Coverings for shells and the like

Claim 1

A MOLDED STRUCTURE FOR USE AS A HOLLOW SHELL OF AN ARTICLE OF LUGGAGE AND THE LIKE COMPRISING A HARD, UNITARY MOLDING OF FIBROUS MATERIAL DEFINING A SUBSTANTIALLY RECTANGULAR DOME WALL AND FOUR END WALLS EXTENDING ABOUT THE PERIPHERY OF SAID DOME WALL AT SUBSTANTIALLY RIGHT ANGLES THERETO AND JOINED WITH THE RESPECTIVE EDES OF SAID DOME WALL BY ROUNDED CORNERS, THE RESPECTIVE, CONTIGUOUS ENDS OF SAID END WALLS BEING JOINED BY ADDITIONAL ROUNDED CORNERS, SAID WALLS AND CORNERS THEREBY DEFINING A GENERALLY RECTILINEAR, HARD, HOLLOW, UNITARY SHELL WITH THE WALLS THEREOF JOINED BY ROUNDED CORNERS AS A UNITARILY MOLDED BODY, A RECTANGULAR PIECE OF FLEXIBLE COVER SHEETING OF POOR STRETCH QUALITY WITH A THERMOPLASTIC RESIN OUTER SIDE SECURED TO AND COVERING THE OUTER SIDE OF SAID WALLS OF SAID SHELL, SAID COVER SHEETING LYING SMOOTHLY AGAINST SAID WALLS AND SAID FIRST-MENTIONED ROUNDED CORNERS, SAID RECTANGULAR PIECE OF COVER SHEETING HAVING A SEGMENT CUT OUT OF EACH OF THE FOUR CORNERS THEREOF, THE EDGES OF SAID CUT SEGMENTS BEING SUBSTANTIALLY ABUTTED AT SAID ADDITIONAL CORNERS, AND A FLEXIBLE, WEAR-REINFORCEMENT STRIP OF THERMOPLASTIC RESIN EXTENDING ALONG EACH OF SAID ADDITIONAL ROUNDED CORNERS OVER SAID SUBSTANTIALLY ABUTTED EDGES, SAID STRIPS BEING BONDED TO SAID COVER SHEETING AT SAID ADDITIONAL CORNERS BY A HEAT SEAL OF SAID THERMOPLASTIC RESIN STRIPS TO SAID THERMOPLASTIC RESIN OUTER SIDE OF SAID COVERING.