Pillow case with dual fastening means

Abstract

A pillow case for a bed pillow comprises a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprising a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides, the short sides disposed between the long sides, the sides forming a rectangular layer. The long sides of each layer comprise releasable fastening means. The first layer coupled to the second layer along one of the short sides of each layer forming a seam. The layers folded about the seam, with the releasable fastening means coupling the long sides of the first layer to the long sides of the second layer.

Description

RELATED U.S. APPLICATION DATA

[0001] Not applicable.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

[0002] This invention relates generally to pillow cases, and more specifically, this invention relates to a pillow case having dual releasable fastening means along the long sides of a pillow case.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0003] There are numerous devices that have been developed to allow a user to more easily stuff a bed pillow into a convention or standard pillow case, particularly in the area of improved pillow cases. In particular, U.S. Pat. No. 5,157,799 (to Aird) discloses a zippered pillowcase. The pillowcase comprises two rectangular panels (16 and 18) having a shared seam along a long side (24), and has an open end at side (22), and having zipper teeth formed along the remaining sides (as illustrated in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, respectively). The Aird reference describes, depicts and claims a pillowcase that has an accessible interior by unfolding the panels (16, 18) in a vertical direction (as drawn) and with a zipper system used for enclosing three sides (two long sides and one short side) of the pillow case.

[0004] The present invention is an improvement over Aird in providing a pillow case comprising layers that unfold in a horizontal direction and require the user to mutually engage only two sides of the pillow case to secure a pillow therein. At present, the applicant is unaware of any invention that is identical to that described herein, and the present application describing a new and improved pillow case fulfills a need in the art that has been felt, namely, in providing a pillow case that is easily engaged and disengaged for inserting and/or removing a bed pillow therein.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] In one embodiment disclosed herein, a pillow case comprises a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprising four sides forming an orthogonal perimeter of each one of the layers. Two parallel and mutually opposed sides of each layer comprise releasable fastening means. The first layer is coupled to the second layer along one of the sides of each layer forming a seam. The releasable fastening means couples the two sides of the first layer to the two sides of the second layer.

[0006] In one embodiment disclosed herein, a pillow case for a pillow case for a bed pillow, and/or a pillow case as one component of a bedding set (including a fitted sheet, a flat sheet and at least one pillow case) comprises a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprising a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides, the short sides disposed between the long sides, the sides forming a rectangular layer. The long sides of each layer comprise releasable fastening means. The first layer coupled to the second layer along one of the short sides of each layer forming a seam. The layers folded about the seam, with the releasable fastening means coupling the long sides of the first layer to the long sides of the second layer.

[0007] The releasable fastening means may comprise a variety of apparatuses or devices, or combinations thereof, including engagable and mateable zipper teeth and corresponding zipper slides, hook and loop material, buttons and slits, and/or snap buttons and button posts, wherein each is arranged or oriented along the margins of the long sides of the respective layers and engaged or mated and then disengaged as necessary. The slits and buttons posts may be characterized as receiving means for receiving and retaining the buttons (for the slits) and the snap buttons (for the button posts), and thereby mutually engaging the sides of the pillow case.

[0008] As discussed above, the method and device of the present invention overcomes the disadvantages inherent in prior art methods and devices. In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangement of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting.

[0009] Accordingly, those skilled in the art will appreciate that the conception upon which this invention is based may readily be utilized as a basis for the design of other structures, methods, and systems for carrying out the several purposes of the present invention. It is important, therefore, that the claims be regarded as including such equivalent constructions insofar as they do not depart from the spirit of the present invention.

[0010] Furthermore, the purpose of the foregoing Abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially including the practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection, the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application. The Abstract is neither intended to define the invention of the application, nor is it intended to be limiting to the scope of the invention in any way. It is intended that the application is defined by the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0011] Additional utility and features of the invention will become more fully apparent to those skilled in the art by reference to the following drawings, which illustrate the primary features of the preferred embodiment and numerous alternative embodiments.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a top view of the pillow case;

[0013] FIG. 2 is a top view of the pillow case of FIG. 1, wherein the first layer is moved to reveal the second layer;

[0014] FIG. 3 is a top view of the pillow case of FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, wherein the first layer and the second layer are separated;

[0015] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of FIG. 3 with a pillow placed therein;

