Patent ID: 6911596

Claim:
A tubular cover member for covering an article extending in a longitudinal direction, the cover member comprising: a cylindrical support formed from a spirally formed ribbon having an inner diameter having a sufficient size for the article to pass through the interior of the cylindrical support; and a tube composed of a room temperature recoverable rubber material or thermoplastic elastomer, the tube having an unfolded length exceeding the length of the cylindrical support and an unexpanded inner diameter equal to or smaller than the outer diameter of the article, wherein at least a portion of the tube being supported and carried on the cylindrical support is folded longitudinally in a corrugated form such that the folded portion of the tube covers the periphery of the cylindrical support in an expanded condition to receive the article in the interior of the cylindrical support for covering the article by shrinking the tube when the support is unwrapped and withdrawn from inside the tube.