Abstract:
A microwaveable thermo-therapeutic cushion for placing on a body is disclosed. The thermo-therapeutic cushion comprises a flexible closed shell partially filled with a plurality of legume seeds. The plurality of legume seeds are operative to store heat upon being subjected to microwaves from a microwave oven and slowly release it to the body through the shell. The legume seeds may be lentils.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
       [0001]    The present invention generally relates to the field of therapeutic equipment. More specifically, the invention relates to a thermo-therapeutic cushion for transferring heat to an external part of a body. 
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    Providing heat to an aching human body part is a known method of pain relief. Long time ago, people would use a heated stone, wrap it in a piece of leather and place the leather against the aching body part. More recently, thermo-therapeutic cushions have been introduced to perform the same task. The principle, however, remains always the same: a material capable of storing heat is wrapped inside an envelope that somewhat isolates the heated material, thereby slowly conducting heat to the contacting body part. Because they are flexible and contain cereal grains, these newer thermo-therapeutic cushions are convenient as they conform well to different body parts. They are also easier to heat than the stones of the old ages. 
         [0003]    Such thermo-therapeutic cushions have been in use for a while. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,300,104 to Gaudreault discloses a flexible thermo-therapeutic pad that uses oats with precise water content. The oats is contained in a fabric envelope and is heatable in a microwave oven. Using oats, however, has some drawbacks: many people complain of the smell of oats when heated. Furthermore, although oats performs reasonably well, it would always be beneficial to find a type of particle having a higher thermal inertia, thereby being capable of releasing its heat over a longer period of time. 
         [0004]    There is therefore a need for a means to provide heat to a human body part that does not smell oats when heated and that transfers its heat over an extended period of time. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0005]    It is an object of the present invention to provide a thermo-therapeutic cushion that overcomes or mitigates one or more disadvantages of known thermo-therapeutic cushions, or at least provides a useful alternative. 
         [0006]    The present invention provides the advantages of being capable of providing heat to a human body part while not releasing a smell of heated oats. Furthermore, the present invention provides the advantage of transferring its heat over an extended period of time. 
         [0007]    In accordance with an embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a microwaveable thermo-therapeutic cushion for placing on a body. The thermo-therapeutic cushion comprises a flexible closed shell and a plurality of legume seeds enclosed in the shell. The plurality of legume seeds are operative to store heat upon being subjected to microwaves from a microwave oven and slowly release it to the body through the shell. The shell is partially filled with the plurality of legume seeds so as to remain flexible. 
         [0008]    In accordance with an aspect of the present invention, the legume seeds may be lentils. The shell may be made of a fabric such as cotton. The shell is preferably filled between 60% and 85% by volume with legume seeds. More preferably, the shell is filled at 75% by volume with legume seeds. 
         [0009]    In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the cushion may be equipped with a strap attached to the shell for securing the cushion over the body. The strap may be stretchable. The strap may comprises attaching means at each end of the strap for conveniently attaching its ends together. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS 
         [0010]    These and other features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings wherein: 
           [0011]      FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a thermo-therapeutic cushion in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0012]      FIG. 2  is a perspective view of the thermo-therapeutic cushion of  FIG. 1  in use. 
           [0013]      FIG. 3  is a perspective view of a thermo-therapeutic cushion in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. 
           [0014]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of a thermo-therapeutic cushion in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0015]    In the present description of the invention, the term legume seed is understood to mean a legume seed that is in naturally dried, mature state. This is by opposition to a legume seed that would be in its fresh, immature state. 
         [0016]    The present invention relates to a microwaveable thermo-therapeutic cushion capable of transferring heat so as to soothe an aching body part of a person by placing the cushion against the body part. The cushion is made of a closed shell containing in its inside volume a plurality of legume seeds having a thermal inertia that allows them to store heat and slowly release it to the body part. 
