Shoe Rack with Removable Tray

Abstract

A debris collecting shoe rack includes a frame, a plurality of rack tiers and a plurality of removable drip trays. Each rack tier includes drainage openings therein and a corresponding removable drip tray underneath it such that debris on footwear stored on the rack tier are able to fall through the drainage openings and onto the removable drip tray underneath. When desired, the removable drip trays can be removed for easy cleaning.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art nor material to the presently described or claimed inventions, nor that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the field of footwear storage of existing art and more specifically relates to a shoe rack with removable drip trays.

RELATED ART

It is common for individuals to own more than one pair of footwear, and as such, it is common for multiple pairs of footwear to be stored in a shoe rack or other storage cabinet. These shoe racks often include multiple tiers to allow for the storage of a variety of different footwear.

When returning home from the outdoors, an individual typically removes their shoes and places them in the shoe rack. However, footwear tends to collect debris from the outdoors, particularly during inclement weather; where rain, snow and/or mud can accumulate on the shoes.

As such, when the shoes are placed into the shoe rack, the debris drips from the shoes onto whatever is below. In shoe racks containing multiple tiers, it is often another pair of shoes that receive the falling debris. This can cause damage and staining to the shoes, as well as lingering odors if liquid debris dries in the shoe. In shoe racks containing one tier, it is the floor that receives the debris, which again can cause damage/staining to flooring and potentially cause harmful mold growth. As such, a suitable solution is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known footwear storage art, the present disclosure provides a novel shoe rack with removable drip trays. The general purpose of the present disclosure, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a shoe rack with a plurality of tiers each including a debris collecting tray underneath to collect debris falling from footwear placed in the shoe rack.

A debris collecting shoe rack is disclosed herein. In some embodiments, the debris collecting shoe rack may include a frame, a plurality of rack tiers, and a plurality of removable drip trays. The frame may include a pair of parallel opposing side panels. The plurality of rack tiers may each be configured to attach between the pair of parallel opposing side panels and may be arranged horizontally at selected spaced apart locations spanning from about a top to about a bottom of the frame.

Each of the plurality of rack tiers may include spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings. The plurality of removable drip trays may each be configured for placement directly underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers such that each rack tier has a respective drip tray underneath it, thereby debris drained through the drainage openings in each rack tier is collected by the respective drip tray.

According to other embodiments of the present disclosure, the plurality of rack tiers may each include a rack tier front side, a rack tier rear side, a rack tier left side, a rack tier right side, a plurality of equally spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings defined by a plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats spanning between the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side, and a linear groove disposed at an inner side of each rack tier left side and each rack tier right side and spanning between the rack tier front side and the rack tier rear side.

Further, the plurality of removable drip trays may each be directly attached underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers. The plurality of removable drip trays may each include a base, a drip tray front wall, a drip tray rear wall, a drip tray left wall and a drip tray right wall. The drip tray front wall, the drip tray rear wall, the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall each may extend upwardly from the base and define an interior for receiving and retaining the debris therewithin.

In addition, at least the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall each may include a lip extending outwardly therefrom. The lip extending from the drip tray left wall may be configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier left side of a respective rack tier and the lip extending from the drip tray right wall may be configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier right side of the respective rack tier, thereby enabling slidable movement of the drip tray relative to the respective rack tier.

In some other embodiments still, the frame may include a pair of parallel opposing side panels each having a U-shaped configuration comprising a pair of parallel vertical legs and a horizontal crossbar spanning between a top end of the pair of parallel vertical legs. Each of the parallel vertical legs may include a plurality of attachment apertures and each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side may include a pair of attachment receivers. A fastener may be provided and configured for insertion through an aligned attachment receiver and respective attachment aperture to attach the rack tier to the frame.

