U.S. patent application number 10/313218 was filed with the patent office on 2004-04-15 for shoe with elastic sole.
Invention is credited to Wang, Guohua.
Application Number | 20040068891 10/313218 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 4789713 |
Filed Date | 2004-04-15 |
United States Patent
Application |
20040068891 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Wang, Guohua |
April 15, 2004 |
Shoe with elastic sole
Abstract
A shoe with elastic sole is disclosed. The shoe comprises an
inner sole, an outer sole, an upper, and an elastic sole comprising
a U-shaped cavity that has openings at the two lateral sides of the
sole and a U-shaped spring pad made of carbon fiber plate provided
in the cavity and between the inner sole and outer sole forming a
highly elastic sole structure. A U-shaped spring tab is added to
the core of the U-shaped portion of the U-shaped spring pad.
Alternatively, the openings of the cavity at the two lateral sides
of the sole can be closed, forming a totally enclosed cavity
structure. Additionally, another U-shaped cavity with a U-shaped
spring pad can be provided in the anterior portion of the sole,
thus forming a sole structure with U-shaped spring pads both in the
anterior and heel portion of the sole. A ventilation structure is
provided between the inner sole and the outer sole. The vent
structure comprises ventilation holes in the lateral and rear sides
of the U-shaped cavity with check intake valves provided therein,
and a ventilation hole in the front side of the U-shaped cavity
with a check exhaust valve provided therein. The shoe has the
advantages of large deformation and high elasticity during use that
can provide comforts and forced ventilation with its simple
structure that is suitable for manufacture by the footwear
industry.
Inventors: |
Wang, Guohua; (Dongguan
City, CN) |
Correspondence
Address: |
KNOBLE, YOSHIDA & DUNLEAVY
EIGHT PENN CENTER
SUITE 1350, 1628 JOHN F KENNEDY BLVD
PHILADELPHIA
PA
19103
US
|
Family ID: |
4789713 |
Appl. No.: |
10/313218 |
Filed: |
December 6, 2002 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
36/27 ;
36/28 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A43B 13/203 20130101;
A43B 21/30 20130101; A43B 3/0063 20130101; A43B 1/0018 20130101;
A43B 13/187 20130101; A43B 21/285 20130101; A43B 13/183 20130101;
A43B 13/206 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
036/027 ;
036/028 |
International
Class: |
A43B 013/28; A43B
013/18 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Oct 11, 2002 |
CN |
02281608.9 |
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A shoe with elastic sole comprises an inner sole, an outer sole,
an upper, and an elastic sole that comprises: a high elastic sole
structure comprising a U-shaped cavity with openings at the two
lateral sides and a U-shaped spring pad provided between the inner
sole and the outer sole, forming a high elasticity sole with high
elasticity structure.
2. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 1, wherein said
U-shaped spring pad comprises an upper and a lower plate in which a
U-shaped portion is provided at the intersection of the upper and
lower plates.
3. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 2, wherein a
U-shaped spring tab is added to the core of the U-shaped portion in
the U-shaped spring pad.
4. A shoe with elastic soles according to claims 1, 2, or 3,
wherein the openings at the two lateral sides of the U-shaped
cavity in the heel portion of the sole are totally enclosed,
forming a totally enclosed heel structure.
5. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 4, wherein another
U-shaped cavity with openings at the two lateral sides is provided
in the anterior portion of the inner sole, comprising a U-shaped
spring pad that is integrally connected between the inner sole and
the outer sole, thus forming a sole structure with U-shaped spring
pads provided both in the anterior and heel portion of the
sole.
6. A shoe with elastic soles according to claim 5, wherein the
openings at the two lateral sides of the U-shaped cavity in the
anterior portion of the sole is also totally enclosed, forming a
totally enclosed sole structure in the anterior portion of the
sole.
7. A shoe with elastic soles according to claim 6, wherein the
U-shaped spring pad may be integrally formed with the inner sole
and the outer sole, or separately bonded together to form an
integral elastic sole structure.
8. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 7, wherein the
U-shaped spring pads in the U-shaped cavities in the heel and
anterior portion of the shoe may comprise one set of the U-shaped
spring pads or multiple sets including at least two sets of the
U-shaped spring pads.
