Footwear Support
An apparatus for supporting footwear includes a pair of inner support members having approximately a same length and a same width and having a continuous or detachable tether attached to extend between the support members. The pair of inner support members are configured to be inserted into a pair of footwear to support the sleeves of the footwear. The inner support members are typically made of a pliable but resilient foam material. End caps can support the tether and provide identifying indicia. Optionally, an air freshener can be attached to or embedded within the support members.
This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patent application No. 62/057,619 filed Sep. 30, 2014, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
TECHNICAL FIELDThis invention relates generally to footwear, and more specifically to providing support for footwear having extended sleeve portions that extend above the ankle and/or up the leg during storage of the footwear.
BACKGROUNDFootwear comes in a large variety of shapes, sizes, and styles. Accordingly, organized storage of footwear can be difficult. Shoe trees address this problem by providing a structure on which the footwear can be mounted when not worn. The phrase “shoe tree” can apply to different types of structures. In one, the shoe tree is shaped to fit inside of footwear to maintain its shape when not worn. This type of shoe tree will be referred to as a “shaping shoe tree,” an example of which that is designed for boots is illustrated as inserted into a boot in
The above needs are at least partially met through provision of the footwear support described in the following detailed description, particularly when studied in conjunction with the drawings, wherein:
Skilled artisans will appreciate that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale. For example, the dimensions and/or relative positioning of some of the elements in the figures may be exaggerated relative to other elements to help to improve understanding of various embodiments of the present invention. Also, 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 these various embodiments. It will further be appreciated that certain actions and/or steps may be described or depicted in a particular order of occurrence while those skilled in the art will understand that such specificity with respect to sequence is not actually required. It will also be understood that the terms and expressions used herein have the ordinary technical meaning as is accorded to such terms and expressions by persons skilled in the technical field as set forth above except where different specific meanings have otherwise been set forth herein.
DETAILED DESCRIPTIONGenerally speaking, pursuant to these various embodiments, an apparatus for supporting footwear includes a pair of inner support members having approximately a same length and a same width and having a tether attached to extend between the support members. The pair of inner support members are configured to be inserted into a pair of footwear to support the sleeves of the footwear. The inner support members are typically made of a pliable but resilient foam material. So configured, the inner support members can resiliently engage the inner portions of the footwear's sleeve for support, are inexpensively manufactured, and can readily facilitate use in traveling by adding little weight and not posing problems in, for example, airport security. These and other benefits may become clearer upon making a thorough review and study of the following detailed description.
Referring now to the drawings, and in particular to
The cross-sectional shape of the inner support member 310 or 315 can be any of a variety of shapes including, for example, circular, elliptical, octagonal, hexagonal, or oval, any of which provide sufficient contact within the inner sleeve to resiliently engage and support it. The inner support members 310 and 315 can be made of a resilient foam material such as polyethlene. Advantageously, this type of material is inexpensive, can be readily and inexpensively manufactured into any of the above shapes, and provides giving yet firm support to the inner surface of the footwear's sleeve. Moreover, such a material could be easily and further shaped by an end user to more specifically fit the sleeve of a particular piece of footwear.
Turning again to
Optionally, the end caps 340 and 345 and/or 350 and 355 may be marked with identifying indicia 450. For example, as illustrated in
Referring now to
Turning to
So configured, an easy to manufacture and relatively inexpensive shaping shoe tree can be used to maintain a shape of boots and similar footwear. The resilient foam or similar material readily supports the footwear's sleeve without unduly catching on the footwear during insertion and extraction given the material's ability to give yet still support the footwear. Identifying information can be provided on the support members' end caps, and extraction is readily facilitated by a tether that also reduces the odds of losing one of the pair of support members. Optionally, an air freshener can be included with the support members that can be readily replaced.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that a wide variety of modifications, alterations, and combinations can be made with respect to the above described embodiments without departing from the scope of the invention, and that such modifications, alterations, and combinations are to be viewed as being within the ambit of the inventive concept.
Claims
1. An apparatus for supporting footwear, the apparatus comprising:
- a pair of inner support members having approximately a same length and a same width, the width suitable for fitting into a foot opening of footwear, the foot opening defined by a sleeve configured to extend over an ankle of a wearer, the length suitable for extending between a sole and the foot opening of the footwear;
- a tether attached to extend between one end of each of the inner support members;
- wherein the pair of inner support members are configured to be inserted into a pair of the footwear to support the sleeves of the footwear.
2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the length of the pair of inner support members is between about 2 inches to about 24 inches.
3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the pair of inner support members are configured to engage inner portion of the sleeve sufficient to support the sleeves of the footwear when the footwear are inserted onto a support structure of a storage shoe tree.
4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the width of the pair of inner support members is between about 3 inches to about 14 inches.
5. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the inner support members have a cross-sectional shape being one of circular, elliptical, octagonal, hexagonal, or oval.
6. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the pair of inner support members comprise a resilient foam material.
7. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising end caps secured to the ends of the inner support members to which the tether is attached.
8. The apparatus of claim 7 wherein the tether is attached to the end caps.
9. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising an air freshener material disposed on or in the inner support members.
10. A method for supporting footwear, the method comprising:
- engaging an inner portion of a footwear's sleeve configured to extend over an ankle of a wearer with a first inner support member having a length suitable for extending between a sole and the sleeve's foot opening for the footwear;
- resiliently supporting the sleeve of the footwear with the inner support member's width when the inner support member is inserted in the sleeve;
- withdrawing the inner support member from the footwear by tensioning a tether attached to extend from one end of the inner support member.
11. The method of claim 10 further comprising supporting the sleeve of the footwear with the inner support member's width when the inner support member is inserted in the sleeve and a support structure of a storage shoe tree is inserted into the sleeve.
12. The method of claim 10 further comprising:
- engaging an inner portion of a second footwear's sleeve configured to extend over an ankle of a wearer with a second inner support member having a shape and size substantially similar to the first inner support member;
- supporting the sleeve of the second footwear with the second inner support member's width when the second inner support member is inserted in the second footwear's sleeve and a support structure of a shoe tree is inserted into the second footwear's sleeve;
- withdrawing the second inner support member from the second footwear by tensioning the tether, which is attached to extend from one end of the second inner support member.
13. The method of claim 10 wherein the engaging the inner portion of the footwear's sleeve comprises engaging the inner portion of the footwear's sleeve with the first inner support member's resilient foam outer portion.
14. The method of claim 10 further comprising modifying a scent of the footwear with an air freshener material disposed on or in the first inner support member.
Type: Application
Filed: Sep 29, 2015
Publication Date: Mar 31, 2016
Inventor: Aravinda N. Reeves (Chicago, IL)
Application Number: 14/868,541