Abstract:
A cushion having a foam core sandwiched by opposing gel infused viscoelastic pads adhesively attached to the core, the assembly wrapped in a non-woven and received in an upholstery casing, for seating use of the cushion in a furniture piece that during use for seating, the upper one of the pads wicking body heat into the seating cushion away from the person sitting thereon to provide a perception of cooling and the compressed pad readily reboundable to a noncompressed state after occupancy, and the cushion rotatable to selectively alternate the seating pad for use.

Description:
TECHNICAL FIELD 
       [0001]    The present invention relates to cushioned seating furniture. More particularly, the present invention relates to seating furniture having seating cushions that readily rebound in recovery from seating occupancy impressions while providing during occupancy a positive impact on perceived thermal seating comfort. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Cushioned furniture such as sofas and chairs provide persons with seating furniture while also providing rooms with ornamentation arising from the style and materials of which the furniture is manufactured. The cushions provide a resilient and comfortable place for persons to occupy such as for reading, watching television, and talking with others such as parties or social events, among other purposes. The cushions are typically covered with ornamental fabrics and may be attached to frame members of the furniture or may be separate cushions held within upholstered casings. Such separate cushions enable removal for cleaning of the frame members of the furniture, for example, for cleaning dust and articles that may accumulate in the gaps between adjacent cushions. While cushions in furniture provide comfortable seating, occupancy by persons of upholstered cushions often have drawbacks which are typically tolerated as acceptable aspects of upholstered cushioned furniture. One drawback to cushioned furniture is involves cushions or pillows formed with feathers and/or down. The feathers break-down over time and usage, and result in reduced billowing for use as cushions for furniture. These pillows and cushions require re-fluffing, such as by manual fluffing of the enclosed feathers and down to allow the feathers and down to breathe and remain light and separated during non-use of the cushion to avoid clumping and reduce break-down during use. 
         [0003]    Another drawback is a perception by the seating occupant of increased warmth created while sitting. The perception arises in response to body heat production local to the occupied seating. Typically, a normal core temperature for a person about is 98.6° F., while skin temperature is around 92° F. Because the ambient temperature is often lower than that, a person emits body heat to the surroundings. The cushions on which a person sits thereby become warmer, and as the area of occupancy becomes warmer, the person sitting on the cushion perceives an increase is ambient sitting temperature. For example, a person watching television may leave a seat which is then occupied by second person. The second person would likely detect the increased temperature of the recently-vacated seating area (adjusted for ambient room temperature and time since vacating the occupancy as the seating area returns to ambient temperature). 
         [0004]    Further, the vacating person may also leave a depression or valley in the resilient cushion. The depression or valley forms in response to the compression loading of the person to the cushion. Typically, cushions rebound after vacating of the loading to a recovered relaxed, non-compressed state, although the time for such rebound varies depending on a number of factors including ambient temperature, occupancy time, occupant mass, and resilience performance characteristics of the cushions. While cushions typically rebound to a normal relaxed state, the appearance of such valleys is detracting and notwithstanding the responsive rebound, may over time and use, lose the rebounding performance and create rather a permanent valley which detracts from the ornamental appearance and useful life of the cushioned furniture. 
         [0005]    Accordingly, there is a need in the art for seating furniture having upholstered seating cushions that readily rebounds from seating occupancy impressions while providing during occupancy a positive impact on perceived thermal comfort by reducing increases in local ambient temperature arising from body heat production. It is to such that the present invention is directed. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0006]    The present invention meets the need in the art by providing a cushion for seating furniture pieces, comprising a pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads, each pad having a length, a width, and a thickness and defining a sitting side and an opposing adherence side. The pads sandwich a core of a foam pad having a core length, a core width, and a core thickness and defining opposing first and second core adherence sides. Each of the pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads laminate on the adherence side to a respective one of the opposing first and second core adherence sides to define an adherence boundary therebetween, whereby the core is disposed between the pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads. A covering sheet overlays the adherence boundary on a side face of the laminated core and gel infused viscoelastic pads. The laminated pads have a first state and a second state, the second state having a recessed valley defined in one of the pair of gel infused pads by compressive loading of a person sitting on thereon during use of thereof on a furniture piece for seating while the first state is relaxed to a substantially planar surface. An upholstered casing receives and encloses the laminated pads and core as a seating cushion. The gel infused viscoelastic pads, being occupied by a person on a piece of furniture, wicks body heat from the person inwardly of the seating cushion to reduce perceived changes in seating temperature and defines the valley while readily rebounding to the relaxed first state upon egress from sitting by the occupant person. 
