Patent Publication Number: US-6336236-B1

Title: Snuggle pillow

Description:
This pillow relates to a pillow to be used by couples when they seek to snuggle and engage in “pillow talk” as it were. The pillow is especially designed for allowing both closeness and comfort while engaging in intimate discourse about topics of the couple&#39;s choice. 
     Henceforth, pillows were designed with only one sleeper in mind. The typical pillow is designed for use by one sleeper and is usually not large enough for two people to share. When two people lie facing one another there is the problem of how to stay comfortable. Using conventional pillows, people will tend to extend the lower arm above their head under the pillow so as to provide support for the head and pillow. Such an arrangement results in the circulation to the arm being cut off with a sharp rise in discomfort. When two pillows are used each participant extends an arm under his or her pillow with the resulting circulation problems and with the added problem of not being able to be too close to one another due to the abutting pillows. If a pillow is folded the folded up portion tends to abut the other&#39;s head and in general is not satisfactory. Folding each others arms in front of one another also forces the couple apart as the folded arms require space. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     There have been several attempts to design modified pillows for various reasons. The patent to Sumpler, U.S. Pat. No. 3,883,906, shows such a design. The Sumpler patent is designed for one user and allows for him to extend his arms outward over his head when lying in a prone position. The design is for one person only and only allows the user to employ it while he or she is in a prone position, flat on one&#39;s stomach. It is difficult to see how one could use it while sleeping on one&#39;s side. 
     U.S. Design Pat. No. 381,234, shows a pillow for two users, a human and a pet. One section of the pillow is elevated and the other is of a lower height. There is no provision shown for two humans and no arm passageways. 
     The patent to Ryndak, U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,862, shows a pillow configured for one user but having different portions that allow for a sleeper to attain maximum comfort whether he be on his right side, left side or back. The pillow allows the head to be supported at different levels for side versus back use. 
     Another version of a specially designed pillow for one user by the same inventor, Ryndak, is shown in U.S. Design Pat. No. 387,599, which shows a two level pillow for supporting a persons head. 
     The U.S. Pat. No. 5,604,944, to Meade, shows a head rest which is adapted to be placed atop the arm and allow one person to rest his head on the device without impeding circulation. 
     None of the background art shows a pillow designed for two people which allows them to snuggle while providing a place for their respective arms without cutting off the circulation to them and further providing adustability in height to each of the people. 
     GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The instant invention allows for two people to snuggle and get cozy without the usual attendant problems of losing all semblance of comfort in the process. The instant pillow may be constructed of one piece material suitable in characteristics to support the users head(s) and allow for extension of their respective arms. The pillow has arm passages which allow for one arm to cross over the other arm in a central chamber and has extension chambers which allow for one&#39;s hands to reside comfortably within the confines of the pillow. An added bonus is that as the arms and,hands are covered the users do not have to worry about chill on those cool or cold evenings when they are using the pillow. The remaining arms are extended alongside their respective bodies and in the winter are safely ensconced under blankets or a comforter. 
     The pillow is also adjustable to accommodate different sized people and has stuffed pads which can vary in thickness and are attached to the main pillow by Velcro fasteners or the like. These pads allow for larger framed people to select a thick pad to facilitate their head and shoulder size while more petite frames may not even need a pad to find a comfortable position on the pillow. 
     The pillow can be fabricated of a solid material with appropriate arms holes and chambers or it can be fashioned of a cover material with apertures in which to stuff padding to conform it to the intended user&#39;s frames to make more of a custom fitted article. It can be made of Styrofoam or stuffed with Styrofoam, ticking, goose feathers or other like material generally used in standard pillows. 
     A side benefit of this pillow is that if one of the users is absent the other can use it as an individual pillow which allows for extension of the arm and adjustablity of the height for that user alone. 
     OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
     Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a pillow for use by two individuals in a manner to accommodate frontal closeness while facing one another while lying on their sides. 
     It is another object of this invention to provide a pillow for allowing a pair of users arms to cross through and underneath or within the pillow so as to allow for comfort and free circulation of blood within their respective arms. 
     Yet another object of this invention is to provide a two user pillow which can be adjusted for user frame variances by attaching pads to the top surface of the pillow or by increasing the stuffing of the interior or both. 
     A further object of this invention is to provide a pillow for multiple users which can be used by one user when the other user is absent. 
