GB2487407A

GB2487407A - Footwear with integral storage pouch

Info

Publication number: GB2487407A
Application number: GB1101022.0A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Asher Clark
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-01-21
Filing date: 2011-01-21
Publication date: 2012-07-25
Also published as: WO2012098417A2; GB201101022D0; WO2012098417A3

Abstract

An article of footwear comprising a main body 2 in which a user's foot is receivable and a pouch 19 attached to the main body which is configured to receive the main body so that the main body is storable in the pouch when the article of footwear is not being worn. The pouch may be integrally formed with the main body, and the main body is preferably deformable so that it can be collapsed to store in the pouch. The pouch may be stored within an aperture in the main body, and the pouch preferably has an opening sealable by a zip fastener. The pouch may be formed from lightweight nylon. The footwear article is preferably a boot.

Description

An article of footwear

Description

The present invention relates to an article of footwear Many types of footwear are known, such as boots, shoes, sports shoes, phmsolls and sandals. Different types of footwear are suited to different environments and circumstances and it is well known that there are many instances when a user will require more than one type of footwear due to weather conditions or dress requirements.

For example, it is a known problem that articles of footwear, such as high heeled shoes, become uncomfortable if worn by a user for a prolonged period of time.

Furthermore, some articles of footwear are not suitable for certain weather conditions, such as rain or snow. Therefore, the user must either remove such footwear, and so not adequately protect their feet, or have an alternative type of footwear available to them that is more comfortable and/or protective. However, one disadvantage of carrying an alternative type of footwear with them is that such footwear is generally heavy and cumbersome. Therefore, a user will generally require a relatively large bag to carry the alternative type of footwear, as they will not fit in a conventional purse or small bag which accompanies a user.

Moreover, even if the alternative footwear is compact enough to fit in a small bag or purse, or a large hag is carried, such footwear may he wet or covered in mud and 50 will damage the contents of the bag. Therefore, it is known to carry an additional protective bag, such as a plastic bag, in which to dispose the footwear to protect the other contents before placing the footwear in another bag. However, such a protective bag is generally unsightly and is easily lost.

Therefore, it is an object of the invention to provide an article of footwear which substantially alleviates or overcomes the problems mentioned above.

According to the present invention, there is provided an article of footwear comprising a main body in which a user's foot is receivable and a pouch attached to the main body which is configured to receive the main body so that the main body is storable in the pouch when the article of footwear is not being worn.

Preferably, the pouch is integrally formed with the main body.

The main body may he deformable so that it can be manipulated between a wearable position, in which the main body is expanded and configured to be received on a user's foot, and a storable position, in which the main body is received in the pouch.

Advantageously, the main body comprises an upper portion with an aperture formed therein, wherein the pouch is insertable through the aperture so that it is received in the main body.

Conveniently, the pouch has an opening and a rim of the opening extends along and is attached to an edge of the aperture.

An article of footwear may further comprise a fastener to open and close the aperture.

Preferably, the fastener is a zip fastener.

Advantageously, the fastener is configured to open and close the opening to the pouch when the main body is received therein.

The rim of the opening to the pouch may be disposed adjacent to the fastener.

In one embodiment, the aperture is elongate and extends along the main body.

Jo Advantageously, the upper portion comprises an upper layer and a lining layer and the aperture is formed through the upper layer such that a pouch receiving space is defined between the upper layer and the lining layer to receive the pouch.

Conveniently, the main body comprises an upper portion and a sole portion and the pouch is attached to the upper portion.

Preferably, the pouch is formed from a lightweight nylon material.

The article of footwear may he a hoot.

According to another aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of storing an article of footwear with a main body and a pouch attached to the main body, the method comprising the steps of deforming the main body and insetting the main body into the pouch.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now he described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in \vhich: FIGURE I shows a perspective view of an article of footwear according to the present invention; FIGURE 2 shows a perspective view of the article of footwear shown in Figure I with a pouch exposed; FIGURE 3 shows a perspective view of the article of footwear shown in Figure 1 with the main body of the article of footwear contained in the pouch; and FIGURE 4 shows a perspective view of the article of footwear shown in Figure 1 \vith the pouch in a closed position.

