WO2008152504A1

WO2008152504A1 - Sport shoe

Info

Publication number: WO2008152504A1
Application number: PCT/IB2008/001562
Authority: WO
Inventors: Mauro Testa; Mauro Zamprogno
Original assignee: Lotto Sport Italia S.P.A.
Priority date: 2007-06-14
Filing date: 2008-06-12
Publication date: 2008-12-18
Also published as: EP2157877A1; ITMO20070203A1

Abstract

A sport shoe comprising a sole which is mounted on the bottom with a plurality of studs positioned substantially crossways in a front zone and a back zone of the sole and a stud located in the front zone which is designed to facilitate the rotation of the sole around an axis which is crossways to the sole.

Description

Sport shoe

Technical Field

The present invention refers to a sport shoe particularly of the type comprising studs.

Background Art

In the sports footwear sector and in particular in the sector for footwear designed for activities on grass or earth surfaces, such as soccer, six-a-side football, golf, baseball, American football and rugby, a known practice is to fit the sole with studs of various shapes in order to improve the grip of the wearer's foot with the ground.

In effect, the studs by penetrating into the ground provide a solid anchoring for the foot even on slippery ground thus preventing unwanted slipping of the support point and a consequent loss of balance.

However, this type of sport shoe does have its shortcomings. In fact, the anchoring effect provided by the studs can cause the athlete's foot to be blocked and fixed at the toe or at the heel.

Blocking the base of the foot impedes rotation thereby obstructing the

^■ execution of certain movements such as changes of direction or aerial kicks.

Above all, the impossibility of rotating can cause dangerous trauma to the joints of the ankle, the knee and the hip resulting from the torsional forces, proportional to the players weight, and the speed of execution originating from the movement.

The trauma caused can be of the acute type, such as sprains of the ankle or ligaments, or of the chronic type caused by subjecting the joints to repeated tensions and stresses. The patents US 5.682.689, US 3.816.945, US 3.707.047, US 3.354.561, US

3.680.231, US 3.744.160 and US 3.757.437 describe a rotary platform fitted with cleats with the function of facilitating rotational movement around a centre pin. However, this solution also has its drawbacks. In fact, when the foot is not resting parallel to the ground the studs of the platform can create a support point which is eccentric with respect to the centre of rotation thus causing the foot to rotate and also to move increasing the risk of injury. Another drawback is that the platforms in the patents quoted above render the entire shoe and foot support instable and do not therefore enable the wearer to operate in the conditions of safety necessary, for example, for practicing sport.

Disclosure of the Invention The main purpose of the present invention is to provide a sport shoe fitted with studs which prevents injuries caused by torsional stresses while maintaining the grip and safety characteristics of traditional shoes.

A further aim of the invention is to provide a sport shoe which enables the wearer to perform with greater ease those technical movements requiring a certain degree of rotational freedom to the foot which acts as a pivot on the ground.

A further aim of the present invention is to provide a sport shoe which overcomes the drawbacks of the known type mentioned above and providing a simple, rational, easy-to-use and efficient solution at a low cost.

The aims described above are fulfilled by the present sport shoe comprising a sole which is mounted on the bottom with a plurality of studs positioned substantially crossways in at least one front zone and at least one rear zone, characterised in that at least one of the studs positioned in the front zone is designed to facilitate the rotation of the sole around an axis which is substantially crossways to the sole.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The characteristics and advantages of the present invention are described in more detail below with the aid of drawings showing a preferred embodiment of a sport shoe, provided merely by way of example without restricting the scope of the inventive concept and in which:

- Figure 1 is an axonometric view from below of the sole of the sport shoe according to the present invention.

- Figure 2 is an axonometric side view of the sole of a sport shoe according to the present invention. - Figure 3 is an axonometric enlarged view showing a detail of a sport shoe according to the present invention.

- Figure 4 is a cross-section of a detail of a sport shoe according to the present invention.

Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments of the Invention

In the figures, the reference numeral 1 indicates as a whole a sport shoe.

