Patent Application
20230389734
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The disclosure relates to orthopedic pillows and more particularly pertains to a new orthopedic pillow for promoting a neutral spinal alignment while sleeping. The present invention discloses an orthopedic pillow comprising viscoelastic polyurethane foam and shredded elastomeric foam formed to define a pair of ridges and a recess, into which a head of a user can be positioned, with a respective ridge supporting the user's neck.
The prior art relates to orthopedic pillows. Prior art orthopedic pillows generally comprise one or two cylindrical bolsters attached to a traditional pillow and extending along one or both of the traditional pillow's long sides. Prior art orthopedic pillows also may comprise multiple layers of different types of foam. What is lacking in the prior art is an orthopedic pillow comprising first and second shells, which are filled with a block of viscoelastic polyurethane foam and shredded elastomeric foam, respectively. An arcuate cutout extends into the block to define a pair of ridges, which yields a recess in the second shell into which a head of a user can be positioned, with a respective ridge supporting the user's neck.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a first shell and a second shell, which define an interior space and an internal space, respectively. The second shell is attached to and substantially covers an upper face of the first shell. A block, which comprises viscoelastic polyurethane foam, is positioned in the first shell and substantially occupies the interior space. An arcuate cutout, which extends into an upper surface and between opposing ends of the block, defines a pair of ridges, with each ridge extending along a respective opposing side of the block. A filler is positioned in the second shell and substantially occupies the internal space. The filler comprises shredded elastomeric foam and thus is moldable to the upper surface of the block to define a recess. The recess is configured for positioning of a head of a user, with a respective ridge supporting a neck of the user, to promote a neutral spinal alignment while sleeping.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A filler 34 is positioned in the second shell 14 and substantially occupies the internal space. The filler 34 comprises shredded elastomeric foam, such as shredded viscoelastic polyurethane foam, and thus is moldable to the upper surface 26 of the block 22 to define a recess 36, as shown in
A plurality of panels 38 is attached to the second shell 14 and defines a plurality of compartments 40 within the internal space 18. Each compartment 40 extends between a lower facet 42 and an upper facet 44 of the second shell 14 and is substantially occupied by the filler 34. Having the filler 34 positioned in the compartments 40 prevents the filler from bunching up in the internal space 18. The panels 38 may extend between opposed ends 46 of the second shell 14, as shown in
A first fastener 50 is attached to the first shell 12 and a second fastener 52 is attached to the second shell 14. The second fastener 52 is complementary to the first fastener 50 and thus is positioned to selectively engage the first fastener 50 to removably engage the second shell 14 to the first shell 12. The second fastener 52 and the first fastener 50 may comprise a zipper 54, as shown in
In use, the orthopedic pillow assembly 10 is positioned on a bed with the recess 36 facing upwardly. A user then positions their head in the recess 36, with a respective ridge 30 supporting the user's neck to promote a neutral spinal alignment while sleeping.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded.
A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
