US1745144A

US1745144A - Shoe-fitting apparatus

Info

Publication number: US1745144A
Application number: US14009A
Authority: US
Inventors: Elmer J Bliss
Original assignee: REGAL SHOE Co
Current assignee: REGAL SHOE Co
Priority date: 1925-03-09
Filing date: 1925-03-09
Publication date: 1930-01-28
Anticipated expiration: 1947-01-28

Description

Jan. 28, 1930. E. J. BLISS 1,745,144

SHOE FITTING APPARATUS Filed March 9. 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet l gzez wmn- Jan. 28, 1930. E. J. BLISS 1,745,144

SHOE FITTING APPARATUS Filed March 9. 1925 4 SheetsSheet 2 Jan. 28, 1930. E. J. BLISS 1,745,144

SHOE FITTING APPARATUS Fi led March 9. 1925 4 Sheets-$heet a MU Q g my 7 \X z L Q. cw

Jan. 28,1930. E. J. BL ISS 7 44 snow FITTING APPARATUS Filed March 9, 1925 4 Sheets-Sheet. 4

Patented Jan. 28, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ELMER 'l'r. BLISS, or BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS, AsSIc-NonTo REGAL SHOE COMPANY, OF WHITMAN, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION or MASSACHUSETTS SHOE-FITTING APPARATUS Application filed March 9, 1925.

This invention relates to shoe fitting apparatus, and is intended to provide a simple and convenient means for expediting the fitting of shoes to customers in shoe stores.

Actual study of shoe store service has disclosed that the average shoe salesman consumes an altogether unnecessary amount of time and unnecessary motions in serving customers who desire to be fitted to a pair of shoes, thereby greatly impairing theeiiiciency of the salesman and requiring an unnecessary number ofsalesmen to take care of a given number of customers within agiven period of time.

The present invention is intended to standardize the shoe fitting practice and at the same time shorten'the time to facilitate rapidity of action, while increasing the comfort and convenience of the customer when being fitted with shoes.

In its general aspects the invention comprises a platformto be occupied by the customer, combined with shoe fitting apparatus and suitable foot-supporting devices which are so arranged as to be conveniently and instantly moved into and out of position for service in performing the various operations required in good shoe fitting practice. This and other features of the invention will be more particularly described in the following specification and will be defined in the claims hereto annexed.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated apparatus embodying the principles of this invention, in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the assembled apparatus showing the raised platform, the foot-rest in raised position and the footfitting apparatus in retracted position.

Figure 2 is a plan view of the same, the chair being removed.

Figure 3 is an elevation showing the working parts by which the measuring apparatus and foot-supports are shifted to and from operative position.

Figure 4 shows, in elevation, the advanced and retracted positions of the measuring apparatus in relation to the floor of the platform.

Figure 5 is a detail cross-section through Serial No. 14,009.

one of the longitudinal slotsor ways formed in the floor of the platform and the guide connected with the sliding foot-support.

Figure 6 is a detail View showing the offset slot in the front of the platform casing in which moves the foot rest lever.

Figure 7 is a bottom plan view of the working parts by which the movements of the measuring apparatus and of the foot rest are affected, thelatter mechanism being a modification of the form shown inFig. 3.

Figure 8 is a detail showing, in elevation, the mechanism for shifting the measuring apparatus and the modified actuating mechanism for the foot-rest.

Figure 9 is a detail in Side elevation of the interlocking feature of the two foot-rest operating treadles shown in Figs. 7 and 8.

Figure 10 is a front elevation showing the modified treadle arrangement illustrated in Figs. 7 and 8.

In the practice of this invention, according to the illustration in the drawings, I provide a hollow platform 1, adapted to form a casing for the interior mechanism, and surmounted by a bench or seat 2, to be occupied by the customer in the fitting operation. The footmeasuring apparatus 3 embodies substantially the features of construction and arrangement shown in Letters Patent granted to me August 15, 1922, No. 1,426,143, and embraces right and left foot-measuring devices, such as shown in said patent, comprisingbase plates 4, movable width-size gages 5 and a toe gage 6, secured to a common supporting plate or base member by which they are carried from retracted position to the advanced position for use, as indicated in Fig. 4, by suitable means such as that hereinafter explained.

As the customer comes in from the street, often with dust or mud on his shoes, which of course will become deposited upon the front end of the platform when he steps upon it in the act of taking his seat, I have made provision for a -r-emovable weight-supporting platform 7, which may be covered with carpet or the like, and is normally retracted or withdrawn from the floor of the platform until the customers shoes have been removed.

To afford a foot rest to support the feet of the customer before removal of his shoes for fitting, I provide a foot rest plate or member 8, mounted on the curved pivotal arm 9 which is fulcrumed on the cross-bar 10 mounted transversely of the interior frame 11, which carries the working parts. This curved arm 9 projects through an opening in the front wall of the platform casing, and is so proportioned that in idle position the footrest lies snugly against said front wall, as indicated in Figs. 3 and 10.

