HIGH-HEELED FOOTWEAR

Abstract

A heel part is formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in the vertical direction, and a front end adjacent portion thereof is buried and fixed in an outer sole more on a toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of a high heel. A portion continuous with and behind the fixed portion is exposed from the outer sole and gradually spaced apart from a bottom face of the outer sole in a rearward direction and has a warp-curved part 3B in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot, and a buffer plate grounded during walking and standing is attached to the bottom face of the heel part in a position almost immediately below a rear end part of the outer sole.

Claims

1. High-heeled footwear comprising a heel part, wherein the heel part is constituted in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in a vertical direction, and the heel part includes a front end adjacent portion in a longitudinal direction thereof buried and fixed in an outer sole of the footwear more on a toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of the footwear, a portion continuous with and behind the fixed portion being exposed from the outer sole and gradually spaced apart from a bottom face of the outer sole in a rearward direction and having a warp-curved part in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot, and an impact absorbing member grounded during walking or standing being attached to a bottom face of the heel part in a position almost immediately below a rear end part of the outer sole.

2. The high-heeled footwear of claim 1, further comprising an auxiliary spring member, wherein the auxiliary spring member connects a top face adjacent to a rear end part of the heel part and a bottom face adjacent to the rear end part of the outer sole, and the auxiliary spring member is elastically and flexibly deformable substantially in the vertical direction.

3. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein the auxiliary spring member is constituted by a plate spring convex-curved forward and substantially C-shaped in a side view, the auxiliary spring member has a top end part connected and fixed to a rear end part of a shank incorporated in the sole part of the footwear, and a second impact absorbing member is incorporated at a connecting part between the shank and the auxiliary spring member.

4. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are integrally formed from a single tabular blank.

5. The high-heeled footwear of claim 1, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

6. The high-heeled footwear of claim 3, wherein the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are integrally formed from a single tabular blank.

7. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

8. The high-heeled footwear of claim 3, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

9. The high-heeled footwear of claim 4, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

10. The high-heeled footwear of claim 6, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the outer sole of the bottom face of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] FIG. 1 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from obliquely behind;

[0033] FIG. 3 is a rear side front view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

[0034] FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

[0035] FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

[0036] FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are a set of cross-sectional views of a portion in the vicinity of a top end part of an auxiliary spring member, where FIG. 6A shows how the auxiliary spring member is assembled to a shoe sole, and FIG. 6B is an exploded view thereof;

[0037] FIGS. 7A to 7E show stages of a walking motion in the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

[0038] FIG. 8 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

[0039] FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a third embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

[0040] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

[0041] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

[0042] FIG. 12 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention;

[0043] FIG. 13 is a side view of an example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed;

[0044] FIG. 14 is a side view of another example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed;

[0045] FIG. 15 is a perspective view of yet another example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed; and

[0046] FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a still further example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0047] Now, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 are a perspective view thereof as viewed from obliquely behind, a rear side front view thereof, and a bottom view thereof, respectively. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the high heel. Note that a pair of high heels has a symmetric structure between the left foot side and the right foot side, and therefore only the left foot side is shown in the drawings.

[0048] As shown in these drawings, the high heel 1 according to the embodiment has an upper 2 in a similar structure to a normal high heel, while a heel part 3 is formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in the vertical direction unlike a conventional heel part.

[0049] According to the embodiment, the heel part 3 is produced by press-forming a stainless steel plate for spring and has a front end adjacent portion in the longitudinal direction buried and adhesively fixed in an outer sole 4 more on the toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of the high heel 1. Herein, the section of arch of foot refers to a range of the high heel 1 corresponding to the arch of the foot when one wears the high heel.

[0050] As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the outer sole 4 includes a top part of outer sole 4A attached to the entire bottom face of the upper 2 and a bottom part of outer sole 4B placed and joined on the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A more on the toe side than the section of arch of foot, and the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 is sandwiched between these parts as if buried therebetween and fixed by an adhesive.

[0051] As shown in FIG. 4, according to the embodiment, the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 has its width expanded to form a dovetail or paddle-like shape in a plan view. Although not specifically shown, the portion has its both surfaces provided with a large number of small irregularities formed by embossing, and these irregularities increase the effective adhesion area between the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A and the top face of the bottom part of outer sole 4B, so that the strength of adhesive bonding between the heel part 3 and the outer sole 4 is increased.

