SE1851617A1 - A protective cover for a shoe having downwardly projecting gripping studs - Google Patents

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a detachable protective cover for a shoe, e.g. a sports shoe, in particular a football (or soccer) shoe, having downwardly projecting gripping studs.According to the present invention, the protective cover (30)comprises a flexible galoshlike exterior casing (40) being of similar size as the shoe (10), The flexible casing is attachable, during use thereof, outside and underneath the shoe, and it has an upright flange (41) along at least a major part of its circumference for accommodating at least two further layers inside and on top of the exterior casing, including an intermediate, semisolid layer (50) having a high viscosity and a first thickness being larger than the maximum height of the gripping studs (21,22) on the shoe, and an upper layer (60) having a smooth, non-adhesive upper surface and a second thickness being substantially less than the first thickness.

Description

DESCRIPTIONA protective cover for a shoe having downwardlv proiecting gripping studs FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a detachable protective cover for a shoe, e.g. a sports shoe,in particular a football (soccer) shoe, having downwardly projecting gripping studs. The shoemay be a regular shoe, a boot or some other footwear, and the studs may be integral withthe shoe or they may be temporarily mounted underneath the shoe, such as ice grippíngstuds fastened underneath a shoe or a boot by means of releasable straps. The ”protection”concerns a desire to avoid a possible damage to floors or other surfaces, caused by the studs, but also to avoid accidents due to slipping on a hard and smooth surface.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The invention has been conceived in connection With sports shoes, in particular football (orsoccer) shoes provided with gripping studs. Such shoes are normvally used on grass or gravelfields in order to secure a good grip whenexercising the sports activity, e.g. a football orsoccer game which requires very quick movements, including accelerated running, Stoppingand sudden changes of direction. However, before or after a game, the stucls are ofteninconvenient or may cause damages to floors or other surfaces. Aiso, the studs may be slippery on certain hard and smooth surfaces.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, it has been discovered that there is a need for some kind of detachableprotective cover to be applied onto the shoe in order to reduce the possible damages tofloors and other surfaces and also to avoid slipping. The detachable protective cover shouldalso enable a normal walking or running when the protective cover is applied onto the shoe.iVloreover, the detachable protective cover should be easy and convenient to put on and to be taken off, as desired.

SUMMARY OF THE lNVENTlONAccording to the present invention, the above stated object will be met for a protective cover being characterized in that the detachable protective cover comprises a flexible galosh-like exterior casing being ofsimilar size as the shoe, - the flexible casing is attachable, during use thereof, outside and underneath theshoe, - the flexible casing has an upright flange along at least a major part of itscircumference for accommodating at least two further layers inside and on top of theexterior casing, and - the at least two further layers include: I an intermecliate, semi-solid layer having a high viscosity and a first thicknessbeing larger than the maximum height of the gripping studs on the shoe, and 0 an upper layer having a smooth, non-adhesive upper surface and a second thicl By way of the semi-solid layer, when stepping into the flexible casing with the shoe, thegripping studs will penetrate into the semi-solid material, whereas the underside of theshoe, in the areas between the studs, will rest on the smooth upper surface of the upperlayer. The thickness of the semi-solid layer, being larger than the maximum height ofthegripping studs, will ensure that the studs will not reach and contact the underlying casing.Also, the non-adhesive property of the upper layer will prevent the underside of the shoe from engaging with the semi-solid layer.

Preferably, the upper layer is rather thin, with a thickness being less than 20%, mostpreferably less than 10% ofthe maximum height ofthe studs and being made of astretchable material, so that the stretchable material will be pressed down by the studs and extend down into the depressions being formed in the underlying semi-solid layer.

'Alternatively, the upper layer may break when a stud is pushed downwards, so that a separated piece of the layer is pressed down towards the bottom of the depression. Then, the stud will contact the semi-solid material, but this may enhance the engagement ofthe lO shoe and the detachable protective cover, so as to facilitate a normal walking or running with the shoe and the protective cover being attached underneath the shoe.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the semi-solid layer is made of a gel or a gel-like material being permanently deformable during a first use together with a particularshoe. Th us, irrespective of the shape, locations and number of the gripping studs, the latterwill find their way into the Intermediate layer and form permanent depressions therein.After a first use, the permanent depressions will provide an elastic, releasable holding grip during further use of the detachable protective cover.

With the inventive structure ofthe protective cover, there is no need to make recesses inthe layers beforehand, taking into account the exact location of each stud of a particularshoe. The depressions will be formed automatically when the user steps into the protective cover the first time with a particular shoe.