The shoe 1 comprises a sole 2 which is fitted on the bottom with a plurality of studs 3 mounted perpendicular to the sole.

The studs 3 are positioned in a front zone 4, comprising the zone between the toe of the shoe 1 to approximately the halfway point of the sole 2, and a back zone 5 in the heel zone thus leaving the portion of the sole between the front zone 4 and the back zone 5 free.

In particular, in the front zone 4 there is a stud 6 designed to facilitate rotation of the sole 2 around an axis which is perpendicular to the sole. In the embodiment illustrated in the figures, the stud 6 designed to facilitate rotation consists of a rotating stud that rotates freely around its own vertical axis; the vertical axis is preferably at right angles to the sole but this does not exclude other embodiments where the axis is diagonal to the sole.

Advantageously, the rotating stud 6 is positioned at the toes of the foot; preferably the rotating stud 6 is positioned under the big toe or at the base of the big toe.

Some studies demonstrate in fact that this zone acts as a fulcrum during certain physical work, such as twisting or changes of direction, characteristic of many sporting activities. The studs 3 and the rotating 6 stud have a bottom surface in contact with the ground.

The shoe 1 is suitable for use a surface which is preferably grass or earth but the shoe 1 according to the present invention can also be used on any type of surface by adapting the shape and the dimensions of the studs 3 and the rotating stud 6 accordingly.

Usually, the bottom surface 7 is the small base of the stud 3 with a truncated cone shape which makes contact with the ground; this does not exclude the possibility that the studs 3 can have other forms such as blades, cylinders or similar. Moreover, the studs 3 have a different size depending on their position on the sole 2; the embodiment in Figures 1 and 2 shows that the studs 3 mounted in the back zone 4 are smaller than the studs 3 mounted in the front zone 5.

The particular layout of the studs 3 enables improved grip with the ground 5 at the front zone of the foot and also decreases the shocks to the heel zone.

Advantageously, the rotating stud 6 has a bottom surface 7 which is greater than that of the remaining studs 3 positioned in the front zone 4 and which coincides with the bottom surface 7 of the studs 3 positioned in the front zone 5.

The larger dimensions of the rotating stud 6 mean that it penetrates the 10 ground less thus facilitating the rotation of the sole 2 and decreasing as a consequence the torsional forces originated by the rotation thereby improving the usage conditions for the wearer.

The rotating stud 6 comprises a support element 8, a fixing element 9 and a connecting element 10 connecting the first two.

15 The support element 8 is mounted on the bottom of the sole 2 and is designed to make contact with the ground by means of its bottom surface 7.

The fixing element 9 is fixed at the top to the sole 2 and comprises a circular plate which engages with the upper part of the sole 2.

The connecting element 10 is a pin which passes through the sole 2 and can 20. .. form a single body with the fixing element 9 and can be fixed to the support element 8, for example, by engagement.

At least one of the elements selected from the support element 8, the fixing element 9 and the connecting element 10 is free to rotate around a vertical axis parallel to the connecting element 10 thereby enabling the rotation of the support 25 element 8 relative to the sole 2 and therefore to the entire shoe 1.

Advantageously, the bottom surface 7 of the rotating stud 6 has circular grooves 11 which improve the grip between the stud and the ground.

The rotating stud 6 also has a series of reliefs 12 distributed over its side surface 13.

30 The side surface 13 of the rotating stud or the studs 3 is the side between the sole 2 and the bottom surface 7 and penetrates partly or completely into the ground depending on the hardness of the ground.

Advantageously the reliefs 12 can be of different sizes depending on their position. In particular, the reliefs close to the sole 2 can be larger than those positioned close to the bottom face 7 in order to improve penetration of the ground.

The reliefs 12 of the shape shown in the figures are distributed with a constant pitch on the side surface 13 of the rotating stud 6 and form rows which are parallel with the sole 2.

To improve interaction with the ground, the reliefs 12 have a "droplet" shape where the rounded end points towards the ground while the pointed end faces towards the sole 2.