9. A shoe with elastic soles according to claim 8, wherein a
ventilation structure is provided between the inner sole and the
outer sole, and said ventilation structure is formed by the
U-shaped cavity of enclosed structure between the inner sole and
outer sole of the heel constituting a totally enclosed air bag
structure of the heel and also at least a ventilation hole is
provided at the peripheral side of the heel with at least a
ventilation hole in the front part of the U-shaped cavity, while
several sub-ventilation holes are provided in the peripheral sides
of the inner sole and outer sole and some ventilation holes
provided in the sole corresponding to the inner sole and the
sub-ventilation holes in which the ventilation hole,
sub-ventilation holes and the ventilation holes in the soles are
communicated.
10. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 9, wherein at least
one outnumbered check intake valve is provided at the ventilation
hole of the heel portion in the totally enclosed U-shaped cavity
and at least one check exhaust valve is provided at the ventilation
hole in the front side of the side U-shaped cavity.
11. A shoe with elastic sole according to claims 1,2, or 3, wherein
a curved part is provided in the intersection of the upper plate of
the elastic pad and the U-shaped part.
12. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 10, wherein a
curved part is provided in the intersection of the upper plate of
the elastic pad and the U-shaped part.
13. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 12, wherein the
thickness of the longitudinally outer side of the upper plate h1 is
greater than the thickness of the longitudinally inner side of the
upper plate and a number of raised reinforced ribs is provided on
the upper surface thereof.
14. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 13, wherein at
least one of the multiple longitudinal reinforced ribs is further
provided on the bottom surface of the upper, or at least one of the
longitudinal reinforced ribs is further provided in the upper
surface of said lower plate wherein both ribs can be provided
either separately or simultaneously.
15. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 14, wherein the
U-shaped spring pad is made of composite material that can be
either a single layer plate or plate having at least more than 2
layers.
16. A shoe with elastic soles according to claim 15, wherein the
composite material of the U-shaped spring pad is made of carbon
fiber plate that can be either a single layer plate or plate having
at least more than 2 layers.
17. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 14 is characterized
in that the U-shaped spring pad is made of spring steel plate that
can be either a single layer plate or plate having at least more
than 2 layers.
18. A shoe with elastic sole according to claims 1, 2, or 3,
wherein the tail of the lower plate of the U-shaped spring pad is
further connected with another U-shaped spring pad forming a
bidirectional structure of the U-shaped spring pad.
19. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 17, wherein the
tail of the lower plate of the U-shaped spring pad is further
connected with another U-shaped spring pad forming a bi-directional
structure of the U-shaped spring pad.
20. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 17, wherein a wavy
spring is provided at the tail of the lower plate of the U-shaped
spring pad. The two ends of the wavy spring are connected to the
upper and the lower plates of the U-shaped spring pad
respectively.
21. A shoe with elastic sole according to claim 17, wherein an
elastic material is provided between the lower and the upper plates
of the U-shaped spring pad.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to a shoe with elastic sole
for personnel and daily use, and in particular, a shoe with elastic
sole.
[0003] 2. Background of the Invention
[0004] With the improvement of the living conditions and change of
life style, people are continuously seeking more comforts of shoes
for daily use. Particularly, because people are attaching more and
more importance to health improving exercises, there is a need for
a kind of shoe that has a sole that can provide good cushioning
during the course of health improving exercises. In order to
satisfy such requirement, the footwear industry has developed
numerous shoes of different kinds, mostly athletic shoes, which
have spring cushioned soles to make the shoes comfortable to wear
during normal walking and health improving exercises.
[0005] Existing shoes with elastic soles have witnessed changes of
structures on various aspects depending on different mechanisms
attempted by inventors. The firstly appeared shoes with elastic
soles were made of foam materials to form an elastic sole structure
to reduce the impact. However, the soles of such kinds of shoes are
mostly made of soft and flexible materials that have limited
elastic effect, which can hardly satisfy the requirement for a shoe
with high elastic effect. Especially, after a period of use, the
soles of such kind of shoes made of soft and flexible materials
will lose the elastic effects because of wear, making it
inconvenient and not practical to use.
