EP2015649B1

EP2015649B1 - Waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement

Info

Publication number: EP2015649B1
Application number: EP07728360A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Dario De Lazzari
Original assignee: MGM SpA
Current assignee: MGM SpA
Priority date: 2006-05-10
Filing date: 2007-04-20
Publication date: 2009-08-05
Anticipated expiration: 2027-04-20
Also published as: ITPN20060035A1; WO2007128671A1; DE602007001887D1; ATE438314T1; EP2015649A1

Abstract

The present invention refers to a waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement, comprising an upper (2) submitted to a waterproofing treatment, a sole (20), a mounting insole (4) whereon the upper (2) is mounted, at least one recess (5) being provided along the periphery of said insole, and a padding ( 10) located inside the upper (2). A layer made of a three-dimensional reticular material is applied on to at least a portion of the upper surface of the insole (4) including the recess (5); the padding ( 10) comprises at least one element (7, 8) made of a three-dimensional reticular material which communicates with the ambient outside the upper (2). The layer (6) and the element (7, 8) are in a mutual fluid-dynamic relationship at the site where the recess (5) is located, so as to enable air to circulate between the layer (6) and the element (7, 8).

Description

The present invention refers to a waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement.
A variety of footwear items are known nowadays to be provided with an upper made of a transpiring material or provided with some arrangement adapted to create a forced ventilation of the foot by taking advantage of the pumping effect that is brought about during walking as the sole undergoes repeated compression and bending, to the purpose of enabling sweat to be expelled out of the footwear thanks to the permeable nature of the material or to the circulation of air inside the footwear.
US 5,086,572 discloses a ventilation arrangement for a footwear, which comprises an upper provided with air inlet and outlet openings located in the upper portion, and a one-way valve located in the lower portion near the sole; an insole is provided with a plurality of perforations in the surface facing the foot and a plurality of channels in the surface facing downwards, both such perforations and channels being adapted to communicate with such one-way valve. This arrangement is effective in allowing for continuous ventilation inside the footwear during walking.
However, a drawback of the footwear provided with such a ventilation arrangement lies in the fact that, in order to reach an effective ventilation for the foot, the footwear itself must be provided with openings towards the outside; in the solution disclosed in US patent no. 5,086,572 the upper must be provided with at least an opening to accommodate the one-way valve so as to establish a connection of the latter with the interior of the footwear. Such connection will not ensure a perfect and full waterproof, since any opening towards the outside, particularly when situated in proximity of the sole, can in fact allow water to penetrate into the footwear.
The Document DE 9016 134 disclose a waterproofed foot wear wich serves as basis of claim 1
It therefore is a main object of the present invention to overcome the above-cited drawbacks of prior art solutions by providing a waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement that, while enabling optimum foot transpiration, ensures at the same time full and effective waterproofing of the footwear under any circumstance whatsoever.
Within the above general object, a purpose of the present invention is to provide a footwear wherein a complete waterproofing can be obtained through the use of natural materials, such as hides, and ensuring at the same time that any possible moisture absorption is solely limited to the outer layer of the upper, so as to prevent the risk of mould, fungi and bacteria in general forming and growing in the footwear.
Yet another purpose of the present invention is to provide a footwear having a layer containing air and communicating with the outside, so as to allow the sweat generated by the foot of the wearer to transpire and evaporate in a natural manner.
A further purpose of the present invention is to provide a footwear, in which the compression and expansion movements of the insole, as they are normally brought about during walking, give rise to a forced ventilation effect inside the footwear.
Yet a further purpose of the present invention is to provide a waterproofed footwear provided with a transpiration and ventilation arrangement capable of being manufactured at competitive costs using generally and readily available tools and machinery.
According to the present invention, these aims, along with further ones that will be apparent in the following description, are reached in a waterproofed footwear provided with a transpiration and ventilation arrangement as defined in Claim 1.
Dependent claims define further characteristics and advantages of the present invention, which will be more readily understood from the description of a particular, although not sole embodiment that is given below by way of non-limiting example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective see-through view of a waterproofed footwear provided with a transpiration and ventilation arrangement according to the present invention;
Figure 2 is an exploded view of some component parts of the footwear transpiration arrangement;
Figure 3 is a cross-sectional view of the footwear, as viewed at the lateral upper portion thereof wrapping up the lower portion of the leg;
Figure 4 is a cross-sectional view of the footwear, as viewed at the lateral lower portion thereof in contact with the outer sole.

