Pillow with height adjustment

Abstract

A pillow of adjustable height comprising of two inflatable airbags that when deflated are approximately rectangular in shape with shorter sides S of dimensions between 20cm and 40cm and longer sides L of dimensions between 30cm and 55cm. The two airbags have similar dimensions and are fixed with their longer sides parallel to each other. Internally each airbag has baffles 13 that are parallel to the shorter sides and within 0.3L of at least one of the shorter sides. At a distance of 0.3L or greater from both shorter sides there are no baffles such that when fully inflated the middle part is at least 1.5 times the height of the baffle nearest the shorter side. The pillow may have one corner 16 from each airbag of greater volume, these corners being adjacent to one another. The pillow may comprise a top portion 1 which may be made of foam, latex or other compressible material.

Description

The present invention relates to a pillow providing improved support for a user when sleeping in different positions. Background Incorrect support for the head and neck when sleeping can cause health problems. Sleeping with the neck in an incorrect position can strain muscles and ligaments and so cause neck pain or stiffness. Between 40% and 70% of the world's population suffer from neck pain at some point in their lifetime. Poor sleeping posture can prolong, worsen or in some cases cause this ailment. One specific medical condition associated with improper neck positioning during sleep is called torticollis, also known as wry neck. Torticollis is a painful condition in which the neck muscles contract involuntarily, causing the head to twist or turn to one side. It can be caused by sleeping in an awkward position, among other factors. When a person rests or sleeps in a prone position they may use one or more pillows under their head. It is often recommended that people who sleep on their side should use a pillow of greater height than people who sleep in a supine position. People change position when they are asleep and so may spend some time supine and some time on their side. A pillow which is the correct height for a person who is supine may not be the correct height for a person who is sleeping on their side. If the pillow is the incorrect height for the user they may be uncomfortable or experience pain. It is therefore advantageous to be able to provide a pillow which provides the correct height and therefore avoids or ameliorates these issues. Pillows with adjustable height are commercially available. These pillows are often adjustable by means of removing or adding layers of foam or removing or adding loose pieces of foam or other packing material in order to change the height or firmness of the pillow. Height adjustable airbag pillows have been proposed, such as CN108577410A (Guoping and Min) or KR101133417B1 (Song In Ho). However the user cannot alter the height up and down whilst resting on these pillows. Pillows which do attempt to automatically change height in response to the user' sleeping position have been suggested. Some use pressure sensors and air pumps. Inventions CN214510597 (Changlong), CN208709201U (Guangshun) and CN113229692A (Yu et al) are of this type. Potential disadvantages include noisy operation, requirements for an electrical power source and complexity. Automatically adjustable pillows which use the pressure of the user's head or neck to displace air or other fluid to alter the height of the pillow are suggested in CN107374230A (Yinan), WO2011026260A1 (Yajun) and CN2794351Y (Dajun). However a user may rest their head to one side even if their body is supine. The position of a user's shoulders is a better indicator of whether they are supine or on their side. Furthermore, shoulders can exert greater pressure than the head and may be more useful in altering the height of the pillow by pneumatic operation. In the case of CN210144371 (Shihai) one long airbag under the user's shoulders presses air into a second airbag in the pillow body. However pressure on one part of the shoulder airbag may displace a lot of air to a different part of that shoulder airbag instead of into the second airbag. Also, as there is only one second airbag it may be too small to be in the correct position under the user's head, or if it is larger a lot of the displaced air will raise part of the second airbag that is not under the user's head. There is therefore a need for an improved pillow to address neck problems arising during sleeping and to provide different levels support in different positions in a practical and efficient manner. The present invention the present invention in its various aspects is as set out in the appended claims the present invention provides a pillow of adjustable height comprising of two inflatable airbags that when deflated are approximately rectangular in shape, the two airbags having similar dimensions and are fixed with their longer sides parallel. The two airbags may be joined to each other along one of their longer sides to form a central seam, or the two airbags may be held in sleeves or bands so that their longer sides are within 4cm of each other and between the two airbags there will be at least one central seam parallel to the longer sides of the airbags. The aforementioned problems are addressed by the present invention as it uses two separately inflatable airbags that are fixed side by side to form an inflatable pillow that rests under the user's shoulders, neck and head. When the user is supine the weight of their shoulders is spread across the lower part of both airbags and their head rests above the central seam between the two airbags. Air displaced by their shoulders moves to the middle part of both airbags mainly to the left and right of the user's head. When the user rolls to one side the weight of their shoulder is pressed on the lower part of one airbag. This displaces air that will move to the middle part of that airbag and causes an increase in the height of the pillow directly under the user's head. The displacement of the air and therefore the reconfiguration of the degree of support across the surface of the pillow provides the height adjustment and responds automatically to the user's position, thus providing optimal support i.e. the present invention is configured to automatically change height depending whether the user