The present invention relates to a device for preventing detonation of a land mine and, more particularly, to a shoe for working safely in a minefield and to a method of manufacture thereof.

Land mines are usually detonated when a weight, exceeding a predetermined threshold, is applied thereon. The sensitivity to the detonation of a mine is governed, on the one hand, by the desire to provide a mine that will explode under the application of a minimal weight and, on the other hand, a mine that will not be accidentally detonated by small animals passing by, windblown debris, etc.

Similar to the snowshoe, which enables a wearer to walk on deep snow without sinking, it has been suggested to use a minefield shoe composed of a flat, rigid surface lined with a thick rubber or plastic foam, which, as it is understood, reduces the weight per unit area of the wearer on the ground. The main disadvantages, however, of such a minefield shoe are the difficulty of movement or walking due to the rigidity of the relatively large surface required for contacting the ground, and, of even greater importance, the fact that such shoes are effective only on smooth ground. On uneven ground or on ground having scattered stones, the weight of the wearer is no longer evenly distributed across the entire tread surface but is concentrated on the highest and limited points of contact between the ground and the contact surface of the shoe. Moreover, the rubber or plastic foam is rapidly worn down, requiring frequent replacement. Hence, this type of minefield shoe is not sufficiently safe and is of limited usefulness.

U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,411 to Ringler, et al., teaches a minefield shoe that displays improved performance in terms of ground contact. The minefield shoe disclosed contains an inflatable, multiple compartment air cushion. In contradistinction to the snowshoe-type minefield shoe, when the ground contacting surface of the air cushion presses against an uneven terrain or against a protrusion, a portion or portions of the surface move inwardly, the extent of which depends, inter alia, on the air pressure prevailing inside the compartment. Since the outer skin of the compartments is deformable and the interior of the compartments are in fluid

communication with each other, the increased internal pressure caused by the decrease in volume will quickly be "absorbed" by all compartments, thus effectively allowing the deformation of the ground contacting surface so as to form a matching counterpart of the terrain. This, in turn, assures that the load on the shoe will, in most cases, still be evenly distributed along the entire ground contacting surface of the air cushion.

The compartments making up the cushion fluidly communicate with each other through external tubing having numerous three-way tube junctions (T-type or Y-type fittings). The external placement of the tubes and the accompanying fittings render the minefield shoe vulnerable to failures associated with deflation. Inadvertent and catastrophic deflation can occur when such a tube is accidentally snagged by a foreign object, such that the tube is separated from a fitting, or such that the tube is punctured or torn (e.g., by a sharp object on the ground or by excessive wear. A tube blowout or a seal failure may also occur as a result of an overly-high internal pressure, e.g., from over- inflation.

Perhaps the greatest disadvantage of the minefield shoe taught by U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,411 to Ringler, et al., is the susceptibility of the gas cushion to puncturing. Since the compartments of the cushion are designed to be fluidly communicable, in order to provide improved ground contacting and weight distribution, and failure within any one of the compartments (or tubes and fittings) results in substantially immediate and catastrophic deflation of the entire cushion, thereby nullifying the detonation risk-reducing properties of the shoe, and unexpectedly subjecting the user to various kinds of life-threatening dangers.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,892 to Chavet, et al. teaches a minefield shoe composed of two cushions each containing a plurality of inflatable compartments, and passages disposed within the cushion, for providing fluid communication between the compartments. This design, undoubtedly, provides a minefield shoe with improved ground-contacting properties, and a greater resistance to punctures. The disadvantages of the minefield shoe, however, are inherent stiffness of the bottom cushion's ground-contacting surface, deleteriously affecting the shoe's capability to conform to the terrain and yet significantly decrease overall pressure acting on a mine detonator pin. Furthermore, the capability of the shoe as taught by Chavet suffers intrinsically from inability to remain maximally flexible when conforming to a flat configuration of a mine detonator fuse, as seen in Fig. 1C.

There is therefore a recognized need for, and it would be highly advantageous to have, a minefield shoe that achieves superior ground contact, like that of U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,892, but is highly robust and reliable. It would be of specific advantage for such a minefield shoe to maintain satisfactory function even after being punctured. It would be of further advantage for such a minefield shoe to exhibit improved performance, in terms of weight distribution, even relative to the minefield shoe taught by the above-referenced application, when conforming to mine detonator fuses of different configurations. Finally, it would be of further advantage for such a minefield shoe to be simple to manufacture, lightweight, compact, and easy to store and to inflate.

