US20200054094A1

US20200054094A1 - Fencing Shoe Product with Asymmetric Front Foot Shoe and Rear Foot Shoe

Info

Publication number: US20200054094A1
Application number: US16/487,449
Authority: US
Inventors: Edwin Yee Man Keh; Lei Yao; Xiao Liao; Qing Ye; Siyu LIN; Chi Hung SO
Original assignee: Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel Ltd
Current assignee: Hong Kong Research Institute of Textiles and Apparel Ltd
Priority date: 2017-02-22
Filing date: 2017-02-28
Publication date: 2020-02-20
Also published as: CN108451093B; CN108451093A; WO2018152856A1

Abstract

This invention discloses a fencing shoe product with an asymmetric front foot shoe and rear foot shoe, comprising a front foot shoe and a rear foot shoe; the front foot shoe comprises a front foot upper, a front foot sole, and a front foot insole; the rear foot shoe comprises a rear foot upper, a rear foot sole, and a rear foot insole; the front foot upper and the rear foot upper are asymmetrically designed, the front foot sole and the rear foot sole are asymmetrically designed, and the front foot insole and the rear foot insole are asymmetrically designed. By means of asymmetric design of the front foot shoe and the rear foot shoe, compared with the traditional fencing shoes, the fencing shoe product of this invention can satisfy different action requirements of the front and rear feet of a fencer, solves the problem that the traditional symmetric fencing shoes are partially damaged severely due to asymmetric use by both feet, has a longer service life and less waste, and can satisfy personalized demands of athletes better as well as can be produced in assembly line.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to the technical field of designing fencing shoes, in particular to a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front foot shoe and rear foot shoe.