With reference to the above-mentioned Figures, the footwear 1 according to the present invention comprises a conventional upper 2 formed by several parts made of both synthetic material and any of a variety of hide-based or leather materials, and a sole 20.
Subsequently to the assembly of all or part of the above cited component parts of the footwear by sewing them together, the upper 2 is subjected to a waterproofing treatment involving the application - to all or part of the inner surface of the upper 2 - of a layer of waterproofing material 3 by means of any of a number of processes largely known in the art, such as a hot-transfer process. When the outer portion of the upper 2 is completed through the application of the last finishing elements, and is then closed, a film of waterproofing material in the liquid state is applied on to the inner surface of all component parts and elements applied after the waterproofing treatment, as well as along all sewing seams made to stitch said component parts and elements together; such a waterproofing film - upon solidifying - creates a further impermeable layer ensuring full and reliable waterproof to the whole inner surface of the upper 2, including stitches and sewing seams.
The footwear 1 further comprises a mounting insole 4, which is made of a rigid or semi-rigid material, whereon the upper 2 is mounted by gluing onto the lower surface thereof.
Such an insole 4 is provided with at least one recess 5, preferably two recesses 5 located one at each side of the same insole, whose function and purpose shall be explained in greater detail further on.
On the upper surface of said insole 4 there is applied and attached a layer of reticular material 6 adapted to enable air to circulate thereinside even when full compression and squeezing is reached. This layer of reticular material 6 is advantageously composed of a three-dimensional net-like structure of synthetic material that, when appropriately woven, produces a layer of variable thickness and density, wherein the three-dimensional texture allows air to circulate therethrough and therewithin.
Further included in the footwear 1 there is a padding 10 applied internally to the upper 2, wherein such padding comprises at least a first element made of a reticular material 7 adapted to allow air to circulate thereinside; advantageously, even this first element of a reticular material 7 is composed of a three-dimensional net-like structure and may be placed at a side of the upper 2 approximately at the ankle portion thereof, so as to achieve an optimum ventilation and transpiration effect. According to a preferred embodiment, there may be provided an element of reticular material on each side region of the upper 2, thereby having a first element of reticular material 7 and a second element of reticular material 8 respectively provided on the inward-facing side and the outward-facing side of the ankle portion.
Such first element 7 and/or second element 8 of reticular material may of course be provided with a thickness and a density differing from the thickness and density of the afore-cited layer 6.
The first element 7 and, possibly, the second element 8 of reticular material are provided in the upper 2 in such a manner as to be fluid-dynamically in contact with the layer 6 of the same reticular material applied on to the insole 4. Such fluid-dynamic contact of the layer 6 with the elements 7, 8 is brought about by having the lower terminal portion of said elements 7, 8 attached to the insole 4 at the site where the aforementioned recesses 5 lie, so that at least a portion of the layer 6 is in contact with the elements 7, 8.
The first element 7 and, possibly, the second element 8 extend then vertically along the footwear starting from the upper portion lying close to the sole 20 up to the top edge of the same upper 2.
To either partially or fully cover the afore-described padding 10, there is provided - on the inside of the footwear - a lining 9 made of a transpiring material so as to allow air to pass and circulate between the inner volume of the footwear and the elements of reticular material 7, 8.
In the upper portion of the upper 2, at the terminal portions of the elements 7, 8, there are provided respective openings 11, 12. These openings are provided in the upper 2 so as to enable the elements 7 and 8 to be in communication with the ambient outside the footwear 1. In order to prevent water from possibly seeping in from outside, such openings 11, 12 may be advantageously guarded by a membrane 13 made of a material that is impermeable in the direction towards the interior of the footwear and, at the same time, transpiring towards the outside of the footwear, in such a manner as to allow water vapour to exhale outside, while preventing water from seeping in. Alternatively, such openings 11, 12 may be provided with suitable valve, shutter or chocking means adapted to prevent water from seeping in and allow vapour to exhale or breathe out.
The way in which the above-described ventilation and transpiration arrangement according to the present invention works is as follows: when walking normally, the weight of the wearer causes the layer of reticular material 6 applied to the insole 4, the first element 7 and the second element 8 - if possibly provided - to alternately compress and expand. Such continuous movement of the above-indicated parts favours - in the compression phase - water vapour and sweat being generated in the inner volume of the footwear to be conveyed towards the first element 7 and, if provided, the second element 8 of reticular material, thanks to the layer 6 being fluid-dynamically in contact with the elements 7, 8 at the recessed portions 5 of the insole 4. Water vapour and sweat will of course be able to be transferred to said first and second elements 7, 8 also in the regions above the insole 4, thanks to the provision of the afore-cited transpiring lining 9 inside the footwear. Water vapour and sweat particles being in this way conveyed towards the first element 7 and, possibly, the second element 8 will then be expelled outside through the openings 11, 12.
In the expansion phase of the above-cited alternating movement, fresh air is drawn and breathed in from outside through the openings 11, 12, such air being then conveyed - through the first element 7 and, if possibly provided, the second element 8 - inside the footwear and onto the insole 4.
As it may be readily appreciated from the foregoing description, the first element 7 and, if possibly provided, the second element 8 essentially constitute preferential conduits for expelling water vapour and breathing in fresh air, since the whole footwear is waterproofed by the treatment as described hereinabove, and the sole way of communication with the outside ambient is constituted by the openings 11, 12, which are anyway located far above the sole 20 and, as a result, the ground.
Fully apparent from the above description is therefore the ability of the waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement according to the present invention to effectively reach the afore-cited aims and advantages: in fact, a footwear is provided, which allows for optimum transpiration of the foot, while at the same time ensuring effective and reliable waterproofing of the same footwear.
In particular, a full waterproofing of the footwear is achieved even if the footwear is made of natural materials, such as hides. At the same time, the footwear made in this way is such as to ensure that any possible moisture absorption is limited to the outer layer of the upper, so that mould, fungi or other bacteria of similar kind are prevented from forming and growing.
In addition, the arrangement comprising the layer 6, the first element 7 and, possibly, the second element 8 fluid-dynamically in contact with each other and communicating with the outside ambient via the openings 11, 12, achieves both a natural transpiration, evaporation and ejection to the outside of the water vapour and sweat generated by the wearer's foot in the footwear when walking, and a forced ventilation to the interior of the footwear brought about by the alternating compression and expansion movement imparted by the wearer when walking in the normal manner.
It shall be appreciated that the inventive footwear as described above may of course be the subject of a number of modifications and may be embodied in a number of different manners without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.
It should finally be noticed that the materials used to manufacture a footwear according to the present invention, as well as the shapes and the sizing of the individual component parts thereof, may be selected so as to more appropriately meet any specific requirements again without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the claims.

