Patent Abstract:
An improved expandable shoe and inner assembly are disclosed. The expandable shoe includes an outer shell and an adjustable inner assembly is disposed within the outer shell. The inner assembly has a first board portion and a second board portion in overlapping engagement with each other and a control to adjust the position of the first board portion relative to the second board portion. The control includes a locking mechanism shaped to engage and hold one of the first and second board portions, a biasing mechanism to bias the locking mechanism into engagement with one of the first and second board portions; and an urging member having a proximal portion external of the shoe outer shell and positioned and movable transversely to a longitudinal direction of the shoe and in transverse alignment with the locking mechanism.  
     In one embodiment, a lighted visualization window provides a visualization window to the inner assembly. The inner assembly may include size markings through the visualization window so that a size of the adjusted shoe may be determined as shoe size is adjusted.

Full Description:
RELATED APPLICATIONS  
       [0001]    This application is a continuation in part of related U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/950,109, now pending, which is a continuation in part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/438,935, now pending, both of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 
     
    
     
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
         [0002]    1. Technical Field  
           [0003]    The present invention relates to expandable shoes that may be adjusted longitudinally.  
           [0004]    2. Discussion of Related Art  
           [0005]    Some attempts have been made to provide expandable shoes, which can purportedly withstand day-to-day use. U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,481, for example, discloses a shoe in which a two plate assembly is disposed between an inner and a disjointed outer sole, having overlapping front and back portions. One of the plates includes a spring tongue, and the other plate includes two apertures to receive the spring tongue, each aperture corresponding to a shoe size. To adjust the shoe size, a screw which extends through the heel and into the disjointed soles is removed. The shoe may then be pulled apart allowing the disjointed sole to separate until the spring tongue engages the next aperture. Thus the shoe size may be lengthened by one size, but apparently the size cannot be controlled finely or reduced. The shoe includes two crinkled leather portions  34 , one on each side of the shoe, to facilitate expansion of the shoe.  
           [0006]    WO 01/33986 describes an expandable shoe. The expandable shoe includes an outer shell having a front and a rear outer assembly each attached to a flexible, expandable segment. An adjustable inner assembly is disposed within the outer shell and includes a control mechanism, accessible from the outer shell, that may be urged from a lock state into a state in which the inner assembly and outer shell may be adjusted. A visualization window provides a view port to the inner assembly.  
           [0007]    Though WO 01/33986 details a desirable expandable shoe design, certain improvements thereto have been discovered to improve ergonomics, torsional rigidity, handling, and the construction of the shoe.  
         SUMMARY  
         [0008]    Under one aspect of the invention, an expandable shoe is provided which includes a front outer assembly, and a rear outer assembly. An expandable segment attaches to the front and rear outer assemblies to define a shoe outer shell and the expandable segment extends at least partially along each side of the outer shell and transversely across the bottom of the outer shell. An adjustable inner assembly is disposed within the outer shell and has a first board portion and a second board portion in overlapping engagement with each other. The inner assembly also includes a control to adjust the position of the first board portion relative to the second board portion and to thereby adjust a dimension of the inner assembly and thereby a corresponding dimension of the shoe.  
           [0009]    Under another aspect of the invention, the control includes a locking mechanism shaped to engage and hold one of the first and second board portions, a biasing mechanism to bias the locking mechanism into engagement with one of the first and second board portions; and an urging member having a proximal portion external of the shoe outer shell and positioned and movable transversely to a longitudinal direction of the shoe and in transverse alignment with the locking mechanism.  
           [0010]    Under another aspect of the invention, one of the first and second board portions include transversely extending teeth, and the locking mechanism includes transversely extending teeth and the urging member include a rod portion having at least two diameters. The locking mechanism includes an aperture in alignment with the rod portion and the cross section of the aperture is larger than the smaller of the at least two diameters but smaller than the large of the at least two diameters. When the urging member is moved, the rod portion contacts and moves the locking mechanism with the larger of the two diameters.  
           [0011]    Under another aspect of the invention, one of the first and second board portions includes an upward-facing cavity containing the control. The opening to the cavity is covered by the other of the first and second board portions when the first and second board portions overlap.  
