WO2002071880A1 - Shoe - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a shoe (1) comprising a sole (2) and at least one upper (3, 4, 5), said upper comprises a first side (31, 41, 51) and a second side (32, 42, 52), the sole and the at least one upper are detachably connected to a connecting device (6). Said shoe is characterised in that the at least one upper and the connecting device are configured in such a way that the at least one upper is detachably connected to the sole by means of the connecting device in such a way that the first or the second side of the upper is orientated towards the sole.

Description

 shoe

The present invention relates to a shoe according to the preamble of claim 1, a shoe system according to the preamble of claim 6 and an upper for such a shoe or for such a shoe system.

Shoes with a sole part and an upper part which can be detachably connected therewith are known and prove to be particularly advantageous if the footwear is to be adapted to the clothing, for example on certain occasions or certain requirements. For example, the user of such shoes can change the appearance by changing only the upper without having to change the entire footwear. Since, as a rule, the sole parts cause the higher manufacturing costs, the consumer can increase the diversity of his shoe collection inexpensively by using different uppers.

Such a shoe is disclosed in DE-U-8'716'546, the shoe described having an upper part, which upper part is open for easy removal on its bottom facing the sole. A zipper, snap fasteners or a Velcro fastener are proposed as a locking device for releasably connecting the sole part to the upper part.

EP-755'202 also describes such a shoe, which enables the upper of the shoe to be removed or replaced by opening or loosening a zipper or a Velcro fastener.

Although the disclosed shoes can increase the diversity of the individual shoe collection to a certain extent by varying the sole parts or the shoe uppers, this is however limited by the fact that a corresponding number, in particular shoe uppers, is required for this.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a shoe which overcomes the disadvantages of the known shoes. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a shoe which allows an increased possible combination and thus an increased variety of the individually designable shoe collection. In addition, it is a further object of the present invention to provide a modular shoe system with which there are a multitude of possible combinations for designing an individual shoe collection.

According to the invention, these objects are achieved by a shoe with the features of claim 1, by a shoe system with the features of claim 6 and by an upper part with the features of claim 9. In particular, the tasks are solved by a shoe with a sole part and at least one upper part, which upper part has a first and a second side, the sole part and the at least one upper part being releasably connectable to one another with a connecting device, hereinafter also referred to as a symmetrical connecting device, and wherein the at least one upper part and the connecting device are designed such that the at least one upper part can be detachably connected to the sole part by means of the connecting device in such a way that either the first or the second side of the upper part faces the sole part.

This inventive design of the at least one upper part and the connecting device now enables a large number of possible combinations for the individual design of a shoe. In particular, the at least one top part that can be worn on both sides and the symmetrical connecting device allow that not only the color or the

Color samples, but also the shape and the material can be varied individually in a simple manner by simply turning the at least one appropriately designed upper part.

The tops according to the present invention essentially have only a first and a second side and preferably do not have a bottom area, i.e. an area which comes to lie or is arranged between the sole part and a foot of a user. However, it is understood that additional insoles or the like can be used. In the connected state and when using the shoe, for example, the first side of the upper part is the foot of the user and thus the

Facing the sole part, while the second side of the upper part faces outwards, i.e. faces the body of the user, and thus, for example, the color or the color pattern can be perceived by the user or an observer.

The uppers are preferably designed in such a way that they serve only as a shoe upper for a specific area or zone of the foot of a user. In the following, we will speak of partially formed tops in this context become. In a preferred embodiment, the shoe comprises three upper parts which are partially designed in this way and which, for example, function as shoe upper parts in the toe area, in the heel area and in the instep area of the foot of a user. The use of several tops that can be worn on both sides and are designed differently now allows the large number of different color or color pattern combinations or different shape and / or material combinations to be increased further.

In addition, a plurality of upper parts which can be used on both sides and which are only partially formed allow several types of shoes to be produced as required, as is particularly illustrated in the figures.

The inventive coupling device ^is' for producing a releasable connection between the sole portion and said at least one upper part made of at least two parts. The sole part has at least a first part of the connecting device and the or each upper part has at least a second part of the connecting device. A “symmetrical connecting device”, as used herein, is therefore to be understood to mean a connecting device which is designed in such a way that it permits a detachable connection to the sole part even when the upper part is inverted or turned upside down relative to the sole part.

Further advantageous and preferred embodiments of the present invention and their special features result from the subclaims. In a preferred embodiment, the connection device thus comprises a sliding connection device. A “sliding connection device” is to be understood here to mean a symmetrical connecting device which allows the sole part and the upper part to be continuously displaceable relative to one another in the connected state, ie after the connection between the sole part and the upper part has been created. The extent of the mutually continuous displaceability can vary, and is particularly dependent on the type of sliding connection device or the size ratios of the individual parts of the sliding connection device and their arrangement on the sole part and on at least one upper part.

