U.S. patent application number 14/867962 was filed with the patent office on 2016-08-11 for footbed and other wearable articles.
The applicant listed for this patent is BAUER HOCKEY CORP.. Invention is credited to Gaetan CHAMPAGNE, Denis COTE, David DAUB, Charles-Antoine DESROCHERS, Sebastien DUBOIS, Ming-Hwa HUANG.
Application Number | 20160227880 14/867962 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 56565527 |
Filed Date | 2016-08-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160227880 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
CHAMPAGNE; Gaetan ; et
al. |
August 11, 2016 |
FOOTBED AND OTHER WEARABLE ARTICLES
Abstract
A footbed for a skate (e.g., an ice hockey skate), which may
enhance a fit of the skate on a skater's foot. The footbed
comprises an upper side for engaging the skater's foot received in
a skate boot of the skate, a lower side opposite to the upper side,
and thermoformable material allowing the footbed to be thermoformed
to conform to the skater's foot. The thermoformable material may
comprise a shape-memory material. Footbeds for other footwear are
also disclosed. Other articles wearable by users, such as articles
of personal protective equipment (e.g., helmets, leg guards, etc.),
are disclosed.
Inventors: |
CHAMPAGNE; Gaetan;
(St-Colomban, CA) ; DUBOIS; Sebastien; (St-Jerome,
CA) ; DAUB; David; (Kitchener, CA) ; HUANG;
Ming-Hwa; (Taichung City, TW) ; COTE; Denis;
(St-Colomban, CA) ; DESROCHERS; Charles-Antoine;
(Prevost, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
BAUER HOCKEY CORP. |
Blainville |
|
CA |
|
|
Family ID: |
56565527 |
Appl. No.: |
14/867962 |
Filed: |
September 28, 2015 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
62114296 |
Feb 10, 2015 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A43B 7/143 20130101;
A43B 5/1641 20130101; A43B 17/14 20130101; A43B 7/28 20130101; A43B
5/16 20130101; A43B 7/142 20130101; A43B 17/006 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A43B 17/14 20060101
A43B017/14; A43B 5/16 20060101 A43B005/16 |
Claims
1. A footbed for a skate, the footbed comprising: an upper side for
engaging a skater's foot received in a skate boot of the skate; a
lower side opposite to the upper side; and thermoformable material
allowing the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the skater's
foot.
2. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the thermoformable material
comprises a shape-memory material.
3. The footbed of claim 2, wherein the shape-memory material allows
the footbed to be thermoformed into a plurality of different shapes
and to recover an original shape in response to being heated to a
shape-recovering temperature.
4. The footbed of claim 2, wherein the shape-memory material
comprises a shape-memory polymer.
5. The footbed of claim 3, wherein the shape-memory polymer is a
shape-memory polyurethane.
6. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a thermoforming temperature of
the thermoformable material is no greater than 85.degree. C.
7. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a thermoforming temperature of
the thermoformable material is no greater than 75.degree. C.
8. (canceled)
9. (canceled)
10. (canceled)
11. (canceled)
12. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the thermoformable material is
rigid at room temperature.
13. The footbed of claim 1, wherein, at room temperature, the
thermoformable material is stiffer than an underlying material of
the skate boot that contacts and supports the footbed in use.
14. (canceled)
15. (canceled)
16. (canceled)
17. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a modulus of elasticity of the
thermoformable material is at least 150 MPa according to ASTM
D638-10.
18. (canceled)
19. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the thermoformable material
substantially does not compress at room temperature when the
skater's foot rests on the footbed while the skater is standing on
the skate.
20. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the
thermoformable material remains substantially constant at room
temperature whether (i) the skater's foot rests on the footbed
while the skater is standing on the skate 10 or (ii) the skater's
foot is not in the skate boot and the footbed is unloaded.
21. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a ratio of (i) a thickness of
the thermoformable material when the skater's foot rests on the
footbed while the skater is standing on the skate over (ii) the
thickness of the thermoformable material when the skater's foot is
not in the skate boot and the footbed is unloaded is no less than
0.95.
22. (canceled)
23. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a hardness of the
thermoformable material is at least 40 Shore D.
24. (canceled)
25. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the thermoformable material is
harder than an underlying material of the skate boot that contacts
and supports the footbed.
26. (canceled)
27. (canceled)
28. (canceled)
29. (canceled)
30. (canceled)
31. (canceled)
32. The footbed of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the
thermoformable material when the footbed has been thermoformed to
conform to the skater's foot is substantially equal to the
thickness of the thermoformable material when the footbed is in an
original shape prior to being thermoformed to conform to the
skater's foot.
33. The footbed of claim 1, comprising a thermoforming readiness
indicator to indicate when the footbed is ready to be thermoformed
to the skater's foot in the skate boot.
34. The footbed of claim 33, wherein the thermoforming readiness
indicator comprises a temperature sensor that is sensitive to a
current temperature of the thermoformable material.
35. The footbed of claim 34, wherein a visual characteristic of the
temperature sensor is changeable in response to variation in the
current temperature of the thermoformable material.
36. The footbed of claim 35, wherein the visual characteristic is a
color of the temperature sensor.
37. The footbed of claim 35, wherein the visual characteristic is a
degree of transparency of the temperature sensor.
38. The footbed of claim 35, wherein the temperature sensor
comprises a thermochromic substance.
39. The footbed of claim 38, wherein the thermochromatic substance
is a thermochromic ink applied to the thermoformable material.
40. The footbed of claim 39, wherein the thermochromic ink has a
first visual state when the current temperature of the
thermoformable material is below a temperature threshold and a
second visual state, different from the first visual state, when
the current temperature of the thermoformable material is above the
temperature threshold.
41. The footbed of claim 40, wherein the first visual state
includes a first color and the second visual state includes a
second color different from the first color.
42. The footbed of claim 40, wherein the first visual state
includes a first degree of transparency and the second visual state
includes a second degree of transparency different from the first
degree of transparency.
43. The footbed of claim 39, wherein the thermochromic ink is
visible when the current temperature of the thermoformable material
is below a temperature threshold and disappears when the current
temperature of the thermoformable material is above the temperature
threshold.
44. The footbed of claim 39, wherein the thermochromic ink is
distributed into a plurality of thermochromic ink portions on the
thermoformable material.
45. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the footbed is insertable into
and removable from a cavity of the skate boot.
46. The footbed of claim 1, comprising a plantar surface for
engaging a plantar surface of the skater's foot and a wall
projecting upwardly from the plantar surface of the footbed.
47. The footbed of claim 46, wherein the wall is configured to turn
about a heel of the skater's foot and face part of a medial side of
the skater's foot and part of a lateral side of the skater's
foot.
48. The footbed of claim 46, wherein the wall comprises an arched
portion for engaging an arch of the skater's foot.
49. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the footbed comprises a
forefoot portion, a hindfoot portion, and a midfoot portion for
respectively engaging a forefoot, a hindfoot, and a midfoot of the
skater's foot.
50. The footbed of claim 1, wherein the footbed has a longitudinal
curvature defining an arched portion to overlap an arch of the
skater's foot.
51. The footbed of claim 50, wherein the footbed has a transversal
curvature defining a concave portion to encompass a hindfoot of the
skater's foot.
52. The footbed of claim 1, comprising a covering affixed to the
thermoformable material at the upper side of the footbed.
53. The footbed of claim 53, wherein: the footbed comprises a
forefoot portion, a hindfoot portion, and a midfoot portion for
respectively engaging a forefoot, a hindfoot, and a midfoot of the
skater's foot; and the covering extends in the forefoot portion,
the hindfoot portion, and the midfoot portion of the footbed.
54. The footbed of claim 52, wherein the covering is adhesively
affixed to the thermoformable material by an adhesive able to
withstand temperature variations experienced by the footbed when
heated to be thermoformed to conform to the skater's foot.
55. The footbed of claim 52, wherein the covering comprises
cushioning material.
56. The footbed of claim 55, wherein the cushioning material is
more flexible and softer than the thermoformable material.
57. The footbed of claim 56, wherein a modulus of elasticity of the
cushioning material is lower than a modulus of elasticity of the
thermoformable material.
58. The footbed of claim 56, wherein a hardness of the cushioning
material is lower than a hardness of the thermoformable
material.
