WO2005077230A1

WO2005077230A1 - Travel pillow

Info

Publication number: WO2005077230A1
Application number: PCT/CA2005/000178
Authority: WO
Inventors: Philip Patrick Chisholm; David Robert Wilson
Original assignee: Philip Patrick Chisholm; David Robert Wilson
Priority date: 2004-02-12
Filing date: 2005-02-11
Publication date: 2005-08-25

Abstract

A travel pillow is described herein. The pillow body is shaped specifically to fill the space between the head and shoulder of a user. An adjustable strap is attached to the pillow body for securing the pillow body between the head of a user and a shoulder of the user.

Description

TRAVEL PILLOW

This invention is in the field of travel pillows and more particularly to travel pillows for supporting the head and neck of the user.

BACKGROUND

People generally feel uncomfortable after sitting for extended periods for purposes including, but not limited to, travel (by airplane, bus, train, subway, car, boat), attending sports matches and artistic performances, and waiting in airports, bus and train stations and ferry terminals. A primary reason for this discomfort is that most seats lack adequate features to support the head completely in a comfortable position. This lack of support leads to neck pain, inability to rest or sleep and/or overall discomfort during travel and other situations of prolonged sitting.

There are many 'U' shaped cushions on the market but they do not provide adequate support to the head. In particular, they do not support or carry the weight of the head when in a seated position and do not increase comfort substantially for sustained periods of sitting. Cushions of this type are disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 6,230,349 (Silver et al.), 6,216,298 (Oliveira), 4,031,578 (Sweeney et al.), 4,679,262 (Davis et al.) and 4,345,347 (Kantor).

U.S. Patent 6,017,094, issued to Sylek, discloses a travel pillow that can be attached to an automobile seat belt.

It is, therefore, desirable to provide a travel pillow that sufficiently supports the head and neck to increase comfort and reduce pain.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to obviate or mitigate at least one disadvantage of previous travel pillows.

The present invention provides, in a first embodiment, a travel pillow for supporting a side of a head of a user when the user is seated in a substantially upright position. The travel pillow comprises: a pillow body comprising a shoulder bracing surface and a head supporting surface, the pillow body shaped such that when the shoulder bracing surface is positioned against a shoulder of a user, the head supporting surface is located in proximity to a side of a head of the user; and an adjustable strap attached to the pillow body and operative to secure the pillow body between the shoulder and the head of the user.

Generally, the present invention provides a travel pillow comprising a pillow body and an adjustable strap attached to the pillow. The pillow body comprises a shoulder bracing surface and a head supporting surface. The pillow body is shaped so that when the shoulder bracing surface is positioned against a shoulder of a user, the head supporting surface is positioned in proximity to the side of a head of a user allowing a user to rest the side of his or her head on the head supporting surface of the travel pillow.

An adjustable strap is attached to the pillow body on both side panels and is looped around the user's opposite side under the armpit to resist the lateral force of the head on the pillow body and to keep the pillow body in place. The strap may be padded at points where it contacts the body for added comfort and safety. This provides excellent support for the head and allows the user to lean his or her head against the head supporting surface of the pillow body as if the user is leaning against a pillow body supported by a solid surface (as when leaning against the inside of the aircraft cabin in a window seat). Other variations of the present invention may include straps that secure the pillow body to a seat back, seat bottom or safety belt and modified configurations of the straps that go around the body at various levels. The strap could also be wrapped around the outside of shoulder opposite to the pillow body side.

The pillow body may have several different sizes with the same/similar general geometry to accommodate different sized users.

In a further embodiment of the present invention, the travel pillow comprises a pillow body and a supplemental neck cushion support. The supplemental neck cushion support comprises a neck support surface and a seat back bracing surface and is shaped such that when the seat back bracing surface is placed against a seat back, the neck support surface is positioned in proximity to the back of a neck of a user to support the head of the user.

