ES2694520T3 - Insole and shoe comprising a removable insole - Google Patents

Abstract

Shoe that has a sole section with an insole designed to support a foot (7) once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising an integrated plastic material that forms a flexible flat base layer (1) from which numerous elastic nodules (2) protrude, characterized in that the flat base layer (1) is designed as a contact surface for the foot (7), the nodules are designed to extend from the base layer (1) up to the sole section of the shoe, and the nodes (2) are shaped with different heights so that without the foot (7) exerting weight load, the insole comes into contact with the sole section of the shoe only with some nodules (2a) of greater heights and when the foot (7) exerts weight load also the nodules (2b, 2c) of lower heights are pressed against the sole section and thus the layer (1) flexible flat base deforms to fit It is tailored to the shape of the bottom of the foot (7) as a three-dimensionally shaped molded sole.

Description

5

10

fifteen

twenty

25

30

35

40

Four. Five

fifty

55

60

65

TEMPLATE AND SHOE COMPRISING A REMOVABLE TEMPLATE

DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a shoe having a sole section with a insole designed to support a foot once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising a plastic material integrated that forms a flexible flat base layer from which protrude numerous elastic nodules.

The present invention further relates to the use of a foot support template once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising an integrated plastic material that forms a base layer flexible flat from which protrude numerous elastic nodules.

The removable insoles for shoes are well known. They consist of different material and in many cases are previously formed by thermoforming (for example, EVA foam (ethylvinyl acetate)) or forming in a closed mold (for example PU foam (polyurethane)). In this way, they form a molded sole inside the shoe whose sole section may not be formed, or not enough, to form a molded sole. The templates of this type have a defined three-dimensional conformation so that many types have to be manufactured in order to adapt to the needs of the client. The insoles can extend along the entire length of the foot or can be designed to support only a part of the foot, for example the heel part or a forefoot.

Insoles with a large number of elastic nodes protruding from a flexible flat base layer are known so that the essential parts of the template consist of an integrated plastic material and are manufactured by injection molding. An example of a template of this kind is described in document US 2010/0175275 A1. The numerous elastic nodules serve to provide a massage and reflexology system by coming into contact with the sole of a person's foot by means of the superior parts of the nodules. Simultaneously, shock absorption is achieved by means of said elastic nodules. The upper surface of the template formed by the upper portions of the nodules may be provided with an outline that generally coincides with the contour of a human foot, such that the massage and reflexology system is maintained in substantially continuous contact with at least one part of the lower area of the user's foot. In this way, the interactive effects of massage, shock absorption, muscle stimulation and blood circulation can be better managed at the foot of the user or consumer. Therefore, these templates are only appropriate for users who want a massage or reflexology effect and who are willing to tolerate the intensive point contacts between the insole and the sole of the foot, punctiform contact that provides intensive stimuli to the foot that can feel like less comfortable, especially when the nodules have a high hardness. Therefore, document US 2010/0175275 A1 discloses upper parts of the cup-shaped nodules thus extending the contact zone between the template and the foot of the user.

GB 2 418 129 A discloses an impact absorbing insole having an upper layer of a woven textile surface providing the contact surface for the wearer's foot. The lower layer comprises a cellular membrane structure in which all the cells have the same size and contain a chemically inert fluid or gel of sufficient viscosity to provide a cushioned effect when compressed. With such a construction, a template conformation must be made to form a molded sole in the top layer in the conventional manner mentioned above.

US 4,974,345 discloses an intermediate sole for a sports shoe comprising a removable spacer and a peripheral element. A plurality of independent damping elements depend on a base element of the interpiece and are dimensioned in order to conform to the depth of the peripheral element.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a jig of the kind mentioned above that can be produced easily and provides a kind of molded sole and a comfortable feel.