As shown in Fig. 1, the foot-rest 8 is pivotally mounted on its supporting curved arm 9 on which it has, however, only a limited pivotal movement.

To conveniently raise the foot-rest to service position, I provide a treadle lever 12 which projects through a slotted plate 17 secured to the front wall of the casing, and has a jointed or pivoted connection at 13 with a bell crank lever 14 to permit sidewise movement for locking purposes. The bell crank arm is fulcrumed on cross-rod 14 and its long arm 14*, extending upwardly, has jointed connection at 14 with a link 15 pivotally connected at 16 with the inner portion of the foot rest supporting arm 9. Depressing the treadle 12 with the foot swings the bell crank arm 14, 1 1 in a clockwise direction and serves to swing the foot rest arm 9 to the elevated position shown in Fig. 1, through an arc of 90, more or less, thereby bringing the foot rest into convenient position for supporting the feet of a person seated in the chair.

Any convenient means may be provided for supporting the foot rest under the pressure of the feet imposed upon it. I have shown in Fig. 6 the front wall of the casing provided with an approximately L-shaped slot bounded by a slotted guard plate 17, in which the lower end of the slot is extended laterally or offset, as shown at 17, to form a sto shoulder 17 for holding the actuating trea le lever 12 temporarily and releasably locked against return. The pivotal joint 18 readily permits the sidewise movement of the treadle 12 into the offset recess 17, where it is retained until moved by the operator into position to allow it to return to the uppermost portion of the slot when the foot-rest is restored to inactive position.

After the old shoes are removed, the measuring apparatus is advanced from its retracted or inactive position, partly beneath the chair, to its forward or active position to permit the customer to stand with each foot on one of the measuring machines by means now to be described.

The measuring machine base is mounted on two pairs of parallel supporting arms 30 with which the base has pivotal connection, said arms being fulcrumed at their lower ends to the frame-work 11, and projecting through longitudinal slots or passages in the platform floor. The actuation of these levers is effected by means of a pivotally connected link 31, whose forward end is slotted to receive a pivotal connecting pin 31, carried by an angular ti'eadle lever 32 which is loosely fulcrumed or pivoted on the end of the transverse shaft 33. The hub 32 of said shaft is kept from slipping olf by means of a collar 32", as shown in Fig. 7. Depression of the treadle 32 rocks it forward, and through the link connection 31 with the measuring machine carrying-ari'ns 30, acts to swing the measuring machine forward into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. The slotted connection between the link 31 and the connecting pin 31, makes provision to allow the measuring device to rest upon the floor or upon the movable foot-supporting platform 7. This platform 7 is formed through its rear portion with longitudinal parallel slots 7, aligned with the longitudinal slots in the platform floor so as to permit the measuring machine supporting-arms 30 to pass through the foot-supporting platform 7 without interfering with the free movement of said parallel arms. These slots 7 extend only about half way toward the front of the movable weight-supporting platform 7 so that the front edges of the slots are engaged by the two forward supporting-arms 30 which act to push or slide the platform 7 forward over the front part of the floor, thus covering up the soiled part of the platform floor on which the customer has stepped in taking his seat, and exposing a carpeted foot-support to receive his stocking feet after both feet have been measured. This movable foot-supporting platform is guided in its movements by means of projecting members secured to its bottom side in position to engage and slide in the slots in the platform floor. These guide members 70 may be provided, as shown in Fig. 5, with one or more outwardly projecting flanges or lips to positively prevent withdrawal of the guides from the slots in the floor.

After both foot measurements have been taken on the two measuring machines with the customer in standing position resting his weight thereon, he again takes his seat and the measuring machines are returned to inactive position, leaving the movable supporting platform 7 in advanced or service position. The shoes indicated by the measurements taken are then tried on, and as the customer stands upon the carpeted platform in testing his shoes while standing, the shoe bottom are not marred by any grit that may have been deposited upon the floor of the fixed platform.

The sequence of operations, therefore, is

that the customer mounts the platform while all of the devices used are in retracted position and afford no obstacle to his doing so. After taking his seat, the foot-rest 8 is thrown up to position, the shoes are removed and the measuring machine and the foot-platform are advanced to service position, the footrest 8 having been thrown back to inactive position to get it out of the way. The customer then stands and is measured for his shoes, it being particularly desirable to measure both feet in view of the fact that both feet rarely have the same measurements, some times the left, and some times the right foot being the larger. The measuring of both feet having been effected simultaneously by the two machines, the larger size is noted by the salesman and the appropriate pair of shoes selected from stock and placed on the feet of the customer, after the foot measuring apparatus has been retracted leaving the covered platform in advanced position from which it can be retracted or slid back by the hand of the salesman.

