VENTILATED SHOE PAD
A ventilated insole including a pad (10) having a bladder (20), an air entry (30), an air exit (40), an entry conduit (50) interconnecting the air entry (30) and the bladder (20), an exit conduit (60) interconnecting the bladder (20) and the air exit (40), and two one-way valves (70) wherein one one-way valve (70) is at a joining portion of the bladder (20) and the entry conduit (50) and the other one-way valve (70) is at a joining portion of the bladder (20) and the exit conduit (60). Each of the entry conduit (50) and the exit conduit (60) has a triangular section so as to increase resistance, thereby facilitating air flow in the entry conduit (50) and the exit conduit (60) and planarizing the pad (10). The insole can be disposed in one of a variety of shoes and brings a degree of comfort to wearer.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to shoe soles and more particularly to a planarized ventilated insole including a plurality of conduits each having a triangular section so that fresh air can be introduced into the insole during walking for comforting and drying the footbed of a wearer.
2. Description of Related Art
Sole of a shoe is provided for wear resistant and cushioning purposes during walking. Further, comfort, shock absorbing capability and ventilation are a shoe sole are needed to consider in the devising stage.
Ventilation of most typical ventilated insoles is achieved by cooperating with other layers of a sole or being integrally formed therewith. For example, Taiwan Utility model No. 180,846 entitled “Removable ventilated insole” discloses an internal bladder, a one-way entry valve, and a one-way exit valve. The entry and exit valves are removably provided at one side of the bladder for communicating air with the exterior of a shoe. The bladder and adjacent valves are removably disposed in a cavity at a front portion of the sole. Taiwan Utility model No. M312,209 entitled “Unitary ventilated insole” discloses a projection on a heel, the projection including a hollow cylinder having a central stem as support and a plurality of entry and exit troughs on a periphery communicating with the hollow cylinder. However, a wearer cannot replace the ventilated insole when it is worn due to its unitary characteristics. Further, it is useless when it is removed. This can adversely decrease the applicability of the ventilated insole and thus decrease consumer's selections.
For allowing consumers to replace a worn ventilated insole by themselves, a number of removable ventilated insoles have been devised. For example, Taiwan Publication No. 200624048, entitled “ventilated insole” discloses a main layer, a spacer layer, a first and a second one-way valve, and a bladder. The bladder communicates with the aperture. The first one-way valve is between the main layer and the spacer layer for introducing external air into the bladder. The second one-way valve is between the main layer and the spacer layer for exiting smell air from the aperture to the atmosphere. However, it is disadvantageous because the bladder is too large to sufficiently suck air or purge air. As a result, air in the bladder is still rather than being expelled or refreshed by external air. The ventilation effect is very poor.
Among prior art literature, a number of patents regarding ventilated insole which allow users to replace the worn insole and have conduits for purging air are disclosed. For example, Taiwan Utility Model No. 515,243, entitled “removable ventilated insole” discloses a pad, a bladder, at least one entry conduit, a first one-way valve in the entry conduit, at least one exit conduit, and a second one-way valve in the exit conduit. The bladder is in the heel of the pad and is comprised of internal elastic members of springs. Entry and exit are provided on the bladder and connected to the entry and exit conduits respectively. The footbed intermittently presses bladder during walking so as to introduce fresh air into the bladder through the entry conduit and exit smell air from the bladder to the atmosphere through the exit conduit. However, a number of drawbacks have been found in the removable ventilated insole having entry and exit conduits as detailed below.
1. The entry and exit conduits are liable to block because if they are made of flexible material.
2. A wearer may have a feeling of pain because something hard touches his/her footbed during walking if the entry and exit conduits are made of hard material.
3. The exposed bladder is liable to wear and thus an uneven surface is formed on the outsole. To the worse, the wearer may slip during walking due to decreased friction.
4. The single conduit arrangement can purge air to the front of the footbed, thereby limiting air flow in a single path between two specific toes.
5. The exposed bladder can be blocked by foreign objects if it is worn. Further, the wearer may have a feeling of uncomfortable when the footbed touches the curved one-way valve.
6. The elastic members of springs inside the bladder may hurt the foot during walking after aging. In view of above problems including being no provision of planarized ventilated insole and unsuccessful commercialization experienced by the prior art, the inventor thus devises a novel ventilated insole by eliminating the prior problems. The ventilated insole of the invention is thin, simple, easy to manufacture, durable, comfort during walking, and appropriate for mass production.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONIt is therefore one object of the invention to provide a planarized ventilated insole for carrying out forced ventilation through the shoe during walking. Further, the insole can be disposed in one of a variety of shoes and brings a degree of comfort and dryness to the foot of a wearer.