is supine or lying on their side. The two airbags are made from TPU, PVC or other flexible, impermeable material. When deflated the airbags are preferably rectangular in shape. Preferably the airbags are attached to each other along one of their longer sides by adhesive, welding or other means. In other embodiments they are fixed adjacent to each other by sleeves or bands so their longer sides are parallel and within 4cm of each other. Each airbag has a valve or other means of inflation or deflation. One or more baffles are preferably fitted near one or both ends of each airbag. These baffles are parallel to the shorter side of each airbag. No baffle, or a taller baffle is fitted to the central part of each airbag. If each airbag was fully inflated the central part would attain a greater height than the ends of the airbag. In use, each airbag is only partially inflated so that the central part of each airbag will be approximately the same height as the area around the end baffle(s). When pressure is applied to the area near the end of the airbag air is displaced and moves to the middle section causing that part to increase in height. The baffles are configured so as to reduce the rate of airflow between different portions of the airbag thus avoiding rapid changes in support which in itself can give rise to stress and tension in the neck. In addition the use of the baffle, when configured to connect, in use upper and lower surfaces of the airbag serves to stop, such as on over inflation, the airbag forming a spherical / cylindrical shape which is less effective for the present invention. The inflatable pillow may be used in conjunction with, i.e. placed within a pillowcase. For optimal use, this pillowcase is made from a material that is either stretchable or loose fitting or both stretchable and loose fitting so that it does not significantly restrict the changes in height achieved by the central part of the airbags. This pillowcase should have openings to allow access to the airbag's valves or other means of inflation and deflation. A further pillowcase could be used over this pillowcase for decorative purposes. In a preferred embodiment the invention further comprises a top pillow made of a compressible material is used between the inflatable pillow and the user's head. The user's shoulder(s) rest on the inflatable pillow only, their head rests on this top pillow to improve comfort. In use the inflatable pillow is positioned so that the central seam between the two airbags is aligned with the user's body. The direction of this seam line shall be referred to as the width of the pillow. Perpendicular to the width in the horizontal plane is the length of the pillow. The length of the pillow is approximately parallel to the top of the user's shoulders when the user is supine. In the preferred embodiment in which a top pillow is used, the length of the top pillow should be similar or identical to the length of the inflatable pillow. The width of the top pillow is preferably 10cm to 25cm less than the width of the inflatable pillow. The amount of the user's shoulders that is resting on the inflatable pillow determines the amount of air that is displaced and therefore the height increase of the middle part of the inflatable pillow. Moving the top pillow away from the user exposes more of the inflatable pillow for the user to rest their shoulder on and therefore get a greater height gain in the area under their head. Moving the top pillow towards the user reduces the amount of the inflatable pillow for the user to rest their shoulder on and so reduces the height variability of the middle part of the pillow. In one variation of the present invention, each of the airbags are provided inflated and sealed upon manufacture, being absent, means of inflation and deflation post inflation such as a valve. Optimal inflation can be carried out on production thus removing the variability of inflation provided, for example by multiple individual carers not being familiar with the product. In one variation of the present invention the airbags of the present invention are lined with a metallised film. This reduces loss of gas over time which can give rise to incremental deflation of the pillow and change what would otherwise be an optimal level of inflation to suboptimal. This is preferably combined with the pillow being sealed as mentioned above. In one variation the airbags are inflated with nitrogen, this has several advantages over inflation using air. Specifically, nitrogen has greater temperature stability in terms of volumetric expansion. Further, gas leakage with nitrogen is lower than with air. The invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying schematic drawings in which figures 1 to 9 show one example of the present invention. Figure 1 shows a plan view of the two airbags of the pillow in a deflated state. Figure 2 shows an end elevation of the airbags when partially inflated. Figure 3 shows a cutaway section of the side elevation of one airbag when in a partially inflated state which is the state of inflation they should be used in. Figure 4 is an upper right hand view of the inflatable pillow with a top pillow resting on top of it. The pillowcases are omitted. Figure 5 is an upper right hand perspective of the pillow in use. The user is supine with their head resting on the top pillow and their shoulders resting on the inflatable pillow. Figure 6 shows a cross section of the side elevation of the situation from figure 5. The pillowcases are omitted. Figure 7 is a cross sectional side elevation of the inflatable pillow and top pillow. The pillow cases are omitted. Figure 8 is an upper right hand perspective of the pillow in use. The person is resting on their side with their head on the top pillow and their shoulder on the inflatable pillow. Figure 9 is a cutaway side elevation of the situation displayed in figure 8. Arrows show air displaced from the end of the airbag and the air moving to the middle area of that airbag. Figure 10 shows a cross sectional view of a side elevation of an alternative embodiment of the invention in which a bolster is attached to one end of the pillow. The pillow is shown in a partially inflated state. Figure 11 shows a plan view of what is shown in figure 10. Figure 12 shows a side elevation of another alternative embodiment of the invention. The airbags are shown in a