Shoe engagement and bumper insert system and method for using the same

Abstract

A bumper system for use in a shoe may include one or more elastomeric members having a curved top portion opposite a generally flat bottom portion; an adhesive layer on said bottom portion; and a peel-removable cover of said adhesive layer, wherein the one or more elastomeric members includes a first elastomeric member that is configured to be secured within a toe box of the shoe and is configured to match a foot-toe-gap arc of a user of the shoe. A method of using a bumper system in a shoe is also disclosed.

Claims

1. A bumper system for use in a shoe, comprising: at least one elastomeric member having a curved top portion opposite a flat bottom portion defining a total thickness between said curved top portion and said flat bottom portion; an adhesive layer on said flat bottom portion; a peel-removable cover on said adhesive layer; at least one protuberance on said curved top portion; at least one reduced thickness region along a length of said at least one elastomeric member; said at least one reduced thickness region further comprising: one or more recessions that facilitate a curving of the at least one elastomeric member; the one or more recessions are arranged located on each opposing side along a length of said at least one elastomeric member from a proximal end to a distal end; wherein the at least one elastomeric member includes a first elastomeric member that is configured to be secured to a portion of said shoe; and wherein the at least one elastomeric member includes one or more grooves that facilitate separating the at least one elastomeric member to a predetermined length.

2. The bumper system of claim 1, further comprising: at least a second said elastomeric member configured to be secured to a curved upper portion of the shoe that is configured to cover a heel of a wearer.

3. The bumper system of claim 1, further comprising: at least a second said elastomeric member configured to be secured to a rear end of a foot bed of the shoe.

4. The bumper system of claim 1, wherein: the at least one elastomeric member further includes a second elastomeric member that is configured to be secured to a curved upper portion of the shoe that is configured to cover the heel of a wearer and a third elastomeric member that is configured to be secured to a rear end of a foot bed of the shoe.

5. The bumper system of claim 1, wherein at least one elastomeric member includes an opening that is configured to receive a portion of the shoe.

6. The bumper system of claim 5, wherein the shoe is a sandal, and wherein the at least one elastomeric member further includes finger elements forming a portion of a boundary of the opening that is configured to receive a portion of the shoe.

7. The bumper system of claim 6, wherein the finger elements are arranged symmetrically with respect to one another.

8. The bumper system of claim 6, wherein one finger element of the finger elements extends proximate a space defined for receiving a thong of said sandal.

9. A bumper system for use in a shoe, comprising: one or more elastomeric members having a top portion opposite a flat bottom portion; an adhesive layer on said bottom portion; a peel-removable cover of said adhesive layer; at least one protuberance on said curved top portion; at least one reduced region along a length of said elastomeric member; said at least one reduced thickness region further comprising: one or more recessions that facilitate a curving of the one or more elastomeric members; the one or more recessions are arranged located on each opposing side along a length of the one or more elastomeric members from a proximal end to a distal end; and wherein the one or more elastomeric members includes a first elastomeric member that is configured to be secured within to a portion of said shoe; and wherein said one or more elastomeric members includes one or more grooves that facilitate separating the at least one elastomeric member to a predetermined length.

10. A bumper system, according to claim 9, further comprising: said first elastomeric member being configured to be positioned in at least one shoe location, said shoe location selected from a group of shoe locations consisting of an area configured to bear the toes of a wearer of the shoe, a curved upper portion of the shoe configured to cover the heel of said wearer, a rear end of a foot bed of the shoe, and a strap member of said shoe, whereby said one or more elastomeric members is configured to aid in positioning of a user's foot upon said shoe during use.

11. The bumper system, according to claim 10, further comprising: the one or more elastomeric members including a second elastomeric member; and each of the first elastomeric member and the second elastomeric member being capable of being secured within one of said group of shoe locations.

12. The bumper system of claim 11, further comprising: at least one opening along a length of each of the first elastomeric member and the second elastomeric member; and said at least one opening is configured to receive a portion of the shoe the strap member.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a partial sectional illustration view of a conventional raised shoe and foot assembly noting the conventional arrangement;

(2) FIG. 2 is partial sectional illustration view of a conventional flat shoe and foot assembly noting the conventional foot arrangement;

(3) FIG. 3 is a partial illustration view of a raised heel sandal construction noting foot movement;

(4) FIGS. 4-7 are a proposed bumper device where FIG. 6 is a section along section line 6-6 in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7 is a section along line 7-7 in FIG. 5;