The present invention achieves the above objects by providing a minefield shoe system for preventing detonation of a landmine by a wearer of the shoe system, the system comprising a pad containing a resilient material; an inflatable chamber attached to the pad; a platform attachable to an upper surface of the shoe system for evenly distributing the wearer weight throughout the upper surface of the system, and a fixture for attaching the shoe system to a boot of the wearer, and wherein a bottom surface of the shoe system is disposed and configured to conform to a terrain covered by the bottom surface, while maintaining a substantially even distribution of a load on the shoe system along all of the bottom surface.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the minefield shoe system has a plurality of the pads and the chambers.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the minefield shoe system contains the pads and chambers planarly alternating.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chamber is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chamber is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cells, each of the cells separated from adjoining cells by a foam material.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pad is a plurality of cells, wherein the cells contain the resilient material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pad is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the resilient material, the material being a viscoelastic polymer.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pad is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the resilient material, the material being a viscoelastic polymer, and wherein the cells re separated by a foam material.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, each of the cells is in the fluid communication with at least one non-adjoining cell.

In yet further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the fluid communication is a plurality of ducts disposed and configured internally within the cells to protect the ducts from damage.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pads and the chambers are planarly alternating, wherein each pad and each chamber is a plurality of cells, the cells are disposed and configured in an offset pattern relative to a layer of the cells disposed below the cells. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, a side surface of the minefield shoe system is resiliently corrugated to complement a shock absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the shoe system.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chamber is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, the chamber is for filling with a foam, the foam having a consistency sufficiently liquid for filling the cells of the chamber.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the chamber is disposed on top of the pad.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention the fixture is a panel hingedly fixed to the platform, thereby allowing the panel to swivel relative to the panel, wherein the panel swivel further allows the wearer to kneel.

In another aspect of the present invention, the minefield shoe system comprises: a pad containing a resilient material; a platform attachable to an upper surface of the shoe system for evenly distributing a load of the wearer throughout the area of the system; and a fixture for attaching the shoe system to a boot of the wearer, and wherein a bottom surface of the shoe system is disposed and configured to conform to a terrain covered by the bottom surface, while maintaining a substantially even distribution of a load on the shoe system along all of the bottom surface.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pad is a plurality of cells, wherein the cells contain the resilient material.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the pad is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the resilient material, the material being a viscoelastic polymer

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention the pad is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the resilient material, the material being a viscoelastic polymer, the cells separated by a foam material.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention, a side surface of the minefield shoe system is resiliently corrugated to complement a shock absorbing and terrain- conforming properties of the shoe system.

In the most preferred embodiment of the present invention the fixture is a panel hingedly fixed to the platform, thereby allowing the panel to swivel relative to the panel, wherein the panel swivel further allows the wearer to kneel. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the cells are contained within a pad structure, the structure further composed of a second resilient material, the structure defining dimensions of the pad.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention the cells are contained within a pad structure, the structure further composed of a second resilient material, the structure defining dimensions of the pad, and wherein the second resilient material is a foam sufficiently resilient to provide rigidity of the cells, and to maintain the dimensions of the pad.

In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention the pad is a vessel at least partially filled with the resilient material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the minefield shoe system comprises: a pad containing a resilient material; a second pad attached to the first pad, the second pad for filling with a foamable material; a platform attachable to an upper surface of the shoe system for evenly distributing the wearer weight throughout the upper surface of the system, and a fixture for attaching the shoe system to a boot of the wearer, and wherein a bottom surface of the shoe system is disposed and configured to conform to a terrain covered by the bottom surface, while maintaining a substantially even distribution of a load on the shoe system along all of the bottom surface.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, one of the pads is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, one of the pads is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, each of the cells separated from adjoining cells by a resilient material.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention, one of the pads is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, each of the cells contain the foamable material.

In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention, one of the pads is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the foamable material, the foamable material being a viscoelastic polymer. In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, one of the pads is a plurality of cells, the cells further containing the foamable material, the material being a viscoelastic polymer, the cells separated by a resilient material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the minefield shoe system is a plurality of the first and the second pads.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first pads and the second pads are planarly alternating.

