GB2419087A - A headrest for a washbasin - Google Patents

Abstract

A headrest for cushioning the back of a person's neck against the rim of a washbasin when the person leans his or her head backwards over the basin to be given a hair wash; the head rest comprising a first portion adapted to sit over the rim and a second portion extending, in use, downwardly from the first portion to sit in front of the rim; characterised in that the second portion is shaped so as to deform under pressure and embrace, at least partially, the back of the user's neck; and in that the deforming region, at least, of the headrest consists wholly or partially of a resiliently deformable polyurethane gel.

Description

24 1 9087 1

HEADREST

Field of the Invention

The invention relates to headrests and is concerned specifically with the kind of headrest for cushioning the back of a person's neck against the rim of a washbasin when the person leans his or her head backwards over the basin to be given a hair wash or other treatment.

State of the Art as knowl1 to the applicant The discomfort associated with "back-wash" hair washing is well known. At best, the person's neck is temporarily extended across what is olden an un-cusllolled hard basin rim of relatively narrow radius. At worst, there have been a number of repotted instances in recent years of so-called "beauty parlour syndrome" when (predominantly) middle- aged people with a tendency to high blood pressure have suffered minor strokes, thought to be caused by small tears in the inning of the vertebral arteries (which rein from the back So of the neck up into the base of the brain) leading to clotting, the clots then breaking off and being swept tpstrealn into the brahl.

Whilst a definite link between strokes and back-washing the hair has not been proven at present, many clients anti salon proprietors, especially, are becoming concerned.

Hairdressing salons are increasingly expected to provide cushioning to allay these fears.

Moreover, it is hoped Flat by cushioning the neck, the client will be afforded extra comfort.

To date, there are only three methods used as far as the applicants are aware. An elongate cylindrical foam tube, split along its length, can be releaseably fitted over a limited length of the basin rim. There also exists a fimn, basin rim cover, pre-formed to the shape and size of the rim of a specific wasHbasin. Finally, a towel or cushion could be used instead.

to The foam cylinder, unless it is pre-shaped, will tend to spring apart from the rim because of its natural elastic tendency to straighten. The pre-fonned rim cover provides little or no cushioning effect, and must be made specifically for a particular design of basin. The wadded towel, or cushion, is relatively incompressible and easily gets soaked. The beneficial effects of each device are limited.

Some hairdressing salons have gone so far as to install special hydraulically tillable chair- and-basin combinations. Quite apart from the capital cost involved, this still does not fully solve the problem if the basin rim remains uncushioned.

Neither does specially shaping the rim itself attack the fundamentals involved. For every other operation except back-washing, the specially shaped Jim is either redundant or a positive nuisance.

Summary of the Invention

In its broadest aspect, the invention provides a headrest for cushioning the back of a person's neck against the rim of a washbasin when the person leans his or her head backwards over the basin to be given a hair wash; the head rest comprising a first portion adapted to sit over the rim and a second portion extending, in use, downwardly frown tl1e first portion to sit in front of tle rim; characterized in that the second portion is shaped so as to deform under pressure and embrace, at least partially' the back of the user's neck; and in that the deforming region, at least, of the headrest consists wholly or partially of a gel.

Such a concept combines the best of the known foam cylinder or cushion ideas whilst avoiding both their drawbacks and also avoiding the expense of either the hydraulically tillable basin-chair combination or the specially moulded indented basin rim construction.

None of these known proposals suggests itself as a starting point for the invention as just defined. Nor could they self:evident]y be combined, with or without hindsight, in any way which might lead to it.

In an advantageous development of the invention, the gel is preferably resiliently -- and more preferably elastically -- deformable. Whilst it may be desirable -- and is withal the lo broadest scope of the invention for the gels to deform to fit a given patient pennanent]y or sempermanently, a truly elastically deformable headrest can be used universally.

Substantially the whole of the headrest may advantageously consist of the deformable gel.

The ability to make the headrest as a one-piece item has clear advantages in manufacture and end-cost. More specifically, and again pointing out the inherent inventive nature of such a headrest, the gels - which are typically autoclaved when made for use in their traditional hospital operating theatre environment - are self-skinning once set. A headrest consisting substantially entirely of such gels therefore needs no outer covering to finish it off.

In a particularly preferred embodiment of the invention, the gel is polyurethane ye]. The use of a polyurethane gel is quite out of the ordinary in the context of the invention.

These gels are known in the medical world where they are used to support limbs of anaesthetised patients. No one looking to improve a hairdressing headrest would think of seeking inspiration from that specialist environment.

Many advantages flow from that primary decision to use these polyurethane gels. They can be se]f-coloured. rlhey are resistant both to heat and to the intrinsically corrosive fluids, shampoos, bleaches and so on which are used in washing, tinting and styling hair.

They are water-resistant and can be re-used repeatedly without perishing or losing any of their essential resilience.

The rim-fitting portion of the headrest may with advantage be so shaped as to extend, in use, into the basin. This gives the headrest an inherent tendency to stay in place and lends itself to the incorporation of, for example, suction cups. Where suction cups are used, it is particularly advantageous to use only one. This allows the headrest to swivel about the suction cup connection and so accommodate small movements of the head and neck. But with or without such additional suction means, a back- extended headrest will have advantages as outlined.

Preferably also the rim-fitting portion of the headrest is weighted so as to resist any to tendency of the headrest to slide off the rim. Especially where there are no suction means in place, this is a neat way of substituting them.

In any arrangement embodying the invention, the gel may be more dense in some regions of tile headrest than in others, to give a variable cushioning effect and/or to provide or t5 augment the weighted effect just discussed.

In the case just outlined, the gel density may specifically vary within the neck-embracing region. Whilst medical studies may be needed to establish whether or not this has advantages in preventing neck vessel stretch and consequent stroke risk, the possibility is no there, and this would help to accommodate it.