59. The footbed of claim 55, wherein the cushioning material is
foam.
60. The footbed of claim 55, wherein the covering comprises an
outer cover disposed over the cushioning material.
61. The footbed of claim 60, wherein the outer cover comprises a
layer of fabric.
62. (canceled)
63. (canceled)
64. The footbed of claim 1, comprising a frictional element to
increase friction between the skater's foot and the footbed such
that a coefficient of friction between the frictional element and
the skater's foot is greater than a coefficient of friction between
an area of the footbed outside of the frictional element and the
skater's foot.
65. (canceled)
66. The footbed of claim 64, wherein the frictional element
comprises a tackifying material.
67. (canceled)
68. The footbed of claim 64, wherein the frictional element
comprises a textured area.
69. The footbed of claim 64, wherein the frictional element is one
of a plurality of frictional elements that are distributed on the
footbed.
70. A skate comprising: a skate boot for receiving a skater's foot;
and a footbed for engaging the skater's foot when received in the
skate boot, the footbed comprising thermoformable material allowing
the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the skater's foot.
71. The skate of claim 70, wherein the footbed is fastened to a
remainder of the skate boot.
72. The skate of claim 70, comprising a thermoforming readiness
indicator to indicate when the footbed is ready to be thermoformed
to the skater's foot in the skate boot.
73. The skate of claim 72, wherein the thermoforming readiness
indicator is disposed on an exterior of the skate.
74. A footbed for footwear, the footbed comprising: an upper side
for engaging a user's foot received in the footwear; a lower side
opposite to the upper side; and thermoformable material allowing
the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's foot, the
thermoformable material comprising a shape-memory material.
75. (canceled)
76. A footbed for footwear, the footbed comprising: an upper side
for engaging a user's foot received in the footwear; a lower side
opposite to the upper side; thermoformable material allowing the
footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's foot; and a
thermoforming readiness indicator to indicate when the footbed is
ready to be thermoformed to the user's foot in the footwear.
77. (canceled)
78. (canceled)
79. (canceled)
80. (canceled)
81. (canceled)
82. (canceled)
83. (canceled)
84. (canceled)
85. (canceled)
86. (canceled)
87. (canceled)
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This application claims priority under 35 USC 119(e) of U.S.
Provisional Patent Application 62/114,296 filed on Feb. 10, 2015
and hereby incorporated by reference herein.
FIELD
[0002] This disclosure generally relates to footbeds for footwear
and to other articles wearable by users for improving fit,
stability, support, and/or comfort, for providing protection,
and/or for other purposes.
BACKGROUND
[0003] Various articles are wearable by users who engage in various
activities, such as walking, running, playing sports, working,
etc., for improving fit, stability, support and/or comfort, for
providing protection (e.g., against impacts), and/or for other
purposes.
[0004] For example, a footbed can be used in a user's footwear
(e.g., shoe or boot) to improve fit, stability, support and/or
comfort. Some footbeds have a soft layer typically made of a
cushioning or shock-absorbing material. The soft layer in some
cases may conform to the user's foot by wearing the footbed in the
user's footwear. In other cases, the footbed is required to be
heated, typically in an oven, placed on a cushioning device, and
then the user stands on the cushioning device for a period of time
to allow the soft layer to conform to the user's foot.
[0005] Existing footbeds, however, present some deficiencies. For
instance, in some cases, once a footbed is formed to a user's foot,
it cannot be easily returned to its original shape. As a result, if
the footbed is not formed as desired or if the user for some reason
wants to return the footbed to its original shape, the user would
typically have to purchase a new footbed. Also, in some cases where
a footbed needs to be heated prior to being formed to a user's
foot, it may not be readily apparent if or when the footbed has
been properly heated and/or is ready to be formed to the user's
foot. Another potential drawback is that the soft layer of a
footbed is typically fairly flexible (i.e., non-rigid), which may
not necessarily be desirable in certain applications. For example,
in certain sports, such as hockey, softness or flexibility of a
footbed may not be desirable since it can affect speed, stability,
and/or other aspects of a user's performance.
[0006] Similar considerations may arise for certain other articles
wearable by users, such as helmets, shoulder pads, arm guards, leg
guards, and/or other items of personal protective equipment.
[0007] For these and/or other reasons, there is therefore a need
for providing improved footbeds and/or other wearable articles.
SUMMARY
[0008] In accordance with an aspect of the invention, there is
provided a footbed for a skate. The footbed comprises: an upper
side for engaging a skater's foot received in a skate boot of the
skate; a lower side opposite to the upper side; and thermoformable
material allowing the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the
skater's foot.
[0009] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a skate comprising: a skate boot for receiving a skater's
foot; and a footbed for engaging the skater's foot when received in
the skate boot. The footbed comprises thermoformable material
allowing the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the skater's
foot.
[0010] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a footbed for footwear. The footbed comprises: an upper
side for engaging a user's foot received in the footwear; a lower
side opposite to the upper side; and thermoformable material
allowing the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's
foot. The thermoformable material comprises a shape-memory
material.
[0011] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided footwear comprising: a cavity for receiving a user's foot;
and a footbed for engaging the user's foot when received in the
cavity. The footbed comprises thermoformable material allowing the
footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's foot. The
thermoformable material comprises a shape-memory material.
[0012] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a footbed for footwear. The footbed comprises: an upper
side for engaging a user's foot received in the footwear; a lower
side opposite to the upper side; thermoformable material allowing
the footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's foot; and a
thermoforming readiness indicator to indicate when the footbed is
ready to be thermoformed to the user's foot in the footwear.
[0013] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided footwear comprising: a cavity for receiving a user's foot;
and a footbed for engaging the user's foot when received in the
cavity. The footbed comprises thermoformable material allowing the
footbed to be thermoformed to conform to the user's foot. The
footwear comprises a thermoforming readiness indicator to indicate
when the footbed is ready to be thermoformed to the user's foot in
the footwear.
[0014] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a helmet for protecting a user's head. The helmet
comprises an outer shell and a pad disposed between the outer shell
and the user's head when the helmet is worn. The pad comprises
thermoformable material allowing the pad to be thermoformed to
conform to the user's head.
[0015] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided a helmet for protecting a user's head. The helmet
comprises an outer shell and a pad disposed between the outer shell
and the user's head when the helmet is worn. The pad comprises
thermoformable material allowing the pad to be thermoformed to
conform to the user's head. The thermoformable material comprises a
shape-memory material.
[0016] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided an article wearable by a user. The article comprises a
member for positioning adjacent to a body part of the user. The
member comprises thermoformable material allowing the article to be
thermoformed to conform to the user's body part. The thermoformable
material comprises a shape-memory material.
[0017] In accordance with another aspect of the invention, there is
provided an article wearable by a user. The article comprise a
member for positioning adjacent to a body part of the user. The
member comprises thermoformable material allowing the article to be
thermoformed to conform to the user's body part. The article
comprises a thermoforming readiness indicator to indicate when the
article is ready to be thermoformed to the user's body part.
[0018] These and other aspects of the invention will now become
apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art upon review of the
following description of embodiments of the invention in
conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0019] A detailed description of embodiments of the invention is
provided below, by way of example only, with reference to the
following drawings, in which:
[0020] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an ice skate comprising a
footbed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0021] FIG. 2 is an exploded view of the ice skate of FIG. 1;
[0022] FIGS. 3 and 4 are side and front views of a right foot of a
wearer of the ice skate with an integument of the foot shown in
dotted lines and bones shown in solid lines;
[0023] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of the footbed;
[0024] FIG. 6 is a top view of the footbed;
[0025] FIG. 7 is a side view of a medial side of the footbed;
[0026] FIG. 8 is a side view of a lateral side of the footbed;
[0027] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a heat source for heating
the footbed in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;
[0028] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the footbed in which a body
of thermoformable material and a covering of the footbed are
separated for illustration purposes;
[0029] FIG. 11 is a flowchart of an example of a process for
thermoforming the footbed in accordance with an embodiment of the
invention;
[0030] FIG. 12 is a state diagram illustrating possible states of
the footbed;
[0031] FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a variant of the footbed in
accordance with another embodiment of the invention;
[0032] FIG. 14 is a perspective view of a variant of the ice skate
where a thermoforming readiness indicator is present on an exterior
of the ice skate;
[0033] FIG. 15 is a perspective view of a roller skate in
accordance with another embodiment of the invention;
[0034] FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a shoe in accordance with
another embodiment of the invention; and
[0035] FIGS. 17 to 25 show examples of protective gear wearable by
users in accordance with other embodiments of the invention.
