Article Of Footwear

Abstract

An article of footwear is described in the form of a calf-length boot for cold weather wear. The boot assembly comprises an inner boot and an outer shell, the inner boot being formed in a boot shape from a relatively thick layer of soft, pliable foam plastic material and having sufficient dimensional rigidity to maintain an erect boot shape. The outer shell has a sole portion and an upper portion, the sole portion being of a traction material with a wear resistant surface and being peripherally joined to an upper portion of thin, pliable sheet material. The inner boot fits snugly within the outer shell to form an erect boot assembly.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to footwear and, more particularly, to a lightweight boot for cold weather wear.

2. Description of the Prior Art

There are many different kinds of lightweight footwear available today for cold weather use. These are typically formed with a thick rubber sole, a leather or nylon fabric upper and some form of a heavy fleece lining sewn into the boot. A typical example of such a boot can be found in Hiestand U.S. Pat. No. 2,820,308 issued Jan. 21, 1958. Such a boot is, of course, formed on a last in the usual shoe-making equipment so that the foot encompassing portion is quite stiff and depends on a relatively exact size for fitting the foot.

Eskimos have for centuries worn mukluks, which are soft boots lined with fur and usually made of sealskin or reindeer skin. The mukluk usually contains no rigid portions and fits softly around the foot and has been noted for its extreme warmth and comfort particularly in very cold weather conditions. While many people would, indeed, like to own authentic Eskimo mukluks, they are generally available only as a rather expensive luxury item.

It is the object of the present invention to provide a very lightweight and inexpensive soft boot which provides excellent protection from the cold and can be used for apres-ski, snowmobile and other outdoor uses.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The article of footwear of this invention is in the form of a boot assembly having an inner boot and and outer shell. The inner boot is formed in a boot shape from a relatively thick layer of soft, pliable foam plastic material and has sufficient dimensional rigidity to maintain an erect boot shape. This foam plastic boot then fits snugly within an outer shell of a soft, flaccid material. The outer shell has a sole portion and an upper portion, the sole portion being of a traction material with a wear resistant surface and being peripherally joined to an upper portion of thin, pliable sheet material, e.g., nylon fabric.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The inner boot can be conveniently made from soft polyurethane foam and can be either directly molded as a unitary article or from panels cut from flat sheets of the polyurethane foam and joined together. This inner boot has sufficient dimensional rigidity to permanently maintain its boot shape and may typically be about 1/2 to 1 inch thick. This thick soft foam molds very easily around the foot and, because of its softness, will be snugly retained on feet of a variety of different sizes.

If desired, the sole portion of the inner boot can be of a somewhat harder foam than the upper portions to provide some extra cushioning for the soles of the feet.

The outer shell portion is formed as a separate boot to fit snugly around the inner foam boot and this outer shell is made from a very thin, flaccid material such as nylon fabric. Thus, it is little more than a thin sheet which surrounds and protects the foam inner boot.

The outer shell has a sole portion of traction material, which can be a relatively thin sheet of natural or synthetic rubber with a roughened outer surface and this is peripherally joined to an upper portion of the thin, flaccid sheet material. The outer shell upper preferably has a panel adjacent the sole made from vinyl-coated nylon fabric with a narrow portion serving as a side wall for the forward portion of the foot merging into a wide portion serving as a side wall for the heel and ankle. The upper edge of this foot embracing section is joined by a seam to nylon fabric which covers the instep and surrounds the leg portion of the boot.

To provide some adjustment to the tightness on the wearer, a series of rings can be mounted in the seam joining the two portions of the outer shell upper in the region of the instep. Tie laces can then be looped across the instep between these rings to pull the boot up snugly on the foot of the wearer.

An additional drawstring can be provided at the top edge of the outer shell to pull the boot very snugly around the leg of the wearer so that no snow can accidently fall down inside the boot.

