HK1028167B - Inner sole for a shoe - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a sole designed as a footbed in the general sense of claim 1 and claim 4.

On average, one in five people aged 20 to 70 needs treatment for a vein disease, and one in three has pathological vein changes that are not yet invasive but can still cause discomfort and need treatment. This is generally due to a weakness of the connective tissue, often inherited, which causes a relaxation of the vein walls and thus a lack of closure of the vein valves. This leads to a reduction in venous backflow from the legs into the body.

Support measures are known by so-called compression stockings, preventive measures, especially in those persons who occupationally mainly perform a sitting or standing activity, however, not. Here it is only recommended to move the legs as much as possible to increase the venous return flow from the legs to the body by promoting the so-called foot and calf muscle pump. This is largely supported by frequent barefoot running, but is more affected by the footwear common today.

Running shoes are known to use elastic layers in the form of insoles in the heel area, but these known elastic layers are only intended to compensate for or at least partially avoid the specific overload of running (DE 39 02 872 A1).

In addition, in the case of an orthopaedic footwear sole, known from DE 87 00 681 U1, the cushion-like layers are also formed as raised arched sheaths above the sole-deck layer and are designed to support and distribute pressure in certain areas of the foot over a large area. Furthermore, a footwear sole has been identified from DE 35 08 582 C2 and US 4.694.831 A, which has nervous cushions in the area of the reflex zones of the foot. These cushions have a symmetrical or asymmetrical concave or convex shape and are located in the blood circulation and thus serve to stimulate the blood flow in these areas. The underlying reflexes affect the circulatory system, in particular the arterial system, and can therefore not affect the circulation of certain organs, in particular the arterial circulatory system.

The case-law of the Court of First Instance in Case T-463/08 A, ECR I-2499, paragraphs 1 and 2 of which are replaced by the following, provides that the Court of First Instance must:

A similar aiming is provided for in EP 0 316 289 A, where the sole is fitted with cavities distributed over the sole surface, which can be filled with an elastic material according to the shape of the foot.

The present invention is therefore intended to create a sole of the type described at the outset which, by synergistically supporting the muscle contraction in the movement of the foot and ankle joints, allows a significant improvement in venous backflow to the foot from the legs into the body.

To address this problem, a sole of this type shall have the characteristics specified in claim 1 or claim 4.

The measures of the invention, in which the pillow-like layers are not raised solitarily but are placed plateau-shaped in certain areas of the foot and are specifically divided into separate areas, result in suitable anti-lock areas which have a positive effect on a contraction of the muscles in the foot. These discrete anti-lock points are arranged in such a way that during normal movement of the foot, but also to a large extent while standing, the muscle contraction is stimulated or stimulated and thus improved. This results in a synergistic support in the movement sequence of the individual joints, which as a continuous homogeneous wave of movement has a positive effect on the lymphatic system and the venous system.

According to further design according to the characteristics of claim 2 and/or 3 and 5 and/or 6 respectively, cushion-like layers are provided in other essential areas of the muscle arrangement.

Alternative arrangements are provided by the features of claim 7 and claim 8 respectively, where it is appropriate to provide for the features of claim 9 or 10.

Further advantages arise from the characteristics of one or more of claims 11 to 15.

According to the characteristics of claim 16 or 17, the sole of the shoe is either individually usable as a sole or intended to be directly integrated into a shoe.

Further details of the invention are given in the following description, which describes and explains the invention in more detail by means of the examples of execution shown in the figure. Figure 1a drawing of a shoe sole according to a first embodiment of the present invention,Figure 2in enlarged form a section along lines II-II of Figure 2,Figure 3in enlarged form a section along lines III-III of Figure 1 andFigures 4 and 5 each a section similar to that in Figure 3, but according to two variants of the first embodiment,Figure 6a drawing of a shoe sole according to a second embodiment of the present invention,Figure 7a longitudinal section similar to that in Figure 3, but according to the second embodiment,Figure 8a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 9a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 9a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 10a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment, but according to the second embodiment,Figure 9a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 11a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 9a drawing in the direction of the second embodiment,Figure 10a drawing in the same direction, but according to the second embodiment, but according to the second embodiment, but according to the second embodiment, but according to the second embodiment,Figure 10a drawing in the same direction.

