BACKGROUND

Getting a good night's sleep is important. Some studies suggest that lack of sleep, or lack of sufficiently restful sleep, has long term health consequences. The long term health consequences include increased risk of dementia and Alzheimer's disease. Some factors that adversely affect the ability to get a good night's sleep are physiological, such as snoring, central apnea, obstructive apnea, and restless leg syndrome. However, other factors are environmental, such as the compliance of the sleep surface upon which sleep is attempted, and sleeping position (though some physiological factors are sleep position dependent).

Many mattresses and beds purport to increase the restfulness of sleep. For example, one attempt in recent years is based on mattresses made of combinations of closed- and open-cell foams that purport to reduce high force areas regardless of sleep position, and to reduce communication of movement to sleeping partners. Other attempts in recent years use air bladders to create individual pockets of support, usually in horizontal rows across the width of a mattress. The air bladder mattresses enable changing air pressure within the bladders, and thus changing the force carried by each bladder. Each system has its respective drawbacks.

Any system and/or method which increases user comfort and flexibility of control would provide a competitive advantage in the marketplace.

