JP7516698B2 - Foot Cover - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to foot covers that, when worn, are hidden inside shoes such as pumps (shoes that are mainly for women and have a wide opening at the top of the shoe, which is the opening for wearing), making them invisible (including becoming difficult to see), and in particular, to foot covers that can effectively prevent blisters that occur around the heels when walking in shoes with the foot covers on.

Wearing shoes such as pumps on bare feet has become a common fashion. In this case, if the pumps come into direct contact with the soles of the feet, the inside of the shoes becomes steamy due to sweat produced on the feet, causing discomfort.
Therefore, a thin foot cover has been proposed that covers the sole including the toes and heels and exposes the instep and ankle, and has a large opening so that the instep and ankle are not exposed when worn. When wearing this foot cover and pumps, it looks like wearing pumps on bare feet, and since the foot cover is between the sole and the pumps, it is possible to prevent the inside of the shoes from becoming stuffy due to sweat.

In this specification, such foot wear items are referred to as foot covers, but may also be referred to as sock covers, inner socks, nude socks, cover socks, etc.
Since such foot covers have a large opening so that they are not exposed from the pumps, they may slip out of place or come off due to friction while walking. On the other hand, if the opening is made small, the foot covers will be exposed from the pumps. Foot covers developed in consideration of these problems are disclosed in the following prior art documents.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. 10-292206 (Patent Document 1) discloses a foot cover having a friction-imparting body attached to the inner surface of the heel contact portion to prevent the foot cover from coming off from bare feet due to friction between pumps and the foot cover when walking, and to prevent the foot cover from coming off or shifting out of position when putting on or taking off pumps.
Utility Model Registration No. 3165733 (Patent Document 2) discloses a foot cover in which flat rubber is provided along the periphery of the opening, forming a band-like elastic part with one side in contact with the foot, in consideration of the problem that when rubber cords are provided along the periphery of the opening of the foot cover disclosed in Patent Document 1, the rubber cords dig into the foot, causing the foot to take on the impression of the rubber cord, causing pain, and making the cover uncomfortable to wear.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 10-292206 Utility Model Registration No. 3165733

Now, if you wear such foot covers while walking in shoes, you may develop blisters. For example, if you walk in shoes that are the wrong size (especially shoes that are too large), your feet will move around inside the shoes because they are too big, and as they do so, your feet will rub against the shoes, causing blisters. More specifically, it is thought that blisters occur when the skin of the foot rubs against the hard part on the inside of the shoe (for example, the upper edge of the opening behind the heel) and separates from the flesh, causing lymphatic fluid to accumulate in the gap and form blisters. These are just some examples of the causes of blisters, and there are many other possible causes of blisters.

As described above, there are various causes of blisters, and even if the foot covers disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Documents 1 and 2 can prevent the foot covers from shifting out of position while walking, considering that blisters can occur even when wearing the most common shin-length socks (low crew socks) (where the shoe does not come into direct contact with the skin), it should be considered that blisters will occur regardless of whether the foot covers are shifted out of position.

However, there is currently no foot cover that suppresses blistering, including the above-mentioned Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2. For this reason, although bandages are applied to the site of blistering after the occurrence of blistering, this is only a retroactive measure, and it is also possible to attach insoles or pads (both thin members with cushioning properties) to the shoe beforehand, but these insoles or pads and foot covers often differ greatly in color and material, so there is no sense of unity with the foot cover, and when wearing shoes with insoles attached to the opening, the insoles are visible even though the foot cover itself is hidden inside the shoe and becomes invisible (hard to see), which reduces the meaning of wearing the foot cover in the first place. Furthermore, the site where blistering occurs varies greatly from person to person depending on the skeleton and external shape of the human foot and the shape of the shoe, so a universal insole cannot actually exist.

The present invention was developed in consideration of the above-mentioned problems with the conventional technology, and its purpose is to provide a foot cover that, when worn with shoes, is hidden inside the shoe and becomes invisible (hard to see), and that can suit the wearer's individual characteristics when walking and maintain a sense of unity with the foot cover, thereby effectively preventing blisters that occur on the heel.

