CA2535426A1 - Antiskid attachment for footwear and method - Google Patents
Antiskid attachment for footwear and method Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- CA2535426A1 CA2535426A1 CA 2535426 CA2535426A CA2535426A1 CA 2535426 A1 CA2535426 A1 CA 2535426A1 CA 2535426 CA2535426 CA 2535426 CA 2535426 A CA2535426 A CA 2535426A CA 2535426 A1 CA2535426 A1 CA 2535426A1
- Authority
- CA
- Canada
- Prior art keywords
- attachment
- footwear
- elements
- skid
- traction
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
Links
Classifications
-
- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A43—FOOTWEAR
- A43C—FASTENINGS OR ATTACHMENTS OF FOOTWEAR; LACES IN GENERAL
- A43C15/00—Non-skid devices or attachments
- A43C15/10—Non-skid attachments made of wire, chain, or other meshed material
Landscapes
- Footwear And Its Accessory, Manufacturing Method And Apparatuses (AREA)
Abstract
An antiskid attachment for footwear is described wherein the traction increases when lateral skidding occurs. The attachment comprises of a multitude of skid-resisting elements positioned between the shoe sole and the surface, and flexible linkage used to ensure appropriate positioning of the elements allowing natural walking and running movement and easy application with virtually any type of footwear. The attachment ensures improved traction on ice and snow, thereby reducing the possibility of slipping during inclement weather, without danger to the user or damage to surfaces when used indoors. The inventive method of traction enhancement using polyhedral shapes is explained as deployed in, but not limited to, the present footwear attachment.
Description
Description BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Shoes for everyday wear provide poor traction on slippery surfaces, such as ice and packed snow. Special shoes for outdoor use (e.g., winter boots, hiking footwear) provide better traction on packed snow but are almost as useless on slippery ice, especially during the season when the outdoor temperature is changing around the freezing point, and during periods of freezing rain. When the ground is covered with a glaze of ice, it becomes a challenge to pursue routine outdoor tasks, such as getting to the car on the driveway or walking from the car to the mall, especially for the elderly and persons with irregular gait. Moving across slippery surface is an inconvenience and may result in injury. The fear of possible injury during icy conditions forces people to slow down or to stay indoors, which may not be an option for certain occupations. With the present invention, the possibility of slipping on ice is significantly reduced. The underlying traction enhancement method may be used in various antislip devices and applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Antiskid and traction improvement devices that have been described in the art provide this capability by a variety of different means. In most cases, they are designed as overshoes and are equipped with sharp elements. Those qualities make many of the existing designs (a) too bulky, (b) difficult to put on and take off, and (c) unsafe to manipulate. In addition, the devices equipped with sharp elements (cleats, crampons) render the footwear extremely slippery when used on the smooth stone floor (e.g., inside the mall) and/or damage the flooring and therefore must be taken off before entrance. Conversely, those devices without sharp elements are not efficient on ice surfaces.
The antiskid attachment of the present invention is an improvement over the existing and prior art devices in that it is designed as a device easy to fasten and remove, small enough to carry along, and cheap and simple to produce. The design is flexible to work with almost any type of footwear and provides an improved degree of traction on both packed snow and ice without impeding normal walking and running movement. Having no cleats, crampons or other sharp or abrasive parts, the device is not detrimental to most flooring types. Using the inventive method of traction enhancement described herein, the device remains sufficiently stable on smooth stone floors, permitting transitory use of the device indoors, thus minimizing the inconvenience of changing or removing footwear every time one enters indoors.
The inventive method of traction enhancement deploying the physical properties of polyhedral shapes may be used for different anti-slip devices, including but not limited to footwear, tires and non-slip flooring.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
FIG. 1 - overall view of the present invention in preferred embodiment;
FIG. 2 - detailed view of a polyhedral skid-resisting element in preferred embodiment, illustrating tetrahedral nature of the elements;
FIG. 3 - detailed view of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 4 - detailed view of the swivel part of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 5 - overall view of the present invention in preferred embodiment attached to footwear;
FIG. 6 - diagram illustrating the performance of the polyhedral skid-resisting element;
FIG. 7 - diagram illustrating the performance of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 8 - diagram demonstrating contact pressure redistribution;
FIG. 9 (A, B) - other possible applications of the traction enhancement method.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The present invention is directed to an improved anti-skid attachment for footwear that integrates performance, light weight, convenience of use and manufacturability.
