151 results about "Arches of the foot" patented technology

The present invention concerns a shoe (10) including an upper (12), having lateral and medial sides, a midsole (14) joined to the upper (12), and an outsole (16) joined to the midsole (4). Shoe (10) is tightened around the wearer's foot using a lacing system (18) comprising a lace (20) and tightening mechanism (22). Lace (20) is threaded through shank (24) positioned under the arch and heel wrap (26) and attached at opposite ends to tightening mechanism (22). In an advantageous aspect of the present invention, lace (18) is tensioned to draw shank (24) upwards and towards the arch of the foot. In order to support the foot, shank (24) is comprised of a material having a strain rate lower than the upper (12).

A directionally flexible shank for an article of footwear is disclosed, which provides support to the bottom of a user's foot while providing flexibility for foot movements in one or more particular directions. The directionally flexible shank may also support the arch of the foot. The directionally flexible shank may include a plurality of articulatable segments that can easily rotate with respect to each other in a first direction and thereby permit the directionally flexible shank to flex away from the foot, while limiting articulation in an opposite direction. The articulatable segments are connected to each other via hinge structures, which may include living hinges formed of a thermoplastic material. The hinge structures may also be formed from a flexible sheet attached to a bottom portion of the directionally flexible shank. Methods are also disclosed for manufacturing the directionally flexible shank.

Articles of apparel include: (a) a garment structure having one or more fabric elements structured and arranged to provide a close fit to at least one predetermined portion of a body (e.g., area(s) of the body for which enhanced position sensing and / or feedback are desired, such as the lower back, the arch of the foot, etc.); and (b) a body position feedback system engaged with or integrally formed as part of the garment structure. The body position feedback system may apply higher tensile or constricting (compressive) forces to selected portions of the wearer's body, which can help stimulate or interact with nerves and deep tissue receptors located in various portions of the body. The increased forces at selected locations of the body give the wearer sensory feedback regarding the position or orientation of these parts of the body and can improve or accelerate development of “muscle memory.”

Articles of apparel include: (a) a garment structure having one or more fabric elements structured and arranged to provide a close fit to at least one predetermined portion of a body (e.g., area(s) of the body for which enhanced position sensing and / or feedback are desired, such as the lower back, the arch of the foot, etc.); and (b) a body position feedback system engaged with or integrally formed as part of the garment structure. The body position feedback system may apply higher tensile or constricting (compressive) forces to selected portions of the wearer's body, which can help stimulate or interact with nerves and deep tissue receptors located in various portions of the body. The increased forces at selected locations of the body give the wearer sensory feedback regarding the position or orientation of these parts of the body and can improve or accelerate development of “muscle memory.”

A new design, applicable to most shoe types, having isolated, compressible rubber cushions as the only contact points with the ground. These cushions, usually 4 in number, are attached at only key points to an overlying flexible skeleton, made of a durable but bendable support structure. The ‘skeleton’ in turn is affixed to an overlying compressible ‘mattress’. This entire structure, consisting of compressible mattress, skeleton, and cushions duplicates the arch of the foot. Under the force of walking, running, etc. the rubber cushions will compress to absorb the force of the step. The overlying skeleton will also absorb energy by bowing convex downward at the toes, middle, and heel of the foot. Similarly the air space of the overlying mattress will also be compressed, absorbing pressure. Upon lifting the foot, the opposite actions will occur, releasing energy in an upward and forward direction, and thereby both lifting and propelling the foot.

The present invention relates to the upper U of an athletic shoe comprising a first opening 1 out of which the foot sticks upwards during wearing and a second opening 2 which is closed with a tongue. The two openings 1, 2 are continuous with each other, and the upper U comprises a medial side stretchable part 51 which covers a part of a medial side face of an arch of the foot, a lateral side stretchable part 50 which covers a part of a lateral side face of a ball of a little toe (a fifth toe), a front part 3 located forward of the two stretchable parts 50, 51 and a rear part 4 located backward of the two stretchable parts. Each of the stretchable parts 50, 51 is provided so as to essentially cross one of side faces of the upper U from a top surface of a sole S to the second opening 2. Young's modulus along the lengthwise direction L of the foot of each of the stretchable parts 50, 51 is set smaller than that of the front part 3 and the rear part 4.

A compression device for the foot comprising: a wrap adapted to surround the foot, the wrap comprising at least two bladders which when inflated conform to the shape of the foot to provide compression, the bladders being positioned on the wrap so that a first bladder focuses compression on the heel of the foot and a second bladder focuses compression on the arch of the foot; a channel attached to each bladder for independently delivering fluid to each bladder; and a controller attached to the channels that generates and independently controls the flow of fluid to the bladders.

