JPS6377403A - Parabolic bent shoe sole - Google Patents

Abstract

SHOE SOLES A shoe sole (l4) having at its bottom surface (l4a) a curvilinear flex groove (24) located at the narrowing region (22) forwardly of the wider region (20) of the shoe sole and extending from the medial side (24b) to the lateral side (24a) in a forwardly oriented arc having its forwardmost portion (24c) offset toward the medial side (24b), to underlie the inner space of the foot forwardly of the metatarsal heads and rearwardly of the phalangeal portions that serve for surface engagement.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Field of Application) This invention relates to footwear, and more particularly to a sole structure for a multi-directional toe shoe.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Shoe soles are designed to take advantage of the natural behavior of the foot's structure during walking, and/or to modify or improve the behavior of the foot that is defective in some respect. Over the years there have been many shapes given to the soles.

It is known that the human foot is a complex arrangement of bones, wings, ligaments, and muscles that produce a series of cooperating lateral and longitudinal movements during use. Although much is currently known about these foot movements, our understanding of them is still incomplete. Furthermore, because each person's feet are quite different from those of others, efforts are constantly being made to improve footwear to optimize walking action. Nevertheless, since shoes are mass-produced for practical reasons, it is not at all possible to accommodate the variety of particularities of individual shoes.

It is an object of this invention to provide a special sheath structure to assist in matching different individual feet into mass produced shoes.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention increases the adaptability of the shoe to the changing characteristics of an individual's foot movements by allowing for proper weight transfer at any forward angle throughout the gait cycle. An object of the present invention is to provide a shoe having a novel sole structure. The almost infinite number of directions of weight transfer from the shoe allows for undue toe bias to the particularities of a particular foot. Proper toe depression accommodates individual changes in the alignment of the bones of the forefoot structure and aids in extension of the phalanges in toe depression.

The new shoe has a special curved flex groove in the sole that extends in a forward arc from the lateral side to the medial side and forward of the widest part of the sole. This curving groove lies anterior to the metatarsal heads and beneath the falx bone, ie, the "medial space" behind the lateral end of the phalanges that engages the ground. The foremost apex of the groove is offset toward the medial side of the sole. The radius of the flexion groove rotates shear forces in the forefoot surrounded during foot inversion! & Understand.

These and other objects, advantages and features of the present invention will become apparent when the following specification is studied in conjunction with the drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now specifically to the drawings, the present invention is illustrated in the form of a casual shoe having an upper portion 12 secured around the periphery of a sole member 14 . The sole has a lower ground engaging surface 14- and an upper foot engaging surface 14b.

An inner sole (not shown) or other conventional component may be used as desired in conjunction with upper surface 14b.

The shoe has a conventional heel portion 16 that accommodates the area beneath the foot of the foot, and a narrow intermediate portion 18 that lies beneath the top of the foot.

The sole now widens in the conventional manner towards the front of the shoe to its widest point below the metatarsal head of the coccygeal structure. The forward-most part n of the sole then narrows from this widest part and lies beneath the phalanges of the foot.

A special curved ridge begins just in front of the widest nodule, as is the front of the metatarsal heads. In particular, it is directly beneath the "inner space" of the foot, which exists between the metatarsal heads and the anterior ground-engaging portion of the stigma. This curved groove is located under the posterior phalange.

This groove extends around the sole, between the lateral sides 24a and the intermediate side 24b, in an arcuate path that projects from these two lateral curves to the front of the sole. The forwardmost apex portion 24c of the groove is offset from the center of the sole toward the medial side, so that it is slightly toward the center of the sole from the big toe. This special groove allows weight transfer to an almost infinite number of forward bends during walking.

The cross-sectional shape of the groove is preferably smoothly curved, with a concave, generally semicircular curve (Fig. 1) at its uppermost point, and two convex grooves in the distal part. The melt spreads out and covers 14 m of the sole surface of the shoe.

The curving shape of the grooves from side to side adds volume to the grooves and aids in flexibility, allowing the collar to extend further during toe-off.

The ability of the curvature of the flex groove to direct an almost infinite number of forward motion directions in Casual Shiraz allows for adequate weight transfer throughout the entire gait cycle. The radius of the flexion groove is surrounded during inversion of the foot. Handles rotational shear forces in the forefoot. The depth of the grooves varies somewhat.