Specifically, the invention comprises a multitude of skid-resisting elements (1), preferably of, but not limited to, tetrahedral shape, positioned between the footwear (2) and the surface (3) (see FIG.5). The skid-resisting elements may be built specifically for the purpose, with the shape of the elements varying from a pyramid with triangular faces (tetrahedron) to a conical shape but not limited to the said shapes . For mass-market applications, a standard single jack chain or double loop (double jack) chain may be used instead. FIG.2 explains the tetrahedral nature of the single jack chain links used in preferred embodiment. The device further comprises front and back flexible linkage parts, each consisting of the elastic loops (4, 5) and swivel connectors (6) connecting the elastic loops to the skid-resisting elements.
The device is attached to the footwear by pulling the front elastic loop over the toe of the shoe, stretching it until the front skid-resisting elements are positioned without slack under the front part of the shoe, with swivel connectors positioned flush with the sides of the sole as shown on FIG.
3, then stretching the back loop over the heel of the shoe (FIG. 5).
The swivel connectors (see FIG.4) consist of the swivel part (7) and an additional link (8) inserted between the swivel and the skid-resisting elements (links of jack chain in the preferred embodiment). This combination facilitates the process of putting the device on the shoe by reducing susceptibility to tangles and by eliminating the need to define the "top" and the "bottom" of the attachment in order to achieve the desired antiskid effect.
In addition, the connectors are designed as levers, and are shaped in such a way that they are retained in the correct position (described above, and as shown on FIG.3 and FIG.7) by a relatively small tension exerted by the soft elastic loop (4), as this force, applied to the longer moment arm, creates sufficient force to secure the vertical parts of the swivel against the sides of the sole. In the previously known anti-slip attachments, the elastic members must withstand the strain caused by the anti-slip action, and therefore they are made noticeably more rigid and hard to stretch.
The elastic loops are made of tubular or round-profile elastomeric material which facilitates attaching of the device to the shoes and self-adjustment of the antiskid elements on the footwear.
Furthermore, this configuration of the connectors protects the elastic loops from being damaged or cut when stepping on sharp objects, as the elastic parts are located around the vamp and heel of the shoe and not under them.
The inventive method of the anti-slip enhancement is based on the following.
All known antiskid devices are designed to increase sliding friction only. This provides adequate traction on packed snow and rough surfaces. However, traction on ice has a specific nature similar to friction between lubricated surfaces, with sliding friction being extremely low, and therefore cleats and crampons are used to increase the friction factor in the majority of antiskid devices that are currently available. For reasons explained before, cleats and crampons may be unacceptable in certain applications.
The present invention suggests transition from sliding to rolling friction as a means of gaining control over skidding. Rolling friction is minimal when spherical solids are placed between the two surfaces. Being polyhedrons with infinite number of summits, spheres offer no resistance to rolling when the number of summits approaches infinity. However, the rolling friction increases as the number of summits decreases.
The least possible number of summits for a three-dimensional solid is equal to four. Hence, the tetrahedron will create maximum possible rolling friction and is the basic shape for the preferred embodiment.
Additionally, the suggested tetrahedral (or similar) antiskid elements will provide traction improvement as compared to regular ribbed or grooved antiskid surfaces and spikeless chains in the following way.
Caused by lateral skidding force, the redistribution of pressure from 2 to 1 point per element (see chain "footprints" on FIG.8) will double the pressure in contact points, negatively impacting the ice surface condition conducive to skidding, similarly to the effect delivered by spikes and crampons, thereby increasing the threshold of starting friction and preventing transiting to sliding friction.
The use of non-slip elements having triangular (or mechanically equivalent to) cross-section in other applications, e.g.: winter tires (FIG.9A), non-slip floors (FIG.9B), will bring equivalent benefits.
