ORIGINAL AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION For an Innovation Patent Invention title: "PILLOW" Applicant: Julianne Davis Associated Provisional Application Nos.: 2012902524 and 2013900090 The following statement is a full description of the invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: 2 "PILLOW" Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a bed pillow designed to reduce the wrinkling of the face during sleep and relates particularly, though not exclusively, to an 5 orthopaedic pillow of this kind. Background to the Invention Most people spend hours sleeping on their sides at night time, which greatly increases the rate that wrinkles form on the face. The side of the face is 10 pushed into the pillow, creating wrinkles in the face. When the face is kept in the same position for such a long time, (average sleeping time being 8 hours per night), then wrinkles start to set in place. It is not difficult to imagine the forming of wrinkles in facial skin over years and years of sleeping! Some idea of the process may be gained by looking in the mirror and pushing against 15 one side of the face as if lying flat on that side. It will be immediately apparent how the formation of wrinkles occurs in response to the pushing of the face flat. Various prior art pillows have been designed to try to address this problem. For example, US 5,848,448 (Boyd) describes a pillow with a solid foam body 20 sculpted to have hollows or cutouts positioned on its longitudinal axis and specifically shaped for receiving facial tissue of a user so as to prevent wrinkles to the facial tissue. The hollows or cutouts of Boyd are of oval or triangular shape to accommodate the ear, nose and/or cheek of a person. Whilst the pillow of Boyd does allow for lying on either the right or left side, it 25 assumes the sleeper will automatically shift their head so that the various parts of the head and face align with the hollows or cutouts in the pillow. However during sleep it is unlikely that the user will keep their head stationary or turn their head so that the ear, nose, etc perfectly align with the hollows or cutouts.
3 US 4,788,728 (Lake) is less susceptible to this problem. Lake describes a contoured, generally rectangular shaped pillow with an oblong hollow formed in its top surface. The hollow in Lake's pillow is designed to accommodate the lower portion of the user's face in order to reduce pressure on the face 5 while lying in a side position so as to reduce creasing of the face and earaches. A central depression extends into the hollow and is designed to support the top of the user's head and to encourage the user to maintain the head in its proper position near the center of the pillow. One of the disadvantages of the contoured pillow of Lake is that it requires a 10 specially designed pillowcase, which has an opening that aligns with the hollow in the pillow, so as to prevent the pillowcase from exerting pressure on the lower portion of the user's face. Another disadvantage of the pillow of Lake is that the design of the hollow is quite complex, requiring special contouring of the foam material of the pillow. 15 The present invention was designed with a view to providing a pillow of simple design that will help to reduce wrinkling of the face during sleep. References to prior art in this specification are provided for illustrative purposes only and are not to be taken as an admission that such prior art is part of the common general knowledge in Australia or elsewhere. 20 Summary of the Invention According to the present invention there is provided a pillow comprising a foam body of generally rectangular shape in the form of an orthopaedic pillow having two contoured longitudinal sides offering two different levels of neck support and having a top and a bottom; an elongate, rectangular gap being 25 formed in a middle of the top of the foam body, the rectangular gap extending substantially perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the pillow wherein, in use, the rectangular gap can accommodate the side of the face when a user's head is lying sideways on the pillow. Alternatively, in use, the rectangular gap can accommodate the side of the 30 user's head so that the face is lifted off the top of the pillow. In either case, 4 the face is not being squashed against the top of the pillow, allowing the facial skin to spread out more evenly and thus greatly reducing the wrinkling of the face while sleeping. In one embodiment the rectangular gap extends to a longitudinal side of the S pillow. Typically the rectangular gap is about 40mm to 60mm wide. Typically the rectangular gap has a depth of about half the thickness of the pillow. In one embodiment the rectangular gap is about 40mm deep. Typically the rectangular gap is about 200mm to 300mm long. Preferably the rectangular gap is of substantially uniform cross-section throughout its length. 10 Advantageously the rectangular gap is formed centrally of the pillow and does not extend to either longitudinal side wherein, in use, the pillow can be rotated with the neck supported on either longitudinal side to provide comfort, support and less wrinkles while sleeping. Typically the generally rectangular shaped foam body is about 600mm long 15 and400mmwide. Throughout the specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise" or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be 20 understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of Integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group of integers. Likewise the word "preferably" or variations such as "preferred", will be understood to imply that a stated integer or group of integers is desirable but not essential to the working of the invention. 