[0036] In the drawings, embodiments of the invention are
illustrated by way of example. It is to be expressly understood
that the description and drawings are only for purposes of
illustration and as an aid to understanding, and are not intended
to be a definition of the limits of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS
[0037] FIGS. 1 and 2 show an example of footwear 10 wearable on a
user's foot in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. In
this embodiment, the footwear 10 is a skate 10 for allowing the
user, i.e., skater, to skate. The skate 10 comprises a skate boot
11 for enclosing the skater's foot and a skating device 13 for
contacting a surface on which the skater skates. In this
embodiment, the skate 10 is an ice skate and the skating device 13
comprises a blade holder 28 and a blade 52 for contacting an ice
surface on which the skater skates. More particularly, in this
example, the skate 10 is an ice hockey skate designed for playing
ice hockey. In other examples, the skate 10 may be designed for
other types of ice skating.
[0038] The skate boot 11 comprises a cavity 22 for receiving the
skater's foot. With additional reference to FIGS. 3 and 4, the
skater's foot F includes toes T, a ball B, an arch ARC, a plantar
surface PS, a top surface TS, a medial side MS and a lateral side
LS. The top surface TS of the skater's foot F is continuous with a
lower portion of the skater's shin S. In addition, the skater has a
heel H, an Achilles tendon AT, and an ankle A having a medial
malleolus MM and a lateral malleolus LM that is at a lower position
than the medial malleolus MM. The Achilles tendon AT has an upper
part UP and a lower part LP projecting outwardly with relation to
the upper part UP and merging with the heel H. A forefoot of the
skater includes the toes T and the ball B, a hindfoot of the skater
includes the heel H, and a midfoot of the skater is between the
forefoot and midfoot.
[0039] As further discussed below, in this embodiment, a footbed 40
is provided in the cavity 22 of the skate boot 11 to engage the
skater's foot and enhance a fit of the skate 10 on the skater's
foot. The footbed 40 is thermoformable to conform to the skater's
foot and the cavity 22 of the skate boot 11 in order to optimize
the fit of the skate 10 on the skater's foot. This may in some
cases allow the skater to achieve greater power, control and/or
stability when skating.
[0040] In this embodiment, the skate boot 11 comprises a front
portion 17 for receiving the toes T of the skater's foot, a rear
portion 19 for receiving the heel H of the skater's foot, and an
intermediate portion 21 between the front portion 17 and the rear
portion 19. More particularly, in this embodiment, the skate boot
11 comprises an outer shell 12, a toe cap 14 for facing the toes T,
a tongue 16 extending upwardly and rearwardly from the toe cap 14
for covering the top surface TS of the skater's foot, a rigid
insert 18 for providing more rigidity around the ankle A and the
heel H of the skater's foot, an inner lining 20, and an insole 24.
The skate boot 11 also comprises lace members 38 and eyelets 42
punched into the lace members 38, the outer shell 12 and the inner
lining 20 vis-a-vis apertures 41 in order to receive laces for
tying on the skate 10.
[0041] In this example of implementation, the inner lining 20 is
affixed to an inner surface of the outer shell 12 and comprises an
inner surface 32 to contact the heel H and medial and lateral sides
MS, LS of the skater's foot F and the skater's ankle A. The inner
lining 20 is made of a soft material (e.g., a fabric made of
NYLON.RTM. fibers or any other suitable fabric). The rigid insert
18 is sandwiched between the outer shell 12 and the inner lining 20
and may be affixed in any suitable way (e.g., glued to the inner
surface of the outer shell 12 and stitched along its periphery to
the outer shell 12). The insole 24 has an upper surface 25 for
facing the plantar surface PS of the skater's foot and a lower
surface 23 on which the outer shell 12 may be affixed.
[0042] Also, in this example of implementation, the outer shell 12
is molded such that it comprises a heel portion 44 for receiving
the heel H, an ankle portion 46 for receiving the ankle A, and
medial and lateral side portions 50, 60 for facing the medial and
lateral sides MS, LS of the skater's foot, respectively. The medial
and lateral side portions 50, 60 include upper edges 51, 61 which
connect to the lace members 38. The heel portion 44 may be molded
such that it is substantially cup shaped for following the contour
of the heel H. The ankle portion 46 comprises medial and lateral
ankle sides 52, 54. The medial ankle side 52 has a medial
cup-shaped depression 56 for receiving the medial malleolus MM and
the lateral ankle side 54 has a lateral cup-shaped depression 58
for receiving the lateral malleolus LM of the skater. The lateral
depression 58 is located slightly lower than the medial depression
56, for conforming to the morphology of the skater's foot. The
ankle portion 46 further comprises a rear portion 47 facing the
lower part LP of the Achilles tendon AT. The rear portion 47 may be
molded such that it follows the lower part LP of the Achilles
tendon AT. Furthermore, the skate boot 11 also includes a tendon
guard 43 affixed to the rear portion 47 of the ankle portion 46 and
extending upwardly therefrom. An outsole 26 may be provided but may
be omitted if the outer shell 12 is sufficiently rigid for
receiving the blade holder 28.
[0043] The skate boot 11 may be constructed in any other suitable
way in other embodiments. For example, in other embodiments,
various components of the skate boot 11 mentioned above may be
configured differently or omitted and/or the skate boot 11 may
comprise any other components that may be made of any other
suitable materials and/or using any other suitable processes.
[0044] The footbed 40 is an insole provided in the cavity 22 of the
skate boot 11 to engage the skater's foot in order to enhance the
fit of the skate 10 on the skater's foot. The footbed 40 comprises
an upper side 34 for engaging the skater's foot F and a lower side
36 opposite to the upper side 34 for engaging the skate boot 11. In
this example, the footbed 40 is insertable into and removable from
the cavity 22 of the skate boot 11.
[0045] With additional reference to FIGS. 5 to 8, in this
embodiment, the footbed 40 is elongated such that it has a
longitudinal axis 45 defining a longitudinal direction of the
footbed 40 and comprises a forefoot portion 71, a hindfoot portion
72, and a midfoot portion 73 to respectively engage the skater's
forefoot, hindfoot and midfoot. The upper side 34 of the footbed 40
comprises a plantar surface 38 for engaging the plantar surface PS
of the skater's foot when the skater's foot is received on the
footbed 40. The footbed 40 comprises a wall 49 projecting upwardly
from the plantar surface 38. In this example, the wall is
configured to turn about the skater's heel H and face part of the
medial side MS and part of the lateral side LS of the skater's
foot. The wall 49 includes an arched portion 74 that projects
upwardly from the plantar surface 38 for engaging the arch ARC of
the skater's foot.
[0046] More particularly, in this embodiment, the footbed 40 has a
longitudinal curvature, including an arch 81, along its
longitudinal axis 45. The arch 81 defines a curve that is generally
shaped longitudinally to overlap the midfoot of the skater's foot.
More specifically, the curve defined by the arch 81 is generally
shaped longitudinally to overlap the arch ARC of the skater's foot.
The footbed 40 also has a transversal curvature, including that
which defines the wall 49. The transversal curvature forms a
concave portion 79 generally shaped to encompass the skater's
hindfoot. The transversal curvature may also include a concave
portion 82 that overlaps the forefoot portion of the skater's foot
and is less concave than the concave portion 79.
[0047] The footbed 40 is thermoformable such that it can be formed
by heating it and applying pressure to it to conform to the
skater's foot F and the skate boot 11. To that end, the footbed 40
comprises a body 48 of thermoformable material 50 which can conform
to a shape of the skater's foot F by heating the thermoformable
material 50 and by having the skater's foot F apply pressure to the
footbed 40 while the footbed 40 is in the cavity 22 of the skate
boot 11. In this embodiment, the footbed 40 also comprises a
covering 86 affixed to the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 on
the upper side 34 of the footbed 40. In this example, the covering
86 is a cushion that may enhance comfort (e.g., in high impact
landing zones).
