CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims the benefit of the filing date of U.S. Application No. 61/733,337, filed December 4, 2012, which is hereby incorporated by reference.

FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT [0002] Not Applicable.

MICROFICHE/COPYRIGHT REFERENCE [0003] Not Applicable.

FIELD

[0004] This disclosure is related to toe and metatarsal protectors as used in safety footwear, namely boots and shoes, such as are worn in locations where there is danger of impact or compression forces being applied to and injuring the feet of the wearer.

BACKGROUND

[0005] Safety footwear in the form of shoes or boots conventionally can incorporate a toecap with metallic or non-metallic reinforcement to avoid injuries that could occur from impact of an object falling accidentally on it. However, in work conditions where the falling objects are common and frequent, it is recommended by many Industrial safety regulations that the workers must be equipped with safety footwear that has impact protection not only on the toe area of the foot, but also the instep area. Most commonly, it is termed as metatarsal protection.

[0006] Metatarsal protection devices are known to be provided as one solid piece or as multiple layers glued together, which can be plastic, hard rubber, or metallic, with the protective devices having curved forms which adapts to the shape of the metatarsal area of the safety shoe/boot, where it can either be attached externally on top of the safety shoe/boot around the instep area or internally integrated into the upper layers of the shoe or boot.

[0007] However, based on the existing safety shoe/boot designs in the market, it has been found that even though the level of impact protection is increased by adding the metatarsal protection, it greatly reduces the flexibility of the shoe/boot and restricts natural and essential range of motion of the foot during various human activities. As a result, in recent past years, several flexible metatarsal protection designs have been introduced to the market. One mechanism used in existing flexible metatarsal design is to have several pieces of protection components attached to a flexible base piece from the top, an example of which is shown in U.S. Patent No. 5,878,51 1 , the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. Other examples of metatarsal protection devices are shown, for example, in U.S. Patent No. 4,366,692; U.S. Patent No. 5,71 1 ,092; U.S. Patent No. 6,161 ,313; U.S. Patent No. 6,539,747; U.S. Patent No. 6,820,354; and U.S. Patent No. 7,305,776, the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. However, a majority of currently available flexible metatarsal protectors are unable to satisfy the impact protection requirements set forth by various industrial safety standards in various countries and industries.

SUMMARY

[0008] A flexible, metatarsal protection device is disclosed herein for use in heavy-duty safety footwear. The device can include or achieve one or more of the following features: [0009] a metatarsal protection device that is fully integrated into the safety shoe/boot (no external components);

[0010] the ability to flex the safety shoe or boot at the ball area;

[0011] the ability to achieve the highest impact resistance level set forth by the industrial safety standards;

[0012] a metatarsal protection device including two main components and working similar to a hinge to allow the whole shoe/boot to bend around its ball line (metatarsophalangeal joint axis), with the device working as if it is hinged to the bottom side of the shoe/boot, with two overlapping edges of the two main components sliding one on top of the other at the top side of the shoe/boot.

[0013] Other features and advantages will become apparent from a review of the entire specification, including the appended claims and drawings.

BRIEF DESCRI PTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0014] Figs. 1 a and 1 b are somewhat diagrammatic, broken, side elevation views illustrating a heavy-duty safety shoe/boot incorporating an integrated, flexible, metatarsal protection device according to the disclosure herein, with Fig. 1 a showing the safety shoe/boot at rest and Fig. 1 b showing the safety shoe/boot as bent during walking;

[0015] Fig. 2 is an isometric view from above, and to the front and one side, of a steel supporting structure of the metatarsal protection device of Figs. 1 a and 1 b; and

[0016] Fig. 3 is an enlarged, broken view of the safety shoe/boot and metatarsal protection device of Figs. 1 a, 1 b and 2. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0017] With reference to Figs. 1 a and 1 b, a flexible metatarsal protection device 10 is shown and includes two main components in the form of a front protector 1 2 and a rear protector assembly 14, with the rear protector assembly including a rear protector or shield 16 fixed to a steel support structure 1 8. The metatarsal protection device 12 is integrated within the structure of a safety shoe or boot 20 which includes commonly known components, including a sole 22, an upper 24 and a steel toe cap 26. The front and rear protectors 12 and 16 are shaped to conform to the anatomical shape of the shoe/boot 20 and any foot received therein.

[0018] The front protector 12 is supported by the steel toe cap 26 and by the rear protector assembly 14 such that the rear protector assembly 14 and the front protector 1 2 can slide relative to each other, with the front protector 12 sliding over the rear protector assembly 14 and the rear protector assembly 14 sliding under the front protector 12 in the illustrated embodiment, as shown in Fig. 1 b. Furthermore, in the illustrated embodiment, the flexible metatarsal protection device 10 further includes a third component in the form of a form material spacing 28 that is sandwiched between the front protector 12 and the rear protector 16 and is deformable so as to further enhance the movement of the front protector 12 and the rear protector 16 relative to each other when the shoe/boot 20 bends during walking which movement can include both relative sliding and binding.

