Abstract:
The present invention provides a resilient and tough, but flexible protective cover that hugs and squeezes various types of moving items without the need for any external securing means such as tape, rope, straps, large rubber bands, plastic, etc. The protective cover prevents damage to items that might occur during the course of moving. It eliminates, among other types of damage, scuffs, scrapes, dents, and scratches that could happen when items are being moved. While the protective cover is “hugging” the items, it also keeps items with moving components such as desks, dressers, cabinets, and appliances, in place by preventing shifting or movement of the moving components.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of Invention 
       [0001]    The present invention is directed to moving supplies and more particularly to a protective cover for preventing damage to items during a move. 
       2. Description of Related Art 
       [0002]    A moving company helps people and businesses move items from one place to another. Items may include, but are not limited to furniture, appliances, electronics, kitchenware, office supplies, and home goods. A moving company may pack, load, move, unload, unpack, and arrange items at a new location. Do-it-yourself movers choose to move items without the services of a moving company. Regardless of the type of mover, moving items, particularly antique, fragile, odd-shaped, and/or expensive items, need to be protected from damage that might occur during the course of moving. 
         [0003]    Furniture blankets/pads protect furniture from scratches and scuff marks when moving. A mover places one or more loose pads (typically each 72″×80″) over a piece of furniture and then tightens/secures those pad(s) to the furniture by wrapping tape, rope, straps, large rubber bands, and/or plastic (plastic wrap or bubble wrap) around the pad(s). Although the furniture is generally protected from damage, the use of furniture pads requires labor and time to tighten/secure the pads to each individual piece of furniture and the purchase of additional moving supplies such as tape, rope, straps, etc., which increases the time and expense of the move. Customized covers that fit the exact shape of a sofa, washer, dryer, or stove, are also available for damage protection. However, these customized covers are expensive and useful for only one item and cannot be used among differently shaped items. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0004]    The present invention overcomes these and other deficiencies of the prior art by providing a resilient and tough, but flexible protective cover that hugs and squeezes various types of moving items without usage of any external securing means such as tape, rope, straps, large rubber bands, plastic, etc. The protective cover of the present invention (sometimes referred to as the “Hugger”) prevents damage that might occur during the course of moving. It eliminates, among other types of damage, scuffs, scrapes, dents, and scratches that could happen when items are being moved. While the protective cover is “hugging” the items, it also keeps items with moving components (e.g., drawers or doors) such as desks, dressers, cabinets, armoires, and appliances, in place by preventing shifting or movement of the moving components. 
         [0005]    A device for protecting a moving item during a move, the device comprising: a protective cover comprising stretch fabric, the protective cover having a top surface and one or more side surfaces, and an opening formed by the one or more side surfaces at a bottom of the protective cover; and a plurality of pads disposed on or within the protective cover. The size of the opening is less than a size of a top surface of the moving item. The moving item can be a dresser or a flat screen television. The plurality of pads are hexagonally shaped and uniformly spaced apart. The plurality of pads can comprise a material selected from the group consisting of: rubber, urethane, polypropylene, vinyl, air bladder, latex, neoprene, sponge, polyether, polyester, polyethylene, volara, cellulose, and a combination thereof. The stretch fabric can comprise a material selected from the group consisting of: spandex, vinyl, velvet, denim, cotton, polyester, and a combination thereof. 
         [0006]    This Hugger has significant advantages over the prior art. For example, the Hugger reduces packing time. The Hugger is easily slipped over a moving item and requires no external securing means such as tape, rope, straps, large rubber bands, plastic, etc. to secure it to the item. There is no need to remove anything, e.g., drawers, from the moving item. The Hugger is also reusable, fits differently shaped items, and is easy to clean. 
