The present disclosure relates generally to footwear insoles, and more particularly to a customizable footwear insole.
Mass-produced shoes are generally uniformly manufactured to include insoles that provide generalized support. On the other hand, the physical characteristics of the foot vary from person to person resulting in the soles of the foot having different physical morphologies. For example, human feet may have varying features in terms of their volume, length, arch height, toe dimensions, and the like. As a result, some individuals may require more foot support while others may require less support from the same shoe design. Suboptimal support may lead to fatigue, discomfort, and/or pain of the foot, leg(s), back and neck. Some individuals may prefer different levels of support depending on the type of activities being performed. For example more support may be required for activities such as nature hiking (e.g. subject to uneven ground surface and terrain), as opposed to walking around in a city (e.g. mostly uniform ground surface).
Footwear insoles have been developed to alter the support provided by the footwear to accommodate variations in foot morphology. The user can replace the insole of a shoe provided by the shoe manufacturer to obtain more comfort and support. Given the variations in foot morphologies available and the varying degrees of support desired by the user of the footwear, a manufacturer of insoles would be required to manufacture and maintain a large variety of insoles to accommodate the different levels of support and foot anatomy. From the insole seller's perspective, he or she may be required to maintain a large inventory of insoles. From the insole user's perspective, the user may be required to purchase multiple sets of insoles to obtain varying support.
Accordingly, in view of the deficiencies identified, there is a need for an insole that can be customized for the needs of the user and to provide the desired support and comfort.
In general, the present specification describes a customizable footwear insole with removable and interchangeable attachment features to provide improved comfort and support.
One aspect of the invention provides an insole apparatus for use in footwear. The apparatus comprises a planar insole base positionable on top of a base interior surface of the footwear, and an attachment accessory removably attachable to the insole base. The insole basis may be fabricated from an elastically deformable material. A plurality of attachment elements are distributed on at least one of an upper surface of the insole base and a lower surface of the attachment accessory. The attachment accessory is removably attachable to the insole base by way of at least one of the plurality of attachment elements. The plurality of attachment elements define attachment points, which are arranged with a predefined consistent spacing to enable interchangeability of the attachment accessory with other attachment accessories having similarly arranged attachment points. In particular embodiments the attachment elements comprise pairs of cooperating attachment elements, such as a receptacle and a corresponding plug, wherein the receptacle is located at an attachment point on one of the attachment accessory and the insole base, for receiving the corresponding plug extending from the other one of the attachment accessory and the insole base.
In some embodiments, the plurality of attachment elements are arranged in a plurality of groups, each group of attachment elements adapted for coupling the insole base to an attachment accessory of a corresponding type. The type of attachment accessory may comprise one or more of arch support, heel support, heel raiser, cooling accessory, heating accessory, massage accessory, and therapeutic magnet.
In particular embodiments, the insole apparatus comprises a plurality of traction elements distributed on a lower surface of the insole base, which faces the interior surface of the footwear when the insole base is in use. At least one of the plurality of traction elements may be a traction stick that extends from the lower surface of the insole base and embeds itself in the footwear base. The traction stick comprises a knob at a distal end of the stick for retention in a corresponding cavity defined in the footwear base. In some embodiments, at least one of the plurality of traction elements is one of a tread, grip and adhesive.
Additional aspects of the present invention will be apparent in view of the description which follows.
Features and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken with reference to the appended drawings in which:
The description which follows, and the embodiments described therein, are provided by way of illustration of examples of particular embodiments of the principles of the present invention. These examples are provided for the purposes of explanation, and not limitation, of those principles and of the invention.
Referring first to
While a single insole base 100 is shown in
The insole base 100 can be separated into regions according to the anatomies of the foot that the insole base 100 is intended to support. As shown in
A variety of materials can be used to fabricate the insole base 100 to provide the desired support and comfort for a user of the insole base 100. In the present embodiment, the insole is fabricated using a flexible and/or resilient material such as foam visco-elastic polymers, or any suitable material with a cushioning characteristic. For example, thermo-plastic elastomers and polyvinyl chloride (PVC) are considered to be suitable visco-elastic polymers. However, in some designs, the base may be made of a rigid material, such as molded plastic. In some embodiments, the insole base 100 may further provide structures to enable improved breathability (e.g. perforations for extended use or sports applications) or odour control functions (e.g. by way of incorporating silver or other anti-bacterial compounds into the material to prevent growth of odour-causing bacteria).
Atop of the insole base 100, various insert accessories can be attached or removed. The manner of attachment and the arrangement of insert accessories will be described in more detail below. In addition, in some embodiments, massage points can be distributed across the insole, as described in more detail below.
In the exemplary insole base 100 shown in
The massage points 110 can be fabricated on a foundation or plate such as a thin polymer sheet upon which the collection of massage points 110 is attached onto the insole base 100. In some implementations, the massage points 110 can be integrally formed with the insole base, made using tooling integrated on the top surface of the insole base 100. In other implementations, the massage points 110 can be attached to the insole base 100. Various suitable methods of attachment can be used, including but not limited to, chemical methods (e.g. adhesion) or physical methods (e.g. by way of sewing and fastening).