[0016] FIG. 5 is a partial top view of an alternative embodiment to FIG. 1 through FIG. 4, wherein releasable fastening means comprises hook and loop material;

[0017] FIG. 6 is a partial top view of an alternative embodiment to FIG. 1 through FIG. 5, wherein releasable fastening means comprises buttons and slits; and

[0018] FIG. 7 is a partial top view of an alternative embodiment to FIG. 1 through FIG. 6, wherein releasable fastening means comprises hook and loop material.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

[0019] The detailed description below is for preferred embodiments and is intended to explain the current invention. It is to be understood that a variety of other arrangements are also possible without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

[0020] Referring now to FIG. 1 through FIG. 7, a pillow case 10 for a decorative pillow, a bed pillow, or as included in a bedding set (such as a fitted sheet, flat sheet and at least one pillow case) is depicted in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, the pillow case 10 comprising a sheet of fabric 12 folded to form congruent rectangular fabric layers 14 and 16. The perimeter of each one of the layers 14 and 16 comprises long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162 and short sides 144, 146 and 164, 166, respectively, wherein all sides define the external margins for the respective layers 14 and 16. Thus, the long sides 140 and 142 of layer 14 and the long sides 160 and 162 of layer 16 form mutually opposing and parallel sides of substantially similar length. Similarly, the short sides 144 and 146 of layer 14 and the short sides 164 and 166 of layer 16 form mutually opposing parallel sides of substantially similar length, with the short sides 144, 146 and 164, 166 having shorter lengths than the long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162. The long sides 140 and 160, and 142 and 162, respectively, may be described as being mutually adjacent one another. Short sides 146 and 166 are mutually adjacent. Short sides 144 and 164 are mutually adjacent when the layers 14 and 16 are mutually engaged for use. The long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162 comprise releasable fastening means 18 through which the long sides of each respective layer 14 and 16 are mutually coupled to form the pocket for housing the bed pillow. Thereafter, the releasable fastening means 18 may be utilized for mutually disengaging the long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162.

[0021] The layers 14 and 16 are mutually coupled along short sides 146 and 166 so as to form a seam 20. The seam 20 comprising short sides 146 and 166 form a closed end 22 of the pillow case 10. The short sides 144 and 164 are not mutually coupled, and instead, are left uncoupled so as to form an opened end 24 as is common for pillow cases for bed pillows. Each short side 144 and 164 may have a marginal hem formed from separate lines of stitching. The layers 14 and 16 are folded about seam 20 so that layers 14 and 16 are mutually adjacent and substantially congruent. Means 18 are utilized for mutually coupling the long sides 140, 160 and long sides 142, 162, respectively. Thus, three of the four sides of the pillow case 10 are mutually coupled and define the opened end 24.

[0022] In one embodiment, the releasable fastening means 18 comprises interleavable zipper teeth 180 and 182 formed along the margins of long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162, respectively. The teeth 180 and 182 are mutually engagable via a zipper slide 184 with respect to mutually coupling sides 140 and 160 and mutually coupling sides 142 and 162, respectively. Similarly, the teeth 180 and 182 are mutually disengagable via the zipper slide 184 with respect to mutually decoupling sides 140 and 160 and mutually decoupling sides 142 and 162, respectively.

[0023] In another embodiment, the releasable fastening means 18 comprises hook 186 and loop 188 material may be oriented along the margins of long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162, respectively. The hook 186 and loop 188 material are mutually engagable with respect to mutually coupling sides 140 and 160 and mutually coupling sides 142 and 162. It is envisioned that the hook 186 material may be oriented along the margins of sides 140 and 142 and the loop 188 material may be oriented along the margins of sides 160 and 162. Similarly, the reverse orientation is envisioned, wherein the hook 186 material may be oriented along the margins of sides 160 and 162 and the loop 188 material may be oriented along the margins of sides 140 and 142. It is also envisioned that the hook 186 and loop 188 material may be mixed in arrangement, so long as portions of the hook 186 material are matable and engagable with complementary loop 188 material.

