Patent Application
20230292941
The present invention relates most generally to the field of human healthcare. In particular, the present invention seeks to unload cervical compression through advantageous use of shaped pillows, employed for head and torso support during rest in any horizontal position.
Chronic neck pain of varying degrees is prevalent worldwide. Office workers suffer at a higher rate. Smart phone users, who often gaze downward at their phone screens, are frequent sufferers.
The Epidemiology of Neck Pain, D G Hoy, M Protani, R De, R Buchbinder, Best Practice & Research: Clinical Rheumatology, 2010 December; 24(6):783-92.
On the web: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21665126/
Association between excessive smartphone use and cervical disc degeneration in young patients suffering from chronic neck pain, Linbo Zhuang, Lisheng Wang, Dongming Xu, Zhiyong Wang, Renzheng Liang, Journal of Orthopaedic Science, 2021 January; 26(1):110-115.
On the web: pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32205018/
Given the amount of time that people typically spend sleeping, it makes sense to provide relief of stress by employing advantageous but simple means during sleep or rest. To date, hundreds of pillow designs have sought to achieve this goal. Only a few of the many pillow designs fulfill the requirement of neck tension relief using simple design.
Barcalo, U.S. Pat. No. 1,890,358, Pillow or Cushion (December 1932) shows a triangular or wedge-shaped pillow not specifically designed to relieve neck stress. It claims filling with soft, pliable, elastic material, but does not anticipate the need for shear.
Andrei, U.S. Pat. No. 6,202,232, Pillow (March 2001) fully anticipates the necessity of an angled head surface to create neck tension. Andrei extends the thickened lobes around the edge of a pillow, mimicking the design that Tempur-Pedic® has been selling since 1992.
Some pillows resort to clever internal structures to induce neck stress in the proper direction. Poths, U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,907 Device for Relaxing the Skeletal Muscle System, In Particular for the Neck and Lumbar Vertebrae (May 1996), is one such device.
Others, like Olson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,644,809, Cervical Pillow (July 1997), simply modify the original Tempur-Pedic® pillow design with various cutouts.
Yu, US2008/0109961, Triangular Pillow (May 2008), employs a triangular head pillow. Although the shape of this pillow is well-suited for providing neck tension while side sleeping, this pillow is not suitable for proper spine alignment when back sleeping. As with all single pillows, Yu's design forces the cervical spine to curve forward while back sleeping or backward while front sleeping.
Likewise, Parimuha, U.S. Pat. No. 7,089,615, Ergonomic Wedge Pillow, (August 2006)
Chisari, U.S. Pat. No. 7,017,213, Stomach Sleeper (March 2006) shows two wedge pillows employed parallel to the body, arranged to prevent neck twisting. The design is unsuitable to address neck tension.
Another characteristic of pillows in general is the creation of force causing neck compression.
The primary objective of the present invention is to create a pillow system contour that facilitates gentle neck and cervical tension while reclined.
A secondary objective is to provide a surface that generates neck tension in any horizontal resting position: side, back, or front.
A third objective is to substantially relieve shoulder pressure in either side rest position, left or right.
Yet another objective is to have a upward-facing resting surface which promotes straight spine alignment in any reclined position, front, back, left or right side.
The present invention is a pillow system comprised of two triangular pillows: a head pillow and a body pillow. The head pillow is a triangular pillow whose inclined upper surface creates support forces directing the head away from the torso, causing gentle neck tension. A second, thinner, triangular pillow is positioned under the torso, with a small gap to the head pillow to allow room for a shoulder and arm. When paired together, the head pillow and body pillow permit a user to experience gentle neck tension and a straight spine in any sleeping position: side, back, or face up.
When back resting, the user's body covers the pillow system's gap without feeling the gap. Side rest requires the gap for proper shoulder comfort. During stomach rest, use of the gap for arm positioning is optional.
A primary embodiment of the head pillow is a right triangle cross section with a base leg, a vertical leg, and a hypotenuse. The included angle of the right triangle is nominally 30 degrees but can vary between 10 and 45 degrees. Pillow length is sufficient to permit a person to roll from one side to the other without rolling off. A length of 50.8 cm (20 inches) would be typical, though it might vary easily between 25.4 and 76.2 cm (10 and 30 inches).
In its preferred embodiment, the body pillow has a shallow isosceles triangle cross section. The thick base end of the triangle is adjacent to the head pillow and the apex is opposite the head pillow. The thickness of the body pillow is approximately equal to the protrusion distance of the shoulder from the side rib cage. Since the pillow is isosceles, it can be positioned with either side up if the thick end is positioned proximal to the head pillow. Body pillow length will be the same as the head pillow.
In their preferred embodiment, the head and body pillows are constructed from viscoelastic polyurethane memory foam, with a typical density range of 70 to 100 kg/m3 (4.4 to 6.2 lb/ft3). Other foams will work as well. Said foam is covered with one or more layers to form a pillow cover. Pillow covers will typically have a zippered opening so that the cover can be washed. Each pillow can further be covered with a pillowcase.