In a further preferred embodiment of the present invention, the first pads and the second pads are planarly alternating, wherein each of the pads is a plurality of cells, the cells are disposed and configured in an offset pattern relative to a layer of the cells disposed below the cells.

In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, a side surface of the minefield shoe system is resiliently corrugated to complement a shock absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the shoe system.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, the second pad is for filling with the foamable material, the foamable material having a consistency sufficiently liquid for at least partially filling the cells of the second pad.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, the second pad is for filling with the foamable material, the foamable material being unfoamed until the second pad is at least partially filled with the foamable material.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a plurality of cells, each of the cells is in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the one cell, the second pad is for filling with the foamable material, the foamable material being an elastomer.

In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a substantially planar vessel for filling with the foamable material, the foamable material having a consistency sufficiently liquid for at least partially filling the cells of the second pad. In another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a substantially planar vessel for filling with a foamable material, the foamable material being unfoamed until the second pad is at least partially filled with the foamable material.

In yet another preferred embodiment of the present invention, the second pad is a substantially planar vessel for filling with a foamable material, the foamable material being an elastomer.

In a most preferred embodiment of the present invention, the fixture is a panel hingedly fixed to the platform, thereby allowing the panel to swivel relative to the panel, wherein the panel swivel further allows the wearer to kneel.

The invention will now be described in connection with certain preferred embodiments with reference to the following illustrative figures so that it may be more fully understood.

With specific reference now to the figures in detail, it is stressed that the particulars shown are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the preferred embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show structural details of the invention in more detail than is necessary for a fundamental understanding of the invention, the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the invention may be embodied in practice.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a side view of the inventive minefield shoe system;

FIG. 1A is a side view of another aspect of the inventive minefield shoe system;

FIG. IB is a side view of a minefield shoe system disposed on a sharply protruding fuse of a mine detonator;

FIG. 1 C is a side view of a minefield shoe system disposed on a flat plate of a mine detonator fuse;

FIG. 2 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system wherein the system chambers and pads comprise cells;

FIG. 3 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system illustrating fluid connection between vertically and horizontally adjoining cells of the system chambers and pads;

FIG. 4 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system wherein the system chambers and pads comprise cells planarly offset to each other;

FIG. 5 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system where the chamber disposed on the bottom of the shoe system comprises cells; FIG. 6 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system having two chambers comprising cells;

FIG. 7 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system having a chamber comprising cells disposed on top of the pad;

FIG. 8 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system showing a duct fluidly connecting interiors of chamber cells;

FIG. 9 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system containing a single pad at least partially filled with a resilient material;

FIG. 10 is a side view of another aspect of the minefield shoe system illustrating the resiliently corrugated side walls of the minefield shoe system in the invention;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the minefield shoe system showing the shoe fixture and a panel thereof in a locked configuration;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the minefield shoe system showing the shoe fixture and a shoe support panel thereof in a raised configuration;

FIG. 13 is a side view of the minefield shoe system showing the shoe fixed within the shoe fixture;

FIG. 14 is a top view of the minefield shoe system showing the shoe fixed within the shoe fixture; and

FIG. 15 is a side view of the minefield shoe system showing the shoe and the shoe support panel in the raised configuration.

With regard to the rest of the figures, similar reference numerals have been used to identify similar parts.

There is seen in FIG. 1 a

The present invention relates to minefield shoes for wearing on a minefield, and, more specifically, to shoes for preventing detonation of a landmine.

Such a minefield shoe system, shown as a shoe 10 in Fig. 1, is composed of: (a) a pad 14 filled with a viscoelastic polymer, such as gel or foam, the polymer may also be a viscoelastic elastomer such as Sorbothane® ; (b) a chamber 15 attached to the pad 14; (c) a platform 30 attachable to an upper surface of the system for evenly distributing a load of the wearer throughout the upper surface of the system; and (d) an adjustable fixture 22 for attaching the platform to a boot 20 of the wearer. An embodiment having additional or alternative features is also described on line 31 of page 3 of this application.

