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Claims  |
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What is claimed is:
1. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position adapted
to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support together, and including connecting means interconnecting
said cushions of said leg and foot support together.
2. The recliner of claim 1 wherein:
said cushions of said leg and foot support are separable and removably
interconnected together.
3. The recliner of claim 1 wherein:
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom end to said top
end, each of said cushions of a first length of said back and head support
being identical in size and construction including having the identical
number and sizes of compartments and each of said cushions of a second
length of said leg and foot support being identical in size and
construction including having the identical number and sizes of
compartments.
4. The recliner of claim 3 wherein:
said compartments are cylindrical with spherical caps in their
configuration and are of constant cylindrical radius each cylindrical
compartment extending longitudinally across the width of a person
supported thereon.
5. The recliner of claim 3 wherein
said connecting means are connected to said top ends and to said bottom
ends of said cushions.
6. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position,
adapted to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
an air inflatable support for dissipating heat from a person positioned
thereatop, including a pair of plastic sheets joined together forming an
air pressurizable chamber therebetween, said sheets having a plurality of
aligned holes extending therethrough with said sheets being joined
together around the circumference of each hole allowing heat flow through
said sheets from said person but limiting air flow from said chamber into
each hole providing an insulated cushion for said person laying thereatop;
and,
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support and said support for dissipating heat together, including
connecting means interconnecting said cushions of said leg and foot
support together.
7. The support of claim 6 wherein:
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom to said top end.
8. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position,
adapted to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support together, and including connecting means interconnecting
said cushions of said leg and foot support together;
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom end to said top
end; and
each of said cushions of a first length of said back and head support is
identical in size and construction including having the identical number
and sizes of compartments.
9. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position,
adapted to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support together, and including connecting means interconnecting
said cushions of said leg and foot support together;
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom end to said top
end; and
each of said cushions of a second length of said leg and foot support is
identical in size and construction including having the identical number
and sizes of compartments.
10. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position
adapted to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support together and, including connecting means interconnecting
said cushions of said leg and foot support together;
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom end to said top
end; and
said compartments are cylindrical with spherical caps in their
configuration and are of constant cylindrical radius each cylindrical
compartment extending longitudinally across the width of a person
supported thereon.
11. A portable recliner for supporting a person in a supine position,
adapted to be positioned on a bed, comprising:
a substantially triangular back and head support extending upwardly at an
angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface
of a first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and
the top of the head and positioned and interconnected together in a
vertical stack;
a substantially triangular leg and foot support extending from an edge area
adjacent the back and head support upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees and for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks;
a valve on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired
internal air pressure to determine said angles;
connecting means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg
and foot support together and, including connecting arms interconnecting
said cushions of said leg and foot support together;
said cushions each include a bottom end, a top end and a pair of plastic
sheets peripherally joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber,
each of said cushions further include a plurality of interior walls
dividing said chamber into a plurality of individual air compartments in
fluid communication together with said interior walls delaying the
deflation of said compartments in the event of accidental rupture of any
one compartment, said compartments differing in size and arranged in order
so said compartments increase in size from said bottom end to said top
end;
said connecting means includes a first perforated member attached to an end
of one of said cushions running longitudinally with said end and further
including a second perforated member attached to an end of a second of
said cushions and a flexible tie extending weavingly through said first
perforated member and said second perforated member removably connecting
same together; and
said connecting means being connected to said top ends and to said bottom
ends of said cushions. |
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Claims |
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Description |
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BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of reclining devices
for supporting the human body, and more particularly, is concerned with an
affordable, portable, air inflatable recliner to sit atop a medical
patient's bed to provide the correct and most effective medical
convalescent postures.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A classic convalescent posture that has been recommended by doctors for
decades for its promotion of the healing processes for many medical
conditions was defined by American surgeon George Ryerson Fowler at the
turn of this century. It is known as the "Fowler position." In the Fowler
position the medical patient is reclining in bed in a supine posture with
the head of the patient's bed raised 18 to 20 inches above the level, and
the knees also elevated. This basic configuration of body support has been
adopted and utilized in medical practice because of its inherent
physiological convalescent properties resulting from the effective use of
gravitational forces, and because it has proven to be an anatomically
correct posture as evidenced by its long-term comfort.
