Eye pressure relief pillow

Abstract

A pillow for eye pressure relief configured with a support portion and a relief portion. The support portion thicker than the relief portion. The support portion configured to support the forehead and lower face while the relief portion configured to provide less pressure and support to the facial orbital eye area.

Description

Title:

[0001] Eye Pressure Relief PillowCross-Reference to Related Application

[0002] The present application claims priority to and the benefit of US Provisional Application No. 63 / 634,236, filed April 15, 2024, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference and made a part hereof.Background of the Invention

[0003] The present invention generally relates to the field devices to treat eye conditions. More particularly, the invention relates to a pillow configured to support the head in a side or prone position without providing additional pressure to the orbital area of the face.

[0004] Glaucoma is a disease that damages the eye’s optic nerve. It usually happens when fluid (aqueous humor) builds up in the front part of the eye, raising the normal intra ocular pressure (IOP). The elevated eye pressure can then damage the optic nerve leading to vision loss.

[0005] Keratoconus is a vision disorder that occurs when the normally round cornea (the front part of the eye) becomes thin and irregularly (cone) shaped. Keratoconus leads to visual loss due to irregularity of the cornea. Treatments include hard contact lenses, collagen cross linking and corneal transplant in severe cases.

[0006] Additional external pressure to the orbital area of the face and specifically the eyes can aggravate both conditions as well as conditions related to floppy eyelid syndrome, post glaucoma valve placement, post-blepharoplasty eyelid surgery, post-ptosis surgery, and postcataract surgery. The body position during affects Intra Ocular Pressure (IOP). Elevation of IOP can occur with going from upright to a recumbent position. Furthers sleeping with a pillow directly placing pressure on the eye can worsen glaucoma field loss. Several also have observed that keratoconus can progress from eye rubbing and from distortion placed on the eye from pressure, such as when sleeping with facedown on a pillow. One study showed worsening progression of keratoconus on the side that the patient slept on.

[0007] The present invention seeks to remedy the shortcomings of pillows in the prior art by providing a structurally stable pillow configured to support the head in a side or prone position without providing additional pressure to the orbital area of the face.Summary of the Invention

[0008] In light of the foregoing a pillow configured to support the head in a side or prone position without providing additional pressure to the orbital area of the face is provided.

[0009] In a first aspect the pillow comprises a support portion and a relief portion nested within the support portion. The support portion has a support volume bound by a support portion front side, a support portion rear side, an outer support perimeter, and an inner relief perimeter.

[0010] The support portion further comprises a support filling disposed within the support portion volume.

[0011] The relief portion has a relief volume bound by a relief portion front side, a relief portion rear side, and the inner relief perimeter. In some aspects, the inner relief perimeter may comprise an elongated arch shape. The elongated arch shape is configured to accommodate the facial orbital area

[0012] In another aspect, the relief portion further comprises a relief filling disposed within the relief portion.

[0013] In yet another aspect, the relief portion may have a relief volume thickness from the relief portion front side to relief portion rear side of about one third of an inch in an uncompressed state.

[0014] In another aspect, the relief volume height is less than the support volume compressed height.

[0015] In one example, the pillow shape is generally rectangular having pillow length, pillow width, a pillow top edge, a pillow bottom edge, a first pillow side edge, a second pillow side edge, a front pillow surface, and a rear pillow surface. In this example, the relief portion is disposed proximal the pillow bottom edge. Further, the relief portion may be disposed at approximately one third the length of the pillow length as measured from the pillow bottom edge. In other examples, the relief portion may be disposed proximal the pillow top edge, or a third of the length of the pillow length as measured from the pillow top edge. In yet another aspect, the relief portion may be disposed centrally between the pillow top edge and bottom edge.

[0016] The methods, systems, apparatuses are set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or can be learned by practice of themethods, apparatuses, and systems. The advantages of the methods, apparatuses, and systems will be realized and attained by means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims. It is understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not restrictive of the methods, apparatuses, and systems, as claimed.Brief Description of the Drawings

[0017] In the accompanying figures, like elements are identified by like reference numerals among the several preferred embodiments of the present invention.

[0018] FIG. 1 represents an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] FIG. 2 represents a cross section of FIG. 1.

[0020] FIG. 3 represents an alternate cross section of FIG. 1.

