MOUNTAINEERING SHOE SOLE

BACKGROUND OF THE DISCLOSURE

1. Technical Field of the Disclosure

The present invention is related in general to shoe soles for exercising and in particular to detachable mountaineering shoe soles for improving the health of a wearer of the shoe.

2. Disclosure of the Related Art

Soles for shoes, boots, sandals or the like are made in designs of the greatest variety. In today's health conscious society, exercise and participation in sports have become increasingly popular activities. For example, designs of shoe soles exist that are particularly suitable for sports, to enable a high degree of damping during sports activities, which reduces the loads on the joints of the athletes. In addition, particularly stable soles are known, which are used, for example, in work shoes or hiking shoes, to protect the foot and at the same time provide a high measure of skid resistance.

Existing shoe soles have in common that they provide a high degree of support for the foot. This has the consequence that the foot itself is exposed to little or no movements at all, except for a roll over motion. In addition, blood circulation in the veins of the legs, including the thighs of the user is affected by wearing shoes having a high heel end. This may cause accumulation of excessive fat in the stomach muscles which produces increased weight in the stomach and the legs and thighs. Thus, a person wearing normal high heel shoes may gain a lot of weight in the course of their activities such as working in an office, factory or kitchen or being at school. Also, wearing high heel shoes affects the posture of the person wearing them by making them appear tall and elegant. However, this may cause tension and pain in the spine and back muscles making the person wearing them feel uncomfortable. Thus, a person may only wear high heel shoes for a few hours at a time before being adversely affected thereby.

For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,507,106 issued to Fox on Apr. 16, 1996, discloses an athletic shoe having a shoe body including a shoe upper, a heel portion, a toe portion, and a sole member mounted to the shoe body extending from the heel to the toe of the shoe body. The bottom of the sole member is covered with a ground contacting surface to provide proper traction, and includes a first angle portion below the heel of the shoe body, a second angle portion below the toe of the shoe body, and a platform section therebetween. The sole member, attached to the bottom surface of the shoe body, includes an upper surface adapted substantially to match the configuration of the bottom surface of the shoe body so as to fit closely therewith. A first angle portion is formed in the sole member, extending from the heel of the shoe body downwardly at a slight slope. The elevated platform is of a desired thickness corresponding to the desired degree of difficulty of use of the exercise shoe as the thicker the platform, the greater the stress placed on the foot of the wearer during use. However, the sole of this invention is not detachable and does not provide a uniform slope to keep the toe of the user higher than the heel end of the foot.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,481 issued to Darby on Feb. 18, 1992, discloses a boot designed to fit around a lightweight cast about the ankle and foot of a patient. The boot is designed to immobilize the foot of the patient. As the patient walks, the foot is moved through a smooth gait so as to prevent the muscles, ligaments, and tendons from being subjected to stresses and strains during a normal walking motion. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,631,842 and 4,589,216 issued to Koskela on Dec. 30, 1986, and to Fuscone on May 20, 1986, respectively, each disclose sole elements for athletic shoes that are designed to reduce muscular strain or stress placed on the muscles and tendons between the feet and legs of the wearer during exercise. These sole elements are not particularly suitable for mountaineering purposes or reducing associated health risks including reducing the fat accumulation in specific areas like stomach, thighs etc. of the user.

Thus, most conventional shoes or sole elements generally are directed to exercise and sporting purposes and for protecting certain ones of the muscles, ligaments, and tendons from being subjected to stresses or stretching. As shoes are often worn for long periods of time, it would be useful if they could provide some health benefit to the wearer of the shoe. There exists a need for a sole for a shoe for improving the health of the wearer of the shoe.

SUMMARY OF THE DISCLOSURE

To minimize limitations found in the prior art, and to minimize other limitations that will be apparent upon the reading of the specifications, a preferred embodiment of the present invention provides a detachable sole for a shoe configured to position the toe of a foot of a user higher than the heel. The detachable sole comprises a toe end having a thicker sole, a heel end having a substantially thinner sole, and an upper surface on which a straight line formed between the toe end and the heel end is inclined with respect to a plane contactable by ground engaging a lower surface of the detachable sole at an acute angle, and an engagement means provided on the detachable sole to detachably connect to a bottom portion of the shoe and/or another detachable sole for positioning the toe of the user of the shoe higher than the heel.

