U.S. patent application number 10/120344 was filed with the patent office on 2003-03-27 for eye mask.
Invention is credited to Hasegawa, Tokuichiro.
Application Number | 20030056281 10/120344 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 19115178 |
Filed Date | 2003-03-27 |
United States Patent
Application |
20030056281 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Hasegawa, Tokuichiro |
March 27, 2003 |
Eye mask
Abstract
An eye mask has magnetic bodies and self-heating warm members,
which are inserted in eye pads on a mask member to be placed over
eyeball parts. If required, vibrators and illumination bodies may
be additionally placed in the eye pads. Thus, fatigue on the eyes
and surroundings thereof can be relieved by the magnetic actions of
the magnetic bodies and the warming effects of the warming member,
in addition to expected effects of restoring ocular functions,
recovering from various ocular diseases, and so on. Furthermore,
the surface of each of the eye pads is gradually curved like the
inner surface of a sphere. When the eye pads are press-contact to
the eyeball parts at predetermined pressures for a long time, the
cornea can be warmed by the warming members so that the shape of
the cornea can be changed along the shape of the eye pad, resulting
in the effects of recovering from eye sight disorder such as
pseudo-myopia, moderate farsightedness, or moderate
astigmatism.
Inventors: |
Hasegawa, Tokuichiro;
(Chita-city, JP) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Striker, Striker & Stenby
103 East Neck Road
Hutington
NY
11743
US
|
Family ID: |
19115178 |
Appl. No.: |
10/120344 |
Filed: |
April 11, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
2/428 ; 2/206;
607/109; 607/141 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61F 7/034 20130101;
A61H 2201/0214 20130101; A61F 9/04 20130101; A61H 23/02 20130101;
A61F 2007/0004 20130101; A61H 5/00 20130101; A61H 2201/1607
20130101; A61H 2205/022 20130101; A61H 2201/0207 20130101; A61H
2201/0278 20130101; A61H 2201/5048 20130101; A61H 2201/10 20130101;
A61H 2201/0257 20130101; A61N 2005/066 20130101; A61H 2201/0228
20130101; A61N 2/002 20130101; A61F 2007/0088 20130101; A61N
2005/0648 20130101; A61H 23/00 20130101; A61N 2/06 20130101; A61H
2205/024 20130101; A61H 2201/168 20130101; A61H 2201/165 20130101;
A61F 2007/0075 20130101; A61F 7/02 20130101; A61H 2201/0242
20130101; A61N 5/0618 20130101; A61H 2201/025 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
2/428 ; 2/206;
607/109; 607/141 |
International
Class: |
A42B 001/18 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Sep 26, 2001 |
JP |
2001-293379 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. An eye mask, comprising: a mask member to be placed over eyeball
parts; magnetic bodies provided on portions of the mask member,
where the portions correspond to the eyeball parts; and a warming
member for warming the eyeball parts, which is provided on the mask
member.
2. An eye mask as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: eye pads
provided on the portions of the mask member corresponding to the
eyeball parts, where the magnetic bodies are placed in the eye
pads; and a warming-member housing portion provided on the mask
member, where the warming member for warming the eyeball parts is
housed.
3. An eye mask as claimed in claim 2, wherein the eye pads are
provided for correcting eyesight by pushing the eyeball parts to
correct the corneas.
4. An eye mask as claimed in claim 2, wherein slight-vibration
generators which give slight vibrations to the eyeball parts are
provided on the eye pads.
5. An eye mask, as claimed in claim 2, wherein means for blinking
illumination bodies is provided in each of the eyes pads.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to an eye mask having the
excellent effects of recovering from eye fatigue and recovering
ocular functions and also having functions for recovering from eye
sight disorder such as pseudo-myopia, moderate farsightedness or
moderate astigmatism, as well as hypnosis effect.
[0003] 2. Detailed Description of Prior Art
[0004] Various kinds of products for recovering from eye fatigue
are commercially available. For instance, a warming or cooling pad
in the shape of an eye patch is known in the art. The effects of
such products are temporary and wear off in a short time.
Furthermore, any conventional systems for warming eyeball parts by
electric or electronic warming devices have some disadvantages. For
instance, each of them has an expensive complicated structure and
is hard to handling.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide an eye mask
having excellent effects of: recovering from eye fatigue; restoring
ocular functions; providing hypnosis action; and so on, in addition
to being useful to restore eyesight and various kinds of ocular
diseases.