In a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a planarized ventilated insole comprising a pad comprising an upper member and a lower member secured to the upper member; a bladder disposed in the pad; an air entry disposed in the pad; an air exit disposed in the pad; an entry conduit disposed in the pad for interconnecting the air entry and the bladder; at least one exit conduit disposed in the pad for interconnecting the bladder and the air exit; and two one-way valves wherein one one-way valve is disposed at a joining portion of the bladder and the entry conduit and the other one-way valve is disposed at a joining portion of the bladder and the at least one exit conduit; wherein the lower member covers both the entry conduit and the at least one exit conduit from below; wherein the upper member comprises an upper opening with an upward arched upper half of the bladder fastened therein; wherein the lower member comprises a lower opening with a downward arched lower half of the bladder fastened therein; and wherein each of the entry conduit and the at least one exit conduit has a triangular section so as to increase resistance to external force, thereby facilitating air flow in the entry conduit and the at least one exit conduit and planarizing the pad.
Preferably, thickness of the pad externally of the bladder is in the range of about 2 cm to 5 cm.
Preferably, further comprises a plurality of equally spaced ribs radially extending from a center of the bladder to a periphery thereof wherein each of the ribs has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the bladder to a second end at the periphery of the bladder.
Preferably, further comprises a lengthwise arched ridge disposed in the entry conduit and a lengthwise arched ridge disposed in the exit conduit respectively.
Preferably, the air exit comprises a transverse exit groove under the pad and connecting to the exit conduit, and a plurality of exit apertures in the exit groove through the upper member, and wherein the air entry is concave on a rear end of the pad.
Preferably, each of the exit apertures comprises an arched top.
Preferably, the bladder comprises two channels at an edge, each channel having one of the one-way valves disposed therein and including a well; wherein each of the one-way valves comprises a divider plate including a through hole, and a flap including a hinge secured to the divider plate; and wherein the flap is vertical to close the through hole when no force is exerted on the bladder.
Preferably, the bladder comprises two tunnels each having an oval longitudinal section for disposing one of the one-way valves therein; wherein each of the one-way valves comprises an outer sleeve including a lengthwise slit on an outer surface and having a first end open to the bladder and a second end formed with a through hole, an inner sleeve of an oval longitudinal section, the inner sleeve including a lengthwise ridge on an outer surface, the ridge being inserted into the slit for assembling the outer and inner sleeves, and a flap pivotably secured to a first end of the inner sleeve, the flap being vertical to close the through hole when no force is exerted on the bladder.
In a second aspect of the invention, there is provided a planarized ventilated insole comprising a pad; an air entry disposed in the pad; and an air exit disposed in the pad; wherein the pad comprises an upper member, an upward arched upper element integrally formed with the upper member, a lower member secured to the upper member, and a downward arched lower element integrally formed with the lower member wherein the upper and lower elements are attached together to form a bladder.
Preferably, further comprises a plurality of spaced ribs radially extending from a center of the upper element to a periphery thereof, each of the ribs being of a longitudinal section of half circle and having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the upper element to a second other end at the periphery thereof; and a plurality of spaced ribs radially extending from a center of the lower element to a periphery thereof, each of the ribs being of a longitudinal section of half circle and having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the lower element to a second other end at the periphery thereof.
By utilizing the invention, the following advantages can be obtained:
1. No conducts are required to mount in the insole. Thickness of the pad externally of the bladder is planarized to be in the range of about 2 cm to 5 cm. A wearer may not have a feeling of pain because something hard touches his/her footbed during walking. Wearer can feel a degree of comfort during walking.
2. With the triangular sections of the entry conduit interconnecting the air entry and the bladder and the exit conduit interconnecting the bladder and the air exit rather than the typical circular section, pointed tops of the exit conduit and the entry conduit have are not liable to become flat or block when pressure is built thereon during walking. Further, the pad can be made thinner with decreased thickness. As a result, a wearer may feel a degree of comfort when wearing shoes incorporating the ventilated insoles during walking.
3. A plurality of equally spaced ribs radially extend from a center of the bladder to a periphery thereof wherein each of the ribs has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the bladder to a second end at the periphery of the bladder. As a result, the bladder is capable of quickly returning to its original shape after releasing pressure exerted thereon.
4. The one-way valves are easy to manufacture, install, and replace and are durable.
5. The one-way valves having an oval longitudinal section can decrease height (i.e., thickness) of the bladder to a minimum. In addition to correct positioning, it is an error-proof design to prevent an erroneous installation from occurring.
6. The one-way valves are disposed in the bladder and thus a wearer may not have a feeling of pain due to projections contacting his/her footbed during walking. Further, locations of air entry and air exit are not interfered. For example, the air entry can be disposed in a rear end of the pad. This eliminates the need of mounting a valve in an opening on an outer surface of outsole as experienced by the typical ventilated insole.
