Abstract:
A pillow retention system includes a blanket member having a first side, an opposing second side, a first end and a second end, a first attachment member attached to a first side of the blanket member at the second end, and a second attachment member attached to the second side between the first and second ends, wherein the first attachment member and second attachment member cooperate to retain the pillow wrap around a rolled pillow.

Description:
REFERENCE TO RELATED CASE 
       [0001]    This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 (e) to provisional application No. 62/179,192 filed on Apr. 29, 2015, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
     
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Many people have a favorite pillow and sleeping on another pillow simply does not allow the user to sleep as comfortably or as well as when the person has that favorite pillow. Traveling potentially provides a conundrum for those with a favorite pillow—lug your favorite pillow around (exposing it to dirt, germs, and potentially losing it) or sleep on an unfamiliar pillow. Moreover, some of the pillows may be large and, when traveling, space may be an issue, especially on airplanes. Thus, when traveling with a favorite pillow, it becomes necessary to utilize a method of compaction in order to transport the item more efficiently. Several methods have been attempted in the past which involve rolling, attachment to ancillary stiffeners, and compressing the pillow into a temporary container. These other methods are too cumbersome, ineffective or troublesome to use. Thus, a new device is presented and offers novel improvements in all these areas, using a simple compression retention method, and re-useable packaging. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0003]    The present invention is directed to pillow wrap that includes a blanket member having a first side, an opposing second side, a first end and a second end, a first attachment member attached to a first side of the blanket member at the second end, and a second attachment member attached to the second side between the first and second ends, wherein the first attachment member and second attachment member cooperate to retain the pillow wrap around a rolled pillow. 
         [0004]    In some embodiments, there is also included a resealable container, the resealable container configured to receive the pillow wrap wrapped around a pillow. 
         [0005]    In some other embodiments, the first attachment member is a hook portion of a hook-and-loop fastener and the second side of the blanket member has loop portions of the hook-and-loop fastener 
         [0006]    In other embodiments, the attachment members may include a zipper or snaps. 
         [0007]    It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the following detailed description of the present embodiments of the invention are intended to provide an overview or framework for understanding the nature and character of the invention as it is claimed. The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention, and are incorporated into and constitute a part of this specification. The drawings illustrate various embodiments of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles and operations of the invention. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of one embodiment of a roll-up pillow and retention system that includes a pillow wrap and transportation container according to the present invention; 
           [0009]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the pillow wrap in  FIG. 1  beginning to wrap a pillow; 
           [0010]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a wrapped pillow to be inserted into a transportation container having indicia thereon; 
           [0011]      FIG. 4  is a top plane view of the first and second sides of the pillow wrap of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 5  is a top plane view of first and second sides of another embodiment of a pillow wrap according to the present invention; 
           [0013]      FIG. 6  is a front perspective view of the pillow wrap in  FIG. 5  encasing a pillow; and 
           [0014]      FIG. 7  is a front perspective view of another embodiment of a pillow wrap using a zipper to secure the pillow wrap around a pillow. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0015]    Reference will now be made in detail to the present preferred embodiment(s) of the invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings. Whenever possible, the same reference numerals will be used throughout the drawings to refer to the same or like parts. 
