Abstract:
A shoe including an upper comprising an outersole, a toe portion, and a rigid plate; and a heel comprising a threaded shaft upwardly extending therefrom, wherein the rigid plate comprises a threaded barrel comprising a lower open end and an upper closed end opposite therefrom, and wherein the heel is removably attached to the upper based on the threaded shaft threading into the threaded barrel from the lower open end to the upper closed end, and wherein the rigid plate extends over the heel when the heel is removably attached to the upper, and wherein the rigid plate extends past the heel towards the toe portion along the outersole.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     The present application is a Continuation of U.S. Nonprovisional application Ser. No. 12/886,360 filed 20 Sep. 2010; which claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 61/245,531 filed 24 Sep. 2009; each of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     The present invention generally relates to footwear. More specifically, a shoe with a screw-on heel is provided. 
     There have been several shoes described that provide replaceable heels. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 980,987; 1,516,355; 1,743,543; 2,707,341; 3,078,599; 3,193,949; 3,782,010; 4,219,946; 4,349,970; 4,443,956; 5,025,574; 5,079,857; 5,581,910; 5,953,836; 6,631,570; U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0235991 A1; U.S. Design Pat. No. D378,548; and PCT Publication No. WO 2005/000062 A1. 
     While some of these shoes provide a screw to attach the replaceable heel to the upper, those designs are generally complicated to use, and often require additional components such as a screwdriver to attach the replaceable heel. The transitional shoe with screw-on heel described herein provides a simpler replaceable heel that does not require an additional tool to remove or attach. 
     SUMMARY 
     Described herein is a shoe that can be transitioned between heels of different heights or styles. The transition is accomplished by unscrewing the heel to be replaced from the upper and replacing it with another heel by screwing the replacement heel into the upper. Thus, a shoe comprising an upper and a detachable heel is provided herewith. The heel screws into the upper, or unscrews from the upper, using a single screw imbedded into the heel. 
     Also provided is a heel for a shoe upper. The heel comprises a top portion designed to attach to the upper, and a bottom portion designed to contact the ground when the upper is attached to the heel. The heel comprises a single screw extending outward from the top of the shoe perpendicular to the ground. 
     Additionally, another heel for a shoe upper is provided. The heel comprises a top portion designed to attach to the upper, and a bottom portion designed to contact the ground when the shoe is attached to the heel. In these embodiments, the heel comprises a threaded barrel to which a screw protruding from the upper can be inserted in order to secure the heel to the upper. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a bottom ¾ perspective view of an illustrative embodiment of the heel coupled to the shoe. 
         FIG. 2  is a partial cross-section of the shoe with heel attached of  FIG. 1  at cross-section  2 - 2 , showing the screw and barrel in place, according to an illustrative embodiment. 
         FIG. 3  is a partial cross-section of a shoe with heel attached, showing the screw and barrel in place, according to an illustrative embodiment. 
         FIG. 4  is a cross-section of a heel and barrel shown with a full view of the upper, according to an illustrative embodiment. 
         FIG. 5  is a partial cross-section of the shoe with heel attached of  FIG. 1  at cross-section  2 - 2 , showing the screw and barrel in place, and showing a shank and the barrel comprising a same material according to an illustrative embodiment. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Additionally, the use of “or” is intended to include “and/or” unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. 
     Provided herewith is a shoe comprising an upper and a detachable heel, wherein the heel attaches to the upper using a single screw. This shoe allows for the expedient and convenient replacement, change, and removal of high heels into flat form and vice versa through simple screw-on action. This rapid heel replacement can be used in consideration of, e.g., fashion, preference, comfort when walking, changes of venue, and the provision of heels of different shapes and sizes. 
       FIGS. 1-5  illustrate exemplary embodiments. In some of these embodiments, the screw  2  protrudes from the heel  10  and the upper  30  comprises a threaded barrel  20  to which the screw  2  can be inserted in order to secure the heel  10  to the upper  30 . 
