WO2020110159A1

WO2020110159A1 - Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket

Info

Publication number: WO2020110159A1
Application number: PCT/IT2019/000099
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mario NAIMOLI
Original assignee: Naimoli-Tech S.R.L.
Priority date: 2018-11-29
Filing date: 2019-11-12
Publication date: 2020-06-04
Also published as: IT201800010666A1

Abstract

A thermal mattress cover or a thermal blanket is described, comprising heating elements (100) and conductive material (200), the heating elements (100) of a surface area extended substantially in a bidimensional plane through at least one fabric (21), the conductive material (200) extending laterally as connecting means to supply low-voltage electric current, the heating elements (100) being composed of braided filaments with such at least one fabric (21) and being free of any type of winding on a carrier element to avoid forming troublesome projections of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket and to avoid forming concentrated hot spots.

Description

THERMAL MATTRESS COVER OR THERMAL BLANKET

The present invention refers to a thermal mattress cover or a thermal blanket.

In general, the present invention is mainly aimed to make blankets, sub-blankets, thermal mattress covers and other heating apparats for domestic use and the like, for heating a bed and a human body.

In particular, the present invention refers to heating elements having a surface area extended substantially in a bidimensional plane, flexible heaters, heaters or heating nets used in fabrics, low-voltage electric supply, for example using a transformer, heaters which use a laterally extending conductive material as connecting means, heaters in which the heating element is braided with the fabric.

The prior art is given by DE 10 2010 036 313 Al, dealing with a flexible heating device, for example, sub-blanket, electric blanket, heating plate or the like, with a flexible heating body, comprising a heating layer composed of a flexible support material with threads of carrier material and flexible filiform heating elements with heating threads, available for a connecting conductor which allows supplying low-voltage electric current, the flexible filiform heating elements being formed as resistances for windings with a central wire of at least one fiber, thereby composing a helically wound heating wire.

The flexible heating device of DE 10 2010 036 313 A1 solves the problem of creating a heating layer of an electric blanket through a fabric used as carrier element of heating wires. However, each heating wire must be helically wound on a fabric thread, before the weaving operation. Moreover, an electric connection must be ensured between the heating wire wound on the fabric thread and the connecting conductor to allow supplying low-voltage electric current. Therefore, it must be provided that the shape of the helical winding of the heating wire on the carrier fabric thread is such as to guarantee the contact with the connecting conductor. Moreover, conductive wires of the same diameter must be used, and, above all, with an opposite winding direction in order to guarantee the mutual contact of conductive wires with heating threads .

Therefore, a double problem introduced by the arrangement of DE 10 2010 036 313 A1 is having to: prepare an electric winding on wire before the weaving step; ensure the electric contact in the crossing between the wire with electric winding and the connecting conductor composing the fabric used as carrier element of the heating threads.

Object of the present invention is solving the above prior art problems, by providing a flexible heating device which is free of electric windings on the threads of a layer of fabric.

Another object is providing a flexible heating device with its heating wires inserted as weft and/or warp threads.

A further object is providing a flexible heating device with its heating wires perfectly braided with the connecting conductor, the connecting conductor inserted as weft and/or warp thread.

An advantageous effect of the present invention is providing heating elements free from electric windings, as guarantee of a uniform thickness of the blanket or mattress cover, enabling to make a product free from projections which can be troublesome.

A further advantageous effect is guaranteeing a uniform cover of the surface to be heated with a homogeneous heat transmission and diffusion, providing a relaxing feeling which helps to stretch the muscles.

Another advantageous effect is avoiding to form concentrated hot spots, which can create burns and overheating of a body in some spots.

A further advantageous effect is avoiding an obsolete arrangement of electric cables with serpenting geometries.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention, as will appear from the following description, are obtained with a thermal mattress cover or a thermal blanket as claimed in claim 1. Preferred embodiments and non-trivial variations of the present invention are the subject matter of the dependent claims.

It is intended that all enclosed claims are an integral part of the present description.

It will be immediately obvious that numerous variations and modifications {for example related to shape, sizes, arrangements and parts with equivalent functionality) can be made to what is described, without departing from the scope of the invention as appears from the enclosed claims.