[0019] More specifically, the front protector 12 has a leading edge portion 30 that is supported by the steel toe cap 26 and a trailing edge portion 32 that overlays a leading edge portion 34 of the rear protector 16, with the additional form material spacing 28 sandwiched between the trailing and leading edge portions 32 and 34 in the illustrated embodiment. During walking, as shown in Fig. 1 b, the rear protector 16 and the steel support structure 18 bend together with the shoe/boot 20 and sole 22 while the trailing portion 32 and leading portion 34 of the rear and front protectors 12 and 1 6 slide over and under each other, respectively, with the form material spacing 28 deforming to assist the relative movement between the two protectors 1 2 and 1 6, which relative movement can include bending in addition to sliding. Additionally, the rear protector 16 has an extended collar 40 that extends upward from the instep towards the ankle area of the shoe/boot 20. This extended collar 40 of the rear protector 16 eliminates unwanted bending at the dorsal area of the instep (which can generate undue pressure and cause discomfort) and transfers forces that assist in bending the shoe/boot at the flexible metatarsal protection device's joint 42.

[0020] The steel support structure 18 includes front and back hoops 44 and 46 that are shaped to conform to the anatomical shape of the shoe/boot 20 and foot, with laterally spaced, longitudinally extending members 48, 50 and 52 extending between the hoops 44 and 46 to connect the hoops 44 and 46 to each other while allowing the hoops 44 or 46 to move or flex relative to each other during the bending motion generated by walking, as shown in Fig. 1 b. In the illustrated embodiment, each of the hoops 44 and 46 includes a pair of laterally inwardly extending feet 54 and 56 that assist in fixing the steel support structure 18 to the shoe/boot 20, and more specifically, to the sole 22. The steel support structure 18 is bonded or fixed to the rear protector 1 6 using any suitable means, such as a suitable bonding agent or glue.

[0021] The front and rear protectors 12 and 16 can be made of any suitable material, many of which are known. In the illustrated embodiment, the front and rear protectors are made of rubber and/or high density, impact resistant foam which stiffens on impact. The form material spacing 28 can also be made of any suitable material, and in the illustrated embodiment is made of low density foam. While in the illustrated embodiment, the steel support structure is made of a suitable steel material, other suitable structural materials can be used. Other suitable materials that can be used in the device 10 and in the construction of the shoe/boot 20 are disclosed in the prior art references discussed in the Background section of this application, with U.S. Patent No. 5,878,51 1 in particular discussing a number of materials that can be utilized for the protectors 12 and 16. [0022] As best seen in Fig. 3, the illustrated embodiment of the boot 20 also includes an outer shell 60 of the upper 24 with the metatarsal protector 1 0 located within the outer shell, and a liner 62 located inwardly of the metatarsal protector 10.

[0023] It should be appreciated, that as disclosed herein, an integrated metatarsal protector 10 is provided, with no external parts appearing on the shoe/boot 20 and which can bend at the ball line of the shoe/boot 20 to facilitate comfortable and unrestricted movements to the wearer.

[0024] It should be further understood that the device 10 as disclosed herein can be anthropometrically designed such that the bending axis of the metatarsal protector device 1 0 strictly follows the metatarsophalangeal joint axis of the wearer's foot.

[0025] It should further be understood that the device 10 as disclosed herein can be designed to withstand much higher impact forces (even more than what is required by the industrial safety standards) then currently available flexible, metatarsal protectors based on its structural design and the combination of different materials, such as, for example, steel and hard rubber.

[0026] It should further be understood that the extended collar 40 at the instep can eliminate unwanted bending (which generates undue pressure at the instep area and cause discomfort) and can transfer those acting forces to bend the shoe/boot 20 at the ball line to provide better performances. In particular, the extended collar 40 of the rear protector 16 (Fig. 1 b) can eliminate unwanted bending at the dorsal area of the foot instep but transfer those acting forces to bend the shoe/boot 20 at the metatarsal protector joint.

[0027] It should further be understood that, as disclosed herein, the device 10 is easy to manufacture and cost effective.

[0028] It should also be understood that the device 10 as disclosed herein can require only a little amount of bending force such that the person who is wearing the shoe/boot may not even realize the existence of the metatarsal protection. [0029] The proposed metatarsal protector design disclosed herein is able to withstand much higher impact forces due to its reinforced structure and the various materials that can be used for its construction.

[0030] It should be understood that any one, or all, or any combination of the above described features may be incorporated in a device 10 according to this application.