     Also provided is a heel  10  for a shoe upper  30 . The heel  10  comprises a top portion  4  designed to attach to the upper  30 , and a bottom portion  6  designed to contact the ground when the upper  30  is worn with the heel  10 . The heel comprises a single screw  2  extending outward from the top  4  of the heel  10  perpendicular to the ground. Aside from the screw, the heel  10  need not comprise any additional components at the top  4  of the heel  10  to assist in attaching the heel  10  to the upper  30 . 
     The heels of any of the shoes described herein can be of any type or height known in the art that would accommodate a screw of sufficient strength to stably secure the heel to the upper. The heel can be, e.g., a high heel, a flat heel, or a heel of mid height. As used herein, a high heel is two inches or higher from top to bottom; a flat heel is an inch or less, and a mid-size heel is between 1 and 2 inches. Examples of heels that can be used for these embodiments are pyramid heels, stilettos, spike heels, kitten heels, and block heels. 
     These embodiments are also not narrowly limited to any particular type of upper that accommodates the heel. Nonlimiting examples of uppers include boots, slingbacks, mules, pumps, and slippers. The shoes can be designed for women or men. 
     The barrel  20  in the upper  30  and the screw  2  in the heel  10  together effectively form a sex bolt, as that term is used in the art, i.e., a threaded screw and a corresponding barrel that receives the screw. Indeed, commercially available sex bolts can be used in the construction of any of the shoes and heels described herein. 
     The heel  10  is attached by inserting the screw  2  of the heel  10  into the aperture  8  of the barrel  20  and rotating the heel  10  in the direction (clockwise or counterclockwise, depending on the screw  2  and barrel  20  used) that causes the top portion  4  of the heel  10  to move toward the upper  30 , until the heel  10  and upper  30  are securely joined. To detach the heels, e.g., to change heels, the heel  10  is rotated in the direction that causes the upper  30  to separate from the heel  10 . 
     In some embodiments, the upper further comprises a heel of a flat, so that the upper can be worn as a flat without attaching a heel that has a screw. In these embodiments, the barrel  20  is embedded in the flat heel. 
     The barrel  20  can be affixed to the upper  30  by any known means, e.g., sewing it into a pocket in the upper, for example through a hole in the outersole  26  and abutting the midsole  18 . In those embodiments, the midsole can optionally be reinforced, e.g., with a metal, plastic or leather disk, to help support the barrel  20 . 
     The heel  10  can be made without having to include extraneous pieces. Construction is therefore economical. The heel  10  can be made of any materials normally used for heel production, including but are not limited to metal and wrapped plastic resin. When plastic resin is used, the heel  10  can be cast with the screw in place. The head  3  of the screw  2  faces the bottom  6  of the heel  10  so the threaded shaft  15  and the end that enters the barrel  20  is upwards, pointing towards the receiving barrel  20  located in the shoe upper  30 . The barrel  20  has an upper solid portion  24  to prevent the screw from extending into or beyond the midsole  18 . When the heel  10  is made of metal, the heel can be made to mirror the design of the screw  2 , with thread  12  having the same rotational handedness (clockwise or counterclockwise), ensuring secure fastening of the thread  12  within the barrel  20  located in the shoe upper  30 . In this embodiment or other embodiments, the screw can be formed from the heel material. 
     When the shoe is converted from a flat to a high heel by replacing or adding the replaceable heel, the shoe bends at the ball of the foot. This tends to cause the shoe to deform from the flat form. In order to help the shoe keep its form, some embodiments of the shoes described herein further comprise a shank  22  and/or an uppermost edge  14 ′ comprising supporting stitching. 
