Patent Application
20070068980
The present invention relates generally to the field of clothing protection. More specifically the present invention relates to a clothes protector cover and an improved means for protecting clothing in a closet or other storage area from dust, particulate matter, and the like. The present invention also relates to an associated method of manufacture and use.
When items such as clothing or the like are hung from a rod or bar in a closet or other similar storage area, dust inevitably settles on the hanging items. Such dust is unsightly and may even cause permanent damage to the clothing. Furthermore, once the clothing is soiled with dust, the owner of the clothing may be required to use the services of a professional cleaner to return the clothing to its normal, clean state. This can become costly when numerous articles of clothing become soiled by dust.
In the prior art, many devices have been disclosed for protecting items of clothing from dust, particulate matter, or the like. Various dust protective measures exist in which items of clothing are individually protected in a garment bag or a protective sleeve. Other protective means include the use of sheets or covers draped over an entire closet area.
The measures in the prior art which protect only an individual item of clothing are limited in that one would need to use many such devices to properly cover all items of clothing in a closet. Additionally, such an endeavor is time consuming since each individual item of clothing must be contained in an individual garment protector. Furthermore, the time required to simply remove an article of clothing from the closet would greatly increase. To do so also would become costly since there is an associated cost for each individual garment bag.
The measures in the prior art that include draping sheets over the closet area are overly burdensome. Additionally, such an apparatus is usually located several inches above the clothing desired to be protected and still allows for the circulation of air and the dust flowing freely in it to settle upon articles of clothing.
These and other problems exist. Previous attempts to solve these and other problems include the following:
U.S. Pat. No. 6,499,636, issued to McCool on Dec. 31, 2002, discloses an improved clothing protector comprising a cover for clothes hangers shaped to slip over the hook of the hanger and to be supported by the wings of the hanger. The clothing protector is comprised of two panels of foam material, such as polyurethane, leaving a space to receive the hook of the hanger, and formed with a slip-resistant surface. After joining, the panels to tend to flare out, providing an area for supporting an article of clothing. However, this clothing protector is placed over or upon a clothing hanger, not over an article of clothing already on a hanger, and is thus really only a hanger cover, not a clothing cover.
U.S. Design Pat. No. Des. 427,782 issued to St. L-Morency on Jul. 11, 2000 discloses the ornamental design for a clothes protector for a hanger.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,564,577, issued to Knaggs on Oct. 15, 1996, discloses an apparatus for protecting clothes hanging on a hanger bar in a closet from dust. The apparatus employs an elongated roller assembly that is provided with an extensible and retractable, preferably transparent, sheet member and also at least one elongated rod-like member. However, this protective apparatus remains above the hanger bar and any clothing. Clothes hangers holding items of clothing are not threaded through the sheet comprising the protective cover. Thus, this apparatus is more like a retractable shade, curtain, or blind over items of clothing located in a closet.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,027, issued to Alexander on Nov. 2, 2004, discloses a polyethylene garment protector, extensively used by garment manufacturers to protect garments in transport to and from various facilities such as factories, distribution centers, and retail establishments. However, this garment protector is for use with an item of clothing in transit, not for use in a closet or the like, wherein the entire clothing contents are desired to be covered by a protective apparatus.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,668 to Endres on Jan. 7, 1992, discloses a method of making a garment protector that is of high quality, having an envelope structure made of cloth fabric with an easy access opening in one of its sides covered by a flap member. However, this garment protector is for use with an individual item of clothing, and is not designed for use to cover the entire clothing contents of a closet.
Additionally, there are products in the marketplace that seek to provide a protective cover for clothing. For example, Sears, the major US retailer, sells a garment rack cover, item number 00850330000, manufacturer's model number 7462389WM, at http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_SessionID=@@@@1606230013.1135693 242@@@@&BV_EngineID=ccjladdgijfjedmcegecegjdghldggo.0&vertical=SEARS&sid=10093600050004500085&pid=00850330000. This cover is used to cover a mobile garment rack and protect the clothing contained within. Also, Alco Sales and Service sells a garment rack cover kit, part AL-51324, made of coated nylon, located online at http://www.alcosales.com/Alco/AlcoProd.nsf/50dfebd4b26e8d5f86256a140048fdce/f54d1 878dcb203fd862569df0044dd65!OpenDocument&Highlight=0,al-51321. The cover is also used to fit a mobile garment rack. HangerCity sells garment storage devices that hang from a rod in a closet. One such product is garment bag, product number 8113910, located online at http://www.hangercity.com/caclst.html. These are examples of a few of the many products sold that either cover individual garments in a garment protector or cover a mobile rack of garments in transport rather than cover an entire closet directly above the protected hanging articles of clothing.
While these patents and other previous devices and methods have attempted to solve the above mentioned problems, none have provided for a clothes protector cover in the same manner as the present invention. Therefore, a need exists for such a device and method of manufacture and use.
In various embodiments, the present invention provides a new and useful clothes protector cover. The clothes protector cover is comprised of a rectangular left sheet, a rectangular right sheet, and a plurality of grommets located on the upper edge of each of the sheets.