During use, the upright flange, extending along at least a major part of its circumference, Willhold the intermediate semi-solid layer in place, so that it does not become deformed andwill not protrude sideways outside the contour of the shoe. Preferably, the semi-solidmaterial is also held in place by a plurality ofupwardly pointed lugs provided underneath theIntermediate semi-solid layer. Such lugs may be provided on the upper side ofthe flexible casing. As an alternative, they may be formed on a separate lower layer. in a preferred embodiment, the detachable protective cover is retained on the shoe bymeans of an upper, releasable holding device configured to prevent the flexible casing fromfalling off downwardly during use. The holding device may comprise two elastic grippingclaws being bent towards other on each side of the flexible casing, and/or a forward capportion in combination with a rear elastic flap for holding the flexible casing in at least a longitudinal direction during use.

Preferably, at least the lowermost part of the flexible casing may be made of rubber or a rubber-like material, preferably provided with a gripping pattern at its underside.

These and other favorable features are stated in the appended claims and will also be apparent from the detailed description below.

The invention will be explained further below with reference to the drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Fig. la and Fig. lb show a sports shoe, such as a football or soccer shoe, from below and from the side, respectively; Fig. 2 illustrates how the sports shoe can be inserted into a detachable protective cover with a flexible galosh-like exterior casing;Fig. 3 shows the sports shoe after being attached onto the flexible protective cover; Fig. 4 shows how the sports shoe can be detached from the flexible protective cover, the latter being shown in longitudinal section so that the various layers thereof are visible; Fig. 5 shows the detachable protective cover alone, after being taken off from the sports shoe; Fig. 6 shows, in an exploded view, three major parts or layers ofthe detachable protective COVE f; Fig. 7 shows, in a perspective view, the protective cover alone, including an enlarged portion of the various layers in a iongitudinal section; and Figs. 8 and 9 show an alternative embodiment of the protective cover according to the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SOIVIE PREFERRED ElVlBODllVlENTS A sport shoe, in particular a football or soccer shoe is shown in figs. la and lb. The sportsshoe 10 is of a type known per se and is provided with downwardly projecting studs at itsrear and front parts 11, 12. At the rear part 11, there are four rear studs 21, but the numberof these rear studs may vary. At the front part 12, there are seven studs 22, and the number of these front studs may also vary. ln the illustrated example, the rear studs 21 are made of a relatively hard material, eg. of ahard plastics materiai, and taper downwards towards their free ends. The height ofthese rear studs 21 is about 15 mm but may vary somewhat between different models.

The front studs 22 are similar in shape but are shorter, about 10 mm. This height may also vary somewhat. ln general, the maximum height ofthe studs 21, 22 is in the interval 10 mm -- 20 mm, the normal maximum height being about 15 mm as in the illustrated example.

As is known, such studs will give a good grip and will enable for a player wearing a pair ofshoes 10 to accelerate, stop quickly, change direction and turn around without loosing the grip with the underlying surface, typically grass or gravel.

As mentioned above, there is a need for a detachable protective cover, so that the player,before or after a game, can attach the cover so as to conceal the studs and avoid damage when walking or running with the cover being attached onto the shoe.

A detachable protective cover 30 according to the invention is shown at the bottom of fig. 2,the shoe 10 being shown at a small distance above the cover 30 before being inserted into the same, as illustrated by arrows A.

The detachable protective cover 30 is formed by a flexible, galosh-like exterior casing 40 with at least two interior layers 50, 60 located on top of the casing 40 and inside a circumferential upright flange 41, which holds the interior layers in place and prevent them from sliding outside the casing during use, in particular during Walking or running with the protective cover being positioned onto the shoe 10, as illustrated in fig. 3.

As shown in fig. 2, the flexible casing 40 also have two upwardly extending gripping claws42a, 42b, serving to hold the flexible casing 40 in place and to prevent it from falling downduring use. The flexible casing is also provided with a front cap 43, for receiving and holdingthe toe part 13 of the shoe 10, and a rear, elastic flap 44, for holding the heel part 14 of theshoe in place during use, at least in the longitudinal direction. As will be understood, thefront cap 43 and the rear, elastic flap 44 will also support the casing sideways to some extentand may be sufficient for holding the flexible casing in place on the shoe 10. The elastic flap44 has an upper, upright part 44a provided with a pulling tab 45. The user of the flexibleprotective cover 30 will pull the tab rearwardly, when stepping into the flexible casing 30(fig. 2) and when detaching the protective cover 30 from the shoe 10 (as indicated by the arrow B in fig. 4).