Such a continuously displaceable movement of the sole part and the at least one upper part ensures that, for example, anatomical differences in the user, be it a high or relatively long instep, can be dealt with in a simple manner or the adaptation of the upper part or parts in particular a user's foot can be modified and optimized individually. The shoe according to the invention can have fixing means for fixing the relative position of the sole part to the upper part or to the upper parts. In a preferred embodiment, however, the connecting device comprises a sliding connection device with which a frictional connection between the sole part and the at least one upper part can be produced. Such sliding connection devices have proven to be particularly advantageous since, by generating a frictional connection, an individually selected relative position of the sole part and the at least one upper part can be fixed, but this fixing can be released after overcoming a certain frictional force and thus the sole part and the upper part against each other remains continuously displaceable. Depending on the use of the shoe according to the invention or the stress caused thereby, the frictional force can now be individually adjusted or set, for example by choosing the sliding connection device.

The slide connection device advantageously has at least one rail system. Rail systems suitable for this are known to the person skilled in the art. These have, for example, a rail as the at least one first part of the connecting device and a plurality of sliding bodies as the second parts of the connecting device. As a rule, the sole part has the rail and the upper part has a large number of sliding bodies. It goes without saying that various geometric shapes of the

Rail system are suitable and conceivable for the present invention. For example, the rail can be cylindrical and the sliding bodies have a correspondingly complementary geometric shape.

In a particularly preferred embodiment of the present invention, this

Rail system on at least a pair of two, preferably complementarily shaped, T-rails. Particularly advantageous embodiments of this embodiment are clarified in the drawings and their description.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the

Connection device on a connector device. A “plug connection device” is to be understood here to mean a symmetrical connection device with which a plurality of connection points can be produced between the sole part and the at least one upper part. Preferred embodiments of the plug connection device have, for example, several snap, click, or

Snap locks on. Such snap, click, or snap locks are known to the person skilled in the art and no further explanation is required here. Furthermore, can a plug connection device according to the present invention can also be designed in such a way that a plurality of elements fastened to the upper part releasably engage in a plurality of cavities recessed in the sole part. The number of cavities in the sole part is preferably larger and / or in the sole part such that the upper part can be adapted to the foot of a user, for example due to anatomical differences, discontinuously and thus like a belt.

Another aspect of the present invention is a shoe system with a first sole part for a right foot of a user, a second sole part for a left foot of a user and at least two uppers, which upper parts have a first and a second side, the first sole part and the second sole part with in each case at least one upper part can be detachably connected to one another with the aid of a connecting device, and the at least two upper parts and the connecting devices are designed such that the at least two upper parts can be releasably connected to the first and second sole parts by means of the connecting devices that either the first or the second side of the at least one upper part faces the first or the second sole part.

The inventive design of the upper parts and the connecting devices creates a shoe system with which a further increase in

Combination options for designing an individual shoe collection is made possible, since the upper parts can be detachably connected to one another by means of the connecting devices both with a sole part intended for a right foot and with a sole part intended for a left foot. The present invention thus does not require a differentiation between a left and a right upper part.

In a preferred embodiment of the shoe system according to the invention, the connection devices comprise slide connection devices, each of which has a rail system which has at least one pair of two, preferably complementarily shaped, T-rails.

In a further particularly preferred embodiment of the shoe system according to the invention, this has six upper parts, two upper parts each being designed as front parts, instep parts and heel parts.

A third general aspect of the present invention is an upper for a shoe according to the invention or for a shoe system according to the invention, which Upper part for a space-saving storage or transport is essentially two-dimensional.

"Essentially two - dimensionally formed" is to be understood here to mean that the top parts are essentially made up of one or more material levels, which are either arranged next to one another and / or parallel to one another, so that the top parts are essentially two - dimensional The shape of the upper parts depends on the area of the foot in which the upper part is used, for example whether the upper part is used in the instep area, in the toe area or in the heel area. The upper parts according to the present invention thus receive what is necessary to accommodate the users' feet and desired three-dimensional shape only when the upper parts are connected to the sole parts.

There are no limits to the design or choice of material for the tops. Thus, the upper parts can have a layer of fabric or leather, on which the at least one second part of the connecting device is arranged, or, like a patchwork, can be assembled from fabric or leather parts of different colors, shapes and / or patterns.