The reliefs 12 can, for example, be made from a polymer type material. In particular, if the reliefs 12 are made of a softer material which wears more rapidly than the material used for the rotating stud 6 or the studs 3, they can be used for identifying the state of wear of the rotating stud 6 and also of the shoe 1 in general.

Given that repeated use of the shoe 1 causes it to wear, with the softer relief the wearer has a means for identifying with a certain degree of accuracy the wear limit where the shoe can no longer provide the performance guaranteed by the maker.

Given the characteristics listed so far, the shoe 1 according to the present invention is preferably suited for sports uses and in particular for those activities such as soccer, six-a-side football, golf, baseball, American football and rugby played on grass or earth surfaces.

The rotating stud 6 fulfils its purpose during the execution of particular technical movements, such as changes of direction or kicking a ball which subject the joints to strong torsional stresses, by acting as a pivot on the ground and facilitating the rotation of the wearer around the vertical axis defined by the rotating stud 6.

The present invention as described above fulfils the aims proposed and it is emphasised that the shoe according to the present invention enables an improvement in the wearer's sports performance while at the same time reducing the risks of acute or chronic trauma linked to sporting activity and movements which involve torsional loading of the joints.

Moreover, the shoe according to the present invention does not negatively influence the safety and the stability of the wearer with the rotating platform positioned under the sole as described in the documents cited in the background art. In addition, the possibility of checking the wear of one or more of the studs means that the wearer can evaluate the condition of the technical characteristics of the shoe.

The present invention as described above is susceptible to numerous modifications and variants without thereby departing from the scope of the inventive concept.

Moreover, all the details of the invention may be substituted by technically equivalent elements.

In practice the materials used, the shapes and the sizes can be of any type to match needs without thereby departing from the protection of the following claims.

Claims

1. Sport shoe comprising a sole which is provided on the bottom with a plurality of studs positioned substantially crossways in at least one front zone and at least one rear zone, characterised in that at least one of the studs positioned in the front zone is facilitating the rotation of the sole around an axis which is substantially crossways to the sole.

2. Shoe according to claim 1, wherein the axis is substantially orthogonal to the sole.

3. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the axis is substantially angled with respect to the sole.

4. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation is rotatable at least partially around its own axis.

5. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation is freely rotatable.

6. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation is positioned close to the toes of the foot.

7. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation is positioned close to the big toe of the foot.

8. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the studs and the stud for facilitating the rotation comprise a bottom contact surface in contact with the ground.

9. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the contact surface of the stud for facilitating the rotation is substantially larger than the contact surface of the studs in the front zone.

10. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the contact surface of the stud for facilitating the rotation is substantially similar to the contact area of the studs in the back zone.

11. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation comprises a support element, provided with a bottom contact surface, which is associable to the bottom of the sole and a connecting element between the support element and the fixing element.

12. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein at least one of the elements selected from the support element, the fixing element or the connecting element is rotatable around a substantially vertical axis.

13. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein at least one of the elements selected from the support element, the fixing element or the connecting element is rotatable around a substantially vertical axis.

14. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the bottom contact surface of the stud for facilitating the rotation comprises at least one groove.

15. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the groove is substantially circular.

16. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the stud for facilitating the rotation comprises at least one relief.

17. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the relief is positioned on the side surface of the stud for facilitating the rotation.

18. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, comprising a plurality of reliefs which are distributed over the side surface.

19. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein at least one of the reliefs is positioned close to the sole.

20. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein at least one of the reliefs is located close to the bottom support surface.

21. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the reliefs located close to the sole are larger than the. reliefs located close to the bottom support surface.

22. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the reliefs are distributed over the side surface with a constant pitch.

23. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the reliefs are distributed over the side surface so as to define a plurality of rows.

24. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the reliefs are made from a polymeric material and assist the identification of the state of wear of the stud.

25. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein the relief comprises at least one first end which is substantially rounded and points towards the ground and a second end which is substantially pointed and faces towards the sole.

26. Shoe according to one or more of the foregoing claims, wherein it is of a type that can be used in at least one of the games selected from a group which comprises soccer, six-a-side football, golf, baseball, American football and rugby.