WO2014074272A1

WO2014074272A1 - Apparatus for creating foam pieces for use in bedding and seating products

Info

Publication number: WO2014074272A1
Application number: PCT/US2013/064971
Authority: WO
Inventors: Richard L. Mccune; Jefferson W. MYERS; Terrance A. MYERS; Mato LJUBICIC; Stjepan Vadlja
Original assignee: L&P Property Management Co
Current assignee: L&P Property Management Co
Priority date: 2012-11-09
Filing date: 2013-10-15
Publication date: 2014-05-15
Anticipated expiration: 2015-05-09

Abstract

An apparatus (10) makes foam pieces of a desired size for use in bedding or seating products. The apparatus (10) comprises a first station (11), including an A-frame assembly (12); a second station (78), including a cutter assembly (130) and an adhesive assembly (120); and a third station (80), including a receiving table (94) for receiving finished foam products. At least one conveyor (44, 106) moves foam pieces between stations.

Description

APPARATUS FOR CREATING FOAM PIECES

FOR USE IN BEDDING AND SEATING PRODUCTS FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0001] This invention relates generally to machinery for making foam pieces for use in the furniture and bedding industries.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] Many furniture cushions and bedding products are commonly made incorporating multiple pieces of foam. The foam pieces may be secured together to form a rectangle, inside which may be placed an insert, such as a spring core, for example. The insert may be made of materials other than springs, including some products including gel, foam or fiber. The foam perimeter or rectangle, typically polyurethane foam, and insert may be covered on top and bottom with one or more layers of polyurethane foam or fiber or other padding. The resulting assembly may be covered with an upholstered covering.

[0003] In other applications, bedding or seating products, such as car seats, may incorporate pieces of foam.

[0004] In current practice, the foam pieces used to create the perimeter or edge of the bedding or seating product are commonly sold to a manufacturer in predetermined, precut sizes (lengths, heights and widths). A plurality of such foam pieces of the same length may be loaded on a pallet and shipped to the manufacturer. The manufacturer must place the pallet at a desired location and unload the foam pieces before securing them together or in the desired manner. Sometimes the manufacturer may run out of a desired size and have to wait for another pallet of foam pieces of the desired size to arrive. This process results in empty pallets once all the foam pieces on the pallets have been used. The manufacturer must dispose of or reuse the empty pallet. If the manufacturer wishes only a few pieces of a predetermined size, the manufacturer must order an entire pallet of the desired size or manually cut to size an existing piece of foam. The manufacturer may have to find floor space for partially filled pallets of foam pieces.

[0005] It is therefore an objective of this invention to provide an apparatus capable of reducing the cost of manufacture of bedding and seating products incorporating one or more foam pieces.

[0006] Another objective of this invention is to provide a method of making pieces for incorporation into a furniture cushion or bedding product that reduces the labor and overhead associated with traditional methods of construction.

[0007] Yet another objective of this invention is to provide a programmable apparatus which automates the process of making foam pieces for use in bedding and/or seating products.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Accordingly, in one aspect, the invention is an apparatus for making multiple foam pieces of a desired size for use in bedding or seating products. The apparatus comprises: a first station comprising an A-frame assembly; a second station comprising a cutting assembly and an adhesive assembly; and a third station comprising a receiving table. The apparatus further comprises at least one conveyor for moving pieces of foam from the first station to the second station and from the second station to the third station.

[0009] The A-frame assembly may be stationary or movable. The A-frame assembly may feed foam pieces or logs from two stacks onto one or more conveyor belts which transport the foam pieces downstream to the second station. The stacked or loaded foam pieces may be any desired height or width or length. Although the drawings show the foam pieces oriented one way in a stack, they may be oriented in any desirable manner or configuration. The A-frame assembly may comprise multiple trap door assemblies and pressure assemblies to aid in releasing the foam pieces in the desired manner onto the conveyor or conveyors. [ooio] The second station may include a safety enclosure for protecting a user from the cutting assembly located inside or partially inside the enclosure. The second station includes a cutting assembly for cutting the foam pieces to the desired length. The second station may also include a second conveyor and at least one moving holding element which may be moved (raised and lowered or moved laterally) by an actuator, such as a pneumatic actuator to hold a foam piece during the cutting process. The second station may also include an adhesive assembly which may be moved by another actuator, such as a pneumatic actuator.

