Foot massage device

The foot massage device is in the general form of an elongated tubular body member that has a plurality of pressure point members disposed on its outer surface. The tubular body is wide enough so that both feet of a person can be applied to the device at the same time. The tubular body has a left end portion, a central portion and a right end portion. The left and right end portions each have a convex outer surface along their longitudinal dimension and the central portion has a substantially constant outer diameter. In the preferred embodiment, the foot massage device has a permanently closed right end and the left end has a removable plug or cap so that either hot or cold fluid may be placed in the hollow tubular body to give the user beneficial results therefrom.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The invention relates to a foot massager and more specifically to one that 
has a sufficient width that allows both of the users feet to be 
simultaneously placed upon the massage device. 
Previous foot massage devices have taken many different forms. The 
Stevenson U.S. Pat. No. 1,481,038, discloses a solid conical member with 
cylindrical members at both its ends. The conical section has a plurality 
of protruberances for massaging the foot. 
The Griffith U.S. Pat. No. 1,780,479, discloses an arch corrector having a 
roller that is mounted between two standards and the roller has a 
plurality of protruberances on its outer surface. 
The Brogan U.S. Pat. No. 2,037,495 discloses a foot massaging device also 
in the form of a solid roller that is mounted between two arms. It has a 
plurality of longitudinally extending ribs having a configuration that 
slopes upwardly from its opposite ends to its center. 
The Illch U.S. Pat. No. 2,080,208 also discloses a foot massaging device in 
the form of a solid longitudinally extending body member having a 
specifically curved portion covered by a resilient layer of material 
having resilient projections that form diamond-shaped suction cups for 
massaging a person's foot. 
It is an object of the invention to provide a novel foot massage device 
that may be filled with either a hot or cold fluid as desired. 
It is also an object of the invention to provide a novel foot massage 
device that allows the user to place both feet on the apparatus at the 
same time. 
It is another object of the invention to provide a novel foot massage 
device that is designed to be utilized by a person in a seated position. 
It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel foot massage 
device that is economical to manufacture and market. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Applicant's novel foot massage device has an elongated tubular body having 
a predetermined length that is sequentially formed by a left end portion, 
a central portion and a right end portion. The left end portion and the 
right end portion each have a convex outer surface along their 
longitudinal dimension. The central portion has a substantially constant 
outer diameter. 
A predetermined number of protruberances are formed along the outer surface 
of the left end portion and the right end portion. These protruberances 
are oriented in a pattern of annular rows that are spaced inwardly from 
the respective ends of the tubular body at the respective axial distances 
L1, L2, L3 and L4. The protruberances of the respective rows are staggered 
so they are not longitudinally aligned. Each row preferrably has seven 
protruberances. 
In one embodiment of the foot massage device, the left and right ends of 
the elongated tubular body are open. In a second embodiment, the right end 
is closed by a permanent end wall. The left end may take the form of a 
plug or cap that is threaded on that end. The interior of this version can 
be filled with a fluid that may be either heated or cooled as desired. The 
version that doesn't contain a fluid could also have its ends open or 
closed off. 
The protruberances function as pressure point members. These members are 
substantially hemi-spherical in shape. The pressure point members may be 
either integrally formed with the tubular structure or separate members 
attached thereto. The entire apparatus may be formed of any desired 
materials, such as wood, aluminum, stainless steel, and the like. 
Depending upon the type of material used, the walls of the tubular body 
could have a uniform wall thickness or it could have wall thickness that 
vary throughout the tubular body. 
In operation, the novel foot massage device is designed to be utilized by a 
person in a seated position. The user places both feet on the apparatus 
and rolls it in order to massage both feet.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Applicant's novel foot massage device will now be described by referring to 
FIGS. 1-3 of the drawing. The foot massage device is generally designated 
numeral 10. 
Foot massage device 10 has a tubular body 12 having a bore 14 that passes 
from its left end 16 to its right end 18. Tubular body 12 has a left end 
portion 20, a central portion 21 and a right end portion 22. The left end 
portion and the right end portion each have a convex outer surface along 
their longitudinal dimensions. The outer ends of the respective left end 
portion and right end portion have a outer diameter DI=2 3/16. The 
diameter of these portions at their maximum width is D2. D3 is the 
diameter of the central portion and it is substantially constant at 21/2 
throughout its length. D4 is the diameter of the bore 14 and it is 13/4". 
A predetermined number of protruberances are formed along the outer surface 
of the left end portion 20 and the right end portion 22. These 
protrubances 30 are oriented in a predetermined pattern of annular rows 
that are spaced inwardly from the respective ends of the tubular body at 
the respective axial distances L1=13/8", L2=2", L3=2 11/16", and L4=31/2". 
The protruberances are approximately 3/8" in diameter. They have a height 
of approximately of 5/32". The protruberances of the respective rows are 
staggered so that they are not longitudinally aligned. In the preferred 
embodiment, there are seven protruberances per each row. Also the length 
of the tubular body is approximately 11". 
An alternative embodiment of the novel foot massage device is illustrated 
in FIG. 2. The foot massage device 40 has a tubular body 12 having a left 
end portion, a central portion, and a right end portion. The right end 
portion is closed by end wall 44. The left end portion is closed by a plug 
46 that is threadably engaged in threaded bore 48. When the plug is 
inserted therein, a closed chamber for a heated or cooled fluid is thus 
provided. 
In FIG. 3 an alternative end for the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2 is 
shown. A cap 50 closes the left end portion and it has external threads 
that are engaged by the threaded bore 52 of the tubular body 42.