Shoe Storage Device and System

The present application claims priority from Australian Provisional Patent Application No. 2022901682 filed 20 Jun. 2022, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.

The present invention relates generally to a storage device and system, and in particular, to a storage device and system for storing footwear, such as shoes.

Footwear, such as shoes, sandals and the like, come in a variety of forms depending upon their purpose. For leisure pursuits, footwear may comprise athletic shoes made from materials that are capable of sustaining wear but which also provide the wearer with a degree of support and comfort. Fashion footwear, particularly those designed for women, are directed towards providing an aesthetic appeal and utilise materials that are directed towards aesthetics, rather than support and comfort. Irrespective of the type of footwear, quality footwear is expensive and requires a degree of care to ensure that the footwear maintains its desirable look and function over time.

In many situations, when a wearer removes their footwear, the individual items can become displaced or lost, causing frustration to the wearer. This is largely due to the individual shoes or items being separate pieces and if the items are not maintained together in pairs following removal, the separate pieces can be displaced. Similarly, if the items of footwear are maintained on a floor space in a wardrobe, closet or the like, it is possible that other items may be placed on top of the footwear, which can scuff and damage the footwear. This is a considerable problem with expensive and fashion items, as minor damage can render the footwear unwearable.

A variety of shoe racks and the like have been proposed for aligning shoes in pairs on an elevated surface for storage purposes. Other types of cabinets have also been proposed to receive footwear for storage. However, such devices are generally configured to receive the footwear items en masse, rather than in individual pairs, which can cause damage to items if not handled carefully. Furthermore, boxes and similar enclosures for storing shoes are typically air-tight and provide little aeration, which can result in undesired odours and moisture collecting in the footwear, which is undesirable.

Thus, there is a need to provide a device for storing footwear that retains the footwear in pairs, keeps the footwear aerated and protects the items from inadvertent damage in a simple and convenient manner.

The above references to and descriptions of prior proposals or products are not intended to be, and are not to be construed as, statements or admissions of common general knowledge in the art. In particular, the above prior art discussion does not relate to what is commonly or well known by the person skilled in the art, but assists in the understanding of the inventive step of the present invention of which the identification of pertinent prior art proposals is but one part.

The invention according to one or more aspects is as defined in the independent claims. Some optional and/or preferred features of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

Accordingly, in one aspect of the invention there is provided a device for storing footwear comprising:

In one embodiment, the support member is configured to support one item of footwear of a pair of items of footwear in an elevated manner above the other item of footwear in the pair of items of footwear.

The drawer member may have two support members removably attached thereto to define four storage compartments in the drawer member, each storage compartment configured to receive one item of footwear of two pairs of items of footwear.

The body may have a roof and a base and wherein the roof may be configured to be complimentary to the base to facilitate vertical stacking of devices.

The roof may be configured to have a convex configuration and the base may be configured to have a concave configuration such that when one device is stacked atop another device the concave base of the upper device mates with the convex roof of the lower device.

The at least one of the roof or base may have at least one rail extending longitudinally therealong and the other of the roof or base may have at least one channel extending longitudinally therealong such that when the devices are stacked in a vertical manner, the at least one rail in the roof or base of one of the devices may be received within the at least one channel in the roof or base of the other of the devices.

The front face of the drawer member may compriss a panel that is configured to be snugly received within the opening of the body.

The panel may be substantially planar and may have perforations formed therein to facilitate air flow into and out of the body when the drawer member is in a closed position.

The drawer member may comprise a base plate extending from the front face thereof. The base plate may be attached to a front plate that may be attached to an inner surface of the front face.

The base plate may project rearwardly from a lower end of the front plate and may terminate in a rear plate that may extend substantially perpendicular to the base plate so as to be substantially parallel with the front face and front plate.

The front plate, base plate and rear plate may be integrally formed from a single piece of material.

The at least one support member may be removably attached to extend between the front plate and the rear plate.

A vertical position of the at least one support member with respect to the front plate and rear plate may be adjustable.

The internal space may comprise a camera to provide a user with a visual indication of the contents of the device.

The internal space may comprise a disinfection system to provide disinfection of the footwear stored therein.

The disinfection system may comprises one or more LEDs mounted to an internal surface of the body. The LEDs may emit short-wavelength ultraviolet light in the UC (UV-C) spectrum to irradiate the internal space of the main body when the drawer member is inserted therein.

Preferred features of the present invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings. However, it is to be understood that the features illustrated in and described with reference to the drawings are not to be construed as limiting on the scope of the invention.

