WO2021035286A1

WO2021035286A1 - A shoe band

Info

Publication number: WO2021035286A1
Application number: PCT/AU2020/050780
Authority: WO
Inventors: Lachlan HIRIART
Original assignee: Hiriart Lachlan
Priority date: 2019-08-26
Filing date: 2020-07-30
Publication date: 2021-03-04

Abstract

A band to be worn around a shoe, particularly during sport. The band is comprised of a band portion and a contact surface. The contact surface is adapted to make contact with a ball during game play to provide increased accuracy in directing the ball while receiving and/or kicking. The band may be used as a kicking aid.

Description

A SHOE BAND

Field of Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to a band adapted to be received by a shoe to be used during sport.

Background of the Invention

[0002] Any discussion of the prior art throughout the specification should in no way be considered as an admission that such prior art is widely known or forms part of common general knowledge in the field.

[0003] Certain sports require speciality footwear to provide protection and to facilitate increased skill at the sport. Such sports include football, soccer, rugby, etc.

[0004] Football shoes or boots are well known in the art to have a tough upper surface suitable for handling the impact of a travelling ball and/or the force from the wearer kicking the ball. Often the heel of the boot is also formed of a toughened material to cope with an impact from back passing the ball.

[0005] In sports where a ball is kicked by a player, it is normal to use a shoe or boot to protect the foot of the person kicking the ball. With varying sports, the nature of the shoe or boot varies to allow for the way in which the ball is kicked, and the nature of the ball being kicked. However, in all instances, the shoe or boot attempts to follow the inherent shape of a human foot.

[0006] The portion of the human foot which kicks the ball is generally either the instep of a foot or the ach of a foot. Typically, the portion of the human foot which kicks the ball is not complimentary to the shape of the ball. For example, in sports such as Australian rules football, rugby and gridiron, the shape of the ball is an ellipsoid, which does not match the instep portion of a foot which kicks the ball. The top of the instep, when kicking, is inherently convex both longitudinally and laterally and therefore contact with the ball tends to be on a narrow band along a portion of the instep. If the ball does not contact the instep correctly, it can skew at an angle, resulting in an inaccurate kick. Further, if the ball makes contact either too high or too low on the instep, the trajectory of the ball will not be that which is desired and the resultant kick will not be as effective as it could have been.

[0007] Some football boots, such as the ADIDAS PREDATOR™, have removed the tongue of a typical football boot and provided a ridged, relatively high friction upper surface. This added friction causes a ball approaching the surface of the boot from an oblique angle to slow down on contact with the surface, giving the wearer greater opportunity to turn and direct the ball before passing it to another player. It may also make it easier for the wearer to stop a moving ball with their foot. While the ADIDAS PREDATOR football boots are useful in that they do not have a tongue, they are expensive, and are not ideal for everyday use but rather only for playing sport.

[0008] It is an object of the present invention to provide an accessory which can be used with footwear in a manner where there is an increased likelihood a ball will make desirable contact with a portion of a shoe.

Summary of Invention

[0009] In accordance with a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a shoe band for a shoe, comprising: a band portion adapted to be received by the shoe; a contact surface projecting from the band portion along a width portion of the shoe; and wherein the contact surface is located above an instep portion of the shoe and is configured to contact a ball.

[0010] In an embodiment, the band is formed of silicone.

[0011] In an embodiment, the contact surface is flat.

[0012] In an embodiment, the contact surface is curved.

[0013] In an embodiment, the band portion is flexible.

[0014] In an embodiment, the shoe is a football shoe.

[0015] In an embodiment, the shoe is used to play one or more sports selected from a group consisting of soccer, football, NFL and/or AFL.

[0016] In an embodiment, the band is unitary.

[0017] In an embodiment, the band further comprises a joining means adapted to join a first end and a second end of the band portion.

[0018] In an embodiment, the joining means is a clip formed of a clip insert located on the first end and a clip receiving portion located on the second end.

[0019] In an embodiment, the shoe band is a kicking aid used by a person wearing a shoe. [0020] In accordance with a second aspect of the present invention there is provided the use of a shoe band comprising: a band portion adapted to be received by the shoe; a contact surface projecting from the band portion along a width portion of the shoe; and wherein the contact surface is located above an instep portion of the shoe and is configured to contact a ball, as a kicking aid by a person wearing a shoe.

[0021] In an embodiment, one or more shoe bands are worn on at least one shoe worn by said person.

[0022] In an embodiment, at least one shoe band is worn on each shoe worn by said person.

[0023] In an embodiment, at least two shoe bands are worn on each shoe by said person.

[0024] In an embodiment, at least three shoe bands are worn on each shoe by said person.