[0011] The third station may include a receiving table for receiving and retaining the finished foam pieces of the desired length. The receiving table has an upper generally horizontal portion and an inclined portion which may have a lower lip to stop the downward movement of the finished foam pieces.

[0012] Alternatively, the third station may include at least one conveyor assembly for receiving and retaining the finished foam pieces of the desired length.

[0013] In yet another aspect, the invention comprises a method of making a foam piece of a desired length for use in a bedding or seating product. The method comprises loading a plurality of foam pieces on an A-frame assembly in a stack, each of the foam pieces being of a length different than the desired length. The next step comprises activating a trap door assembly to allow a first foam piece of the stack of foam pieces to fall onto a first conveyor. The next step comprises activating the first conveyor to move the first foam piece downstream to a cutting station. The next step comprises cutting the first foam piece into a front portion having the desired length and a rear portion having a length less than the desired length with a cutting assembly. The next step comprises moving the front portion with a second conveyor to a receiving table downstream of the saw assembly. The next step comprises activating the trap door assembly to allow a second foam piece of the stack of foam pieces to fall onto the first conveyor. The next step comprises activating the first conveyor to move the second foam piece downstream to the cutting station. The next step comprises applying adhesive to an end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece or the second piece using an adhesive assembly. The next step comprises allowing the adhesive on the rear portion of the first foam piece to contact a front end surface of the second foam piece to secure the rear portion of the first foam piece and the second foam piece together to create a first combined foam piece. The next step comprises cutting the second foam piece to create a first combined foam piece of the desired length with a cutting assembly. The next step comprises moving the first combined foam piece with the second conveyor to a receiving table downstream of the cutting assembly.

[0014] In yet another aspect, the invention comprises a method of making foam pieces of a desired length for use in bedding or seating products. The method comprises providing two independent stacks of foam pieces on an A-frame assembly, each of said foam pieces being of a length different than the desired length. The next step comprises activating a trap door assembly to allow a first foam piece of one of the stacks of foam pieces to move onto a conveyor. The next step comprises moving the first foam piece downstream to a cutting station by a conveyor. The next step comprises cutting the first foam piece into a front portion having the desired length and a rear portion having a length less than the desired length. The next step comprises moving the front portion of the first foam piece to a receiving table downstream of the cutting station. The next step comprises moving a second foam piece of the stack of foam pieces onto the conveyor. The next step comprises activating the conveyor to move the second foam piece downstream to the cutting station. The next step comprises cutting the second foam piece into a front portion and a rear portion with a saw assembly. The next step comprises applying adhesive to an end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece or the second foam piece. The next step comprises contacting a front end surface of the front portion of the second foam piece to a rear end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece to secure the rear portion of the first foam piece and the front portion of the second foam piece together to create a first combined foam piece of the desired length. The next step comprises moving the combined foam piece to a receiving table downstream of the cutting station.

[0015] One advantage of the present invention is that foam pieces of any desired length may be quickly made in a cost effective manner. [0016] Another advantage of the present invention is that foam pieces of standardized lengths may be purchased and cut to any desired length.

[0017] Yet another advantage of the present invention is that a user may program the apparatus to make a desired number of foam pieces all of a desired length.

[0018] These and other objectives and advantages of the present invention will become more readily apparent during the following Detailed Description in conjunction with the Drawings herein.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0019] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a portion of the apparatus of the present invention;

[0020] Fig. 2 is a perspective view taken of a portion of the apparatus of Fig. 1;

[0021] Fig. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 3A-3A of Fig. 2 showing the trap doors in a closed position;

[0022] Fig. 3B is a cross-sectional view, like Fig. 3A, showing the trap doors on one side of the apparatus open and a lowermost foam piece resting on a conveyor belt;

[0023] Fig. 3C is a cross-sectional view, like Fig. 3A, showing the trap doors on both sides of the apparatus closed and the lowermost foam piece removed from the conveyor belt;

[0024] Fig. 3D is a cross-sectional view, like Fig. 3A, showing the trap doors on both sides of the apparatus closed and a second foam piece resting on the trap doors above from the conveyor belt;

