AU2002318673B2 - Footwear - Google Patents

Description

Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION FOR A STANDARD PATENT Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor(s): Address for Service: Invention Title: Thomas Cook Boot Clothing Co Pty Ltd DAVIES COLLISON CAVE, Patent Attorneys, 1 Little Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria 3000.

Footwear Details of Associated Provisional Application: PR9522 filed 14 December 2001 The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us: Q:OPER\DH\ARCH 2002\DEC\PR9522 AU CAP.DOC 13/12/02 P: OPERDH~2599445 rc 2 doc I12007 V -1-

\O

tFOOTWEAR Field of the Invention The invention relates to footwear, particularly but not exclusively, construction of an

\O

00 insole for the footwear.

Background of the Invention It is known to form an insole for an item of footwear, with various features to increase the comfort of a wearer of the footwear. For example, an insole may include specific polymeric materials, be specifically contoured to fit a wearer's foot and/or be provided with cushioning in the form of air pockets trapped between adjacent layers of the insole.

The manufacturing process, particularly for integrating air pockets within the insole can, however, be fairly complex and expensive.

Obiect of the Invention The invention seeks to provide an insole of a simplified construction, wherein comfort advantages may be realised.

Summary of the Invention In accordance with the invention, there is provided an insole for an item of footwear, having an aperture formed therein for receipt of a cushioning pad wherein the insole is formed as an elongate body, with a main section and toe section, separated by a relatively flexible region, to provide for enhanced flexure between the toe section and main section of the insole.

P:\OPER\DK2599445 r- 2 doc-10 =If2007 -2ct Preferably, the insole is fitted with a cover portion for retaining the pad in the aperture.

Preferably, the insole includes the pad. More preferably, the pad is formed of a peripheral ¢Cc flange for engaging one side of the insole and a compressible portion arranged to project t"-

ID

00 through the aperture, toward another side of the insole.

ci Preferably, the region is defined by a felt insert, secured to each of the sections.

Alternatively, the region is defined by a flexible base of the sole and the sections are defined by layers of relatively rigid material secured to the base.

In another aspect, there is provided a pad for insertion in an aperture of an insole, as described above, including a flange for engaging one side of the insole and a compressible portion arranged to project through the aperture, toward another side of the insole.

In another aspect, there is provided footwear, including an insole, as described above.

Brief Description of the Drawings The invention is described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an item of footwear, including an insole formed in accordance with the invention; and Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the construction of the insole shown in Fig. 1.

P:OPER\DI2399445 cp do-13/I1202 -3- Detailed Description Referring firstly to Fig. I, an item of footwear 1, in the form of a boot, is shown in a partially sectioned view as including an insole 2 positioned between an outer sole 3 and a cushioned insert 4. The insole includes an aperture 5, which is shown with a cushioning pad 6 projecting therethrough. The insole 2 is in the form of an elongate body 7 which is divided into a main section 8, a toe section 9 and a region 10 which is relatively flexible compared to the sections 8, 9.

The assembly of the insole 2 and outer sole 3 is shown in more detail in Fig. 2. The cushioning pad 6, which includes a peripheral flange 11 and compressible portion 12 is fitted to the insole by moving the pad 6 in a direction indicated by arrow 13, such that the flange 11 engages one side 14 of the insole 2, while the projecting portion 12 passes through the aperture 5 toward the other side 15. The pad 6 is preferably formed as a plastics envelope which is air-filled, although any other form of impact absorbing material may be used. A cover portion 16, in the form of a board or the like, is then glued to the insole 2 so as to retain the pad 6 in the aperture The insole 2 is then preferably secured to an underlying welt 17 and flexible insert 18, for increased shock-absorbence, and subsequently to outer sole 19, which is stitched to the welt for extra security. The outer sole is preferably formed of a rubber compound for increased abrasion resistance and flexibility and is provided with a honeycomb cavity structure to reduce weight. A heel 20 may then be fitted to the outer sole 19 to complete the sole of the boot 1.

As may be appreciated, the construction of the insole provides two main advantages in that P:OPERIDIH\2599445 cap.do- 13/I 2/02 -4air cushioning may be readily incorporated, without the need for complex manufacturing techniques and the insole itself has desirable flexibility due to region 10, so that a wearer will feel comfortable wearing the boot, even straight after purchase, as compared to a conventional insole which may need to be worn-in in order to achieve a similar flexibility between the main section 8 and toe section 9. The relative flexibility of the region 10 may also be achieved by instead providing substantially rigid material on the sections 8, 9 so that the region 10 is defined simply by underlying flexible base material.

The insole, cushioning pad and footwear have been described by way of non-limiting example only and many modifications and variations may be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention described.

The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as, an acknowledgment or any form of suggestion that that prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia.

Claims (9)

1. An insole for an item of footwear, having an aperture formed therein for receipt of a cushioning pad, wherein the insole is formed as an elongate body, with a main section \O 00 and toe section, separated by a relatively flexible region, to provide for enhanced flexure between the toe section and main section of the insole.

2. An insole as claimed in claim 1, wherein the insole is fitted with a cover portion for retaining the pad in the aperture.

3. An insole as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the insole includes the pad.

4. An insole as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the pad is formed of a peripheral flange for engaging one side of the insole and a compressible portion arranged to project through the aperture, toward another side of the insole.

An insole as claimed in claim 1, wherein the region is defined by a felt insert, secured to each of the sections.

6. An insole as claimed in claim 1, wherein the region is defined by a flexible base of the sole and the sections are defined by layers of relatively rigid material secured to the base.

7. Footwear, including an insole, as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6.

8. An insole, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings.

9. Footwear, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the drawings.