[0021] FIG. 4 represents an embodiment of the present invention in use.

[0022] Other aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description, wherein similar structures have similar reference numerals.Detailed Description

[0023] The foregoing and other features and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of an exemplary embodiment, read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. The detailed description and drawings are merely illustrative of the invention rather than limiting, the scope of the invention being defined by the appended claims and equivalents thereof.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 1 in a first aspect, the pillow 10 comprises a support portion 12 and a relief portion 14 within the support portion 12. The support portion has a support portion volume 16 bound by a support portion front side 18, a support portion rear side 20, an outer support perimeter 22, and an inner relief perimeter 24. The support portion front side 18 and support portion rear side 20 may be comprised of any textile or synthetic material. In some aspects, the relief portion 14 is nested within the support portion 12, while in other aspects, the at least a portion of the relief portion 14 extends to the outer perimeter of the pillow 10. The support portion front side 18 and support portion rear side 20 may further comprise a covering 26made of quilted microfiber blend with a zipper on at least one side as shown in FIG. 1. It may be beneficial but optional for the covering 26 fabric to be soft, breathable, machine washable, and thick enough to mask filling lumps. In some examples, the covering 26 may comprise a moisture wicking or hydrophobic material.

[0025] The support portion 12 further comprises a support filling 28 disposed within the support portion volume 16. The support filling 28 may comprise but is not limited to, layers or volumetric pieces of polyurethane foam and / or polyester gel fiber, feathers, down, down alternative, cotton, latex, kapok, buckwheat, wool, memory foam, or polyfill . In one example, the support filling comprises a combination of polyurethane foam geometric shapes mixed with polyester gel fiber in an approximately 80% to 20% ratio as shown in FIGS. 2-3.

[0026] In one aspect, the support portion 12 may have a support volume thickness 30 extending from the support portion front side 18 to the support portion rear side 20. In some examples the support volume thickness 30 ranges from of about three inches to about five inches in an uncompressed state. In some examples, the amount of support filling 28 and support volume thickness 30 is user adjustable to maintain comfort for the individual user.

[0027] The relief portion 14 has a relief volume 32 bound by a relief portion front side 34, a relief portion rear side 36, and the inner relief perimeter 24. In some aspects, the inner relief perimeter 24 may comprise an elongated arch shape. The elongated arch shape is configured to accommodate the facial orbital area of a person using the pillow as shown in FIG. 4. In some examples, the elongated arch may have a height H (or relief portion gap from a relief portion lower edge to a relief portion upper edge) of about two to three inches as shown in FIG. 3. One of skill in the art would recognize that the inner relief perimeter 24 may be a variety of shapes spanning at least a portion of the width of the pillow 10 as long as height portion can accommodate the facial orbital area. The relief portion front side 34 and relief portion rear side 36 may be comprised of any textile or synthetic material including. The relief portion front side 34 and relief portion rear side 36 may further comprise a covering 26 made of quilted microfiber blend. It may be beneficial but optional for the covering fabric to be soft, breathable, machine washable, and thick enough to mask filling lumps.

[0028] As shown in FIGS. 2-3 The relief portion further comprises a relief filling 38 disposed within the relief portion 14. The relief filling 40 may comprise but is not limited to, layers or volumetric piece of polyurethane foam and / or polyester gel fiber, feathers, down, downalternative, cotton, latex, kapok, buckwheat, wool, memory foam, or polyfill . In one example, the relief portion 14 may be a 4 millimeter thick flexible foam core to give the relief portion 14 structure and prevent collapsing.

[0029] In yet another aspect, the relief portion 14 may have a relief volume thickness 42 extending from the relief portion front side 34 to relief portion rear side 36. In another aspect, the relief volume thickness is less than the support volume thickness compressed height. In another aspect the relief volume thickness 42 is about one third of an inch in an uncompressed state.