[0024] It another embodiment, the releasable fastening means 18 comprises buttons 190 and slits 192 in the fabric for receiving and retaining the buttons 190. The buttons 190 and slits 192 may be oriented along the margins of long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162, respectively, as described above with regard to the teeth 180, 182 and the hook 186 and loop 188 material. The buttons 190 may be oriented along the margins of sides 140, 142, or conversely, along the margins of sides 160, 162, or alternatively, along the margins of sides 140 and 162 or sides 142 and 160. Similarly, the slits 192 may be oriented along the margins of sides 160, 162, or conversely, along the margins of sides 140, 142, or alternatively, along the margins of sides 142 and 160 or sides 140 and 162. It is envisioned that the slits 192 are configured and arranged in a manner that the buttons 190 and the slits 192 are substantially aligned so that each respective button 190 is received and retained by each respective slit 192 corresponding therewith.

[0025] In another embodiment, the releasable fastening means 18 comprises snap buttons 194 and button posts 196 for receiving and retaining the snap buttons 194 therein. The snap buttons 194 and button posts 196 may be oriented along the margins of long sides 140, 142 and 160, 162, respectively, as described above with regard to the teeth 180, 182, the hook 186 and loop 188 material and the buttons 190 and slits 192, respectively. The snap buttons 194 may be oriented along the margins of sides 140, 142, or conversely, along the margins of sides 160, 162, or alternatively, along the margins of sides 140 and 162 or sides 142 and 160. Similarly, the button posts 196 may be oriented along the margins of sides 160, 162, or conversely, along the margins of sides 140,.142, or alternatively, along the margins of sides 142 and 160 or sides 140 and 162. It is envisioned that the button posts 196 are configured and arranged in a manner that the snap buttons 194 and the button posts 196 are substantially aligned so that each respective button 194 is received and retained by each respective button post 196 corresponding therewith.

[0026] It is envisioned that the pillow case 10 may be provided in a variety of size and colors, and may include various indicia. For instance, the pillow case 10 may be provided in standard and king size dimensions to accommodate the various sizes of pillow commercially provided. It is envisioned that the pillow case 10 is easily incorporated into a standard set of bed sheets offered commercially so that the pillow case 10 replaces the conventional or standard pillow cases offered in bed sheet sets, thus a variety of colors and/or patterns may be utilized with the pillow case 10. It is also envisioned that the pillow case 10 may be utilized in bed sheet sets offering indicia themes, such as licensed trademark characters or indicia, including cartoon characters, sci-fi characters, sports and other similar themes. It is also envisioned that the releasable fastening means 18 and the various embodiments that the means 18 may assume may be fabricated from a variety of materials, including metal and plastic. Plastic may be preferred as a substitute for metal so that the user will not have to be concerned with metal elements rusting or corroding over time.

[0027] To use the pillow case 10 as described, and as but one example, a user will utilize the releasable fastening means 18 to release the layers 14 and 16 from mutually coupling and engagement. Therefore, where means 18 comprises zipper teeth 180 and 182 and zipper slides 184, the user will grasp one zipper slide 184 and mutually disengage and decouple the teeth 180 and 182 about long sides 140 and 160 and then grasp the other zipper slide 184 and mutually disengage and decouple the teeth 180 and 182 about long sides 142 and 162, respectively. Where means 18 comprises hook 186 and loop 188 material, the user will pull the layers 14 and 16 apart from one another so that the hook 186 and loop 188 material are mutually disengaged and decoupled about long sides 140 and 160 and long sides 142 and 162, respectively. Where means 18 comprises buttons 190 and slits 192, the user will disengage and decouple each respective button 190 from each slit 192 retaining each button 190 about long sides 140 and 160 and long sides 142 and 162, respectively. Where means 18 comprises button snaps 194 and button posts 196, the user will disengage and decouple each respective snap button 194 from each button post 196 retaining each button snap 194 about long sides 140 and 160 and long sides 142 and 162, respectively.

[0028] Once the long sides 140 and 160 and long sides 142 and 162 are mutually disengaged, decoupled and released, the layers 14 and 16 are separated from one another along a substantially flat surface. A pillow 100 is placed therein, either engaging the layer 14 or the layer 16 initially. The initially unengaged layer 14 or 16 is then folded onto the pillow 100 about seam 20 so that the layers 14 and 16 envelope the pillow 100 therein. The user will then perform the reverse operation(s) to the operations described above with regard to disengaging and decoupling the long sides of each layer 14 and 16. Therefore, the user will perform the operation(s) to mutually couple and engage the long sides 140 and 160 and long sides 142 and 162 to form the pillow case 10.