         [0007]    In another aspect, the present invention provides a furniture piece with seating cushions, comprising a frame having a front and rear rail joined at opposing ends to opposing arm structures, each arm structure having front and back arm posts and an arm top, and legs extending downwardly to support the frame on a floor surface and great rail extending between the opposing back posts to define a back, a seating foundation and padding. The foundation receives at least one seating cushion for occupancy by a person using the furniture piece for furniture piece purposes. The seating cushion comprises a pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads, each pad having a length, a width, and a thickness and defining a sitting side and an opposing adherence side, and a core of a foam pad having a core length, a core width, and a core thickness and defining opposing first and second core adherence sides. Each of the pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads laminate on the adherence side to a respective one of the opposing first and second core adherence sides to define an adherence boundary therebetween, whereby the core is sandwiched between the pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads. A covering sheet overlays the adherence boundary on a side face of the laminated core and gel infused viscoelastic pads. An upholstered casing receives and encloses the covered laminated core and pads. The laminated pads have a first state and a second state, the second state having a recessed valley defined in one of the pair of gel infused pads by compressive loading of a person sitting on thereon during use of thereof on a furniture piece for seating. The gel infused viscoelastic pads, being occupied by a person on a piece of furniture, wicks body heat from the person inwardly of the seating cushion to reduce perceived changes in seating temperature and defines the valley while readily rebounding to the relaxed first state upon egress from sitting by the occupant person. 
         [0008]    Advantages, features, and objects of the present invention will become readily apparent upon a reading of the following detailed description of the invention with reference to the drawings and in conjunction with the appended claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0009]      FIG. 1  illustrates in perspective cut-away view an upholstered seating cushion in accordance with the present invention. 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  illustrates in perspective cut-away view a furniture piece using the upholstered seating cushion illustrated in  FIG. 1 . 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  illustrates in side schematic view a person sitting on the cushion while using the furniture piece illustrated in  FIG. 2 . 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  illustrates in side schematic view the cushion in a first state prior to use for seating in the furniture piece illustrated in  FIG. 2 , 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
       [0013]    With reference to the drawings in which like parts have like identifiers,  FIG. 1  illustrates in perspective cut-away view a laminated cushion  10  in accordance with the present invention. The cushion  10  comprises a core  12  of a foam material sandwiched on opposing sides by a pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads  14 . The core  12  has a length, width and thickness and defines first and second core adherence sides  16 ,  18 . Each pad  14  also has a length, a width, and a thickness and defines a sitting side  20  and an opposing adherence side  22 . Each pad  14  laminates on its adherence side  22  to a respective one of the opposing first and second core adherence sides  16 ,  18 . This defines an adherence boundary  34  between the core  12  and the pad  14 , whereby the core is sandwiched between the pair of gel infused viscoelastic pads  14 . A covering sheet  30  overlies at least the adherence boundary  34  on respective side faces of the cushion  10 . In an alternate embodiment, the covering sheet  30  envelopes and covers the laminated pads and core. An upholstered casing  38  receives, and encloses, the covered laminated core  12  and pads  14 . The casing  38  may be made of synthetic materials, leather, or woven fabrics. The casing  38  may include an opening selectively closable by a closing device such as a zipper, but may also be seamed closed and thereby restricting readily removing the covered laminated core  12  and pads  14 . 
         [0014]    In the illustrated embodiment, the covering sheet  30  is a nonwoven fabric. Prior to wrapping, the outside surfaces of the laminated core  12  and pads  14  are lightly sprayed with an adhesive. The covering  30  wraps around the laminated core  12  and pads  14  and secures thereto with the adhesive. 