[0030] In one example, the pillow shape is generally rectangular having pillow length 44, pillow width 46, a pillow top edge 48, a pillow bottom edge 50, a first pillow side edge 52, a second pillow side edge 54, a front pillow surface 56, and a rear pillow surface 58. In this example, the relief portion 14 is disposed proximal the pillow bottom edge 50. Further, the relief portion 14 may be disposed at approximately one third the length of the pillow length 44 as measured from the pillow bottom edge. 50 Further in this example, the pillow length 44 and pillow width 46 may be approximately eighteen inches by twenty-eight inches to accommodate a queen pillow case. One of skill in the art would recognize that the pillow size and dimensions can scale to other industry standard pillow sizes. In other examples, the relief portion may be disposed proximal the pillow top edge, or a third of the length of the pillow length as measured from the pillow top edge. In yet another aspect, the relief portion may be disposed centrally between the pillow top edge and bottom edge.

[0031] In one aspect, as shown in FIG. 2, the relief portion 14, is disposed towards the rear pillow surface 58, however in other aspects as shown in FIG. 3 the relief portion 14, is disposed between the support volume thickness 30, making the pillow reversible.

[0032] In use, as shown in FIG. 4 the narrower section, or lower support portion, of the support portion disposed under the relief portion, is placed under the neck and lower face of the user, allowing the gap to be at the level of the eye orbits. This creates a “bridge” between the lower face and the forehead at an upper support portion that keeps the weight of the whole head off of the globe (eyeball) and protects the globe (eyeball) from pressure during sleep. As shown, the bridge is configured to prevent contact between the eyeball and pillow. The arch design of the relief portion 14 is configured for different size faces to find the proper “bridge” to removepressure from the globe(s). One of skill in the art would recognize that other shapes of the relief portion such as an elongated rectangle may serve a similar purpose.

[0033] Those of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate the aforementioned description of the invention has been made with reference to a certain exemplary embodiment of the invention, which describe an eye pressure relief pillow and method of use. Those of skill in the art will understand that obvious variations in construction, material, dimensions or properties may be made without departing from the scope of the invention which is intended to be limited only by the claims appended hereto.

Claims

Claims1. A pillow for eye pressure relief comprising: a support portion having a support filling and a support volume thickness; a relief portion, the relief portion having a relief filling and a relief volume thickness; and wherein the when the support volume thickness is in a compressed state, the support volume thickness is greater than the relief volume thickness.

2. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief portion comprises an arch shaped inner relief perimeter.

3. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief portion comprises a relief portion lower edge, a relief portion upper edge, and a relief portion gap between the relief portion upper edge and the relief portion lower edge configured to accommodate a facial orbital.

4. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief portion is nested within the support portion.

5. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein at least a portion of the relief portion extends to a pillow outer perimiter.

6. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 further wherein: the pillow comprises a pillow top edge, a pillow bottom edge, a first pillow side edge and a second pillow side edge forming an outer support perimeter; the support portion is bounded by the outer support perimeter and an inner relief perimeter; the relief portion is bounded by the inner relief perimeter; and wherein the relief portion is disposed proximal the pillow bottom edge forming a bridge from a lower support portion to an upper support portion.

7. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 6 further wherein the relief portion is disposed within a first third of a pillow height from the pillow bottom edge.

8. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 6 further wherein the relief portion is disposed within a first third of a pillow height from the pillow top edge.

9. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 6 further wherein the relief portion is disposed centrally along between the pillow bottom edge and pillow top edge.

10. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief portion is disposed mid the support volume thickness.

11. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief portion is disposed towards a rear pillow surface.

12. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the support filling comprises one of layers or volumetric pieces of polyurethane foam and / or polyester gel fiber, feathers, down, down alternative, cotton, latex, kapok, buckwheat, wool, memory foam, or polyfill.

13. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 6 wherein the support volume thickness is between 3 and 5 inches in an uncompressed state.

14. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief filling comprises at least one of layers or volumetric pieces of polyurethane foam and / or polyester gel fiber, feathers, down, down alternative, cotton, latex, kapok, buckwheat, wool, memory foam, or polyfill.

15. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief filling comprises a foam core.

16. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 wherein the relief filling is about 4 millimeters thick.

17. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 1 having a covering comprising a pillow outer surface, the covering comprising support portion outer surfaces and relief portion inner surfaces, the covering bound to itself to form the relief portion.

18. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 17 wherein the cover comprises a quilted pattern.

19. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 17 wherein the cover comprises a microfiber.

20. The pillow for eye pressure relief of claim 17 wherein the cover comprises a hydrophobic material.

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