Abstract:
A foot sock for envelopment about the foot of an individual, the sock formed with a 2-ply sole thereby defining a chamber between the first upper ply and the second lower ply, one of the plies being formed with a reinforced slit transverse to the axis of the sole of the sock, the reinforced slit allowing for the insertion of an orthotic into the chamber between the first and second fabric plies of the sole. The reinforced slit can be made either in the upper interior ply requiring the sock to be turned inside out in order to insert the orthotic or the slit can be made in the lower outer ply allowing the orthotic to be inserted without the requirement of turning the sock inside out.

Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    Applicant claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 61/131,356, filed Jun. 9, 2008. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    The present invention relates to socks and to orthopedic foot pads commonly referred to as orthotics, and in particular to a sock which is formed with a pocket which allows the orthotic to be inserted into the sole of the sock. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Prior Art 
         [0005]    Orthopedic foot pads, or orthotics, are required by many people for a variety of maladies. They may be required for people with Planters Facia, or other foot problems to help relieve the pain. Still further, they are oftentimes required for orthopedic situations far removed from the foot, such as aiding the individual in the proper alignment of the foot and leg in order to relieve either knee pain, hip pain, or even back pain. 
         [0006]    The orthotic is normally fabricated by a professional who can shape the orthotic to the shape of the sole of the individual&#39;s foot, and to fabricate the proper curvatures in order to alleviate or lessen the pain associated with one of the aforementioned problems. However, generic orthotics are available over the counter to provide cushioning to the foot or arch support. The orthotic is typically inserted into the shoe of the individual before the individual positions his or her foot within the shoe. In an ideal situation, the orthotic will fit snugly within the shoe and not slide around or become mispositioned as the individual walks about. However, most people wear a variety of different shoes, and therefore the orthotic is used in a variety of different shoes and may not always fit as snugly as desired. In such a situation, the individual normally has to remove the shoe to reorient the orthotic before replacing the shoe back on one&#39;s foot. Applicant&#39;s sock with an orthotic pocket maintains the orthotic in position relative to the individual&#39;s foot sole and if the orthotic requires realignment, the individual does not have to remove the shoe, but merely pull up on the ankle portion of the sock to correctly realign the orthotic. 
       OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION 
       [0007]    An object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock having a pocket on the sole of the sock for the receipt of an orthotic. 
         [0008]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock in which the sole of the sock is of two-ply construction, one ply having a reinforced slit for the insertion of an orthotic. 
         [0009]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock for the receipt of an orthotic wherein the reinforced slit for the insertion of the orthotic is on the upper ply of the sole of the sock such that the sock is turned inside out in order to insert the orthotic. 
         [0010]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock for receipt of an orthotic wherein the reinforced slit is formed on the lower ply of the sole of the sock allowing for the insertion of the orthotic. 
         [0011]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock having a pocket for the receipt of an orthotic which allows the individual to realign the orthotic to its correct position by pulling up on the ankle portion of the sock and not having to remove one&#39;s shoes. 
         [0012]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a novel sock having an orthotic pocket for receipt of an orthotic which will maintain the orthotic in its desired position or orientation as opposed to inserting the orthotic independently into the shoe. 
