US20110035964A1

US20110035964A1 - Bike shoe slipper

Info

Publication number: US20110035964A1
Application number: US12/583,208
Authority: US
Inventors: Frank Gallagher
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2009-08-17
Filing date: 2009-08-17
Publication date: 2011-02-17

Abstract

A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper with a sole portion, a side wall portion and a top portion. The top portion including a shoe receiving aperture and the aperture including a sewn in elastic band that surrounds its perimeter. The over-slippers are constructed of elastic material such as spandex. The over-slippers each have a plurality of resilient pads fixedly attached to the underside of the sole portion of each slipper. The soles and the pads form a protective layer between the cleats of a standard bike shoe and any surface that the wearer of the bike shoe may be walking on. The pads of the slippers are located under the standard cleat locations found on a standard bike shoe. A preferred embodiment includes strap handles fixedly attached to the front and rear rim of the shoe receiving aperture to allow for easy attachment or removal of the slipper.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Not Applicable

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

DESCRIPTION OF ATTACHED APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates generally to the field of shoe accessories and more specifically to a bike shoe slipper.
Many modern day bicyclists wear cycling shoes that include cleats on their soles that engage with a mating receiving member located on a bicycle pedal. When a person tries walking on a surface while wearing the cycling shoes, they risk damaging the cleats as well as damaging the surface of the floor that they are walking on. To this end it would be advantageous to wear some sort of slipper or attachment that would attach to the cycling shoe and provide protection for the cleats.
The concept of placing a slipper or over-shoe on and around a primary shoe is well known. Rubber slippers have been in existence for many years and are used to protect a shoe when worn during rainy or wet conditions. One design for a cleat protector for cyclists has been put forth by R. Igor Crook in his U.S. Pat. No. 5,031,342 which describes a device that anchors on the nose of the cleat and heel box of the shoe, however this device is made of relatively rigid material and can only fit on a cyclists shoe of a specific size and cleat location. Richard Kay in is patent application 2007/0006490A1 describes a cleat protector device for an athletic shoe where a sub sole is attached to the sole of the athletic shoe by means of straps and hook and loop fasteners.
However, there are deficiencies in the prior technology. None of the devices described in prior art offer a fully elastic over-shoe type slipper that is made of very light weight elastic material, can fit on a variety of shoe sizes, can be rolled up into a small size for storage, can fit on either the left shoe or right shoe, and has a plurality of resilient pads fixed to the underside sole portion that align with the location of the cleats of a standard bicycle shoe. Additionally, none of the prior art designs include a pair of strap handles located on the front and rear perimeter if the slipper opening to help a user attach or remove the slipper from a standard bicycle shoe.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The primary object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that easily attaches to cyclists shoes, providing protection to the cleats of the bike shoe while the wearer is walking.
Another object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that is elastic and can fit over a wide variety of shoe sizes.
Another object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that can be rolled up into a small package when not being used.
A further object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that is light weight.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that rolls into itself to keep the dirty side of the sole from touching the inside of a cyclists pocket.
Still yet another object of the invention is to provide a bike shoe slipper that includes strap handles to help the user attach and detach the slipper from a bike shoe.
Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following descriptions, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein, by way of illustration and example, an embodiment of the present invention is disclosed.
In accordance with a preferred embodiment of the invention, there is disclosed a pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper comprising: a sole portion, a side wall portion, a top portion, said top portion including a shoe receiving aperture, said shoe receiving aperture including a sewn in elastic band that surrounds the perimeter of said aperture, said over-slippers constructed of elastic material, said over-slippers each having a plurality of resilient pads fixedly attached to the underside of the sole portion of said slippers, said over-slipper soles and said pads forming a protective layer between the cleats of a standard bike shoe and any surface that the wearer of said bike shoe may be walking on, and said pads of said slippers located under the standard cleat locations found on a standard bike shoe.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The drawings constitute a part of this specification and include exemplary embodiments to the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. It is to be understood that in some instances various aspects of the invention may be shown exaggerated or enlarged to facilitate an understanding of the invention.

FIG. 1 is top plan view of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a section view of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a left side view of the invention.

FIG. 5 is a right side view of the invention.

