EP2036461A1

EP2036461A1 - Magnetic levitation cushion and magnetic levitation device thereof

Info

Publication number: EP2036461A1
Application number: EP08014831A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Lo-Ping Hsu
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-09-12
Filing date: 2008-08-21
Publication date: 2009-03-18
Also published as: JP2009068704A

Abstract

A magnetic levitation cushion has multiple magnetic levitation devices (1) being assembled with at least one bracket (2). Each magnetic levitation device (1) has a housing (10), a fixed magnet (14), a movable magnet (15), a shaft (16) and a primary pad (17). The fixed magnet (14) is mounted securely in the housing (10). The movable magnet (15) is mounted slidably in the housing (10) and faces the fixed magnet (14) with a same magnetic pole. The shaft (16) is mounted slidably through the housing (10) and has a bottom end attached to the movable magnet (15). The primary pad (17) is mounted on a top end of the shaft (16). The magnetic levitation cushion is used for upholstered furniture such as chairs, beds and sofas and does not suffer metal fatigue or material hardening problems and may be cleaned, rearranged and recycled effectively.

Description

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a cushion, especially to a magnetic levitation cushion being used as a supporting assembly for beds, chairs, sofas and the like.

2. Description of the Prior Arts

Upholstered furniture like beds, chairs or sofas generally comprise supporting elements, such as springs or latex.
A spring-bed offers a level of comfort determined by a number of coils of metal springs and wire diameter of the metal springs installed inside the spring-bed. The springs also affect flexibility and hardness of the spring-bed. Therefore, lying on a very hard or soft spring-bed may chronically injure a person's back and spine and may also cause loss of sleep due to discomfort and even negatively-affect growth of a child's spine. The spring-bed has a lifespan due to metal fatigue and will become too soft for a person's spine.
Furthermore, the internal structure of the spring-bed is so complicated that dirt easily accumulates inside and the spring-bed is hard to be dismantled for cleaning the dirt.
A latex bed is suitable for lying on. However, the material of the latex bed has a high density. With bad ventilation, the latex bed will not provide good heat-dissipation and cause discomfort, even heat-rash by excessive perspiration. Besides, latex material of the latex bed will become harder year by year and crumble causing terminal failure.
To overcome the shortcomings, the present invention provides a magnetic levitation cushion to mitigate or obviate the aforementioned problems.
The main objective of the present invention is to provide a magnetic levitation cushion that uses permanent magnets to exert repulsive magnetic forces as supporting forces.
The magnetic levitation cushion has multiple magnetic levitation devices being assembled with at least one bracket. Each magnetic levitation device has a housing, a fixed magnet, a movable magnet, a shaft and a primary pad. The fixed magnet is mounted securely in the housing. The movable magnet is mounted slidably in the housing and faces the fixed magnet with a same magnetic pole. The shaft is mounted slidably through the housing and has a bottom end attached to the movable magnet. The primary pad is mounted on a top end of the shaft. The cushion is used for upholstered furniture such as chairs, beds and sofas. Since the magnets provide magnetic forces, the cushion does not suffer from metal fatigue or material hardening problems and may be cleaned, rearranged and recycled effectively.
Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a magnetic levitation cushion in accordance with the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a partial enlarged perspective view of the magnetic levitation cushion in Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a magnetic levitation device in accordance with the present invention;
Fig. 4 is an exploded perspective view of the magnetic levitation device in Fig. 3;
Fig. 5 is a cross sectional view of the magnetic levitation device in Fig. 3;
Fig. 6 an exploded perspective view of a second embodiment of a magnetic levitation device in accordance with the present invention; and
Fig. 7 is a cross sectional view of a third embodiment of the magnetic levitation device in accordance with the present invention.