7. The air exit is provided under the pad corresponding to the toes at the front of the footbed. Thus, the exit apertures correspond to the gaps between the toes and each exit aperture has an arched top. As a result, the exit apertures are not liable to be flattened or blocked by applying force thereon.
The above and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken with the accompanying drawings.
Referring to
The pad 10 comprises an upper member 11 and a lower member 12 secured to the upper member 11. Each of the entry conduit 50 and the exit conduit 60 has a triangular section (see
Thickness of the pad 10 externally of the bladder 20 is in the range of about 2 cm to 5 cm.
The upper member 11 comprises an upper opening 111 with an upward arched upper half of the bladder 20 fitted therein, and a plurality of projections 112 on a top, the projections 112 being for massaging the footbed. The upper member 11 further comprises a plurality of protrusions 113 on a bottom, the protrusions 113 being for pressing acupuncture points on the footbed (see
Refer to
Refer to
The bladder 20 comprises a channel 21 communicating with inside of the bladder 20 and the external thereof with each one-way valve 70 disposed therein, and a U-shape well 22 vertically disposed in the channel 21. Each one-way valve 70 comprises a divider plate 71 and a flap 72 having a hinge 73 secured to the divider plate 71.
The divider plate 71 has a central through hole 711. Both sides and bottom of the divider plate 71 is sealingly fastened in the well 22 so that fresh air can only communicate from the entry conduit 50 to the bladder 20 through the through hole 711 of one one-way valve 70 and foul air can only communicate from the bladder 20 to the exit conduit 60 through the through hole 711 of the other one-way valve 70. The divider plate 71 and the flap 72 of each one-way valve 70 are formed integrally from the same material with the hinge 73 of the same material made thinner.
The flap 72 is vertical to close one mouth of the through hole 711 due to gravity when the bladder 20 is not pressed. That is, fresh air can only communicate through the through hole 711 and the flap 72 of one one-way valve 70 to inside of the bladder 20 by pivotably pushing the flap 72 upward. In other words, air inside the bladder 20 is not allowed to exit by passing through the flap 72 and the through hole 711 of one one-way valve 70. The divider plate 71 is shaped as trapezoid so as to prevent it from being incorrectly disposed in the complementarily shaped well 22 during installation.
Further, a plurality of equally spaced ribs 23 radially extend from a center of the bladder 20 to a periphery thereof. The rib 23 has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from one end at the center of the bladder 20 to the other end at the periphery of the bladder 20. Thus, in response to being flexibly depressed, the bladder 20 can be quickly returned to its original shape after the depressing force is released.
The flap 72 of the other one-way valve 70 is at one end of the exit conduit 60. Thus, air in the bladder 20 can only communicate through the through hole 711 and the flap 72 of the other one-way valve 70 to enter the exit conduit 60. In other words, foul air in the bladder 20 can only communicate through the through hole 711 and the flap 72 of the other one-way valve 70 to enter the exit conduit 60 for exiting during walking.
The flap 72 of one one-way valve 70 is provided between the divider plate 71 and inside of the bladder 20 so that air is only allowed to enter the bladder 20 by pivotably upward pushing the flap 72. A partial vacuum is created in the bladder 20 when a person wearing the shoe incorporating the ventilated insole lifts his/her foot. Thus, fresh air is introduced into the bladder 20 via the air entry 30, the entry conduit 50 and one one-way valve 70 and next foul air is purged out of the bladder 20 by leaving the other one-way valve 70, the exit conduit 60 and the air exit 40 in response to the footbed of the wearer pressing the bladder 20.
Referring to
Air introduction and air exit operations of the second preferred embodiment are the same as that of the first preferred embodiment. Air in the bladder 20 is only allowed to leave through the flap 77 of the other one-way valve 70 connected to the exit conduit 60 (see
Referring to
In the third preferred embodiment, as shown in
As shown in
Refer to
Referring to
A plurality of equally spaced ribs 13A are radially extend from a center of the arched upper element 111A to a periphery thereof. The rib 13A has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from one end at the center of the arched upper element 111A to the other end at the periphery of the arched upper element 111A. A plurality of equally spaced ribs 14A radially extend from a center of the arched lower element 121A to a periphery thereof. The rib 14A has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from one end at the center of the arched lower element 121A to the other end at the periphery of the arched lower element 121A. Thus, in response to being flexibly depressed, the arched upper and lower members 111A and 121A can be quickly returned to its original shape after the depressing force is released. This effect is the same as that described in the first preferred embodiment.
