FR3076984A1 - INNER SHOE FOR SPORTS SHOES - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to an inner shoe liner comprising at least one lower part (1) forming a shaft, and having an opening (10) for the introduction of the foot, said opening (10) being partially delimited by a tongue (3). ) integral with the lower part (1) and comprising at least one inner layer (32) and an outer layer (31) covered with a covering element (4) sealing, characterized in that said cover element ( 4) is secured, at least on part of its front edge, only with the outer layer (31) of said tongue (3).

Description

INTERIOR SLIPPER FOR SPORTSHOES [0001] The invention relates to a slipper for sports shoes and, more particularly, to an inner slipper for boots for alpine skiing, cross-country skiing, ski touring or snowboarding.

PRIOR ART [0002] Certain sports shoes and, in particular, alpine ski boots, are equipped with an inner boot having, on the one hand, thermal insulation properties and comprising, on the other hand, means for protecting the skier's foot both against impact and with respect to the support stresses exerted by the rigid outer shell of the boot.

This slipper is housed in a generally removable manner inside a more or less rigid outer shell or shoe shell. In addition, the liner improves the comfort of the skier while ensuring a wedging of the foot and a tibial support to ensure effective and sensitive control of the trajectory thanks to a precise transmission of mechanical support on the skis via the boots.

The inner liner is made from several pieces mounted together using assembly means, in particular by sewing or gluing. Such a bootie includes a high part forming a collar which surrounds the bottom of the user's leg, connected to a low part forming a rod which covers the user's foot, as well as a sole on which the rod is generally glued. In order to allow the passage of the user's foot, the inner bootie is also provided with a foot entry opening, which extends from the upper front part of the bootie, and which extends to the front. of the stem.

In order to fill the entry opening of the foot, the liner also has a tongue. The tongue, integral with the lower part, generally comprises at least one internal layer and one external layer.

Thus, the tongue extends above the foot, from the front part of the rod, and extends at the level of the kick then upwards at the level of the collar, sometimes until covering the tibia. The tongue facilitates putting on by forward movement by adapting the fitting volume of the shoe to the foot of the user. It also makes it possible to absorb frontal forces and shocks.

Furthermore, for shoes intended for use in snow, such as alpine skiing, ski touring, cross-country and snowboard boots, the only insulation (with respect to external elements, such as for example snow) offered by the hull remains insufficient. Indeed, the openings for the entry of the foot, present both at the level of the shell and of the liner, require the use of covering and support elements for the foot. This is the role played in particular by the flaps of the shell and by the tongue of the inner boot. These elements must be movable to allow the passage of the foot during putting on.

Due to their mobility, these covering elements around the entry opening of the foot in the shell do not provide sufficient sealing. Consequently, snow and / or water can easily infiltrate and penetrate inside the hull and reach the liner which is then itself exposed to the same problem of water infiltration.

In some embodiments, such as that described in patent FR2781129, the inner boot includes, at its front part, on its upper face and in the frontal area, a covering element which ensures, in particular, the tightness of the liner, then covering part of the entry opening of the foot.

However, this cover element is of complex, three-dimensional shape. In addition, the cover element is fixed to the liner and is not linked to the tongue, which exposes it to the risk of folding and tearing. This arrangement is, moreover, capable of causing a shift of the tongue during the booting, which consequently favors the infiltration of snow or water which is detrimental to the comfort of the skier.

Furthermore, the cover element is glued to the liner, which poses difficulties in industrial implementation.

There are also slippers whose cover element is attached and fixed to the tongue by transverse seams. However, for reasons of mechanical strength and assembly, these seams are made with strong threads which pass through the entire thickness of the tongue and which protrude inside the liner and therefore prove to be aggressive in contact with the part. front of the foot, even being likely to cause injury.

For these booties of the prior art, the cover element is assembled to the boot after assembly of the tongue at its end. Sewing this cover with the liner therefore involves sewing the thread through all the layers of the tongue. Furthermore, the joining of the covering element, both with the lower part of the bootie and with the tongue, is achieved by a single seam, which poses manufacturing problems.

In addition, these seams which pass through the entire thickness of the tongue favor the entry of moisture through the holes in the bites through which the threads pass.

PRESENTATION OF THE INVENTION The aim of the present invention is to solve the technical problems posed by the prior art by proposing a bootie whose covering element is linked to the tongue by seams located in areas out of contact. direct with the top of the foot so as to offer better comfort to the skier.

This object is achieved according to the invention by means of an inner boot for a sports shoe comprising at least one lower part forming a rod, and having an opening for the introduction of the foot, said opening being partially delimited by a tongue. integral with the lower part and comprising at least one internal layer and one external layer covered with a covering element ensuring sealing, characterized in that said covering element is joined, at least on part of its front edge, only with the outer layer of said tongue.