     Still another object of this invention is to provide a multiple user pillow which allows for custom fitting and maximum comfort to the users. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     These and other objects will become apparent when reference is had to the accompanying drawings in which 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the pillow  10  of this invention showing pads  30  and  31  atop it, 
     FIG. 2 is a cross sectional view taken along line  2 — 2  of FIG.  1  and showing the configuration of the pillow, 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the pillow of FIG. 1 showing the internal passageways through which users arms extend, 
     FIG. 4 is the same view as FIG. 3 but showing two users in position using the pillow to facilitate face-to-face closeness. 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a second embodiment of the invention showing multiple apertures for arms to extend through, 
     FIG. 6 is the same view as FIG. 5 but showing a couple using the pillow for closeness, 
     FIG. 7 is a plan view of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, 
     FIG. 8 is a plan view of the second embodiment of the invention as shown FIG. 5, 
     FIG. 9 is a cross sectional view taken along line  9 — 9  of FIG. 8, 
     FIG. 10 is a cross sectional view taken along line  10 — 10  of FIG. 9, and 
     FIG. 11 is a front view of the pillow shown in FIG.  1 . 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Referring now to FIG. 1 there is shown a perspective view of the first embodiment of a pillow  10 . The pillow has a top surface  11  and a series of openings,  12 ,  13 ,  14  and  15  along the front of the pillow. A series of strips  16  hold Velcro™ or similar contact adherence materials to engage with a corresponding series of strips  17  on two pads  30  and  31  which rest atop the pillow. The attaching strips  16 / 17  hold the pads in place. 
     Each pad  30  and  31  has a zippered opening  19  into which may be stuffed pad or pillow stuffing material such as ticking, goose down, or a similar plastic stuffing. Pillow  10  also has a zippered opening  18  into which similar stuffing may be placed to conform the pillow to the shape and frame of a user. The philosophy of the pillow use is to make it as comfortable as possible and to accomplish that result, padding may be added or subtracted to accommodate the shape of the user. 
     FIG. 2 shows a cross-sectional view of the pillow. Zippered enclosure can be opened as shown to allow insertion of resilient material such as  20 . A chamber  21  is formed under the pillow which is supported by portions such as  22 . 
     FIGS. 3 and 4 show the pillow in more detail with the passageways through which users arms protrude shown in detail. As shown, opening  12  opens into passageway  34 , opening  13  opens into passageway  35 , opening  14  opens into passageway  36  and opening  15  opens into passageway  37 . Separating passageways  34 ,  35 ,  36  and  37  are protrusions  38 ,  39  and  40 . A large chamber  21  is formed in and underneath the pillow which also has subchambers  32  and  33  for accommodating users hands once their arms are extended beneath the pillow and are crossed. FIG. 4 shows the pillow in use with a man M and female W lying face to face and using the pillow to accommodate their arms such as WA. Their heads MH and WH lie upon the pillow pads which may have stuffing inserted or removed to accommodate their head and shoulder sizes. 
     FIGS. 5 and 6 show a second embodiment of the pillow as  40 . Pillow  40  has a series of openings  41 ,  42 ,  43  and  44  along the front edge thereof which open into a series of passageways,  52 ,  53 ,  54  and  55 . They are separated by protruding portions  60 ,  61  and  62  and, in turn, communicate with a large chamber  49 . On the back side of the pillow  40  are a series of openings  45 , 46 ,  47  and  48  which communicate with passageways  59 ,  58 ,  57 , and  56 , respectively, and in turn open into chamber  49 . Chamber  49  and the various passageways allow users to cross their arms over as in pillow  10  and leave their hands in areas  50  and  51  or to extend them through and out of the pillow as shown in FIG. 6 to as to hold hands. The users M and W have their arms such as WA extending through the pillow and have their hands, MHA and WHA, outside so as to be able to hold hands. Their other arms and hands, not shown, extend in through the pillow by openings  42  and  43  allowing them to snuggle closer. Pillow  40  thus provides several options on how a couple will place their hands and arms both as a matter of choice and of comfort. 
     FIG. 7 shows the pillow  10  in plan view with all the passageways shown in dotted lines. The protrusions  38 ,  39  and  40  separate the passageways. A cross section of a portion of the pillow is shown in FIG. 10 showing the hand chamber  33  and the pad  30 . FIG. 11 shows the front view of pillow  10 . 
     FIG. 8 shows the pillow  40  in plan view with all the passageways shown in dotted lines. Protrustions  60 ,  61  and  62  separate the front passageways and protrusions  63 ,  64  and  65  separate the rear passageways. 
     While only two embodiments of this invention have been shown and described it will be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art that many changes and modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.