The storage device of the present invention will be described below in relation to its use in storing pairs of shoes. However, it will be appreciated that the storage device of the present invention could be used to store and contain a variety of different types of footwear and other clothing and accessories, as will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.

Referring to Fig.-, a storage devicein accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention is shown. The storage devicegenerally comprises a body, defining a rectangular box shape, into which shoes are to be stored in the manner as will be described in more detail below.

The bodycomprises substantially vertical side wallsextending between a baseand a roof. The baseand the roofextend longitudinally between a rear walland a front frame member, with the roofhaving a substantially convex profile and the basehaving a substantially convex profile, as is best shown in. The degree of curvature of the baseis substantially the same as the degree of curvature of the roofsuch that when to devicesare stacked atop one another the baseof the upper deviceconforms to the roofof the lower device. To facilitate stability of such stacked devices, the basehas a pair of spaced apart railsextending longitudinally therealong and the roofhas a pair of channelsextending longitudinally therealong, in a similar spaced manner. The depth of the channelsis sufficient to accommodate the railswhen the devicesare stacked in a vertical manner, such that the devices mate in a vertical stack.

A drawer memberis mounted within the front frameto be accommodated within the body, as shown. The drawer memberhas a front panelthat is configured to be snugly received within the front frame. The front panelis substantially planar and has perforationsformed therein to facilitate air flow into and out of the bodywhen the drawer member is in the closed position as shown in. A central recessis also formed in the front panel to facilitate gripping by a user to slide the drawer memberinto and out of the body, in a manner as described in more detail below.

One embodiment of a drawer memberof the present invention is depicted inand. In this embodiment, the drawer membercomprises a base plateextending from a front platethat is attached to an inside surface of the front face. The front plateand the front faceare attached in a manner such that the perforationsextend through both the front plateand the front faceto permit air flow into and out of the body. The base plateprojects rearwardly from a lower end of the front plateand terminates in a rear platethat extends substantially perpendicular to the base plate, so as to be substantially parallel with the front faceand front plate. In the embodiment as shown, the front plate, base plateand rear plateare integrally formed from a single piece of material, which may be a metal, such as a steel plate, or a plastic material moulded to form the desired shape.

As is best shown in, a rear surface of the front platehas a hook membersformed thereon. The hook membersare arranged in two pairs, an upper pair and a lower pair, and are spaced apart to be located towards adjacent sides of the front plate. As best shown in, the rear platehas openings or recessesformed therein. In the embodiment as depicted, three pairs of recessesare provided so as to be vertically displaced along the height of the rear plate, although the number and orientation of the recessesmay vary between embodiments of the present invention.

The hook membersand recessesfacilitate mounting of a support memberbetween the front plateand the rear plateof the drawer member. As is shown in, the support membercomprises a front portion, a rear portionand an intermediate portionjoining the front portionand the rear portion. The front portionand the rear portionare configured to be substantially flat and extend in a parallel manner to each other. The front portionis higher than the rear portion, such that the intermediate portionforms a downwardly directed angled surface. A front edge of the front portionhas a lip (not shown) that is received over the hook membersformed on the inner surface of the front plate to support and locate the front portionof the support member in position. The rear edge of the rear portionhas hook membersextending therefrom to engage with the recessesformed in the rear plate, as shown in. In this regard, the support memberis removably mounted between the front plateand the rear platesuch that it can be vertically adjusted to support shoes of different shapes and sizes, as required. In the embodiment as shown in, the drawer membercomprises two spaces A and B for receiving a shoe for storage.

Referring toand, an alternative embodiment of the present invention is depicted. In this embodiment, the drawer memberhas two support membersmounted between the front plateand the rear plate. The support members are mounted in the same manner as described above in relation toand, with the vertical distance between the support membersmaximised to maximise the storage space. As is depicted more clearly in, by employing two support members, four storage spaces C, D, E and F are provided to facilitate storage of two pairs of shoes.

In the embodiment as depicted inand, a divider memberis provided to divide the space between the spaces D and E formed between the support members. The divider memberis in the form of a plate having an end projection (not shown) that engages within a recessformed in the support member. In this arrangement, the divider memberprojects from an underside of the support memberto provide a substantially horizontal surface to support a shoe in the space E. To access the space D, the divider memberis able to pivot in the direction of the arrow shown in.

As is shown inand, the drawer memberis received within the front framesuch that it is able to slide into and out of the body. One or more damping devices, such as springs or other damping means, may be provided between the drawer memberand the bodyto provide for soft closing of the draw member. In this regard, as the drawer memberis pushed into the front frameof the body, the drawer membermay push against the damping device at the end of the sliding action, prior to engaging into position. Similarly, the drawer membermay be spring loaded such that to release the drawer memberfrom the bodythe drawer membermay be simply depressed to disengage from the bodysuch that the spring loaded mechanism may provide a degree of propulsion of the drawer memberaway from the body. Such an action can assist in opening the device.