Claims

Waterproofed footwear provided with a ventilation and transpiration arrangement comprising an upper (2) submitted to a waterproofing treatment, a sole (20), a mounting insole (4) whereon said upper (2) is mounted, and a padding (10) located inside said upper (2), whereby :
- at least one recess (5) is provided along the periphery of said insole (4);

- a layer (6) made of a three-dimensional reticular material is applied on to at least a portion of the top surface of said insole (4) including said recess (5);

- said padding (10) comprises at least one element (7, 8) made of a three-dimensional reticular material communicating with the ambient outside the upper (2);

- said layer (6) and said at least one element (7, 8) being in a mutual fluid-dynamic relationship at the site where said recess (5) is located, so as to enable air to circulate between said layer (6) and said at least one element (7, 8).
Footwear according to claim 1, wherein said layer (6) and said at least one element (7, 8) made of a three-dimensional reticular material enable air to circulate therewithin even when fully squeezed.
Footwear according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said at least one element (7, 8) made of a three-dimensional reticular material is placed at least on a side of said footwear approximately at the ankle portion thereof, and extends along said footwear substantially from a portion of said upper (2) close to said sole (20) up to a top edge portion of said upper (2).
Footwear according to claim 3, wherein said padding comprises a first element (7) and a second element (8) made of a three-dimensional reticular material respectively provided on the inward-facing side and the outward-facing side of said ankle portion.
Footwear according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said at least one recess (5) is provided in correspondence to the plantar-arch region of the foot.
Footwear according to claim 1 or 5, wherein said insole (4) is provided with at least two side recesses (5) at the inward-facing side and the outward-facing side of the foot.
Footwear according to any of the preceding claims, wherein said fluid-dynamic relationship is obtained by attaching a terminal portion of said at least one element (7, 8) to said insole (4) at a site where said at least one recess (5) is located, so that at least a portion of said layer (6) is in contact with a portion of said at least one element (7, 8).
Footwear according to any of the preceding claims, wherein on the inner side of said footwear there is provided a lining (9) of a transpiring material to either partially or fully cover said padding (10).
Footwear according to any of the preceding claims, wherein in the top portion of said upper (2) there is provided at least one opening (11, 12) in communication with said at least one element (7, 8).
Footwear according to claim 9, wherein said at least one aperture (11, 12) is guarded by a membrane (13) of a material that allows transpiration in the direction towards the outside of the footwear and is impermeable in the direction towards the interior of the footwear, or by suitable valve, shutter or chocking means adapted to prevent water from seeping into said footwear and allow vapour to exhale or breathe out.