Flexible border rod

Abstract

A mattress having a border rod assembly and at least one central spring core. The border rod assembly having individual border rods and corner pieces fitting together to create a contiguous border around and attached to the central spring core. A resilient, polymer material is used for at least one of the individual border rods. Border rod assemblies serve a dual purpose in mattress construction, acting both as a frame to which fabrics and foams may be attached and as a support structure for the central spring core, eliminating unsightly sagging and bowing at the mattress edge. Using resilient materials for the border rods allows the mattress to be used interchangeably with adjustable and non-adjustable foundations, while retaining the rigidity and desirable structural aspects of standard steel border rod mattresses.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A mattress having a border rod assembly, comprising 
 a plurality of border rods, at least one being made of a resilient polymer material,    a plurality of corner pieces connecting at least two of the plurality of border rods, and    at least one central spring core being coupled to at least one of the plurality of border rods.    
     
     
         2 . The mattress of  claim 1 , wherein the border rod assembly forms a contiguous rectangular perimeter with a longer dimension and a shorter dimension, wherein at least one of the border rods comprising the longer dimension of the rectangular perimeter is comprised of the resilient polymer material.  
     
     
         3 . The mattress of  claim 1 , the resilient polymer material being plastic.  
     
     
         4 . The mattress of  claim 1 , the resilient polymer material being epoxy.  
     
     
         5 . The mattress of  claim 1 , the resilient polymer material being reinforced with fiber strands.  
     
     
         6 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the resilient polymer border rods being hollow.  
     
     
         7 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the resilient polymer border rods being solid.  
     
     
         8 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the plurality of corner pieces being rigid, retaining a fixed-angle relationship between at least two of the plurality of border rods connected by the corner piece.  
     
     
         9 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the plurality of corner pieces being flexible and permitting variation in the angle between at least two of the plurality of border rods connected by the corner piece.  
     
     
         10 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the plurality of corner pieces being molded polymer material and having at least two sockets, each socket being sufficiently large to receive a terminal length of the border rod.  
     
     
         11 . The mattress of  claim 1 , at least one of the plurality of corner pieces being flexible tubing, the inner diameter of the tubing being sufficiently large to accommodate a terminal length of one of the plurality of border rods concentrically located within the inner diameter of the tubing.  
     
     
         12 . The mattress of  claim 1 , wherein the plurality of border rods and corner pieces are integrally molded into the border rod assembly.  
     
     
         13 . The mattress of  claim 1  being unoccupied, the border rod assembly having sufficient pliability to maintain conformity between a surface of the mattress and an adjustable foundation supporting the mattress while the adjustable foundation is in an adjusted position.  
     
     
         14 . A mattress having a border rod assembly, comprising 
 a plurality of border rods, at least one being made of a resilient polymer material, and    at least one central spring core being coupled to at least one of the plurality of border rods.    
     
     
         15 . The mattress of  claim 14 , the resilient polymer material being plastic.  
     
     
         16 . The mattress of  claim 14 , the resilient polymer material being epoxy.  
     
     
         17 . The mattress of  claim 14 , the resilient polymer material being reinforced with fiber strands.  
     
     
         18 . The mattress of  claim 14 , at least one of the resilient polymer border rods being hollow.  
     
     
         19 . The mattress of  claim 14 , at least one of the resilient polymer border rods being solid.  
     
     
         20 . A mattress for an adjustable bedding system, comprising 
 at least one central spring core,    a flexible border rod assembly, having 
 a plurality of resilient, fiberglass-reinforced, polymer border rods,  
 a plurality of corner pieces terminally connecting one of the plurality of border rods to another one of the plurality of border rods forming a contiguous rectangular perimeter, the plurality of corner pieces being flexible poly tubing.  
   
     
     
         21 . The mattress assembly of  claim 20 , the flexible border rod assembly being attached to the perimeter of the central spring core and encircling the central spring core.  
     
     
         22 . The mattress assembly of  claim 20 , the plurality of border rods being solid and cylindrical.  
     
     
         23 . The mattress assembly of  claim 20 , the corner pieces having an inner diameter sufficiently large to accommodate a terminal length of one of the plurality of border rods concentrically located within the inner diameter of the tubing.  
     
     
         24 . A method of manufacturing a mattress with a border rod assembly, comprising 
 assembling a border rod assembly by connecting a plurality of border rods with a plurality of corner pieces to form a contiguous rectangular perimeter, at least one of the plurality of border rods being made of a resilient polymer material, and    attaching at least one of the plurality of border rods to at least one central spring core.    
     
     
         25 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the connection between one of the plurality of flexible border rods and one of the plurality of corner pieces is a slip joint.  
     
     
         26 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the flexible border rods are attached to the central spring core through hog rings.  
     
     
         27 . The method of  claim 24 , wherein the flexible border rods are attached to the central spring core through clips.