         [0015]    The pads  14  are a dense foam material that is infused with a thermogel material  40 . The thermogel material readily wicks heat that otherwise would not communicate into or through the foam material that has an insulative effect. G FLEX gel infused pads are available from Flexible Foam Products, Inc., of Spencerville, Ohio 45887. The core  12  is a high density foam, a synthetic material, a rubber latex, polyurethane, or other resilient cushioning foam. The core  12  is preferably a high density polyurethane form. The core may have density in the range of about 1.5-2.5 pounds per cubic foot. HIGH COMFORT high resiliency polyurethane foam used in the illustrated embodiment is available from Flexible Foam Products, Inc., of Spencerville, Ohio 45887. In the illustrated embodiment, the core  12  has core length of 20 inches, a core width of 20 inches, and a core thickness of 5 inches. The pads  12  have respective pad length and width of 20 inches and a pad thickness of 2½ inches. It is to be appreciated that the length, width, and thickness may be changed to accommodate a particular furniture piece. 
         [0016]      FIG. 2  illustrates a furniture piece  50  that uses the upholstered cushion  10 . The illustrated furniture piece  50  is configured as a sofa, but seating furniture are similarly constructed. The furniture piece  50  includes a frame  52  with opposing front and back longitudinal rails  54 ,  56  joined at opposing ends by arm structures  58  having front and back arm posts  60 ,  62  and an arm top  64 . Legs  66  extend downwardly to support the frame  52  from a floor surface. A great rail  68  extends longitudinally between the opposing back posts  62  with spaced back uprights  70  extending between the back rail  56  and the great rail  64 . The opposing front and back rails support a seating foundation  72 , such as conventional jute webbing and spring members. Similarly, the back supports a jute and spring foundation between the back rail and the great rail. Padding and liners generally  74  conventional in the trade, such as cotton batting and burlap sheeting, attach to the foundations and the arm structures. The back cushions are made and covered with the selected ornamental fabric, and may be joined together side-by-side before attaching to the back. The seat cushions  10  are prepared with the selected fabric for the ornamental casing. The illustrated embodiment is sized for three seat cushions  10 . 
         [0017]      FIG. 3  illustrates in side schematic view a person occupying the seating provided by the cushion  10  supported on the foundation of the furniture piece  50 . The laminated pads  14  have a first state and a second state. In the first state, the surface of the upholstered cushion is substantially planar (as shown in  FIG. 4 ) without seating recesses caused by an occupant/sitter loading the cushion. In the second state as shown in  FIG. 3 , the cushion  10  has one or more recessed valleys  76  defined in the upper seating one of the pair of gel infused pads  14 . The valley  76  forms in response to the compressive loading of a person sitting on the cushion  10  during use of the furniture piece  50  for seating. 
         [0018]    By sitting on the seating cushion  10 , the person loads the seating cushion and the seating cushion  10  compresses to define the recess  76  in the seating surface. The gel infusion  40  in the upper pad  14  on which the person sits wicks body heat from the occupant through the upholstery  38  and into and through the gel infused pad, as indicated by the arrows  78 . The thermo-communicative gel therein effects a reduction in sitting temperature perceived by the occupant, and thereby produces a thermophysical sense of cooled seating as the seating surface of the cushion  10  tends to remain at about ambient temperature rather than increasing locally in response to body heat of the sitting occupant. 
         [0019]      FIG. 4  illustrates in side schematic view the cushion  10  after departure of the occupant, in which the gel infused pad  14  rebounds from the second state to the first state, for readily returning the furniture piece  50  to a perceived unused status. The gel infused viscoelastic pad  14 , being occupied by a person on a piece of furniture, wicks body heat from the person inwardly of the seating cushion to reduce perceived changes in seating temperature and defines the valley while readily rebounding to the relaxed first state upon egress from sitting by the occupant person. 
         [0020]    The gel infused pads  14  laminated on opposing sides of the cushion core  14  make the cushion  10  reversible so that a consumer may readily flip the cushion. The seating cushion  10  accordingly readily rotates to dispose the second one of the pads  14  uppermost for seating and thereby distribute the wear from compressive loading on the pads  14  and core  12 , as well as even the wear on the outer fabric  38 . 
         [0021]    The present invention accordingly provides the seating cushion usable in a furniture piece for cushioned seating of the occupant while effecting a perception of cooling seating as body heat wicks into the laminated seating cushion and readily rebounds from a compressed state to a relaxed planar state for ornamental effect for further seating use. The principles, preferred embodiments, and modes of operation of the present invention have been described in the foregoing specification with regard to an illustrative, non-limiting embodiment. The invention accordingly is not to be construed as limited to the particular forms disclosed as these are regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Moreover, variations and changes may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention described in the following claims