JPH0994134A - Cushioning structural body, and cushion pad and seat using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a proper hardness, ventilation performance, and heat insulation performance by slicing a dried and pressed sponge gourd into plural pieces, containing and holding these in a mold for immersing these in a water tank, or sprinkling water to them to swell, drying them, and setting them with their cut surfaces in the load-applied direction. SOLUTION: A dried and pressed sponge gourd 3 is sliced at a length of about 5cm to correspond to height of a cushion pad 1. Next, a mold 5 is prepared, cut pieces of the sponge gourd 3 are put in the mold 5 in the vertical direction to be contained without dropping, and water is sprinkled to them, or the mold 5 is immersed in a water tank, so the sponge gourd 3 is swollen. Though the sponge gourd 3 is thus swollen, the pieces are regulated by the mold 5, so gap between the piece of the sponge gourd 3 and the mold 5, and gap between the adjacent pieces of the sponge gourd 3 are filled. A uniform and a dense porous fiber structure tissue can thus be formed along the whole range in the mold 5, and after draining and drying this in a drying chamber, it is contained in a foundation cloth bag 4.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a cushioning structure that uses natural loofah as a cushioning material for mats and pads.

[0002]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Loofah fruit is used for food and medicine, liquid for makeup, fiber for cleaning scrubbing brushes, brushes, insoles, ladies' hats, bodice materials, cushioning materials, filtering materials, etc. ing. In particular, loofah has excellent elasticity as well as breathability, heat retention, water absorption, and is a suitable material as a cushioning material.
It has been used well from the past.

However, conventionally, dried loofah is crushed and only the fibers are taken out, and then the fibers are put into a base cloth bag as a filling material for use, or they are used in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 61-28455 and Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 62-136699. Gazette, Jitsukai Sho 63-1248
As disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 61, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 61-242 has used vertical chopped or sliced loofah to dry and put it in a pillow, or to put loofah cut into appropriate lengths on a liner or the like for use. In all of these cases, the loofah was placed sideways and used with emphasis on the elasticity of the loofah as a cushion.

[0004]

That is, in these conventional methods, loofah is merely used as a normal cushioning material having air permeability and is replaced with one of other natural and artificial cushioning materials. However, it cannot be said that the characteristics and effectiveness of loofah are fully utilized.

Therefore, the present invention provides a fiber structure of the loofah having excellent breathability and elasticity among the many effective properties of loofah, that is, a fiber having a fine internal fiber structure but a fine fiber outside. A new application method was found, focusing on the unique fiber structure that has a structure and changes to a dense fiber structure toward the outer surface.

That is, the loofah has appropriate softness and elasticity with respect to lateral force and has a sufficient function as a cushion, but has insufficient cushioning property in the longitudinal direction. , Was never used vertically. However, even dried loofah has the strength to withstand a considerable amount of load in the vertical direction, and has the strength to withstand a considerable weight unless it is bent by buckling. understood. Therefore, by using this property to install the loofah so that it does not bend in the vertical direction, it becomes a cushioning structure excellent in moderate hardness, breathability and heat retention, as a cushion pad for floor pads, mattresses, etc. , In addition to cushions and mats, it is to be used as a stool.

[0007]

According to the first aspect of the present invention, a dry-pressed loofah is sliced into predetermined lengths, and a plurality of cut lobes are aligned and the side faces are sewn together, or the side faces are joined by a string or the like, or A cushioning structure is formed by storing and holding it in a mold and dipping or sprinkling it in a water tank to swell it, and then drying it and arranging the cut surface in the direction of load application.

A second aspect of the present invention resides in that the cushioning structure is housed in a base cloth bag, and the cut surface side is arranged so as to face the load application direction to form a cushion pad.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the dry-pressed loofah is cut into a predetermined length, and the cut surfaces are aligned and a plurality of side surfaces are sewn together, or the side surfaces are joined together by a string or the like, and wound in a bundle, and then in a water tank. It is to swell by swelling and then to be dried, and this is used as a stool for stool by separately attaching a sheet-like cushion material to one end of the cut surface.