[0052] Note that the outer sole 4 may be produced by integrally forming the bottom part of outer sole 4B and the top part of outer sole 4A using a material such as synthetic rubber, a recess adapted to the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 may be provided inside, and the front end adjacent portion 3A may be fitted into the recess and fixed. Alternatively, the front end adjacent portion 3A may be fixed to the outer sole 4 using a bolt or a rivet.

[0053] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a rear portion of the heel part 3 continuous with the front end adjacent portion 3A is exposed rearward from a rear end surface of the bottom part of outer sole 4B, gradually spaced apart from the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A in the rearward direction and has a warp-curved part 3B in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot.

[0054] A rear end part 3C of the heel part 3 is curved upward, and a buffer plate 5 as an impact absorbing member grounded during walking and standing is adhesively fixed to the bottom face of a portion between the curved part 3B and the rear end part 3C. The buffer plate 5 is formed using high friction hard rubber in a thin tabular form as an important member adapted to absorb noise and impact generated during walking on a hard road surface or stairs of concrete for example and make the shoe less slippery and provided in a position almost immediately below the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A.

[0055] An auxiliary spring member 6 including a plate spring convex-curved forward and substantially C-shaped in a side view is incorporated between the top face adjacent to the rear end part of the heel part 3 and the bottom face adjacent to the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A. The auxiliary spring member 6 is produced from a stainless steel plate for spring similar to the heel part 3 and has an attaching hole 6A formed at a lower end thereof as shown in FIG. 5.

[0056] In the meantime, a screw hole 3D is formed in a positon opposed to the attaching hole 6A in a position adjacent to the rear end part 3C of the heel part 3, and an attaching screw 7 is fitted into the screw hole 3D through the attaching hole 6A, so that the auxiliary spring member 6 is fixed to the heel part 3.

[0057] Although not specifically shown, the attaching screw 7 has a hexagonal socket formed at a head part thereof for receiving an Allen wrench and a screw part having a length not extending beyond the bottom face of the heel part 3. The lower end of the screw hole 3D is blocked by the buffer plate 5 fixed to the bottom face of the heel part 3 with an adhesive.

[0058] FIGS. 6A and 6B are partly sectional views of a portion in the vicinity of a top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6, FIG. 6A shows how the member is assembled to the shoe sole, and FIG. 6B is an exploded view thereof. As shown in FIG. 6B, the top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6 has a pair of attaching holes 6B side by side in the longitudinal direction thereof for passing stepped attaching screws 8 therethrough.

[0059] In the meantime, a rectangular hole 4C is formed in a position adjacent to the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A, and an impact absorbing block 9 as a second impact absorbing member is provided therein. The impact absorbing block 9 is produced using a rubber material in a flat rectangular solid shape adapted to the inner surface of the rectangular hole 4C and has a thickness slightly larger than the thickness of the top part of outer sole 4A when no external force acts thereon. The impact absorbing block 9 has through holes 9A formed in positions overlapping the pair of attaching holes 6B and having substantially the same diameters as these attaching holes.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 6A, the top face of the impact absorbing block 9 is in abutment against the bottom face of a rear end part 11A of a shank 11 buried in a rear part of inner sole 10, and the top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6 and the rear end part 11A are coupled with each other by the pair of stepped attaching screws 8 with the impact absorbing block 9 interposed therebetween.

[0061] The rear part of inner sole 10 is produced using a paper material impregnated with resin and fixed to the top face of the top part of outer sole 4A for a range of the inside sole part of the upper 2 corresponding to a part between the arch of the foot and the heel. As shown in FIG. 5, a front part of inner sole 12 made of fabric is fixed to the top face of the top part of outer sole 4A continuously with the front of the rear part of inner sole 10, and an insole 13 is removably overlapped on the rear part of inner sole 10 and the front part of inner sole 12.

[0062] As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the stepped attaching screws 8 each have a head part 8A provided with a hexagonal socket for receiving an Allen wrench similarly to the attaching screw 7, a short columnar large-diameter part 8B, and a screw part 8C.

[0063] The large diameter part 8B has an outer diameter adapted to the inner diameters of the attaching hole 6B of the auxiliary spring member 6 and the through hole 9A of the impact absorbing block 9 and a length arranged slightly shorter than the total thickness of the thickness of the impact absorbing block 9 when there is no compression force applied thereon and the thickness of the auxiliary spring member 6, and the screw part 8C has a length arranged to be equal to or shorter than the thickness of the rear end part 11A of the shank 11.

