US20120017470A1

US20120017470A1 - Paddle slipper that offers wearing comfort

Info

Publication number: US20120017470A1
Application number: US12/805,278
Authority: US
Inventors: Kung-Sheng Pan
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2010-07-22
Filing date: 2010-07-22
Publication date: 2012-01-26

Abstract

A paddle slipper includes an insole for the contact of the sole of a user's foot, and an outsole bonded to the bottom side of the insole for contacting the ground and defining at a bottom side thereof a front open zone, a front support zone and a rear support zone. The front and rear support zones of the outsole lift the insole so that the user's sole is kept above the ground, lowering the chance of water-wetting the sole of the user's foot when the user is paddling. A front groove is defined between front protruding blocks of the front support zone, facilitating discharge of pressure from the user's sole. The front open zone design offers wearing comfort when the user is walking.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to slippers and more particularly, to a paddle slipper that offers wearing comfort.
2. Description of the Related Art
When playing a water game, taking a hot spring bath or SPA treatment, or participating in outdoor activities during a leisure time, people may wear a pair of slippers for the advantages of wearing comfort. However, the user's sole will feel uncomfortable when the slipper is water-wetted.
In order to eliminate the aforesaid water-wetted problem, breathing slippers that can discharge water or be dried quickly are created. However, the user's sole will still feel uncomfortable during the waiting time before the water-wetted slipper is dried, i.e., the aforesaid prior art design of breathing slippers is still not satisfactory in function, and an improvement in this regard is necessary.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been accomplished under the circumstances in view. It is the main object of the present invention to provide a paddle slipper, which lowers the chance of water-wetting the sole of the user's foot when the user is paddling and, which offers wearing comfort.
To achieve this and other objects of the present invention, a paddle slipper comprises an insole for the contact of the sole of a user's foot, and an outsole bonded to a bottom side of the insole for contacting the ground. The outsole comprises, at a bottom side thereof, a front open zone extending backwardly from a front edge thereof, a front support zone located on a front half of the bottom side thereof and disposed at a rear side relative to the front open zone and having at least two front protruding blocks and a front groove defined between two front protruding blocks, and a rear support zone disposed at a rear side relative to the front support zone and having at least one rear protruding block. Thus, the front and rear support zones of the outsole lift the insole to keep the user's sole above the ground at a distance, lowering the chance of water-wetting the sole of the user's foot when the user is paddling. The groove defined between the front protruding blocks of the front support zone enables the corresponding part of the paddle slip to be elastically curved during walking. The front open zone enables the paddle slipper to incline forward for smooth walking. Thus, the insole is elastically curved to fit the user's sole perfectly, facilitating pressure release. Therefore, the paddle slipper offers wearing comfort when the user walks.
It is still another object of the present invention to provide a paddle slipper, which guides water rapidly away when the paddle slipper is water-wetted, assuring wearing comfort.
To achieve this and other objects of the present invention, the insole of the paddle slipper comprises a plurality of horizontal drainage channels and a plurality of vertical drain holes respectively disposed at the top side in communication with the horizontal drainage channels. When the paddle slipper is water-wetted, water flows through the vertical drain holes into the horizontal drainage channels and then guided to the outside by the horizontal drainage channels. Therefore, the paddle slipper discharges water rapidly, eliminating the problem of uncomfortable feeling due to wearing of a water-wetted slipper.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the paddle slipper in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of an outsole for paddle slipper in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is sectional side view of the paddle slipper in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a side view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a side view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a side view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a bottom view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a bottom view of a paddle slipper in accordance with a sixth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an elevation view of an insole for paddle slipper in accordance with a seventh embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view taken along line 11-11 of FIG. 10.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a paddle slipper 10 in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention is shown comprising a vamp 20, an insole 30 and an outsole 40.
The insole 30 is formed of three sheet members, namely, the first sheet member 31, the second sheet member 32 and the third sheet member 33 that are bonded together in a stack. The first sheet member 31 has multiple vertical drain holes 312 that are tapered holes reducing in diameter from the top side toward the bottom side. The second sheet member 32 is bonded to the bottom side of the first sheet member 31, having a plurality of horizontal drainage channels 322 transversely extending through left and right sides thereof Each vertical drain hole 312 is kept in communication with one respective drainage channel 322 so that water can be guided away from the top wall of the first sheet member 31 through the vertical drain holes 312 into the horizontal drainage channels 322 and then discharged out of the insole 30. The third sheet member 33 is bonded to the bottom side of the second sheet member 32, having 5 locating holes 332. The vamp 20 comprises 5 mounting portions 22 that are respectively positioned in the locating holes 332 to secure the vamp 20 to the insole 30. The vamp 20 defines with the insole 30 a wearing space for accommodating the user's foot, avoiding separation of the user's foot from the paddle slipper 10 when the user is walking. Further, while achieving the aforesaid function, the vamp 20 can be made in any shape. The shape shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 is not a limitation.
