with each other. Therefore, a belt for arranging the air chambers is not required, and a work for arranging the air chambers by the belt is not required.

In the present embodiment, the air cells 1 are not only connected by the welded portions 6, but also connected to each other via the buttons 7 provided on the ear portions 2 and via a belt having buttons that engage with the buttons 7, and therefore the air cells 1 can be further reliably restricted from each other, and therefore the air cells 1 can be prevented from falling over, and the air cells 1 can reliably maintain the shape of the air mattress.

In addition, in the air chamber of the present embodiment, the suspension portion 5 horizontally connecting the inner surface of the air chamber is provided at substantially the center in the vertical direction in the cross section thereof, and two air chambers separated in pressure, i.e., the upper air chamber and the lower air chamber, are provided in the air chamber by the suspension portion, so that the air pressure can be controlled in different modes from each other, and the control mode of the air chamber can be set in a wide range.

Further, since the suspension portion is provided substantially at the center in the vertical direction of the air chamber, the height of the cross section of the air chamber can be made sufficiently higher than the lateral width of the cross section of the air chamber, and the amount of sinking of a person when lying can be increased, and the feeling of lying can be significantly improved.

Next, a method for manufacturing the air chamber cell according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The lower mold 20 used in the present embodiment is formed with a plurality of vertically standing wall-shaped moving molds 20a, and the upper mold 21 is formed with a plurality of vertically standing wall-shaped moving molds 21 a. The movable mold 20a and the movable mold 21a are formed at positions matching each other, and the upper mold 21 and the lower mold 20 are arranged so that the movable mold 20a and the movable mold 21a face each other. The distance between the

movable molds

20a and 21a is determined based on the lateral width of the air chamber 1 between the outermost movable mold and the inner movable mold, and between the two

movable molds

20a and 21a at the center (wide distance), and the movable mold pairs at both sides and the movable mold pair at the center (narrow distance) are separated by a slight distance. Further, a support portion 22a capable of lifting and lowering for fixing and positioning an end portion of the sheet is provided on an outer surface of the outermost moving die 20a, and a support portion 22b for lifting and lowering the sheet is provided between the moving dies 20a with a narrow interval.

In the present embodiment, first, as shown in fig. 7(a), the first sheet 11 for air chambers is placed on the lower mold 20. At this time, both end portions of the first sheet 11 are fixed to the support portions 22a, the support portions 22b are located at the lower positions, and the first sheet 11 is suspended between the moving molds 20 a. Then, as shown in fig. 7(b), the second sheets 12 for the three suspended portions are placed on the upper end surface of the widely spaced moving die 20a, and the second sheets 12 are arranged only on the widely spaced moving die 20 a. Next, the upper die 21 is lowered, the first sheet 11 and the second sheet 12 are sandwiched between the upper die 21 and the moving dies 20a and 21a of the lower die 20, and heat and stress are applied to the first sheet 11 and the second sheet 12, thereby welding the first sheet 11 and the second sheet 12.

Next, the upper mold 21 is raised, the support portion 22a is raised as shown in fig. 7(c), and the third sheet 13 for air chambers is horizontally placed on the entire lower mold 20. Next, the upper die 21 is lowered, the first sheet 11 and the third sheet 13 are sandwiched between the moving die 21a and the moving die 20a, and heat and stress are applied to the first sheet 11 and the third sheet 13, thereby welding the first sheet 11 and the third sheet 13.

As a result, as shown in fig. 8(a), the following structure was obtained: the first sheet 11 hangs downward, and the upper end edge thereof is supported by the third sheet 13, and the second sheet 12 is welded to the middle of the hanging portion of the first sheet 11. When the structure thus obtained is inverted vertically, as shown in fig. 2, the upper sheet 4 in the upper portion has a substantially elliptical cross section, and the suspending portion 5 is welded between the upper sheet 4 and the lower sheet 3 to obtain the air chambers 1 having the lower openings of the upper sheet 4 closed, and the air chamber units 10 having the air chambers 1 connected to each other by the welding portion 6. When both ends of the cylindrical portion formed by the first sheet 11 and the third sheet 13 are overlapped in the horizontal direction and welded to each other, ear portions 2 are formed at both ends of the air chamber 1 as shown in fig. 8 (b).

According to the manufacturing method of the present embodiment, in the case where the air chamber unit 10 is configured by three air chambers 1 as shown in fig. 8, the welding step of the suspending portion (second sheet 12) is performed once, the welding step of the third sheet 13 configuring the bottom surface is performed once, the welding step of both end portions of each cylindrical body is performed six times, and the total number of welding steps is eight. In contrast, in the case of the air chamber described in conventional patent document 3, as shown in fig. 18, a welding step (1) of the suspension portion is required in order to manufacture one air chamber; a welding step (2) for the bottom side; welding processes (3) and (4) of both end edges of the cylindrical body; and welding processes (5), (6), (7) and (8) for mounting buttons on both upper end parts and both lower end parts of the air chambers, wherein the buttons are used for mounting the air chambers on fixing buttons arranged on the inner surface of the inflatable mattress cover, and the total number of the processes is eight. Thus, a total of twenty-four processes are required to manufacture the three air chambers. Therefore, according to the present invention, eight welding steps are sufficient to manufacture one air chamber cell or three air chamber structure, and the process can be shortened to 1/3 in the related art.