The shoe sole 11 or 111' shown in the figure, which is e.g. formed as a footbed, according to two embodiments and a variant of the second embodiment of the present invention, serves to provide synergistic support to the muscles in the movement of the foot and ankle joints to improve fluid transport in the venous and lymphatic vessels through the legs and may be formed as a single sole or as an integrated sole.

As can be seen from Figures 1 and 6, the inner sole 11 and 111 respectively have several cushion-like layers 12 to 16 and 112 to 116 respectively, which are arranged over the sole surface 17 and 117, of which the cushion-like layers 12, 112, 13, 113 and 14, 114 are divided into separate individual plateau-like fields 18 to 22, 118 to 122, 23 to 25, 123 to 125 and 26, 27, 126, 127 respectively.

The first cushionary layer 12, 112 is intended for the forefoot joint, i.e. the area of the toes. This first cushionary layer 12, 112 is divided into five separate and adjacent cross-sectional areas of the inner sole 11, 111. The individual areas 18 to 22, 118 to 122 are of different widths and lengths, approximately corresponding to the base area of the sub-areas of the individual toes. The same is true of the shape of the front and rear boundary 28, 128 and 29 respectively.This second cushion-like layer 13, 113 is divided into three fields 23 to 25, 123 to 125, which are shaped according to this sub-area of mid-foot/foot-root and are arranged in a transverse direction of the inner sole 11, 111 adjacent to each other. The same is true of the shape of the circumference 31, 131 of this second cushion-like layer 13, 113.132 about the transition area from the midfoot to the heel.

The fourth cushion-like layer 15 and 115 are arranged in the heel area and plateau-like as a uniform undivided, transversely or longitudinally formed oval layer of the inner sole 11, 111 and the fifth cushion-like layer 16, 116 are similarly formed as a uniform undivided layer but are shaped like a sickle in the area of the foot-vault.

The cushion-like layers 12 to 16, 112 to 116 are made of an elastic (foam) material, e.g. silicone.

In the first example shown in Figures 1 to 3, the inner sole 11 has a three-layered sole body 36 which forms the basic shape of the inner sole 11 and is formed according to a foot, here the right foot, as shown in Figure 1. It is understood that the other one, i.e. the left sole 11, is formed mirror-symmetrically. The sole body 36 consists, for example, of three layers of cork 33, 34, 35.34 with corresponding recesses 38 having a different base area according to fields 18 to 27 of the cushion-like layers 12 to 14 and according to the cushion-like layers 15, 16. The recesses 38 are embedded in the floor-body 36 so deeply that the flat top of the plateau-like cushion-like layers 12 to 15 is approximately in a plane, i.e. coplanar with the surface of the floor-body 36.The upper material or the sole layer 37 covers the pillow-like layers 12 to 16 in such a way that these or their fields are surrounded by the periphery of 18 to 27 in a deep depression and are firmly connected to the middle layer 34 of the sole body 36 preferably glued, so that, outside the boundaries 28, 29 and 31, 32 interlinear lines 41 to 47 approximately perpendicular to the transverse direction of the inner sole 11 are formed. In other words, the recesses 38 are formed according to the total base area of the pillow-like layers 12 to 15.

In the two versions of this model, as shown in Figures 4 and 5, the surface arrangement of the cushion-like layers 12 to 15 of the sole 11 including the arrangement of boxes 18 to 27 is the same as in Figure 1. The main difference between the versions of Figures 4 and 5 and the example shown in Figures 2 and 3 is that between the sole 36' and 36' respectively and the sole 37' and 37' respectively, a cushion-like elastic interlayer 51'b. 51' is provided over the sole 36' in total surface area. The interlayer 51 is made of the same elastic material as the cushion-like layers 12 to 16 and is not connected to any deep vertical layers as in Figure 4 (see Figure 34' and 35' respectively).

In Figure 5, the pillow-like interlayer 51'' has a thickness of approximately 2 to 3 mm uniform over the entire base, resulting in a flat, continuous pillow which is considerably more elastic than the layers of the floor-body. 36 In this variant, as shown in Figure 3, the interlayer 51''' is only located between the bottom layer 35' and the middle layer 34'.

