ADJUSTABLE GIRTH SHOE CONSTRUCTION

Abstract: Footwear having a concealed means for girth adjustment is described. The girth adjustment means may be manual or automatic and generally comprises a girth adjustable lining assembly disposed within the shoe.

Description: ADJUSTABLE GIRTH SHOE CONSTRUCTION BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION In order for a shoe to fit properly, it should not only be of the correct length, but also the correct inside width and girth dimensions that substantially continually match those of the foot therein. As used herein, girth is defined as the transverse circumference around the foot, typically measured at the ball, waist and instep thereof, and is also used to de¬ scribe the effective inside circumference of the shoe in the same regions. In conventional footwear, such proper fit is approached only by offering a full range of some nine or more successively graduated width increments for each size in length. However, even with such full width ranges, some means of further girth adjustment is still needed to accommodate dif¬ ferences between left and right foot girths as well as those caused by diurnal and other girth variations experienced by the foot, which variations, primarily due to fluid accumulation in the foot, usually amount to up one and one half or even two full width sizes in range. Despite this well known informa¬ tion, the economics of mass production and distribution have brought about the widespread practice of limiting most. shoe of¬ ferings to a single width for each size in length, resulting in only an approximate and usually poor fit in most cases, often resulting in serious foot disorders over time. For these reasons, there has been a continuing need for a practical and economical shoe construction affording width and girth adjustment through means that are relatively concealed to allow such adjustability to be applied to a wide variety of shoe styles including those with conventional bottoms and at¬ tachment of uppers thereto. Adjustable girth footwear is not new. Much prior art has employed visible means of girth adjustment including laces, straps, and the like, most of which are rarely adaptable to girth adjustment at the ball of the foot, where such adjustment is most needed. Moreover, these means are not even present in styles having typically no such girth adjustment means, such as loafers, women's dress shoes of various heel heights, and many other casual and boot styles; in addition, there are well-de¬ fined needs for footwear having means of girth adjustment that are automatic, not only to prevent improper manual adjustment, but to provide such adjustment to those who might otherwise have difficulty with other manual means, as for example, young children, the handicapped, and the elderly. Adjustable girth footwear are also disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,404,468, 3,541,708, and 3,686,777 granted this inventor. None of these proved marketable for several reasons: the latter patents were too complex to be able to be produced competitive¬ ly, and were prone to malfunction as a result of dirt entrapm¬ ent in the mechanism, while he embodiments of '468 suffered from similar problems, as well as durability and appearance com¬ pared to conventional shoes, and finally, the last three fig¬ ures of '468 (11 through 13) failed to give sufficient girth adjustment to be worth consideration. However, despite their many shortcomings, they did serve to suggest the merit of the considerable added R&D that has led finally to the present in¬ vention. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,442,031 and 3,922,800 disclose shoes in which the girth is adjusted by raising at least part of the top surface of the insole, thereby not only changing the shoe's girth but the elevation of a foot in the shoe as well. Since, as a practical matter, such adjustment would usually take place in the forepart of the shoe to preserve a comfortable fit in the counter and backpart, there results an imbalanced adjust¬ ment that can change the effective 'tread' of the shoe, i.e. the relationship of the height of the wearer's heel to that of the ball. Moreover since proper adjustment of girth normally reflects the usual girth difference between left and right foot, another result would often be to have a person's feet at essentially different heights above the walking surface, which could over time result in serious orthopedic problems. U.S. Pat. Nos. 490,998; 2,691,227 and 3,436,842, while ap¬ parently having some similarity to this invention are actually quite different in function, provide a measure of girth adjust¬ ment only when the shoe is unweighted while the present inven¬ tion provides girth adjustment in both unweighted and weight- bearing conditions, the latter being considered as far more im¬ portant as the discomfort and trauma experienced with ill-fit¬ ting shoes occurs mainly under weight-bearing conditions. Fur¬ thermore, the latter