JP2015519934A - Convertible shoes - Google Patents

Abstract

  The convertible shoe comprises an insole, a molded upper, and an upper portion having a lower side having a lower attachment means, an insertion portion having an upper attachment means and a lower attachment means, an upper attachment means and a bottom of the bottom. And having a bottom. The upper attachment means at the bottom and the upper attachment means at the insertion part are the same, and the lower attachment means at the upper part and the lower attachment means at the insertion part are the same. High-heeled shoes so that the top can be attached directly to the bottom to create a low heel appearance, or the top is attached to the intermediate insert and the intermediate insert is attached to the bottom A plurality of the upper attachment means are dimensioned, spaced apart and configured to be removably attached in correspondence with the lower attachment means. The bottom may be a variety of shapes, allowing the low heel version of the shoe to convert from a dress version to a sports version. The lower attachment includes protruding protrusions that follow the curved outer periphery of the shoe, and the upper attachment includes a peripheral groove that mates with the protrusions. The interlocking protrusion and groove curve shapes accommodate multidimensional forces on the shoe and hold the components together. The top heel end, insert, and bottom have a curved or recessed cross section to provide a retaining surface and remove the shoe component.

Description

  The invention relates to footwear having removable and replaceable inserts and soles to convert low heel shoes to higher heel shoes or to convert casual shoes to sports shoes.

  There are many inventions related to shoes with inserts added to change from low heeled shoes or from shoes without heels to higher heeled shoes, and many inventions related to shoes with removable and replaceable soles. US Pat. No. 7,752,695 issued to Kaufman et al. On July 13, 2010 describes a shoe having an insertable and removable wedge that can be inserted into the openable and closable space between the insole and the sole of the heel of the shoe. About. The invention relates to temporary inserts for use during the finishing process, but it teaches the use of removable inserts to change the heel height of the shoe.

  US Patent Application Publication No. US2003 / 0200675, published to Gross on Oct. 30, 2003, describes a pair of sandals with or without a plurality of inserts or core modules to adjust the height of a shoe. -Flop) type shoes are taught. All core modules are of uniform thickness and the overall height of the shoe is changed, but the height of the heel relative to the toe is not changed. The core modules are positioned by corresponding holes and rows of insertable pins and are held together by engaging the hook and loop material.

  US Pat. No. 3,902,259, issued September 2, 1975 to Cracco, discloses a sandal having interchangeable side plates and a sole. The side plate and sole can be removed and replaced through a plurality of rows of recessed grooves and positioned with corresponding protrusions and holes. The side plates and sole are modified to change the appearance of the sandals, and in one embodiment, the flat sole is replaced with a sole with a wedge heel so that a low heel is converted to a higher heel. be able to. Cracco does not disclose the use of intermediate insertable components to change low heels to high heels, but relates to multiple components with complex locking mechanisms.

  US Pat. No. 5,317,822 issued to Johnson on June 7, 1994 relates to athletic shoes having a replaceable wearing sole or sole bottom. The goal is to allow the user to change the bottom to the best fit for the surface of the athletics play area. The sole is positioned by a corresponding row of knobs and knob holes to align the components, and the sole is a row of lock fittings having velcro hook and loop material and locking pins around the periphery of the sole. Is held in a fixed place. US Pat. No. 7,549,237, issued June 23, 2009 to Gallegos, discloses a shoe having removable and replaceable cushions and straightening plates. Cushions and straightening plates are held in place by corresponding studs and holes, or alternatively by hook and loop materials such as Velcro. Gallegos does not change the height of the heel or the bottom of the sole.

  US Patent Application Publication No. 2009/0193684, published August 6, 2009 to Diamond, is convertible with a removable and replaceable insole upper and sole with various height and style soles and heels To teach special shoes. The components are arranged by a series of corresponding protrusions and recesses and are suitably held by corresponding hook and loop materials such as Velcro, along with a series of snaps such as fasteners around the outsole. Diamond discloses a heel that changes height and style, but does not use an insert placed between the insole and the sole to change the height or heel of the shoe.