The design of the top parts allows cost-effective production. In addition, an essentially two-dimensional design of the upper parts enables space-saving storage or transport, which has a positive effect on the costs. This is particularly advantageous if the sole parts and the upper parts are packaged and / or sold separately as a modular system. To further increase the possible variations, additional separately packaged tops can then be purchased, for example.

Further advantageous and preferred embodiments of the present invention result from the following description and the drawings, on the basis of which the invention is to be described in more detail. It shows:

1 a shows a side view of a preferred embodiment of the shoe according to the invention;

1 b shows a cross section of the preferred embodiment of FIG. 1 a along the plane AA; 1c shows an enlarged detail of FIG. 1b, in particular for

Clarification of the preferred connecting device of the embodiment of Fig. 1 a;

2a, b schematically show a further preferred embodiment of the shoe according to the invention;

3a-f different possible combinations for producing an individual shoe collection according to the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a schematic representation of another preferred

Embodiment of the shoe according to the invention.

In the drawings, the same parts are given the same reference numerals for simplicity, although these may be shown in different preferred embodiments.

1 a shows a side view of a preferred embodiment of the shoe 1 according to the invention with a sole part 2 and three upper parts 3, 4, 5, which upper parts have a first side 31, 41, 51 and a second side 32, 42 (second side 52 of FIG Upper part 5 in Fig. 1 a not visible). The sole part 2 and the three upper parts 3, 4, 5 can be detachably connected to one another with a connecting device 6. The sole part 2 of the preferred embodiment has a standing frame 7, as can be seen in the cross section of FIG. 1 b, so that, for example, an insole 8 can be inserted if necessary or desired.

The connecting device 6 of the preferred embodiment shown has a rail system which consists of four pairs of two complementarily shaped T-rails, one pair each for the detachable connection of the upper parts 3 and 5 to the sole part 2, and two pairs for connecting the latter serve with the upper part 4.

The first part of the connecting device, ie the first T-rail 9, is typically integrated in the sole part, and preferably in the standing frame 7. This is suitably carried out directly during the manufacture of the sole by integrating the first T. rail 9 or the plurality of first T rails, for example when the sole part is being sprayed. However, other preferred arrangements are also possible. For example, as shown in FIG. 2, the first rail 9 or the plurality of first T-rails can also be glued or sewn onto the sole part 2 or the standing frame 7. In addition, the first part of the connecting device, and here in particular the first T-rail 9, can also be subsequently integrated into the sole part 2 or the standing frame 7 after corresponding recesses have been made in the latter.

The second part of the connector, i.e. the second T-bar 10 in the preferred embodiment of Fig. 1 is typically sewn to the top. The formation of such a seam 11 is known to the person skilled in the art and need not be explained in more detail here. However, it goes without saying that other suitable ways of connecting the upper part or parts and the second part or parts of the connecting device can be selected.

Fig. 2 shows a further preferred embodiment of the shoe according to the invention, in which the first part of the

T-rail 9 is arranged on the standing frame 7 of the sole part 2. However, it is to be understood that other arrangements can also serve the purpose of this invention. It goes without saying that the T-rail 9 or other first parts of the connecting device can also be arranged in the edge region or on the outside of the sole part or, as explained above, can be integrated.

The arrangements shown or mentioned of the first parts of the connecting device or the first T-rail 9 also have the advantage that this avoids undesirable friction in the lateral foot area when the shoe is worn.

In the preferred embodiment of FIG. 2, the two T-rails 9, 10 are typically beveled at their respective ends 12, 13. Such tapered ends of the T-rails make it easier to connect the upper parts to the sole part, for example during the changing of the upper parts, since the second T-rail 10 can thereby be inserted into the first T-rail 9 in a simple manner. In addition, the upper parts can have a tab 14 with which the aforementioned insertion of the upper parts can be further facilitated.

3b-f show various possible combinations for producing an individual shoe collection according to the present invention. Thus, the preferred embodiments of the shoe 1 according to the invention have a plurality of first T-rails 9, which are arranged on the standing frame 7 of the sole part 2. The upper parts 3, 4, 5 are reversible, ie can be worn on both sides, so that either the first or the second side of the upper part faces the sole part. For example, the upper part 4 in FIG. 3b can also be detachably connected to the sole part in an inverted arrangement, so that on the one hand the first side 41 of the upper part 4, as in FIG. 3f, or on the other hand the second side 42 of the upper part 4, as in FIG 3b, the sole part 2 and thus facing a foot of a user.

The upper parts can be attached independently of the left or right sole part, which results in a further increased possible combination.

