EP2334211A1

EP2334211A1 - Shoe with anti-skid sole

Info

Publication number: EP2334211A1
Application number: EP09783793A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Adam Jara; Arnaud Larregain; Olivier Muhlhoff
Original assignee: Michelin Recherche et Technique SA Switzerland; Michelin Recherche et Technique SA France; Societe de Technologie Michelin SAS
Current assignee: Compagnie Generale des Etablissements Michelin SCA
Priority date: 2008-10-06
Filing date: 2009-10-06
Publication date: 2011-06-22
Also published as: CN102238883A; US20110247237A1; JP2012504480A; WO2010040755A1; JP5657544B2

Abstract

The invention relates to a shoe having a sole made of an elastomer material having an improved grip on a ground and having an interface that may include an intermediate foreign material, said sole including blocks (31) separated from each other by grooves (35). The walls of the grooves (35) extend in the body of the elastomer material and define sharp-angled patterns in the outline of said blocks (31), capable of piercing said foreign material in order to establish a direct dry contact between the two surfaces. Each block (31) defines a star-shaped pattern having at least five branches in the shape of stems (32) distributed about the outline, and each stem (32) is oriented radially towards the outside of the pattern and ends in a tip. Each stem (32) is separated from the adjacent one by a recess (38) in the block outline. Finally, each block (31) has a stem (32) that is inserted into a space of the adjacent groove (35), defined by a recess (38) between adjacent stems in the outline of a second block adjacent to the first one.

Description

SHOE WITH ANTI-SLIP SOLE

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to shoes equipped with a soleplate intended to give them a good non-slip contact with a work surface that can be made slippery by foreign liquid or solid materials. It is aimed at work shoes or sports shoes, for example, which require good adhesion qualities on naturally slippery floors, very smooth, natural or synthetic coatings, such as Linoleum material.

(trademark), glazed tiles, polished stone, metal surfaces, especially when these surfaces are wet or wet with a liquid (water, oil, blood, etc.), or even covered by puddles of liquid, or polluted by other types of impurities, such as mud or ice.

STATE OF THE ART

The falls caused by unintentional slips are one of the most common and most serious causes of accidents, nowadays. This is particularly true for work-related accidents and specialists have for some time been looking for ways to reduce the frequency and severity of these accidents. Several manufacturers of safety shoes, in particular, have already put on the market footwear with a sole designed to provide good anti-slip properties. The grip characteristics of shoes are also very popular in many areas of the sport.

The state of the art documented also describes quite a few achievements aimed at the same goal. The model deposited in the United States of America under US No. D446912S provides a good example illustrated by Figure 1 of proposed provisions for enhancing the adherence of shoe soles having a relatively flexible or flexible sole with carving patterns that have ridges capable of cutting or breaking liquid films which can cover the ground with a surface intended for pedestrians. These patterns typically include in particular rolls of elastomeric material, for example rubber, juxtaposed in the surface of the sole so as to fill for example all the part supporting the front of the foot and in some cases also the entire surface of the heel. These loaves have a square shape and are arranged diagonally that is to say they all have a diagonal in the longitudinal direction of the sole. The loaves are aligned to form rows separated by narrow branches of uniform width which thus form a network of channels that intersect at right angles. Each bread is further divided into four pieces by two slots (or slats in common use) at right angles and parallel to the edges of the bread thus forming four elementary blocks. These slots are intended to increase the flexibility or transverse flexibility of each roll of the sculpture so the sole in general and also contribute to the rupture of liquid films. Preferably, the depth of each slot is less than that of the grooves and even more preferably between 20% and 80% of the depth of the branches.

[0004] In patent document US Pat. No. 7,146,752 there is disclosed a shoe sole which also comprises regular alignments of elastomer rolls which project from the base surface of the sole towards the ground. The loaves are constituted by four-pointed star-shaped patterns which are oriented substantially in the longitudinal direction, in one direction, and in the transverse direction, in the other. These loaves are aligned in diagonal rows substantially at 45 degrees relative to the longitudinal direction, which delimit between them antlers for the evacuation of liquids and foreign matter displaced by the loaves during the progression of the shoe on the ground. In order to increase the penetration of the edge edges of bread into the materials covering the floor, it is expected that the distance between the tips of the tips at the ends of the branches of each star and the base surface of the sole is greater than the height of the floor. the central surface of each bread above this basic surface; another option mentioned in the document is that this surface itself has a concavity which ends at the edge of the bread by an edge whose section forms an acute angle.

US patent document 7310894 also illustrates a non-slip shoe for the shower, the sole of which is perforated by openings intended to let the water circulate through the sole, but which also comprises contact bars separated by grooves. and further divided by slots. These slots or incisions make it possible to increase the deformation of the bread material during contact with the ground. In one embodiment, the loaves have a polygonal shape cut into sectors by radiating discharge slots from the center of the bread towards the vertices of the polygon. We obtain significant results in adhesion with these different types of sculptures according to the prior art. However, the systematic studies conducted on the non-slip shoes by the applicants show that it is still possible to increase the anti-slip soles according to the variety of risks of slips and circumstances sometimes difficult to predict likely to cause them. Progress remains to be made.