         [0013]    A still further object of the present invention is to provide for a sock with an orthotic pocket for the receipt of an orthotic which allows an individual to gain the benefit of the orthotic when not wearing shoes by allowing the individual to walk around in his or her socks with the orthotic in place. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0014]    A foot sock for envelopment about the foot of an individual, the sock formed with a 2-ply sole thereby defining a chamber between the first upper ply and the second lower ply, one of the plies being formed with a reinforced slit transverse to the axis of the sole of the sock, the reinforced slit allowing for the insertion of an orthotic into the chamber between the first and second fabric plies of the sole. The reinforced slit can be made either in the upper interior ply requiring the sock to be turned inside out in order to insert the orthotic or the slit can be made in the lower outer ply allowing the orthotic to be inserted without the requirement of turning the sock inside out. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0015]    These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent, particularly when taken in light of the following illustrations wherein: 
           [0016]      FIG. 1  is an exploded view of the prior art illustrating an individual&#39;s foot, an orthotic, and a shoe; 
           [0017]      FIG. 2  is a side cross-sectional view of one embodiment of a sock of the present invention; 
           [0018]      FIG. 3  is a side cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of a sock of the present invention; 
           [0019]      FIG. 4  is a top cross-sectional view of one embodiment of the sock of the present invention; 
           [0020]      FIG. 5  is a side cross-sectional view of a sock of the present invention with the orthotic in place; and 
           [0021]      FIG. 6  is a cross-sectional side view of a sock of the present invention for use with a rigid orthotic. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
       [0022]      FIG. 1  is an exploded view of a typical arrangement of a shoe and an orthotic of the prior art. The orthotic  10 , whether it be a generic flexible orthotic purchased over the counter to provide cushioning for the foot or arch support, or whether it be a rigid prescription orthotic fabricated to fit the individual&#39;s sole of the foot, it is inserted into the shoe  12 . Since individuals wear a variety of different shoes, the orthotic  10  itself may not always fit within the shoe  12  in the same manner as it fits within other shoes worn by the individual. Once the orthotic  10  is in place in the shoe  12 , the individual inserts his foot  14  into the shoe orienting the sole  16  of the foot  14  on the orthotic  10 . The shoe  12  itself may be a slip on or a lace shoe which would require the user to lace the shoe once he had obtained the correct orientation of the orthotic. 
         [0023]    In this situation, if the orthotic  10  and the sole of the foot  14  become misoriented, it requires the individual to remove the shoe  12 , adjust the orthotic  10 , and then reinsert the foot  14 . Still further,  FIG. 1  illustrates a full foot orthotic which is designed to abut the full sole of the foot  14  and therefore when inserted in a shoe  12 , normally has less chance of becoming misoriented with respect to the foot  14 . In many instances there are half orthotics which only are concerned with providing support or pain relief to the heel portion of the foot. These orthotics can become misoriented much easier than a full orthotic, particularly when the individual is inserting the foot into the shoe containing the orthotic. Applicant&#39;s invention would have application to both of these situations. 
         [0024]      FIG. 2  illustrates the orthotic sock  20  of the present invention. It is a cross-sectional side view comprised of a series of panels which are sewn together resulting in a unitary orthotic sock  20  which covers the foot  14  and at least a portion of the ankle  18 . The orthotic sock  20  comprises an ankle portion  22  which normally would have an elastic ankle band  24  at its upper terminus  26 . The orthotic sock  20  is further comprised of a foot portion  28  designed to encapsulate the foot  14 . The foot encapsulating portion  28  is formed with a sole member  30  which is comprised of two plies, a first upper ply  32  and a second lower ply  34 , first upper ply  32  and second lower ply  34  defining a chamber  36  between the plies. This chamber  36  between the first upper ply  32  and the second lower ply  34  is for the receipt of an orthotic  10 . In the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 2 , there is a slit  38  transverse to the axis of the sock and formed midway between the toe portion  40  and the heel portion  42 . Slit  38  is made in the first upper ply  32  and is reinforced with stitching  44  on both sides. The individual&#39;s access to slit  38  is obtained by turning the sock of  FIG. 2  inside out. Once turned inside out, the individual can take a flexible orthotic  10  identical or similar to that as illustrated in  FIG. 1  and insert the toe portion of the orthotic through slit  38  and into the chamber  36  formed by first upper ply  32  and second upper ply  34  until the toe portion of the orthotic abuts the toe end of chamber  36 . The individual would then fold the flexible orthotic so as to insert the heel portion of the orthotic through slit  38  and extend the heel portion of the orthotic in chamber  36  until the heel portion of the orthotic abuts the heel terminus of chamber  36 . The individual would then reverse the inside out procedure to return the sock to its normal orientation. The individual could then insert his foot  14  into the orthotic sock  20 , the foot being in alignment with the orthotic  10  and separated from the orthotic by the first upper ply  32  of the sole member  30  of the orthotic sock  20 . The individual would then insert his foot containing the sock and the encapsulated orthotic into the individual&#39;s shoe of choice. The foot  14 , and the orthotic  10 , both encapsulated by the orthotic sock  20 , are then free to move in unison and orient themselves naturally with no slippage as identified in the prior art. In fact, this method is more beneficial to the individual in that he can still wear the orthotic  10  even if he has removed his shoes in that the orthotic sock  20  will maintain the orthotic  10  in the proper orientation to the sole of the foot  14 . 
