Patent Publication Number: US-2015074904-A1

Title: Blanket Apparatus for Distributing Conditioned Air Into Zones of a Bed

Description:
BACKGROUND 
     1. Field of Use 
     This invention relates to a blanket apparatus for distribution of a flow of pressurized conditioned air into a zone around the body of a bed occupant. More specifically, the invention relates to an engineered layer of bedding that connects to a supply of pressurized conditioned air that evenly distributes such conditioned air to a single specific zone of the bed. The invention additionally contemplates connection of two independent supplies of conditioned air into the single layer of engineered bedding to evenly distribute such independent supplies into specific dual zone areas about the multiple bed occupants, thus providing independently conditioned zones within the bed for each occupant. The invention further avoids the feeling of foreign and unnatural apparatus in the bed to the occupants by providing for a bedding texture against the skin of ordinary cotton linens and comforters. 
     2. Description of Prior Art (Background) 
     The body of the average person releases a substantial amount of heat through skin loss and moisture due to perspiration to the surrounding air. The usual practice of covering the body during sleeping has the effect of insulating the body from the surrounding room air and thereby holds such released heat and moisture in the air about the body. 
     In cold weather when the room temperature may be below 70 F. heavy covering is frequently employed so as to minimize the exchange of air about the body with the surrounding room air and thus has the effect of increasing the air temperature and humidity about the body. In such instances a person will often throw off the covering while asleep, which will then result in chilling. 
     In warm weather when the room temperature is above 70 F., a lighter covering is usually employed but the moisture which results from perspiration is still retained about the body by the insulating covering, causing personal discomfort and results in poor rest. 
     The obese and the bedridden are particularly troubled by these conditions of the air environment about the body. Many home and hospital patients have body temperature conditions which ideally require controlled surrounding air and humidity conditions within the bed environment. 
     Room air conditioners which have heretofore been provided for regulating the room air temperature and humidity conditions have the disadvantages of handling large volumes of air, requiring special electrical power, and are relatively expensive for installation, operation and maintenance costs. Even with room air conditioners, the person usually employs some form of covering which insulates the body from the surrounding air so there remains no suitable means of exchanging the air between the body and the covering of the occupant&#39;s bed. 
     There are a many causes of the various known sleep disorders. Of these causes the physical comfort of the person attempting to sleep or rest is paramount, for if a person&#39;s ambient surroundings are not conducive to their personal comfort, sleep can become extremely difficult to achieve, if at all. One factor in the person&#39;s environment that has a bearing on their ability to achieve sleep is the ambient temperature. If the temperature of the surroundings of a person is either too hot or too cold, restful sleep may be impossible. Of particular concern is the case where the surroundings are too hot, because in such cases the body&#39;s ability to control its internal temperature may be effected to the point where the body begins to sweat, and it is nearly impossible to achieve restful sleep while sweating. Thus, maintaining the ambient temperature at a level which is conducive to sleep is a key to enabling a person to sleep. 
     Means for controlling the ambient temperature in a person&#39;s surroundings are known to include the provision of “air conditioning” in which an air conditioner utilizing the principles of Joule-Thomson cooling is employed to extract heat from a volume of air, such as a bedroom. While air conditioners are highly effective at coarsely controlling the temperature in a room, the customary preference for persons to sleep beneath one or more bed sheets, covers, blankets, etc, coupled with the body&#39;s tendency to liberate heat during its normal operation translates to the well-known situation in which the person resting beneath the sheets cannot get comfortable because they are too hot, which is compounded by the proposition that if they remove the covers or sheets from themselves then they become too cold. 
     Owing to variance between selected individual human subjects&#39; metabolism, genetics, etc. the method used in the fine tuning control of one&#39;s body temperature becomes a matter of personal taste or preference, and many individuals have typically been observed to develop their own personal habits of effecting such fine tuning, such as sleeping with more or less clothing, permitting part of the body to be exposed to the open air, etc. It is a common observation that two individuals sharing a bed may have widely different requirements of hot and cold within the ambient air of the bedding for comfortable sleep. 