The engagement means may include a plurality of pins and a plurality of holes provided on the upper surface and the lower surface of a plurality of detachable soles, which are configured to receive the plurality of pins on the plurality of detachable soles for stacking the plurality of detachable soles to position the toe of the shoe higher than the heel. A detachable pin strip includes detachable pins for tightly surrounding and securing the detachable pin strip around the shoe perimeter. The upper surface may have a curved front end portion with a center of curvature situated above the upper surface. The toe end having the thicker sole causes tension to stomach muscles and muscles in the back of the legs and the thighs of the user to improve blood circulation in the veins of the legs and thighs. Improved blood circulation in the veins of the legs of the user may cause loss of excessive fat in the stomach muscles and the legs, thereby reducing weight in the stomach and the thighs.

A straight line formed between opposite ends of the upper surface may be inclined with respect to a plane contactable by ground engaging lower surfaces of the sole at an angle in the range of about 2° to about 25°. By having high heel soles in reverse i.e. by having the ball of the foot higher than the heel, the tension caused by wearing shoes incorporating the soles is moved to the front of the wearer so that stomach muscles and muscles in the back of the legs including the thighs are in tension. Fat loss due to the movement of stomach muscles and leg including thigh muscles and the movements of these muscles creates very healthy blood circulation and body muscle firmness.

These and other advantages and features of the present invention are described with specificity so as to make the present invention understandable to one of ordinary skill in the art.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Elements in the figures have not necessarily been drawn to scale in order to enhance their clarity and improve understanding of these various elements and embodiments of the invention. Furthermore, elements that are known to be common and well understood to those in the industry are not depicted in order to provide a clear view of the various embodiments of the invention, thus the drawings are generalized in form in the interest of clarity and conciseness.

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a pair of shoes incorporating modified soles of an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a side perspective view of the pair of shoes illustrated in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side perspective view of the pair of shoes incorporating a pair of modified soles of an embodiment of the present invention stacked together;

FIG. 4 is a top perspective view of the pair of shoes illustrated in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a top perspective view of a pair of shoes of the present invention incorporating three modified soles stacked together;

FIG. 6 is a side perspective view of the shoes illustrated in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a top perspective view of a shoe of the present invention incorporating three modified soles stacked together and tightly surrounded and secured using an embodiment of a detachable pin strip around the shoe perimeter;

FIG. 8 is a side perspective view of the shoe with detachable soles stacked together and tightly surrounded using the detachable pin strip illustrated in FIG. 7;

FIG. 9 is a side perspective view of a canvas shoe of the present invention incorporating a pair of modified soles stacked together and attached to sole of the shoe;

FIG. 10 is a side perspective view of the shoe of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of an embodiment of a shoe of the present invention with ankle securing means at a heel end of the sole;

FIG. 12 is a top view of an embodiment of a shoe of the present invention with an engagement means provided at the heel end of the sole;

FIG. 13 is a top perspective view of the shoe illustrated in FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a top perspective view of an embodiment of a shoe of the present invention with a hole at the heel end of the sole;

FIG. 15 is a side perspective view of the shoe illustrated in FIG. 14 with the pin at the heel end of the sole;

FIG. 16 is a side perspective view of the shoe illustrated in FIG. 15;

FIG. 17 is a top surface of the sole of the shoe illustrated in FIG. 15 with attached pins and contours for providing more grips for the legs of the user while walking or mountaineering;

FIG. 18 is a top surface of the sole illustrated in FIG. 17; and

FIG. 19 is a top perspective view of an embodiment of a shoe of the present invention having modified soles and having provisions for placing a counter for measuring a variety of parameters while walking or mountaineering.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the following discussion that addresses a number of embodiments and applications of the present invention, reference is made to the accompanying drawings that form a part hereof, and in which is shown by way of illustration specific embodiments in which the invention may be practiced. It is to be understood that other embodiments may be utilized and changes may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention.