         [0025]      FIG. 3  is a second embodiment of the orthotic sock  20  of the present invention. It is identical to the first embodiment as illustrated in  FIG. 2 , with the exception that the slit  38 A and the reinforced stitching  44 A associated therewith for allowing the insertion of the orthotic  10  into the chamber  36  formed between first upper ply  32  and second lower ply  34  is now formed in the second lower ply  34  thereby negating the need to turn the sock inside out in order to insert the orthotic  10 . 
         [0026]    In this embodiment the individual inserts the orthotic  10  in the same manner as accomplished in  FIG. 2  without the need for turning the sock inside out. Once the orthotic is positioned in chamber  36  between first upper ply  32  and second lower ply  34 , the individual merely inserts his foot into the shoe of choice and gains the same benefits as enjoyed by the individual utilizing the embodiment as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . As with  FIG. 2 , the embodiment illustrated in  FIG. 3  allows the individual to wear the orthotic  10  even when his foot is not within a shoe. 
         [0027]      FIG. 4  is a planar view which more clearly identifies the relationship between the first upper ply  32 , second lower ply  34 , and slit  38 . For explanatory purposes,  FIG. 4  is an illustration of the plies as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . First upper ply  32  is sewn around its periphery  46  to second lower ply  34  so as to form the chamber  36  as illustrated in  FIG. 2 . The slit  38  is made in first upper ply  32  approximately midway between the toe terminus and the heel terminus. Slit  38  is secured by reinforced stitching  44  on both sides of the slit. 
         [0028]      FIG. 5  is a side cross-sectional view of the orthotic sock  20  of the present invention illustrating the orthotic inserted and positioned therein.  FIG. 5  illustrates the embodiment of  FIG. 3  wherein the slit  38 A is formed in the second lower ply  34  of the sole of the sock. The orthotic  10  has been inserted into chamber  36  such that the first upper ply  32  is positioned between the orthotic  10  and the bottom or sole of the individual&#39;s foot  14 , which is now encapsulated by the sock portion. The individual could walk around without shoes in this illustration and still have the benefit of the orthotic  10  cooperative with the individual&#39;s foot  14 . The individual could also take his foot with the sock and/or orthotic positioned as shown and insert it into the shoe  12  of choice. The orthotic  10  will be maintained in position because it is encapsulated within the chamber  36  of the orthotic sock  20  and the individual&#39;s foot  14  will remain in position and oriented with the orthotic  10  more easily that that of the prior art since it is also encapsulated by the same sock. Should any misorientation or slippage occur, the individual is not required to remove his or her shoe in order to correct the orientation, but rather can pull up on the ankle portion  22  of the orthotic sock  20 , without removing the shoe  12  in order to bring tautness to the sock as it relates to the foot which is encapsulated and to the orthotic which is encapsulated. 
         [0029]      FIGS. 2 through 5  are illustrative of an orthotic sock  20  for use with a flexible orthotic for the full foot or with respect to a partial orthotic, such as for the heel. In those instances where an individual is prescribed a full orthotic of rigid construction, the slit  38  may transverse to the axis of the foot and midway between the toe and the heel may present difficulty in inserting the orthotic as previously described. In those instances, a slit  38 B may be formed in either of the first upper ply  32  or the second lower ply  34  proximate the heel portion of the orthotic sock which would allow for the rigid orthotic to be positioned within chamber  36  more easily. 
         [0030]    Therefore, while the present invention has been disclosed with respect to the preferred embodiments thereof, it will be recognized by those of ordinary skill in the art that various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is therefore manifestly intended that the invention be limited only by the claims and the equivalence thereof.