           [0012]    Under another aspect of the invention, one of the first and second board portions includes at least one groove extending longitudinally and the other of the first and second board portions includes a corresponding rail in alignment with the groove. The rail is positioned within the groove as the first and second board portions overlap.  
           [0013]    Under another aspect of the invention, one of the first and second board portions has at least one projection which extends into a cavity in the sole.  
           [0014]    Under another aspect of the invention, at least one of the first and second board portions includes a lattice support structure.  
           [0015]    Under another aspect of the invention, one of the first and second board portions includes a set of notches and the locking mechanism has a surface feature to contact a notch in the set of notches to resist relative movement of the first and second members in relation to shoe size and provide ergonomic sensation.  
           [0016]    Under another aspect of the invention, a visualization window provides a view to the inner assembly. The inner assembly may include size markings or other indicia representative of a shoe adjustment, and these markings may be placed on the inner assembly to allow them to be visible through the visualization window.  
           [0017]    Under another aspect of the invention, a light source may be provided in the cavity to illuminate the visualization window. 
       
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING  
       [0018]    In the Drawing,  
         [0019]    [0019]FIGS. 1 and 2 show shoe designs according to certain embodiments of the invention;  
         [0020]    [0020]FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross sectional view of a shoe according to certain embodiments of the invention;  
         [0021]    FIGS.  4 A-B are exploded views of expandable last boards according to certain embodiments of the invention;  
         [0022]    FIGS.  5 A-C show features of expandable last boards according to certain embodiments of the invention;  
         [0023]    [0023]FIGS. 6 and 7 show an exemplary control mechanism in two states.  
         [0024]    [0024]FIG. 8A shows a perspective view of last boards according to one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0025]    [0025]FIG. 8B shows a bottom cross section view according to one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0026]    FIGS.  9 - 16 ,  18  and  20  show bottom views according to certain embodiments of the invention.  
         [0027]    [0027]FIG. 17 shows a rear view of a shoe according to one embodiment of the invention.  
         [0028]    [0028]FIG. 19 shows a side view of a shoe according to one embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0029]    Certain embodiments of the present invention provide improvements to the ergonomics, torsional rigidity, handling, and construction of the shoe designs disclosed in WO 01/33986. That reference in conjunction with U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/438,935 is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.  
         [0030]    [0030]FIGS. 1 and 2 show two shoe designs under certain embodiments of the invention. With reference to FIG. 1, shoe  10  includes a front outer sole  12  and a front upper  18  to form a front outer assembly  13 , and a rear outer sole  16  and a rear upper  20  to form a rear outer assembly  17 . The front outer assembly  13  is attached to one edge  15 B of a bellows segment  14 , and the rear outer assembly  17  is attached to a second edge  15 A, in each case using conventional techniques, such as by using stitching to the uppers  18 ,  20  and glue along the outer soles  12 ,  16 . The combination of front outer assembly  13 , rear outer assembly  17 , and bellows segment  14  forms an outer shell  21 .  
         [0031]    An alternative shoe  20  is illustrated in FIG. 2. One principal difference in shoe  20  relative to shoe  10  is the bellows  22  of shoe  20  does not completely surround the shoe, whereas bellows  14  of shoe  10  is a unitary bellows enveloping the circumference of the shoe.  
         [0032]    Similarly to that described in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/438,935, an adjustable inner sole assembly is placed within outer shell  21 . An externally-accessible manual control is urged via cap  24  and is used to place the inner sole assembly in a state in which it may be adjusted. When the control is in its natural state (i.e., when it is not urged transversely) it is in a lock state to hold the shoe adjustment fixed.  
         [0033]    [0033]FIG. 3 is a longitudinal cross-sectional view of an exemplary shoe  10 . As can be seen in this view, an adjustable inner assembly  30  is positioned within the outer shell  21  and is generally formed from two pieces  31 , 32  which are shaped to engage and move relative to one another in overlapping relationship. The overlapping and engaging inner assembly  30  provides a relatively rigid last board for desirable foot support. In this embodiment, rear piece  31  is partially positioned within a heel section of the shoe  10  and includes the control mechanism  41 , discussed below, which allow the shoe to be adjusted in size. The shoe includes a two piece inner last board  33 ,  34 . This two piece inner last is made from materials, e.g., cloth, used for conventional last boards and is attached or sewn to the outer shell. Over the inner last is a two piece inner sole  36  and  37  made from conventional materials, e.g., foam, and shaped to overlap one another so that the pieces slide as the shoe size is adjusted.  
