(12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 7,908,693 B2 Demoss (45) Date of Patent: Mar
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US007908693B2 (12) United States Patent (10) Patent No.: US 7,908,693 B2 DeMOSS (45) Date of Patent: Mar. 22, 2011 (54) COIL-IN COIL SPRINGS AND 6,021,627 A 2/2000 Mossbeck et al. INNERSPRINGS 6,122,900 A 9, 2000 Mossbeck et al. 6,155,310 A 12/2000 Haubert et al. (75) Inventor: Larry K. DeMoss, Greensboro, NC 6,398,199 B1 6/2002 Barber (US) 6,668,406 B2 * 12/2003 Spinks et al. .................. 5,655.8 6,688,457 B2 2/2004 Haubert et al. (73) Assignee: Sealy Technology LLC, Trinity, NC 7,178,187 B2 22007 Barman et al. (US) 7,194,777 B2 3/2007 Edling et al. 7,404,223 B2 7/2008 Manuszak et al. (*) Notice: Subject to any disclaimer, the term of this 200 FR5; R ck g: Social . D6,504 patent is extended or adjusted under 35 2005/0257883 Al 1 1/2005 Anagnostopoulos U.S.C. 154(b) by 0 days. 2007, OO 17035 A1 1/2007 Chen et al. (21) Appl.ppl. No.: 12/760,110 2008. O184493 A1 8, 2008 Mossbeck et al. 9 FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS (22) Filed: Apr. 14, 2010 WO WO2008143595 11, 2008 WO WO2009/O29057 3, 2009 (65) Prior Publication Data k cited. by examiner US 2010/0257675 A1 Oct. 14, 2010 Related U.S. Application Data Primary Examiner — Fredrick Conley (60) Provisional application No. 61/169,039, filed on Apr. (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm — Roetzel & Andress 14, 2009. (51) Int. Cl. (57) ABSTRACT (52) A47C23A04U.S. Cl (2006.01)5/720.5/246:5/248: 5/256 A mattress innerspring having coil-in-coil- 0 - springs arranged in 58 Fi id ic - - - - - ificati- - - - - -s h s s 5246 248 an array. Each coil-in-coil spring an outside helical coil and (58) Field of Classification cars. 258.720 655 s 76 an inside helical coil, wherein the outside helical coil has a See application file for com lete search histo • Y-s greater height and diameter than the inside helical coil, each pp p ry. coil having a dual spring rate between that of the outside (56) References Cited helical coil and the combined spring rates of the outside and inside helical coils. The coil-in-coil springs may be pocketed U.S. PATENT DOCUMENTS or unpocketed in a mattress innerspring. 2,631,840 A 3/1953 Bugenhagen 3,076,203 A * 2, 1963 Verreau ............................. 5/256 4.679,266 A * 7/1987 Kraft ................................. 5,716 19 Claims, 5 Drawing Sheets 2EEEEEEEEE i iii. Fisiia.- "N- 300 30 30 3. 30 U.S. Patent Mar. 22, 2011 Sheet 1 of 5 US 7,908,693 B2 U.S. Patent Mar. 22, 2011 Sheet 2 of 5 US 7,908,693 B2 Fig.5 U.S. Patent Mar. 22, 2011 Sheet 3 of 5 US 7,908,693 B2 U.S. Patent Mar. 22, 2011 Sheet 4 of 5 US 7,908,693 B2 V7 S. S. 5 5 5 U.S. Patent Mar. 22, 2011 Sheet 5 of 5 US 7,908,693 B2 ø, § ~~ US 7,908,693 B2 1. 2 COIL-IN COIL SPRINGS AND springs are realized. The coil-in-coil spring offers the positive INNERSPRINGS aspects of having varying spring heights, springs with a dif fering number of helical turns and springs with diverse spring RELATED APPLICATIONS rates. It also accommodates furniture serving in dual capaci 5 ties. Such as a daybed. This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent The present disclosure and related inventions describe an Application No. 61/169,039 filed on Apr. 14, 2009, which is innerspring for a mattress which includes an array of nested or incorporated herein by reference. coil-in-coil springs. The outside coil is greater in both height and diameter than the inside coil. The inside coil contains FIELD OF THE INVENTION 10 more helical turns or convolutions than the outside coil and The present invention is in the general field of innerspring thus also has a greater spring rate than the outside coil. In one and coil designs and more specifically to coil-in-coil springs embodiment, the coil-in-coil springs are encased in indi and innersprings for mattresses and other bedding products. vidual “pockets' before being joined together in rows to form an innerspring. In a second embodiment, the coil-in-coil BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 15 springs are joined together by helical lacing wires which run between rows of the coils and which wrap or lace around Mattress innersprings, or simply “innersprings”, made of tangential or overlapping segments of adjacent coils. matrices or arrays of a plurality of wire form springs or coils, In accordance with one embodiment of the invention, there have long been used as the reflexive core of mattress padding is provided a mattress innerspring made of a plurality of and upholstery is arranged and attached around the inner coil-in-coil springs, each coil-in-coil spring having an outside spring. Innersprings made of formed Steel wire are mass helical coil and an inside helical