         [0017]      FIG. 1  depicts a first embodiment of the invention. A thermo-therapeutic cushion  10 , looking much like a bag, is made of a closed shell  12  containing a plurality of naturally dried legume seeds  14 . The closed shell  12  is heat-resistant and flexible. The closed shell  12  may be manufactured by cutting a rectangular piece of cloth, folding it in two, and sewing together both layers on its open edges  16 . The closed shell  12  may be made in any other convenient way. The closed shell  12  may also take many shapes or forms to better suit certain parts of a human body.  FIG. 2 , which is concurrently referred to, shows an example of the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10 , where the closed shell  12  may be narrow and elongated to better suit a neck and shoulders area. Similarly, the closed shell  12  could be shaped more like a square to better fit a lumbar area. It may also be smaller to fit smaller body parts, such as a hand, for example. The closed shell  12  must be made of a heat resistant material as it is in contact with the legume seeds  14 , which release heat during use. If air is present inside the closed shell  12 , the shell material may be porous so as not to explode from internal pressure created from the expansion of air when heated. The shell material must not have a high heat conductivity (such as aluminum, for example), which would risk burning the body parts. On the other hand, the shell material must not have a too low heat-conductivity either, which would impair the heat transfer from the legume seeds to the body part. The closed shell  12  must also be flexible so as to conform to the different body parts. Certain types of fabrics have been successfully used as a shell material. Preferably, 100% natural fibers materials, such as cotton or fleece are used. 
         [0018]    The legume seeds  14  must be of a type having a relatively large thermal inertia in order to store heat and slowly release it to the body part. The legume seeds  14  must be dry so as not to stick together and not to rot. Therefore, legume seeds  14  must be used in their dry, mature state rather than in their fresh, immature state. The closed shell  12  must only be partially filled with legume seeds  14  so as to allow a free flow of the legume seeds  14  inside the closed shell  12 . Typically, the closed shell  12  is filled by volume between 60% and 85% with the legume seeds  14 . It has been found that filling the closed shell  14  to 75% of the volume provides good results. The free flow of legume seeds  14 , combined with the fact that the shell  12  is flexible, allow the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  to conform to the shape of the body part. 
         [0019]    Different types of legumes seeds  14  may be used. For example, it has been found that using lentils as the legume seeds  14  provided good results. 
         [0020]    In use, the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  is placed 2 minutes at maximum power in a microwave oven. The thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  is then removed from the oven and placed over a body part. Alternatively, the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  may also be placed in a cold place, such as a refrigerator or a freezer. Similarly, the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  is removed from the cold place and placed on a body part for treatment with cold. 
         [0021]    Turning now to  FIG. 3 , there is depicted another embodiment of the invention where the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  is equipped with a strap  18  in order to secure the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  over a body part. The strap  18  may be made of two parts, sewn to opposed ends of the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10 , or be of a single part, sewn across the shell  12 . The strap  18  may be stretchable so as to stretch over a body part, such as a head. Alternatively, the strap  18  may be divided in two half-straps  19  and equipped with attaching means  20  at each free end of the half-straps  18 . 
         [0022]      FIG. 4  depicts a variant of a strap-equipped thermo-therapeutic cushion. In this embodiment, the strap  18  is integrally made with the shell  12 . The shell  12  is horizontally sown on itself at two locations  22  in order to create three thinner horizontal tubes  24 , thereby preventing the legume seeds  14  inside the shell  12  to run all the way to the bottom of the shell  12  when the thermo-therapeutic cushion  10  is in working position such as across the back of the user, for example. Each half-strap  19  is equipped with matching bands  26  of Velcro®, which may be adjusted to fit snugly over a body part of the user. 
         [0023]    The present invention has been described with regard to preferred embodiments. The description as much as the drawings were intended to help the understanding of the invention, rather than to limit its scope. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that various modifications may be made to the invention without departing from the scope of the invention as described herein, and such modifications are intended to be covered by the present description.