two patents disclose no means to prevent entrapment of dirt and pebbles within the described structure. U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,270 uses deformable sponges that are secured to the inside of a boot primarily to facilitate inser¬ tion and removal of the foot without the use of a zipper or oth¬ er enlarging means. However, the heat and pressure build-up experienced with such inserts, particularly those worn over the foot in the ball area, has precluded their use in conventional dress and casual footwear. U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,531 describes a shoe with a partial elastic slipper sock surrounding the forepart of the foot and fastened to the bottom assembly, free of attachment to the upper. While this structure may limit tongue misalignment in use, it affords no substantial girth adjustment as the narrower foot in such a shoe would typically experience looseness and resultant buckling when weight bearing during the stride cycle over the sensitive top area of the ball of the foot, where the foot flexes in motion. U.S. Pat. No. 4,038,762 discloses use of viscous flowable materials within closures, primarily for use in alpine ski boots having rigid soles, and as described, is not applicable to conventional footwear which optimally requires girth adjust¬ ability at the ball of the foot, where the MP (metatarsal/pha- lange) joints flex during the gait cycle. This, and similar ap¬ proaches using air, gels, gas, plastic foam, and other mechani¬ cal means, while useful in rigid-soled footwear particularly when used rearward of the ball have generally been precluded from use at or over the ball, primarily for comfort and foot health considerations in this relatively sensitive and critical fitting area. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has as its principal object the con¬ struction of a shoe containing a substantially concealed girth adjustment means for use with a wide variety of shoe styles, in¬ cluding those having conventional bottom elements. The shoe of the present invention comprises a deformable upper, the lower margins of which are inelastically fastened to a sole or sole assembly, and a girth adjustment means disposed within the cavity defined by said upper and sole elements. The girth adjustment means is preferably in the form of an inner liner assembly. It is attached to an uppermost interior por¬ tion of the upper, and includes elastic means that enable it to adjust its girth to that of a foot therein, while deforming the sides of the upper as may be needed to accommodate this adjust¬ ment. In the preferred embodiments, such deformation in the up¬ per, as may accompany the adjustment, occurs only when the shoe is weight-bearing, and mostly when it is in motion and thus least noticeable visually. In one embodiment, the inner assembly includes relatively non-stretchable lining elements around the sides of the foot, attached to a panel of stretchable material under the foot, with a floating insole between the foot and the panel. In another embodiment, the functions of the inner assembly elements are essentially reversed, with the stretchable materi¬ al being located along the sides of the shoe and the nonstretch- able material comprising the bottom panel. In a further embodiment, not shown in the drawings, a stretchable liner assembly extends fully around the sides and under the bottom of the foot. Such a construction is particu¬ larly suitable for footwear of the so-called 'tubular' construc¬ tion. In other embodiments, the girth adjustment means include an inner assembly having relatively non-stretchable upper liner' elements attached to similarly non-stretchable bottom panel and insole elements, with both preferable attached to a transverse¬ ly adjustable frame assembly. The frame assembly preferably, but not necessarily, is interconnected by hinge-like bridging portions, and has attached thereto any of the various adjust¬ ment means including springs, other elastic materials, cables, cams and the like. Transverse motion in the frame assembly re¬ sults in a rolling adjustment to the side margins of the liner elements and consequent effective girth dimensional change of the inner liner assembly. In all these latter embodiments, the insole portion of the unweighted inner assembly is at least par¬ tially suspended within the shoe, with deformation of the upper occurring only at such times as the shoe becomes weightbearing. At all other times, the upper will retain the original lasted contours of the shoe, irrespective of the girth of the foot therein. In still other embodiments, particularly those designed for use in lower cost footwear, the concealed girth adjustment means comprises stretchable lining elements, partially attached directly to the uppers in such a fashion as to allow the uppers to assume, when needed, somewhat different transverse contours as compared to those of the inside stretchable adjustable sur¬ face of the lining elements