According to a preferred embodiment, the cover element is secured to the outer layer of the tongue by at least one transverse line of seams.

Advantageously, the transverse line of seams of the cover element crosses the outer layer of said tongue and extends above its inner layer.

According to another advantageous characteristic, the side edges of the cover element are secured to the side edges of the lower part forming a rod.

According to a specific variant, the side edges of the cover element are joined to the side edges of the lower part of the liner by stitching lines.

Preferably, these seam lines between the cover element and the lower part of the liner each join the ends of the transverse seam line.

Where appropriate, these seam lines joining the cover element to the lower part of the liner extend continuously with the transverse seam line of the cover element.

According to a particular variant, the covering element consists of a layer of impermeable material.

Preferably, at least one of the front and rear edges of the cover element has a notch.

In this case, the transverse line of seams of the cover element follows the contours of its front notch.

According to yet another advantageous characteristic, the internal layer of the tongue comprises a padding underlayer.

Preferably, the tongue is secured to the lower part of the liner at its front end.

Another object of the invention is a method of manufacturing a liner having the characteristics defined above, characterized in that the cover element is previously assembled to the tongue by sewing its front edge to the outer layer of the tongue.

According to an advantageous characteristic of the method, the seam of the front edge of the cover element is then covered by the internal layer of the tongue.

According to another characteristic of the method, the side edges of the cover element are assembled on the side edges of the bottom part of the liner by sewing.

Thanks to the invention, the liner retains good flexibility of the upper and has, jointly, a flexible and sealed connection with the tongue thus providing great comfort in use.

In addition, at the time of putting on and during the pivoting movements of the collar, alternately forwards and backwards, the movement of the tongue is carried out in a regular manner and without crushing of material, nor fold of the cover element which avoids any discomfort to the user.

These advantages are of great interest, in particular, for skiers equipped with pivoting rigid shell shoes.

The intermediate arrangement of the line for securing the cover element between the outer and inner layers of the tongue also makes it possible to avoid the risk of injury to the foot without compromising the tightness of the liner.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge on reading the description which follows, with reference to the appended and detailed figures below.

Figure IA shows a front view of a boot of the prior art.

FIG. 1B represents a view of the internal face of the tongue of a boot of the prior art provided with a cover element.

FIG. 2A represents a front view of an embodiment of the boot of the invention.

FIG. 2B represents a view of the internal face of the external layer of the tongue, before assembly of the internal layer.

FIG. 2C represents a view of the interior face of the tongue of the bootie of FIG. 2B, after assembly of the internal layer.

Figure 3 shows an exploded perspective view of the tongue of the boot of the invention.

FIG. 4 represents a front view of the tongue of the boot of the invention with its cover element.

For the sake of clarity, identical or similar elements are identified by identical reference signs in all of the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS Naturally, the embodiments illustrated by the figures presented above and described below are given only by way of nonlimiting examples. It is explicitly provided that we can combine these different modes to offer others.

The boot of the prior art shown in perspective in Figure IA and the boot according to the invention shown in Figure 2A are intended to be introduced into an alpine ski boot shell not shown here.

For the sake of understanding, the front part of the boot consists of the zone intended to receive the toes of a user and the rear part of the zone intended to receive the heel of the user's foot.

This boot consists, conventionally, of a lower part or upper 1 surrounding the foot and the ankle, connected to a upper part or collar 2 surrounding the lower leg of the user. This upper part can be very short when it is, for example, a Nordic ski boot.

The liner includes an opening or recess 10 in the upper part and on the front, to allow the introduction of the foot. This recess is closed in its front part by a tongue 3 secured to the lower part 1 of the liner. After introduction of the foot into the boot, the tongue 3 closes the recess 10 on the front of the boot.

The tongue 3, which is illustrated separately and from below by Figure IB, extends above the foot and extends at the level of the kick then upwards, until covering, at least in part , the tibia. This tongue makes it easier to put on by forward movement, thereby removing the lateral flanks 2a, 2b of the collar 2 of the liner located on either side of the opening 10, so as to adapt its footwear volume for the introduction of the user's foot. It also allows the good transmission of forces from the foot to the liner and to the outer shell (not shown), but also the absorption of stresses and frontal shocks.

The two parts 1, 2 of the liner which are made of possibly different materials, are produced independently of one another and are intended to be subsequently assembled with the tongue 3 under the conditions described below.

In a manner known per se, the tongue 3 is provided with an articulation zone 13 situated at the height of the connection zone between the lower part 1 and the upper part 2 of the liner, after assembly.

The tongue 3 according to the invention is formed of several layers and comprises in particular an outer layer 31 and at least one inner layer 32. The outer layer 31 has a reinforcing element 31a in the upper part which is attached and fixed on a support element 31b in the lower part of the tongue 3. The reinforcement element 31a can at least partially cover the top of the support element 3 lb. The two elements 31a and 31b can also be joined edge to edge.

