US20090001800A1

US20090001800A1 - Device for human body resting support area interface interaction control and method thereof

Info

Publication number: US20090001800A1
Application number: US12/214,819
Authority: US
Inventors: Prabhat Kumar
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2007-06-26
Filing date: 2008-06-24
Publication date: 2009-01-01

Abstract

A device for human body resting area interface interaction control with a method thereof, wherein moving unexposed air into each zone of body contour adapting flexural collapse resisting void interacts with body and exposed air exit trough flexural low resistance duct.

Description

This application claims priority to provisional application No. 60/937,047 dated Jun. 26, 2007, express mail dated Jun. 21, 2007, titled “device for human body resting support area interface ventilation, heat control and method thereof”.
The objective in the.,art is to provide bio-functional, physical and thermal comfort through interface interaction control to body at rest in various positions of seating and lying. The body at rest needs physical support that is generally compatible to body contour of resting part to make it comfortable. On a contoured support surface the body part has lower pressure compared to flat surface because of the larger surface area of the rest surface for a given load and thereby also providing accommodation of body flesh parts. This make the body part more comfortable like a soft cushion compared to a flat seat plank. When instead of the flat wooden a curved seat of body contour is used it gives better seating comfort.
While the body is resting it continues to perform its bio-functions including metabolism, which requires air, giving energy generation and other bio-operations on the rest surface areas.
The heat generation is a natural phenomenon, however when the body is resting this heat gets trapped by the resting support surface generating higher temperature depending on nature of the resting surface. This causes disparity in heat dissipation compared to exposed body area and influences the body functions. In hot and cold climate sweating and heat loss respectively are influenced. These inequalities besides influencing bio-function also give discomfort to human feelings.

PRIOR ART BACKGROUND

The prior art provides several kinds of device. These broadly are fixed and cushion type. In the fixed type are flat and curved surface rigid and semi-rigid—netted and woven seat and bed with perforation as added feature. Their physical comfort is limited, as they do not give sufficient contour flexibility.
In the devices, which are having spherical/cylindrical beads, forming a layer spread on soft seat these is some added air in the support area but this is entrapped air as in the trough seat cover. The soft seat and the body parts on resting fill up the bead curve surface limiting air trapped therein. Spring coil, including set with coil plane oblique, because of the large pitch, collapse reducing space and air which gets entrapped besides the large pitch leads to concentrated leading thus increases the discomforting body contact pressure.
In the cushion type for indoor, outdoor and mobile transportation usage material like synthetic foam, rubber pads, rubberized and natural coir and like material are used. These give good contour flexibility but no or little air movement capability. The foam and coir have very small air gap, which get pressed under body weight pressure in region of support. These materials then act more like a strong heat transmission insulator in the pressed condition compare to the depressed condition. Some of these materials are used extensively as heat insulation. This result in body heat getting trapped and cause temperature rise of up to 10° C., being subjective to heat generation and dissipation of site condition. Due to temperature rise the body experiences excessive heat and discomfort. This is more pronounced in hot situations like geographical tropical areas, deserts etc and exposed areas including automobiles and other transport system and buildings
In prior art there are also devices in which the flexible foam, coir and like materials are fed with air through ducts. The air under pressure comes out from the ducts and spreads in the seat medium-foam, coil, etc. and travel through the medium to the periphery and exterior. The air has to travel through the entire medium length succeeding the air inlet port. The air experiences multiple flow resistance. Firstly the medium gets compressed at the body contact face with the support seat leading to little or no air passage. Thus air bypasses these compressed areas since air moves through path of least resistance. Secondly the length of travel to the periphery from point of release in the medium is long causing added air resistance thus reducing flow rate. Also generally qualities like heat transfer, airflow, moisture content, metabolism rate are function of gradient differences. The heat transfer depends on temperature difference other factors remaining same. Airflow rate depends on resistance to flow and pressure difference. In the prior art devices because the medium-foam, coir being soft, collapse under body support pressure, get compressed reduces air gap, increase air resistance causing little or no air flow leading to bypassing of the desired body rest surface contact area by no or little airflow. Also the air passes succeeding zones across the length of the support medium. As the air passes succeeding area the air picks up heat and gain in temperature. Thus succeeding areas have higher and higher temperature of the passing air. Since heat transfer is function of temperature difference the amount of heat taken away reduces with the increasing air temperature in succeeding support zones. These lead to deteriorating functions—heat, moisture, air, etc. of the air causing insufficient performance. The prior art because of the inherent multiple deficiencies do not provide an efficient system that gives the desired function herein fore described.

