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Inflatable protective covers for motor vehiclesRelated Patent Categories: Purses, Wallets, And Protective Covers, Protective Cover Made Of Flaccid Material, For A Vehicle ExteriorInflatable protective covers for motor vehicles description/claimsThe Patent Description & Claims data below is from USPTO Patent Application 20070284023, Inflatable protective covers for motor vehicles. Brief Patent Description - Full Patent Description - Patent Application Claims
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0001] 1. Field [0002] The present invention generally relates to flexible protective covers for motor vehicles, and more particularly to inflatable protective covers for automobiles, trucks, motorcycles, and motorbikes. [0003] 2. State of the Art [0004] Protective covers for automobiles have been used for many years to protect automobiles parked outdoors from exposure to various environmental hazards such as dust, dirt, sunlight, acid rain, snow, frost, and ice which otherwise accumulates on the exterior surface of the automobile. This helps keep the automobile in a better condition and thus has longer life. Such protective covers are typically rolled up and/or folded for storage such as in the trunk of the automobile. Such protective covers also help prevent excessive heat build-up inside the automobile by being essentially opaque such that sunlight cannot directly heat the interior passenger compartment thereof. [0005] Most protective covers are full car covers which are designed to cover the entire automobile down to the tires thereof. Such car covers are primarily a single sheet of waterproofed canvas which is cut and seamed to generally fit to the exterior shape of the automobile. A drawcord is disposed along a peripheral channel formed in a hemmed lower periphery of the sheet which extends completely around a lower periphery of the automobile when in a deployed position over the automobile. Respective ends of the drawcord extend outwardly through respective grommets of the sheet which may be pulled together and tied by hand to secure the car cover about the automobile. These car covers are typically rolled up and/or folded for storage such as in the trunk of the automobile. One such full car cover is the canvas auto cover disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,728,437 issued on Sep. 17, 1929 to Mott. [0006] These full car covers have several serious problems. Firstly, handling of such car covers such as unpacking and deploying onto the automobile is difficult due to their large size and heavy canvas construction, requiring individual persons to repeatedly move around the automobile to deploy the car cover. Removal of the car cover from the automobile and repacking for storage and later use is similarly inconvenient for a single person, with the peripheral edge catching on corners of the automobile if the car cover is not removed in the correct sequence of moves. Secondly, storage of such car covers is difficult because of their bulk and unwieldiness. Thirdly, such car covers typically do not provide protection from hail which can permanently damage the automobile. If the car cover is designed to provide protection from hail, it typically is constructed of a thick, heavy padding material in order to absorb hail impacts. The resulting car cover is bulky and difficult to install on the automobile. Fourthly, such car covers often do not fit the particular motor vehicle. [0007] Inflatable car covers were developed to provide automobiles protection from hail damage without necessitating the use of overly heavy padding materials. One or more inflatable bladders are provided which provide sufficient thickness when inflated to absorb hail impacts without damaging the automobile. These inflatable car covers have a serious problem in that they typically require a portable electric air compressor which runs off the cigarette lighter socket of the automobile. Some use a flexible tube arrangement to direct bleed air from the vehicle tires into each bladder. In either case, the volume of air required to fill each bladder is substantial due to the large size of the bladders which is far too much to be supplied by human lung power. If an air compressor is used, it takes a long time to fill each bladder due to the limited air flow provided by most portable air compressors. If bleed air from the tires is used, the relatively low pressure of thirty-five pounds per square inch (PSI) and low volume of air contained in the tires renders partially flattens the bled tires rendering them unsafe for driving. [0008] An example of such an inflatable car cover is the multi-air-bag cover disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,000 issued to Wang on Sep. 27, 1994. The cover includes a plurality of interconnected air bags each having downward bent sides and which are disposed in parallel manner over the automobile. An air tube extends through the bags for receiving pressurized air to inflate the air bags. The air tube has a plurality of pressure valves disposed therealong which open to pass air at different pressures, one connecting the air tube to each air bag, such that the pressurized air inflates the air bags in a sequential manner. The inflated air bags cover the roof and doors of the automobile to shield it from the weather and provide insulation to prevent