The present invention aims to improve the prevention of slips and limit slippage that may face users, even equipped with special shoes on slippery floors. In addition, as in all cases where the use of an object aims to obtain a compromise between performance, such an improvement in safety must be obtained while respecting the other performances, such as wear on use, comfort and respect for the integrity of the surfaces in contact. The integrity of the surfaces in contact requires that the least possible small objects (such as small pebbles) can not be captured and retained in the grooves or troughs formed in the sculpture pattern of the sole.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

For this purpose, the invention relates to a safety shoe with anti-slip properties reinforced for the case of interfaces between the sole and the floor particularly slippery, especially in the presence of an intermediate foreign matter. This shoe comprises a sole having a base of elastomeric material, this sole having an upper face and a lower face, the upper face being intended to support the foot of the user of the shoe.

According to the invention the shoe comprises a sole having a base of elastomeric material at least one zone is furnished with contact bars which emerge from its lower face so as to come into contact with the ground, and wherein these loaves contact are separated from each other by grooves delimiting, on each bread contact, bows sharp angles that is to say less than 75 degrees. The contact face of each bread has the shape of a star with at least five branches distributed over the contour of said contact face; each bow is separated from its neighbor on the bread by a withdrawal towards the center of the star shape. This sole is characterized in that for a plurality of first contact rolls of said zone, each of said first contact bars has at least one bow-withdrawal coupling of a first bow with a recess separating two neighboring bows in the contour of a second contact bread neighbor of the first bread in said area. By bow-withdrawal coupling, here we mean that the end a bow of a first contact roll is positioned in the vicinity of a withdrawal between two bows of a second bread neighbor and within the circle circumscribed said second bread. The end of a bow can take the form of a point formed by the intersection between two faces or be of truncated shape.

For the convenience of reference, when two loaves are in the condition described by the preceding sentence, it will be said that they are in "coupling" situation, by analogy with the case of a gear in which a tooth of a first pinion is engaged in the space defined by the withdrawal between two teeth of a second adjacent pinion coupled with the first.

According to a complementary variant, said first bread has at least one recess separating two neighboring bows in the contour of the bread, which defines a space of the corresponding groove in which is engaged a bow of a second neighbor bread in said area.

In addition, according to one embodiment, each first bread has (i) at least two couplings of its bows with withdrawals separating neighboring bows in the contour of neighboring loaves and (ii) at least two couplings between its withdrawals. between neighboring bows in its outline with bows of neighboring breads.

The mutual arrangement of the star patterns according to the invention also has the advantage of giving the sole a good resistance to the retention of foreign bodies such as pebbles in the antlers of the sculpture, thanks to the head arrangement. -beach arm or bows in the bow-withdrawal coupling position in said branches. Thanks to the flexible bending of the bows, the ejection of foreign bodies (such as small pebbles) is favored.

It is conceivable that thanks to the characteristics according to the invention which have just been defined, it is possible to increase the density of distribution of the tips or ends of bows in a sole area, as well as the density of the edges at the edge of bread along the grooves, which is favorable to the adhesion, while decreasing the rate of notching of the sculpture filling the sole in this area. In the following developments we use the expression "rate of notching" of a sculpture comprising full of gum drawing patterns on the surface and separated from each other by hollows, to designate the ratio between the unit area of the hollows of the sculpture at the total unit area of it in a plan view of a sample of this sculpture. The lower the rate of notching, the greater the area of material constituting the breads in contact with the support surface. However, the greater the contact area, the greater the pressure of the material is low, which is a guarantee of better adhesion and better wear resistance of the sole.

In addition, according to a complementary feature of the invention, the resistance to the retention of foreign bodies is increased by orienting the lateral walls delimiting bows so that instead of being strictly perpendicular to the base the outsole, they are turned slightly towards the outside of the sole with a draft angle that tends to drive out the outstretched foreign bodies that come into contact with them and may tend to get caught between two walls opposite on both sides of the groove. According to an improved arrangement, it is furthermore provided to vary this clearance angle along the bow of each bread to increase the instability of the jamming and thus promote the ejection of foreign bodies. It is also possible to provide bosses for hunting stone projecting from the root of the forest, at the intersection of the grooves.

In one embodiment, the area of the sole considered is packed with a plurality of first loaves, each first loaf is surrounded by at least four second loaves distributed at its circumference, each in coupling position with the first bread. Each of these second loaves is itself surrounded by a set of at least four loaves, including said first loaf, with which it is in the coupling position. It is therefore possible to obtain a high density of lining of the sole with carving rolls so as to obtain a high tacking power and a reduced rate of notching. The breads of the zone in question achieve a tight overlap of the sole with points suitable for notching the materials interposed between the ground and the sole in a multitude of directions. Thanks to the recommended arrangement, this result is achieved without degrading the other performance expected of the shoe in the desired application.

Very interesting results have been obtained in particular with shoes with a sole in which each first bread in the area has six bows and is surrounded by a set of at least six second loaves distributed along its circumference . Preferably, each of the loaves of this set is in a reciprocating bow-withdrawal coupling condition with the first loaf they surround, i.e., each coupling comprises engagement of a bow of the first loaf in a recess. a second bread and a bow of this second bread engaged in a withdrawal of the first bread. The Applicant has determined that the particular geometric properties of this configuration provide many benefits in the search for an effective compromise between the different constraints to which the running sole must obey.

The arrangement according to the invention allows to multiply the directions in which the sole of the shoe has asperities or ridges capable of penetrating foreign substances interposed between the sole and the ground and may cause loss of adhesion. This characteristic is reinforced with the number of branches of each bread. According to an improvement, it is also possible to further increase the number of pointing directions of the bows of the carving rolls with a provision according to which the stars of the neighboring rolls have angularly offset orientations relative to one another.