The inwardly bent gripping or holding claws 42a, 42b will press sideways onto the shoe 10during use, and they will thereby provide an extra support sideways as well as holding the flexible casing 40 against falling down from the shoe 10.

As illustrated in figs. 4 and 5, the studs 21, 22 will form corresponding depressions or cavities51, 52, respectively, in the intermediate semi-solid layer 50. An upper, relatively thin layer 60is stretchable, in this preferred embodiment, and will be stretched by the studs and extenddownwards towards the bottom of each depression, as illustrated in fig. 4. As also shown infig. 4, the bottom part ofthe flexible casing 40 will not be contacted by the studs 21,22,since the intermediate layer 50 of a semi-solid material is thicker than the maximum heightofthe studs 21,22. ln this embodiment, this maximum height is 15 mm, and the thickness ofthe intermediate layer 50 is about 18-20 mm, preferably about 20mm in the rear part and about 18 mm in the front part. ln this way, the bottom of the depressions 51,52 will be located at a small distance, about 4 to 5 mm above the upper surface of the flexible casing 40.

The semi-solid material of the intermediate layer is a gel or gel-like material, which has ahigh viscosity and the property of being permanently deformed when a relatively highpressure is being exerted onto the surface ofthe material. Of course, the studs 21,22 willimpose a high pressure onto the layers 50 and 60 when a user is standing in the shoe and thefull body weight is concentrated onto the end surfaces of the studs 21,22. Because of thehigh viscosity, the depressions 51,52 being formed in the gel material will be substantiallyretained in a supplementary shape as the studs when the shoe 10 is lifted out ofthe flexiblecasing 40, as illustrated in fig. 4. lt is possible that the gel material will have some elasticityand will change its shape to some degree, so that the depressions 51, 52 will become a littlesmaller than the exact shape of the corresponding studs 21,22. lf so, this will be anadvantageous property, since this will lead to a gripping engagement the next time the shoe is inserted into the flexible casing.

When the user walks or runs with the shoes 10 inserted inside the flexible casings 40, thesemi-solid material of the intermediate layer 50 may flow somewhat due to the pressureexerted sideways by the studs 21,22, which may cause the intermediate layer to becomedeformed so that one side will be thicl stabilize the relative location ofthe shoe 10 inside the casing 40.

The gel material may be selected at will. As an example, one can use the two componentmaterial marketed by the company BizLlne SAS, Paris, France, under the name Skarv Gel Bizgel IL, product code 0719122/BIZ 710 295.

The flexible casing 40 with its upwardly projecting pointed lugs 70, the intermediate layer 50 of a semi-solid material, and the upper, relatively thin layer 60 are shown separately in fig. 6.

The flexible casing 40 is made of an elastic material, such as rubber or a rubber-like material.The configuration ofthe circumferential edge corresponds to the circumferential edge of theshoe 10, but the elasticity of the material makes it possible to use the casing together withshoes of slightly varying sizes. The upright flange 41 extends along at least a major part ofthe circumference and will effectively hold the intermediate and upper layers 50 and 60 inplace. The height of this flange 41 should be larger than the total thickness ofthese layers50,60. in the example, the thickness of the 'mtermediate layer 50 is about 20 mm and thethickness ofthe upper layer is only about 1 mm, in any case it should be less than 20% ofthemaximum height ofthe studs. Thus, it should be less than 3 mm and preferably less than10% ofthe maximum height ofthe studs or less than 1.5 mm. As indicated above, the upperlayer should be stretchable and may be formed by a cloth or a non-woven material withstretchable properties. This material should also be non-adhesive, so that it does not stick tothe underside ofthe shoe 10 in the areas between the studs 21,22. Compare fig. 4.

Preferably, the height ofthe flange should be about 25 mm, or somewhat higher.

The upper layer 60 is preferably somewhat larger than the intermediate layer 50, so that acircumferential edge portion thereof can be folded over the corresponding circumferentialedge surface of the Intermediate layer 50, so as to form a unit 50,60. The unit 50,60 may be held together by a binding agent, e.g. a glue.

Also, the unit 50,60 may be fastened onto the flexible casing 40 by means of a binding agent, e.g. a glue, so that all the layers 40,50,60 form a unitary assembly.

The underside or lower surface of the flexible casing 40 is preferably substantially flat, like aslipper. lf desired, it may have a gripping pattern, in particular in the front part, so as to avoid slipping on hard and smooth surfaces. If desired, the flexible casing may be formed bytwo or more layers being permanently joined together. At least the lowermost part or layer should preferably be made of a rubber material.

