Abstract:
The portable head support device of the present invention provides comfortable support for a user&#39;s head while the user is in a sitting potion. The pillow or cushion has a v-shape on the top where a user&#39;s chin can rest so that the head cannot fall forward or sideways but will stay in a comfortable and upright position. The pillow is held in place by hook and loop fasteners located on the pillow and, for instance, on straps extending from behind the user&#39;s back and over the shoulders or wraparound supports wrapped around standard seat belts. The head support can be used in child car seats to keep a child&#39;s head in a safe and stable position while they sleep.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims priority to and the benefit of the filings of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/847,306, entitled “Head Support,” filed on Jul. 17, 2013, and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/874,236 entitled “Head Support,” filed on Sep. 5, 2013, and the specifications thereof are incorporated herein by reference. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The field of the present invention is portable head supports, and more particularly, head supports that support a user&#39;s head in an upright, ergonomically correct, comfortable position, preventing the user&#39;s head from falling forward or sideways while sleeping in an upright or sitting position. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Head support devices are widely used by travelers, children in car seats, and other people that have to sleep with their torso in an upright position, such as while sitting. However, most head supports cannot effectively prevent the user&#39;s head from tilting forward or sideways, which naturally occurs while sleeping in an upright position, or avoid putting pressure on the carotid arteries, jugular veins, or the trachea. In addition, most known devices are held in place with the aid of a neck strap that puts forward pressure on the user&#39;s upper neck region causing discomfort and possibly injuring the vertebrae. In addition, some devices cannot remain in place unless the torso of the user is leaning forward on the device. One particular problem that has not been resolved thus far is that children riding in car seats tend to fall asleep in very uncomfortable positions, e.g. with their head hanging forward, sideways, or lolling to and fro. There are no head supports in the prior art that effectively prevent this problem. 
     For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 5,611,601 to Cowgur discloses a rest pillow for facilitating rest for a person in a sitting position comprising an inflated flexible substantially rectangular compartment, and a strap secured to the sides of the compartment for securing the compartment to the waist of the person using it. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,319 to Parks, Jr., discloses an inflatable pillow on which passengers on commercial carriers may lean forward to rest their head, the pillow substantially occupying the space in front of such passengers. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,394,554 to Hingle discloses a “7”-shaped seat belt pillow which includes a neck-supporting pillow member adapted to be placed behind the head or neck while sitting in a vehicle&#39;s seat along with a secondary body pillow which is angled to approximate the angle of a buckled shoulder restraining strap and adapted to be strapped to the seat belt so it can be hugged by the user. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,625,829 to Zell discloses a chin support pillow for supporting a person&#39;s head in an upright position while sitting including a flexible member that extends around the back of the person&#39;s neck. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,860,563 to Semsch, et al, discloses a device for avoiding or limiting the tilting of the head forwards and/or to the side of a passenger sitting in a seat which has a backrest, having one or more cushion-like elements designed to completely surround the side and front sections of the neck and/or of the head of the passenger and connecting around the back of the backrest or headrest. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 6,973,691 to Cordova discloses a portable elongated support pillow that is crescent shaped at the top and is propped between the chin and lap of a user. There are sling style pockets to accommodate a user&#39;s arms or a strap. 
     Nothing in the prior art provides the unique benefits afforded by the present invention. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Embodiments of the present invention solve the above-described problems by providing a cushion like device, or pillow, that has a v-shape on the top where a user&#39;s chin can rest with the top sides of the cushion extending upward on each side of the user&#39;s chin and jaw area to gently hold the user&#39;s head in a comfortable and upright position. This cushion can be held in place by hook and loop fasteners such as Velcro® located on the back of the cushion and on, for instance, one or more straps extending over the user&#39;s shoulders. Thus, when the cushion is temporarily fastened to the straps, the head support is held in place such that the user&#39;s chin rests on the top of the cushion and the user&#39;s head can be held in an upright position. The straps can be held in place behind the user&#39;s back, for instance they may be attached to an object or connected to each other, so long as they are secure enough to hold the cushion in place once the user rests his or her chin on the cushion. 
     When the user is a small child, the cushion may be held in place by attaching it to one or more seat belts, such as the two over-the-shoulder straps that are used in most child car seats. In this embodiment, two wraparound supports are wrapped around the seat belts in a way that the cushion can be attached to the wraparound supports so that the child&#39;s chin rests comfortably on the cushion. The wraparound supports have a v-shape on the bottom side so that when they are in the closed configuration and strapped around shoulder seat belts, the child seat buckle is easily accessible. Therefore, the head support device of the present invention, particularly when adapted to use in a car seat, is safer than anything in the prior art because the cushion can be easily detached from the shoulder seat belts and the buckle and be opened quickly in order to free a child from his or her car seat in an emergency. 
