SHOE MOUNTING AND CLOSING DEVICE

DISPOSITIF DE MONTAGE ET DE FERMETURE D'UN ARTICLE CHAUSSANT

English Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE
The present invention relates to a shoe
mounting and closing device, wherein a strap is secured
between the upper and the sole of the shoe, adjacent
the arch, which arch constitutes, in the strained foot,
the part where the strains are transmitted, the said
strap enclosing tightly the whole upper of the shoe and
comprising a closing member joining together the two
ends of said strap. The invention finds an application
in the manufacture of sports shoes.

Claims

The embodiments of the invention in which an
exclusive property or privilege is claimed are defined
as follows:
1. Shoe mounting and closing device, wherein
a strap is secured between the upper and the sole of
the shoe, adjacent the arch, which arch constitutes, in
the strained foot, the part where strains are trans-
mitted, said strap enclosing completely and tightly
said upper of the shoe and including a closure member
joining together the two ends of said strap.
2. Device according to claim 1, wherein one
of the ends of the strap comprises a buckle in which is
engaged the other end of the strap which is folded over
and secured to the strap by fastening means.
3. Device as claimed in claim 1, wherein one
of the ends of said strap comprises series of hooks or
loops which are adapted to be engaged in series of
loops or hooks provided on a part of the strap.
4. A shoe comprising a sole, an upper, an
arch and a strap secured between the upper and the sole
of the shoe, adjacent the arch, which arch constitutes,
in the strained foot, the part where strains are
transmitted, said strap enclosing completely and tight-
ly said upper of the shoe wherein one of the ends of
said strap comprises a series of hooks or loops which
are adapted to be engaged in a series of loops or hooks

provided on a part of the strap and wherein said strap
and said series of hooks or loops constitutes the sole
means for the closure of the shoe.

Description

~ ~9 ~J~ ~
~he preSellt in~'ell~i on relates to a de~ice
for mo~ultil1g and c:Losil1g a sl1oe and in particulc~^ a
sport shoe.
In orcler to clearly sl1ow the different
f~mctions required from the shoe, it l1as been necessary
to study the allatomical problem3, namely ho~ best to
adapt the foot to the shoe and to its ~orking surface.
In particular, ~rhere a sport shoe is
concerned, it is most inlportan-t for any efforts develc>ped
by the athlete to be transmitted with the minimum defor-
mation and this, in the bes-t con~itions of physiological
comfort for the foot. Also, the lightness Or the shoe is
very often a major element.
The compromise is therefore a shoe which
is sufficiently structured to prevent any deformations
from affecting the mechanical transmissions and sufficien~
tly light and supple to meet the requirements of sport
competitions.
I-t is the o~ject of the present invention
to ensure a complete interdependence between the foot and
the slloe witll a ma~imum of safety and comfort for a mini-
mum ~eight.
According to the present invention, a de~rice
is used for mounting and closing a shoe which is
characterized in that a strap is secured between the
upper and the sole of the shoe, adjacen1- the arch, which
arcil consti1u-tes, in the strained foo$, the part where
the strains are transmitted, the said s-trap enclosing
tightly -the whole upper of the shoe ancl comprising a clos-
ing member joining togetller the two ends of said strap.
Said strap is folclecl bacl; by Illealls of a
sligl1tly c~red ~lckle, permitting by shiftil1g the
folding back portion in one direction or another, an
ànatomical adaptation to any instep.
Said strap is also clesignecl to provide
~`

arch-support, -thereby preventing the deforlna-tions of the
foot structlu-e (flat feet) founcl by podiatrists~ and
reducirlg tlle fatigue resulting from strain.
rhe fron-t and back parts of the shoe can be
mo~lted accorclin~ to any assembl~ g metllod, i~ith or
tYit~lou-~ hal.~.lellgt]l sock or reinfol~cmen~s (Willg pieces,
hard toe-caps, counters, shan]~s).
The radi.al assemb:Ly of the fastenin~ strap
also elimi:nates the conventional clos~u~e 7 by affordins
nlaxinlum adjus-tin~ poss:i.~i.lities to ~he gri.ppinS of the
foot, the support ~ei~ guarallteed by the complete
dimensional stabi.li.ty of tlle strap.
Tlle reduct.ion in weig~ht resultin~ from
the invention is also itnportant due to the extreme
simplif:ication of the assembling and closin$ device
and the eliminati.on of stiff reinforcenlents normally
used for palliatill$ longitlldi.nal deformations.
Tlle device according to the invention
offers an added safety whicl results from the elimination
of laces and of buckles liable to cause certain
accidents SUCII as ullexpected opening, falls due to
undone laces, serious deformations necessitating the
removal o~ the shoe, or causin~ the foot to work ~ongly
inside the slloe and ~iving rise to cramps or other
painsO
Wherl straining the foot (~hich occurs in
most forms of sport) and in particular durin~ the
position of traction (in cyclin~) the conventional
shoe is deformed essentially length~ise, the point of
application of the strain being situated at tl~e heel
whereas the point of contact ~ith the ground, and there-
fore the resistance -to the strain, is situated under the
vamp.
It is the object of the invention to over-
come this disadvantage by proposillg a device ~hereill tlle -

~o~
-tightenin$ of the foot adjacellt the arch enables the
application of ~he strain over the ~ihole radial strap,
this increasillg -tlle clistrib-ltion surface (llellce less
de~ormatioll for an identical strain) and brings the
point of traction closer -to the point of resistance.
:Ln acldition, the coefficien-t of deformation
of the strap proper is lo--, and neglisible at the le~-el
of ~he forces applied by strainin~r a~hLetes.
In certa:in fornls of spor~s w}lere the foot
reaches higll speeds for e~alnp:Le in cvcling~ the aero-
d~namism of tlle shoe tales on c~l essential character.
The closure of the strap b~ means of ~~elcro-t~-pe tape
enal)lesl dlle to close i~lterlocking of the hooked part
~itll the looped part, an excellent penetration into the
air t clearly superior to the conventional closing devices.
Tlle invention ~ill be more readily under-
stoocl Oll reading the follol~ing descriptioll, with reference
to -the accompaJIying drawin$s, in l~hicll :
- Figure l is a viel~ from above of a shoe
according to the invention mounted on a shoe-tree, the
strap being open.
- Fig~-e ~ is a similar view from above
of the shoe, the strap being closed;
- Figure 3 is a view from beneath of the
25 shoe according to tl-e invention with -the sole dismounted~
the st;rap beillg closedO
Figllres l, ~ and 3 slloli a shoe and more
particularly a sports shoe on l~hicll a strap 3 is secured
between the upper l and the sole 2, said strap enclosing
completely the upper l of the shoe. Said strap being
secl~red at the level of the arch la whicll, in the
strained foot, constitu-tes the spot where the strains are
transmi-t ted.
One of the ends of the strap 3 comprises
a bllckle 4 in ~hich is engased -the o-ther end 3a of ~he
strap l~hicll i.5 f`olded over the ~Ipper par-t of said strap.

3P7f9 ~
~v
-- 4
The end 3a of the strap is fastened to the upper part
of the latter by ]cnown fastening means, such as for
example a hooked strap of tape made of material
identified under the trade mark "Velcro" and
comprising, on its face opposite the strap, series of
hooks engaging with series of loops.
The buckle 4 is slightly curved and permits
by shifting the folded over portion in one direction or
another, an anatomical adaptation to all insteps.
The invention is in no way limited to the
description given hereinabove, and on the contrary
covers any modifications that can be made thereto
without departing from -the scope thereof.
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