Title: Travel blanket with arm support
Abstract: A travel blanket having a head hole through which a traveler can extend the traveler's head. A rear portion drapes down over the traveler's back and shoulders and a front portion covers the traveler's chest and torso. A pocket is positioned along the interior of the front portion for supporting the traveler's arms when the traveler's arms are positioned therein.
Patent Number: 6,966,069 Issued on 11/22/2005 to Booth
| Inventors:
|
Booth; Arlen L. (P.O. Box 147, Henry, IL 61537)
|
| Assignee:
|
Booth; Arlen L. (Henry, IL)
|
| Appl. No.:
|
837258 |
| Filed:
|
April 30, 2004 |
| Current U.S. Class: |
2/69; 2/48; 2/69.5; 2/88; 5/485 |
| Intern'l Class: |
A41D 003/08 |
| Field of Search: |
2/88,48,695,69,51,50,491-495,46,47,91,52,83,84,89,94,104,114,247,248,253,80
5/485,482,494
D2/823,824,826,860,861,863,864
|
References Cited [Referenced By]
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| 2004/0205876 | Oct., 2004 | Bruffett.
| |
Primary Examiner: Vanatta; A.
Parent Case Text
RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/467,187
filed May 1, 2003.
Claims
1. A travel blanket for covering a person while in a seated position, the travel
blanket comprising:
a fibrous sheet having a top edge, bottom edge, and two opposing side edges,
the fibrous sheet further including an axis extending between the opposing side
edges, the axis being generally closer to the top edge than the bottom edge, the
axis dividing the two opposing side edges into front opposing side edges and rear
opposing side edges;
an elastomeric opening positioned along the axis and surrounded by the fibrous
sheet, the elastomeric opening adapted to be stretched to allow positioning of
the elastomeric opening of the travel blanket over the head and around the neck
of the person;
a front portion defined by the bottom edge, the axis, and the front opposing
side edges, the front portion having an interior surface and an exterior surface,
wherein the front portion of the fibrous sheet covers the arms and the upper portion
of the legs of the person when in the seated position;
a first interior pocket positioned on the interior surface of the front portion
of the fibrous sheet and adapted to accept a first hand and a portion of the forearm
of the person;
a second interior pocket positioned on the interior surface of the front portion
of the fibrous sheet, adjacent the first interior pocket and adapted to accept
a second hand and a portion of the forearm of the person wherein the hands are
adjacent the vertical centerline of the person and the forearms of the person are
oriented substantially parallel to one another when the persons hands are inserted
into the interior pockets, and
a rear portion defined by the top edge of the fibrous sheet, the axis, and the
rear opposing side edges, the rear portion extending a length from the axis suitable
for trapping the rear portion between the person's upper back and a back portion
of a seat when the person is in the seated position.
2. The travel blanket of claim 1, further comprising an open bottom end located
between the top edge and bottom edge when the travel blanket is draped over the person.
3. The travel blanket of claim 1, wherein the elastomeric opening includes an
elastic lining.
4. The travel blanket of claim 3, further comprising the elastic lining being
formed from sewn-in ribbing.
5. The travel blanket of claim 3, further comprising the elastomeric opening
being positioned a fraction of a distance from the top edge to the bottom edge.
6. The travel blanket of claim 5, further comprising the fraction being from
approximately ⅓ to approximately ¼.
7. The travel blanket of claim 5, further comprising the fraction being approximately ¼.
8. The travel blanket of claim 1, further comprising at least one exterior pocket
located on the exterior surface of the front portion.
9. The travel blanket of claim 1, further comprising the interior pocket being
positioned at a distance from the elastomeric opening to allow the person's forearms
to be supported inside the interior pockets.
10. The travel blanket of claim 1, wherein the first interior pocket is at least
partially above the second interior pocket.
11. The travel blanket of claim 1, further comprising the fibrous sheet being
formed of a fleece material.
