Gel-filled, variably-adjustable cushioning system for supporting a person

Claim 1

A cushioning device for supporting a person's weight by distributing force over a support area of the person's body in a variably-adjustable manner to prevent pressure concentration points in predetermined portions of said support area, said cushioning device comprising: (a) a flexible enclosure assembly for containing a flowable gel, said enclosure assembly having a major flexible surface for distributing supportive force over a support area of a person's body; compartments, each underlying a different portion of said major flexible surface, and preventing the transfer of said gel within said enclosure from one of said compartments to another; (b) means defining a plurality of selectively openable and closable ports, each communicating between the interior of a respective one of said compartments and the exterior of said enclosure, for enabling the flow of said gel into and out of the respective interiors of said compartments; and (c) gel container means, having means defining an aperture for mating and sealingly coupling with said ports, for selectively delivering said gel to or receiving said gel from the respective interiors of said compartments so as to variably adjust the distribution of said supportive force, said gel container means including means for forcing said gel to flow through said aperture and ports into the respective interiors of said compartments wherein each of said ports includes one-way check valve means for normally permitting said gel to flow through the respective port into the interior of a respective compartment while normally preventing said gel to flow through the respective port out of the interior of the respective compartment, and means associated with said aperture of said gel container means for selectively engaging and opening said one-way check valve means so as to permit said gel to flow through the respective port out of the interior of the respective compartment.