Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
This application relates to an improved head and neck
rest or pillow which provides therapeutic benefits.
B~C~GROU~D OF T~ I~VE~TIO~
Various types of head and neck rests and supports have
been used since earliest times to support a person's head and
neck while sleeping. A wide variety of configurations oE such
supports have been devised, and an equally wide choice of
materials have been utilized in their construction. These have
varied from wooden supports which may or may not have been padded
in various ways and contoured to fit the head and neck of a
resting person to classic feather pillows. The latter are
generally not shaped as such but are intended to adapt to the
pressure points of the sleeper to provide support where
necessary.
To date none of the support methods and devices have
been entirely successfull. Those of wood and similar materials
have generally been too unyielding to permit sufficient comfort
or to be adaptable in size and shape to even relatively small
differences in the anatomy of different people.
The feather pillows do not provide proper support in
the areas where it is particularly necessary. For example~ such
pillows provide very little support under the neck and rather
tend to either support only the head or support the head and neck
but in a position of curvature of the upper part of the spine.
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More recently various types of foams have been utilized
to construct pillows and these offer a very attractive advantage
of being able to be shaped and to hold their shape reasonably
well, while at the same time being sufficiently resilient. Even
with the advent of foams, pillows have generally been constructed
in the well known and long utilized conventional "pillow shape".
This is no doubt due to the fact that the normal pillow shape
does result in some degree of comfort over a variety of different
positions of the head and neck.
One of the key concerns in the manufacture of a really
effective pillow arises from anatomical considerations. It can
be deduced that the si~e and shape of support necessary to
conform with the anatomy of a person lying on his or her back is
substantially different from that required where the person is
lying on one or other of his or her sides. In the former case
the head ought to have very little thickness of support, and the
back of the neck ought to have somewhat but not a great deal
more. At the same time, the interposing o~ the shoulder when a
person is sleeping on one side results in the side of the head
and the neck being a rather greater distance abo~e the surface
upon which the person is lying. In that case, therefore, the
support ought to be somewhat thicXer.
Clearly, this factor must be addressed in providing an
adequate pillow or support.
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PRIOR ART
The only prior art of which applicant is aware is
Canadian Patent 524,694, wherein the inventor appears to
appreciate that different thicknesses of pillows are desirable
for different sleeping positions~ Othèrwise, the invention
described in that patent is not similar to that of the present
invention.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF T~ NTIO~
It has now been discovered that a wedge-shaped
configuration for a head rest wherein the thicker part of the
wedge shape is in the direction of a sleeper's body can meet the
dual height requirement for support as between the head and
neck. Furthermore, a pillow comprising two such wedge shapés
best meets the criteria of the requirement of different heights
for different body positions.
Accordingly, there is provided a pillow set comprising
a pillow case; first and second pillows within the case, each
pillow being of generally wedge shape and truncated toward the
thin edge of the wedge shape, the truncated edges of the pillows
being of substantially equal thickness, and the thick edge of the
first pillow being substantially greater than the thick edge of
the second pillow; wherein the pillows are juxtaposed in the case
such that the thin edges of both pillows lie along one side
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of the case and the thick edges oE both pillows lie along an
opposite side of the case; and wherein the thick edge of the
first pillow approximates the height of an individual's neck
above a surface on which the individual is lying on his or her
side and the thick edge of the second pillow approximates the
height of an individual's neck above a surface on which the
individual i5 lying on his or her back.
BRI~F D~SCRIPTIO~ OF THE DRAWINGS
In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the
invention:
FIGURE l is a perspective view of a pillow set
according to the invention;
FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the pillow set of
FIGURE 1 with the case removed;
FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of one pillow of a
pillow set according to the invention;
FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of a second pillow of a
set according to the invention;
FIGURE ~ illustrates one position in which the
invention is utilized; and
FIGURE 6 illustrates a second position in which the
invention is utilized.
While the invention will be described in conjunction
with illustrated embodiments, it will be understood that it is
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not intended to limit the ;.nvention to such embodiments. On the
; contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modif.ications
and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of
the invention as defined by the appended claims.
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D~T~ILED DESCRIPTION OF T~E PREFERRED EMBODIMFNTS
In the following description, similar features in the
drawings have been given similar reference numerals.
The pillow set 10 comprises the case 12 and, preferably
a pair of pillow inserts 14 and 16. The insert could comprise a
set of three pillows or an integral unit to replace the two or
three inserts. The relative advantages and disadvantages will be
discussed below.
Each of the pillow inserts 14 and 16 is substantially
wedge shaped, with the thin edge of the wedge being truncated as
at 18 and 20 respectively. The upper corners of the thick edges
22 and 24 of the wedges are preferably rounded of~ in smooth
curves as at 30 and 32 respectively.
While the truncated thin edges 18 and 20 of the two
inserts 14 and 16 are substantially the same thickness, one of
the inserts 16 is of substantially greater thickness at the thick
end than is the other.
The two inserts 14 and 16 are placed end to end in the
case 12 so that the thin edges 18 and 20 lie along one
longitudinal side of the case, and the thick edges 26 and 28 lie
along an opposite longitudinal side of the case.
While all dimensions of the inserts can be varied
somewhat to suit a range of cases, typically the thin edges of
the inserts 14, 16 will be about one inch in thickness; and the
thick edges 26 and 28 will be respectively about three inches and
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five inches in thickness. The length of the pillow i,5 not of
great concern, apart from a preferred situation where the pair of
inserts will fit into the standard pillow case. As well, the
distance between the thick and thin edges is less critical than
the heights, but a ~ypical distance would be fifteen inches.
As indicated above, one could utilize three inserts
- comprising two of the thicker ones and the central thinner one or
one could utilize an integral unit incorporating either the two
insert or three insert case. The advantage of ~he two insert
case is that it can readily be fitted into a standard pillow case
and can be rearranged with the thicker insert on which ever side
is desired of the thinner insert. This positioning is determined
by the fact that most people are known to have a preferred side
for sleeping. Thus, the thinner insert would be in a "central'!
position in which a sleeper is lying on his or her back, and the
thicker insert would be placed to one side of the thinner one,
the side dictated by the direction in which the person would roll
to move into the position of his or her preferred side.
Clearly, with the three insert case, a thicker insert
would be located to aach side of the thinner one.
The resting position utilizing the pillow set of the
present case is illustrated in FIGURES 5 and 6, where it can be
seen that the shapes and positions of the inserts conform to
natural anatomical lines.
Thus it is apparent that there has been provided in
accordance with the invention a head and neck rest or pillow
which provides therapeutic benefits that fully satisfies the
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objects, aims and advantages set forth above. While the
invention has been desribed in conjunction with specific
embodiments thereof, it it evident that many alternat.ives,
modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in
the art in light of the foregoing description. Accordingly~ it
is intended to embrace all such alternàtives, modifications and
variations as fall within the spirit and broad scope of the
invention.