For these reasons, most convalescence in medical practice is pescribed to
be accomplished in a Fowler position. More particularly, the
configurations of body support that have long been known and prescribed by
doctors because of their inherent convalescent properties are presented in
FIG. 9 ("Prior Art"), representing the basic Fowler position, and FIG. 10
("Prior Art"), representing the modified Fowler position. Embodiments of
these basic configurations of body support can be found in adjustable
hospital beds, but as medical costs have risen, a definite trend toward
minimizing hospital convalescence in favor of convalescence outside the
hospital has been observed. Even minor surgery is now being accomplished
on an outpatient basis. However, no satisfactory, air inflatable
alternative to the adjustable hospital-style bed was available for
utilization in convalescent care in the patient's home, or at intermediate
care facilities such as nursing homes, for example. The present invention
provides an affordable, portable, air inflatable recliner to rest atop a
medical patient's bed to provide the correct and effective medical
convalescent postures represented by the basic or modified Fowler
position.
Various forms of reclining devices that support the human body in the basic
and modified Fowler positions depicted in FIGS. 9 and 10 have been
proposed in the prior art. These Fowler positions have been generally
embodied not only in hospital beds but also in surgical tables, dentist
chairs, lounge chairs, beach chairs, and furniture recliners of numerous
types. However, such embodiments of the Fowler position are not suitable
for affordable and easily portable home or secondary care facility
convalescent care or do not provide the correct and effective medical
convalescent postures depicted in FIGS. 9 and 10.
Patent references known to the inventors that may be relevant include the
following:
______________________________________
Patent No. Patentee
______________________________________
4,473,913 Ylvisaker
4,171,549 Morrell et al.
3,680,917 Harris
2,612,645 Boland
______________________________________
In the Ylvisaker reference there is disclosed a three-pillowed therapeutic
support cushion composed, in part, of two end pillows that when spaced
apart will, in cooperation with a horizontal surface, support a person in
a supine posture in a Fowler-type position. The three-pillowed therapeutic
support cushion of Ylvisaker is principally designed for convalescence in
a face-down prone position to situate a person so that the spine is in a
forwardly curving and relaxed posture. By virtue of the end pillow design
necessary to accommodate a person in the primary face-down prone position
the use of the end pillows to support a person in a supine posture in a
Fowler-type position as taught by Ylvisaker does not result in the correct
and effective medical convalescent postures of the basic or modified
Fowler positions depicted in FIGS. 9 and 10, which are provided by the
instant invention. In the Ylvisaker construction, the end pillows are
always of identical construction, being mirror images of one another.
While the Ylvisaker end pillows would provide support of the legs and
upper torso in a Fowler-type supine position if positioned in the manner
taught, these pillows would not position the person in an anatomically and
physiologically correct manner. The human body does not measure the same
from the coccyx (the tip of the spine) to the popliteal fossa (the area
immediately behind the knees) as it does from the coccyx to the top of the
head, the latter always being of greater measure. The natural and
medically correct anatomical and physiological breaking point of the human
body between the legs and the torso is at the waist, and not at any point
between the coccyx and the top of the head. For the body to break at the
waist and at the popliteal fossa, pillows with differing support surface
lengths will be required. The support surface between the coccyx and the
top of the head would necessarily be longer than the support surface
between the coccyx and the popliteal fossa. The Ylvisaker construction
results in a break point between the coccyx and the top of the head, and
if adjusted to provide a break point at the waist would result in either
the head and body not being fully supported or in the popliteal fossa not
being properly supported. Furthermore, even though the Ylvisaker
construction provides for air inflatability of the end pillows to be used
in the supine support mode, there is not the same capability of precisely
varying the degree of elevation of the torso for varying medical
convalescent needs that is provided in the present invention. Furthermore,
the Ylvisaker construction does not provide the structural integrity of
the present invention as, for example, the Ylvisaker end pillows are not
secured together in any of the possible arrangements, making this
construction unsuitable for accommodating the nocturnal kinetics of the
convalescing patient, such as when the sleeping patient would toss or roll
over onto one side or the other. This kineses causes the patient to slide
down hill, so to speak, such that the body conformation is medically
unacceptable. The instant invention, by virtue of its interconnected lower
body support system, prevents such down hill sliding. The present
invention provides support surfaces that resist the longitudinal kinetics
of the unconscious patient by the nature of their construction. The
support surfaces for the back and head and the leg and foot of the present
invention are interconnected together to prevent their relative
displacement, thereby providing resistance to body movement that would
necessitate relative displacement to any degree of these surfaces.