[0006] Later, the footwear industry has developed shoes with
elastic soles that have a full elastic structure. A typical of
these kinds of shoes with full elastic soles that can be found in
the market is a shoe with a spring element in the sole, as shown in
FIG. 8. Said shoe 10 with a spring element includes an inner sole
101, an outer sole 102 and an upper 103. A cavity 107 and another
cavity 108 that are opened at two longitudinal sides of the sole
are provided in the arch and heel portion of the sole respectively.
Within cavity 107 and 108, column springs 104, 105, and 106, which
are enclosed by rubber encasements 04A, 105A and 106A for
protection, are provided between the inner sole 101 and outer shoe
102 respectively. This kind of shoe has a better elasticity
compared with the above said soft sole shoes. However, because such
elasticity is achieved by a very complicated mechanism such as
column springs, it is difficult to produce and will result in high
costs. At the same time, said shoe is difficult to maintain and
repair due to its complicated structure. Obviously, there is really
a need for improvement of this kind of shoe because it is not
suitable for mass production by the footwear industry.
[0007] Another kind of shoe that has elastic plastic cubes inserted
in the sole has been developed. A typical example is a type of
elastic soled shoe produced and merchandised by Adidas, as shown in
FIG. 9, which is a side view of such shoe 20 that has a elastic
sole. Shoe 20 comprises an inner sole 201, an outer sole 207, and
an upper 205. Two elastic plastic cubes 203 and 204 are provided
between the upper part and lower part of a U-shaped plastic pad
that is located within a cavity in the heel portion of the sole
between inner sole 201 and outer sole 207. The spring effect of the
sole is achieved by elastic plastic cubes 203 and 204. Comparing
with the above said shoe that has a sole with spring element, this
kind of shoe with elastic plastic cubes has the following defects
that has been found during use by the wearer:
[0008] 1. Said shoe produce low elasticity or spring effect because
elasticity of said shoe is achieved by elastic plastic cubes 203
and 204, which do not provide high elasticity as required by the
wearer. Obviously, there is room for further improvement.
[0009] 2. Said shoe has a complicate sole structure that will
result in relatively higher cost to produce. Elastic plastic cubes
203 and 204 are affixed between upper and lower parts of the
U-shaped plastic pad 202, which are in turn affixed between the
inner sole and the outer sole within the cavity 206. So such sole
structure is difficult to produce and results in high production
costs. In addition, said sole structure can be damaged by the
impact by the motion of the foot of the wearer after some time of
use, making it difficult to repair. Obviously, there is room for
further improvement.
[0010] All of the above mentioned different kinds of shoes with
elastic soles offer improvements in the elastic structures of the
soles of the shoes. Although such kinds of elastic structures can
achieve some elasticity to the soles as attempted by the inventor,
they do not satisfy the needs for high elasticity, which is
obviously caused by imperfection of the design of the previous
elastic sole structures.
[0011] In order to provide a shoe that has a high elastic sole, the
footwear industry has been racking their brains to find out a
satisfactory solution without any practical results. Conventional
shoes with elastic soles do not have an effective high elastic
structure, which is obviously a problem remaining to be solved as
soon as possible. As can be seen from the above, there are still
many defects of the existing shoes with elastic soles that demand
prompt solution.
[0012] In view of the structural imperfection of shoes with elastic
soles that cannot provide high elastic function, I invented the
present kind of shoe with high elastic sole based on my rich
knowledge and experience after repeated trials and
improvements.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0013] One object of the present invention is to overcome the
defects of the soles of the existing shoes with elastic soles, and
to provide a shoe with high elastic sole to provide comforts to a
wearer.
[0014] Another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe
with an elastic sole that can provide not only high elasticity to
the soles, but can also be used by the wearer for a considerably
long period of time without undesired deformation, thus enhancing
durability and practicability of the shoe.
[0015] Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a
shoe with elastic sole that has an simple structure and is easy to
produce in low cost, thus making it suitable for extensive adoption
by the footwear industry.
[0016] A still further object of the present invention is to
provide a shoe with an elastic sole that can minimize the
discomforts suffered by a wearer during health improving exercises
so that it can further satisfy the wearer by improve the
performance of the wearer and fully exert his athletic potential
during health improving exercises.