[0006] Another object of the present invention is to provide an eye
mask capable of substantially recovering or restoring from eye
fatigue or disordered ocular functions as a long-time treatment can
be performed through sleeping hours.
[0007] Still another object of the present invention is to provide
an eye mask with a simple structure, which can be mass-produced at
low cost and can be easy to use.
[0008] The present invention has been proposed in view of the above
objects. Accordingly, there is provided an eye mask comprising: a
mask member to be placed over eyeball parts; magnetic bodies
provided on portions of the mask member, where the portions
correspond to the eyeball parts, respectively; and warming members
for warming the eyeball parts, which are provided on the mask
member.
[0009] According to one of preferred embodiments of the present
invention, eye pads may be provided on the portions of the mask
member corresponding to the eyeball parts, where the magnetic
bodies are placed in the eye pads, respectively. In addition, a
warming-member housing portion may be provided on the mask member,
where the warming member for warming the eyeball parts is
housed.
[0010] The term "mask member" refers to one prepared from any
material having any shape as far as it can be placed over the
eyeball parts, such as one in the shape of goggles, glasses, eye
bandage, or ocular adhesive sheet. Also, the term "eyeball parts"
refer eyes, eyeballs, and their surroundings in the human body.
Also, but not particularly limited to, the magnetic body may be a
ferrite permanent magnet, a rare-earth permanent magnet, a
diboronic magnesium permanent magnet of a superconductive material,
or the like, which may be shaped like a ball, bar, plate, ring,
wire, particle, or the like to filled in the eye pad or the
like.
[0011] The magnetic force of the magnetic body may be appropriately
defined for attaining the object, for example it may be in the
range of 1 mT to 180 mT.
[0012] By the way, apparatuses for magnetic therapy have been well
known in the art. Each of them utilizes magnetic actions of
magnetic bodies for taking the stiffness out of each part of the
human body, such as shoulder, scruff, back, hip, foot, or for
relieving fatigue of muscle. On the other hand, the present
inventors have found that magnetic actions of magnetic bodies could
be effective to restore eye fatigue, ocular functions, various
kinds of ocular diseases, and so on. In particular, eye sight
disorder such as pseudo-myopia, moderate farsightedness, or
moderate astigmatism can be naturally restored or improved by
applying a predetermined strength of magnetic force for a long
time. In addition, the present inventors have also found that
magnetic actions of magnetic bodies could be effective to ocular
diseases such as keratopathy, cataract, glaucoma, paralysis of
ocular muscles, and retinopathy.
[0013] It be presumed that each structural component of the eye
part, such as crystalline lens, ciliary body (zonula cliaris) that
regulates swelling of the crystalline lens, or cornea, may be
effected by magnetic force in a cellular level to restore intrinsic
biological functions of each structural component. Simultaneously,
there additional effects of restoring the functions of nerve fibers
connecting to the ocular cells, causing increase in bloodstream by
expansion of peripheral capillaries around the eyeball part,
relaxing muscles and nerve fivers and relieving tension on each of
them, activating cells, and so on to recover eyeball parts from
fatigue and to enhance ocular functions.
[0014] In the mask member, as described above, the warming member
for warming the eyeball parts and their surroundings are provided
in addition to the magnetic bodies.
[0015] The warming member may be, for example, a powder-type
exothermic material which can be self-heated at a temperature of
about 38.degree. C. to 42.degree. C., or may be a small-sized
far-infrared ray heat-generating device, or may be of using
functions of heating or cooling by means of a potential difference
in module alloy. Warming the eyeball parts works synergistically
with the magnetic actions of the magnetic bodies to provide more
excellent advantages of the eye mask.
[0016] In other words, blocked meibomian glands in the lids of
eyes, which are a main cause of dry eyes, can be restored by
heating the eyeball parts, so that the stream of tears can be
recovered to allow normal secretion of tears.
[0017] In addition, the stresses on somatic cells, muscles, nerves,
bone marrows, and so on can be relaxed and the circulation of the
blood can be improved.
[0018] Furthermore, there are synergistic effects of the warming
and the magnetic force on cells and tissues in the body, so that
fatigue materials such as wastes, blood stasis, cholesterol, lactic
acid, CO.sub.2, and active oxygen, which are accumulated in the
eyeball parts, will be removed. Therefore, the stiffness or
hyperemia of muscles, nerves, bone marrows, and so on will be
removed.