         [0034]    [0034]FIG. 4A is an exploded view of one embodiment of the inner assembly  30  in relation to rear outer assembly  17 . The inner assembly  30  includes front last board piece  31  and rear last board piece  32  positioned in overlapping, slidable and engaging relationship, as will be described more fully below in connection with the description of other figures. The front piece includes a downward facing cavity  40  (shown better in other figures) into which a control mechanism  41  is positioned. Plate  46  is mounted on the front piece  31  over the cavity  40  and encapsulates the control mechanism within the cavity, protecting it from glue and other substances used in the construction of the entire shoe. On the bottom surface of plate  46 , shoe size indicia or adjustment indicia may be printed, engraved, labeled, or the like. The heel portion of the inner assembly  30  is positioned within a heel support  47 . A plate  48  having magnification window  49  is fixed to the rear piece  32  by protrusions or the like to align the window  49  with the indicia on the bottom surface of plate  46 . Cap  24  is fit over the proximal end of pin  45  and the entire assembly is fit within rear outer assembly  17  and the other components of the outer shell  21 .  
         [0035]    [0035]FIG. 4B is an exploded view of another embodiment of the inner assembly  30 . In this embodiment, the front piece  31  has an upward facing cavity (not shown) into which the control mechanism is placed. The bottom surface of the cavity is integrated into the front piece  31  (as opposed to an attached plate  46 ), and the control mechanism is encapsulated by the rear piece  32  being positioned over the opening of the cavity. The bottom surface of the front piece, like the plate  46  of the prior embodiment, includes shoe size indicia or adjustment. The bottom surface  34  of the rear piece  32  has a cutout (not shown), through which the indicia may be observed. In particular, a magnification window  49 ′ is attached to the bottom surface  34  of the rear piece  32  in alignment with the cutout and through which the indicia may be viewed. To illustrate the wide applicability of the design, this figure shows the inner assembly being used with a midsole  17 ′ having an attached outer sole  17 ″.  
         [0036]    With reference to FIGS. 3, 4A,  6 , and  7 , the control mechanism  41  has a natural, locked state in which a toothed member  42  engages teeth  62  integrated with or attached to the front piece. The locked state prevents the front and rear pieces  31  and  32  from being moved longitudinally relative to one another. By sufficiently pushing pin  45  of the control mechanism  41  in a transverse direction relative to the last board&#39;s longitudinal direction, the last board may be placed in an unlocked state in which the toothed member  42  disengages the integrated or fixed tooth segment. Consequently, the front piece  31  may be moved longitudinally relative to the rear piece  32 . The longitudinal movement is constrained by the extent of the longitudinal apertures  35 , one of two of which is shown in FIG. 3. As the front and rear pieces  31 ,  32  are moved relative to one another, different indicia will align with the magnification window  49 ,  49 ′.  
         [0037]    The control mechanism  41  of either embodiment includes a toothed member  42 , a biasing spring  43 , a support guide  44 , and an urging pin  45 . The teeth of the toothed member  42  are shaped and spaced to engage with teeth  62  (shown in FIG. 6 and  7 ) integrated into or fixed to a wall  64  of the cavity  40  facing the teeth of the toothed member  42 . FIG. 6 shows the support guide  44  and spring  43  biasing the toothed member  42  into engagement with the integrated teeth. This “locked” state prevents the front piece from moving longitudinally relative to the rear piece  32 .  