[0010]

Description of the Actual State of the Invention When the dry-pressed loofah is immersed in water, the fibers of the loofah are swollen and become close to the original shape before being pressed. Then, if it is dried in this state, it will have a considerable strength against the vertical force, and if this loofah is firmly held, it will not bend due to buckling, etc. As a cushioning structure such as a pad or a stool, one having sufficient strength can be obtained.

That is, when a plurality of dry-pressed loofahs are stored in a predetermined mold and water is sprinkled on the loofah or when the whole mold is immersed in a water tank, the loofah expands and expands. The gaps between the loofahs and the gaps between the loofahs and the mold are closed, and as a result, a uniform and dense porous fiber structure is formed in the entire mold. Therefore, a cushioning structure having sufficient strength can be obtained by sufficiently swelling it and then drying it.

Further, a cushion pad can be manufactured by arranging the cushioning structure in the base cloth bag with the cut surface side facing the direction of load application.

Furthermore, since the loofah that has been dry-pressed can be easily sewn together or joined with a string, etc., after it is joined in the lateral direction, it is wound into a bundle and fixed, and then immersed in a water tank. Then, the loofah swells and expands so as to project into the gaps between the loofahs, forming a strongly bonded structure. Therefore, by using this as a pedestal, with the cut surface side facing upward, and by attaching a sheet-like cushioning material to the pedestal, a stool with a light weight and excellent rigidity and breathability can be obtained.

[0014]

[Embodiment 1] Next, a cushion pad and a cushion structure in the process will be described as an embodiment with reference to FIG. First, many loofahs are usually imported and dried and pressed to reduce the bulk, and are relatively inexpensively available. Therefore, the labor of dehydrating and drying the cultivated and harvested loofah can be omitted.
This dry-pressed loofah has a thickness of 2 cm and a width of 12 c.
The length is about 40 cm and the length is about 40 cm. The loofah is cut into pieces in a length of about 5 cm according to the height of the cushion pad.

Next, a predetermined form 5 corresponding to the size and shape of the product is prepared, and the cut loofah 3 is stored in the form 5 side by side so as not to fall out vertically, and then sprinkled evenly from above. To swell Loofah 3. In order to swell the loofah 3, it is possible to swell the mold 5 together with the mold 5 in the water tank uniformly, but the mold 5 itself has a size of 45 cm × 9.
Since it was a little large at 0 cm, it was performed by sprinkling water from above. Therefore, 2 to include irrigation to swell the whole
It took about 3 minutes.

When the cushion pad 1 has a large area as described above, it is advantageous in terms of workability and quality to first manufacture the cushion pad 1 by dividing it into appropriate sizes and combine them. Further, the formwork 5 is for controlling the size and shape of the outside, and the material of the formwork 5 is a thin band-shaped material, and metal, wood, bamboo, plastic, leather if it does not protrude outside. -In addition to cloth, a combination of these may be used.

The sponge causes the loofah 3 to expand, but since it is regulated by the mold 5, it fills up the gap between the loofah 3 and the mold 5 and the gap between the adjacent loofers 3 and further weak portions. As a result, a uniform and dense fibrous structure is formed throughout the mold 5. In this state, the water was drained, placed in a drying chamber to be dried, and then stored in the base cloth bag 4 to make the cushion pad 1.

The cushion pad 1 thus formed is 4
We laid the sheets side by side according to the bed, covered a woven cloth on it, and made a simple floor pad, and experimented on the function and effect. When I put a thin futon on the pad and laid it on my back, it was not too soft, had adequate cushioning, and had excellent breathability, so my back hurt even after lying down for a considerable time. I didn't sweat or sweat.