[0025] Fig. 3E is a cross-sectional view, like Fig. 3A, showing the A-frame moved to a second position, the trap doors on both sides of the apparatus being closed;

[0026] Fig. 4 is a perspective view of another portion of the apparatus of Fig. 1 downstream of the portion shown in Fig. 1; [0027] Fig. 5A is a perspective view of the portion of the apparatus of Fig. 4 with portions of the apparatus removed for clarity;

[0028] Fig. 5B is a perspective view of the portion of the apparatus of Fig. 5A showing a first foam piece being cut by a foam saw into two smaller pieces;

[0029] Fig. 5C is a perspective view of the portion of the apparatus of Fig. 5B showing the cut foam piece being advanced, adhesive applied to an end of the first foam piece and a second foam piece being introduced;

[0030] Fig. 5D is a perspective view of the portion of the apparatus of Fig. 5C showing the front portion of the cut first foam piece being moved down a ramp by a kick bar and the remainder of the first foam piece adhesively secured to the second foam piece;

[0031] Fig. 5E is a perspective view of the portion of the apparatus of Fig. 5D showing the front portion of the cut first foam piece at the bottom of the ramp and the combined rear piece of the cut first foam piece and second foam piece moved downstream;

[0032] Fig. 6A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 6A-6A of Fig. 5B;

[0033] Fi - 6B is a cross-sectional view, like Fig. 6A, showing the foam saw on the opposite side of the foam piece;

[0034] Fig. 7 is a perspective view of an alternative first station; [0035] Fig. 8 is a perspective view of an another first station; and [0036] Fig. 9 is a perspective view of an alternative third station. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0037] Referring to Fig. 1, a portion of an apparatus 10 according to the principals of the present invention is illustrated. The apparatus 10 comprises three principal stations: a first station 11, a second station 78 and a third station 80. As shown in Fig. 1, the second station 78 is located downstream of the first station 11 and the third station 80 is located downstream of the second station 78. [0038] According to one embodiment, the first station 11 comprises an A-frame assembly 12 raised above the ground with an A-frame support 14. The A-frame assembly 12 comprises a top member 16 and multiple braces 18a, 18b extending downwardly and outwardly from the top member 16 of the A-frame 12. The braces 18a, 18b are arranged in spaced pairs, as best shown in Fig. 3A. The first and second braces 18a, 18b, respectively, are supported at their bottoms by longitudinally extending first and second brace supports 20a, 20b, best shown in Fig. 3A. The first and second brace supports 20a, 20b are generally parallel the top member 16. The ends of the first and second brace supports 20a, 20b are connected by two end members 22 (only one being seen in Fig. 1). The first and second brace supports 20a, 20b and two end members 22 form a rectangular base 24 which supports the braces 18a, 18b. Each pair of braces 18a, 18b form an inverted V-shape. The A-frame assembly 12, including the rectangular base 24, is movable between a first position shown in Figs. 3A-3D and a second position shown in Fig. 3E. In its second position, the A-frame assembly 12, including the rectangular base 24, is moved to the right relative to its first position, as shown in the drawings.

[0039] As best shown in Fig. 2, the A-frame support 14 includes four legs 26, each leg 26 having a foot 28 at the bottom thereof. Two of the legs 26 are connected at each end with a stationary guide 30 and a cross bar 32 below the stationary guide 30. The cross bars 32 at opposite ends of the first station 11 are connected via two parallel spreaders 34 which extend longitudinally parallel the top member 16 of the A-frame assembly 12. At each end of the first station 11 is a movable slide 36 engaged with one of the guides 30 and located above one of the cross bars 32. Each of the two movable slides 36 is fixedly secured to one of the two end members 22 of the rectangular base 24 so that when the movable slides 36 move transversely, the A-frame assembly 12 moves from a first position shown in Figs. 3A-3D to a second position shown in Fig. 3E. The A-frame assembly 12 may be moved manually or automatically via servo-motors or pneumatic cylinders or any other known means. When the A-frame assembly 12 is in its first position shown in Figs. 1-3D, the foam pieces 40 may be unloaded onto a conveyor 44 as described herein. When the A-frame 12 assembly is in its second position shown in Fig. 3E, the foam pieces 42 on the other side of the A-frame assembly 12 may be unloaded onto the conveyor 44.