According to another aspect of the organization of the carving loaves in the sole, a first bread is associated by a previously defined bow-withdrawal coupling with a second bread neighbor, in an alignment belonging to a first network of generally parallel lines. in the sole. Preferably, in addition, the contour of said first bread is associated by a bow-withdrawal coupling with that of another second bread neighbor in the sculpture, in a second network of lines generally parallel to a direction distinct from that of the first network in The area.

The loaves of two adjacent rows of the first and / or second network delimit corrugated shaped branches for the removal of foreign matter dislodged from the interface between the surfaces in contact in the general direction of the first and / or second network. Advantageously, the width of the grooves between the loaves is substantially uniform to form channels facilitating the flow to the outside of slippery particles trapped under the sole. Due to the interlocking between the bows that has just been defined, these grooves may take an undulating shape. For example, to increase the regularity of the width of the branches, use bows whose tip is cut or blunted or rounded, depending on the need, knowing that the pressure created on the very small surface of the ridge at the moment when the User's sole attack the ground remains considerable.

According to one embodiment, it is further provided that each bread is divided by at least one slit or slat in the thickness of the bread. This slot can be drawn so that it has an end located in the center of the bread and at its other end it ends in a recess between two bows in the contour of said bread. It follows a path that represents a minimum distance between the center of the bread and one of the edges of the bread between two bows. In a bread with six bows, it can provide three slots in accordance with the indicated route and which meet on the opposite side to said edge at a common point to the center of the bread in a radiating configuration. Of Preferably, said slots cut each bread into several sectors or elementary loaves which can each draw the shape of a chevron in the case of a six-pointed star. An advantage of this arrangement is to reduce the distance necessary to remove the intermediate foreign matter particles from each point under the bread to a hollow in the sole structure. The slots also make it possible to soften the soleplate perpendicular to its thickness, to offer more shearing edges to increase the local overpressures and to ensure the evacuation of the intermediate impurities thus released. For this purpose, we can also angularly shift the orientation of the radiating patterns of these slots on the surface of the bread from a pad to its neighbor.

Regarding now the operation of the slip shoe, it is understood that a bearing pressure of an edge of an elastomer roll against the ground surface creates a concentration of compressive stresses in the material of this edge which decreases as one moves away from the edges of the bread. The ground pressure exerted by the ends of the branches of the stars and the ridges of the carving loaves are suitable for penetrating and initiating the breaking of any liquid film or other intermediate between the surface of the loaves and that of the ground. This results in a resumption of direct local contact between the bread material and that of the soil. In the particular case of ice, sliding situations are caused by the creation on the ice surface of a film of water, the problem is in fact the same.

Each bow, by crashing gradually promotes the propagation of the breaking force of the intermediate film of liquid impurities or other from the end of the bows.

Preferentially, a bow having an acute angle will have a better efficiency in breaking the liquid film. Furthermore, since each edge is never strictly parallel to the surface of the ground at the time when the bread is attacking the ground, a concentration of stress at the point of attack is always formed which facilitates the breaking of the film to put in contact with each other. the material of the bread with the soil.

Once the intermediate film punched, the edges of the bow continue to cut by chasing to the hollow parts (boughs and possibly slats) liquid impurities or other present between the surface of the soil and that of the bread. The component of the force exerted by the sole in the plane of the ground develops an increase of pressure on the ridge which expels the liquid or other surface pollution (mixture dust and liquid) in the manner of a wiper. The resulting dry contact produces a strong increase in local adhesion. The extension of a dry contact under the loaves of the sole is favorable to a good distribution and good spreading efforts under the sole. Improved adhesion greatly reduces slippage. This results in a decrease in abrasion and thus improves the duration of use. The star-shaped roll form recommended also makes it possible to organize the loaves so as to adjust the rate of surface notching (ratio of the surface of the hollows of the sculpture to the total surface thereof), with a view to increasing the surface area. contact between the material and the soil. As mentioned above, a dry contact surface as large as possible is favorable for adhesion and wear resistance.

In the implementation of the invention, the apex angle of each bow is at least equal to 40 degrees. Similarly, the number of branches forming bows of each star is preferably at least six.

It has been observed that the invention made it possible to obtain a very good anti-slip behavior between the ground and the sole of a shoe, in particular by reducing the retention of pebbles. The sculpting arrangement on the surface of this sole makes it possible to effectively penetrate and expel substances that destroy the coefficient of adhesion and that intervene in the contact area, in particular liquids in films (moisture) or puddles ( wetting). With this mechanism, it creates then at each step of the user a dry contact surface, sufficiently wide to obtain improved adhesion. However, the plaintiffs' inquiries have shown in this respect that it is appropriate to use motifs which not only possess the intrinsic characteristics of form and angle referred to above, but which are small enough to multiply the points of attack. in the slippery intermediate substance. It has thus been demonstrated that the previously described patterns are particularly effective in dimensions which remain inscribed within a circle whose maximum diameter is 20 millimeters and preferably at most equal to 10 millimeters and at least equal to 4 millimeters.

According to the invention, it is furthermore chosen to combine these characteristics with a dense distribution of the loaves of the sculpture of the sole. For this purpose, a relatively low notch rate is determined, ie less than forty five percent and preferably equal to or less than forty percent to promote the potential extent of dry adherent contacts.

Surprisingly, we obtain with this type of shoe sole tread patterns whose surface is characterized by a very particular feel to the touch, different, all things being equal, from that of the soles of the prior art as for example that illustrated in Figure 1. The multiple points ending the bows breads provide an unusual and unexpected sensation of soft roughness and hooking "velvety ".

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

[0030] Figure 1 shows a plan view of an antiskid shoe sole sculpture of the state of the art.

