Technical field.

This invention concerns the protection of shoes and socks. More particularly, it concerns protection for the shoes, boots, socks (if worn) and the feet of a wearer of the shoes or boots from dust, mud, water, and the like. It is especially, but not exclusively, suitable for use by sporting cyclists and walkers.

Preliminary note.

In this specification, including the claims, "directional" terms (such as "top", "bottom" , "side" , "underside", "upper", "lower", "front", "back" , "above", "upwards" , "below", "vertical" , and the like) will be used in the sense that these terms would have with reference to an embodiment of the invention positioned as shown in Figure 2 of the accompanying drawings.

Background to the invention.

Cyclists, particularly cross-country cyclists and down-hill riders, find that their shoes and socks, and consequently also their feet, are affected by water (for example, from rain or as a result of splashes when riding through puddles) and by dust, mud and insects. At the end of a ride, the feet of such a cyclist are uncomfortable. Walkers who hike through the countryside have their shoes and socks (if not protected) affected by dust, mud, water, seeds and burrs of plants, and also by insects.

A number of shoe protection devices have been produced in the past. Galoshes - which have been known for many years, fully cover a shoe. Galoshes, however, are cumbersome to use by walkers and unsuitable for use by cyclists. Spats and gaiters

have also been used to protect the shoes (or boots) and socks of the wearer. Spats - with their need for constant attention to maintain their appearance - are no longer in fashion. Gaiters are worn almost exclusively (a) by walkers who like to hike in the countryside, and (b) as part of a military uniform. Neither spats nor gaiters provide suitable shoe protection for cyclists.

Protective shoe covers for cyclists and walkers are currently available on the market, examples being the "Gore" (trade mark) overshoes and the "Altura" (trade mark) overshoes. They represent a development of the gaiter, and cover the entire shoe and ankle region. Invariably, they are fitted to the shoes or boots of a wearer by using fixing points, which are positioned on the front of the toe of the shoe, to which a toe section (of rubber or of a less suitable material) is attached, and also at the rear of the shoe by means of a strap which goes under the outside of the shoe, usually forward of its heel. The toe section and the strap are intended to keep the shoe cover in place and prevent creeping of the cover. Unfortunately, the front fixing points are prone to damage and have a tendency to unlatch while the user is cycling or walking, with the result that the cover creeps up, or bunches up, and the protection which it is supposed to provide is lost. The rear (strap) fixing points are also prone to damage and wear from walking and cycling.

Clearly there is a need for an improved shoe cover which can be mounted securely over the shoe (and ankle region) of a wearer, and which stays in place during normal use.

Disclosure of the invention.

It is an object of the present invention to provide such an improved shoe and boot cover.

This objective is achieved by providing a shoe cover member that has dimensions such that it fits over the top portion of a shoe or boot, and also protects the ankle of the wearer of the shoe or boot. This cover member is constructed from a sheet of a resilient, waterproof material, typically a closed cell neoprene fabric. It has a generally arcuate rear edge, a pair of substantially straight side edges, and a front edge which is also generally arcuate in shape, but which deviates from its arcuate shape to provide an edge of a tongue section of the cover.

The rear edge is adapted to be located around the lower leg of the wearer, below the calf muscle and above the ankle. Preferably a strap which is attached to the rear edge will enable the rear edge to be adjusted to be a comfortable fit around the lower leg of the wearer. Connecting means are provided to enable the side edges to be connected together. Preferably, the connecting means is a zip.

The tongue section is adapted to fit over the top, front region (the toe region) of the shoe or boot that the cover is protecting. The centre of the tongue section is off-set from the mid-point of the front edge, so that, when the cover is fitted over the shoe or boot of the wearer, the side edges meet not at the rearmost part of the shoe of the wearer, but to one side of the rear portion of the shoe or boot.

The protective cover has two anti-creeping members. A first anti-creeping member is attached to the tongue section of the cover. A second anti-creeping member is an elongate anti-creeping member which is attached to the cover in a location that, when the cover is in use, corresponds to the rearmost part of the shoe or boot, and overlies the top-to-bottom rear seam of the shoe or boot.

Each anti-creeping member comprises a stiff member (typically made from a plastic material) which has some flexibility. In the second anti-creeping member, the stiff

but flexible member typically comprises a thin, flat rod that is attached to the cover member of the invention. In the first anti-creeping member, this stiff but flexible member is shaped to fit over the toe section of the shoe or boot of a user of the protective cover, and thus maintains a curved shape of the tongue section (and in a preferred form, can be likened to a hand with a number of flat fingers).