Certain preferred embodiments of the invention will now be illustrated by the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the completed assembled boot;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the boot shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the inner boot; and

FIG. 4 is a rear elevation of the inner boot.

As will be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the outer shell A has a thin natural crepe rubber sole 1 which is sewn by peripheral seam 2 to a vinyl-coated nylon fabric foot enclosing portion 3. The foot enclosing portion 3 wraps around the heel and is joined at the toe by means of the sewn seam 4. The foot enclosing portion 3 has a narrow portion with an upper edge 6 which embraces the forward portion of the foot and this merges upwardly to a wide portion with an upper edge 5 which embraces the heel and ankle. The upper edges of this foot embracing portion 3 are sewn by a seam 8 to a nylon fabric 7 which covers the instep and surrounds the leg of the wearer. This nylon fabric 7 has a central seam 9 extending from the toe up to the top of the boot and also a lateral instep seam 12. A peripheral pocket 10 is formed at the top edge of the outer shell and a tie lace 11 is inserted into this pocket.

In the seam 8 joining the two portions of the outer shell upper is inserted fabric loops 13 for holding lacing rings 14. A tie lace can then be placed in these rings 14 for drawing the boot up snugly on the foot of the wearer.

As will be seen from FIGS. 2, 3 and 4, the inner boot B can easily be formed from commercially available sheets of polyurethane foam plastic. A sole portion 20 is first provided and this may be of a somewhat stiffer foam material than is used for the side walls to provide some extra cushioning for the sole of the foot. The entire upper portion of the inner boot can be formed from two panels of polyurethane foam plastic material with one large panel 21 bending around the rear portion of the boot and being joined at the toe by way of vertical seam 22. The seam 22 as well as the join 23 between the upper and the sole 20 can be done by way of an adhesive or by heat-sealing. To provide the necessary shape to the inner boot, a second panel 24 is provided which extends down the front of the boot and over the instep out to the toe portion. This front panel 24 is joined to the main panel 21 by way of seam 25.

As will be seen from FIG. 2, an additional insole 26 of soft polyurethane foam plastic can be inserted into the inner boot to provide additional softness for the wearer.

Claims

We claim:

1. An article of footwear comprising a boot being formed of a substantially flat sole portion joined to a calf-high upper portion both made from a relatively thick soft, pliable foam plastic material and having sufficient dimensional rigidity to independently maintain an erect boot shape, and an outer shell having a substantially flat sole portion and a calf-high upper portion, the sole portion of the shell being made of a thin traction material with a wear resistant surface and being peripherally joined to an upper portion of thin, pliable sheet material, said boot fitting snugly within the outer shell to form an erect boot assembly with the outer shell assuming the shape of the boot.

2. An article according to claim 1, wherein the outer shell comprises a flat sole portion, a lower portion of water-proof sheet material surrounding the foot and ankle and being peripherally joined by a seam to the sole portion and an upper portion of thin, pliable material covering the leg and instep and peripherally joined to said lower portion.

3. An article according to claim 2 wherein the sole portion of the outer shell is made from a natural or synthetic rubber sheet material.

4. An article according to claim 3 wherein the lower portion of the outer shell is made from a vinyl-coated nylon fabric and the upper portion is made from a woven nylon fabric with a water-proof finish.

5. An article according to claim 3 wherein ring-holding loops are provided in the seam joining the outer shell upper and lower portion, these being positioned on opposite sides of the instep.

6. An article according to claim 1 wherein said boot is made entirely from material about one inch thick.

7. An article according to claim 1 wherein said boot is made of a foam plastic material at least one-half inch thick.

8. An article according to claim 1 wherein said upper portion of said boot is formed from first and second panels of foam plastic material, said first panel bending around to form the rear portion of the boot and being joined at the toe by a vertical seam, said second panel extending down the front of the boot and over the instep out to the toe portion and being joined to said first panel.

9. An article according to claim 8 wherein said flat sole portion of said boot is formed of first and second superimposed layers of foam plastic material.