Referring now to Figure 1, there is shown an article of footwear in a wearable position. In the present embodiment, the article of footwear is a boot 1, however it will be appreciated that the article of footwear is not restricted thereto and may be another type of footwear, for example a shoe, a plimsoll, a sports shoe or a sandal.

It will also be appreciated that such an article of footwear will generally form part of a pair of footwear articles, for example a pair of boots.

The article of footwear comprises a main body 2 in which a user's foot, at least, is received. The main body 2 comprises a flexible, deformable upper portion 3, also known as the upper, and a resiliently deformable sole portion 4, also known as the sole. The upper portion 3 forms an outer cover and has a top opening 5 at an top end 6 through which a user inserts their foot into a foot receiving space 9 defined by the upper and sole portions 3, 4 to wear the article of footwear. The upper portion 3 includes a foot part 7 and an ankle part 8 which are integrally formed and communicate with each other to define the foot receiving space 9.

The sole portion 4 is fixedly mounted to, or integrally formed with, a lower end it of the upper portion 3 to form the foot receiving space 9. The upper portion 3 is a deformable, flexible material, such as a hydrophobic synthetic material and the sole portion 4 is a flexible, resilient material, such as thermo polyurethane, which is light\veight and has a high abrasion quality. The sole portion 4 is generally planar and has a gripping surface 12 arranged to contact the ground when a user is wearing the article of footwear.

The upper portion 3 comprises an outer upper layer 14 and an inner lining layer 15, which lie adjacent to each other such that the lining layer 15 is disposed against an inner face of the upper layer 14. A section of the upper portion top end 6 is folded back on itself at the top opening S and a resiliently deformable cord 11 is disposed in the circumferentiall extending recess between the upper portion 3 and the folded back section so that the top end of the main body 2 may be resiliently drawn against a user's calf to grip against their calf.

An elongate aperture 16 is formed in the upper portion 3 through the upper layer 14. The elongate aperture 16 is formed by a longitudinally extending slit 16 in the upper layer 14 which extends between outer and inner sides of the upper layer 14. A fastener 17, such a ip fastener, is mounted along opposing elongate edges 18 of the elongate aperture 16 to open and close the aperture.

Jo Referring to Figures 2 and 3, the article of footwear also has a pouch 19. The pouch 18 has sidewalls 20 and an opening 22 (refer to Figure 3). The sidewalls 20 form a cavity therehetween which defines a main body receiving space 23 (refer to Figure 3) in which the main body 2 of the article of footwear is received, as will be explained in detail hereinafter. The pouch 19 is formed from a thin nylon material or silk.

An upper rim 24 of the pouch opening 22 is fixedly mounted along the corresponding edges 18 of the elongate aperture 16 in the upper portion 3 such the pouch 19 attached to the main body 2. The upper rim 24 of the pouch opening 22 is fixedly mounted to the inner side of the upper layer 14 of the upper portion 3, adjacent to the fastener 17. Therefore, when the elongate aperture 16 is in a closed position, with the fastener 17 closed, the pouch 19 is received on the inner side of the upper layer 14 sandwiched between the upper and lining layers 14, 15.

Therefore, the pouch 19 is hidden from vie\v. In this arrangement the article of footwear is in a wearable position.

In the present embodiment, the fastener 17 is a double-sided zip fastener, that is a slider 25 of the zip fastener may be operated from both sides of the zip fastener to move the zip fastener from an open position to a closed position, depending on the orientation of the opposing sides of the zip fastener. Therefore, the zip fastener is usable to open and close the elongate aperture when the article of footwear is in a wearable position and to open and close the opening 22 to the pouch 19 when the article of footwear is in a storable position, in \vhich the main body 2 is disposed in the pouch 19, as will become apparent hereinafter. Such a double-sided zip fastener is conventional, and so further description of the zip will be omitted herein.