coil; the outside helical coil produced by machinery which forms the coils from steel wire having an upper end convolution and a lower end convolution stock and interconnects or laces the coils together in the opposite the upper end convolution, an uncompressed height matrix array. With Such machinery, design attributes of inner of approximately 8.25 inches and having a total of approxi springs can be selected and modified, from the gauge of the wire, the coil design or combinations of designs, coil orien 25 mately 5 helical convolutions; the inside helical coil having tation relative to adjacent coils in the matrix array, and the an upper end convolution and a lower end convolution oppo manner of interconnection or lacing of the coils. site the upper end convolution, an uncompressed height of Mattresses and other types of cushions have for decades approximately 5.75 inches and having a total of approxi been constructed using conventional innersprings, which, mately 7 helical convolutions; wherein the diameter of the due to their symmetrical construction resulting from the use 30 upper end convolution of the outside helical coil is less than of generally symmetrical coils as manufactured by coil pro the diameter of the previous convolutions of the outside heli duction, have two sides (as defined by the coil ends) which cal coil and the diameter of the lower end convolution of the provided reflective Support. The conventional innerspring inside helical coil is greater than the Subsequent convolutions typically consists of a series of hour-glass shaped-springs that of the inside helical coil; and wherein the wire gauge of the are adjoined by lacing end convolutions together with cross 35 coil-in-coil springs is approximately between 13 and 16 and helical wires. An advantage of this arrangement is that it is each coil-in-coil spring is double-annealed, individually inexpensive to manufacture. However, this type of inner pocketed and arranged in a matrix. spring provides a firm and rigid mattress Surface. In accordance with another aspect and embodiment of the Another type of coil that has been used in mattress con invention, there is provided a mattress innerspring which has struction is the pocketed coil. A pocketed coil is a spring 40 a plurality of coil-in-coil spring, each coil-in-coil spring hav wrapped in a cloth cover. The springs are arranged in Succes ing an outside helical coil and an inside helical coil; the sion and the pockets are sewn together to forma cohesive unit. outside helical coil having an upper end convolution and a This type of innerspring provides a more comfortable mat lower end convolution opposite the upper end convolution, an tress Surface because the springs become relatively individu uncompressed height of approximately 8.25 inches and a total ally flexible, so that each spring may flex separately without 45 of approximately 5 helical convolutions; the inside helical affecting the neighboring springs. However, this type of coil having an upper end convolution and a lower end convo innerspring design is more expensive to construct and also lution opposite the upper end convolution, an uncompressed more prone to sagging than the conventional hour-glass height of approximately 5.75 inches and a total of approxi shaped, non-pocketed innerspring. mately 7 helical convolutions; wherein the diameter of the Innerspring designs of the prior art attempt overcome the 50 upper end convolution of the outside helical coil is approxi limitations of existing innerspring designs with varying mately 64 mm and the diameter of the previous convolutions heights, helical turns, and spring rates along with variations of the outside helical coil is approximately 70 mm; wherein on placement and orientation have all been individually intro the diameter of the lower end convolution of the inside helical duced in an effort to improve innerspring design or to com coil is approximately 40.8 mm and the diameter of the sub pliment a particular mattress design. However, these designs 55 sequent convolutions of the inside helical coil is approxi and configurations are typically focused on improving one mately 32.8 mm; and wherein the wire gauge of the coils is aspect of mattress design, Such as comfort, affordability, ease approximately between 14 and 15.5 and each coil is double of manufacture, or durability. And the physical properties, i.e. annealed, arranged in a matrix and laced together with helical spring characteristics of single wire springs are constrained lacing wire. by the gauge of wire used, the height of the coil, the number 60 And in accordance with another aspect and embodiment of and radius of turns or convolutions in a helical spring body, the invention, there is provided a mattress innerspring having and the end configurations.