     Thus, in some embodiments, the upper  30  comprises an arch (i.e., a bow or curve designed to fit the curve of the bottom of a foot), an insole (not shown), a midsole  18 , an outersole  26  and a shank  22 . The shank in these embodiments is a flat, rigid plate that mirrors the arch of the upper  30 . Beside providing shape retention for the upper  30 , the shank also allows the flat form of the shoe to provide the same arch support as the shoe in high-heeled form. The shank can be inserted in any location in the sole, and can be any length required to provide adequate support. In some embodiments, the shank is extended to be present above the heel of the upper to provide support for the barrel. In various embodiments, the shank  22  resides between the midsole  18  and the outersole  26 . The shank can be made of any rigid material, for example a rigid plastic or a metal. In certain embodiments, particularly when the shank lies above the heel, the shank and the barrel are one continuous piece of metal. 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the supporting stitching along the uppermost edge  14 ′ of the upper  30  helps support the upper  30  when the uppermost edge  14 ′ deforms as the shoe transitions to a high heel. This supporting stitching is stitching that is stronger than would normally be present on a shoe that cannot be transitioned from a flat to a high heel. Preferably, the stitching is elastic, to provide flexibility in the upper  30  when the shoe transitions to a high heel. This embodiment also includes an outersole  26 ′ and a shank  22 ′. The heel  10 ″ has an upper portion  4 ″ that abuts the outersole  26 ′ when screw  2 ″ is inserted into barrel  20 ″. In an alternative embodiment, the shoe as shown in  FIG. 4  may include one or more V-shaped cutouts  32  at around the midpoint or some other location along the sides of the shoe extending from the uppermost edge  14 ′ toward the shank  22 ′ with the point of the V extending downward towards the shank  22 ′. This V-shaped cutout may be filled with a piece of elastic or some other flexible material that can be sewn or welded to the upper  30  to provide for additional flex when the shoe is worn as a high heel.  FIG. 4  shows a V-shaped cutout  32  on only one side of the upper  30 , but it can be included in both sides of the upper. 
     In alternative embodiments, as illustrated in  FIG. 3 , the screw  2 ′ protrudes from the upper  30 ′ and the heel  10 ′ comprises a threaded barrel  20 ′ to which the screw  2 ′ can be inserted into in order to secure the heel  10 ′ to the upper  30 ′. Similarly, a heel  10 ′ is also provided, where the heel  10 ′ comprises a top portion  4 ′ designed to attach to the upper  30 ′, and a bottom portion  6 ′ designed to contact the ground when the shoe is worn with the heel  10 ′. The heel  10 ′ comprises a threaded barrel  20 ′ to which a screw  2 ′ can be inserted in order to secure the heel  10 ′ to the upper  30 ′. Aside from the barrel  20 ′, the heel  10 ′ need not comprise any additional components at the top  4 ′ of the heel  10 ′ to attach to the upper  30 ′. Other than the switching of the screw from the heel to the upper, and the barrel from the upper to the heel, these alternative embodiments can still be utilized with any type of shoe and heel. Additionally, these alternative embodiments are envisioned to optionally comprise a midsole  18 ′, a shank  22 ′, [[a]] an outersole  26 ′ and/or supporting stitching as described above. The shank  22 ′ in these embodiments may be extended to support the screw, as illustrated in  FIG. 3   
     REFERENCES 
     
         
         U.S. Pat. No. 980,987. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 1,516,355. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 1,743,543. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 2,707,341. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 3,078,599. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 3,193,949. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 3,782,010. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 4,219,946. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 4,349,970. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 4,443,956. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 5,025,574. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,857. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,910. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 5,953,836. 
         U.S. Pat. No. 6,631,570. 
         U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0235991 A1. 
         U.S. Design Pat. No. D378,548. 
         PCT Publication No. WO 2005/000062 A1. 
       
    
     In view of the above, it will be seen that the several advantages of the invention are achieved and other advantages attained. 
     As various changes could be made in the above methods and compositions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description and shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense. 
     All references cited in this specification are hereby incorporated by reference. The discussion of the references herein is intended merely to summarize the assertions made by the authors and no admission is made that any reference constitutes prior art. Applicants reserve the right to challenge the accuracy and pertinence of the cited references.