[0048] With additional reference to FIG. 9, the thermoformable
material 50 can be heated by a heat source 61. In this embodiment,
the heat source 61 is an oven. The oven 61 may be located in a
commercial or industrial site (e.g., a store or other facility
making or selling skates), a sports facility (e.g., an arena), or a
residence (e.g., the skater's residence). For instance, in various
examples of implementation, the oven 61 may be an industrial oven,
a kitchen oven (e.g., range), a skate oven, a boot oven, or any
other suitable oven. In other embodiments, instead of being an
oven, the heat source 61 may be any other suitable heating device
(e.g., a heat gun).
[0049] In this embodiment, the thermoformable material 50 has a
"memory". More specifically, the thermoformable material 50 is a
shape-memory material. That is, the thermoformable material 50 is
imparted with an "original shape" when it is originally formed
during manufacturing of the footbed 40 and, then, upon the footbed
40 being deformed into a "formed shape" (that may be any one of a
plurality of different shapes) in which it conforms to the skater's
foot F and the skate boot 11 by thermoforming, the thermoformable
material 50 recovers (i.e., returns to) its original shape when it
is re-heated to a predetermined temperature T.sub.o, which will be
referred to as a "shape-recovering temperature", without load or
pressure applied to it. For example, the shape-recovering
temperature T.sub.o may be a softening point of the thermoformable
material 50.
[0050] The thermoformable material 50 has a thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f at which it is sufficiently soft to deform from
its original shape to the formed shape in which it conforms to the
skater's foot F and the skate boot 11. The thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f is low enough that it does not burn or
otherwise harm or discomfort the skater while he/she applies
pressure on the footbed 40 within the cavity 22 of the skate boot
11. For example, in some embodiments, the thermoforming temperature
T.sub.f may be no greater than 85.degree. C., in some cases no
greater than 80.degree. C., in some cases no greater than
75.degree. C., in some cases no greater than 70.degree. C., in some
cases no greater than 65.degree. C., and in some cases even less.
For instance, in some embodiments, the thermoforming temperature
T.sub.f may be between 50.degree. C. and 85.degree. C., in some
cases between 50.degree. C. and 80.degree. C., in some cases
between 50.degree. C. and 75.degree. C., in some cases between
50.degree. C. and 70.degree. C., and in some cases between
50.degree. C. and 65.degree. C. In some examples, the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f may be at least 60.degree. C. (e.g., to avoid
situations in which the footbed 40 would be left in a place, such
as a car or other vehicle during a hot summer day, where a
temperature of 50.degree. C. could be reached). For example, in
some embodiments, the thermoforming temperature T.sub.f may be
between 60.degree. C. and 70.degree. C. (e.g., 62.degree. C.).
[0051] In this embodiment, the thermoformable material 50 is a
polymeric material. That is, at least a main (i.e., a main or sole)
constituent of the thermoformable material 50 is a polymer. In this
example, the polymer is a sole constituent of the thermoformable
material 50. More specifically, in this embodiment, the polymer is
a shape-memory polymer (e.g., a thermally-induced shape-memory
polymer in this example). In this case, the polymer of the
thermoformable material 50 is polyurethane. In other examples, the
thermoformable material 50 may be a composite material including a
polymer matrix in which another constituent (e.g., fibres) is
embedded. Although in this embodiment the thermoformable material
50 is a polymeric material, any other suitable shape-memory
material may be used in other embodiments.
[0052] Thus, in this embodiment, the thermoformable material 50 is
a thermally-induced shape-memory polymer (SMP). For instance, in
some examples of implementation, the thermoformable material 50 may
be a shape-memory polymer commercially available from various
sources (Taiwan Kurim Enterprises Co., Ltd., Cornerstone Research
Group (GRG) Inc., etc.) Any other suitable shape-memory polymer may
be used in other embodiments.
[0053] Shape-memory materials, including shape-memory polymers, are
known and, as such, no detailed description of these materials will
be presented here. In general, shape-memory materials, including
shape-memory polymers, are materials that can actively change from
a first shape to a second shape and recover the first shape in
response to a particular stimulus (e.g., heat, a magnetic or
electric field, light, etc.). The second shape is obtained by
mechanical deformation and subsequent fixation of that deformation
from the first shape. It is appreciated that the first shape is a
permanent shape which is formed by conventional processing (e.g.,
extruding, injection molding, etc.). The process of transforming
from the first shape to the second shape is sometime referred to as
"programming". When the material is fixed in the second shape and
upon the application of an external stimulus, the material recovers
the first shape (i.e., its initial permanent shape). In some cases,
this process can be repeated several times, with different formed
shapes of a temporary nature.
[0054] For a more detailed review of shape-memory polymers, one may
be referred to "Shape-memory polymers", Marc Behl and Andreas
Lendlein, Materials Today, Volume 10, Issue 4, April 2007, Pages
20-28, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein.
[0055] In this embodiment, a thermoforming process of the footbed
40 thus involves heating the footbed 40 to the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f and having the skater's foot apply pressure to
the footbed 40 when inserted into the cavity 22 of the skate boot
11. During this thermoforming process, a deformation of the footbed
40 occurs when the footbed 40 is heated to the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f and then subsequent fixation of the footbed 40
into the formed shape occurs once the temperature drops below the
thermoforming temperature T.sub.f. Furthermore, a recovery process
of the footbed 40 involves application of a stimulus in the form of
heat to the footbed 40 until the footbed 40 reaches the
shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o. Heating the footbed 40 to the
shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o occurs without load or
pressure applied to it and results in an indirect actuation of the
footbed 40 returning to its original shape based on the
shape-memory effect of the thermoformable material 50. Then, once
the temperature of the footbed 40 drops below the shape-recovering
temperature T.sub.o, the footbed 40 remains in its original shape.
The footbed 40 can be thermoformed to the formed shape and recover
its original shape several times, while in some cases allowing the
formed shape of the footbed 40 to be any one of a plurality of
different shapes in response to different deformations.
[0056] The thermoformable material 50 is rigid and hard at room
temperature (which is considered herein to be 20.degree. C.). When
the footbed 40 is thermoformed to conform to the skater's foot and
the skate boot 11, this rigidity may help the skater to develop
greater power, control and/or stability when skating as this
effectively brings the skate 10 in conformance to the skater's
foot. This is in contrast to soft and flexible materials which are
used in some conventional footbeds.
[0057] For example, in some embodiments, a modulus of elasticity
(i.e., tensile modulus) of the thermoformable material 50 may be at
least 150 MPa, in some cases at least 200 MPa, in some cases at
least 250 MPa, in some cases at least 300 MPa, and in some cases
even more (e.g., at least 350 MPa), according to ASTM D638-10. The
modulus of elasticity of the thermoformable material 50 may have
any other suitable value in other embodiments.
[0058] As another example, in some embodiments, such as this one in
which the footbed 40 is inserted into the cavity 22 of the skate
boot 11, at room temperature, the thermoformable material 50 may be
stiffer (i.e., more rigid) than an underlying material 88 of the
skate boot 11 which it contacts and on which it is rests, such as,
in this example, a material making up the upper surface 25 of the
insole 24. For instance, in some embodiments, a ratio of the
modulus of elasticity of the thermoformable material 50 over a
modulus of elasticity of the underlying material 88 of the skate
boot 11 may be at least 1.1, in some cases at least 1.25, in some
cases at least 1.5, in some cases at least 2, and in some cases
even more. This ratio may have any other suitable value in other
embodiments. In other embodiments, the thermoformable material 50
may be less stiff than the underlying material 88 of the skate boot
11 which it contacts and on which it is rests.
[0059] As yet another example, in some embodiments, the
thermoformable material 50 may be rigid enough that it
substantially does not compress at room temperature when the
skater's foot rests on the footbed 40 while the skater is standing
on the skate 10 compared to when the skater's foot is not in the
skate boot 11 and the footbed 40 is unloaded. For instance, a
thickness G of the thermoformable material 50 may remain
substantially constant at room temperature whether (i) the skater's
foot rests on the footbed 40 while the skater is standing on the
skate 10 or (ii) the skater's foot is not in the skate boot 11 and
the footbed 40 is unloaded. For example, in some embodiments, a
ratio of (i) the thickness G of the thermoformable material 50 when
the skater's foot rests on the footbed 40 while the skater is
standing on the skate 10 over (ii) the thickness G of the
thermoformable material 50 when the skater's foot is not in the
skate boot 11 and the footbed 40 is unloaded may be no less than
0.95, in some cases no less than 0.98, and in some cases 1.0 (i.e.,
there is no change in thickness). This ratio may have any other
suitable value in other embodiments.
