Travel Foot Rest

Abstract

The invention is directed to a travel footrest. A sheet of durable fabric is provided. The sheet is approximately the width of a passenger vehicle seat and hangs from a strap wrapped around the neck support or tray table of the seat in front and extends forward onto the user's seat. The user sits on the lower end of the fabric such that the user's own weight provides a second support point in addition to the neck rest of the seat in front. The user places his or her feet on the portion of the fabric that is between his or her own seat and the seat in front and finds his or her feet to be fully and stably supported. The user can adjust the height of the foot rest by adjusting the amount of slack in the fabric.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/594,082, filed Feb. 2, 2012.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not Applicable

REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISK APPENDIX

Not Applicable

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates generally to the field of travel accessories, and in particular to devices that make travel more comfortable by providing a foot rest in a vehicle passenger seat. Coach vehicles, such as coach buses, passenger rail cars, and passenger airplanes generally require passengers to remain in or around their seats for long periods of time. Private cars have a similar restriction enforced by the small available space and the common legal requirement for passengers to wear a seatbelt. Seats often become uncomfortable, especially when passengers attempt to sleep in the provided seat. Many people cope with this discomfort by elevating their feet; usually this is accomplished with a provided foot rest built into the seat or the seat in front, or with a makeshift footrest such as piece of luggage placed on the floor.

The prior art discloses some devices for use in situations where a built-in foot rest is not provided, and a makeshift footrest is unavailable or inappropriate. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 7,322,655 to Williams et. al. teaches a hanging fabric or foot-hammock supported by the neck rest of the seat in front of the user, however such the Williams device can easily break and may be difficult for the user to get comfortable in, both due to the single point of support and necessity of supporting the entire weight of the user's feet (and any additional downward force that may be experienced during, for example, getting into and out of the device). An improved device would add an additional point of support, thus improving the device's stability and durability.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the invention is directed to a travel footrest. A sheet of durable fabric is provided. The sheet is approximately the width of a passenger vehicle seat and hangs from a strap wrapped around the neck support or tray table of the seat in front and extends forward onto the user's seat. The user sits on the lower end of the fabric such that the user's own weight provides a second support point in addition to the neck rest of the seat in front. The user places his or her feet on the portion of the fabric that is between his or her own seat and the seat in front and finds his or her feet to be fully and stably supported. The user can adjust the height of the foot rest by adjusting the amount of slack in the fabric.

It is an object of the invention to provide a travel foot rest for use on a coach vehicle where no foot rest is provided, or where a provided foot rest is undesirable or inadequate.

It is an object of the invention to provide a travel foot rest that fully and stably supports the user's feet.

It is an object of the invention to provide a travel foot rest that is durable against substantial downward force experienced when the user gets into or out of the foot rest.

It is an object of the invention to provide a travel foot rest with additional stability provided by having the device be supported by the user's own weight on his or her seat as well as by being suspended from the neck rest of the seat in front.

Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and will be apparent from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The foregoing general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and are intended to provide further explanation of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings are included to provide a further understanding of the invention and are incorporated into and constitute a part of the specification. They illustrate one embodiment of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.

FIG. 1 shows a front view of the first exemplary embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 shows a front view of the second exemplary embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 shows a perspective view of the invention deployed on a coach vehicle seat.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to the invention in more detail, the invention is a travel foot rest for use in a passenger vehicle where no foot rest is provided, or where the provided foot rest is undesirable or inadequate. FIG. 1 shows a front view of the first exemplary embodiment. In the first exemplary embodiment, a sheet of durable fabric 10 is provided. The durable fabric sheet 10 is approximately the width of the usable area of the vehicle seat, or approximately the width of the user's body. The durable fabric sheet 10 is of a sufficient length to be hung from the neck support or tray table of the seat in front of the user and extend out, leaving some slack over the space between the seat in front of the user and the user's own seat, and over to cover a substantial portion of the sitting surface of the user's seat. The durable fabric sheet 11 is made of a high tensile and sheer-strength flexible material such as canvas or nylon; many other suitable materials are known in the prior art, and any will work.

A strap 11 is provided. The strap 11 is of high tensile strength material (e.g. leather or woven nylon) and is attached to the fabric sheet 10 with a durable fastening means such as multiply reinforced stitching. The strap 11 may be a single piece of material or, as in the first exemplary embodiment comprise a plurality of members. In the first exemplary embodiment, a first strap member 12 is attached on its first end to the fabric sheet 10, and a second strap member 13 is likewise attached on its first end to the fabric sheet 11. The second ends of the strap members 12 and 13 are connected by a cinch 14. The cinch 14 may be of any durable material; many plastic and metal materials are well known and customarily used for such objects. The cinch 14 allows the hanging height of the foot rest to be adjusted, and may be constructed to provide a safe fail point such that the effect of a momentary increase in downward force (e.g. person stands on the foot rest during entry or exit from the seat) results in the cinch 14 coming undone rather than the strap 11 being torn from the fabric sheet 10 (since a cinch is easily re-threaded, this failure is preferable to tearing damage).

