Absorbent Shoe Insert

Abstract

An absorbent shoe insert for absorbing sweat from the user's feet. The absorbent shoe insert is shaped similarly to the bottom of a human foot and can be worn with conventional footwear such as shoes, sneakers, flip flops, or the like. The absorbent shoe insert has a body that includes at least one absorbent layer for absorbing sweat from the user's foot. An adhesive layer is disposed on the underside of the body, wherein the adhesive serves to secure the absorbent shoe insert to the user's footwear. In some embodiments, the shoe insert further includes a porous upper layer that helps to channel sweat to the absorbent layer so as to help to keep the user's foot dry.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/049,593 filed on Sep. 12, 2014. The above identified patent application is herein incorporated by reference in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to shoe inserts. More specifically, the present invention provides an absorbent shoe insert adapted to help keep a user's feet dry and comfortable. The shoe insert comprises at least one absorbent layer, wherein an adhesive layer is disposed on the underside thereof. The shoe insert may further include a porous upper layer for helping to keep a user's foot dry and so as to channel sweat towards the absorbent layer.

During periods of warm weather, certain types of footwear may cause a person's feet to become sweaty and uncomfortable. Conventional shoes and other footwear do not include means for absorbing sweat, and sweat from the user's feet can damage the footwear and can cause the footwear to develop a foul odor. While some people wear socks in order to prevent foot odor and to prevent the sweat from damaging the footwear, wearing socks in periods of warm weather can be uncomfortable. Further, many types of footwear are not commonly worn with socks, such as flip flops. Thus, a shoe insert for helping to absorb sweat and keep a user's feet dry is desired.

Devices have been disclosed in the prior art that relate to sweat absorbing devices. These include devices that have been patented and published in patent application publications. These devices generally relate to sweat absorbing pads for various portions of a user's body, such as U.S. Pat. No. 6,138,276, U.S. Pat. No. 6,203,399, U.S. Published Patent Application Number 2011/0296579, U.S. Pat. No. 5,716,255, and U.S. Published Patent Application Number 2012/0291175.

These prior art devices have several known drawbacks. The devices in the prior art provide sweat absorbing devices that can be secured to a user's body. However, the prior art fails to provide a shoe insert having a multi-layer construction including at least one absorbent layer, wherein the shoe insert is adapted to absorb sweat so as to keep a user's feet comfortable and dry.

In light of the devices disclosed in the prior art, it is submitted that the present invention substantially diverges in design elements from the prior art and consequently it is clear that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing sweat absorbing devices. In this regard the instant invention substantially fulfills these needs.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known types of shoe inserts now present in the prior art, the present invention provides a new shoe insert wherein the same can be utilized for providing convenience for the user when absorbing sweat to provide comfort to the user while wearing footwear.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a new and improved shoe insert shaped similarly to a human foot that is adapted to be inserted into or onto footwear, such as a shoe or sandal, and the like.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a shoe insert having a multi-layer construction with at least one absorbent layer.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe insert having a multi-layer construction with an adhesive layer for securing the shoe insert to footwear.

Yet another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe insert having a multi-layer construction with a porous layer for helping to keep a user's foot dry and for channeling sweat to the absorbent layer or layers.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe insert that may be readily fabricated from materials that permit relative economy and are commensurate with durability.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of this invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manner in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1A shows a top-down view of an embodiment of the shoe insert for use with shoes.

FIG. 1B shows a top-down view of an alternate embodiment of the shoe insert for use with flip-flops.

FIG. 2 shows a side cross sectional view of the shoe insert.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the shoe insert. For the purposes of presenting a brief and clear description of the present invention, the preferred embodiment will be discussed as used for absorbing sweat from a user's foot so as to keep the user's foot dry and comfortable. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered to be limiting in any respect.

Referring now to FIGS. 1A and 1B, there are shown views of embodiments of the shoe insert. The shoe insert 11 comprises a body 12 shaped similarly to the bottom of a human foot. Thus, the body 12 comprises a widened toe portion 13 and a heel portion 14. The body 12 is sized so as to fit within an article of footwear, such as a sneaker or shoe, or so as to be placed onto the upper surface of a sandal or flip-flop. The body is preferably selected so as to be similar in size to the size of a user's foot. The body 12 is thin and flexible so that it can be positioned within various types of footwear without consuming substantial volume therein.

In some embodiments, the toe portion 13 comprises a longitudinal slit 16 adapted to correspond to the location of the strap of a flip-flop so that the shoe insert 11 can be worn with a conventional pair of flip-flops. The slit 16 extends from the toe portion 13 so that when the shoe insert 11 is in use, a user's big toe is on a first side of the slit 16 and the user's other toes are on the second side of the slit 16.

In some embodiments, the body 12 further comprises a padded region 20 corresponding to the ball of the user's foot. The padded region 20 is adapted to provide additional cushioning to the ball of the user's foot to provide comfort to the user. The padded region 20 is positioned on the upper surface 15 of the body 12 of the shoe insert 11.

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown a side cross sectional view of the shoe insert. The body 12 comprises a multi-layer construction having at least one absorbent layer 18. Additional layers of absorbent material provide additional absorptivity and further provide cushioning or padding. Preferably, the absorbent layer is composed of cotton or another similar material. The absorbent layer 18 is adapted to absorb and hold sweat from a user's foot.

An adhesive layer 19 is positioned on the underside of the absorbent layer 18. The adhesive layer 19 is adapted to allow the shoe insert 11 to be secured to the footwear so that the shoe insert 11 remains in position therein.

In some embodiments, the body 12 further comprises an upper layer 17 composed of a porous material. The upper layer 17 is adapted to direct or funnel sweat from the user's foot to the absorbent layer thereunder. In this way, the absorbent layer 18 and the sweat held therein does not contact the user's foot. The upper layer 17 is adapted to remain dry for the comfort of the user.

It is therefore submitted that the instant invention has been shown and described in what is considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments. It is recognized, however, that departures may be made within the scope of the invention and that obvious modifications will occur to a person skilled in the art. With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized that the optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, to include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obvious to one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to those illustrated in the drawings and described in the specification are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of the principles of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications and changes will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operation shown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A shoe insert, comprising:

a body shaped similarly to a human foot and adapted to be inserted within an article of footwear;

said body having at least one absorbent layer;

an adhesive layer disposed on an underside of said at least one absorbent layer.

2. The shoe insert of claim 1, wherein said body comprises a toe region and a heel region, wherein said toe region is widened relative to said heel region.

3. The shoe insert of claim 2, wherein said toe region comprises a slit thereon adapted to be positioned so as to receive a strap of a flip-flop on which said body is positioned.

4. The shoe insert of claim 1, wherein said body further comprises an upper layer disposed on said at least one absorbent layer, wherein said upper layer is composed of a porous material.

5. The shoe insert of claim 1, wherein said absorbent layer is composed of cotton.

6. The shoe insert of claim 1, wherein said body further comprises a padded region thereon, wherein said padded region is positioned in an area corresponding to the ball of a user's foot.