as they adjust to conform and ad¬ just girthwise to the contours and dimensions of a foot there¬ in. These latter embodiments are preferably used in conjunc¬ tion with the simple and conventional fixed attachment of upper and lining elements to bottom elements along their mutually adjacent marginal edges. For a fuller understanding of the nature and objects of the present invention, reference should be made to the follow¬ ing detailed description taken in connection with the accompany¬ ing drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1, is a side-elevational cross-sectional view of a shoe embodying the principles of the present invention. Figure 2 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the shoe of Fig. 1 taken along line 2-2 in the latter, with the shoe off the foot. Figure 3 is a view of the embodiment of Fig. 2, shown as if the shoe is on the foot, and at least partly weight-bearing. Figure 4 is a side-elevational cross-sectional view of an¬ other embodiment of a shoe incorporating principles of the pre¬ sent invention. Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of the shoe of Fig. 4, taken along the line 5-5 in the latter, when off the foot. Figure 6 is a view of the embodiment of Fig. 5, taken with the shoe on the foot and at least partially weight-bearing. Figure 7 is a side-elevational cross-sectional view of an alternative version of a shoe embodying the principles of the current invention. Figure 8 is a side-elevational cross-sectional view of another preferred embodiment of the shoe incorporating princi¬ ples of the present invention. Figure 9 is a cross-sectional view of the shoe of Fig. 8 taken along line the line 9-9 thereof and showing the shoe as it would appear off the foot. Figure 10 is a cross-sectional view of the shoe of Fig. 8 taken along the line 10-10 thereof, and showing the shoe as it would appear when on a wearer's at least partially weight-bear¬ ing foot. Figure 11 is a plan view of the insole assembly of Fig. 9, including a transversely deformable frame, insole and socklin- ing cover for same, as well as typical widthwise adjusting mech-' aniεm for deforming said frame. Figure 12 is a side-elevational, cross-sectional view of still another version of a shoe with a deformable frame embody¬ ing principles of the present invention. Figure 13 is a cut-away plan view of the insole assembly of the shoe of Fig. 12. * Figure 14 is a side-elevational cross-sectional of another preferred embodiment of the shoe incorporating principles of the present invention. * ' Figure 15 is a transverse cross-sectional view of the shoe of Fig. 14, taken along the line 15-15 in the latter, and show¬ ing the section as it would appear, on a foot of a lesser girth in the girth range accommodated by this shoe. Fig. 16 is a transverse cross-sectional ...view of the shoe of Fig. 14, taken along the line 16-16 thereof, and showing the section as it would appear, on a foot of the greatest-girth ac¬ commodated by this shoe. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the drawings, the adjustable girth shoe con¬ struction of the present invention will be described wiji refer¬ ence to the well known 'loafer' design. It should,^.however, be understood that this is being done for ease of reference and that the invention is not limited to any one style of shoe, but rather is applicable to most other types of footwear including other styles of shoes, boots, sneakers and slippers. In the various embodiments described hereinafter, like reference numer¬ als refer to like members which function in the same or similar manner. Referring to Figs. 1-3, there is. shown one embodiment of the present invention. Shoe 20 comprises a typical flexible ' upper 22, preferably composed of leather, including vamp 24 and plug 26 joined together by a suitable means such as stitching so as to form a seam 28 extending around the forepart of the shoe. The back portion of the shoe has the usual counter pock¬ et or back tab 30 over vamp 24, a collar or cuff 32 preferably stitched to cover the adjacent top edges of tab 30, upper 22 and liner 46. Shoe 20 also includes a typical conventional sole assembly 34 having a heel 42 instep 43, waist 49, ball 45 and toe 47. Sole assembly 34 in this embodiment is composed of a conventional rubber unitsole 36 preferably cut from a so-call¬ ed "blocker", and a rubber midsole 38, attached on its bottom surface to the top surface of unitsole 36 by adhesive cement, or other suitable attachment means. Midsole 38 is joined, pre¬ ferably by stitching about its periphery to the bottom portion of vamp 24. Shoe 20 also contains an adjustable inner assembly 48 comprising a liner 46 and a socklining 50. In this embodi¬ ment, liner 46 is composed of a non-stretchable material, pre¬ ferably Cambrelle , a non-woven nylon fabric supplied by the Faytex Corp. of Braintree, MA, but any other suitable substan¬ tially non-stretchable material may also be used. Liner 46 is attached at its uppermost