The reinforcing element 31a is preferably made with a rigid material such as, for example, a plastic material, but could also be made of a composite material, or even of a resistant textile material. The reinforcing element 3a has a profile and a geometry adapted to the articulation zone 13. For this purpose, the reinforcing element 31a has lateral tabs 310 which follow the contours of the articulation zone 13 and which give the necessary flexibility to this area.

The support element 31b of the outer layer 31 of the tongue 3 is preferably made with a textile material, foam or plastic, with sufficient rigidity to ensure the transmission of forces from the foot to the shoe.

The inner layer 32, intended to be in direct contact with the foot is, in general, made with more flexible materials, textiles or foam, giving comfort and thermal insulation properties to the liner.

In order to improve comfort, the tongue 3 generally includes an intermediate underlay 33 of padding (visible in Figure 3) which is arranged between the outer layer 31 and the inner layer 32. The underlay of padding 33 extends at least as far as the articulation zone 13 and, in the variant shown here, extends over the entire length of the tongue 3. The padding underlayer 33 can consist of a single piece or several pieces, juxtaposed and / or superimposed, preferably made of textile material or foam.

The tongue 3 is provided, on its outer face and in its front part, in front of or optionally straddling the articulation zone 13, with a cover element 4 which ensures, in particular, the tightness of the slipper. This covering element extends laterally on the lateral sides 1a, 1b of the liner 1 which are not here joined to the tongue 3, thus leaving a free space where water or snow infiltration can occur.

The cover element 4 is made with an impermeable material, generally fabric or synthetic material. This material can be elastic, thus facilitating the deformation of the liner in order to increase the volume of the boot when the user's foot is introduced.

The cover element 4 is positioned in the lower part 1 of the boot, preferably only on the top of the foot, and covers the front part of the tongue 3.

In a variant, this sealing element 4 could extend beyond the articulation zone 13, or even go up in the upper part 2. For reasons of cost of raw materials and ease of production, but also so as not to hinder too much the evacuation of perspiration in the forefoot area, the cover element 4 is positioned only on the part of the liner located above the foot.

According to the invention, at least one of the front or rear edges of the cover element 4 (and here the two edges) has a notch respectively front 44 and rear 43. The rear notch 43 is here centered between the two tabs 310 of the reinforcing element 31a.

The front notch 44 is here of rounded shape but could be in the form of a zigzag or have any other shape. The front edge of the cover element could, if necessary, not have a notch, or extend to the front end edge of the tongue 3 following its contour.

In the embodiment of the prior art illustrated in Figure IA, the cover element 4 is attached and fixed, not only on the side edges of the lower part 1 of the liner, but also on the tongue 3 by a continuous line of seams 41 produced with a sufficiently strong thread. These seams could however be produced by means of discontinuous stitching.

These seams 41 pass through both the outer layer 31 and the inner layer 32 of the front part of the tongue 3, as illustrated in FIG. 1B, so that the strands of thread protrude inside the liner then coming into contact with the front part of the foot. However, this provision is very uncomfortable because it can cause injuries to the foot and further promote the entry of moisture around the wire through the holes in the bites.

The invention aims to solve this problem by securing the cover element 4, on the one hand on at least its front edge, with only the outer layer 31 of the tongue 3, as illustrated in Figures 2B, 3 and 4, and on the other hand on its lateral edges with the lateral flaps 1a and 1b of the lower part 1 of the liner.

In the embodiment shown here in the figures, the tongue 3 is integral with the lower part 1 of the liner only at its front end and the cover element 4, which does not extend up to at the front end of the tongue 3, covers only part of it. The rear edge of the cover element 4 provided with the notch 43 remains here free, that is to say, without being secured to the outer layer 31 of the tongue.

The cover element 4 is therefore secured to the front part of the tongue 3 by a transverse seam line 45 which passes through the cover element 4 and the only outer layer 31 of the tongue 3. In a variant, this seam line could be reduced to stitches, possibly discontinuous.

The seam line 45 extends transversely between the two lateral edges of the tongue 3 and, preferably, following the contours of the front edge of the cover element 4 whatever its shape.

On the inner face of the outer layer 31 are positioned and secured the interlayer padding underlay 33 and the inner layer 32, which generally provide sufficient thickness to cover and fill the transverse seam line 45 of the 'cover element 4. The seam 45 is no longer neither facing nor in contact with the foot of the user, because it is isolated and masked by the inner layer 32 and the interlayer underlay 33. The foot of the the user is thus protected from the aggressive nature of the seam 45.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the cover element 4 is therefore secured to the outer layer 31 of the tongue 3 by at least the transverse stitching line 45 which passes only through the outer layer 31 of the tongue 3 and extends above its internal layer 32.