In order to achieve the above object, the foot cover according to the present invention employs the following technical measures.
In other words, it is a foot cover that covers the sole of the foot including the toes and heel and exposes the instep and ankle, and is formed of a sole portion, side portion, heel portion, and toe portion covering the toes, all knitted with elastic fabric, with an opening for inserting and removing the foot provided on the upper and lower opposite sides of the sole portion, and a cushion portion with cushioning properties on the heel side of the opening, the upper end of the cushion portion being located higher than the part of the opening that does not have the cushion portion, the cushion portion being formed as the heel portion, or being formed by joining a cushioning material separate from the heel portion to the heel portion, and the heel portion and the cushion portion being formed from elastic fabric with a cut-off specification that does not require post-processing to prevent fraying around the peripheral edges of the knitted fabric ends.

The foot cover of the present invention can provide a foot cover that, when worn with shoes, is hidden inside the shoe and becomes invisible (hard to see), and that can suit the wearer's individual characteristics when walking and maintain a sense of unity with the foot cover, thereby effectively preventing blisters that occur on the heel.

1A is an overall perspective view of a foot cover 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention worn on a foot F, and FIG. 1B is an overall perspective view of a foot cover worn inside out on the foot F. 1(B) is a right side view, (B) is a left side view, and (C) is a rear view in FIG.

The foot cover 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that there are various foot cover structures, and the present invention is not limited to a specific structure. As long as it has the characteristic features described below, any foot cover structure can be used, and the type of fabric that forms the foot cover, the fabric pattern, and the method of joining the fabric can basically be used. Therefore, the structure of the foot cover 100 itself shown below is merely an example.

The preferred fabrics for the foot cover 100 include bare jersey (bare jersey: a flat knit fabric made of covered yarns (e.g., polyurethane yarns) wrapped around the base with yarns of other materials (e.g., cotton, wool), tricot (a warp knit fabric made with a tricot machine, which is a type of warp knitting machine), and pantyhose fabric (a knit fabric containing polyurethane yarns and nylon yarns). Among these, bare jersey is particularly preferred for foot covers because it (1) has excellent elasticity, (2) has good shape stability and is less likely to change shape after washing, (3) is soft to the touch and fits well, (4) is less likely to wrinkle or crease, (5) is breathable due to its porous structure, and (6) has good texture and moisture absorption properties when it contains cotton. In the following, there may be no distinction between fabric and knit fabric.

Furthermore, the foot cover 100 according to this embodiment is a foot cover that covers the sole of the foot, including the toes and heel, and exposes the instep and ankle, and is formed of a sole portion, side portion, heel portion, and toe portion that covers the toes. In addition, although not limited to this, the foot cover 100 shown below is compatible with both left and right feet, and is preferable in that it is compatible with both left and right feet and therefore cannot be mistaken for left and right. Note that when the foot cover is not compatible with both left and right feet, the left and right foot versions have symmetrical shapes.

And, what is characteristic is that the opening is provided with a cushioning part 120 having cushioning properties and elasticity on the heel side (more specifically, a cushioning material having cushioning properties and elasticity, which is a thin knit fabric separate from the heel part 108, is joined to the heel part 108 to form the cushioning part 120), the upper end of the cushioning part 120 is located (at least at the time of sale) above the part of the opening that does not have the cushioning part 120, and this cushioning part 120 is formed by joining a cushioning material having cushioning properties and elasticity, which is a thin knit fabric separate from the heel part 108, to the heel part 108. What is further characteristic is that the cushioning part 120 formed by the heel part 108 and the cushioning material having cushioning properties and elasticity, which is a thin knit fabric, is formed of an elastic fabric with a cut specification that does not require post-treatment to prevent fraying around the edge of the knitted fabric, which is the periphery. Here, the cushion part 120 is attached to the inside (skin contact side) of the heel part 108, but it can also be attached to the outside (shoe side).