Figure 2 is a plan view of a first example of sculpture according to the invention for a non-slip sole.

Figures 3A and 3B are two representations, a plan view and the other in perspective, of sculpture patterns according to the invention arranged according to a different mode of organization than that of Figure 2.

FIG. 4A represents a detailed plan view of a bread of the sculpture of FIG. 3, FIG. 4B schematically shows a profile view of this bread and FIG. 4C illustrates a possible positioning of this bread in a soleplate. slip.

[0034] Figure 4D shows three carving loaves of a soleplate illustrating bowing-withdrawal couplings.

FIG. 5 is a detailed view of the arrangement of the loaves of FIGS. 3 and 4 in a circular sole portion V-V identified in FIG. 6.

Figure 6 shows a plan view of the general appearance of a sculpture made with the breads of Figures 3 to 5 in a shoe sole.

Figures 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D showing four alternative embodiments of a sculpture using loaves similar to those of Figures 4A and 4B.

Figures 8A and 8B illustrate in more detail an embodiment of a shoe sole using the sculpture pattern of Figure 2, Figure 8A view of upper three-quarter and Figure 8B in wire perspective. Figure 9 shows yet another embodiment of a surface providing non-slip properties with a variant of sculpture according to the invention.

Figures 10A to 10F illustrate the explanation of a problem of jamming of foreign bodies in the grooves between the loaves of a shoe sole.

Figures 11 and 12 schematically show two solutions of this problem according to the invention.

Figures 13A, 13B and 13C show, in plan view, the implementation of three anti-jamming solutions in an arrangement of bow breads according to the invention.

o DESCRIPTION OF A PLENARY EXAMPLES OF REALIZA TION

A sole sculpture is shown in FIG. 1, which at least approximately reproduces that of the model document filed in the United States of America No. US D446912S, mentioned at the beginning of the present document as illustrative of a state of the art. . It is composed of 11 square shaped gumbread that protrude towards the front

The bottom of the soleplate from a substrate 12 which has a thickness and flexibility adapted to the type of use for which the soleplate is intended. The loaves 11 are each divided into four elementary blocks 14 by two slits or slits or notches 15 crossed at right angles. The loaves 11 are separated from each other by two sets of orthogonal branches 16 parallel to the slots 15, which are dimensioned to allow good circulation of the liquid displaced by the soleplate.

20 soil contact. The width of these branches is normally several times that of the slots 15 internal to each bread 11.

In Figure 1, the longitudinal direction of the shoe is oriented from the bottom to the top of the sheet. All the blocks therefore have a diagonal in the longitudinal direction L of the shoe. The pavers 11 form parallel lines in this direction. The diagonals of a

The same line is aligned. Each block has a tip of rubber at each of its front and rear ends on the diagonal which under the weight of a user each forms a stress concentration point perpendicular to the ground and likely to break a film of liquid covering the surface of that -this. Similar points are aligned in the direction 1 perpendicular to the longitudinal L. The organization which has just been presented has merits but

30 still sometimes suffers from insufficient adhesion. Indeed, the penetration of the liquid film by the bread of the sculpture is not always effective and it is not followed by a wiping of the surface of the ground sufficient to drive the liquid of the surface being covered by the bread considered and thus to establish a dry contact with the ground, condition of a good adhesion to avoid slipping.

[0045] FIG. 2 illustrates a sculpting embodiment that implements the principles of the invention in which each gum roll 21 which protrudes from a sole substrate has the shape of a star comprising six branches which each end in the form of a bow 22 facing outward bread 21. The realization of these loaves will be discussed in more detail below. It is found that if the longitudinal direction of the shoe (indicated by the arrow L) extends from the bottom to the top of the sheet, the loaves form alignments in this direction. Each alignment is separated from the neighboring alignment by a corrugated profile groove 24. The loaves 21 are also aligned in the direction (indicated by the arrow 1) perpendicular to the longitudinal direction L and form rows separated from each other by a set of corrugated branches 25 in this direction.

In this example the width of each corrugated groove varies quite widely. In straits such as 25-1, which each separate a bow point 22 and a recess 28 between two bows of a neighboring bread, the width hardly exceeds 1 millimeter. Conversely, it widens up to a few millimeters in arms 25-2 in areas where the spacing between neighboring stars is maximum. It will be seen that this arrangement is not considered optimal for the implementation of the invention. It is sufficient to observe here that the average width of the channels drawn by the branches in this example varies between 1 and 5 millimeters for an average of 3 millimeters. On the other hand each bread can be inscribed in a circle of 8 millimeters in diameter. These figures give a first idea of the high density of the distribution of gumbread ridges in the surface of the sculpture at the same time that the notching rate of the sculpture represented remains less than or equal to 45%. This still leaves a considerable gum surface available for establishing effective adhesion contact with the ground after the liquid covering the ground has been displaced by the gum rolls as a result of the progression of the user's footsteps. As regards the density of edges, it will also be noted that each loaf 21 is divided into three elementary blocks 26 by a set of three slots, notches or slats 23 which all start from the center of the star pattern and each end in a recess 28 between edges. adjacent to the edge of the bread 21. It is further noted that one out of two bread has two bows such that 22 oriented in the longitudinal direction L and a single bow pointing in the transverse direction 1. In addition each bread 21 is followed in each longitudinal direction L and transverse 1 by a bread whose bows have angularly offset orientations of 30 ° relative to that of bread 21 taken here for reference. As a result, the breads of this sculpture form a set whose bows point in twelve different directions and thus give a sole equipped with this sculpture a significant multidirectional resistance capacity vis-à-vis the risk of slipping a user engaged on a slippery floor.