Having an elastomer-containing pad contacting the terrain surface ensures that the minefield shoe in the invention conforms and matches most minute protrusions of the terrain, while still minimizing pressure acting on a mine detonator fuse of various configurations. On contrast to the show in the invention, a simple fabric ground contacting surface has a finite amount of flexibility and total surface area, which does not guarantee protection in cases of contacting a terrain replete with different sharp objects.

The chamber 15 is made of any sturdy, impermeable, and preferably flexible synthetic material such as PVC, polyurethane or nylon fabric. A bottom surface of the assembly 12 is composed of a fabric having an impermeable coating on the underside thereof, which can also contain additionally contain a bottom sheet composed of a porous and flexible fabric that is loosely attached, and preferably sewn to the bottom surface of assembly 12.

The advantage of the inventive minefield shoe system is illustrated in Fig. 1A. The bottom surface and the bottom sheet of the assembly 12 are sufficiently loose and pliable so as to conform freely to terrain 17, as well as to protruding objects that the shoe wearer might step on, such as a mine detonator pin 13, or a flat surface of a mine 11, wherein the flat surface itself often serves as a detonator pin. This provides the inventive minefield shoe with near-optimal weight distribution.

The assembly 12 of pads 14 and chambers 15, respectively, has a generally rectangular planar configuration. Pads and chambers 14 and 15, respectively, in an alternative embodiment of the invention, have a plurality of cells 18, as seen in Fig. 2. Optionally, chamber cells 18 may be manufactured so as to fluidly interconnect cell interiors through ducts 19, as in Fig. 3.

The minefield shoe system assembly 12 of the present invention (Fig. 3) has cells 18 that fluidly communicate interiors thereof by means of ducts that are internal to the cushion structure.

The inventive minefield shoe system assembly 12 includes an inflatable air cushion 202 composed of a plurality of chambers or compartments 204. When inflated, the compartments form an air cushion having upper and ground contacting surfaces that are substantially flat.

Internal passages 19 are inherently protected by cells 18, and are thus not vulnerable to damage and/or failure due to external sharp objects, rough use under battlefield conditions, and blowouts or leakage due to excessive inflation, excessive pressures, etc. There is no external tubing for linking compartments 204, such that the serious problems associated with external tubes and fittings are eliminated.

In simplest form, ducts 19 are also one or more sealing gaps disposed in each of partitions 16. It has been found to be advantageous, however, to place a fitting in duct 19. The fitting is also a tubular orifice. Preferably, a multiple-orificed fitting, and the tubular orifice have a rectangular profile. The chamber 45, according to one embodiment in the invention, can be manufactured so as to allow the wearer to adjust the gas pressure in the pad. The chamber 45 can be filled with foam that is of sufficiently fluid consistency.

Preferably the chamber 45 has a dedicated valve (not shown) for inflation and deflation, and it is known and appreciated by one skilled in the art that various configurations of the valve and the placement thereof are possible.

The cells comprising chamber 15 are designed and configured so as to be in fluid communication with adjoining cells, in order to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of said one cells. In an additional inventive aspect of the minefield shoe system, adjoining cells can be separated from each other by the partitions 16 manufactured of foam material.

In an alternative embodiment of the inventive idea, each of the cells 19 interiors is manufactured to be in fluid communication with at least one non-adjoining cell.

In an additional aspect of the invention, the pad 14 of the minefield shoe system contains a plurality of cells further containing a resilient material. The material is preferably a viscoelastic polymer such as Sorbothane®. The cells of pad 14 are separated by a foam material.

In an alternative aspect of the invention, the pads 14 and the chambers 15 of the minefield shoe assembly 12 are planarly alternating, as shown in Fig. 3. The cells of the pads and the cells of chambers are disposed and configured in an offset pattern, wherein a layer of the pad 14 cells are disposed below the chamber 15 cells.

In an additional aspect of the present invention, side surfaces, or walls of the minefield shoe assembly 12 are designed and configured to be resiliently corrugated, as seen in Fig. 10, to complement a shock absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the minefield shoe system.

In an additional embodiment of the present invention, and in the embodiment where the chamber 15 is composed of cells, the said chamber is filled with foam, as an alternative to a gas. The foam can be sufficiently liquid to assure filling and flowing through the interiors of the cells and the ducts of the chamber.