BACKGROUND

Traditional shoes are usually designed with completely symmetrical left foot shoe and right foot shoe. However, in real life, the shape of human feet is not necessarily absolutely symmetrical, and even sizes of both feet are not necessarily the same. Especially in some sports, the limitations of symmetrical shoes are particularly prominent due to different actions of athlete's feet. In playing the sports such as fencing, tennis, badminton and golf, actions of the athlete's feet are different. In playing such sports, symmetrically designed shoes cannot fully satisfy different needs of both feet, or due to long-term use in an asymmetric manner by both feet, the sport shoes become severely damaged in part and their service life is thereby shortened.
Fencing is a typical sport with asymmetrical actions of both feet. Depending on the athlete's habits in sports, the left and right feet are the front foot (or called the dominant foot) and the rear foot (or called the support foot), respectively. In the basic foot actions of the fencer, the action of the front foot (i.e. the dominant foot) is that the front foot lifts forward, and then the heel touches the ground first. The action of the rear foot (i.e. the support foot) is mainly that the rear foot slides or drags on the ground in cooperation with the dominant foot to keep balance and complete a series of actions. During playing the sport, the athlete has different levels of demand between the front and rear shoes on cushioning, stability, balancing and wear resistance. It can be seen that the symmetrical design of traditional shoes cannot meet different needs of the feet in the fencing sport.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In order to solve the problems of existing techniques, the embodiments of this invention provide a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front foot shoe and rear foot shoe. The technical solution is as follows.
In one aspect, the embodiments of this invention provide a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front foot shoe and rear foot shoe. The fencing shoe product comprises a front foot shoe and a rear foot shoe. The front foot shoe comprises a front foot upper. A front foot sole is connected with the front foot upper. A front foot insole is detachably mounted in the front foot shoe. The rear foot shoe comprises a rear foot upper. A rear foot sole is connected with the rear foot upper. A rear foot insole is detachably mounted in the rear foot shoe.
The front foot upper and the rear foot upper are designed to be mutually asymmetrical. The front foot sole and the rear foot sole are designed to be mutually asymmetrical. The front foot insole and the rear foot insole are designed to be mutually asymmetrical.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, an area of the rear foot reinforcing portion at a toe of the rear foot upper is larger than that of the front foot shoe reinforcing portion at a toe of the front foot upper, or the wear resistance of a material used for the rear foot reinforcing portion at the toe of the rear foot upper is greater than that of the front foot shoe reinforcing portion at the toe of the front foot upper.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the rear foot reinforcing portion and the front foot shoe reinforcing portion are made from lightweight wear-resistant thermoplastic polyurethane material having a certain surface structure.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, when the fencing shoe product is used in epee competitions, the toe of the front foot upper is provided with an anti-piercing front foot protection zone.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the front foot sole includes: a front foot outsole for contacting with a ground; a front foot midsole in contact with the front foot insole; and a front foot cushion embedded in the heel of the front foot midsole.
The rear foot sole includes: a rear foot outsole for contacting with the ground; a rear sole midsole in contact with the rear foot insole; a rear foot iron core disposed and embedded in the middle portion of the upper surface of the rear foot midsole; and the rear foot waist covering and embedded in the arch area of the lower surface of the rear foot midsole.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the two side edges of the rear foot waist are bent upward and arched to wrap both sides of the rear foot midsole, and the rear foot waist is made from thermoplastic polyurethane material.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the front foot insole is provided with a front foot reinforcing buffer area at each of the first metatarsophalangeal joint, the front sole and the heel area respectively; and the rear foot insole is provided with a rear foot reinforcing buffer area at each of the first metatarsophalangeal joint and the front sole respectively.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the front foot insole is provided with a front foot arch support plate at the arch, and the rear foot insole is provided with a rear foot arch support plate at the arch.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, a contact surface between the front foot insole and the front foot sole is provided with a texture full of grooves; and a contact surface between the rear foot insole and the rear foot sole is provided with a texture full of grooves.
In the fencing shoe product according to the embodiments of this invention, the front foot upper, the front foot sole, the front foot insole, the rear foot upper, the rear foot sole and the rear foot insole adopt a multi-layer composite structure and are manufactured by modular production.
The beneficial effects from the technical solution provided by the embodiments of this invention are as follows.
In comparison to the traditional fencing shoe, the fencing shoe product, by means of asymmetric design of the front foot shoe and the rear foot shoe, can satisfy different action requirements of the front and rear feet of a fencer, solves the problem that the traditional symmetric fencing shoes are damaged severely in part due to asymmetric use by both feet, has a longer service life and reduces wastage, and can satisfy personalized demands of athletes better as well as can be produced in an assembly line.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solution of the embodiments of this invention, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments will be briefly described below. It is obvious that the drawings in the following description only describe some embodiments of this invention. Other drawings may also be obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on these drawings without creative work.

FIG. 1 is a structural view of the upper of a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front and rear foot shoes according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

FIG. 2 is a structural view of the outer side of a rear foot shoe according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

FIG. 3 is a structural view of the inner side of a rear foot shoe according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a structural view of the sole of a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front and rear foot shoes according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

FIG. 5 is a structural view of a rear foot sole according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

FIG. 6 is a structural view of the insole of a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front and rear foot shoes according to Embodiment 1 of this invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

To make the objective, technical solution and advantages of this invention more apparent, the embodiments of this invention will be described in further detail by making reference to the accompanying drawings.

