Heel support
By designing a semi-circular heel core, combined with the convex and concave shapes and material combinations of the guiding and retaining parts, the problem of limited fit in existing shoes without the use of shoe trees is solved, achieving better foot fit and comfort.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- JP · JP
- Patent Type
- Applications
- Current Assignee / Owner
- NICHIMAN RUBBER KOGYO KK
- Filing Date
- 2024-10-23
- Publication Date
- 2026-05-11
AI Technical Summary
When existing shoes are worn without shoe trees, the left and right support parts can only move around the linear boundary, which limits the fit to the foot and makes it difficult to adapt to the needs of different users.
A semi-circular heel core was designed, combining a guiding part and left and right retaining parts. The front end is convex and the middle boundary is concave. By using a combination of materials with different hardness, three-dimensional deformation is achieved to better wrap the foot.
Through the semi-circular design and material combination, the left and right retaining parts can be freely deformed, improving the foot's wrap-around comfort and adapting to the needs of users with different foot shapes.
Smart Images
Figure 2026075971000001_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention relates to a semicircular heel core integrated with a guide portion and left and right holding portions in a plan view, which is built into the heel of a shoe that can be worn without using a shoehorn.
Background Art
[0002] Shoes that can be worn without using a shoehorn have configurations such as temporarily deforming a deformable heel portion to insert the foot into the opening, or sliding the foot along a heel core built into the heel portion into the opening (Patent Document 1). The shoe disclosed in Patent Document 1 has a hard guide portion (the portion that abuts against the rear of the heel), which functions as a shoehorn for the foot inserted into the opening, and soft left and right holding portions (the portions that abut against the left and right sides of the heel) that sandwich the heel after wearing, integrated into a semicircular heel core (reinforcement member) in a plan view and built into the heel portion. Thereby, the heel core disclosed in Patent Document 1 prevents the guide portion from falling forward, wraps the foot with the left and right holding portions, and firmly fixes the heel (Patent Document 1 ·
[0016] ).
Prior Art Documents
Patent Documents
[0003]
Patent Document 1
Summary of the Invention
Problems to be Solved by the Invention
[0004] <关于本发明公开的日本专利申请号2021-053040,这里按照原文格式保留了日文“特開”未翻译,因为要求保留特殊占位符原样不变。若实际应用中需要准确翻译,可根据具体情况将“特開 ”替换为“Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.”之类准确的英文表述。 The heel support disclosed in Patent Document 1 only allows the left and right retaining parts to move left and right around a linear boundary with the guide part. The left and right retaining parts have a triangular shape at the front end where a downward-sloping upper edge intersects with a horizontal lower edge, and the lower edge is fixed to the sole of the shoe, thus limiting the degree of freedom of movement. As a result, the retaining parts can only hold the foot in a predetermined orientation, making it difficult to better enclose the foot for various users. Therefore, we investigated the shape of the retaining part that can better enclose the foot in a heel support that is built into shoes that can be put on without using a shoehorn, and has a crescent shape in plan view, with the guide part and left and right retaining parts integrated. [Means for solving the problem]
[0005] The result of the study is a heel core for shoes, characterized by a semi-circular shape in plan view, in which the guide part and the left and right retaining parts are integrated, and the front ends of each of the left and right retaining parts are convex in side view. The convex front end in side view only needs to have its front edge protruding forward from the lower edge, and a circular arc shape in side view is preferred. If the hardness of the guide part and the left and right retaining parts are different, a boundary is formed between them. If the guide part is hard and the left and right retaining parts are soft, the boundary between the hard guide part and the soft left and right retaining parts should be concave in side view, with the middle section in the vertical direction set back towards the rear. The hard guide part may be thicker than the left and right retaining parts, or a separate reinforcing surface may be laminated. The concave boundary in side view only needs to have the middle section protruding backward from the upper and lower sections, but a circular arc shape in side view is preferred. [Effects of the Invention]