While the invention has been described in terms of preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art will recognize that the invention can be practiced with modifications within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. A planarized ventilated insole comprising:
- a pad (10) comprising an upper member (11) and a lower member (12) secured to the upper member (11);
- a bladder (20) disposed in the pad (10);
- an air entry (30) disposed in the pad (10);
- an air exit (40) disposed in the pad (10);
- an entry conduit (50) disposed in the pad (10) for interconnecting the air entry (30) and the bladder (20);
- at least one exit conduit (60) disposed in the pad (10) for interconnecting the bladder (20) and the air exit (40); and
- two one-way valves (70) wherein one one-way valve (70) is disposed at a joining portion of the bladder (20) and the entry conduit (50) and the other one-way valve (70) is disposed at a joining portion of the bladder (20) and the at least one exit conduit (60);
- wherein the lower member (12) covers both the entry conduit (50) and the at least one exit conduit (60) from below;
- wherein the upper member (11) comprises an upper opening (111) with an upward arched upper half of the bladder (20) fastened therein;
- wherein the lower member (12) comprises a lower opening (121) with a downward arched lower half of the bladder (20) fastened therein; and
- wherein each of the entry conduit (50) and the at least one exit conduit (60) has a triangular section so as to increase resistance to external force, thereby facilitating air flow in the entry conduit (50) and the at least one exit conduit (60) and planarizing the pad (10).
2. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, wherein thickness of the pad (10) externally of the bladder (20) is in the range of about 2 cm to 5 cm.
3. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, further comprising a plurality of equally spaced ribs (23) radially extending from a center of the bladder (20) to a periphery thereof wherein each of the ribs (23) has a longitudinal section of half circle having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the bladder (20) to a second end at the periphery of the bladder (20).
4. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, further comprising a lengthwise arched ridge (51) disposed in the entry conduit (50) and a lengthwise arched ridge (61) disposed in the exit conduit (60) respectively.
5. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, wherein the air exit (40) comprises a transverse exit groove (41) under the pad (10) and connecting to the exit conduit (60), and a plurality of exit apertures (42) in the exit groove (41) through the upper member (11), and wherein the air entry (30) is concave on a rear end of the pad (10).
6. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 5, wherein each of the exit apertures (42) comprises an arched top (43).
7. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, wherein the bladder (20) comprises two channels (21) at an edge, each channel (21) having one of the one-way valves (70) disposed therein and including a well (22) vertically provided in the channel 21; wherein each of the one-way valves (70) comprises a divider plate (71), adapted to be sealingly fastened in the well 22, including a through hole (711), and a flap (72) including a hinge (73) secured to the divider plate (71); and wherein the flap (72) is vertical to close the through hole (711) when no force is exerted on the bladder (20).
8. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 1, wherein the bladder (20) comprises two tunnels (24) each having an oval longitudinal section for disposing one of the one-way valves (70) therein; wherein each of the one-way valves (70) comprises an outer sleeve (74) including a lengthwise slit (741) on an outer surface and having a first end open to the bladder (20) and a second end formed with a through hole (75), an inner sleeve (76) of an oval longitudinal section, the inner sleeve (76) including a lengthwise ridge (761) on an outer surface, the ridge (761) being inserted into the slit (741) for assembling the outer and inner sleeves (74, 76), and a flap (77) pivotably secured to a first end of the inner sleeve (76), the flap (77) being vertical to close the through hole (75) when no force is exerted on the bladder (20).
9. A planarized ventilated insole comprising:
- a pad (10A);
- an air entry (30) disposed in the pad (10A); and
- an air exit (40) disposed in the pad (10A);
- wherein the pad (10A) comprises an upper member (11A), an upward arched upper element (111A) integrally formed with the upper member (11A), a lower member (12A) secured to the upper member (11A), and a downward arched lower element (121A) integrally formed with the lower member (12A) wherein the upper and lower elements (111A, 121A) are attached together to form a bladder.
10. The planarized ventilated insole of claim 9, further comprising a plurality of spaced ribs (13A) radially extending from a center of the upper element (111A) to a periphery thereof, each of the ribs (13A) being of a longitudinal section of half circle and having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the upper element (111A) to a second other end at the periphery thereof; and a plurality of spaced ribs (14A) radially extending from a center of the lower element (121A) to a periphery thereof, each of the ribs (14A) being of a longitudinal section of half circle and having an area gradually increased from a first end at the center of the lower element (121A) to a second other end at the periphery thereof.
Type: Application
Filed: May 19, 2011
Publication Date: Mar 21, 2013
Inventors: Wei-Kuo Chou (Taipei), Feng Zhen (Huishan Wuxi)
Application Number: 13/696,315