EP0913102B1 - Sole for sportsshoe - Google Patents

Abstract

Shoe sole has on its lower face transverse connection spindles (10,20) set back relative to each other in longitudinal direction of shoe. First connection (10) is placed at the front end and second connection is placed behind it, in front of the metatarsophalanien articulation zone.

Description

The present invention relates to the design of sports shoes, and in particular sliding sports such as cross-country skiing or skating, or other sports such as a bicycle, in which the shoe should be attached to the sporting item while preserving a possibility of unwinding of the foot during the practice of sport.

In the aforementioned sports and in particular in cross-country skiing different modes of attachment of the shoe to the sports article have been tested.

Thus, the traditional method of binding consists in fixing the boot on the ski of bottom by means of a stirrup cooperating with a projecting front part of the sole and applying this part against cross-country skiing.

Such a method of attachment prevents the complete unfolding of the foot since the foot is fixed on a whole front part.

To overcome this drawback, various systems have been proposed for articulate the boot on the cross-country ski around an axis fixed transversely on the shoe.

Different positions of this axis, at the front of the shoe, at the area metatarsals, ... etc., have been tried with more or less satisfaction.

• un déroulement ou soulèvement maximum du pied, nécessaire à l'obtention d'une grande impulsion ou amplitude de foulée suivant le sport pratiqué, qui implique une certaine souplesse de la semelle en flexion, cette souplesse étant variable selon le type de sport pratiqué,
• un contrôle et guidage optimum de l'organe de glisse ou article de sport qui ne peut en théorie être obtenu que par un "contact" permanent du pied avec celui-ci, et/ou une certaine rigidité en torsion de la semelle, et n'est donc pas compatible avec une flexion ou déroulement du pied.

The problem is in fact, while preserving comfort of use, to find a compromise between two totally contradictory requirements, namely:

• a maximum unwinding or lifting of the foot, necessary for obtaining a large impulse or amplitude of stride according to the sport practiced, which implies a certain flexibility of the sole in flexion, this flexibility being variable according to the type of sport practiced,
• optimum control and guidance of the sliding member or sports article which can in theory only be obtained by permanent "contact" of the foot with it, and / or a certain torsional rigidity of the sole, and n 'is therefore not compatible with flexion or unwinding of the foot.

This problem has been partially resolved in FR 2 739 788 which provides for a shoe assembly / device for attaching a shoe to a sporting article wherein the shoe has two anchoring means constituted by pins transverse arranged, one at the front of the shoe, and the other substantially at level of the metatarsophalangeal joint area, and in which the fastening device is provided to allow rotation of the shoe around the first anchoring axis and exert a permanent elastic return on the second anchor axis towards the sports article.

Thus, the fact of providing elastic return means of the shoe towards the sports article, not at the front thereof as in the known devices so far but at the rear of the means for fixing said shoe, allows to have a control of the shoe compared to the sliding member itself when the shoe is lifted.

Such a shoe / binding system therefore makes it possible to reconcile the problems for lifting and checking / guiding the shoe with respect to the article of sport, and therefore in principle allows an optimal unfolding of the foot.

FR 2 739 788 provides for positioning of the second axis transverse to the level of the metatarsophalangeal joint area.

However, experience shows that positioning such an axis just at the level of this joint poses problems of comfort since the flexion of the foot at this level takes place around a hard point.

WO 94/09660 describes another shoe / binding device assembly and provides a positioning of the second transverse axis in front of the joint metatarsophalangeal about 30 to 35 mm from the first axis.

The positioning of the first axis is also not obvious. Indeed, the more this axis is positioned forward, the greater the travel, but if this axis is placed too far forward the unwinding of the foot will be disturbed because the sportsman will not have the feeling of pure rotation.

Conversely, the course will not be optimal either if the first axis is placed too far back from the end of the shoe.

The object of the present invention is therefore to remedy these drawbacks and to offer a sports shoe sole combining the requirements of foot control / guidance procedure without prejudice to comfort.

This object is achieved in the sole of the sports shoe according to the invention which is of the type comprising on its underside two offset connection means one relative to each other in the longitudinal direction of the shoe and arranged substantially transversely, by the fact that the first connecting means is disposed at or just in front of the front end of the toes and the second connecting means is disposed behind the first connecting means, about 50 mm from the first connection means.

By this arrangement it is indeed guaranteed that the second connecting means will only come into effect at the end of a rolling movement on the joint metatarsophalangeal, and therefore will not disrupt this movement.

The positioning of the first connecting means ensures movement of rolling on the toes without hard spots.

La figure 1 est une vue de dessous d'une semelle selon l'invention.

La figure 2 est une vue en coupe longitudinale de la figure 1.

In any case, the invention will be well understood and other characteristics thereof will be highlighted with the aid of the description which follows.

Figure 1 is a bottom view of a sole according to the invention.

FIG. 2 is a view in longitudinal section of FIG. 1.

The sole shown at 1 in the figures has a guide groove 3 of substantially rectangular cross section, arranged along the axis longitudinal 2 of said sole and receiving two transverse axes constituting two connecting means respectively front 10 and rear 20.

As shown in Figure 1, the first axis 10 is arranged at the front end of the sole while the second axis 20 is disposed in front of the metatarsophanlangeal axis of articulation Δ.

Preferably, the first axis 10 is disposed at the front end of the toes of the foot.

In practice, this position is determined by the end of the shape of assembly used to constitute the upper of the shoe during manufacture. This shape is represented at 30 in FIG. 2, as well as the relative position of the axis 10 relative to its end 31.

The second axis 20 is disposed behind the first axis 10, in the direction longitudinal and so as to be in front of the axis Δ of articulation métatarsophanlangienne.

This position is shown in particular in FIG. 1.

In practice, for sizes equal to or greater than the size mondopoint 23 (a size corresponding to one foot in length 230 mm), a distance "d" between the two axes 10 and 20, equal to 50 mm, makes it possible to fulfill this requirement and reconcile freedom of movement of the foot while preserving satisfactory guidance.

According to preferred embodiments, the axes 10, 20, are anchored independently of each other in the shoe so as not to interfere with the flexing of the sole.

Similarly, bending slots 5, 6, 7, 8, can be provided between the two axes 10, 20, and behind the second axis 20 for the flexibility of the sole.

It will be noted that the position of the connecting parts 10, 20, at the front of each zone articulation of the foot avoids the formation of hard spots during unfolding of the foot, and therefore perfect user comfort.

Of course, the present invention is not limited to the single mode of embodiment described here by way of nonlimiting example, but includes all the equivalent embodiments.

It also applies to all types of sports shoe in which similar or equivalent problems must be resolved.

Claims (6)

1. Sport boot sole (1) of the type comprising on its lower surface two connecting means (10, 20) offset one with respect to the other in the longitudinal direction (2) of the boot and arranged substantially transversely, the first connecting means (10) is arranged at the level of the front end of the toes or right in front thereof, characterized in that the second connecting means (20) is arranged behind the first connecting means, approximately 50 mm from the first connecting means.
2. Sole according to claim 1, characterized in that the first connecting means (10) is arranged at the level of the front end (31) of an assembly form (30) of the boot.
3. Sole according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the two connecting means (10, 20) are anchored separately in the sole.
4. Sole according to one of claims 1-3, characterized in that each connecting means (10, 20) is constituted by a transverse axle.
5. Sole according to one of claims 1-4, characterized in that at least one flexion slot (5, 6, 7, 8) is provided in the sole at the level of each connecting means (10, 20).
6. Boot characterized in that it comprises a sole according to any of the preceding claims.

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