  High-heeled shoes are fashionable but often not comfortable. High heels are not comfortable, especially when worn for long periods of time. For this reason, it is very common for women to carry an extra pair of shoes to change when they wear high heels for an extended period of time. Women often wear a pair of heelless footwear or often tennis shoes, work in the morning, and then change to higher dressed shoes in the office. Often, when wearing high heels in the evening, women also carry a more comfortable pair of shoes, such as footwear without ballet heels or flip flaps for later wear. It is not uncommon to see a woman with bare feet after wearing high heels for a long time. For this reason, there is a need for shoes that are fashionable and can be easily converted from high to low heels and shoes that can be easily converted into sports shoes.

  The invention is a convertible shoe comprising an insole having an insole and an upper, an insertion portion, and a sole. There is a standard attachment that connects the insole to the insert and the insert to the sole. The insole is attached directly to the sole to form a heelless footwear or low heel shoe, and an insert is added between the insole and the sole to form a high heel shoe. One variation may include two or more inserts to form a plurality of variable height shoes. Other variations may include a plurality of different bottom shapes at the bottom of the sole to form different types of shoes with the same upper, such as dress shoes and golf shoes, with interchangeable sole bottoms.

  A preferred embodiment of the convertible shoe is a wedge style shoe. The wedge has three individual components: a top component consisting of an insole, an intermediate component consisting of an insert, and a bottom component consisting of a sole. This wedge is about 4 inches tall when all three components are secured together, and about 1-2 inches lower when the intermediate insert is removed and the insole is attached directly to the sole Even heels. The upper insole is always the top of the shoe and the bottom sole is always the bottom of the shoe. This version of the shoe is available in women with various style uppers.

  The convertible shoe of the present invention also comprises a sports shoe version with only an upper insole and a bottom sole. This version features multiple convertible bottom soles with different bottoms and converts from tennis shoes or leather shoes to golf shoes by replacing the bottom sole. There are at least two different versions of this sport shoe, one is a men's wingtip or dress shoe that can be converted to a golf shoe by changing the sole and bottom, the other version is a golf shoe A tennis shoe for women or men to be converted. This version of the shoe is available in versions and styles for men, women and children.

  One of the technical difficulties in forming a removable attachment for a shoe component is easily and conveniently removable while at the same time withstanding the dynamic forces on the shoe and keeping the component securely attached. It should be strong enough. The present invention accomplishes this by using an attachment mechanism comprising a pair of protruding peripheral protrusions and a recessed peripheral groove and an attachment material. The peripheral protrusion is on the lower side of the upper component and the recessed groove is on the upper side of the lower component. Both components have attachment material. The attachment material holds the two components together, and the pair of peripheral protrusions and peripheral grooves allow the attachment to withstand the force on the shoe and keep the components securely attached. The combination of the pair of protrusions and grooves and attachment material indicates that in some cases it is stable so that it is difficult to separate the components. This gives the insole flared form both an additional element with a recessed section in the sole and insert, and an attractive appearance behind the shoe and a convenient handgrip that holds components for attachment and removal A (expanding) cross section is formed.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a convertible shoe having an insole attached to the insert and an insert attached to the sole.

It is a decomposition | disassembly side view of the convertible shoes which shows the insole of the position attached to the insertion part and the insertion part of the position attached to the sole.

It is an upper surface perspective view of a 1st embodiment of an upper attachment which shows a slot and an upper attachment field.

It is a bottom perspective view of the first embodiment of the lower attachment, showing the protruding protrusion and the lower attachment region.

FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view from the underside of the convertible shoe showing the first embodiment of the lower attachment of the insole and the insert and the sole bottom.

It is a disassembled perspective view from the upper part of the convertible shoes which shows the 1st embodiment of the insole, an insertion part, and the upper attachment of a sole.

It is a fragmentary sectional view which shows the peripheral protrusion part and attachment material which were inserted in the peripheral groove | channel.

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of a second embodiment of an upper attachment showing a groove, a pointed recess, and an upper attachment region.

FIG. 6 is a bottom perspective view of a second embodiment of a lower attachment showing a protruding protrusion, a protruding pointed protrusion, and a lower attachment region.

