IES930285A2 - Improvements in and relating to ankle protectors - Google Patents

Abstract

The ankle protector device (1, 1') to be worn on the ankle of a person, comprises an exterior shell (2, 2') and a pliable interior pad (3, 3') adapted to snugly fit over one side of the ankle with the pad adjacent the person's skin whereby the ankle protector covers the ankle. The protector device (1, 1') does not include any additional means for holding it in position, in use. Both the exterior shell (2, 2') and the interior pad (3, 3') are generally "L" shaped. The exterior shell (2, 2') is formed of material having good shock absorbing charateristics.

Description

Ankle protectors are known in the prior art but known ankle protectors require straps, for instance, or similar means to hold the protector around the ankle. Such known protectors resemble ankle support braces which provide generalised support to the ankle and protect the neighbouring ligaments from injury or aggravation of pre-existing injury. The straps or other attachment means such as velcro , for example, are awkward and time consuming to attach onto one's leg. Indeed in the case of velcro which is attached to a wearer's sock, if the sock slips down then clearly the ankle protector moves out of position and is ineffective.

The present invention seeks to alleviate the disadvantages associated with known ankle protectors.

Accordingly, the present invention provides a protector device to be worn on the ankle of a person, comprising an exterior shell and a pliable interior pad, the exterior shell being manufactured of a material having good shock absorbing characteristics and the interior pad having a cushioning effect, the interior pad being adapted to snugly fit over one side of the ankle with the interior pad adjacent the person's skin whereby the ankle protector covers the ankle.

The interior pad may be replaceable or the interior pad and exterior shell may be integrally formed.

The ankle protector according to the invention does not include any additional means for holding it in position. Initially the protector is held in place by virtue of being between the wearer's ankle and his sock, subsequently heat generated from the ankle area causes the pad to be held in position in which case, the protector is held in place both by the sock and by the heating effect.

* Velcro is a Trade Mark. <$930285 Advantageously, the angles of curvature of the ankle protector are appropriately arranged so that the protector snugly fits over and around the ankles thereby covering the vulnerable ankle area.

Ideally, the hard exterior shell is manufactured from plastics material having good impact resistance characteristics, such as Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene plastics. The interior pad may be manufactured from a polymeric material which has anti-hypo-allergenic properties such as polyethylene or polyurethane foam. The ankle protector is manufactured from light weight material and thus is comfortable to wear about one's ankles. The hard exterior shell is manufactured from material which has high impact resistance and shock absorbing characteristics. The hard exterior shell also has the advantage that it deflects an oncoming kick from for instance, a football boot by actually flicking the boot away from the ankle. However, in the event of a kick being delivered to the ankle, the shock absorbing characteristics of the hard exterior shell together with the cushioning effect of the interior pad substantially reduces the impact of the kick. Another advantage of the ankle protector is that the polymeric foam of the pad has the effect that it warms the joints and thereby helps prevent an injury. Indeed, if injury is received, the warmth assists in recovery or assists in recovery of a pre-existing injury which has been aggravated.

The invention will now be described more particularly with reference to the accompanying drawings which show, by way of example only, one embodiment of the ankle protector in accordance with the present invention. s930285 In the drawings : Figures 1 and 1a are perspective views of the hard exterior shell; Figure 2 is a side view of the interior pad; Figure 2a is a perspective plan view of the interior pad; Figure 3 and Figure 4 are perspective views of the interior pad with the hard exterior shell positioned therein; Figure 5 is a cross-sectional perspective view along the line X-X of Figure 4; and Figure 6 is a cross-sectional perspective view along the line X-X of Figure 4 with the hard exterior shell removed from the pad.

Referring to the drawings, an ankle protector in accordance with the invention is shown and is indicated generally by the reference numeral 1. Each ankle protector 1 comprises a hard exterior shell 2 and a conformable interior replaceable pad 3. Both the exterior shell 2 and the replaceable pad 3 are generally L shaped. The exterior shell 2 is manufactured from plastics material such as Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene which has good impact resistance and shock absorbing characteristics. The replaceable pad 3 is manufactured from light-weight, easy to wear, anti-hypo-allergenic polymeric material such as polyethylene or polyurethane foam. - 4 The respective shapes of the hard exterior shell 2 and the interior replaceable pad 3 are complementary so that the shell 2 fits into the replaceable pad 3. The pad 3 includes a flange 5 which sits on the shell 2 when the latter is inserted in the pad 3 and holds the shell 2 securely in place.

The hard shell 2 includes an arcuate portion 4, curved portions 6, 8 and bend portion 10.

The replaceable pad 3 includes corresponding shaped arcuate portion 7, curved portions 9, 11 and bend portion 13.

The radius of curvature of the respective arcuate portions 4 and 7 is approximately 45mm, radius of curvature of the curved portions 6 and 9 is approximately 12mm, of the curved portions 8 and 11 approximately 12.5mm, and of the respective bend portions approximately 12mm. The radius of curvature of both shell 2 and pad 3 themselves is approximately 66mm. The curvature of the shell 2 and pad 3 are specially designed so that the ankle protector 1 fits snugly over and around a wearer's ankle area.

To use the the ankle protector 1, a wearer places one ankle protector 1 over each ankle i.e. a wearer would need four ankle protectors, one to cover each ankle area. Each ankle protector 1 is worn with the pad 3 adjacent to the wearer's ankle and with the hard exterior shell 2 facing outwardly. The ankle protector 1 is worn adjacent the ankle and inside a wearer's socks so that the ankle protector 1 is between the ankle and sock. Initially, the ankle protector 1 is held in place by the sock but as heat is generated from the 8930285 wearer's ankle area, this heating creates a suction-type effect and holds the ankle protector 1 in place. If a kick from a football boot for instance, is directed towards the ankle, the shape, nature of the curvature and characteristic of the hard exterior shell 2 cause the boot to be deflected hence avoiding impact to the ankle.

However, in the event that the ankle is struck, the degree of injury will be lessened because of the shock absorbing characteristics of the exterior shell 2 and cushioning effect of the replaceable pad 3.

The ankle protector 1 also has the advantage that the shape thereof enables it to fit into the dip which generally occurs on the rim of a football boot around the ankle area allowing the ankle protector to sit on the rim of the football boot.

It will of course be understood that the invention is not limited to the specific details described herein, which are given by way of example only, and that various modifications and alterations are possible within the scope of the invention.

MACLACHLAN & DONALDSON Applicants' Agents Merrion Square DUBLIN 2. 8930285

Claims (5)

1. A protector device to be worn on the ankle of a person, comprising an exterior shell and a pliable interior pad, the exterior shell being manufactured of a material having good shock absorbing characteristics and the interior pad having a cushioning effect, the interior pad being adapted to snugly fit over one side of the ankle with the interior pad adjacent the person's skin whereby the ankle protector covers the ankle.

2. A protector device according to Claim 1 in which the device is of size to allow it to be worn inside and initially held by a person's stocking and the pad is adapted to grip onto the ankle, so that the device does not require any additional means for holding it in position on an ankle.

3. A protector device according to Claim 1 or Claim 2 wherein the radii of curvatures of the device correspond generally to the curvatures of a person's ankle so as to allow the device to be snugly fitted over and around one side of the ankle thereby covering the vulnerable ankle area.

4. A protector device according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the pad includes a flange to hold the exterior shell securely in place.

5. A protector device according substantially as herein described with reference to and as shown in the accompanying drawings.