While many other attachments using chains may look similar, they do not have the benefits of the tetrahedral (in the preferred embodiment) shape of the antiskid elements and therefore are less efficient on ice. The existing attachments with carbonized steel crampons and cleats may be more efficient on plain hard ice, but are extremely uncomfortable on smooth hard surfaces, such as tiled floors, and are dangerous due to increased slipping, while being detrimental to most surfaces.
In addition, driving a vehicle is not safe with those devices attached to the footwear, if possible at all. The present invention does not have the above disadvantages, and its suggested embodiment using standard jack chain makes it more appropriate for city use than the anti-skid devices presently available.
Shoes for everyday wear provide poor traction on slippery surfaces, such as ice and packed snow. Special shoes for outdoor use (e.g., winter boots, hiking footwear) provide better traction on packed snow but are almost as useless on slippery ice, especially during the season when the outdoor temperature is changing around the freezing point, and during periods of freezing rain. When the ground is covered with a glaze of ice, it becomes a challenge to pursue routine outdoor tasks, such as getting to the car on the driveway or walking from the car to the mall, especially for the elderly and persons with irregular gait. Moving across slippery surface is an inconvenience and may result in injury. The fear of possible injury during icy conditions forces people to slow down or to stay indoors, which may not be an option for certain occupations. With the present invention, the possibility of slipping on ice is significantly reduced. The underlying traction enhancement method may be used in various antislip devices and applications.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Antiskid and traction improvement devices that have been described in the art provide this capability by a variety of different means. In most cases, they are designed as overshoes and are equipped with sharp elements. Those qualities make many of the existing designs (a) too bulky, (b) difficult to put on and take off, and (c) unsafe to manipulate. In addition, the devices equipped with sharp elements (cleats, crampons) render the footwear extremely slippery when used on the smooth stone floor (e.g., inside the mall) and/or damage the flooring and therefore must be taken off before entrance. Conversely, those devices without sharp elements are not efficient on ice surfaces.
The antiskid attachment of the present invention is an improvement over the existing and prior art devices in that it is designed as a device easy to fasten and remove, small enough to carry along, and cheap and simple to produce. The design is flexible to work with almost any type of footwear and provides an improved degree of traction on both packed snow and ice without impeding normal walking and running movement. Having no cleats, crampons or other sharp or abrasive parts, the device is not detrimental to most flooring types. Using the inventive method of traction enhancement described herein, the device remains sufficiently stable on smooth stone floors, permitting transitory use of the device indoors, thus minimizing the inconvenience of changing or removing footwear every time one enters indoors.
The inventive method of traction enhancement deploying the physical properties of polyhedral shapes may be used for different anti-slip devices, including but not limited to footwear, tires and non-slip flooring.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
FIG. 1 - overall view of the present invention in preferred embodiment;
FIG. 2 - detailed view of a polyhedral skid-resisting element in preferred embodiment, illustrating tetrahedral nature of the elements;
FIG. 3 - detailed view of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 4 - detailed view of the swivel part of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 5 - overall view of the present invention in preferred embodiment attached to footwear;
FIG. 6 - diagram illustrating the performance of the polyhedral skid-resisting element;
FIG. 7 - diagram illustrating the performance of the self-adjusting linkage;
FIG. 8 - diagram demonstrating contact pressure redistribution;
FIG. 9 (A, B) - other possible applications of the traction enhancement method.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The present invention is directed to an improved anti-skid attachment for footwear that integrates performance, light weight, convenience of use and manufacturability.
Specifically, the invention comprises a multitude of skid-resisting elements (1), preferably of, but not limited to, tetrahedral shape, positioned between the footwear (2) and the surface (3) (see FIG.5). The skid-resisting elements may be built specifically for the purpose, with the shape of the elements varying from a pyramid with triangular faces (tetrahedron) to a conical shape but not limited to the said shapes . For mass-market applications, a standard single jack chain or double loop (double jack) chain may be used instead. FIG.2 explains the tetrahedral nature of the single jack chain links used in preferred embodiment. The device further comprises front and back flexible linkage parts, each consisting of the elastic loops (4, 5) and swivel connectors (6) connecting the elastic loops to the skid-resisting elements.
