US2738834A - Foldable cushion - Google Patents

Description

March 20, 1956 H. JAFFE ETAL FOLDABLE CUSHION 2 Sheets-Shea?l l Filed July 17, 1953 INVENTORS zgf@ Hzr Bylule CZZ'LJMG March 20, 1956 H. .JAFFE ErAL FOLDABLE CUSHION 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 17, 1953 INVENTORSZ Harz' Juf e ancznuel? )in Q 4% ATTORNEY United States Pam-* y 2,738,334 p Y IFOLDABL cUsHIoN Harry-'Jaffe and Manuel Philadelphia, Pa. Applictiontuiy 17, 1953, senat N. 3,613,751` p 2 claims. y (cl. 15s- 182) Y y The present invention relates generally to pads, cushions and mats and the like, and it relates more particularly to articles of this type which fare intended to be carried about from place to place for use in different localities.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new and useful foldable pad, cushion or mat or the like, as Well as a vnovel method of forming the same. Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel pad, cushion, mat or the like which can be opened for sitting or reclining comfort, andrwhich can be folded and secured quickly and easily for convenience in transportation. Other objects and advantages of the present invention are apparent in the following detailed description, appended claims and accompanying drawings forming` part hereof.

At various outdoor places of entertainment, such as ball games, concerts, etc., the seating accommodations consist of wood or concrete benches, which are hard and extremely uncomfortable. As a result, many patrons bring with them stuffed cushions or padswhich are bulky and clumsy to carry. A similar problemexists at beaches,

picnic grounds, etc., to which it is customary to bring large and bulky mats or pads for comfort in reclining.

The present inventioncontemplates a novel construction for such pads, cushions, mats and the like, which will enable vthem to be folded up and secured in the form of a compact, easily transportable package, capable of being opened instantaneously to provide a soft and comfortable large-area seating or reclining surface.

For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there is shown in the accompanying drawings a form thereof which Y is presently preferredand which has been found in practice to'give satisfactory results. However, the invention is not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown; variationsand equivalents thereof being within the purview of the invention.

Referring to the accompanying drawings in which like reference characters indicate likeparts throughout:

Figure 1 is a perspective View of a folded seat cushion or pad embodying the present invention, shown Vin position for insertion into a carrying case or envelope.

Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of the folded cushion of Fig. 1.

Figure 3 is a perspective view of the cushion of Fig. 2 shown in at unfolded position, ready for use.-

Figure '4 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along the line 4-4 ofl Fig. 3.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along the line 5 5 of Fig. 3.

Figure 6 is a cross-sectional view taken generally along the line 6 6 of Fig. 3.

Figure 7 is a perspective view of the cushion of Figs. 2 and 3 showing an intermediate stage in the folding operation.

Figure 8 is a perspective view showing the last stage of the folding operation.

Figure 9 is a perspective view showing an intermediate stage in the method of forming the cushion of Figs. 2 and 3.

2,738,834 Patented Mar. 20, 19,56

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lz Figure l0 is a perspective view showing a subsequent stage in the method of forming the cushion of Figs. 2 'and 3.

In Figs. l-10, there is shown a foldable seat cushion or pad forming one embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, the cushion. is formedof two generally rectangular panels 20 and 22 .of any suitable flexible material; i as for example wovencloth (which may be woven 'from anyA naturalor synthetic yarn or thread) vor synthetic resin film',` etc.` The panels 20 and 22 are stitched together along peripheralrseam lines, in a manner to be hereinafter described and are also provided with intermediate criss-crossing seam lines which form spaced pockets within which are disposed individual blocks of foam rubber which form the padding of thecushion.V

As best shown in Fig. 9,- it is possible to provide nine of the individual foam rubber blocks, of varying sizes. rThus, the center block 24 may be the largest in size and generally square in configuration. Outward of, and parallel to the four sidesV of the center block 24, we may provide four rectangular blocks 26 having alongitudinal dimension generally the same as the length of the sides of the centerrblock,but having a somewhat smallertransverse dimension. At the corners, we may provide four more blocks 28 which are generally square; the length of the sides being generally the same as the transverse dimension of the blocks 2 f The blocks 24, 26 and 28 are spaced from each other to permit them to he encased in individual pockets or compartments as will be hereinafter described. Mounted adjacent one edge of the panel 20 is a male snap-fastener element 3u, while a female snapfastener element 32 is mounted adjacent the opposite edge of the panel 22. In other words, when the cushion is in flat unfolded position, one of the elements faces upwardand the other downwardas indicated in Figs. 3, 5 and 6.

in producing the cushion of Figs.'2 and 3, the sponge rubber blocks 24, 26 and 2S may irst be adhesively or i otherwise suitablyaffixed to one face'of the panel 26,

after which the panel 22 is stitched to theother face of the panel 20 by seam lines 34 extending along three sides thereof, as indicated in Fig. 9.

The partially stitched panels 20 and 22 are then turned inside out, in the manner shown in Fig. l0, after which the fourth edges of the two panels are united by a seam line V35. lt should be noted that, when the two panels are turned inside out as mentioned above, the conguration is changed to place the rubber blocks between the two panels as illustrated in Fig. 10.

Thereafter, a continuous rectangular seam line 38 is sewn through the panels 20 and 22; the seam line 3S extending along the outer edges of the blocks 26 and 28 in encompassing relationship thereto. As indicated in Fig. 3, the same line 38 generally parallels the seam lines 34 and 36 but is spaced somewhat inward therefrom, passing just inside the snap-fastener elements.