[0060] As yet another example, in some embodiments, a hardness of
the thermoformable material 50 may be at least 40 Shore D, in some
cases at least 50 Shore D, in some cases at least 60 Shore D, and
in some cases even more. The hardness of the thermoformable
material 50 may have any other suitable value in other
embodiments.
[0061] As yet another example, in some embodiments, the
thermoformable material 50 may be harder than the underlying
material 88 of the skate boot 11 which contacts and supports the
footbed 40. For instance, in some embodiments, a ratio of the
hardness of the thermoformable material 50 over a hardness of the
underlying material 88 of the skate boot 11 may be at least 1.1, in
some cases at least 1.25, in some cases at least 1.5, in some cases
at least 2, and in some cases even more. This ratio may have any
other suitable value in other embodiments. In other embodiments,
the thermoformable material 50 may be softer than the underlying
material 88 of the skate boot 11 which it contacts and on which it
is rests.
[0062] The thickness G of the body 48 of thermoformable material 50
may have any suitable value. For example, in this embodiment, the
thickness G of the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 may be no
more than 6 mm, in some cases no more than 5 mm, in some cases no
more than 4 mm, in some cases no more than 3 mm, in some cases no
more than 2 mm, and in some cases even less. In some embodiments,
the thickness G of the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 may
vary between different portions of the footbed 40. For example, in
some embodiments, the thickness G of the body 48 of thermoformable
material 50 may vary between the forefoot portion 71, the hindfoot
portion 72, and the midfoot portion 73 of the footbed 40, in which
case the thickness G of the body 48 of thermoformable material 50
can be taken as a minimum value of the thickness G of the body 48
of thermoformable material 50 among these different portions.
[0063] In some examples of implementation, the thickness G of the
body 48 of thermoformable material 50 may undergo little or no
change when the footbed 40 is thermoformed to conform to the
skater's foot. For instance, in some embodiments, the thickness G
of the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 may have a certain
value G.sub.o when the footbed 40 is in its original shape and
another value G.sub.f when the footbed 40 is in the formed shape
after being thermoformed which is identical or very close to the
value G.sub.o. For example, in some embodiments, a ratio of the
thickness G.sub.f of the thermoformable material 50 when the
footbed 40 is in the formed shape over the thickness G.sub.o of the
thermoformable material 50 when the footbed 40 is in its original
shape may be no less than 0.95, in some cases no less than 0.98,
and in some cases 1 (i.e., there is no change in thickness). This
ratio may have any other suitable value in other embodiments. In
some cases, any reduction in thickness of the thermoformable
material 50 that may occur during the thermoforming process may be
restored when the footbed 40 is heated to the shape-recovering
temperature T.sub.o.
[0064] In this embodiment, the footbed 40 comprises a thermoforming
readiness indicator 66 to indicate when the footbed 40 is ready
temperature-wise to be thermoformed to the skater's foot in the
cavity 22 of the skate boot 11. The thermoforming readiness
indicator 66 comprises a temperature sensor 68 that is sensitive to
a current temperature of the thermoformable material 50. In this
example, a characteristic of the temperature sensor 68 is
changeable in response to a variation in temperature of the
thermoformable material 50. Changes in the characteristic of the
temperature sensor 68 can therefore provide information relevant
for thermoforming of the footbed 40, including an indication of
when the footbed 40 is ready temperature-wise to be thermoformed to
the skater's foot.
[0065] In this example of implementation, the characteristic of the
temperature sensor 68 that is changeable is a visual characteristic
(e.g., a color or a degree of transparency) of the temperature
sensor 68. The temperature sensor 68 interacts with light
differently (e.g., reflects, absorbs, and/or transmits light
differently) based on its temperature. Thus, a determination of
whether the footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed can be made
based on the visual characteristic of the temperature sensor
68.
[0066] More particularly, in this embodiment, the temperature
sensor 68 comprises a thermochromic substance 70. In this example
of implementation, the thermochromatic substance 70 is a
thermochromic ink applied onto the thermoformable material 50. In
other examples of implementation, the thermochromic substance 70
may be embedded into the thermoformable material 50 (e.g., into the
polymer itself).
[0067] The thermochromic ink 70 is a temperature-sensitive compound
having a visual characteristic (e.g., a color or a degree of
transparency) that temporarily changes with exposure to temperature
variation. In various embodiments, the thermochromic ink 70 may
include liquid crystals, leuco dyes, or any other suitable
substance. For example, in some embodiments, the thermochromic ink
70 may be commercially available from various sources (e.g.,
Chromatic Technologies Inc. (CTI), NCC in Taiwan, etc.). Any other
suitable thermochromic ink may be used in other embodiments.
Thermochromic inks are known and, as such, no detailed description
of them ink will be presented here.
[0068] In this embodiment, the thermochromic ink 70 has a given
visual state (e.g., a given color or degree of transparency) when
the temperature of the footbed 40 is below a temperature threshold
and a different visual state (e.g., a different color or degree of
transparency) when the temperature of the footbed 40 is above the
temperature threshold. More particularly, in this embodiment, the
thermochromic ink 70 is of a given color, say black, while the
temperature of the footbed 40 is below the temperature threshold
and disappears (i.e., is not readily visible to the human eye) when
the footbed 40 is above the temperature threshold. The
thermochromic ink 70 may disappear by becoming clear (i.e.,
transparent) or acquiring the same color as the thermoformable
material 50 (e.g., if the thermoformable material 50 is blue, the
thermochromic ink 50 may disappear by changing from black to blue).
In this case, the thermochromic ink 70 disappears by becoming clear
(i.e., transparent). For example, the temperature threshold may be
related to the thermoforming temperature T.sub.f, such as by
corresponding to or being slightly above the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f, or any other suitable temperature
threshold.
[0069] The thermochromic ink 70 may be arranged in any suitable
way. For instance, in this embodiment, the thermochromic ink 70 is
distributed into a plurality of thermochromic ink portions
76.sub.1-76.sub.6. In this example, the thermochromic ink portions
76.sub.1-76.sub.6 are a gradient of larger to smaller sized
portions, with the ink portion 76.sub.1 larger than the ink
portions 76.sub.2-76.sub.6, the ink portion 76.sub.2 larger than
ink portions 76.sub.3-76.sub.6, and so on. The thermochromic ink 70
may be arranged in any other suitable manner in other
embodiments.
[0070] For example, in this embodiment, the footbed 40 can be
heated in the oven 61 to a thermoforming temperature T.sub.f-h
(i.e., a high thermoforming temperature greater than the
thermoforming temperature T.sub.f), which is indicated by the
thermochromic ink 70 having disappeared (i.e., changed from black
to clear or to the same color as the thermoformable material 50).
This signals that the footbed 40 can be removed from the over 61
(e.g., an instruction may be provided with the footbed 40 to
indicate that the footbed 40 can be removed from the oven 61 when
the thermochromic ink 70 has disappeared). In some cases, the
temperature T.sub.f-h may be the shape-recovering temperature
T.sub.o and in these cases the disappearance of the ink 70
indicates that the footbed 40 has reached the shape-recovering
temperature T.sub.o and has returned to the original shape. Then,
once the footbed 40 is removed from the oven 61 and is cooled down
to a thermoforming temperature T.sub.f-l (i.e., a lower
thermoforming temperature no less than the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f but lower than the high thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f-h), the ink 70 starts to re-appear to indicate
that the footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed. This signals that
the footbed 40 can be placed in the cavity 22 of the skate 10 and
the skater's foot can apply pressure to the footbed 40 such that it
conforms to the skater's foot and the skate boot 11.
[0071] With additional reference to FIG. 10, in this embodiment,
the covering 86 is affixed to an upper surface 59 of the body 48 of
thermoformable material 50. In this example, the covering 86
extends over at least a majority of the upper surface 59 of the
body 48 of thermoformable material 50. In this case, the covering
86 extends in the forefoot portion 71, the hindfoot portion 72, and
the midfoot portion 73 of the footbed 40.
