US20190075949A1

US20190075949A1 - Inflatable Pillow Assembly

Info

Publication number: US20190075949A1
Application number: US15/704,698
Authority: US
Inventors: Walter Allison
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2017-09-14
Filing date: 2017-09-14
Publication date: 2019-03-14

Abstract

An inflatable pillow assembly for adjusting firmness of a pillow includes a pillow for sleeping that is substantially hollow. A bladder is removably positioned within the pillow. The bladder is selectively inflated thereby facilitating the pillow to have a selected degree of firmness. A pump is fluidly coupled to the bladder and the pump is selectively manipulated. The pump selectively inflates and deflates the bladder.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT

Not Applicable

INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC OR AS A TEXT FILE VIA THE OFFICE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR OR JOINT INVENTOR

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(1) Field of the Invention

(2) Description of Related Art Including Information Disclosed Under 37 CFR 1.97 and 1.98

The disclosure and prior art relates to pillow devices and more particularly pertains to a new pillow device for adjusting firmness of a pillow.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a pillow for sleeping that is substantially hollow. A bladder is removably positioned within the pillow. The bladder is selectively inflated thereby facilitating the pillow to have a selected degree of firmness. A pump is fluidly coupled to the bladder and the pump is selectively manipulated. The pump selectively inflates and deflates the bladder.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a phantom perspective view of an inflatable pillow assembly according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a right side phantom view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a front view of an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a cross sectional view taken along line of FIG. 1 of an embodiment of the disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to FIGS. 1 through 5 thereof, a new pillow device embodying the principles and concepts of an embodiment of the disclosure and generally designated by the reference numeral 10 will be described.
As best illustrated in FIGS. 1 through 5, the inflatable pillow assembly 10 generally comprises a pillow 12 for sleeping. The pillow 12 is substantially hollow and the pillow 12 has a first end 14 and a second end 16. The pillow 12 has an aperture 18 extending through the first 14 and second 16 ends. The pillow 12 may be comprised of a resiliently compressible material to enhance comfort when sleeping.
A bladder 20 is provided and the bladder 20 is removably positioned within the pillow 12. The bladder 20 is selectively inflated thereby facilitating the pillow 12 to have a selected degree of firmness. In this way the pillow 12 may satisfy comfort needs for a variety of users. The bladder 20 has a plurality of chambers 22 therein and the chambers 22 are in fluid communication with each other. The bladder 20 is removably positioned within the aperture 18.
A pump 24 is fluidly coupled to the bladder 20 and the pump 24 is selectively manipulated. The pump 24 selectively inflates the bladder 20 and the pump 24 selectively deflates the bladder 20. The pump 24 comprises a hose 26 that is fluidly coupled to and extends away from the bladder 20. The hose 26 has a distal end 28 with respect to the bladder 20.
A bulb 30 is fluidly coupled to the distal end 28 of the hose 26 and the bulb 30 is selectively manipulated. The bulb 30 urges air through the hose 26 to inflate the bladder 20 when the bulb 30 is compressed. Moreover, the bulb 30 may be comprised of a deformable material such as rubber or the like. A valve 32 is fluidly coupled to the bulb 30 and the valve 32 is selectively manipulated. The valve 32 is positioned in a first position to pass air from the bulb 30 into the bladder 20 for inflating the bladder 20. The valve 32 is positioned in a second position to release air from the bladder 20 for deflating the bladder 20. The valve 32 may be a push button air valve or the like.
A pillowcase 34 is provided and the pillow 12 is removably positioned in the pillowcase 34. The pillowcase 34 has a first end 36 and the first end 36 has a cut 38 extending into an interior of the pillowcase 34 for receiving the pillow 12. The cut 38 has a first bounding edge 40 and a second bounding edge 42.
A closure 44 is coupled to the pillowcase 34 and the closure 44 is selectively manipulated. The closure 44 is aligned with the cut 38 and the closure 44 selectively opens and closes the cut 38. The closure 44 is coupled to each of the first 40 and second 42 bounding edges of the cut 38. Thus, the first 40 and second 42 bounding edges are joined together when the closure 44 is closed. The closure 44 may comprise a pair of zippers or the like.
In use, the bladder 20 is positioned in the pillow 12 and the pillow 12 is positioned in the pillowcase 34. The hose 26 is extended through the cut 38 in the pillowcase 34 and the closure 44 is manipulated to close the pillowcase 34. The bulb 30 is selectively compressed to inflate the bladder 20 to a selected degree. In this way the bladder 20 facilitates the pillow 12 to have a selected degree of firmness. Thus, the pillow 12 and the bladder 20 enhance a comfort for sleeping for a variety of users. The valve 32 is selectively manipulated to deflate the bladder 20.
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.

