1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to devices and methods for preserving portable, flexible receptacles, such as a handbags, gloves, shoes, etc., and in particular, to preserving their shape and reducing deleterious moisture in them.
2. Description of Related Art
Handbags, slippers, gloves, shoes and other articles are often made of delicate, rare, or relatively expensive materials. Also, some articles are highly prized because of the prestige of its brand, their distinctiveness as an antique, a limited production volume, or other economic or social factors. Owners of such goods will very much want to preserve them from damage.
Taking handbags as an example, that market has experienced tremendous growth recently. The U.S. market alone is projected to reach $9 billion by 2015 and the market only appears to be poised for more growth, with the luxury segment of the market leading the way. Handbags are often treated less like a purchase and more like an investment. Accordingly, many purchasers go to great lengths to protect and preserve their handbags. To date, most of the focus has been on preserving the outside of the handbag. In fact, it is commonplace for handbags (particularly, the more expensive handbags) to be sold with a dust bag in which the bag is to be kept in order to protect it from outside elements.
Handbags and other articles are often shipped with inserts for preserving their shape. Unless such initial precautions are taken, the article might partially collapse or develop ripples or wrinkles due to gravity-induced settling or from being stacked together with other articles during shipment or storage. When an insert is used, the article will have crisp and new appearance when first removed from a shipping container. Also, the insert will maintain the article's appearance if it is put on display.
After purchase, a consumer usually discards the insert. Consequently, over time, the article tends to change shape and lose its crisp, new appearance. Even if the consumer were to keep the insert and use it when storing the article, the insert would not last long since it is typically made of nondurable materials such as cardboard, thin plastic, or crumpled tissue paper.
Some articles such as handbags are in the form of receptacles with an internal space in which moisture can be a problem. In such cases, keeping moisture under control is important to suppress mildew, mold, rust, etc. For this reason, many articles are shipped with a packet containing a desiccating agent for reducing moisture that might otherwise damage an article made with easily degraded materials such as leather, cloth, steel, etc.
To keep the desiccating packet effective, the shipping container is sealed to reduce infiltration of moist air. In some cases the article is placed in a box that is sealed with durable packing tape. Alternatively, the article may be sealed in a separate plastic bag placed in a larger box. Under these circumstances, a relatively small desiccating packet may be adequate to dry a fixed, noncirculating volume of air during shipment.
After being removed from its shipping container, the desiccating packet is often discarded and its advantage lost. The problem with internal moisture may then arise, especially since receptacles such as a handbag, will normally be kept closed to avoid forming wrinkles. Even if the desiccating packet were retained and placed inside a closed article such as a closed handbag, the packet will be inadequate because moisture will ordinarily infiltrate and replace the dry air unless the handbag is nearly airtight, which is almost never the case. In addition, the packets that are usually included tend to be very small and of limited capacity; thus, losing their effectiveness fairly quickly
Aftermarket products for maintaining the shape of an article are limited and have been bulky and inconvenient. They require a user to squeeze and manipulate a resilient material in order to insert it into the article as well as to remove it. Such manipulation of the insert is also likely to damage the handbag. Moreover, providing an aftermarket device for preserving previously purchased articles such as a handbag, is hindered by the enormous diversity in the shapes and sizes of such articles.
See also U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,131,036; 4,565,287; 4,813,791; 5,291,669; 5,542,191; 5,934,808; 5,950,323; 6,378,224; 6,769,807; 7,108,425; 7,699,913; 7,770,723; and 7,930,837, as well as US Patent Application Publication No. 2011/0061257.