With reference to Fig. 1, a magnetic levitation cushion in accordance with the present invention comprises multiple magnetic levitation devices (1) and at least one bracket (2).
With further reference to Figs. 2 to 5 and 7, the magnetic levitation devices (1) are attached to each other using the at least one bracket (2). Each magnetic levitation device (1) comprises a housing (10), an optional base (11), an optional lid (12), an optional piston (13), a fixed magnet (14), a movable magnet (15), a shaft (16), a primary pad (17), two optional rings (18) and at least one optional suspended magnet (30).
The housing (10) has an open top, an open bottom, a top rim and a bottom rim, may be cylindrical or cuboidal and may have multiple protrusions (100), multiple tab holes and at least one bracket mount. The protrusions (100) and the tab holes are formed in the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10) and may be adjacent to each other. The at least one bracket mount is formed on the housing (10) and may be a protrusion.
The base (11) is mounted on the open bottom of the housing (10) and has a top surface, a recess (110) and multiple optional tabs. The recess (110) is formed on the top surface of the base (11). The optional tabs are resilient and protrude radially around the base (11) and respectively extend into a corresponding tab hole of the housing (10).
The lid (12) is mounted on the open top of the housing (10) and has a through hole (120) and multiple optional tabs. The through hole (120) is formed through the lid (12) and may be keyed and may be a cross, a polygon or the like. The optional tabs are resilient and protrude radially around the lid (12) and respectively extend into a corresponding tab hole of the housing (10).
The piston (13) is mounted slidably inside the housing (10) and has an upper surface, a lower surface, a recess (130) and a shaft mount (131). The recess (130) is formed on the lower surface and opposite to the recess (110) of the base (11). The shaft mount (131) is formed on the upper surface of the piston (13) and may protrude from the upper surface of the piston (13), correspond to and extend into the through hole (120) of the lid (12).
The fixed magnet (14) is mounted securely inside the housing (10) and may be mounted in the recess (110) of the base (11).
The movable magnet (15) is mounted slidably in the housing (10), faces the fixed magnet (14) with a same magnetic pole to exert repulsion forces to the fixed magnet (14) and may be mounted securely in the recess (130) of the piston (13). The movable magnet (15) then stays apart from the fixed magnet (14) due to the magnetic repulsion forces and is prevented from flipping by the piston (13).
The shaft (16) is mounted slidably through the housing and has a bottom end and a top end. The bottom end is attached to the movable magnet (15), extends through the through hole (120) of the lid (12) into the housing (10), and may have a piston mount (160). The piston mount (160) corresponds to and is connected securely to the shaft mount (131) of the piston (13).
The primary pad (17) is mounted on the top end of the shaft (16) and may have an upper surface, at least one pad mount (171) and at least one secondary pad (170). The at least one pad mount (171) is formed on upper surface of the primary pad (170). The at least one secondary pad (170) is mounted on the at least one pad mount (171) and may be resilient and comprise multiple wings protruding away from a plane of the at least one secondary pad (170) and has a center, a mounting hole (172) and a fastener (173). The mounting hole (172) is formed through the center of the at least one secondary pad (170). The fastener (173) mounts the at least one secondary pad (170) on the pad mount (171) of the primary pad (17) through the mounting hole (172).
With further reference to Fig. 6, the rings (18) are respectively mounted on the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10). Each ring (18) may have an inner sidewall, an outer sidewall, at least one slot (180) and at least one bracket mount (181). The slot (180) is formed on the inner sidewall and engages a corresponding protrusion (100) of the housing (10) to fix the ring (18) on the housing (10) and reinforce the housing (10). The at least one bracket mount (181) is formed on the outer sidewall of the ring (18) to allow simple attachment of multiple magnetic levitation devices (1).
The at least one optional suspended magnet (30) is mounted slidably between the fixed magnet (14) and the movable magnet (15) inside the housing (10) and may comprise a suspension frame mounted between the housing (10) and the suspended magnet (30) to prevent rotation or flipping thereof.
The at least one bracket (2) holding the magnetic levitation devices (1) together and may have at least two ends and each end having a ring mount (20) formed on the end. Each ring mount (20) corresponds to and engages the bracket mount (181) of the housing (10), maybe on the ring (18) mounted on the bottom rim or the top rim, or the top and bottom rims of the housing (10). Therefore the magnetic levitation devices (1) are assembled with the bracket (2).
When a force is applied against the primary pad (17), the magnetic repulsion between the magnets (14, 15, 30) resists the force by reducing a separation distance. When the force is removed, the magnets increase the separation distance. Therefore, the present invention can be used as a supporting structure for upholstered furniture. Furthermore, the magnets (14, 15, 30) are all permanent magnets and will maintain the magnetic repulsion inside the housing (10) for a long time. The upholstered furniture thus has a long lifespan.
The present invention also has following advantages:

1. Easy to clean, a user can dismantle the magnetic levitation cushion by themselves for internal cleaning.
2. Easy to repair, damaged magnetic levitation devices (1) in the magnetic levitation cushion can be individually replaced. Therefore, the furniture need not be disposed of if one device fails.
3. Superior air ventilation, every magnetic levitation device (1) is a single structure and space between the magnetic levitation devices (1) is sufficient for ventilation.
4. Easy to change size, a size of the magnetic levitation cushion can be changed as desired by decreasing or increasing the number of the magnetic levitation devices (1).
5. Recyclable, furniture employing the magnetic levitation devices (1) may be reshaped and reupholstered by changing an exterior only more cheaply than replacing an entire furniture for improved adaptability and to maintain changing trends and fashions.

Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with details of the structure and features of the invention, the disclosure is illustrative only. Changes may be made in the details, especially in matters of shape, size, and arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended claims are expressed.

Claims

A magnetic levitation device (1) comprising:
a housing (10) having an open top, and a top rim;

a fixed magnet (14) being mounted securely inside the housing (10);

a movable magnet (15) being mounted slidably in the housing (10) and facing the fixed magnet (14) with a same magnetic pole;

a shaft (16) being mounted slidably through the housing (10) and having a bottom end being attached to movable magnet (15); and a top end; and

a primary pad (17) being mounted on the top end of the shaft (16).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein:
the housing (10) further has an open bottom and a bottom rim;

the magnetic levitation device (1) further comprises
a base (11) being mounted on the open bottom of the housing (10) and has
a top surface; and

a recess (110) being formed on the top surface of the base (11);

a lid (12) being mounted on the open top of the housing (10) and having a through hole (120) being formed through the lid (12); and

a piston (13) being mounted slidably inside the housing (10) and having

an upper surface;

a lower surface;

a recess (130) being formed on the lower surface and opposite to the recess (110) of the base (11); and

a shaft mount (131) being formed on the upper surface of the piston (13);

the fixed magnet (14) is mounted in the recess (110) of the base (11);

the movable magnet (15) is mounted securely in the recess (130) of the piston (13); and

the bottom end of the shaft (16) extends through the through hole (120) of the lid (12) into the housing (10) and has a piston mount (160) corresponding to and being connected securely to the shaft mount (131) of the piston (13).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in claim 2, wherein
the magnetic levitation device (1) further comprises two rings (18) being respectively mounted on the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10); wherein

at least one of the rings (18) has
an outer sidewall; and

at least one bracket mount (181) being formed on the outer sidewall of the ring (18) to allow attachment of multiple magnetic levitation devices (1).
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 3, wherein
the housing (10) further has multiple protrusions (100) being formed in the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10); and
each of the rings (18) mounted on the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10) further has
an inner sidewall; and
at least one slot (180) being formed on the inner sidewall and engaging a corresponding protrusion (100) of the housing (10).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in claim 4, wherein the primary pad (17) has
an upper surface;
at least one pad mount (171) being formed on the upper surface; and
at least one secondary pad (170) being mounted on the at least one pad mount (171).
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 5, wherein the at least one secondary pad (170) has
a center;
a mounting hole (172) being formed through the center of the at least one secondary pad (170); and
a fastener (173) mounting the at least one secondary pad (170) on the pad mount (171) of the primary pad (17) through the mounting hole (172).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in claim 6, wherein the at least one secondary pad (170) is resilient and has multiple wings protruding away from a plane of the at least one secondary pad (170).
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the shaft mount (131) of the piston (13) protrudes from the upper surface of the piston (13), corresponds to and extends into the through hole (120) of the lid (12).
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 2, wherein
the housing (10) further has multiple tab holes being formed in the top rim and bottom rim of the housing (10) and being adjacent to each other;
the base (11) further has multiple tabs being resilient and protruding radially around the base (11) and respectively extending into a corresponding tab hole of the housing (10); and
the lid (13) further has multiple tabs being resilient and protruding radially around the lid (12) and respectively extending into a corresponding tab hole of the housing (10).
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 2, wherein the through hole of the lid is a cross or a polygon.
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in anyone of claims 1 to 10, wherein the magnetic levitation device further comprises at least one suspended magnet being mounted slidably between the fixed magnet and the movable magnet inside the housing.
The magnetic levitation device as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at least one suspended magnet (30) further comprises a suspension frame mounted between the housing (10) and the suspended magnet (30).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the multiple magnetic levitation devices (1) are implemented as a magnetic levitation cushion and attached to each other using at least one bracket (2).
The magnetic levitation device (1) as claimed in anyone of claims 3 to 7, wherein the multiple magnetic levitation devices (1) are implemented as a magnetic levitation cushion and attached to each other using at least one bracket (2).
The magnetic levitation cushion as claimed in claim 14, wherein
the at least one bracket has at least two ends and each end has a ring mount (20) formed on the end; and
each ring mount (20) corresponds to and engages the bracket mount (181) of the ring (18) mounted on the bottom rim or the top rim, or the top and bottom rims of the housing (10).