Hands free shoehorn

Abstract

A hands free shoehorn is shown and described. The shoehorn includes a guide member for guiding a foot of a user into an opening of a shoe. A handle projects upwardly from the guide member to facilitate insertion and maneuvering of the shoehorn. An entrapment member generally parallel to the guide member captures a heel wall of the shoe between the guide member and the entrapment member in sufficiently close fit to enable the shoehorn to remain coupled to the shoe in an operative position without the shoehorn being held by the user. The user may then slip his or her foot into the shoe with the shoehorn stably mounted on the shoe such that the user need not either hold the shoe horn or balance body weight on one leg while donning the shoe.

I claim: 
     
         1 . A shoehorn comprising:
 a guide member for guiding a foot of a user into a shoe, the guide member comprising a proximal end at an opening of the shoe when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe and an opposed distal end facing a heel of the shoe when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe;   an entrapment member fixed to the guide member proximate the proximal end of the guide member and configured such that a majority of the length of the entrapment member is parallel to the guide member, the entrapment member and the guide member collectively surrounding a heel wall of the shoe on two opposed sides of the heel wall when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe in a sliding fit sufficiently close such that the shoehorn will be retained on the shoe in the absence of manual grasp by the user; and   a handle fixed to the guide member proximate the proximal end of the guide member and projecting from the guide member in a direction away from the entrapment member.   
     
     
         2 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , further comprising a lateral stabilizer projecting laterally from the guide member, for opposing dislodging of the shoehorn from a longitudinal alignment with the shoe when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe. 
     
     
         3 . The shoehorn of  claim 2 , wherein the lateral stabilizer comprises a first wing projecting to a right side of the guide member when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe, and a second wing projecting to a left side of the guide member when the shoehorn is installed on the shoe. 
     
     
         4 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the handle is configured to incline relative to a sole of the shoe and to project away from a toe of the shoe. 
     
     
         5 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the guide member is curved along a length thereof to conform to a curvature of the heel of the shoe. 
     
     
         6 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the shoehorn is fabricated from a form holding material. 
     
     
         7 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the guide member has a first width and the handle has a second width equal to the first width of the guide member. 
     
     
         8 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the guide member has a first width and the entrapment member has a third width greater than the first width of the guide member. 
     
     
         9 . The shoehorn of  claim 1 , wherein the handle includes a hole for receiving a peg for suspending the shoehorn from a vertical surface.