Patent Application
20230190017
This invention relates generally to pillows and more particularly to pillows configured to maintain a sleeper in a supine orientation.
A study by the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery (ASAPS) has revealed that sleeping on one's side or stomach contributes to the development of facial wrinkles. Facial wrinkles form in response to distortion created when the face is pressed against any sleep surface. The study, published in Aesthetic Surgery Journal, claims that sleeping supine, or on the back, is the best way to limit facial wrinkles, by relieving compression, tension and shear forces applied to the face during sleep.
Various other health benefits have been attributed to sleeping in a supine position. Such benefits include maintaining spine alignment, reducing chest compression, alleviating sinus conditions, alleviating acid reflux and reducing tension headaches.
While there have been attempts to provide pillows for maintaining a supine position, these have not met widespread acceptance, perhaps in part because the user felt constricted and they have not provided a comfortable head supporting surface for inducing sleep.
A composite therapeutic pillow includes a soft central section for receiving the back of one's head. Projecting upwardly at the lateral ends of the central section is a pair of bolster segments configured to restrain the head from turning to either side.
A firm or dense buttress underlies the central section. The buttress includes a pair of bolster stiffeners for engagement against the outer face of each bolster segment. Both the central section and the buttress have a generally “U” shaped transverse cross section such that central section nests within the bolster when the composite pillow is assembled. The buttress includes a central spherical cap depression occupied by portion of the central section to provide increased comfort for the occipital protuberance.
From the foregoing compendium, it will be appreciated that an aspect of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which is not subject to the aforementioned disadvantages of the antecedents of the invention.
A feature of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which facilitates the maintenance of a supine sleeping position.
A consideration of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which accommodates the occipital protuberance.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which promotes proper spinal alignment.
Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which reduces the likelihood of developing facial wrinkles.
A further consideration of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which may be beneficial in the reduction of sinus conditions.
An additional consideration of the present invention is to provide an improved pillow of the general character described which reduces chest compression.
Another feature of the present invention is to provide an improved composite pillow of the general character described which includes a firm lower buttress and soft head cradling cushion nested within the buttress.
To provide an improved pillow of the general character described which is well suited for economical mass production fabrication is yet a further consideration of the present invention.
Other aspects, features and considerations of the present invention in part will be obvious and in part will be pointed out hereinafter.
With these ends in view, the invention finds embodiment in various combinations of elements, arrangements of parts and series of steps by which the above-mentioned aspects, features and considerations and certain other aspects, features and considerations are attained, or with reference to the accompanying drawings and the scope of which will be more particularly pointed out and indicated in the appended claims.
In the accompanying drawings, wherein one of the various possible exemplary embodiments of the invention is shown:
The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings, which are provided as illustrative examples of the invention so as to enable those skilled in the art to practice the invention. Notably, the figures and examples below are not meant to limit the scope of the present invention to a single embodiment, but other embodiments are possible by way of interchange of some or all of the described or illustrated elements.
Moreover, where certain elements of the present invention can be partially or fully implemented using known components, only those portions of such known components that are necessary for an understanding of the present invention will be described, and detailed descriptions of other portions of such known components will be omitted so as not to obscure the invention. In the present specification, an embodiment showing a singular component should not be considered limiting; rather, the invention is intended to encompass other embodiments including a plurality of the same component, and vice-versa, unless explicitly stated otherwise herein.
Applicant does not intend for any term in the specification or claims to be ascribed an uncommon or special meaning unless explicitly set forth as such. Further, the present invention encompasses present and future known equivalents to the known components referred to herein by way of illustration.
Referring now to the drawings the reference numeral 10 denotes generally to a therapeutic pillow constructed in accordance with and embodying the invention. The therapeutic pillow 10 includes front and rear parallel edges edge 11, 13 respectively, together with parallel right and left lateral edges, 16, 17, respectively which provide a generally rectangular foot print. The therapeutic pillow 10 may be formed of molded two piece construction including a central section 12 comprising a soft head support surface 15 and a pair of laterally spaced bolster segments 14A, 14B which extend upwardly.
With attention directed to
Underlying the central section 12 and the neck gradient is a firm stiffening buttress 24, best depicted in
One should note that the central portion 26 of the buttress 24 includes a reduced thickness zone formed by a spherical cap depression 30. The spherical cap depression 30 is filled with a portion of the soft central section 12 whereby one's occipital protuberance will lie in registration with a relatively thick portion of the soft central section area and a reduced thickness area of the stiffer buttress.
Both the central section 12 and the buttress 24 can be each unitarily molded of a suitable foam material. The central section 12 and the buttress 24 can subsequently be bonded in nested configuration with chemical bonding or adhesives. Alternately, both the central section and the buttress may be molded in a single cavity or the central section may be molded over the buttress or the buttress may be molded over the central section.
The central section comprises foam which is less dense, i.e., softer and more compressible than the buttress foam, e.g. viscoelastic polyurethane foam.
By way of example only, the composite pillow 10 dimensioned for use by an adult may comprise an overall width of 51 cm, a depth of 30 cm, a buttress width of 15 cm, a buttress height of 13 cm, a thickness of 5 cm at the planar portion of head support surface 15, a width of 19 cm between the bolster segments 14A, 14B, a neck gradient extension of 6 cm and a neck gradient maximum width of 18 cm. The neck gradient 18 extends forwardly approximately 20% of the depth of the composite pillow, excluding the neck gradient 18. It is significant that the neck gradient maximum width is not greater than the distance between the bolster segments to assure alignment of the user's neck and head with the head support surface 15.
Thus it will be seen that there is provided a therapeutic pillow which achieves the various aspects, features and considerations of the present invention and which is well suited to meet the condition s of practical usage.
The particular combinations of elements and features in the above-detailed embodiment are exemplary only; the interchanging and substitution of these teachings with other teachings in this application are also expressly contemplated. As those skilled in the art will recognize, variations, modifications, and other implementations of what is described herein can occur to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the spirit and the scope of the invention as claimed.
Further, in describing the invention and in illustrating embodiments of the invention in the figures, specific terminology, numbers, dimensions, materials, etc., are used for the sake of clarity. However the invention is not limited to the specific terms, numbers, dimensions, materials, etc. so selected, and each specific term, number, dimension, material, etc., at least includes all technical and functional equivalents that operate in a similar manner to accomplish a similar purpose.
Use of a given word, phrase, number, dimension, material, language terminology, product brand, etc. is intended to include all grammatical, literal, scientific, technical, and functional equivalents. The terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not limitation.
Having described the preferred embodiment of the invention, it will now become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that other embodiments incorporating the concept may be used. Moreover, those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the embodiment of the invention described herein can be modified to accommodate and/or comply with changes and improvements in the applicable technology and standards referred to herein.
Variations, modifications, and other implementations of what is described herein can occur to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the invention as claimed. It is felt therefore that these embodiments should not be limited to the disclosed embodiment but rather should be limited only by the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