[0017] The objects of the present invention are achieved by a shoe
with elastic sole that includes an inner sole, an outer sole, an
upper, and an elastic sole. The shoe is characterized in that a
high elastic sole structure is formed by a U-shaped cavity having
openings at the lateral sides in the heel portion of the sole, in
which a U-shaped spring pad is provided between the inner sole and
the outer sole.
[0018] The objects of the present invention and the technical
solutions achieved by the present invention can be further achieved
by the following technical measures:
[0019] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
spring pad comprises upper and lower plates in which a U-shaped
portion is provided at the intersection of the upper and lower
plates.
[0020] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein a U-shaped
spring tab is added to the core of the U-shaped portion to improve
the elastic strength and durability of the curving portion of the
U-shaped spring pad.
[0021] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the openings
at the two lateral sides of the U-shaped cavity in the heel portion
of the sole are totally enclosed, thus forming a totally enclosed
heel structure.
[0022] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein another
U-shaped cavity with openings at the two lateral sides of the sole
is provided in the anterior portion of the sole, and a U-shaped
spring pad is integrally connected between the inner sole and the
outer sole, thus forming a sole structure with U-shaped spring pads
provided both in the anterior and heel portion of the sole to
provide the sole with much higher elasticity.
[0023] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
cavity at the anterior portion of the inner sole can also be a
totally enclosed structure, forming a totally enclosed structure in
the anterior portion of the sole.
[0024] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
spring pad can be integrally formed with the inner sole and the
outer sole, or separately bonded together to form an integral
structure.
[0025] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
spring pads in the U-shaped cavities in the heel and anterior
portion of the shoe may comprise one set of the U-shaped spring
pads or multiple sets including at least two sets of the U-shaped
spring pads.
[0026] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein a ventilation
structure is provided between the inner sole and the outer sole,
and said ventilation structure is formed by the U-shaped cavity of
enclosed structure between the inner sole and outer sole of the
heel constituting a totally enclosed air bag structure of the heel
and also at least a ventilation hole is provided at the peripheral
side of the heel with at least a ventilation hole in the front part
of the U-shaped cavity, while several sub-ventilation holes are
provided in the peripheral sides of the inner sole and outer sole
and some ventilation holes provided in the sole corresponding to
the inner sole and the sub-ventilation holes in which the
ventilation hole, sub-ventilation holes and the ventilation holes
in the soles are communicated to achieve ventilation.
[0027] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein at least one
outnumbered check intake valve is provided at the ventilation hole
of the heel in the enclosed U-shaped cavity and at least one check
exhaust valve is provided at the ventilation hole of the front part
of the U-shaped cavity to achieve better elasticity and forced
ventilation.
[0028] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein a curved part
is provided in the intersection of the upper plate of the elastic
pad and the U-shaped portion.
[0029] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the thickness
of the longitudinally outer side of the upper plate h1 is greater
than the thickness of the longitudinally inner side of the upper
plate h2, or more numbers of raised reinforced ribs can be provided
on the upper surface thereof.
[0030] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the upper
plate has at least one of the multiple longitudinal reinforced ribs
in the bottom, or at least one of the longitudinal reinforced ribs
provided in the upper surface of the lower plate wherein both ribs
can be of separate structure or provided simultaneously.
[0031] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
spring pad is made of composite material that can be a single layer
plate or a plate having at least more than 2 layers.
[0032] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the composite
material of the U-shaped spring pad is carbon fiber plate which may
be formed of one layer or at least more than 2 layers.
[0033] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the U-shaped
spring pad is made of spring steel plate that can be formed by one
layer or at least more than 2 layers.
[0034] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein the tail of
the lower plate of the U-shaped spring pad is connected with a
U-shaped spring pad forming a bi-directional structure of the
U-shaped spring pad.
[0035] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein a wavy spring
is provided at the tail of the lower plate of the U-shaped spring
pad. The two ends of the wavy spring are connected to the upper and
the lower plates of the U-shaped spring pad respectively.
[0036] The aforesaid shoe with elastic sole, wherein an elastic
material is provided between the lower and the upper plates of the
U-shaped spring pad.
[0037] The present invention has prominent advantages and produces
effective results compared with prior art. From the above-mentioned
technical solution one can see that this invention is suitable for
extensive application by the footwear industry because it can
produce the effects of high elastic deformation and high elasticity
with its simple structure. More detailed description of the
advantages of the present invention is given below.