According to the present invention, the shoe having a sole section with a insole designed to support a foot once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising an integrated plastic material forming a flexible flat base layer from which numerous elastic nodes protrude, characterized in that the flat base layer is designed as a contact surface for the foot, the nodes are designed to extend from the base layer to the sole section of the shoe, and the nodules are formed with different heights so that without the foot exerting weight load, the insole comes into contact with the sole section of the shoe only with some nodules of greater heights and when the foot exerts weight load also the nodules of lower heights are pressed against the sole section and thus the flexible flat base layer is deformed to conform to the shape of the lower part of the foot like a molded sole formed in a three-dimensional way.

5

10

fifteen

twenty

25

30

35

40

Four. Five

fifty

55

60

65

According to the present invention, the nodules are not used for massage and reflexology but, instead, to easily form a molded sole for the user's foot when weight loading is exerted. For this purpose the nodules are made with different heights so that without exerting weight load, the insole comes into contact with the sole section of the shoe only with some nodules having a relatively large height. In this state, the flat base layer remains flat. When weight loading is exerted, also the nodules of lower height are pressed against the sole section of the shoe so that the base layer is deformed to allow the smaller nodules to come into contact with the sole section of the shoe. The height distribution of the nodules is chosen in such a way that by deformation of the base layer a suitable molded sole is formed by the base layer which serves as the contact surface for the foot. It should be noted that it is not necessary that the base layer be in direct contact with the foot but that it can be covered with a flexible cover layer consisting of a textile material, leather or other material preferably having skin-friendly properties. However, said cover layer does not substantially influence the deformation of the flat base layer, which deformation is determined by the distribution and heights of the nodes in the lower part of the template. Therefore, the base layer can be manufactured as a flat layer and, however, form a molded sole when the user's weight is loaded onto the template. Due to the nodules in the lower part, the jig can be made with less material compared to a jig that is made with the same material and shaped to form a conventional molded outsole. Due to the nodules, there is a plurality of intermediate spaces between the nodes for which no material is needed. In addition, the nodules have elastic properties and produce a progressive spring characteristic since when the weight load increases, more and more nodules come in contact with the sole section of the shoe thereby contributing to the overall spring resistance of the insole. Due to the nodules, the template of the present invention can be produced with approximately 60% of the material, and therefore of the weight, necessary for a template forming a molded sole of the same fully formed material. Only due to the nodules, the jig according to the present invention has the ability to adapt the deformation to the individual foot when weight loading is exerted.

The nodules can be distributed along the entire length of the template. For some purposes it may be preferred to provide nodules at the bottom of the template only along a portion of the length of the template, for example to provide only a heel portion, a heel portion and a plantar vault and / or a portion of fingers with nodules that allow deformation of the base layer to form a molded sole. For some purposes it may be preferred that the insole according to the present invention extends only along a part of the length of the foot to support only a part of the length of the foot, such as the heel portion, the heel and vault part. plantar and / or the part of fingers.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the hardness of the material from which the base layer and the nodules are formed can be between 30 and 50 Shore 00, more preferably between 33 and 45 Shore 00 and even more preferably between 35 and 40 Shore 00. Therefore, the material can be a comparatively soft material that differs in hardness from the material used for the nodules for massage and reflexology in which the hardness is between 80 and 100 Shore 00 and even for a soft massage sandal of more than 50 Shore 00.

In a preferred embodiment, the insole extends along the entire length of the foot and there are nodules of small height in the middle area of a heel portion and a part of fingers of the insole and nodules of greater heights are provided at the edge of the heel part as well as at an intermediate part between the heel part and the finger part. The intermediate part will preferably be an arc part of the template.

For reasons of easy fabrication, the nodules are preferably solid nodules, ie without a hollow part.

The nodules are preferably designed to expand their diameter when compressed under weight load. Therefore, the height reduction due to the elastic weight load may result in a corresponding enlargement of the diameter so that the nodules extend into intermediate spaces between the nodules.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, several ventilation holes are located within the base layer in intermediate spaces between the nodes. The widening of the nodules under weight load obviously reduces the interspace between the nodules so that air under pressure can be passed through the ventilation holes from the bottom of the sole to the bottom surface of the foot exerting the weight load on the template.

