Foldable seat cushion and lumbar suport

Abstract

A single sheet waterproof seat cushion is worn around the waist to display a first logo and provide a soft waterproof seat cushion whenever the wearer sits down. The cushion may be folded in half to display a second logo and ease walking with the cushion and it may be rotated to the front to provide an inside space for hand warming.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to foldable seat cushions which are wearable around the waist of the user and more particularly to such cushions which also have other purposes such as lumbar supports and holders of miscellaneous items and for displaying logos advertising sport teams etc.

2. Description of Prior Art

Prior art waist worn seat cushions are known which are foldable, rolled up, or just hanging down from the waist belt.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,651,016 shows a waist worn seat cushion which is folded for compact use and is unfolded to provide a seat cushion. However, there is no teaching therein of any alternate uses of the folded seat cushion such as having advertising areas which are easily replaceable.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,132 shows a waist worn seat cushion which is rolled up when worn and is unrolled when used to provide a seat cushion. It also shows a separate waist mounted compartment for holding miscellaneous items.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,895 shows a seat cushion which is waist worn and has advertising material thereon.

None of the cited patents or any other known waist worn seat cushions provide a one piece cushion having a soft pad insert therein which is foldable to form two pieces making it small and easy to wear and provide alternate uses such as Velcro fastened sports logos on both the folded up and unfolded sections which are easily removed and replaced with another. It may also be used as a lumbar support when flipped up in the folded position against the spine of the wearer while driving to a sport event or anywhere such as home or when flying or being in another auto. An added lumbar wedge section may be inserted with the tip of the wedge against the spine to make a stronger lumbar support.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention solves the previous problems of belt mounted waist worn seat cushions and others by providing a multi-use single sheet foldable seat cushion which provides a waterproof side for placement on a wet seat or grass and a soft comfortable side worn against the wearer's pants. The cushion has a pair of logos one of which appears only when the unfolded cushion is worn and another when the cushion is worn folded. The logos may be stenciled or made to be easily replaced by Velcro mountings. The folded cushion may also be used as a lumbar support when the folded seat cushion is flipped up on the belt to rest against the spine and act as a comfortable lumbar support. It may also be enhanced by adding a wedge shaped insert in the central section padding of the cushion.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a back waterproof side view of the single sheet foldable seat cushion of the present invention.

FIG. 2 shows the soft insert located inside the pillow cushion which has a pocket for adding an additional lumbar support wedge therein.

FIG. 3 shows the cushion of FIG. 1 in the folded position to form a more easily worn cushion on the waist of the wearer and displaying an advertising logo thereon visible only in the folded section

FIG. 4 shows a side view of the FIG. 1 cushion.

FIG. 5 shows a side view of the FIG. 3 cushion.

FIG. 6 shows the cushion of FIG. 1 as worn around the waist of the wearer.

FIG. 7 shows the cushion of FIG. 3 as worn around the waist of the wearer.

FIG. 8 shows the seat cushion and an auxiliary pouch for holding miscellaneous goods both located on the belt worn by the user.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

Referring now to the drawings in general where the showings are for describing preferred embodiment of the invention but are not intended to limit the invention thereto, FIGS. 1 and 6 in particular show that the seat cushion assembly 10 of the present invention is a two sided cushion such as a pillow case. The cushion outside case 12 is made from waterproof material such as plastic to allow the wearer to be dry when sitting on the opposite side surface of the cushion protected from the wet surfaces of the seat covered by the placement of the waterproof surface 12 on the wet seat. FIG. 1 shows the waterproof back side 12 as seen best in the wearable position at FIG. 6 and it is understood that the wearer sits down from this position with the cushion unfolded. The cushion assembly 10 is intended to be worn around the waist of the wearer to thus leave his hands free for other uses such as carrying various items such as beverages. A belt 14 is threaded freely within a loop 16 making the cushion 10 easily flipped or moved along the belt 14 for other uses which will be described later. The belt 14 has a male and a female buckle end 18 making it easily adjusted for various waist sizes. The belt 14 can be made of different materials such as Nylon, leather or other fabric materials so long as the belt is free to move or flip within the loop 16.

As best seen in FIG. 3a at the bottom of the loop 16 a zipper 20 is found which provides access to the inside of the cushion allowing the foam cushion or internal padding 22 to be removed and washed. The foam insert may be upgraded to a weatherproof form. The foam insert makes the cushion soft when sitting on hard surfaces such as cement, bleachers and other sport seats. The foam cushion also has a pocket 24 into which a wedge 26 of hard Styrofoam material may be inserted to enhance the use of the cushion as a lumbar support.