Brief Description of Drawings

[0025] Preferred features, embodiments and variations of the invention may be discerned from the following detailed description which provides sufficient information for those skilled in the art to perform the invention. The detailed description is not to be regarded as limiting the scope of the preceding summary of the invention in any way.

[0026] Specific embodiments of the present invention are described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0027] Figure 1 is front perspective view of a band in accordance with an embodiment of the invention;

[0028] Figure 2 is side view of more than one band on a shoe in accordance with an embodiment of the invention; and

[0029] Figure 3 is front perspective view of the shoe and bands of Figure 2.

Detailed Description

[0030] Embodiments of the invention described herein relate to a band adapted to be received by a shoe for providing a surface to make contact with a ball. [0031] Figure 1 is a front perspective view of a band (1 ) in accordance with an embodiment of the invention. The band (1) comprises a band portion (2) which is circular in nature such that it is able to be received by a shoe.

[0032] The band further comprises a contact surface (3) projecting from the band portion (2). The contact surface (3) is flat and provides a large surface area where the contact surface is able to make contact with a piece of sporting equipment, such as a ball.

[0033] Figures 2 and 3 depict more than one band (1) in accordance with an embodiment of the invention on a shoe (4). The bands (1 a, 1 b, 1 c) comprise a band portion (2a, 2b, 2c) which receives the shoe (4). The band portions (2a, 2b, 2c) are seated on the shoe (4) such that they are secured around the instep (5) of the foot.

[0034] A contact surface (3a, 3b, 3c) projects upward from the band portion (2a, 2b, 2c) along a width portion of the width (6) of the shoe (4). The contact surfaces (3a, 3b, 3c) each provide a surface where a ball is able to make contact. In use, when the ball makes contact with the contact surface (3), the contact surface (3) allows the user wearing the shoe (4) to have increased accuracy when kicking the ball in a direction. In an embodiment, the ball may make contact with more than one contact surface (3) if multiple bands (1) are worn on the shoe (4).

[0035] The contact surface is located above the instep (5) of a foot, being the instep portion of the shoe (4).

[0036] The contact surface (3) provides a large surface area in which the ball makes contact with when kicking the ball. The flat nature of the contact surface (3) provides a firm contact point for the ball to be kicked with. Its primary function is to improve kicking efficiency.

[0037] In the described embodiment, each band (1a, 1 b, 1 c) is spaced along the shoe (4) to allow the foot inside the shoe (4) to flex when running and kicking, thus not impairing the user’s game play.

[0038] The band (1 ) can be formed of any material such that it does not depart from the nature of the invention. In an embodiment, the band (1) is formed of silicone. In an alternate embodiment, the band (10 is formed of rubber and may incorporate an elastic material such as Lycra™ or Elastane™. In an alternate embodiment, the band (1 ) is formed of thermoplastic elastomer. In a preferred embodiment, the band (1 ) is formed of a flexible material such that it does not impair game play when the user is required to flex their foot and/or such that the band portion (2) is able to receive a number of different sized shoes. In an embodiment, the band (1) is formed of a durable material such that it is able to endure being worn during outdoor sports games. In an embodiment, the band (1 ) is formed of a material that increase the bounce of a ball which makes contact with the band (1).

[0039] In an embodiment, the band (1 ) is formed of a single material, such as rubber. In an alternate embodiment, the band (1 ) is formed of a number of materials combined, for example, the band portion (2) is formed of a flexible rubber which is able to stretch over a number of different types of shoes (4) of various sizes, while the contact surface (3) is formed of a hard plastic for durability.

[0040] In an embodiment, the band portion (2) is not flexible and may only received a small range of shoe sizes. In an alternate embodiment, the band portion (2) is flexible and is able to receive a large number of shoe sizes.

[0041] The band portion (2) is any shape such that it is able to receive the shoe, including but not limited to: circular, oval, square, diamond, triangular, etc.

[0042] In an embodiment, the band (1) is formed of one or more high-friction materials, such that there is increased friction between the band (1 ) and the shoe (4) and/or the band (1 ) and a ball.

[0043] In use where a ball makes contact with the band (1), the band (1 ) provides grip, thereby relatively slowing the ball. At the same time the band (1 ) may move along the shoe (4) due to, and in the direction of, the force from the ball. The band (1 ) may then be adapted to return to its initial position, such that the ball is returned to the position at which it impacted with the band (1 ). This assists the wearer in the slowing and holding of the ball as they receive it, giving them a better opportunity to control and redirect the ball.

[0044] The contact surface (3) projects from the band portion (2) along a width portion of the shoe. A person skilled in the art would appreciate that the width portion is any portion of the width (6) of the shoe (4). As such, the contact surface (3) may extend along the whole width of the shoe (4), or only a portion of the width of the shoe (4).