A preferred material for the template is a gel, especially a polyurethane gel. In a preferred embodiment, the polyurethane gel can have a specific gravity of between 0.6 and 1.1 g / cm3. A suitable gel may be adherent so that in a preferred embodiment said gel is covered by a film of a non-adhesive material which, again, may be a selected polyurethane, however, so that it is non-adhesive and non-adherent.

The invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in which

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the lower part of a first embodiment of a template;

Figure 2 is a side view of the template of Figure 1;

5

10

fifteen

twenty

25

30

35

40

Four. Five

fifty

55

60

65

Figure 3 is a bottom view of the template of Figure 1 showing the distribution of the nodes; Figure 4 is a perspective view of the lower part of a second embodiment of a template; Figure 5 is a bottom view of the template of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a schematic diagram showing the deformation of the nodules when loaded with body weight;

Figure 7 is a similar diagram that highlights a ventilation effect through ventilation holes;

Figure 8 is a perspective view of the lower part of an embodiment of a template having nodules only in a bead section;

Figure 9 is a perspective view of the lower part of an embodiment of the template having nodules only in the heel and plantar vault section;

Fig. 10 is a perspective view of the lower part of a jig extending only along the heel section of the foot length.

The embodiment of figures 1 to 3 is an integrated template of a plastic material consisting of a thin layer 1 of flat base and a plurality of nodes 2 in the lower part of the base layer 1. The upper side of the base layer is manufactured as a flattened surface 3 which serves as a contact surface with the wearer's foot. For this purpose, the integrated insole made of plastic material according to figures 1 to 3 can be provided with a cover layer on the upper side of the flattened surface 3.

In addition, the template material forming the base layer 1 and the nodules 2 can be wrapped by a film of a material similar to that of the base layer 1 and the nodes 2 but modified so that it is non-stick or non-stick. It is understood that a cover layer for the flattened surface 3 will be applied on the wrapping film of the base layer 1 and the nodes 2 in case such a wrapping film is used.

The template can be produced by casting the material in liquid form in a casting mold having deeper cavities in the form of the nodules 2 and in the middle of a small flattened cavity for the base layer. Said cavities can be coated with the non-stick film in a well-known manner, for example by applying vacuum to a film, by coating or by applying a release agent. Then the liquid material is cast and allowed to pour into the mold. After pouring, the mold can be covered with the cover layer of textile, leather or microfiber material which is thus fixedly attached to the template material during curing of the material in the mold and serves as a contact surface.

As illustrated in the drawings, the nodes 2 in the lower part of the base layer 1 have different heights. They can have a cylindrical shape with a rounded tip. The cross section of the cylindrical shape is circular. The diameter of the nodules within the cylindrical part corresponds essentially to the height of the respective nodes. It can be seen that there are higher nodes 2a at the edge of a heel portion 4 of the template. The nodes 2a at the edge are higher and have a larger diameter than the nodes 2b in the mid-zone of the heel part 4.

At the other end of the template, specifically in a part 5 of fingers, the nodes 2c are even smaller than the nodes 2b in the middle area of the heel part. Between the part 5 of the fingers and the heel part 4 there is an intermediate part 6 which shows nodules 2d higher than in a part of the plantar vault of the insole they are even higher than the nodes 2a at the edge of the heel part. The nodes 2d on the lateral edge of the intermediate part 6 may have approximately the same size as the nodes 2a on the edge of the heel part 4. The intermediate part 6 establishes an arc portion of the template that is designed to come into contact with the arc portion of the user's foot.

As illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, the insole as manufactured will come into contact with a support layer, such as the sole section of a shoe in which the insole may have been inserted, only with the tips of the nodes 2 relatively Taller. In this state, the base layer 1 remains flat and flat. The nodules are directed towards the support surface as the sole section of a shoe. If the user exerts weight load on the template, the template will come into contact with the sole section of the shoe with all the nodes of different heights. In this way, the base layer 1 will deform according to the distribution of the nodes 2 of different heights. The distribution of the nodes 2 is selected so that the base layer is deformed to give a molded sole shape that picks up the wearer's foot in a comfortable manner.