In use there may be a limited swivellh1g movement of the user's head as his or her hair is being back-washed. If suction means such as cups are pivotally fitted, such movements can be incorporated automatically. With or (especially) without them, however, preferably the headrest is sufficiently pliant to enable [united flexing movements once it is in place on the ran. The inevitable slglt but repeated user head movements can then be accommodated without the user's head having to move, to any great extent, in relation to the headrest Chicle instead moves with it.

so The invention includes within its scope a headrest substantially as described herein with reference to and as llustrateci in any appropriate combination of tl1e accompanying drawhlgs.

The term 'gel', when used in its broadest context in the present application, relates to materials that provide a cushioning effect when pressure is exerted to them, i.e. the material compresses under pressure. The material may be resiliently deformable, i.e. compressing under pressure, giving a resistive counter-force, and returning towards its original shape, perhaps incompletely, when the pressure is removed. Alternatively, the material may be elastically deformable, returning reversibly and completely to its original shape when the pressure is removed.

Description of the Preferred Embodiment

One headrest embodying the invention will now be described with reference to those drawings. It is currently the best way known to the applicants of embodying the invention, but it is not the only form the invention might take. It is integral, for example, but could have detachable neckembracing pads. It is formed substantially wholly of a polyurethane compound (''polyurethane gel") currently available from S Teasdale (Hospital Equipment) Limited of Stockport, Cheshire SK3 OAN, United Kingdom and other suppliers; but other gels having the required properties could be used.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a headrest according to the present invention; Figure 2 is a cross-section through the headrest of figure 1, as indicated; Figure 3 is a plan view of a headrest according to the present invention; and Figure 4 is a cross-section through the headrest of figure 3, as indicated.

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a headrest according to the present invention, generally indicated by 1. The headrest comprises a first portion 2 adapted to sit over tile rim of a wash bashl, and a second portion 3 extending downwardly from the first portion 2. The second portion 3 is shaped so as to deform under pressure and embrace, al least partially, the back of a user's neck. In this embodiment, this second portion 2 is shaped to include two raised portions 5 that nary lie either side of the cervical vertebrae, thus providing the required cushioning and neck-embracing feature.

In this embodiment, the first portion 2, which extends into the wash basin, in use, is weighted so as to resist any tendency of the headrest to slide off the rim. In this embodiment, the weighting is indicated as 4, and is provided as a thickening of the structure in this area. Altennative embodiments could readily be envisaged having more dense material located within the headrest at this point.

This perspective view of such a headrest shows the device in the configuration it would adopt when placed over the rim of a wash basin, in use. The rim of the wash basin would fit in the cleft marked 6. loop production, and when not in use on a wash basin, the device would lie essentially flat, the cleft 6 being formed by the action of draping it over the end of the basin.

Figure 2 illustrates a cross-section through a headrest according to the present invention, the section being taken along the line marked A - A in figure 1. Again, this illustrates the headrest in the configuration that it would take when draped over the edge of a wash basin, the rho of the basin sitting in the cleft 6. This section shows the first portion 2 adapted to sit over the rim and the second portion 3 extending downwardly frown the first portion to sit in fiont of the rim. Again, this embodiment is provided with raised panels 5 to sit in either side of the cervical vertebrae. Whilst these are illustrated as separate *om the second portion 3, they may conveniently be formed as a single unit. Also illustrated in this embodiment is a weighted portion 4 of the first portion 2. Again, this weighted portion may conveniently be formed merely by a thickening of the gel at this point, or by the inclusion of additional weighted elements.

Figure 3 is a plan view showing the second portion 3 of a headrest according to the present invention to illustrate the overall preferred shape, and the provision of the two raised portions 5 to cushion the neck area of a user, in use.

Figure 4 is a partial cross-section through the headrest of figure 3, as indicated by the line B - B in that figure. Again illustrated, is a section through the second portion 3 with its raised elements 5 to support the neck. In this embodiment, the raised portions are shaped such that in its undeformed configuration, it provides a neck-receiving shape to provide a maximum cushioning effect. In this view, tile first portion 2 and the weighted, or thickened portion 4 is illustrated. This is the portion that would extend over the rim of a basin and into the bowl during use.

Claims (11)

1. A headrest for cushioning the back of a person's neck against the rim of a washbasin when the person leans his or her head backwards over the basin to be given a hair wash; the head rest comprising a first portion adapted to sit over the rim and a second portion extending, in use, downwardly from the first portion to sit in front of the rim; characterized in that the second portion is shaped so as to deform under pressure and embrace, at least partially, the back of the user's neck; and hi that the deforming region, at least, of the headrest consists wholly or partially of a gel.

2. A headrest according to Claim I and in which the gel is resiliently preferably elastically - deformable.

3. A headrest according to Claim I or Claim 2 and in which substantially the whole of the headrest consists of the deformable gel.

4 A headrest according to any of the preceding claims and in which the rim-fittng portion of the headrest is so shaped as to extend, in use, into the basin.

So

5. A headrest according to Claun 4 and in which the portion of the headrest extending into the basin in use is weighted so as to resist any tendency of the headrest to slide off the rim.

6. A headrest according to any of the preceding claims and in which the gel is more dense in some regions of the headrest than hi others.

7. A headrest according to Claim 6 and in which the relatively more dense gel provides or augments the weighted effect.

8. A headrest according to Claim 6 anal in which the gel density varies within tile neck-embracing region.

9. A headrest according to any preceding claim and in which the gel is sufficiently pliant to afford a limited swivel of the neck-engaging region in response to movements, in use, of the user's head.

10. A headrest according to any preceding claim in which the gel is a polyurethane gel.

11. A headrest substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in any appropriate combination of the accompanying drawings.