Embodiment 1

The embodiment of this invention provides a fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front and rear foot shoes. With reference to FIG. 1, the fencing shoe product may include front foot shoe 1 and rear foot shoe 2 both of which are mutually asymmetrical, wherein the front foot refers to the dominant foot during playing the sport, and accordingly, the rear foot refers to a support foot during playing the sport. According to the athlete's habit, the front foot is generally the right foot, but it can also be the left foot. Accordingly, the rear foot is generally the left foot, but it can also be the right foot. FIG. 1 is an example in which the front foot is the right foot and the rear foot is the left foot. In practice, the fencing shoe product can be customized according to requirements of the athlete. In the present disclosure, there are no left and right foot restrictions.
With reference to FIGS. 1, 4 and 6, the front foot shoe 1 may include a front foot upper 11, a front foot sole 12 connected with the front foot upper 11, and a front foot insole 13 detachably mounted in the shoe. The rear foot shoe 2 may include a rear foot upper 21, a rear sole 22 connected with the rear foot upper 21, and a rear insole 23 detachably mounted in the shoe. The front foot upper 11 and the rear foot upper 21 are designed to be mutually asymmetrical. The front foot sole 12 and the rear foot sole 22 are designed to be mutually asymmetrical. The front foot insole 13 and the rear foot insole 23 are designed to be mutually asymmetrical.
In this embodiment, in the basic foot movement of the fencing athlete, the action of the front foot (i.e. the dominant foot) is that the front foot lifts forward, and then the heel touches the ground first; the action of the rear foot (i.e. the support foot) is mainly that the rear foot slides or drags on the ground in cooperation with the dominant foot to keep balance and complete a series of actions. During playing the sport, athletes have different levels of demand for the front and rear shoes in terms of cushioning, stability, balance and wear resistance. Therefore, the asymmetric design makes the front foot shoe 1 and the rear foot shoe 2 more in line with the requirements of the fencing sport.
Specifically, as the toe of the rear foot upper 21 undergoes more friction (friction with the ground) than the front foot upper 11 during the fencing sport, the toe of the rear foot upper 21 is more susceptible to wear than the front foot upper 11. Therefore, with reference to FIG. 1, the area of the rear foot reinforcing portion 211 at the toe of the rear foot upper 21 is larger than that of the front foot shoe reinforcing portion 111 at the toe of the front foot upper 11, or the wear resistance of the material used for the rear foot reinforcing portion 211 at the toe of the rear foot upper 21 is greater than that of the front foot shoe reinforcing portion 111 at the toe of the front foot upper 11.
Optionally, the rear foot reinforcing portion 211 and the front foot shoe reinforcing portion 111 can be made from lightweight wear-resistant thermoplastic polyurethane (abbreviated as “TPU”) material with a certain surface structure, and the area of the rear foot reinforcing portion 211 can be increased accordingly.
Refer to FIG. 1. Optionally, when the fencing shoe product is used for epee competitions, the toe of the front foot upper 11 is provided with an anti-piercing front foot protection zone 110.
In practical applications, due to the larger range of attack in the epee sport (one of the fencing sports), the attackable area includes the feet (mainly the front foot), so that the toe area of the upper of the front foot (the dominant foot) needs to be provided with a front foot protection zone 110 made from a material resistant to piercing and friction. The front foot protection zone 110 can be made from synthetic leather materials.
Further, both the front foot upper 11 and the rear foot upper 21 can adopt a multi-layer composite structure and can be manufactured by modular production. Refer to FIGS. 2 and 3. Take the rear foot upper 21 of the foot shoe 2 as an example. The rear foot upper 21 may include a rear foot base layer 212, a rear foot structural support layer 213, and a rear foot reinforcing portion 211. (Accordingly, the front foot upper also includes the front foot base layer, the front foot structural support layer, and the front foot reinforcement portion. The difference is that the design of the reinforcement portion is different, and the front foot upper may be also provided with a front foot protection zone.)
The rear foot base layer 212 fits around the user's foot and is attached to the rear foot sole 22 by various means, such as adhesion and stitching. Preferably, lightweight three-dimensional mesh structural materials are used to provide a comfortable and breathable wearing environment while reducing the weight of the shoe body.
