Therapeutic Pillow

Abstract

This pillow is a flat substantially rectangular block of material that is more resilient on its upper top layer and is less resilient on its lowermost layer. It is substantially rectangular overall, but has a cutout in at least one of the longer rectangular sides, although this cutout may be repeated in the opposite rectangular side. The cutout is substantially circular, more or less, and is not greater than a semi-circle, although it may be somewhat less than a semi-circle, the cutout serving to receive the sleeper's shoulder with the attached arm extendable beyond the pillow and not subject to any pressure from the pillow, being entirely free thereof, and, of course, free of any pressure from the sleeper's head. The thickness of the pillow is such that the sleeper's head is supported in a horizontal position, with the neck and windpipe free of any bends. As a result, breathing is freer than with a conventional pillow, where the arm is often extended under the pillow attempting to hold the head horizontal, in which it often fails, but such does succeed in restricting the blood flow in the arm, leading to a condition strongly resembling bursitis in pain and restriction of arm movement, a painful condition not easily remedied.

Description

The pillow is made of a flat pillow-soft upper surface supported on a base of firm but resilient material, the entire material being such as foam rubber, polyfoam, polyurethane, etc., that may be made in different degrees of firmness or of resiliency. With this therapeutic pillow, the head is supported horizontally, in the same relation to the body that it is when standing up, so that the mouth remains in the normal closed condition, eliminating the slack-jaw situation common in snoring, which is also true should the sleeper turn on his back, for the jaw then likewise will not open and snoring is eliminated or lessened.

The pillow is made of two layers of material, a firmer layer on the bottom and a more resilient layer on the top where the sleeper's head is supported in a generally horizontal position.

This pillow may be in two forms, one form with a single cutout at about the middle of one long side of the block, and in a second form, having a pair of cutouts, one along each long side. The single cutout form may be a "his" pillow, the double cutout form may be a "hers" pillow, with her shoulder extending into one cutout and allowing her hairdo to extend down somewhat into the other cutout without disturbing her hairdo or permanent. Also, with two cutouts, one may be of a slightly different size thus providing selectivity in size comfortable to the user.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of this invention to provide a therapeutic pillow which will maintain the head and the neck of the sleeper in a horizontal position.

A further object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow which will promote the health of the user which will support the head of the sleeper in a straight position from his body, and which places his supporting shoulder directly on the mattress with the arm free of any pressure from the weight of the head or neck, leaving the arm free of any blood constricting pressure.

A further object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow wherein the head of the sleeper is supported on a flat pillow-soft surface in a straight line from his body, with his shoulder supported directly on the mattress through a cutout in the edge of the pillow, with the arm of the supporting shoulder free of blood constricting pressure from his head.

Yet a further object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow made of a resilient flat body having greater resiliency in its upper layer than in its lower layer, with a cutout whereby the shoulder does not rest on the pillow but instead rests directly on the mattress with the arm free of any blood constricting pressure.

Still a further object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow made of a resilient material in the form of a flat block, its upper horizontal layer being of greater resilience than its lower layer, and with its overall height being such that the head of the sleeper remains in a horizontal position when supported thereon, the shoulder of the sleeper resting through a cutout in the block directly on the mattress, the arm thereof being entirely free of the weight of the head of the sleeper.

Another object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow that may have either one cutout on a single long side, or two cutouts, one on each long side, with one cutout of a different size from the other cutout. With two cutouts, one size may fit the shoulder better than the other.

A further object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow having a cutout on one long side to receive the shoulder of the sleeper, with the face supported on the pillow-soft surface, and the long hair or hairdo of the sleeper hanging down into the other cutout without being disarranged.

A further object of this therapeutic pillow is to provide, in addition, the advantageous features of the conventional Japanese pillow block, usually made of wood, which supports the neck and head with the hairdo extending therebehind, while in this invention, the face is supported on a pillow-soft surface with the head in horizontal position, the neck unbent, and the hairdo or permanent extending over the back of the pillow, into the second cutout, if present.

Yet another object of this invention is to provide a therapeutic pillow that is an improvement over those shown in U. S. Pats. Nos. 2,295,906; 2,940,088; 3,009,172; and 3,574,397.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Prior pillows for sleeping purposes normally support the head of the sleeper at an angle to the body, which causes constriction in breathing to overcome which the sleeper usually inserts his upper arm under the pillow to hold his head up. This, in turn, causes restriction of the circulation in the arm and its muscles, but such blood restriction does not discomfort the sleeper as quickly as would restriction of this breathing, and he falls asleep on his arm. On waking, however, the impeded blood circulation often causes pain in the muscles and ligaments in the upper arm, -- pain that is just as excruciating as it is with bursitis -- and is often confused with such condition. However, such pain is not readily relieved by injections, massages, heat, electrical impulses, but is relieved by extended use of this pillow.

Furthermore, such pain causes some sleepers to move their arms in their sleep to attempt to reduce the pain, with the result that the head is no longer horizontal, the neck is bent at an angle, the jaw becomes slack, and unpleasant snoring is often the result. If the sleeper twists and turns often enough trying to avoid this result, then his sleep is fitfull and not as restful. Other sleepers do not change their position so often, with the painful results of blood constriction in their arms and disturbing snoring, annoying to their bed companion.