The device is attached to the footwear by pulling the front elastic loop over the toe of the shoe, stretching it until the front skid-resisting elements are positioned without slack under the front part of the shoe, with swivel connectors positioned flush with the sides of the sole as shown on FIG.
3, then stretching the back loop over the heel of the shoe (FIG. 5).
The swivel connectors (see FIG.4) consist of the swivel part (7) and an additional link (8) inserted between the swivel and the skid-resisting elements (links of jack chain in the preferred embodiment). This combination facilitates the process of putting the device on the shoe by reducing susceptibility to tangles and by eliminating the need to define the "top" and the "bottom" of the attachment in order to achieve the desired antiskid effect.
In addition, the connectors are designed as levers, and are shaped in such a way that they are retained in the correct position (described above, and as shown on FIG.3 and FIG.7) by a relatively small tension exerted by the soft elastic loop (4), as this force, applied to the longer moment arm, creates sufficient force to secure the vertical parts of the swivel against the sides of the sole. In the previously known anti-slip attachments, the elastic members must withstand the strain caused by the anti-slip action, and therefore they are made noticeably more rigid and hard to stretch.
The elastic loops are made of tubular or round-profile elastomeric material which facilitates attaching of the device to the shoes and self-adjustment of the antiskid elements on the footwear.
Furthermore, this configuration of the connectors protects the elastic loops from being damaged or cut when stepping on sharp objects, as the elastic parts are located around the vamp and heel of the shoe and not under them.
The inventive method of the anti-slip enhancement is based on the following.
All known antiskid devices are designed to increase sliding friction only. This provides adequate traction on packed snow and rough surfaces. However, traction on ice has a specific nature similar to friction between lubricated surfaces, with sliding friction being extremely low, and therefore cleats and crampons are used to increase the friction factor in the majority of antiskid devices that are currently available. For reasons explained before, cleats and crampons may be unacceptable in certain applications.
The present invention suggests transition from sliding to rolling friction as a means of gaining control over skidding. Rolling friction is minimal when spherical solids are placed between the two surfaces. Being polyhedrons with infinite number of summits, spheres offer no resistance to rolling when the number of summits approaches infinity. However, the rolling friction increases as the number of summits decreases.
The least possible number of summits for a three-dimensional solid is equal to four. Hence, the tetrahedron will create maximum possible rolling friction and is the basic shape for the preferred embodiment.
Additionally, the suggested tetrahedral (or similar) antiskid elements will provide traction improvement as compared to regular ribbed or grooved antiskid surfaces and spikeless chains in the following way.
Caused by lateral skidding force, the redistribution of pressure from 2 to 1 point per element (see chain "footprints" on FIG.8) will double the pressure in contact points, negatively impacting the ice surface condition conducive to skidding, similarly to the effect delivered by spikes and crampons, thereby increasing the threshold of starting friction and preventing transiting to sliding friction.
The use of non-slip elements having triangular (or mechanically equivalent to) cross-section in other applications, e.g.: winter tires (FIG.9A), non-slip floors (FIG.9B), will bring equivalent benefits.
While many other attachments using chains may look similar, they do not have the benefits of the tetrahedral (in the preferred embodiment) shape of the antiskid elements and therefore are less efficient on ice. The existing attachments with carbonized steel crampons and cleats may be more efficient on plain hard ice, but are extremely uncomfortable on smooth hard surfaces, such as tiled floors, and are dangerous due to increased slipping, while being detrimental to most surfaces.
In addition, driving a vehicle is not safe with those devices attached to the footwear, if possible at all. The present invention does not have the above disadvantages, and its suggested embodiment using standard jack chain makes it more appropriate for city use than the anti-skid devices presently available.
