US933423A

US933423A - Bunion-guard.

Info

Publication number: US933423A
Application number: US45150208A
Authority: US
Inventors: William H De Ford
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1908-09-03
Filing date: 1908-09-03
Publication date: 1909-09-07
Anticipated expiration: 1926-09-07

Description

W. H. DE FORD,

' BUNION GUARD.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. a, 1908.

933,423. I r Patented Sept. 7,1909.

FIG-.2.

FIGA

' t INVENTOR WITNESSES: I

' wwzm @9s7m a BYWQW HIS ATTQRNEY .acitizen of the ;United States,

in the city of Pittsburg, Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented or discovered new and us'e-f'ulIImi provementsin Bunion-Guards, of which the To all whom z'tmay concern:

Be itknown 5 that *I', WILLIAM H. 'Dn FORD, and re'siding in the county of% sn non-GUARD.

Application filedlseptember;3, .1908. ,Serial No. 451,502.

' specification of Letteralatent.

Patented Sept. 7, 1909.

following is; a specification;

i econd joint of the great toe of a human oot.

Bunions arensually caused by improperly fitting or designed shoes which result in bending the great toe inwardly toward or overlapping the adjacent toes from its second joint, forcing out the joint into a prominent protuberance against which the shoe presses and which results in a very painful lameness. This protuberance is visible through the shoe and gives the foot a very unsightly appearance in addition to crippling the sufferer.

My invention consists of a horizontally rlgid plate partially severed or cut across, so that a natural bending of' the foot in walking is permitted. The plate is worn in the shoe and means are provided for securing the toe in its natural position, thereby reducing the protuberance of the joint and restoring the natural contour of the foot. By curving the lateral, outside edge of the plate, I protect the toe and joint against shoe pressure.

Many other novel and advantageous features will appear from the following description. In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 1s a perspective of a right foot fitted with my invention; Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view of a left foot; Fig. 3v is an enlarged bottom plan View of my invention removed from the foot and Fig. 4 is a top plan view of the same, while Fig. 5 is a cross-section along the line VV in Fig. 4. i

The following is a description of the drawings z- Y J 1 represents a right foot of a human be ing; 2 the second joint of the great toe which is supposed to be distorted into a bunion.

3 is a plate, preferably of some substantial material such as springsteel. Said plate is arranged to fit under the sole of the foot within the shoe and may extend partially or wholly across the sole of the foot as may be desired." The said plate 3 is bentupwardly and inwardly-to inclos e the second joint 2 as at 4 in Figs. 1, 3 and 4, thus protecting said joint from the shoe and assisting the means" hereinafter described to reduce the bunionf and maintain the joint in natural alinement." Thesaid plate 8 is also bent up- My invention, generally speaking, con- 3 slsts of new and improved means for 'relievmg and curing bunionsor distortions of the l "wardly and slightly inwardly to form portion*5 which embraces the great toe as shown in Fig. 1. The metal of plate 3 is cut as at a before bending or stamping into the shape shown so that when bent up the

portions

4 and 5 overlap somewhat and a natural bending action is thus provided in plate 3. Of course any other convenient character of bending mechanism may be substituted for the means shown but that above described has proven eminently satisfactory and is very inexpensive.

6 is a loop of leather or other suitable, flexible material, attached to portion 5 of plate 3 and adapted to embrace the great toe of the wearer, an aperture 7 being provided to accommodate the soft corn which usually appears on the inner side of a great toe in the case of a bunion.

8 is a lining for plate 3, preferably of hard rubber suitably attached to protect the foot from the plate and to prevent rust. Any other suitable lining, attached in any convenient manner, may be substituted, if desired.

It is evident that the plate 3 is practically rigid in a horizontal direction so that the great toe secured in loop 6 cannot slip or move-over toward the other toes into the unnatural position which it is desired to correct, which return movement Would inevitably result if the great toe be not securely anchored in the natural alinement. As long as the great toe is held in proper alinement, the bunion can be reduced by the consequent relocation of the bones of the second joint in their natural relative positions. This lack of means for anchoring the great toe in its proper alinement has been a cardinal defect in previous devices of this general character.

Continuous use of my invention, maintaining the great toe in proper alinement and thus gently forcing the second joint back into its natural position eventually results in curing the bunion and restoring the foot to its proper contour. The provision for vertical bending in the plate allows the foot to bend naturally in walking or in other use, not however, in any way impairing the horizontal rigidity of the device or permitting the great toe to escape from its proper position.

It will of course be understood that the device intended for the left foot will be the reverse of the device illustrated and that diflerent sizes and shapes will be provided to suit the feet of the wearers.

Although, for the sake of clearness, I have minutely described the practical construction shown in the drawings, I do not wish to limit myself thereby, but claim broadly 1. A bunion guard consisting of a hori- "Zontally rigid plate partially severed and disconnected to provide a vertical bending action adjacent to the first joint of the toe and means'for securing the toe in proper alinement in said plate.

to protect the bunion from shoe pressure and ,1.

a second curved portion of said plate being adapted to protect the end portion of the toe from shoe pressure, the material of said plate between said curved portions being partially severed and remaining disconnected, the said curved portions being permitted to overlap, whereby a vertical bending action is provided in said plate, for the purposes described.

Signed at Pittsburg, Penna, this 1st day of September, 1908.

l VILLIAM H. DE FORD. Vitnesses EDWARD A. LAWRENCE, J. H. HARRISON.