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  • Footwear Having Independently Articuable Toe Portions (US Patent 7805860)

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    U.S. patent 7805860: Footwear having independently articuable toe portions. Granted to Fliri on 2010-10-05 (filed 2006-09-26) and assigned to Vibram S.p.A.. Currently involved in at least 1 patent litigation: Vibram S.P.A. et. al. v. Fut Glove, LLC (Florida). See http://news.priorsmart.com for more info.

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    Footwear having independently articuable toe portions (US patent 7805860)

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    U.S. patent 7805860: Footwear having independently articuable toe portions. Granted to Fliri on 2010-10-05 (filed 2006-09-26) and assigned to Vibram S.p.A.. Currently involved in at least 1 patent litigation: Vibram S.P.A. et. al. v. Fut Glove, LLC (Florida). See http://news.priorsmart.com for more info.

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    Public Domain
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    629 views18 pages

    Footwear Having Independently Articuable Toe Portions (US Patent 7805860)

    Uploaded by

    PriorSmart
    U.S. patent 7805860: Footwear having independently articuable toe portions. Granted to Fliri on 2010-10-05 (filed 2006-09-26) and assigned to Vibram S.p.A.. Currently involved in at least 1 patent litigation: Vibram S.P.A. et. al. v. Fut Glove, LLC (Florida). See http://news.priorsmart.com for more info.

