U.S. patent number 3,659,361 [Application Number 04/886,704] was granted by the patent office on 1972-05-02 for skate boot.
Invention is credited to Thomas Paul White, Sr..
United States Patent |
3,659,361 |
White, Sr. |
May 2, 1972 |
SKATE BOOT
Abstract
The present invention relates to skate boots and in particular
the present invention relates to an improved skate boot in which
the high top shoe quarters thereof fit in a snug or glove-like
fashion around the ankles of the wearer.
Inventors: |
White, Sr.; Thomas Paul (Saint
John, New Brunswick, CA) |
Family
ID: |
25389571 |
Appl.
No.: |
04/886,704 |
Filed: |
December 19, 1969 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
36/89;
36/115 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A43B
5/1691 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A43B
5/16 (20060101); A43b 000/00 () |
Field of
Search: |
;36/2.5,2.5AL,2.5N |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Lawson; Patrick D.
Claims
I claim:
1. In a skating boot having medial and lateral high top shoe
quarters the improvement in which each of the medial and lateral
high top shoe quarters thereof has means defining an opening
closely circumscribing the respective malleolus extending
completely therethrough, said opening being dimensioned to allow
the medial malleolus and the lateral malleolus of the wearer's foot
to extend therethrough whereby said high top shoe quarters of said
boot may substantially completely follow the contours of said foot,
the area below said openings being of flexible material to permit
foot-relative-to-leg lateral movements characteristic of skating
and being further characterized by the absence of means preventing
such movements.
2. A boot as claimed in claim 1 in which each of said openings is
closed by a relatively rigid cup member, each cup member being of
sufficient depth to avoid engagement and frictionally grasping
contact with its respective malleolus whereby to substantially
avoid distortion of said openings during use of said boot.
3. A boot as claimed in claim 2 in which the cup members are
fixedly attached to the high quarters of the said boot by means of
flange portions extending from said cup members only sufficiently
to permit attachment of the flange portions to the respective high
top shoe quarters immediately peripherally of said openings, then
terminating to avoid preventing said characteristic
foot-relative-to-leg lateral movements.
4. A boot as claimed in claim 2 in which each cup member is formed
from a thicker leather than said high top shoe quarters.
5. In a skating boot having medial and lateral high top shoe
quarters the improvement in which each of the medial and lateral
high top shoe quarters thereof has means defining an opening
extending completely therethrough, said opening being dimensioned
to allow the medial malleolus and the lateral malleolus of the
wearer's foot to extend therethrough whereby said high top shoe
quarters of said boot may substantially completely follow the
contours of said foot; each of said openings being closed by a
relatively rigid cup member, each cup member being of sufficient
depth to avoid engagement and frictionally grasping contact with
its respective malleolus whereby to substantially avoid distortion
of said openings during use of said boot; the cup member on the
lateral high top shoe quarter being indented to accommodate the
large tendon extending upwards from the outside ankle bone.
6. In a skating boot having medial and lateral high top shoe
quarters made of leather, the improvement in which each of the
medial and lateral high top shoe quarters thereof has means
defining a border positioned to circumscribe a region immediately
adjacent the respective malleolus of the wearer, the boot outside
the two said borders substantially completely following the
contours of the foot of the wearer; the high top shoe quarters
being out of contact with the wearer's malleoli within the region
bounded by said border means; the high top shoe quarters within
said border including cups which bulge away from the wearer's
malleoli, said cups being impressed from the same leather as said
high top shoe quarters, said skating boot including said medial and
lateral high top shoe quarters, below said borders, being
characterized by having sufficient flexiblity to permit
foot-relative-to-leg lateral movements characteristic of skating
and being further characterized by the absence of means preventing
such movements.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
In conventional skate boots, both of the speed skating and pleasure
skating types, the high top shoe quarters thereof are formed from
artificially prepared (tanned) skins of animals and due to the
presence of the ankle bones in the wearer's foot, it is impossible
for these high top shoe quarters to follow the contours of the bony
ankle protrusions since they do not have sufficient flexibility.
Thus, when the boot is fitted to the human foot the high top shoe
quarters thereof are loosely placed over the outside of the ankle
portions of the foot and means, suitably in the form of boot laces,
are provided to draw the flat surface of the top area of the high
top shoe quarters against the wearer's ankle portion whereby spaces
are inherently left between the skin of the wearer's ankle portions
and the leather of the high top shoe quarters due to the bony
protrusions of the ankle bone which are wedged between the surfaces
of the boot. The portion of the high top shoe quarters stretching
across these spaces tend to buckle both above and below the contact
of the high top shoe quarters with the ankle bones causing
accordion-like ripples to form in the leather which accordion-like
folds of course expand and contract allowing the foot to bend to
one side or the other during skating depending on which side the
stress is exerted. This effect is normally referred to as weak
ankles and is particularly prevalent with pleasure skaters when the
skates are worn by inexperienced skaters. Many attempts have been
made to counteract this effect including a variety of so-called
"ankle supports" but none of these supports has heretofore provided
a satisfactory solution to the problem.