[0040] As shown in Fig. 3A, a first endless conveyor 44 is supported by two stationary conveyor support brackets 46 secured to two stationary support plates 48 (only one being shown in Fig. 3A). The two spaced support plates 48 (one at each end of the first station 11) are secured to the spreaders 34 of the A-frame support 14, as shown in Fig. 3A. Figs. 6A and 6B illustrate a motor 134 for driving the conveyor 44.

[0041] Referring to Figs. 1 and 3A, the first station 11 further comprises four movable trap door assemblies, two trap door assemblies 50a being on one side of the A-frame assembly 12 and two others 50b being on the other side of the A-frame assembly 12. Each of the trap door assemblies 50a, 50b is fixedly secured to the movable A-frame assembly 12 which moves transversely or laterally with the slides 36, so that when the movable slides 36 move transversely, the trap door assemblies 50a, 50b (with the A- frame assembly 12) move from a first position shown in Fig. 3A to a second position shown in Fig. 3E. More specifically, each trap door assembly 50a, 50b comprises a trap door 52a, 52b and a driver 54 as described below. Two trap door assemblies 50a are located on one side of the A-frame assembly 12 below brace support 20a and two trap door assemblies 50b are located on the other side of the A-frame assembly 12 below brace support 20b. Each of the trap doors 52a, 52b is movable between a raised, generally horizontal position as shown in Fig. 3A, and a lowered, generally vertical position shown by the trap doors 52a in Fig. 3B about a pivot axis defined by a pin 62. Each of the trap doors 52a, 52b is moved by a driver 54 comprising a stationary cylinder 56 fixed in position with brackets 58 and a movable piston 60 pivotally connected at location 61 to a link 64. The link 64 is connected at its opposite end to the pin 62 so that when the piston 60 is retracted inside the cylinder 56, as shown in Fig. 3B, the link 64 pivots, causing the trap door 52a, 52b to move from its raised, generally horizontal position, as shown in Fig. 3A, to its lowered, generally vertical position, as shown in Fig. 3B. A pneumatic valve (not shown) activates the piston 60 to move the link 64. [0042] As shown in Figs. 1 and 3A, the first station 11 further comprises four movable pressure assemblies 66a, 66b. Two pressure assemblies 66a are located on one side of the A-frame 12 outside brace support 20a, and the other two pressure assemblies 66b are located on the other side of the A-frame assembly 12 outside brace support 20b. Figs. 3A-3E illustrate only two of the pressure assemblies 66a, 66b. Each of the pressure assemblies 66a, 66b is fixedly secured to the movable A-frame assembly 12, which moves transversely or laterally with the slides 36, so that when the movable slides 36 move transversely, the pressure assemblies 66a, 66b move transversely from a first position shown in Fig. 3A to a second position shown in Fig. 3E.

[0043] Each pressure assembly 66a, 66b comprises a pressure support member 68, a driver 70 and a pressure bar 72. The driver 70 comprises a cylinder 74 and a piston 76 movable relative to the cylinder 74. The pressure bar 72 is attached to one end of the movable piston 76. A pneumatic valve (not shown) activates the piston 76 to move the pressure bar 72.

[0044] Fig. 1 further illustrates a second station 78 comprising a cutting assembly 130 and an adhesive assembly 120 located downstream of the first station 11. Fig. 1 further illustrates a third receiving station 80 located downstream of the second station 78.

[0045] As shown in Fig. 1, the cutting/adhesive station 78 comprises an enclosure 82 and a user interface shown as a touch screen 84 suspended from a bar 86. Alternatively, the user interface may include a keyboard and screen or other known user interfaces. As best shown in Figs. 5A-5D, the cutting/adhesive station 78 further comprises a movable holding element 88 activated by an actuator, such as a pneumatic actuator 89.

Upstream of the movable holding element 88 is located an adhesive assembly 120 comprising a movable adhesive sprayer 122 activated by an actuator, such as a pneumatic actuator 124. Fig. 5A further illustrates a sensor 126 mounted on a side rail 128. The sensor 126 senses the presence of a leading or trailing edge of each foam piece. An encoder (not shown) may determine the length of each piece.