In the Boland reference there is disclosed a reclining air cushion with an
attached apron to be situated under a person to secure the cushion in
place. In the Morrell reference there is disclosed a cushion ensemble that
may be arranged in various ways to provide various body postures. In the
Harris reference there is disclosed an inflatable, ribbed floor rest.
Neither the Boland, the Morrell, or the Harris construction embody the
efficient and medically correct Fowler positions depicted in FIG. 9 or 10,
as does the present invention, nor are such references suitable for
accommodating the nocturnal kinetics of the convalescing patient, as is
the present invention.
In contrast to the human body supports of the prior art, the present
invention provides for the first time a portable, air inflatable recliner
to rest atop a patient's bed to support the patient in the correct and
effective medical convalescent postures of a basic or modified Fowler
position and which is suitable for accommodating the nocturnal kinetics of
the convalescing patient.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
One embodiment of the present invention is a back and head support
extending upwardly at an angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and
including a plurality of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions
with a support surface of a first length equal to at least the distance
between the coccyx and the top of the head and positioned and
interconnected together in a vertical stack; a leg and foot support
extending upwardly at a first angle between 20 degrees and 30 degrees and
for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a second angle between 120
degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality of individual wedge
shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface of a second length
equal to the distance between the coccyx and the popliteal fossa and
positioned and interconnected together in vertical stacks; air means on
said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at a desired internal
air pressure to determine said angles; and, connecting means
interconnecting said back and head support and said leg and foot support
together, including interconnecting said cushions of said leg and foot
support together.
Another embodiment of the present invention is an air inflatable support
for dissipating heat from a person positioned thereatop comprising a pair
of plastic sheets joined together forming an air pressurizable chamber
therebetween, said sheets having a plurality of aligned holes extending
therethrough with said sheets being joined together around the
circumference of each hole allowing heat flow through said sheets from
said person but limiting air flow from said chamber into each hole
providing an insulated cushion for said person laying thereatop; and
further comprising a back and head support extending upwardly at an angle
between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and including a plurality of individual
wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support surface of a first
length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and the top of
the head and positioned and interconnected together in a vertical stack; a
leg and foot support extending upwardly at a first angle between 20
degrees and 30 degrees and for elevation of the popliteal fossa through a
second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a plurality
of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions with a support
surface of a second length equal to the distance between the coccyx and
the popliteal fossa and positioned and interconnected together in vertical
stacks; air means on said cushions operable to allow inflation of each at
a desired internal air pressure to determine said angles; and, connecting
means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg and foot
support and said heat dissipating support together, including
interconnecting said cushions of said leg and foot support together.
Another embodiment of the present invention is a back and head support
extending upwardly at an angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and
including an air inflatable cushion with a first support surface of a
first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and the top
of the head; a leg and foot support extending upwardly at a first angle
between 20 degrees and 30 degrees and for elevation of the popliteal fossa
through a second angle of between 120 degrees and at least 140 degrees and
including a plurality of air inflatable cushions positioned and
interconnected together with a second support surface of a second length
equal to the distance between the coccyx and the popliteal fossa and a
third support surface of a third length equal to at least said second
length; air means on said cushions operable to allow inflation at a
desired internal air pressure to determine said angles; and, connecting
means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg and foot
support together.
