BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of Invention

The present invention relates to headrests in general and in particular to a method and apparatus for supporting the head of a user in an upright position.

2. Description of Related Art

Travel has become a common part of modern life for many people both for business and recreation. Common forms of travel include, airline, railway, bus or automobile. Often, such travel may take place over a long duration during which a traveler may wish to sleep to pass the time.

Conventional means of sleeping during travel has been to lean back against their seat back. Such method however is known to produce sore backs and necks due to the uncomfortable sleeping position required by such seat backs. Additionally, due to the need to accommodate multiple people, limitations in the degree to which current seat designs may be reclined reduces the ability of a user to achieve a substantially comfortable sleeping position.

One previous attempt to provide a means for a user to sleep during travel has been to provide a pillow supported by legs which are braced against another object, such as the user's legs. An example of such a design is illustrated in U.S. Patent Application Publication US2002/0050009 published May 2, 2002 and filed by Jonathan J. Ley. The Ley design however, only utilizes two points of support contact at the bottom thereof. Therefore, such designs rely upon the user's own body to provide forwards and backwards stability which may be less desirable to some users. Additionally, the Ley design includes folding legs which protrude from the pillow in a folded position. Such folded legs may be undesirable to a user's as being both bulky and prone to catching on object during storage and transportation. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to a first embodiment of the present invention there is disclosed an apparatus for supporting a head of a user during travel comprising a base, a head support platform and at least one upright selectably locatable between said base and said head support platform.

The head support platform may be mateable with the base. The head support platform may be mateable with the base about a periphery thereof.

The base and the head support platform may form a cavity therebetween when mated together. The at least one upright may be storable within the cavity formed between the base and the head support pad. One of the base or head support platform may include retainers for retaining the at least one upright in the cavity. The retainers may comprise at least one set of fingers adapted to grip the at least one upright therebetween.

The head support platform may have a padded top surface. The base and the head support platform may have substantially round shapes.

The at least one upright may comprise a plurality of uprights. The plurality of uprights may be endwise connectable to each other. The at least one upright may include a substantially straight section and a pivotable section. The pivotable section may be located proximate to the head support platform when located between the base and the head support platform. The at least on upright may be receivable in sockets in each of the base and the head support platform. According to a further embodiment of the present invention there is disclosed a method of supporting a head of a user comprising providing a base, engaging a first end of at least one upright upon the base and engaging a head support platform upon a second end of the at least one upright. Other aspects and features of the present invention will become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review of the following description of specific embodiments of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In drawings which illustrate embodiments of the invention wherein similar characters of reference denote corresponding parts in each view,

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an apparatus for supporting the head of a user during travel according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the apparatus of Figure 1. Figure 3 is cross sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in an open or operational position.

Figure 4 is cross sectional view of the apparatus of Figure 1 in a closed or transportable position.

Figure 5 is a perspective view of a user resting their head on the apparatus of Figure 1 as supported by a table.

Figure 6 is a perspective view of an apparatus for supporting the head of a user during travel according to a further embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring to Figures 1 and 5, an apparatus for supporting the head of a user according to a first embodiment of the invention is shown generally at 10. The apparatus 10 comprises a base 12, a head support platform 30 and at an upright 50 extending therebetween. The base 12 may be located on a table 8 or the like a user may rest their head 6 upon the head support platform 30.

The base 12 comprises a substantially planar bottom panel 14 and an outer wall 16 extending around a periphery thereof. The bottom panel 14 and outer wall 16 define an inner cavity 18 therein. A bottom socket 20 is located on the bottom panel 14 within the inner cavity 18 and extends substantially perpendicularly upwardly therefrom. The bottom socket 20 includes an inner bore 22 bore sized to receive the upright 50 therein as will be more fully described below. The base also includes a first pin 21 having a tapered end portion 27 and a first socket 23 extending therefrom having a bore 25 therein as will be more fully described below.

The base 12 may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non- limiting example, plastic, metal ceramics or composite materials. It will be appreciated that the thickness of the base should be selected to have sufficient strength while also having a low enough weight to be suitably transportable by a user. The base may be formed by any known suitable method, such as, by way of non-limiting example moulding, casing or machining. It will also be appreciated that the bottom panel 14, outer wall 16, bottom socket 20, first pin 21 and first socket 23 of the base 12 may be co- formed as a single unit or may be connected or joined together to form the base. Optionally, the base may also include pads 28, such as, by way of non- limiting example, rubber pads or the like to provide stability and grip to the bottom of the base on the desired surface.

