US1823721A - Linings fob - Google Patents

Description

' Patented Sept. 15, 1931 UNITED STATES,

PATENT- OFFICE 10 Drawing;

This invention relates to linings for shoes and the like. The invention has been applied more articularly to the converting of grey goods fbr shoe linings, and will be here- 1n described in this hase of its utility.

For shoe linings t e grey goods are usually either bleached or .dyed, but in many cases are merely finished in the grey by being stiffened so as to stand up well in the shoe. The invention introduces a feature which has the double efi'ect that it makes the product permanently promotive of foothealth, foot-sanitation and foot-comfort, or at least very durably so, and that it makes a liningwhose initial purity is but little affected by wear, with incldental perspiring of the wearers foot. Also the lining has longer life than ordinary lining, without being appreciably more expensive. By reasonof the invention, peculiar astringent, aseptic and odor-preventing qualities become associated with the lining or inter-lining of a shoe.

7 To these ends a proportion of a suitable ingredient is to be incorporated in the sizing material, by mixture before the sizing is applied. Zinc stearate may be considered as one example of such an ngredient,

producing the result that when the goods,

sheet duck for example, are sized in the so course of their normal converting for shoe linings, the duck becomes a carrier of properties which, when it is later incorporated in a shoe tend to allay the irritating and odorous effect of perspiration and to kee whole shoe sweet and wholesome. gredient also imparts to'the lining a character eliminating chafing, thus reducing wear upon hosiery and upon feet; and the lining becomes soothing to the feet, with astringent effect upon the skin and pores.

These highly desirable qualities are imparted to a shoe approximately without extra cost. The added ingredient acts to a certain degree as a filler; in consequence of which less of the usual filler, such as starch,

will be required. And because stcarates as. a rule are bulky, the added ingredient may occupy considerable space relative to itsfproportion of weight. But these effects are relatively minor and incidental, for it is a pcthe This in- Application filed April 24, 1928. Serial No. 272,560.

euliar fact that an extraordinarily small qualtit of the zinc stearate sufiices. For

'examp e, for treating a duck sheet weighing ten ounces to the yard, a suitable bath may have the regular sizing and the zinc stear- 56 ate ingredients mixed in a 200 to 1 ratio. Notwithstanding thissmall proportion it is observed that the stcarate, 'by its smooth, waxy feel, tends to smooth the. surface fibres in the cloth, diminishing the chafing, and reducing .the wear on lming'and hosiery. Therefore it is considered that perhaps the stearate forms as a coating over particles of the size. But regardless of the correctness of this suggestion as to the structural arrangement of the stearate inreference to the main body of sizing, there is an important effect in that in some manner it roduces in the sizin an environment in WhlCh life and growth 0% microscopic plant or animal forms are inhibited. As a probable explanation, it is surmised that the odor which ordinarily develops in shoes, and which the invention avoids, is due to a bacterial growth in perspiratory matter excreted from the wearers foot, akin to the bacterial growth called putrefactien which is familiar in vegetable and animal foods. The sizing material em ployed for shoe lining often consists largely of starch. Starch is a favorable medium for growth and multiplication of bacteria, especially in presence of moisture. The ingredient' lntroduced by the invention creates an environment which is unfavorable to the growth of bacteria, and which is in that sense germicidal because it inhibits germ life, operating much as a so-called preservw tive prevents fermentation or putrefaction when added to a foodsubstance. Thus the notable results attained in this respect in shoes are due to the change of environment for germ life produced by the invention.

Takingzine 'stearate as an example, the zinc atom when incombination is known to be astringent and germicidal; and the stemic acid radical gives to the stearate material a quality such that although it is a fatty residue nevertheless certain kinds of deterioration do not easily occur. This is true of the cognate fatty acids, all vegetable fats out when wet by water or perspiration. Zinc and aluminum are metals which meet these specifications. They are amphoteric', in that each may act both as an acid-forming and a base-forming element, and each has salts' which are non-poisonous and are insoluble in water.

The protective material, selected on the above principles, or otherwise found suitable, is added to the sheets of grey goods,

along with their sizing; and it takes final form as an impregnating solid substance which imparts :the desired germicidal, astringent and anti-friction properties. Its introduction may be accomplished 'by' the apparatus and methods by which sizing alone has hitherto been applied. Preferably the substance is preliminarily thoroughly mixed with the size in liquid form; and the woven sheet material is run through a bath of this mixture in a trough, according to usual practices. of sizing. As" the sheet takes up the mixture, both ingredients thereof become impregnated into the grey goods so as thoroughly to disseminate each throughout the sheet. The relative proportions of the ingredients in" a particular bath may vary somewhat accordingto the weight per yard of thesheet material to be treated. v A lighter sheet may require in its'bath proportionately slightly more of the deodorant and antiseptic substance. Y

' In the zinc or aluminum stearate, or oleate, the metal furnishes astringent properties which tend to close the pores of the feet, thus retarding perspiration; and the fatty acid makes the stearate or oleate' be demulcent, soft and waxy feeling, and nonabrasive and giving the cloth a soothing and soft-feeling quality; and both metal and fatty acid contribute to the environment which discourages bacterial growth; The same effect can be obtained, to a degree, by a combination of talc and sodium borate which would have the anti-friction, antise' tie and astringent qualities.

he result is a prolongation of the useful life of shoes and of hosiery; a more wholesome condition for both; and for the wearer is; gfefiiter degree of foot comfort and foot ea t Although especially developed with regard to shoe linings, the invention is not limited to that use. The invention may, for example, be found useful for sweat bands in hats; or as a fabric, lining, or casing for dress shields. In the case of sweat bands a fabric likethat above proposed for shoe linings but well filled with a larger proportion of the material would be suitable for inexpensive hats.

And although by the preferred method herein describedit is applied by admixture with the sizing, it would appear that a rotective material could be applied to the s eet duck otherwise, as by treatment after or before the application of the sizing.

What is claimed is:

1. As a new article of manufacture, a line ing for shoes and the like comprising a sheet of textile fabric impregnated with starch, throughout which is disseminated a solid, astringent salt of stearic acid.

2. As a new article of manufacture, an

astringent lining for shoes and the like comprising a sheet of starch-impregnated textile fabric throughout which is disseminated a small proportion of zinc stearate.

Signed at Boston, Massachusetts, this twenty-third da of A ril 1928. 1 W A E C. BEKNETT.