2) United States Patent Dhillon (54) SOLE COVER DISPENSER Ice oy Modesto, CA (72) Inventor Modesto, CA (9) Noto pateat is extended or adjusted under 38 USC. 1540) by 0 days (21) Appl. Nos 130970,864 (22) Filed: Aug. 20,2013 6s) Prior Publication Data US 20140048214 AI Feb. 20, 2014 Related Application Data (60) Provisional application No, 61/691,061, filed on Ang. 20, 2012. "Cl. Ba2h 38/10 (2006.01) AgD MD (2005.01) ‘43D 99900 (2006.01) GSB 316 (2006.01) 28328 4300 (2006.01) (2) US.CL ore A43D 11/003 2013.01); ASBB 3168 (2013.01) 44a 999/00 (2013.01): 8328 38710, (2013.01); 8328 43/006 (2013.01); ¥207 156/11 2015.01}: Y1OT 1546/1174 20151) YIOT 156/19 2015.01); Y1OT 156/195 (2015.01); 1107 1546/1956 201501) 32 0 'US009215910B2 US 9,215,910 B2 Dec. 22, 2015 (10) Patent No. 4s) Date of Patent: (58) Fleld of Classification Search CPC“. B328 38/10; 8328 43/006, YIOT 1560115 YiOF 1561174; YIOT S619: YLOT 56/195: YiOF 156!1986 1567701, 715, 250, 789, 760; 221/48, ai ‘See aplication file for complet search history usec 60) References Cited US. PATENT DOCUMENT 91995 ite 52008 Milner ta 200) Lunds Tams he 759.19 BL 71569381 BL* $2010 Ghote 3671 R 200s2174S0 AL* 102005 “Tixey 31609 aouworsioo Als "72006 the 2M annneoases A+ '9 2007 Chen sys Soowong003s AL* 1/2008 Levine ea. bie anno02Nss00 AL* 112010. Xw ass * cited by examiner Primary Examiner Assistant Examiner (4) Attornes, Agent, or Firm Intellect! Property Agency LLC 67 ABSTRACT The present invention describes a dispenser of protective cover forthe sole ofa shoe, The sole eavers are disposed on ‘sheet that is placed within the dispenser. The dispenser ‘comprises a series of roller supports tht are adapted topos tion the sheet of solvecovers onfo an exposed plato user steps the exposed platform in order to apply the cover to the ‘ser s footwear antremovethe sole cover fom the sheet. The top of the sole cover ineludes an adlesive tht enables the caver loauhere othe sole ofthe user'sshoe, thereby enabling ‘user to walk around the house while reducing the likelihood that the user would spread dit therein, 13 Claims, 5 Drawing Sheets Philip Tueksr Nikolas Harm Daniel Bowdoin; Global 4 og, sp ae 50 = IYU.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 1 of 5 US 9,215,910 B2 FIG. 2US 9,215,910 B2 Sheet 2 of 5 Dec. 22, 2015 U.S, Patent 20, 50 % FIG.4 40 38 28U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 3 of 5 US 9,215,910 B2US 9,215,910 B2 Sheet 4 of 5 Dee. 22, 2015, US. Patent FIG. 6B FIG. 7U.S. Patent Dec. 22, 2015 Sheet 5 of 5 US 9,215,910 B2 ‘ 32 cy 32. TTI 7 THT T \ q I Ts aaUS 9,215,910 B2 1 SOLE COVER DISPENSER DEVICE (CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No, 61/691,061 filed on Aug. 20, 2012, entitled “Sole Mat.” The above idemtified patent application is herein incorporate referees ins etl provident BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field ofthe Invention The present invention relates to solecoverings and dispeas- cers therefore, More specifically the invention relates to 8 slispenser of disposable sole coverings that once applied reduce transfer of dirt and bacteria into indoor spaces cover ing the sole ofa user's shoe. The solecoverings resized to fit the shoes of us that do-not wish to have shoes piled near the doorway. ‘There are many ways that bacteria can spread through a home, and the most overlooked way iby footwear. Everyday people enter and exit homes, and the majority of them fil t0 properly cover their shoes. The soles ofa person's shoes can ‘Quickly change a clean room into an unsanitary one aller repeated use, particularly if many wsers enter the room while wearing soiled footwear ‘When a person walks into a house with their footwearon, the solesof the footwear bring along a portion ofthe contami- nation tha they" ve com in contact with while omtdoors. The soles of shoes can bring gum, dit, mud, fees, grasses and ‘ther clement that might disrupt the cleanliness ofthe hows. I doesn't take much time for a carpet to become imbedded with these elements. And because shoes transfer and deposit the dint and grasses of wherever a person walks, the task of ‘leaning the floors becomes seemingly endless. Walking ‘around the house in shoes that have soles contaminated with di, grasses and other unsanitary elements can lead to unclean floors and the spreal of germs and bacteria, These ‘unsanitary elements can ereste arom that is no longer aes- thetically pleasing and also increases the risk of eausing and spreading sicknesses “The most popular method of reducing the transfer benveen shoesoles anda