US2922559A

US2922559A - Controlled density cushioning

Info

Publication number: US2922559A
Application number: US691971A
Authority: US
Inventors: Arthur G Perry; Gilfix Philip
Original assignee: LELANITE CORP
Current assignee: LELANITE Corp
Priority date: 1960-01-18
Filing date: 1957-10-23
Publication date: 1960-01-26
Anticipated expiration: 1977-01-26
Also published as: NL247684A; NL109933C; FR1245986A; GB917678A; DE1183858B

Description

Jan. 26, 1960 A. e. PERRY ETAL CONTROLLED DENSITY CUSHIONING Filed Oct. 25, 1957 FIGS INVENTORS ATTORNEY Ymr r WI.

United States Pate CONTROLLED DENSITY CUSHIONIN G Arthur G. Perry, Worcester, and Philip Gilfix, Newton, Mass., assignors to Lelanite Corporation, Webster, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application October 23, 1957, Serial No. 691,971 4 Claims. (Cl. 229-14) This invention relates to a cushioning material, in which is incorporated a controlled density or controlled resistance to pressure in any desired section thereof. The invention incorporatesthe use of a molded cushioning unit which has. incorporated in the sides, ends, top and bottom thereof a coil of wound rubberized cohesive fibrous material, said coil being most conveniently provided in the form of a ribbon wound upon itself a predetermined number of times with the ends connected to the coil; and the invention contemplates the provision of these rubberized fibrous material coils where desired, varying in size, density and number of coils, depending upon the desirability of denser or lighter cushioning areas in the particular chosen sections of the molded form, so that areas of heavier density are provided in the molded form, said heavier densities being occasioned by the strips of the coiled and rubberized fibrous material cemented and fastened in position.

A further object of the invention includes the provision of the molded form above described in which the coils are all integrally connected in a single molded form by the use of additional quantities of relatively loose rub-berized fibrous material which binds the coils into a single mass using a suitable adhesive.

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of the device as above described wherein the coils are located on edge as respects the direction of pressure to be applied and therefore provide added resistance due to the alignment of the fibers and the shape of the ribbon itself of which the coils are made, said ribbons being wider in comparison with their flat or uncoiled thickness; and the provision of a device as described in which the coils are not fully wound at the centers thereof and the size of the resultant hole in the center of the coils aids in controlling the resistance of the coil to the applied pressure.

Our invention further relates to arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a device made according to the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on line 2-2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a bottom plan view of the device of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the device, taken at right angles to Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 illustrates a connection between the ends of the coils.

This same idea also covers different forms and in addition to the use of the coils is to be described, the invention may be accomplished with the use of springs, foam rubber, solid rubber and other types of resilient materials. However, in order to illustrate the invention, the same is herein disclosed as made mainly of rubberized fiber, which fiber due to the adhesion of separate fibers to each other, forms itself a resilient cohesive unitary padding which is springy but light in weight.

In this illustration, the fiber usedis rubberized Istle or Tampico fiber (Ixtle De Lechuguilla), the same being in common use in this invention;,nevertheless horse or hog hair or blends of,both,'for example, may be used as fibrous materialwith similar facility. The purpose of rubberizing is only to provide a permanent springy bonding agent as the fibrous strands cross one "another and any other suitable adhesive iswithin the scope of this invention. p

Referring now to Fig. 1, the reference numeral'10 indicates in general a portion of a container such as a box, crate, case, can, cylinder, sphere, or the like for containing fragile material such. as for instance instruments. This. container or crate part is conveniently molded from loose rubberized. fiber or hair or other materials such as cellulosic-plastic-synthetic placed in a. form and heated and pressed to the form desired.

The invention in the present case resides in using as a foundation for the more or lessloose rubberized fiber, a series of coils of rubberized fiber, said coils beingv made of ribbons of' rubberized fiber, said ribbons preferably having a width greater than the thickness thereof.

In Fig. 1 there is represented a coil 12 in a side wall of the container or crate part, and this coilmay be duplicated .at 14 at the opposite side thereof. The

coils

12 and 14 each comprise a series of; overlapping or coiled runs of .the rubberized fiber ribbon material described, audit will be seen that these coils provide a considerable resistance to pressure in a lateral direction because the individual coils are placed on edge as respects the walls of the container or crate as clearly shown in Fig. l.

