Patent Publication Number: US-2006012228-A1

Title: Snug fitting adjustable slipcover

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS  
      Not applicable.  
     STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT  
      Not applicable.  
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
      1. Field of Invention  
      The present invention relates to the field of slipcovers for sofas.  
      2. Description of Prior Art  
      There are a variety of slipcovers on the market that have attempted to answer the general need for a universal slipcover for a sofa. There are a multitude of reasons for a universal slip cover for a sofa, which reasons include for either style change, color change, protection from dust or spills, or to mask overuse or damage to an existing sofa. Ideally, a universal slipcover should fit snuggly on all sofas, cost a fraction of the cost of a replacement sofa and be easy to install. The problem with existing slipcover designs are that they are not truly universal. With existing slipcovers, there are frequently problems with achieving a “tailored” appearance on a variety of sofa designs. Also, existing designs frequently employ complicated, multi-component designs, fitted arms and “skirts” that discourage achieving a fitted look, and which instead frequently result in wrinkles, awkward folds, and the obvious appearance of a slip cover, which is not a good thing. Loose fitting slipcovers are also annoying to the user of the sofa, because they tend to bunch up under the user of the sofa and result in an undesirable sitting experience. Existing slip technologies fail consumer expectations of comfort and are inferior so that many consumers would just as soon buy a new couch. The present invention offers an alternative to couch-sitting consumers—an alternative adjustable slipcover that is universal in design and elegant in style.  
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
      Accordingly, it is the objective of the present invention to provide an adjustable slipcover that provides a fitted or “tailored” appearance for the user&#39;s sofa.  
      It is a further object of the present invention to provide a slip cover design that is more truly universal than existing slip cover designs, and which is designed to be rapidly adjusted to fit over a wide array of sofa shapes and styles, including what could be more frequently described as chairs.  
      It is a further object of the present invention to provide a slipcover design that is of a one-piece construction, and which does not rely on any fitted arms or skirt features.  
      It is a further object of the present invention to provide a slip cover that will have a “tailored” appearance when installed, that is comfortable to the user when sitting and will not bunch up to annoy the user.  
      It is a further object of the present invention to provide a slip cover that in most instances should cost less than a replacement sofa, and which will also be useful in changing styles and colors to accommodate a room; which will serve a protective and life-extending function for the user&#39;s couch; and which may also be used to cover or conceal overuse or damage to an existing sofa.  
      It is a further object of the present invention to provide a slipcover that will be easy to install for the user and of durable construction.  
      Other objectives of the invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art once the invention has been shown and described. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
      The manner in which these objectives and other desirable characteristics can be obtained is explained in the following description and attached drawings in which:  
       FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional view of the snug fitting adjustable slipcover as it is typically installed on a two-cushion sofa.  
       FIG. 2  is a top view of the snug fitting adjustable slipcover, as it would appear when fully laid out and not installed on the sofa.  
       FIG. 3  depicts another embodiment of the slipcover, as it would appear on a three-cushion sofa.  
       FIG. 4  depicts the slipcover invention as it would appear on a one cushion sofa chair.  
    