         [0007]    The foregoing, and other features and advantages of the invention, will be apparent from the following, more particular description of the preferred embodiments of the invention, the accompanying drawings, and the claims. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0008]    For a more complete understanding of the present invention, the objects and advantages thereof, reference is now made to the ensuing descriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings briefly described as follows: 
           [0009]      FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary dresser found in the prior art; 
           [0010]      FIG. 2  illustrates a protective cover for a dresser according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; 
           [0011]      FIG. 3  illustrates a dresser found in the prior art to be protected by the protective cover of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0012]      FIG. 4  illustrates the dresser of  FIG. 3  partially covered by the protective cover of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0013]      FIG. 5  illustrates the dresser of  FIG. 3  in a tipped over position and partially covered by the protective cover of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0014]      FIG. 6  illustrates the dresser of  FIG. 3  fully covered by the protective cover of  FIG. 2 ; 
           [0015]      FIG. 7  illustrates a protective cover for a flat screen television according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention; and 
           [0016]      FIG. 8  illustrates a bottom view of the protective cover of  FIG. 7 . 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0017]    Preferred embodiments of the present invention and their advantages may be understood by referring to  FIGS. 1-8 , wherein like reference numerals refer to like elements. Although the present invention is described from in the context of moving a dresser or flat screen television, the present invention can be used to protect any type of moving item such as, but not limited to furniture, desks, appliances, armoires, tables, night stands, and cabinets. 
         [0018]      FIG. 1  illustrates an exemplary dresser  100  found in the prior art. Here, the dresser  100  comprises nine (9) drawers  111 - 119 , which slide in and out relative to a frame  120  (as shown by drawer  110 ). During movement of the dresser  100  from one place to another, the drawers  111 - 119  tend to freely slide. This sliding of the drawers  111 - 119  may lead to damage, injury to movers, or damage to or loss of drawer contents. To mitigate such damage/loss, furniture pads may be used as described above, which has noted disadvantages, or the drawers  110  may be removed by movers and moved separately. Although and exemplary dresser  100  is shown, dresser  100  may vary in, among other things, dimensions and number of drawers. 
         [0019]      FIG. 2  illustrates a protective cover  200  according to an exemplary embodiment of the invention. In this embodiment, the protective cover  200  is sized to fit a dresser  300  as shown in  FIG. 3 . Protective cover  200  can vary in size to accommodate variously sized dressers, e.g., dresser  100 . Dresser  300  comprises five (5) drawers  311 - 315  as shown, which may freely slide in and out (not shown) relative to a frame  320 . Referring back to  FIG. 2 , the protective cover  200  comprises a resilient and durable fabric  210 . In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the fabric  210  comprises a stretch fabric such as, but not limited to spandex, vinyl, velvet, denim, cotton, polyester (or a blended combination thereof) that can provide flexibility and restriction of movement of drawers  311 - 315  when placed over the dresser  300 . For example, the fabric  210  of the protective cover  200  is stretched when placed over the dresser  300 . As the fabric  210  is stretched, it innately wants to contract back to its original shape. This contraction provides a force to restrict, if not completely eliminate, outward movement of the drawers  311 - 315 . The cover  200  comprises an enclosed top  220  and an open bottom  230 . In an embodiment of the invention, the fabric  210  is non-porous and water resistant. 
         [0020]    The protective cover  200  comprises a number of pads  211 A-N joined to and spaced throughout the fabric  210 . The pads  211  provide additional cushioning to help prevent damage to the dresser  300 . In an embodiment of the invention, each pad  211  is formed by a pocket on the outer surface of the fabric  210 . A soft material (not shown) such as, but not limited to rubber, urethane, polypropylene, vinyl, air bladder, latex, neoprene, sponge, polyether, polyester, polyethylene, volara, cellulose, or a combination thereof is inserted into the pocket, which is sewn shut. In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, each pad  211  is shaped as a two inch (2″) diameter hexagon, which is one centimeter (1 cm) in thickness. Any shape pad  211  can be used. The hexagon shape is preferred because of its six sided polygon angles which provide the best conformity to corners of various moving items such as, but not limited to utilities, dressers, night stands, and refrigerators, which are usually four sided. 