12. A travel blanket for covering a person while in a seated position, the travel
blanket comprising:
a fibrous sheet, the sheet having a top edge, bottom edge, and two opposing side
edges, the fibrous sheet further including an axis extending between the opposing
side edges, the axis being generally closer to the top edge than the bottom edge,
the axis dividing the two opposing side edges into front opposing side edges and
rear opposing side edges;
an elastomeric opening positioned along the axis and surrounded by the fibrous
sheet, the elastomeric opening adapted to be stretched to allow positioning of
the elastomeric opening of the travel blanket over the head and around the neck
of the person;
a front portion defined by the bottom edge, the axis, and the front opposing
side edges, the front portion having an interior surface and an exterior surface,
wherein the front portion of the fibrous sheet covers the arms and the upper portion
of the legs of the person when in the seated position;
an interior pocket positioned along the interior surface, of the front portion
of the fibrous sheet and having two openings, the pocket adapted to accept the
hands and a portion of the forearms of the person such that the hands are adjacent
the vertical centerline of the person and the forearms of the person are substantially
parallel to one another when the persons hands are inserted into the interior pocket; and
the interior pocket being positioned to allow the person's left and right forearms
to be supported in the interior pocket
a rear portion defined by the top edge of the fibrous sheet, the axis, and the
rear opposing side edges, the rear portion extending a length from the axis suitable
for trapping the rear portion between the person's upper back and a back portion
of a seat when the person is in the seated position.
13. A method of using a travel blanket to cover a traveler's shoulders, torso
and a portion of the legs when the traveler is positioned within a seat, the method
comprising the steps of:
providing a travel blanket, the travel blanket comprising a fibrous sheet, the
fibrous sheet having a top edge, bottom edge, and two opposing side edges, an axis
extending between the opposing side edges, the axis being generally closer to the
top edge than the bottom edge, the axis dividing the two opposing side edges into
front opposing side edges and rear opposing side edges, an elastomeric opening
positioned along the axis and surrounded by the fibrous sheet, a front portion
defined by the bottom edge, the axis, and the front opposing side edges, the front
portion having an interior surface and an exterior surface wherein the front portion
of the fibrous sheet covers the arms, torso and a portion of the legs of the traveler
when in a seated position, a rear portion defined by the top edge, the axis, and
the rear opposing side edges, and a pocket positioned along the interior surface
of the front portion of the fibrous sheet and having two openings, the pocket adapted
to accept the hands and a portion of the forearms of the traveler inserting the
head of the traveler through the elastomeric opening; and
pulling the travel blanket down over a traveler's torso and legs as the traveler's
head extends through the elastomeric opening; and
positioning the traveler's hands and a portion of the traveler's forearms into
the openings of the pocket so that the hands of the traveler are adjacent the vertical
centerline of the traveler and the forearms of the person are substantially parallel
to one another, and
trapping the rear portion between the traveler's upper back and a back portion
of a seat when the person is in the seated position.
14. The method of claim 13, further comprising tucking the opposing front side
edges of the front portion between the traveler's torso and a back of a seat.
Description
BACKGROUND
Travelers have long used blankets for warmth and comfort during trips on
all types of transportation including buses, airplanes, and trains. Often, such
blankets slip out of position such as by slipping down the traveler's body causing
annoyance to the traveler. It is desirable to have a travel blanket that is comfortably
worn and that stays in place.
Also, while sleeping on the bus, train, or other form of transportation, the
traveler may inadvertently shift their arms out from underneath the blanket, and
then hit or otherwise touch a neighboring passenger. Such movement may not only
awaken the blanket-wearing traveler, but may also cause a conflict with the neighboring
traveler. It is therefore desirable to have a simple, low cost travel blanket that
can comfortably support and store the traveler's arms during a trip.
SUMMARY
Briefly, and in accordance with the foregoing, disclosed is a travel blanket
with arm support for use by a traveler on a trip. The travel blanket includes a
front portion, a rear portion, and a head hole positioned along an axis connecting
the front portion and the rear portion. The front portion has an outer surface
and an inner surface, the inner surface having at least one interior pocket for
storing a traveler's arms. When worn, the bottom edges of the front and rear portions
define an open bottom end through which the traveler's lower torso and/or legs
can extend. When the blanket is used during travel, the open bottom end is an important
safety feature since during an emergency it ensures that the passenger is free
to rise from the seated position without being encumbered by the blanket.
A lining of the head hole may be formed from an elastic material for comfort
and
to allow for stretching caused by the weight of the traveler's arms. Such an arrangement
makes the travel blanket more comfortable to wear for extended periods as the weight
of the traveler's arm may be more efficiently spread around the head hole area.