The rear foot structural support layer 213 and the rear foot reinforcing portion 211 cover the rear foot base layer 212, wherein the rear foot structural support layer 213 is distributed in patches and strips, comprising an area covering the front half portion of the inner side of the upper (covering the triangular area formed by the toe, the lacing system and the middle of the arch), the strip area extending from the lacing system to the heel direction, and the heel area. The material is wear-resistant and has a certain hardness, preferably lightweight wear-resistant leather or synthetic leather.
In practical applications, the structure of the structural support layer is designed asymmetrically according to the different actions of the feet in the fencing sport. The asymmetric design is mainly embodied in the inner side of the front foot (the dominant foot) and the inner side of the rear foot (the support foot). In the fencing sport, the inner side of the athlete's rear foot (the support foot) has many dragging and rotation movements. The structural support layer disposed on the inner side of the rear foot (the support foot) completely covers the front half portion of the inner side of the rear foot upper (the triangular area formed by the toe, the lacing system and the arch position), so as to obtain a sufficient reinforcing effect and extend the service life of the shoe. Meanwhile, the structural support layer in the corresponding position disposed on the inner side of the front foot (the dominant foot) and on the outer side of the two shoes is in the shape of inverted triangular strips. It provides a stable supporting force for the front part of the shoe body, reduces the resistance generated by the bending of the shoe body during the athlete's jumping and landing, and achieves good flexibility and breathability. In addition, the strip-shaped structural support strips that extend from the lacing system to the heel direction are respectively disposed on the inner and outer sides of the two shoes to stably support the middle position of the upper. This design is a symmetrical design. The structural support layer covering the heel portion adopts a double-layer design with a stable heel modeling. The front and rear shoe heels are symmetrically designed.
In practical applications, the reinforcing portions (which include the front foot reinforcing portion 111 and the rear foot reinforcing portion 211) can be disposed not only at the toe of the upper, but also at the heel and the eyelet area of the inner side of the upper (consistent with the inner side of the foot). (That is, the eyelet area is the area of the inner side of the upper not covered by the structural support layer, e.g., area 214 in FIG. 3 being the eyelet area of the inner side of the rear foot upper.) The reinforcing portion at the heel covers the structural support layer, thus further stabilizing the heel structure and strengthening the surface wear resistance. The reinforcing portion at the toe of the rear foot upper and the reinforcing portion at the eyelet area coordinate with the action characteristic that the inner side of the rear foot upper touches the ground in the fencing sport, so that the shoe product can obtain enough reinforcement to extend its service life.
Furthermore, in the fencing shoe product, the tongue uses a breathable fabric. Preferably, lightweight three-dimensional mesh structure material the same as the base layer is used. The inner side of the left and right foot uppers is provided with a thick cushion to protect the ankle and reduce the chance of sprain. The lacing system is designed to be an anti-loose lacing system that prevents dangers due to lace loosing during the fencing sport. Preferably, anti-loose shoelaces are used.
Refer to FIG. 4. Specifically, the front foot sole 12 may include a front foot outsole (not shown in the drawing) for contacting with the ground, a front foot midsole 122 in contact with the front foot insole 13, and a front foot cushion 123 embedded in the heel portion of the front foot midsole 122.
In the embodiment, the front foot cushion 123 has two pieces, which are respectively embedded from the upper and lower surfaces of the front foot midsole 122. The front foot cushion 123 is added to the front foot sole 12 to satisfy the higher demand of the front foot (the dominant foot) for the cushioning performance of the fencing shoes.
Refer to FIG. 5. The rear foot sole 22 may include a rear foot outsole 221 for contacting the ground, a rear foot midsole 222 in contact with the rear foot insole 23, a rear foot iron core 223 disposed and embedded in the middle portion of the upper surface of the rear foot midsole 222, and a rear foot waist 224 covering and embedded in the arch area of the lower surface of the rear foot midsole 222.
In this embodiment, the rear foot iron core 223 is disposed in the middle portion of the upper surface of the rear foot midsole 222, and embedded in the rear foot midsole 222. Preferably, nylon material is used. The rear foot waist 224 covers and is embedded in the arch area of the lower surface of the rear foot midsole 222. Preferably, it is made from thermoplastic polyurethane, and the two side edges of the rear foot waist 224 are bent upward to wrap both sides of the rear foot midsole 222 and are slightly arched. The rear foot iron core 223 and the rear foot waist 224 are used to improve the stability of the fencing shoe product and prevent harm to the athlete due to the torsion of the sole in the fierce and fast fencing sport.
