1 Sleeping Aid This invention relates to a sleeping aid. The invention has particular application to a sleeping aid for use in aircraft to assist passengers to sleep in their 5 seats and reference will be made to such application. However, the invention may have application other than as a sleeping aid and/or for use in situations other than on aircraft. Passengers on long flights may find it difficult to sleep in their seats. Reclining seats are normally provided by .0 airlines to assist passengers to sleep, and blankets are normally provided so that passengers may be kept comfortable for sleeping. However, passengers' arms can fall into the aisle or the seat next to them because of their seated position, thereby breaking their sleep and possibly .5 interfering with other passengers. Moreover, passengers may be inclined not to sleep well when travelling through a fear of disturbing other passengers. The present invention aims to provide a sleeping aid which alleviates one or more of the aforementioned problems. 20 Other aims and advantages of the invention may become apparent from the following description.
2 With the foregoing in view, in one aspect the present invention resides broadly in a sleeping aid for a traveller including: a body portion sized to extend from at least the nape of 5 the neck to the elbows of the traveller; securing means operatively associated with the body portion for securing body portion to the traveller; and arm retaining means attached to or formed with said body portion for retaining the upper arms of the traveller .0 substantially at the traveller's sides and the lower arms on the lower chest or upper abdomen of the traveller. Preferably, the body portion is formed as a blanket portion sized to cover at least a portion of the front of the traveller. More preferably, the blanket portion is sized to .5 cover the front from the neck and over the feet of an adult person. In a preferred, form, the size of the blanket portion is commensurate with the size of blankets provided by airlines for use by passengers. Such blankets are typically rectangular with rounded corners. 20 The securing means is preferably provided by complementary hook and loop fastener patches of the velour crochet type attached to opposite corners of one end of the blanket portion. In such form, the fastener patches are 3 provided on opposite faces of the blanket portion so that the blanket portion may be wrapped around the neck of the traveller without twisting the blanket portion. The retaining means is preferably provided in the form of 5 a pocket formed by sewing or otherwise attaching a piece of material to the blanket portion in the form of a pocket. The position of the pocket is such that the forearms of an average-sized adult may be retained in a position akin to a folded-arms position resting on the lower chest or upper .0 abdomen of the traveller. The pocket is preferably arranged for retaining upper arms of the traveller substantially parallel to the traveller's sides. In a preferred form, the pocket is provided as a rectangular patch sewn with continuous seams to the blanket L5 portion along three side edges of the pocket patch. The base of the pocket is located spaced from the end of the blanket a distance corresponding approximately to the distance from the top of the shoulder to the end of the elbow of an average adult. 20 In another aspect, the present invention resides broadly in a method of aiding sleep for a seated person including: retaining the upper arms of the traveller substantially at the traveller's sides and 4 retaining the lower arms of the traveller on the lower chest or upper abdomen of the traveller. Preferably, the method includes providing a sleeping aid having a body portion, securing means and retaining means as 5 hereinbefore described. In such form, it is preferred that the body portion is provided in the form of a blanket having the securing means fixed to opposite corners of one end, whereby the method includes wrapping the ends of the blanket about the neck of the sleeping person and securing the blanket portion .0 so placed by the securing means and retaining the arms of the sleeping person in the retaining means. In order that the invention may be more readily understood and put into practical effect, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will now be described with .5 reference to the following drawing, and wherein: Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of a sleeping aid blanket according to the invention. Terms such as "top", "bottom", "left" and "right" are used for convenience only to described elements of the 20 invention in the orientation illustrated in Fig. 1, and are not to be taken as confining the invention to any particular orientation. The sleeping aid blanket 10 illustrated in Fig. 1 includes a rectangular blanket portion 11 having a top edge 12 and two side edges 13 at right angles to the top edge. A 5 rectangular pocket patch 14 is sewn with stitch 15 along three sides to form a pocket having an opening at 16. The pocket is centrally placed between the side edges, but closer to the top edge than the opposite end on one face of the blanket. 5 A loop fastener rectangular patch 17 is provided spaced from the top and side edge near the top right-hand corner and on the same face of the blanket as the pocket. A rectangular hook fastener patch 18 is provided spaced from the top and side edge near the top left-hand corner of the blanket, but on .0 the opposite face so that the hook and loop patches may be fastened together without having to twist the blanket. The pocket is arranged such that the bottom corners of stitching are about the same as the distance from the hook and loop fasteners as the distance from the centre of the back of .5 the neck to the elbow of the average adult person. In use, a sleeping aid according to the invention may be provided as a sleeping aid blanket, for example, taken aboard an aeroplane by an airline customer for use as an aid to sleeping. The blanket may be folded up for storage in a manner 20 akin to that used for folding ordinary blankets and such like. A typical user, such as a traveller, may take the blanket, holding it in front of the body with one of the top corners in each hand, and fasten the two parts of the hook and loop fastener together so that the upper edge of the blanket loops 6 around their neck. This may be done in the seated or standing position. The traveller may then place their arms in the pocket, the forearms at least being supported in a position similar to a folded-arm position on the front of the 5 traveller's body, again in either the seated or standing position. It will be appreciated that the traveller would normally be in a seated position when sleeping in an aircraft, bus, train or the like. Although the invention has been described with reference .0 to a specific example, it will be appreciated by persons skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in other forms within the broad scope and ambit of the invention as herein set forth and defined by the following claims.