Patent Application
20190192838
The present disclosure concerns foot covers and more particularly, form fitting foot covers that are intended for delivery of health or beauty related cremes or form fitting foot covers that include a non-slip exterior surface disposed on the portion covering the bottom of the wearer's foot.
Disposable hand coverings made of latex and other elastic materials, such as nitrile, are used in in health care providers' offices throughout the world. They provide a simple way for a healthcare provider to handle biological materials without the provider experiencing skin-to-skin contact with the biological material. Similarly, disposable overshoes have also been used in hospitals and manufacturing clean rooms to guarantee that external contaminants are not able to cause harm to a subject.
In addition, foot coverings have been used to provide, for example, phototherapy or to deliver certain treatments. For example, when receiving phototherapy, various parts of a recipient's body can be covered by, for example, hand coverings and foot coverings. Similarly, in cases of burns or degloving, a loose-fitting foot covering can be used to deliver medication to the skin of a patient's foot in a healthcare setting.
However, the prior art has not addressed a number of situations. First, the foot coverings of the prior art tend to be loose fitting and unattractive; for example, a foot covering adapted for use by a burn victim for delivery of medicine will be intentionally loose fitting so as not to aggravate any wounds on the wearer's feet. Accordingly, for fashion and beauty conscious persons, such foot coverings are entirely unsuitable. Second, prior art foot coverings are not adapted to be used for normal ambulation without wearing shoes. Rather, prior art foot coverings are adapted to cover shoes, or to deliver a medicine or treatment to a patient.
Accordingly, it is an object of the disclosure to provide a form fitting foot covering constructed of a stretch material.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a form fitting foot covering adapted to deliver a beauty cream.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a form fitting foot covering adapted for everyday use.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a form fitting foot covering for use by patients in a hospital or clinic to provide a sterile foot covering.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a form fitting foot covering for use in a nail spa, hotel, or hotel spa.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use by passengers on airplanes.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use at a health club or gymnasium.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use while swimming.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use at a public bath or shower.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use in a sterile environment, such as a retirement home or a commercial kitchen.
Another object of the disclosure is to provide a foot covering for use by men, women, and children.
Other advantages of this disclosure will be clear to a person of ordinary skill in the art. It should be understood, however, that a system or method could practice the disclosure while not achieving all of the enumerated advantages, and that the protected disclosure is defined by the claims.
Generally speaking, pursuant to the various embodiments, the present disclosure provides a form fitting foot covering constructed of a flex material. The disclosed form fitting foot covering comprises an elongated tubular body constructed of a flex material. The elongated tubular body includes an opening that is adapted to be stretched by a user to accommodate the user's foot as she places the foot covering on her foot. In certain embodiments, the elongated tubular body can comprise a bottom surface having a non-slip tread pattern on the exterior of the bottom surface. In addition, the flexible foot covering includes five toes, each of which is adapted to allow a user's toe to be inserted within. In certain embodiments, each of the five toes can comprise an interior where a topical treatment, such as a beauty cream can be disposed within the toes of the foot covering. Finally, the disclosed foot covering includes an angled heel portion.
Variations, such as the use of medical treatments, as well as various uses, such as for use at health spas, swimming pools, and other users, are discussed herein.
Although the characteristic features of this disclosure will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself, and the manner in which it may be made and used, may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views and in which:
A person of ordinary skills in the art will appreciate that elements of the figures above are illustrated for simplicity and clarity, and are not necessarily drawn to scale. The dimensions of some elements in the figures may have been exaggerated relative to other elements to help understanding of the present teachings. Furthermore, a particular order in which certain elements, parts, components, modules, steps, actions, events and/or processes are described or illustrated may not be actually required. A person of ordinary skills in the art will appreciate that, for the purpose of simplicity and clarity of illustration, some commonly known and well-understood elements that are useful and/or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment may not be depicted in order to provide a clear view of various embodiments in accordance with the present teachings.
This disclosure involves the use of a foot covering constructed out of a flex material. A flex material is one that can be easily deformed or manipulated so as to conform to a wearer's foot. Examples of flex materials include, but are not limited to latex, natural rubber latex, synthetic polyisoprene, polyurethane, silicone, nitrile, and other thermoplastic elastomers and polymers.
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Similarly, the same mechanism can be used to deliver medicinal treatments. For example, a user that is being treated for eczema can have a medication, such as a steroid cream, delivered in a matter similar to that described above; i.e., by having the topical treatment predisposed within the foot covering so that it comes into contact with the area of the user's foot or ankle suffering from eczema. Other conditions that require topical treatment of medications can also be treated by predisposing the topical medicine within the foot covering.
The foregoing description of the disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, and is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the disclosure to the precise form disclosed. The description was selected to best explain the principles of the present teachings and practical application of these principles to enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the disclosure in various embodiments and various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated. It should be recognized that the words “a” or “an” are intended to include both the singular and the plural. Conversely, any reference to plural elements shall, where appropriate, include the singular.
It is intended that the scope of the disclosure not be limited by the specification, but be defined by the claims set forth below. In addition, although narrow claims may be presented below, it should be recognized that the scope of this invention is much broader than presented by the claim(s). It is intended that broader claims will be submitted in one or more applications that claim the benefit of priority from this application. Insofar as the description above and the accompanying drawings disclose additional subject matter that is not within the scope of the claim or claims below, the additional inventions are not dedicated to the public and the right to file one or more applications to claim such additional inventions is reserved.