A front attachment means (to connect the cover to the front of the shoe or boot) is provided on the underside of the cover member, on or near the tongue region. Typically, this attachment means consists of a strap to which is attached two strips of "Velcro" (trade mark) material (one strip at each end of the strap) and/or a hook. A rear attachment means, normally a hook, may also be provided. If present, the rear attachment means will be located on the underside of the cover member, at or near the top end of the second anti-creeping member.

At least one vent in the cover may also be provided.

Thus, according to the present invention, there is provided a protective cover for a shoe or boot, said protective cover comprising a cover member constructed from a sheet of a resilient and waterproof material, characterised in that: a) said cover member has a generally arcuate rear edge, b) said cover member has a pair of substantially straight side edges; c) said cover member has a front edge that is generally arcuate but which deviates from its arcuate shape to provide an edge of a tongue section of said cover member; said tongue section being adapted to fit over the top of the front region of said shoe or boot; d) connecting means is provided for holding, when said protective cover is in use, said side edges together, with said rear edge substantially encircling a lower leg of a wearer of said shoe or boot;

e) a first anti-creeping member is attached to said tongue section (and, optionally, also to the region of said cover member which is adjacent to said tongue section), said first anti-creeping member comprising a stiff but flexible support member which is shaped to fit over the top of the front region of said shoe or boot; f) a second anti-creeping member is attached to said cover member, said second anti-creeping member comprising an elongate, flat strip of a stiff but flexible material; the location of said second anti-creeping member corresponding to and, when said protective cover is in use, overlying, the substantially vertical rearmost part of said shoe or boot; and g) attachment means is provided on the underside of said cover member, on or adjacent to said first anti-creeping member, for attaching said cover member to the front of said shoe or boot.

As noted above, preferably the cover member includes (1) a strap associated with said rear edge, for adjusting the fit of said rear edge around the lower leg of a wearer of said shoe or boot, and (2) at least one vent is provided in said cover member.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Brief description of the drawings.

Figure 1 is a perspective sketch showing the underside of a protype protective cover for a shoe or boot, which includes all the preferred features (some optional) of the invention.

Figure 2 is a perspective sketch of the embodiment of Figure 1 fitted onto a shoe

or boot.

Detailed description of the illustrated embodiments.

The protective cover shown in Figures 1 and 2 consists of a cover member 1 which includes a tongue section 20. The cover member 1 is made from a sheet of a resilient and waterproof material. For optimum protection from water, the preferred resilient and waterproof material is a closed cell neoprene fabric. Another material, preferred for use in hot weather, is a perforated neoprene material, which provides water resistance ( but which is is not entirely waterproof) and also some ventilation. Other suitable fabrics may be used.

Normally, the cover member material will have a layer of a fabric which prevents scuffing - for example, "Ro-Tek" (trade mark) abrasion resistant material - on each of its faces, to minimise wear. Thus the preferred cover material is constructed with the resilient and waterproof material in a sandwich between two layers of an abrasion resistant material.

The cover member 1 has substantially straight side edges 21 and 22, a rear edge 23 and a front edge 24. The rear edge 23 is generally arcuate in shape and is dimensioned to fit around the lower leg of a user of the protective cover, above the ankle of the user but below the calf muscle. A rear strap 27 is attached to (preferably sewn to) the rear edge 23. The strap 27, in the illustrated embodiment, carries two strips 10 and 11 of a "Velcro" (trade mark) material, one at each end of it, to enable a user of the protective cover to tighten the rear edge 23 around his or her lower leg until it is a comfortable fit. An elongate pad 9, of a fabric material that is both stretchable and high wicking, is included for the absorption of perspiration, and to improve, further, the comfort of the fit of the rear edge 23 around the lower leg of the user.

Although "Velcro" pads 10 and 11 are used in tne illustrated embodiment, buckles or another suitable strap length adjusting means may be used to enable the length of the strap 27 to be varied.

The substantially linear arrays of the interlocking teeth 11 and 12 of a zip are attached to the side edges 21 and 22 of the cover member 1. As shown in Figure 2, this zip connects the side edges to hold the cover member over a shoe or boot 14.

Alternative connecting means, such as press studs, or at least one lace threaded through pairs of eyelets, or a further strips of "Velcro" material (these alternatives are not exhaustive), may be used instead of the zip teeth 11 and 12, although a zip is the preferred means for holding the side edges 21 and 22 together.