In the first exemplary embodiment a pocket 15 is provided to store travel items such as reading material, beverages, or electronic devices. The pocket 15 is made of generally similar materials as the fabric sheet 10, may be sectioned into a plurality of smaller pockets, and may be attached by stitching or other appropriate means. FIG. 2 shows the second exemplary embodiment of the invention, which is like the first exemplary embodiment in all respects except for the absence of a pocket 15. Specifically, the second exemplary embodiment comprises a fabric sheet 20 attached to a strap 21, the strap comprising a first member 22 and a second member 23, the strap members 22 and 23 being connected by a cinch 24.

FIG. 3 shows the invention as it would appear in use on a coach vehicle. In FIG. 3, a first seat 30 has a neck rest 33 and is located in front of the user's seat 31. Around the neck rest 33 is looped a strap 32, which is attached to and supports a fabric sheet 35, which extends on to the sitting surface 34 of the user's seat 31. In an alternative configuration, the strap 32 may be looped around a tray table rather than a neck rest, depending on the available fixtures in the particular coach seat. When the user places his or her weight on the sitting surface 34, the fabric sheet 35 is held in place by friction among the fabric sheet 35, the sitting surface 34, and the user's bottom. The user may then rest his or her feet on the fabric sheet 35 where they will be support stably until the user leaves the seat. The height of the foot rest may be adjusted by simply moving the fabric sheet 35 so that it covers more or less of the sitting surface 34, as desired.

While the foregoing written description of the invention enables one of ordinary skill to make and use what is presently considered to be the best mode thereof, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand and appreciate the existence of variations, combinations, and equivalents of the specific embodiment, method, and examples herein. The invention should, therefore, not be limited by the above described embodiment, method, and examples, but by all embodiments and methods within the scope and spirit of the invention.

Claims

1. A travel foot rest comprising:

(a) a sheet of flexible fabric material having a front face, a rear face, a top edge, a bottom edge, a left edge, and a right edge;

(b) a first flexible strap member having a first end and a second end;

(c) a second flexible strap member having a first end and a second end;

(d) said first end of said first flexible strap member being affixed to said top edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material;

(e) said first end of said second flexible strap member being affixed to said top edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material;

(f) said second end of said first flexible strap member being releasably and adjustably attached to said second end of said flexibly strap member by a cinch; and

(g) said sheet of flexible material being about the width of a passenger seat and having a length sufficient to hang by said first and second strap members from around the headrest or tray table of a first passenger seat to rest upon the seat top portion of a second passenger seat located behind said first passenger seat;

whereby a user may attach said sheet of flexible fabric material about an anchor point located on a first passenger seat located in front of a second passenger seat by said first and second flexible strap members, drape said bottom edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material on the seat top of said second passenger seat, and sit on top of said bottom edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material, thus providing an elevated foot rest from said sheet of flexible fabric material.

2. The travel foot rest of claim 1 wherein a plurality of pockets is affixed to the front face of said sheet of flexible fabric material.

3. A method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle comprising:

(a) providing an apparatus comprising sheet of flexible fabric material having a front face, a rear face, a top edge, a bottom edge, a left edge, and a right edge; a first flexible strap member having a first end and a second end; a second flexible strap member having a first end and a second end; said first end of said first flexible strap member being affixed to said top edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material; said first end of said second flexible strap member being affixed to said top edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material; said second end of said first flexible strap member being releasably and adjustably attached to said second end of said flexibly strap member by a cinch; and said sheet of flexible material being about the width of a passenger seat and having a length sufficient to hang by said first and second strap members from around the headrest or tray table of a first passenger seat to rest upon the seat top portion of a second passenger seat located behind said first passenger seat;

(b) attaching said first and second flexible strap members about an anchor point located on a first passenger seat, located in front of a second passenger seat;

(c) said second passenger seat being the passenger seat to be occupied by said user;

(d) draping said bottom edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material on top of the seat top of said second passenger seat;

(e) sitting on top of said bottom edge of said sheet of flexible fabric material; and

(f) resting the feet of said user on the portion of said sheet of flexible fabric material that is suspended between the first and second passenger seats;

whereby sufficient tension is created in said sheet of flexible fabric material that said user's feet may be supported in an elevated position.

4. The method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle of claim 3 wherein said apparatus further comprises a plurality of pockets is affixed to the front face of said sheet of flexible fabric material.

5. The method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle of claim 3 wherein said anchor point is the headrest of said first passenger seat.

6. The method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle of claim 5 wherein said apparatus further comprises a plurality of pockets is affixed to the front face of said sheet of flexible fabric material.

7. The method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle of claim 3 wherein said anchor point is the tray table of said first passenger seat.

8. The method for resting a user's feet while riding in a passenger vehicle of claim 7 wherein said apparatus further comprises a plurality of pockets is affixed to the front face of said sheet of flexible fabric material.