FIG. 6 is a front view of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Detailed descriptions of the preferred embodiment are provided herein. It is to be understood, however, that the present invention may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, specific details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but rather as a basis for the claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in the art to employ the present invention in virtually any appropriately detailed system, structure or manner.
Referring now to FIG. 1 we see a top plan view of the present bike shoe slipper of the present invention. The construction is basically one piece where a sole portion 12, side walls 10 and a top portion 2 are sewn together from an elastic material such as spandex. An additional elastic band is sewn in around the perimeter 4 of the aperture on the top surface 2 where the user inserts his or her foot and cyclist's shoe. A front strap 6 and rear strap 8 are sewn onto the perimeter 4 to help the user slip the invention on and off of a cyclist's shoe.
FIG. 2 shows a bottom view of the invention where sole portion 12 can be clearly seen, as well as a plurality of resilient pads 14 that are fixedly attached to the sole portion 12. Pads 14A and 14B are specifically placed to coincide with the location of the cleat on a standard cyclist's shoe so that when the wearer of the invention walks with the bike shoe and over-shoe slipper of the present invention, the cleats of the bike shoe are protected from damage by the surface being walked on. Additionally, the surface being walked on is protected from damage by the cleat. Pads 14 are constructed of a resilient material such as an elastomeric vinyl. An ideal durometer for the material is Shore A 40. One specific material that has this capacity is Versaflex CL2250 made by GLS Corp. It also has a high non-slip rating so that the wearer has less chance of slipping while wearing the bike shoe slipper of the present invention. The slipper of the present invention is symmetrically designed and can therefore be worn on either the left foot or the right foot.
FIG. 3 shows a section view of the invention as defined by section line 50 shown in FIG. 1. This view clearly shows the elastic band 5 sewn into the perimeter portion 4 of the slipper. Resilient pads 14 are shown fused to the under portion of sole 12. The pads 14 are separated from each other 15 so that they do not significantly interfere with the elastic quality of the slipper itself.
FIG. 4 shows a left side view of the invention. The extremely pliable nature of the side walls 10 allows the slippers to be rolled up when not in use for compact storage. The user can choose to roll up the slippers inside out so that the outward portion of the sole 12 faces inward and therefore can not cause the pocket of the user to become soiled if the slippers are stored in a pocket.
FIG. 5 is a right side view of the invention. The overall invention is relatively light in weight so that they can be carried by the user during bike riding without adding excess unwanted additional weight.
FIG. 6 is a front view of the invention.
While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it is not intended to limit the scope of the invention to the particular form set forth, but on the contrary, it is intended to cover such alternatives, modifications, and equivalents as may be included within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. a pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper comprising:

a sole portion;

a side wall portion;

a top portion;

said top portion including a shoe receiving aperture;

said shoe receiving aperture including a sewn in elastic band that surrounds the perimeter of said aperture;

said over-slippers constructed of elastic material;

said over-slippers each having a plurality of resilient pads fixedly attached to the underside of the sole portion of said slippers;

said over-slipper soles and said pads forming a protective layer between the cleats of a standard bike shoe and any surface that the wearer of said bike shoe may be walking on; and

said pads of said slippers located under the standard cleat locations found on a standard bike shoe.

2. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 further comprising strap handles fixedly attached to the front and rear rim of said shoe receiving aperture of each said slipper to allow for easy attachment to or removal from said from said bike shoe.

3. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said slippers are constructed of spandex material.

4. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said pads are constructed of elastomeric vinyl material having a shore A durometer of approximately 40.

5. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said pads are constructed of a material that has a high non-slip value such as Versaflex CL2250 manufactured by GLS Corp.

6. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said slippers are relatively light in weight.

7. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said slippers can roll up into a compact shape for easy storage and transport.

8. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said said slippers can be turned inside out and rolled up so that the said sole portion is not exposed to a person's pocket when carrying said slippers.

9. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said the elastic nature of said slippers allows them to fit snuggly on a variety of sizes of bike shoes.

10. A pair of bike shoe slippers, each slipper as claimed in claim 1 wherein said said slippers are identical in shape and can each be put on either the right foot or the left foot bike shoe of the user.