Fig. 9 is a view schematically showing the manufacturing method of fig. 7 and 8. The air chamber cell shown in fig. 10(c) can be manufactured in the same manner as the manufacturing method. The air chamber unit is configured such that the first sheet 11a is bent shallowly, the third sheet 13a is bent deeply, and the second sheet 12a serving as a suspension portion to short-circuit the deeper bent portion of the third sheet 13a is welded to the inner surface of the third sheet 13a, so that the first sheet 11a and the third sheet 13a are formed into a bag shape. Therefore, the air chambers below the air chambers of the air chamber unit are connected by the welded portion 6 a.

Fig. 11 is a view showing a manufacturing process of the air chamber cell. The lower die 23 used in the present embodiment is formed with a plurality of projecting movable dies 23a, and the upper die 21 is formed with a plurality of vertically standing wall-like movable dies 21a, as in fig. 7. The movable mold 23a and the movable mold 21a are formed at positions matching each other, and the upper mold 21 and the lower mold 23 are arranged so that the movable mold 23a and the movable mold 21a face each other. The distance between the

movable molds

23a and 21a is determined based on the lateral width of the air chamber 1 between the outermost movable mold and the inner movable mold and between the two

movable molds

23a and 21a at the center (wide distance), and the movable mold pairs at both sides and the movable mold pair at the center (narrow distance) are separated by a slight distance. Further, support portions 24a capable of lifting and lowering for fixing and positioning the end portions of the sheet are provided on the outer surfaces of the outermost moving dies 21a,

support portions

24b and 24c are provided between the moving dies 21a with a wide interval and between the moving dies 21a with a narrow interval, respectively, and the sheet is supported by the

support portions

24b and 24c while being stretched over the

support portions

24b and 24 c. The support portion 24c can be raised and lowered.

In the present embodiment, first, as shown in fig. 11(a), the second sheet 12a for the suspended portion is placed on the moving die 23a of the lower die 23. The third sheet 13a for the air chamber is bridged over the

support portions

24b and 24 c. Then, the moving die 21a of the upper die 21 is pressed against the moving die 23a of the lower die 23, and heat and stress are applied to the second sheet 12a and the third sheet 13a, thereby welding the second sheet 12a and the third sheet 13 a. Next, as shown in fig. 11(b), the

support portions

24a and 24c are lowered to lift the second sheet 12 a. At this time, the third sheet 13a between the widely spaced moving dies 21a hangs down between the supporting portions 24 b. Then, the first sheet 11a is placed on the moving die 23a of the lower die 23, the moving die 21a is lowered, the first sheet 11a and the third sheet 13a are sandwiched between the moving die 21a and the moving die 23a, and heat and stress are applied to weld the sheets. As a result, as shown in fig. 10, an air chamber cell in which the fusion joint 6a between the air chambers is located below the lower portion of the air chamber was produced.

Fig. 12 and 13 are views showing another method of manufacturing the air chamber cell 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention. The method bends the first sheet 11b and the third sheet 13b into semi-ellipses, and commonly welds the tips of the ellipses to the second sheet 12 b. Fig. 12 is a schematic view of the ear portion 2 formed in the longitudinal direction by horizontally pressing and welding the cylindrical bodies of the first sheet 11b and the third sheet 13b formed as described above so that both end portions thereof are vertically overlapped with each other to form the ear portion 2. The air chamber cell can be manufactured as shown in fig. 13. As shown in fig. 13, the manufacturing method of the present embodiment uses the same upper die 21 and lower die 20 as those in fig. 7. However, in the present embodiment, one support portion 24b is provided at an upper portion between the wide-spaced moving molds 21a, and one support portion 24c is provided at a lower portion between the narrow-spaced moving molds 21 a. A support portion 24a is provided outside the outermost moving mold 21 a.

In the present embodiment, the third sheet 13b is laid on the

support portions

24a, 24b, and 24c inside the upper mold 21, and the first sheet 11b is placed on the movable mold 20a and the

support portions

22a and 22b of the lower mold 20. At this time, the first sheet 11b hangs down between the wide moving dies 20a and between the narrow moving dies 20 a. The second sheet 12b is horizontally arranged between the first sheet 11b and the third sheet 13b, and the second sheet 12b is supported by the moving die 20 a. In this state, the working die 21a is lowered toward the working die 20a, and the first sheet 11b, the third sheet 13b, and the second sheet 12b are sandwiched between the working die 21a and the working die 20a, and heat and stress are applied thereto, thereby performing welding. Thus, it is possible to manufacture an air chamber unit in which a suspending portion is provided at the center in the vertical direction of the air chambers, and adjacent air chambers are connected at the center in the vertical direction. Further, the air chamber unit including three air chambers can be manufactured at the same time by the manufacturing apparatus of fig. 13, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the first sheet 11b, the second sheet 12b, and the third sheet 13b may be welded separately from the adjacent air chambers so as not to be connected to the adjacent air chambers, and the three air chambers may be welded to each other at appropriate positions after being manufactured.

