Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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I B A CKGROLTND OF DELMEENTTON
2 1. Field of the Invention
3 The present invention relates to a method for making a component of a
4' boot body for a skating shoe, and more particularly to a method for making
a
component of a boot body for a skating shoe to reinforce the hardness and
impact
6 strength of the boot body and to lighten the weight of the boot body.
7 2. Description of Related Art
8 At present, a conventional method of making a boot body of a skating
9 shoe, such as a roller skate, an ice skate or the like, uses leather,
polyvinyl
chloride (PVC), hard polyurethane elastomer (PU) or textile cloth to
11 substantially form the boot body with stitches. To reinforce the hardness
of the
12 boot body, reinforcements, such as chemical sheets, cabretas or leathers
are
13 attached to a lining that is put inside the boot body. Then, a tongue is
joined to the
14 boot body with stitches and a sole is adhered to the boot body. Further,
wheels or
a blade is mounted on the sole to form a skating shoe.
16 Another conventional method of making a boot body uses injection
17 molding to form the boot body. Likewise, reinforcements, such as chemical
18 sheets, cabretas or leathers are attached to a lining that is put inside
the boot body
19 to reinforce the hardness of the boot body. Then, wheels or a blade is
mounted on
the boot body to form a skating shoe.
21 The skating shoe is used in speed skating, figure skating or hockey
22 games so the skating shoe must have a light weight, a high hardness and a
high
23 impact strength to protect a foot of a user from injury and to help the
user to have
24 an excellent performance. However, the reinforcements attached to the
lining do
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2
1 not join with the boot body, so the reinforcements directly press the foot
to make
2 the user uncomfortable. Further, the reinforcements increase the weight of
the
3 skating shoe and influence the performarnce of the user.
4 'SiTM1VfARY OF THE INVENTION
The primaty objective of the present invention is to provide a method for
6 making a component of a boot body of a skating shoe to overcome the
7 aforementioned problems.
8 The method for making a component of a boot body of a skating shoe
9 comprises a cutting step, a mold-making step, a coating step and a shaping
step.
The cutting step cuts a flexible sheet to form a base sheet with at least
11 one predetermined coating area. The mold-making step forms a coating mold
12 with at teast one coating slot corresponding to the at least one
predetermined
13 coating area of the base sheet.
14 The coating step applies epoxy resin to the base sheet to form a layer of
epoxy resin coating on the base sheet, aligns the at least one coating slot of
the
16 coating mold with the at (east one predetermined coating area of the base
sheet
,A7 after the layer of epoxy resin coating is solidified and then applies at
least one
18 layer of the epoxy resin to the at least one predetermined coating area
through the
19 at least one coating slot to form at least one reinforcement.
When the epoxy resin is solidified, the at least one reinforcement
21 provides an improved hardness and impact strength to the boot body to keep
a
22 user's foot from injury. Further, the at least one reinforcement is formed
23 integrally on the base sheet to avoid directly pressing the foot and makes
the user
24 comfortably.
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1 The shaping step heats and pressurizes the base sheet on a boot last to
2 form a boot body after the base sheet is cooling.
3 Other objectives, advantages and novel features of the present invention
4 will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken
in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
6 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THR DRAWMMS
7 Fig. I is a block diagram of steps of a first embodiment of a method for
8 making a component of a boot body of a skating shoe in accordance with the
9 present invention;
Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a-coating mold with a side
11 sheet made by the method in Fig, 1;
12 Fig: 3 is a front view of a side-plus-heel sheet made by the method in Fig.
13 1;
14 Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional side plane view of reinforcements made by the
method in Fig. 1;
16 Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional side plane view of the reinforcements made by
17 the method in Fig. I with fiber textiles being added to the reinforcements;
18 Fig. 6 an exploded perspective view of multiple base sheets made by the
19 method in Fig. 1,
Fig. 7 an exploded perspective view of multiple base sheets made by the
21 method in Fig. 1 with a side sheet and a sole sheet being joined together;
22 Fig. 8 an exploded perspective view of multiple base sheets made by the
23 method in Fig. I with a heel sheet and the sole sheet being_joined
together;
24 Fig. 9 an exploded perspective view of multiple base sheets made by the
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1 method in Fig. 1 with two side sheets and the sole sheet being joined
together;
2 Fig. 10 is a perspective view of a sole mold fitting with the method -in
Fig.