It should be noted that the template only comes into full contact with the support surface, namely the sole section of a shoe, through the nodes 2 so that there is no direct contact of parts of the shoe.

5

10

fifteen

twenty

25

30

35

40

Four. Five

fifty

55

60

65

base layer with the sole section of the shoe.

Figure 3 illustrates the distribution of the nodes 2 over the entire surface of the lower part of the base layer 1. Since the heights of the nodules 2 essentially correspond to their diameter, it can even be seen from figure 3 where the nodules of greater height are located.

It should be noted that the rule according to which the height corresponds to the diameter of the nodules 2 can be omitted in the part 5 of the fingers, where the diameter can be different and can be equal to twice the height of the nodules since the nodules can be made very low in part 5 of fingers.

The second embodiment of FIGS. 4 and 5 shows a template produced according to the same principle, however provided with a somewhat thicker base layer 1 which still does not exceed 3 mm and from which the nodules 2 protrude. The nodes 2 are distributed to form a molded sole when the template is loaded with the user's body weight.

Figure 6 represents the influence of the body weight transmitted by the foot of the user 7. The base layer 1 is shown with the outline of the nodes 2 in the state as it is manufactured, ie without weight load. There is a large intermediate space 8 between the nodes 2. When the weight pressure is exerted as indicated by arrows in Figure 6, the nodules will be compressed against the sole part of a shoe and will thus be deformed as indicated in two'. Thus, the size of the intermediate spaces 8 'is considerably reduced. Simultaneously, the contact surface 3 'of the layer 1, on being in pressure contact with the sole part of the foot 7, will adapt a contour corresponding to the contour of the sole part of the foot 7 by means of different compression rates of the nodules two'.

In the embodiment of Figure 7, the base layer 1 is provided with ventilation holes 9 which are through holes that connect the intermediate space 8 between the nodes 2 with the flattened surface 3 of the base layer, i.e. with the part bottom of the foot 7 when the insole is loaded by the weight pressure through the foot 7. When the weight load is exerted, the same deformation of the nodules 2 occurs to give the nodules 2 'as illustrated in figure 6 The reduced intermediate space 8 'between the nodes 2' exhausts air from said intermediate space 8 'through the ventilation holes 9', so that the sole part of the foot 7 is ventilated each time a load is exerted. weight on the template while walking, running or standing.

Due to the large number of nodes 2, a considerable amount of air is expelled through the ventilation holes 9. The effect can be enhanced by providing a seal edge on the outer contour of the template whereby the interspaces 8 between nodes 2 such as a hole are sealed against the atmosphere so that a lateral expulsion of air from the loaded template is prevented. with weight and the passage of air is forced through the ventilation holes 9. The sealing edge may have the shape of a small lip so that it does not have a considerable influence on the elastic deformation of the nodes 2 when weight loading is exerted.

The template of the present invention can be manufactured with a flattened flat base layer 1 which is deformed with weight pressure to adapt to the shape of the foot 7 which exerts the weight pressure and thus form a kind of molded sole.

Fig. 8 shows a modification of the insole which is similar to the jig of Fig. 1 in the heel portion 4 so that the nodes 2 in the bottom provide a conformation of a molded sole when weight loading is exerted such as described above. However, the other parts or sections of the template that are designed to extend along the entire length of the foot have no nodes 2, so that there is a support with nodes 2 only in the heel region while the template consists of only in base layer 1 in the other parts.

In Figure 9 a further modification of the template is shown which is similar to the embodiment of Figure 1. The template has nodes 2 in the lower part in the heel part 4 and the intermediate part 6 which includes the plantar vault part . The distribution of the nodules with different heights can be the same as that described for the previous embodiments. Again, the insole is designed to extend over the entire length of the foot but has nodes 2 only in the heel portion 4 and the intermediate portion 6 and for example not in the forefoot that includes the finger part 5.

