US1164177A

US1164177A - Heel-pad.

Info

Publication number: US1164177A
Application number: US87851514A
Authority: US
Inventors: Horace M Eaton
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1914-12-22
Filing date: 1914-12-22
Publication date: 1915-12-14
Anticipated expiration: 1932-12-14

Description

H. M. EATON.

HEEL PAD.

APPLICATION FILED DEC.22. 1914.

1,164,1 77. Patented Dec. 14, 1915.

earner enrich.

Specification of Letters Patent. ygmm c, Egg, 141., 1915 aii ucauonslec December 22,. 1914; Serial. in. trans.

To all whom it may concem:

Be it known that I, HORACE. M; EATON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hudson, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have'invented a new and useful Improvement in Heel-Pads, of

which the following is a specification.

The present invention relates to heel pads. In the manufacture of shoes it is customaryto attach the heels to the shoes by a plurality of nails which are driven through the insole and clenched upon the face of that portion of the insole, known as the heel. seat, which directly supports the heel of the foot. The early shoe manufacturers covered the heel seat with a pad made from a superior grade of thick stock with the intention of providing the wearer of the shoewith some measure of protection from the bunchy' condition produced in the heel seat by the heel nails. Experience soon demonstrated to these manufacturers that, owing torthe deteriorating action of sweat or moisture upon the available adhesive employed to secure these pads to the heel seats, the pads became loosened on the heel seats and bunched in a wrinkled condition under the heels of the wearers resulting in so much discomfort as to cause the wearers to pull the pads out: of the shoes and throw them away. As this practice destroyed the beneficial use of the heel pads the shoe manufacturers, in order to cheapen the cost of production, aban doned the practice of employing a high grade quality heel pad and substituted therefor a thin piece ofupper stock. or a cheap grade of felt the sole function of which was to enable the manufacturers to mask the m1- sightly heel seat which was found to be a desirable thing to do from a selling point of view. As is Well known these thin cheap heel pads zifi'ord small protection to theheel of the foot from the uncomfortable-condition produced by the heel nails in. the heel seats. Moreover these heel. pads are easily penetrated by the moisture ofthe foot which causes the heel nails to rust which action in turn corrodes the leather around the nails thus freeing the clenched ends of the nails and permitting their points to protrudethrough the heel pad. and penetrate the heel of the foot causing excessive wearon. the stockings: and great discomfort to the wearer of the: shoe. These conditions: are particu.-- larly liable to occur when the wearerof the shoe becomes exasperated and. pulls the heel pads from the shoes which has become almost a universal practice even after only a few days wear Many attempts have been made to devise practical methods of nailing heelswith the object in view of obviating" the presence of nails in the heel seats. These methods have usually been founded either upon the split ting of the heel of-the insole and the; use of a'metallic plate inthesplit for the purpose of clenching the heel nails: in the lower: portion of the insole, or upon the attachmeutof a metallic plate to the bottom of the; insole so that the heel nails would be clenched in the outsole. These methods, some of which.

required special last construction, have proved to be so expensive as to materially increase the cost of. manufacture and for,

that reason have never been adoptedv for commercialuse.

The object of the invention is to produce a heel pad which will afford ample protection to the: heel of: the foot and which will fluence of heat into a viscous surface for attaching the pad to theheel seat and protecting the nails and heel seat from rust and corrosion. Heretofore it has-been the practice to attach heel pads to heel seats by means of pasteapplied by a brush in the hands of a 7 cheap operative. This method of attaching heel seats is'not only uneconomical in the ex penditure of labor and material but often causes soiling of the linings which to clean involves an expensive operation. As a contrast to this crude method the heel pad of the present invention. may be placed in its proper position in the heel seat while the adhesive coating thereon is cold and then be pressed upon by a hot plate the combination of heat and pressureacting to melt the adhesive and amalgamate the heel pad with the heel seat.v As the. adhesive is waterproof and permits. the nails: to embed themselves therein, all danger of moisture penetrating the pad and causing the nails to rust and the leather of the heel seat to corrode is avoided.

A further feature of the invention contemplates providing the adhesive with a sheeting to protect the adhesive while being handled or shipped.

The various features of the present invention will be best understood from an inspection of the accompanying drawing illustrating the preferred form of the invention, in which, Y

Figure 1 is a bottom plan of the heelpad, and Fig. 2 is a reversed elevation looking at the breast end of the heel pad.

In the illustrated embodiment of the in vention the heel pad comprises a portion'of felt 1 shaped to cover the heel seat of a shoe and having a thickness sufficient to prevent the presence of the heel nails being felt by the wearer of the shoe. This body portion of felt is provided upon oneface with anonviscous waterproof adhesive coating 2 which is unaffected by the moisture or heat of the foot and normally non-adhesive under ordinary conditions of temperature but which is capable of being converted into a viscous surface by heat.

In order to protect the cold adhesive from contact with foreign substances and prema ture heating the adhesive 2 is covered with a paper sheet 3 which is readily removed prior to the attachment of the pad to the heel seat.

To attach the heel pad to the heel seat the paper backing 3 is removed and the heel pad inserted'into the shoe with the cold adhesive engaging the heel seat. A hot plate is then firmly pressed against the uncoated face of the heel pad); The heatconverts the adhesive coating into, a viscous surface and the pressure amalgamates the sticky heel pad with. the heel seat; and embeds 'the nails in the waterproof adhesive thus effectively preventing the moisture of the foot from rusting the nails andcorroding the leather of the heel seat. 1

What is claimed as new, is

1. A heel pad comprismg a body portion having one face coated with a non-viscous,

waterproof adhesive unafiected by the moisture or heat of the foot and normally nonadhesive under ordinary conditions of temperature but capable of. being converted under the influence of heat into a viscous surface for attaching the pad to the heel seat and protecting the nails and heel seat from rust and corrosion, substantially as described.

2. As an article of manufacture, a piece. of felt provided upon one face with a waterproof adhesive coating nor mally non-adhesive under ordinary conditions of temperature but capable of being,converted under thefinfluence of heat into a viscous surface for attaching the pad to the heel seat and protecting the nails and heel seat from rust and corrosion, and coveredfwith a protective sheeting separable therefrom, substantially as described.