US2940087A - Pillow - Google Patents

Description

A. J. KlEFER June 14, 1960 PILLOW Filed F eb. 26, 1957 INVENTOR. A uaus mus JoH/v K/EFEE.

H15 A TTOENEV United States Patent PILLOW Augustine John Kiefer, 1100 Brighton Road, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Filed Feb. 26, 1957, Ser. No. 642,557

6 Claims. (Cl. -338) This invention relates generally to pillows and more particularly a pillow having a flat intermediate section and outwardly extending wedge shaped end sections to provide a comfortable headrest that is simple in design and inexpensive to manufacture.

There are many different shapes of pillows. Their contours require difiicult patterns to construct, sew together and stuff. Most of these pillows have sudden changes in contour that are apt to awaken the sleeper if he rolls from one contoured portion to another.

The principal object of this invention is the provision of a pillow that is generally of the size of an ordinary pillow filled with feathers, foam rubber or pneumatically inflated but has an intermediate section that is not only lower than the two side sections but gradually changes from the lower intermediate section to the higher sections on both sides. This is accomplished by two methods. The first method is by contouring the edges of the end panels of the pillow to hold the shape of the same, and secondly by providing a base batten that has a low horizontal intermediate section that gradually rises into wedge side sections. The pillow and the base batten are generally the same shape although the pillow would probably be thicker. The panels making up the pillow are simple and easily fastened together and easily stuffed or filled. The filler, if air or very flexible, need not have the same shape as the cover to cause it to conform, but

if the filler is firm it is preferable to have it preshaped to the same configuration.

Other objects and advantages appear hereinafter in the following description and claims.

The accompanying drawing shows for the purpose of exemplification without limiting this invention or the claims thereto, certain practical embodiments illustrating the principles of this invention wherein:

Fig. l is a perspective view of one form of pillow comprising this invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of another form of pillow comprising this invention.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view showing the pillow comprising this invention having a stiff batting therein.

Fig. 4 is an end elevation of another form of pillow batting.

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a spring batting for a pillow.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view of a rubber foam batting for a pillow.

Fig. 7 is an end elevation of another form of pillo comprising this invention. 1

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings the pillow shown could be the covering of a pillow stuifed with feathers, cotton, foam rubber, or other stulfing material ordinarily used for pillows of this character or it may be a pneumatically inflated pillow wherein the covering is of rubberized cloth. The pillow retains its shape owing to the shape of the end panels 1 which consist of a center section 2 and outer sections 3 and 4. The center section 2 is substantially rectangular having parallel edges and the outer sections 3 and 4 have diverging edges making them frustum shaped. The edges 5 and 6 of the center portion 2 are preferably horizontal and parallel with each other; whereas the edges 7, 8 of the outer sections 3 and 4 that form the sides of the frustum are preferably straight and the remote edges 10 and 11 are preferably arcuate. Opposite ends of the pillow are the same as that indicated at 1 and the top of the pillow is one section as indicated at 12 but when it is secured to the adjacent edges 4 to 8 it produces the intermediate panel section 13 and the outer panel sections 14 and 15 The sides of the pillow indicated at 16 and 17 follow the arcuate edges' 10 and 11 respectively. 1

When constructing this pillow from cloth the top and bottom panels 12 and the sides 16 and 17 may be one piece of material which when secured to the opposite ends takes the form as shown in Fig. 1. If the stufilng conforms generally to the same shape as this cover the pillow will readily retain its shape. However'if the stuffing tends to expand due to its ownresiliency the top and bottom panels may be secured by some form of tying them together along the section lines 18 and 19 of the top and bottom panels. Thus a few ties through the stufling will retain the shape of the pillow in combination with the outer covering. I

Referring now to Fig. 2 the end panel 20 is somewhat similar to the end panels of the structure just described. However the bottom of the pillow lies flat as indicated at 21 but the top edges are substantially the same as indicated in the drawing and in the top and bottom panels together with the sides are substantially the same as that described and for all practical purposes could be of the same dimension as a continuous member forming the top and bottom and side panels as shown in Fig. 1. Again the stufling for the pillow as shown in Fig. 2 may be retained in the same manner as that required by the stufling in the pillow in Fig. 1.

