Versatile footwear covers and methods relating to same

Abstract

A footwear cover made of an elastic material is provided. The footwear cover defines a first opening and is moveable between a first expanded or stretched position for installing the cover on footwear and a second compressed position to form fit the cover to the footwear the cover is installed on. The cover may include a plurality of biasing mechanisms for form fitting the cover to the footwear disposed within the cover including one or more of the elastic cover material itself, a flat elastic band, elastic thread used to stitch one or more pieces of the cover together and a heel securing mechanism.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION[0001]This application claims benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61 / 840,439, filed Jun. 27, 2013, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]This invention relates generally to footwear covers, and more specifically, a flexible, stable and versatile footwear cover and related methods.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Shoes are an important part of the wardrobe, providing both functional and aesthetic benefits. Consumers may be quick to change their tastes, and often wish to have footwear having an assortment of colors and patterns to complement the rest of their attire. Consumers may simply build a large collection of footwear, but this may be very expensive and require considerable storage space. Further, it may be inconvenient if one wishes to change the look or appearance of their shoes throughout the course of a given time period (e.g., day, week, year, season, trip, etc.), for exampl...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014]In another embodiment, a flexible footwear cover is provided that includes a flat elastic band that allows the cover to form fit to the footwear it is covering more easily, in a manner that is less noticeable and in a way that reduces the risk of the cover damaging the footwear (while either worn or not worn) or hurting the user while the footwear is worn. In a preferred form, the flat elastic band is hemmed into the opening of the footwear covering in a free floating manner so as to make the cover less noticeable when installed over or on footwear and to allow movement of the flat elastic band with respect to the cover to accommodate a user's heel or tendon in a more comfortable manner. In other forms, the flat elastic band may be stitched into a desired position or orientation with respect to the cover, such as by using the stretchable thread discussed above.

[0015]In other forms, a flexible footwear cover is provided herein that includes a unique heel securing mechanism or member for maintaining the position of the cover with respect to the heel while the cover is worn over footwear so that the cover

Problems solved by technology

Consumers may simply build a large collection of footwear, but this may be very expensive and require considerable storage space.

Further, it may be inconvenient if one wishes to change the look or appearance of their shoes throughout the course of a given time period (e.g., day, week, year, season, trip, etc.), for example, as they may be away from their shoe closet.

Additionally, over time, the appearance of a shoe may decline or degrade to an unwearable state due to exposure to the elements such as sun, rain or puddles, dirt, and salt.

Conventional galoshes are made of stretchable rubber materials that are generally less adaptable to a variety of different shoe designs and sizes, non-breathable, and require numerous different shapes and sized to be provided in order to accommodate different styles of footwear.

Due to the friction created between the shoe and rubber of the galosh, these types of overshoes are not very easy to put on over a shoe and/or remove from a shoe.

To address the latter problem, some overshoes or galoshes include a zipper or other external fastener in order to make the galoshes easier to install over the shoe, however, the fasteners may in turn scratch, mar, or damage a surface of the shoe or the user's other clothing (e.g., sock, stockings, pants, leggings, etc.).

Not only does such a configuration leave a portion of the sole exposed to damage and/or the elements, thus reducing the wearable life of the shoe, the portion of the cover extending onto or under the sole of the footwear may also create discomfort when walking due to the protruding nature of this portion relative to the exposed sole area and exposes the cover to wear and tear due to the positioning of this portion of the cover below the sole.

While these materials are stretchable, the covers described in the '510 patent have limits to their elasticity.

Further, the components of the cover in the '510 patent are stitched together using standard thread,

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