[0046] As best shown in Figs. 6A and 6B, a cutting assembly 130 is used to cut one of the foam pieces at a predetermined position. The cutting assembly 130 comprises a movable cutter, such as a saw 90 movable by actuation of a rodless cylinder 132, the rodless cylinder 132 traveling along a guide 92. The cutter 90 may make cuts of any desired configuration and is not intended to be limited to linear or straight cuts. For example, the cutter 90 may create notches in one or more of the foam pieces.

[0047] As shown in Fig. 5E, according to one embodiment, the third receiving station 80 comprises a table 94 supported by four legs 96. The table 94 has an upper generally horizontal portion 98 and an inclined portion 100 having a lower stop 102.

[0048] The operation of the apparatus 10 will now be described. Referring to Figs. 3A-3E, at the beginning of the process, the A-frame assembly 12 is loaded with foam pieces or logs 40 on one side and additional foam pieces or logs 42 on the opposite side. Referring to Fig. 3A, three foam pieces 40a, 40b and 40c are shown against the braces 18a. The lowest foam piece 40a rests on the trap doors 52a of trap assemblies 50a. The second lowest foam piece 40b is secured in place against the braces 18a with the pressure assemblies 66a. The third lowest foam piece 40c rests on top of the foam piece 40b and rests against the braces 18a, as shown in Fig. 3A.

[0049] On the other side of the A-frame assembly 12, four foam pieces 42a, 42b, 42c and 42d are illustrated from bottom to top. The lowest foam piece 42a rests on the trap doors 52b of trap assemblies 50b. The second lowest foam piece 42b is secured in place against the braces 18b with the pressure assemblies 66b. The third lowest foam piece 42c rests on top of the foam piece 42b and rests against the braces 18b, as shown in Fig. 3A. The fourth lowest foam piece 42d rests on top of the foam piece 42c and rests against the braces 18b, as shown in Fig. 3A.

[0050] Fig. 3B illustrates the lowest foam piece 40a resting on conveyor 44 and the trap doors 52a of trap door assemblies 50a in their lowered positions contacting the sides of the lowest foam piece 40a. The foam pieces 40b, 40c remain in the same position shown in Fig. 3A. The foam piece 40b remains secured in place against the braces 18a with the pressure assemblies 66a. The foam pieces 42a, 42b, 42c and 42d have not changed from their positions shown in Fig. 3 A. [0051] Fig. 3C illustrates the lowest foam piece 40a having moved along the conveyor 44 and the trap doors 52a of trap assemblies 50a raised back to their raised positions. The second lowest foam piece 40b remains in its position shown in Fig. 3B secured in place against the braces 18a with the pressure assemblies 66a. Foam piece 40c remains in its position shown in Fig. 3B.

[0052] Fig. 3D illustrates foam piece 40b having moved downwardly due to its disengagement from pressure assemblies 66a. The trap doors 52a of trap assemblies 50a are shown in their raised positions supporting the second lowest foam piece 40b. The third lowest foam piece 40c is lowered to a position in which it may be engaged and held in place by pressure assemblies 66a.

[0053] Fig. 3E illustrates all of the foam pieces 40a, 40b and 40c having been carried by the conveyor 44 downstream away from the A-frame assembly 12. The movable slides 36, A-frame assembly 12 and rectangular frame 24, trap door assemblies 50a, 50b and pressure assemblies 66a, 66b have moved transversely (to the right in Fig. 3E) so that now the foam pieces 42a, 42b, 42c and 42d and trap door assemblies 50b are above the conveyor 44 whose location has remained the same. The position of the foam pieces 42a, 42b, 42c and 42d along with the trap door assembly 50b and pressure assembly 66b have remained the same relative to the A-frame assembly 12, as shown in Figs. 3A- 3D. The process shown in Figs. 3A-3D is repeated on the opposite side of the A-frame assembly 12 with the foam pieces 42a, 42b, 42c, etc.