It has now been found according to the present invention that by
providing openings in the high top shoe quarters of the boots,
which openings extend completely through the high top shoe quarters
and are dimensioned to allow the ankle bones to extend
therethrough, the high top shoe quarters of the boot may follow
snugly the contours of the foot of the wearer of the boot and thus
essentially avoid the effect of weak ankles.
According to the present invention therefore there is provided in a
skating boot the improvement in which each of the medial and
lateral high top shoe quarters thereof has an opening extending
completely therethrough, said opening being dimensioned to allow
the medial malleolus and the lateral malleolus of the wearer's foot
to extend therethrough whereby said high top shoe quarters of said
boot may substantially completely follow the contours of said
foot.
Further, while the openings in the high top shoe quarters of the
boot to allow protrusion of the ankle bones therethrough provide
for a snug fit between the high top shoe quarters and the foot of
the wearer during skating the openings in the high top shoe
quarters of the boots tend to undergo distortion when the skate
boot is first reached out in front of the body and then moved to
the rear of the body for the thrust stroke. In order to avoid such
distortion applicant has found that each opening should suitably be
closed by a relatively rigid cup member suitably of greater
rigidity than the high top shoe quarters of the boot, the cup
members being of sufficient depth to avoid frictionally grasping
contact and preferably any contact with the ankle bone, for such
contact with the ankle bone would completely nullify the advantages
to be gained by allowing the ankle bone to protrude completely
through the high top shoe quarters of the boot.
According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention
therefore there is provided in a skating boot the improvement in
which each of the medial and lateral high top shoe quarters thereof
has an opening extending completely therethrough, said opening
being dimensioned to allow the medial malleolus and the lateral
malleolus of the wearer's foot to extend therethrough whereby said
high top shoe quarters of said boot may substantially completely
follow the contours of said foot, each of said openings being
closed by a relatively rigid cup member preferably of greater
rigidity than said high quarters of said boot, each cup member
being of sufficient depth to avoid frictionally grasping contact
with the respective malleolus whereby to substantially avoid
distortion of said openings during use of said boot.
The opening in the medial high top shoe quarter of the skate boot
suitably has an ellipse-like configuration so as to be able to
accommodate the medial (tibial) malleolus, commonly known as the
inside ankle bone, and the opening in the lateral high top shoe
quarter of the boot has a generally circular configuration so as to
accommodate the lateral (fibular) malleolus, commonly known as the
outside ankle bone. The openings must extend completely through the
high top shoe quarters of the boot including any reinforcing pieces
and/or inner linings so that none of these overlie or frictionally
grasp the ankle bone thus allowing the ankle bones to protrude
completely through the side of the boot and the depth of the cups
is such that no part thereof comes into contact with the ankle bone
which contact would completely nullify the advantages to be gained
by the modification of the boot according to the present invention
of allowing the ankle bones to protrude completely through the side
of the boot.
Each of the above openings is desirably closed by a relatively
rigid cup member preferably of greater rigidity than the high top
shoe quarters of the boot and the cup members are fixedly attached
to the boot suitably by flange portions extending therefrom such as
by sewing. Each cup member may alternatively be integral with its
respective high top shoe quarter. Suitably, the cup members are
formed from a semi-rigid material and in a particular embodiment
when the high top shoe quarters of the boot are formed from
leather, the cup members may be formed from a more rigid leather,
e.g., a thicker leather. The cup shaped member attached to the
lateral high top shoe quarter is suitably indented to accommodate
the large tendon extending upwards from the outside ankle bone. The
presence of the cup member is, as aforesaid, to avoid any
distortion of the lips of the openings during skating thus
preventing the wrinkling or accordion effect in the high top shoe
quarters and these cups are not present as ankle supporters and any
support for the ankle to be gained from these cups is purely
incidental. Further, while the presence of the cups may supply
protection for the ankle bone, this again is merely an incidental
effect.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The present invention will be further illustrated by way of the
accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a sectional rear view of a conventional skate boot as
worn on the foot of a skater;
FIG. 2 is an inside elevational view of a skate boot including a
generally ellipsoidal opening therein to accommodate the medial
malleolus of the skater's foot according to the present
invention;
FIG. 3 is an outside elevational view of a skate boot including a
generally circular opening therein to accommodate the lateral
malleolus of the skater's foot according to the present
invention;
FIG. 4 is a detail of the cup members for closing the openings of
the skate boot in FIG. 2;
FIG. 5 is a detail of the cup member for closing the opening in the
boot of FIG. 3;
FIG. 6 is a section taken along the line 6--6 of FIG. 5, and
FIG. 7 is a sectional rear view of a skate boot according to one
embodiment of the present invention on the foot of a skater.
FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 of a modification wherein the
cup members are embossed in the leather of the high top shoe
quarters. Equivalent parts are designated with primed numerals.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
Referring to FIG. 1, normally a skater selects his boot size such
that his foot 1 fits into the boot with the heel of his foot
fitting snugly between the counters 2 and having substantial
contact in the area of the counters 2 with the inside lining 3, of
the boot. The bottom of the foot 1 rests on the insole 4 suitably
formed from fiber or leather which insole 4 is separated from the
outer sole 6 by a midsole 5 suitably formed from leather and in
filler 7 suitably formed from cork.
FIG. 1 illustrates the disadvantages of the conventional skate boot
as will be seen from FIG. 1, the high top shoe quarters 8 of the
skate boot 2 do not closely follow the contours of the foot 1 and
gaps 9 are left between the foot 1 and the high top shoe quarters 8
due to the presence of the ankle bones 10. Those portions of the
high top shoe quarters 8 surrounding the gaps 9 tend to buckle
causing accordion-like folds 11 during skating which folds 11
expand and contract allowing the foot 1, boot and skate (not shown)
to bend to one side or the other depending upon the direction of
the stress exerted by the skater thus producing the "weak ankles"
in the skater.
To avoid the presence of the gaps 11 according to the present
invention, openings 12 and 13 (FIGS. 2 and 3) are formed desirably
during manufacture of the boot in the high top shoe quarters 8 of
the boot to allow the ankle bones 10 of the foot 1 to protrude
therethrough. The opening 12 is generally ellipsoidal to
accommodate the medial malleolus and opening 13 is generally
circular to accommodate the lateral malleolus.
To avoid distortion of the opening 12 during skating this opening
is closed by a generally ellipsoidal cup member 14 (FIG. 4) which
is fixedly attached, e.g. sewed to the high top shoe quarters 8 of
the boot via the flange 15. Similarly, a generally circular cup
member 16 (FIG. 5) closes the opening 13 which cup member 13 is
fixedly attached, e.g. sewed to the high top shoe quarters 8 of the
boot via the flange 17. As will be seen from FIGS. 5 and 6, the lip
17 and bowl of the cup 16 is suitably indented at 18 to accommodate
the large tendon 19 (FIG. 7) extending upwardly from the ankle bone
10 on the outside of the foot 1.
With reference to FIG. 7 which shows the skate boot according to a
preferred embodiment of the present invention again the foot 1 fits
into the boot with the heel fitting snugly between the counters 2
having substantial contact with the inner lining 3 and the area of
the counters 2. The bottom of the boot also has the conventional
insole 4, midsole 5, filler 7 and outer sole 6. However, the ankle
bones 10 are accommodated by openings 12 and 13 in the high top
shoe quarters 8 which openings are closed by the cup shaped members
14 and 16 respectively by means of flanges 15 and 17 respectively.
It will readily be seen that the presence of the openings 12 and 13
allows the high top shoe quarters 8 and bottom sides of the boot in
the area of the counters 2 to fit snugly to the foot 1 around the
ankle bones 10 thus effectively eliminating the gaps and any
subsequent accordion-like folds which appear in conventional skate
boots during use.
The presence of the openings in the high top shoe quarters of the
boot whether or not closed by the relatively rigid cup member will
modify the method of manufacture of the boot, i.e. the
manufacturing pattern of the high top shoe quarters for the
improved skate boot of the present invention, it is not sufficient
merely to cut the openings in conventional skate boots to
accommodate the ankle bones as the high top shoe quarters of these
conventional skate boots have been made, i.e. lasted to pass over
the ankle bones and as such the amount of leather in the high top
shoe quarters is substantially greater than that required when the
high top shoe quarters are formed with the openings of the present
invention so as to pass around the ankle bones leading to an
undesirable loose fit of the boot around the ankle bones. Further
with the modified high top shoe quarters of the present invention
as they do not stretch over the ankle bones of the foot but pass
around them then the curvature of the boot and portions of the back
of the boot will be narrower necessitating an adjustment in the
forming of the high top shoe quarters. Thus the pattern of the high
top shoe quarters is modified and the openings and when present the
relatively rigid cup closure members are incorporated into the high
top shoe quarters before assembly to form the boot. Suitably the
recessed cup members are impressed into a sheet of leather and the
high top shoe quarters include the recessed cup members cut to
pattern for the sheet of leather.
As illustrated in FIG. 8, the cup members may be integral with
their respective high top shoe quarters.
* * * * *