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.

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.

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..