25 Brief Description of the Drawings The nature of the invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments of the pillow, given by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which; 5 Figures 1 (a) and (b) are a rear and front perspective view respectively of a first embodiment of the pillow according to the present invention; Figures 2 (a) and (b) are a rear and front perspective view respectively of a second embodiment of the pillow according to the present 5 invention; and, Figures 3 (a) and (b) are a rear and front perspective view respectively of a third embodiment of the pillow according to the present invention. Detailed Description of Preferred Embodiments 10 A first embodiment of a pillow 10 in accordance with the invention, as illustrated in Figures 1 (a) and (b), comprises a foam body 12 of generally rectangular shape having a top 14 and a bottom 16. An elongate, rectangular gap 20 is formed in a middle of the top 14 of the foam body 12. The rectangular gap 20 extends substantially perpendicularly to a longitudinal 15 axis 22 of the pillow. In use, the rectangular gap 20 can accommodate the side of the face when a user's head is lying sideways on the pillow 10. Alternatively, in use, the rectangular gap 20 can accommodate the side of the user's head so that the face is lifted off the top of the pillow 10. In either case, the face is not being squashed against the top of the pillow, allowing the 20 facial skin to spread out more evenly and thus greatly reducing the wrinkling of the face while sleeping. Because the rectangular gap 20 is in the middle of the pillow 10 it doesn't matter if the user is sleeping on the right or the left side. In the first embodiment, illustrated in Figures 1 (a) and (b), the rectangular 25 gap 20 extends to a longitudinal side of the pillow 10. Typically the rectangular gap is about 40mm to 60mm wide. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 20 is 40mm wide and is of substantially uniform cross section throughout its length. The rectangular gap 20 is of rectangular cross section. Typically the rectangular gap 20 has a depth of about half the 6 thickness of the pillow. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 20 is about 40mm deep. Typically the rectangular gap is about 200mm to 300mm long. In this embodiment the rectangular gap is about 250mm long. Preferably the pillow 10 is an orthopaedic pillow having two contoured 5 longitudinal sides offering two different levels of neck support to ensure comfort, support and less wrinkles while sleeping. One longitudinal side has a height of about 100mm, and the other longitudinal side has a height of about 80mm. Typically the pillow 10 is of standard size. In this embodiment the generally rectangular shaped foam body 12 is about 600mm long and 10 400mm wide. Since the design of the pillow 10 is orthopaedic, having the options of traditional or memory foam, the pillow 10 not only ensures that wrinkles are being prevented but also provides a healthier and more comfortable sleep. Figures 2 (a) and (b) illustrate a second embodiment of a pillow 30 in 15 accordance with the invention. The pillow 30 comprises a foam body 32 of generally rectangular shape having a top 34 and a bottom 36. An elongate, rectangular gap 40 is formed in a middle of the top 34 of the foam body 32. The rectangular gap 40 extends substantially perpendicularly to a longitudinal axis of the pillow. In use, the rectangular gap 40 can accommodate the side 20 of the face when a user's head is lying sideways on the pillow 30. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 40 is formed centrally of the pillow 30 and does not extend to either longitudinal side. Hence, in use, the pillow 30 can be rotated with the neck supported on either longitudinal side to provide comfort, support and less wrinkles while sleeping. The rectangular gap 40 25 can also accommodate the side of the user's head, with the head slightly tilted to one side so that the face is lifted off the top of the pillow 10. In this case also, the face is not being squashed against the top of the pillow, allowing the facial skin to spread out more evenly and thus greatly reducing the wrinkling of the face while sleeping. If the user desires to train themselves 30 to sleep on their back to keep the face clear of the pillow altogether, the gap 7 40 creates a comfortable resting place for the back of the head. At the same time the neck is supported and natural alignment to the spine is encouraged. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 40 is 50mm wide and is of substantially uniform cross-section throughout its length. The rectangular gap 5 40 is of rectangular cross-section. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 40 passes all the way through the thickness of the pillow. In this embodiment the rectangular gap 40 is about 300mm long. In other respects the pillow 30 is similar to the first embodiment of the pillow 10. The pillow 30 is an orthopaedic pillow having two contoured longitudinal 10 sides offering two different levels of neck support while sleeping. One longitudinal side has a height of about 100mm, and the other longitudinal side has a height of about 90mm. Figures 3 (a) and (b) illustrate a third embodiment of a pillow 50 in accordance with the invention. The pillow 50 is substantially identical to the 15 second embodiment (pillow 30) and therefore will not be described again in detail. The same reference numerals are used in Figures 3 (a) and (b) to identify the similar parts. The principal difference is in the dimensions of the rectangular gap 40, which is in this instance is not of uniform cross-section throughout its length. Rectangular gap 40 in this embodiment is about 50mm 20 in width at one end and gradually widens to about 60mm in width at the other end. Now that preferred embodiments of the pillow have been described in detail, it will be apparent that the described embodiments provide a number of 25 advantages over the prior art, including the following: (i) The provision of the rectangular gap helps to position the head in a variety of ways for comfort while preventing the side of the face from being squashed against the pillow, thus greatly reducing the wrinkling of the face while sleeping.
8 (ii) Because the rectangular gap is in the middle of the pillow it doesn't matter if the user sleeps on the right or the left side. (iii) The pillow is of simple design, is of similar size to a standard pillow and can be used with conventional bed linen. 5 (iv) Two contoured longitudinal sides offer two different levels of neck support while sleeping. (v) Orthopaedic design contributes to increased comfort and natural alignment of the spine. (vi) Made of traditional or memory foam to provide firmer, more 10 comfortable support. It will be readily apparent to persons skilled in the relevant arts that various modifications and improvements may be made to the foregoing embodiments, in addition to those already described, without departing from the basic inventive concepts of the present invention. For example, although 15 the rectangular gap in each of the describe embodiments is of rectangular cross-section it will be appreciated that it could be of any suitable cross sectional shape. For example, the rectangular gap could be of semi-circular cross-sectional shape. Therefore, it will be appreciated that the scope of the invention is not limited to the specific embodiments described and is to be 20 determined from the appended claims.