The foot cover according to this embodiment is made of multiple fabrics (three fabrics, the fabric forming the toe portion 102 and the front side portion 106F, the fabric forming the sole portion 104, and the fabric forming the rear side portion 106B and the heel portion 108, are joined together to form a three-dimensional shape, but it may be multiple fabrics other than these or a single fabric), but there is no limitation on how these fabrics are joined together (including the joining of the fabrics to the cushioning material). For example, the fabrics may be joined together by sewing, or the fabrics may be joined together by heating an adhesive tape with adhesive applied to one side of a belt-shaped member, melting the adhesive and thermally bonding the fabrics. Here, this joining includes joining by thermocompression, heat welding, heat fusion, etc. In the following, when there is no need to distinguish between the front side portion 106F and the rear side portion 106B, they may be referred to as side portions 106.

The fabric constituting the foot cover may be cut out from a pattern as three pieces of fabric: the fabric forming the toe portion 102 and the side portion 106, the fabric forming the sole portion 104, and the fabric forming the heel portion 108 (the fabric forming only the heel portion 108), and these pieces may be joined together to form a three-dimensional foot cover. In this case, the cushion portion 120 may be formed as the heel portion 108 (as a single piece cut out of a thin knitted fabric having cushioning and elasticity on the pattern of the heel portion 108). Even in this case, the upper end of the cushion portion 120 is located higher (at least at the time of sale) than the portion of the opening that does not have the cushion portion 120, and the cushion portion 120 is formed from an elastic fabric with a cut-off specification that does not require post-treatment to prevent fraying around the edge of the knitted fabric, which is the periphery.

The foot cover 100 according to this embodiment will be described in more detail with reference to Figures 1 and 2. In the following, the foot cover 100 will be described as having a heel portion 108 and a cushion portion 120 formed of a cushioning material, which are separate bodies, and the cushion portion 120 will be described as having a thin knitted cushioning material with cushioning and elasticity attached to the inside (skin contact side) of the heel portion 108.

FIG. 1(A) shows an overall perspective view of the foot cover 100 worn on the foot F, FIG. 1(B) shows an overall perspective view of the foot cover 100 worn inside out on the foot F, and FIG. 2(A) shows a right side view of FIG. 1 worn inside out on the foot F, FIG. 2(B) shows a left side view, and FIG. 2(C) shows a back view. As described above, all of the figures assume that the foot cover 100 is worn on the foot F of the wearer. That is, since the foot cover 100 according to the present embodiment is made of a stretchable fabric such as pantyhose, if it is not illustrated in this way, it will be in a shrunken state and it will be difficult to understand the shape, so the above-mentioned assumption is made. Also, as described above, in this foot cover 100, the cushion part 120 is joined to the inside (skin contact side) of the heel part 108, so in order to easily understand the cushion part 120, it is assumed that the foot cover 100 is worn inside out on the foot F in all figures except FIG. 1(A).

This foot cover 100 is a foot cover that covers the sole, including the toes and heels, of the wearer's foot F, while exposing the instep and ankle. This foot cover 100 is made of a thin, stretchy fabric with a large opening (not limited to such a large cut shape) that is the opening of the shoe so that the instep and ankle are not exposed when the foot cover 100 is worn.
This foot cover 100 is formed of a toe portion 102, a sole portion 104, side portions 106 (front side portions 106F and rear side portions 106B), and a heel portion 108 (this distinction does not mean that the stretchable knitted fabrics are different, and for example, it is not necessarily the case that a knitted fabric cut into a pattern for only the toe portion 102 exists). An opening for putting the foot in and out is provided on the upper and lower opposite sides of the sole portion 104. The opening is formed by the upper portion of the toe portion 102, the upper portion of the side portions 106, and the upper portion of the heel portion 108.

