Boots – shoes – and leggings – Soles – Cushion
Reexamination Certificate
1999-05-24
2001-07-03
Patterson, M. D. (Department: 3728)
Boots, shoes, and leggings
Soles
Cushion
C036S03500R, C036S037000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06253466
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a cushion for placement in a shoe sole for cushioning and supporting a foot. More particularly, the invention relates to a cushion that has U-shaped tubular portions disposed around a central portion for supporting a region of a foot.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Resilient athletic shoe soles have been made with a variety of resilient cushioning elements for storing and absorbing impact energy imposed on a wearer's feet. Known shoe soles include fluid bladders that either contain pressurized air or a viscous liquid or gel to absorb shock and store energy.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,406,719, for instance, discloses a bladder that is pressurized with a gas. The bladder includes a heel support with various gas chambers. Gas chambers are located around the perimeter of the heel support, and additional chambers are located centrally in the heel support. The gas confined in the chambers provides cushioning for a foot as gas pressure increases in response to loads applied on the chambers. The patent shows the central chamber communicated with a lateral chamber so that internal gas pressure is equalized between the chambers.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,459 also shows a bladder for cushioning a heel. The bladder has a horse-shoe shaped chamber that extends about the periphery of the bladder, from the medial side to the lateral side around the rear of the bladder. Within the horse-shoe shape is a central chamber. As in the '719 patent disclosure, this stiffness of the chambers is controlled by altering the gas pressure therein.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,183,156 discloses an insole shaped insert with interconnected chambers that form pneumatic springs. Two of these chambers are tubular and extend around the sides and back of the heel of the insole. Two additional tubular chambers are disposed between the chambers that extend around the heel sides.
Cushioning bladders that employ a gas or other fluid to cushion shock to a foot suffer from a number of disadvantages. These bladders can usually leak over time, and gas units are especially prone to loss of pressure as the bladder ages. Moreover, the bladders are subject to punctures caused by sharp objects. Once the bladders are punctured, their contents are free to escape, and the bladders cease to effectively cushion shocks. Furthermore, fluid filled bladders also tend to pop and/or compress over time. Most perform significantly differently at different temperatures as the pressure or viscosity of the contained fluids varies. Also, because the fluid within the bladders tends to equalize the pressure within chambers of the bladders, compression of one part of a chamber may merely force the fluid to another part of the chamber decreasing control over localized deformation, and thus cushioning, of the bladder.
Other known soles employ resilient structures that rely on walls of the structure rather that on a fluid contained therein to cushion impact on a wearer's foot. U.S. Pat. No. 5,255,451, for example, teaches a shoe sole with an insert formed from a plurality of undulations. U.S. Pat. No. 4,774,774 shows a midsole formed of a honeycomb structure. Also, U.S. Pat. No. 4,342,158 teaches a sole with a coned disk spring member disposed in the sole heel.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The invention provides a cushion for use in a shoe sole. The cushion includes resilient load-bearing first and second hollow tubular walls that are shaped to support and cushion edges of the shoe wearer's foot. The tubular walls form first and second tubular portions, preferably extending along first and second portions of a boundary of a region of the sole. At least one of the tubular portions, but preferably both tubular portions, also extend on a third portion of the region to face each other, such that together, the tubular portions form a U-shape adjacent the edges of the region. The cushion is preferably disposed between a midsole and an outsole of the shoe sole.
The cushion also has a resilient load-bearing central wall configured to support and cushion a widthwise central part of the foot disposed generally centrally across the width of the foot shape. The central wall forms a hollow central portion and is located between and preferably joined with the tubular portions and is preferably of unitary construction with the tubular walls. The tubular portions are preferably vertically stiffer than the central portion to stabilize the supported region of the foot towards the central portion.
An embodiment of the cushion provides a coupled portion in which the central wall and first tubular wall are coupled such that vertical deformation of one of the central and first walls is transmitted to the other. The coupling portion can be placed in a heel strike area of the wearer's foot, which receives the first and concentrated loads generated during a running step.
At locations where the central and tubular walls are not coupled, the preferred embodiment has a recessed portion that joins the central portion and first tubular portion. Because this portion is recessed and preferably lacks walls that are vertically spaced to any significant extent, vertical deformation is substantially isolated between sections of the central wall and first tubular wall which are disposed adjacent the recessed portion.
As the support of the cushion is preferably provided by the load-bearing central and tubular walls themselves, any air trapped within the cushion is preferably not pressurized and is at atmospheric pressure. This reduces problems associated with fluid or gas pressurized bladders of the prior art.
In another embodiment, first and second hollow tubular portions respectively having resilient load-bearing first and second hollow walls. The cushion preferably has a weakened section between the first and second portions, preferably adjacent a bend section of at least one of the tubular portions that is bent around the boundary of the central portion. The weakened section has greater flexibility than the tubular portions and permits the cushion to flex about a line extending between the tubular portions.
The preferred placement in the sole of this embodiment is in a region corresponding to a region of the foot that includes at least one distal head of the metatarsals of the foot. Two cushions may be employed in a sole, for example adjacent and facing each other in regions of the sole that collectively define a larger sole distal metatarsal-head region including some or all of the distal metatarsal heads, most preferably at least the large distal metatarsal head. In this disposition, the first and second tubular portions of each cushion are most preferably generally aligned with the first and second tubular portion of the other cushion.
The cushion is disposed in this embodiment in a portion of the sole of increased flexibility. Grooves preferably extend generally widthwise in this more flexible portion, preferably adjacent the weakened section of the cushion, to increase fore and aft flexibility.
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pa
Harmon-Weiss Edith Michele
Mauceri David Arthur
Verhoorn Derek Alan
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.
Patterson M. D.
Pennie & Edmonds LLP
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