When used in conjunction with a single-temperature sole, the flex groove becomes considerably deeper due to the groove's greater surface area, and its greater surface area also results in increased flexibility.

(Effects of the Invention) When the sole is used for walking, the normal basic pattern of the foot for engagement with the ground is shown in FIG.

As is known, the series of fractures begins at the eye 25a, progresses towards the metatarsal head 25b on the lateral side of the foot, then crosses the metatarsal head to the post-big toe head on the medial side. Proceed to section 25C. Between the successive toe edges, the anterior end of the toe along with the anterior flesh of the metatarsal head then provides an engagement area, with the toe extending forward due to spring action.

The tip of the toe of the specified person's foot is directly in front of him, as shown by the arrow in Figure 5.

However, due to different people and their unique foot structures, the direction of the toe tip changes from straight ahead in angle and perspective. This novel sole readily accommodates any such individual gait toe-off characteristics since the sole can be bent in its angular direction for a smooth and comfortable action.

Certain additional advantages and minor modifications in construction will occur to those skilled in the art from the above teachings and the preferred embodiment illustrated. It is intended that the invention be limited only by the scope of the following claims and structures reasonably equivalent to those defined therein.

Exclusively owned event or t! & “The fruits of the invention for which the right is claimed”
Examples are defined above.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure M1 is a side elevational view of a casual shoe using the present invention; Figure 2 is a bottom view of the shoe of Figure 1; Figure 3 is an ink-stained foot print with dashed lines indicating the sole outline in Figure 1; A photo reproduction with the addition of forward line breaking instructions for foot contact with the ground and dashed line instructions for the position of the flexion groove in front of the metatarsal head and after the ground-engaging portion of the foot; Figure 4 shows that the flexion groove is The position of the inner space below. Figure m5 is a bottom view of the foot diagrammatically illustrating the position of the flexion groove below the medial space. (Explanation of symbols) 12 -1 Upper part 14... Sole member 14a - Ground engaging surface 14b - Foot engaging surface 16 - Heel part 18 -1 Middle part J - Wider part ρ - Front Partial area - Groove 24a - Compensation 1 side 24b - Intermediate side 24C... Apex part 5 - Broken line delay 25a - Starting point 25b - Metatarsal head 25C = Head 26 - Peripheral F - Foot

Claims (1)

Claims: 1. A shoe sole comprising an elongated sole having a bottom surface, a top surface, and a periphery including medial and lateral sides; said top surface engaging the heel of the foot. a narrow central part that lies beneath the instep of the foot; a wide part that lies beneath and engages the metatarsal bones of the foot; a narrow area in front of said wide area to underlie the medial space of the foot engaging a front end; said sole has a narrow area in front of said wide area on said sole surface and said lateral It extends in an arc from the side to the front and then back, and is shaped and positioned so that it lies in front of the metatarsal heads and below the medial space of the foot so that the toe separation is in various forward directions. A parabolic bending sole characterized by having a groove forming a curve. 2. The parabolic flex sole of claim 1, wherein said arc of said groove has a forward-most apex laterally offset from the center of the sole toward said medial side surface. 3. A parabolic flex sole according to claim 2, wherein said groove has a concavely curved upper portion whose cross section merges with said sole surface into a convexly curved juncture. 4. A shoe consisting of a sole and an upper part connected thereto, the sole comprising: an elongated sole member having a sole surface, a top surface and a periphery including intermediate and lateral sides; The surface consists of a rear part that engages the heel of the foot, a narrow central part that lies under the instep of the foot, a wide part that lies below and engages the metatarsals of the foot, and a head of the metatarsal bone. a narrow area in front of said wide area that begins immediately in front of said wide area and underlies the medial space of the foot that engages the anterior end of the phalanges of the foot; The narrow area in front extends in an arc anteriorly and then posteriorly with respect to the lateral aspect and lies below the medial space of the foot in front of the metatarsal heads so that the toe separation is in various anterior directions. 1. A shoe comprising a sole and an upper portion connected to the sole, characterized by having a curved groove shaped and positioned as shown in FIG.