In the sectional view of Fig. 3 the pillow is provided with an end member 22 the upper corners of which are rounded at a great degree as indicated at 23 and 24' which changes the shape of the pillow somewhat and the bottom panel of the pillow 25 is slightly shorter so as to provide an overhanging portion of the sides 16 and 17. Here again the top, bottom and side panels are the same as that shown in Figs. 1 and 2 being made of a single strip. But the end being of different configuration produces a slightly different character of pillow. As shown in this view the section lines 18 and 19 between the panels are held in place by means of the tie strings 26 and 27 which pass through the stufiing and the base or batting 28. The stuffing as indicated is a foam rubber and it rests on the top surface of the batten 28 which is a solid board having an intermediate section 30 with upper and lower parallel surfaces and wedge shaped base sections 31 and 32 which are shaped to aid in conforming the shape of the pillow and are thicker towards the side edges of the pillow to accentuate the shape of the end panels 22.

The base 33 shown in Fig. 4 comprises a baseboard member 34 having two wedge pieces 35 and 36 placed on each side thereof to give the general configuration of the pillow as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. This batten is intended for use under any of the pillows as shown in Figs. 1 to 3 or under an ordinary rectangular pillow. If it is desired to have the sides higher the wedges 35 and 36 may be added to or increased to the width so as to accentuate the height of the sides of the ordinary pillow placed thereon. When using this batten with an ordinary pillow it is preferable that the pillow be slightly larger than the batten. However it will shape the ordinary pillow whether shaped with foam rubber or feathers in a shape somewhat as the contour shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

' base 3 7 shown' iri'P ig. comprises an intermediate section 38' and the flexible end sections having "a' baseboard 40 which extends continuously across the rhea-ravens hinge section 43- are connected b'y'theside panel Between the bottom or baseboard'section 40 hinge 'section43is a plurality-of springs '46, 47 and 48 which 'may' be diminished in size towards the center section 38 0f the batten and which retain-the hinge scctiorf43-in its uppermostposition lay-stretching the fiexibl'e end panel 45. Thus-when the batten shown'in -Pig. 5 is'pla'cedunder an ordinary pillow it will-sustain the saiuc in the approximate shape 'of -the pillow shown in Fig.

and auh'esame-me pmvide-resilieney in response to predet rmined pressures. r

the Stine-titre Shown in Fig. 5 except thEi't' the top 'afid lbot'tom pane'ls 50 of this baseunember have the J central portion 52 and the outer portions 53 hin'ged ltoge ther at 54. Thus-theptwo outersections 53am movable relative .to-the center section and arepiovide'd with astufiingof resilient material suchas the foam rubber as indicatedat 55, This foam rubber may extend between -the center sections 52 as'indicated 'in the drawings. Here again-the batten may be employed with the charactenof pillow shown in Figs. 1 to 3 or with an ordinary pillow to provide 'higher sides and at lower intermediate section thereby providing more comfort to the user. 7

.. In-the structure shownin Fig. 7y the pillow is similar to 7 V thatlillustrated in Fig. 2. However the pillowimember- 56 has the1end.panel s '57, which are duplicates of each other, the rectangular side panels 58, the. rectangular bottom 'panel59 and the two rectangularly shaped top panelsfifl, whichate joined along the central section line61 and are I connectedby means of-the tie str-ingslfiL The stiffener member such. as indicatedrby the plate63, shown in-dotted lines on the bottom of the pillow, is flexible but is not soft enough, to prevent the pillow from becoming deformed when free and retains the shape of the pillow as shown. a

1. A pillow structure of. generally rectang lar shape at seeing strata-5g" standard sa the use; as.

'face of whichis-stifi for' the full length 'andwidt-h of the pillow, the upper surface of said baseboard strip also being stifi for the full length and width of the pillow, spacing means bctween said lower and said upper stiff surfaces to make the upper surface wedge shape being thick at both ends and thin towardnthe center of the pillow, a soft pillow of substantially the same rectangular dimension as said base and confer-media. have a similar general shape and mounted on said baseboard strip, and a covering enclosingsaid' st-ifibase and-saids'oft pillowto form a unitary pillow structure The nillomstructur egpf claim l chatecteti in that said pillow is wedge-shaped and said spacing means extends from adjacent itscenter.

3. The pillow structure of claim 1 characterized in that said Wedge shape spacing means are on each end of said baseboard strip and terminate in spaced relation to each othen'sa'id baseboard stripbeing'flat therehetween;

' 4. The 'inew: structure oficIaimBcha'racteEiZed in" that said wedge shape spacing: means includes a. solid wedge I 5. The pillow structure -'of claim -3: characterized that said wed'ge shapc spaeing nrea'ns includes springs extending'between the bottom; andrtop: surfaces.

6. Thepillow-stru'cture'o'f claimBJcharacteriZed in 'that said wedge. shape spacing means iSZfOamtr-ubbeP.

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