[0072] In this example of implementation, the covering 86 is
adhesively affixed to the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 by
an adhesive 63. The adhesive 63 is able to withstand temperature
variations experienced by the footbed 40 when it is heated to be
thermoformed. For instance, the adhesive 63 may be a
polychloroprene adhesive. Any other suitable adhesive may be used
in other embodiments. The covering 86 may be affixed to the body 48
of thermoformable material 50 in any other way in other examples of
implementation (e.g., by mechanical fasteners, etc.).
[0073] The covering 86 may be implemented in any suitable manner.
In this embodiment, the covering 86 comprises a cushioning material
64 and an outer cover 77.
[0074] The cushioning material 64 is more flexible (i.e., less
rigid) and softer than the thermoformable material 50. That is, a
modulus of elasticity of the cushioning material 64 is lower than
the modulus of elasticity of the thermoformable material 50, while
a hardness of the cushioning material 64 is lower than the hardness
of the thermoformable material 50. In this example of
implementation, the cushioning material 64 is foam. For instance,
the foam 64 may include polyethylene foam (e.g., low- or
mid-density polyethylene foam). Any other suitable foam may be used
in other embodiments (e.g., ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam,
polyurethane foam, polypropylene foam, etc.). In some cases, the
foam 64 may include a single type of foam. In other cases, the foam
64 may include two or more different types of foam, such as foams
having different densities and/or different material compositions
(e.g., an outer layer of foam that is denser than an inner layer of
foam).
[0075] The outer cover 77 is affixed to the cushioning material 64.
More particularly, in this embodiment, the outer cover 77 comprises
a layer of fabric affixed to the cushioning material 64. The layer
of fabric may be woven or nonwoven and may be made of nylon, rayon,
cotton, polyester, or any other suitable material. In this example,
the outer cover 77 is affixed to the cushioning material 64 by an
adhesive (e.g., a solvent-based adhesive).The outer cover 77 may be
affixed to the cushioning material 64 in any other suitable way in
other examples (e.g., by mechanical fasteners).
[0076] A thickness V of the covering 86 may have any suitable
value. For example, in some embodiments, the thickness V of the
covering 86 may be comparable to the thickness G of the body 48 of
thermoformable material 50. For instance, in some embodiments, a
ratio of the thickness V of the covering 86 over the thickness G of
the body 48 of thermoformable material 50 may be between 0.7 and
1.3, in some cases between 0.8 and 1.2, and in some cases between
0.9 and 1.1. This ratio may have any other suitable value in other
embodiments.
[0077] In this embodiment, the footbed 40 comprises frictional
elements 57.sub.1-57.sub.F, 89.sub.1-89.sub.G to increase friction
between the skater's foot and the footbed 40 and between the skate
boot 11 and the footbed 40 in order to enhance stability and reduce
slippage.
[0078] More particularly, in this embodiment, the frictional
elements 57.sub.1-57.sub.F are grippers to engage the skater's foot
and reduce a potential for slippage of the skater's foot relative
to the footbed 40. A frictional force exerted by a gripper 57.sub.x
on the skater's foot is greater than a frictional force exerted by
an area of the footbed 40 outside of the grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F
on the skater's foot (i.e., a coefficient of friction between the
gripper 57.sub.x and the skater's foot 12 is greater than a
coefficient of friction between the area of the footbed 40 outside
of the grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F and the skater's foot). More
specifically, the grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F are provided on the
covering 86 and their coefficient of friction with the skater's
foot is greater than a coefficient of the outer cover 77 with the
skater's foot. In this case, the grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F are
disposed in the forefoot 71 of the footbed 40 to reduce slippage in
that region.
[0079] The grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F may comprise any suitable
material to exert sufficient friction. For example, in this
embodiment, each of the grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F comprises a
tackifying material 90 such as a thermoplastic elastomer (e.g.,
Santoprene.TM.) polyurethane (thermoplastic or thermoset),
polyvinyl chloride (e.g., Plastisol), silicone, or any other
suitable material providing tackiness. Any other suitable material
providing a high coefficient of friction may be used in other
embodiments. The grippers 57.sub.1-57.sub.F may be provided in any
suitable way. For instance, in this embodiment, the grippers
57.sub.1-57.sub.F may be printed (e.g., screen-printed) onto the
outer cover 77. In other embodiments, the grippers
57.sub.1-57.sub.F may be adhesively bonded to the outer cover 77,
stitched to the outer cover 77, or provided using any other
suitable process.
[0080] Also, in this embodiment, the frictional elements
89.sub.1-89.sub.G are textured areas of the body 48 of
thermoformable material 50 that generate greater friction with the
skater's foot and the skate boot 11 than areas of the body 48 of
thermoformable material 50 outside of the textured areas
89.sub.1-89.sub.G. For instance, in this example of implementation,
the textured areas 89.sub.1-89.sub.G include ridges (e.g., in a
cross-hatched pattern) formed when originally molding the body 48
of thermoformable material 50. The textured areas 89.sub.1-89.sub.G
may be arranged in any other suitable way in other examples of
implementation.
[0081] In some embodiments, the covering 86 may be positioned on
top of the thermoforming readiness indicator 66 and in such
embodiments, the covering 86 may be provided with a region, a
cutout, a window and/or any other suitable means in which the
thermoforming readiness indicator 66 is visible through the
covering 86.
[0082] In some embodiments, the thermoforming readiness indicator
66 may be embedded and/or indented into the thermoformable material
50 of the footbed 40, which may assist in reducing wear of the
thermochromic substance 70 off of the thermoforming readiness
indicator 66 by use or wear of the footbed 40.
[0083] An example will now be presented with reference to FIG. 11
which illustrates a flowchart of a process 1100 for thermoforming
the footbed 40 in some embodiments. At step 1102, the heat source
61 is applied to the footbed 40. In this example, the footbed 40 is
in its original shape when the heat source 61 is applied. Also, in
this example, the heat source is the oven 61, previously discussed.
The oven 61 may be preheated for a set period of time (e.g., 5
minutes, or any other suitable time) or to a specific temperature
prior to the footbed 40 being placed in the oven 61. In this
example, the oven 61 is set to a temperature of about 75.degree. C.
(e.g., about 170.degree. F.). In this example, once the oven 61 has
been preheated, the footbed 40 is placed in the oven 61 face up
(e.g., the lower side 36 may touch a surface or a rack of the oven
61 and the upper side 34 does not engage the surface or the rack of
the oven 61). In this example, the skate 10 is placed in the oven
61 along with the footbed 40. In some cases, the skate 10 may be
heated for a set period of time (e.g., 1 minute 30 seconds, or any
other suitable time) prior to or after the footbed 40 is placed in
the oven 61. Yet, in other cases, the skate 10 may not be heated at
all. At step 1104, a determination is made as to whether the
footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed. For example, in some cases,
the thermoforming readiness indicator 66 may indicate that the
footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed based on the temperature of
the footbed 40. In this example, the thermochromic ink portions
76.sub.1-76.sub.6 of the thermochromic ink 70 change from black to
clear to indicate that the footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed,
when the temperature of the footbed 40 is above 65.degree. C., say
70.degree. C. Then, at step 1106, the heat source 61 is ceased to
be applied to the footbed 40. In this example, the footbed 40 is
removed from the oven 61 along with the skate 10. At this step,
when the footbed 40 is removed from the oven 61, all of the
thermochromic ink portions 76.sub.1-76.sub.6 are clear. Then, at
step 1108, once the footbed 40 is removed from the oven 61, the
thermochromic ink portions 76.sub.1-76.sub.6 of the indicator 66
start to reappear as the temperature of the footbed 40 drops, which
indicates that the footbed 40 should be inserted into the cavity 22
of the skate 10 and thermoformed by the skater's foot. In this
example, the thermochromic ink portions 76.sub.1-76.sub.6 of the
indicator 66 start to reappear around 65.degree. C. Once the
footbed 40 is inserted into the cavity 22 of the skate 10, the
skater can insert his/her foot F into the cavity 22 of the skate 10
and then apply pressure to the footbed 40 (e.g., stand-up with the
skate 10 on). The skater may then continue to stand on the footbed
40 for a specific amount of time. For example, the skater may stand
on the footbed for 1 minute, while in other cases the skater may
stand on the footbed for longer or shorter than 1 minute. This step
allows for a mechanical deformation of the footbed 40 and
subsequent fixation of the footbed 40 in that deformation. The
skater may then repeat the aforementioned steps for a second
footbed for his/her other skate.
