This invention pertains generally to the field of footwear with interchangeable heels, and in particular articles of footwear that allow for the heel to be interchanged quickly and conveniently.

Either for aesthetic or for practical reasons it is desirable to be able to alter the height of the heel of articles of footwear. A wearer may wish to change the appearance of their footwear to suit a different occasion, or may wish to alter the height of the heel for comfort purposes when travelling to and from an event for an example. They may wish to match their footwear to a particular outfit or style to keep up with current trends. The heel portion of a pair of shoes may become damaged and need to be replaced or repaired. They may wish to change their heel height to suit different conditions underfoot, or may wish to have the comfort and practicality of a pair of flat shoes at one particular time, yet be able to transform their footwear to provide them with high heels for another particular time, perhaps once they have reached their destination.

The prior art shows a number of devices which attempt to address these needs in various ways.

US 5 347 730 (Rodriguez) discloses a low heel shoe that can be converted to a high heel shoe and vice versa. The shoe comprises a low heel that is permanently attached to the sole and a relatively high heel that can be releasably secured to the low heel. Also disclosed is an extensible shank incorporated in the sole of the shoe that can be manually adjusted to flex the sole to suit the change of heel condition. Whilst allowing a conversion from low heel to high heel, this system does not convert to a flat soled shoe, and does not allow for a plurality of different heels to be attached to the shoe by a simply and convenient method. To secure the high heel portion to the low heel portion, a user slides the heel into position and inserts a pin. The pin can easily become lost or mislaid, and the conversion can no longer take place.

Whilst the prior art appears to address the issue of being able to interchange heels on a pair of shoes, the majority of these incorporate means that affect the outside aesthetics and appearance of the shoes. Those with external mechanisms for affixing different heels to the soles of shoes may become clogged with dirt and other detritus.

Preferred embodiments of the present invention aim to provide a interchangeable heel portion for a footwear article, that provides a quick and easy means of interchanging heel portions, whilst not affecting the styling or overall appearance of the footwear article. The present invention aims to provide a retrofittable interchangeable heel portion that can be configured to be applied to existing footwear articles. According to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an interchangeable heel for a footwear article, the interchangeable heel comprising:

a plate for securing to the sole of the footwear article, said plate incorporating at least one flange; and,

a heel portion comprising at least one groove, whereby said at least one groove is configured to engage with the at least one flange or,

wherein the heel portion incorporates a releasable fastening means to releasably secure the heel portion to the plate, and a quick release means within the fastening means to release the heel portion.

Preferably, the flange and corresponding groove are configured to be U-shaped.

The U- shaped flange may be tapered.

The tapering may be between 0 degrees and 10 degrees.

Preferably, the releasable fastening means comprises a rocking catch.

The rocking catch may pivot about a pin and be spring loaded .

The quick release means may comprise a push button . Preferably, the plate is riveted to a sole of the footwear article.

The groove of the heel portion may be slidably mounted to the plate from the rear of the footwear article until the releasable fastening means engages with a recess in the plate.

Preferably, the plate is cast from steel. The rocking catch may comprise a plastics material.

The heel portion may comprise at least one rubber face.

The quick release means may be configured to be accessed within the arch of the footwear article.

An article of footwear incorporating the interchangeable heel of any one of the preceding claims.

For a better understanding of the invention and to show how embodiments of the same may be carried into effect, reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows one embodiment of a footwear article with cutaway heel portion to show internal means of releasably securing the heel portion to a sole of the footwear article;

5 Figure 2 shows the footwear article of Figure 1 , shown without the cutaway heel portion;

Figure 3 shows an alternative heel portion releasably secured to the footwear article to create a different heel height, with cutaway of the heel portion 10 to show internal means of releasably securing the heel portion to a sole of the footwear article;

Figure 4 shows the the footwear article of Figure 3, shown without the cutaway heel portion;

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Figure 5 shows the footwear article of Figures 1 and 3 with heel portion removed;

Figure 6 shows an exploded view of the heel portion of Figure 1 ;

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Figure 7 shows an underside view of Figure 5, showing a plate riveted to the sole of the footwear article and a tapered flange within the plate; and, Figure 8 shows in side view the tapered flange of Figure 7.

In the figures like references denote like or corresponding parts. Figure 1 shows a footwear article 1 with typical shoe upper 2 and sole 3. A heel portion 4 has been releasably secured to the sole 3 to provide the footwear article 1 with a low heel. A plate 5 is permanently affixed to the sole 3 of the footwear article 1. This plate 5 incorporates at least one flange 6. The heel portion 4 incorporates at least one groove 7 that corresponds to the at least one flange 6 to releasably secure the heel portion 4 to the plate 5.

The flange 6 in one embodiment may comprise a horseshoe or U- shaped protrusion that coincides with the circumference of the rounded portion of the heel portion 4. The heel portion 4 may incorporate a corresponding horseshoe or U-shaped groove that is configured to engage with the flange 6 of the plate 5. The heel portion 4 can therefore be slid onto the plate 5 from the rear of the footwear article 1.