Furthermore, in the case of long hair, any elaborate hairdo or permanent is usually disarranged or ruined on the conventional pillow.

This invention overcomes all these undesirable features of the conventional pillow.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

With the above and related objects in view, this invention consists in the details of construction and combination of parts, as will be more fully understood from the following description, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of one form of the therapeutic pillow of this invention, with a cutout in one long edge only for the shoulder of the sleeper.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of another form of this therapeutic pillow, having two shoulder cutouts, one of them extending slightly deeper than the other, providing a degree of selectivity to the user according to his or her size, as well as for cosmetic purposes to preserve one's hairdo or permanent.

FIG. 3 is a front edge view of the therapeutic pillow block of either form.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

There is shown at 10 a substantially rectangular pillow 10 in the form of a block having parallel horizontal top 12 and bottom surfaces 14. This pillow block 10 is made of suitable material such as latex rubber, foam, polyurethane, etc., and has two layers of material of different resiliency, the upper layer being preferably three times the thickness of the lower layer 18, and the upper layer 16 is comparatively soft as compared to the lower and firmer layer 18. Obviously, the block 10 may be made of the same material throughout, but with the lower layer 18 firmer than the upper layer 16. Likewise it may be made of two suitable layers bonded or molded together, according to the convenience of the manufacturer. The height is such that the head remains horizontal when at rest on the pillow-soft top.

In addition to the two layers of different degrees of resiliency as just described, the invention includes the feature of the pillow having at least one cutout 20 along one front edge 22, and, in a second form, may have an additional cutout 24 along the opposite long edge 26.

The cutout 20 is the essence of this invention; it receives the shoulder of the sleeper lying on one side, the face resting and supported on the pillow-soft layer 16 with the head in a horizontal position in a straight line with the body of the sleeper, and the neck is also straight and unbent. The arm of the sleeper lies on the mattress, and is not inserted under the pillow as conventional to help support the head. Instead, it is free to move and it is not subject to constriction of the circulation of the blood in the upper arm and its muscles, thus remains free of possible pain, as often exists with a conventional pillow. The pillow 10 may be made in different heights to fit different size individuals, the selected height size being such that the head of the user is supported in a horizontal position.

The cutout 20 should be comfortable, and of a shape preferably not greater than a semi-circle so that the shoulder may enter it freely. Obviously, the size and shape of the cutout 20 may vary somewhat, and in the form shown in FIG. 2, a second cutout 24 is provided in the opposite long edge 26 of a size somewhat different from that of the cutout 20. This second cutout 24 provides selectivity as to which may fit the shoulder better.

Furthermore, this second cutout may serve for cosmetic purposes. A hairdo or permanent may depend into this second cutout 24 while the face is supported on the pillow area 28 between the cutouts 20 and 24, just as in the first form, the face is supported on the pillow area 30 behind the single cutout 20. By selecting a single cutout pillow of suitable width, the long hair, hairdo or permanent may also hang over the back edge 26 without being disturbed or disarranged, thus providing the cosmetic advantages of the conventional Japanese wood pillow block without the uncomfortable disadvantages of the Japanese solid wood pillow. In use, the pillow 20, in either form, would be enclosed in a pillow case which may be shaped to conform to the shape of the pillow, the pillow being easily insertable in the pillow case because it is resilient enough, even in the firm layer 18, to compress and enter the pillow case to the desired position. Another cosmetic benefit is that keeping the face flat on the horizontal surface of this pillow prevents distortion of the facial skin and therefore helps prevent wrinkles such as the conventional sloping pillow is apt to cause.

ABSTRACT OF THE DRAWING

In the drawing, like numbers refer to like parts, and for purposes of explication, marshalled below are the numbered parts of the improved therapeutic pillow:

10 pillow block

12 top surface of 10

14 bottom surface of 10

16 upper soft layer

18 lower firm layer

20 cutout in front edge 22

22 front edge

24 cutout in back edge 26

26 back edge

28 face supporting surface between cutouts 20 and 24

30 face supporting surface behind single cutout 20.

Although this invention has been described in considerable detail, such description is intended as being illustrative rather than limiting, since the invention may be variously embodied, and the scope of the invention is to be determined as claimed.

Claims

I claim:

1. A therapeutic pillow (10) for comfortably supporting the head and neck of the user in bed in a substantially horizontal position while lying on one's side leaving the lower arm free of constriction comprising a substantially flat, one piece, solid rectangular body of resilient material, said material having a cutout (20) to receive one shoulder of the user while leaving the attached arm thereof free from constriction by the weight of the head of the user, said cutout (20) extending vertically through one long edge (24) of the pillow (10) midway of and spaced from its short end edges, said cutout (20) having a contour substantially approaching but not greater than a semi-circle, said one piece solid body being comprised of two horizontal uniform layers (16 and 18) integrally united, the upper layer (16) being of substantially greater height and resiliency and lesser uniform density than the lower layer (18), the height of the upper more resilient layer (16) being approximately three times that of the lower, firmer layer (18).

2. The pillow of claim 1, said material being more resilient polyurethane in the upper layer (16), and less resilient polyurethane in the lower layer (18).