deflated state. Figure 13 is as figure 12 but with the airbags fully inflated. Figure 14 is a plan view of what is shown in figure 12. In figure 1 the airbags are shown in a deflated state, each airbag is approximately rectangular in shape. Measured across the centre of each airbag each airbag has a shorter dimension S where 20cm <S <40cm and longer dimension L where 30cm <L <55cm and S <L. The two airbags preferably have similar or in the present instance identical dimensions. In this example they are joined to each other along one of their longer sides 11, this join may be achieved by adhesive, welding or other means. Welding is preferred as this enables automated production without any intermediate glue curing step. When deflated as shown in figure 1, it can be seen that one corner 16 on each airbag has a greater surface area than the other three corners. This corner 16 preferably has a square profile or may be based on a curve of a smaller radius than the other three corners of the airbag. In the assembled pillow these corners 16 are adjacent to each other. When the airbag is inflated this corner 16 will hold a greater volume of air than the other corners. If the user's shoulder is resting on or near to corner 16 then there is more air to be displaced to the middle part of the airbag under the user's head. Also, the lesser volume in the remaining corners means less air can be displaced into those corners and so more air is displaced to the middle area. Each airbag can be inflated or deflated by means such as a valve 12 shown on figure 2. In use the airbags are housed in a pillowcase (not shown) which is made from stretchable or loose fitting material which does not significantly restrict the ability of the central part of each airbag to vary in height. That material is preferably a polyether-polyurea copolymer, such as provided commercially under the names Spandex (R), Lycra (R) or Elalastane (R). The pillowcase (not shown) may have small openings to allow the user to access the means of inflation and deflation 12. In figure 3 an airbag is shown partially inflated, the end sections 14 are approximately the same height as the middle section 15. This is the correct level of inflation for use, if the airbag is inflated more than this the height of the end sections 14 is limited by the baffles 13 which are 4cm to 10cm tall and which are parallel to the shorter side of the airbag. These baffles are situated within 0.3L of a shorter side (L being the length of an airbag). In figure 3 only one baffle 13 is shown at each end 14. In some embodiments more than one baffle 13 may be placed at an end 14. This provides a more even height for the individual pillow sections. In the airbag's middle part 15 there are no baffles or one or more baffles that are at least 1.5 times the height of the baffles 13 at the end. If airbag is fully inflated its middle part 15 expands to a height 1.5 times or more than the height of the baffles 13 near the end 14. The baffles in the airbag may have holes in them (not shown) to allow air to pass through them as well as around them. In figure 4 the airbag pillow 2 is shown without a pillowcase, a top pillow 1 is shown on the inflatable pillow. This top pillow 1 contains foam, latex or other compressible material. A memory foam is preferable as this gives more even support distributed over the portion of the person resting on the pillow. In plan elevation this top pillow 1 is exactly or approximately rectangular. Its longest dimension is similar or identical to that of the inflatable pillow 2 that it rests upon. Perpendicular, so in the horizontal plane, the top pillow 1 is 10cm to 25cm shorter than the inflatable pillow so that the user's shoulders can rest on the end(s) 14 of the airbag(s). Figure 5 shows the pillows in use with a person supine. The user's shoulders rest upon the inflatable pillow 2 and their head rests on the top pillow 1. Figure 6 shows a side elevation of this (pillowcase not shown). The weight of the user's shoulders forces some air out of the end 14 of the airbag into the middle part 15. Figure 7 shows the heights of the end section 14 and middle section 15 when the user is not resting on the pillows. In figure 8 the airbag pillow 2 and the top pillow 1 are shown in use with a person resting on their side. Figure 9 shows a cross sectional side elevation of the situation from figure 8. In figure 9 the user's shoulder is exerting pressure that flattens the end 14 of one airbag, air is displaced shown by the sideways arrow 16 and the air moves to the middle section 15 where it will increase the height of the pillow as indicated by the upwards and downwards arrows 17. In practice the inflatable pillow may rotate towards the user's head around an axis 19, any such rotation will reinforce the lifting and supporting force of the middle part 15. This rotation is not shown in these figures. The above feature is particularly important to the present invention as it means that when a person moves between the supine and side / lateral position the support presented for the head and that provided by the pillow of the present invention changes accordingly. This provides improved support and in tests has alleviated user neck problems. An alternative embodiment is shown in figures 10 and 11. In this case a bolster 20 is fitted to the end of the inflatable pillow that is furthest from the user. The bolster 20 may be inflatable or made from foam, latex or other compressible material. It may be made in one piece or from a plurality of sections. A further alternative embodiment is shown in figures 12,13 and 14. In this embodiment the top middle section 15 of each airbag has foldable material 30 that can concertina, in an, in use, vertical direction. Figure 12 shows a side elevation of such an airbag in a deflated state, the foldable part 30 is shown with two folds per side but other embodiments may have more folds. Figure 13 shows such an airbag fully inflated, the concertinaed material 30 is expanded by the air pressure increasing the height of the middle section 15 of the airbag. A plan view of the conjoined airbags in this embodiment is shown in figure 14. The concertinaed part may be constructed with various geometry but is preferably, but not restricted to being, octagonal as this provides improved head support in conjunction with the other features of the present invention.