INVENTION BACKGROUND

The invention provides a device with an interactive means, which has body rest surface bearing face where the air interacts with the body rest area while it supports the body. The support is by close-pitched crests, high parts surfaces and trough linked air voids. These crests-high part surfaces may have many faces and shapes with corresponding sections. They can be of regular or irregular geometrical shapes and be flat spherical, cylindrical or combination top surface and be solid, hollow section and be rigid or semi-rigid structure. The crest are close pitched thus body rest surface is uniformly supported without discomforting feeling of support concentrated bearing of weight, pressure. The crest have rigidity in themselves and do not collapse under the body weight-unlike do prior art with large pitch, allowing intrusion and blocking. In this invention the crest under support is flexible allowing the crest-high parts—pivot to move up down to adjust according to the body contour and the crest undersurface structure and the interactive means mounting structure yield and adjustment. Thus the interactive surface formed by crest and trough deforms to give contour support. The troughs, gap between the crests are in fluid communication with the interconnected air voids means system juxtaposed to the interactive means body interface surface. The here before described crest structure and air void structure makes the air void collapse resisting while bearing the body at rest on the crest surface which takes the body contour giving body physical contour comfort. The voids may be of more than one and different shapes, size configurations and be interconnected directly or through connecting passages. These features give air in the air void in various interface zone of the interactive means easy moving and spreading capability unlike prior act and to interact with the body rest surface. The air voids through a system of air feed ports be in communication through feed ducts with various interface zone and exterior of the interface area of the interactive means gives it as a matrix area distribution network. Another novel feature is the supply and exit of the interactive means. This gives fresh i.e. not worked, unexposed air supply to various matrix zones of the device interactive means to give comfort to fine part in contact.
After spreading and interacting with the body surface the air is passed led out through exit port in each matrix zone air void by corresponding exit duct out flow system means to the exterior of the device. Thus the body-exposed air is removed to exterior from each matrix zone without interacting with succeeding adjoining matrix zone area giving higher performance-heat transfer and air feed. This feature gives the advantage that the outgoing air, after performing its function is subjected to lower air flow resistance as it exits at the matrix zone exit port, not travel through all the succeeding zone area of the interacting means surface and through the exit duct.
The lower resistance experienced by the air allow more air volume flow for given air pressure difference overcoming the major prior art draw back where non-peripheral area do not get good air flow because of communicative air resistance experienced on account of length of travel and reduced, collapsed air void in the juxtapose zone of the body rest surface of the prior art. The invention provides a controlled airflow over the interactive face like experienced with an air stream. The air supply can be conditioned, pretreated like temperature, humidity by air condition and heating of the supply air or surface conditioned air void surface conditioning by known means like heating wire and cooling tubes. The use of inlet and outlet ducts are positioned below interface of interactive means provides thermal insulation from under support materials thereby giving isolation reducing energy loss to the under apparatus, equipment like seat, sofa, bed support.
In this invention unexposed, virgin air after emerging from the inlet ports in the interactive means particular zone matrix air void spreads through the body juxtaposed air voids and passes scavenging body resting interface causing heat and mass-moisture transfer function and exit in the zone area air void exit port and led out by the exits ducts. The ducts have larger clear air passage thus air experiences much lower flow resistance allowing higher air volume for given air pressure-gradient, conversely for a given volume flow lesser energy is used because of much lower pressure. Subjective to situation, a 50% reduction in energy maybe there for a given flow. In prior art, air is blocked at every stage, at entry point and flow through the entire length of the seat air resistance medium plus further because of the collapsible medium—there is no measure to non-blocking port or collapse resistance is practiced, leading to very low or no flow making them inefficient.
The invention also provides variation in airflow on the interactive means surface for e.g. more in central area of a seat by having more number of ports and larger, smaller size of ports in the central area. The number and size for inlet port and outlet port can suitably be set.
The improved performance of the supply air is powered by air blower to above atmosphere pressure giving large airflow in the interactive means air voids. Having a negative pressure i.e. below atmospheric pressure at the exit ports of the matrix to give more efficient performance further increases this flow. In a lower performing variation of the invention the air movement is without external powered air and caused by convective airflow generated due to body heat. When air contacts the body it gains heat from the body causing a slight temperature rise. This causes air to rise and flow to a gravitationally higher area of the body contoured interactive means in the air voids. This heated air either escapes out from the air permeable peripheral part of the interactive means where body is not resting and covering or looses its heat to surrounding and flows down through air ducts to the gravitationally lower zone of the body contoured interactive means. from the air permeable peripheral part of the interactive means where body is not resting and covering or looses its heat to surrounding and flows down through air ducts to the gravitationally lower zone of the body contoured interactive means. Where air flows out of the interactive means periphery fresh airflow in duct air passages to the lower part setting a convection cycle.
The convective current is only possible because of good air passage in the interactive means and suitable air transfer-flowing duct system.
Devices based on the invention features can be made assembling various herein described function members and several of these be made into composite unit. Like interactive features are made in combination with an duct features are made in combination with air duct features with various air inlet ports and exit ports distributed to form a matrix giving each zone different air flow capacity.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 depicting schematic three dimension section part of a device embodiment