In one exemplary embodiment, the grommets are located along the upper edge of each rectangular sheet. A clothes hanger, upon which an item of clothing may already be hung, is threaded through a grommet on the left sheet and a corresponding grommet on the right sheet and hung on the hanger bar. This is repeated throughout the length of the sheets until all items of clothing are hung on the hanger rod and thereby protected by the clothes protector cover. This provides a means by which the clothes protector cover is held in place immediately above the protected items of clothing and thereby prevents the accumulation or settling of dust on the items of clothing.
In another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the clothes protector cover further includes one or more of various means by which the left sheet and right sheet can be fastened together when an item of clothing on a clothes hanger is not present and when an empty clothes hanger is not used to secure the left and right sheets together. These various means include the use of snap hook clasps, shower curtain hangers, ribbons, hanger hooks, cords, and the like.
In yet another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a method of manufacturing and use of a clothes protector cover is described.
The present invention is illustrated and described herein with reference to preferred embodiments and examples thereof, in which like reference numbers denote like parts or components, and in which:
Before explaining the disclosed embodiments of the present invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of the particular arrangement shown since the invention is capable of other embodiments. Also, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and not of limitation.
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The hanger rod 20 is a traditional cylindrical wooden dowel rod, or the like, common in many closets, but may be any generally horizontal means by which items of clothing may be hung. For example, many new closets and storage areas use wire-frame shelving, the underside from which hangers are placed.
The left and right sheets 40 and 42 are generally rectangular in shape, with a width of approximately twenty six inches and a length of approximately ninety inches. The width of a sheet 40 or 42 refers to the sheet direction from the base of the hook of the clothes hanger 50 along the shoulder of the clothes hanger 50 then in a downwardly vertical direction along the sleeve of side of an item of clothing in a direction toward the closet floor. The length of a sheet 40 or 42 refers to the distance along the horizontal direction of the sheet parallel to the hanger rod 20. These dimensions are representative of one embodiment of the present invention. Various widths and lengths may be used to manufacture the left and right sheets 40 and 42. Additionally, for larger closets, more than one clothes protector cover 10 may be used, coupling two or more pairs of sheets 40 and 42 together to form one continuous length of clothing protection.
The left and right sheets 40 and 42 are comprised of fabric, but may be made from a similar material. The various materials may include, but are not limited to, cotton, polyester, plastic, silk, or wool. The fabric is preferably transparent to allow for viewing of the items of clothing without the need to lift a sheet 40 or 42 for viewing. The fabric is preferably of a washable composition. Furthermore, the substance with which the sheets are made must be of a moderate or light weight so as to not compress or compromise the items of clothing located underneath. The edges of the fabric sheets 40 and 42 may be hemmed on all four sides in order to reinforce the edges and therefore prevent any fraying of the sheets 40 and 42 during washing or otherwise.
Each sheet 40 and 42 contains a plurality of grommets 60 installed along one edge of the side with the longer dimension. The grommets 60 are spaced along each sheet so that they will match when the two sheets 40 and 42 are placed side-by-side and such that a clothes hanger 50 or other clasp device will securely hold the two sheets 40 and 42 together. Preferably the grommets 60 are placed approximately fourteen inches apart; however, this distance may vary as needed. Additionally, the distance between the grommets 60 need not be uniform. The grommets 60 have an approximate inside diameter of seven sixteenths of an inch to accommodate both wire hangers as well as larger tubular hangers. The clothes protector cover 10 is installed such that a grommet 60 is positioned at each end along one length side of each sheet 40 or 42. Additional grommets 60 are then evenly placed between the two end grommets 60 on each sheet. Items of clothing on a clothes hanger 50 may be hung through the grommets 60 to help hold the clothes protector cover 10 in place or may be hung on the hanger rod 20 without being threaded through the grommets 60.
The clothes protector cover 10 is used by placing the left sheet 40 over the left shoulder of the clothes hanger 50, threading the clothes hanger through a grommet 60, placing the right sheet 42 over the right shoulder of the same clothes hanger 50 used for the left sheet 40, threading the clothes hanger through another grommet 60, and placing the clothes hanger on a hanger rod 20. The clothes protector cover 10 may also be used by installing the sheets 40 and 42 in reverse order. The left and right sheets 40 and 42 may also be installed by using one or more of the various, optional clasps as illustrated in
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Although the present invention has been illustrated and described with reference to preferred embodiments and examples thereof, it will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that other embodiments and examples may perform similar functions and/or achieve similar results. For example: the left and right sheets 40 and 42 of the clothes protector cover 10 may be made from various materials and made to various lengths and widths, the grommets 60 of each sheet 40 and 42 may be secured together by one or more of various clasping means, and the grommets 60 may be spaced apart on each sheet 40 and 42 at varying distances. All such equivalent embodiments and examples are within the spirit and scope of the invention and are intended to be covered by the following claims.
The present non-provisional patent application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/596,497, filed Sep. 28, 2005, and entitled “SIMPLE CLOTHES PROTECTOR COVER,” which is incorporated in-full by reference herein.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60596497 | Sep 2005 | US |