[0084] The footbed 40 may be thermoformed a number of times, by
first heating the footbed 40 in the formed shape to the
shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o to recover its original shape
and then repeating the process 1100.
[0085] In some embodiments, the footbed 40 may originally be
configured with the arch 81 being exaggeratedly high and the wall
49 defining a narrow heel cup such that, when the footbed 40 is
thermoformed, the arch 81 is lowered and the wall 49 defines a
wider heel cup to conform to the skater's foot. For instance, the
arched portion 74 and lateral and medial portions of the wall 49
may be such that the footbed 40 between the lateral and medial
portions of the wall 49 is narrower than the skater's foot F.
During thermoforming of the footbed 40, the arched portion 74 and
the lateral and medial portions of the wall 49 move in position
such that footbed 40 becomes wider and conforms to the skater's
foot F (e.g., the lateral and medial portions of the wall 49 move
away from one another).
[0086] FIG. 12 is a state diagram illustrating possible states that
the footbed 40 may be in from being provided after manufacture in
its original shape, to being thermoformed into a formed shape, to
recovering its original shape, and to being subsequently
thermoformed into a different formed shape. At state S1, the
footbed 40 is provided to the user in its original shape. The user
may then chose to thermoform the footbed 40, by first heating the
footbed 40 to a temperature at least as high as the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f (i.e., T.gtoreq.T.sub.f), as illustrated by the
transition T.sub.12, causing the footbed 40 to enter state S2 where
the footbed 40 is in a deformable state. Then, while the
temperature of the footbed 40 is at or above the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f (e.g., the footbed 40 remains in state S2), the
footbed 40 may be deformed in to any desired formed shape. Once the
temperature of the footbed 40 drops below the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f (i.e., T<T.sub.f), as illustrated by the
transition T.sub.23, subsequent fixation of that formed shape
occurs and the footbed 40 then enters state S3. The footbed 40
maintains the fixated formed shape while the temperature of the
footbed 40 remains below the shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o
(i.e., T<T.sub.o) (e.g., the footbed 40 remains in state S3).
Then, if the footbed 40 is heated above the shape-recovering
temperature T.sub.o (i.e., T>T.sub.o), as illustrated by the
transition T.sub.34, then the footbed returns to its original shape
when no load or pressure is applied and the footbed 40 enters state
S4. Then, once the footbed 40 is allowed to cool down so the
temperature drops below the shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o
(i.e., T<T.sub.o), as illustrated by the transition T.sub.41,
then the footbed 40 maintains the original shape and returns to the
original state S1. Once the footbed 40 returns to the original
state S1, it is possible for the state of the footbed 40 to be
changed amongst the various states (S1, S2, S3, and S4), if the
condition for the transition from state-to-state is met.
[0087] In some embodiments, the shape-recovering temperature
T.sub.o may be equal to the thermoforming temperature T.sub.f. In
other embodiments, the shape-recovering temperature T.sub.o may be
greater than the thermoforming temperature T.sub.f (i.e.,
T.sub.f<T.sub.o). In other words, the activation temperature for
shape-recovery may be greater than or equal to the thermoforming
temperature.
[0088] The footbed 40 may be implemented in various other ways in
other embodiments.
[0089] For example, in other embodiments, the thermoforming
readiness indicator 66 may indicate a rigidity of the footbed 40
(e.g., it is a stiffness indicator, which would not necessarily
indicate temperature). FIG. 13 is a perspective view of a variant
of the footbed 40 where the thermoforming readiness indicator 66 is
a stiffness indicator. The thermoforming readiness indicator 66
comprises a stiffness sensor 68' that is sensitive to a current
rigidity of the thermoformable material 50. In this embodiment, the
thermoforming readiness indicator 66 indicates when the footbed 40
is ready rigidity-wise to be thermoformed to the skater's foot in
the cavity 22 of the skate boot 11. In this example, a
characteristic of the stiffness sensor 68' is changeable in
response to a variation in rigidity of the thermoformable material
50. In this case, the characteristic of the stiffness sensor 68'
that is changeable is a visual characteristic (e.g., a color or a
degree of transparency) of the stiffness sensor 68'. More
particularly, in this embodiment, the stiffness sensor 68'
comprises a thermochromic substance 70' which may be similar to the
thermochromic substance 70 discussed previously.
[0090] The stiffness indicator 66 may detect a range of stiffness
of the footbed 40. For example, when the stiffness of the
thermoformable material 50 of the footbed 40 is below a stiffness
threshold, the thermoformable material 50 is not ready
rigidity-wise to be thermoformed and, when the stiffness of the
thermoformable material 50 of the footbed 40 is above the stiffness
threshold, the thermoformable material 50 is ready rigidity-wise to
be thermoformed. For instance, in this embodiment, when the
stiffness of the thermoformable material 50 of the footbed 40 is
below the stiffness threshold, the indicator 66' is of a given
color, say black, and if the stiffness of the thermoformable
material 50 of the footbed 40 is above the stiffness threshold, the
indicator 66' becomes clear (i.e., disappears). The stiffness
threshold may have any suitable value. As another example, while in
embodiments considered above the thermoforming readiness indicator
66 provides two indications, namely a first indication that the
footbed 40 is to be removed from the oven 61 and a second
indication that the footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed by the
skater's foot in the skate boot 11, in other embodiments, two
separate thermoforming readiness indicators may be provided, namely
a first one to first indicate that the footbed 40 is to be removed
from the oven 61 and a second one to indicate that the footbed 40
is ready to be thermoformed by the skater's foot in the skate boot
11.
[0091] While in this embodiment the thermoforming readiness
indicator 66 is present on the footbed 40, in other embodiments, a
thermoforming readiness indicator 66'' may be present on the skate
10, such as, for instance, as illustrated in FIG. 14. In this
embodiment, the indicator 66'' is provided on the skate boot 11 and
is similar in construction to the indicator 66 previously
discussed, notably in that it comprises thermochromic ink 70''. The
indicator 66'' may be disposed at any suitable place on the skate
10.
[0092] In this embodiment, the skate 10 having the footbed 40
inserted in the cavity 22 may be heated in the oven 61 in a similar
fashion as previously discussed. As the indicator 66'' is
positioned on the exterior of the skate 10, the temperature at
which the thermochromic ink 70'' of the indicator 66'' on the skate
10 disappears and reappears may vary from, but be calibrated to,
the temperature at which the thermochromic ink 70 of the indicator
66 on the footbed 40 disappears and reappears. More specifically,
the temperature at which the thermochromic ink 70'' of the
indicator 66'' on the skate 10 disappears and reappears may be
higher than the temperature at which the thermochromic ink 70 of
the indicator 66 on the footbed 40 disappears and reappears to
account for additional time needed for the footbed 40 to heat up
compared to the exterior of the skate 10.
[0093] For example, when the skate 10 is heated in the oven 61 to a
temperature T'.sub.f-h (i.e., a temperature greater than the
thermoforming temperature T.sub.f) the thermochromic ink 70''
disappears, which indicates to the user that the footbed 40 is at
or above the thermoforming temperature T.sub.f that is desirable
for thermoforming the footbed 40. Then, once the skate 10 is
removed from the oven 61 and is cooled down to a temperature
T'.sub.f-l (i.e., a lower temperature no less than the
thermoforming temperature T.sub.f but lower than the temperature
T'.sub.f-h), the ink 70'' starts to re-appear to indicate to the
user that the footbed 40 is ready to be thermoformed (e.g., the
skater's foot can be inserted in the skate boot 11 to apply
pressure to the footbed 40 in the skate 10).