Various inventive features are described below that can each be used independently of one another or in combination with other features. However, any single inventive feature may not address any of the problems discussed above or only address one of the problems discussed above. Further, one or more of the problems discussed above may not be fully addressed by any of the features described below. Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings. While particular embodiments have been described, it will be understood that various modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

The invention relates to modified soles, such as for a mountaineering shoe soles used by the climbers of mountains or hills. The climbers typically use shoes with a flat shoe sole but when climbing mountains the effect is to place the foot at an angle higher at the front of the shoe sole i.e. at a toe end than the rear part of the mountaineering shoe i.e. heel end. A higher toe position than the heel of the foot of a user causes tension of the stomach and the leg muscles which can provide the climber body with better blood circulation in places where few other sports can. Hence, engaging in this sport with shoe soles having higher toe end can be, if used correctly, very beneficial to help exercise the body as this sport differs from other outdoor sports in that nature alone provides the field of action.

Due to the danger involved in climbing high mountains, the present invention discloses a new type of mountaineering shoe sole which gives the same benefit to the climber by making the mountaineering shoe with shoe soles that are higher at the front of the shoe than the rear of the shoe. As used herein, the term mountaineering shoes applies to all types of shoes as described above including climbing shoe footwear such as boots, slippers, sandals, hacker, jogging shoes and all similar sports and walking shoes. In one embodiment of the present invention, the mountaineering shoe sole can be made with several individual sole layers—thin at heels and thicker at toes. Each sole can be connected to the upper and lower sole using plastic or PVC or any other materials with pins having circular or rectangular shapes to be inserted inside similar shaped holes in the upper or lower soles. The individual soles may be detached and removed as desired.

FIG. 1 shows a top perspective view of a pair of shoes 10 incorporating modified soles of an embodiment of the present invention. According to the embodiment, there is provided a sole 12 for a shoe 10 configured to position the ball and/or toes of a foot of a user of the shoe 10 higher than the heel. The sole 12 has an upper surface (not shown) for receiving the ball and heel of the foot of the user, whereby a straight line formed between opposite ends of the upper surface (not shown) is inclined with respect to a plane contactable by ground engaging lower surfaces of the sole at an angle in the range of about 2° to about 25°. The angle may also be in the range of about 10° to about 20°. The mountaineering shoe 10 preferably includes means for holding the foot of the user to the shoe. The foot holding means may comprise two portions and fastening means arranged to fasten the two portions at least towards each other. The two foot holding means portions may be arranged to overlap when fastened by the fastening means. This enables the foot holding means to cope with the large stresses exerted when a user is wearing the shoe. The shoe may include means for securing an ankle of the user to the mountaineering shoe. The holding means need to withstand large forces exerted on them by the foot of the user and may comprise, for example, straps of strong plastics or reinforced plastics or leather.

FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the pair of shoe 10 incorporating modified soles 12. As shown, the soles 12 increase the height of the front or a toe end 14 of the mountaineering shoe soles 12, keeping the rear soles part or the heel end 16 to a reduced height. The climber can climb hills wearing these shoes and may have several choices of shoe soles heights for the climbing exercise needed by the climber. This may be especially beneficial for people with diseases and who cannot be left to climb high mountains without a doctor's help and for elderly people or people with heart troubles who can now enjoy the benefit of climbing while being close to emergency treatments if needed.

FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show perspective views of the pair of shoes 10 incorporating a pair of modified soles 12 stacked together. To increase the effectiveness of mountain climbing sport to help exercise the body while walking, several shoe soles layers can be attached to the mountaineering shoe 10 making the front or a toe end 14 of the mountaineering shoes much higher in front compared to the heel end 16 as needed by the climbers. The several shoe soles layers 12 can be removed. The front surface 14 of the soles 12 may have a curved front end portion with a center of curvature having a radius of curvature between about 20 and about 200 mm. The front end portion 14 may extend over about 10% or greater, such as a quarter of the entire length of the sole layers 12. The dimensions of the curved front end portion 14 enables a user of the shoe incorporating the soles layers to walk easily without toppling.