[0019]

[Embodiment 2] Next, seating will be described with reference to FIGS. Take 10 of the same loofah as in Example 1 and use 40c so that the pedestal 6 of the stool 2 has an appropriate height.
Cut into circles according to the length of m. Then, the cut loofahs 3 are arranged in the lateral direction and sewn together by a strong string 8 to be joined together, wound into a bundle, and the ends are firmly fixed, and then immersed in a water tank. Loofah 3 was swollen and expanded rapidly in the water tank, and substantially stopped expanding in 10 to 20 seconds, so it was pulled up, drained, and placed in a drying chamber to dry. The bundle of loofah 3 thus taken out was firmly joined unexpectedly, and a pedestal 6 for sitting was obtained with sufficient robustness.

Next, one same loofah is separately immersed in a warm water tank to swell it, restore the original shape, and then hollow out the inside.
Tear in the longitudinal direction and stretch into a sheet. This serves as a cushion 7 for a stool, which is cut with a cutter or scissors according to the upper surface of the pedestal 6 of the stool 2 and is attached so that the outer surface portion of the loofah is facing up. The stool 2 made in this way has the features of being extremely rich in breathability and water absorption and being light.

[0021]

[Other Embodiments] In order to reinforce the cushion pad 1 of the first embodiment, a sheet-like cushion material made of plant fibers such as luffa, rush and straw may be attached to one surface or the rain surface of the pad 1.

The cushion 7 of the stool 2 in the second embodiment may be replaced with loofah and knitted grass or straw may be used. These are the breathability and water absorption of the loofah constituting the pedestal 6 of the stool 2. It does not reduce the natural texture and does not impair the natural texture. Also, when the temperature is low, a cloth cover may be directly covered or a sheet of a foamed resin such as polyurethane may be sandwiched between the covers, or a cushion with another simple pattern may be placed thereon. Further, the pedestal 6 of the loofah stool 2 may be colored with paint, dye or the like or a pattern may be added, and in order to maintain the strength of the stool 2, a support column may be provided inside the pedestal 6. .

[0023]

As described above, the cushion pad and the stool can be easily manufactured by utilizing the natural material called loofah. These are not only excellent in breathability, water absorption, and heat retention, but also have the advantages of being lightweight and easy to carry.

In particular, since the cushion pad has appropriate hardness over the entire surface in addition to the above-mentioned advantages of breathability, water absorption and heat retention, when used as a floor pad or a mattress, floor slippage is unlikely to occur. It has the feature that it is useful. In addition to the above-mentioned advantages, the stool also has the effect of decorating the room by giving it a natural feel.

[Brief description of drawings]

[0025]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of essential parts showing an outline of a cushion pad of this embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a stool of this embodiment.

3 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG.

[0026]

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 cushion pad 2 stool 3 loofah 4 base cloth bag 5 formwork 6 pedestal 7 cushion 8 string

Claims (5)

[Claims] 1. A dry-pressed loofah is sliced into a predetermined length, and a plurality of the loofahs are cut into pieces, the cut surfaces are aligned and the side surfaces are sewn together, or the sides are joined by a string or the like, or they are stored and held in a mold and placed in a water tank. A cushioning structure, characterized in that after being dipped or sprinkled with water to swell and dried, the cut surface side is arranged with the load applied direction. 2. A cushioning pad in which the cushioning structure according to claim 1 is housed in a base cloth bag, and the cut surface side is arranged in the load application direction. 3. The cushioning pad according to claim 2, wherein a sheet-shaped cushioning material made of plant fibers such as loofah, rush and straw is attached to one or both sides of the cut surface side of the cushioning structure. 4. The dry-pressed loofah is sliced into a predetermined length, and the cut surfaces are aligned and sewed together, or the side surfaces are sewn together, or tied together with a string or the like, wound into a bundle, and swollen by immersing in a water tank. The stool is characterized in that a sheet-shaped cushion material is attached to one end of the cut surface side after being dried. 5. The stool according to claim 4, wherein the sheet-shaped cushioning material is made of vegetable fibers such as loofah, rush and straw.