Abstract: Disclosed shoe cover dispensers function in conjunction with a cartridge of pre-stacked shoe covers utilizing an improved loading process, making the process easier and faster for the user. The cartridge can be inserted into the dispenser and then expanded by the dispenser to achieve a stack of expanded shoe covers ready to be automatically released over a shoe when the shoe is placed inside the dispenser.

Abstract: A shoe-cover dispenser is described, including, for example, features that facilitate the simultaneous loading of multiple shoe covers and/or features that prevent incomplete release of shoe covers. The shoe-cover dispenser can include a shell and a removable shoe-cover cartridge sized to fit within the shell. The removable shoe-cover cartridge can be configured to releasably hold a plurality of shoe covers, such as by releasably holding three or more clips attached to an elastic element of each shoe cover. These clips can be preloaded into the removable shoe-cover cartridge prior to delivery to an end-user. Release of a shoe cover can be initiated by downward movement of a foot pad. To prevent tilting of the foot pad, the shell can include a guide plate substantially abutting a substantially vertical side of the foot pad and/or an alignment rod positioned within a substantially vertical hole in the foot pad.