Resilient Heel Support Slats for Hands-Free Foot Entry
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional footwear requires the use of one or both hands to stretch the ankle opening and hold the rear portion during foot insertion, especially in soft uppers without a heel counter, making it difficult to put on footwear easily.
Innovation Solution
A heel support device with a plurality of slats and a base, configured to be resiliently bendable, which allows for hands-free foot entry by depressing the slats to open the ankle opening and facilitate easy insertion into the foot-receiving cavity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If the footwear upper is made soft and flexible, then comfort and adaptability are improved, but ease of foot entry deteriorates as manual stretching is required
Solution Approach 1:
The heel support device enables the footwear to assist itself during foot entry. When the user steps in, their heel automatically depresses the resilient slats, which in turn automatically pulls the ankle opening outward to facilitate entry. This self-service mechanism eliminates the need for manual stretching while maintaining upper flexibility.
Solution Approach 2:
The heel support device transitions from a static structure to a dynamic one through the resilient slats that can bend and return. The slats dynamically respond to heel pressure by deforming and generating pulling force on the ankle opening, adapting the footwear's entry mechanism to the user's action in real-time.
2Ease of operation
If manual stretching is used to insert the foot, then foot entry is achieved, but time consumption and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The device performs the stretching action automatically through the user's own heel pressure. The resilient slats convert the downward heel motion into outward pulling force on the ankle opening, creating a self-service system that reduces both time and operational steps required for foot insertion.
3Stability of the object's composition
If a heel counter is added to provide structural support, then stability is improved, but device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
The heel support device divides the heel region into multiple functional segments: the base attached to the upper, the resilient slats providing dynamic support and entry assistance, and the control bar coordinating slat movement. This segmentation achieves stability through distributed structural elements rather than a single complex heel counter.
Solution Approach 2:
The resilient slats function as flexible structural elements that provide heel support while maintaining flexibility. These thin, bendable components replace traditional rigid heel counters, reducing manufacturing complexity while maintaining structural integrity and stability during wear.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables easy and accurate foot entry and removal without the need for hands, using materials like PEBAX, fiberglass reinforced polyamide, and thermoplastic polyurethane to provide elastic deformation and secure attachment to the footwear upper.
Implementation Method 1
each slat resiliently bendable between an unloaded position and a loaded position when depressed toward the base from the unloaded position to the loaded position
Data Source
AI summary
An article of footwear includes an upper defining a foot-receiving cavity with a heel region, and a heel support device extending around the rear of a heel region from a lateral side to a medial side. The heel support device may include a plurality of slats and a base, the plurality of slats providing a progressive gradient of lengths and/or widths, and/or one or more pegs extending from the device for attachment to a footwear upper, and/or an elongated tip that may be disposed in a cavity of an extension of a heel collar of the upper.