For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and methods of use for the present disclosure, a shoe rack with removable drip trays, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a debris collecting shoe rack with footwear placed thereon, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a front perspective view of the debris collecting shoe rack including a frame, a plurality of rack tiers and a plurality of drip trays located underneath a respective rack tier, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of the debris collecting shoe rack, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a partial exploded view of the debris collecting shoe rack illustrating the plurality of drip trays slid out from underneath each respective rack tier, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a detailed view of circle A in FIG. 2 and illustrating a linear groove in a side of a rack tier and a lip on a side of a drip tray configured to insert into the linear groove, enabling slidable movement of the drip tray in and out of the rack tier, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a footwear storage system and more particularly to a debris collecting shoe rack. Generally, the debris collecting shoe rack may include a rack with removable drip trays that are slid under each tier of the rack, providing protection to footwear and flooring located below each tier from falling debris (from footwear placed above). Particularly, the removable drip trays may collect debris such as snow, rain, mud, etc. and may be easily removed from the debris collecting shoe rack to enable cleaning thereof.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings by numerals of reference, there is shown in FIGS. 1-5, various views of a debris collecting shoe rack 100.

Referring first to FIG. 1, there is shown a perspective view of the debris collecting shoe rack 100 in use. As shown here, the debris collecting shoe rack 100 may include a frame 110, a plurality of rack tiers 120 and a plurality of removable drip trays 140 each located underneath the plurality of rack tiers 120, such that each rack tier 120 has a respective drip tray 140 underneath it, as can be seen here. As such, footwear 5 may be placed on the rack tiers 120 and debris such as snow and/or mud falls through the rack tiers 120 onto the removable drip tray 140 underneath.

Referring now more specifically to FIGS. 2-3, there is shown perspective views of the debris collecting shoe rack 100 having the plurality of removable drip trays 140 located underneath each of the plurality of rack tiers 120.

As shown here, the frame 110 may include a pair of parallel opposing side panels 111a, 111b (i.e., a left panel 111a and a right panel 111b). As shown here, the pair of parallel opposing side panels 111a, 111b may each include an elongated U-shaped configuration. Particularly, the pair of parallel opposing side panels 111a, 111b may each include a pair of parallel vertical legs 113a, 113b and a horizontal crossbar 115 spanning between a top end 112a, 112b of the pair of parallel vertical legs 113a, 113b.

It should be appreciated however that the frame 110 is not limited to solely including the side panels 111a, 111b; for example, the frame 110 may in some embodiments include a rear panel (not illustrated). It should also be appreciated that the side panels 111a, 111b are not limited to the configuration shown and described here.

The debris collecting shoe rack 100 may be used for industrial use or residential use. For industrial use, the frame 110 may be made from a metal material, including, but not limited to, aluminum. For residential use, the frame 110 may be made from plastic. It should however be appreciated that the frame 110 is not limited to these materials, regardless of application. Further, in some embodiments, the debris collecting shoe rack 100 may be collapsible. This may enable easy storage of the debris collecting shoe rack 100 when not needed (e.g., out of the wet season).

As shown in these figures, the plurality of rack tiers 120 may each be configured to attach between the pair of parallel opposing side panels 111a, 111b at selected spaced apart locations spanning from about a top to a bottom of the frame 110 and defining distinct levels of the debris collecting shoe rack 100. As shown here, each of the plurality of rack tiers 120 may be arranged horizontally within the frame 110 and (at least generally) perpendicular to the pair of parallel vertical legs 113a, 113b.

In some embodiments, the plurality of rack tiers 120 may be removable from the frame 110, or at least movable within the frame 110, enabling a space between two rack tiers 120 to be adjusted. As such, a user may adjust the space to accommodate larger footwear (such as boots).

As shown more specifically in FIG. 3, each of the parallel vertical legs 113a, 113b may include a plurality of attachment apertures 116 for use in attaching the plurality of rack tiers 120 to the frame 110. For example, as shown here, each of the parallel vertical legs 113a, 113b may include (but are not limited to) five attachment apertures 116 distributed from about (at or at least near to) the top of the frame 110 to about (at or at least near to) the bottom of the frame 110 with each side panel 111a, 111b including opposing aligned apertures 116 allowing for integration of the plurality of rack tiers 120 at multiple levels within the frame 110.

Each of the plurality of rack tiers 120 may include a rack tier front side 122, a rack tier rear side 123, a rack tier left side 124 and a rack tier right side 125. Each of the rack tier left 124 and the rack tier right side 125 of each rack tier 120 may include a pair of attachment receivers (not illustrated) each configured to align with one of the attachment apertures 116, again at multiple levels within the frame 110. In some examples, the pair of attachment receivers may also include (but are not limited to) apertures.