In the organization illustrated in Figure 3, if we keep the same orientation conventions of the pattern with respect to the longitudinal directions L and transverse 1 of the sole, we see that in this example all the breads 31 in The star shape has six branches each having two bows 32 oriented mainly towards the longitudinal direction, in each direction, and a bow 33 which is oriented in the transverse direction in each direction as well. But if the loaves 31 are aligned as will be seen later, the two alignment networks they form are not longitudinal and transverse. As explained above, the bows 32 are capable of achieving a concentration of stresses vis-à-vis the ground surface and any impurities that cover it, such as a film of water, oil or blood, for example. With this organization, the density of bowstring points capable of initiating the piercing of a veil or sliding film covering the surface of the ground in response to a mainly longitudinal force is higher than in the preceding organization where the orientation of the loaves was different. The advantage of this arrangement is to produce branches having a relatively constant section. For the low level of surface notching, this arrangement is preferred for reasons of ease of circulation of pollution (mainly fluids). Figure 3B gives a better idea of the appearance of a non-slip surface formed in accordance with the invention.

Referring to Figure 4A, we see that a bread 31 of the sculpture of Figure 3, with six bows such as 32 and 33, is divided into three basic blocks 36 by three slots 34 proceeding radially to outside each of the center 37 of the bread 31. Each of these slots 34 opens into a groove 35 separating the bread 31 from its neighbors at a recess point 38 located at the junction of two adjacent bows 32 or 33 on the contour of the bread 31. Each elementary block 36 itself comprises two adjacent bows 32 or 33 arranged in chevron. Figure 4B shows a sectional view of the bread 31 of Figure 4A projecting from a shoe sole substrate or support. The slots 34 that divide the bread 31 meet in its center 37 in a single slot, visible at 37 in Figure 4B. It is further noted that the depth h of the slots such as 34 is smaller than the depth H of the grooves 35.

A shoe sole contour 41 according to the invention is shown in Figure 4C in which a bread pattern 31 as described above has been deliberately enlarged to bring out the orientation of the bows 32 and 33 by relative to longitudinal L and transverse directions 1.

Figure 5 allows to understand the reciprocal arrangement of the six-clawed breads of the type discussed in the previous examples. The same reference numbers as used for FIGS. 3 and 4 have therefore been used. If one refers to a loaf 31 -A in FIG. 5, its bow 32-1 whose edge is parallel to the direction L "penetrates" into a recess or recess formed between two bows 32-3 and 32-4 a bread 31 -B neighbor bread 31 -A in the direction L. Conversely, the bow 32-4 of this bread 31 -B points in the direction L, but in the opposite direction, and "penetrates", in the hollow formed between the two bows 32-1 and 32-2 of the bread 31 -A. There is therefore a sort of interlocking, imperfect, between the loaves 31 -A and 31 -B which is repeated for all the other loaves of the sculpture in this direction. The same observation can be made for the bows 33 in the transverse direction 1.

It is thus noted that the grooves 35 between the facing faces of the bails that succeed in one or the other direction in this structure have a relatively uniform width and communicate with each other forming a network of channels corrugated or zigzag in which liquids or other impurities driven from the contact surface between the loaves and the ground can circulate and be evacuated out of the sole. The arrangement described favors the creation of channels whose width is relatively, but not completely uniform. It is noted in fact that at each end of a groove such as 35- B with parallel flanks, there is an enlargement such as 43 triangle-shaped bordered by three different loaves. The tests carried out show that this irregularity is not critical provided that the capacity of capacity and evacuation of the network of channels is sufficient to collect and evacuate all the liquids or other substances driven by the progression of the breads on the surface. of the ground.

Figure 5 is an enlargement of the sculpture contained in a circular sector identified by VV in Figure 6 which is a more global representation of a sole portion packed with the same pattern. The observation of this Figure 6 shows that the loaves 31 are in fact aligned rigorously, that is to say that we can obtain the pattern of each bread by simply moving or translation of another bread of the same line. In the case of Figure 6 the loaves of the sculpture are aligned in two directions marked by the arrows 45-45 and 46-46. The direction 45-45 forms an angle of sixty degrees with the direction 46-46, none of these two directions coinciding with any of the main directions L and 1 of the sole. This optimizes to a certain extent the regularity of the width of the hollows or branches between the patterns. Other examples of optimizing the uniformity of the grooves for each pattern are discussed a little further with the adjustment of the orientation of the stars relative to one another (Figs 7A and 7B). In addition, the choice of the number of slots in each carving roll and their orientations within each star also provides a factor for adjusting the performance of the carving.

Returning to Figures 4 A, B and C, we can explain the operation of the sculpture described here for example when a user takes a step forward. The contact of a loaf 31 with the soil is from the rear to the front and the two bows 32 facing the back of the sole begin to crash under the weight of the walker. The crushing progresses towards the widened part of the bow. If the tip 41 of a bow 32 located towards the rear of the bread 31 of Figure 4A pierces the impurity film and makes contact with the dry surface of the ground, it is understood that as the crush from this bow its edges 42 and 43 cut the film. The bow 41 of FIG. 4A belongs to an elementary block 36-1 which comprises a second bow and is separated from the other elementary blocks 36 of the bread 31 by a chevron-shaped slot 34. Under the effect of the pressure transmitted by crushing of the gum of this bread, the foreign substances of the film located under the stem 41 are driven forward but also on the sides to the surrounding groove and the eraser gradually establishes a dry contact with the ground. This causes an increase in adhesion. It is further noted that when the crushing of the gum progresses towards the center of the bread 31, the rubber at the edge of the slot or lamella 34 expands and closes the slot. The elementary block 45 leans against the wall of the two other adjacent elementary blocks of this bread, which limits the deformation of the loaves and keeps the dry contact thus established with a sufficient contact pressure. The operation indicated above is valid for all directions.