It is a disassembled perspective view from the lower side of the convertible shoes which shows 2nd Embodiment of the lower attachment of an insole and an insertion part, and the sole bottom.

It is a disassembled perspective view from the upper part of the convertible shoes which shows the insole inner bottom and 2nd Embodiment of an insertion part and the upper attachment of a sole.

FIG. 6 is a rear view of a convertible shoe showing a recessed cross section of the heel of the sole and insert and a flared cross section of the heel of the insole.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a convertible shoe showing an insole directly attached to the sole of the low heel version of the shoe.

FIG. 6 is an exploded side view of a convertible shoe showing the insole in an arrangement directly attached to the sole.

It is a bottom view of the bottom of the bottom part of the sole of convertible shoes.

It is a bottom view of the bottom of a golf shoe version.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a different embodiment of a convertible shoe upper.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a different embodiment of a convertible shoe upper.

FIG. 5 is a detail of a convertible shoe insole and a heel ribbon clip of the sole.

  Detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. However, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, and the invention may be embodied in various other forms. As such, the specific structural and functional details disclosed herein are not intended to be limiting, but merely as a basis for claims and as a representative basis for teaching those skilled in the art to use the present invention in various ways. Should be interpreted.

  The convertible shoe 100 goes from a low heel to a high heel by simply adding the insert 30 between the upper insole 10 and the bottom sole 50. In a preferred embodiment, the convertible shoe 100 consists of three different components, a top consisting of an insole 10 with an insole 11 and a shaped upper 60, a middle consisting of an insert 30, and a bottom consisting of a sole 50. It is. The plurality of components are attached by uniform attachment means, described in detail below, where the insole 10 is attached directly to the sole 50 for low heels or the insert 30 for shoes with high heels. To be included. As an alternative version, the preferred embodiment has a plurality of inserts each having a uniform thickness of about 1 inch thick at the back portion, thereby increasing the heel from 1 inch to 4 inches thick by 1 inch. A shoe can be formed. In the second embodiment, the insole 10 is attached directly to the sole 50, but there are many changeable soles 50 that change the plurality of bottom components 52 at the bottom portion, thereby changing the sole 50 to make the shoe The type of can be changed. This allows, for example, a change from dress shoes to golf shoes. The details of these embodiments are described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the convertible shoe 100 includes an insole 10, an insertion portion 30, and a sole 50. The insole 10 is located at the top of the insole 10 and has an insole 11 on which a wearer's foot rests. There is an insole toe tip 13 and an insole heel end 14 corresponding to the wearer's heel and toe and corresponding to standard footwear terminology. There is an insole peripheral portion 15 that surrounds the peripheral portion of the insole 10 and corresponds to an object generally called an outsole. The insole 10 also has a bottom surface 12, which includes an attachment component for the bottom surface 20 described below. The insertion portion 30 has an upper surface 31, a bottom surface 32, a toe tip 33 of the insertion portion, a heel end 34 of the insertion portion, and a peripheral portion 35 of the insertion portion which is an outer surface of the insertion portion 30. The bottom surface 32 of the insertion portion includes an attachment component of the bottom surface 20 described below. The upper surface 31 of the insertion portion includes an attachment component of the upper surface 40 described below. The sole 50 includes an upper surface 51, a lower side (often referred to herein as a bottom (tread) 52, referred to), a toe tip 53 of the sole, a heel end 54 of the sole, and a perimeter 55 or outer surface of the sole. Or it has an outsole. The upper surface 51 of the sole includes an attachment component of the upper surface 40 as described below. The convertible shoe 100 has the same bottom surface 12 of the insole and the bottom surface 32 of the insertion portion, the top surface 31 of the insertion portion and the top surface 51 of the sole are the same, and both bottom surfaces have the same bottom surface 20 attachment component. , Both top surfaces are designed to have the same top surface 40 attachment component. And, as will be described below, the attachment component on the bottom surface 20 corresponds to the attachment component on the top surface 40 so that the insole 10 can be attached directly to the sole 50 to form a low heel shoe or insert 30 and the insert 30 is attached to the sole 50 to form a high heel shoe.