     In spite of these efforts, however, perfect control of the temperature of ambient surroundings of persons in a bed desiring to sleep has been fleeting, with particular difficulty for partners who share a bed with different sleep temperature preferences. This fact is evidenced by the myriad of schemes and contrivances provided by workers in the prior art for effecting thermal control over a bed or region in which a person normally rests for sleep utilizing a pressurized flow of air, the following few of which are exemplary, and are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 20,120,017,371 A1 discloses a cooling blanket with an upper portion and lower portion defining a space between them for the flow of cooling fluid; the blanket having a first zone and a second zone with each zone being connected to an independent source of cooling fluid, and with myriad of reinforced openings in the lower layer for flow of air. 
     This invention is deficient in that it does not contemplate a blanket that can be used for both heating and cooling. This invention is also deficient because it contains no plurality of joining method within the cooling fluid flow area between the upper portion and lower portion to avoid massive ballooning of the cooling blanket while under natural pressure from the flow of cooling fluid. This ballooning effect can cause the blanket to swell to 24″ over the surface of the bedding, creating an undesirable condition. This invention is also deficient in that it contemplates flow of air through myriad reinforced small openings in the lower layer, the reinforced openings thus creating a bedding texture in contact with the bed occupant that is unlike that of ordinary cotton sheets or comforters. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 7,631,377 B1 provides for a bed ventilator comprising a divided bed sheet having first and second vented chambers, a ventilating unit in conduit communication with each of said vented chambers; and said divided bed sheet comprising a top sheet, a bottom sheet of greater length than said top sheet, and a longitudinal pliable partition conjoining said top and bottom sheets, with said top sheet and partition portion extending beyond said bottom sheet to form said first and second vented chambers in a side-by-side manner. 
     This invention is deficient in that it requires said bed sheet to operate with a pliable partition in between occupants in order to create separate vented chambers or zones for conditioned air in the bed, thus creating an unnatural separation between occupants that did not exist prior to introduction of the apparatus to the bed. In another form where the partition is removable, the invention still requires an extra previously non-existent activity for an occupant to cross over to a different zone (ie, disconnection of the partition). 
     U.S. Pat. No 4,777,802 A, teaches of a blanket for connection with a supply of pressurized temperature-modified air, comprising: an outer layer constructed of an air impervious material; an inner layer constructed of a material readily permeable by pressurized air, said inner layer being arranged in major surface area contacting relation with the outer layer; sealing means interconnecting the outer and inner layers arranged in a substantially continuous closed path leaving an unsealed and separable portion of said outer and inner layers inwardly of the sealing means; and inlet means communicating with the unsealed portion between the outer and inner layers for introducing the pressurized temperature-modified air therein at least a part of which pressurized air exits through the inner layer. 
     This invention is deficient in that it does not contemplate supply of multiple sources of independently conditioned air for distribution to into multiple independent conditioned zones within the bed. This invention is also deficient in that it utilizes an air impervious material for the upper layer, which is an uncommon characteristic of normal bedding and shall cause substantial temperature and humidity rise within the bed during moments when pressurized air is not supplied to the apparatus and thus causing discomfort to occupants who do not wish continuous use of pressurized air during all sleeping times. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,660,388 A provides for a generally rectangular cooling cover adapted to be positioned over a human body in a prone position; said cooling cover comprising; a coverlet having an outer sheet, an inner porous pouch attached to the outer sheet, and an inner pad within the porous pouch; said inner pad including a pair of upper and lower sheets formed of an air impermeable material with the upper sheet adjacent the coverlet and the lower sheet adjacent the porous pouch, said sheets secured to each other along their outer edges to form an air distribution chamber there between, and secured to each other along a plurality of parallel intermediate portions extending lengthwise between the ends of the sheets for a major portion thereof to form a plurality of separate longitudinally extending air passages there-between having lower rounded surfaces, a plenum chamber extending transversely of the pad at each end thereof in fluid communication with said longitudinally extending air passages; and a cool air inlet at one end of said inner pad, said coverlet having an opening therein in alignment with said inlet of said pad adapted to receive a source of cool air for connection to said inlet; said lower rounded surfaces having a plurality of apertures along the length thereof at locations other than the lowermost portion of said rounded surfaces and in fluid communication with said longitudinally extending passages whereby cool air may be discharged as small jets through said apertures at an angular relation to a vertical plane for diffusing through the porous pouch to contact a large area of the body cooled. 
