Patent Application
20250107629
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
The present disclosure relates generally to the fields of bedrest. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to superior methods and devices which are effective in improving the quality of bedrest.
High quality sleep and bedrest is vital for good health. However, many people do not get high-quality sleep or bedrest for a variety of reasons. There are many different reasons why people might not get high quality sleep or bedrest.
Many people's poor quality of sleep and bedrest may be a result of poor comfort due to the amount of pressure and the distribution of pressure experienced by different parts of the body. Comfort can generally be defined as a state of physical ease and freedom from pain or constraint, and may heavily depend on personal, individual preference. While generally in the sleep context, comfort is generally viewed through the lens of the support provided by the sleeping surface (e.g. the level firmness of the mattress), it is also important to also view comfort during sleep and bedrest from the opposite direction, in terms of the qualities of the bedding over the sleeper. For example, many sleepers may prefer to have heavy, specially weighted bedding over them while they sleep, and likewise, many sleepers may prefer to utilize very light or no bedding over them while they sleep, for various reasons. While the sleep industry has generally been responsive to issues of mattress firmness in situations where multiple sleepers may be sharing the same bed by providing mattresses which may have variable or controllable levels of firmness in different locations, generally, there are few or no options when it comes to providing such variation in the level and qualities of bedding over a sleeper without needing to resort to the use of different bedding in different locations on a bed.
Many people's poor quality of sleep and bedrest may also be due to Vasomotor symptoms, e.g. hot flashes and night sweats, which are the frequently encountered as symptoms of menopause. As many as three out of four women experience hot flashes during menopause. Hot flashes are a sudden temporary onset of body warmth, flushing, and sweating. Sufferers of hot flashes have experienced numerous, bothersome symptoms, including a feeling of mild warmth to intense heat spreading through the upper body and face; perspiration, mostly on the upper body; and a chilled feeling as the hot flash subsides. In response to a hot flash, heart rate and skin blood flow increase, but the internal body temperature may drop by as much as three or four degrees as the body struggles to correct the imbalance. Hot flashes, which typically subside within a couple of minutes, can sometimes last as long as thirty minutes. Especially bothersome, is that nighttime hot flashes (night sweats) can wake a person up from a sound sleep, or even bother a sleeping partner.
Many people's poor quality of sleep and bedrest may also be due to the presence of a wound or injury that may result in pain when a sleeper utilizes conventional bedding while sleeping. For example, medical patients recovering from wounds such as burns on the skin may suffer from poor quality sleep due to the presence of a blanket applying pressure to the wounded location, resulting in pain interfering with their sleep. In addition, many patients recovering from injuries or wounds may benefit from having improved airflow around the wound or injury while sleeping, or require removal of protective medical treatment elements during sleep (e.g. bulky or uncomfortable bandages or wraps) around the injured location, but still wish to have bedding over their body during sleep for purposes of warmth, modesty, comfort, or for other reasons.
For these and many other reasons, it is therefore desirable to have improved devices and methods for improving the quality of bedrest.
To solve these and other problems, methods and devices for improving the quality of bedrest are contemplated herein. Specifically, it is contemplated that a repositionable resilient article may be placed atop a sleeping surface and underneath one or more articles of bedding for elevating the one or more articles of bedding above the level of the sleeping surface, and in particular above a particular height of an extremity of the user for reducing, mitigating, or preventing contact of the one or more articles of bedding with the extremity of the user, in order to achieve numerous benefits conducive to improved bedrest, especially for convalescent users having a particularized need for such improved bedrest conditions owing to certain types of injuries or illnesses. Furthermore, various configurations of devices which may be utilized as such a resilient article are contemplated and described herein, including repositionable as well as integrated devices.
According to one embodiment of the present disclosure, a method for improving quality of bedrest is contemplated, the method comprising the steps of providing a repositionable resilient article for placement atop a sleeping surface and underneath one or more articles of bedding, the resilient article having a bottom surface and a top portion, the bottom surface being configured for placement atop at a selected location of the sleeping surface, the top portion being configured to elevate the one or more articles of bedding to above at least the level of the selected location of the sleeping surface atop which the bottom surface is placed and positioning the bottom surface of the repositionable resilient article atop a selected location of the sleeping surface with the top portion underneath one or more articles of bedding in order to elevate the one or more articles of bedding above the level of the selected location of the sleeping surface.
It is contemplated that the repositionable resilient article may be sized and configured so as to elevate the one or more articles of bedding to above at least the height of an extremity of a user positioned atop the sleeping surface and underneath the one or more articles of bedding. It is also contemplated that the elevation of the one or more articles of bedding above at least the height of an extremity of a user positioned atop the sleeping surface may be operative to reduce pressure applied against the extremity by one or more of the articles of bedding. It is additionally contemplated that the elevation of the one or more articles of bedding above at least the height of an extremity of a user positioned atop the sleeping surface may be operative to eliminate contact of the one or more articles of bedding against at least a portion of that extremity. It is likewise contemplated that the elevation of the one or more articles of bedding above at least the height of an extremity of a user positioned atop the sleeping surface may be operative to improve airflow about at least a portion of that extremity. It is further contemplated that the elevation of the one or more articles of bedding above at least the height of an extremity of an extremity of a user positioned atop the sleeping surface is operative to mitigate temperature increase in at least a portion of that extremity.
A device for improving the quality of bedrest is also contemplated, comprising a repositionable resilient article for placement atop a sleeping surface and underneath one or more articles of bedding, the resilient article having a bottom surface and a top portion, the bottom surface being configured for placement atop at a selected location of the sleeping surface, the top portion being configured to elevate the one or more articles of bedding to above at least the level of the selected location of the sleeping surface atop which the bottom surface is placed.