With Figure 4D, we want to clarify what is understood here by bow-withdrawal coupling relationship. This FIG. 4D shows three rolls 211, 212, 213 of uniform star-shaped shape with six branches or bows, the ends of which radially furthest from the geometrical centers P1, P2, P3 of said loaves are situated on a circumscribed circle (C1, C2, C3, respectively). ) to each bread. We see that the bread 212 is in a coupling relationship with the bread 211 since one of its 212E bows is close to a withdrawal 21 IR formed between two bows 21 IE bread 211 and within the circle C1 circumscribing said bread 211. Similarly, the bread 213 is in a coupling relationship with the bread 212 since one of its staves 213E is positioned in a recess 212R and inside the circle C2 limited to the bread 212. In limit, it is considered that the bread 211 has a bow 21 IE 'whose end is placed on the circle C2 circumscribed bread 212.

It has been found that the arrangement of nested carving rolls with respect to each other has another advantage in terms of the safety of the soleplate in the situations of jamming of foreign bodies between the walls of a groove. the sculpture. FIG. 10A illustrates the view of a sole section comprising two loaves 88A and 89A separated by a groove 9OA. The width of this groove with respect to its depth is such that no foreign body such as a stone can remain long trapped in the antler. Figure 10B illustrates the opposite case where the 9OB is deeper and narrower than the groove 9OA. It is understood that it is easy for pebble 93B to remain stuck for a period that can be long before being released, possibly, as a result of the various efforts to which the sole is subjected to use. In the latter case, the presence of a pebble will affect the nonslip performance on a slippery floor. Figure 10C shows a top view of the sole portion of Figure 10B with a 9OC branch that borders two thick parallel bars which exerts balanced efforts on both sides of the stone 93C which is stuck in the wood. FIG. 10D illustrates in contrast an identical situation with a grove lined in accordance with an arrangement according to the invention by two bows 88B and 89D disposed substantially head to tail. It is conceivable to observe this figure that a pebble such as 93D wedged in the upper part of Figure 10D is subjected to unbalanced lateral forces from the walls of the groove 9OD during walking. This imbalance has the effect of quickly causing the expulsion of the pebble 93D out of the tree 9OD. It is the same in the other case shown where the pebble 93 'D is jammed in the lower part of the groove 9OD in Figure 10D; the stresses exerted by the 89D stem, which is thicker at the level of the pebble, are greater than that of the narrower 88D bow, and the pebble will sooner or later unravel.

Figure 1 OE illustrates a provision according to a variant of the invention for combating pebble retention. The walls 91E and 92E of the groove 9OE are inclined by a draft angle looking towards the top of the figure; the clearance angle, measured with respect to a perpendicular to the contact surface of the bread, is greater than 0 degrees. They form an obtuse angle with respect to the base 80E. The pebble 93E wedged in a funnel tends to be driven by the inclined walls towards the exit of the antler. A similar result is obtained in the case of FIG. 10F where the bottom of the groove is lined with a 94F elastomer boss which acts as a stone flapper. with respect to any object such as 93F that would become jammed between walls 91F and 92F. This last disposition is especially appropriate in the spaces where it is not easy to create remains as at the crossroads of the branches as we will see it a little further.

11 schematically shows a perspective view of a set of two bows 96-1, bordered by a wall 95-1 inclined with a constant draft angle, and 96-2, bordered by a wall of branching 95- 2 inclined also with a constant draft angle. The two bows are arranged upside down according to the organization according to the invention and separated by a branch. Figure 12 shows schematically in a plan view that it is possible, and sometimes advantageous, to create walls 99 whose draft angle varies along the groove 97 they delimit. In the case presented the angle of clearance of the wall increases along the antler to the end of the stem.

Figures 13A, 13B and 13C show plan views similar to those of Figures 2, 3, 6 and 7, for example, in which the walls of the grooves between the rolls have: a constant draft angle for the variants shown in Figs. 13A and 13C and a variable draft angle in Fig. 13B. The traces of said walls in the base of the sole which defines the bottom of each groove are visible at 180 and 181 between the loaves 182 and 183 for Figure 13A, 190 and 191 between the loaves 192 and 193 for Figure 13B. In Figure 13C we see the trace of a stone hunt 195 formed at the intersection of the grooves which leave a substantial space of the base of the sole not covered by the inclined walls of the branches.

FIGS. 7A, 7B, 7C and 7D illustrate some possible variants of implementation of the preferential arrangement which has just been described with reference to the preceding figures and in particular to adapt the notching rate of the sculpture in accordance with FIG. the invention. Thus in FIG. 7A, a star-shaped six-branched breadcrumb pattern 51 identical to that of FIGS. 3 to 6 is treated differently in that the stars all have a bow 52 directed along the L-axis and two bows 53. having a principal component in the direction of the axis 1. It will be noted that the centers 57 of each group of three neighboring loaves 31 are situated at the vertices of an equilateral triangle 58. This is comparable to the case of FIG. 5, in which the centers 37 of the neighboring loaves 31 are situated on an equilateral triangle 48 in phantom with the sides oriented respectively at 45 degrees, 105 degrees and 165 degrees with respect to the longitudinal direction L. In the arrangement of FIG. equilateral triangle 58 have the same orientation as those of the triangle 48. On the other hand the ratios between the distances of the bread centers and the length (ie distance from the end of the bow has the bread center) of their Bows are different. As a result, it is possible to visually verify a wider spacing of the neighboring parallel bow edges on either side of a groove and a certain tightening of the channels formed by the branches at the tips of the bows.