The present invention will be better described by some preferred embodiments thereof, provided as a non-limiting example, with reference to the enclosed drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a plan view of a relevant part of a first embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket according to the present invention;

Figure 2 shows a plan view of a relevant part of a second embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket according to the present invention;

Figure 3 shows a front view of a third embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket according to the present invention;

Figure 4 shows a front view of a fourth embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket according to the present invention; and

Figure 5 shows a plan view of an embodiment of the thermal mattress cover according to the present invention . With reference to Figures 1, 2, it is possible to note that a thermal mattress cover or a thermal blanket comprises heating elements 100 and conductive material 200. The heating elements 100 are on a surface area extended substantially in a bidimensional plane through at least one fabric 21. The conductive material 200 extends laterally as connecting means to supply low-voltage electric current .

Advantageously, the heating elements 100 are composed of braided filaments with such at least one fabric 21. In particular, such filaments are free from every type of winding su a carrier element to avoid forming troublesome projections of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket and to avoid forming concentrated hot spots .

Dimensionally, the heating elements 100 are intercalated with a spacing P100 included between 4 mm and 45 mm.

Each filament of the heating elements 100 is of a carbon-based material, in particular carbon yarns IK, 3K, 6K, 12K, whose roving or yarn is composed of 1000, 3000, 6000, 12000 filaments.

With reference to Figure 1, the conductive material 200 is composed of jointed sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203, braided with the fabric 21.

With reference to Figure 2, the conductive material 200 is composed of non-jointed sections of conductive material 201, 202, braided with the fabric 21.

Each of the sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203, is composed of a plurality of electric conductive filaments equal to a number included between 1 and 48.

In particular, each electric conductive filament of the said sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203, is composed of strands in an amount included between a minimum of 2 ad a maximum of 46 capillaries, the section of the capillaries included between 0.03 mm and 2 mm.

Each electric conductive filament of the sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203 is of at least one material among thin copper, tin-coated copper, silver-coated copper, red copper, silver, nickel, stainless steel, conductor coated with a fabric, tinsel or other type of conductive material .

At least one electric connector 22 is fastened to the thermal mattress cover or to the thermal blanket in order to allow connecting and supplying at least one of the sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203. The electric connector 22 can comprise a receptacle adapted to house supplying wires, joining means of the pressure, crimping or welding type, of the electric conductive filaments of the sections of conductive material 201, 202, 203; the electric connector 22 is connected to a cable of an electric source, supplied with direct or alternate current, at a low voltage, included between 2 and 48 volts.

With reference to Figure 3, a first embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket deals with an upper layer 1 of fabric, made of a material such as viscose, polyester, wool or any textile fiber, a heating layer 2 with the heating elements 100 and with the conductive material 200 through such at least one fabric 21 and a lower layer 3 of fabric, made of a material such as viscose, polyester, wool or any natural or artificial textile fiber.

With reference to Figure 4, a second embodiment of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket deals with a padded layer 4, between the heating layer 2 and the lower layer 3. In particular, the padded layer 4 is made of a material such as polyester fibers, sponge, microcellular foam, foamed polyurethane or padded wool.

The operation for joining said layers 1, 2, 3, 4, is performed through operations such as quilting, binding, gluing, sewing.

With reference to Figure 5, a thermal mattress cover comprises fastening elements 41 in the four angular regions, such as notches, textile ribbons, textile bands, elastic gowns, to allow fastening the mattress cover to a mattress.

A safety device is provided, through which it is possible to observe a wrong operation of the heating elements 100 and of the conductive material 200.

In a weaving process, the heating elements 100 are composed of weft and/or warp threads, while the conductive material 200 is composed of warp and/or weft threads.

Examples

The blanket or the thermal mattress cover of the present invention allows combining the thermal properties obtained through heating elements made of carbon with those of comfort and of posture offered by a thermal mattress cover equipped with elastic bands and elastic gowns or of a slippingpreventing fabric in contact with the mattress.

The blanket or the thermal mattress cover of the present invention is of the anti-bacterial and anti-static type; moreover, it appears free from electric cables and internal projections and allows extending its use in the field of clothings and in all those sectors where it is possible to use a flexible electric heating device for domestic use and the like, comprising arrays of electrically heating weft threads of a carbon-based material.

The carbon-based material allows exploiting the intrinsic features of flexibility and ductility, to efficiently link and braid weft and warp, optimizing a low-resistance thermal bridge, in the braiding, necessary to guarantee the electric connection between heating weft threads made of carbon fibers and conductor weft and/or warp threads made of thin copper.

A further advantage in the use of carbon fibers is given by the fact of being able to exploit features like: resistance to oxidation and humidity; absence of thermal inertia and of thermal dilatations; high capability of storing and spreading heat; resistance to oxidation; endurance in time; structural flexibility; efficient heating transient to allow quickly reaching a steady-state temperature .