Further, with reference to FIG. 5, the two side edges of the rear foot waist 224 are bent upward and arched to wrap both sides of the rear foot midsole 222. The rear foot waist 224 is made from thermoplastic polyurethane material.
Further, both the front foot sole 12 and the rear foot sole 22 can use a multi-layer composite structure and can be manufactured by modular production. In this embodiment, take the rear foot sole 22 as an example. Refer to FIG. 5. The rear foot outsole 221 uses smooth wear-resistant elastic material. Preferably, lightweight low-density natural rubber is used. The heel portion of the rear foot outsole 221 is thickened and forms a three-dimensional arc shape, wrapped in the outer layer of the heel portion of the rear foot midsole 222. The rear foot outsole 221 extends to the outer side of the front part of the upper, which is round and smooth. The side of the rear foot outsole 221 in contact with the ground has a gully texture design and is provided with suction cups for higher frictional resistance. The rear foot midsole 222 is preferably made from a low density ethylene-vinyl acetate copolymer (abbreviated as “EVA”). The heel portion is thickened and forms a three-dimensional arc shape, wrapped in the outer layer of the upper material.
Refer to FIG. 6. Specifically, as the heel of the front foot needs more cushion protection during the fencing sport, the front foot insole 13 is provided with a front foot reinforcing buffer area 131 at the first metatarsophalangeal joint, the front sole and the heel area, respectively. The rear foot insole 23 is provided with a rear foot reinforcing buffer area 231 at the first metatarsophalangeal joint and the front sole respectively.
Furthermore, the front foot insole 13 is provided with a front foot arch support plate 132 at the arch, and the rear foot insole 23 is provided with a rear foot arch support plate 232 at the arch. In practical applications, the arch support plate is mainly provided according to the athletes' wearing habits and foot characteristics (such as flat feet which are common in the fencing athletes), so as to improve the wearing comfort of the fencing shoe product.
Furthermore, the contact surface between the front foot insole 13 and the front foot sole 12 is provided with a texture full of grooves, and the contact surface between the rear foot insole 23 and the rear foot sole 22 is provided with a texture full of grooves. This enhances the friction between the insole and the sole, and prevents the detachable insole from slipping.
Furthermore, both the front foot insole 13 and the rear foot insole 23 can adopt a multi-layer composite structure and can be manufactured by modular production. In this embodiment, the insole is provided in a detachable manner. Its main material preferably uses a professional insole material, such as thermoplastic polyurethane material. The upper surface of the insole is covered with an anti-slip textile fabric to prevent relative slippage between the foot and the insole during movement. Preferably, a suede fabric is used. The lower surface of the insole is preferably provided with a front sole cushion (i.e. the reinforcing buffer area at the first metatarsophalangeal joint and the front sole) and a heel cushion (i.e. the reinforcing buffer area at the heel). The arch area is provided with an arch support plate, and the hardness and material of the arch support plate can be selected according to the athlete's wearing habits and foot characteristics (for example, flat feet are common in the fencing athletes), and EVA material is preferably used. The surface of the front sole buffer, the heel buffer and the arch support plate adopts the texture full of grooves to increase the friction and reduce the relative movement between the lower surface of the insole and the inner surface of the sole.
In comparison with the traditional fencing shoe, the fencing shoe product according to the embodiment of this invention, by means of designing the front foot shoe and the rear foot shoe to be mutually asymmetrical, can satisfy different action requirements of the front and rear feet of a fencer, solves the problem that the traditional symmetric fencing shoes are damaged severely in part due to asymmetric use by both feet, has a longer service life and reduces wastage, and can satisfy personalized demands of the athlete better as well as can be produced in an assembly line.
The above are only the preferred embodiments of this invention, and are not intended to limit this invention. Any modifications, equivalents, improvements, etc., which fall within the spirit and scope of this invention, shall be included in the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A fencing shoe product with asymmetrical front foot shoe and rear foot shoe, characterized by comprising a front foot shoe (1) and a rear foot shoe (2);