     This invention is deficient in that it does not contemplate supply of multiple sources of independently conditioned air for distribution into multiple independently conditioned zones within the bed. This invention is also deficient in that it contemplates flow of air through myriad small apertures in the lower layer and through a porous pouch, thus creating a bedding texture in contact with the bed occupant that is unlike that of ordinary cotton sheets or comforters. 
     U.S. Pat. No. CA 2295584 C sets forth An apparatus for cooling a patient, comprising: an upper sheet and a base sheet connected together at a plurality of locations to form an inflatable covering, the inflatable covering including: an inlet for receiving pressurized air in the inflatable covering, and a plurality of apertures extending through the base sheet for exhausting the pressurized air from the inflatable covering; and a liquid distribution apparatus disposed beneath the base sheet to deliver a liquid adjacent a region of the base sheet including at least a portion of the apertures for being evaporated by the pressurized air exhausted from the inflatable covering. 
     This invention is deficient because it requires a liquid distribution into the bedding, thus introducing a foreign element to ordinary means of sleeping. This invention is also deficient in that it does not contemplate supply of multiple sources of independently conditioned air for distribution into multiple independently conditioned zones within the bed. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,265,599 A provides a pneumatic temperature control blanket receiving air through an external pressurized air supply connection wherein the blanket comprises an envelope formed by first and second sheets sealed together at their peripheries, the blanket having a longitudinal axis, a central region, lateral regions, a head end and a foot end, a plurality of air dispensing orifices defined in at least one of the sheets and the sheets being interconnected within the sheet&#39;s peripheries by spaced tacks, the improvement comprising, closely spaced first tacks being so positioned as to define a primary reduced flow resistance air passage within the blanket envelope in communication with the air supply connection and defining lateral ports within said air passage establishing communication between said air passage and the remainder of the envelope interior including the lateral regions, the lateral regions including second tacks, the spacing between adjacent second tacks being greater than the spacing between adjacent first tacks. 
     This invention is deficient in that it does not contemplate supply of multiple sources of independently conditioned air for distribution into multiple independently conditioned zones within the bed. This invention is also deficient in that it contemplates flow of air through myriad small orifices in the lower layer, thus creating a bedding texture in contact with the bed occupant that is unlike that of ordinary cotton sheets or comforters. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 20110289684 A1 A distribution system adapted for use with a mattress and a personal comfort system having an air conditioning system operable for outputting a conditioned air flow, the distribution system comprising: an inlet interface adapted for receiving a conditioned air flow; and a distribution layer comprising: a bottom layer configured to inhibit a flow of air, a top layer, a spacer structure disposed between the bottom layer and the top layer, the spacer structure defining an internal volume within the distribution layer and configured to enable the conditioned air flow to flow therethrough, and wherein at least a portion of the top layer is configured to allow at least a portion of the conditioned air flow to pass from the spacer structure into a surrounding atmosphere near a top surface of a mattress. 
     This invention is deficient because it requires a significant integration with a mattress system and because the user is required to sleep on top of the air distribution system rather than directly on the mattress, thus introducing a foreign element into the users bed that was not there previously. This invention is deficient in that it does not contemplate supply of multiple sources of independently conditioned air for distribution into multiple independently conditioned zones within the bed. 
     While each of the prior art devices and methods achieve to a greater or less extent their desired objectives, they are nevertheless not without features which have heretofore prevented their widespread adoption by large numbers of people. The prior arts fails to teach a bedding apparatus that can evenly distribute a pressurized flow of air through a bed into both one or two independent zones, while not causing ballooning of bedding due to flow of air. Moreover, the prior art introduces apparatus that introduce either foreign textures or objects to the user in the bed, which is a highly undesirable feature. 
     Thus, there exists a need for an improved system for distributing both warm and cool conditioned air throughout a bed into one or two zones, while not introducing elements or textures to the users that were previously foreign to the bed, while also avoiding ballooning of the bedding while delivering the pressurized air. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY 
     The foregoing and other problems are overcome, and other advantages are realized, in accordance with the presently preferred embodiments of these teachings. 
