DE29520582U1 - Shoe insole to improve walking ability - Google Patents

Description

7991

KARL MAYERHOFER

Shoe insole to improve walking ability

The invention relates to a shoe insole or insert for adapting an individual foot type to a selected footwear. Such inserts are used in particular in the context of orthopedic treatments and in the field of sports. They are also referred to as "dynamic inserts according to Seyfried".

Conventional shoe insoles are used to more precisely adjust a characteristic foot shape to a non-custom-made shoe, but also to insulate, cushion and ventilate the sole of the foot. In sports shoes in particular, the job of the insoles is to transport sweat away and provide suitable shock absorption, e.g.

for long-distance runners and joggers. In orthopedics, the insole is a common means of compensating for or correcting a person's reduced ability to walk due to pathological changes in the walking apparatus.

When designing insoles in orthopedics, care is taken to ensure that deformations or wear and tear of the leg or foot are compensated or alleviated by the supporting, corrective and/or bedding functions of the insole.

The starting point for the design of the insoles is usually the geometric deviation of the foot from the norm in the static state. Satisfactory results in terms of sufficient walking ability and long-term load-bearing capacity could not be achieved in this way, especially for people with rheumatism.

The task was therefore to design an insole in such a way that people with foot deformities of various causes would have an improved ability to walk and, for this and other groups of people, an increased long-term load-bearing capacity of the walking apparatus would be ensured.

According to the invention, to solve this problem, a shoe insole or insert is provided for correcting deformations of the walking apparatus of a person and/or for supporting a walking movement of the person with supporting elevations at predetermined points in the area of the sole of the foot, wherein the sole and the elevations consist of one or different materials, a pronation elevation in the area of the heel, essentially in the outer half of the sole underside, and an elongated elevation in the area of the metatarsal bone, essentially in the inner half of the sole underside, are provided, and the sole consists of a flexible material so that it can be twisted with respect to its longitudinal axis when loaded due to the elevations arranged diagonally with respect to the longitudinal axis of the sole.

The combination of the two elevations according to the invention means that the foot's own dynamics are taken into account better in the design of the insoles than with previous soles. Due to its numerous joints, the foot is not static when walking, but is subject to significant dynamic movement. The main tendons in the foot run diagonally to its longitudinal direction, which is why the foot is supported in a diagonal direction according to the present invention.

This results in an increased pre-tension of the long tendons in the foot area and in the ligaments of the lower ankle joint. This improves the transfer of power from the leg to the foot area and makes walking and running more dynamic and ergonomic. As a result of the improved transfer of power, the person's endurance capacity and performance are increased.

Especially for people with chronic inflammation in the joints (e.g. rheumatism) and spine area, paralysis and muscle imbalance, the diagonally supported insoles can improve walking ability.

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But the long-term load capacity of athletes such as long-distance runners and joggers is also significantly increased by the pre-tensioning of the tendons due to the insoles.

The invention can be better illustrated with the aid of the accompanying drawings, which are briefly described below. In the drawings:

Figure 1: an outside and inside view and a

Top view of the shoe insole according to the invention

Figure 2: an inside view and a top view of a second embodiment of the shoe insole according to the invention and

Figure 3: a rear view of the sole according to the invention without and with load

A first embodiment of the shoe insole or insert is shown in Figure 1 in its outside, inside and underside views. A pronation elevation or a pronation wedge 2 is formed in the area of the heel, i.e. at the rear end of the sole 1, as shown by the hatched area of the outside view. According to the underside view, it extends in the transverse direction from the outside of the insert, where it has the greatest thickness, preferably to the middle of the insert, where it merges into the sole 1 flush with the surface. In the longitudinal direction, it extends from the rear end of the heel or sole 1 to the front end of the heel. In general, with regard to the exact position and the surface area of the pronation elevation 2, it is only important that it is located in the outer half of the heel area in order to tilt the heel inwards when loaded.

On the underside of the sole 1, an elongated elevation 3 is attached diagonally opposite the pronation elevation 2.

The elongated elevation 3 extends transversely from the inside of the forefoot or sole 1 to the middle of the sole. It extends longitudinally in the area of the metatarsal bone. Its thickness decreases from the inside of sole 1 to its middle. There, the elongated elevation 3 merges into the sole 1 flush with the surface. Here, too, the exact position and the surface area of the elongated elevation 3 can vary slightly; the only important thing is that the elongated elevation 3 tilts the forefoot outwards when loaded.