flooris have users remove thershoes once they enter a house. This solution reduces the area othe house that comes into contact with the sols ofthe footwear, ho= ‘ever this solution quickly causes elute atthe entrance ofthe house andis not always convenient forall users. People who to the user's sole, The inline configuration enables the sole ‘cover 50 tlie flush with the remainder of the sheet 40 t0 provide a more even rolled sheet 40. In ether embostimeat, the user can readily remove the over 80 from the sheet 48 by stepping thereonand adhering the cover 0 the footwear To remove the cover 80 from the platform, a user steps on the ‘adhesive layer 82 ofthe cover, thusaffixing the adhesive ayer S52 on the sole of a shoe. Referring nos to FIG. 7, there is shown a view ofthe sole ‘cover sce 40 being installed on the primary roller 24. The Primary roller 24 is removable from the interior of the base Portion 20 in onderto instal a rolled up shestof sole cavers 40 ‘hereon, Thereafter, theroller24and sheet 40 are inserted into the base 20 in onler to permit use of the device 10. FIGS, 8 and 9 display cross-sectional views ofthe sole ‘cover dispenser and the position of the sole enver shect 40 between the set of rollers 24, 26, and 28, The sheet 40 com- prises a non-stick upper layer 42, a bottom layer 48, and a series of sole covers 80 disposed therebetween, Prior o wse, portion ofthe upper layer 42 ofthe sheet 40 must be separated from the bottom layer 48, in order to afix the layers to the proper rollers. During installation within the base portion 20 the upper 42 andl lower Layers 48 of the sheet are separate The user Wraps the upper layer 42 around the top collection roller 26, and pull the remaining bottom layer 48 across the platform 30. The bottom layer 4¥ispulled over the tensioning rod 38, which provides a proper angular orientation for the bottom layer 48 10 wrap around the bottom collection roller 28. Therealtor, the bottom layer 48 is wrapped around the collection roller 2. ‘During activation of the device 10, the bottom collection roller 28 is operatively connected tothe primary 24 and top collection roller 26 by a belt 39 (see FIG. 4), Rotation ofthe bottom collection ler 2 pulls te sheet 0 from the primary roller24, which in um rotates the top collection oll 26.The sheet 40, which is spit in (© upper 42 and lower layers 48, ‘continves to be separated onto the top collection 42 and bottom collection ollers 28, respectively, when movement of the rollers is actuated. To facilitate the separation ofthe ly- fers, the base portion 20 may comprises a wedge 36 that Separates the tpper layer 42 from the bottom layer 48 by spliting the eo sections apart. 8 Referring now to FIG. 10, thereis shown a view ofthe sole cover device 10 of the present invention, including several ‘acessories, The device 10 may lie on the ground, or alterna tively may eompriseasetof height adjustable legs 6 attached thereto, The legs 66 are telescopic in onder to accommodste dflerent heights, and may be removed for storage ot for use ‘nthe ground. Additionally, the device may comprise side- ‘mounted waste baskets 68 for collection of used sole covers 50. The haskets 68 are attachad othe sides ofthe device 10 and may be used for containing items therein, such as extra rolls of sheets 40 or be used forthe disposal of used sole covers $0, ‘The dispensing device 10 and arrangement of the sole cover sheet 40 facilitates the attachment of a sole cover 50 ‘nto the bottom ofa users shoes without manual attachment. The dispensing device 10 comprises lower base portion 20, And an upper lid 69, between which intemal mechanisms Tacilitate the dispensing of sole cover sheet 40 across the exposed platfonm 30. The internal mechanisms include @ series or rollers that are operatively connected to an electie ‘motor 2 or mana inp means. Thesheet 40 firstattoched to the primary roller 24, whereafer the sheet 40 i separated into upper 42 and lower 4¥ layers. The upper layer 42 is ‘wrapped around a top collection roller 26, which comprises eats 27 that are operatively connected to the gears 25 ofthe primary roller 24. The bottom layer 48 is pulled through the slat 32, across the platform 30, through the opposing slot 32, over a rod 38, and wrapped around the bottom collection roller 28, thereby connecting the sheet 40 to cach of the rollers. ‘The dispensing device 10 of the present invention may be activated by pressing activation buttons 72, by a motion sen- ‘sor 34, or hy manual inp Themotion sesor identfiess user fon the platform 30 and