Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FITTED PRODUCT WITH ATTACEIED DUST RUFFLE
This invention relates to a fitted product having an
attached dust ruffle, particularly fitted bed products.
In the past when dust ruffles were employed, they
generally required a platform top to support the ruffle,
and had roughly the geometric confi~uration of the surface
from which the rufEle was to descend. In the case of a
bed, the platform top would be placed on the bed springs
and have roughly the same configuration as the bed spring
surface. In the case oE a table, couch, or sofa, the dust
ruffle would be similarly supported and have substantially
the same configuration as the underlying object.
In all cases the fabric or other material that sup-
ports the dust ruffle is bulky, expensive and adds to the
layers of material that must be placed on and removed from
the surface by which it is supported. This is an unreward-
ing and time-consuming chore since the material required
to support the dust ruffle is otherwise superfluous.
Nevertheless, it must be laundered, cared for and stcred
as are other household items such as mattress pads, sheets,
pillow cases and the like.
In conjunction with fitted products such as mattress
pads; bed sheets, mattress and box spring encasements and
the like, it is now possible to do away with the cumbersome
ànd otherwise superfluous layer which had no other use
than to support a dus~t ruff1e.
944-181
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_ummary of the Inve tion
The present invention provides a unitary fitted pro-
duct having a dust ruffle secured to a peripheral boundary
thereof, preferably at a peripheral seam. The unitary
fitted product is produced by joining a dust ruffle to the
peripheral boundary of the ~itted product along a seam
substantially defining the shape of the surface from which
the dust ruffle is to descend~ The fitted product can be
a fitted sheet~ a mattress pad, an encasement for a mattress
or box spring, a fitted case for a pillow such as for
example a couch or sofa cushion, or even a protective
covering for a table surface. Preferably, the dust ruffle
of this invention is attached at the seam into which elas-
ticizing means has been sewn to cause the pad, covering,
or sheet to conform to the shape of the substrate to which
it is fitted.
A preferred construction is a fitted mattress pad
comprising a substantially rectangular fabric backing and
a ~iberfill batt of substantially the same dimensions as
the backing abric which, if desired, may be quilted to the
backing ~abric on a~ least one surface of the bat~. A
cover of either quilted or un~uilted fabric of substantially
the same dimension as the backing fabric and fiberfill batt
can overlie the fiberfill batt on the surface opposite
the backing fabric. The cover is joined to the backing
fabric and fiberfill batt along the seam around their respec-
tive perimeters. Elastic means around at least a portion
of the seam are provided to enable the fitted mattress pad
to substantially conform to the shape of a mattress and
hold the mattress pad in place thereon. The dust ruffle
of this invention is joined to the backin~ fabric and
fiberfill batt in a co~mon seam with the elastic means
around the perimeter of the pad.
In the case of a fitted bed sheet, the dust ruffle
may be attached at a seam extending along the perimeter of
the fitted bed sheet. It may also be attached along the
peripheral border of the bed sheet which is wholly or partly
.
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elasticized to cause the bed sheet to conform to the shape
of the mattress. The fitted bed sheet is preferably part
of a one-piece fitted bed sheet and mattress pad construc-
tion.
Similar constructions can be used to support dust
ruffles using pillow encasements for a couch or sofa or
using surface coverings for tables.
Description of the Drawings
For the purpose of illustrating the invention, there
is shown in the drawings a form which is presently prefer-
red; it being understood, however, that this invention is
not limited to the precise arrangements and instrumental-
ities shown.
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a unitary quilted
mattress pad and dust ruffle of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a view of a unitary pillow encasement and
dust ruffle.
Figure 3 illustrates a unitary quilted table top
protector and dust ruffle of the present invention.
Figure 4 illustrates a method or manufacturing a
preferred fitted product of the invention.
Detailed Description of the Invention
Referring to the drawings wherein like numerals
indicate like elements, Figure 1 is a view from below of a
unitary construction of the invention. Figure 1 shows
mattress pad 10 having dust ruffle 30 attached thereto at
seam 20. Figure 1 also shows the quilting 50 of a prefer-
red mattress pad of the invention. As shown in Figure 1,
the mattress pad comprises a substantially rectangular
backing fabric and a fiberfill batt of substantially the
same dimensions as the backing fabric quilted to the back-
ing fabric on at least one surface of the batt. The dust
ruffle 30 is joined to the mattress pad at a seam around
their respective perimeters, and elastic means around at
least a portion of common seam 20 enables the mattress pad
to substantially confonm to the shape of a mattress.
.