Normally, such electrically heating weft threads are carbon yarns IK, 3K, 6K, 12K, whose roving or yarn is composed of 1000, 3000, 6000, 12000 filaments.

Each electrically heating weft thread made of carbon fiber is unwound from a respective creel and inserted through the fabric warping by means of such weft inserting means, for example a forceps or preferably a positive forceps, of a multiweft loom. In this way, the contact is ensured of conducting warp threads braided with respect to weft threads made of carbon fibers, without the risk of etching or cutting the carbon fibers. At the same time, the thereby obtained intersection between the conducting threads and the carbon yarns ensures the electric connection through an adequate beating action of the loom. On the sides of each conducting band, a warp density is obtained with a greater value to stabilize and guarantee a good connection and conductivity under different use situations.

Claims

1. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket, comprising heating elements (100} and conductive material (200), the heating elements (100) of a surface area extended substantially in a bidimensional plane through at least one fabric (21) , the conductive material (200) extending laterally as connecting means to supply low- voltage electric current, characterized in that said heating elements (100) are composed of braided filaments with said at least one fabric (21) free from any type of winding on a carrier element to avoid forming troublesome projections of the thermal mattress cover or of the thermal blanket and to avoid forming concentrated hot spots .

2. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to the previous claim, characterized in that said heating elements (100) are intercalated with a spacing ( P100 ) included between 4 mm and 45 mm.

3. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to the previous claim, characterized in that each filament of said heating elements (100) is made of a carbon-based material, in particular carbon yarns IK, 3K, 6K, 12K, whose roving or yarn is composed of 1000, 3000, 6000,

12000 filaments.

4. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to claim 1, characterized in that said conductive material (200) is composed of jointed sections of conductive material (201, 202, 203} braided with said at least one fabric (21), or said conductive material (200) is composed of non-jointed sections of conductive material (201, 202) braided with said at least one fabric (21) .

5. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to claim 2 or 3, characterized in that each of said sections of conductive material (201, 202, 203) is composed of a plurality of electric conductive filaments equal to a number included between 1 and 48, each electric conductive filament of said sections of conductive material (201, 202, 203) being composed of strands in an amount included between a minimum of 2 and a maximum of 46 capillaries, the section of the capillaries included between 0.03 mm and 2 mm.

6. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to the previous claim, characterized in that each electric conductive filament of said sections of conductive material (201, 202,

203) is of at least one materiale between thin copper, tin-coated copper, silver-coated copper, red copper, silver, nickel, stainless steel, conductor coated with a fabric, tinsel or other type of conductive material.

7. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to the previous claim, characterized in that it comprises at least one electric connector (22) fastened to the thermal mattress cover or to the thermal blanket in order to allow connecting and supplying at least one of said sections of conductive material (201, 202,

203), the electric connector (22) comprising a receptacle adapted to house supplying wires, joining means of a pressure, a crimping or a welding type, of the electric conductive filaments of said sections of conductive material (201, 202, 203), the electric connector (22) connected to a cable of an electric source, supplied with direct or alternate current, with low voltage, included between 2 and 48 volts.

8. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to the previous claim, characterized in that it is composed of an upper layer (1) of fabric, made of a material such as viscose, polyester, wool or any textile fiber, of a heating layer (2) with the heating elements (100) and with the conductive material (200} through said at least one fabric (21) and of a lower layer (3) of fabric, made of a material such as viscose, polyester, wool or any natural or artificial textile fiber.

9. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that it comprises a padded layer (4), between the heating layer (2) and the lower layer (3), said padded layer (4) being made of a materiale such as polyester fibers, sponge, microcellular foam, foamed polyurethane or padded wool, said layers (1), (2), (3), (4) being preferably designed to be joined through operations such as quilting, binding, gluing, sewing.

10. Thermal mattress cover according to the previous claim, characterized in that it comprises fastening elements (41) in its four angular regions, such as notches, textile ribbons, textile bands, elastic gowns, to allow fastening the mattress cover to a mattress.

11. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that it comprises a safety device, through which it is possible to observe a wrong operation of the heating elements (100) and of the conductive material (200) .

12. Thermal mattress cover or thermal blanket according to any one of the previous claims, characterized in that said heating elements (100) are composed of weft and/or warp threads in a weaving process, and in that said conductive material (200) is composed of warp and/or weft threads in a weaving process.