  As best seen in FIG. 2, the insole 10 has an essentially uniform thickness between the insole 11 and the bottom surface 12, ranging from the toes 13 of the insole to the heel 14 of the insole. The insole 10 of all modifications of the shoe 100 has a uniform thickness. In a preferred embodiment, the insert 10 is 7.0 mm thick, but can be between about 0.25 and 0.75 inches thick. The insertion portion 30 has a wedge shape between the top surface 31 and the bottom surface 32, which is thin at the toe 33 of the insertion portion and thick at the heel 34 of the insertion portion. The insertion part 30 of all the modifications of the shoe 100 has a wedge-shaped thickness. The insert 30 of the preferred embodiment has a thickness of approximately 7 mm at the toe 33 of the insert and a thickness of approximately 45 mm at the heel 54 of the insert. The thickness of the insert toe tip 33 is typically approximately 0.25 inches thick, but the thickness at the heel end 34 of the insert ranges between about 1 inch and about 3 inches. It is. The sole 50 shown in FIG. 2 has a wedge shape between the top surface 51 and the bottom 52 and is thin at the toe 53 of the sole and thicker at the heel 54 of the sole. In a preferred embodiment, the thickness of the sole 50 is about 7 mm at the toe 53 of the sole and about 58 mm at the heel 54 of the sole. The thickness of the sole 50 at the sole toe 53 is typically about 0.5 inches, but the thickness at the sole heel end 54 is 0.5 inches in the convertible sports version shown below, The high heel version can range between about 3 inches. 1 and 2, the shoe toe tips (13, 33, and 53) are also slightly curved upward. This is common among shoes and is referred to as “kick-up”. Kick-up is necessary for the wearer to move smoothly on the toes of the foot and for the wearer of the shoe 100 to walk comfortably and normally.

A first embodiment of the attachment means is shown in FIGS. The bottom attachment 20 is shown in FIG. The bottom surface attachment 20 is the same as that on the bottom surface 12 of the insole 10 and the bottom surface 32 of the insertion portion 30. The bottom surface attachment 20 has a toe tip 23 and a heel end 24, and includes a protruding peripheral protrusion 21 and a lower attachment region 25 located in the peripheral protrusion 21. Peripheral protrusion 21 has an essentially rectangular cross-section, is about 0.25 inch wide, and is about 0.25 inch thick, but this size is Slightly changeable. In a preferred embodiment, the peripheral protrusion 21 is 8.0 mm at the top and gradually tapers to 8.3 mm at the bottom, and the peripheral protrusion 21 is attached to the surface 20. The height of the peripheral protrusion 21 is 6.0 mm. There is a sheet of attachment material 26 located in the lower attachment region 25. In one variation, the attachment material 26 is a standard hook and loop material commonly known as velcro, and in other embodiments, the attachment material 26 is branded 3-M ^™ Dual Lock ^™ fastener. ) Is a mushroom velcro sold as. This material is known as mushroom velcro because its cross-section resembles a mushroom with a head protruding from the stem. When the two corresponding sheets of mushroom velcro are pressed, the head is fitted into the space formed by the stem, creating a very firm engagement. Attachment material 26 is adhered to attachment region 25 by gluing or other conventional well-known means.

  The top surface attachment 40 is shown in FIG. 3 and is the same as that on the top surface of the insertion portion 30 and the sole 50. The upper surface attachment 40 has a toe tip 43 and a heel end 44, and includes a peripheral groove 41 and an upper attachment region 45 located on the upper surface in the peripheral groove 41. The peripheral groove 41 on the upper surface 40 corresponds to the peripheral protrusion 21 on the bottom surface 20, and the peripheral protrusion 21 protrudes downward and fits in the peripheral groove 41. The peripheral groove 41 has a generally rectangular cross-section, is approximately 0.25 (1/4) inch wide, and is approximately 0.25 (1/4) inch thick. In the most preferred embodiment, the groove 41 is 8.2 mm wide at the bottom, 8.5 mm wide at the top, and 6.0 mm deep. There is a sheet of attachment material 46 attached to the upper attachment region 45 by gluing or other well-known attachment means. In one variation, the attachment material 46 is a standard hook and loop material commonly known as velcro, and in other embodiments, the attachment material 46 is mushroom velcro. Clearly, the upper attachment material 46 corresponds to the lower attachment material 26, both are standard hook and loop materials, or both are mushroom velcro.