[0054] Fig. 5A illustrates the first foam piece 40a exiting endless conveyor 44 in the direction of arrow 104 upstream of a second, short conveyor 106. Fig. 5B illustrates the first foam piece 40a passing over the short conveyor 106 below the holding element 88 of the cutting/adhesive station 78. Fig. 5B shows the first foam piece 40a being cut with a cutter, such as a saw 90 along a cut line 108 to create a front portion 112 and a rear portion 114, the rear portion 114 being shorter than the front portion 112. The front portion 112 is the desired length.

[0055] As shown in Fig. 6A, the cutter 90 begins on the left side of the foam piece 40a as one is looking upstream. Referring to Figs. 6A and 6B, cutter 90 moves in the direction of arrow no with the holding element 88 of the cutting/adhesive station 78 in a lowered position engaged with and contacting the first foam piece 40a.

[0056] Fig. 5C shows an end surface 116 of the first foam piece 40a, now cut into two portions 112, 114. An adhesive is applied to the end surface 116. In certain applications, the adhesive assembly may apply adhesive to one or more side surfaces of the foam pieces in addition to the end surfaces or in place of the end surfaces. The holding element 88 of the cutting/adhesive station 78 holds the rear portion 114 of the first foam piece 40a in place as a second foam piece 40b is moved along conveyor 44 until its front end surface contacts the end surface 116 of the first foam piece 112 and remains there for a predetermined period of time for the adhesive to secure the two pieces together.

[0057] As shown in Figs. 5D, the front portion 112 of the first foam piece 40a having the desired length is moved from the upper generally horizontal portion 98 of the third receiving station 80 down the inclined portion 100 until it abuts lower stop 102 at the third receiving station 80 by a movable kick bar 118.

[0058] Fig. 5E shows the second foam piece 40b being cut with the cutter 90 to create a second foam piece made from portions of the first and second foam pieces 40a, 40b of a desired length equal to the length of a front portion 112 of first foam piece 112 now resting against the lower stop 102 of the third receiving station 80. This process may be repeated numerous times to obtain the desired number of foam pieces of any desired length.

[0059] Fig. 7 illustrates an alternative first station 11a which may be used in apparatus 10 in lieu of the first station 11 shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The alternative first station 11a comprises a retainer assembly 136 which may rest on top of a support 14a and may be movable relative to such a support, similar to A-frame assembly 12. The retainer assembly 136 may comprise a rear support 138 and at least one side support 140. The retainer assembly 136 holds a plurality of foam pieces 142 in an array of aligned rows 144 and columns 146. Although one configuration of retainer assembly 136 is illustrated, a number of other configurations of retainer assemblies may be used. Although the foam pieces 142 are illustrated being oriented "on edge", they may be stacked in any desired orientation, such as with rotated ninety degrees from the orientation shown in Fig. 7. The retainer assembly 136 has a pusher bar 148 having handles 150 which may be manually or automatically operated to move the pusher bar 148 to load one of the foam pieces 142 onto conveyor 44. In this manner, one of the foam pieces 142 may be loaded onto conveyor 44 at a desired time.

[0060] Fig. 8 illustrates an alternative first station 11b which may be used in apparatus 10 in lieu of the first station 11 shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The alternative first station lib comprises a robot 152 having an arm 154. The robot 152 may be

programmed to pick up a foam piece 156 from a stack 158 of foam pieces 156 and move it in the direction of arrow 160 onto conveyor 44. A conveyor support 14b, like A-frame support 14, supports the conveyor 44.

[0061] Fig. 9 illustrates an alternative third station 80a which may be used in apparatus 10 in lieu of the third station 80 shown in Figs. 5A-5E. The alternative third station 80a comprises two conveyor assemblies 162 on opposite sides of a roller assembly 164. The roller assembly 164 comprises a plurality of individual rollers 166 mounted in a casing 168, the rollers 166 being driven by a driver (not shown) to move a foam piece, such as shown as 40a in Fig. 9 downstream. One of the conveyor assemblies 162 may be activated by a driver 170 to rotate a drive shaft 172, which rotates a plurality of wheels 174 which rotate conveyor belts 176. When one of the conveyor assemblies 162 is activated, the conveyor belts 176, which are higher than the rollers 166, may move the foam piece 40a laterally outwardly away from the roller assembly 164 (to one side). Either one of the conveyor assemblies 162 may be activated depending upon which direction one wishes the foam pieces 40a to travel.