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In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the
mattress pad 10 is a one-piece fitted sheet and mattress
pad combination comprising a cover 12, a fiberfill batt 14,
and a backing fabric 16. The one-piece fitted bed sheet
and mattress pad contains a substantially rectangular back-
ing fabric, a ~iberfill batt of substantially the same
dimenslons as the backing fabric quilted to the backing
fabric at only one surface of the batt and a cover of
unquilted fabric of substantially the same dimensions as
the backing fabric batt. The cover loosely overlies the
batt on the surface opposite the backing fabric, and is
joined to the backing fabric, batt, and dust ruffle along
a common seam around their respective perimeters. Alter-
natively, the cover may be quilted to the batt and the
backing fabric. Elastic means is joined around at least a
portion of the common seam to enable the one-piece fitted
structure to substantially conform to the shape of a mat- `;
tress and hold the fitted bed sheet, mattress pad and dust
ruffle in place on the mattress. Corner seams 18 are
provided at the ~our corners of the one~piece fitted sheet
and mattress pad 10 to enable it to more easily conform
to the shape of a mattress. Corner seams 18 give one-piece
fitted she~t and mattress pad 10 the form of a shallow
open box when it is fully extended. A unitary fitted bed
sheet and dust ruffle will have somewhat the same configu-
ration as shown in Figure 1 except that the dust ruffle 30
will be integral with covering sheet 12 alone.
Figure 2 shows a side view of a fitted pillow encase-
ment ~0 having a seam 42 to which dust ruffle 30 is secured.
One of the advantages of this configuration is that it
provides protection for that portion of a couch or sofa
which is most easily soiled by contact with shoes, by
household pets, splatters, stains, and the like. Where the
dust ruffle is secured to only one face of the pillow, the
dust ruffle can be hidden quite easily by turnin~ the face
supporting the dust ruffle to the back of the couch when
the surface to be protected is no longer vulnerable.
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Figure 3 is a plan view of a quilted table top pro-
tector integral with a dust ruffle in accordance with this
invention. The surface of the table is protected by a pad
60 which may be constructed in the same manner as the pad
in Figure 1. A common seam 62 secures pad 60 in place on
the table surface and supports dust ruffle 30. The seam
may also be wholly or partly elasticized.
The padding for the mattress pad in Figure 1 and pad
60 oE Figure 3 is preferably prepared by joining a fiber-
fill batt to a backing fabric along a number of bond points
by quilting. The batt may be quilted to the backing fabric
ultrasonically to directly bond the fibers of the fiberfill
batt and the fibers of the backing fabric. The fiberfill
batt and backing fabric can also be quilted using other
sonic or ultrasonic seaming techniques or it can be quilted
conventionally using needle and thread.
In a pre~erred embodiment of Figure 1, cover sheet
12 is preferably a layer of bed sheet material placed over
the quilted surface of batt 14 and joined together with
dust ruffle 30 along seam 20 around the perimeter of cover
sheet 12, batt 14, backing fabric ]6 and dust ruffle 30.
Seam 20 is preferab].y secured with needle and thread,
although sonic or ultrasonic bonding, welding, or any
other suitable method of joining these members to one
another may be employed. The dust ruffle of this invention
may be similarly secured to a fitted bed sheet, pillow,
encasement, or other fittsd product.
The fitted product with the attached dust rufle of
this invention can be manufactured by any suitable process.
One method for manufacturing the preferred unitary con-
struction of Figure 1, is illustrated in Figure 4~
As shown in Figure ~t a one piece fitted sheet and
mattress pad 10 is made in the form of a continuous web
which is severed and sewn as more fully described below.
Backiny fabric 16 is supplied from a backing supply roll
36 and fiberfill batt 14 is supplied from a batt supply
roll 34. The batt 14 and backing fabric 16 are brought
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into contact by anvil roll 38 and ultrasonic bonding head
70. ~nvil 38 and ultrasonic bonding head 70 are conven-
tional device~ used in ultrasonic bonding. They cooperate
to ultrasonically quilt batt 14 to backing fabric 16. After
the quilting operation, the cover 12 is fed from cover sup-
ply roll 42 and bro~lght into contact with the unquilted sur-
face of batt 14. The web may then be passed through a pair
of counter-rotating rollers 76 and 78 to ensure intimate
contact between cover 12 and batt 14. It should be noted
that cover 12 is not bonded in any way to batt 14 in the
preferred embodiment of this invention. However, cover 12
can be bonded or quilted to batt 14 if desired.
After tlle web leaves counter-rotating rollers 76 and
78, lt may be cut into substantially rectangular pieces,
the dimensions of which are chosen so that the finished
one-piece construction will conform to the desired mattress
dimensions. Square segments can be cut away from the four
corners of the rectangle and the resulting L-shaped edges
sewn together to ~orm side skirts of the desired depth.
This forms corner seams 18 to enable the fitted sheet and
mattress pad to assume a neat shap~ and better conform to
the rectangular shape o a mattress.
As a Einal operation, elastic strips 44 are sewn along
seam 20 and, at the same time, dust ruffle 30 is secured
to the perimeter of the construction along seam 20.
As stated hereinbefore, other fitted products may be
provided with the dust ruffle of this invention in a unitary
construction using any suitable method as desired. The dust
ruffle may be prepared of any suitable material including
ordinary bedding material, non-woven polyolefin, or other
natural or synthetic fabrics which may also be decorated as
desired and/or dyed or otherwise tinted. The dust ruffle
may also be single or multi-layered. Further modifications
may be made by those skilled in the art without departing
from the spirit and scope of the invention e~cept as set
forth in the claims
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The present invention may be embodied in other speci-
fic forms without departing from the spirit or essential
attributes thereof and, accordingly, reference should be
made to the appended claims, rather than to the foregoing
specification, as indicating the scope of the invention~
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