Referring now to the Figures, use of the article of footwear will now be described.

The article of footwear is initially in a wearable position, as shown in Figure 1, in which the main body 2 is in an expanded arrangement. The fastener 17 is in its closed position such that opposing side edges 18 of the elongate aperture 16 are drawn together. In this wearable position, the pouch 19 is received on the inner side of the upper layer 14 in the pouch receiving space between the upper and hning Jo layers 14, 15 of the upper portion 3. An advantage of the pouch 19 being received between the upper and lining layers 14, 15 of the upper portion 3 when the article of footwear is in a wearable position is that the pouch 19 is spaced from the user's skin and does not press against the user, which may be uncomfortable. It will also be appreciated that the pouch 19 is formed from a thin and lightweight material so that it does not urge against the user when the user's foot is inserted in the foot receiving space.

To wear the article of footwear, a user releases the fastener 17 by moving it from its closed position to its open position so that the opposing edges 18 of the aperture 16 are released from each other. Therefore, the diameter of the upper layer 14 of the upper portion 3 is increased in the region of the aperture 1 6 and the user may easily slide their foot through the top opening 5 into the foot receiving space. The lining layer 15 is formed from a resilient material, or is loose, so that the user's foot is not restricted by the lining layer 15 as it is inserted. Once the user's foot is positioned in the foot receiving space the user moves the fastener 17 from its open position to its closed position so that the opposing edges 18 of the aperture 16 are drawn together and the upper portion 3 of the upper portion 3 fits snugly against the user.

To remove the article of footwear from the user's foot the user releases the fastener 17 and removes their foot. If it is then desired to move the article of footwear into a storable position, in which the main body 2 of the article of footwear is received in the pouch 19, the user ensures that the fastener 17 is in a fully open position. The user then reaches through the elongate aperture 16 and draws the pouch 19 though the aperture 16 so that it extends from the outer side of the upper portion upper layer 14, as shown in Figure 2.

The user draws the pouch 19 fully through the elongate aperture 16, however it is retained to the main body 2 by the pouch's upper rim 24 being attached to and extending along the edges 18 of the aperture 16. The pouch 19 then defines a bag with a cavity, with the opening 22 to the cavity facing inwardly. The main body 2 of the article of footwear is then folded about itself so that it is fed into the main body receiving space 23, as shown in Figure 3.

The main body 2 of the article of footwear is manipulated into a compact arrangement until it is fully received in the pouch 19 so that it is in a storable position. The upper and sole portions 3 of the main body 2 are flexible and deformable and so the main body 2 is easily manipulated into the pouch 19. Once the main body 2 is fully received in the pouch 19, the user draws the fastener 17 from its open position into its closed position and so the opening 22 to the pouch is closed because the rim 24 of the pouch opening 22 extends along the edges 18 of the elongate aperture 16.

It will be appreciated that the pouch 19 retains the main body 2 of the article of footwear in a compact arrangement, as shown in Figure 4, so that the article of footwear is easily inserted into a purse or the hke. Furthermore, the main body 2 of the footwear is enclosed in the pouch 19, and so the water and dirt are retained in the pouch if the upper and sole portions 3, 4 have become wet or dirty during use.

Although in the above described embodiment the upper portion and sole portion are folded to deform the main body of the article of footwear from an expanded arrangement, in which the article of footwear is in a wearable position, to a compact arrangement, in which the article of footwear is in a storable position, and vice versa, it will be appreciated that other ways of deforming the main body of the article of footwear are anticipated, for example, crumpling, folding, rolling and collap sing.

