GB2514168A

GB2514168A - Insole

Info

Publication number: GB2514168A
Application number: GB1308840.6A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Garry Franks
Original assignee: HEEL 2 TOE Ltd
Current assignee: HEEL 2 TOE Ltd
Priority date: 2013-05-16
Filing date: 2013-05-16
Publication date: 2014-11-19
Also published as: GB201308840D0

Abstract

An insole 10 for insertion into a shoe or sock, comprising a flexible base shaped to conform to the shape of a foot, characterised by at least one insert 12,14 located to contact at least one of the ball and the heel of the foot and made from a material containing at least 30% copper. Preferably one insert 12 is in contact with the heel, and one 14 with the ball of the foot. There may be two separate insert at each location, arranged along the longitudinal axis of the insole. The insole may comprise a cushioning layer and a surface layer, the inserts being received in a cut out of the surface layer whilst being supported by the cushion layer. Each insert may contain 6 grams of copper and the material may contain at least 50%, 80% or 98% copper.

Description

INSOLE

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to insoles for shoes and more particularly to Soles intended to provide comfort for the wearer and additionally relief lIvm the symptoms of arthritis.

Backgmund of the invention Insoles are typically used to cushion to the sole of the foot and work by relieving the pressure exerted on the pressure points of the foot. These are the locations where the weight of the person is distributed to the surface on which they are standing, namely the ball and heel of the foot. By cushioning these areas the reaction force and impact fit,m the other wise hard surface is spread over a larger area and time.

In addition to the above, it has been found over the centuries, though without scicntiflc cxplanation, that copper has a thcrapcutic cffcct and is bcncficial in thc trcatmcnt of the symptoms of arthritic and joint pain. Experts believe this to occur when copper comes into contact with sweat secreted through the skin, a reaction between the sweat and the copper, produces copper salts which may be reabsorbed into the skin. It has been suggested that these reabsorbed copper salts produce a medicinal effect 014 ect of the invention Since knees and ankles absorb much of the impact of daily lift, arthritic -is particularly prevalent in these joints. It would therefore be beneficial to combine two treatments aimed at reducing both the impact on these joints and the -resulting flvm arthritis.

Summary nf the invention

With a view to solving the above posed problem, the present invention provides an insole for insertion into a shoe or sock as set forth in claim 1 of the appended claims.

Preferably the insole thrther comprises an additional insert located such that, in use, one insert is in contact with the heel and the other is in contact with the ball of the foot.

The insole may comprise two separate inserts at at least one of the locations.

Preferably the insert is disc shaped.

Advantageously the base may be cut to accommodate different sizes of foot without interference with the location of an insert.

Preferably the surface of the base is marked to provide a size guide to enable the insole to be easily cut down to the correct size.

The base may include a recessed portion for receiving each insert, such that the surface of the insert is flush with thc foot contacting surface of the base.

The base may be comprised of a cushioning layer and a surface layer.

Each insert may be received in a cut-out in the surface layer and is supported by the cushioning layer.

Additionally, each insert comprises approximately 6 grams of copper.

The material may contain at least 50% copper, but more preferably 80 or 98% copper.

Bricf description of the drawings

The invention will now be described further, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing which shows a pair of insoles according to the present invention.

Detailed descrintion of the embodiment(s The figure shown in the drawing shows a plan view from above of a pair of insoles according to the present invention. The soles 10 consist of a leather upper layer 12 and a cushioning layer (obscured). The cushioning layer may be made from latex rubber or any other similar material intended to absorb shock loadings and pressure on the feet occurring when walking. The leather upper layer and the cushioning layer maybe perforated to allow the passage of air to aid breathing of the skin.

The insoles 10 are intended to be used either with or without socks. The inventor has also recognised the potential to wear the insoles inside the socks to ensure they remain in contact with the skin without preventing the wearer from wearing socks.

The insoles are intended to be cut to size. In a preferred embodiment, the leather upper or the cushioning layer is provided with a sizing chart that indicates the desired size for the insole based on the show size of the wearer. This helps the user to cut the insoles to size whilst retaining the correct anatomical shape of the foot regardless of the size chosen.

With the exception of the inserts to be described later, the insole can be considered conventional.