The side edges of the cover element 4 are, in turn, secured to the lower part 1 of the liner by lines of side seams 42a and 42b, as illustrated in Figure 2A. These seam lines 42a, 42b are substantially parallel and are not secured to the tongue 3.

Alternatively, the side edges of the cover element 4 could be secured to the lower part 1 of the liner by any other assembly technique, such as by gluing.

The cover element 4 is thus secured to the entire liner by a seam 45 of this element with the single outer layer 31 of the tongue 3 in the front part and by at least one other separate seam 42a, 42b, at least at the level of the lateral edges 1a, 1b of the lower part 1 of the liner.

Preferably, the parallel seam lines 42a and 42b joining the cover element 4 to the lower part 1 extend continuously with the transverse seam line 45 of the cover element 4. The lines of seams 42a, 42b may possibly be superimposed, in particular at their front end, with the ends of the transverse seam line 45.

Preferably, the transverse seam line 45 of the cover element 4 follows the contours of its front notch 44. The shape of the front notch 44 and therefore of the transverse seam line 45 can be arbitrary without fear to interfere with the foot of the user, since the latter is covered and therefore masked by at least the internal layer 32 of the tongue.

In the variant illustrated by the figures, the tongue 3 comprises at least two layers, respectively external 31 and internal 32 and, preferably, three layers including a layer or underlayer of lining 33 but it could, according to variants of the invention, include additional layers without departing from the scope of the invention.

The liner according to the invention is produced with a process comprising the successive stages described below.

A first step is to secure, by means of the transverse seam line 45, the cover element 4 with the outer layer 31 to obtain the provisional tongue shown in Figure 2B.

In a second step, the padding underlay 33 is attached and fixed on the inner face of the outer layer 31, then the inner layer 32 on the inner face of the padding underlay 33. The line seams 45 is then covered, above the space intended for the foot of the user, by two internal protective layers, as illustrated in FIG. 2C.

Then secures the front end of the tongue 3 as it is shown in Figure 4, in the lower part 1 of the liner, for example by sewing;

the lower part 1 and the upper part 2 of the liner having been previously assembled with each other.

The side edges of the cover element 4, left free until then, are then joined, in particular, by the stitching lines 42a, 42b to the side edges 15a, lb of the lower part 1 of the liner, as illustrated in Figure 2A. The assembly of the covering element 4 on the liner is then finished.

The finishing step consists in bringing a liner sole under the lower part of the liner, for example, by gluing.

Claims (15)

claims 1. Inner boot for sports shoe comprising at least one lower part [1] forming a rod, and having an opening (10) for the introduction of the foot, said opening (10) being partially delimited by a tongue (3) integral with the lower part (1) and comprising at least one internal layer (32) and one external layer (31) covered with a covering element (4) ensuring sealing, characterized in that said covering element (4) is secured, at least on part of its front edge, only with the outer layer (31) of said tongue (3). 2. Slipper according to claim 1, characterized in that said cover element (4) is secured to the outer layer (31) of said tongue (3) by at least one line of seams (45). 3. Slipper according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the transverse stitching line (45) of said covering element (4) passes through the external layer (31) of said tongue and extends above its internal layer (32 ). 4. Slipper according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the side edges of said cover element (4) are secured to the side edges (la, lb) of the lower part (1) forming a rod. 5. Slipper according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the lateral edges of said covering element (4) are joined to the lateral edges (la, lb) of the lower part (1) by stitching lines (42a, 42b). 6. Slipper according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the seam lines (42a, 42b) each join the ends of the transverse seam line (45). 7. Slipper according to one of claims 4 to 6, characterized in that the stitching lines (42a, 42b) securing said cover element (4) to the lower part (1) extend continuously with the line transverse seam (45) of said cover element. 8. Slipper according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said covering element (4) consists of a layer of impermeable material. 9. Slipper according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that at least one of the front and rear edges of the cover element (4) has a notch (43, 44). 10. Slipper according to claims 2 and 9, characterized in that the transverse line of seams (45) of said cover element (4) follows the contours of its front notch (44). 11. Liner according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said inner layer (32) of the tongue (3) comprises an underlay (33) of padding. 12. Slipper according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that said tongue (3) is integral with the lower part (1) at its front end. 13. A method of manufacturing a liner according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the cover element (4) is first assembled to the tongue (3) by sewing its front edge to the outer layer (31) of said tongue. 14. Method according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the seam (41) is then covered over the front edge of the covering element (4) by the internal layer (32) of the tongue. 15. Method of manufacturing according to claims 13 or 14 characterized in that the side edges of the cover element (4) are assembled on the side edges of the lower part (1) of the liner by sewing.