FIG. 2 depicting schematic top view of device embodiment

FIG. 3 depicting schematic section of device embodiment element

FIG. 4 depicting schematic an inside section of seating layout of device embodiment

FIG. 5 depicting schematic the section view of device embodiment element

DETAIL DESCRIPTION

The schematic sectional perspective view in FIG. 1 shows interactive means 21 a representative of the invention where the crest (1) as cylindrical slabs rising from the structure (3) of the interactive means (21). The gap between the crest constitutes opening of the air voids (2). The gap between the crests (1) is small so that body rest surface and covering cloth thereon shall in normal use not go deep in and substantially reduce the space of air void (2) and obstruct the air movement between inter communicative voids (2). The crest (1) can be of other shapes, square, round, etc and aspect ratio to have sufficient rigidity not to buckle or comprises under body pressure to cause the air voids (2) to collapse losing their air flowing character unlike the prior act where air get confined by collapsing passages. The void may be of various shape and size suitable to give airflow ability under body resting pressure. The base structure (3) hold the crest (1) where the air voids (2) are located. The material can be no-metal synthetic like plastic, elastomer or natural materials like rubber. The face of crest (1) rise is flat or slightly spherical with a small pitch to give body surface the feel of uniformity, non-over concentration of body pressure as one feels in prior art spaced out beads, ribs or benches of prior art.
The crests (1) are solid non collapsing and thus the air voids (2) form there between giving air void means are also collapse resisting inherently but the base member (3) structure being lateral with respect to the body surface is flexible in the lateral plane, thus when resting on soft surface (14) like foam, coir that yield the entire interacting means (21) contours to the body support shape of enhance surface area giving the body physical comfort like as experienced on a cushion.
To facilitate the contour adaptability of the device the ducts and interactive means are made with thin walled material using folding, corrugated thin wall thereby reducing the flexural rigidity while maintaining the air void collapse resistance, the body support contoured uniformly of low pitch and low air flow resistance in air void and duct and in air void and duct and made from suitable metal, non metallic, composite materials, schematically illustrated in FIG. 3, showing the sectional view with crest (16), air void (17) and air duct (18) instead of plane sides (3,5,6,8,9).
FIG. 5 shows a round corrugated air duct 21 with corrugated wall 24 form the crust and trough and body interface surface on upper side has a covering medium like air permeable screen 23 and upholstery cover 22. The port for stream 25 is at inlet ports 26 and oblique set outlet ports 27 to give air interaction on the interface surface. For improved efficiency, in another form for still higher function and energy efficiency at low air pressure the ports 28 are located at the surface interface—juxtapose to give angle and straight flow steam 29 with similar exit/outlet port giving very close to surface stream. At low pressure and air volume the air streams first flow, scavenges touches the interactive surface while using very low energy at low noise levels exposing minimal air for body interaction.
The strengthening of thin wall form can be also made by varying the wall thickness besides profile projection giving local collapse resistance while giving overall flexural capability. The collapse resistance gives good air passage over surface of body interactive air voids and air ducts. The use of thin corrugated wall form including tubular form composition reduces both the weight mass and the heat inertia of the embodiment which lead operational energy saving while giving large flexibility for contour adaptability giving desired resilience herein later described.
The flexural resilience of the interactive means and duct system is set by facts like thickness, material, size to suit seat flexural level while maintaining the air passage capability on the interactive surface and duct system means. This gives desired seat comfort while giving low surface and duct air flow resistance.
In another manifestation of the invention the interface surface crest (1) and air void (2) are of limited, yieldable form thus under body pressure they reduce and deform to a lower dimension air void (2) but in this pressed, reduced deformed situation maintain air space that allow good air movement for body surface interaction, inter void and duct air movement sufficient to effect desired heat and air transfer objective depending on factors like ambient temperature, climate target heat transfer comfort level. For this material like plastic elastomer, spring helical, oblique and combination may be use to make the interface surface in conjunction with ducts to make interactive means.
The ports (10), (12) in the base structure (3) connect air voids (2) to air ducts (4),(7) respectively. The duct (4) in one form of the invention is connected to an air forced draft (11) i.e. pressure higher than the ambient atmospheric pressure. Thus air (11) from interior of duct (4) enter through port (10) and spreads in the adjoining air voids interacting with the body rest surface supported on crest face (1) then enters the port (12)—exit port and pass out through the respective exit duct (7) and goes out into the atmosphere. The air draft (15) interacts in the short area about it, matrix, FIG. 2 schematic plan view, port (12) and port (10) and goes out through the exit port (12) and not travel the entire length of the interactive means (21) to reach its periphery or a point on the support surface not covered by the resting body. Long air path in prior art gives very high air resistance causing a backpressure dissuading the incoming air draft resulting in poor or no airflow thereby failing the objective in prior art device. The exit port (12) connected through the duct (7) over comes a long path air resistance draw back of the prior art.