[0019] In addition, blood turns into alkalinity from the acidity,
and the body metabolism becomes active, so that natural healing
power in the body can be recovered and improved, resulting in
normalized eyesight as a necessary consequence. Furthermore,
stresses on cells and tissues of the cornea and the surroundings
thereof can be relieved by warming the cornea with the warming
member, resulting that these cells and tissues become expanded and
softened.
[0020] Under such conditions, the softened cornea can be deformed
along the shape of the eye portion of the eye pad by pressing down
the eye pads on the eyeball parts from above the eye lids or on the
surroundings of the eye lids at a predetermined pressure for a
predetermined time period. As a result, especially, eye sight
disorder such as pseudo-myopia, moderate farsightedness, or
moderate astigmatism, or the like can be corrected so that eyesight
can be recovered.
[0021] The eye pad is constructed of an elastic body such as a
sponge or a soft plastic material in consideration of coming in
contact with the eyeball part for a long time. According to the
present invention, however, it is not limited to such materials.
The eye pad may be constructed of another material such as a
semi-hard plastic material, a cork, or a magnetic metal.
[0022] In addition, the eye portion of the eye pad is formed in a
concave shape. According to the present invention, however, it is
not limited to such a shape. Various kinds of eye portions may be
prepared in advance. For example, each of the eye portion may have
a different amount of curvature of the concave, or a convex or flat
shape, depending on the purpose of correction. If the purpose is
not for corrective treatment on eyesight, there is no need to
forcefully press the eye pad against the eyeball part. It may touch
on the eye lid lightly by loosing the constriction band of the eye
mask or the like.
[0023] The mask member may be equipped with means for generating
micro-vibrations, such as a vibrator. The micro-vibration means
providing the eyeball parts with micro-vibrations to stimulate
cells, tissues, nerves, blood flows, and so on in the eye parts and
the surroundings thereof. Therefore, the effects of magnetic force
and warming can be further increased, and also the cornea
correction can be further effective.
[0024] In the mask member, if required, means for blinking luminous
bodies may be provided. The luminous body may be a miniature bulb,
a light emitting diode, or the like. The luminous body can be
turned on and off at predetermined time intervals by adjusting the
light level, flashing speed, or the like of the luminous body, so
that hypnotic and ataractic effects can be induced.
[0025] Furthermore, the ocular functions or the like can be
improved by stimulating the eyeballs, retina nervous systems, and
so on by irradiating moderate light on the eyeball parts and the
surroundings thereof.
[0026] The luminous bodies may be colored with four primary colors
(red, blue, yellow, and green) or filtered with colored filters,
respectively. Therefore, the luminous bodies can be independently
rendered in different color schemes so as to be appropriately
adjusted to the goal of treatment or the like. Therefore, it
becomes possible to improve or enhance the recognition ability of
the eye and to treat or improve partial or total
color-blindness.
[0027] Furthermore, if required, coolants may be housed in the
warming-member housing portions of the mask member for cooling the
eyeball parts at predetermined temperatures, respectively.
Therefore, it becomes possible to ease the tensions of muscles of
the eye parts and the surroundings thereof. In addition, it also
becomes possible to restore hyperemia, to prevent a rush of blood
to the head, and to bring down the blood pressure.
[0028] The coolant may be a disposable cold sheet or pad, which is
commercially available, or an improved product thereof for the
present invention.
[0029] For recovering from a disorder such as insomnia or mental
stress, an aromatic material having a hypnotic or ataractic effect
may be provided in the mask member. Furthermore, earplugs for sound
isolation, a portable music playback device, a radio, or the like
may be optionally provided in the mask member.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0030] FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram of the eye mask in
accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the present
invention;
[0031] FIG. 2 is a front view of the eye mask shown in FIG. 1 in
accordance with the first preferred embodiment of the present
invention;
[0032] FIG. 3 is a cross sectional view of the eye mask along the
line a-a in FIG. 2 in accordance with the first preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
[0033] FIG. 4 is a cross sectional view of the eye mask along the
line b-b in FIG. 2 in accordance with the first preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
[0034] FIG. 5 is a front view of the warming member to be attached
on the eye mask of the present invention;
[0035] FIG. 6 is a cross sectional view of the warming member along
the line a-a in FIG. 5;
[0036] FIG. 7 is a front view of the eye mask in accordance with
the second preferred embodiment of the present invention;
[0037] FIG. 8 is a cross sectional view of the eye mask along the
line a-a in FIG. 7 in accordance with the second preferred
embodiment of the present invention;
[0038] FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view of the eye mask along the
line b-b in FIG. 7 in accordance with the second preferred
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0039] FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view of the eye mask along the
line c-c in FIG. 7 in accordance with the second preferred
embodiment of the present invention.
DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0040] Preferred embodiments of this invention will be described
below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0041] FIGS. 1 to 4 show an eye mask as a first preferred
embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, an eye
mask 10 comprises a mask member 11 and a constriction band 12. In
this embodiment, a front panel 14 of the mask member 11 is provided
as a shade plate.
[0042] An edge frame 16 is attached on the peripheral end of the
front plate 14. In addition, as shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, a cushion 15
is mounted on the backside edge of the front plate 14. In this
embodiment, the cushion 15 is constructed of a cloth bag filled
with cotton, sponge, or the like.
[0043] Furthermore, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, a back plate 18 is
fixed on the backside of the front plate 14 with a predetermined
space between these plates 14, 18 to form a housing portion 19 for
housing a warming member 21 described below. Furthermore, stopper
members 17, 17a are provided on the middle portions of the back
plate 18 and the front plate 14, respectively. One of the stopper
members 17, 17a has a protrusion while the other thereof has an
opening, so that that the stopper members 17 can be fixed together
by fitting the protrusion into the opening. Thus, the warming
member 21 can be secured in the space between the front and back
plates 14, 18 such that the warming member 21 can be prevented from
coming out of the space.
[0044] Furthermore, there are right and left eye pads 20, 20 on the
back place 18. Each of the eye pads 20 is constructed of a cloth
bag filled with an elastic body such as a sponge material with a
predetermined thickness. A plurality of magnetic bodies 13 is
imbedded in a part corresponding to each of the eyeball and its
surrounding areas of the inside of the eye pad 20. The eye pads 20
may be fixed on the back plate 18 by means of adhesive or the like.
Alternatively, the eye pads 20 may be fixed on the back plate 18
using adjustable double-faced tape or hook-and-loop fasteners so
that they can be fixed at appropriate positions for the treatment
or correction to be performed on user's eyeball parts and the
surroundings thereof.
[0045] An eye portion 20a of each of the eye pads 20 has a concave
shape. In other words, it is gradually curved like the inner
surface of a sphere. The curvature and shape of the eye portion 20a
can be changed depending on the purpose of corrective treatment of
poor eyesight.
[0046] As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the warming member 21 is shaped
like a pair of eyeglasses and is constructed of exothermic bodies
23 enclosed in the right and left side of a heat-stable package
film 22 placed in the space between the front plate 14 and the back
plate 18. The package film 22 is sealed and the inner opposite
faces are kept in absolute contact with one another except the
portions where the exothermic bodies 23 are enclosed.
[0047] Each of the exothermic body 23 comprises iron power,
activated carbon, wood flour, salt, water, baculite, and so on. The
exothermic body 23 can be self-heated at a predetermined
temperature as a result of oxidation when these components are
mixed by kneading with hands through the package film 22.
[0048] The warming member 21 generates heat at a temperature of
about 40.degree. C. to 70.degree. C. and is able to warm eyeball
parts and surroundings thereof through eye pads 20. If the
treatment requires only magnetic bodies 13 (i.e., there is no need
to warm the eyeball parts), the warming member 21 may be removed
from the housing portion 19.
[0049] When the above eye mask 10 is used, the warming member 21 is
housed in the housing portion 19 and the stopper members 17, 17a
are then mated together, followed by placing the mask member 11
over eyeball parts of the individual so as to place both eye pads
20 on the eyeball parts while holding the mask member 11 on the
head by an appropriate pressure from the constriction band 12.
[0050] Therefore, the eye portions 20a of the respective eye pads
20 appropriately apply pressures on the eyeball parts, especially
on corneas, respectively. In addition, the eyeball parts and
surroundings thereof can be magnetically effected by the magnetic
bodies 13 in the eye portions 20a, respectively. Simultaneously,
the eyeball parts and surroundings thereof can be warmed with the
warming member 21.