(5) FIG. 8 is a modified illustrated view of FIG. 1 with the bumper device 70 installed between a toe and the ball of a user's foot to prevent sliding on a foot bed;

(6) FIG. 9 is a modified illustrated view of FIG. 2 with a bumper device 70 installed between a toe and the ball of a user's foot to prevent sliding and secure the foot to the strap as shown;

(7) FIG. 10A-10F illustrate differently configured bumper devices;

(8) FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an open-toed thong-type flat sandal including bumpers adhered to its footbed to reduce lateral displacement in stepping, to guide the toes for improved comfort and walking-control and to increase safety; and

(9) FIG. 12 is a perspective view of a closed-toe heel shoe including bumpers adhered to its footbed to reduce lateral displacement in stepping, to guide the toes for improved comfort and walking-control and to increase safety.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(10) Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the invention. Wherever possible, same or similar reference numerals are used in the drawings and the description to refer to the same or like parts or steps. The drawings are in simplified form and are not to precise scale. The word couple and similar terms do not necessarily denote direct and immediate connections, but also include connections through intermediate elements or devices. For purposes of convenience and clarity only, directional (up/down, etc.) or motional (forward/back, etc.) terms may be used with respect to the drawings. These and similar directional terms should not be construed to limit the scope in any manner. It will also be understood that other embodiments may be utilized without departing from the scope of the present invention, and that the detailed description is not to be taken in a limiting sense, and that elements may be differently positioned, or otherwise noted as in the appended claims without requirements of the written description being required thereto.

(11) Various operations may be described as multiple discrete operations in turn, in a manner that may be helpful in understanding embodiments of the present invention; however, the order of description should not be construed to imply that these operations are order dependent.

(12) One of the present inventions is noted in FIGS. 4 through 7 as a bumper system 70 having an elongated shape and a curved upper portion 71 and a flat bottom portion 72. On flat bottom portion 72 is an adhesive layer and a removable cover film (both not shown). The adhesive layer and removable cover film may be of any conventional adhesive and film suitable for adhering to a shoe and being stored for transport for peal-and-stick application.

(13) The curved upper portion 71 optionally has a series of ridges 73 between depressions 74 to aid in gripping a foot as will be discussed. To assist in curving the elongate bumper system 70 one or more recessions 75, 75 are provided along the curvature of system 70 to a preferred arcas will be discussed. One example of a preferred arc is shown at 76, 76 in FIG. 4, however this is not limiting, and an arc may be either symmetrical or asymmetric relative to user's need and desire as will be discussed.

(14) As will be noted in FIG. 7 along section line 7-7 in FIG. 5, the cross-section portion noted in recession region 75 is smaller than the overall section line 6-6 in FIG. 6, and as a result, system 70 may be readily bent and curved as needed.

(15) Referring now to FIG. 8, for the use of a bumper system 70 positioned within a closed-toe shoe 20 between the toe 13 and ball 16 of a foot 12, and secured to the foot bed region as shown by adhesive upon removal of a backing member (not shown). In this position, bumper system 70 is slightly arcuate (as in FIG. 4) to match the foot-toe-gap arc of a user and to fill in this gap. As such, bumper system 70 provides a slid-resistance for user's moving their foot relative to the position in shoe 20 and prevents unintended sliding-forward or sliding-rearward. As shown the foot-toe-gap will be designated as position A. However, it will be understood that bumper system 70 may be positioned at the rear cup shaped heel 21 in a position C as shown, or optionally under an upper toe-box cover position B as shown. Alternatively, multiple bumper systems 70 may be used depending upon a user's desire.

(16) As will be seen also from FIG. 9, a foot-toe-gap position A is provided with bumper system 70 following adhesive backing removal and application to foot bed 30. Additionally, the strap position B may be provided with a bumper system 70. Further, a bumper system 70 may be in both position A and B for a strap member combination.

(17) It will be further understood that for a high-heel sandal 45 (as noted in FIG. 3), bumper systems 70 may be in along a top strap (re. position C) to prevent motion 78 or along the foot bed in position A or under a bottom strap 46 in position B to prevent motion 80.

(18) In sum, the use of the adaptive bumper system 70 allows for ready adaptation of a foot wear item and avoidance of the discomfort noted. It will also be understood that any type of footwear device from sandal, boot, flat shoe, high heel, for either men or women, of any kind may be described herein as a shoe without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention. It will be also understood that bumper system 70 may be of any modulus of elasticity made of an elastomeric material suitable for use, including a material that has a smooth-non-sticky interface (rubber) and a sticky-interface (silicone).