In an advance form of the invention the duct (7) interior is connected to a induce air draft source. Thus at duct (7) is at an air pressure lower than the atmosphere pressure thus increases the pressure difference gradient at port (10) and port (12) thereby causing more air flow between the inlet ports (10) and exit port (12) giving higher interaction and better performance.
In a simpler version the ducts (4),(7) are not connected to external draft and duct (4) does not have a forced draft, the heat of the body resting on top of the crest-riser (1) cause air in the air void (2) to gain heat and temperature making it rise and flows to gravitational high contact surface point on the contoured interactive means surface to a peripheral area where it escapes or losses heat. Cooled air or fresh air flows in through gravitational lower located other ports (10),(12) and ducts (7),(4) replace the rising body contact air void air. This set off a small convective cycle to dissipate and distribute the trapped body heat in its support area. Through it is less efficient than the powered air draft, force and/or induced draft system. Fig. it is less efficient than the powered air draft, force and/or induced draft system. FIG. 4 gives schematically sectional view in which the interactive means (20) is with duct (19) feeding air to the air voids in the interactive means where convective air rises up in a simple seat with back form. Air circulation by convictive airflow in a seat contoured by body weight takes place because of the air void and duct system means. The contour gives different gravitational level to the interactive means and attached air duct member system means. Because of the maintaining of air moving capability of the interface air voids herein described and duct system means the convective current is set up by the body heat giving an air cycle carrying the heat from the interface surface though less than the powered air embodiment. The location of the ports and their sizes are proportionate to the volume of air draft, the location—central or peripheral of the seat, rest area. Central area has slightly more heat thus more air is directed in the middle matrix zone by having more and or large port sizes and shorter run. This way a control of the air distribution is achieved on the specific seat rest area; besides controlling the supply air draft volume from a power air means like, an air blower means, aoto relative motion not illustrated and connected to the air duct member system (4),(7) inflow and outflow herein described.
The ports as an added feature have nozzle like peripheral structure that direct and prevent air-blocking and direct air to the interface support surface.
The interactive means has crest and voids that have feature of limited yield and deformation under body pressure. Thus the interactive means retains enough space that allow sufficient interactive air flow on the body supporting interface of the means under the air pressure herein described to give the thermal interactive transmission thereby giving the thermal and physical comfort.
The interactive means interactive face may have over the supporting and air void trough air thermal permeable covering like cloth, perforated sheet, mesh of natural or synthetic material. The air on the interactive means air void creating air sheet film performs its functions in unison.
The invention besides giving energy saving, thermal and physical comfort to the resting body leads to room energy saving by giving uniform thermal comfort comparable to the room ambience, reduces extra energy needed to control the ambience to offset the seat discomforting of the prior art.
Another embodiment of the invention will have integrated flexural thin wall air duct member system with ports, juxtapose air voids and body supporting crests providing air inflow, outflow and a body support interaction area performing the invention. In this way matrix zone of the support surface has suitable air inflow and outflow on the interface surface thus ensuring air distribution pattern with limiting air resistance for effective interface control of the body rest surface. For higher flexibility for body comfort like on cushions thin corrugated wall be used without losing air passing quality low air resistance.
The device with the invention feature can be as a separate unit put on conventional prior art body rest equipment like chain, bed or made integral to the equipment in fixed and mobile location like building and automobile respectively. The conventional surface like synthetic foam, rubberized pad, dunlop and natural coir and combination give the flexible, contour able support on which the device flexible interactive means and the duct system is put as an add on manifestation or as an integral attached interior feature. In another possible embodiment limited yield interface surface herein described shall give limited yield flexibility to the support surface.
There are many forms of manifestation of the invention feature some described herein and the scope of the specification is limited by the claims hereafter given.

