This invention relates to a pillow and, more especially, this invention relates to a pillow which is made of a plastics foam material.

Known pillows are made from various materials including feathers and plastics foam material. Known pillows often do not give head and neck support. This may result in persons waking up in the morning with neck, shoulder or back pain.

It is an aim of the present invention to reduce the above mentioned problem.

Accordingly, in one non-limiting embodiment of the present invention there is provided a pillow which comprises a central portion positioned between two side portions, the central portion being made of a plastics foam material, and the central portion comprising a plurality of apertures which define the stiffness of the central portion whereby the central portion posturally supports the head and neck of a person resting their head and neck on the pillow.

With the pillow of the present invention, the head and neck are supported from underneath by the central portion. The apertures can be varied in concentration and/or size in order to give various predetermined degrees of stiffness. Thus a person buying a pillow of the present invention is able to buy a pillow of a required degree of stiffness, for example giving a soft, medium or hard stiffness. The support afforded to the head and neck by the pillow of the present invention enables good sleeping posture, which in turn reduced or eliminates neck and/or shoulder and/or back pain caused by a person sleeping with their head and neck in an incorrect postural position. Also, the apertures allow the pillow to breathe, and this may reduce heat and perspiration from a person using the pillow and sleeping.

The apertures in the pillow will usually be bores. Preferably the bores are of circular cross section but bores of other cross sectional shapes such for example as square, rectangular or elliptical may be employed. Apertures other than bores may also be employed. Thus, the apertures may be of any suitable and appropriate shape.

The bores are preferably through bores extending through both faces of the pillow. This enables the pillow to be turned over whereby either side of the pillow can face upwardly in use. If desired the bores may be blind bores. Where the bores are blind bores, then the bores may enter the pillow from either face of the pillow.

The central portion may be diamond-shaped in plan. Alternatively, the central portion may have a concave front face and/or a concave rear face.

Any suitable and appropriate plastics material may be used. Preferably the plastics material is polyurethane.

The pillow may be one in which the side portions are made of a plastics foam material. Usually, the side portions will then not have any apertures. If desired, the side portions may have apertures but then the central portion will have more apertures, or larger apertures, than the side portion in order that the central portion is of a lesser stiffness than the side portions.

The pillow may be one in which the plastics foam material is a single hardness plastics foam material. The plastics foam material will usually be in one piece. If desired however the plastics foam material could be in two or more pieces with the central portion being formed as an insert between the two side portions. If desired, the pillow could be made of pieces of plastics material of two or more different hardnesses so that, for example, the hardness of the plastics material of the central portion could be less than the hardness of the plastics material of the side portions.

The pillow may be one in which the side portions are made of feather, down, or hollow fibre. The hollow fibre may be used for allergy sufferers.

The pillow may include a cover layer which covers at least the central portion. The cover layer may help to avoid the person feeling the apertures on their head and neck. The cover layer may cover the central portion and the side portions. The cover layer may be made of a plastics foam material. The plastics foam material for the cover layer may be the same as or different from the plastics material of the central portion.

The pillow is preferably constructed such that it is able to be turned upside down whereby either side of the pillow can face upwardly in use.

The pillow may be one in which the central portion has areas which change in stiffness. The central portion may change in stiffness by a change in density and/or a change in thickness and/or a change in the number and/or size and/or shape of the apertures. When the side portions are made of a plastics foam material, then the side portions may change in density in the same way as the central portion. The areas which change in stiffness may allow support for the neck without putting pressure on other areas, for example the vertebrae and nerves. In an alternative embodiment of the invention, the pillow may be one in which the central portion is of a single constant stiffness.

The pillow may be one in which is shaped such that in use it does not come under a person's shoulder blades but has a gap to rise above the shoulders whilst supporting the neck. Generally, the pillow may be one which supports the neck.

Embodiments of the invention will now be described solely by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first pillow of the present invention;

Figure 2 is a section on the line X-X shown in Figure 1 and shows the pillow not in use;

Figure 3 is a section on the line X-X shown in Figure 1 and shows the pillow in use;

Figure 4 is a section on the line Y-Y shown in Figure 1 and shows the pillow not in use;

Figure 5 is a section on the line Y-Y shown in Figure 1 and shows the pillow in use;

Figure 6 is a perspective view of a second pillow of the present invention; Figure 7 is a perspective view of a third pillow of the present invention; and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a fourth pillow of the present invention.

Referring to Figures 1 - 5, there is shown a pillow 2 which is made of a plastics foam material. The pillow 2 comprises a central portion 4 positioned between two side portions 6, 8. The central portion 4 comprises a plurality of apertures in the form of bores 10. The bores 10 cause the central portion 4 to be of a lesser stiffness that the side portions 6, 8 whereby the central portion 4 depresses more than the side portions 6, 8 consequent upon a person 12 resting their head 14 and neck 16 on the pillow 2. This in turn enables the head 14 and the neck 16 to be posturally supported. The person 12 is thus able to sleep comfortably in a good posturally supported position, and to awaken without neck and/or shoulder and/or back pain caused by sleeping with the head and neck not correctly posturally supported.