[0064] As shown in FIG. 6B, the rear end part 11A of the shank 11 has screw holes 11B into which the screw parts 8C of the attaching screws 8 are fitted, and as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6A, while the attaching screws 8 are fitted into these screw holes 11B and fixed until the end faces of the large diameter parts 8C abut against the bottom face of the rear end part 11A, the impact absorbing block 9 is elastically compressed in a thickness-wise direction thereof to have both top and bottom faces thereof closely contacted to the bottom face of the rear end part 11A and the top face of the rear end part of the auxiliary spring member 6, respectively, so that the impact absorbing block can function to absorb impact transmitted from the auxiliary spring member 6 to the shoe sole side.

[0065] Now, stages of a walking motion in the high heel 1 having the above-described structure will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7E. FIG. 7A shows the high heel 1 on the side of the stepped out foot at the moment at which the bottom face of the buffer plate 5 attached to the heel part 3 of the high heel 1 is grounded on the walking surface such as a road surface.

[0066] At the moment, the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 have not been flexibly deformed yet and are in the process of approaching the walking surface integrally with the upper 2 as the stepping out of the foot proceeds. In the process, the bottom face of the buffer plate 5 strikes the walking surface first, and a striking sound generated at the time is absorbed by the buffer plate 5, so that a noise that would be generated during walking in conventional normal high heels is not generated.

[0067] Then, as shown in FIG. 7B, in the stage in which the upper 2 further approaches the walking surface together with the foot, the rear end part of the heel part 3 receives upward reaction force from the walking surface through the buffer plate 5, so that the rear end side of the heel part 3 deforms elastically and flexibly upward relative to the upper 2 as a result, along with which the auxiliary spring member 6 also elastically and flexibly deforms to provide a cushioning effect, while elastic energy corresponding to the amount of flexural deformation is stored each at the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6.

[0068] Note that as the flexural deformation increases, the portion behind the front end adjacent portion 3A shown in FIG. 5 abuts against the bottom face of the outer sole 4 sequentially in the rearward direction, and the heel part 3 has a reduced effective flexibly deformable length, so that the flexural rigidity (bending rigidity) of the heel part 3 increases and a soft and comfortable cushioning effect can be obtained.

[0069] Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7C, when a point P1 at the front of shoe sole of the high heel 1 is grounded as the walking motion proceeds, a part of the load imposed on the rear end side of the heel part 3 moves toward the point P1, so that the load imposed on the heel part 3 is reduced. Then, the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 try to regain their original shapes by respective elastic restoring force.

[0070] In the meantime, the grounded point between the shoe sole of the high heel 1 and the walking surface further moves continuously from the point P1 to a point P2 on the toe side shown in FIG. 7D as the ankle turns, and during the movement, the elastic restoring force of the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 acts to push the heel side of the shoe sole forward and obliquely upward to release the elastic energies stored therein and aid the walking motion.

[0071] After the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 are elastically restored to their original positions and the buffer plate 5 is apart from the walking surface, the walking motion is the same as that by a normal high heel, and lastly a point P3 at the tip end of the shoe sole is apart from the walking surface as shown in FIG. 7E.

[0072] Note that while in the above-described embodiment, the auxiliary spring member 6 that is substantially C-shaped in a side view is used, the form of the auxiliary spring member is not limited to this, and the auxiliary spring member may be a compression coil spring or a volute spring. However, in order to stabilize the movement of the heel part, the spring member is desirably formed using a spring in a hardly deformable form in the lateral direction such as a plate spring curved in a V-shape or an S-shape in a side view.

[0073] Furthermore, in a high heel 1 shown in FIG. 8 as high-heeled footwear according to a second embodiment of the present invention, a wedge-shaped member 14 adapted to restrict the elastic flexure amount of the heel part 3 is incorporated between the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A and the top face of the heel part 3, and in FIG. 8 the portions designated by the same reference characters as those in FIG. 1 have the same structures as those of the high heel 1.

[0074] According to the embodiment, the wedge-shaped member 14 has one side surface formed of hard rubber and fixed to the side of the outer sole 4 and the other side surface opposed to the top face of the heel part 3 with a small gap therebetween in a no-load state.