margin to the matching edge margins of vamp 24, and lies otherwise free of vamp 24, except at the heel end where it has been optionally included in the handsewn backpart seam 31 fastening tab 30 and top and bottom sections of vamp 24 together. The elasticized socklining 50 is fastened by stitching within its bottom surface to liner 46 and together liner 46 and socklining 50 form the inner assembly 48 which sur¬ rounds the sides and bottom of the foot. Socklining 50 is pre¬ ferably constructed of a stretch-knit fabric of the type known generally as spandex, although any other suitable elastic sheet material may be employed. Optionally, but preferably, an in¬ sole 44 lies loosely above the lower marginal edges of liner 46 and socklining 50. It protects socklining 50 and its sewn seam connection to liner 46 from undue wear, and the foot from feel¬ ing said sewn seam. Insole 44 preferably extends the length of the shoe interior, and is of a pattern matching the bottom of the maximum width last acceptable by the shoe; i.e., the last ' on which the shoe was made. In addition, insole 44, is unat¬ tached to the inner assembly 48 and is easily removable for cleaning and removal of any foreign matter that may have accumu¬ lated inside the shoe. Fig. 2 shows shoe 20 with socklining 50 unstressed and in¬ sole 44 in suspension. In this condition, socklining 50 is at its minimum width, and consequently holds the bottom margins of liner 46 at their closest proximity to each other. In this no- load condition, the contours of upper 22 tend to remain substan¬ tially as they were when on the last on which the shoe was made. On the other hand, when the shoe is on the foot and also weight-bearing as shown in Fig. 3, socklining 50 stretches to allow liner 46 to exactly fit the foot, particularly in the important fitting region between and including ball, waist and instep. As the inner assembly 48 increases to adapt itself to the girth of the foot, it becomes primarily responsible for the fit of the shoe on that foot. Moreover, when the shoe is weight-bearing as shown in Fig. 3 the sides of the upper 22 deform by a slight outward bulging as the inner assembly 48 and insole 44 move downwards under foot pressure, with the extent of such deformation being relative to the girth of the foot therein and limited to the greatest girth said shoe is designed to accommodate. Figs. 4-7 show an embodiment similar to that shown in Fig. 1-3, except that here the action has been essentially reversed, in that the stretch material surrounds the sides and -optionally also the top of the foot, while the non-stretch elements are underfoot. Thus Fig. 4 shows a simulated moccasin construction with upper 22 lasted over a permanent fixed insole 58, of Tex- on R , or similar conventional insole material with an inner assembly 56 comprising a spandex or similar stretch liner 51 at¬ tached, preferably by stitching, to a non-stretch socklining 44 of Cambrelle R or the like, which supports a non-stretchable insole 44. Fig. 4-6 show this embodiment in a simulated mocca¬ sin construction, wherein seam 28 is a simulated seam, heat- ' formed in the one piece vamp 22 that now includes plug portion 26 therein. Such construction of seams or pleats can be carri¬ ed out with equipment supplied by the Geo. Knight Co. of Brock¬ ton, MA, and others. As best shown in Figs. 4 and 5, the simu¬ lated seam 28 is stitched to liner 51 under essentially zero tension and in a non-extended condition. Fig. 6 shows the seam 28 and liner 51 to which it is sewn now in an expanded condi¬ tion as would occur in a load-bearing condition with a relative¬ ly wide foot in the shoe. In addition, the upper 22 is deform¬ ed along its sides as shown in Fig. 3, as well as along the now expanded simulated seam 28. Fig. 5 shows the shoe off the foot, with the inner assembly 56 under zero or minimal tension. It should be understood that the simulated seam may be used to¬ gether with the aforementioned girth adjustable inner assembly or alone to effect girth adjustment or left out as shown in Fig. 7, in which all girth adjustment results from the elastici¬ ty of the vamp lining assembly, together with the accompanying vamp side deformation previously described. Figs. 8-11 describe another embodiment of this invention. In this embodiment the inner assembly comprises liner 46, sock¬ lining 50, and the frame assembly 60. Fig. 8 shows a side view of the shoe, with the non-stretch Cambrelle R not only used in liner 46 but in socklining 50 as well, which is in turn support¬ ed by a nonstretchable insole 62 and filler block 68, with up¬ per 22 having been lasted over permanent conventional insole 70. As best seen in Fig. 11, the frame assembly 60 comprises an articulated frame 61 which forms the base of the means for girth adjustment. Frame 61 is made of a suitable material such -li¬ as plastic, preferably extruded polypropylene of about 0.03" to about 0.04" thickness, notched at 69 to allow the narrow bridg¬ ing