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    ‘US007805860B2 2) United States Patent (10 Patent No: US 7,805,860 B2 Fliri (45) Date of Patent: Oct. 5, 2010 (34) FOOTWEAR HAVING INDEPENDENTLY Sa7g19 A 61994 Fig ARTICUABLE TOE PORTIONS, 538979 A M1995 Lydon 05) verte, Ment S41409 A 81906 His I sic ert Flr, Meran (IT) S647 145 A (997 Russell etal. (73) Assignee: Vibram S.p.A. (IT) 5.774.898 A * 7/1998 Malpee .. 229 5913592 A+ 61999 Moore 3681 (4) Notice: Subst oany sls thetermofthis ——goigs75.A* 12000 yeh 229 patent iserended or adjusted under 38 eangay G00 Bae C 154(b) by 909 days. 6.118941 A 92000, Ellis, IT aatenetine 6.40599 BI* 102002 Che sens 6708348 BI 32004 Romy (22) ied: Sep. 26,2006 6) Prior Publication Data US 2007/0144039 Al Jun. 28, 2007. (Continued) FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS Related US. Applicaton Data (60) Provisional application No. 60/720,750, filed on Sep. ones 7767-0006 2005 26, 2008, provisional application No, 60830.92, fe on J 15, 2006 (S)) Incl, (Continued) ANB 726 (2006.01) OTHER PUBLICATIONS (2) US.CL 95,3688; 509 2289, 7409 Amacto Form PCTISA206 Communion ling othe es Oonredt concen ere 369 oTlhepalltertionl ech PCTUS2O0605 70 dade ‘36/113, 88, 93, 94; 2/239, 499 Ysaref 2006. See application le fo compte search history. Primary Esoniner-Mori Patron (86) References Cited (4) Attorney Agen, or Firm—Cantor Colburn LLP US. PATENT DOCUMENTS eo) ABSTRACT Lm A+ 21990 Finklseia ex BO1S66 A 12 Levey A “Aided Langeafeldeta an 12894 A footwear is provided ncng a sole ad an upper where A+ Tye Aatins 364 thesolean the uper dln inva oe portions contig A 1aost Stacie ted receive ein, and allow independ arcs of AS M1987 Petrey 2259 corresponding individual toes of a foot inserted in the foot- Ay SBT Hey coc 3643 yearn whee te soe inl an exesion prion whi tag el line tens upwardly around at east a portion the To. A+ 111. Sipala 368 A 41909 Hlerpeneder 15 Claims, 11 Drawing Sheets US 7,805,860 B2 Page? US. PATENT DOCUMENTS oso4eir AL 8200 Grewedtl Sipcuroa al Tap Bu nw 670.028 BI 04 Bs Soolson Als Sab tana oe Crees BI 130! Awe Sastaer BI 46 eget seu FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS 7ae)s0) BI Tm sy ve . THI B2* BOG Gretel nanan 3689 EE esse 7 iioves oe oiensest At 123901 Beh ee Jimi Al '9ap0s Gn oilers Mars 2008091728 AL $2008 Alley 2008009172 AL 52005 Alley * cited by examiner US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 1 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 Aig. 1 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 2 of 11 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 3 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 AG. 3 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 4 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 Aig. 4 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 6 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 FIG.6 48 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 7 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 100 AG. 7 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet $ of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 US. Patent Oct. 5, 2010 Sheet 11 of 11 US 7,805,860 B2 US 7,805,860 B2 1 FOOTWEAR HAVING INDEPENDENTLY ARTICUABLE TOE PORTIONS (CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION s This epplicaionis related o and claims the benefit of US. Provisional Patent Application Ser, No, 60°720.750 filed on 126 Sep. 2005 and U'S, Provisional Patent Application Sex No. 60890,922 led on 15 Jul. 2006, the conten of sid. 10 applications are herein incorporated by reference in their entirety TECHNICAL FIELD OF INVENTION ‘The invention concems footwear and, more particultly, feotwear having provisions for allowing independent move- ‘ment ofa wearer's tes while providing comfort, protection, ‘and enhanced haptic response BACKGROUND OF INVENTION As is widely accepted, toe movement is essential t0 the efficent overall movement of the body. See, eg wow posetech.com; “Kick OM Your Shoes and Run Awhile, » Christopher McDougall, NY Times, 23 Jun. 2005; et. Toe ‘ction and the overall haptic response ofthe foot upoa the round play an important role in walking jogging, running, et, and a providing and mitaining a person's bodily bal- ance. Herein, “haptic response” is used t meana tctilesense cof response relating particularly fo the sense of touch asso ated with te foot and lower logs with espoct othe ground! sree Conventional shoes generally include a sole portion and an ‘upper formed above the sole and attachod to a periphery thereof. The soe is shaped to undetle the bottom of a Weat- rs foot from te hee! area through te arch, ball ofthe foot, ‘upto and even beyond the tips ofthe toes, The upper extends cover the sole to delimit a eavity which receives the foot. portion ofthe upper extend over the toe aren of the sole to forma toe cap at the font portion of the shoe, When the shoe is wom, the toes extend into the toe cap and lie therein aj cent one another. In this way, the foot rests upon a thick sole the bottom of which is generally fat for providing even con- ‘et withthe ground. That is, when the shoe sat rest, the sale is disposed fush agains the grou. ‘When the conventional shoe is worn, the entire font toe ap portion aets2sa single unt. The movement of the toe cap portion is generally limited toa pivoting action about the ball. ‘ofthe fot. Thats despite the various movements f the five toes dispose therein, the toe cap portion moves asa single ‘unit in only one dizection st a time. In this way, the coaveational shoe can limit the natural ‘movements ofthe toes and thus effet the overall operation ana performance ofthe foot. Additonal the toe cap potion limits, if aot restrits, the wearer's ability to spread hisher toes Within the toe cap portion. This ean lead to significant iscomfort of the wearer. This discomfort is compounded ‘when the toes are eroded into the toe cap portion. ‘Moreover the thick sole of a conventional shoe isolates the ‘tural contouring and curvature ofthe fot from the ground, thus minimizing the foots haptic sensations with respect to the