As shoes are often worn for long periods of time, it would be useful if they could provide some health benefit to the wearer by wearing the mountaineer shoes 10 with soles 12 of different height as desired by the wearer. FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 show top and side perspective views of the shoe 10 incorporating three modified soles 12 stacked together according to an another embodiment of the present invention. The three soles 12 shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 6, each have different heights at the toe end 14 and at the heel end 16. This provides the user the ability to select soles 12 with desired thicknesses at the toe end 14 and at the heel end 16 as described above.

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 show perspective views of the pair of shoes 10 incorporating three modified soles 12 stacked together and tightly surrounded and secured using a detachable pin strip 18 around the shoe 10 perimeter. The detachable pin strip 18 surrounds and covers the plurality of soles 12, which are stacked together and may have different thicknesses at the toe end 14 and at the heel end 16. The plurality of soles 12 having different thicknesses at the toe end 14 and at the heel end 16 may be glued, stitched or otherwise secured to each other and attached to the base sole of each of the shoes 10. In an embodiment of the present invention, the plurality of soles 12 having different thicknesses is provided with an engagement means including at least one pin 22 and at least one hole 20 (see FIG. 13). The hole 20 is configured to receive the pin 22 and to form a locking arrangement to stack the soles 12 together. The detachable pin strip 18 covers the side of the plurality of stacked soles 12 to give a good visual appearance of the shoe 10. The detachable pin strip 18 covers the sides of the stacked soles 12 and is secured using different attachment means including a plurality of pins (not shown), Velcro®, or any other attachment means provided on an end portion of the detachable pin strip 18. The detachable pin strip 18 makes the mountaineering shoes 10 more fashionable. For making the mountaineering shoes 10 beautiful and fashionable, several motifs with different shapes can be added to surround the shoe soles 12 which makes them capable of having several models but the same basic mountaineering slim shoe 10 by using the detachable pin strip 18 all around the shoe perimeter. The strip 18 will have detachable pins (not shown) and can be made of printed leather or plastic with different colors.

Wearing the mountaineering shoes 10 with several sole layers 12 depending on the wearer sole height requirement as discussed above will give several benefits to the wearer. For people with diabetes who perform mountaineering sports or wear mountaineering shoes 10 in their gardens, houses, kitchen, offices, schools, factories or just walking in the streets, the shoes 10 will strengthen their muscles. This may result in a higher metabolism and more calories burnt, improving insulin sensitivity, helping with weight loss, and may reduce the amount of diabetes medications. Also for diabetes, modest physical activity wearing mountaineering shoes 10 with detachable soles 12, including performing indoor mountaineering shoe exercises due to summer heat or winter cold, may provide a good way to manage diabetes.

Compartments of fat cells, including capillary walls, become excessively permeable causing localized accumulation of fluid, dimples, skin dimpling, bulging and pitting surrounded by lose deteriorating muscle tissue with a lumpy collection of fat in a centralized area that pushes against the connective tissue of the skin giving a cottage cheese-like appearance on the legs and many body parts. Wearing the mountaineering shoes 10 with the detachable soles 12 may reduce or eliminate excess fat cells in the stomach, legs, and thighs. Fat and loose tissues inside the stomach, sometimes due to previous pregnancy or to eating, are a major body problem and by wearing the mountaineering shoes 10 with the detachable soles 12 having higher toe end 14 compared to the heel end 16 may also improve the body muscles' firmness and reduce and eliminate excess fat cells in the stomach. Yet another advantage of wearing the mountaineering shoes 10 with the detachable soles 12 having higher toe end 14 compared to the heel end 16 is that it may reduce or eliminate the blue blood veins which are present in the skin of the legs and thigh and are usually treated by surgery. However, blue veins may be reduced or eliminated due to good circulation after a short time of using and wearing the mountaineering shoes 10 with the detachable soles 12. In addition, wearing these mountaineering shoes 10 may improve the body firmness, stomach, legs, thighs, back parts of the body, and most of all good posture of the back bones and the firmness of the breast.