Instead of the L-sh aped slot with a laterally movable treadle, I may use an additional treadle for the express purpose of returning the raised foot-rest to idle position. This modified arrangement, as shown in Figs. 7, 8, 9 and 10, comprises a treadle 40 of angular construction corresponding to the

treadle

14, 14, in all respects except that its forward arm, projecting through the front wall of the casing, is integral with the rear portion instead of being jointedly connected therewith. The link 15 has precisely the same construction and arrangement as before, and the treadle is secured to the same reel:- shaft 14" which is used in the other case to mpport the

lever

14, 14. On the end of this roclcshaft 14 is secured a short projecting arm or finger 41, this finger being arranged to engage a pin 42 carried by the return or lowering treadle 4.3 so that when the treadle $0 is depressed for the purpose of raising the foot-rest to service position, the engagement of the finger with this projection 42, on the treadle 43, serves to rotate the treadle 43 in a counter-clockwise direction, thus causing it to rise as treadle 40 is pushed down. In lowering the foot-rest out of the way so as not to obstruct access to the front part of the platform-casing, the attendant depresses treadle 43 to cause the reverse movement of the treadle 40.

Pivoted dash-

pots

18 and 34 are preferably applied, respectively, to the foot-rest raising mechanism and to the mechanism for shifting the foot-measuring devices to operative position so as to avoid any violent shock when the respective devices come to operative position under foot-pressure on the respective pedals.

As shown in Fig. 3, a retractile spring may be used for the purpose of automatically returning the foot-rest to inactive position. This spring may be located at any convenient point, but is here shown as anchored to a screw-eye in the top of the casing and connected with a projecting pin carried by the treadle member 12.

\Vhen the customer takes his seat there is noobstruction to his doing so; then the salesman instantly and easily shifts the foot-rest to position to conveniently unlace and remove the shoes. With equal ease and rapidity the foot-measuring apparatus and the foot-receiving platform or floor covering member is advanced to service position, the customer placing both feet on the measuring machine, stands for measurement with his feet normally expanded under his weight, as in walking, and the measurement of both feet is simultaneously effected. When the customer resumes his seat the measuring machine is shifted to inactive position to leave the floor-covering platform in position to receive his stocking-feet and for the trying on of the shoes indicated by the measurements taken.

The apparatus, therefore, when properly used, greatly facilitates accuracy in fitting and economizes time, and prevents needless movements on the part of the salesman so that a much larger number of customers can be satisfactorily fitted within a given time than under he practice heretofore prevailing in shoe stores.

To effectuate the objects of this invention the foot measuring devices or machines referred to are of a character to gauge the feet and give length and width size measurements, it

according to the standard length sizes and width sizes used in this art, which is precisely what the foot measuring machines hereinbefore referred to accomplish. In other words, a foot measuring machine or device. as the term is used here, while it may differ in details of construction from such a device shown in applicants former patent, nevertheless involves means for accurately gauging the length andthe width of the feet being measured and at the same time indicating, on appropriate length size scales and width size scales, the actual size measurements which must be known in order to intelligently select from stock the appropriate shoes for the customer.

What I claim is:

1. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with araised fixed platform and seat, of foot-measuring apparatus mounted to be shifted above said platform into and out ofposition in front of said seat to receive the feet to be fitted, a movable weight-supporting platform arranged to be shifted forwardly into service position in ad Vance of said seat by the forward movement of said measuring apparatus, substantially described.

2. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a fixed platform, of movable measuring apparatus adapted to support the weight of the person being fitted and movable forward and back over said plat form, means for guiding said measuring apparatusfrom one position to the other while maintaining it in parallelism in its different positions, substantially as described.

3. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a fixed platform, of footmeasuring apparatus mounted to move above said platform from idle to service position, supporting and guiding means for said measuring apparatus embracing parallelmotion pivotal arms swingable forwardly and rearwardly to carry said measuring apparatus to and from service position.

4. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a platform, of foot-measuring apparatus mounted and guided to move to and fro above and along said platform, and an actuating lever operatively connected therewith to effect the movement of said measuring apparatus and thereby position it for service, substantially as described.

5. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a platform, a foot-measuring apparatus movably mounted thereon, parallel-motion pivotal arms for carrying said measuring apparatus into and out of service position, and an actuating lever operatively connected with said pivotal arm, substantially as described.

6. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the

combination with a platform and seat, foot- 4 measuring mechanism normally arranged to afford unobstructed access to said seat and movable into service position in front of said seat, a floor covering footsupporting platform normally withdrawn from service position, and movable into service position simultaneously with said measuring mechanism, substantially as described.

7. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a platform and seat, of foot-measuring mechanism movable into service position in front of said seat, a floorcovering foot-supporting platform movable into service position in front of said seat, and means by which said measuring mechanism and said floor covering platform are shifted to their respective positions for service, substantially as described.

8. In an apparatus for fitting shoes, the combination with a platform and seat, of foot-measuring mechanism movable to arid from service position above said platform, a floor covering platform also movable to and from service position in front of said seat, said floor covering platform being moved into service position by the movement of the measuring mechanism, substantially as described.

9. A shoe-fitting apparatus embracing a raised platform provided with an elevated seat over its rear portion, foot-gauging and measuring mechanism normally supported over the rear portion of the platform, means for carrying said mechanism to service position forwardly of the seat, and an indeabove specification.

ELMER J. BLISS.