Shoe

Abstract

A shoe with a curved rocker bottom sole member with an H-shaped pad that is decoupled from the sole member. The shoe promotes a mid-foot region footstrike and a more even distribution of pressure.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0001]1. Field of the Invention[0002]The present invention relates to athletic shoes and, in particular, a shoe that provides more efficient and natural running by promoting a mid-foot region—rather than a heel region—footstrike (i.e., the place where the foot first strikes the ground during the gait cycle) and a more even distribution of pressure which, in turn, leads to greater running efficiency. All of this is achieved by combining a rocker bottom curved sole member with an H-shaped pad which is placed within, but decoupled from, the sole member.[0003]2. Description of Related Art[0004]Prior art shoes have encouraged users to land on their heels first and transition to their toes during running, thereby putting the center of pressure and thus the most pressure and load on the heel region of the foot when it first strikes the ground. That is not the most efficient or natural motion for running Striking in the heel region of the foot leads to poor shock ...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0005]It is an object of the present invention to provide a shoe that promotes a mid-foot strike, moves the center of pressure of the foot strike forward to the mid-foot region, and has a more even distribution of pressure, so as to enable a more natural motion and greater efficiency during running

[0006]The present invention achieves this objective by combining a rocker bottom curved sole member with an H-shaped pad that is decoupled from the sole member. This configuration results in the user first striking the ground during the gait cycle in the mid-foot region (rather than in the heel region as with conventional shoes) and pressure being more evenly dispersed.

[0012]A plate may also be present within the sole member. In the embodiments of the shoe, different plates, placed within the sole member may contribute to help disperse and diffuse pressure on the foot. The plate is usually placed in a portion of the mid-foot region of the sole member and / or a portion of the mid-foot region to the heel region of the sole member. However, the plate may extend the entire length of the sole member. The plate may be a flat member or a uniquely shaped member comprised of thermoplastic polyurethane, carbon fiber, aluminum or another rigid material.

[0015]The combined effect of the rocker bottom shape and decoupled H-shaped pad is a mid-foot region (rather than heel region) footstrike and a more even distribution of pressure during the gait cycle which, in turn, leads to greater running efficiency.

Problems solved by technology

That is not the most efficient or natural motion for running Striking in the heel region of the foot leads to poor shock absorption, slower running, over-striding, wasted energy and poor form.

However, there have been no prior art shoes with a rocker bottom curved sole member combined with a specialized decoupled H-shaped pad.

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