U.S. patent number 3,822,709 [Application Number 05/323,474] was granted by the patent office on 1974-07-09 for shoe having heel with replaceable insert member.
Invention is credited to Michael Gruner.
United States Patent |
3,822,709 |
Gruner |
July 9, 1974 |
SHOE HAVING HEEL WITH REPLACEABLE INSERT MEMBER
Abstract
A shoe is provided with a heel comprising a portion consisting
of a relatively rigid material permanently attached to the shoe and
having mounted therein a replaceable elongated inset member of
elastic material projecting beyond the bottom surface of the
heel.
Inventors: |
Gruner; Michael (S-217 56
Malmo, SW) |
Family
ID: |
26330110 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/323,474 |
Filed: |
January 15, 1973 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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Jan 19, 1972 [IT] |
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84101/72 |
Dec 5, 1972 [SW] |
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15787/72 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
36/173;
36/34R |
Current CPC
Class: |
A43B
21/42 (20130101); A43B 23/22 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A43B
23/00 (20060101); A43B 21/00 (20060101); A43B
21/42 (20060101); A43B 23/22 (20060101); A43b
007/16 () |
Field of
Search: |
;128/614,586,590,596,597,608,609,610,616,621,623 ;36/34,35 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Gaudet; Richard A.
Assistant Examiner: Yasko; J.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Jones and Lockwood
Claims
What I claim is:
1. A shoe, comprising an insole, a heel including a main portion of
relatively rigid material, and means to permanently connect said
main portion to said insole, a bottom surface on said main portion,
wherein said main heel portion comprises a vertical through passage
widened at the bottom end thereof into a recess, an integral inset
member of elastic material mounted on said main heel portion and
including a first portion at the bottom end thereof and having a
plane bottom surface and outer dimensions exceeding the inner
dimensions of said recess, a second portion having a close fit in
said recess and being complimentary therewith with the top surface
of said second portion engaging a horizontal shoulder surface
between the inner walls of said recess and said through passage, a
third portion comprising an upright stud at the top of said second
portion and, introducable into said through passage, and means to
secure said second and third portions within said recess and said
through passage, respectively, said shoulder surface being
positioned in a level at a substantial distance above said plane
bottom surface of said first portion of said inset member.
2. A shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein said stud in the top
portion thereof is provided with an axial bore to receive a screw
for radial expansion of said stud within said through passage.
3. A shoe as claimed in claim 2, wherein said axial bore comprises
a first upper cylindrical portion having a slightly smaller
diameter than said screw, and a second lower portion having a
diameter which is substantially smaller than said screw.
4. A shoe as claimed in claim 3, wherein said screw at the bottom
end thereof is provided with a conical tip.
5. A shoe as claimed in claim 2, wherein said stud conically tapers
upwardly and the upper portion of said through passage is
cylindrical and the lower portion thereof conically tapers
upwardly.
6. A shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein a reinforcing metal ring
is embedded in the area of said main heel portion surrounding said
recess.
7. A shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein a soft rubber packing ring
is provided between said first portion of said inset member and
said bottom surface of said main heel portion.
8. A shoe as claimed in claim 1, wherein said main heel portion at
the top thereof is provided with an upright annullar boss
surrounding the top opening of said through passage, and a flat,
resilient metal strip being embedded in said insole and extending
over an area of the shoe supporting the arch of the foot, the rear
end of said strip having the shape of a fork the prongs of which
being positioned on each side of said boss and engaging therewith
over a continuous arch of more than 180.degree..
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a show of a new structure by means
of which the use of, for example, arch-supports to support the foot
may dispensed with.
In their present construction shoes are affected with serious
disadvantages in that it has proved that the construction may cause
serious complaints of spine, feet, pelvis and blood vessels, due to
the fact that the shoe during walking does not afford proper
support to the body on hard, rough or sloping surfaces.
The skeleton of the foot has five toe joints and is built up like
an arch. The purpose of the toe joints is to act as a fine-adjuster
of the balance of the body, and the arch affords suppleness to the
foot. By virtue of the fact that the weight of the body rests on
the foot the arch becomes depressed so that the skeleton of the
foot becomes deformed and causes platypodia. In case of platypodia
the suppleness of the foot is lost as is the fine-balancing ability
of the toes which makes it necessary to use the muscles of the back
which may result in several complaints.
Typical complaints as a result of incorrectly constructed shoes
are, for instance, the following:
A. spine complaints:
Deformities: Distortion of normal neck and loin lordosis, increase
of the curvature of the spine and resulting shifting, in erect
posture, of the centre of gravity.
Consequences:
1. General spondylarthritis (inflammation of vertebrae, with
neuralgic and vascular complications: Guillain-Barre syndrome,
cervical brachialgia, sciatica).
2. Invertebral disk degenerations and resulting slipped-disk
syndrome.
B. foot complaints:
1. Flat-foot.
2. Distorted foot.
C. pelvis complaints:
(obstetric and gynecologic complications)
D. vascular complaints:
Varix syndrome in the lower veins.