The rear portion of the blanket may be dimensioned to cover the upper portion of
the back and shoulders of a traveler. These two design features of the travel blanket
allow the traveler to wear it in comfort for prolonged periods of time without
the necessity of providing straps or buckles to carry the weight of the arms. Also,
a number of outer pockets may also be formed on the outer surface of the front
portion for storage of the traveler's items such as tissue, glasses, a cell phone,
or other portable electronic device.
Additional features will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon
consideration of the following detailed description of drawings exemplifying the
best mode as presently perceived.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The detailed description particularly refers to the accompanying figures in which:
FIG. 1 is a simplified side view of a travel blanket being worn by a person
while seated;
FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the travel blanket of FIG. 1; and
FIG. 3 is a view of the travel blanket being worn by a person who is buckled
into an airplane seat.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
While the present disclosure may be susceptible to embodiment in different
forms, there is shown in the drawings, and herein will be described in detail,
embodiments with the understanding that the present description is to be considered
an exemplification of the principles of the disclosure and is not intended to limit
the disclosure to the details of construction and the arrangements of components
set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings.
With reference to the figures, FIG. 1 is a simplified line drawing showing a
travel blanket
10 worn by a traveler while sitting in a seat
11.
Travel blanket
10 is a sheet made from a fabric, plastic, man-made material,
or other flexible material suitable for being formed into a sheet, that includes
a front portion
12 which covers the front of the traveler's body and a rear
portion
14 which is dimensioned to cover the top portion of the traveler's
back and/or shoulders and to be trapped between the seat
11 and the traveler
when the traveler is seated. It is desirable to have the rear portion
14
trapped between seat
11 and traveler's back because this arrangement relieves
some of the stress on the fabric due to the weight of the traveler's arms thereby
preventing the fabric from over-stretching and also to spread the load to avoid
placing too much strain on the traveler's neck area. The sheet has a top edge
7,
a bottom edge
6, and two opposing side edges. Each edge is divided into
a front edge
8 and a rear edge
9. The front and rear portions
12,
14 are divided at an axis or transverse line
13 as shown in FIG.
2. Front portion
12 is generally defined by bottom edge
6, axis
13,
and opposing front side edges
8. Rear portion
14 is generally defined
by top edge
7, axis
13 and opposing rear side edges
9.
The travel blanket
10 includes an opening or a head hole
15 through
which the traveler's head extends when the travel blanket
10 is worn. Head
hole
15 is generally positioned along transverse line
13 approximately
midway between the opposing side edges
8,
9. Head hole
15
and transverse line
13 generally are spaced a fraction of the total length
of travel blanket
10 away from top edge
7, such as from approximately
⅓ to approximately ¼ of the distance between top edge
7 and
bottom edge
6. Head hole
15 may include a lining or ribbing
17
formed from a soft, resilient material to provide for a degree of stretching. The
use of a resilient material around the head hole has the benefit of increasing
the comfort of the traveler when putting on or taking off the blanket and of spreading
the force away from the neck area when the traveler's arms are placed inside the
travel blanket
10. A generally circular or rounded head hole
15,
as illustrated in FIG. 2, may have advantages over a head slit because a slit design
may cause pressure points along the neck area when worn for extended periods and
is less comfortable to put on and remove, although a slit may be used as well.
The front portion
12 has an outer surface
16 and an inner surface
18. The outer surface
16 may include an outer pocket portion
20.
Outer pocket portion
20 has a width
22 extending over a portion of
the outer surface
16 in both directions from a center axis
24. Outer
pocket portion
20 may consist of one pocket or may be divided into a number
of pockets. As shown in FIGS. 2-3, one embodiment of outer pocket portion
20
has divisions to form a larger center pocket
30 and two side pockets
32,
34. This embodiment is one example of the size and quantity of pockets that
outer pocket portion
20 may have. Other sizes and quantities of pockets,
such as for example, two equal size pockets or four or more pockets may be used
as well. The pockets
30,
32,
34 have a depth
36 that
allows for convenient storage of travel items such as glasses, tissue, a CD-player,
cell phone, or other portable electronic device.
As shown in FIG. 1, interior surface
18 includes one or more arm interior
pockets. Although two interior pockets are shown, travel blanket
10 may
include just one interior pocket. Lower interior pocket
26 and upper interior
pocket
27 generally run lengthwise across the traveler's chest or front
torso generally parallel to the axis
13 and have a length generally proportional
to outer pocket portion width
22. Upper interior pocket
27 is at
least partially above lower interior pocket
26. Interior pockets
26,
27 may have a variety of forms including being generally tubular with an
opening at both ends. Alternatively, interior pockets
26,
27 may
be open at only one end to each allow entry of only one arm.