provides an electronic signal that actuates the motor, thereby fciitating the advancement of the sheet 40 over the platlonn 30 after the user as stepped way from the device and. subsequent pair of sole eovers is ‘esirod, Alternatively, the device may be manvally actated by turning or depressing a knob 22" that is connected to the collection roller 28 and advances the same, "The present invention is configured to dispense an equal amount of sheet 40 each time the motor 22 is activated, thereby consistently locating the sole covers 80 on the pli orm 30 each time, However, i the sheet becomes displaced hile removing a sole eover 80, buttons 72 located slong the side of the base 20 may provide incremental reverse or for ‘Ward movements ofthe shect 40 in onder to provide proper placoment, Furhermore, when the shoot 40 nears the end of the moll, the reverse ton 72 is capable of reversing the ispensing ofthe sheet 4, thereby bringing the upper 42 and lower layers 48 hack together on the primary roller 24. Aer ‘atively the processor of the motion detector 34 may’ com- prise a counter that reconds the numberof imes dat the sheet has been dispensed across the platform 30. When a selected numberof removed sheets 40 has heen observed, the proces sor may direct the motor 22 to reverse the rollers andrea semble the upper 42 and lower 48 layers together on the primary roller 24, thereby enabling easy disposal ofthe shoot 40, In the asanval embodiment, the user can selectively advance the roller based on manual inputs. ‘The present invention is designed for users who desire a device that reduces the spread of footwear tracked din around household. The device dispenses pair ofsole covers $0 that comprise an adhesive top layer 52, which is configured t0 ‘attach onto the bottoms aa user's shoes and provide a layer ‘ofprotection between he contaminants that ie onthe bottom ofthe shoes and the house of userUS 9,215,910 B2 9 Is therefore submited thatthe instant invention as bee shown and described in what is considered w be the most practical and preferred embodiments. Is recognized, how- ‘ever, that departures may be made within the scope of the Jnvention and that obvious modifications will occur to a per sot skilled in the art With respect to the above description then, it is 1 be realized thatthe optimum dimensional rel tionships forthe partsof the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, funetion and manner of opera- tion, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and ‘obvious to one skilled in the rt and all equivalent relation- ships to thse illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present “Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only ‘of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous ‘modifications and changes will readily occu to those skilled Jn the ar, its not desired to limit te invention tothe exact ingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted 10, falling within the scope of the invention, Tela: 1. A footwear sole cover dispensing deviee, comprising: ‘acompartment that comprises an upper lid anda lowerbase portion; ssid compartment comprising a substantial U-shape hav ing sides and a platform between said sides; ssid eompartment comprising an internal volume; Sid sides having a fit and second slot disposed ther ‘through that are adapted to allow access fora sheet of ‘material to extend between said sides and above said platorm: plurality of rollers disposed within said internal volume said rollers adapted to support a roll of said sheet of ‘materials atleast one eletrie motor for advancing atleast one of sid rollers and advancing sai sheet of material across said pltorm 2, The dispensing device of claim 1, wherein ‘id sheet of material further comprises an upper layer and bottom: layer in peelable connection with one another: and wherein sad plurality of rollers further comprises: fist primary roller adapted to support said sheet of ‘material 4 second top collection roller adapted to collect said upper layer: an opposing bottom sheet collection roller adapted to collect said bottom layer and disposed within an “opposite sideof sad compartment with respect sid frst primary roller, und: ‘tensioning raller adjacent to said bottom sheet collee- ‘ion roller said bottom layer being positioned over sa platform and between said first primary roller and said tensioning rollee 3. The dispensing device of claim 1, wherein ‘sid shoot of material further eomprises an upper layer and ‘a bovtom layer in pevlable conneeton with one another: and ‘wherein