According to Figure 4, the 51' intermediate layer lies between the middle layer 34' and the upper layer 33' and has different thicknesses, so that the upper layer 33' with 38' recesses and the 51' cushionary intermediate layer are provided with 38' recesses and 52' corresponding recesses to accommodate the 12 to 16 cushionary layers, over which the upper material or the 37' floor layer extends in the same way as the 37' floor layer shown in Figures 2 and 3.

In the second example shown in Figures 6 to 10, the inner sole 111 has a two-layered sole base 136 which forms the basic shape of the inner sole 111 and is formed according to Figures 6 and 9 according to one foot, here the left foot, respectively. It is also understood that the other one, i.e. the right sole, is formed accordingly mirror-symmetrically. The sole base 136 is made up of, for example, two layers of cork. On the sole base 136 there is a layer of sole base 137 which is, for example, leather.

Between the floorboards 136 and 137 the pillow-like layers 112 to 115 are arranged in a manner which is embedded in the floorboards 136. In this respect, the floorboards 136 have corresponding recesses 138 which have a different base area according to fields 118 to 127 of the pillow-like layers 112 to 114 and according to the pillow-like layer 115. Figures 9 and 10 show in a drawing or in cross-section the corresponding recesses 138. Thus, the floorboards 136 have a maximum upper length of 3.5 to 4 mm, preferably 3.7 mm, and a minimum thickness in the area of their recesses 138 to 154 mm, representing approximately 1.3 mm of the figure 9 and the bottom layer of the floorboards 136 and 136 mm, respectively, which can be made of a textile fabric with a thickness of not more than 136 mm, or a textile fabric with a thickness of not more than 136 mm, which is completely drawn from the top layer of the floorboards.

According to Figure 7, the top 153 of the floor body 136 is also covered with an elastic or cushion-like interlayer 151 throughout the surface. The interlayer 151 thus covers the entire surface including the recesses 138 of the floor body 136, so that the recesses 138 corresponding to recesses 152 are maintained in the interlayer 151. The interlayer 151 has a through-thickness of bspw. about 3 mm. The interlayer 151 is preferably, like the cushion-like layers 112 to 116, made of a foam material, e.g. foamed natural platex.

In the 152 recesses of the intermediate layer 151 the cushion-like layers 112 to 115 are placed, which are, for example, of the aforementioned foamed natural latex and which, for example, have a thickness in the range of 4 to 5 mm, preferably 4.5 mm. In contrast, the cushion-like layer 116 for the floor vault is not in a recess but is placed directly on the level, i.e. un-deep-lined intermediate layer 151 in this range. This cushion-like layer 116 is also about 4 to 5 mm thick at its thickest point, with transverse upper lines of 4.5 mm, which are, for example, located in the inner side of the sole, and are, in their thickness, 111 to 151 mm. The 116 to 117 layers of the basement are located in the same plane as the last recess, and are therefore about 115 to 115 mm narrowly sloping in the direction of the outer edge, and the boundary between the layers 127 and 127 is about 121 to 127 mm.

The variant shown in Figures 11 and 12 differs from the second example only in the design of the second cushion-like layer 113'.

The second cushion-like layer 113' is, according to Figures 11 and 12, equipped with the outer layer 125', the middle layer 124' and the inner layer 123', the first two being formed as shown in Figures 6 and 7. The inner layer 123' of the second cushion-like layer 113' is arched forward from the first cushion-like layer 112' to the field 123' shown in Figure 6. This arched forward area 123' extends and widens the front surface of the field 123'. As can be seen from Figure 12, this arched forward area 123' is not raised just like the other surfaces of the cushion-like layer 113', but raised about 125' above, i.e. the upper surface of the sleeve is raised by 137 mm above the level of the oil-filled area 123' and this arched forward area 123' is raised about 125' above the level of the oil-filled area 123'.