[0038] 1. A high elasticity sole is provided by a high elasticity
structure formed by a U-shaped spring pad located within a U-shaped
cavity in the heel portion of a shoe. Unlike the existing shoes
with elastic soles that lack practical applicability because of its
small elastic deformation, the present sole can produce high
elastic deformation during use, making it comfortable to wear.
[0039] 2. The present invention has a variable structure that can
absorb and exhaust sweat of the foot of the wearer, providing a
multifunction of ventilation and high elasticity. The present
invention can fully exert potential of the wearer and improve work
efficiency because the shoe keeps the feet of the wearer enjoyably
dry and comfortable to use, while minimize discomforts of the
wearer during walking or exercises.
[0040] 3. The elasticity strength of the curved part of the
U-shaped spring pad can be reinforced be adding a U-shaped spring
tab to the core of the U-shaped portion, which provides durability
and applicability because it will not produce permanent deformation
even after a long period of use.
[0041] 4. A more highly elasticity to the sole can be achieved by
providing the U-shaped spring pads both in the anterior portion and
the heel portion of the shoe, making it more applicability and more
satisfy the requirement of the wearer by providing better choices
to the wearer.
[0042] 5. A ventilation structure is added between the inner sole
and outer sole by providing at least one vent hole in the
peripheral sides of the heel portion of the sole and providing at
least one vent hole in the front side of the U-shaped cavity to
have the effects of ventilation and exhaust.
[0043] 6. Check intake valves and check exhaust valves can be
provided to the vent holes in the peripheral sides of the heel
portion of the sole and in the front side of the U-shaped cavity
respectively, making the sole has a even more better elasticity and
forced ventilation and exhausting.
[0044] 7. The tail of the lower plate of the U-shaped spring pad
can be connected with another U-shaped spring pad to form a double
way U-shaped spring pad, further increasing the elasticity of
U-shaped spring pad to make reciprocating motion of the elastic
shoe more smooth.
[0045] 8. Or a wavy spring can be provided at the tail of the lower
plate of the U-shaped spring pad. The two ends of the wavy spring
are connected to the upper and the lower plates of the U-shaped
spring pad respectively.
[0046] 9. Or an elastic material can be provided between the lower
and the upper plates of the U-shaped spring pad.
[0047] 10. The present invention can be easily produced with low
cost because of its simple structure, which is suitable for
extensive application by the footwear industry.
[0048] 11. The present invention can fully satisfy the requirements
of the footwear industry in its simple structure, applicability and
cost effectiveness. The present invention do possess novelty
because it discloses an new structure that has never been publicly
disclosed in publications or publicly used or made known to the
public or can be found in the market.
[0049] 12. The structure of the present invention has technical
advances compared with existing elastic sole. Its unique structural
features and functions produce more applicability and promoted
effects, which are more superior to the existing elastic soles,
therefore, the present invention possesses inventiveness.
[0050] As indicated above, the present invention of the shoe with
the unique elastic sole structure, which possesses the
above-mentioned advantages, has never been disclosed or used by
prior art. The present invention is really a novel, progressive,
and applicable new design with its great improvement in structure
and function.
[0051] The above description is only a summary of the present
invention. In order to make a person skilled in the art have better
understanding of the technical measures of the present invention
and carry in execution of the present invention according to this
specification, a detailed description of one embodiment of the
present invention is given below with the help of the drawings.
[0052] Detailed implementation of the present invention is
described in the following drawings and examples of several
embodiments.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0053] FIG. 1 is a side view of the shoe with elastic sole
according to the present invention, with parts cut away.
[0054] FIG. 2 is a side view of an alternate shoe with elastic sole
according to the present invention, with parts cut away.
[0055] FIG. 3 is a bottom view of the shoe with elastic sole shown
in FIG. 2, with parts cut away from "A-A" side of FIG. 2.
[0056] FIG. 4 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0057] FIG. 5 is a longitudinal side view of the spring pad shown
from the "A" side in FIG. 4.
[0058] FIG. 6 is a top view of the spring pad shown from the "B"
side in FIG. 5
[0059] FIG. 7 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0060] FIG. 8 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0061] FIG. 9 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0062] FIG. 10 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0063] FIG. 11 is a side view of an alternate spring pad according
to the present invention.