By having high heel soles in reverse, i.e. by having the ball of the foot higher than the heel, the tension caused by wearing shoes 10 incorporating the soles 12 is moved to the front of the wearer's foot so that stomach muscles and muscles in the back of the legs including the thighs are in tension. This may provide improved blood circulation in the veins of the legs including the thighs and loss of excessive fat in the stomach muscles which may produce loss of weight in the stomach and the legs including the thighs. Thus, a person wearing shoes incorporating the soles can lose weight in the course of their activities such as working in an office, factory or kitchen or being at school. The shoes 10 may also be used by army and police cadets during training or as the usual shoes to be warn all the time to keep fit and body firmness. Fat loss due to the movement of stomach muscles and leg including thigh muscles may create very healthy blood circulation and body muscle firmness.

In mountain climbing, the steeper the mountain the greater the movement of stomach muscles and leg including thigh muscles in the climber. In the same way, the higher the ball of the foot is above the heel, the greater the muscle movement in the stomach and legs including the thighs. Thus, the several layers of soles 12 of the shoes 10 of the present invention may cause greater loss of weight and unwanted fats. This loss is proportional to the height of the ball of the foot above the heel, which depends on the height of the sole layers and their number. Blood circulation is also improved in veins in the legs including the thighs helping to fight diseases due to bad blood circulation in these veins. If there is weak pain in the stomach muscles and leg including thigh muscles from wearing the mountaineering shoes, the pain will go away the longer the shoes 10 incorporating the soles 12 are worn and will get less and less with time. By increasing the numbers of layers of soles 12 and their height and by regularly changing sole heights, where each change has an increase in the height between the toes and heel, the full benefit of losing weight in the right places and improving blood circulation can be achieved.

The mountaineering shoe soles 12 may include a reinforced portion between a ball receiving sole portion and a heel receiving sole portion. The reinforced portion enables the soles 12 to handle the large stresses induced in that portion by the weight of the user or wearer of a shoe incorporating the soles. The reinforced portion of the sole layers may be reinforced with metal making the shoes suitable for sports footwear and leather sandals incorporating the sole layers.

FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 show perspective views of a canvas shoe 10 incorporating the pair of modified soles 12 stacked together and attached to the base sole of the shoe 10 according to another embodiment of the present invention. The soles layers 12 may be incorporated into a sports shoe 10 for walking or running or may have a boot-like design. Such a boot will develop large stresses in the region where the leg and ankle of a user meet when the user is wearing the shoe correctly. Such a shoe 10 should have a means for securing the ankle to the shoe 10 and the ankle securing means should include, for example, a threaded lace to withstand these stresses, as shown in FIG. 11. The boot-like design is even more beautiful and fashionable which makes it possible to have several models using the same basic mountaineering slim shoe 10. In one embodiment, the sole layers may be reinforced with metal strengthening them for sports footwear and leather sandals incorporating the sole layers.

In a specific example of an embodiment, the curved front end portion has a radius of curvature between about 20 and about 200 mm and extends over from about 10% to up about a quarter of the entire length of the soles. The mountaineering shoes 10 as shown in FIG. 10 may have two basic sole parts and several in-between soles with different thickness as described above which can be attached or detached and connected to the basic two parts. An upper basic part will have a flat contour as in conventional shoes but with a higher front at toes than at the heels, with the front and the rear connected with straight contours. A lower basic part will have contours that have higher curved front as described above to help prevent toppling while wearing and walking