To return the main body 2 from the storable position to a wearable position, the fastener 17 is opened so that the main body receiving space 23 is accessible. The user then draws the main body 2 through the pouch opening 22 until the main body 2 is fully removed therefrom. The pouch 19 then extends from the upper portion 3 of the main body 2, as sho\vn in Figure 2. The pouch 19 is fed through the elongate aperture 16 to the inner side of the upper layer 14, such that the fastener 17 may be moved from its open position to its closed position.

Although in the above embodiment the user moves the fastener 17 to its open Jo position to loosen the upper portion 3 and enable the user to easily insert their foot into the foot receiving space, and then moves the fastener 17 to its closed position to draw opposing edges 18 of the elongate aperture 16 together so that the upper portion 3 fits snugly against the user, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto and that the \vidth of the upper portion 3 may be arranged so that the user does not have to release the fastener in order to insert their foot into the main body 2 of the article of footwear.

Although in the above embodiment, the aperture 16 is elongate and is do sable by a ip fastener, it will be appreciated that alternative arrangements are envisaged, for example in an alternative embodiment the aperture is circular and is openable and closable by a draw string.

Although it is described above that the upper portion 3 of the main body 2 comprises an upper layer 14 and a lining layer 15, it will he appreciated that in an alternative embodiment the upper portion may have an upper layer only.

Alternatively, the elongate aperture in the upper portion may be formed through both the upper and lining layers. In such arrangements the pouch is received in the foot receiving space when the article of footwear is in a wearable position.

Although in above described embodiments and corresponding Figures the elongate aperture is disposed along a rear part of the main body, it will be appreciated that the invention is not limited thereto, and that the aperture through which the pouch is received may be formed, for example, in a front part, a side part, a top face or through the sole portion.

In an alternative embodiment, it is envisaged that the article of footwear forms part of a pair, for example a pair of boots. In this embodiment, it is envisaged that a pouch is integrally formed \vith a single article of footwear only, but is configured to receive both of the pair of footwear.

It will be appreciated that the foregoing description is given by way of example only, and that modifications may be made to the above embodiments of the present io invention without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Claims

Claims 1. An article of footwear comprising a main body in which a user's foot is receivable and a pouch attached to the main body which is configured to receive the main body so that the main body is storable in the pouch when the article of footwear is not being worn.
2. An article of footwear according to claim 1, \vherein the pouch is integrally formed with the main body.
3. An article of footwear according to claim I or claim 2, wherein the main body is deformable so that it can be manipulated between a wearable position, in \vhich the main body is expanded and configured to he received on a user's foot, and a storable position, in \vhich the main body is received in the pouch.
4. An article of footwear according to any preceding claim, wherein the main body comprises an upper portion with an aperture formed therein, wherein the pouch is insertable through the aperture so that it is received in the main body.
5. An article of footwear according to claim 4, \vherein the pouch has an opening and a rim of the opening extends along and is attached to an edge of the aperture.
6. An article of footwear according to claim 5, further comprising a fastener to open and close the aperture.
7. An article of footwear according to claim 6, wherein the fastener is a ip fastener.io
8. An article of footwear according to claim 6 or claim 7, wherein the fastener is configured to open and close the opening to the pouch when the main body is received therein.-10 -
9. An article of footwear according to any of claims 6 to 8, wherein the rim of the opening to the pouch extends along the fastener
10. An article of footwear according to any of claims 4 to 9, wherein the aperture is elongate and extends along the main body.
11. An article of footwear according to any of claims 4 to 10, wherein the upper portion comprises an upper layer and a hning layer and the aperture is formed through the upper layer such that a pouch receiving space is defined between the upper layer and the lining layer to receive the pouch.
12. An article of footwear according to any preceding claim, wherein the main body comprises an upper portion and a sole portion and the pouch is attached to the upper portion.
13. An article of footwear according to any preceding claim, wherein the pouch is formed from a hghtweight nylon material.
14. An article of footwear according to any preceding claim, wherein the article of footwear is a boot.
1 5. A method of storing an article of footwear with a main body and a pouch attached to the main body, the method comprising the steps of deforming the main body and inserting the main body into the pouch.