In such a contemplated device, the resilient article may define a triangular cross-sectional profile. Such a triangular profile may be a right triangular cross-sectional profile, or an equilateral triangular cross-sectional profile. The top portion of the resilient article may also define a generally arcuate surface, or a linear edge, or an arcuate or curvilinear edge. The bottom surface of the resilient article may be generally flat, or may be configured for placement against and engagement with a corresponding portion of the sleeping surface. The resilient article may be formed of a rigid material, or may be formed of a flexible material, or may be formed of a viscoelastic material. Such a viscoelastic material may be polyurethane foam.
A system for improving the quality of bedrest is also contemplated as comprising a resilient article configured to be associated with a sleeping surface and being configured for placement underneath one or more articles of bedding placed atop that sleeping surface, the resilient article having a bottom portion being operative for association with the sleeping surface at a selected location of the sleeping surface, and the resilient article having a top portion configured to elevate the one or more articles of bedding to above at least the level of the selected location of the sleeping surface with which the bottom portion is operative for association with.
The present disclosure will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein are better understood with respect to the following descriptions and drawings, in which:
Common reference numerals are used throughout the drawings and the detailed description to indicate the same elements.
According to the disclosure herein, systems and methods for improving the quality of bedrest are contemplated. Specifically, it is contemplated that a repositionable resilient article may be placed atop a sleeping surface and underneath one or more articles of bedding for elevating the one or more articles of bedding above the level of the sleeping surface, and in particular above a particular height of an extremity of the user for reducing, mitigating, or preventing contact of the one or more articles of bedding with the extremity of the user, in order to achieve numerous benefits conducive to improved bedrest, especially for convalescent users having a particularized need for such improved bedrest conditions owing to certain types of injuries or illnesses. Furthermore, various configurations of devices which may be utilized as such a resilient article are contemplated and described herein, including repositionable as well as integrated devices.
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As may be seen, by elevating the one or more articles of bedding 12 in such a fashion via us of a resilient article 10, the articles of bedding 12 may be physically supported so as to no longer necessarily rest with their full weight upon the extremities of the occupant of the sleeping surface 14, but may instead be partially or fully lifted to at least above the level of the sleeping surface, which may or may not be a level above that of a proximal extremity of the user occupying the sleeping surface 14. In this manner, it may be seen that several benefits to the occupant of the sleeping surface 14 may be realized, including but not limited to a decrease in at least the localized pressure applied to their extremity or extremities from the weight of articles of bedding 12, an elimination of the localized pressure applied to their extremity or extremities from the weight of articles of bedding 12, an improvement in airflow about at least a portion of an extremity of the user occupying the sleeping surface 14, a mitigation in the rate of increase of temperature of at least a portion of an extremity of the user occupying the sleeping surface 14, as well as other benefits which will be readily apparent.
As may further be seen, the resilient article 10 may be positioned, according to the illustrated embodiment, at the foot of a sleeping surface 14 such as a mattress. Such positioning may be desirable where the desired extremity to be targeted for such above-described benefits may be the feet or legs of a wearer. However, it may also be seen that the resilient article 10 may be positioned elsewhere atop a sleeping surface 14, and indeed, anywhere atop a sleeping surface 14, that it may be desirable to position the resilient article 10, or multiple resilient articles 10, at a location where it will result in the elevating of the articles of bedding 12 proximal to a particular extremity. For example, if the extremity is an arm, it may be desirable to locate the resilient article 10 atop the sleeping surface 14 at a location to the side of the occupant lying down atop the sleeping surface 14. Likewise, it may be seen that the resilient article 10 may not necessarily need to correspond to the entire length of the sleeping surface 14, but rather may be tailored or adjusted to only correspond to a portion thereof, which, for example, may result in only a portion of the one or more articles of bedding 12 atop that length of the sleeping surface 14 being elevated. It may be appreciated that this may be useful to allow for the articles of bedding 12 to be elevated in a more targeted fashion, such as to correspond to only particular portions of extremities or extremities (e.g. for one leg of an occupant and not the other) for only one occupant of a sleeping surface 14 and not the other (e.g. two sleepers occupying the sleeping surface in a side-by-side arrangement.)
It may also be appreciated that the variations in which the articles of bedding 12 may be elevated according to the methods and systems described herein are essentially unlimited in their specifics and adjustability, and need not be confined to any one particular location and configuration of the resilient article 10, but rather, may be readily adjusted by the user or a caregiver, especially if a repositionable resilient article 10 is utilized. Likewise, it may be seen that a non-repositionable resilient article 10 may be utilized to accomplish the herein described objectives, and that, for example, a resilient article 10 may be incorporated with or formed as a component of a sleeping surface 14 or an article of bedding 12, or configured to be more fixedly attached or attachable to a sleeping surface 14 or an article of bedding 12. Furthermore, it may be seen the specific size of the resilient article 10 may be adjustable or configurable, and any size may be utilized which is suitable to accomplish the herein described methods.
With regard to the material utilized for a resilient article 10, it may be seen that any material or combination of materials may be utilized, so long as the basic function as described herein may be accomplished. However, according to more specific embodiments, it is contemplated that according to certain preferences or uses, a rigid material may be preferable, such as a hard plastic or rubberized material, while according to other preferences or uses, a flexible material may be preferable, such as a textile or woven material like a pillow. Likewise, it may be seen that a viscoelastic material may be utilized, such as a viscoelastic polyurethane foam, certain type of which are generally utilized in sleep products where it is called ‘memory foam’. However, it may be seen that any material for the resilient article 10 may be utilized which is suitable to accomplish the herein described methods, and should be considered to within the scope and spirit of the present disclosure.
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The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments.
