EP1665958B1

EP1665958B1 - Baby pillow

Info

Publication number: EP1665958B1
Application number: EP04772158A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Kenzou Kassai; Sachiyo c/o Aprica Kassai K.K. SUZUKI; Fumiko c/o Aprica Kassai K.K. TAKAHASHI
Original assignee: Aprica Ikuj ikenkyukai Aprica Kassai KK
Current assignee: Newell Brands Japan GK
Priority date: 2003-09-11
Filing date: 2004-08-25
Publication date: 2008-12-31
Anticipated expiration: 2024-08-25
Also published as: EP1665958A4; WO2005025385A1; KR20060059965A; TW200513216A; EP1665958B8; EP1665958A1; US20090007336A1; RU2006107554A; ATE418895T1; DE602004018798D1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a baby position holding structure in which a position of a baby is appropriately held so as to prevent oxygen saturation from being lowered, and a baby pillow on which an airway in a throat is not blocked. A baby position holding tool (60) comprises a mat (61) extending from right to left and up and down, and a pair of body supports (62 and 63) positioned on right and left sides of the mat so as to abut on both sides of a body of a baby laid on the mat. The body supports include lower parts (62b and 63b) supporting rear faces of the sides of the body of the baby from beneath, respectively and upper parts (62a and 63a) positioned on the lower parts so as to be shifted outward and abut on the side of the body of the baby from the side, respectively. The pillow (10) comprises a pair of head positioning parts (12) having a first height and supporting both sides of a rear part of the head of the baby from beneath, and a neck supporting part (13) having a second height lower than that of the first height and supporting a neck of the baby positioned by the pair of head positioning parts from beneath.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a baby pillow on which an airway in a throat is not blocked.