ground, Thiscan cause a general dsessocation between a person ad the ground resulting te development of eaproper foot andlor toeaetion while walking, running te and ean be ‘generally disadvantageous with respect tothe person's bal- ance, agility, and overall foot health x“ 8 s 2 Attemptshave been made to provide footwear having indi- vidual portions which encapsulate each te separately, Se, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3967390, 4,651,354, and 'STTA808. However, none ofthese have been successful in enabling fee and independent toe articulation while atthe sume time providing enhanced comfort and inereasedbapt response along wth a significant degre a foot and toe pro tection Further attempts have been made to contour the sale of shoeto correspond to curvatures the foo. See, forexample, US. Pat, Nos. 4989349, 5317 819, 5,544,429, 6,115,941, and 6,708,424. However, all of these teachings require an futsole and a mid-sole, the combined thickness of which separates the foot ofthe wearer from the ground, thus reic= ing haptic response. Additionally, dhese atempis are gener- ally directed toward shoe sole Whicl has a generally planar bottom surface for fhshly engaging the ground. As men- tioned above, tis configuration further deprades the haptic response provided by the shoe, Moreover these references disclose a shoe having a conventional toe cap portion for containing al five tes ina restrictive single compartment ‘Therefore, independent articulation of toes isnot permitted, thorefore farther degrading the wearer's haptic response and resuling in increased foot discomfort. Thos there isa need for footwear which is shaped to the natural contour of the feet and which allows independent intrinsic movement of the feet, and particularly the toes, in order to enhance performance of the foot, increase haptic response, andto bring increased comfort tothe wearerand yet ‘which il provides coverage and protectionto the toes and to the remainder ofthe foo. BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION ‘The above discussed and oer problems and deficiencies ofthe proe art are avercome or alleviated by the invention ‘which provides a novel and nonobvious footwear dove, A footweuris provided including asoleandan upper where the sole and the upper dcimit individual toe potions config ‘ured to receive, retain, and allow independent arculation of corresponding individual toes of a foot inserted in the foot ‘wear and where the sole includes an extension portion which extends upwardly around at least a portion the fot ‘The inveation further provides footwear including asole, ‘an upper attached to the sole, anda convexity formed on the sole proximate tothe upper, wherethe convexity isconfigured tw engage a fore-fot portion of afoot inserted ato the Foot- ‘The invention additionally provides a footwear inching sole an upper, and a securentent arangement configured to securethe fotweae tothe foot ofa wearer, where the soleand the upper delimit individual toe portions configured to receive, ean, and allow independent articulation of eoere- sponding individual tes ofa foot inserted inthe footweae, ‘whore the sole ineludes contouring and curvature which it imately coresponds tothe shape ofthe foot, and where the sole and upper are disposed to provide an enlaces haptic response tothe wearer. ‘The above-discussed and oer features and advantages of the apparatus and method willbe appreciated and understood ‘by those skilled inthe avt from the following drawings and datsled description, BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES Referring now tothe drawings wherein tke elements are ‘numbered alike inthe several gues: US 7,805,860 B2 3 FIG.1 shows a perspective view of a footwear according ‘he invention; IG. 2 shows aside elevation view thereof; IG. 3 shows atop plan view thereof: FIG. 4 shows a perspective view thereof with te portions in an articulated position: FIG. § shows a bottom view ofthe footwear of FIG. FIG. 6shows asie elevation view ofa fotwearin another embodiment aecoeing to the invention; FIG.7 shows a perspective view thereof and FIG. 8 shows atop plan view theeeo. FIG. 9 shows aside elevation view of footwearin another ‘embodiment according the invention FIG. 10 shows a perspective view thereof; FIG. 11 shows a side elevation view of a footwear in another embodinent ofthe invention: FIG. 12 shows a perspective view thereof; FIG. 13 shows atop plan view of a sole ofthe footwear of FIGS. 9-12; and FIG. 14 shows a bottom plan view thereof with contour lines showing the contouring and curvature ofthe bottom of the sole DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 shows a prspostve view ofa fooowear 10 in one ‘embodiment ofthe invention, The footwear 10 is generally ‘composed ofa sole 12 and an upper 14 attached tothe sole 12 around a periphory of the sole 12. The footwear 10 further ‘comprises an insole 16 dispose atop and attached to the sale 12. The insole 16 also attached to the upper 14 ata periph- ery of the insole 16 ‘As best show in FIG. 3, the footwear 10 includes several regions which generally corespond to various parts of the foot, A rearfoot portion 18 is disposed toward a rer of the footwear 10 ands generally configured for fitting wound and supporting the el ofa wearer A midfoot portion 0 extends forward fom the rear portion 18 and eoresponds generally ‘with the arch area ofthe foo. fre-foct portion 22 extends Forward ofthe mid-faot portion 20nd generally corresponds to the area ofthe bal ofthe foot, thats, the area proximate to the joining ofthe metatarsals and proximal phalanges. fat portion 24is the forward most egion ofthe footwear 0 and stenerally aligns with, supports, and protect the toes ofthe foot. “The tion portion 24 ofthe focteur 10 includes invidual toe portions 26 formed by a unique and intricate shaping of the sole 12, upper 14, and insole 16, The sole 12 includes splits 28 in te font portion 24 which delimit respective toe portions 26. See, particularly, FIG. 5. The upper 14 includes toe regions 30 which extend from atop 32 ofthe upper 14

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