A cover for a lace-up football boot has a continuous, elastically expandable sleeve (1). The sleeve is, in use, stretched around the boot so that the latter extends through the sleeve with the toe of the boot protruding from the end of the sleeve, and that the underside of the sleeve engages the portion of the underside of the boot in a region between the heal and the toe (i.e. under the arch of the foot). This engagement between the sleeve and the boot is sufficient to hold the sleeve in position on the boot in use, the sleeve also covering the bootlaces to prevent the latter from untying. At least part of the cover may also be transparent so as to reveal ornamental features or indicia on the boot.

The present invention concerns a shoe 10 including an upper 12, having lateral and medial sides, a midsole 14 joined to the upper 12, and an outsole 16 joined to the midsole 14. Shoe 10 is tightened around the wearer's foot using a lacing system 18 comprising a lace 20 and tightening mechanism 22. Lace 20 is threaded through shank 24 positioned under the arch and heel wrap 26 and attached at opposite ends to tightening mechanism 22. In an advantageous aspect of the present invention, lace 18 is tensioned to draw shank 24 upwards and towards the arch of the foot. In order to support the foot, shank 24 is comprised of a material having a strain rate lower than that of upper 12.

Articles of apparel include: (a) a garment structure having one or more fabric elements structured and arranged to provide a close fit to at least one predetermined portion of a body (e.g., area(s) of the body for which enhanced position sensing and / or feedback are desired, such as the lower back, the arch of the foot, etc.); and (b) a body position feedback system engaged with or integrally formed as part of the garment structure. The body position feedback system may apply higher tensile or constricting (compressive) forces to selected portions of the wearer's body, which can help stimulate or interact with nerves and deep tissue receptors located in various portions of the body. The increased forces at selected locations of the body give the wearer sensory feedback regarding the position or orientation of these parts of the body and can improve or accelerate development of “muscle memory.”

In a high heel shoe the heel seat is angled upwards approximately 3-5 degrees. The insole follows the natural shape of the inside long arch of the foot so that the medial arch of the foot is raised higher than the lateral arch of the foot in order to support the natural angle of the calcaneus, the navicular, the medial cuneiform and the first metatarsal. The angle of the heel seat is more acute relative to the ground looking from the lateral side of the shoe. A triangular dome bump on the insole of the shoe has one corner behind the second metatarsal head, a second corner behind the fourth metatarsal head and the final corner near mid-foot. Material is added beneath the sole of the insole so that the greatest thickness is beneath the metatarsal heads and tapers to zero at the end of the insole toward the toes.

A directionally flexible shank for an article of footwear is disclosed, which provides support to the bottom of a user's foot while providing flexibility for foot movements in one or more particular directions. The directionally flexible shank may also support the arch of the foot. The directionally flexible shank may include a plurality of articulatable segments that can easily rotate with respect to each other in a first direction and thereby permit the directionally flexible shank to flex away from the foot, while limiting articulation in an opposite direction. The articulatable segments are connected to each other via hinge structures, which may include living hinges formed of a thermoplastic material. The hinge structures may also be formed from a flexible sheet attached to a bottom portion of the directionally flexible shank. Methods are also disclosed for manufacturing the directionally flexible shank.

Articles of apparel include: (a) a garment structure having one or more fabric elements structured and arranged to provide a close fit to at least one predetermined portion of a body (e.g., area(s) of the body for which enhanced position sensing and / or feedback are desired, such as the lower back, the arch of the foot, etc.); and (b) a body position feedback system engaged with or integrally formed as part of the garment structure. The body position feedback system may apply higher tensile or constricting (compressive) forces to selected portions of the wearer's body, which can help stimulate or interact with nerves and deep tissue receptors located in various portions of the body. The increased forces at selected locations of the body give the wearer sensory feedback regarding the position or orientation of these parts of the body and can improve or accelerate development of “muscle memory.”

An orthotic device which provides functional support for the foot. It comprises a substantially rigid moulded sheet of resiliently deformable plastics material which provides continuous contact with the arch of the foot whether the foot is flat or pointed. The plastics material is preferably embedded between a shock absorbent layer and a covering layer.