3 i; and
4 Fig. 11 is a block diagram of steps of a second embodiment of the
method for making a component of a boot body of a skating shoe in accordance
6 with the present invention
7 DETATj,F.])QF,S= ON OF PRF RRF.T) FMBOI]IMFNT
8 A boot body of a skating shoe comprises multiple sections including a
9 sole section, two side sections and a heel section. The sole section has two
opposite side edges and a rear edge. The side sections are mounted
respectively
11 on the opposite side edges of the sole section. The heel section is mounted
on the
12 rear edge of the sole section and joins with the side sections,
13 With reference to Fig. l, a method for making a component of a boot
14 body in accordance with the present invention comprises a cutting step (A),
a
mold-making step (B), a coating step (C) and a shaping step (D).
16 With further reference to Figs. 2, 3 and 6-10, the cutting step (A) is
17 cutting a flexible sheet to form a base slieet (10) with at least one
predetermined
18 coating area. The flexible sheets may be made of hard polyurethane
elastomer
19 (PU) or fiber-textile pre-preg. The base sheet (10) may be a one-piece side
sheet
(1 a, 1 b) corresponding to one of the side sections of the boot body, may be
a
21 one-piece heel sheet (2) corresponding to the heel section of the boot body
or
22 may be a side-plus-heel sheet (11) having multiple optional ventilating
holes (12)
23 and two side sections and a heel section formed in an integral piece. The
side
24 sections of the side-plus-iteel sheet (11) correspond respectively to the
side
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1 sections of the boot body. The heel section of the side-plus=heel sheet (11)
2 corresponds to the heel sections of the boot body.
3 The mold-making step (B) is forxning a coating mold (40) with at least
4 one coating slot (41) and an optional sole mold (50) with a sole recess
(51). The
5 at least one coating slot (41) corresponds to the at least one predetermined
6 coating area of the base sheet (10). The sole recess (51) corresponds to the
sole
7 section of the boot body and has two opposite side edges and a rear edge.
S With further reference to Figs. 4 and 5, the coating step (C) is applying
9 epoxy resin to the base sheet (10) and comprises acts of forming a layer of
epoxy
I0 resin coating (23) on the base sheet (10), aligning the at least one
coating slot (41)
i 1 of the coating mold (40) with the at least one predetermined coating area
of the
12 base sheet (10) after the layer of epoxy resin coating (23) is solidified
and
13 applying at least one layer of epoxy resin to the at least one
predetermined
14 coating area through the at least one coating slot (41) to form at least
one
reinforcement (20). The coating step (C) may be implemented in several ways.
16 The at least one reinforcement (20) becomes hardened when the epoxy resin
is
17 solidified, is formed integrally on the base sheet (10) and has at least
one layer
18 (21) to form an enough thickness. So the at least one reinforcements (20)
19 provides enhanced hardness and impact strength to the boot body and
effectively
protects a user's foot from injury. In addition, the at least on.e
reinforcement can
21 avoid directly pressing the foot and makes the user comfortable. Further,
the at
22 least one reinforcement (20) do not impose additional weight to the skating
shoe
23 to influence a perfornzance of the user.
24 With further reference to Fig. 10, in a first embodiment of the coating
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I step (C), the coating step (C) applies the epoxy resin to the sole recess
(51) of the
2 sole mold (50) to form a sole sheet (30).
3 With further reference to Fig. 7, in a second embodiment of the coating
4 step (C), the side sheet (1a, ib) is placed adjacent to one of the side
edges of the
sole recess (51) of the sole mold (50) and the epaxy resin is applied to the
side
6 sheet (1 a, I b) and the sole recess (51) to form the layer of epoxy resin
coating (23)
7 on the side sheet (la, 1b) and a sole sheet (30) integrally joined with the
layer of
8 epoxy resin coating (23) on the side sheet (la, ib).
