Shoe with interchangeable heels

Abstract

A shoe includes an interchangeable heel having a shoe body configured to accept a foot of a person. A protrusion is permanently attached to a bottom heel surface comprising two oppositely disposed straight edges separating and contiguous with two oppositely disposed curved edges. A channel is disposed within the protrusion between the two oppositely disposed curved edges. A removable heel comprises an open-ended slot configured to securely accept the protrusion. The removable heel is rotatably attachable to the protrusion. The at least one stop is attached to the removable heel and configured to prevent translation of the removable heel relative to the protrusion. A flexural lock attached to the removable heel is configured to engage the channel and prevent rotation of the removable heel relative to the protrusion. The flexural lock may be manually disengaged by the person to release the removable heel from the protrusion.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This non-provisional patent application claims priority to provisional application 61 / 537,402 filed on Sep. 21, 2011, the contents of which are fully incorporated herein with this reference.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention generally relates to shoes. More particularly, the present invention relates to shoes with interchangeable heels such that varying heel heights may be used throughout the day with the same shoe body.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]The heel of a shoe may wear out prematurely when worn by a person. This is especially true of high heels on women's shoes. This is because the bottommost portion of the high heel that touches the ground is small in comparison to the upper part of the heel that supports the woman's heel. Therefore, a lot of weight and stress is channeled into the small bottom of the heel and causes premature wear.[0004]Furthermore, walking in a high heel for an extended period of time is extre...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0008]An exemplary embodiment of the present invention discloses a shoe with an interchangeable heel. The shoe comprises a shoe body configured to accept a foot of a person. The shoe body comprises an outsole defining a bottom heel surface. A protrusion is permanently attached to the bottom heel surface. The protrusion comprises two oppositely disposed straight edges separating and contiguous with two oppositely disposed curved edges. The two oppositely disposed curved edges together define a first circular arc. A channel is disposed within the protrusion between the two oppositely disposed curved edges, wherein the channel faces away from the bottom heel surface. A removable heel comprises an open-ended slot defining a portion of a second circular arc. The portion of the second circular arc is configured to securely accept the first circular arc of the protrusion. The removable heel is rotatably attachable to the protrusion. The at least one stop is attached to the removable heel. The at least one stop is configured to prevent translation of the removable heel relative to the protrusion. A flexural lock is attached to the removable heel and configured to engage the channel. The flexural lock is configured to prevent rotation of the removable heel relative to the protrusion. The flexural lock may be manually disengaged by the person to release the removable heel from the protrusion.

Problems solved by technology

The heel of a shoe may wear out prematurely when worn by a person.

Therefore, a lot of weight and stress is channeled into the small bottom of the heel and causes premature wear.

Furthermore, walking in a high heel for an extended period of time is extremely challenging.

As most women have experienced, the higher the height of the heel the shorter the period of time they can wear the shoe before they become fatigued and the shoe starts becoming uncomfortable or even painful.

This is because the heel is dramatically elevated compared to the ball of the foot, which increases the difficulty of walking and wearing the shoe for long periods.

However, designing a reliable and easy to use mechanism to interchange high heels is not an easy task as considerations such as safety, reliability and quality are key issues that determine whether women will in fact rely upon and use the product.

It must be appreciated that women are often balancing upon the very small area of the high heel and any weakness in the design could lead to the woman falling over or breaking the heel.

This type of a failure is very unwanted and undesirable in a product.

For instance, a complicated and tough to use mechanism discourages a woman from using the product.

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