Protective shoe cover

Abstract

A soft shoe cover protects shoes from stains from falling liquid and other matter. The shoe cover comprises a toe cup and arms. The arms wrap around the back of a user's ankle. The arms cover the top line of the shoe and leave the and heel and the lower portion of the quarter exposed. The arms are sufficiently wide to cover a topline of the shoe and an upper portion of a shoe quarter. The arms extend rearwardly from the toe cup and are joined behind the user's ankle. The arms and the toe cup define an open area around the shoe's heel. Releasable securing means, e.g., hook and mesh fastener, join the arms to hold the shoe cover in place. The construction provides adequate tensile strength for holding the cover to a shoe and around an ankle as a user moves, maintaining the shape of the shoe cover.

1 . A soft shoe cover for protecting shoes from stains and particulate matter comprising:
 a toe cup, said toe cup comprising a forward portion of said shoe cover formed to receive a forward portion of a shoe, the forward portion of the shoe comprising a toe and a forward portion of a sole;   a rear portion surrounding a quarter of the shoe;   a central portion intermediate said toe cup and said rear portion, said central portion covering an area comprising a vamp;   a first arm integral with said toe cup and extending rearwardly from a first lateral side of said toe cup in a longitudinal direction, said first arm having a length to extend beyond a quarter of the shoe;   a second arm integral with said toe cup and extending rearwardly from an opposite lateral side of said toe cup in a longitudinal direction, said second arm having a length to extend beyond a quarter of the shoe;   releasable securing means at an end of each of said first arm and said second arm;   said first arm and said second arm each being proportioned to cover a topline of the shoe and to leave a lower portion of the quarter and the heel exposed; and   said shoe cover defining a lower contour extending from a point in vertical registration with a vamp to a position at the rear of the shoe along the quarter intermediate a heel and a topline.   
     
     
         2 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 1  wherein said toe cup comprises an upper panel of said shoe cover and a lower panel of said shoe cover, each comprising a discrete piece. 
     
     
         3 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 2  wherein said upper panel and said lower panel are joined at a seam. 
     
     
         4 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 3  wherein said upper panel and said lower panel are dimensioned so that said seam at a front of a shoe cover is formed at a position in registration with the front of a welt of the shoe. 
     
     
         5 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 4  wherein said upper panel and said lower panel are dimensioned so that said seam is intermediate a welt and vamp at a rear boundary of said toe cup. 
     
     
         6 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 3  wherein said shoe cover comprises a textile. 
     
     
         7 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 6  wherein said textile is elastomeric. 
     
     
         8 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 6  wherein said textile comprises an inner layer having a coefficient of friction selected to facilitate insertion of the shoe into the toe cup and an outer layer having a coefficient of friction selected to prevent sliding with respect to a smooth floor. 
     
     
         9 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 6  wherein said textile comprises a substrate comprising said first layer on one side of the substrate and said second layer on an opposite side of said substrate. 
     
     
         10 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 1  wherein a lower panel is a component covering a forward portion of the sole and has a rear border extending in a linear direction from a first lateral side of said shoe cover to a second lateral side of said shoe cover. 
     
     
         11 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 1  wherein said lower portion has a rear border having a curvature such that at a center of a curve, the rear border is intermediate a ball position on a sole of the shoe and the front of the shoe. 
     
     
         12 . A soft shoe cover construction including covering for selected portions of the shoe and uncovering of other portions of the shoe for optimizing shoe protection versus safety comprising:
 a forward section, a central section, and a rear section;   releasable securing means providing tensile force between a front and a rear of said shoe cover;   a forward portion for receiving a front of a shoe;   said rear portion being unitary with said central portion and said forward portion and comprising said releasable securing means;   said releasable securing means being closeable behind the rear of the shoe to provide the tensile force to maintain the soft shoe cover on the shoe; and   said forward portion surrounding a toe of the shoe, said rear portion having an upper position located above a topline of the shoe, said central section and rear section defining a contour extending from the rear of the shoe to the forward portion, the contour exposing the heel of the shoe.   
     
     
         13 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 12  wherein said rear portion comprises first and second arms on opposite lateral sides of said shoe cover. 
     
     
         14 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 13  wherein said shoe cover comprises a textile having a single layer. 
     
     
         15 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 13  wherein said central portion is formed to cover a vamp and a topline. 
     
     
         16 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 13  wherein a first lateral side of a shoe cover has a larger curvature than a second lateral side of said shoe cover and wherein the second lateral side of the shoe cover has an indentation intermediate said front section and said rear section, whereby separate shoe cover shapes may be provided to accommodate a right shoe or a left shoe. 
     
     
         17 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 12  comprising an upper portion including the portions of said rear section, said central section, and said forward section in registration with an upper of the shoe and registration with a substantially planar lower portion in registration with a forward half of a lower of the shoe. 
     
     
         18 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 17  wherein said upper portion comprises a discrete layer formed by a flat pattern to form an enclosure for a shoe and wherein said lower portion completes an enclosure for a forward portion of the shoe. 
     
     
         19 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 17  wherein said upper portion is formed of a non-porous water resistant material. 
     
     
         20 . The soft shoe cover according to  claim 18  wherein said lower portion comprises a nonskid surface.