areas resulting from such notching to act as hinges to al¬ low the frame to deform or distort transversely against tension supplied by a preferably stainless steel spring 72 attached thereto by means of fasteners 70 and 71, all of which comprise the frame assembly. Optionally, the bridging area can be omit¬ ted and the frame segmented with spaces therebetween and/or sub¬ stantially shortened or limited in number. Spring 72 is option¬ ally also attached to socklining supporting insole 62 and fill¬ er block 68 at a central position by fastener 74, to help .keep frame deformation transversely in balance. Socklining 50 is provided with an extending peripheral margin, which is wrapped over the underlying frame 61, and joined to the underside there¬ of by a suitable means such as adhesive cement or a radiation bonding means. Then, with the upper 22 on a last, and a tempo¬ rarily jig holding the frame in its outermost position, the lin¬ er 46 is preferably cement lasted to the bottom side of the socklining 50 so as to attach it to the frame assembly, and the jig removed. As shown the liner 46 is also attached to the up¬ per 22 by a suitable means such as stitching or a cement adhe¬ sive. The upper 22 is then lasted in a conventional manner over a conventional insole 70 and, finally, the bottom edges are roughed and attached to the unit sole preferably using an adhesive, as shown, with all the usual other sole assembly op¬ tions available if desired. Fig. 9 shows the shoe construction of Fig. 8 in a non-loadbearing condition, while Fig. 10 shows the same shoe in a loadbearing condition, as it would appear on a foot of somewhat less than the maximum girth said shoe is de¬ signed to accommodate. Figs. 12 and 13 show a further embodiment of the inven¬ tion, which functions as that in Figs. 8-11, except that the adjustment means shown in Figs. 12-13 includes a cam 78, manual¬ ly rotationally adjustable from inside of the shoe for' adjust¬ ing the tension of the spring 87, the back end of which leads through cam follower 82 and is attached to insole 44 at fasten- ing point 43. Cables from the forward end of the spring will cause the girth of the lining assembly and thereby the shoe to self-adjust to fit feet of differing girths, while turning cam 78 by screw 76 causes the cam follower 82 to move according to the varying radius of cam groove 80 to adjust the effective ten¬ sion exerted by spring 87. The cam follower 82 also engages a longitudinally oriented metal plate fastened to the underside of the insole to limit the cam follower to longitudinal move¬ ment. Optionally, and as shown, this plate could be designed to extend to grommet 74 and thereby stiffen the insole between follower 82 and grommet 74 to prevent longitudinal buckling of insole 44 during girth adjustment. If the spring is eliminated from the above assembly, and the cables extend from the grommet directly along dashed line 88, and through cam follower 82 to end fastening point 83, the adjustment becomes completely manual, with the manual adjust¬ ment of the cam determining the distance between opposing side segments of frame 61. Alternatively, but not shown, transverse spring 72, shown in Figure 11, could be included in this embodi¬ ment, to allow automatic girth adjustment together with manual adjustment. Optionally, a similar adjustment spring and/or cam could be placed in the waist area to eliminate the cables. Figs. 14 through 16 show a still further embodiment of the invention, which functions in a manner similar to those of the previous embodiments but with some differences in construction designed to allow this embodiment to be produced at somewhat lower cost for use when the cost factor is a critical and deter¬ mining issue. Fig. 14 shows shoe 90, typically but not limited to a moccasin loafer style of tubular construction, having an upper 92 of leather or other suitable upper material, compris¬ ing a plug or tip 94, preferably attached by handsewn overlap seam 96 to vamp 100, vamp lining 98 and optional plug lining 98a. The linings are constructed of a suitable material which is stretchable girthwise such as spandex, or other like materi¬ als, particularly the heavier and more durable Spandura R pro- ducts distributed by H.L. Warshow & Sons, Inc. of New York, NY. The linings 98 and optional 98a are preferably firmly fastened to upper 92 at a number of locations in the shoe. As * shown, fastening occurs at plug stitching 91, optional plug lining stitching 91a, cuff stitching 91b, kicker handsewn seam 91c, and also, where lining 98 is fastened, together with vamp 100 to midsole 102 by the conventional Littleway R stitching 106. Unitsole 104 is attached to midsole 102 by the customary adhe- _ sive cement, with both midsole 102 and unitsole 104 composed of the conventional sheet or molded materials used for such mem¬ bers such as leather, plastic or rubber. Finally, a sock 106 is removably inserted into shoe 90, to improve the comfort and durability of the final