A foot support insole having four different versions, each providing differing degrees of arch support for use in any shoe or boot. The insole is biomechanically shaped to support the medial arch, the lateral arch, the metatarsal arch, and the heel. In each of these versions, the principal variable is the extent of support for the medial arch. Low, medium, high, and extreme foot support versions are disclosed. The insole design effectively distributes the weight-generated forces provided by the user into a neutral plantigrade position. Supporting the neutral position for the foot obtains optimum balance and weight distribution by dispersing the forces applied by the foot over the greatest area possible within the shoe. The insole allows the three foot arches to work together and function as a structural support tripod, alternatively absorbing compressive forces and recoiling into a stable support state.

Disclosed is a functional shoe, comprising a foot arch support, wherein said foot arch support includes a support body accommodated and fixed in a shoe body, a slider tightened to the support body by a screw, and a contact member which is coupled to the top of the slider and projects toward the inside of the shoe to contact the arch of the foot. The slider moves in the upward and downward directions by means of the rotation of the contact member.

The present invention relates to the upper U of an athletic shoe comprising a first opening 1 out of which the foot sticks upwards during wearing and a second opening 2 which is closed with a tongue. The two openings 1, 2 are continuous with each other, and the upper U comprises a medial side stretchable part 51 which covers a part of a medial side face of an arch of the foot, a lateral side stretchable part 50 which covers a part of a lateral side face of a ball of a little toe (a fifth toe), a front part 3 located forward of the two stretchable parts 50, 51 and a rear part 4 located backward of the two stretchable parts. Each of the stretchable parts 50, 51 is provided so as to essentially cross one of side faces of the upper U from a top surface of a sole S to the second opening 2. Young's modulus along the lengthwise direction L of the foot of each of the stretchable parts 50, 51 is set smaller than that of the front part 3 and the rear part 4.

A protective foot cover for use in dance, exercise, or athletic applications using strategically placed protective pieces in ball and heel areas of the foot in connection with an elastic material in the sole structure to allow the foot to move freely and provide less of a barrier between the foot and floor such that a dancer can better sense the floor upon which they dance. The foot cover incorporates strategically placed protective patches that provide support, protection, and comfort to the ball and heel portions of the foot. The patches are spaced from one another so that the footwear is able to move more naturally with the expansion of the foot as pressure is applied to the foot. An elastic band extends in a figure eight configuration from the front of the cover, beneath the arch of the foot where the band overlaps, and around the heel to provide arch support and to hold the cover on the foot.

Footwear comprising a sole. The sole has a heel section for supporting a heel of the foot. The heel section has medial and lateral regions. At least a portion of the lateral region has a first compressive resilience for attenuating the shock of impact to the wearer during running and walking. Further, the sole has an arch section forward of the heel section for supporting an arch of the foot. The arch section also has medial and lateral regions. At least a portion of the lateral region of the arch section has the first compressive resilience and at least a portion of the medial region of the arch section has a second compressive resilience harder than the first compressive resilience for providing firm support for the foot during running and walking. In addition, the sole has a forefoot section forward of the arch section for supporting a ball of the foot including first, second, third, fourth and fifth metatarsal heads and associated metatarsal necks, proximal phalanges and metatarsal phalangeal joints. The forefoot section has a first region for supporting the first, second, third, fourth and fifth metatarsal heads, associated phalanges and metatarsal phalangeal joints, and the metatarsal neck associated with the fifth metatarsal head and a second region for supporting at least one of the metatarsal necks associated with the second and third metatarsal heads. The first region of the forefoot section has the first compressive resilience and the second region of the forefoot section has the second compressive resilience.

A protective foot cover for use in dance, exercise, or athletic applications using strategically placed protective pieces in ball and heel areas of the foot in connection with an elastic material in the sole structure to allow the foot to move freely and provide less of a barrier between the foot and floor such that a dancer can better sense the floor upon which they dance. The foot cover incorporates strategically placed protective patches that provide support, protection, and comfort to the ball and heel portions of the foot. The patches are spaced from one another so that the footwear is able to move more naturally with the expansion of the foot as pressure is applied to the foot. An elastic band extends in a figure eight configuration from the front of the cover, beneath the arch of the foot where the band overlaps, and around the heel to provide arch support and to hold the cover on the foot.

A laminated foam sockliner for use in combination with footwear. The sockliner has a forward part generally underlying and supporting toes and metatarsal heads, a middle part generally underlying and supporting an arch, and a back part generally underlying and supporting a heel of the wearer. The sockliner includes a porous upper layer made from a flexible air permeable material. The upper layer provides support for at least a portion of the foot of the wearer including a heel and an arch of the foot. The sockliner also includes a shockfoam layer positioned generally at the back part of the sockliner below the upper layer. A top surface of the shockfoam layer being permanently bonded to at least a portion of a bottom surface of the upper layer underlying the back part of the sockliner. The forward part of the sockliner substantially lacks the shockfoam layer.