The front edge 24 is also generally arcuate in shape, except where it follows the side and front edges of the tongue section 20. It will be noted that the tongue section 20 is not positioned mid-way along the front edge 24, but is located to one side of the notional line A-A which passes through (a) the mid-point of the rear edge 23 and (b) the notional mid-point of the front edge 24, if the tongue section should be absent from the cover member. This asymmetrical arrangement enables

(1) the tongue section to be fitted above the toe region of the shoe or boot 14,

(2) the zipped-together side edges 21 and 22 to be located to one side of the shoe 14, and (3) an anti-creeping member 7 to be positioned over the rearmost part of the shoe or boot 14, above its heel (and, thus, usually, over a vertical rear seam of the shoe or boot).

The anti-creeping member 7 is one of two anti-creeping devices attached to the cover member 1. The anti-creeping member 7 comprises a flat strip of a stiff material (typically a plastic material, or a suitable metal) which is also flexible. In

the illustrated embodiment, this flat strip is enclosed within an elongate pocket, made from a nylon fabric (1,000 denier fabric), and is sewn (or otherwise attached) to the cover member. It may be attached to the underside or to the top face of the cover member 1; it may be set into the cover member.

The other anti-creeping member of the illustrated embodiment comprises a stiff but flexible member 2 formed as a plurality of flat, downwardly curved fingers, each of which extends from a central flat strip which is positioned on the (notional) fore-and-aft central line of the tongue section 20. The curved fingers are shaped so that the stiff member 2 fits over the toe region of a shoe or boot 14. The stiff but flexible member 2, therefore, moulds the tongue section 20 of the cover member 1. Normally (as shown in the illustrated embodiment) the stiff but flexible member 2 has dimensions such that it also "moulds" the region of the cover member that is adjacent to the tongue section 20.

In the illustrated embodiment, the stiff but flexible member 2 is located within a fabric pocket 25 that is made from 1,000 denier nylon fabric (though other suitable fabrics may be used for this pocket). The pocket 25 is stuck and sewn to the underside of the tongue section 20 and the region of the cover member 1 that is adjacent to the tongue section 20. However, the stiff but flexible member 2 (1) need not be positioned on the underside of the cover member 1; (2) need not be in a fabric pocket 25; and

(3) may be attached to the cover member 1 by any suitable technique, including (a) using rivets; and (b) by being sewn into position.

The anti-creeping members are not physically attached to the shoe or boot, but their stiffness is such that they are effective in preventing the cover member from creeping upwards, and from bunching up (gathering up around the shoe or boot)

during normal cycling or hiking.

The cover member 1 has to be attached to the shoe or boot 14 of a user of the protective cover. For this purpose, a strap member 4, to which two further, elongate strips 26 of "Velcro" material (one strip 26 is not visible in Figure 1) are affixed, is provided. Each strip 26 is at a respective end of the strap member 4. The strap member 4 is attached to the cover member 1 (usually, it will be sewn to the cover member) above the first anti-creeping member 2. The other end of the strap member 4 is passed behind (under) an exposed portion of the lace of the shoe or boot (preferably, the lowest exposed portion). The strap member 4 is then pulled tight (to hold the cover member close to the shoe or boot) and the "Velcro" strip 26 at the end of the strap member 4 that has been passed behind (under) a lace portion, is pressed against the "Velcro" strip 26 on that part of the strap member 4 that is on the end of the strap member 4 that is attached to the cover member. The two "Velcro" strips 26 on the strap member 4 are now operatively connected to each other, and the strap member 4 securely holds the cover member 1 to the lace of the shoe or boot.

An alternative construction (actually, the preferred construction, which is illustrated in Figure 1) of the strap member 4 includes a hook 5 which is attached to the strap member 4. The hook 5 is used to connect the strap member 4 to the lace of the shoe or boot, or to a secondary fixing point (for example, a loop) that is provided by the shoe manufacturer (or by a cobbler).

The illustrated embodiment also includes an optional, second attachment means, namely, a hook 8 which is provided on the underside of the cover member, at or near the top of the anti-creeping member 7. The hook 8 is attached to a loop (not shown) which is provided at the back of the shoe or boot, by the manufacturer of the

shoe or boot (or by a cobbler if the shoe or boot is manufactured without such a loop).

A benefit of having the attachment means mounted on the underside of the cover member 1 is that when the protective cover is in use, in addition to the protection being provided for the shoe or boot, the (or each) attachment means is protected from dust, water, mud, and the like.

At least one vent 19 (two are present in the illustrated embodiment, one on each side of the anti-creeping member 7) is normally provided to assist air circulation around the ankle of a wearer of the shoe or boot. The (or each) vent 19 may be constructed from a plastic, rubber or other suitable material.

It should be appreciated that an example only (but in this case, the preferred form) of the present invention has been illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and described above. Variations of, and modifications to, the illustrated embodiment (in addition to the alternative constructions already noted above) may be made without departing from the present inventive concept, as defined by the claims.