Patent Publication Number: US-2020297065-A1

Title: Assemblable slipper

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No. 10-2019-0031860 filed on Mar. 20, 2019, which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety. 
     BACKGROUND 
     Field of the Invention 
     The present invention generally relates to a slipper and, more particularly, to an assemblable slipper. 
     Description of the Related Art 
     Generally, a pair of slippers are used indoors and/or outdoors to keep a user&#39;s feet clean, or for the user&#39;s convenience. As the slippers are used for convenience, they have been used by a large number of people. However, conventional slippers have been manufactured with a sole portion and a cover portion covering the top of the foot in an integral form by means of sewing or an adhesive. Accordingly, there have been such problems that a sewing part at which the sole portion is coupled with the cover portion covering the top of the foot is damaged if the slipper is used for a long time or, where the sole portion and the cover portion covering the top of the foot are separated from each other as the adhesive reaches the end of its life, it is not possible to reuse the slipper. 
     Also, as the sole portion is integrally coupled with the cover portion covering the top of the foot, users have no other choice to use the standard slippers as manufactured by the makers. In this regard, there is a problem such that a user is unable to use slippers specially designed only for him/her. 
     SUMMARY 
     Accordingly, the present invention has been made keeping in mind the above problems occurring in the related art, and an object of the present invention is to provide an assemblable slipper that can be assembled without use of an adhesive, be designed as desired by a user, and is easy to carry. 
     In order to accomplish the above object, an exemplary embodiment of the present invention provides an assemblable slipper comprising a sole portion having one side on which an insertion groove is formed, a clip fixed to an inner surface of the insertion groove provided in the sole portion, a band fixedly coupled at each of both ends thereof to the clip, and a bed formed with the same size and thickness as the insertion groove and inserted into the insertion groove. 
     According to an exemplary embodiment, the insertion groove may be formed with the same width as the band. Also, the clip and the band may be coupled with each other and then fitted into the insertion groove. 
     Further, the sole portion and the bed may be made of different materials, the insertion groove may be formed in plural, and the number of each of the band and the bed may be configured as the same number of the insertion grooves. 
     As described above, according to the present invention, it is possible to assemble a slipper in a simple manner without use of an adhesive by inserting a band into a sole portion and then fixing the band and the sole portion with a bed. In this regard, the present invention is effective that when the slipper is carried or is not in use, a space for carrying can be reduced by separating the band from the sole portion, and it is also easy to react to damage or separation of the band. 
     In addition, according to the present invention, replacement of the band is easy, allowing the slipper to be easily replaced with a design as desired by the user. Also, the present invention may have an effect in that the life of the slipper can be increased by replacement of the band. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an assemblable slipper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the line A-A of  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of a sole portion according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 4  shows coupling of a clip and a band according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and 
         FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an assemblable slipper according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     The present invention can be variously modified and have various embodiments. In this regard, specific examples thereof are illustrated in the accompanying drawings and described below. However, it is to be understood that the present invention is not intended to limit the invention to those exemplary embodiments. On the contrary, the present invention is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents and substitutions that may be included within the spirit and scope of the present invention. 
     Like reference numeral is used to identify like elements in describing each of the drawings. Further, in the following description, if it is decided that the detailed description of known technology related to the invention makes the subject matter of the invention unclear, the detailed description thereof is omitted. 
     It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, these elements should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element, from another element. 
     For instance, a first element discussed below could be termed a second element without departing from the teachings of the present invention. Similarly, the second element could also be termed the first element. 
     The term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. 
     The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting. 
     As used herein, the singular forms “a” and “an”, or “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprise”, “include”, “have”, etc. when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or combinations of them but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or combinations thereof. 
     Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which example embodiments belong. 
     It will be further understood that terms, e.g., those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art and will not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. 