         [0038]    Pin  45  has a first section  45 A of a relatively larger diameter and a second section  45 B of a relatively smaller diameter. The pin  45  is sized to fit through aperture  33  in rear section  32 , through longitudinal slot  35  (shown in FIG. 3), through the control mechanism  41 , and into another aperture corresponding to aperture  33  but on the hidden side of the rear section  32 . More specifically, the larger diameter section  45 A fits through aperture  33  but is too large to fit through the central aperture  42 A of toothed member  42 . The smaller diameter section  45 B, however, is small enough to fit through the central aperture  42 A of member  42  and aperture  44 A of support  44 . The support  44  includes a circular protrusion  44 C which defines the aperture  44 A and which fits into the aperture corresponding to the aperture  33  but on the hidden side. Thus, as the pin  45  is pushed through the aperture  33 , the larger diameter section  45 A eventually contacts toothed member  42  but does not pass through it. Continued pushing of pin  45  will thus cause the toothed member  42  to move transversely and compress spring  43  against support  44 . Circular recess  44 B of support  44  helps keeps the components in secure alignment. Sufficient pushing of the pin  45  will cause the teeth of member  42  to clear and disengage the integrated teeth of front piece  31 , as shown in FIG. 7. This “adjustment” state allows the front piece  31  to be moved longitudinally relative to the rear piece  32 , while the teeth are so disengaged. The number of teeth and the spacing in between teeth may be made to index to known adjustments. For example, the amount of teeth and spacing may be made to correspond to a range of sizes 13 to 1 and allow half size increments 13, 13.5, 1.  
         [0039]    FIGS.  6  and further illustrates an end cap  75 . The end cap has a cylindrical protrusion  77  to fit into aperture-defining portion  76  and defines an aperture  78  to receive a distal end of pin  45 . The cap further encapsulates the control mechanism protecting it from glue and other debris during manufacturing and use of the shoe.  
         [0040]    Though the control mechanism and states are shown and described with reference to the embodiment of FIG. 4A, the operation and components are the same for the embodiment of FIG. 4B. The embodiment of FIG. 4B requires the control mechanism (except for pin  45 ) to be assembled within the cavity of the front piece  31  before the front piece is arranged with the rear piece but it has the advantage of improved encapsulation and protection from glue used in shoe assembly.  
         [0041]    FIGS.  5 A-C show certain improvements to the design of the front and rear pieces relative to embodiments shown in WO 01/33986. The rear piece  32  is generally shaped like the rear piece disclosed in WO 01/33986 having slots  51  and  52  to accept the wings  53  and  54  of the front piece  31  so that the front piece may slide within rear piece  32  in an overlapping relationship. When fully contracted curved sections  55  and  56  of the front piece  31  contact curved walls  57  and  58  of the rear piece  32 . Unlike the design shown in WO 01/33986, the rear piece  32  includes two rails  59  and  60  protruding up from the major surface of the rear piece  32 , and the front piece includes two slots  61  and  62  shaped to receive these rails. Because the rails protrude from the major surface they help inhibit transverse sliding of the front and rear pieces and improve the torsional rigidity of the last board  30 .  
         [0042]    As shown in FIGS.  6 - 8 , the cavity  40  has a set of notches  80  to provide ergonomic feedback (in the form of resistance and/or clicking) to the user when he or she is adjusting the shoe size. The notches are positioned to correspond to shoe size adjustments. As the front piece  31  and rear piece  32  are moved relative to one another, a surface of portion  81  of the control mechanism  41  contacts a notch, and thus provides resistance to the user pushing or pulling the two pieces  31 , 32  together or apart, when the teeth  64  do not align with the teeth of toothed member  42 . When the teeth  64  and the toothed member  42  align, a surface of portion  81  of the control mechanism will be positioned in a valley or recess of the set of notches  80  and thus provide no resistance to the user, giving the user the tactile sensation of no resistance and signaling that the shoe size adjustment is in alignment. In addition, the surface portion  81  of the control mechanism causes a clicking sound as it completes the move from the notch into the valley or recess, further signaling to the user that the shoe size adjustment is in alignment.  
         [0043]    [0043]FIG. 5C shows the bottom surface of front piece  31  and illustrates the lattice-shaped support structure  66  integrated into the front piece. Though other arrangements may be substituted, the structure  66  provides improved torsional rigidity in the midsole area while allowing some of the material of the front piece  31  to be removed and to thus reduce weight.  
         [0044]    FIGS.  9 - 16  show additional embodiments of the invention in which the front piece  31  has one or more longitudinally extending projections which extend into a cavity (or cavities) in the sole  82 . These projections help inhibit transverse sliding of the front piece  31  and rear piece  32  and improve the torsional rigidity of the last board.  