Claims

I claim:

1. An inflatable pillow assembly being configured to be selectively inflated for supporting a head during sleep, said assembly comprising:

a pillow being configured to be slept upon, said pillow being substantially hollow;

a bladder being removably positioned within said pillow, said bladder being selectively inflated wherein said pillow is configured to have a selected degree of firmness; and

a pump being fluidly coupled to said bladder wherein said pump is configured to be manipulated, said pump selectively inflating said bladder, said pump selectively deflating said bladder.

2. The assembly according to claim 1, wherein said pillow has a first end and a second end, said pillow having an aperture extending through said first and second ends.

3. The assembly according to claim 2, wherein said bladder has a plurality of chambers therein, said plurality of chambers being in fluid communication with each other, said bladder being positioned within said aperture.

4. The assembly according to claim 3, wherein said pump comprises a hose being fluidly coupled to and extending away from said bladder, said hose having a distal end with respect to said bladder.

5. The assembly according to claim 4, further comprising a bulb being fluidly coupled to said distal end of said hose wherein said bulb is configured to be manipulated, said bulb urging air through said hose to inflate said bladder when said bulb is compressed.

6. The assembly according to claim 5, further comprising a valve being fluidly coupled to said bulb wherein said valve is configured to be manipulated, said valve being positioned in a first position wherein said valve is configured to pass air from said bulb into said bladder for inflating said bladder, said valve being positioned in a second position wherein said valve is configured to release air from said bladder for deflating said bladder.

7. The assembly according to claim 1, further comprising a pillowcase having said pillow being removably positioned therein, said pillowcase having a first end, said first and having it cut therein extending into an interior of said pillowcase for receiving said pillow, said cut having a first bounding edge and a second bounding edge.

8. The assembly according to claim 7, further comprising a closure being coupled to said pillowcase wherein said closure is configured to be manipulated said closure being aligned with said cut such that said closure selectively opens and closes said cut, said closure being coupled to each of said first and second bounding edges of said cut such that said first and second bounding edges are joined together when said closure is closed.

9. An inflatable pillow assembly being configured to be selectively inflated for supporting a head during sleep, said assembly comprising:

a pillow being configured to be slept upon, said pillow being substantially hollow, said pillow having a first end and a second end, said pillow having an aperture extending through said first and second ends;

a bladder being removably positioned within said pillow, said bladder being selectively inflated wherein said pillow is configured to have a selected degree of firmness, said bladder having a plurality of chambers therein, said plurality of chambers being in fluid communication with each other, said bladder being positioned within said aperture;

a pump being fluidly coupled to said bladder wherein said pump is configured to be manipulated, said pump selectively inflating said bladder, said pump selectively deflating said bladder, said pump comprising:

a hose being fluidly coupled to and extending away from said bladder, said hose having a distal end with respect to said bladder,

a bulb being fluidly coupled to said distal end of said hose wherein said bulb is configured to be manipulated, said bulb urging air through said hose to inflate said bladder when said bulb is compressed, and

a valve being fluidly coupled to said bulb wherein said valve is configured to be manipulated, said valve being positioned in a first position wherein said valve is configured to pass air from said bulb into said bladder for inflating said bladder, said valve being positioned in a second position wherein said valve is configured to release air from said bladder for deflating said bladder;

a pillowcase having said pillow being removably positioned therein, said pillowcase having a first end, said first and having it cut therein extending into an interior of said pillowcase for receiving said pillow, said cut having a first bounding edge and a second bounding edge; and

a closure being coupled to said pillowcase wherein said closure is configured to be manipulated said closure being aligned with said cut such that said closure selectively opens and closes said cut, said closure being coupled to each of said first and second bounding edges of said cut such that said first and second bounding edges are joined together when said closure is closed.