Patent Application
20240032625
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The disclosure relates to footgear device and more particularly pertains to a new footgear device for protecting and disguising a medical appliance. The present invention discloses a footgear device comprising a substantially water impermeable sleeve, which is shaped substantially complementarily to a covered foot and an associated lower leg of a user, respectively. A fur layer is attached to and substantially covers an outer face of a lower leg portion of the sleeve. A closure attached to the sleeve is positioned to close a slit in the lower leg portion to upon donning of the sleeve.
The prior art relates to footgear device. Prior art footgear devices include overshoes with attached or attachable leggings, which may be zippered. The prior art also includes leggings over which shoes can be worn and which provide an appearance of boots. What is lacking in the prior art is a footgear device comprising a substantially water impermeable sleeve, which is shaped substantially complementarily to a covered foot and an associated lower leg of a user, respectively. A fur layer is attached to and substantially covers an outer face of a lower leg portion of the sleeve. A closure attached to the sleeve is positioned to close a slit in the lower leg portion upon donning of the sleeve.
An embodiment of the disclosure meets the needs presented above by generally comprising a sleeve, which comprises a lower leg portion and a shoe portion, and which is shaped substantially complementarily to a covered foot and an associated lower leg of a user, respectively. The sleeve is configured for insertion of the covered foot and the associated lower leg. The sleeve comprises elastomer so that the sleeve is substantially impermeable to water. A fur layer is attached to and substantially covers an outer face of the lower leg portion of the sleeve. A slit is positioned in the sleeve and extends through the fur layer. The slit extends from an upper edge of the lower leg portion toward the shoe portion. A closure is attached to the sleeve and extends along the slit so that the closure is positioned to selectively close the slit upon donning of the sleeve.
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
The sleeve 12 comprises elastomer so that the sleeve 12 is substantially impermeable to water. The sleeve 12 being substantially impermeable to water protects the user's lower leg, foot, any foot covering, and any appliance from exposure to water. As shown in
A fur layer 22, which may comprise faux fur, is attached to and substantially covers an outer face 24 of the lower leg portion 14 of the sleeve 12. A slit 26 is positioned in the sleeve 12 and extends through the fur layer 22. The slit 26 extends from an upper edge 28 of the lower leg portion 14 toward the shoe portion 16. The slit 26 may be positioned in a back 30 of the sleeve 12, as shown in
A closure 36 is attached to the sleeve 12 and extends along the slit 26 so that the closure 36 is positioned to selectively close the slit 26 upon donning of the sleeve 12. The closure 36 is positioned so that the fur layer 22 substantially covers the closure 36 upon closing of the slit 26. The closure 36 may comprise a zipper 38, as shown in
A sheath 40 is attached to and extends circumferentially around the upper edge 28 of the lower leg portion 14. The slit 26 extends through the sheath 40. An elastic strap 42 is attached to and positioned in the sheath 40. The elastic strap 42 is configured to tighten the upper edge 28 of the lower leg portion 14 around the associated lower leg of the user, thus helping to keep water from entering the sleeve 12.
A pair of couplers 44 is attached to the sleeve 12 and brackets the slit 26 proximate to the upper edge 28. The couplers 44 are selectively mutually couplable and, when mutually coupled, help to prevent inadvertent opening of the slit 26. The pair of couplers 44 may comprise a snap fastener 46, as shown in
The protective footgear device 10 also may comprise an elastomeric strap 48, which has a pair of first fasteners 50 attached singly proximate to its opposed ends 52. The first fasteners 50 are complementary to a pair of second fasteners 54 attached to a top surface 56 of the shoe portion 16 proximate to the lower leg portion 14. The second fasteners 54 are spaced apart so that the elastomeric strap 48 is tensioned when the first fasteners 50 are engaged to the second fasteners 54, thus snugging the shoe portion 16 to the covered foot. The pair of first fasteners 50 and the pair of second fasteners 54 may comprise a pair of snap closures 58, as shown in
In one example of use, the zipper 38 is opened and a user inserts their walking boot adorned foot and lower leg into the sleeve 12. The zipper 38 then is closed and the snap fastener 46 is fastened to secure the protective footgear device 10 in place. In this example, the protective footgear device 10 shields the walking boot from view, thereby promoting compliance with recommended use. The protective footgear device 10 also protects the walking boot, as well as the foot and lower leg of the user, from the elements. A second protective footgear device 10 can be used on the other foot and lower leg of the user for aesthetic purposes, but also to protect and to shield from view a shoe positioned on the other foot.
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.