product. Figure 15 shows the shoe as it would appear when worn on a foot requiring little or no girth adjustment of the shoe. The upper 100 and linings 98 and 98a are in close contact at and near their mutual points of attachment, allowing the sides of the upper, and optionally the top of the upper to deform in both height and width to accommodate the foot of the wearer. As shown in Fig. 16, the linings 98 and 98a have been urg¬ ed into full contact with the upper and plug, which exhibit es¬ sentially zero deformation of contours from those of the last, or form, on which the shoe was made. This drawing shows the position of the members of the shoe as they would appear when accommodating a foot having substantially the maximum girth for which the shoe is designed to fit. While the lining 98 and 98a are preferably composed of elastically stretchable fabric materials optionally other mater¬ ials, or mechanisms may be used to create variable and adjust¬ able volumes between foot and upper, operating as girthwise ad¬ justment means at least in the ball region of the shoe. These include sealed or sealable plastic or similar bladders for con¬ tainment of varying amounts of air and/or other gasses, gels, 'flo' materials or resilient plastic foams. Such foams include the closed cell heat-moldable polyester based polyurethane foams distributed by United Foam Products Corp. of Georgetown, MA, and others, and are preferably of low density, i.e. 2#/cub- ic foot or less. Alternatively, such foams can be used to con¬ tribute to the elasticity of the girth adjustment means. In such an embodiment the foam is preferably lined with a somewhat elastic inner lining of fabric or even a flocking material. Such linings to function properly for appreciable girthwise ad¬ justability should provide at least one full standard 'width' adjustment which means at least about 1/4" of girth adjustabil¬ ity at the ball, waist, and instep of the foot. To achieve such adjustability and proper compression rate the linings should be thicker than the 1/16" and 1/8" fabric-to-foam lining materials often used in vamp linings; i.e. initially in the about 3/8" to 1/2" thickness range. Such thickness would usual¬ ly cause unacceptable gaping or open space between the topline of the shoe and the foot adjacent thereto, but this gaping ten¬ dency however, can be minimized or even eliminated by proper contouring of the thick foam, reducing the thickness at the top- line thereof in the ball, waist, and instep areas for a better appearance and closer fit between shoe and foot. It is a fur¬ ther embodiment of the invention to provide such contouring means for foam lining elements used in shoes. There are a number of known approaches for the contouring of such foam elements, including initial molding, removal of ma¬ terial by skiving and the like, and re-molding of slab or sheet foam materials. The preferred approach, however, involving the minimum equipment cost and the maximum adaptability to the wid¬ est possible range of shoe styles, involves the use of heat- moldable foams, including those mentioned herein, which can be permanently contoured when brought to temperatures of about 260 to 300°F for about 8 to 12 minutes. This is most easily done by providing the shoe with the aforementioned heat-moldable knit fabric faced polyurethane foam sheet lining material, pre¬ ferably of about 3/8" to 1/2" initial thickness overall, later contouring same on the otherwise finished shoe by inserting a last or other form into the shoe, such last or form.having the contouring and girth dimensions of the least girth foot the shoe is designed to accommodate. After placing the last in the shoe, the proper heat is introduced by any of the known tech¬ niques, i.e. by use of a suitable oven, and/or by heating the lasts, as by circulating hot oil or other fluid therein. After cooling, the less compressed areas of the foam will continue to contribute to the girth adjustment of the shoe. Still another optional embodiment (not shown) comprises the use of small leaf springs, inserted between lining and up¬ per in the sides of the waist area of the shoe, to facilitate the adjustment of the girth of the shoe. Such springs, stamped out of thin, e.g. about .010 inches thick, flat spring shim stock can be pre-formed or bent to hold the plug (top of the upper) in a lower position with the sides of the upper deformed outward from that foot,as would be required by a foot of lesser girth. A foot of greater girth would urge the plug up, and the sides inward to a less extreme contour, against the gentle re¬ straint of the spring means. In all the above embodiments, it should be noted that shoes so made will automatically compensate for differences from the norm in girth relationships between ball and instep. This offers significant fit advantages over conventional con¬ structions, particularly for styles not having conventional girth adjustment means, e.g. loafers, boots, slip-on casuals, and the like.