         [0021]    In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the pads  211 A-N are spaced one centimeter (1 cm) apart from one another and are formed throughout the entire outer surface of the fabric  210 . In an alternative embodiment of the invention, pads  211 A-N are formed on the inner surface of the fabric  210  as well. One of ordinary skill in the art recognizes that the pads  211 A-N can be configured in various shapes, sizes, thicknesses, and layouts. For example, the pads  211 A-N can be shaped as circles, squares, or rectangles. The surface density of the pads  211 A-N may also vary. For example, the number of pads  211  at the top  220  (or at areas more prone to damage) can be greater than the number of pads  211  at the bottom  230  (or at areas less prone to damage). In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a dresser with the dimensions of three feet (3′) by four feet (4′) can have fifteen hundred (1500) hexagonal pads to completely cover the fabric  210 . 
         [0022]    In an exemplary embodiment of the invention, the protective cover  200  is manufactured as follows. For each side of the protective cover, hexagonal pockets are sewn on to one side of a spandex material. Foam padding is inserted into the hexagonal pockets, which are sewn shut with elastic threading. A second piece of spandex is sewn to the pocketed side and will become the inside of the protective cover  200 . The four sides of finished material are then sewn together to form a square or rectangular shaped protective cover  200  with an opening  230  at the bottom. All pieces sewn together will be less than, e.g., two or more inches (2″+) smaller, than the actual size of a dresser or moving item to create compression. Alternatively, the protective cover  200  is constructed from two pieces of finished material: one piece for the top surface  220  and one piece for all four sides of the protective cover  200 . The top surface piece  220  is sewn to one top edge of the piece for all four sides. 
         [0023]      FIGS. 4 and 5  illustrates the dresser  300  partially covered by the protective cover  200 . For illustrative purposes, the dresser  300  is shown with the protective cover  200  covering drawers  311 - 313 , but not drawers  314  and  315 . Here, the cover  200  has been placed over the dresser  300  via opening  230 . Because the fabric  210  comprises elastic fabric it easily expands to the width and depth of the dresser  300 . The expansion of the fabric  210  innately provides a contraction force inward on the dressers  311 - 313  (hidden from view). Referring to  FIG. 5 , which shows the dresser  300  in a tipped position, drawers  311 - 313  do not slide outward, whereas unprotected drawers  314  and  315  are free to slide.  FIG. 6  illustrates the dresser  300  fully covered by the protective cover  200 , which restrains movement of all drawers  311 - 315 . 
         [0024]    The present invention can vary in shape and sizes. For example, protective cover  200  may be shaped as a square, circle, octagon, triangle, rectangular, pyramid, or parachute. Various sizes and shapes can be implemented to fit various types and shapes of moving items. 
         [0025]      FIGS. 7 and 8  illustrates a protective cover  700  for a flat screen television  730  according to an embodiment of the invention. Similar to protective cover  200 , the protective cover  700  comprises a resilient and durable fabric  710  with a number of pads  711 A-N joined to and space throughout the fabric  710 . In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the fabric comprises an elastic fabric such as spandex that can provide flexibility when placing the cover  700  over the television. For example, the fabric  710  of the protective cover  200  is stretched when placed over the television  730 . Once covering the television  730 , the expanded fabric  710  provides an inward contraction force to snuggly hug the television. The pads  711 A-N prevent damage to the television  730 . 
         [0026]      FIG. 8  illustrates a top view of the protective cover  700 . Here, because of the shape of moving item, i.e., flat screen television, the protective cover  200  is shaped as a rectangle with rounded ends  740 . The protective cover  700  comprises a top section  750  of fabric  710  joined to a cylindrical section  760  of a rectangular cylinder. 
         [0027]    In other embodiments of the invention, the protective cover  200  or  700  can comprise additional materials such as, but not limited to lace, Velcro, drawstrings, zippers, buttons, and holding straps. For example, zippers may provide access to drawers of a dresser when the protective cover is placed over such. 
         [0028]    The invention has been described herein using specific embodiments for the purposes of illustration only. It will be readily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, however, that the principles of the invention can be embodied in other ways. Therefore, the invention should not be regarded as being limited in scope to the specific embodiments disclosed herein, but instead as being fully commensurate in scope with the following claims.