Fig. 7 shows the protective cover 30, with the flexible casing 40 and an enlarged part of the various layers 40, 50,60 of the protective cover.

Figs. 8 and 9 show a modified embodiment of the flexible casing 40. instead of oppositegripping or holding claws, as in the embodiments shown in figs. 2,3,5,6 and 7, the releasableholding device comprises two opposite straps 42c and 42d, one ofthem 42c being providedwith a fitting 46 With a transverse pin or the like, and the other one, 42d, having mutuallyengaging, releasable fastening means of self-engaging hook and loop kind (e.g. VELCRObrand). Fig. 8 shows the device in an open position, and fig. 9 shows the device in a closedposition holding the shoe 10 firmly within the flexible casing 40. Of course, those skilled in the art can modify the releasable holding device in various ways.

Claims (16)

1. A protective cover (30) for a shoe (10) having downwardly projecting gripping studs(21,22), characterized in that - - the protective cover comprises a flexible, galosh-like exterior casing (40) being of similarsize as said shoe (10), _ - the flexible casing (40) is attachable, during use thereof, outside and underneath the shoe,- said flexible casing (40) has an upright flange (41) along at least a major part of itscircumference for accommodating at least two further layers (50,60) inside and on top ofsaid flexible casing, and - said at least two further layers include: ø an intermediate, semi-solid layer (50) having a high viscosity and a firstthickness being larger than the maximum height of said gripping studs(21,22), ando an upper layer (60) having a smooth, non-adhesive upper surface and a second thickness being substantially less than said first thickness.

2. A protective cover as defined in claim 1, Wherein- said upper layer (60) is made of a stretchable material Which will be stretched intodepressions (51,52) in said intermediate layer (50) when the shoe (10) is being inserted a first time into said flexible casing (40).

3. A protective cover as defined in claim 1 or 2, Wherein- said first thickness is at least 20% larger, preferably at least 30% larger, than said maximum height of said studs (21,22).

4. A protective cover as defined in claim 3, Wherein- said maximum height of said studs (2122) is in the interval 10 mm - 20 mm, preferably about 15 mm, and - said first thickness of said intermediate layer (50) is in the interval 12 mm - 26 mm, preferably in the interval 17 mm - 20 mm.

5. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein - the protective cover is also provided with a plurality of upwardly pointed lugs (70)underneath said Intermediate, semi-solid layer (50), for holding said intermediate semi-solid layer in place within said upright flange (41), and - said upwardly pointed lugs (70) have a projecting height being no larger than 30%, preferably no larger than 20% of said first thickness.

6. A protective cover as defined in claim 5, wherein- said upwardly pointed lugs (70) are provided on the upper side of said flexible casing (40).

7. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein- said intermecliate, semi-solid layer (50) is fastened onto the flexible casing (40) by means ofa binding agent, such as a glue.

8. A protective cover, as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein - said intermediate, semi-solid layer (50) is made of a gel or a gel-like material beingpermanently deformable during a first use together with a particular shoe, so that thedownwardly projecting gripping studs will form permanent depressions (51, 52) in said gelor gel-like material, said permanent depressions providing an elastic, releasable holding grip during further use ofthe detachable sole together with said particular shoe.

9. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein- said upper layer (60) is formed by a cloth or a non-woven material with a thickness being less than 20%, preferably less than 10%, of said first thickness.

10. A protective cover as defined in any one ofthe preceding claims, wherein - said upper layer (60) has an edge portion which is folded over an outer circumferentialedge surface of said intermediate, semi-solid layer (50), so as to form a unit (50,60) being insertable into said flexible casing (40).

11. A protective cover as defined in claim 10, wherein- said unit (50,60) is fastened onto the flexible casing (40) by means of a binding agent, such as a glue.

12. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein- said flexible casing (40) is provided with an upper, releasable holding device configuredto prevent the exterior casing from falling off downwardly during use together with said shoe.

13. A protective cover as defined in claim 13, wherein- said upper, releasable holding device comprises two elastic gripping claws (42a,42b) being bent towards each other.

14. A protective cover as defined in claim 13, wherein- said upper, releasable holding device comprises two opposite straps (42c,42d) with mutually engaging, releasable fastening means.

15. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein- said flexible casing has a forward cap portion (43) and a rear elastic flap (44) for holdingthe exterior casing (40) in place in at least a longitudinal direction during use of the protective cover (30) together with said shoe (10).

16. A protective cover as defined in any one of the preceding claims, wherein- at least a Iowermost part of said exterior casing (40) is made of rubber or a rubber-like material, preferably provided with a gripping pattern at its undersida.