(19) As further will be noted a method of use would include the selection of a bumper 70, optionally cutting to length (with scissors or otherwise), shaping to an arc desired, removing the adhesive backing, and pressing the device into position within a selected shoe, and then test-fitting by a user.

(20) Other bumpers are described with respect to FIGS. 10A-10F. As shown in FIG. 10A, a flexible bumper 80 may have a generally elongated shape and may include one or more recessions 81 on opposing sides of axis extending along a length thereof. Such recessions 81 may facilitate curving or bending of the bumper 80 to a preferred arc. Moreover, the bumper 80 may include groove 82 to facilitate cutting or trimming the bumper 80 to a desired length.

(21) As shown in FIGS. 10B-10E, bumpers 90A-90D are configured to be secured to a thong (e.g., split-toe divider 32) of a sandal (e.g., sandal 40).

(22) As shown in FIG. 10B, bumper 90A has a generally elongated shape and includes an open section 91 or alternatively a gripping assist section 91 in which a space is defined within the bumper 90A to receive the thong therein for alignment aid. Fingers 92 may wrap around the thong to secure and help position the bumper as closely as possible to the same location as the thong member post (shown in FIG. 11), while maintaining the bumper position, so as to allow maximum comfort and minimize a rolling-force upon foot removal and thereby minimize a removal of the bumper 90A from the thong. As shown in FIG. 10B, the fingers 92 of section 91 may define a space therebetween, and may be generally symmetrically positioned with respect to one another.

(23) Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 10C, a similar bumper 90B may include an opening section 93 having fingers 94a, 94b that are arranged asymmetrically such the finger 94b extends over the space defined for the reception of the thong such that the finger 94b impedes the path for the removal of the bumper 90B from the thong once the two are coupled and which allows the bumper to maintain alignment with the thong member 32 (FIG. 11).

(24) FIG. 10D depicts a bumper that is similar to the bumper 90A, but also includes grooves 95 which may facilitate bending and/or cutting or trimming of the bumper 90C (trimming along a cut line will provide a smoother profile).

(25) Another bumper 90D shown in FIG. 10E is substantially similar to bumper 80 in that it includes recessions 96 that are substantially similar to the recessions 81, but may also include a section 97 similar to that of the sections 91, 93 such that the bumper 90D may be secured to a thong of a sandal and positioned in close alignment.

(26) As additionally illustrated in FIG. 10E, designation of cut-lines 100, 100 may be provided as marked indicia on a bumper, or as stress-reducing segments or tear-opening sections, to aid a user to reduce an overall bumper to a desired length.

(27) Another bumper 90E, as shown in FIG. 10F, may be generally elongated and include gaps 98 on at least one side along its length to facilitate bending or curving of the bumper 90E. Each of the bumpers 80-90E may include an adhesive backing to facilitate securing or affixing of the bumpers to a footbed of a shoe or sandal or the like.

(28) Sandal 40 may have one or more bumpers secured to its footbed. As shown in FIG. 11, for example, bumper 90A may be secured to a front section of the sandal 40 such that it is positioned under a user's toes when the sandal is worn to inhibit relative movement of the user's foot along the length of the sandal. In particular, split-toe divider 32 may be coupled to bumper 90A (or alternatively bumper 90B, 90C, or 90D, for example) which receives the divider within the gripping opening section 93. Another one of the bumpers, for example, bumper 90E may be positioned at the rear of the sandal and curved such that it is configured to snugly be positioned against the heal of the user's foot, thereby preventing the foot from slipping or translating relative to the footbed of the sandal 40. As noted in FIG. 12, a bumper 70 is also positioned under a user's toes or along an arc-of the user's heel at the rear-shoe lip (as in FIG. 8), but also shown positioned in a U-or-V-shaped position proximate a user's heel 9 as in FIG. 11 to enhance a lateral-stability and positioning of a user's heel in a shoe.

(29) While not specifically illustrated herein, Applicant recognizes the discussed elongate bumper members may additionally be integrally formed with either a removable full-insole for a shoe (co-molded in the removable insole in the positions noted) or may be integrally formed with the footbed of a shoe (formed during initial manufacturing into the footbed of the shoe or side wall of a heel-wall). These improvements and updates will be understood by those of skill in the art of footwear design to be discussed and understood from the above-description and within the scope of the present invention.

(30) Having described at least one of the preferred embodiments of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings, it will be apparent to those skills that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various modifications and variations can be made in the presently disclosed system without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present disclosure cover modifications and variations of this disclosure provided they come within the scope of the appended claims and their equivalents.