     It is a primary aim and object of the present invention to provide a top bedding blanket assembly interconnected with an external apparatus which supplies a pressurized flow of conditioned air, such that the air can be evenly distributed within a zone of a bed and not provide the feeling of “rushing air” to the occupants. 
     Another object is the provision of a top bedding blanket assembly accepting two independent flows of conditioned air from external apparatus for even distribution into two independent zones within the bed, thus accommodating two occupants&#39; different bed temperature preferences while simultaneously allowing a single top bedding blanket apparatus to cover both occupants without separation between the occupants. 
     Yet another object of the invention is the provision of accepting both heated, ambient and cooled air as a means of establishing multiple zones of temperature within a bed 
     Yet another object of the invention is to not introduce foreign textures or surfaces in contact with the bed occupants other than those that are already commonly used in existing residential bedding such as cotton, cotton blends, and synthetic microfiber materials. 
     A final object of the invention is to allow for sufficiently pressurized air flow into the blanket apparatus to evenly distribute air without a large ballooning effect of the blanket or bedding. 
     In accordance with one embodiment of the invention is a lower layer sheet comprised of a cotton, cotton blend, or synthetic microfiber, or other similar material commonly used in residential bedding that has some permeability to air, that is joined to an upper layer sheet of similar material but of tighter weave with a lower natural permeability to air, the joining of the two layers thus creating an interior space for the flow of air. Said upper layer being arranged in major surface area contacting relation with the lower layer, the joining shall be arranged in a substantially continuous closed path with allowance for an inlet port for pressurized conditioned air. The lower layer sheet and upper layer sheet shall be joined by a plurality of joining methods within the air flow area that enables contiguous connection to the air flow stream while preventing ballooning of the blanket apparatus while under natural pressure from the flow of pressurized air. The differential of permeability of the upper and lower layers shall cause substantially more of the flow air to be directed towards the occupants versus out the upper layer, while avoiding unsightly appearance of any holes, apertures or other venting means or textures which would not normally be present in ordinary bedding sheets or comforters. The use of both layers being permeable to air increases the occupants comfort to a more natural bedding experience while pressurized air is not supplied. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the invention another feature of the apparatus is a limited flow zone area, where the pressurized conditioned air is directed to only half or some portion of a bed, while the blanket apparatus still covers the entire bed area. 
     In accordance with another embodiment of the invention another feature of the apparatus is a dual zone flow area, where one flow area is sealed from the other and both have independent inlets for pressurized conditioned air, thus creating a two zone conditioning system for the bed. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion of the specification. The foregoing and other objects, features, and advantages of the invention are apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The following brief definition of terms shall apply throughout the application: 
     The term “comprising” means including but not limited to, and should be interpreted in the manner it is typically used in the patent context; 
     The phrases “in one embodiment,” “according to one embodiment,” and the like generally mean that the particular feature, structure, or characteristic following the phrase may be included in at least one embodiment of the present invention, and may be included in more than one embodiment of the present invention (importantly, such phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment); 
     If the specification describes something as “exemplary” or an “example,” it should be understood that refers to a non-exclusive example; and 
     If the specification states a component or feature “may,” “can,” “could,” “should,” “preferably,” “possibly,” “typically,” “optionally,” “for example,” or “might” (or other such language) be included or have a characteristic, that particular component or feature is not required to be included or to have the characteristic. 
     Referring now to  FIG. 1 , there is shown a pictorial illustration of an operational use in which the invention is implemented. Item  4  identifies a sealed edge between the upper and lower layer sheets, Item  7  represents the flow area created by the sealed upper and lower sheets, Item  2  represents the plurality of joining means between the upper and lower layer sheets that allows open flow paths but prevents ballooning of the joined sheets when under pressurized air flow, Item  1  represents an unsealed area between the upper and lower sheets where a pressurized air flow can be supplied by a hose or other means into the flow area, Item  3  represents optional sealing line between the upper and lower layers to further distinguish a smaller zone in the bed, Item  5  represents an additional optional sealing line between the upper and lower layers to create an independent dual zone flow area, Item  6  represents an input port for a second independent conditioned flow of air to support the dual zone air flow nature of the apparatus.