A preferred embodiment of the invention is a combination of head and body pillow, sized for the user so that the shoulder gap is comfortable. Large users will need a larger pillow; small users will use a smaller pillow.
Tension is created in the neck by the head pillow due to the angled contact surface, which comports both a vertical supporting force as well as a horizontal tensioning force. In addition, the thick end of the pillow contacts the jaw line, or proximal area, with maximum force. As the pillow tapers away toward the top of the head, less and less force is conveyed to support the head. Consequently, the head attempts to rotate about the contact line along the thickest pillow portion. Said rotation causes tension in the neck. Only a slight angle of rotation is needed to create neck tension, so the head remains substantially horizontal and in line with the spine.
Another feature of the head pillow is its ability to convey shear force to the head, and thus the neck, by advantageous shear deformation of the foam construction material. In use, a person can grab the top surface and pull it towards the body. The internal foam of the pillow will deform in shear and impart a force to the head determined by the amount of shear deformation.
A traditional pillow, shown in
No pillow discussion is complete without mentioning the Tempur-Pedic® contour pillow, shown schematically in
To sum, a conventional pillow and to some extent the contoured pillow induce support forces toward the top of the head that creates neck compression. Observe that a traditional pillow and even a specially contoured pillow do not address induced cervical spine curvature in back-down or face-up positions. Neither does a traditional pillow address shoulder force that is higher than torso force for side positions. Even pillows that claim to be designed for side sleeping do not alleviate the excess force felt by the shoulder because the shoulder has a wider profile than the torso. For a person on their side, the shoulder pushes down further into the mattress and experiences higher force.
The proposed pillow system invention shown in
The head pillow (201) is angled so that the narrow portion of the wedge (205) is near the top of the head and the thick end (203) is near the jaw or neck. The body pillow (202) is positioned with the narrow portion (206) more towards the waist and the thick portion (204) near the body pillow, thus allowing a gentle and comfortable height transition in support of the torso.
The resting surface of the head pillow (208) is inclined away from the body pillow. 30 degrees is the preferred included angle of the head pillow (209), but this may be adjusted to suit the user's needs. The angle may vary from zero degrees, or flat, to 45 degrees, with consequent neck tension decreased or increased. Pillow width, corresponding to the base leg, is typically 25.4 cm (10 in). Pillow length is typically 61 cm (24 inches) but can vary according to user preference.
The body pillow lifts the body slightly to provide shoulder relief and to keep the spine straight in all sleeping positions. Height of body lift is determined by the nominally vertical leg (210) minus foam compression. Body pillow angle is not critical, but must taper to a reasonably small, end (211) so that it comfortably transitions into the supporting surface.
To permit a sufficiently sloped head pillow angle without the pillow running out of material, the nominal right triangle of the pillow optionally includes a lift zone (212). Said lift zone is enough to create a total vertical leg (213) high enough to both support the head and keep the spine aligned.
The head pillow is generally a 30-degree right triangle with a base leg (214) of 25.4 cm (10 inches) and height of 14.7 cm (5.8 inches). It is thickened at the base by a 2.5 cm (1 inch) lift zone (212) to add to overall height, said thickening reflected by a flat tailing surface (215). Edges may be rounded or left sharp.
In the preferred embodiment of
The body pillow (302) is substantially an isosceles triangle positioned with its thick end near the head pillow. Its symmetry permits it to be flipped over with equal function, but again with the thick end towards the head pillow. Gap between the pillow (306) is determined by user preference but typically ranges from 5.1 to 10.2 cm (2 to 4 inches).
Head pillow function is maintained even when varying the proscribed dimensions. Included angle may vary between 45 and 0 degrees. Height may vary between 5.1-20.3 cm (3-8 inches). Depth may vary from 12.7-40.6 cm (5 to 16 inches). Length may vary from 25.4-10.6 cm (10 to 40 inches), or more. The right angle is shown in its preferred embodiment of 90 degrees but may also vary by +/−15 degrees.
In the preferred embodiment, pillow material is viscoelastic polyurethane foam. Construction is typically monolithic but may also be in layers, single or multiple, with materials varying in hardness. Layers may be as arranged as a core with wrapped outer layers, or in a flat stacked manner
We see in detail how the wedge-shaped head pillow creates neck tension in
To maintain static equilibrium of the head on the pillow, both the sum of X/Y forces and the sum of moments must be zero, or:
Σ(X forces): F1+F3=0
Σ(Y forces): F2+F4=0
ΣMoments: (F4×D1)+(F3×D2)=0
In
Although the described pillow system is passive, it is nonetheless performing several simultaneous functions in service of comfort and stress relief:
The gap between head and body pillow is imperceptibly overlain with no ill effects when the user is resting on their back or front.
Variations in material height for the pillow pair may accommodate various body sizes. Foam hardness may be varied as well to suit the preference of the user.
Both head and body pillows are preferably covered with a protective material, said cover material may be zippered or seamed to allow removal and cleaning. Covers may also be of multiple layers performing different functions such as moisture control and thermal regulation. In typical use, a pillow assembly of wedged foam with cover would be placed inside a pillowcase for final use.