Another embodiment of the present invention is a back and head support
extending upwardly at an angle between 30 degrees and 45 degrees and
including a plurality of individually shaped, air inflatable, cushions
positioned and interconnected together with a first support surface of a
first length equal to at least the distance between the coccyx and the top
of the head; a leg and foot support extending upwardly at a first angle
between 20 degrees and 30 degrees and for elevation of the popliteal fossa
through a second angle between 120 degrees and 150 degrees and including a
plurality of individually shaped, air inflatable, cushions positioned and
interconnected together with a second support surface of a second length
equal to the distance between the coccyx and the popliteal fossa and a
third support surface of a third length equal to at least said second
length; air means on said cushions operable to allow inflation at a
desired internal air pressure to determine said angles; and, connecting
means interconnecting said back and head support and said leg and foot
support together.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a recliner for
convalescent use that provides the correct and effective medical
convalescing postures most often prescribed for convalescing patients,
depicted in FIGS. 9 and 10.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a recliner for
convalescent use that is completely air inflatable, permitting compact
packaging in its deflated state for ease of storage, distribution and
transportation.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide recliner
cushions having a plurality of internal air chambers in fluid
communication together to delay deflation of each cushion in the event of
accidental rupture at any point.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a recliner for
convalescent use that can be made available at an affordable cost to needy
patients.
Related objects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent
from the following descriptions.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective and partially segmented view of the recliner that
is the present invention.
FIG. 2 is an enlarged, fragmentary, perspective view of the interconnecting
means that interconnect the back and head support, the heat dissipating
cushion, and the leg and foot support of FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a perspective, unfolded view of individual cushions comprising
the back and head support of FIG. 1.
FIG. 4 is a perspective exploded view of the individual cushions that
comprise the leg and foot support of FIG. 1 for elevation of the popliteal
fossa through 120 degrees.
FIG. 5 is a perspective partially segmented view of an individual wedge
shaped, air inflatable, cushion of FIG. 1, and without connecting means
attached.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the inflatable heat dissipating cushion of
FIG. 1.
FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the inflatable heat
dissipating cushion of FIG. 6 taken along line 7--7 in the direction of
the arrows.
FIG. 8 is a perspective view of individual wedge shaped, air inflatable,
cushions of the present invention interconnected together so as to provide
the means to elevate the popliteal fossa through 150 degrees when
incorporated into the leg and foot support in FIG. 1.
FIG. 9 is a side view of the basic Fowler position, and is a Prior Art
drawing.
FIG. 10 is a side view of the modified Fowler position, and is a Prior Art
drawing.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the
invention, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in
the drawings and specific language will be used to describe the same. It
will nevertheless be understood that no limitation of the scope of the
invention is thereby intended, such alterations and further modifications
in the illustrated device, and such further applications of the principles
and theory of the invention therein being contemplated as would normally
occur to one skilled in the art to which the invention relates.
Referring now to the drawings, there is shown in FIG. 1 a preferred
embodiment of the recliner 10 of the present invention. This preferred
embodiment is composed of the back and head support 12, shown in FIG. 1 at
its full-inflation upward angle of 45 degrees, composed of three
individual wedge shaped, air inflatable cushions 14, 16, and 18,
positioned and interconnected together in a vertical stack. The back and
head support 12 is interconnected along line 32--32 with the leg and foot
support 20, shown in FIG. 1 at full-inflation in the configuration for
elevation of the popliteal fossa through 120 degrees. The leg and foot
support 20 is composed of four individual wedge shaped, air inflatable
cushions 24, 26, 28, and 30, that are positioned and interconnected
together by connecting means along lines 32--32, 34--34, 38--38, and
40--40. The air inflatable support 22 for dissipating heat is shown in
FIG. 1 in fragment and at full-inflation, interconnected together by
connecting means with the back and head support 12 and the leg and foot
support 20 along line 32--32.
Each of the individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions 14, 16, 18,
24, 26, 28, and 30 comprising the back and head support 12 and the leg and
foot support 20 have conventional air inflation means 36 (valve),
permitting separable inflation of the individual cushions to desired air
pressures. Likewise, the support 22 for dissipating heat has a
conventional air inflation means 36, permitting its separable inflation to
variable air pressures.