According to another embodiment of the invention, FIG. 12 to FIG. 17 show different views of the shoe with an engagement means provided at the heel end of the sole 12. The engagement means includes a pin 22 and a hole 20 at the bottom portion and/or the top portion of the heel end 16 of the sole. The pin 22 and hole 20 arrangement is complementary and can form a tight fit to connect two or more soles 12 together. FIG. 12 and FIG. 13 show top perspective views of the shoe 10 with the engagement means including the pin 22 and the hole 20 at the bottom portion of the heel end 16 and attached to the base sole of a shoe 10. This arrangement helps to add additional soles having matching pins 22 to increase the overall height at the toe end 14 of the shoe 10. The pins 22 may be projecting from the surface of the sole 12. The pin 22 and the hole 20 can be provided on any part of the sole 12 for attaching two or more soles together or for attaching the sole 12 to the base sole of the shoe 10. Several shoe soles 12 attached in-between the upper basic part and the lower basic part may be connected using the plastic pins 22 to be inserted into the holes 20 in both upper and lower basic parts or the pins 22 and holes 20 can be reversed. The pins 22 can be made of any materials to withstand the stresses and strains encountered during use of the mountaineering shoes 10 with detachable soles 12 as shown in FIG. 15 and FIG. 16. Illustrating another embodiment, FIG. 18 shows a top surface of the sole 12 with contours for providing a better grip for the legs of the user while walking or during mountaineering.

In an additional embodiment of the present invention, instead of plastic pins 22 and holes 20 to hold the detachable soles 12 together as shown in FIG. 13 to FIG. 17, the detachable soles 12 can be glued to a hook-and-loop, backing, such as a Velcro® material. Adjacent detachable soles 12 may have a hook backing provided on the bottom portion and corresponding loop inter-locking means provided on the top portion of another detachable sole 12 for detachably connecting the plurality of detachable soles 12 together. The hook-and-loop backing material may be stitched or glued or attached using any attaching means including pins to the corresponding soles 12. The detachable pin strip 18 wound around the shoe 10 perimeter stacks the soles together and tightly surrounds the three modified soles 12 as shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 8. The detachable pin strip 18 covers the sides of the plurality of soles 12, which are stacked together and may have different thicknesses at the toe end 14 and at the heel end 16 pin strip. The hook-and-loop backing layer is reusable and flexible. The detachable pin strip 18 may also include self-gripping hook-and-loop fasteners, which form a unique back-to-back fastening system. The straps of the detachable pin strip 18 wrap around objects to be bundled or controlled, here the plurality of soles 12, and then the remaining strap tip attaches back to the fasteners on an end of the strap to provide a simple, easy to use mountaineering shoe attachment.

In yet another embodiment of the mountaineering shoes 10 of the present invention having a fixed soled with the high sole at the front or toe end of the shoe 10. The height of the fixed sole may be chosen by the wearer of these mountaineering shoes which will give the same benefit as the mountaineering shoes 10 with detachable soles 12 as described above.

FIG. 19 illustrates a top perspective view of still another embodiment of a mountaineering shoe 10 having modified soles 12 and having provisions for placing a counter 28 for measuring a variety of parameters while walking or during mountaineering. The mountaineering shoe 10 having modified soles 12 is provided with at least one shoe attachment 26 for securing the counter 28 to the shoe 10. The shoe attachment 26 may be a removable shoe insert which is attachable to top strip of the shoe 10. The shoe attachment 26 may also be available as a fixed attachment to the mountaineering shoe 10 for holding the counter 28. The shoe insert can be custom-made to adapt with the conditions during mountaineering. The counter 28 located on the shoe attachment 26 include a variety of functions including step counters that can help the user to track their activity during mountaineering or walking by wearing the mountaineering shoe 10. The counter 28 provided on the mountaineering shoe 10 enable the users to track how many steps they currently take each day or during mountaineering, thereby enabling the users to set a goal to increase steps over time. The shoe attachment 26 with the counter 28 is useful for the diabetic, or to one attempting to loose stomach weight and improve the blood circulation in the thigh veins. The counter 28 attached to the mountaineering shoe 10 can measure distance travelled by the mountaineer, the number of steps the mountaineering shoe 10 made during a walk, and the calories lost during a walk. The counter 28 can scientifically monitor the effectiveness of the mountaineering shoes 10 in aid in the control of diabetics using blood test before and after walk and can monitor increase or decrease in length during the everyday walk or mountaineering.

The foregoing description of embodiments of the present invention has been presented for the purpose of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed. Many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings. It is intended that the scope of the present invention not be limited by this detailed description, but by the claims and the equivalents to the claims appended hereto.

MOUNTAINEERING SHOE SOLE

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