excessive heat build-up in the passenger compartment thereof. The multi-air-bag cover suffers from the serious problems enumerated above. [0009] Some protective covers are partial car covers which are designed specifically to cover only certain areas of the automobile such as just the windows or the roof and windows thereof. Some of these car covers are a single sheet of waterproofed canvas which is cut and seamed to generally fit to the roof and window areas of the automobile. The car covers are anchored in position using a plurality of flexible straps having an upper end affixed to a lower periphery thereof which extend downwardly therefrom with lower ends thereof having respective end hooks that engage the automobile frame under the body thereof. The straps may alternatively be of a shorter length and configured to be entrapped between the body and respective doors or windows of the automobile. As an alternative to the straps, a plurality of special clips may be affixed to the lower periphery which attach to lower window moldings affixed to the body. [0010] An example of such a partial car cover is the weather protection system for road vehicles disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,209,197 issued to Fischer on Jun. 24, 1980. The weather protection system is for covering the windows of automobiles. The system includes a pair of protector parts which detachably connect to the automobile. The protector parts are made of a flexible material extending over the windows and are disposed near each other in the region of the front windshield and the rear window. The weather protection system suffers from the same serious problems enumerated above. [0011] Protective covers for motorcycles have been developed more recently to protect motorcycle, parked outdoors from exposure to the above-mentioned various environmental hazards to helps keep the motorcycle in better condition and have a longer life. Such motorcycle covers are primarily a single sheet of waterproofed canvas which is cut and seamed to generally fit to the exterior shape of the motorcycle. A plurality of fasteners such as clips, snaps, or the like are used to retain the motorcycle cover to the motorcycle. This is time-consuming, requiring the user to attach and detach the fasteners from the motorcycle. Such protective covers are typically rolled up and folded for storage such as in the saddlebags of the motorcycle. [0012] These motorcycle covers have several serious problems. Firstly, handling of such motorcycle covers such as unpacking and deploying onto the motorcycle is somewhat difficult due to their heavy canvas construction. Removal of the motorcycle cover from the motorcycle and repacking for storage and later use is similarly inconvenient. Secondly, storage of such motorcycle covers is difficult because of their bulk and unwieldiness which is particularly problematic on motorcycles due to the limited space available. Thirdly, such car covers typically do not provide protection from hail which can permanently damage the motorcycle. If the motorcycle cover is designed to provide protection from hail, it typically is constructed of a thick, heavy padding material in order to absorb hail impacts. The resulting car cover is bulky and difficult to install on the motorcycle. [0013] Various attempts have been made to overcome the deployment and storage problems of motorcycle covers. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 3,884,523 issued to Allen on May 20, 1975 is disclosed a protective covering for motorcycles which is permanently attached and stored within the seat of the motorcycle. The covering includes a generally contoured cover made of a flexible material contained within a covered storage compartment of the seat. The cover may be withdrawn through an opening in the seat to a deployed position completely covering the motorcycle. A portion of the cover is secured to the seat to prevent full removal of the cover from the storage compartment. The cover is foldable and collapsible into a compact package for reinsertion back into the storage compartment following use. The cover remains attached to the seat to for ready access thereto. While the covering is adequate for the purposes intended, it still suffers from the serious problems enumerated above. Additionally, when the user tries to repack the covering for storage, precise folding thereof is required to fit within the small space of the storage compartment. [0014] There is a need for a protective cover for motor vehicles which: 1) is lightweight and non-bulky so as to be easy to unpack, deploy, and repack for storage by one person; 2) provides protection from hail to prevent damage the motor vehicle without being constructed of thick padding material; 3) has inflatable chambers which require a relatively small volume of air at low pressure to inflate for quick inflation; and 4) may be of a universal fit (e.g. small, medium, and large sizes) or custom fit to the particular motor vehicle. Additionally, the protective cover preferably may have added improvements including: 5) a big deflation valve to let air out quickly; 6) forms a bubble when inflated such that an automobile cannot be used as a junk shelf in a garage; 7) has different types of air valves for inflation using a compressed air line, a portable air compressor, a foot pump, a cannister of compressed gas, or inflation by mouth using the person's own lungs; 8) easily folds to a compact size for storage; 9) comes in both reusable and disposable versions; 10) has a drawstring and a draw clamp for easy securing about the motor vehicle; 11) has an inner layer which rests on the motor vehicle made of a non-marring, felt-like material; 12) the bladder is of a construction similar to conventional air mattresses with baffles; and 13) the bladder has a zip-off cover. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION [0015] The present invention is inflatable protective covers for motor vehicles, preferably automobiles or motorcycles, though adaptable to fit other motorized and non-motorized wheeled vehicles such as bicycles, adult tricycles, and the like. [0016] The protective covers each include a flexible bladder which includes respective upper and lower sheets each made of a lightweight, pliable, waterproof, air-tight material of a shape adapted to substantially cover the motor vehicle. The sheets have mating outer peripheries affixed together in an air-tight manner at a first peripheral seam at an outer periphery of the bladder to form at least one inflatable pocket therebetween. A valve device is adapted to allow adding of air to the inflatable pocket to inflate the bladder when the protective cover is in a deployed position covering the motor vehicle and removing of air from the inflatable pocket to deflate the bladder prior to removing the protective cover to a stowed position disposed off the motor vehicle. A securing device is adapted to removably retain the outer periphery of the bladder about a lower periphery of the motor vehicle when the protective cover is in the deployed position. [0017] The bladders may be adapted to fit about the motor vehicles either baggily to fit a multiplicity of motor vehicles such as by having unitary upper and lower sheets, or custom-fit to the particular motor vehicle by the upper and lower sheets each comprising a plurality of panels affixed together at respective panel seams. The upper and lower sheets comprised of the plurality of panels have a plurality of interconnected inflatable pockets formed by affixing the upper sheet to the lower sheet at a plurality of partial length seams inside the first peripheral seam of the bladder. [0018] The valve device may comprise an inflation member such as a resilient nipple having an air hole extending therethrough which is in fluid communication with the inflatable pocket, and a stopper device adapted to closely removably fit within the air hole to permit inflation and retention of air within the bladder by inserting the stopper into the air hole. The nipple has an inflating position extending generally outwardly therefrom and a stowed position flush with the bladder extending inwardly through the inflation hole into the inflatable pocket. [0019] The securing device may comprise a draw cord disposed along the outer periphery of the bladder disposed through an elongate peripheral channel of the bladder with a cord outlet opening through which respective ends of the draw cord extend. The peripheral channel is formed by doubling over the outer periphery of the bladder and affixing together at a second peripheral seam. [0020] The protective covers may include a quick deflation device having a base affixed to the bladder in fluid communication with the inflatable pocket and a cap adapted to selectively retain and allow quick removal of air from within the inflatable pocket. The valve device may alternatively be combined with the quick deflation device. [0021] The protective covers may be reusable or disposable depending on the material from which the upper and lower sheets are made. In the reusable protective covers, the material may be a lightweight, pliable, waterproof, air-tight material such as thin sheet vinyl material, polyester fabric, laminated Polyester or Nylon Rip-Stop material, or other material which resist the effects of weather, with such material being a top layer of the lower sheet with a soft, non-marring bottom layer bonded thereto made of a material such as felt or fluffed polyester fibers to cushion car cover on the motor vehicle. In the disposable protective covers, the material is a thin and readily foldable plastic film which allows the protective cover to be compactly folded to a hand-held size for single use by unfolding and subsequent disposal. The bladder is folded in stages some at major fold lines some of which may be along respective seams of the bladder to provide the hand-held size. An outer package also made of a plastic film contains the protective cover prior to use. [0022] The protective covers may be of a separable, three-piece construction by including a flexible bladder cover comprising respective upper and lower covers which zip together to form a bladder pocket therebetween adapted to closely receive the bladder therein. A closure device such as a zipper is adapted to retain together respective outer peripheries of the upper and lower sheets disposed about the bladder. The securing device is attached to the bladder cover to removably retain the bladder cover and the outer periphery of the bladder about the motor vehicle when the protective cover is in the deployed position disposed about the motor vehicle. Continue reading about Inflatable protective covers for motor vehicles... 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