Each of the individual wedge shaped, air inflatable, cushions 14, 16, 18,
24, 26, 28, and 30 comprising the back and head support 12 and the leg and
foot support 20 are identical in general shape and construction. Referring
to FIG. 5, there is shown a perspective partially segmented view of one
such cushion, but without connecting means attached. Each cushion is
comprised of adjacent compartments, cylindrical in configuration with
spherical caps, that are in side-by-side relationship, each compartment
being of constant cylindrical radius, with the cylindrical radius of each
compartment decreasing linearly from the compartment 48 at the top end 42
of each cushion to the compartment 50 at the bottom end 44 of each
cushion.
It is preferred that each cushion be constructed from a pair of plastic
sheets that are peripherally joined together to form an air pressurizing
chamber of the desired peripheral dimensions, with a plurality of interior
walls 52, formed by heat sealing the sheets together along preselected
lines, dividing the air pressurizable chamber into adjacent compartments
of the desired cylindrical configuration, each compartment to be in
side-by-side relationship and each to be in fluid communication with the
other by means of openings in the interior walls 54, representing places
along said preselected lines where said sheets were not heat sealed
together, which openings will have the effect of delaying deflation of the
cushion in the event of accidental rupture at any point in any
compartments of each cushion. It is contemplated that cushion construction
be accomplished by means currently utilized in the construction of common
air mattresses and similar devices.
Referring to FIG. 5, peripheral dimensions of each cushion and the radius
of the compartment 48 at the top end 42 of each cushion are to be selected
so that when each individual cushion is fully inflated the result is a
wedge shaped cushion extending upwardly at a constant angle of
approximately 15 degrees. Cushions 14, 16, and 18 are identical in size
and shape, with an identical number of interior chambers. Cushions 24, 26,
28, and 30 are identical in size and shape, with an identical number of
interior chambers. Cushions 14, 16, and 18 are each to be of a length from
the top end 42 to the bottom end 44 equal to at least the distance between
the coccyx and the top of the head. Cushions 24, 26, 28, and 30 are each
to be of a length from the top end 42 to the bottom end 44 equal to the
distance between the coccyx and the popliteal fossa. Because the human
body does not measure the same from the coccyx to the popliteal fossa as
it does from the coccyx to the top of the head, the latter always being of
greater measure, cushions 14, 16, and 18 will always have support surfaces
of greater length than cushions 24, 26, 28, and 30.
Referring to FIG. 1, the back and head support 12 is shown comprised of
three cushions, 14, 16, and 18, in a vertical stack, each fully inflated,
and each individually extending upward at a constant angle of 15 degrees.
In such combination, the back and head support 12 has a total upward angle
equal to the sum of three individual cushion angles, which sum is 45
degrees. By fully deflating cushion 14 or 16 or 18 only, two cushions
remaining fully inflated, the combined upward angle of the back and head
support 12 may be reduced by approximately 15 degrees to a combined upward
angle of approximately 30 degrees. By partially inflating the deflated
cushion, the total upward angle of the back and head support may be
adjusted between approximately 30 degrees and 45 degrees.
Referring again to FIG. 1, the leg and foot support 20 is shown comprised
of four cushions, 24, 26, 28, and 30 each at full inflation; cushions 24
and 26 being in a vertical stack resulting in a combined upward angle from
line 32--32 of approximately 30 degrees; and cushions 28 and 30 being in a
vertical stack resulting in a combined upward angle from line 34--34 of
approximately 30 degrees. By partially deflating cushions 24 and 28 only
in equal proportions from full inflation, cushions 26 and 30 remaining
fully inflated, the combined upward angle from line 32--32 formed by
cushions 24 and 26, and the upward angle from line 34--34 formed by
cushions 28 and 30 may be reduced equally from approximately 30 degrees
each to approximately 15 degrees each.
It is intended that the recliner 10 shown in FIG. 1 be placed atop a
convalescing patient's bed, which would place the base of the recliner 10
on a level support. If necessary, the recliner 10 may be secured in place
by running tying means (straps) between cushions 14 and 16 that are
secured to the bed, and by running tying means (straps) between cushions
28 and 30 that are secured to the bed. The patient would then recline upon
the recliner 10 in the supine position, placing the patient's posterior
atop line 32--32, resting the patient's back and the head upon the back
and head support 12, the top of the head not extending beyond the midpoint
of the upper-most chamber of cushion 18, and resting | | |