In a further embodiment, the plate 5 may incorporate a plurality of flanges 6 or protrusions that are configured to engage with a plurality of grooves 7 within the heel portion 4. The flange 6 and groove 7 arrangement ensures that the heel portion 4 is in the correct position and aligned correctly on the sole 3 of the footwear article 1. Also shown in figure 1 is one embodiment of releasable fastening means 8 to releasably secure the heel portion 4 when in the correct position. In this embodiment the releasable fastening means 8 comprises a spring loaded catch 9. The spring loaded catch 9 engages with a recess 11 in the plate 5 once the heel portion 4 is in position. Such a rocker catch, biased by a spring 10, is mounted within the uppermost surface of the heel portion 4. When the heel portion 4 is slid onto the plate 5, the spring loaded catch 9 is moved into an engaged position. Once the spring loaded catch 9 reaches the recess 11, there is space for the spring loaded catch 9 to move into engaged position, thus securing the heel portion 4 into place on the plate 5.

To remove the heel portion 4 from the plate 5 and therefore allow a different heel portion 4 to be releasably secured to the plate 5, the heel portion is provided with a button 12 that forms part of the spring loaded catch 9 of the releasable fastening means 8. The button 12 moves the spring loaded catch 9 out of the recess 11 in the plate 5, to allow the heel portion 4 to be slid off the plate 5 from the rear of the footwear article 1.

The button 12 is conveniently mounted on the inside of the heel portion 12 such that it does not interfere with the overall aesthetic of the footwear article 1. Such an arrangement of heel portion 4 does not therefore alter the appearance of the footwear article 1, from a similar footwear article 1 that does not have interchangeable heels. The releasable fastening means 8 is configured in this embodiment to be concealed within the heel portion 4 and plate 5 when engaged with the sole 3 of the footwear article 1. Not only does this not affect the aesthetics of the footwear article 1, but it also ensures that the flange 6, the groove 7 and the moving parts of the releasable fastening means 8 are kept clear of dirt, dust and other detritus that could interfere with the mechanism.

Figure 2 shows the same embodiment of footwear article 1 with interchangeable heel portion 4, showing how the heel portion 4 would appear from outside the footwear article 1. The button 12 is the only visible component of the releasable fastening means 8 that projects outside the footwear article 1. In a further embodiment, not shown, the button 12 may be substantially concealed within the heel portion 4, such that the footwear article 1 does not appear to incorporate interchangeable heel portions 4.

Figure 3 shows the footwear article 1 with a different style of heel portion 4 attached to the plate 5 that is permanently affixed to the sole 3. This heel portion 4 provides a higher heel height, and converts the footwear article 1 into a stiletto heeled shoe. As before, the plate 5 is riveted through a plurality of rivets 13 or joined by similar fastening means to the sole 3. The plate 5 incorporates at least one flange into which the groove 7 of the heel portion 4 can be slid, and also incorporates a recess 11 into which the spring loaded catch 9 of the releasable fastening means 8 can latch. As typical with stilettos heeled footwear articles 1, the heel portion may also comprise a steel pin 14 to provide strength to the heel portion 4 when subjected to impacts underfoot. Figure 4 shows the footwear article 1 of Figure 3 when the releasable fastening means 8 is concealed within the heel portion 4. The shoe upper 2 of the footwear article 1 has been suitably configured to allow for a change in heel height, by comprising a suitable material that conforms to different foot shapes when the foot is placed in the footwear article 1 with different heel portions 4.

Figure 5 shows a typically footwear article 1 without heel portion 4, showing the plate 5 affixed to the sole 3. The plate 5 could be secured to many different styles and designs of footwear articles 1, and could convert an existing footwear article 1 into one which can support a plurality of different

interchangeable heel portions 4. The interchangeable heel portions 4 could therefore be retrofitted to existing footwear articles 1. The plate 5 may be affixed directly to the base of the upper 2, in place of the sole 3 at the rear of the footwear article 1. The plate 5 may be riveted to the footwear article 1, or alternative permanent fastening means may be used such as adhesives, magnets, nails, screws or similar.

Figure 6 shows an exploded view of the components of one embodiment of footwear article 1 with heel portion 4. The heel portion 4 may incorporate a front face 15 that may comprise rubber or other suitable material to prevent wear and tear to the heel portion 4. The heel portion 4 may also incorporate a top lift 16 at the very base of the heel portion 16. As shown in Figure 7 the plate 5 can be riveted to the base of the footwear article 1 with a plurality of rivets 13. This embodiment shows four rivets 13. The flange 6 configured within the plate 5 is shown as horseshoe or U- shaped. This horseshoe shaped flange 6 may also be tapered such that when the groove 7 of the heel portion 4 is slidably mounted onto flange 6 of the plate 5, the heel portion 4 slides easily until it approaches the correct position, where it begins to grip and provide some resistance. This makes it easy to slide the heel portion 4 onto the plate 5, but also ensures that once approaching the correct position and when in the correct position, the flange 6 and groove 7 arrangement provides some of the grip required to support the heel portion 4 in position just prior to the releasable fastening means 4 engaging with the recess 11.

Figure 8 shows a further embodiment of plate 5 incorporating a tapered flange 6 to provide additional resistance to the heel portion 4 when the heel portion 4 is slid onto the plate 5.

In a further embodiment, not shown, the releasable fastening means 8 may incorporate at least one magnetic means, and the plate 5 may incorporate a corresponding magnetic means, such that the heel portion 4 is releasably secured to the plate 5 through magnetic means.