If we consider now Figure 7B, for patterns of bread 61 once again identical, we note that their centers 67 are located at the vertices of equilateral triangles 68 whose sides are respectively angles of 15 degrees, 75 degrees and 135 degrees with the longitudinal direction L. Considering that the dimensions of the loaves 61 and triangles 68 are identical to those of the loaves 51 and triangles 58 of FIG. 7A, it is easy to check that the arrangement of FIG. to obtain, for a notch rate certainly higher than that of Figure 7A, a uniformity of the width of the grooves almost perfect sculpture.

The orientation of the mesh triangle desjnains is therefore an interesting parameter for adjusting the uniformity of grooves and the notch rate.

In Figures 7C and 7D there is shown a method for decreasing the rate of notching of the sculpture of Figures 3 to 6 above and therefore to increase the density of the breads by trimming the tips of the bows while retaining a substantial width of the groove for discharging substances from the intermediate film to be removed. We could also round off or blunt the tips of bows to achieve the result illustrated. Note that this arrangement allows with an organization identical to that of Figure 7B to increase the size of the stars (see bow length E as defined above) as shown in Figure 7C and even more as shown in Figure 7C. Figure 7D in a case where the evacuation capacity required from the branches is less important. It is known that the reduction of the notching rate is a factor allowing, all things being equal, to reduce the contact pressure on the support surface. In the case of a sole working on a floor this allows both to increase the adhesion in dry contact condition and to reduce wear. These performances are generally regarded as preponderant in the design of anti-slip applications.

According to the invention, which aims in particular applications to non-slip contacts between the floor and the foot of a user, it seeks to produce a sculpture that allows to penetrate and effectively hunt intermediate substances, destructive coefficient adhesion, between the ground and the user, while maintaining a maximum dry contact area once the first objective reached at each step of the user. Applicants' research has shown in this respect that patterns which not only possess the intrinsic characteristics described above but use sufficiently small patterns should be used. to multiply the points of attack of intermediate substances, all with a relatively low notch rate ie less than sixty percent (60%) and at most equal to thirty percent (30%). It has been discovered that the previously described patterns are particularly effective in dimensions which remain inscribed within a circle whose maximum diameter is 10 millimeters and preferably between 2 and 8 millimeters. Finally, these patterns lend themselves particularly to the prevention of retentions of pebbles or other objects in the sole, which may constitute additional risk factors for skidding.

Surprisingly, with this type of characteristics, sculptures are obtained whose surface is characterized by a very particular sensation to the feel of the sole, which is different from all other things equal to those of the soles of the prior art, such as for example that illustrated in Figure 1. The multiple points ending the bread bows provide an unusual and unexpected sensation of soft roughness and "velvety" hooking.

Such an impression is provided for example by a sculpture as described with reference to Figure 5 for a work shoe sole made of a rubber gum or other elastomeric material, the modulus of elastic stiffness at 10% d elongation is 2.7 MPa. The distance between the points of two opposite bows is 8 millimeters and the angle of opening of the bows is sixty degrees. The end of each bow is slightly rounded. The width of the slots 34 in this example is 0.3 millimeters and their length about 2 millimeters. The distance between two parallel edges of two bread bails bordering the same groove in FIG. 5 is 0.9 mm. The tread height (or trimming depth) is 3 millimeters and that of the slots 34 is 2 millimeters. The rate of surface notching in this example is 40 percent.

FIGS. 8A and 8B illustrate a mode of arrangement of the six-pointed star pattern of FIGS. 4A and 4B suitable for improving the isotropy of the adhesion properties of the sculpture. Each bread 81 has six branches that end in a bow shape. One of the loaves 81-1 is considered and there are two neighboring bows 82-1 and 83-1 belonging to two separate elementary blocks 86-A and 86-B in the bread 81-1. Referring now to one of the adjacent loaves 81-2 on the right of FIG. 8A, and the staves 82-2 and 83-2 of the two corresponding elementary blocks 86-A and 86-B are observed. bread 81-2 can be considered that they were obtained by a displacement of the trace of bread 81-1 having a translation of this trace up the left of the figure and a rotation about the axis of the bread d An angle of 30. In the same way it can be verified in this figure 8A that the bread 81-3 can be obtained by translation. the trace of bread 81-2 in the same direction and rotation of 30 ° around its axis. As a result, the neighboring loaves 81-1 to 81-3 located on a right-to-left alignment upwards have bows oriented in different directions. The same structure is found in the alignments immediately downward and upward of Figure 8A. This structure therefore makes it possible to multiply the directions of effort in which the breads are likely to act with maximum efficiency to start a film or film of material interposed between the sole and the ground.

FIG. 8B gives a more pictorial view of the constitution of a bread 81-1 protruding from the substrate of the sole 80, with its bows 82-1 and 83-1 and the slots 84 -1 of depth. less than that of the branches 85-1. Note that each bread such as 81-1 has two opposite bows that point in the direction of two withdrawals 88-1 and 88-2 respectively belonging to two loaves of bread on either side of the bread 81-1 in the same alignment (here from right to left up). Inversely, the bread 81-1 has two opposite recesses 88-3 and 88-4 towards which two bows of neighboring loaves point on either side of the bread 81-1 in a second alignment (here from left to right from the bottom to the right). top of FIGS. 8A and 8B).

