Portable Headrest for the Prone Body Position, for Personal Use and as an Aid to Therapy

Abstract

A portable headrest which has a forehead support and a chin support and a recess between the forehead support and chin support. The portable headrest can especially be constructed in such a way that the forehead support and/or chin support is/are adjustable in height and/or length. The headrest can optionally include a rounded attachment. Furthermore, the headrest can include at least one camera is arranged in the recess between the forehead support and chin support.

Claims

1. A portable headrest which has a forehead support and a chin support and a recess between the forehead support and the chin support.

2. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the portable headrest is constructed in such a way that the forehead support and/or the chin support is/are adjustable in height and/or length.

3. The portable headrest according to claim 2, wherein the portable headrest is constructed in such a way that the forehead support and the chin support are adjustable in height and/or length independently of one another.

4. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the portable headrest has a body, and the forehead support and/or the chin support are formed separately from the body of the headrest, wherein the forehead support and/or the chin support have displacement elements, and the body of the portable headrest has at least one displacement element that is complementary to the displacement elements of the forehead support and/or the chin support.

5. The portable headrest according to claim 4, wherein the forehead support and/or the chin support comprise a rail, and the body of the headrest comprises at least one groove complementary to the rail, the rail and the groove being arranged along a longitudinal axis of the portable headrest, so that the rail is able to co-operate with the associated groove.

6. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the forehead support and the chin support consist at least partly of a soft foam plastics material.

7. The portable headrest according to claim 4, wherein the body of the portable headrest consists at least partly of a soft foam plastics material.

8. The portable headrest according to claim 4, wherein a contact surface between the body of the headrest and the forehead support and/or the chin support is slanted in such a way that the forehead support and/or chin support can be adjusted in height and length by displacement along a longitudinal axis of the portable headrest.

9. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the portable headrest has a body which has at its underside a rigid plate which extends over at least a portion of the underside.

10. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the portable headrest further comprises at least one camera which is arranged in the recess between the forehead support and chin support.

11. The portable headrest according to claim 10, wherein the at least one camera is movably arranged in the recess between the forehead support and the chin support.

12. The portable headrest according to claim 1, wherein the headrest comprises a rounded attachment.

13. The portable headrest according to claim 12, wherein the rounded attachment has the shape of a spherical cap.

14. The portable headrest according to claim 12, wherein the rounded attachment has a flat plane and is attachable with the flat plane to an underside of a body of the headrest.

15. The portable headrest according to claim 14, wherein the rounded attachment has fixing means which are able to co-operate with complementary receiving means on or in the underside of the body of the headrest.

16. The portable headrest according to claim 15, wherein the fixing means are snap-in elements which are arranged on the flat plane of the rounded attachment and are able to snap into complementary receiving elements on or in the underside of the body of the headrest.

17. A method for supporting the head of a patient comprising providing a portable headrest according to claim 1.

18. The portable headrest according to claim 2, wherein the portable headrest has a body, and the forehead support and/or the chin support are formed separately from the body of the headrest, wherein the forehead support and/or the chin support have displacement elements, and the body of the portable headrest has at least one displacement element that is complementary to the displacement elements of the forehead support and/or the chin support.

19. The portable headrest according to claim 3, wherein the portable headrest has a body, and the forehead support and/or the chin support are formed separately from the body of the headrest, wherein the forehead support and/or the chin support have displacement elements, and the body of the portable headrest has at least one displacement element that is complementary to the displacement elements of the forehead support and/or the chin support.

20. The portable headrest according to claim 2, wherein the forehead support and the chin support consist at least partly of a soft foam plastics material.

Description

[0038] The portable headrest according to the invention is described in greater detail below on the basis of exemplary embodiments and referring to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

[0039] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an embodiment of the headrest according to the invention.

[0040] FIG. 2 shows the use of the headrest according to the invention on a patient.

[0041] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the headrest according to the invention.

[0042] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the headrest according to the invention.

[0043] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a further embodiment of the headrest according to the invention.

[0044] The following observation applies in respect of all the further description: where, for the purpose of clarity of the drawings, reference numerals are included in a Figure but are not explained in the directly associated description text, reference should be made to the mention of those reference numerals in preceding descriptions of the Figures.

[0045] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the headrest according to the invention, showing a forehead support 11 and a chin support 12 as well as a recess 13 between the forehead and chin supports 11,12 for receiving the nose and mouth of the patient.

