Dress shoe with improved heel counter

• US 20040064975A1
• Filed: 10/02/2002
• Published: 04/08/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 10/02/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sears Brands LLC (Sears Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Footstar Corporation (Footstar)
• Inventors: Huff, Marvin
• Granted Patent: US 6,962,010 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 36/92
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 11/00 Footwear with arrangements to facilitate putting-on or removing, e.g. with straps
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/021 Leather
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/024 Different layers of the same material
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0295 Pieced uppers
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/17 made of plastics

Abstract

A comfortable heel counter for a dress shoe is provided. The dress shoe includes an upper that has a first portion and a second portion. The first portion is connected to the second portion to define a heel counter pocket. A heel counter insert is disposed between the first portion and the second portion in the heel counter pocket. The heel counter insert is disposed in spaced relation to a calcaneus bone of a wearer. The heel counter insert provides comfort to the wearer and an improved fitting of the dress shoe.

Claims

1. A shoe comprising:

an upper having a first portion and a second portion, said first portion being connected to said second portion to define a heel counter pocket, said first portion and said second portion being connected to a foot bed;

a heel counter insert being positioned in said heel counter pocket, said heel counter insert being disposed in spaced relation to a calcaneus bone of a wearer, wherein said heel counter insert provides comfort to said wearer and improved fitting of said dress shoe.

2. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is a material selected from the group consisting of:

Poron, a polyurethane, ethyl vinyl acetate, a slow recovery ethyl vinyl acetate, and any combinations thereof.

3. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is a slow recovery polyurethane.

4. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert has a thickness in a range of about 1 mm to about 3 mm.

5. The shoe of claim 4, wherein said thickness is in a range about 2 mm to about 3 mm.

6. The shoe of claim 4, wherein said thickness is about 2.5 mm.

7. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said first portion is a sueded reverse leather.

8. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said second portion is a full grain upper leather.

9. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert has an initial shape and a deformed shape, and wherein, said heel counter insert deforms from said initial shape in response to said heel when said wearer wears the shoe, and said heel counter insert recovers to said initial shape when said wearer is not wearing the shoe.

10. The shoe of claim 1, further comprising a forepart portion connected to said upper.

11. The shoe of claim 10, wherein said forepart portion is flexible.

12. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is arcuate in response to an arc of a heel of a wearer.

13. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert extends laterally around a periphery of a heel of said wearer, said heel counter insert being disposed in said heel counter pocket.

14. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert extends laterally around a periphery of a heel of said wearer, and wherein said heel counter insert is disposed floating in said heel counter pocket.

15. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is connected to said first portion and said second portion.

16. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is connected to said first portion and said second portion by a method selected from the group consisting of a stitch operation, cementing, adhesive, and a heat bonding operation, or any combinations thereof.

17. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert is floating between said first portion and said second portion.

18. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said first portion has a bulbous heel counter protrusion.

19. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said second portion has a bulbous heel counter protrusion.

20. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said first portion has a first bulbous heel counter protrusion and said second portion has a second bulbous heel counter protrusion, and wherein said first bulbous heel counter protrusion mates with said second bulbous heel counter protrusion in said heel counter pocket.

21. The shoe of claim 1, wherein said heel counter insert has a shape selected from the group consisting of an elliptical shape, a circular shape, a triangular shape, an oblong shape, a rectangular shape, an arcuate shape, and a shape that substantially approximates curve of said wearer'"'"'s heel disposed in the shoe.

22. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the shoe is a dress shoe.

23. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the shoe is an athletic shoe.

24. The shoe of claim 1, wherein the shoe is a boot.