     Further, the wraparound supports can be used in other embodiments of the present invention, not just child car seats. The wraparound supports can be wrapped around any strap or belt-like object to secure the head support cushion in a position to support a sleeping person&#39;s head. 
     Another embodiment of the invention is one where the cushion can be thicker on the top than on the bottom. In this embodiment, the top of the cushion can be as thick as 4 inches. The fastening means is always on the thinner, bottom, portion of the cushion. Therefore, the cushion can only be installed one way, with the thick end under the chin of the user. This provides an additional safety feature because it is impossible for the cushion to accidentally press against a user&#39;s throat and cause a choking hazard (especially when the user is a child) because of the cushion&#39;s thickness. 
     In the preferred embodiment, the wraparound supports are made of fabric. When in the open configuration, the wraparound supports have an inside, an outside, a top side, and a bottom side. The inside comprised a center portion that is thicker than the side portions and has a surface that is composed of a grip-like fabric. The material that makes the center portion thicker can be a filling of resilient material. The opposing side portions contain opposing hook and loop fastening strips, like Velcro®. The bottom side has an approximately centered upside down v-shape. 
     The wraparound supports can then be moved to the closed configuration by joining the opposing side portions containing opposing hook and loop fastening strips together around the child&#39;s car seat shoulder seat belt. The thickness of the center of the wraparound support, and the fact that the center is covered in a grip-like fabric, prevents the wraparound supports from moving up or down on the seat belts. However, the wraparound supports can intentionally be installed higher or lower on the seat belts depending on the size of the child. Thus, the device of the present invention can be adjusted as the child grows. 
     Also, there is one strip of a hook and loop type fastener, like Velcro®, on a side portion of the outside of each wraparound support so that when it is in the closed configuration and wrapped around the shoulder seat belts, the strip of hook and loop fastener is facing away from the child. The hook and loop fastening strips of the two wraparound supports line up with the hook and loop fastening strips that are located on the back of the cushion so that the cushion can be temporarily, but securely, attached to the wraparound supports. 
     While a hook and loop type fastener, such as Velcro®, is the preferred means for detachably fastening the cushion to the wraparound supports or straps and for keeping the wraparound supports in the closed configuration, any type of fastening device can be used, for instance, buttons, zippers, stitching, tape, and the like, can be used as a fastening means in the present invention. 
     In another embodiment of the present invention, the cushion can be contained in a removable and washable cover. The cushion cover can be installed around the cushion and sealed with a zipper. The cushion cover can then periodically be removed and washed for the purpose of keeping it sanitary. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of the portable head support device comprising the front side of the cushion whose the top portion has a v-shape that can receive the chin of the user, in this case a child in a car seat, and the means for detachably fastening the cushion, which is comprised of two wraparound supports each being wrapped around a car seat shoulder belt. 
         FIG. 2  is a view of the front side of the portable head support device comprising the front side of the cushion, the v-shape on the top side that can receive the chin of a user, and a partial view of the two wraparound supports behind it. 
         FIG. 3  is a view of the back side of the portable head support device comprising the back side of the cushion, the v-shape on the top side that can receive the chin of a user, and the second back side of the two wraparound supports in the closed configuration. 
         FIG. 4  is a perspective view of the portable head support device comprising the front side of the cushion with a v-shape that can receive the chin of a user and the second front side of the two wraparound supports in the closed configuration with the strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device on each second front side. 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of the portable head support device comprising the back side of the cushion with a v-shape on top that can receive the chin of a user, the back side having two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device. The second back side of the two wraparound supports in the closed configuration can also be seen. 
         FIG. 6  is a view of the inside of a wraparound support in the open configuration including the center portion and the two opposing side portions containing opposing hook and loop fastening strips.  FIG. 6  also shows the approximately centered upside down v-shape on the bottom side of the wraparound support. 
         FIG. 7  is a view of the outside of a wraparound support in the open configuration, including the center portion the two side portions, one of the side portions containing a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of the portable head support device comprising the front side of the cushion whose top portion has a v-shape that can receive the chin of the user and the means for detachably fastening the cushion, which is comprised of two flexible straps extending over the shoulder of the user, each strap containing a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device located in a position relative to the user that the cushion&#39;s two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device can be detachably fastened to the straps and the user&#39;s chin can rest in the approximately centered v-shape of the top portion of the cushion. 
         FIG. 9  is a perspective view of the portable head support device comprising the front side of the cushion and the means for detachably fastening the cushion, which is comprised of two flexible straps which are connected to each other. 
         FIG. 10  is a side view of the portable head support device and the means for detachably fastening the cushion to at least one support, which is comprised of two flexible straps containing a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device. 