For example, to attach a rack tier 120 to the frame 110, each attachment receiver on the rack tier 120 may be aligned with each attachment aperture 116 at a desired level on the frame 110 and a fastener may be inserted through the aligned attachment receiver and the attachment aperture 116. For example, the fastener may be a bolt or other elongated member 117 which may be threaded or inserted through the aligned attachment receiver and the attachment aperture 116. In some embodiments, the fastener may be provided with and specifically for use with the debris collecting shoe rack 100; in other embodiments, the fastener may be existing hardware.

In some embodiments, the plurality of attachment apertures 116 may be distributed equally from about the top of the frame 110 to about the bottom of the frame 110. This may provide equally spaced apart rack tiers 120 when attached. In other embodiments, as shown here, the plurality of attachment apertures 116 may not be distributed equally, providing various levels of spacing/height between the rack tiers 120. As above, this may be particularly useful to accommodate footwear 5 of varied sizes. For example, sneakers need less height between rack tiers 120 than boots, so in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, sneakers may be placed on lower level rack tiers 120 and boots may be placed on higher level rack tiers 120. It is contemplated that the user is able to customize the rack tiers 120 and their location and height within the frame 110.

As shown particularly in FIG. 3, each of the plurality of rack tiers 120 may include spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings 121, allowing debris from the footwear 5 (FIG. 1) to fall through the rack tier 120 and into its respective drip tray 140 beneath. As shown here, the spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings 121 may span between the rack tier left side 124 and the rack tier right side 125. In this embodiment, the drainage openings 121 may be oriented generally perpendicular to a length of the footwear 5 (FIG. 1), ensuring a maximum amount of debris is filtered through the drainage openings 121 and into the drip tray 140 underneath.

The drainage openings 121 may be defined by a plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats 126 spanning between the rack tier left side 124 and the rack tier right side 125. In some embodiments, the plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats 126 may each be permanently fixed at one end to the rack tier left side 124 and at another end to the rack tier right side 125. Further, in some embodiments as shown here, the spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings 121 (and therefore the plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats 126) may be equally spaced apart. In other embodiments, spacing may vary between each adjacent longitudinal slat 126.

With reference now also to FIG. 4, illustrating a perspective view of each of the plurality of rack tiers 120 and the plurality of removal drip trays 140, which have been removed from underneath each rack 120. As has been shown in FIGS. 1-3 and discussed above, the plurality of removable drip trays 140 are each configured for placement directly underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers 120 such that each rack tier 120 has a respective drip tray 140 underneath it. Particularly, as demonstrated in FIG. 4, in some embodiments, the plurality of removable drip trays 140 may be slidably inserted into its respective rack tier 120, to enable easy removal and insertion thereof.

As shown in FIG. 4, each of the plurality of drip trays 140 may include a substantially planar base surface 141, a drip tray front wall 142, a drip tray rear wall 143, a drip tray left wall 144 and a drip tray right wall 145 all extending upwardly from the base 141 and defining an interior 146 for receiving and retaining the debris. The upwardly extending side walls 142, 143, 144, 145 aid in retaining the debris, allowing a greater volume of debris to be collected in the drip tray 140 before it is overfilled, and particularly containing liquid debris in the drip tray 140.

Referring now also to FIG. 5, with reference still to FIGS. 1-4, there is shown a detailed view of a connection between a drip tray 140 and a rack tier 120 from circle A in FIG. 2. As shown here and as discussed above, each drip tray 140 may be directly attached to its respective rack tier 120. This may provide ease of movement when moving or changing heights of the rack tiers 120 within the frame 110.

In some embodiments, the rack tier left side 124 and the rack tier right side 125 may each include a linear groove 127, or track, disposed at an inner side 128 thereof and spanning (generally) between the rack tier front side 122 and the rack tier rear side 123 perpendicular to each leg 113a, 113b of the side panels 111a, 111b. In some embodiments, the linear groove 127 may be disposed centrally within the inner side 128 of each of the rack tier left side 124 and the rack tier right side 125.

Accordingly, at least the drip tray left wall 144 and the drip tray right wall 145 each may include a lip 147 extending outwardly therefrom. Particularly, as shown here, a top periphery of each drip tray 140 may include a continuous lip 147a, 147b, 147c, 147d extending outwardly from each wall 142, 143, 144, 145, as can be seen particularly in FIGS. 4-5.