In order to prevent said diseases, the arch of the foot must be
raised so that the foot can regain its suppleness. The suppleness
can be regained by means of an elastic material placed under the
heel and affixed to the insole of the shoe by means of an
anatomically correct steel link connected to the elastic material.
By this means the wedge-like bone (Os Cuneiforme) located in the
middle of the arch of the foot can be raised. The soft material
also stabilizises the gait and eliminates the possibility of the
weight of the body acting on one side or the other of the foot,
thus restoring the balancing ability of the toes.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a shoe having a
structure by means of which the disadvantages mentioned above are
removed. Said purpose has been realized by means of a shoe,
comprising an insole, a heel including a main portion of relatively
rigid material, means to permanently connect said main portion to
said insole, a bottom surface on said main portion, a vertical
through hole in said main portion, an inset member of elastic
material mounted on said main portion, a plane bottom surface on
said inset member, a stud at the top of said inset member engaging
into said through hole of said main portion and means to secure
said stud in said through hole in said main portion in a position
in which said plane bottom surface of said inset member is disposed
outside said bottom surface of said main portion.
By this means the elements included in the inset member due to
their elasticity can adjust themselves to the roughness and slope
of the ground without disturbing the normal position of the heel of
the shoe, the foot or the body, the inset member and the elements
included therein simultaneously acting as a sort of shock-absorber
and step regulator each time the shoe is put down on a hard
surface. Thus, the effect of the new heel structure of the shoe is
that the above-mentioned strains on various parts and organisms of
the body would be eliminated and the pains resulting therefrom
would be eased.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1 is a cross sectional view of the heel.
FIG. 2 is a top projection view of the insole of the shoe.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
In the drawing, reference numeral 1 represents the insole of the
shoe to which is affixed the shoe heel 2 in conventional manner.
The shoe heel 2 comprises a main section 3 of plastics material and
has the conventional external shape. The shoe heel 2 is provided
with a central through hole 4 the lower end of which opens into a
recess 5 in the bottom portion of the main section 3, the recess 5
having a shape corresponding to said external shape of the main
section 3 and the shoe heel 2, respectively, and accordingly being
defined, for instance, by three straight walls and a curved rear
wall. The lower portion 4a of the hole 4 opening into the recess 5
is conically widened towards the recess 5. Into the recess 5 there
is with close fit inserted a wear heel 6 made in one piece of a
highly resistant and elastic material, such as rubber. The wear
heel consists of three portions, namely (a) a base plate 7 having a
flange 8 extending under the bottom edge 3 a of the main section 3
surrounding the recess 5, the outside of the flange 8 being in
flush with the outside of the main section 3, (b) an intermediate
section 9 having a shape to closely fit in the recess 5, and (c) a
top section comprising an upwardly extending and tapered stud 10
which with close fit is inserted into the conically widening lower
portion 4a of the hole 4. The top end of the stud 10 is provided
with an axial bore 11 in which is received a screw 12 having a
smooth cylindrical upper portion and a threaded lower portion of
slightly reduced diameter and terminating with a conical tip. For
the purpose of tightening and unscrewing the head of the screw 12
is provided with a screw driver slot accessible through the top
opening of the hole 4. The bore 11 comprises a cylindrical upper
portion having a slightly smaller diameter than the threaded
portion of the screw 12, and a lower portion of a substantially
reduced diameter into which the conical tip penetrates on
tightening of the screw, and extending a short distance downwards
through the stud 10. Thus, when the screw 12 is screwed into the
bore 11 and the tip penetrates into the lower portion of reduced
diameter of the bore, the elastic material of the conical stud 10
is firmly pressed into engagement with the inside of the conical
lower portion of the hole 4 so that the wear heel 6 will be
permanently and inflexibly anchored within the shoe heel 2. The
wear heel 6, however, may be easily removed when worn out.
On the top surface the main section 3 is provided with a circular
upwards projecting flange 13 surrounding the top opening of the
hole 4 and engaging a corresponding opening in the insole 1.
Within the bottom edge portion 3a of the main section 3 surrounding
the intermediate section 9 of the wear heel 6 is embedded a
reinforcing steel ring 14 or rail, and between the flange 8 and the
underside of the portion 3a there is mounted a soft rubber packing
15 to prevent foreign matters, such as gravel and the like, from
penetrating between the wear heel 6 and the shoe heel 2.
Owing to the fact that the support point for the foot is not
located at the lowermost portion of the shoe heel but at the
interface 16 between the top surface of the intermediate section 9
and the shoulder formed at the top end of the recess 5, the height
level of the foot supporting surface is substantially lowered in
order to effectively compress the material and absorb the shock
when the foot is put down on the ground.
In FIG. 2, reference numeral 17 represents a tensile, flat and
resilient metal strip mounted within the insole 1 and extending
over the arch supporting area of the shoe. The rear wider end 17a
of the strip 17 is fork-shaped with the prongs 18 of the fork
located on each side of the flange 13 and adjacent thereto. In
combination with the new structure of the shoe heel the strip 17
provides an effective support for the wedge-shaped bone of the
skeleton of the foot and raises the arch of the foot so that the
foot will regain its suppleness.
* * * * *