         FIG. 11  is a side view of one embodiment of the invention where the top portion of the cushion is thicker than the bottom portion and the means for detachably fastening the cushion to at least one support is comprised of the two wraparound supports in the closed configuration. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       FIG. 1  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42 , and a back side  43  (not shown), the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of the user  60 . The means  61  shown in  FIG. 1  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support such that the user&#39;s  60  chin can rest in the approximately centered v-shape  44  of the top portion  40  of the cushion  39  is comprised of the back side  43  (not shown) of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two wraparound supports  20  (only one shown in  FIG. 1 ), each wraparound support  20  being wrapped around a car seat shoulder belt  70  and being detachably fastened to the cushion  39  using a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27  such that the strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27  is located in a configuration relative to the user  60  that the cushion&#39;s  39  at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) can be detachably fastened to the wraparound supports  20  and the user&#39;s  60  chin can rest in the approximately centered v-shape  44  of the top portion of the cushion  40 . 
       FIG. 2  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42  and a back side  43  (not shown), the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  and the means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  (not shown) of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two wraparound supports  20  (partially shown) with a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27  (not shown) on each wraparound support  20 . 
       FIG. 3  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42  (not shown) and a back side  43 , the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of a user  60  (not shown). The at least one means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two wraparound supports  20  in the closed configuration with a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27  (not shown) on each wraparound support  20 . 
       FIG. 4  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42 , and a back side  43  (not shown), the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of a user (not shown). The at least one means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  (not shown) of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two wraparound supports  20  in the closed configuration with the strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27  on each second front side  30  of the closed configuration of the wraparound support  20 . 
       FIG. 5  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42  (not shown), and a back side  43 , the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of a user (not shown). The at least one means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  and the two wraparound supports  20  in the closed configuration. Each second back side  31  of the closed configuration of the wraparound supports  20  is shown. 
       FIG. 6  shows a wraparound support  20  in the open configuration, the wraparound support  20  comprising an inside  21 , an outside  22  (not shown), a top side  23 , and a bottom side  24 , said inside  21  comprising a center portion  25  and two opposing side portions containing opposing hook and loop fastening strips  26 , the center portion  25  being thicker than the side portions  26  and having a surface that is comprised of a grip-like fabric, and said bottom side  24  comprising a second approximately centered upside down v-shape  29 . 
       FIG. 7  shows a wraparound support  20  in the open configuration, the wraparound support  20  comprising an inside  21  (not shown), an outside  22 , a top side  23 , and a bottom side  24 , said outside  22  comprising a center portion  50  and two side portions  51 , one of the side portions containing a strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  27 , and said bottom side  24  comprising a second approximately centered upside down v-shape  29 . 
       FIG. 8  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42  (not shown), and a back side  43 , the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of the user  60 . The means  61  shown in  FIG. 8  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two flexible straps  80 , said straps  80  extending over the shoulder of the user  60 , each strap  80  containing a second strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  81  (not shown) located in a position relative to the user  60  that the back side  43  of the cushion&#39;s  39  at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) can be detachably fastened to the straps  80  and the user&#39;s  60  chin can rest in the approximately centered v-shape  44  of the top portion  40  of the cushion  39 . 
       FIG. 9  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising a cushion  39  having a top portion  40 , a bottom portion  41 , a front side  42  (not shown), and a back side  43 , the top portion  40  having an approximately centered v-shape  44  that can receive the chin of a user  60  (not shown). The means  61  shown in  FIG. 9  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and two flexible straps  80  connected to each other, each strap  80  containing a second strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  81  (location shown by dotted line). 
       FIG. 10  shows the portable head support device  12  comprising the cushion  39  and the means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support, which is comprised of two flexible straps  80 , each strap  80  containing a second strip of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  81 . 
       FIG. 11  is a side view of one embodiment of the invention where the top portion  40  of the cushion  39  is thicker than the bottom portion  41 , and the means  61  for detachably fastening the cushion  39  to at least one support is comprised of the back side  43  of the cushion  39  having at least two strips of one side of a hook and loop fastening device  45  (not shown) and the two wraparound supports  20  in the closed configuration. 
     As used throughout this specification and claims, certain terms have the following definitions: 
     A “v-shape” is not strictly confined to the shape of a “V” and is not intended to limit the object being described to a pointed shape, but rather, the shape may be in the shape of a “U” or a circle or the like, so long as the shape can hold, support or cradle the head of a user. 
     The term “resilient” means able to return to the original form or position after being compressed. 
     The term “grip-like” means a material that possesses a sufficient degree of friction that confers to the material the property of being non-slippery. 
     Whereas the figures and description have illustrated and described the concept and preferred embodiment of the present invention, it should be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the form of the invention without affecting the scope thereof. The detailed description above is not intended in any way to limit the broad features or principles of the invention, or the scope of patent monopoly to be granted.