[0006] The heel support of this invention features a convex shape at the front end of each of the left and right retaining parts when viewed from the side. This separates the front edge from the lower edge, allowing the left and right retaining parts to have freely deformable front ends, enabling the retaining parts to better envelop the foot. In particular, if the front end of the retaining part is made arc-shaped when viewed from the side, there are no corners at the front end, improving the tactile feel against the enveloping foot. Furthermore, by making the boundary between the hard guide part and the soft left and right retaining parts concave when viewed from the side, the left and right retaining parts become three-dimensionally deformable, enabling the retaining parts to better envelop the foot. In particular, if the boundary is made arc-shaped when viewed from the side, the deformation of the left and right retaining parts changes continuously in the vertical direction, allowing the foot to be held more securely. [Brief explanation of the drawing]
[0007] [Figure 1] This is a perspective view showing an example of a shoe in which the heel stiffener of the present invention is built into the heel. [Figure 2] This is a right side view of the shoe in this example, with its external shape virtually displayed. [Figure 3] This is a back view of the shoe in this example, with its external shape virtually displayed. [Modes for carrying out the invention]
[0008] The embodiments for carrying out the present invention will be described below with reference to the figures. As shown in Figures 1-3, the heel stiffener 2 of the present invention is embedded in the upper 13 of the heel portion 11 of a shoe 1 that can be worn without using a shoehorn. The heel stiffener 2 in this example is a resin member with a crescent shape in plan view, composed of a guide portion 21 which is a curved surface material similar to a shoehorn, and left and right holding portions 22 which are curved surface materials that protrude forward from the guide portion 21. The guide portion 21 and the left and right holding portions 22 are molded integrally, and furthermore, a reinforcing curved surface material similar in shape to the guide portion 21 is added. 212 These are stacked, and a boundary 23 is placed between the guide section 21 and the left and right holding sections 22.
[0009] The guide section 21 has an upper edge that follows the rear edge of the opening 12 and has an upward-facing guide surface 211. The guide surface 211 serves to guide the foot into the inside of the shoe 1 by allowing the heel (not shown) of the foot to rest on it and slide. In this example, the guide section 21 is made of overlapping reinforcing curved surface material. 212 This structure is rigid and highly rigid. Therefore, even if the guide surface 211 is raised, the guide portion 21 does not bend or deform due to the heel of the foot placed on it. The guide portion 21 in this example, with its raised guide surface 211, makes it possible to provide a shoe 1 that is easier to put on.
[0010] The holding part 22 is a curved surface material for reinforcement. 212 The curved surface material of the guide portion 21, excluding the guide portion, is extended to form the left and right convex portions, and the front end portion 221 is formed in an arc shape when viewed from the side. The lower edges of the guide portion 21 and the left and right holding portions 22 are continuous straight lines and are both fixed to the sole 14. Here, since the front end portion 221 of each of the left and right holding portions 22 is formed in an arc shape when viewed from the side, most of the front edge protrudes forward from the front end of the lower edge of the holding portion 22, creating a portion that can deform without being constrained by the lower edge. As a result, the front end portion 211 of the holding portion 21 that has deformed to become a foot can better wrap around the foot.
[0011] In this example, heel core 2 is a curved surface material for reinforcement. 212 The leading edge of the guide portion forms a boundary 23 with the holding portion 22. In this example, the boundary 23 has a side-view arc shape with the middle section in the vertical direction protruding rearward. The left and right holding portions 22, which are relatively softer than the guide portion 21, deform forward from the boundary 23. At this time, because the boundary 23 has a side-view arc shape, the left and right holding portions 22 can easily deform to conform to the shape of a foot. As a result, the front end portion 211 of the holding portion 21, which has deformed to conform to the shape of a foot, can better enclose the foot. [Explanation of Symbols]
[0012] 1 Shoes 11 Heel 12 Opening 13 Carapace 14 Sole 2. Heel stiffener 21 Information Department 211 Guide surface 212 Reinforcement curved surface material 22. Maintenance section 221 Front end 23 Realms
Claims
1. In a heel support that is built into a shoe that can be put on without using a shoehorn, the guide part and the left and right holding parts are integrated and have a crescent shape in plan view, A heel support characterized by having the front ends of each of the left and right retaining parts convex when viewed from the side.
2. The heel core according to claim 1, wherein the boundary between the hard guide portion and the soft left and right holding portions is concave in side view, with the middle section in the vertical direction set back towards the rear.