Claims (20)

1. An inner sole (11) of a shoe, with a sole base body (36), with a sole cover layer (37) and with several pillow-like layers (12, 13, 14, 15, 16) arranged on the surface of the sole characterized in that a first pillow- like layer (12) is provided in the forefoot joint area, a second pillow-like layer (13) in the metatarsus/tarsus transition area, and a third pillow-like layer (14) in the metatarsus/heel transition area, that each of these pillow-like layers (12, 13, 14), which are provided for aiding into individual plateau-like fields (18 to 27), which are positioned next to each other in the transverse direction of the sole surface (17) and are separated from each other, and that the surface of the pillow-like layers (12, 13, 14), which is also covered by the sole cover layer (37), approximately forms a plane with the surface of the sole base body (36).
2. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that a fourth pillow-like layer (15) is provided in the area of the heel, which is plateau-shaped, preferably ovally homogeneous in the transverse direction of the sole and approximately forms a plane with the surface of the sole base body (36).
3. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 1 or 2, characterized in that a fifth pillow-like layer (16) in the shape of a sickle is provided in the area of the plantar arch.
4. An inner sole (111) of a shoe, with a sole base body (136), with a sole cover layer (137) and with several pillow-like layers (112, 113, 114, 115, 116) distributedly arranged on the surface of the sole, characterized in that a first pillow-like layer (112) is provided in the forefoot joint area, a second pillow-like layer (113) in the metatarsus/tarsus transition area, and a third pillow-like layer (114) in the metatarsus/heel transition area, that each of these pillow-like layers (112, 113, 114), which are provided for aiding the venous outflow of the blood, is itself divided into individual plateau-like fields (118 to 127), which are positioned next to each other in the transverse direction of the sole surface (117) and are separated from each other, and that the surface of the pillow-like layers (112, 113, 114), which is also covered by the sole cover layer (137) is raised in respect to the plane of the surface of the sole base body (136).
5. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 4, characterized in that a fourth pillow-like layer (115) is provided in the area of the heel, which is plateau-shaped, preferably ovally homogeneous in the transverse direction of the sole and is raised in relation to the plane of the sole base body (136).
6. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 4 or 5, characterized in that a fifth pillow-like layer (116), which is raised in relation to the plane of the sole base body (136), is provided in the area of the plantar arch.
7. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the pillow-like layers (12 to 16, 112 to 116) have been recessed in the sole base body (36, 136).
8. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that an intermediate layer (51', 51'', 151) is provided between the sole base body (36', 136) and the sole cover layer (37', 137), or respectively the pillow-like layers (12 to 16, 112 to 116), which constitutes a full surfaced, additional, pillow-like layer.
9. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the intermediate layer (51'', 151) has an approximately even thickness of preferably approximately 2 to 4 mm, preferably 3 mm.
10. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the first to fifth pillow-like layers (12 to 16) are recessed in depressions (52') of the intermediate layer (51').
11. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 8, characterized in that the first to fifth pillow-like layers (112 to 115) are arranged on the intermediate layer (151).
12. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sole base body (36, 136), preferably in layers, consists of a cork granulate compacted by means of binding agent.
13. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 12, characterized in that the sole base body (136) has a thickness of approximately 3.5 to 4 mm in its thickest areas, and approximately 1 to 1.5 mm in its thinnest areas.
14. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the second pillow-like layer (113') is provided with an inner field (123'), which is provided with an area (123"), which is pulled forward in a bow shape toward the first pillow-like layer (112').
15. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 14, characterized in that the bow-shaped, pulled-forward area (123") of the inner field (123') of the second pillow-like layer (113') is arched upward in respect to the remaining raised surface of the sole cover layer (137') of the remaining areas, or respectively fields of the second pillow-like layer (113').
16. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with claim 15, characterized in that the arching of the bow-shaped, pulled- forward area (123") raises the level by approximately 2 mm.
17. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the sole base body (136) is covered over its entire upper and/or lower side by a textile cover.
18. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the pillow-like layers (13 to 16, 113 to 116) and/or the intermediate layer (51, 151) are constituted by a soft foam material.
19. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that it is designed as an exchangeable insole.
20. The inner sole of a shoe in accordance with at least one of claims 1 to 18, characterized in that it is designed as a sole which is integrated into a shoe.