  As shown in the cutaway view of FIG. 7, the peripheral protrusion 21 on the bottom surface 20 is aligned and fits with the peripheral groove 41 on the top surface 40. Modern molding techniques allow for very accurate molding, and the peripheral protrusion 21 is also configured to be approximately accurately dimensioned to fit within the peripheral groove 41 accurately. When properly molded, the two components interlock together to form a relatively stable attachment. When the peripheral protrusion 21 is inserted into the groove 41, the upper attachment material 46 engages the lower attachment material 26 and fastens the two components together.

  When a person wearing a shoe walks, various pressures and forces are applied to the shoe. Obviously, the person who wears the shoe will step on the shoe and apply downward pressure to form a vertical or vertical force, and if the person who wears steps forward and stops with the upper, an upward pressure is formed. Is done. This is known as the peel force in the shoe making and design field because these forces cause the various layers of the shoe to peel away. There is also dynamic power when the person wearing it walks with shoes. Many people step on their heels first, which creates a positive force that slides the various layers of shoes (any shoe) on each other. This is different with high heel shoes, where people typically step on the toes of the foot. Everyone walks differently, and many twist their feet slightly while walking, creating a twisting force. There is also a lateral force and the shoe components slide on each other. Many people remove their dragging feet when walking forward and also have a slight twisting motion from the toes of the foot to the toes. This creates a rotational force on and near the front of the shoe. These various forces are known as shear forces. The combination of shear and peel forces and the fact that they are dynamic forces make it difficult to keep the individual components of the shoe attached.

  The pair of attachment materials 26 and 46 prevent the components from being separated by up and down or peeling force, and the arrangement of the peripheral protrusion 21 in the peripheral groove 41 is designed in consideration of all other shearing forces. The pair of protrusions 21 and grooves 41 are formed just inside the periphery of the component, so that they can withstand lateral and torsional forces, so that the shoe components can be in a coupled state. to be certain. As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 and FIGS. 8 and 9, the shoe components have a non-uniform shape and the widest part of the shoe is near the toes where the toes of the wearer's toes rest on the insole 11. And the shape that the heel 13 direction is the narrowest is the same for most shoes. This non-uniform configuration allows the pair of protrusions 21 and grooves 41 to capture all of the various non-vertical shear forces on the shoe 100. The grooves 41 and the protrusions 21 are at a uniform distance from the peripheral portions 15, 35, or 55 of the insole 10, the insertion portion 30, and the sole 50, respectively. This distance ranges from 0.125 (1/8 ") inch to 0.5 (1/2") inch and depends on the size of the shoe 100 and the configuration of the protrusion 21 and the groove 41. This prevents material overlap and allows the material outside the groove 41 to withstand lateral and reverse shear forces on the components of the shoe 100. This is an improvement over Gross and other prior art that includes multiple alignment and attachment posts that do not take into account the dynamic nature of the force on the shoe.

A second embodiment of the attachment means is shown in FIGS. A bottom attachment 20 is shown in FIG. The bottom surface attachment 20 is the same as the bottom surface of the insole 10 and the insertion portion 30. The bottom surface attachment 20 has a toe tip 23 and a heel end 24, and includes a peripheral protrusion 21, a plurality of downward protrusions 22, and a lower attachment region 25 positioned in the peripheral protrusion 21. In the lower attachment region 25, there is a sheet of attachment material 26 located around the protruding protrusion 22. In one variation, the attachment material 26 is a standard hook and loop material commonly known as velcro, and in other embodiments, the attachment material 26 is branded 3-M ^™ Dual Lock ^™ fastener. Mushroom velcro). The bottom surface attachment 20 of the second embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment, but a protrusion 22 protruding downward is added.