[0046] In the present embodiment of the portable headrest 1, both the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 are adjustable in length. The forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 are adjustable in length independently of one another. This facilitates optimum adaptation of the portable headrest 1 to the anatomy of the head and the body of the patient. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 have been formed separately (as separate parts) from the body 14 of the headrest 1. Both the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 are provided with a rail 111,121. The body 14 of the headrest 1 has a groove 112 in the forehead region and a groove 122 in the chin region. The grooves 112,122 are complementary to the respective rails 111,121 of the corresponding forehead support 11 and chin support 12. Both the rails 111,121 and the complementary grooves 112,122 extend along a longitudinal axis L of the portable headrest 1, so that both the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 are displaceable along the longitudinal axis L.

[0047] In this embodiment both the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 have been produced from a soft foam plastics material. The forehead and chin supports 11,12 can each also have, for example, fabric on their surface in order to offer the patient a more pleasant contact surface. Furthermore, the body 14 of the portable headrest 1 likewise consists partly of a soft foam plastics material. In order to impart the necessary rigidity to the portable headrest 1 during use, on the underside 15 of the body 14 there is embedded an aluminium plate which extends over the entire underside 15 of the headrest 1.

[0048] FIG. 2 shows the use of the portable headrest 1 according to the invention with reference to a person lying in the prone position. The patient lies in a relaxed prone position and, with the forehead and the chin being supported simultaneously, can nevertheless breathe freely because mouth and especially nose are located in the recess 13 between the forehead and chin supports 11, 12. When a person lies in the prone position on a flat surface, the head is supported in a controlled way on the forehead and on the chin in order that the head remains in a straight position (no rotation of the cervical vertebrae, no tension of the cervical vertebrae caused by extension).

[0049] FIG. 3 shows a further embodiment of the portable headrest 1 according to the invention. This embodiment differs from the embodiment of FIG. 1 in that two cameras 2 are arranged in the recess 13 between the forehead and chin supports 11, 12. The cameras 2 are fixed to movable arms 21 and the wiring passes through the movable arms 21. Furthermore, the movable arms 21 are connected to through-holes in the body 14. It will be understood that the number of cameras is not limited to two.

[0050] FIG. 4 shows a further embodiment of the portable headrest 1 according to the invention, comprising a rounded attachment 3, which can be mounted on and removed from the underside 15 of the headrest 1 and has a rounded support surface in the shape of a spherical cap.

[0051] FIG. 5 shows a further embodiment of the portable headrest 1 according to the invention having a rounded attachment 3, which has a flat plane 31 and with that flat plane 31 is reversibly attachable to the underside 15 of the body 14 of the headrest 1 with the aid of snap-in elements 32 in complementary receiving elements in the underside 15 of the body 14.

[0052] In addition, it can be seen from this embodiment of FIG. 5 that the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 have been formed separately and the contact surfaces 113, 123 between the body 14 of the headrest 1 and the forehead support 11 and the chin support 12, respectively, are slanted. The angle between the slanted contact surface 113 on the forehead support 11 and the underside 15 of the body 14 along the longitudinal axis L is approximately 5 and the angle of the slanted contact surface 123 on the chin support 12 relative to the underside 15 of the body 14 along the longitudinal axis L is approximately 15.

[0053] The forehead support 11 and the chin support 12 are connected to one another by means of a rail and groove along the longitudinal axis of the portable headrest 1. By displacement of the forehead support 11 and/or the chin support 12 along the longitudinal axis, which movements are indicated by the arrows, the height and the length of the portable headrest in the chin region and in the forehead region can be set independently of one another. As a result of the different inclination (angle) of the slanting contact surface 113 in the forehead region in comparison with the inclination (angle) of the slanting contact surface 123 in the chin region, it is again possible for an optimum height and length of the portable headrest 1 to be specifically adapted and adjusted to the anatomy of the head and the body of the patient.

[0054] It should be pointed out that the embodiment shown in FIG. 5 can likewise be used without the rounded attachment and, as in the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, can likewise be provided with at least one camera.

[0055] The invention has been explained with reference to exemplary embodiments, but is not limited to those embodiments. However, the exemplary embodiments demonstrate the high degree of versatility of the present invention and its flexibility for use in an extremely wide range of therapeutic fields, such as, for example, in the field of surgery or application in the field of massage. The portable headrest can also be used, however, in the private sphere without a therapist, since during personal use it likewise facilitates a relaxing lying position in the prone position and is easy to use. Such a lying position relieves strain on the cervical vertebral region and automatically brings the spinal column and neck musculature into a beneficial and strain-relieving position. As a result, it is possible to reduce chronic pain in the cervical vertebral column and the shoulder region as well as tension in the back of the neck and headaches. In conjunction with the rounded attachment, if required the head, in addition to being actually supported, can at the same time be moved in all directions during personal use or by a second person.