[0045] The contact surface (3) may have a generally flat face which makes contact with the ball, or may have a curved face which makes contact with the ball. In an alternate embodiment, the contact surface (3) may be coated with a secondary material to provide grip, such as anti-slip tape. [0046] In an alternate embodiment, the face of the contact surface (3) which makes contact with the ball may comprise one or more projections, such as bumps or spikes which provide increased grip.

[0047] In an alternate embodiment, the band (1 ) further comprises a joining means adapted to join a first end and a second end of the band portion (2) such that the band portion (2) is secured around the shoe (4). The joining means may be any means that joins a first end of the band portion (2) and a second end of the band portion (2), such as but not limited to clips, Velcro, zippers, etc. In an example of such an embodiment, the joining means may be a clip formed of a clip insert located on the first end of the band portion (2) and a clip receiving means located on a second end of the band portion (2). The clip insert and clip receiving means are complimentary such that the clip insert is received by the clip receiving means to join the first end and second end of the band portion (2) around the shoe (4).

[0048] In an embodiment, the shoe band (1 ) is used as a kicking aid by a user wearing a shoe (4) with the shoe band (1 ).

[0049] A person skilled in the art would appreciate that embodiments of the invention can be used on shoes (4) when playing various sports, including but not limited to soccer, football, gridiron, NFL and AFL. The shoes are not limited to those for playing sport, as the bands can be used with a number of different shoe types.

[0050] A person skilled in the art would appreciate that one or more bands (1 ) may be worn on one of more shoes (4) during game play. For example, a band (1 ) may be worn on the right shoe, and a second band may be worn on the left shoe. In some embodiments, a user may only wish to use a band (1 ) on their primary kicking foot, and thereby may only wear one or more bands (1 ) on a single foot.

[0051] The band (1) may be any colour which does not depart form the nature of the invention.

[0052] In this specification, the word "comprising" is to be understood in its "open" sense, that is, in the sense of "including", and thus not limited to its "closed" sense, that is the sense of "consisting only of". A corresponding meaning is to be attributed to the corresponding words "comprise", "comprised" and "comprises" where they appear.

[0053] The preceding description is provided in relation to several embodiments which may share common characteristics and features. It is to be understood that one or more features of any one embodiment may be combinable with one or more features of the other embodiments. In addition, any single feature or combination of features in any of the embodiments may constitute additional embodiments.

[0054] In addition, the foregoing describes only some embodiments of the inventions, and alterations, modifications, additions and/or changes can be made thereto without departing from the scope and spirit of the disclosed embodiments, the embodiments being illustrative and not restrictive.

[0055] Furthermore, the inventions have described in connection with what are presently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to the disclosed embodiments, but on the contrary, is intended to cover various modifications and equivalent arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the inventions. Also, the various embodiments described above may be implemented in conjunction with other embodiments, e.g., aspects of one embodiment may be combined with aspects of another embodiment to realize yet other embodiments.

[0056] Further, each independent feature or component of any given assembly may constitute an additional embodiment.

Claims

Claims:

1. A shoe band for a shoe, comprising: a band portion adapted to be received by the shoe; a contact surface projecting from the band portion along a width portion of the shoe; and wherein the contact surface is located above an instep portion of the shoe and is configured to contact a ball.

2. The band of claim 1 , wherein the band is formed of silicone.

3. The band of claim 1 , wherein the contact surface is flat.

4. The band of claim 1 , wherein the contact surface is curved.

5. The band of claim 1 , wherein the band portion is flexible.

6. The band of claim 1 , wherein the shoe is a football shoe.

7. The band of claim 1 , wherein the shoe is used to play one or more sports selected from a group consisting of soccer, football, NFL and/or AFL.

8. The band of claim 1 , wherein the band is a unitary.

9. The band of claim 1 , wherein the band further comprises a joining means adapted to join a first end and a second end of the band portion.

10. The band of claim 9, wherein the joining means is a clip formed of a clip insert located on the first end and a clip receiving portion located on the second end.

11.The use of the shoe band of any one of claims 1 to 10, as a kicking aid by a person wearing a shoe.

12. The use of a shoe band comprising: a band portion adapted to be received by the shoe; a contact surface projecting from the band portion along a width portion of the shoe; and wherein the contact surface is located above an instep portion of the shoe and is configured to contact a ball, as a kicking aid by a person wearing a shoe.

13. The use of claim 11 or claim 12, wherein one or more shoe bands are worn on at least one shoe worn by said person.

14. The use of claim 13, wherein at least one shoe band is worn on each shoe worn by said person.

15. The use of claim 14, wherein at least two shoe bands are worn on each shoe by said person.

16. The use of claim 15, wherein at least three shoe bands are worn on each shoe by said person.