9 With further reference to Fig. 8, in a third embodiment of the coating
step (C), the heel sheet (2) is placed adjacent to the rear edge of the sole
recess
11 (51) of the sole mold (50) and then the epoxy resin is applied to the heel
sheet (2)
12 and the sole recess (51) to form the layer of epoxy resin coating (23) and
a sole
13 sheet (30) integrally joined with the layer of epoxy resin coating (23) on
the heel
14 sheet (2).
With further reference to Fig. 5, in a forth embodiment of the coating
16 step (C), fiber textiles (22) or reinforced material such as injection-
molded piece,
17 metal piece and the like can be added to the at least one reinforcement
(20)
18 during applying the epoxy resin to the at least one predetermined coating
area of
19 the base sheet (10) through the at least one coating slot (41) in the
coating mold
(40) to form the at least one reinforcement (20) with an improved structural
21 strength.
22 The shaping step (b) is heating and pressurizing the base sheet (10) on a
23 boot last to form a component of a boot body after the base sheet (10) is
cooling.
24 The method for making a component of a boot body for a skating shoe
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1 can be performed to form a[aeel section and a sole section of the boot body
as an
2 integral piece or to form a side section and a sole section of the boot body
as an
3 integral piece. Xt is easy to be derived that how to form two side sections
and a
4 sole section of the boot body as an integral piece.
With further reference to k'ig. 11, another implementation of the method
6 for making a component of a boot body for a skating shoe comprises a cutting
7 step (Al), a mold-making step (B 1), a coating step (C1) and a shaping step
(D1).
8 The cutting step (A1) is cutting two flexible sheets to form two base
9 sheets (10) with multiple predetermined coating areas. The base sheets (10)
are
respectively correspond to the side sections of the boot body.
1 t The mold-making step (B 1) is forming at least one coating mold (40)
12 with multiple coating slots (41) and a sole mold (50) with a sole recess
(51) and
13 may be implemented in several ways. The coating slots (41) correspond to
the
14 multiple predetermined coating areas of the base sheets (10). The sole
recess (51)
has two opposite side edges.
16 In a first embodiment of the mold-alaking step (B 1), the mold-making
17 step (BI) forms a single coating mold. The single coating mold can cover
both'--
18 the base sheets (10) in a plane and all the coating slots (41) are located
in the
19 single coating mold.
In a second embodiment of the mold-making step (B 1), the mold-
21 making step (B1) forms two coating molds (40). The coating molds (40)
22 correspond respectively to the base sheets (10) and the coating slots (41)
may be
23 distributed in both coating molds (40).
24 The coating step (CI) includes acts of placing the base sheets (10)
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1 respectively adjacent to the opposite side edges of the sole recess (51) of
the sole
2 mold (50), applying epoxy resin to the base sheets (10) and the sole recess
(51) to
3 form a layer of epoxy resin coating (23) on each base sheet (10) and a sole
sheet
4 (30) integrally joined with the layer of epoxy resin coatings (23) on the
base
sheets (10), aligning the coating slots (41) of the at least one coating mold
(40)
6 with the predetermined coating areas of the base sheets (10) after the layer
of
7 epoxy resin coatings (23) being solidified and applying at least one layer
of the
8 epoxy resin to the predetermined coating areas through the coating slots
(41) to
9 form reinforcements (20). The reinforcements (20) are formed integrally on
the
base sheets (10) and each having at least one layer.
I I The shaping step (D1) is heating and pressurizing the base sheets (10)
12 and the sole sheet (50) on a boot last to form a component of a boot body
after the
13 base sheets (10) and the sole sheet (50) being cooling. The component
formed in
14 the shaping step (D1) forms the side sections and the sole section of the
boot
body in an integral piece.
16 Even though numerous characteristics and advantages of the present
17 invention have been set forth in the foregoing description, together with
details
18 of the structure and function of the invention, the disclosure is
illustrative only.
19 Changes may be made in detail, especially in matters of shape, size, and
arrangement of parts within the principles of the invention to the full extent
21 indicated by the broad general meaning of the terms in which the appended
22 claims are expressed.