  The upper surface attachment 40 of the second embodiment is shown in FIG. 9 and is the same as the upper surface of the insertion portion 30 and the sole 50. The upper surface attachment 40 has a toe tip 43 and a heel end 44, and includes a peripheral groove 41, a plurality of rows of concave portions 42, and an upper attachment region 45 located on the upper surface in the peripheral groove 41. The row of recesses 42 is approximately 6.2 mm in diameter, although the actual diameter may vary slightly depending on the size and configuration of the shoe 100. In general, there is one recess 42 near the heel edge, one recess in the neck or narrowest part of the shoe, and one recess 42 behind the thumb ball in the foot area, There may be two recesses 42 in the vicinity of the most applied pressure of the thumb ball, and one recess 42 near the toes. The depth of the concave portion 42 corresponds to the height of the protrusion 22 that has been changed according to the position. The recess 42 at the neck is about 6 mm deepest, while the recess near the toes is shallowest about 4 mm. Although the upper surface attachment 40 of 2nd Embodiment is the same as that of 1st Embodiment, the several recessed part 42 of 1 row is added. The peripheral groove 41 on the top surface 40 corresponds to the peripheral protrusion 21 on the bottom surface 20, and the peripheral protrusion 21 protrudes downward to fit the peripheral groove 41. The pointed projections 22 of the second embodiment on the bottom surface 20 are sized and arranged to fit within the plurality of rows of recesses 42 on the top surface 40 of the second embodiment. A projection 22 near the toe, two projections 22 located below the thumb ball of the wearer's foot, one projection 22 located behind the thumb ball in the foot region, one projection 22 located at the constriction, There is a protrusion 22 located near the heel. The constriction protrusion 22 is the highest, about 6 mm. This takes into account the need for special straight protection at that location. With modern molding technology, the peripheral protrusion 21 is formed to fit the peripheral groove 41 almost accurately, and the peripheral protrusion 21 is fitted in a position inside the peripheral groove 41. When properly molded, the two components are mated together to form a relatively stable attachment. There is a sheet of attachment material 46 located in the upper attachment region 45. In one variation, the attachment material 46 is a standard hook and loop material commonly known as velcro, and in other embodiments, the attachment material 46 is mushroom velcro. Clearly, the upper attachment material 46 corresponds to the lower attachment material 26, both of which are standard hook and loop materials or both are mushroom velcro.

  In a preferred embodiment, the component, insole 10, insert 30 and sole 50 are formed of plastic that has been extruded by processes well known in the art. The component can be formed from a variety of molded plastic materials, but is not limited to EVA plastic, PE plastic, PU plastic or any other molded plastic material well known in the art. The upper insole 10 has a shoe upper 60 that holds the foot against the insole 11. The shoe upper 60 can be any number of common styles and variations, ranging from simple toe straps to more elaborate wrapping shoe uppers. A pair of different variations are shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, but any style of women's shoe upper 60 is possible and within the concept of the invention. There are also male versions with interchangeable soles 50 and bottoms 52, with the upper 60 in a wide variety of male styles. Shoe upper 60 may be made of any common material for making shoe uppers, including cloth, leather, and various other natural or artificial materials. Upper 60 is attached to insole 10 by well known conventional means including, but not limited to, sawing and gluing. Visible outer peripheries of the upper insole 10, the intermediate insert 30 and the bottom sole 50 are covered with an upholstery or other decorative material to form a decorative and stylish shoe. For example, a common overlay for wedge shoes is cork. The underside or bottom (tread) 52 of the bottom sole 50 may be any type of conventional shoe bottom sole material, from artificial and plastic to leather.

  Referring now to FIG. 12, which is a rear view of the convertible shoe 100, the heel end 14 of the insole 10 has a slightly flared cross section and the end near the insole 11 is near the bottom surface 12. It is wider than the end. The flared cross-section forms a grip surface and allows the user to grip the heel end 14 of the insole 10 with one hand. The heel end 34 of the insertion portion 30 of the insertion portion 30 has a recessed cross section to form a convenient grip area. The sole heel end 54 also has a recessed cross section to form a convenient grip area. This allows the user to grip the heel end 14 of the flared insole with one hand and firmly hold the recessed sole heel end 54 with the other hand to pull the component apart.

