Mating Footwear
Footwear that includes correlated magnets of opposite polarity to releasably mate the pieces of footwear together.
The inventions described below relate to the field of footwear that incorporates correlated magnets of opposite polarity to releasably mate the pieces of footwear together.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONSIndividuals often wear sandals or flip-flops and discard them with little regard for storage. Each individual shoe can be easily misplaced or hard to locate when not properly stored. This results in the constant misplacing of one of the mates in a pair of sandals, resulting in frustration, lost time and loss of money due to having to replace an entire pair of sandals when only a single shoe is misplaced. Fasteners for mating shoes can be cumbersome and ineffective and are thus limited in their capacity to efficiently store pairs of shoes together. Consequently, there is a need for shoe mating devices and methods.
SUMMARYThe devices and methods described below provide for mating footwear to easily store and access the footwear. Each piece of footwear or shoe includes a magnet integrated within the sole of the shoe. Each pair of shoes contains coordinating magnets of opposite polarity. The magnet within each shoe attracts to the magnet in its mating shoe. Once mated, the shoes can be stored together for easy location at a later desired time. The mated shoes are pulled apart in order for the user to wear the shoes. The footwear can include sandals, flip-flops, athletic shoes, boots or any other footwear.
The outsole is comprised of a waterproof and durable material in order to provide enough friction between the shoe and the ground. The outsole may also be etched with grooves in order to enhance friction. The insole is comprised of a shock absorbing material such as ethylene vinyl acetate or the like. The insole may also include anti-microbial additives in order to reduce the possibility of bacterial infections and shoe odor. The magnets may be comprised of iron, nickel, cobalt, or any other ceramic or ferrite material that produces a magnetic field. The magnet strength may be in the range of 100 Gauss and 3,700 Gauss. The magnets may be any shape within the sole.
In use, a user will remove both shoes and align the shoe soles together in order to engage the magnets. The shoe soles can be aligned either in an outsole-outsole configuration or alternatively an insole-insole configuration. Once paired, the shoes are stored together for ease of location and convenience. The user can also pull the shoes apart to disengage the magnets when desired to wear the shoes.
While the preferred embodiments of the devices and methods have been described in reference to the environment in which they were developed, they are merely illustrative of the principles of the inventions. The elements of the various embodiments may be incorporated into each of the other species to obtain the benefits of those elements in combination with such other species, and the various beneficial features may be employed in embodiments alone or in combination with each other. Other embodiments and configurations may be devised without departing from the spirit of the inventions and the scope of the appended claims.
Claims
1. A shoe assembly comprising:
- a first shoe having a sole with a first magnet releasably attached within the sole; and
- a second shoe having a sole with a second magnet releasably attached within the sole;
- wherein the first magnet is disposed within the first shoe with polarity aligned in a first orientation relative to the structure of the first shoe, and the second magnet is disposed within the second shoe with its polarity aligned in a second orientation relative to the structure of the second shoe, where the second orientation is opposite the first orientation.
2. The assembly of claim 1 wherein the magnets in the first and second shoes are positioned within an outsole of the soles.
3. The assembly if claim 1 where in the magnets in the first and second shoes are positioned within the insole of the soles.
Type: Application
Filed: Aug 27, 2020
Publication Date: Mar 3, 2022
Inventors: Jeffrey Jamison Beall (Mission Viejo, CA), Allyson Kate Beall (Mission Viejo, CA)
Application Number: 17/004,553