The side portions 6, 8 do not have apertures. The pillow 2 is formed from a single piece of plastics material having a single hardness. The bores 10 are of circular cross section. The bores 10 are through bores which extend completely through the depth of the pillow 2 from an upper face 18 to a lower face 20. This enables the pillow 2 to be turned over so that the upper and lower faces are then reversed. The central portion 4 is diamond shaped as shown. The central portion 4 and the side portions 6, 8 increase in thickness as shown from front and rear edges of the pillow 2 towards a central portion of the pillow 2. The central portion of the pillow 2 lies on a longitudinal axis of the pillow 2. The plastics material is polyurethane.

Figures 3 and 5 illustrate how the head 14 and the neck 16 of the person 12 are supported during use of the pillow 2. It will be seen that the central portion 4 is depressed more than the side portions 6, 8 due to the central portion 4 being of a lesser stiffness than the side portions 6, 8. The size and/or frequency of the bores 10 can be varied so that the stiffness of the central portion 10 with respect to the side portions 6, 8 is varied to give exactly the depression required by the person 12 using the pillow 2.

Referring now to Figure 6, there is shown a pillow 22 which comprises a central portion 24 and two side portions 26, 28. The central portion 24 comprises a plurality of apertures in the form of bores 30. The bores 30 define the stiffness of the central portion 24 such that the central portion 24 posturally supports the head and neck of a person resting their head and neck on the pillow 22. The side portions 26, 28 are filled with feather and/or down. Alternatively, the side portions 26, 28 may be filled with hollow fibre, with the hollow fibre being useful for allergy sufferers who may be adversely affected by feather and/or down.

The central portion 24 and the side portions 26, 28 may each be 20cm in length, so that the total length of the pillow would then be 60cm. The side portions 26, 28 may be 12 - 14cm at their greatest depth, and they may each be 40cm wide. The filling for the side portions 26, 28 may be other than feather, down or hollow fibre so that, for example, it may be in the form of small pieces of foam material. The filling for the end portions 26, 28 may be contained in sacks of material, for example sacks of cotton material.

The pillow 22 may be such that the end portions 26, 28 feel softer and more luxurious than the side portions 6, 8 of the pillow 2. The pillow 22, as shown in Figure 6, is such that the central portion 24 has a concave upper face 32 and a flat lower face 34. If desired, the lower face 34 may be concave in the same manner as the upper face 32 so that the pillow 22 can be turned over and slept on from either side of the pillow 22.

Referring now to Figure 7, there is shown a pillow 36 which is like the pillow 22 insofar as the pillow 36 has a central portion 38 and two side portions 40, 42. The central portion 38 is provided with bores 44 which are like the bores 30 in the pillow 22. The pillow 36 has an upper face 46 which is basically concave and which is formed by the two curved faces 48, 50 of the side portions 40, 42 respectively and a flat face 52 of the central portion 38. The front edge 54 of the pillow 36 as viewed in Figure 7 extends rearwardly from the upper face 46 towards a lower face 56 of the pillow 36. The inclined front edge 54 enables the shoulders of a person using the pillow 36 to extend under the upper face 46 of the pillow 36, and thus the person's neck is able to fit further onto the pillow 36 and thereby achieve more support than would be the case if the front edge 54 were vertical. The pillow 36 may be 60cm long, with the front edge 54 extending rearwardly by 5cm. Other measurements may be employed.

Figure 8 shows a pillow 58 which is like the pillow 36 shown in Figure 7. Similar parts have been given the same reference numerals for ease of comparison and understanding. In Figure 7, the pillow 36 has the inclined front edge 54, with the opposite edge 60 vertical and not inclined. In Figure 8, the pillow 58 not only has the inclined front edge 54 but it also has a similarly inclined opposite edge 62. With the two inclined edges 60, 62, the pillow 58 is able to be turned around and used in the same manner with either the edge 54 or the edge 62 facing towards a foot of a bed. The pillow 58 may have the same measurements as the pillow 36. The pillows 36, 58 may be made of a foam material or any other appropriate materials.

It is to be appreciated that the embodiments of the invention described above with reference to the accompanying drawings have been given by way of example only and that modifications may be effected. Thus, for example, the bores 10, 30 may be of a cross section other than circular. The central portion 4 may be of a shape other than the illustrated diamond shape in plan and it may thus be, for example, keyhole-shaped in plan or rectangular in plan. The central portion 4, 24 may be made to any required shape, for example circular or rectangular. The central portion 4 may be shaped to fit under a person's shoulder/neck. Plastics materials other than polyurethane may be employed. The central portion 4 may be made from a different piece of plastics material than the side portions 6, 8. The pillows 2, 22 may include a cover layer for ensuring that the bores 10 in the central portions 4, 24 are not felt by the person 12 in use of the pillows 2, 24. Individual components shown in the drawings are not limited to use in their drawings and they may be used in other drawings and in all aspects of the invention.