  The attachment means described above is designed to stably hold and hold the components (insole 10, insert 30 and sole 50) and to suppress the dynamic force of walking. The present design shows that the combination of the pair of attachment materials 26 and 46 and the pair of peripheral projections 21 and peripheral grooves 41 has sufficient holding force to hold the components in a coupled state during walking. . Unfortunately, the resulting bond force makes it difficult to separate the components. The heel end 14 of the flared insole is designed to provide a handgrip to the heel end 14, and the heel end 34 of the concave insert and the concave sole end 54 form a handgrip that is worn by the wearer. Designed to hold and allow components to be released. The flared and concave ends are not only functional, but add additional style elements to the convertible shoe 100. When all three components are together, the user grasps the flared insole's heel end 14 with one hand and the recessed section of the sole heel end 54 with the other hand and pulls the component apart. be able to. At this position, the sole 50 is removed from the insertion portion 30 or the insertion portion 30 is separated from the insole 10. If these two components are separated, the user can repeat the process with the remaining two components.

  The main purpose of the convertible shoe 100 is to allow a change from a high heel to a lower heel for comfort. FIGS. 13 and 14 show a low heel version of the convertible shoe 100 without the addition of an insert 30. In this version, the insole 10 is attached directly to the sole 50. FIG. 1 shows a convertible shoe 100 of a high heel version and FIG. 13 shows the same shoe of a low heel version. These figures show a sole 50 having a heel 54 that is slightly thicker than the toe 53. The heel 54 and toe 53 of the sole 50 are approximately the same thickness, and it is possible to form a heel-free style shoe, and within the concept of the invention. Due to the structure of the peripheral groove 41, the sole should be at least 1 inch thick to accommodate the groove 41 and still retain sufficient strength. FIG. 14 shows a perspective view of the insole 10 in a position to be attached to the sole 50 for a low version shoe. FIG. 14 shows a first embodiment that does not include protrusions 22 and recesses 42, but it is also possible to use a second embodiment with protrusions 22 and recesses 42 for a low version shoe 100. FIG. 6 shows a shoe 100 with an insert 30 to form a high heel version of the shoe 100, and FIG. 14 shows the same shoe 100 without the insert 30 to form a low heel version of the shoe 100.

  It is possible to use a variety of different bottoms 52 on the sole 50 and are within the concept of the invention. In one configuration shown in FIG. 16, the bottom 52 includes a golf spike. In this embodiment, the user has one insole 10 and two bottom soles 50 with an upper 60. One bottom sole 50 has a bottom of a standard shoe sole as shown in FIG. 15, and the other bottom sole 50 comprises a golf shoe sole with spikes as shown in FIG. In this variation of the shoe 100, the sole 50 as described above has a relatively uniform thickness, which is generally necessary for sports shoes and is generally common for men's shoes. This allows the user to wear the same pair of shoes for golf and non-golf wear. Other combinations include a dressy leather artificial leather bottom 52 and a sports or tennis shoe style bottom 52 that allows the wearer to convert from dress shoes to casual shoes.

  FIG. 19 shows a removable bow ribbon 70. The butterfly ribbon 70 is attached to the upper 60 by a clip 76 attached to the butterfly ribbon 70 and slides into a tab 62 attached to the upper 60. In a preferred embodiment, the tab 62 is attached to the upper at two ends, leaving a slip space 63 in between, allowing the bow ribbon clip 76 to slide in, allowing the bow ribbon 70 to be attached to the upper 60. To. In one variation, the butterfly ribbon clip 76 includes a spring that allows easy opening of the clip and a plurality of teeth on the clip 76 that ensure that the butterfly ribbon 70 does not slide off the tab 62. including. It is possible to use any decorative feature or heel jewelery on the butterfly ribbon 70 and the tab 62 to attach the decorative feature. Heel jewelry can be made in a wide variety of configurations from flowers to metal letters, enabling personalization of shoes. The embodiment shown in FIG. 19 shows a tab 62 attached to the upper, but it is possible to attach the tab 62 to the sole 50 or the insert 30 and is within the concept of the invention. This allows the shoe 100 owner to fully personalize the shoe 100 with various decorative features.