    
      It is to be noted, however, that the appended drawings illustrate only typical embodiments of this invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for the invention may admit to other equally effective embodiments.  
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION  
       FIG. 1  is a three-dimensional view of the snug fitting adjustable slipcover  1  as it is typically installed on a two-cushion sofa. As indicated by the drawing, the slipcover is of one-unit commercially available fabric construction, so that the user is not burdened with multiple components that must be pieced together by the user.  FIG. 1  depicts a two-cushion sofa, although three-cushion and single-cushion chairs also work with a slightly modified embodiment of slipcover  1  to accommodate such shapes. A prominent feature of the slipcover  1  shown in  FIG. 1  is that it has a left wing  2  and a right wing  3 , both of which wrap around the lower portion of the sofa (beneath the arm-rests) where they fasten to one another behind the sofa by joining of a left connector means  4  and a right connector means  8 . Typically, the left connector means  4  and right connector means  8  are made of a synthetic material having both a layer of tiny hooks and a complementary layer of clinging pile, where said layers of material are capable of being pulled apart and pressed together for easy fastening and unfastening, i.e., Velcro®. A variety of other means might also be suitable for fastening the left wing  2  and right wing  3  to one another at the left connector means  4  and right connector means  8 , which means includes but are not limited to buckles, hinges, hooks, clasps, or ties. The left connector means  4  and right connector means  8  may be formed of at least one strap as depicted in  FIG. 1 , with a connecting means occurring at the end of such straps. Alternately, the right connector means  8  and left connector means  4  are located directly on the co-joining ends of left wing  2  and right wing  3 . The left and right wings are typically in the range of 2 to 25 inches in height extending upward from the floor, but preferably are inches in height as this accommodates most commercially available sofa&#39;s with the snuggest fit. As depicted on  FIG. 1 , the ends of the left wing  2  and right wing  3 , which are not adapted to join one another, are connected to the slipcover  1  at double stitch sections  5  that are vertically aligned beneath the sofa arms when the slipcover  1  is applied. The double stitch sections  5  are preferably constructed of a higher quality fabric, and more durable fabric than other portions of the slipcover  1 , both for purposes of a stylish appearance and because of the pulling action on this part of the slipcover that occurs when the left wing  2  and right wing  3  are pulled tautly behind the sofa back and fastened to one another. Alternately, the double stitch sections  5  may be preferably of the same material as the rest of the slipcover or folded for double thickness. The two double stitch sections  5  are preferably separated by a midsection  10  of the slipcover  1 , which is the portion of the slipcover that would be behind a user&#39;s calves when he or she sat on the sofa and further which extends upward to the top of the sofa cushions where it meets the edge of the sitting section  16  of the slipcover  1 .  
      The sitting section  16  defines the part of the slipcover  1  where the user&#39;s posterior would rest. It is particularly important that this sitting section  16  be tightly drawn so that the sitter does not have an uncomfortable, bunched-up sitting experience. Realizing this, the inventor has developed a tuck pocket  6  that facilitates a snug fit. The tuck pocket  6  is positioned on the slipcover  1  at a location where two cushions would meet, or alternately where a sofa cushion meets a side of the sofa. The tuck pocket  6  defines a slight opening at this location so that the user of the slipcover  1  may insert a hand or arm into a pocket that is designed to extend under the sofa cushion for purposes of securing the slipcover  1  to the sofa. The tuck pocket  6  opening is preferably a slit with a length in the range of 1 to 40 inches in length. The same tuck pocket  6  is preferably in the range of 2 to 40 inches deep. Preferably, the end of the tuck pocket  6  may contain a weight, such as sand or a stone, to further secure the slipcover  1 , or other fastening means, such as Velcro® affixed to the outside of the tuck pocket  6  end which would fix the tuck pocket  6 . There is typically one tuck pocket at each location where sofa cushions meet, but in another preferable embodiment of this invention, a plurality of tuck pockets  6  may also extend from the same location(s) so that at least one tuck pocket  6  might extend under each sofa cushion. Additionally, tuck pockets  6  may be found at a rear tuck zone  13 , namely where the sitting section  16  meets the seat back section  9 . The sitting section  16  is further adapted to be tucked into the sofa along the rear tuck zone  13  and side tuck zone  12 , and elastic is preferably positioned on section  16  to enhance the snugness of the tuck at tuck zone  13  and side tuck zone  12 . These are manual tucks and do not necessarily benefit from a tuck pocket  6 , but preferably, such an adaptation of the present invention is contemplated.  
      Where the sitting section  16  ends, the seat back section  9  begins, with the seat back section  9  forming the portion of the slipcover where a users back would rest. This seat back section  9  wraps over the front portion of the sofa and merges into the rear section  17  of the slipcover  1  that would cover the entire back of the sofa. The rear section  17  defines an edge slit  7  occurring near where a sofa back would meet a sofa side. This edge slit  7  allows the rear section  17  of the slipcover  1  to form a flap extending to the floor, but underneath which flap the left wing  2  and right wing  3  of the slipcover  1  join to one another by left  4  and right connector means  8  to tighten the slipcover  1  to the sofa. After the left wing  2  and right wing  3  are joined and the slipcover  1  is secure, the rear section  17  that formed the flap is folded down and preferably fastens by fastening means  11  to either the sofa back or the wall facing sides of the left wing  2  and right wing  3 . This fastening means  11  is preferably of the hook and loop Velcro® variety, but other means are also contemplated, including but not limited to buckles, fasteners, hinges, hooks, buttons, clasps or ties. The rear section  17  that comprises the flap shape is also important for presentation because it makes for a “cleaner” appearance for the sofa back, which in many decorative instances is not against a wall, but rather is in open view. Thus, the slipcover  1  further avoids a cheap and tacky looking sofa back.  
       FIG. 1  also shows the locations where the remaining fabric comprising slipcover  1 , referred to as the remnant sections  18 , must be folded to affect a neat appearance, namely on the portion of the slipcover  1  covering the sofa sides, beneath the armrests (side folds  14 ), and covering the armrest, and at the front folds  15  occurring at the armrest ends. Left wing  2  and right wing  3  cover the remnant sections  18  under the armrest; however, the sofa user must fold the remnant sections  18  at side folds  14  and front fold  15 .  
       FIG. 2  provides a secondary top view of the snug fitting adjustable slipcover  1 . The principal benefit of this second drawing is that one can see the various sections comprising the single unit slipcover  1  as it would appear laid out on the floor prior to being fitted to a sofa. Unlike other designs, this slipcover  1  is easy to store by folding and it does not require fitting together of separate pieces.  
       FIG. 3  and  4  show alternate preferable embodiments of this invention, however, where it is applied to a single-cushion, and a triple-cushion sofa. In all other respects the invention is the same as preferably described in the detailed description for  FIGS. 1 and 2 . The invention still has the wrap around feature and the tuck pockets  6  that help insure a snug fit on virtually any commercially available sofa. On the single-cushion design, one or more tuck pockets  6  would preferably be located at least one of three edges of the sitting section  16 , namely where the sitting section  16  meets the base of the armrests and the seat back section  9  begins.