COMBINATION TRAVEL PILLOW/PILLOW ENHANCER
A pillow/pillow cover combination is transformable between a relatively compact folded configuration where it functions as a comfortable stand-alone pillow for travel situations where personal space may be limited, such as inside a car or plane, and an unfolded configuration where it functions as a padded pillow cover, able to accept a standard pillow inside an attached pouch, thereby making it suitable for use as a personal pillow enhancer for enhancing a pillow provided in a hotel room or other travel lodgings.
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This application claims the benefit of prior co-pending U.S. provisional application Ser. No. 60/835,459, filed Aug. 4, 2006.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to a novel pillow/pillow cover combination that is transformable between two principal configurations that make it well suited and highly beneficial for travelers.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONMany travelers desire the use of a personal pillow while en route and/or upon arriving at overnight lodgings. A personal travel pillow can, in general, enhance travel comfort in the many circumstances where a pillow is desired but not typically provided, such as while traveling in an automobile, or waiting for a flight in an airport terminal or for a train at the train station. In addition, the use of a personal pillow can address concerns with the potentially limited comfort and unsanitary conditions of the pillows sometimes made available to travelers, such as those offered on commercial airline flights. The same concerns can also exist with respect to the bed pillows provided in hotels and other overnight lodgings. Even in the case of clean and sanitary hotel bedding, the pillows may not provide the degree of comfort that the traveler desires.
The carriage of a personal pillow during travel presents practical difficulties, however. A conventional bed pillow is not easily carried on one's person, and would take up a substantial amount of the very limited space typically available to the traveler in his/her luggage if carried that way. On the other hand, small pillows and cushions of the type which might be easily carried during travel likely provide very limited additional comfort, and generally are not suitable or desirable for use as a bed pillow.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention, exemplary embodiments of which are described herein, can afford the traveler a comfortable personal pillow for travel use, while avoiding much of the practical difficulty traditionally associated with traveling with one's own comfortable pillow.
In accordance with the invention, a pillow/pillow cover combination is transformable between a relatively compact folded configuration where it functions as a comfortable stand-alone pillow for travel situations where personal space may be limited, such as inside a car or plane, and an unfolded configuration where it functions as a padded pillow cover, able to accept a standard pillow inside an attached pouch, thereby making it suitable for use as a personal pillow enhancer for enhancing a pillow provided in a hotel room or other travel lodgings.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent and fully understood from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments, taken in connection with the appended drawings.
There is an additional fabric panel 55 that spans the tri-panel structure 2 on its bottom side. This panel is attached, such as by a stitched seam, about the periphery of bottom casing layer 30. In
The construction of travel pillow/pillow enhancer 1 is completed with the attachment of the second piece of fabric 55 to one side of the tri-panel pillow structure 2. As previously indicated, fabric panel 55 preferably spans the entire length and width of the tri-panel structure 2. The attachment may be provided in the form of a conventional stitched seam extending about the periphery of the tri-panel pillow structure 2 along all but one end. As previously explained, one end will be left open to provide an opening 60 permitting insertion of a standard pillow into the pouch, as illustrated in
The cushion panels may be provided in the form of blocks of soft latex foam or polyurethane foam. The foam blocks may have flat surfaces or be provided with surface height variations, such as egg crate shaped crests and valleys. Alternatively, the cushioning material could be any other material suitable as a pillow or cushioning material, including natural materials such as down feather filling and other synthetic materials, such a fiber-fill
It will be understood that while the invention has been described in conjunction with various embodiments and details thereof, the foregoing description and examples are intended to illustrate, but not limit the scope of the invention. Numerous other variations and arrangements are within the scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A pillow/pillow cover combination which is transformable between a relatively small footprint stand-alone pillow configuration and a relatively large footprint padded pillow cover configuration, comprising:
- a plurality of cushion panels hingedly attached to each other by hinge joints so as to allow the cushion panels to fold onto each other and thereby provide said stand-alone pillow configuration, and to unfold from each other so as to provide said padded pillow cover configuration; and
- a panel of material that spans a substantial portion of the plurality of cushion panels on a side thereof and is attached thereto so as to form a pouch for receipt of a separate pillow when said pillow/pillow cover combination is in said padded pillow cover configuration.
2. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 1, wherein the plurality of cushion panels comprise fabric encased generally rectangular cushion panels.
3. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 2, wherein said cushion panels comprise fabric encased blocks of soft foam material.
4. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 2, wherein there are exactly three fabric encased rectangular cushion panels of approximately equal size, including a pair of side cushion panels and a middle cushion panel connected between the side cushion panels so as to form a tri-panel pillow structure.
5. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 2, wherein said hinge joints are provided by a fabric casing enclosing each of the cushioning panels individually, said joints providing flexible hinge lines which allow for the folding of the combination pillow/pillow cover combination in an accordion-like fashion to place the combination in said stand-alone pillow configuration.
6. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 5, wherein at least one of said hinge joints is formed by an attachment of a top layer of the fabric casing to a bottom layer of the casing in such a manner as to give the joint a general “v-shaped” appearance.
7. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 6, wherein said at least one joint is located adjacent a bottom layer of the fabric casing between one of the side panels and the middle panel, to thereby facilitate a folding of the side panel beneath the middle panel.
8. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 7, wherein a second hinge joint is located adjacent a top layer of the fabric casing between one of the side panels and the middle panel, to thereby facilitate a folding of the side panel on top of the middle panel.
9. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 5, wherein the casing fabric comprises a stretchable, forgiving polyester-cotton blended velour fabric.
10. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 4, wherein said panel of material substantially spans the tri-panel pillow structure on its bottom side.
11. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 10, wherein said panel of material is attached by a stitched seam about the periphery of a bottom casing layer of the tri-panel pillow structure, whereby said pouch is formed between the tri-panel pillow structure and the attached panel of material.
12. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 10, wherein without a separate pillow inserted into the pouch, the attached panel of material lies generally flat against the tri-panel pillow structure so as not to interfere with or add significant bulk to the structure when it is folded up into said stand-alone pillow configuration.
13. The pillow/pillow cover combination of claim 1, in further combination with a tote bag into which the pillow/pillow cover combination may be placed when in its stand-alone pillow configuration.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 3, 2007
Publication Date: Feb 7, 2008
Applicant: Louisville Bedding Company (Louisville, KY)
Inventor: Diane E. Abell (Louisville, KY)
Application Number: 11/833,702
International Classification: A47C 20/00 (20060101); A47G 9/02 (20060101);