         [0045]    In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 9 and 10, three cylindrical rods  88 ,  90  and  92  extend from the front piece  31  and are positioned in corresponding cylindrical cavities  94 ,  96  and  98  in the sole  82 . As the front piece  31  is moved relative to the rear piece  32 , the cylindrical rods  88 ,  90  and  92  move further into the cavities  94 ,  96  and  98 . In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, two cylindrical rods  100  and  102  extend from the front piece  31  and are positioned in corresponding cylindrical cavities  104  and  106  in the sole  82 . In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a longitudinally extending rectangular projection  86  extends from the front piece  31  and is positioned in a rectangular cavity  84  in the sole  82 . In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 15 and 16, a triangular projection  112  extends from the front piece  31  and is positioned in a triangular cavity  114  in the sole  82 . A cross section of the triangular projection is shown in FIG. 16A.  
         [0046]    It is understood that projections and cavities of other shapes may be used to provide the desired torsional stability, and that the number of such projections and corresponding cavities may also be varied.  
         [0047]    In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 and 18, a visualization window  116  is provided in a wall of the sole  117  in the heel portion of the shoe to provide a view to the inner assembly. As shown in FIG. 18, indicia  118 , such as shoe size or adjustment indicia, is applied to the front board portion  31  so that as the front board portion  31  is moved relative to the rear board portion  32 , the indicia travels up around the heel portion of the front board portion  31 , and the shoe size or adjustment indicia is visible through the visualization window  116 .  
         [0048]    In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 19 and 20, the visualization window  116  is located in a side wall  120  of the sole of the shoe. As shown in FIG. 20, shoe size or adjustment indicia is applied to a side portion  122  of the front board portion  31  so that as the front board portion  31  is moved relative to the rear board portion  32 , the shoe size or adjustment indicia is visible through the visualization window  116 .  
         [0049]    In the embodiment shown in FIG. 18, the visualization window may be illuminated. The cavity  40  includes a light source  124 , electronic connectors  126  connected to a power source  127  and a clear lens  128  to transmit light from the light source  116  to the visualization window  116 . The light source  124  is activated when the control mechanism  41  in the “adjustment” state as described above (i.e., where the front piece  31  is allowed to move longitudinally relative to the rear piece  32 , while the teeth of member  42  are disengaged from the integrated teeth of front piece  31 ). The light source is de-activated when the control mechanism is in a locked state (i.e., when the teeth of member  42  are engaged with the integrated teeth of front piece  31 . One way to activate the light source is to put contacts on the control mechanism, so that as the control mechanism is depressed, a circuit is formed to activate the light source so that light is transmitted from the light source to the visualization window.  
         [0050]    The shoe designs of FIGS. 1 and 2 are exemplary. The principles of the invention may be manifested in embodiments including running shoes, biking shoes, ski boots, dress shoes, snow boarding boots, sandals and the like. Depending on the shoe type, the inner assembly may be in the form of a last board, or a combination of a last board and a midsole, or a midsole. Likewise, depending on the shoe type, the materials used will be selected to provide a desired amount of flexibility or rigidity. Moreover, depending on the shoe design the outer shell may differ. In the case of a sandal, for example, the outer shell would only have strapping. Other embodiments, such as a biking shoe, might have either netting, meshing, or no material where the bellows are shown, thus providing increased ventilation.  
         [0051]    Moreover, the above embodiments described a flexible segment made of a bellows-shaped material, but other embodiments may use other materials, e.g., stretchable nylon, netting or meshing, or it may be omitted. Likewise all of the control features described had external features to activate the control, but other embodiment (e.g., cost-reducing embodiments or embodiments where hiding the control is desirable) may place the control mechanisms on the interior of the outer shell.  
         [0052]    While the invention has been described in connection with certain preferred embodiments, it will be understood that it is not intended to limit the invention to those particular embodiments. On the contrary, it is intended to cover all alternatives, modifications and equivalents as may be included in the appended claims. Some specific components, figures and types of materials are mentioned, but it is to be understood that such component values, dimensions and types of materials are, however, given as examples only and are not intended to limit the scope of this invention in any manner.

Technology Classification (CPC): 0