  The present invention is well adapted to carry out the objects and maintain both the described objects and advantages, as well as other benefits inherent thereto. While the invention is illustrated, described, and defined with reference to specific embodiments of the invention, such references are not intended to be limiting on the invention and such limitations are inferred. Shouldn't. The illustrated and described embodiments of the invention are exemplary only, and are not exhaustive of the scope of the invention. As a result, the present invention is intended to be limited only to the intent and scope of the claims, and provides full recognition to all equivalents.

Claims (12)

Convertible shoes,
An upper portion having an insole, an upper, and a lower attachment means;
An intermediate insert having upper attachment means and lower attachment means;
An upper attachment means and a bottom having a bottom,
The lower attachment means of the upper part and the lower attachment means of the intermediate insertion part are the same,
The upper attachment means of the intermediate insertion portion and the upper attachment means of the bottom portion are the same,
High-heeled shoes so that the top can be attached directly to the bottom to create a low heel appearance, or the top is attached to the intermediate insert and the intermediate insert is attached to the bottom A convertible shoe sized, spaced and configured such that a plurality of the upper attachment means can be removably attached correspondingly to the lower attachment means. The lower attachment means has a protruding peripheral protrusion and a lower attachment material,
The upper attachment means has a recessed peripheral groove and an upper attachment material,
The upper attachment material is combined with the lower attachment material to hold the lower side firmly on the upper side,
The convertible shoe of claim 1, wherein the peripheral protrusion is sized and configured to fit within the peripheral groove to create a secure but removable attachment. The lower attachment has a non-uniform curved outer periphery, the peripheral protrusion is spaced from the outer periphery by a uniform distance, and the peripheral protrusion is provided with a non-uniform curved shape,
The upper attachment has a non-uniform curved outer periphery, and the peripheral groove is spaced a uniform distance from the outer periphery to provide a non-uniform curved shape in the peripheral groove
A convertible shoe according to claim 2. The shoe is subjected to vertical peel and lateral shear forces;
When attached, the attachment material is adapted to withstand the peel force;
The convertible shoe according to claim 4, wherein the peripheral protrusion fits in the peripheral groove so as to withstand the shearing force. The convertible shoe according to claim 2, wherein the upper attachment material and the lower attachment material are hook and loop materials. The convertible shoe according to claim 2, wherein the upper attachment material and the lower attachment material are mushroom velcro. The lower attachment means further includes a plurality of downward projecting protrusions, and the upper attachment means further includes a plurality of recesses,
The convertible shoe according to claim 2, wherein the plurality of recesses are dimensioned to be connected to correspond to the plurality of protrusions, and are separated from each other. The lower attachment means further includes a plurality of downward projecting protrusions, and the upper attachment means further includes a plurality of recesses,
The plurality of recesses are dimensioned to be connected corresponding to the plurality of protrusions, spaced apart, and configured.
The convertible shoe according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of protrusions fit into the plurality of recesses to withstand the shear force. Further comprising a plurality of bottoms having a plurality of different bottoms,
The convertible shoe of claim 1, wherein the top can be attached to one of the plurality of bottoms to provide a shoe for different applications. The upper has toe tips and heel ends, the upper portion has toe tips and heel ends, the intermediate insert has toe tips and heel ends, and the bottom has toe tips and heel ends. Have
The upper heel end has an expanding cross section to provide a grip area, and the intermediate insert heel end has a recessed cross section to provide a grip area, and The convertible shoe of claim 1, wherein the heel end has a recessed cross section to provide a grip area. The convertible shoe according to claim 1, wherein the upper can be configured in any shoe style. An attachment tab attached to the heel end of the upper;
The convertible shoe according to claim 1, wherein the attachment tab has an attachment slot for attachment of a plurality of heel jewelry.

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