Claims

1. A human body resting support area interface interaction control device comprising;

a flexural body contour adapting interactive means (21) being with a body resting interface surface interactive portion;

at least a part of said interactive portion being with a plurality of collapse resisting intrusion restraining crest (1) of one and more size;

said crest defining at least a part of said interface surface of said interactive portion and a plurality of air void means;

said air void means being juxtapose said interface surface of said interactive portion and being for air passing and air to body interaction;

at least an air void of said air void means being with a plurality of air inlet port (10) and a plurality of air outlet port (12);

said inlet port connectable with an interior of a flexural air inflow duct means (4);

said inflow duct means being for communicating a non exposed air to said an air void;

said outlet port connectable with an interior of a flexural air outflow duct means (7);

said outlet duct means being for providing free duct passage to a body exposed air of said an air void to an exterior there of;

said non exposed air interaction with the body in said an air void on contoured said interface surface interactive portion giving said body exposed air and passing said exposed air to said exterior through said out flow duct.

2. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said air void means being of one and more form, size being interconnectable and extend beyond said crest said defining.

3. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said air void means is of a location pattern on said interface surface giving a zoning air distribution on said interface surface;

4. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said inlet port and said outlet port being of one and more size.

5. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein at least a said inlet port and said outlet port being juxtapose said interface surface giving said interface surface first flow of said non exposed air for said interaction.

6. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said communicating, said passing air being under a pressure gradient by at least an air moving power generating means connectable with at least one of said inflow duct means and said outflow duct means.

7. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said interactive portion being conditioned including by a conditioned said non exposed air.

8. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein said interactive portion being with at least an air permeable cover on said interface surface.

9. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of said interactive means, said inflow duct means, said outflow duct means being with a non planner wall form including corrugated wall form in at least one part.

10. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein at least one of said interactive means, said inflow duct means, said outflow duct means being of a plurality of corrugated wall tubular form composition.

11. The device as recited in claim 1, wherein contour of said flexural means is in conformity with a support (11) including of a body occupying equipment.

12. A method for human body resting support area interface interaction control comprising steps of;

flexural adapting of interface of a flexural interactive means to body resting contour;

collapse resisting of a plurality of crest;

said crest defining at least a part of said interface surface of said interactive means and a plurality of collapse resisting air void means juxtapose said interface surface;

inflowing of non exposed air into at least an air void of said air void means through a plurality of inlet port on said an air void from an flexural air inflow duct means;

interaction of said inflowing air with the resting body giving exposed air;

flowing out of said exposed air from said an air void by a plurality of outlet port on said an air void into an flexural air outflow duct means;

passing said exposed air through said outflow duct means with limited air duct resistance, to an exterior thereof;

providing non exposed air interaction with resting body on the interface surface of the interactive means.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, include distributive interacting of air on said interface surface by locating said air void means on said interface surface in a zone matrix pattern for an distribution pattern.

14. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein said defining a plurality of collapse resisting air void means being non inclusive and said collapse resisting air void means extend beyond said crest defining.

15. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein one and more of said interactive means, said inflow duct means, said outflow duct means being with at least a non planner part including corrugation wall form of at least a flexural resilience.

16. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein said inflowing, said flowing out, said passing being under a pressure gradient of an air power means.

17. The method as recited in claim 12, include step of first flow of said non exposed air for said interaction with said resting body being with locating at least a said port juxtapose said interface surface.

18. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein said interaction being through an interface surface covering medium.