This invention relates to massage apparatus, and more particularly to an apparatus employing pulsating water jets positioned above a reclined body with a water-proof sheet of material interposed between the body and the water jet heads.
Various types of massage units have been provided heretofore and generally encompass mechanical and electrical hand-held units that vibrate, pulsate and provide heat. Also known in the art are shower heads arranged to expel water in pulsating fashion whereby a person taking a shower is treated to a variety of sprays which can be physically directed at will to any desired spot on the body. Typical of this type are the devices disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,762,648; 3,801,019; and 4,190,207.
A third type of prior massage unit is illustrated by U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,832,336 and 4,112,943. The latter patent discloses a device that provides heated water circulated to a flexible bag positioned on a person's back, for example. The action of the circulating water through the bag, and the heat emanating therefrom, serve to provide therapy to a muscle injury or the like.
No device known to the applicant is directed to the concept of providing an individual reclining on a horizontal surface a whole body massage by utilizing pulsating and impacting jets of water as the massaging elements while also assuring the individual's dryness whether in a clothed or unclothed condition.