[0029] The use of a pillowcase according to the embodiments described herein avoids the tugging and pulling which is necessary to move two flexible materials past each other as is necessary in order to insert a bed pillow into a conventional or standard pillow case.

[0030] While the invention has been described by way of example and in terms of several embodiments, it is to be understood that the present invention is not limited in scope to the embodiments disclosed herein. To the contrary, it is intended to cover various modifications and similar arrangements and procedures, and the scope of the appended claims should be accorded the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and similar arrangements and procedures.

Claims

1. A pillow case comprising: a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprises four sides forming an orthogonal perimeter of each one of the layers; two parallel and mutually opposed sides of each layer comprises releasable fastening means; the first layer coupled to the second layer along one of the sides of each layer forming a seam; the releasable fastening means couples the two sides of the first layer to the two sides of the second layer.

2. The pillow case of claim 1, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a first side of the first layer and on a corresponding first side of the second layer; and interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a second side of the first layer and on a corresponding second side of the second layer.

3. The pillow case of claim 1, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: hook material arranged along two of the sides of one of the layers; loop material arranged along two of the sides of the remaining layer; and the hook material and loop material aligned for mutual engagement.

4. The pillow case of claim 1, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: a plurality of buttons arranged along two of the sides of one of the layers; a plurality of receiving means arranged along two of the sides of the remaining layer; and the buttons and the receiving means aligned for mutual engagement.

5. The pillow case of claim 4, wherein receiving means is a member selected from the group consisting of slits and button posts.

6. A pillow case for a bed pillow comprising: a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprising a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides, the short sides disposed between the long sides, the sides forming a rectangular layer; the long sides of each layer comprising releasable fastening means; the first layer coupled to the second layer along one of the short sides of each layer forming a seam; the layers folded about the seam, the releasable fastening means coupling the long sides of the first layer to the long sides of the second layer.

7. The pillow case of claim 6, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a first long side of the first layer and on a corresponding first long side of the second layer; and interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a second long side of the first layer and on a corresponding second long side of the second layer.

8. The pillow case of claim 7, wherein the teeth along the long sides of the first layer are mutually engagable with the teeth along the long sides of the second layer.

9. The pillow case of claim 6, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: hook material arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; loop material arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the hook material and loop material aligned for mutual engagement.

10. The pillow case of claim 6, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: a plurality of buttons arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; a plurality of slits arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the buttons and the slits aligned for mutual engagement.

11. The pillow case of claim 6, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: a plurality of snap buttons arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; a plurality of button posts arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the snap buttons and the button posts aligned for mutual engagement.

12. The pillow case of claim 6, wherein each one of the first layer and the second layer comprises a short side unengaged to the mutually adjacent short side, the short sides forming an opened end of the pillow case.

13. In a bedding set comprising a fitted sheet, a flat sheet and at least one pillow case for a bed pillow, the improvement wherein the at least one pillow case comprises: a first layer and a second layer, each one of the layers comprising a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides, the short sides disposed between the long sides, the sides defining a rectangular perimeter about each one of the layers; the long sides of each layer comprising releasable fastening means; the first layer coupled to the second layer along one of the short sides of each layer forming a seam; the layers folded about the seam, the releasable fastening means coupling the long sides of the first layer to the long sides of the second layer.

14. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a first long side of the first layer and on a corresponding first long side of the second layer; and interleavable zipper teeth and a zipper slide formed on a second long side of the first layer and on a corresponding second long side of the second layer.

15. The at least one pillow case of claim 14, wherein the teeth along the long sides of the first layer are mutually engagable with the teeth along the long sides of the second layer.

16. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: hook material arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; loop material arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the hook material and loop material aligned for mutual engagement.

17. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: a plurality of buttons arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; a plurality of slits arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the buttons and the slits aligned for mutual engagement.

18. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein the releasable fastening means comprises: a plurality of snap buttons arranged along the long sides of one of the layers; a plurality of button posts arranged along the long sides of the remaining layer; and the snap buttons and the button posts aligned for mutual engagement.

19. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein each one of the first layer and the second layer comprises a short side unengaged to the mutually adjacent short side, the short sides forming an opened end of the pillow case.

20. The at least one pillow case of claim 13, wherein the seam comprises a line of stitching.