The coil 12 in Fig. 1 is shown as comprising five separate coils of material, but this number of coils of course is variable, depending upon the resistance to pressure which is desired; and coil 12 and coil 14 may be made of different numbers of coils, depending upon the resistance to pressure expected at the particular location.

Coils

12 and 14 are open at their centers as illustrated at 16. The coils could be wound tighter than shown to reduce the size of the opening, but this provides a further control of the expected deformation of the container or crate and the crushing action applied to a particular side wall of the part.

At the top of the container or crate part 10, there is another coil 18 which is similar to those at 12 and 14, and at the ends there are provided

coils

20 and 22 which are similar but in this case are shown as smaller, having a lesser area and lesser number of coils. However, all the coils are shown as having open centers, as this is desirable in most instances.

In making the container or crate part, the coils described are placed in a form, together with an amount of loose rubberized fibrous material, and heat and pressure is applied to form the unitary padded cushioning container part. The unit as shown at 10 has the areas of greatest resistance to pressure defined by the

individual coils

12, 18, 20, etc.

In Fig. 5 there is shown a method of securing the coils together. These coils could merely be cemented at intervals or throughout their contacting areas, but it is desirable to provide adherence areas as by cementing at 24 at the ends 26 of the respective coils; and furthermore if desired nail-like fasteners 28 maybe applied in order to connect the ends to the coils mechanically.

The container or crate part thus described may be provided with a cover of similar material to close the opening at 30 clearly shown in Fig. provided for the purpose of receiving an object to be transported. In some cases, the container or crate part 10 will be duplicated with openings 30 joined, and in any event the entire crate then provides a very safe and 4, and this opening is ,completelyand adequately protected by the cushioning Ias described herein, and it will be seen that the same is made with Controlled densities for resistance to pressure in any desired section of the same. The denser cushioning materials are used in quantity in the sections that will receive'the heavier pressures, and the other parts of the molded unit are held together with like rubberized materials which are however not coiled, but relatively loosely applied.

Having thus described tages thereof, we do not wish to be limitedto thedetails herein disclosed, otherwise thanvas set forth in the claims, but what we claim is: i

l. A device comprising part of a cushioning member I,

for a container for fragile articles, said part being in the form of a resilient block of relatively loose fibrous material, said block having a generally central recess therein forming an opening, a series of connected end and side walls and a bottom, the latter being connected to all .of said walls, said walls and bottom presenting continuous surfaces interiorly and exteriorly of the part, said surfaces being generally smooth and well spaced so that the walls and bottom are relatively thick, and means forming 'denser and more crush-proof areas: in certain of said walls and between the said surfaces at predetermined locations therein, leaving the remainder of the said part less dense, said means comprising more highly com.

pressed masses of similar fibrous material.

our invention and the advan- M 2. The device of claim 1 wherein said masses comprise coils of the fibrous material.

3. The device of claim 1 wherein said masses comprise coils of fibrous material, said coils being located on edge at right angles to the respective surfaces adjacent thereto.

4. A cushioning member part comprising a padding provided with heavier and denser resilient materials of like nature at predetermined points, said padding being in the form of a block having a recess therein forming walls of substantially uniform section, and the heavier denser material being located in the walls, said denser material comprising wound coils of adhesive fiber in the walls, the coils being separate, and means connecting the coils, the latter being secured in a mass in the part, said means including rubberized fiber in loose but cohesive form, all the coils and loose fiber forming a continuous mass shaped to receive an object to be protected.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,988,843 Heldenbrand Jan. 22, 1935 1,997,905 Hellman Apr. 16, 1935 2,036,876 vKraft Apr. 7, 1936 2,147,362 Bloomberg Feb. 14, 1939 2,298,986 Taylor Oct. 13, 1942 2,301,596 Wells Nov. 10, 1942 2,688,152 Marco Sept. 7, 1954 2,690,947 Roehrl Oct. 5, 1954 2,775,998 Osborn Jan. 1, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 446,300 Great Britain Apr. 28, 1936