[0064] FIG. 12 is a side view of a shoe with spring sole according
to an existing invention, with spring assembly cut away.
[0065] FIG. 13 is a side view of a shoe with elastic plastic cubes
according an existing invention, with the elastic structure cut
away.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
[0066] Details about method of execution, structure, features, and
functions of embodiments of the present invention are given below
with the help of the drawings.
[0067] FIG. 1 shows one embodiment of the present invention. Shoe 1
comprises an inner sole 11, an outer sole 12 and an upper 13. A
U-shaped cavity 14 with openings at the two lateral sides is
provided in the heel portion of the shoe, in which a U-shaped
spring pad 15 is located between the inner sole 11 and outer sole
12. A shoe with high elastic sole can be achieved by the high
elastic structure formed by the U-shaped spring pad 15, which is
structurally simple and easy to produce.
[0068] FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show one embodiment of the present
invention. The U-shaped spring pad 15 includes an upper plate 151
and a lower plate 152, in which a U-shaped portion 153 is provided
at the intersection thereof. In order to enhance the elasticity and
to increase durability of the present invention, a U-shaped spring
plate is provided in the core of the U-shaped portion 153 of the
spring pad 15 to enhance the elastic strength of the curved section
of the U-shaped pad 15.
[0069] The U-shaped cavity 14 may also be closed at the two lateral
sides (the enclosed U-shaped cavity can not be illustrated by the
drawing because the drawing is a side view with U-shaped portion
cut away; so the drawing only illustrates the U-shaped cavity with
openings at the two lateral sides), thus forming a totally enclosed
U-shaped chamber 15, which can ensure safety of the heel portion
during use and prevent foreign maters such as dust and debris from
entering into the heel structure. The totally enclosed structure
can also enhance applicability and generate an aesthetic appearance
to the shoe.
[0070] FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the present invention,
which, in order to further enhance elasticity of the sole, includes
another U-shaped cavity 16 having openings at the two lateral sides
in the anterior portion of the sole. Within the U-shaped cavity 16,
a U-shaped spring pad 17 is integrally affixed to the inner sole 11
and outer sole 12, which can further enhance elasticity of the
sole, thus forming a elastic sole with U-shaped spring pads both in
the anterior and heel portion of the sole that provides a much
higher elasticity.
[0071] Similarly, The U-shaped cavity 16 may also be closed at the
two lateral sides (the enclosed U-shaped cavity can not be
illustrated by the drawing because the drawing is a side view with
U-shaped portion cut away; so the drawing only illustrates the
U-shaped cavity with openings at the two lateral sides), thus
forming a totally enclosed U-shaped chamber 16
[0072] Said U-shaped spring pad 15 can be integrally formed with
the inner sole 11 and the outer sole 12, or separately bonded
together to form an integral structure.
[0073] The U-shaped spring pad 15 in the U-shaped chamber 14 in the
heel and the U-shaped spring pad 17 in the U-shaped chamber 16 in
the anterior portion of the shoes may be provided with one set of
the U-shaped spring pad or multiple sets including at least two
sets of the pads respectively, thus further improving the structure
thereof.
[0074] Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 2, and FIG. 3, FIG. 3 shows the
ventilation structure of the present invention. The ventilation
structure 18 is provided between the inner sole and the outer sole,
and said ventilation structure is formed by the enclosed U-shaped
cavity 14 between the inner sole 11 and outer sole 12 of the heel
constituting a totally enclosed air bag structure of the heel and
also at least a ventilation hole 181 is provided at the peripheral
side of the heel with at least a ventilation hole 182 in the front
part of the U-shaped cavity 14, while several sub-ventilation holes
183 are provided in the peripheral sides of the inner sole 11 and
outer sole 12 and some ventilation holes 184 (illustrated by dotted
lines in FIG. 3) provided in the sole corresponding to the
sub-ventilation holes 183 in which the ventilation hole 182,
sub-ventilation holes 183 and the ventilation holes 184 in the
soles are communicated. When the inner sole 11 is pressed down to
deform by the wearer, parts of the air inside the air bag formed by
the U-shaped chamber 14 will be discharged to the outside through
sub-ventilation holes 183, while at the same time, sweat of the
foot will be discharged to the outside together with the air
through ventilation holes 184, making the shoe have the advantages
of forced ventilation and better elasticity.