[0094] In such embodiments where the thermoforming readiness
indicator 66'' is located on the exterior of the skate 10, the
thermoforming readiness indicator 60 may be omitted from the
footbed 40. Also, when the indicator 66'' is visible to the user
during the thermoforming process (e.g., the user has inserted
his/her foot F into the cavity 22 of the skate 10 and is applying
pressure to the footbed 40), the user may then continue to stand on
the footbed 40 for a specific amount of time or may look to the
indicator 66'', which may indicate when the formed shape of footbed
40 has been fixed. For example, the indicator 66'' may indicate
when the temperature of the footbed 40 is below the thermoforming
temperature T.sub.f.
[0095] In various embodiments, the footbed 40 may be manufactured
(e.g., by injection molding or otherwise molding the body 48 of
thermformable material 50) for various sizes (e.g., small, medium,
large; U.S. foot sizes 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, etc.; or any
other suitable range of sizes). In some cases, the footbed 40 may
be cutable to adjust its size (e.g., such that a half size may be
formed or formed to fit into existing skates).
[0096] Although in embodiments considered above the footbed 40 is
provided separately from the skate 10 and insertable into and
removable from the skate boot 11, the footbed 40 may be an
integrated part of the skate boot 11 in other embodiments. For
example, in some embodiments, the lower side 36 of the footbed 40
may be fastened (e.g., with adhesive, mechanical fastener, or any
other suitable fastening means) to a remainder of the skate boot
11. In such embodiments, the thermoforming readiness indicator 66''
may be provided on the exterior of the skate 10).
[0097] While in this embodiment the skate 10 is an ice skate, the
skate 10 in which the footbed 40 is provided may be any other type
of skate in other embodiments. For example, in other embodiments,
as shown in FIG. 15, the skate 10 may be a roller skate for playing
roller hockey or engaging in another type of roller skating and the
skating device 13 may comprise a frame 53 carrying a plurality of
roller wheels 54.sub.1-54.sub.4 for contacting a dry skating
surface (e.g., a polymeric, concrete or wooden surface).
[0098] Although in this embodiment the footwear 10 is a skate, the
footwear 10 in which the footbed 40 is provided may be any other
type of footwear in other embodiments. For example, in other
embodiments, the footwear 10 may be a shoe or a boot, as shown in
FIG. 16. Although a running shoe is illustrated in FIG. 16, it is
appreciated that any type of shoe or boot may be used, such as a
tennis shoe, golf shoe, rugby shoe, basketball shoe, or any other
suitable shoe or boot.
[0099] While embodiments discussed above relate to footwear in
which is provided a thermoformable footbed, in other embodiments,
other articles wearable by users adjacent to other body parts
(e.g., a head, arms, legs, a chest, etc.) of the users may comprise
thermoformable material and be constructed using principles
discussed herein in respect of the footbed 40. For example, in
other embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 17 to 25, protective gear 110
wearable by a user may comprise a member 140 (e.g., a pad) to be
positioned adjacent to a body part of the user and comprising
thermoformable material 150 constructed using principles discussed
herein in respect of the footbed 40. This may allow the protective
gear 110 to better fit the user.
[0100] For example, in some embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 17 to
21, the protective gear 110 may comprise a helmet (e.g., a hockey,
lacrosse, baseball, football, or other sports helmet) in which the
member 140 comprising the thermoformable material 150 is a pad for
engaging the user's head. The pad 140 comprises padding 144 shaped
by the thermoformable material 150. That is, a shape of the pad 140
is dictated by a shape of the thermoformable material 150. The
thermoformable material 150 thus implements a support 148 on which
the padding 144 is mounted such that the shape of the support 148
defines the shape of the padding 144. The padding 144 may be
fastened to the support 148 in any suitable way (e.g., by an
adhesive, by one or more screws, staples, or other mechanical
fasteners, by overmolding, etc.).
[0101] In this embodiment, the padding 144 comprises a plurality of
padding elements 153.sub.1-153.sub.3 that are mounted to the
support 148 such that the padding elements 153.sub.1-153.sub.3 are
movable relative to one another when the shape of the support 148
is altered. The padding 144 may be a single one-piece padding layer
that can change shape when the shape of the support 148 is altered
in other embodiments.
[0102] The padding 144 comprises cushioning material 161. In this
example of implementation, the cushioning material 161 is foam. For
instance, the foam 161 may include polyethylene foam (e.g., low- or
mid-density polyethylene foam), ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam,
polyurethane foam, polypropylene foam, or any other suitable foam.
In some cases, the foam 161 may include a single type of foam. In
other cases, the foam 161 may include two or more different types
of foam, such as foams having different densities and/or different
material compositions (e.g., an outer layer of foam that is denser
than an inner layer of foam). The cushioning material 161 may be
implemented in any other suitable way in other examples of
implementation (e.g., rubber or another elastomer).
[0103] In this example, the cushioning material 161 is more
flexible (i.e., less rigid) and softer than the thermoformable
material 150. That is, a modulus of elasticity of the cushioning
material 161 is lower than the modulus of elasticity of the
thermoformable material 150, while a hardness of the cushioning
material 161 is lower than the hardness of the thermoformable
material 150.
[0104] In this embodiment, the pad 140 is selectively (i)
detachable and removable from and (ii) attachable to a remainder of
the helmet 110 in order to allow it to be removed, thermoformed,
and reinstalled within the helmet 110. More particularly, in this
embodiment, the pad 140 comprises a connector 170 to connect it to
another part of the helmet 110. For instance, in this embodiment,
the connector 170 of the pad 140 is connectable to an outer shell
180 of the helmet 110. In this case, the connector 170 of the pad
140 is connectable to a connector 185 of the outer shell 180. For
example, in various embodiments, the connector 170 of the pad 140
and the connector 185 of the outer shell 180 may be buttons (e.g.,
male and female snap buttons), clips, hook-and-loop fasteners). The
connector 170 of the pad 140 may be implemented in any other
suitable way in other embodiments.
[0105] In some embodiments, the pad 140 may comprise a
thermoforming readiness indicator, similar to that discussed above,
to indicate when the pad 140 is ready to be thermoformed.
[0106] As other examples, in other embodiments, as shown in FIGS.
22 and 23, the protective gear 110 may comprise an arm guard (e.g.,
an elbow pad). In other embodiments, as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25,
the protective gear 110 may comprise a leg guard (e.g., a shin
guard). In yet other embodiments, the protective gear 110 may
comprise shoulder pads.
[0107] Although in embodiments discussed above the body 48 of the
footbed 40 and the member 140 of the protective gear 110 comprise a
shape-memory material which is responsive to a thermal stimulus
(i.e., the thermoformable material 50, 150 which is a
thermally-induced shape-memory polymer), in other embodiments, a
body or other member of a footbed, protective gear, or other
wearable article may comprise a shape-memory material exhibiting a
shape-memory effect triggered by a stimulus that is not heat but
rather light (e.g., infrared light), an electric field, a magnetic
field, immersion in liquid (e.g., water, a solution, etc.), or any
other suitable stimulus.
[0108] While in embodiments discussed above the terms "original
shape" and "formed shape" are used, the term "original shape" may
be used interchangeably with "permanent shape", "permanent form",
"stored form" (or any other suitable phrase) and the term "formed
shape" may be used interchangeably with "temporary shape",
"temporary form" (or any other suitable phrase).
[0109] To facilitate the description, any reference numeral
designating an element in one figure designates the same element if
used in any other figures. In describing the embodiments, specific
terminology has been resorted to for the sake of clarity but the
invention is not intended to be limited to the specific terms so
selected, and it is understood that each specific term comprises
all equivalents.
[0110] In some embodiments, any feature of any embodiment described
herein may be used in combination with any feature of any other
embodiment described herein.
[0111] Certain additional elements that may be needed for operation
of certain embodiments have not been described or illustrated as
they are assumed to be within the purview of those of ordinary
skill in the art. Moreover, certain embodiments may be free of, may
lack and/or may function without any element that is not
specifically disclosed herein.
[0112] In case of any discrepancy, inconsistency, or other
difference between terms used herein and terms used in any document
incorporated by reference herein, meanings of the terms used herein
are to prevail and be used.
[0113] Although various embodiments have been illustrated, this was
for the purpose of describing, but not limiting, the invention.
Various modifications will become apparent to those skilled in the
art and are within the scope of this invention, which is defined
more particularly by the attached claims.
* * * * *