Patent Application
20240138511
Not Applicable
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The disclosure relates to covering devices and more particularly pertains to a new covering device for covering and insulating a front segment of an article of footwear. The present invention discloses an insulating sleeve designed for insertion of a front segment of an article of footwear. The sleeve comprises a pocket into which a portable heating device is insertable for warming purposes.
The prior art relates to covering devices for footwear, which may comprise insulating wraps for skates, toe box caps for shoes attachable by straps and buckles, pocketed panels that cover uppers of footwear, and hook and loop straps attached to pockets. Related prior art comprises boots having integral compartments into which heating packets are insertable and modified insoles that cover toes. What is lacking in the prior art is a covering device comprising a sleeve with an integral pocket into which a portable heating device is optionally insertable. Upon insertion of an article of footwear into the sleeve, the sleeve is configured to insulate, and the portable heating device is configured to warm, a front portion of a foot that is positioned in the article of footwear.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a sleeve, which is configured for toe box first insertion of an article of footwear through its first end so that the sleeve substantially surrounds a front segment of the article of footwear. The sleeve thus is configured to insulate a front portion of a foot that is positioned in the article of footwear. A fastener is attached to the sleeve proximate to the first end and is configured to selectively attach to the article of footwear so that the sleeve is removably attached to the article of footwear.
Another embodiment of the disclosure includes a footwear covering system, which comprises article of footwear that is inserted toe box first through a first end of a sleeve so that the sleeve substantially surrounds a front segment of the article of footwear. The sleeve is configured to insulate a front portion of a foot that is positioned in the article of footwear. The sleeve is held in place by a fastener. A portable heating device is positioned in a pocket on an inner surface of the sleeve and is configured to warm the front portion of the foot.
There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the disclosure in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the disclosure that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto.
The objects of the disclosure, along with the various features of novelty which characterize the disclosure, are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure.
The disclosure will be better understood and objects other than those set forth above will become apparent when consideration is given to the following detailed description thereof. Such description makes reference to the annexed drawings wherein:
With reference now to the drawings, and in particular to
As best illustrated in
A fastener 26 is attached to the sleeve 12 proximate to the first end 18 and is configured to selectively attach to the article of footwear 16 so that the sleeve 12 is removably attached to the article of footwear 16. The fastener 26 serves to hold the sleeve 12 in place on the article of footwear 16. The fastener 26 may comprise a sheath 28, which is attached to the first end 18 of the sleeve 12. A drawstring 30 is positioned in the sheath 28 so that opposed end segments 32 of the drawstring 30 protrude from a slit 34 in the sheath 28. The opposed end segments 32 are configured to be grasped in hands of a user, positioning the user to pull on the drawstring 30 to tighten the sheath 28 around the article of footwear 16. The opposed end segments 32 can be tied as one would tie a shoelace to secure the drawstring 30 in a configuration wherein the sheath 28 is tightened around the article of footwear 16. The present invention also anticipates two slits 34 in the sheath 28, with each opposed end segment 32 protruding from a respective slit 34.
A cordlock 36 is slidably attached to the drawstring 30 and is configured to attach to the drawstring 30, selectively and fixedly, to fixedly position the drawstring 30 in the configuration wherein the sheath 28 is tightened around the article of footwear 16. The present invention also anticipates other means of tightening the first end 18 of the sleeve 12 to the article of footwear 16, such as, but not limited to, resiliently stretchable bands, hook and loop fastening straps, or the like.
The footwear 16 covering device 10 also may comprise a panel 38, which is attached by its opposed side edges 40 and a bottom edge 42 to the inner surface 44 of the sleeve 12 to define a pocket 46, as shown in
The present invention also includes a footwear covering system 50, as shown in
In one example of use, a portable heating device 48 is positioned in the pocket 46 and the sleeve 12 is donned by the user so that the portable heating device 48 is positioned atop the front segment 20 of a first article of footwear 16 of a pair of articles of footwear 16. The opposed end segments 32 of the drawstring 30 are pulled to tighten the sheath 28 to the article of footwear 16. The cordlock 36 then is squeezed and slid along the drawstring 30 until it is adjacent to the sheath 28, as shown in
With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of an embodiment enabled by the disclosure, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by an embodiment of the disclosure.
Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the disclosure. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the disclosure to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the disclosure. In this patent document, the word “comprising” is used in its non-limiting sense to mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically mentioned are not excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article “a” does not exclude the possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context clearly requires that there be only one of the elements.