As such, in this embodiment, each linear groove 127 may be configured to slidably receive two opposing sides of the continuous lip 147 of the drip tray 140, enabling slidable movement of the drip tray 140 in and out of the rack tier 120. Particularly, the lip 147a extending from the drip tray left wall 144 may be configured to slidably insert into the linear groove 127a disposed in the rack tier left side 124 of the respective rack tier 120; and the lip 147b extending from the drip tray right wall 145 may be configured to slidably insert into the linear groove 127b disposed in the rack tier right side 125 of the respective rack tier 120.

In some embodiments, handles (not illustrated) may be provided on each drip tray 140. For example, each of the drip tray left wall 144 and the drip tray right wall 145 may include a handle (again, not illustrated) to aid in moving and carrying of the drip tray 140.

In use generally, a user may store their footwear 5 on any of the plurality of rack tiers 120. Any debris on the footwear 5 such as snow, rain, mud, etc. may fall, or drip, through the plurality of drainage openings 121 defined by the plurality of longitudinal slats 126 and onto the below removable drip tray 140. When desired, the user may easily remove one or more of the removable drip trays 140 (e.g., by sliding the removable drip tray 140 from the rack tier 120); clean the one or more of the removable drip trays 140; and re-insert the one or more removable drip trays 140 back into the frame 110 (e.g., by sliding the removable drip tray 140 into the rack tier 120).

It should also be noted that, under appropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference, user preferences, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements, available materials, technological advances, etc., other methods are taught herein.

It should be understood by one of skill in the art that the disclosed invention is described here in a few exemplary embodiments of many. No particular terminology or description should be considered limiting on the disclosure or the scope of any claims issuing therefrom.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the relevant patent offices and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application.

It should be noted that, in this specification and the drawings, elements that have substantially the same function and structure are denoted with the same reference numerals, and repeated explanation and illustration is omitted. Further, common but well understood elements that are useful or necessary in a commercially feasible embodiment are often not depicted in order to facilitate a less obstructed view of the various embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A debris collecting shoe rack comprising: a frame including a pair of parallel opposing side panels;a plurality of rack tiers each configured to attach between the pair of parallel opposing side panels and arranged horizontally at selected spaced apart locations spanning from about a top to about a bottom of the frame, each of the plurality of rack tiers including spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings; anda plurality of removable drip trays each configured for placement directly underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers such that each rack tier has a respective drip tray underneath it, thereby debris drained through the drainage openings in each rack tier is collected by the respective drip tray.

2. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 1, wherein the pair of parallel opposing side panels each include a U-shaped configuration having a pair of parallel vertical legs and a horizontal crossbar spanning between a top end of the pair of parallel vertical legs.

3. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of rack tiers include a rack tier front side, a rack tier rear side, a rack tier left side and a rack tier right side.

4. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 3, wherein each of the parallel vertical legs include a plurality of attachment apertures; wherein each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side includes a pair of attachment receivers, one disposed toward the rack tier rear side and another one disposed toward the rack tier front side, each attachment receiver configured to align with a respective attachment aperture; andwherein a fastener is configured for insertion through an aligned attachment receiver and respective attachment aperture to attach the rack tier to the frame.

5. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 4, wherein the spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings span between the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side.

6. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 5, wherein the spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings are defined by a plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats spanning between the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side.

7. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 6, wherein the spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings are equally spaced.

8. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of drip trays include a base, a drip tray front wall, a drip tray rear wall, a drip tray left wall and a drip tray right wall, the drip tray front wall, the drip tray rear wall, the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall each extending upwardly from the base and defining an interior for receiving and retaining the debris.

9. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 8, wherein each drip tray is directly attached to its respective rack tier.

10. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 9, wherein the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side each include a linear groove disposed at an inner side thereof and spanning between the rack tier front side and the rack tier rear side; wherein at least the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall each include a lip extending outwardly therefrom;wherein the linear groove in the rack tier left side is configured to slidably receive the lip on the drip tray left wall; andwherein the linear groove in the rack tier right side is configured to slidably receive the lip on the drip tray right wall.

11. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 10, wherein the linear groove is disposed centrally within the inner side of each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side.

12. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 10, wherein the lip is a continuous lip extending outwardly from each of the drip tray front wall, the drip tray rear wall, the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall; wherein the lip extending from the drip tray left wall is configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier left side of the respective rack tier; andwherein the lip extending from the drip tray right wall is configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier right side of the respective rack tier.

13. A debris collecting shoe rack comprising: a frame including a pair of parallel opposing side panels;a plurality of rack tiers each configured to attach between the pair of parallel opposing side panels and arranged horizontally at selected spaced apart locations spanning from about a top to about a bottom of the frame, each of the plurality of rack tiers including a rack tier front side, a rack tier rear side, a rack tier left side, a rack tier right side, a plurality of equally spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings defined by a plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats spanning between the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side, and a linear groove disposed at an inner side of each rack tier left side and each rack tier right side and spanning between the rack tier front side and the rack tier rear side; anda plurality of removable drip trays each directly attached underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers such that each rack tier has a respective drip tray underneath it, thereby debris drained through the drainage openings in each rack tier is collected by the respective drip tray, the plurality of removable drip trays each including a base, a drip tray front wall, a drip tray rear wall, a drip tray left wall and a drip tray right wall all extending upwardly from the base and defining an interior for receiving and retaining the debris, at least the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall each including a lip extending outwardly therefrom, the lip extending from the drip tray left wall configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier left side of a respective rack tier and the lip extending from the drip tray right wall configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier right side of the respective rack tier, thereby enabling slidable movement of the drip tray relative to the respective rack tier.

14. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 13, wherein the pair of parallel opposing side panels each include a U-shaped configuration having a pair of parallel vertical legs and a horizontal crossbar spanning between a top end of the pair of parallel vertical legs.

15. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 14, wherein each of the parallel vertical legs include a plurality of attachment apertures; wherein each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side includes a pair of attachment receivers, one disposed toward the rack tier rear side and another one disposed toward the rack tier front side, each attachment receiver configured to align with a respective attachment aperture; andwherein a fastener is configured for insertion through an aligned attachment receiver and respective attachment aperture to attach the rack tier to the frame.

16. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 15, wherein the linear groove is disposed centrally within the inner side of each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side.

17. The debris collecting shoe rack of claim 16, wherein the lip is a continuous lip extending outwardly from each of the drip tray front wall, the drip tray rear wall, the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall.

18. A debris collecting shoe rack comprising: a frame including a pair of parallel opposing side panels, the pair of parallel opposing side panels each including a U-shaped configuration having a pair of parallel vertical legs and a horizontal crossbar spanning between a top end of the pair of parallel vertical legs, each of the parallel vertical legs including a plurality of attachment apertures;a plurality of rack tiers each configured to attach between the pair of parallel opposing side panels and arranged horizontally at selected spaced apart locations spanning from about a top to about a bottom of the frame, each of the plurality of rack tiers including a rack tier front side, a rack tier rear side, a rack tier left side, a rack tier right side, a plurality of equally spaced apart longitudinal drainage openings defined by a plurality of parallel spaced apart longitudinal slats spanning between the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side, and a linear groove disposed centrally at an inner side of each rack tier left side and each rack tier right side and spanning between the rack tier front side and the rack tier rear side, each of the rack tier left side and the rack tier right side including a pair of attachment receivers, one toward the rack tier rear side and one toward the rack tier front side, each attachment receiver configured to align with a respective attachment aperture;a fastener configured for insertion through an aligned attachment receiver and respective attachment aperture to attach the rack tier to the frame; anda plurality of removable drip trays each directly attached underneath one of the plurality of rack tiers such that each rack tier has a respective drip tray underneath it, thereby debris drained through the drainage openings in each rack tier is collected by the respective drip tray, each of the plurality of drip trays including a base, a drip tray front wall, a drip tray rear wall, a drip tray left wall, and a drip tray right wall all extending upwardly from the base and defining an interior for receiving and retaining the debris, a top periphery of each drip tray includes a continuous lip extending outwardly from each of the drip tray front wall, the drip tray rear wall, the drip tray left wall and the drip tray right wall, a lip portion extending from the drip tray left wall configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier left side of a respective rack tier and a lip portion extending from the drip tray right wall configured to slidably insert into the linear groove disposed in the rack tier right side of the respective rack tier, thereby enabling slidable movement of the drip tray relative to the respective rack tier.