Another advantage of the present invention, and in particular of the shoe system according to the invention, is the modularity of the assemblable shoes. For a preferred shoe or shoe system according to the present invention, only one upper part designed as an instep element can be detachably connected to a right and a left sole part. Such a shoe, which can be used, for example, as a bathing or beach shoe, is shown in FIG. 3e. Alternatively, either toe tops as shown in Fig. 3c or heel tops as shown in Fig. 3d can be combined. A shoe to be used as a sandal, for example, can be obtained if three uppers, i.e. a front part, an instep part and a heel part are detachably connected to the sole part.

As shown in FIGS. 1 a, 3b-f, the connecting device of the preferred embodiments has a plurality of first T-rails 9. These are designated in Fig. 3a with 93 (T-rail for connection to the upper part of the toe), 94 (T-rail for connection to the upper part of the instep) and 95 (T-rail for connection to the upper part of the heel). However, it goes without saying that the first T-rail can also be formed in one piece and can run all the way around the sole part. In this case, the T-rail can suitably be designed in such a way that insertion of the second T-rail or T-rails is possibly made easier. In addition, however, it goes without saying that such T-rails can also be designed in such a way that the releasable connection can be made by simply clicking in or pressing in or snapping into place.

As can be seen in the preferred embodiments shown in FIGS. 1 a and 3b-f, at least the

T-rails 94 and 95 have a greater elongation than the associated second T-rails of the corresponding top parts. This allows that, if applicable

Upper part can be moved continuously after overcoming the frictional force in order to achieve an individual adaptation of the upper part with one foot of a user. FIG. 4 schematically shows a section of a sole part of a further preferred embodiment of the present invention. In this preferred embodiment, the connecting device has a plug connection device, so that the standing frame 7 of the sole part 2 has a plurality of cavities 15 arranged at a distance from one another. These cavities 15 serve as or comprise the first parts of the connector device. As indicated, these cavities can also be arranged on the outside of the sole part. In addition, a plurality of rows of such cavities arranged in parallel can also be arranged on the outside of the sole part, as indicated by the reference numerals 151 and 152. As already mentioned, the individual upper part can then be individually adapted to the foot of the user, for example by moving within the parallel rows of cavities 151 and 1 52.

Although preferred embodiments of the invention are described herein, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications to the described embodiments can be made without departing from the spirit and purpose of the invention. A wide variety of mechanisms are possible for the mutually continuous displaceability between the sole part and the at least one upper part when using a sliding connection device according to the present invention. Therefore, this does not necessarily have to be based on a sliding process, but can also be partly or wholly attributable to a rolling process.

LIST OF REFERENCE NUMERALS

shoe

Sole part, 4.5 upper parts 1.41.51 first side of the upper parts 2.42.52 second side of the upper parts

connecting device

standing frame

Insole, 93.94.95 first T-rail 0 second T-rail 1 seam 2.13 ends of the T-rails 4 tab 5.151, 152 cavities

Claims

claims 1. Shoe (1) with a sole part (2) and at least one upper part (3,4,5), which upper part has a first side (31, 41, 51) and a second side (32,42,52), wherein the sole part and the at least one upper part are releasably connectable to one another with a connecting device (6), characterized in that the at least one. an upper part and the connecting device are designed such that the at least one upper part can be releasably connected to the sole part by means of the connecting device in such a way that either the first or the second side of the upper part faces the sole part. 2. Shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the connecting device comprises a sliding connection device, preferably a sliding connection device, with which a frictional connection between the sole part and the at least one upper part can be produced. 3. Shoe according to claim 2, characterized in that the sliding connection device has a rail system. 4. Shoe according to claim 3, characterized in that the viewing rail system has at least one pair of two, preferably complementarily shaped, T-rails (9, 10). 5. Shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the connecting device has a connector device ^' . 6. Shoe system with a first sole part for a right foot of a user, a second sole part for a left foot of a user and at least two upper parts, which upper parts have a first and a second side, the first sole part and the second sole part each having at least one a top with With the help of one connecting device each is releasably connectable, characterized in that the at least two upper parts and the connecting devices are designed in such a way that the at least two upper parts can be releasably connected to the first and second sole parts by means of the connecting devices in such a way that either the first or the second side of at least one Upper part facing the first or the second sole part. 7. Shoe system according to claim 6, characterized in that the connecting devices comprise sliding connection devices, which sliding connection devices each have a rail system, which rail system has at least a pair of two, preferably complementarily shaped, T-rails. 8. Shoe system according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the shoe system has six upper parts, two upper parts each being designed as front parts, instep parts and heel parts. 9. Upper part for a shoe according to claim 1 and for a shoe system according to claim 6, characterized in that the upper part is essentially two-dimensional for space-saving storage or transport.