The pillow body can be made out of a variety of materials. Pillow materials can include (but are not limited to) foam (including standard and "memory foam") and an adjustable air cushion (or adjustable air bladder). The foam is dense enough to support the side of the head. Preferably, the pillow body has an air bladder that is deflatable to allow it to be compressed to a more compact size when not in use. Generally, the air bladder would be in the shape of the pillow body but would allow the user to regulate the amount of air in the cushion to provide further control of the head position/angle. Alternatively, the pillow body can comprise a combination of two or more separate air bladders that can be deflated or inflated independently of the others. Combinations of foam and an air cushion could also be used with one chamber of the pillow being an air chamber and another chamber comprising foam. Other materials, such as buckwheat husks and gels, could also be used to completely or partially fill the cushion or be used in multiple chamber configurations.

The pillow body and/or supplemental neck cushion may be covered with a material that is comfortable in contact with the user's skin. These materials can include velour, terry cloth, fleece, cotton, and numerous other natural and synthetic materials.

Preferably, the strap is approximately 1 ¥z inch wide and is made of nylon webbing or cotton, but can also be made of Lycra, cotton, polyester, and a variety of other materials. The size, shape and materials of the strap could also be varied for optimum support of the pillow and comfort for the user. There may be a padded section on the strap to distribute load in any region where it contacts the body (including the armpit). This padded section could be made from a variety of materials.

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS:

While the invention is claimed in the concluding portions hereof, preferred embodiments are provided in the accompanying detailed description which may be best understood in conjunction with the accompanying diagrams where like parts in each of the several diagrams are labeled with like numbers, and where:

Fig. 1A is a front view of a travel pillow strapped to a user, in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. IB is a front view of the travel pillow of Fig. 1A wherein the travel pillow is strapped to a user by encircling the neck of the user;

Fig. 2 is afront view of the pillow body of Fig. 1 A;

Fig. 3 is a side view of the pillow body of Fig. 1 A;

Fig. 4 is a top view of a user using the travel pillow of Fig. 1 A;

Fig. 5 is a front view of a user using a travel pillow, in accordance with the present invention, while leaning against a wall; Fig. 6A illustrates a user using a travel pillow with an alternate strap geometry;

Fig. 6B illustrates a travel pillow with a different alternate strap geometry;

Fig. 7 illustrates a variation of the travel pillow comprising an air bladder;

Fig. 8 illustrates another variation of the travel pillow comprising a first air bladder and a second air bladder;

Fig. 9 shows a user wearing the travel pillow with an optional neck cushion support;

Fig. 10 is a detailed view of the optional neck cushion support;

Fig. 11 illustrates the optional neck cushion support attached to the travel pillow;

Fig. 12 illustrates a side view of a user wearing the travel pillow with the optional neck cushion support; and

Fig. 13 illustrates a detailed view of the strap attachments.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENTS:

Fig. 1A illustrates a front view of the travel pillow 5 strapped to a user. The pillow body 10 comprises a head supporting surface 11 and a shoulder bracing surface 13. The pillow body 10 is shaped specifically to fill the space between the head and shoulder such that when the shoulder bracing surface 13 is positioned on top of a shoulder of a user, the head supporting surface 11 is located in proximity to a side of a head of the user, yielding firm support of the head of the user. The shape of the pillow body 10 and the relation between the head supporting surface 11 and the shoulder bracing surface 13 allows the angle of lateral bending from the vertical axis X to be adjusted to support neck angles that are most comfortable. The angle A between the head of a user and the vertical axis X can be adjusted from 0° to 45° in a sitting position by adjusting a strap 12 location and/or length and/or geometry and/or pillow shape/density. Typically a comfortable lateral bend of the neck is between 0^° and 30^°. The travel pillow 5 can be used on either side of the head so a user can use the travel pillow 5 to comfortably rest the head to the left or to the right against the head supporting surface 11 of the pillow body 10 depending upon which shoulder the shoulder bracing surface 13 is placed on. Fig. 1A illustrates the pillow body 10 attached to an adjustable strap 12 via a buckle 14, however it would be understood by someone skilled in the art that other attachment means such as buckles, velcro™, etc. could be used to attach the strap 12 to the pillow body 10. Typically, the strap 12 loops around the user and under the armpit of the user where an optional padded section 16 fits under the user's armpit for added comfort. Alternatively, Fig. IB illustrates the travel pillow 5 where the strap 12 loops around the neck of the user.

The pillow body can be made from any number of materials including: velour, terry cloth, fleece, cotton, and numerous other natural and synthetic materials so that it is comfortable against the skin of a user.