The sole 1 can be a sole commonly used for orthopedic, sporting or other purposes or it can be a special product, which, for example, has additional orthopedic functions. It must be made of a material that allows the sole 1 to twist at least in its longitudinal direction through the diagonally attached elevations 2 and 3. This is the only way to ensure that the foot twists accordingly when stepping (see Figure 3) and that the tendons are pre-tensioned.

The twisting of the insert according to the invention is shown by the rear views of the insert in Figure 3. Here, the contact surfaces in the heel area and in the ball of the foot area are marked by dashed lines. As can be seen from the illustration in Figure 3 above, the contact surfaces are rotated against each other by a certain angle due to the pronation elevation 2 in the heel area and the elongated elevation 3 in the ball of the foot area. When loaded, as shown in Figure 3 below, the two contact surfaces in the shoe are almost parallel, which results in the sole 1 twisting with respect to its longitudinal axis.

Further embodiments of the shoe insole according to the invention are now described below.

According to Figure 2, the elongated elevation 3 can also extend in its longitudinal direction to the os naviculare (scaphoid bone).

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This results in long-stretched support of the foot on the inside from the scaphoid bone to the big toe joint. The larger-area support has a positive effect, particularly on the long-term load-bearing capacity of the foot.

The elevations 2 and 3 can be designed as wedges, which are then glued to the underside, and possibly also the top, of the sole 1 using standard adhesives. If the material is selected appropriately, gluing may not be necessary due to the high level of adhesion or friction between the shoe, elevation and sole. The above-mentioned wedges have the advantage that they can be exchanged before gluing and thus their height, length, width and position can be individually adjusted.

Both the sole 1 and the elevations 2 and 3 can consist of one or more layers. The number of layers depends on the requirements placed on the sole and the elevations. For example, the support in the heel area consists of a cork material that provides a certain degree of rigidity; above this, a cushioning, flexible HB foam layer is provided for the entire sole area, and the top of the sole 1 is made of a hard-wearing synthetic leather. Based on this example of a three-layer insert, it is easy to see how the functionality of the insoles is increased by having multiple layers.

Furthermore, the insole according to the invention can also be manufactured in one piece by injection molding, casting, foaming and similar processes. This opens up the possibility of cost-effective mass production, especially for insoles in standard sizes.

The thickness of the elevation or wedge 2, 3 determines the degree of twisting of the sole and the foot. This follows from the direct dependence of the rotation of the contact surfaces in the heel and ball area on the thickness of the two elevations (see Figure 3). If the thicknesses of the elevations are designed in such a way that they

If the sole thickness is increased by a factor of 1.3 to 5, reasonable effects on the walking ability and long-term load-bearing capacity of people can be expected. However, factors in the range of 2 to 3 are preferred. The two increases 2 and 3 can be the same thickness or have different thicknesses.

As already mentioned, elevations 2 and 3 can be made of the same material as sole 1 itself. However, in the case of special requirements, it may be necessary to use materials such as HB foam, Cellvulcolan or cork for the elevations, independent of sole 1. Furthermore, rigid materials such as wood or hard plastic can also be used as the base material for the elevations.

Claims (9)

Expectations 1. Shoe insole for correcting deformations of the walking apparatus of a person and/or for supporting the walking movement of the person with supporting elevations at predetermined locations in the sole area, the sole and the elevations are made of the same or different materials, characterized in that a pronation increase (2) in the heel area, essentially in the outer half of the sole underside, and an elongated elevation (3) is provided in the area of the metatarsal bone, essentially in the inner half of the bottom of the sole, and the sole (1) is made of a flexible material so that when loaded it can be twisted relative to the longitudinal axis due to the elevations (2, 3) arranged diagonally in relation to the longitudinal axis of the sole. 25 2. Shoe insole according to claim 1, characterized in that the elongated elevation (3) extends in its longitudinal direction from the metatarsal bone to the navicular bone (scaphoid bone). 3. Shoe insole according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the elevations (2, 3) consist of wedges which are glued to the sole at the predetermined locations using conventional adhesives. 4. Shoe insole according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the elevations (2, 3) and the sole (1) are single-layered or multi-layered. 5. Shoe insole according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the sole (1) with the elevations (2, 3) is manufactured in one piece by casting, injection molding or the like. 6. Shoe insole according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that both elevations (2, 3) each increase the thickness of the sole (1) by a factor of 1.3 to 5, preferably 2 to 3, compared to the thickness of the sole without elevation. 7. Shoe insole according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the elongated (3) and the pronation elevation (2) are of the same height. 8. Shoe insole according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the elevations (2, 3) consist of HB foam, Cellvulcolan or cork. 9. Shoe insole according to one of claims 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 and 7, characterized in that one or both elevations (2, 3) consist of a rigid material.