WO2001005261A1

WO2001005261A1 - Boot or shoe with moulded sole extending to upper

Info

Publication number: WO2001005261A1
Application number: PCT/AU2000/000871
Authority: WO
Inventors: James Richard Cloros
Original assignee: Radi Holdings Pty Limited
Priority date: 1999-07-20
Filing date: 2000-07-20
Publication date: 2001-01-25

Abstract

A boot or shoe is provided with an upper (1) of leather or other equivalent breathable material incorporating portions including a toe (2), vamp (3), waist (4), back quarters (5), and heel counter (6). The leather upper is optionally fastened to a leather insole. The boot is provided with a one piece polymeric moulding forming the sole (10) and extending upwardly over the lower portion of the upper forming an integral over galosh typically covering the toe (2), vamp (3), waist (4), back quarters (5) and heel portions (6). The polymeric moulding terminates in a rim (11) which may be keyed to the leather upper by way of the polymeric material extending into holes (12) in the upper.

Description

Boot or shoe with moulded sole extending to upper

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a boot or shoe and has been devised particularly, though

not solely, to provide comfortable waterproof footwear in adverse conditions.

There are many applications where it is desirable to provide footwear that is

substantially waterproof while remaining comfortable to wear. Such applications might

include wet environments such as are encountered in some industries and, for example in

mining or military applications. Other examples include situations where it is necessary

to provide footwear that is resistant to degradation by chemicals such as acids or other

corrosive industrial chemicals.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In the past, footwear for use in such situations has typically comprised rubber

boots or booties, or rubber overshoes such as galoshes, but rubber footwear of this type

is not comfortable over long periods of use due to the lack of ventilation resulting in

perspiration and internal dampness. Furthermore, rubber boots and overshoes are

inherently elastic in nature and do not mould to the shape of the users foot and are

therefore typically uncomfortable to wear.

For these reasons, it is often preferred to use leather based footwear in adverse

environments but it is extremely difficult to make leather footwear moisture resistant,

even when treated with wateφroofing substances. Even where it is possible to make the

leather itself inherently wateφroof, there is generally leakage through seams and

stitching etc. When leather based footwear is used in high moisture and arduous

environments such as in military applications, mining, and in the chemical industry, they have not proven to be completely satisfactory due to ultimate water and chemical

penetration leading to rot and breakdown, and furthermore, it is difficult to provide

leather footwear with adequate grip and scuff resistant properties.

It is desirable to provide a leather wateφroof breathable boot that will meet the

comfort/thermal and health requirements (absoφtion/desoφtion of foot moisture) of

more conventional high quality leather footwear whilst remaining wateφroof and

rendering a very high degree of wear resistance in the natural severe rugged elements of

outdoor conditions.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The present invention therefore provides a boot or shoe including an upper of

leather or other known equivalent materials and a one piece polymeric moulding forming

at least an outer sole portion and extending upwardly over at least the lower portion of

the upper so as to form an over galosh.

Preferably, the upper has toe, vamp, waist, back quarter and heel counter portions,

and the polymeric moulding extends upwardly from the sole over at least a significant

portion of the toe, vamp, waist, back quarters and heel counter.

Preferably, the upper is attached to an insole with the polymeric moulding formed

over both the insole and the lower portion of the upper.

Preferably, the polymeric moulding is a synthetic material, or natural rubber

material that is vulcanised.

Where the polymeric material is vulcanised during the moulding process, the

leather of the upper is specially tanned to be heat resistant. Preferably, the upper, in the vicinity of the upper edge of the polymeric moulding,

is provided with a plurality of cavities or apertures which are filled with polymeric

material during the moulding process to enhance bonding between the polymeric

material and leather or other material.

In one form of the invention, the upper is provided with a wateφroof membrane

lining extending at least over the portions of the upper adjacent to but not covered by the

polymeric moulding, and wherein a wateφroof seal is provided between the upper and

the wateφroof membrane lining, extending around the upper adjacent the upper edge of

the over galosh.