The foundation plate can be made to provide a desirable thickness and firmness. Additional plates (which may be flat or contoured) may be removably attached to the foundation plate to vary the height in certain areas or across the entire foundation plate. For example, a plate positioned at the heel area or hind foot region 106 can function as a height raiser 120 to provide heel support in addition to providing massage points for comfort, as shown in
Referring to
Referring next to
As seen in
For larger attachment accessories 111 such as accessory plates 113, the plate 113 can attach to multiple attachment points, the set of attachment elements 118 forming an attachment group. For example, a number of attachment groups are allocated in the embodiment of the customizable insole system 105 of
In other embodiments, the heel support attachment accessory 119 may comprise a flexible or soft heel raiser 120 (see
In particular embodiments, one or more of the attachment accessories 111 may comprise electronic sensors such as pressure sensors and motion sensors operable to monitor the weight or pressure distribution of the foot and the foot's movement. The user can use the data obtained from these sensors to adjust the level of support for a given foot position to maximize comfort and minimize injury (e.g. based on the measured pressure and movement data). The measured pressure data can be transmitted to a computer terminal or processor (such as within a handheld device) where the information can be analyzed to determine the degree of adjustment that would be suitable. The sensors can be battery powered or self-powered by way of a piezoelectric system supporting a power bank (e.g. a battery or a capacitor). Power in the power bank can be replenished each time the user takes a step. The application and subsequent release of pressure against a piezo transducer of the piezoelectric system causes the generation of electrical energy that can be stored in the power bank for use. The same principles can be applied to self-heating foot-warming attachment accessories in which the energy generated by the piezoelectric system can be used to activate a built-in heating element (e.g. a planar resistor and the like).
For clarity, the attachment accessories 111 described herein incorporate combinations of features and comprise various shapes which are representative of those that may be provided by attachment accessories 111 that are attachable to insole base 110. Attachment accessories 111 having other shapes and features may be attached to insole base 100 in other embodiments.
Each attachment element 118 can comprise a suitable fastening mechanism. For example, fastening mechanisms can include, but are not limited to, snap fasteners, hook and loop fasteners (e.g. Velcro™, magnetic attachment, adhesive attachment, and mateable attachments that make use of interlocking male and female components in attachment accessory 111 and insole base 100, respectively (or vice versa).
In the illustrated embodiment, as best seen in
In alternate embodiments, female receptacles may be provided in the form of a through-hole defined in the insole base 100 (the through-hole being of the same diameter as the diameter of extension 150A of male plug 150), such that the distal portion 150B of male plug 150 passes through the through-hole and is retained on the opposite side of the insole base 100. In that case, attachment elements 118 therefore comprise pairs of cooperating male plugs 150 and through-holes defined in the insole base 100.
In yet other embodiments, the positioning of the traction elements 160 can correspond to the positioning of the attachment elements 118 on the top surface 101 of the insole base 100. For example, the horizontal positions (i.e. planar position along a surface of the insole base) of the attachment elements 118 and the traction elements 160 may be arranged in a matching configuration, so that for a given attachment element 118 on the top surface 101 of the insole base 100, there exists a traction element 160 on the bottom surface 103 of the insole base 100 at the same horizontal position below the attachment element 118. In other words, an attachment element 118 and a traction element 160 are said to be “matched” when they are located at points along a line that is perpendicular to the plane defined by the planar-shaped insole base 100. In the embodiment shown in
In some embodiments, the traction elements 160 comprise adhesive elements so as to enable the insole base 100 to stick to the base of the footwear. In other embodiments, the traction elements 160 are in the form of treads or grips that increase the friction between the bottom surface 103 of the insole base 100 and the base of the footwear. In yet other embodiments the traction elements 160 take the form of male tread sticks 162 that mate with corresponding female tread holes 164 defined in the base of the shoe, as seen in
In the embodiments where one or more of the traction elements 160 comprise male treads 162 as seen in
The insole system 105 described herein enables a plurality of interchangeable attachment accessories 111 that may be coupled to an insole base to adapt the insole for a user's particular needs, foot size and shape, and comfort. By selecting particular attachment accessories 111 and fastening them to the insole via attachment elements 118, an insole apparatus can be customized to provide heel support and cooling in some situations for one user, and arch support and therapeutic magnets for another user, for example. Customization can be facilitated within a predefined size range (e.g. US women's size 7.5-12, or men's size 6-10.5) by defining a consistent spacing of the corresponding attachment elements within each group for both insole and attachment accessories, so that a particular attachment accessory can be coupled to any insole within that size range. In other words, by using a consistent spacing of attachment points in each area of the insole (e.g. arch support attachment group 116, heel support attachment group 117, fore- and mid-foot attachment group 121) and for the corresponding attachment accessory, the need to manufacture different attachment accessories for each footwear size within a range of sizes is avoided. In some embodiments, the spacing of attachment elements may be consistent across all areas of the insole, and not just within localized areas corresponding to an attachment element group.
The examples and corresponding diagrams used herein are for illustrative purposes only. Different configurations and terminology can be used without departing from the principles expressed herein.
Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various modifications thereof will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. The scope of the claims should not be limited by the illustrative embodiments set forth in the examples, but should be given the broadest interpretation consistent with the description as a whole.
This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/771,467 filed Nov. 26, 2018 entitled “CUSTOMIZABLE FOOTWEAR INSOLES”. This application claims the benefit under 35 USC § 119 of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 62/771,467 filed Nov. 26, 2018 entitled “CUSTOMIZABLE FOOTWEAR INSOLES”, which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.
Number | Date | Country | |
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62771467 | Nov 2018 | US |