Fig. 14 is a view similarly showing another manufacturing method according to the embodiment of the present invention. The air chamber unit of the present embodiment is also provided with a suspending portion at the center in the vertical direction of the vertically long air chamber, and is formed by connecting adjacent air chambers to each other at the center in the vertical direction of the air chamber. However, in the air chamber unit of the present embodiment, in order to form the ear portions 2a, the cylindrical bodies of the first sheet 11c and the third sheet 13c formed as described above are pressed and welded in the vertical direction so that both end portions thereof horizontally overlap, and the ear portions 2a extending in the lateral direction are formed. The air chamber cell of the present embodiment can also be manufactured by the manufacturing apparatus shown in fig. 13.

Fig. 15 is a view similarly showing another method for manufacturing the air chamber cell 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention. In the method, when three cylindrical bodies each composed of the first sheet 11c and the third sheet 13c are manufactured in the same manner as in fig. 14, and then, both end portions thereof are horizontally overlapped and pressed in the vertical direction and welded, the overlapped portions pressed in the vertical direction are similarly welded at two locations in the longitudinal direction of the cylindrical bodies, so that the air chambers are divided into three in the longitudinal direction, and three air chambers connected to each other in the longitudinal direction of the air chambers are formed.

Fig. 16 shows a structure in which the ear portion 2 extending in the vertical direction as shown in fig. 8(b) is cut, formed, and trimmed as shown in fig. 17 to form the

coupling portions

30a and 30 b. The connecting portion 30a is formed above an end surface 1c at an end portion in the longitudinal direction of the air chamber 1, and the connecting portion 30b is formed in an intermediate portion of the end surface 1 c. The connecting

portions

30a and 30b are band-shaped, and locking

portions

31 and 32 are formed at the distal end portions thereof. The

engagement portions

31 and 32 overlap each other and engage with each other, thereby connecting the end surfaces 1c in the longitudinal direction of the adjacent air chambers 1. Therefore, when the connecting

portions

30a and 30b are provided, the air chambers 1 are connected at a portion other than the welding portion 6 without providing the button 7 as shown in fig. 5 or the like and without providing a tape for connecting the button 7, and the plurality of air chambers 1 can be restricted from each other by the welding portion 6 and the connecting

portions

30a and 30 b.

In the above-described embodiment, the air chamber unit is configured by three air chambers, but is not limited to three, and one air chamber unit may be configured by two, four or more air chambers, or all the air chambers necessary for an air mattress may be configured by one air chamber unit. The number of air chambers constituting the air chamber unit is mainly determined by the control mode of air pressure control such as alternate expansion and contraction.

Industrial applicability

According to the present invention, the air cells and the air cell units can be easily manufactured, and the air cells and the air cell units can be easily handled, and the air mattress has an excellent lying feeling, and therefore, the present invention significantly contributes to the spread of the air mattress.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing an air chamber unit,

using a manufacturing apparatus having a lower mold member in which a plurality of pairs of vertical molds are arranged with a certain interval between adjacent pairs of vertical molds, the vertical molds of the pairs of vertical molds being erected with a chamber width apart from each other, and an upper mold member in which the vertical molds are arranged so as to face the vertical molds respectively,

placing a first sheet for an air chamber on the lower mold member in a state of being suspended between the longitudinal molds of each longitudinal mold pair and between the adjacent longitudinal mold pairs, placing a plurality of second sheets for a suspending portion on the first sheet on the longitudinal molds so as to be laid between the longitudinal molds of the longitudinal mold pairs, and nipping and joining the first sheet and the second sheet between the longitudinal molds of the upper mold member and the longitudinal molds of the lower mold member; and

2. A method of manufacturing an air chamber unit,

a manufacturing apparatus is used, which includes a lower die member and an upper die member, wherein the lower die member is formed by arranging a plurality of pairs of vertical dies so that adjacent pairs of vertical dies are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, the vertical dies of the vertical die pairs are arranged to stand with a chamber width apart from each other, the upper die member is provided with vertical dies respectively facing the vertical dies, a first support portion for holding a sheet material is provided at an upper portion of an inside of the vertical die pair of the upper die member, a second support portion for holding a sheet material is provided at a middle portion of the upper die member between the vertical die pairs,

3. A method of manufacturing an air chamber unit,

a manufacturing apparatus is used, which includes a lower die member and an upper die member, wherein the lower die member is formed by arranging a plurality of pairs of vertical dies so that adjacent pairs of vertical dies are spaced apart from each other by a predetermined distance, the vertical dies of the vertical die pairs are arranged to stand with a chamber width apart from each other, the upper die member is provided with vertical dies respectively facing the vertical dies, a first support portion for holding a sheet material is provided at an upper portion of an inside of the vertical die pair of the upper die member, a second support portion for holding a sheet material is provided at a lower portion of the upper die member between the vertical die pairs,