The ducts 19 may also connect cells vertically as well as horizontally, when disposed in an additional embodiment where pads 14 are vertically adjoining each other. The pads 14 and partitions 16 may also be manufactured so as to form cells in an offset configuration, as illustrated in Fig. 4

The minefield shoe system 10, as illustrated in Fig. 5, in one of the alternative concepts of the invention, consists of an elastomer-filled pad 40, a chamber 45, a protective platform 30, and, according to one concept of the invention, an adjustable fixture 22 for fixing the shoe to a boot 20 of the wearer.

According to one embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in Figure 5, the shoe 10 is constructed of an elastomer-filled pad 40 fixedly attached on top of the chamber 45. The chamber 45 is manufactured of any resilient material that is substantially sturdy so as to contain gas under high pressure.

The chamber 45 is disposed in a horizontally parallel configuration to the pad 40, and is flexibly fixed to the bottom surface of the foam pad 45.

According to an alternative embodiment of the invention, the chamber 45 can also consist of cells 50, as shown in Figs. 5 and 6, their interiors communicating fluidly with each other, in order to dissipate increases in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of the chamber, further allowing the ground-contacting surface of the shoe 10 to conform to a terrain covered by the shoe 10, while maintaining a substantially even distribution of the wearer weight on the shoe 10 along all of the ground-contacting surface, while substantially reducing the pressure on a mine fuse located underneath the ground- contacting surface.

In an alternative concept of the invention, a cell 50 of the chamber 45 is in fluid communication with at least one non-adjoining cell, as illustrated conceptually in Fig.8. According to another concept of the invention, the fluid communication ducts 42 are housed within the pad 40 to protect the tubes against damage and also to avoid the tubes imparting any rigidity to the chamber, thereby counteracting the cushioning action of the chamber.

In an additional embodiment, the invention also includes an additional chamber disposed between the pad 40 and the first chamber 45 as shown in Fig.6.

The pad 40 can further consist of, or manufactured in segments (not shown), flexibly interconnected as to allow the foam pad to conform to the changes of terrain and to the wearer's gait. In another concept of the invention, the elastomer content of the pad 40 can be adjustable.

In another embodiment of the invention, the pad 40 is significantly thinner than the overall height of an inflated chamber 45, and preferably has the thickness of 2 centimeters. The pad 40 can also be disposed as shown in Fig. 7.

The protective platform 30 is fixedly attached to the top surface of the top pad. The protective platform 30 is most preferably manufactured of armor, such as Kevlar®, for example. For attaching a boot of the wearer to the shoe, the adjustable fixtures, or straps 22 can contain hook- and-loop, or Velcro, or other similar attachments. According to a further embodiment of the invention, as illustrated in Fig. 11, the pressure fuse avoidance system has an alternate shoe fixture and platform construction wherein platform 30 has a plate 32 fixedly and planarly attached thereto.

Plate 32 has on the rearward-facing end thereof a hinge 35. A panel 34 is rotatingly attached to panel 32 by hinge 35. Panel 34 is designed to accommodate a wearer shoe. Alternatively, the plate 32 and panel 34 can be joined by hinge 35 manufactured of resilient, or elastic material, that can also form a continuous, non-mechanical, integral connection between plate 32 and panel 34. This construction allows a wearer in addition to walking on minefields, to be able to kneel while still ensuring that the system in the invention is securely and properly attached to the shoes of the wearer.

On the rearmost end of panel 34 there is attached a heel stop 37. Perpendicularly to platform 30 there is also fixedly attached a rotating catch 38, designed to engagingly retain panel 34 in the lowered configuration of the panel, as seen in Fig, 11, wherein panel 34 is disposed flat on platform 30, wherein catch 38 has a protrusion, that in retaining position of catch 38, prevents panel 34 from being raised. In order to allow panel 34 to raise from plate 34, as shown in Fig. 12, catch 38 is rotated 180 degrees along the vertical axis thereof, thereby orienting the protrusion away from the engaging and retaining of panel 34.

The above-described raising of panel 34 allows a wearer of the fuse avoidance system to kneel relative to the rest of the system, with the shoes of the wearer conforming to the kneeling position, as shown in Figs. 13-15, thereby allowing pneumatic, or cushioning elements, or cells 50 of the system to continue ensuring the minimal pressure imparted by the wearer on the ground. Additionally there are adjustable fixtures, or straps 26 that together with the shoe- retaining action of heel stop 37 allow for a shoe 20 of the wearer to be securely attached to panel 34.