At the bottom of the outside surface is found a screen printed logo 22 visible only when the cushion is unfolded. The logo 22 may also be made with matching Velcro strips on the logo and the case making it easily removed and replaced.

As best seen in FIG. 3 through 5 and 7 the logo 22 is covered when the outside surface 12 of the cushion is folded to have the male Velcro strip 28 engage the female strip 30. The cushion 10 is then formed into a smaller thicker cushion of two surfaces showing the inside soft surface 32 and making it easily worn on the waist so as to make walking easier. The folded inside section 32 of the cushion now displays a second screen printed logo 34 visible only in the folded manner. The second logo could also be made with mating Velcro surfaces making the logo easily removed to display another logo. Thus when going to a football game a football logo of your team may be displayed and when going to a baseball game the logo of that team may be easily replaced with their logo.

As best seen in FIG. 5 when the cushion is folded with the Velcro surfaces 28 and 30 mating an inner area 40 is formed. This inner area 40 may act as a hand warmer when the cushion 10 is rotated on the belt 180 degrees to allow the hands to be easily inserted therein. Also, hand warmers may be stored inside the zipper compartment of the cushion 18 and removed for hand warming. Also, since the belt 14 is movable within the loop 14 the folded cushion may be flipped up against the spine of the wearer to provide a lumbar support while driving to the sporting event or otherwise sitting such as at home. The effect of the lumbar support may be enhanced by placing the wedge shaped elongated wedge device 26 inside the inner surface 22 of the cushion with the sharp edge of the cushion against the spine. The wedge 26 may be also made of a semi hard foam material for comfort.

Referring now to FIG. 8 an accessories pouch 42 is shown fitted to the belt 14 by threading it through loops 46. The pouch has a zipper or Velcro closures 44 for holding the various devices therein. A cell phone could be held there or a separate pouch could be included fitted to the cell phone. These pouches could be moved along the belt to either the front or side of the wearer.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that the cushion of the present invention may be used either at outside or indoor events keeping the wearer dry and warm when seated thereon and may act as a lumbar support when turned up against the waist.

There are many changes and improvements which will become obvious to one of ordinary skill in this art area. It is intended that all such be included in the invention claims of this application.

Claims

1. A portable seat cushion wearable on the waist of a person for providing a soft dry surface for watching sports events comprising:

a cushion having a first waterproof side and a second side with a soft foam cushion center there between;

said cushion being worn on a belt surrounding the person with said waterproof side on the outside and said other side against the person; and

said waterproof side being located on a wet or cold surface whenever the person sits down.

2. A cushion as set forth in claim 1 wherein said waterproof side has a logo thereon visible whenever the person is standing or walking.

3. A cushion as set forth in claim 2 where said logo is mounted to said waterproof surface by mating Velcro strips mounted on said waterproof surface and said logo.

4. A cushion as set forth in claim 1 including mating Velcro strips located at each end of said waterproof surface to allow the cushion to be bent in half by mating said end located Velcro strips allowing easier walking while wearing said cushion.

5. A cushion as set forth in claim 4 wherein a space is formed between said bent halves of said cushion to provide a hand warming area therein when said cushion is rotated on said belt to the front of the person.

6. A cushion as set forth in claim 4 wherein said folded cushion is a lumbar support whenever the cushion is rotated on the belt to an upper position when the person is seated.

7. A cushion as set forth in claim 6 including a wedge shaped pad inserted into the cushion to provide a firmer lumbar support.

8. A cushion as set forth in claim 4 including an ad advertising logo located on the inside surface of the cushion being visible only when the cushion is bent in half.

9. A cushion as set forth in claim 8 wherein said logo is Velcro mounted for easy removal and replacement.

10. A cushion as set forth in claim 1 including an accessories bag mounted on said belt.

11. A cushion as set forth in claim 10 wherein said accessories bag is fitted to hold a cell phone.

12. A one piece waterproof seat cushion worn around the waist of a person comprising the steps of:

wearing a waterproof side of the seat cushion on the outside; and

sitting down on a seat to have the waterproof side between the seat and the person wearing same.

13. A cushion as set forth in claim 12 including the steps of:

standing up and folding the cushion in half to form a space there between;

turning the folded seat cushion around to face the front of the person; and

inserting hands in the space to keep them warm.

14. A cushion as set forth in claim 13 including the steps of:

standing up and walking with the cushion folded to make walking less cumbersome.