BICYCLE SEAT COVER

Abstract

A bicycle seat cover for a bicycle seat with a rigid substrate and a cushion thereon, includes a stretchable polymeric layer forming a top surface, a seat horn cover, a seat conforming sidewall, and a partial seal bottom surface covering and integral honeycomb cells extending from an underside of the top surface, each cell closed at its top by the top surface and open at its bottom.

Claims

1. A bicycle seat cover for a bicycle seat with a rigid substrate and a cushion thereon, the cover comprising: a stretchable polymeric layer forming a top surface, a seat horn cover, a seat conforming sidewall, and a partial seat bottom surface covering; and integral honeycomb cells extending from an underside of the top surface, each cell closed at its top by the top surface and open at its bottom.

2. The cover of claim 1 in which the cells have varying thickness.

3. The cover of claim 2 in which the cells proximate the sidewall are thinner than the cells interior of the sidewall.

4. The cover of claim 2 in which the cells proximate the seat horn cover are thinner than the cells interior of the sidewalls.

5. The cover of claim 1 in which the top surface includes a longitudinally extending depression.

6. The cover of claim 5 in which the cells extending from the underside of the depression are thinner than the cells interior of the underside of the depression.

7. The cover of claim 1 in which the bottom of the cells lie in the same plane.

8. The cover of claim 1 in which the cells are hexagonal.

9. A bicycle seat cover for a bicycle seat, the cover comprising; a waterproof polymeric layer preformed into the shape of the bicycle seat, stretchable to deploy the seat cover over and about the bicycle seat, and when released rebounds conforming to the shape of the bicycle seat and affixed thereto without slippage; and integral honeycomb cells extending from an underside of the polymeric layer engaging the bicycle seat.

10. The cover of claim 9 in which the polymeric layer is preformed into a seat cover portion, a sidewall portion, a horn covering portion, and a partial seat bottom surface covering with an opening therein.

11. The cover of claim 9 in which the cells have varying thickness.

12. The cover of claim 10 in which the cells proximate the sidewall are thinner than the cells interior of the sidewall.

13. The cover of claim 10 in which the cells proximate the seat horn cover are thinner than the ceils interior of the sidewall.

14. The cover of claim 9 in which the top surface includes a longitudinally extending depression.

15. The cover of claim 14 in which the cells extending from the underside of the depression are thinner than the cells interior of the underside of the depression.

16. The cover of claim 9 in which the bottom of the cells lie in the same plane.

17. The cover of claim 9 in which the cells are hexagonal.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0010] Other objects, features and advantages will occur to those skilled in the art from the following description of a preferred embodiment and the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0011] FIG. 1 is a top view of a preferred embodiment of an example of a seat cover;

[0012] FIG. 2 is a schematic view of the bottom of the seat cover of FIG. 1;

[0013] FIG. 3 is another schematic view of the bottom of the seat cover of FIGS. 1-2;

[0014] FIG. 4 is another schematic view of a portion of the bottom of the seat cover; and

[0015] FIG. 5 is a schematic view showing another portion of the bottom of the seat cover.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0016] Aside from the preferred embodiment or embodiments disclosed below, this invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or being carried out in various ways. Thus, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangements of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. If only one embodiment is described herein, the claims hereof are not to be limited to that embodiment. Moreover, the claims hereof are not to be read restrictively unless there is clear and convincing evidence manifesting a certain exclusion, restriction, or disclaimer.

[0017] Bicycle cover 10, FIG. 1 is preferably molded and made of a stretchable polymeric layer 12 (e.g., silicone) preferably rendering the seat cover waterproof and providing a cushioning effect. The layer 12 forms a top (scaling) surface 14 which will overlay the existing seat cushion of the bicycle seat, seat conforming sidewall 16, and seat horn cover portion 18. Conforming sidewall 16 covers the left sidewall of the seat, the rear sidewall, and the right sidewall. As shown in FIGS. 1-2, the seat horn cover portion covers the top, sides, and preferably the bottom of the horn. FIG. 2 also shows partial seat bottom covering portion 20 which stretches over the seat cushion and resides underneath the scat shell periphery. Opening 22 in bottom covering portion allows the seat cover to be deployed onto the bicycle seat and removed if desired. Because seat cover 10 is made of a molded layer of silicone, in one example, it is stretchable to be deployed onto and about the seat and firmly resides in place without any slippage once deployed. The underside of the polymeric layer preferably has a sticky texture to prevent movement of the cover relative to the seat. The outer side of the polymeric layer is slicker to prevent rider chafing. The outer layer may be treated by spraying on a polymer (e.g., Parlylene). The polymer chemically bonds to the molded material and provides an improved tactile feel.