Can be made a sculpture according to the invention with different breads by the arrangement of the slots or slats such as 34 in their orientation or in their number of slots in each bread to improve the isotropy of the sculpture, c that is to say to standardize its performance in all directions or its response to requests of different directions. One can also deliberately choose to differentiate or privilege certain properties of the sculpture in certain directions, for example in the direction of the forward movement for a shoe. Thus, in FIGS. 7C and 7D, it can be seen that each star bread 71 has six radial slots 74 similar to the slots 34 of FIGS. 3 to 5, and which are concurrent with the center 75 of each of the loaves 71.

It is not only possible to change the orientation of star patterns from a bread to a nearby bread but also juxtapose breads of different sizes in the sculpture according to the desired performance. FIG. 9 represents an embodiment of a sculpture with star-shaped six-branched loaves of the type represented in the preceding FIGS. 3 to 5, between which are sandwiched loaves 92 which have an equilateral triangle profile and which fit into each other. in sculpture. These loaves 92 thus each have three peaks 96 which engage in open spaces by withdrawals 98 between the bows of the bread 91 and are each provided with three slots or slats concurrent in the center of the bread 94. Of course we can design other designs and organization of sculptures in which the patterns of the neighboring loaves that define the sculpture have different shapes, for example numbers of different branches and sizes, orientations, and slit systems that vary between the breads of the sculpture.

The invention can thus be implemented with star-shaped breads comprising for example five, six, seven branches (or more).

Experience has shown that the preceding provisions are favorable to a significant improvement of the adhesion of the soles of shoes on wet or wet or covered floors, apart from liquids such as water, oil, blood, by all other impurities to develop a sliding contact between materials commonly used for floors and / or soles of shoes. The invention is particularly well suited to the production of non-slip soles for work shoes and / or sports shoes.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the examples described and shown and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1-shoe comprising a sole having a base of elastomeric material at least one zone is furnished with contact bars which emerge from its lower face so as to come into contact with the ground, and wherein these contact bars are separated from each other; others by branches delimiting on each contact bread bows (32) at angles less than 75 degrees, the contact face of each bread having the shape of a star with at least five branches distributed over the contour of the face of contact, each bow being separated from its neighbor on the bread by a recess (38) towards the center of the star shape, this sole being characterized in that for a plurality of first contact loaves (81) of said zone, each of said first contact bars has at least one bow-withdrawal coupling of a first bow (83-1) with a recess (88-1) separating two neighboring bows in the contour of a second roll of contact next to the first bread in said zone, that is to say that the end of this first bow is positioned within a circle circumscribed to the second bread.

2- Shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that each first bread in the area has:

(i) at least two couplings of its bows with withdrawals (88-2) separating neighboring bows in the contour of neighboring loaves and

(ii) at least two couplings between its withdrawals between neighboring bows in its contour with bows of neighboring loaves.

3- Shoe according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each first bread in the area is surrounded by a set of at least four loaves distributed at its circumference which are each associated by a bow-withdrawal coupling with the bread surrounded by this set.

4- Shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that each bread in the area comprises six bows and in that each bread is surrounded by a set of at least six neighboring loaves distributed around its circumference which each have a bow-withdrawal coupling with the bread surrounded by this set.

5- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that in at least one area of the sole, each bread (31) is writable inside a circle whose diameter is less than 20 millimeters. 6- Shoe according to claim 5, characterized in that each bread (31) is writable inside a circle whose diameter is at most equal to 10 millimeters and at least equal to 4 millimeters.

7- Shoe according to one of the preceding claims characterized in that in an area at least the sole, the notching rate of the sculpture is at most equal to 60% and at least equal to 30%.

8. Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that the apex angle of each bow is at least equal to 40 degrees.

9- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the width of the branches (35) between the bows is substantially uniform to maximize the actual contact area of an area of a sole.

10- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that, in at least a portion of the sole, the star shapes of neighboring loaves (81-1, 81-2, 81-3) have orientations. angularly offset from each other.

11- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that each bread has at least one slot (34) in the thickness of the bread, opening on its contact face.

12- Shoe according to claim 11, characterized in that, each slot comprising two ends, one of these ends ends in a recess.

Shoe according to claim 11 or claim 12, characterized in that, each bread comprising a plurality of slots, these slots have a common end (37) located inside said bread.

14. Shoe according to one of claims 11 to 13, characterized in that the depth of each slot (34) is between 20% and 80% of the depth of the grooves (35) separating said loaves.

15- Shoe according to one of claims 11 to 14, characterized in that, in at least a portion of the sole, the slots (84-1, 84-2, 84-3) of a bread (81-1 , 81-2, 81-3) have angularly offset orientations relative to the slits of at least one of the neighboring loaves.

16- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 15, characterized in that each bow is delimited by the walls of two grooves (35) and in that the wall of at least one branch which separates a bow (83-1) from a first roll (81) engaged in the withdrawal (88-1) of a second bread is inclined relative to the base of the sole at a draft angle greater than 0 degrees, this draft angle being measured relative to a perpendicular to the contact surface of the bread.

17- Shoe according to claim 16, characterized in that the draft angle of the wall increases along the antler to the end of the stem.

18- Shoe according to one of claims 1 to 17, characterized in that the sole comprises at least one boss acting as a flush-stone, this boss protruding from the base at the intersection of at least two branches delimiting the ends two bows.