[0062] The embodiments shown and described are merely for illustrative purposes only. The drawings and the description are not intended to limit in any way the scope of the claims. Those skilled in the art will appreciate various changes, modifications, and other embodiments. All such changes, modifications and embodiments are deemed to be embraced by the claims. Accordingly, the scope of the right to exclude shall be limited only by the following claims and their equivalents.

Claims

[0063] What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for making foam pieces of a desired size for use in bedding or seating products, the apparatus comprising: a first station comprising an A-frame assembly; a second station comprising a cutting assembly and an adhesive assembly; a third station comprising a receiving table; and at least one conveyor for moving pieces of foam from the first station to the second station and from the second station to the third station.

2. The apparatus of claim l wherein said A-frame assembly is movable.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said A-frame assembly is stationary.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said adhesive assembly is adapted to apply adhesive to end surfaces of foam pieces.

5. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein said A-frame assembly is adapted to move from side-to-side via activation of actuators.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 wherein said actuators are pneumatic actuators.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said A-frame assembly is adapted to support two stacks of foam pieces.

8. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising a user interface for programming the apparatus.

9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said A-frame assembly comprises at least one trap door assembly.

10. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said A-frame assembly comprises at least one pressure assembly.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein each trap door assembly is activated by a driver.

12. The apparatus of claim g wherein each pressure assembly is activated by a driver.

13. A method of making foam piece of a desired length for use in bedding or seating products, the method comprising the following steps, in any desired order: loading a plurality of foam pieces on an A-frame assembly in a stack, each of said foam pieces being of a length different than the desired length; activating a trap door assembly to allow a first foam piece of the stack of foam pieces to fall onto a first conveyor; activating the first conveyor to move the first foam piece downstream to a cutting station; cutting the first foam piece into a front portion having the desired length and a rear portion having a length less than the desired length with a cutter; moving the front portion with a second conveyor to a receiving table downstream of the cutter; activating the trap door assembly to allow a second foam piece of the stack of foam pieces to fall onto a conveyor; activating the conveyor to move the second foam piece downstream to the cutting station; applying adhesive to an end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece or the second foam piece using an adhesive assembly; allowing the adhesive on the rear portion of the first foam piece to contact a front end surface of the second foam piece to secure the rear portion of the first foam piece and the second foam piece together; cutting the second foam piece with a cutter to create a first combined foam piece of the desired length; and moving the first combined foam piece with a second conveyor to a receiving table downstream of the cutter.

14. The method of claim 13 wherein a rear portion of the second foam piece is

combined with a portion of a third foam piece to create a second combined foam piece.

15. The method of claim 13 wherein the step of cutting the first foam piece into a front portion having the desired length and a rear portion having a length less than the desired length comprises using a cutting assembly which moves a cutter along a path via a track.

16. The method of claim 13 wherein the first and second conveyors are independently movable.

17. A method of making foam pieces of a desired length for use in bedding or seating products, the method comprising the following steps, in any desired order: providing two independent stacks of foam pieces on an A-frame assembly, each of said foam pieces being of a length different than the desired length; activating a trap door assembly to allow a first foam piece of one of the stacks of foam pieces to move onto a conveyor; moving the first foam piece downstream to a cutting station by a conveyor; cutting the first foam piece into a front portion having the desired length and a rear portion having a length less than the desired length; moving the front portion of the first foam piece to a receiving table downstream of the cutting station; moving a second foam piece of the stack of foam pieces onto the conveyor; activating the conveyor to move the second foam piece downstream to the cutting station; applying adhesive to an end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece or the second foam piece; contacting a front end surface of the second foam piece to a rear end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece to secure the rear portion of the first foam piece and the second foam piece together to create a first combined foam piece of the desired length; cutting the second foam piece with a cutter to create a combined foam piece of the desired length; and moving the combined foam piece to a receiving table downstream of the cutting station.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the front portion of the first foam piece is moved with a second conveyor to the receiving table downstream of the saw assembly.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein applying adhesive to an end surface of the rear portion of the first foam piece comprises using an adhesive assembly.

20. The method of claim 17 wherein the combined foam piece is moved to the

receiving table with a second conveyor.

21. The method of claim 17 wherein the first and second conveyors are independently operable.