         [0016]      FIGS. 1-3  illustrate a first embodiment of a system  10  according to the present invention. The system  10  includes a pillow wrap  12  and a transportation container  14 . The system  10  may also include a pillow  16 , but the user of this system  10  may provide their own pillow to be used therein. The pillow wrap  12  preferably includes a soft material that can be easily folded and manipulated, is washable, and, as noted below, can have other indicia included on at least one surface. Further in this regard, the pillow wrap  12  has a first side  18  and a second side  20 . See  FIG. 2 . The pillow wrap  12  also has a first end  22  and a second end  24 . The pillow wrap  12  is longer than pillow  16  that is to be wrapped up in pillow wrap  12 . The pillow wrap  12  is at least as wide as the standard pillow (or even a king size pillow) to keep the pillow from being dirtied. On the first side  18  at the second end  24  is a first attachment member  26 . As illustrated in  FIGS. 1-3 , the first attachment member  26  is one portion of a hook-and-loop fastener. More specifically, in  FIGS. 1-3  the first attachment member  26  is the hook portion of the hook-and-loop fastener. The second side  20  is preferably made from a material that has loops that function as the loop portion of the hook-and-loop fastener and becomes the second attachment member  28 . This provides the advantage that when the pillow wrap  12  is wrapped around the pillow  16 , the first attachment member  26  can hook to any location on the second side  20  of the pillow wrap  12 . The wrapped pillow  16  can then be inserted into the transportation container  14 . 
         [0017]    As illustrated, the transportation container  14  has configuration similar to that of the wrapped pillow  16 —a right cylinder. Transportation container  14  has the main body  30  and a top  32 , the top  32  being secured to the main body  30  with a zipper  34 . The top  32  could be secured to the main body  30  by other means. Additionally, while the top  32  is illustrated as a small right cylinder, it could also be just a flat disc. Other configurations are possible as long as transportation container  14  is sealed. The transportation container  14  may also include advertising, names, or any other appropriate indicia  40 . The transportation container  14  may be made of any appropriate materials including, for example, transparent final, fabric, plastic, etc., in may either be transparent or opaque. 
         [0018]    An alternative embodiment of a pillow wrap  112  is illustrated in  FIG. 4 . In this embodiment, pillow wrap  112  has as a first attachment member  126  the loop portion of a hook-and-loop fastener. The first attachment member  126  is disposed on the first side  118  at the second end  124 . A number of second attachment members  128  are disclosed on the second side  120  of the pillow wrap  112  between the first end  122  and the second end  124 . The second attachment members  128  are the hook portion of the hook-and-loop fastener. Having a number of the second attachment members  128  spaced along the length of the pillow wrap  112  allows the pillow wrap  112  to be used with pillows having different thicknesses. As in the first embodiment, it would be possible to have the second side made from the hook portion of the hook-and-loop fastener, but it would be rough, scratchy, and hard. Thus, having a limited amount of surface space for the hook portion as second attachment members  128  is preferable. As noted in  FIG. 4 , the second side  120  may also have displayed thereon advertising, names, or any other appropriate indicia  140 . Applicant notes that putting an indicia  140  on the the hook portion of a hook-and-loop fastener is more difficult than that the loop portion. 
         [0019]    A second alternative embodiment of pillow wrap  212  is illustrated in  FIGS. 5 and 6  In this embodiment, pillow wrap  212  has as a first attachment member  226  one portion of a snap closure. The first attachment member  226  is disposed on the first side  218  at the second end  224  may be a plurality of either the stud portion or the socket portion of a snap closure. The second attachment member  228  includes a plurality of the other of the stud portion or socket portion of a snap closure. A number of rows of the second attachment member  228  are included on the second side  220  to allow for the variation in pillow size. 
         [0020]    A third alternative embodiment of a pillow wrap  312  is illustrated in  FIG. 7 . In this embodiment, pillow wrap  312  has as first and second attachment members  326 ,  328  portions of a zipper. As illustrated, the pull tab and slider body of the zipper are disposed at the second end  324  on the zipper tape that is the first attachment member  326 . There are a number of corresponding zipper tapes that are the second attachment members  328  spaced along the second side of the pillow wrap  312 . While it would be possible to have a pull tab and slider body on each of the second attachment members  328 , they would pose a number of issues in that configuration: higher cost for more pull tabs and slider bodies, catch on the transportation container  14  or other structures, would make noise as they moved around, etc. Thus, it is preferable to have the pull tab and slider body on the first attachment member  326 . 
         [0021]    It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made to the present invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Thus it is intended that the present invention cover the modifications and variations of this invention provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.