[0075] When a load is imposed on the heel side of the high heel 1 and the heel part 3 elastically and flexibly deforms for a prescribed amount, the top face of the heel part 3 abuts against the wedge-shaped member 14. As a result, the heel part 3 has a substantial flexibly deformable length reduced, and therefore the heel part 3 has an increased apparent spring constant in the elastic and flexural deformation after the abutment and is less easily flexed, so that downward displacement of the heel side can be restrained. The sinking amount of the heel side in wearing the high heel 1 can be adjusted individually as desired by changing the gap or selecting rubber hardness for the wedge-shaped member 14.

[0076] A high heel 1a shown in FIG. 9 as high-heeled footwear according to a third embodiment of the present invention has a heel part 3a and an auxiliary spring member 6a integrally formed from a single tabular blank of stainless steel, and the auxiliary spring member 6a is formed by cutting a center part of the rear half portion of the heel part 3a into a substantial C-shape in a side view.

[0077] The other portions of the high heel 1a according to the embodiment are the same as those of the high heel 1 according to the foregoing embodiments, and in FIG. 9 the portions designated by the same reference characters as those in FIG. 1 have the same structures as those of the high heel 1. In the high heel 1a shown in FIG. 9, the auxiliary spring member 6a and the heel part 3a can be produced integrally from the same blank, so that the parts count can be reduced, the durability can be increased, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Since the heel part 3a and the auxiliary spring member 6a are continuous to form a smooth curved surface, which is advantageous in terms of design features.

[0078] A high heel 1b shown in FIG. 10 as high-heeled footwear according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention has an auxiliary spring member 6b formed by cutting both outer sides of the rear half portion of the heel part 3b into strip shapes. A high heel 1c as shown in FIG. 11 as high-heeled footwear according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention has an auxiliary spring member 6c formed by cutting one side of the rear half portion of the heel part 3c into a strip shape.

[0079] Furthermore, a high heel 1d shown in FIG. 12 as high-heeled footwear according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention is formed by removing the auxiliary spring member 6 from the high heel 1 described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 to 5. Note that the high heel 1d in FIG. 12 must receive a load acting on the heel side of the high heel 1d only by a heel part 3d, and therefore the heel part 3d has a greater flexural rigidity than those according to the above embodiments.

[0080] According to the embodiments described above, stainless steel for spring (SUS 304 for example) is used as the material of the heel part or the auxiliary spring member, while the material is not limited to stainless steel, and a greatly elastically deformable metal material such as spring steel provided with antirust treatment for example by chromium plating may be used.

[0081] These materials may be a non-metal material such as glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) and carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) or a multi-layer composite material including a metal and resin in order to reduce the weight or vibrations or noises generated during waking.

[0082] The heel part and the auxiliary spring member may be obtained by placing a plurality of thin plates upon one another in a plate spring shape like a plate spring structure for use in holding the axle of an automobile, so that a vibration damping effect may be provided utilizing sliding frictional resistance between adjacent plates.

[0083] The high-heeled footwear according to the present invention is applicable to a wide range of high-heeled footwear in general including high-heeled shoes, high-heeled sandals, and high-heeled boots for women and those for men.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

[0084] 1, 1, 1a, 1b, 1c, 1d High heel

[0085] 2 Upper

[0086] 3, 3a, 3b, 3c, 3d Heel part

[0087] 3A Front end adjacent portion

[0088] 3B Curved part

[0089] 3C Rear end part

[0090] 3D Screw hole

[0091] 4 Outer sole

[0092] 4A Top part of outer sole

[0093] 4B Bottom part of outer sole

[0094] 4C Rectangular hole

[0095] 5 Buffer plate (impact absorbing member)

[0096] 6, 6a, 6b, 6c Auxiliary spring member

[0097] 6A, 6B Attaching hole

[0098] 7 Attaching screw

[0099] 8 Stepped attaching screw

[0100] 8A Head part

[0101] 8B Large-diameter part

[0102] 8C Screw part

[0103] 9 Impact absorbing block (second impact absorbing member)

[0104] 9A Through hole

[0105] 10 Rear part of inner sole

[0106] 11 Shank

[0107] 11A Rear end part

[0108] 11B Screw hole

[0109] 12 Front part of inner sole

[0110] 13 Insole

[0111] 14 Wedge shaped member