The sandal with pneumatic support includes an inflatable bladder in the sole, in the area immediately beneath the arch of the foot when the sandal is worn. A manual air pump is provided integrally with the sandal. In one embodiment, the pump is located atop the toe divider of a flip-flop type sandal. In another embodiment, the pump is located in the heel. A pressure relief valve is located along one of the upper straps of the sandal. The arch bladder, air pump, and relief valve communicate pneumatically with one another. The sandal may be devoid of structure extending between the toes when worn, but may include straps passing over and / or around the foot. The sandal provides greatly improved support and reduces or eliminates muscular problems resulting from the lack of arch support in sandals.

The present invention relates to an insole including an acupressure member for supporting the arch of the foot. The insole includes: a connector which protrudes from a top or bottom surface of the insole corresponding to the arch, and which includes a continuous uneven part on the outer surface thereof and a female screw in a central portion thereof; and said acupressure member which includes a male screw protruding from the bottom surface thereof so as to engage with the female screw, and an uneven recess which is shaped so as to correspond to the continuous uneven part and which is recessed in the to bottom surface thereof around the male screw.

A foot balancing device includes a shoe insert, a main balancing element, three auxiliary force-transferring elements, and three auxiliary balancing elements. The main balancing element is provided in an arch region of the shoe insert and serves as a fulcrum on the shoe insert for the front part of the sole of one of the user's feet and the heel of the foot. The auxiliary force-transferring elements are provided in the arch region of the shoe insert so that the pressure center of the sole will displace along an ideal line. The auxiliary balancing elements are located forward of and on two lateral sides of the main balancing element respectively to support a transverse arch, inner arch, and outer arch of the foot respectively. Thus, the user's body weight can distribute evenly over the sole while the user is standing or walking, thereby preventing injury resulting from improper posture.

The invention discloses a customizable shaping insole and a manufacturing method thereof. The customizable shaping insole comprises a shaping layer. A concave-convex part which is matched with the sole of a human body can be shaped out on the shaping layer through a mold according to the shape of the sole of the foot of a user. The shaping layer can be softened when heated for shaping. A low-temperature thermoplastic plate with the concave-convex part shaped can be obtained when the shaping layer is cooled. According to the customizable shaping insole and the manufacturing method thereof, the insole is manufactured by means of the characteristic of the low-temperature thermoplastic plate that the shape of the low-temperature thermoplastic plate can changed for shaping at a certain temperature, and the purpose of insole customization is achieved so that the foot of each person can be in good fit with the insole; the insole can be worn more comfortably and more healthily, the optimum arch is provided for the foot, the optimum gravity center is provided for a body, and the pressure applied to the foot by the body is dispersed, so that a wearer feels more comfortable on the foot; blood circulation of the sole of the foot is promoted, and fatigue is effectively relieved.

The invention relates to a foot posture information and pressure measurement system and intelligent sneakers, and aims at solving the problems that in the prior art, the postures of two feet cannot be measured, pressure sensor distribution is sparse, scanning frequency is low, and detailed dynamic foot sole pressure information cannot be provided. A flexible PCB (2-1) is installed on the portion, corresponding to the arch of the foot, inside a shoe sole of a sneaker body (1), a film pressure sensor (2-2) is installed at the contact part of the shoe sole and the sole of the foot, a battery container (4) is arranged on the portion, corresponding to a heel, inside the shoe sole, a status indicator lamp (5) is arranged on a shoe upper, and an ankle posture information measurement device (3) is fixed at an ankle to conduct wireless transmission with a foot sole posture information and pressure measurement device (2). The foot posture information and pressure measurement system and the intelligent sneakers are applied to wearable device fields.

An ergonomic, contoured urinal floor mat for use with wall-urinals with the purpose of positioning a user center, up and toward a wall-urinal so as to prevent urine spillage and drippings from reaching floor below a wall-urinal. The floor mat consists of a heavy duty, permanent material with topside anti-slip and floor conforming anti-skid surfaces and is designed with three unique contouring angles which, in combination, elevates heels above toes, spreads legs, pushes toes outward, pulls heels inward, and creates a lift in the inner arch of the foot. The system also incorporates a replaceable drip tray, located between the users' legs and the urinal lip (to catch the inevitable last drops), a topside perimeter gutter (for complete urinal misses), and underside seal (to prevent liquids seepage under mat). If spills do occur, the overall contouring guides liquid into the gutter and keeps the topside foot areas dry.