Spring cushioned shoe

Abstract

A spring cushioned shoe is disclosed. The shoe includes a sole assembly that has a first encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within a vacuity of the heel region and a second encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within a vacuity of the toe region. The springs are, e.g., wave springs that extend to the upper and lower boundaries of the encapsulating spring enclosure.

Description

PRIORITY CLAIM

[0001] Applicant claims priority based upon U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/897,605 filed Jan. 26, 2007.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] 1. Field of the Invention

[0003] This invention relates to an improvement to the existing technology surrounding wave spring cushioned shoes. Specifically, prior wave spring cushioned shoes, as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,814 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,665,957, have utilized a fluid flow passageway to move fluid, such as air, from the heel portion of the shoe to the ball portion of the shoe during impact. The present invention eliminates the need of the fluid flow passageway.

[0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0005] One of the most basic laws of physics is that for ever action there is an equal and opposite reaction. In terms of shoes and running, this means that for every step down ("foot strike"), there is an equal and opposite force exerted back towards the shoe and ultimately the person wearing the shoe. If life were but one step perhaps the forces involved would be inconsequential. But life, like running, is not a single step but a repetition of many steps. The forces that must be absorbed by a shoe and the wearer of the shoe over the course of a single event are tremendous and have spurred on countless inventions aimed at cushioning shoe impact forces.

[0006] U.S. Pat. No. 6,282,814 (the '814 patent) discloses a spring cushioned shoe wherein the springs are sealed within vacuities formed in the soles of the shoe. When the springs are sealed within a vacuity, the air within the vacuity is an integral part of the spring system. During a foot strike, air sealed within the vacuity behaves as an ideal gas and follows the numerical expression "PV=NRT." Since temperature is constant, the pressure of the air varies inversely with the volume as the vacuity is compressed. In lay men's terms, as the volume of the vacuity is compressed during a foot strike, the air pressure within the vacuity increases and exerts a return force. While this aspect of air within the vacuity adds to the effectiveness of the spring system, air can and does interfere with the predictable operation of the spring and in such way can have a detrimental effect on the spring system To reduce the air interference on the spring, a fluid flow passageway, such as that discussed in the U.S. Pat. No. 6,665,957 (the '957 patent), can be used. The heel region of the shoe is the first to make contact with the ground during a foot strike. As the springs of the heel region are compressed, the fluid flow passageway of the '957 patent allows air to escape to the toe region of the shoe. As weight is transferred from the heel to the toe region of the shoe, the air escapes back into the heel region.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] One would not have to have a degree in manufacturing to appreciate that if the fluid flow passageway could be eliminated, a reduction in manufacturing costs would be achieved while still maintaining the effectiveness of the shoe springs. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide for an effective shoe spring without the necessity of the fluid flow passageway.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] FIG. 1 is a side view of the self contained toe insert.

[0009] FIG. 2 is a top view of the self contained toe insert.

[0010] FIG. 3 is a top view of the self contained heel insert.

[0011] FIG. 4 is a top view of the self contained heel insert.

[0012] FIG. 5 is a top view of the sole of a shoe depicting both the heel and toe insert.

[0013] FIG. 6 is a close up illustration of the wave springs of the current invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] The detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosed herein. It should be understood, however, that the disclosed embodiments are merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in various forms. Therefore, the details disclosed herein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as the basis for the claims and as a basis for teaching one skilled in the art how to make and/or use the invention.

[0015] FIG. 1 depicts a side view of the toe insert showing the wave springs [1 & 2] contained in a fully encapsulating spring enclosure [3]. The fluid within the encapsulating spring enclosure [3] can be any substance that flows such as a gas or a liquid. The volume of fluid within the encapsulating spring enclosure is sufficient to allow for enhanced spring performance and is not so great as to interfere with such performance. As disclosed in the '814 patent, the wave springs [1&2] are substantially identical to the multi turn compression springs with distinct crests and trough described by Greenhill in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,987. As shown in FIG. 3 of the '814 patent and FIG. 6 herein, the wave springs of the current invention have circular flat shim ends [1A & 1B] and wave crest [1C] and wave trough [1D] with prescribed periodicity. FIG. 6 illustrates the configuration of wave springs [1&2] which provide for operationally acceptable force and deflection for a given free height of the springs. The compression wave springs of the preferred embodiment of this invention could be replaced with multi turn wave springs which do not employ flat shim ends but rather rely on the use of flat end plates in combination with ordinary wave springs. Although FIGS. 1 and 2 depicts the toe insert of the present invention with two wave springs [1&2], any number and combination of wave springs could be used so long as the effectiveness of the shoe spring was retained.

[0016] FIGS. 3 and 4 illustrate the insert of the present invention showing the wave spring [4] contained in a fully encapsulating spring enclosure [5]. As with the toe insert springs, although FIG. 3 shows only one wave spring, any number or combination of springs could be used so long as the effectiveness of the shoe spring was retained. FIG. 5 depicts the placement of the encapsulating spring enclosures [3 &4] into the shoe sole [5]. While the present invention provides cushioning for a shoe that utilizes wave springs placed in the ball and heel areas of the sole of a shoe, it should be obvious to one skilled in the art that the placement of the wave springs is not limited to only the ball and heel areas of the shoe. In the present invention the middle portion sole of the shoe sole assembly is made of foam with vacuities located at or near the ball and heel regions of the foot in order to accommodate placement of the springs. There are also numerous other methods and designs to place the wave springs into a shoe for cushioning and energy return.

[0017] While the preferred embodiments have been shown and described, it will be understood that there is no intent to limit the invention by such disclosure, but rather, is intended to cover all modifications and alternate constructions falling within the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A shoe comprising a shoe sole defining a vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within such vacuity.

2. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the vacuity is disposed within the heel region of the shoe sole.

3. The shoe of claim 2, further comprising a pair of vertically opposed plates, disposed on upper and lower ends of the spring encapsulating enclosure, wherein the spring is mounted within the enclosure between the opposed plates.

4. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the shoe sole further defines a second vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within such vacuity.

5. The shoe of claim 4, wherein the first vacuity with encapsulating spring enclosure with spring is disposed within the heel region of the shoe sole, and the second encapsulating spring enclosure with spring is disposed within the ball region of the shoe sole.

6. The shoe of claim 5, wherein the spring and the second spring are both crest-to-crest multi-turn wave springs.

7. The shoe of claim 4, wherein the first and second encapsulating spring enclosures are hermetically sealed.

8. The shoe of claim 4, wherein the first and second encapsulating spring enclosures contain ambient air at atmospheric pressure.

9. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the spring is a multi-turn wave spring.

10. A shoe comprising a shoe sole including outer sole, an inner sole, and a mid-sole disposed above the outer sole and below the inner sole, the middle sole defining a vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within such vacuity, and a second vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring disposed within such vacuity.

11. The shoe of claim 10, wherein the first and second springs are multi-turn wave springs.

12. A shoe sole assembly comprising a compressible material defining a vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring within the vacuity.

13. A shoe sole assembly comprising a sole member defining a vacuity and an encapsulating spring enclosure with spring within the vacuity.