Interior pockets
26,
27 are used to support the traveler's
arms when the arms are positioned therein. The traveler may place one arm in lower
interior pocket
26 and the other arm in upper interior pocket
27,
or may reverse this arrangement. The traveler may also place both arms in one interior
pocket
26 or
27 if that positioning is more comfortable for the traveler.
For example, a taller person may have longer arms and feel more comfortable positioning
both arms in lower pocket
26. Additional interior pockets of varying heights
may be included along interior surface
18 to provide a traveler with a selection
of support positions.
FIG. 3 is a view of one embodiment of the travel blanket
10 showing the
location of the outer pockets
30,
32,
34.
In one embodiment, travel blanket
10 is formed and has dimensions as described
hereinafter. Travel blanket
10 is a 44.88 inch×41.75 inch fleece material
consisting of 65% polyester and 35% cotton. The rear portion
14 is made
from the same fleece material and has dimensions 12 inch×41.75 inch. The front
portion
12 is made from the same fleece material and has dimensions 32.88
inch×41.75 inch and includes sewn in outer pocket portion
20. Head
hole
15 is 7 inches in diameter and includes sewn in ribbing around the
opening. A combination of straight stitching and serge stitching may be used.
The materials and dimensions described above represent one embodiment and do
not limit other configurations for the travel blanket
10. For example, all
dimensions may be scaled down when the travel blanket
10 is intended for
use by children or scaled up for taller people. Other materials or material combinations
other than a polyester-cotton blend may be used as well.
In use, a traveler puts on the travel blanket
10 by pulling the front
and/or
rear portions
12,
14 down over the traveler's body as the traveler's
head extends through head hole
15. The sides of the front portion
12
may be tucked around the traveler's sides and behind the traveler for additional
warmth and comfort. Travel items may be placed in the pockets of the outer pocket
portion
20. As described above, the traveler positions his or her arms into
the interior pocket or pockets
26,
27 to support the arms during
rest or sleep. This helps prevent the traveler from accidentally elbowing or hitting
a neighboring traveler during sleep.
The weight of the traveler's arms may cause some stretching at head hole
15.
The rear portion
14 being dimensioned to be trapped behind the traveler
along with the flexibility of the head hole lining
17 helps prevent this
stretching from putting excessive pressure on the traveler's neck. In the embodiment
of the disclosure shown in FIG. 1, the use of a flexible head hole lining
17,
and rear portion
14 dimensioned to be trapped behind the traveler, spreads
the force of the arms hanging within interior pockets
26,
27 to ensure
that the blanket
10 may be worn comfortably for an extended period. This
simple construction of the blanket
10 provides a high level of comfort at
low cost since additional straps and buckles may not be needed to support the weight
of the traveler's arms.
At all times, the traveler's legs or lower torso extend beyond the bottom edges
of the front and rear portions
10,
12. The travel blanket
10
can thus be said to have an open bottom end between top edge
7 and bottom
edge
6 when travel blanket
10 is draped over the traveler and thus
both top and bottom edges
7,
6 generally pointing downwardly. This
allows easy access to the traveler's feet area and allows the traveler to get up
and out of the seat quickly without obstruction from the travel blanket
10
in case of an emergency.
The travel blanket
10 is removed by lifting the front or rear portions
12,
14 up over the traveler's head until the head is removed from
the head hole
15. In the embodiment of FIG. 2, the provision of a rounded,
head hole
15 with flexible hole liner
17 improves the comfort of
this operation.
Although the disclosure provided above describes use of the travel blanket
10 by a traveler during a trip, the blanket
10 can also be used by
any person desiring the warmth and comfort of a blanket while simultaneously having
their arms supported. Other examples include a person wearing the blanket
10
while watching television, or an elderly or handicapped person wearing the blanket
10 while sitting in a wheel chair.
While this disclosure has been described as having exemplary embodiments, this
application is intended to cover any variations, uses, or adaptations using the
general principles set forth herein. It is envisioned that those skilled in the
art may devise various modifications and equivalents without departing from the
spirit and scope of the disclosure as recited in the following claims. Further,
this application is intended to cover such departures from the present disclosure
as come within the known or customary practice within the art to which it pertains.
*
