US3064288A

US3064288A - Moulded rubber footwear

Info

Publication number: US3064288A
Application number: US77906A
Authority: US
Inventors: Tusa John; Hollington George
Original assignee: Bata Shoe Co Inc
Current assignee: Bata Shoe Co Inc
Priority date: 1953-11-17
Filing date: 1960-12-23
Publication date: 1962-11-20
Anticipated expiration: 1979-11-20

Description

Nov. 20, 1962 .1. TUsA ETAL MOULDED RUBBER FOOTWEAR Filed Dec. 23. 1960 Inventor@ Jaim 736g. d

Attorney United States 3,064,288 MULDED RUBBER FQDTWEAR John Tusa, Horndon-on-the-Hill, and George Hollington, Chadweil-St. Mary, England, assignors to Bata Shoe Company lnc., Belcamp, Md.

Fiied Dec. 23, 196), Ser. No. 77,906 Claims priority, application Great Britain Nov. 17, 1953 4 Claims. (Cl. 12-142) This invention relates to footwear (hereinafter and in the claims referred to generally as shoes) formed partly of rubber or the like (hereinafter and in the claims referred to simply as rubber) with insoles. This application is a continuation in part of applicants prior copending application Serial No. 468,913, led November l5, 1954, now abandoned. The invention embraces inter alia kneeboots of the Wellington type, and sports shoes including sports shoes having textile uppers.

It is known to incorporate in shoes, such as aforesaid, insoles which are cut in a clicking press from a sheet of vulcanised sponge rubber. The waste material cannot be re-used except after a process of re-claim treatment.

According to the present invention we provide a method of making shoes formed wholly or partly of rubber, with an insole comprising bonding together a layer of textile material and a composition of vulcanisable rubber containing a sponging agent, building-in an insole of said bonded material with a vulcanisable rubber sole, saidv composition being between the textile material and the sole, and vulcanising the sole and insole in situ, whereby the sole and insole become integrally united and the insole becomes sponge rubber under control of the textile material, through which the sponging gases escape.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described merely by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. l is a transverse section through the foot part of a kneeboot of the Wellington type built-up on a hollow last and constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary transverse section through the leg part of such a kneeboot.

In the drawings, for simplicity of description, the hoot and last are shown with the ground-engaging surface of the sole lowermost, as when the boot is worn on the human foot; but in actual manufacture, as is customary, the last would be positioned to hold the boot upside down. Moreover, for clearness of illustration, the thickness of the several thin components are drawn exaggerated.

Referring firstly to FIG. l, the sole of a kneeboot of the Wellington type formed on a hollow aluminium last 1 comprises a main or outer sole 2 of vulcanisable rubber, a main or lower intersole consisting of layers 3 of vulcanisable rubber and an intermediate layer 4 of textile fabric, and an upper insole consisting of an under layer 5 of a composition of vulcanisable rubber containing a sponging agent bonded on its upper surface to a top layer 6 of porous textile fabric. 'Ihe upper of the kneeboot, at the foot part thereof, consists of a porous textile fabric layer 7 bonded to an outer vulcanisable rubber layer 8 and the lower ends of these layers 7 and 8 are turned in under the layer 5. A vulcanisable rubber foxing 9 secures the rubber layer S to the main sole 2.

The leg part of the upper of the kneeboot, as shown in FIG. 2, may have interposed between the fabric and rubber layers 7 and '8, respectively, a layer 10 composed of vulcanisable rubber containing a sponging agent.

In assembling the various components of the boot, namely the sole 2, the intersole 3, 4, 3, the insole 5, 6, the upper 7, 8 and the foxing 9, their inter-engaging surgyjzgg Patented Nov. 20, 1952 faces are coated with vulcanisable cement, as is customary in the manufacture of built-up shoes consisting or including rubber components to be vulcanised and thereby permanently bonded together.