Thc purpose of the insert is to provide a comfortable, in fact almost unnoticeable way of maintaining copper in contact with the skin of the user/wearer. This is facilitated by providing copper discs 12 as part of the foot contacting surface of the insole.

Weight from the body is imparted to the ground through the sole of the foot at two main pressure points, the ball of the foot and the heel, weight is transferred between these two points continuously during walking. As a result locating the copper discs at these points guarantees a strong contact between the skin and the metal, and since the weight is constantly loaded and unloaded a degree of friction is produced which generates heat and gives rise to the production of sweat. As mentioned previously the reaction between sweat and copper, producing copper salts is believed to be key to the therapeutic effects observed.

A preferred feature of the insole is for the inserted discs to be flush with the surface of the insole in contact with the foot. This aids comfort. In an insole having two layers such as described above, this may be achieved by cutting or stamping a suitably shaped hole in the leather upper layer for receiving the copper disc insert. The disc may be secured to the cushioning layer exposed through the hole or cut-out in the leather upper layer. It may be secured by any suitable means, namely gluing, stitching, Velcro, or even retained in place simply by gravity.

In the preferred embodiment, four separate discs 12, 14 of copper are provided on each insole 10, two at each pressure point, namely corresponding with the ball and the heel of a foot. They are arranged in pairs, along a longitudinal axis of the insole aflowing the insole and shoc to bend about thc longitudinal axis and also about a number of horizontal axes between the two pressure regions and therefore between the pairs of inserts. It has been found that by shaping the inserts as round discs having no corners, there is no noticeable detrimental effect on the bending properties of the insole.

The two discs within each pair of inserts are themselves separated by a fillet of material of the upper leather layer. This ensures that the insole can successfully bend along a lateral access betwccn thc two discs, which is bcneficial, particularly for thc inserts located in the region of the ball of the foot.

The use of two inserts or discs 12 especially at the location conesponding to the ball of the foot is particularly beneficial when considering the adjustment available to the length of the insole. When cutting the insole 10 down to accommodate different sizes, the position of the discs 12 (and 14 depending on the amount of cut-down) must not interfere with the new shape of the insole, 10 but must remain functional and continue to provide a contact point with the ball of even a smaller foot. for this reason it remains preferable to provide a pair of discs 12 and the locations highlighted. Providing two discs serves to lengthen the contact point without affecting the comfort of flexibility of the sole to any noticeable degree.

Subjective testing has shown the inventor that the invention is particularly beneficial if the copper is kept in direct contact with the skin. With this in mind it is proposed that the insole be cut down even further than would normally be the case when used in a show, and inserted into the sock. The placement of the discs 12 and 14 again enables this to remain an option without impacting on the flexibility of the insole required when the insole is used in this way.

Claims

CLAIMS1. An insole for insertion into a shoe or sock, comprising a flexible base shaped to conform to the shape of a foot, characterised by at least one insert located such that it contacts at least one of the ball and the heel of the foot when in use and made from a material containing at least 30% copper.
2. An insole as claimed in claim 1, further comprising an additional insert located such that, in use, one insert is in contact with the heel and the other is in contact with the ball of the foot.
3. An insole as claimed in claim 2, further comprising two separate inserts at at least one of the locations.
4. An insole as claimed in claim 3, wherein the two inserts at each location are arranged sequentially along the longitudinal axis of the insole and separated a bridge portion of the base to allow the insole to bend along a lateral axis between the inserts.
5. An insole as claimed any preceding claim wherein the insert is disc shaped.
6. An insole as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the base may be cut to accommodate different sizes of foot without interference with the location of an insert.
7. An insole as claimed in claim 6, wherein the surface of the base is marked to provide a size guide to enable the insole to be easily cut down to the correct size.
8. An insole as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the base includes a recessed portion for receiving each insert, such that the surface of the insert is flush with the foot contacting surface of the base.
9. An insole as claimed in claimS, wherein the base is comprised of a cushioning layer and a surface layer.
10. An insole as claimed in claim 9, wherein each insert is received in a cut-out in the surface layer and is supported by the cushioning layer.
11. An insoc as claimed in any preceding claim wherein each insert comprises approximately 6 grams of copper.
12. An insole as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the material contains at least 50% copper.
13. An insole as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the material contains at least 80% copper.
14. An insole as claimed in any preceding claim wherein the contains at least 98% copper.