BACKGROUND ART

Various proposes are made to hold a position of a baby.
For example, Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3079785 discloses a baby pillow. According to the baby pillow disclosed in this document, its entire configuration is in the shape of a donut or an inverted U so as to fit a shape of a head of a baby.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-70602 discloses a sheet on which the baby is prevented from rolling over when a diaper is exchanged. According to the sheet for preventing the baby from rolling over disclosed in this document, a belt for fixing a chest circumference of the baby and a belt for fixing right and left shoulders of the baby are mounted on the sheet.
Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-276312 discloses a tool for preventing rolling over which is conveniently used when a diaper of the baby is exchanged. According to the tool for preventing rolling over disclosed in this document, clothes which can be put on an upper body of the baby is mounted on a sheet.
Japanese National Publication No. 2002-539852 discloses a multifunctional cushion which can prevent the baby from moving and rolling over on a bed during sleep. According to the multifunctional cushion disclosed in this document, it comprises a thin and flat pad and a pair of column-shaped cushions positioned on both sides of the pad.
An example of the donut-shaped baby pillow disclosed in the Japanese Utility Model Registration No. 3079785 is shown in Figs. 13A, 13B and 13C. Fig. 13A is a view showing an example in which the baby is put on the donut-shaped pillow, Fig. 13B is a view showing a state in which the head of the baby is smaller than the donut-shaped pillow shown in Fig. 13A and only a neck part is supported, and Fig. 13C is a view showing a state in which the head of the baby is displaced from the donut-shaped pillow.
According to the donut-shaped pillow 90, originally, the head of the baby is lifted by the donut-shaped pillow so that an entire head part is raised and a rear part of the head of the baby does not become flat. However, as shown in Fig. 13A, since only the head is positioned on the pillow and a position of a lower part from shoulders is not determined, the lower part from the shoulders is moved with respect to the head as shown by dotted lines in the drawing in some cases.
In addition, as shown in Fig. 13B, when a top part of the head of the baby is not supported by the donut-shaped pillow and only the neck part is supported by the donut-shaped pillow, the neck part of the baby is unnaturally lifted so that the baby feel uneasy.
Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 13C, when the head of the baby comes out of the donut-shaped pillow and then the head is lifted by that, the neck part is compressed and an airway in a throat could be blocked.
As the baby rolls over frequently during sleep on the back, the baby often takes an uneasy form as shown in Fig. 14. In the state shown in Fig. 14, the neck part of the baby is bent, so that the oxygen saturation could be lowered because of blockage of the airway of the throat. Furthermore, since the abdomen of the baby is also bent, abdominal breathing is prevented, so that the oxygen saturation could be lowered.
As disclosed in the Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 2003-70602 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 11-276312 , when the upper body of the baby is restrained by the belt or the clothes, although the baby can be prevented from rolling over, since the movement of the upper body of the baby is almost hindered, it is not suitable for a long use.
According to the multifunctional cushion disclosed in the Japanese National Publication No. 2002-539852 , since the pair of columnar cushions are positioned on both sides of the baby, the baby can be allowed to move freely. Meanwhile, since a certain degree of gap is formed between the side of the baby and the cushion, it is difficult to prevent the neck part or the abdomen part of the baby from being bent.
Document US 4 383 713 A1 discloses an orthopedic support apparatus enabling an infant or child to be properly supported while in a seated position. A relatively flat central section is provided which accomodates the neck of the child.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The present invention was made to solve the above problems and it is an object of the present invention to provide
a baby pillow on which a baby can have good sleep.
This object is solved by the baby pillow according to claim 1. Preferred embodiments are set forth in the subclaims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a baby pillow according to one embodiment of the present invention,
Fig. 2 is a plan view showing the baby pillow shown in Fig. 1;
Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing the baby pillow taken along line III-III of Fig. 1;
Fig. 4 is a sectional view showing the baby pillow taken along line IV IV of Fig. 1;
Fig. 5 is a view to explain an effect of the baby pillow according to the present invention;
Fig. 6 is a plan view showing a baby pillow according to another embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 7 is a plan view showing a baby pillow according to still another embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing the baby pillow taken along line VIII-VIII of Fig. 7;
Fig. 9 is a plan view showing a baby pillow according to still another embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 10 is a sectional view showing the baby pillow taken along line X-X of Fig. 9;
Fig. 11 is a plan view showing a baby pillow according to still another embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 12 is a sectional view showing the baby pillow taken along line XII-XII of Fig. 11;
Fig. 13A is a view showing an example in which the baby is put on a donut-shaped pillow;
Fig. 13B is a view showing a state in which a head of the baby is smaller than the donut-shaped baby pillow shown in Fig. 26A and only a neck part is supported by it;
Fig. 13C is a view showing a state in which the head of the baby comes out of the donut-shaped pillow; and
Fig. 14 is a view showing a state in which the neck part and an abdomen part of the baby are bent.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

One embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings, hereinafter. Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a baby pillow 10, Fig. 2 is a plan view thereof, and Figs. 3 and 4 are sectional views showing parts taken along lines III-III and IV-IV respectively.
Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the baby pillow 10 comprises an underlay 11, a head positioning part 12 made of a relatively soft cloth on the underlay 11 and raised toward an upper end to form the shape of inverted U, and a neck supporting part 13 provided in the center of the vicinity of a lower end of the baby pillow 10. The neck supporting part 13 is raised and has the shape of a trapezoid in which a lower end side is long.
The inverted U-shaped head positioning part 12 is extended downward beyond the neck supporting part 13 and constitutes a first and a second projections 14a and 14b. In addition, a part surrounded by the head positioning part 12 and the neck supporting part 13 constitutes a recessed part 15. The head positioning part 12, neck supporting part 13 and the recessed part 15 are smoothly connected.
Referring to Fig. 3, the highest part of the neck supporting part 13 is lower than a top side of the head positioning part 12 and the neck supporting part 13 is smoothly lowered to its upper end side and its lower end side. Since the neck supporting part 13 has such tapered shape, when a baby is put on the baby pillow 10, a fat of a part from the neck to the shoulder of the baby who does not have a neck part yet can be supported at this part as will be described below.
Referring to Fig. 4, a height of both sides of the head positioning part 12 is almost the same from its upper end to a little upper part of the neck supporting part 13 and it is gradually lowered from that part to the projections 14. In addition, a height of both sides 12a and 12b of the head positioning part 12 which are opposed to a nose and a mouth of the baby when the baby turns sideways on the neck supporting part 13 is lower than a height of the nose and the mouth of the baby. Thus, even when the baby turns sideways, the baby is not choked.
According to the baby pillow 10 having the above-described configuration, when a head 18 of the baby is put in the recessed part 15 so that its rear part is fitted in (refer to Fig. 3), the head 18 of the baby is positioned by the head positioning part 12. Furthermore, the right and left shoulders are positioned by the first and second projections 14a and 14b. Since the head 18 and the shoulders of the baby can be positioned, the baby body is in no danger of being twisted during sleep unlike it used to be. In addition, since the neck of the baby is supported by the neck supporting part 13, when the baby is put thereon, the neck becomes horizontal, so that it is not likely that the baby feels uneasy because the neck part is lifted, or the airway in the throat is blocked because the neck part is lowered too much like it used to be.
It is preferable that a material constituting the underlay 11 has a density higher than that of materials constituting the head positioning part 12, the neck supporting part 13, and the first and second projections 14a and 14b which are provided on the underlay 11 in order to keep the height as the baby pillow 10.
Fig. 5 is a graph showing changes in oxygen saturation (SpO₂ : measured value by a pulse oximeter) and pulse rate while the baby sleeps on the baby pillow 10 according to this embodiment. A case (A) where the baby sleeps on the baby pillow 10, a case (B) where the baby sleeps without the baby pillow 10, and a case (C) where the baby sleeps on the baby pillow 10 again are arranged so that they can be compared with each other. The pulse rate is normal in all data.
As can be seen from Fig. 5, when the baby pillow 10 (A) was used, the oxygen saturation was not lowered (around 95) and the baby had a good sleep. Before too long after the baby pillow 10 was taken away (B), it was found that the oxygen saturation was lowered (lowered to about 85). This is because the neck was twisted when the baby rolled over, so that the oxygen saturation was lowered. After that, when the baby pillow 10 is used again (C), the oxygen saturation is raised again (in the vicinity of 95). According to Fig. 5, an effect of the baby pillow 10 can be clearly seen.
Next, another embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 6 is a plan view showing this embodiment of the present invention. According to this embodiment, a baby pillow 20 is incorporated in a baby care instrument represented by a baby carriage.
Referring to Fig. 6, the baby pillow 20 is appropriately incorporated in an inner wall surface of a baby carriage 21. A configuration of this baby pillow is basically the same as that shown in Figs. 1 to 4. Thus, when the baby pillow 20 is adapted to the inner wall surface of the baby care instrument such as the baby carriage or fixed thereto, since the head and shoulders of the baby can be firmly positioned in the baby carriage, the airway in the throat is not blocked during sleep.
In this case, it is necessary to make an underlay 11 of a material whose density is higher than that of a material forming an upper surface of the baby care instrument such as the baby carriage 21 comprising the baby pillow 20, so that the underlay 11 is not affected by hardness of the upper surface of the baby care instrument comprising the baby pillow 20.
Next, still another embodiment of the present invention will be described. Fig. 7 is a plan view showing a baby pillow according to this embodiment of the present invention, and Fig. 8 is a sectional view showing a part taken along line VIII-VIII of Fig. 7. Referring to Figs. 7 and 8, the baby pillow 30 according to this embodiment is different from that according to the above embodiment shown in Figs. 1 to 4 in that a head positioning part 32 is in the shape of a donut, projections are not provided and a neck supporting part 33 is in the shape of a rectangle. Including a structure in which a part surrounded by the head positioning part 32 and the neck supporting part 33 constitutes a recessed part 35, since the parts other than the above differences are basically the same as the above-described embodiment, their description will be omitted.
Since the baby pillow 30 according to this embodiment has the same fundamental configuration as that of the above embodiment basically, the same effect as that of the above embodiment can be provided.
Next, an illustrative example invention will be described. Fig. 9 is a plan view showing the illustrative example, and Fig. 10 is a sectional view showing a part taken along line X-X of Fig. 9. Referring to Figs. 9 and 10, a baby pillow 40 according to this is different from the above illustrative example in that a head positioning part 42 is divided into right and left head positioning parts 42a and 42b by a groove 46 at a top part. In addition, the head positioning part 42 and a neck supporting part 43 are raised from an underlay 41 in a relatively sharp manner.
Since the parts other than the above differences are basically the same as the above-described embodiment, their description will be omitted. Since the baby pillow 40 according to this embodiment has the essential parts of the above embodiment basically, the same effect as that of the above embodiment can be provided.
Next, still another illustrative example will be described. Fig. 11 is a plan view showing this illustrative example, and Fig. 12 is a sectional view showing a part taken along line XII-XII of Fig. 11. Referring to Figs. 11 and 12, a baby pillow 50 is different from that according to the above illustrative example in that the pair of head positioning parts 42a and 42b in the above embodiment are divided into projections 52a and 53a, and projections 52b and 53b, respectively. Thus, since there are provided grooves 56a and 56b, even when the baby turns sideways during sleep, the baby is not choked because parts opposed to the nose and the mouth of the baby when the baby turns sideways do not exist.
Furthermore, the grooves 56a and 56b may be provided from the center of Fig. 11 to a position (shown by dashed lines in Fig. 11) where the nose and the like of the baby do not abut on when the baby turns sideways and may have some height from that position (refer to a part shown by dashed lines in Fig. 12). In this case also, the same effect as the above can be provided.
In addition, including a structure in which a part surrounded by the projections 52a, 53a, 52b and 53b and a neck supporting part 43 constitutes a recessed part 45, the parts other than the differences are the same as that of the above embodiment, their description will be omitted.
Although the various embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiments. Various kinds of modifications and variations can be added to the illustrated embodiments.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention can be advantageously applied to a position of a baby.