For example, the foot cover 100 is made by knitting the toe portion 102 and the front side portion 106F, the sole portion 104, the rear side portion 106B, and the heel portion 108 separately (the toe portion 102 and the front side portion 106F and the rear side portion 106B and the heel portion 108 are knitted integrally), and the toe portion 102 and the front side portion 106F are integrated with the rear side portion 106B and the heel portion 108 by sewing them together, and then the integrated toe portion 102, the side portion 106, and the heel portion 108 are integrated with the sole portion 104 by sewing them together. The cushion portion 120, which will be described later, may be attached to the fabric of the foot cover 100 before sewing (i.e., before integration), or may be attached to the fabric of the foot cover 100 after sewing (i.e., after integration).

In this foot cover 100, an opening for inserting and removing the foot is provided on the upper and lower opposite sides of the sole 104, and is formed by the toe 102, side 106, and heel 108. The heel side of the opening for inserting and removing the foot is provided with a cushion 120 that provides cushioning. The upper end of the cushion 120 is located above a portion of the opening that does not have the cushion 120, at least at the time of sale. Here, the cushion 120, which is separate from the heel 108, is joined to the heel 108, and the heel 108 and cushion 120 are formed from a cut-off stretch fabric that does not require post-treatment to prevent fraying around the periphery of the knitted edge.

In addition, in this foot cover 100, a stretchable narrow fabric 116 of about 5 mm to 15 mm with appropriate stretchability is provided around the entire periphery of the opening (over the entire circumference) to prevent the foot cover 100 from slipping off or slipping off the foot F. (For example, it is thermally bonded to the inside (skin contact side) of the fabric with a thermoplastic adhesive.) However, it is also acceptable to provide the stretchable narrow fabric 116 on at least a part of the opening. Also, the reason that this stretchable narrow fabric 116 is provided on the inside (skin contact side) is to make the stretchable narrow fabric 116 less noticeable.

Here, a nylon tape can be given as an example of the stretchable narrow fabric 116. It is also preferable that the stretchable narrow fabric 116 is made of the same fabric as the stretchable fabric constituting (at least a part of) the foot cover 100.
Furthermore, it is also preferable to provide a heel slip prevention member 118 made of a thin transparent sheet such as silicone resin on the upper edge of the heel portion 108 of the foot cover 100 on the inside of the foot cover 100 (the side that contacts the foot F: the skin side). This enhances the adhesion to the heel of the foot F, and further prevents the foot cover 100 from slipping off the heel of the foot F. Here, in order for the heel slip prevention member 118 to come into contact with the skin of the foot, it is formed in the following order from the skin side: the heel slip prevention member 118, the cushion portion 120, the elastic narrow fabric 116, and the elastic knit fabric of the heel portion 108. Note that the heel slip prevention member 118 is not an essential component of the foot cover according to the present invention.

Furthermore, it is also preferable to provide a sole anti-slip material made of a thin sheet of silicone resin or the like on the side of the sole 104 opposite to the side that the foot F comes into contact with (the side that comes into contact with the inner sole of a pump, which is an example of a shoe, when the foot is worn). This increases the adhesion to the inner sole of the pump, preventing the foot cover 100 from shifting position inside the pump. Note that this sole anti-slip material is not an essential component of the foot cover according to the present invention.

These thin sheets of silicone resin or the like may come into direct contact with the wearer's skin, such as the heel slip prevention material 118. In such cases, in addition to silicone resin, it is also advantageous to use non-silicone materials such as styrene-based thermoplastic elastomer (mesh) sheets or sheets in which a knitted fabric is soaked in urethane resin, which are also preferable for people who have poor resistance to silicone resin, a specific chemical substance.

As mentioned above as a characteristic feature, the foot cover 100 is provided with a cushion part 120 having cushioning properties on the heel side of the opening for inserting and removing the foot, and the upper end of the cushion part 120 is located higher (at least at the time of sale) than the part of the opening that does not have the cushion part 120. The cushion part 120 is made of a cushioning material having cushioning properties and elasticity and is a thin knit fabric separate from the heel part 108, and is joined to the heel part 108. The heel part 108 and the cushion part 120 are made of a cut-off elastic fabric that does not require post-treatment to prevent fraying around the edge of the knitted fabric, which is the periphery. In addition, the color of the cushioning material of the cushion part 120 has the same color as the foot cover 100 at least when viewed from the outside, so that a sense of unity with the foot cover can be maintained.