[0018] Cover 10 also features integral honeycomb (e.g., hexagonal) cells 24 formed in the mold and extending from the underside 26 of the top surface 14. Each cell is preferably closed at its top by the underside 26 of the top seat covering portion and each cell is preferably open at its bottom as shown.

[0019] Cover 10, FIG. 1 may include longitudinally extending molded depression 30 in top surface 14 conforming to a similar depression in many bicycle seats. The underside of horn covering portion 18 may also include a molded depression 19, FIG. 2.

[0020] In one version, the wall thickness of the polymeric layer was 0.05 inches. The honeycomb cells may vary in their extent but preferably reside only below the main seat portion and not in the nose or horn portion. And, for added comfort, the cells can vary in thickness. In the example shown in FIGS. 3-5, the cells 24′ proximate the underside of the sidewall covering portion 16 are thinner than the cells 24″ interior of the sidewalls. Also, the cells 24′″ proximate the underside of the seat horn cover portion 18 are thinner than the cells 24″ interior of the underside of the sidewall covering portion. Also, the cells 24.sup.iv extending from the underside 32 of depression 30 are thinner than the cells 24.sup.v interior of the underside 32 of depression 30. The cells may range in thickness from 1/32 to ⅝ inch. In other embodiments, the cell wall thickness or even the cell material may vary to tune the cushioning effect at various regions of the cover. In the version shown, the bottom of the cells generally lie in the same plane (when the cover is pressed flat). The cushioning cells thus extend from their closed tops at the underside 26 of the seat covering portion 14 to their open bottoms which engage the top of the existing seat cushion providing an air cushion to alleviate saddle sores and chafing. The cover is easy and inexpensive to manufacture.

[0021] Like a swim cap, the seat cover stretches over the seat and snaps into place making it easy and self-evident to deploy. Once in place, the cover stays in place without slippage. In one embodiment, the waterproof polymeric layer is preformed into the shape of the bicycle seat as shown in FIG. 1 and yet is stretchable to deploy the seat cover over and about the bicycle seat. When released, the waterproof polymeric layer rebounds conforming to the shape of the bicycle seat and is affixed thereto without slippage. In the preferred version shown, the polymeric layer is preformed into a seat cover portion, a sidewall, a horn covering portion, and a partial seat bottom surface covering with an opening therein. In other embodiments, for different styles of seats, the polymeric layer can be performed to cover a particular seat style.

[0022] The basic dimensions of the seat cover in its relaxed state are preferably slightly smaller than the bicycle seat the cover will be applied to. That way, the cover can be stretched over the seat and then rebounds to tightly fit on the bicycle seat. In this way, a given seat cover can be used with a wide variety of bicycle seats of different sizes and configurations.

[0023] Although specific features of the invention are shown in some drawings and not in others, this is for convenience only as each feature may be combined with any or all of the other features in accordance with the invention. The words “including”, “comprising”, “having”, and “with” as used herein are to he interpreted broadly and comprehensively and are not limited to any physical interconnection. Moreover, any embodiments disclosed in the subject application are not to be taken as the only possible embodiments. Other embodiments will occur to those skilled in the art and are within the following claims.

[0024] In addition, any amendment presented during the prosecution of the patent application for this patent is not a disclaimer of any claim element presented in the application as filed: those skilled in the art cannot reasonably be expected to draft a claim that would literally encompass all possible equivalents, many equivalents will be unforeseeable at the time of the amendment and are beyond a fair interpretation of what is to be surrendered (if anything), the rationale underlying the amendment may bear no more than a tangential relation to many equivalents, and/or there are many other reasons the applicant cannot he expected to describe certain insubstantial substitutes for any claim element amended.