Typically, the drawer memberis removed to position the shoes therein and to adjust the support membersto define the storage spaces accordingly. The drawer memberis then inserted through the front frameand into the bodyto be securely contained in the manner as shown in. In this arrangement, the shoes are not only kept together in a pair, but they are also secured and protected from damage which may occur through contact with other shoes and similar handling issues. The storage space within the bodyreceives air flow to prevent moisture build-up and minimise odour collection.

As is shown in, the storage devicecan be simply configured to store a pair of shoes in a secure manner, with the internal space of the devicedefining two storage spaces A and B. In this arrangement, a single support memberis provided to support one of the shoes in an elevated manner as shown. In, two support membersare provided to define four storage spaces C, D, E and F. As is shown, the support memberscan be spaced to accommodate different sizes of shoes as well as different shoe styles, such that two pairs of footwear can be stored in the device. It will be appreciated that varying the vertical height and horizontal width of the device, the number of pairs of shoes able to be stored in the device can be varied.

To provide a degree of security, each device may employ a locking mechanism to prevent unauthorised removal of the footwear. In this regard, upon insertion of the drawer memberinto the body, the locking mechanism may securely engage the drawer memberand the bodytogether. The locking mechanism may only be activated by way of a mechanical key or combination arrangement to unlock the drawer memberfrom engagement with the body. Alternatively, the locking mechanism may be electrically activated/deactivated by way of a signal emitted from a smart phone or the like. In this regard, the internal space of the devicemay include a camera or the like to provide a user with a visual indication of the contents of the devicewithout requiring the deviceto be opened. Such a facility may be provided by way of a smartphone application whereby the user can interrogate the internal camera of the devicethrough their smartphone or similar electronic device to view the contents of the devicewithout having to physically open/unlock the device.

The devicemay also be configured to provide disinfection of the footwear whilst stored therein to kill or inactivate microorganisms present in the footwear. To achieve this, the internal surfaces of the roof, side walls, rear walland baseof the device may have LEDsmounted therein to irradiate the internal space of the main bodywhen the drawer memberis inserted therein. The LEDsmay emit short-wavelength ultraviolet light in the UC (UV-C) spectrum, which is known to penetrate the cells of organisms to disrupt and destroy the molecular bonds that form the DNA that is crucial for proper cell function. As such, organisms, such as mould and fungi, which may be present in the footwear can be eradicated. The LEDsmay be controlled to activate upon initial insertion of the drawer memberinto the main bodyof the deviceand to remain activated for a predetermined period of time to treat the footwear. Alternatively, the LEDs may be activated by a switch or wireless controller, as required by the user. The LEDsare positioned on the internal surfaces of the main bodyto provide full coverage of the footwear when positioned on the drawer member. Whilstonly depicts the LEDson the roof of the main body,, it will be appreciated that the LEDsmay be positioned over each of the internal surfaces of the main body, to ensure full coverage of the irradiating light onto the footwear.

Referring to, due to the shape of the devicesand the complimentary configuration of the baseand roofof each device, multiple devicescan be arranged in a stacked manner as shown. The devicescan be arranged to against a wall in a wardrobe or room to contain shoes in a tidy and convenient manner. The devicescan each be labelled to identify the shoes contained therein and each devicecan be simply removed from the stack as required.

It will be appreciated that the device of the present invention provides a simple and effective means for storing footwear in pairs in a contained manner that protects the items from inadvertent damage and which is simple and convenient to use. The devices can be easily adjustable to suit different types of shoes and have an aesthetically pleasing appearance. Multiple devices can be stacked in a manner that provides multiple storage solutions for accommodating shoes of a variety of different sizes and forms in a convenient manner.

Throughout the specification and claims the word “comprise” and its derivatives are intended to have an inclusive rather than exclusive meaning unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise. That is, the word “comprise” and its derivatives will be taken to indicate the inclusion of not only the listed components, steps or features that it directly references, but also other components, steps or features not specifically listed, unless the contrary is expressly stated or the context requires otherwise.

Orientational terms used in the specification and claims such as vertical, horizontal, top, bottom, upper and lower are to be interpreted as relational and are based on the premise that the component, item, article, apparatus, device or instrument will usually be considered in a particular orientation, typically with the device uppermost.

It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that many modifications and variations may be made to the methods of the invention described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.