Claims

A baby pillow (10; 30) comprising:
an underlay (11; 31);

a pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) on the underlay (11; 31)having a first height and supporting both sides of a rear part of the head of the baby from beneath; and

a raised neck supporting part (13; 33) on the underlay (11; 31) having a second height lower than that of said first height and supporting a neck of the baby positioned by said pair of head positioning parts from beneath, the neck supporting part is lower than a top side of the head positioning, and the neck supporting part is smoothly lowered to its upper end side and its lower end side, wherein a height of said head positioning part which is opposed to a nose and a mouth of the baby when the baby turns sideways on said neck supporting part (13; 33) is lower than heights of the nose and the mouth of the baby.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to claim 1, wherein said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) is continued to each other at a top of the head.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said neck supporting part (13; 33) is in the shape of a trapezoid having a long side on the neck side.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a height of said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) is formed so as to be gradually lowered from the top side of the head toward the neck side.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein said neck supporting part (13; 33) is formed so as to be gradually lowered from the top side of the head toward the neck side.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) extends to the neck side beyond said neck supporting part (13; 33) to constitute shoulder pads which position shoulders of the baby.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to any one of claims 1, 3, 4, 5 and 6, wherein said pair of head positioning parts (42a, 42b; 52a, 52b) is separated from each other at top of the head.
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) extends to the neck side beyond said neck supporting part (13; 33), and said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) and neck side end portions of said neck supporting part (13; 33) is smoothly connected from said neck supporting part (13; 33) to said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32).
The baby pillow (10; 30) according to claim 1, wherein the width of said pair of head positioning parts (12; 32) is larger than the width of said neck supporting part (13; 33).