[0075] In order to have a much better ventilation and elasticity,
at least one check intake valve 1811, 1812, and 1813 can be
provided at the ventilation hole of the heel in the enclosed
U-shaped cavity 14 and at least one check exhaust valve is provided
at the ventilation hole 182 of the front part of the U-shaped
cavity 14. When the wearer lift up his foot, the inner sole 11 will
also lift up due to the elastic force of the U-shaped spring pad
15, thus making the outside air flow into the air bag structure
formed by the U-shaped chamber 14 through check intake valve 1811,
1812, and 1813. When the inner sole 11 and the U-shaped spring pad
15 is pressed down to deform by the wearer, the check intake valves
1811, 1812, and 1813 will close, thus making the air inside the air
bag formed by the U-shaped chamber 14 discharged to the outside
only through ventilation hole 182 and sub-ventilation holes 183,
while at the same time, sweat of the foot will be discharged to the
outside together with the air through ventilation holes 184, making
the shoe have the advantages of forced ventilation and better
elasticity.
[0076] FIG. 4 shows another embodiment of the present invention,
which has a similar structure to that of the first embodiment. The
difference is that a curved portion 154 is provided at the
intersection between the upper plate 151 and the U-shaped portion
153, thus avoiding fatigue breakdown of the U-shaped portion 153
after repeated use, while at the same time deformation of the
curved portion 154 can neutralize the deformation displacement of
the upper plate 151 during use, thus making the reciprocating
motion of the upper plate 151 more smooth, and further enhancing
the elastic strength of the U-shaped spring pad.
[0077] Referring to FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, the thickness h1 of the
outer side of the upper plate 151 is greater than the thickness h2
of the inner side of the upper plate 151, so that the center of
gravity of the wearer will be kept to the center of the sole, or
more numbers of raised reinforced ribs 1511 can be provided on the
upper surface of said upper plate 151, which can achieve same
result.
[0078] Referring to FIG. 5, the upper plate 151 can be provided
with at least one of the multiple longitudinal reinforced ribs 1512
in the bottom, or at least one of the longitudinal reinforced ribs
1521 in the upper surface of the lower plate 152 wherein both ribs
can be of separate structure or provided simultaneously. Strength
of the upper plate 151 and lower plate 152 can be enhanced by the
more numbers of the longitudinal reinforced ribs, thus strength of
the U-shaped spring pad 15 can be further enhanced.
[0079] FIG. 7 shows yet another embodiment of the present
invention, which has a similar structure to that of the second
embodiment of the present invention. The difference is that the
tail of said lower plate 152 can be connected with another U-shaped
spring pad 156 forming a bi-directional structure of the U-shaped
spring pad. The structure of the U-shaped spring pad 156 can be
same to that of said U-shaped spring pad 15; therefore it is
unnecessary to go in to details. This structure will provide
further more elasticity and more smoothness of the reciprocating
motions of the elastic sole because the elastic force of the
U-shaped spring pad 15 is further more enhanced.
[0080] Said U-shaped spring pad 15 of the present invention can be
made of composite material which can be a single layer plate or
plate having at least more than 2 layers. Carbon fiber plate is
preferred for embodiments of the present invention. The carbon
fiber plate that may be of one layer or at least more than 2
layers. Said U-shaped spring pad 15 may be also made of spring
steel plate which can be of one layer or at least more than 2
layers depending on requirement for different elasticity.
[0081] Referring to FIG. 8, FIG. 9, FIG. 10, and FIG. 11, in
another embodiment of the present invention, a wavy spring is
provided at the tail of the lower plate of said U-shaped spring pad
15. The two ends of the wavy spring are connected to the upper and
the lower plates of the U-shaped spring pad respectively (as shown
in FIG. 9). In yet another embodiment of the present invention, an
elastic material such as silica gel can also be provided between
the lower and the upper plates of said spring pad (as shown in FIG.
11).
[0082] The above detailed description of the invention are only
examples of several preferred embodiments, they should not be
construed as limitations on the scope of the invention. Other
examples of changes, substitutions, and alterations are readily
ascertainable by one skilled in the art and could be made without
departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.
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