[0051] Referring now to FIGS. 7 to 10, there is shown another eye
mask as a second preferred embodiment of the present invention. The
eye mask of the present embodiment is constructed just as in the
case with the first preferred embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 4
except of a micro-vibrating device and a light-blinking device.
[0052] In this embodiment, a vibrator (i.e., a micro-vibrating
device) 30 is additionally provided in the middle of each eye pad
20 as and a plurality of illumination bodies 31 is provided as a
light-blinking device around the vibrator 30. In this embodiment,
furthermore, each illumination body 31 is a miniature bulb.
[0053] Moreover, a controller box 32 is arranged on the middle of
the front plate 14. The controller box 32 has an upper end portion
on which an electric switch 34 is provided and a front portion on
which an illumination-control dial 35 for increasing or decreasing
the light levels of illumination bodies 31, a flash-control dial
35a for controlling a blinking speed of the illumination, a
vibrator-control dial 36 for controlling the intensity of
vibration, an illumination body timer 37, and a vibrator timer 38
are provided. In addition, as shown in FIG. 10, a battery 33 is
embedded in the controller box 32.
[0054] The eye mask 10 of the present embodiment as described above
is capable of providing micro-vibrations on the eyes from the
vibrators 30. In this case, an appropriate strong and an
appropriate time period of slight vibration can be controlled by
the vibrator-control dial 36 and the vibrator timer 38.
[0055] Simultaneously with or independently of vibrations created
by the vibrators 30, the illumination bodies 31 can illuminate the
eyeball parts as a result of selecting predetermined light levels,
blinking-speeds, and time periods. These parameters can be
appropriately adjusted by the illumination-control dial 35, the
flash-speed control dial 35a, and the illumination body timer 37,
respectively.
[0056] Furthermore, if required, an aroma-emitting member (not
shown) having hypnosis and ataractic effects may be arranged on a
nose portion of the mask member 11, which can be placed near the
nostrils. The aroma-emitting member may be a designated container
(e.g., a small portable body warmer) that contains a aroma material
that emits pleasant characteristic odor, as of a plant such as moxa
to be used for the so-called moxa treatment. In this case, moxa may
be burned in the container to produce smoke to be inhaled.
Alternatively, there is another method for generating an aroma of
moxa. That is, the aroma of moxa may be provided as a volatile
liquid (aroma liquid) previously filled in another container,
followed by pouring an appropriate amount of the aroma liquid into
the aroma-emitting container being placed near the nozzle portion
of the mask member 11. Therefore, an aroma of the moxa can be
inhaled into the nostrils as the aroma liquid in the container can
be volatized.
[0057] In the above housing portion 19, a portable coolant such as
a cooling pad known in the art may be housed instead of the warming
member 21 if required to cool the eyes or their surroundings.
Furthermore, a small speaker or an ear phone may be provided near
each of the ear portions of the mask member 11. The small speaker
or the like may connected to a portable music playback system, a
portable radio, or the like to provide various kinds of the
so-called healing music or the like for the purpose of hypnosis or
of healing sleeplessness.
[0058] For enhancing the hypnosis effect, cooling the head is
effective. Thus, a coolant may be attached on a hair band or a cap
to keep the head cool in combination with use of the mask member
11. The coolant to be used in the present embodiment may be any of
coolants well-known in the art. Preferably, the coolant may be one
which can be commercially-available and made of a specific
high-polymer crystalline material that exert an excellent cooling
effect when the coolant absorbs water. In this case, such a cooling
effect can be kept for an extended time (e.g., over 30 hours). In
other words, such a coolant has a cooling action using the
application of heat of evaporation, so that a natural cooling
effect can be obtained. Thus, there is no possibility of cooling
the eyes too much.
[0059] The embodiment described above has been provided as one of
representative examples of the present invention. Therefore, the
present invention is not limited to the eye mask of the above
embodiment. For instance, the mask member 11 may be constructed as
a bag sheet in which an exothermic body is tightly enclosed in
addition to embed magnetic bodies in the eye portions of the mask
member 11. Furthermore, the vibrator 30, the illumination body
bulbs 31, the warm member 21, and so on shown in the figures are
provided for conveniently describing the present invention.
Therefore, such a configuration of the eye mask can be changed
within the scope of the present invention.
* * * * *