Claims (8)
1. An antiskid attachment for footwear comprising:
a. a multitude of skid-resisting elements positioned between the shoe sole and the surface, providing enhanced traction;
b. flexible linkage keeping the skid-resisting elements in appropriate position, allowing natural walking and running movement and easy application of the attachment;
a. a multitude of skid-resisting elements positioned between the shoe sole and the surface, providing enhanced traction;
b. flexible linkage keeping the skid-resisting elements in appropriate position, allowing natural walking and running movement and easy application of the attachment;
2. The attachment of claim 1, wherein said elements have polyhedral shape, with preference given but not limited to a tetrahedral or pentahedral shape;
3. The attachment of claim 1, wherein said elements have pyramidal or conical shape;
4. The attachment of claim 1, wherein the flexible linkage includes specially shaped connectors ensuring self-adjustment of the skid-resisting elements position against the sole of the footwear without excessive tension of the elastic members;
5. The attachment of claim 1, wherein the connectors are pivotally connected to the elastic members;
6. The attachment of claim 1, wherein the elastic members of the linkage are made of tubular or cylindrical material;
7. The attachment of claim 2, wherein a single jack chain is used, with the links of the said chain behaving as skewed tetrahedrons;
8. The traction enhancement method wherein the resistance to skidding is achieved by the use of parts having polyhedral shapes or possessing mechanical properties of the polyhedral solids.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2535426 CA2535426A1 (en) | 2006-01-09 | 2006-01-09 | Antiskid attachment for footwear and method |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2535426 CA2535426A1 (en) | 2006-01-09 | 2006-01-09 | Antiskid attachment for footwear and method |
Publications (1)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
|---|---|
| CA2535426A1 true CA2535426A1 (en) | 2007-07-09 |
Family
ID=38236304
Family Applications (1)
| Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| CA 2535426 Abandoned CA2535426A1 (en) | 2006-01-09 | 2006-01-09 | Antiskid attachment for footwear and method |
Country Status (1)
| Country | Link |
|---|---|
| CA (1) | CA2535426A1 (en) |
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE102013014573A1 (en) | 2012-09-03 | 2014-03-06 | Bergans Fritid As | Outsole for footwear |
-
2006
- 2006-01-09 CA CA 2535426 patent/CA2535426A1/en not_active Abandoned
Cited By (1)
| Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| DE102013014573A1 (en) | 2012-09-03 | 2014-03-06 | Bergans Fritid As | Outsole for footwear |
Similar Documents
| Publication | Publication Date | Title |
|---|---|---|
| CA2555916C (en) | Anti-slip overshoe | |
| US5943792A (en) | Footwear traction device | |
| US20070163146A1 (en) | Antiskid attachment for footwear and universal traction enhancement method | |
| CA2844620C (en) | Heel traction aid and method of manufacture therefor | |
| US20080000102A1 (en) | Shoe covering for traction and/or sports | |
| JPS62502246A (en) | Walking aids or anti-slip means for footwear | |
| CN205162081U (en) | Anti -skidding shoe | |
| CA2535426A1 (en) | Antiskid attachment for footwear and method | |
| JP2009090032A (en) | Nonslip device | |
| US20080000103A1 (en) | Shoes having deployable traction elements | |
| US20080000104A1 (en) | Traction element for shoes | |
| US3949495A (en) | Anti-skidding device for shoes | |
| CN109393646B (en) | Ice claw for outdoor mountain climbing | |
| CN102113743A (en) | Anti-skid shoes | |
| CN108158118B (en) | Antifatigue climbing boot | |
| CN111480942A (en) | Wear-resistant anti-skid shoe | |
| KR20160028243A (en) | Non-Slip Apparatus On Icy Road | |
| RU2815128C1 (en) | Universal skates - push antiskid | |
| CN2896947Y (en) | Anti-skid shoe-cover | |
| CN218650517U (en) | Woman style climbing boot with ankle protect function | |
| CN114304802B (en) | Snow antiskid shoe capable of preventing foreign matters from affecting balance | |
| KR20150056959A (en) | Crampons for preventing of slipperiness in winter season | |
| CN2146879Y (en) | Skid-proof over-shoes | |
| CN201967781U (en) | Anti-skid shoes | |
| KR200158945Y1 (en) | Shoes with non-skid devices |
Legal Events
| Date | Code | Title | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| FZDE | Dead |