said plurality of rollers further comprises ‘fist primary roller adapted to support said sheet of ‘material 4 second top collection roller adapted to collect said upper ayer: mand operation shown and described, and accord 10 ‘an opposing bottom sheet colletion roller adapted to collect said bottom layer and disposed within an “opposite side of sal compartment with respect to said frst primary roller, and 5 atensicning roller adjacent to said bottom sheet collee- tion roller ssid bottom layer being positioned over sai plstform snd between said first primary roller and said tensioning roller; ssidat least one eleetic motor being operatively connected to said opposing bottom sheet collection roller fest pear set connecting sad fst primary roller toa sid second top collection roller 1 pulley bell connecting sid opposing botiom sheet col. lection roller to sid fist primary roller. 4 The dispensing device of ela 1, further comprising: 4 motion sensor adapted to monitor movement on said platforms ssid motion sensor being electrically connected to said at least one electric motor and configured fo communicate to. motor processing means for activating said at least ‘one electrie motor. 5. The dispensing device of claim 1, farther comprising: at least one advancement button electrically connected to said atleast one eleetie motor and configured to com- municatetoa motorprocessing mest for activating said motor 6. The dispensing device of claim 5, whersin said atleast, 50, one advancement button comprises a frst and second diee= tional button 17. The dispensing device of claim 1, wherein said sheet of material comprises a peclable upper layer bottom layer, and ‘plurality of removable sole cover pairs therebetween, '8. A footwear sole cover dispensing device, comprising: ‘acomparuent that comprisesan upperlidanda lower base portion; said compartment comprising a substantial U-shape hav~ ing sides and an platform betwoen sai sie, ssid eompartment comprising an internal volume; sid sides having a first and second slot disposed there ‘through that are adapted to allow access fora shoot of | ‘material between said sides and above said platonm; plurality of rollers disposed within sid internal volume, said rollers adapted to support a roll of said sheet of materia ‘manual advancement means for advancing at least onc of said rollers and advaneing sid sheet of material across said platform. 9. The dispensing device of claim 8, wherein sid shoct of material further comprises an upper layer aud ‘bottom layer in povlable connection withone another: and ‘wherein sai plurality of rollers further comprises first primary roller adapted to support said sheet of material; ‘9 seoond top collection roller adapted t0 collect ssid upper layers ‘an opposing bottom sheet colletion roller adapted to collect said bottom layer and disposed within an “opposite side of said compartment with respect to said first primary roller, and a tensioning roller adjacent to said bottom sheet collec- tion roller; sid bottom layer being positioned over sed platform and between said fist primary roller and said tensioning roles, 0 oUS 9,215,910 B2 ul 10, The dispensing device of claim 8, wherein: sid shoct of material further comprises aa upper layer and «4 bovtom layer in peelable conneeton with one another: and ‘wherein said plurality of rollers further comprises: 4 fist primary roller adapted to support said sheet of ‘material: 4 second top collection aller adapted to collect said upper ayers aan opposing bottom sheet collection roller adapted to collect said bottom layer and disposed within an ‘opposite sideo said compartment with respect (os first primary roller, and ‘tensioning roller adjacent to said bottom sheet eollec- sion roller said bottom layer being positioned over said platform and between said first primary roller and said tensioning roller, said manual advancement means being operatively con- pected 1 sad opposing bottom sheet collection roller, ‘first gear sot connecting sad fis primary roller toa said second top collection roller, pulley belt connecting sid opposing bottom sheet cole Jeetion roller to said first primary roller 1. The dispensing device of claim 8, wherein said manual > ‘advaacement means further comprises turn knob, 12. The dispensing device of elaim 8, wherein said manual ‘advancement means further comprises a-depressible foot pedal 13. The dispensing device of claim 8, wherein said shoot of material comprises peclable upper layer a bottam layer and ‘a plurality of removable sole cover pairs therebetween, 12