At least at the time of sale, the dotted line 120U1 shown in FIG. 2(C) is the upper end of the cushion part 120 of this foot cover 100, and is located above the part of the opening that does not have the cushion part 120. A wearer who purchases this foot cover 100 puts on the foot and puts on shoes, checks the position of the blisters, and confirms that the presence of the cushion part 120 at that position can prevent blisters, and then cuts off the upper side of the cushion part 120 that protrudes from the upper end of the heel of the shoe (if necessary). In this way, the upper side of the cushion part 120 is cut according to the characteristics of the wearer and the shape of the shoe to be worn, so that blisters occurring on the heel part can be suitably prevented while walking with the foot cover on and shoes on, according to the wearer's individual characteristics, and while maintaining a sense of unity with the foot cover. In this case, if necessary, by cutting off the upper side of the cushion part 120 that protrudes from the upper end of the heel of the shoe, it is possible to realize that when the foot cover 100 is worn and the shoe is put on, the foot cover 100 is hidden inside the shoe and is not visible (is difficult to see).

If the upper side of the cushion part 120 is cut to suit the characteristics of the wearer and the shape of the shoes to be worn, it is possible to gradually lower it as shown by the white arrows as shown by the solid line 120U2, dotted line 120U3, and dotted line 120U4, as shown in FIG. 2(C). In this case, the heel part 108 and the cushion part 120 are made of a stretchable fabric with a cut-off specification that does not require post-treatment to prevent fraying around the peripheral edge of the knitted fabric end, so no special post-treatment is required after cutting. Therefore, the wearer can easily cut the upper side of the cushion part 120 to suit the characteristics of the wearer and the shape of the shoes to be worn, and can wear the foot cover 100 equipped with the cushion part 120 for preventing blisters, the upper side of which is appropriately cut.

As described above, with the foot cover of this embodiment, when the foot cover is worn and shoes are put on, it becomes hidden inside the shoe and becomes difficult to see, and it is possible to provide a foot cover that can suit the wearer's individual characteristics when walking and maintain a sense of unity with the foot cover, thereby preferably preventing blisters that occur on the heel area.
It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed herein are illustrative and not restrictive in all respects. The scope of the present invention is defined by the claims, not the above description, and is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope of the claims.

The present invention is suitable for foot covers that become hidden or difficult to see inside shoes when worn, and is particularly suitable for preventing blisters that occur around the heel when walking in shoes with the foot covers on.

100 Foot cover 102 Toe part 104 Sole part 106 Side part (front side part 106F, rear side part 106B)
108 Heel part 116 Elastic narrow fabric 120 Cushion part F Foot

Claims (1)

A foot cover that covers the sole of the foot including the toes and heels and exposes the instep and ankle,
The sole portion, the side portion, the heel portion, and the toe portion covering the toes are formed three-dimensionally by joining one or more stretchable fabrics,
An opening for inserting and removing the foot is provided on the upper and lower opposite sides of the sole of the foot,
A cushion portion having cushioning properties is provided on the heel side of the opening,
an upper end of the cushion portion is located above a portion of the opening that does not include the cushion portion;
The cushion portion is formed as the heel portion, or is formed by joining a cushion material separate from the heel portion to the heel portion,
The heel portion and the cushion portion are formed from a stretchy fabric with a cut-off specification that does not require any post-processing to prevent fraying around the peripheral edge of the knitted fabric so that when the foot cover is worn on the foot and shoes are put on, it is confirmed that the cushion portion is present in the position where blisters are likely to occur, and then the upper side of the cushion portion that protrudes from the upper end of the heel of the shoe is cut off, eliminating the need for post-processing after cutting off the upper side.