When the boot components are assembled, as shown, on the hollow aluminium last 1, the whole is introduced into the vulcanising boiler and is subjected therein to vulcanising and sponging heat and pressure, involving the three following pressures:

(l) The customary gas pressure in the boiler acting on the exterior of the boot.

(2) Pressure by the hollow aluminium last reacting on the interior of the boot.

3) Pressure on the welds between sole, insoles, foxing and upper caused by expansion of the sponge rubber of the insole caused by the production of gases during vulcanisation and sponging.

The porosity of the fabric layers 6 and 7 allows for controlled escape of gases from the sponge rubber layers 5 and 10 during vulcanisation and sponging. The escaping gases, after penetration of the fabric layers 6, 7 pass away between the layers 6, 7 on the one hand and the smooth surface of the last 1 on the other hand.

After vulcanisation and sponging, the rubber components of the boot constitute an integral whole, the rubber components all uniting into each other under the heat and pressure within the boiler.

The layers 5 and 10 may initially be bonded with the fabric layers 6 and 7, respectively, directly by means of a three bowl calendar.

The sponge rubber insole may be made of any desired thickness.

As a result of the invention:

(a) The insole of a built-up shoe is produced in vulcanised sponge rubber form and is incorporated as an integral component of the shoe by one operation.

(b) Clicking press waste in the initial work of stamping insoles from a sheet of unvulcanised sponge rubber material can be re-used without reclaiming as is the case with pre-vulcanised waste material.

(c) During vulcanisation internal pressure is exerted by expansion of the sponging rubber of the insole against the other parts of the built-up shoe in opposition to the pressure in the boiler, so that the sponge rubber of the insole is spread outwards and completely seals the bottom of the shoe and will lill-in any small spaces round the insole 5, 6 and the intersole 3, 4 underneath it.

In the example, the insole consists of a sponge rubber under layer 5 with a textile top layer 6 bonded to it, having been stamped from material consisting of a sheet of textile fabric coated with a layer of uncured sponge rubber composition. If desired, the initial layer 5 of vulcanisable rubber and sponging agent may be interleaved between top and bottom textile layers, all finally bonded together by the vulcanising procedure. Lighter fabrics may replace the heavier and more expensive ones for the bootee type of shoe, such lighter fabrics giving Warth and heat retention equivalent to heavier fabrics. The compound may be applied byspraying or spreading or by coating by a Ventilating coating method.

We claim:

l. A method of making shoes comprising building together on a last the following components, namely, a sole incorporating vulcanisable rubber, an upper and an insole incorporating a top layer of porous fabric and, in direct contact therewith, a-n under layer composed of a composition of uncured vulcanisable rubber containing a sponging agent, and subjecting said components on the last to heat and pressure by an exterior fluid pressure medium to vulcanise the rubber constituents and to convert said composition into vulcanised sponge rubber, the procedure being such that compressed gases produced in fabric and the last and said components are under the exterior pressure` of sa-id'medium--the reactive interior pressure of the last andthe internal pressure of said gases, soy that the components are united as an integral whole.

2. A method of making shoes according to claim 1 in which the insole is of material made beforehand by coating a sheet VofV textile fabric Ywith a layer of uncured sponge rubber composition and stamping the insole from the coated sheet.

3. A method of making shoes according to claim 1 in which the' insole is made by coating a-n uncured sponge rubber composition on to uncoated textile material con,- stituting the top layer of porous fabric.

4 4. A method of making shoes according to claim 1 and including building-in a lining of porous fabric, to which is bonded an uncuredA sponge rubber composition with the shoe upper before vulcanising.

References Cited inthe le of this patent UNITED STATES "PATENTs 823,928V Clark ..i June 19, 1906 989,089- Warner Apr. 11, 1911 1,309,047 Price July- 8, 1919 1,924,716 Ferrettie Aug. 29, 1933 2,287,026 Craig et al. June 23, 1942 2,586,045 Hoza Feb. 19, 1952