Claims

1. A pillow of adjustable height comprising of two inflatable airbags that when deflated are approximately rectangular in shape each with shorter sides S where 20cm <S <40cm and longer sides L where 30cm <L <55cm and S <L, the two airbags have similar dimensions and are fixed with their longer sides parallel to each other, internally each airbag has baffles that are parallel to the shorter sides and within 0.3L of at least one of the shorter sides, at a distance of 0.3L or greater from both shorter sides there are no baffles so that if the airbag is fully inflated its middle part will be at least 1.5 times the height of the baffle nearest the shorter side.

2. The pillow of claim 1 wherein at a distance of 0.3L or greater from both shorter sides there is one or more baffles that are at least 1.5 times the height of the baffles nearest the shorter side so that if the airbag is fully inflated its middle part will be at least 1.5 times the height of the baffle nearest the shorter side.

3. The pillow of claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the airbags have identical dimensions.

4. The pillow of any preceding claim wherein the two airbags are joined to each otheralong one of their longer sides.

5. The pillow of claim 1 or claim 2 or claim 3 wherein the two airbags are held in sleeves or bands so that the airbags are parallel and within 4cm of each other.

6. The pillow of any preceding claim wherein the baffles that are within 0.3L of the shorter sides are 4cm to 10cm in height.

7. A pillow of adjustable height according to any preceding claim, in which the baffles contain holes to allow air to pass through them as well as around them.

8. A pillow of adjustable height of any preceding claim, in which each of the airbags has means of inflation and deflation such as a valve.

9. A pillow of adjustable height of preceding claims 1 to 7, in which each of the airbags are provided inflated and sealed upon manufacture being absent, means of inflation and deflation such as a valve.

10. The pillow of adjustable height of claim 9 in which the airbags are inflated with nitrogen and lined with a metallised layer.

11. A pillow of adjustable height according any preceding claim, configured so that that when each airbag is fully inflated one corner will contain a greater volume than the other three corners, it achieves this by having a greater surface area than the other three corners, when each airbag is deflated this corner will have a profile that is squarer than the other three corners or it may be based on a curve with a smaller radius than the other three corners, and the two corners which can hold the greatest volume are adjacent to each other.

12. A pillow of adjustable height according to any preceding claim further comprising a top portion which is a second pillow portion which is a foam, latex, or other compressible material, in plan view the longest side of this second pillow portion is similar or identical in length to the longest side of the adjustable height pillow, also termed a first pillow portion.

13. The second pillow according to claim 12 wherein the horizontal plane perpendicular to the longest side it is of dimension 10cm to 25cm less than the first pillow portion.

14. A pillow of adjustable height of any preceding claim further comprising a pillowcase which sleeves onto the said pillow, this pillow case shall be loose fitting or made from stretchable material or both loose fitting and made of stretchable material such that it does not restrict the maximum height of the airbags.

15. A pillow adjustable height according to claim 14 in which any means of inflation or deflation of the airbags are accessible through openings in the pillowcase.

16. A pillow of adjustable height of any preceding claim, to which is attached a bolster which itself is inflatable or made from foam or latex or other compressible material.

17. A pillow of adjustable height of any preceding claim, in which one surface of each airbag includes folded material in its middle section, when each airbag is inflated the material unfolds and increases the height of the middle section.

18. The pillow of adjustable height of claim 17 wherein the middle section is concertina folded.

19. The pillow of adjustable height of claim 17 or claim 18 wherein the middle section isof an octagonal cross-section.12