Claims: WHAT IS CLAIMED IS: 1. A shoe comprising an at least partly deformable upper attached to a sole assembly so as to form a cavity into which a foot can be placed and an adjustable inner assembly attached to at least said upper, said inner assembly having a deformable portion which acts together with the said at least partly de¬ formable upper to adjust the girth of the shoe in response to a force exerted thereon so as to fit feet of differing widths and girths. 2. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the deformable portion of the inner assembly is resiliently deformable. 3. The shoe of Claim 2, wherein the resiliently deform¬ able portion comprises an elastic material. 4. The shoe of Claim 3, wherein the elastic material is an elastic sheet material. 5. The shoe of Claim 2, wherein the resiliently deform¬ able portion comprises a spring. 6. The shoe of Claim 2, wherein the resiliently deform¬ able portion comprises a frame assembly having a spring attach¬ ed thereto to facilitate its resilient deformation. 7. The shoe of Claim 6, further comprising an insole dis¬ posed within the shoe cavity and adjacent the adjustable inner assembly. 8. The shoe of Claim 7, wherein the spring is attached at a midpoint to the underside of an insole. 9. The shoe of Claim 7, containing tension adjustment means for adjusting the tension of the spring. 10. The shoe of Claim 9, wherein said adjustment means is a manual tension adjustment means. 11. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the inner assembly comprises a relatively non-stretchable material. 12. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein said inner assembly in¬ cludes a frame member articulated to allow transverse movement' of portions of said frame. 13. The shoe of Claim 12, wherein said frame member ex¬ tends from about the toe to about the heel of the shoe. 14. The shoe of Claim 12, wherein said frame member is lo¬ cated at the mid-portion of the shoe. 15. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the upper contains an ex¬ pandable seam. 16. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the inner assembly com¬ prises a substantially non-deformable liner extending along at least the sides of the upper and a resiliently deformable mem¬ ber extending along the bottom of the shoe cavity. 17. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the inner assembly is par¬ tially suspended in the shoe when the shoe is not on the foot. 18. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the inner assembly is fix¬ edly attached to the bottom assembly. 19. The shoe of Claim 18, wherein the inner assembly is composed at least in part of elastic sheet material. 20. The shoe of Claim 19, wherein said elastic sheet mater¬ ial is at least in part a spandex fabric. 21. The shoe of Claim 18, wherein the inner assembly is composed at least in part of a plastic foam. 22. The shoe of Claim 21, wherein the plastic foam is lo¬ cated along the inner sides of the shoe in the vicinity of at least the ball region thereof. 23. The shoe of Claim 21, wherein said foam elements are contoured to a thickness suitable for a proper fit and appear¬ ance. 24. The shoe of Claim 23, wherein such contouring is ef¬ fected by the application of heat and forming pressure. 25. The shoe of Claim 24 wherein the heat and pressure are applied to the shoe by placement of a form therein and subject¬ ing said formed shoe portions to heat radiation. 26. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the inner assembly is at¬ tached to the upper by means of a spring. 27. The shoe of Claim 26, wherein the spring is located in the waist region of the shoe. 28. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the inner assembly com¬ prises a means for containing varying amounts of a gas. 29. The shoe of Claim 28, wherein the means for containing varying amounts of a gas comprises a bladder. 30. The shoe of Claim 29, wherein the bladder is composed of a plastic material. 31. The shoe of Claim 30, wherein the bladder is adjust¬ able by adding or subtracting gas thereto. 32. The shoe of Claim 31, wherein the means for containing varying amounts of a gas is adjustable to create variable vol¬ umes between the upper and a foot when the foot is in the foot cavity. 33. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the adjustable inner as¬ sembly is attached to said deformable upper in an upper portion of the upper. 34. The shoe of Claim 1, wherein the adjustable inner as¬ sembly is attached to said deformable upper below the upper por¬ tion of the upper.

Inventors: ROSEN HENRI E, ROSEN, HENRI, E.
Applicants: ROSEN HENRI E, ROSEN, HENRI, E.
Application year: 1990
Main classification: A43B3
IPC codes: A43B3