Fig. 2 illustrates a front view of the travel pillow 10. Attached to the side of the pillow body 10 is a National 1 ^lή inch Stealth Warrior™ buckle 14 to which is added the end of the strap 16. The end 16 of the 1 Vi inch wide nylon webbed strap comprises a "male" VelcroTM attachment 18 which fits through a buckle loop 15, folds back onto itself and is secured with a "female" Velcro TM attachment 20. In one embodiment, a zippered pocket 22 is embedded in the side of the pillow body 10. Alternatively, Velcro™ or a buckle could be used to secure the strap 16 to the pillow body 10. Fig. 3 illustrates a side view of the pillow body 10 with the strap 24 traversing the width of the pillow body 10.

Fig. 4 illustrates top view of a user and a travel pillow 5 where the travel pillow 5 is strapped to a user. The travel pillow 5 allows a user to adjust the axial rotation of the neck of the user. Axial rotation is the rotation of the head of a user about the long axis of the spine from straight ahead. The axial rotation angle is the angle between the direction the head of the user is facing and the straight ahead position. When the head of the user is facing straight ahead, the axial rotation angle of the head of the user will be approximately 0°, as illustrated in Fig. 4. When the user turns his of her chin towards one of the shoulders of the user, this axial rotation angle will change. An axial rotation angle of 90° or -90° will have the user looking in approximately the same direction the shoulder of the user is facing with the chin of the user being located approximately over the shoulder of the user. The travel pillow 5 allows the axial rotation angle of the head of the user to be adjusted from -45° (where the head is turned approximately halfway to one shoulder) to 45° (where the head is turned approximately halfway to the other shoulder) in a sitting position by adjusting the strap 12 location and/or length and/or geometry at the buckle 14 and/or pillow shape/density. Typically, the neck of a user is most comfortable with an axial rotation angle between -20° and 20°. Fig. 5 illustrates the travel pillow 5 with a curved outside surface 21. The outside surface 21 of the pillow body 10 is curved to conform to a curved wall 25, such as the inside wall of an aircraft cabin, boat interior, train, subway compartment etc. This curved outside surface 21 provides the user's head with comfortable support when such a curved wall is available to support the travel pillow 5.

Generally, the pillow body 10 has a core comprising any material suitable to support the head of the user such as foam, buckwheat husks, or gel, however it is envisioned that the pillow body 10 could comprise an air bladder. Fig. 7 illustrates a cutaway of an embodiment of the pillow body 10 of the travel pillow 5 with pillow body 10 comprising an air bladder 45. Air bladder 45 is adjustable such that the amount of air in the air bladder 45 can be varied. By varying the amount of air in the air bladder 45, a user can alter the position of the head supporting surface 11 in relation to the shoulder bracing surface 13 to allow the user to adjust the angle of the neck of the user when the user is resting his or her head against the head supporting surface 11. Optionally, air bladder 45 is deflatable so that when the travel pillow 5 is not in use, a user can deflate the air bladder 45 and compress the pillow body 10 for storing the travel pillow.

Fig. 8 illustrates a cutaway of an alternate embodiment of the pillow body 10 of the travel pillow 5 comprising a first air bladder 47 and a second air bladder 49. In this embodiment, the pillow body 10 comprises a first air bladder 47, a second air bladder 49, and foam sections 51. The first air bladder 47 and second air bladder 49 are inflatable and deflatable independent of each other. In this manner, a user can adjust the head supporting surface 11 relative to the shoulder bracing surface 13 by adjusting the amount of air in the first air bladder 47 and the second air bladder 49. The ability to adjust the amount of air in the first air bladder 47 independently from the second air bladder 49 (and vice versa) provides the user with more control over the adjustments to the pillow body 10. Foam cores 51 are optionally included to provide some support to the pillow body 10, regardless of the amount of air in the first air bladder 47 and second air bladder 49.