In a further aspect the present invention provides a method of making a boot or

shoe including the steps of,

1) fabricating an upper from leather or other known equivalent materials,

2) providing a mould adapted to receive the lower part of the upper and

formed to the desired shape of the sole and lower portion of the upper,

3) placing the upper within the mould, and

4) moulding a polymeric material around the upper, forming the sole of the

boot or shoe and extending in one piece over at least the lower portion of the upper so as

to form an over galosh.

Preferably the method includes the step of tanning the leather to be heat resistant

before fabricating the leather upper. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Notwithstanding any other forms that may fall within its scope, one preferred form

of the invention will now be described by way of example only with reference to the

accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a boot made according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a vertical section through the vamp area of one form of boot

construction according to the invention; and

Figure 3 is a similar view to Figure 2 showing an alternative construction.

PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION

In the preferred form of the invention, a boot is manufactured as follows, although

it will be appreciated that the invention may also be applied to a shoe or other similar

forms of footwear.

The boot is formed from a leather upper 1 typically comprising a toe portion 2, a

vamp portion 3, waist portions 4, back quarters 5, and a heel counter portion 6.

Although the upper is referred to throughout this specification as being formed of

leather, it will be appreciated that other known equivalent materials could be used. For

example, boots or shoes are often fabricated from combinations of synthetic materials

such as nylon and breathable synthetics such as Goretex™ which could be substituted

for leather.

The leather upper is also provided with lacing eyelets 7, a tongue 8 and cuff 9

around the upper portion of the boot as is well known in boot construction.

The boot is also preferably provided with a leather insole (not shown) attached to

the leather upper in the manner which is well known in leather boot construction. The boot is provided with a moulded polymeric sole 10 which is formed as part of

a one piece polymeric moulding 13 which extends upwardly from the sole over the lower

portion of the upper to a rim 11 so as to form an over galosh over the lower part of the

upper. As shown in the accompanying illustration, the one piece polymeric moulding

covers not only the sole, but also the toe portion 2 the vamp portion 3, the waist portions

4 and a significant part of the back quarters 5 and heel counter 6.

According to the intended use of the boot or shoe, the rim may be positioned at

higher or lower placements than that shown in Figure 1.

The boot is typically manufactured by providing a mould adapted to receive the

lower part of the leather upper, formed to the desired shape of the sole and the lower

portion of the upper. The leather upper is then fabricated according to conventional boot

manufacturing techniques, either with or without a leather insole. The upper is then

placed within the mould and the polymeric material moulded around the upper forming

the sole of the boot and extending in one piece over the lower portion of the upper to the

rim 11 as shown.

The polymeric material may be of any suitable synthetic or natural material, and

the moulding may take place by any known process. It is, however, anticipated that in

many applications, the polymeric material will be vulcanised in the mould, to mould the

polymeric material closely against the leather upper to provide the desired end result.

Where the polymeric material is applied with a vulcanising process, it is necessary that

the leather be specially tanned to be heat resistant, otherwise the leather will shrink and

harden. In order to enhance the bond between the polymeric moulding and the leather

upper, the leather upper may be provided with holes, slots or cavities of any shape made

into or through the leather lining. Such holes, diagrammatically shown at 12 in the

accompanying drawing, are filled with the polymeric material during the moulding

process to enhance the 'key' between the polymeric material and the leather in order to

resist delamination during wear.

The toe portion 2 may either be formed of leather or may be provided as a metallic

toe cap located inside the leather upper or, alternatively, outside the leather upper,

subsequently covered by the polymeric moulding.

In alternative forms of the invention, the boot or shoe maybe provided with a part

liner of a breathable synthetic material such as Goretex in order to enhance the

wateφroof nature and breathability of the leather upper. In such constructions, it maybe

possible to lower the position of the rim 12 from that shown in Figure 1 so as to leave

the upper part of the vamp portion 3 uncovered by the polymeric moulding.