The head support platform 30 may be formed of a top plate 32 (as illustrated in Figure 5 with an outer wall 34 extending around a periphery thereof. The top plate 32 and outer wall form a top cavity 36 therein. As illustrated, the head support platform 30 includes a cushioned top surface 38. With reference to figure 3, the head support platform 30 includes a top socket 40 extending generally downwardly therefrom. The top socket 40 includes an inner bore 42 bore sized to receive the upright 50 therein as will be more fully described below. The top socket 40 may extend substantially perpendicularly from the top plate 32 although it will be appreciated that it may also angularly extend therefrom as well. The head support platform 30 also includes a second pin 31 having a tapered end portion 37 and a second socket 33 extending therefrom having a bore 35 therein as will be more fully described below. The head support platform 30 may include an outer rim 44 extending around the top plate 32 in an opposite direction to the outer wall 34. The outer rim 44 has a height sufficient to retain the cushion 38 therein. The cushion 38 should be selected to extend above the outer rim 44 to a height sufficient to provide a comfortable support for the user's head 6. The cushion may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non-limiting example, foam, cotton, hair, feathers, polyester fiber or the like. The head support platform 30 may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non-limiting example, plastic, metal ceramics or composite materials. It will be appreciated that the thickness of the head support platform should be selected to have sufficient strength while also having a low enough weight to be suitably transportable by a user. It will also be appreciated that the top panel 32, outer wall 34, top socket 40, second pin 31 and second socket 33 of the head support platform 30 may be co-formed as a single unit or may be connected or joined together to form the base.

The upright 50 may be formed of one or more inserts 52 and 54 which extend between the bottom panel 14 and the top panel 32. The inserts 52 and 54 may be slidably received within the top and bottom sockets 20 and 40 and are also connectable to each other as illustrated. Optionally, the upright 50 may be formed of a first substantially straight section 52 and a second pivotable section 54. As illustrated, the inserts 52 and 54 are substantially tubular, although it will be appreciated that other shapes may be useful as well, such as, by way of non-limiting example, square, triangular, oval, octagonal or irregular. The inserts may be formed of any suitable material, such as, by way of non-limiting example, plastic, metal, ceramics or composite materials. The inserts 52 and 54 may be selected to provide a height of the apparatus 10 as desired by the user. The second pivotable section may be formed of first and second plates, 56 and 58 respectively secured to first and second plugs, 60 and 62, respectively. The first plug 60 may be received within an end of the straight section while the second plug 62 is received within the top socket 40. A thumb screw 66 or other suitable fastener may be passed through first and second bores,68 and 70, respectively in the first and second plates 56 and 58 to pivotally secure them to each other. In operation, a user may loosen the thumb screw so as to angularly orient the first and second plates to each other at a desired angle and thereafter tighten the thumb screw so as to fix the desired angle.

With reference to Figure 4, the outer wall 34 of the head support platform 30 may be selected to have a size sufficient to receive the outer wall 16 of the base therein such that the head support platform 30 and base 12 are nestable with each other. When nested together, the head support platform 30 and base 12 form a compact structure which is adapted to be stored and transported. As illustrated in Figures 3 and 7, the cavities 18 and 36 of the base 12 and head support platform 30 are combined in such a position and will have a spacing sufficient to receive the uprights 52 and 54. The outer walls 16 and 34 of the base 12 and head support platform 30 may be securable to each other in a stored position by pressing the tapered portion 27 of the first pin 21 into the bore 35 of the second socket 33 and also by pressing the tapered portion 37 of the second pin 31 into the bore 25 of the first socket 23. Although, the head support platform 30 and base 12 are illustrated as being substantially circular in cross section, it will be appreciated that other shapes may be useful as well, such as, by way of non-limiting example, square, triangular, oval, octagonal or irregular. Turning now to Figure 6, one of the base 12 or head support platform 30 may include retainers 80 for retaining the upright 50 within the cavity 18 in a stored configuration. The retainers 80 may be formed of a pair of spaced apart arms 82 with a gap or space 84 therebetween. The gap 84 is sized to securely grip an upright 50 located therebetween and may be biased towards each other. Optionally, the arms 82 may be have a profile corresponding to the cross section of the upright and may include distal ends closer together than the width of the upright as is commonly known in the art to as to assist in securely retaining the upright therein. As illustrated in Figure 6, two sets of arms 82 may be utilized although it will be appreciated that other quantities may also be utilized, such as, by way of non-limiting example, 1 or 3 or more.

In operation, as illustrated by Figure 2, when a user desires to use the support, they may remove the head support platform 30 from the base and the inserts 52 and 54 from the cavity 18 of the base 12. Thereafter they may insert the first insert 52 into the bottom bracket 20 and the second insert 54 into the top end of the first insert. The top socket 40 of the head support platform 30 may then be placed over the top end of the second insert 54. A user may then place the apparatus 10 on a table or the like so as to support their head as desired. When the user is completed using the apparatus, the head support platform 30 and first and second inserts 52 and 54 may be removed from each other. The first and second inserts may then be stored within the bottom cavity 18 and the head support platform 30 secured over the base for storage and transportation.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated, such embodiments should be considered illustrative of the invention only and not as limiting the invention as construed in accordance with the accompanying claims.