Finally, two pairs of criss-crossing seam lines 40 are sewn through the panels 20 and 22 intermediate the seam line 38; the seam lines 40 passing between the blocks 24, 26 and 2S. As is apparent in Figs. 3 and 4, the seam lines 3S and 46 form nine generally enclosed compartments or pockets, each holding one of the rubber blocks 24, 26 and 28.

In folding up the open cushion of Fig. 3, it is folded along one pair of seam lines 40 in the manner indicated in Fig. 7; that is, so as to position the male element 3() in upwardly-directed relationship and with the two sides of the cushion folded upward and inward. The transverse dimension of the blocks 26 is preferably not appreciably more than half the dimension of the center block 24, so that, inthe position'of Fig. 7, the juxtaposed edges of the blocks 26 and 28 do not overlap (although the edges of the panels beyond the seam line 38 do overlap).

This results in a attenedsleeve-like configuration havingY a thickness notf appreciably greater than twicev that of th'e' opened cushion' o ,f Fig. 3.

The cushion is next folded upward along the opposite pair of seam lilies-.40 so as v.to bring1the snap-'fastener'element's 30fand32'intb2juxtapsition5 whereupon the folded edge carrying tliefemaleelement 32 (which: now faces upwardly) is tuckedfnside thefolded edge carrying the male element 30 (which now faces downwardly), and the two elements-are joined `in thefmanner shown in Fig. 8.

This results in' the fully; closed configuration of Fig. 2 in which the cushion'has about four times the thickness and about one-fourth` the area of the opened configuration of Fig; 3*; v

The folded-in free edges visible in Fig. 7, as well as the folded-,edge carrying the'female element 32 are all fullyy enclosed andconcealed in the nal closed configurationof Fig. 2, thereby giving a neat, compact article which can be transported conveniently from place to place. For example, a seatcushion which is 16 inches square when open, with a cushion area of about 13 inches square and 3A inch thick, can be folded into an article only slightly more than 6` inches square and only slightly more than 3 inches thick, which can conveniently be slipped into a mansc'oat pocket or a womans handbag.

AWhile the folded-up cushion can be carried about in the form shown in Fig. 2, it is also possible to provide a separate carrying case or envelope 42, shown in Fig. l, having a flap 44. The envelope 42 may be of polyethylene or other suitable inexpensive material which is relatively strong, waterproof and easy to clean. This separate carrying case makesfor a more attractive vendible package and protects the cushion when the latter is not being used.

Snap- fastener elements 46 and 48 may be provided on the case 42, which can be folded up and slipped into a pocket or handbag when the cushion is in use.

It is obvious thatV the number, size and arrangement of individual blocks and pockets can be varied to provide different-size and different proportion cushion, pads and mats. Also, although we presently prefer to employ blocks of foam rubber as' the cushioning material, it is possible to'use, instead, cotton, kapok, down, hair, bonded foam, or any other suitable material for this purpose. Where down, hair or other loose material is used, it can either be placed into the stitched compartments in loose form or, instead, can first be enclosed in casings to give miniature pillowswhich can then be placed into the compartments in an obvious manner.

In place of snap fasteners, it is possible to provide the cushion with any other conventional type of detachable closure elements such as buttons, hook-and-eyes, slide fasteners, etc.

As used in theV appended claims, the term cushion is intended to comprehend and' include seating pads, beach pads, floor mats, and other similar structures.

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f The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms and, therefore, the foregoing embodiment is to be considered merely as illustrative and not descriptive, reference to be made to the appended claims as indicating the scope of this invention.

Having thus described our invention, we claim as new and desire to protect by Letters Patent the following:

1. A portable cushion` comprising a pair of panels formed of exiblenia'terial, sidpanels being stitched together along their edges and being provided with additional intermediate crisscrossin'g'pairs' of parallelv spaced panel-connecting seam lines forming a plurality of individual enclosed pockets, each of said pockets containing a resilient block of foam rubber adhesively secured to one of the panels in centered relationship within the pocket, said cushion being foldable inwardly along one pair of parallel seam lines into an open-ended multi-ply configuration and being thereafter foldable along the other pair of seam lines to form a small-size multi-ply configuration with one of the open ends inserted' within and' generally enclosed by the other, and co-acting detachable connecting means mounted at opposite edges of said cushion and so disposed that they are brought into juxtaposition and can be engaged' when the cushion is folded so a's to connect the aforesaid ends in inserted relationship, whereby the cushion can be converted to a compact closed easily transportable package.

2. A construction according to claim 1 wherein the intermediate seam lines are so arranged as to forma generally square center pocket, four generally square corner pockets each having a side dimension about half that of the center pocket, and four elongated generally rectangular edge pockets extending intermediate the corner pockets and havingv a longitudinal dimension generally the saine as that of the center pocket and a transverse dimension about half the longitudinal dimension, and wherein the blocks-of foam rubber correspond in shape to, but are somewhat smaller in size than, the individual pockets, whereby the cushion can be first folded along one pair of intermediate seam lines to provide a two-ply configuration, and then folded at right angles along the other pair of intermediate seam lines to provide a fourply configuration in the closed package.

ReferencesV Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 885,778 Neuberger Apr. 28, 1908 1,476,697 Dwyer Dec. l1, l923 1,604,646 Langer Oct. 26, 1926 1,604,658 Post oct. 26, 1926 FOREIGN PATENTS 491,261 Great Britain s Aug. 30, 1938 785,687 France May 20, 1935 819,449 Germany Oct. 3l, 1951

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