In another embodiment of the invention, the shoe 10 can comprise a single pad 45, as shown in Fig. 9. The pad 45 is partially filled with a viscoelastic polymer, such as gel or foam, the polymer may also be a non-cellular elastomer such as Sorbothane® , capable of maintaining the shape thereof while conforming to the geometry of an inner cavity of the pad 45.

In an additional embodiment of the invention, the walls 13 of the whole assembly 12, or of the pad 40, or of the pad 45 can be manufactured and configured to be resiliently corrugated, such as shown in Fig. 10, to aid in shock-absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the shoe 10.

According to another embodiment of the invention, the chamber 45 is disposed on top of the foam pad 40 as in Fig. 7. In yet another inventive aspect of the minefield shoe 10 of the present invention, the minefield shoe system contains a pad 45, as shown in Fig. 9, wherein the pad 45 is a resilient material, preferably a viscoelastic polymer such as Sorbothane®.

In another inventive aspect, the minefield shoe system 10 the pad 45 is composed of flexibly interconnected cells (not shown), which are manufactured of the resilient material. The said cells are separated by a partition of a foam material. In another embodiment of the invention, the pad 45 is a vessel at least partially filled with the resilient material 26, as shown in Fig.9.

The side surface of the pad 45 is resiliently corrugated, as illustrated in Fig. 10, to complement a shock absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the shoe system in the invention.

In an alternative embodiment of the minefield shoe system 10, wherein the cells (not shown) are contained within a structure of the pad 45, the structure is manufactured of a second resilient material, having rigidity sufficient to define and maintain dimensions and support the structure of the pad 45. The second resilient material can also be a foam of sufficient rigidity.

In another inventive aspect of the minefield shoe system 10, the system contains two pads, preferably the top pad 40 and bottom pad 45. The pad 40 is manufactured of a resilient material, such as a viscoelastic polymer. The pad 45 is designed and configured for filling with a foamable material such as polyurethane and like foamable agents.

The platform 30 attachable to an upper surface of the shoe system and the fixture 22 for attaching the shoe system 10 to a boot 20 of the wearer are essentially the same as having been discussed above and illustrated in Figs. 11-15.

An alternative embodiment of the minefield shoe system 10, as shown in Fig. 10, has the pad 45 containing cells 50, interiors of each of the cells being in fluid communication with at least one other of the cells, so as to moderate any increase in internal pressure of any one of the cells resulting from a decrease in internal volume of any one cell.

The pad 45 cells 50 are separated from adjoining cells by a partition manufactured of resilient material. In another concept of the invention, each of the cells 50 contains said foamable material. Alternatively, the foamable material can also be a viscoelastic polymer.

Alternatively, cells 50 of a pad 40 or 45, are preferably separated by a resilient material.

A minefield shoe system 10 is also envisioned as a plurality of pads 40 and 45, which, in an additional embodiment of the invention, can be planarly alternating, as shown in Fig. IB.

The cells 50 can also be disposed and configured in an offset pattern relative to cells disposed below the cells 50, as in Fig. 4. The side surface of the minefield shoe system 10, in one aspect of the invention, is resiliently corrugated to complement a shock absorbing and terrain-conforming properties of the shoe system 10, as discussed hereinabove and illustrated in Fig. 10.

In an embodiment of the minefield shoe system 10, the 45 pad is designed and configured for filling with a foamable material having a consistency sufficiently liquid for at least partially filling the cells 50 of the pad 45.

According to one concept of the present invention, the foamable material remains unfoamed until the pad 45 is at least partially filled with the foamable material. The foamable material can be an elastomer.

In another embodiment of the present invention, the foamable material has a consistency sufficiently liquid for at least partially filling the cells 50 of the pad 45.

In an embodiment where the pad 45 is a contiguous vessel, the foamable material remains unfoamed until the pad 45 is at least partially filled with said foamable material.

The platform 30 attachable to an upper surface of the shoe system and the fixture 22 for attaching the shoe system 10 to a boot 20 of the wearer are essentially the same as having been discussed above and illustrated in Figs. 11-15.