the front foot shoe (1) comprising a front foot upper (11), a front foot sole (12) connected with the front foot upper (11), and a front foot insole (13) detachably mounted in the front foot shoe;

the rear foot shoe (2) comprising a rear foot upper (21), a rear foot sole (22) connected with the rear foot upper (21), and a rear foot insole (23) detachably mounted in the rear foot shoe;

the front foot upper (11) and the rear foot upper (21) being designed to be mutually asymmetrical, the front foot sole (12) and the rear foot sole (22) being designed to be mutually asymmetrical, the front foot insole (13) and the rear foot insole (23) being designed to be mutually asymmetrical.

2. The fencing shoe product according to claim 1, characterized in that an area of a rear foot reinforcing portion (211) at a toe of the rear foot upper (21) is larger than an area of a front foot shoe reinforcing portion (111) at a toe of the front foot upper (11), or a wear resistance of a material used for the rear foot reinforcing portion (211) at the toe of the rear foot upper (21) is greater than that of the front foot shoe reinforcing portion (111) at the toe of the front foot upper (11).

3. The fencing shoe product according to claim 2, characterized in that the rear foot reinforcing portion (211) and the front foot shoe reinforcing portion (111) are made from lightweight wear-resistant thermoplastic polyurethane material having a certain surface structure.

4. The fencing shoe product according to claim 2, characterized in that when the fencing shoe product is used in epee competitions, the toe of the front foot upper (11) is provided with an anti-piercing front foot protection zone (110).

5. The fencing shoe product according to claim 1, characterized in that:

the front foot sole (12) includes a front foot outsole for contacting with a ground, a front foot midsole (122) in contact with the front foot insole (13), and a front foot cushion (123) embedded in the heel of the front foot midsole (122); and

the rear foot sole (22) includes a rear foot outsole (221) for contacting with the ground, a rear sole midsole (222) in contact with the rear foot insole (23), a rear foot iron core (223) disposed and embedded in a middle portion of an upper surface of the rear foot midsole (222), and a rear foot waist (224) covering and embedded in an arch area of a lower surface of the rear foot midsole (222).

6. The fencing shoe product according to claim 5, characterized in that two side edges of the rear foot waist (224) are bent upward and arched to wrap both sides of the rear foot midsole (222), and the rear foot waist (224) is made from thermoplastic polyurethane material.

7. The fencing shoe product according to claim 1, characterized in that:

the front foot insole (13) is provided with a front foot reinforcing buffer area (131) at each of the first metatarsophalangeal joint, a front sole and a heel area; and

the rear foot insole (23) is provided with a rear foot reinforcing buffer area (231) at each of the first metatarsophalangeal joint and the front sole.

8. The fencing shoe product according to claim 7, characterized in that:

the front foot insole (13) is provided with a front foot arch support plate (132) at an arch; and

the rear foot insole (23) is provided with a rear foot arch support plate (232) at the arch.

9. The fencing shoe product according to claim 8, characterized in that:

a contact surface between the front foot insole (13) and the front foot sole (12) is provided with a texture full of grooves; and

a contact surface between the rear foot insole (23) and the rear foot sole (22) is provided with a texture full of grooves.

10. The fencing shoe product according to any of claims 1-9, characterized in that the front foot upper (11), the front foot sole (12), the front foot insole (13), the rear foot upper (21), the rear foot sole (22) and the rear foot insole (23) adopt a multi-layer composite structure and are manufactured by modular production.