     Hereinbelow, an assemblable slipper according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.  FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an assemblable slipper according to an exemplary embodiment;  FIG. 2  is a cross-sectional view of the line A-A of  FIG. 1 ;  FIG. 3  is a cross-sectional view of a sole portion according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention;  FIG. 4  shows coupling of a clip and a band according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention; and  FIG. 5  is a perspective view of an assemblable slipper according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In order to clarify the subject matter of the present invention, description of the conventional art known to the public will be below omitted or simplified. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 1 to 5 , an assemblable slipper  1  according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention is easy to assemble, serving to allow easy replacement of the design thereof with a unique design as desired by a user, and enhance the portability and extend the life thereof. According to an exemplary embodiment, the assemblable slipper  1  may comprise a sole portion  100 , a clip  200 , a band  300 , and a bed  400 . 
     The sole portion  100  may have one side on which an insertion groove  110  is formed, and may be coupled with the clip  200  and the band  300 . 
     The insertion groove  110  may be provided on a part or a whole part of one side of the sole portion  100 , into which the bed  400  may be inserted. A fixing groove  111  may be provided on an inside surface of the insertion groove  100 , and the clip  200  may be inserted into and fixed to the fixing groove  111 . Where the insertion groove  110  is provided on a part of the sole portion  100 , the insertion groove  100  may be formed of the same width as the band  300 , and the clip  200  coupled with the band  300  having the same width as the band  300  may be fixedly fitted into the insertion groove  110 . 
     Also, the insertion groove  110  may be provided in plural, and the number of each of the band  300  and the bed  400  coupled with the clip  200  may be configured as the same number of the insertion grooves  100 . 
     The fixing groove  111  may be provided on an inside surface of the insertion groove  110  and in the same shape as the clip  200  so as to be fitted into the clip  200 . Here, although the fixing groove  111  is illustrated as an L-letter shape in the drawings, the fixing groove  111  is not limited to the L-letter shape and may be substituted as any shape that the clip  200  can be fixedly fitted thereinto. 
     The clip  200  may be fixed to the fixing groove  111  provided on an inside surface of the insertion groove  110 , and each of both ends of the band  300  may be fixedly coupled to the clip  200 . The width of the clip  200  may be same as those of the insertion groove  110  and the bed  200 . Also, in a state that the clip  200  is fitted into the fixing groove  111 , the bed  400  is inserted into the insertion groove  110 , thereby being capable of preventing the clip  200  from being deviated from the fixing grove  111 . 
     The clip  200  may be shaped so as to correspond to the fixing groove in shape. The shape of the clip  200  is not limited, and may be substituted as any shape that can be fixedly fitted into the fixing groove  111 . For example, the clip may take an L-letter shape as illustrated in the drawings, or may be substituted as a U-letter shape or a II-letter shape. 
     At each end thereof, the band  300  may be fixedly coupled to the clip  200  fitted into the fixing groove  111  provided on the inside surface of the insertion groove  110 , and the band  300  may be coupled to the clip  200  by sewing so as to prevent separation from the clip  200 . Also, the band  300  may be formed in various designs as desired by the user, and separation of the bed  400  from the insertion groove  110  serves to facilitate replacement of the insertion groove  100  because separation from the sole portion  100  is easy. 
     Also, when the band  300  is coupled with the clip  200 , an end of the band  300  may be positioned between the sole portion  100  and the clip  200 , or between the clip  200  and the bed  400 . At this time, it is preferable that an end of the band is positioned between the sole portion  100  and the clip  200  so as to allow the band  300  to be firmly fixed. 
     The bed  400  may be formed with the same size, thickness, and number as the insertion groove  110 , and is inserted in a fitted manner into the insertion groove  110  so as to fix the clip  200  and the band  300 . The bed  400  may be formed of a different material from the sole portion so as to make a wearer more comfortable, and the material may have higher elasticity and cushioning effect as compared with the sole portion  100 . 
     As described above, the band  300  may be easily replaced by separating the bed  400  from the sole portion  100 . Also, by inserting the bed  400  into the insertion groove  110  in a fitted manner, the wearer&#39;s foot is positioned at the bed  400 , and thus, the clip  200  and the band  300  can be firmly fixed. Also, as only the bed  400  is coupled with the insertion groove  110  after separating the band  300  from the sole portion  100  so as to carry, the volume of the slipper is reduced, resulting in reducing a space for carrying. Depending upon the situations, as the slipper is used with replacing the band  300 , the life of the slipper  1  may be extended. 
     In addition, as the insertion groove  110 , the band  300 , and the bed  400  are provided in plural, the present invention is also applicable to footwear such as sandals as illustrated in  FIG. 5 . Also, by forming the sole portion  100  and the bed  400  of different materials, that is, the material of the bed  400  having higher elasticity and cushioning effect than that of the sole portion  100 , the wearer may feel more comfortable in wearing the slippers. 
     The present invention is not limited to specific exemplary embodiments as described above. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, etc. are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims. 
     DESCRIPTION OF THE REFERENCE NUMERALS IN THE DRAWINGS 
     
         
           1  Assemblable slipper 
           100  Sole portion 
           110  Insertion groove 
           111  Fixing groove 
           200  Clip 
           300  Band 
           400  Bed