Voided Elastomeric Shoe Insole for Breathable Pressure Relief
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional cushioning materials, particularly those incorporating thermoset elastomeric gels, often suffer from structural weakness and stickiness issues, and the plastic film used to reinforce them can create barriers to gas flow, leading to discomfort due to trapped body heat and perspiration.
Innovation Solution
The development of cushioning elements featuring a gel with voids that deform by bulging rather than buckling, allowing for effective pressure distribution and comfort while preventing buckling, which includes an elastomeric material with A-B-A triblock copolymers and plasticizers, and optionally fillers or antioxidants, to enhance thermal properties and stability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If a plastic film is used to cover the gel layer, then the structural strength is improved and stickiness is prevented, but gas flow is blocked causing discomfort
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies porous materials by replacing the solid plastic film with a porous breathable barrier layer. This layer allows gas molecules to pass through while still providing structural reinforcement and preventing gel stickiness. The porous structure enables vapor transmission to escape body heat and perspiration, eliminating the suffocating effect of conventional plastic films while maintaining the necessary structural support for the gel layer.
2Stress or pressure
If conventional cushioning materials are used, then pressure distribution is provided, but peak pressure reduction is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by combining a gel layer with a porous breathable barrier layer. The gel layer provides excellent pressure distribution and peak pressure reduction through its viscoelastic properties, while the porous barrier layer reinforces the structure and enables gas flow. This composite structure achieves superior pressure management by complementing the strengths of each material while mitigating their individual weaknesses.
3Stress or pressure
If gel material is used for cushioning, then pressure peak relief is improved, but structural weakness and stickiness occur
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the intermediary principle by introducing a porous breathable barrier layer as a mediator between the gel layer and the external environment. This intermediary layer prevents direct contact between the gel and air, eliminating stickiness issues, while also providing structural reinforcement to compensate for the gel's inherent weakness. The barrier layer acts as a protective interface that allows the gel to perform its pressure relief function without suffering from structural deficiencies.
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
The gel with voids provides improved comfort and pressure distribution by bulging under force, reducing the likelihood of buckling and enhancing thermal stability, while maintaining structural integrity and preventing gas flow barriers, thus enhancing user experience and durability.
Implementation Method 1
elastomeric material with A-B-A triblock copolymers and plasticizers... gel with voids that deform by bulging rather than buckling
Implementation Method 2
elastomeric material... gel with voids that deform by bulging rather than buckling, allowing for effective pressure distribution
Implementation Method 3
Gels may have high thermal mass and/or thermal conductivity, and may therefore be used for heating... cooling... or maintaining a given temperature
Implementation Method 4
Gels may have high thermal mass and/or thermal conductivity
Data Source
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Figure 3
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AI summary
An insole for a shoe includes an insole body of elastomeric material having a first major surface and a second major surface opposite the first major surface. A distance between the first major surface and the second major surface is between about 1 mm and about 10 mm. The elastomeric material defines a plurality of voids extending through the elastomeric material from the first major surface to the second major surface. Each void has a dimension between about 1 mm and about 3 mm in a plane parallel at least one of to the first major surface and the second major surface. A minimum distance between adjacent voids is between about 0.5 mm and about 3 mm. A shoe insole includes such a cushion. A method of forming an insole for a shoe includes providing an elastomeric material within a mold to form an insole body of elastomeric material.