In the embodiments shown in Figure 2, the upper, and in particular the vamp

portion 3 is formed of leather as previously described with the moulded polymeric sole

and upper galosh 10. A wateφroof breathable membrane lining 14 is provided, attached

to the vamp portion 3 or other adjacent upper portions, and a lower lining 15 of leather

or other suitable material is provided sewn to the lower edge of the wateφroof

breathable membrane lining 14 at 16.

The composite liner so formed, is sewn to an insole 17 which maybe of leather or

other suitable material at seams 18 to form the complete upper, over which the

polymeric moulding is formed as previously described. Inserted between the outside upper material 3 and the wateφroof lining material 14

is a seal 19 which is adhered to both materials in order to create a wateφroof seal at this

point completely around the upper edge of the over galosh. This join line is known as

the mould "nip-line" 20. The seal, which can be made from rubber or any other suitable

material, is operable to eliminate any entry of water or other liquid which may form

between the outside leather 3 and the lining 14 from moving downwardly past this point

and entering the region inside the over galosh 13.

A variation of this embodiment is shown in Figure 3 where the outside upper

leather 3 is sewn to the insole 17 at 18 as is the wateφroof membrane lining 14 which

extends right down to the seam 18, rather than being joined to a further leather lining

member 15 as previously described with reference to Figure 2.

As before, a seal 19 is provided in the locality of the nip line 20 in order to prevent

moisture from running down between the upper leather 3 and the wateφroof membrane

lining 14, where it would otherwise be able to seep into the inside of the boot or shoe

through the seam 18.

Although two possible variations of the use of wateφroof membrane linings have

been shown with reference to Figures 2 and 3, it will be appreciated by those skilled in

the art that other variations maybe possible while remaining within the scope of the

invention.

By providing the polymeric moulding directly around the leather upper, a

wateφroof and robust boot or shoe is provided with the advantages of both leather and

rubber boots and shoes. Because there is no stitching through the polymeric moulding which is provided in one piece, the lower portion of the boot is completely wateφroof

with all the advantages of one piece moulded boots or shoes.

In addition, the boot has a leather upper with all the normal advantages of a leather

boot including the capacity to mould to the shape of the wearer's foot and the ability to

absorb perspiration during use which can be allowed to dry out when the boot is not

being used. In this manner, the boot provides the normal comfort, moulded interface,

breathing characteristics etc of a normal leather boot.

Claims

1. A boot or shoe including an upper of leather or other known equivalent materials

and a one piece polymeric moulding forming at least an outer sole portion and extending

upwardly over at least the lower portion of the upper so as to form an over galosh.

2. A boot or shoe as claimed in claim 1 wherein the upper has toe, vamp, waist, back

quarter and heel counter portions, and the polymeric moulding extends upwardly from

the sole over at least a significant portion of the toe, vamp, waist, back quarters and heel

counter.

3. A boot or shoe as claimed in either claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the upper, in the

vicinity of the upper edge of the polymeric moulding, is provided with a plurality of

cavities or apertures which are filled with polymeric material during the moulding

process to enhance bonding between the polymeric material and the upper.

4. A boot or shoe as claimed in any one of the preceding claims wherein the upper is

provided with a wateφroof membrane lining extending at least over the portions of the

upper adjacent to but not covered by the polymeric moulding, and wherein a wateφroof

seal is provided between the upper and the wateφroof membrane lining, extending

around the upper adjacent the upper edge of the over galosh.

5. A boot or shoe as claimed in claim 4 when provided with an insole sewn to the

lower edge of the upper, and wherein the wateφroof membrane lining extends

downwardly to, and is sewn into, the seam so formed between the insole and the lower

edge of the upper.

6. A boot or shoe as claimed in claim 4 wherein the lower edge of the wateφroof

membrane lining is sewn to a leather lining at a point below the wateφroof seal, the

leather lining in turn being sewn to an insole.

7. A boot or shoe as claimed in claim 6 wherein the lower edge of the leather upper

terminates within the over galosh portion of the polymeric moulding.