It should be noted that all the embodiments of Figures 1 to 9 show templates with base layers 1 that extend along the entire length of the foot 7 (or the shoe) and have grooves or simple lines that allow to shorten the length of the foot. Template to match the length of foot 7 or shoe for the individual application.

Figure 10 shows an example of a template according to the present invention that does not extend over the entire length of the foot 7 but instead extends only over a certain part, namely the heel part 4 in the embodiment of the Figure 10. The insole according to this embodiment has a similar distribution of nodes 2 in the lower part to that of the embodiment of Figure 1 so that a molded sole is formed when the heel of a foot 7 exerts weight loading. It is obvious to those skilled in the art that stencils extending along other parts of the foot length, for example the plantar vault part and / or can be provided in the same manner.

a front part of the foot The support of a front part of the foot can be especially suitable for high-heeled shoes that result in a major weight load on the front of the foot or part of the toes 7.

A stencil extending only along a part of the length of the foot 7 can be protected against displacement or sliding within the shoe by being made of an adherent material or by applying pads of adherent material to the underside of the insole, for example to the tips of the nodes 2, or to the contact surface 3 of the base layer 1 to fix the template to the foot 7. Naturally, other fixings, for example mechanical fixings by means of lateral extensions that can be formed, conform to the lateral recesses corresponding 10 of the shoe.

Claims (9)

10 15 2. 20 3. 4. 25 5. 6. 30 7. 35 8 9. 40 10 eleven. Four. Five fifty Shoe having a sole section with a template designed to support a foot (7) once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising an integrated plastic material that forms a flexible flat base layer (1) from which protrude numerous elastic nodes (2), characterized in that the flat base layer (1) is designed as a contact surface for the foot (7), the nodes are designed to extend from the base layer (1) up to the sole section of the shoe, and the nodes (2) are formed with different heights so that without the foot (7) exerting weight load, the insole comes into contact with the sole section of the shoe only with some nodules (2a) of higher heights and when the foot (7) exerts weight load also the nodules (2b, 2c) of lower heights are pressed against the sole section and thereby the layer (1) flexible flat base it is deformed to conform to the shape of the lower part of the foot (7) like a molded sole formed in a three-dimensional manner. Shoe with a stencil according to claim 1, characterized in that the insole comprises nodules (2b, 2c) in the middle zone of a heel part (4) and a part (5) of fingers of the insole and the nodules (2a) of greater heights are provided at the edge of the heel portion (4) as well as in an intermediate section (6) between the heel portion (4) and the finger portion (5). Shoe with a template according to claim 2, characterized in that the intermediate part (6) is an arc part. Shoe with a sole according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the nodules (2) are solid nodules. Shoe with a sole according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the nodes (2) of the insole are designed to expand their diameter when compressed under weight load. Shoe with a template according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that several ventilation holes (9) are located within the base layer (1) of the template in intermediate spaces (8) between the nodes (2). Shoe with a sole according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the plastic material of the insole is a gel. Shoe with a sole according to claim 7, characterized in that the gel is a polyurethane gel. Shoe with a template according to claim 7 or 8, characterized in that said gel is covered by a film of a non-adhesive material. Shoe with a sole according to claim 9, characterized in that said film is a polyurethane film. Use of a foot support template (7) once the insole is inserted into the shoe to abut against the sole section of said shoe, said insole comprising an integrated plastic material forming a flat base layer (1) flexible from which protrude numerous elastic nodules (2), in which the flat base layer (1) is used as the contact surface for the foot (7), the nodes are designed to extend from the base layer (1) up to the sole section of the shoe, and the nodes (2) are formed with different heights so that without the foot (7) exerting weight load, the insole comes into contact with the sole section of the shoe with only some nodules (2a) of higher heights and when the foot (7) exerts weight load also the nodules (2b, 2c) of lower heights are pressed against the sole section and thus the layer (1) of flexible flat base is deformed to fit the shape of the bottom of the foot (7) as a molded sole formed in a three-dimensional manner.