Fig. 6A illustrates the travel pillow 5 with an alternate strap configuration. An auxiliary strap 28 is secured around a torso of a user beneath both armpits of the user. An adjustable strap 29 is attachable to the auxiliary strap 28 to secure the pillow body 10 between a side of the head and a shoulder of the user such that the head supporting surface 11 is positioned in proximity to the side of the head of the user and the shoulder bracing surface 13 is positioned against the shoulder of the user. Fig. 6B illustrates a further alternate strap configuration where an auxiliary strap 28 is secured around a shoulder and under an armpit of a user on the side of the user's body opposite the shoulder the pillow body 10 is secured on and the adjustable strap 29 is attachable to the auxiliary strap 28. Figs. 9, 10, 11 and 12 illustrate an embodiment of the present invention with a supplemental neck cushion support 30. The neck cushion support 30 adds comfort and support to the user. This added neck cushion support 30 comprises a neck support surface 35 and a seat back bracing surface 37 and the neck cushion support 30 is shaped to fill the space between the head, neck, shoulder, upper back, and seat, such that when the seat back bracing surface 37 is placed against a seat back 40 the neck support surface 35 will be positioned against the back of a neck of a user, yielding firm support of the head.

The neck cushion support 30 can be attached to the pillow body 10 in numerous ways including Velcro ™. Attachment features 32 are added to both sides of the neck cushion support 30 so that it can be properly positioned with the pillow body 10 in use on either side of the head. Attachment features 32 will allow positioning of the neck cushion support 30 for different body sizes and types. As shown in Fig. 10, the neck cushion support 30 can also be used independently of the travel pillow 5.

Figure 13 shows a detail of the strap 12, buckle 14, buckle loop 15 and strap end 17. The strap length is adjustable; however, its total length is approximately 46 inches and its width approximately 1 Yi inches. The foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous changes and modifications will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all such suitable changes or modifications in structure or operation which may be resorted to are intended to fall within the scope of the claimed invention.

Claims

CLAIMS:What is claimed is:

1. A travel pillow for supporting a side of a head of a user when the user is seated in a substantially upright position, the travel pillow comprising:

a pillow body comprising a shoulder bracing surface and a head supporting surface, the pillow body shaped such that when the shoulder bracing surface is positioned against a shoulder of a user, the head supporting surface is located in proximity to a side of a head of the user; and

an adjustable strap attached to the pillow body and operative to secure the pillow body between the shoulder and the head of the user.

2. The travel pillow of Claim 1 wherein the pillow body comprises a foam core.

3. The travel pillow of Claim 1 wherein the pillow body comprises a buckwheat husk core.

The travel pillow of Claim 1 wherein the pillow body comprises a gel core.

The travel pillow of Claim 1 wherein the pillow body comprises an air bladder.

6. The travel pillow of Claim 5 wherein the air bladder is deflatable such that the pillow body can be compressed when not in use.

7. The travel pillow of Claim 5 wherein the air bladder is adjustable such that the amount of air in the air bladder can be varied and thereby allow the alteration of the position of the head support surface relative to the shoulder bracing surface.

8. The travel pillow of Claim 1 wherein the pillow body comprises a first air bladder operative to be inflated and deflated and a second air bladder operative to be inflated and deflated independently from the first air bladder.

9. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-8 wherein the adjustable strap is operative to loop around a side of a torso of a user opposite a shoulder the pillow body is positioned on, thereby securing the pillow body between the shoulder and a side of a head of the user.

10. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-8 wherein the adjustable strap is operative to loop around a side of a neck of a user opposite a shoulder the pillow body is positioned on, thereby securing the pillow body between the shoulder and a side of a head of the user.

11. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-8 further comprising an auxiliary strap securable around a torso of the user and wherein the adjustable strap is attachable to the auxiliary strap.

12. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-8 further comprising an auxiliary strap securable around a shoulder of a user opposite a shoulder the pillow body is positioned on and wherein the adjustable strap is attachable to the auxiliary strap, thereby securing the pillow body between the shoulder and a side of a head of the user.

13. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-12 comprising a neck cushion support with a neck support surface and a seat back bracing surface oriented such that when the seat back bracing surface is positioned against a seat back the neck support surface is positioned against a back of a neck of the user and supports a head of the user.

14. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-13 comprising a pocket located on the pillow body.

15. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-14 wherein the adjustable strap comprises a padded section.

16. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-15 wherein the pillow body comprises an outer surface material comprising one of: velour, terry cloth, fleece, and cotton.

7. The travel pillow of any one of Claims 1-16 wherein an outside surface of the pillow body is curved to conform to a curved wall.