The outsole 40 comprises an outsole body 41 bonded to the bottom side of the insole 30, and 4 anti-slip strips 42 fastened to the bottom side of the outsole body 41. The bottom side of the outsole 40 is configured to provide, in proper order from the front side toward the rear side, a front open zone 43, a front support zone 44, a rear support zone 45 and a rear open zone 46. The front open zone 43 is an opening that extends backwardly from the front edge of the outsole 40. The front support zone 44 comprises a first front protruding block 441 located on the rear side of the front open zone 43, a second front protruding block 442 located on the rear side thereof, and a front groove 443 defined between the first front protruding block 441 and the second front protruding block 442. The rear support zone 45 comprises a first rear protruding block 451 located on the front side thereof, a second rear protruding block 452 located on the rear side thereof, and a rear groove 453 defined between the first front protruding block 451 and the second front protruding block 452. The first and second front protruding blocks 441,442 and the first and second rear protruding block 451,452 extend transversely between the left and right sides. The rear open zone 46 is an opening that extends forwardly from the rear edge of the outsole 40 to the second rear protruding block 452. The outsole body 41 can be made directly by means of injection molding technology. Alternatively, the outsole body 41 can be made by cutting and/or grinding a blank to form the desired front open zone 43, front groove 443, rear groove 453 and rear open zone 46, or by bonding different thickness block members 412 into the desired shape (see FIG. 3).
In the outsole 40 of the aforesaid paddle slipper 10, the first front protruding block 441, the second front protruding block 442, the first rear protruding block 451 and the second rear protruding block 452 each have an anti-slip strip 42 located on its bottom side. The bottom wall of each anti-slip strip 42 for direct contact with the ground is corrugated, having anti-slip properties. Further, the front support zone 44 and the rear support zone 45 are respectively located on the front half part and rear half part of the outsole 40 so that the first and second front protruding blocks 441,442 and the first and second rear protruding block 451,452 can support the paddle slipper 10 on the ground in a balanced manner, keeping the top wall 34 of the insole 3 above the ground at a distance for the contact of the sole of the user's foot, lowering the chance of water-wetting the sole of the user's foot when the user is paddling.
Referring to FIG. 4, the point at the bottom side of the outsole 40 that is spaced from the front edge of the outsole 40 at a distance equal to ⅓ of the length L of the paddle slipper 10 is within the front groove 443, and the point at the bottom side of the outsole 40 that is spaced from the rear edge of the outsole 40 at a distance equal to ⅙ of the length L of the paddle slipper 10 is within the rear support zone 45, thus, when the user wears the paddle slipper 10 of which the length L is slightly greater than the length of the sole of the user's foot and stands up, the center of gravity of the front half of the sole of the user's foot and the center of gravity of the rear half of the sole of the user's foot are respectively vertically located insole 30 corresponding to the front groove 443 and the rear groove 453. The front groove 443 and the rear groove 453 enable the corresponding parts of the paddle slipper 10 to be curved when the user imparts a pressure to the paddle slipper 10 through the sole, causing the insole 30 to fit the curvature of the sole of the user's foot for immediate release of pressure. Further, the length L1 of the front open zone 43 is within the range of 12˜18% of the length L of the paddle slipper 10, or preferably at about 15%. The length L2 of the rear open zone 46 is within the range of 6˜9% of the length L of the paddle slipper 10, or preferably at about 7.5%. The front open zone 43 or rear open zone 46 enables the paddle slipper 10 to incline forward or backward subject to curving of the sole of the user's foot when the user is walking, and therefore user wearing the paddle slipper 10 can walk smoothly. Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the outsole 40 can be made having a front bevel 432 and a rear bevel 462.
Thus, when a user wearing the paddle slipper 10 is paddling, the sole of the user's foot and the top wall 34 of the insole 30 will not be wetted by water easily. Even if the paddle slipper 10 is wetted by water, water can be rapidly carried away, eliminating the discomfort feeling of wearing a wetted slipper. Further, the paddle slipper 10 offers wearing comfort when the user is walking or paddling.
Further, as shown in FIG. 6, the front support zone 44 can be designed to provide only one single front protruding block 444 to lift the insole 30 in a balanced manner. Similarly, the rear support zone 45 can be designed to provide only one single rear protruding block 454 (as shown in FIG. 7). Further, as shown in FIG. 8, the first and second front protruding blocks 441,442 and the first and second rear protruding block 451,452 can be corrugated, achieving the same effect as the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. Further, as shown in FIG. 9, the front support zone 44 can be configured to provide multiple front protruding blocks 446 that are arranged around a circle; the rear support zone 45 can be configured to provide multiple rear protruding blocks 456 that are arranged around a circle. The front support zone 44 and the rear support zone 45 achieve the same effect of lifting the sole of the user's foot and releasing the pressure from the sole of the user's foot.
Further, the insole 30 can be made by bonding one single upper sheet member 35 and one single bottom sheet member 36 in a stack (see FIG. 10 and FIG. 11), wherein the upper sheet member 35 has multiple horizontal drainage channels 354 transversely extending through the left and right sides thereof, and multiple vertical drain holes 352 respectively disposed in communication with the horizontal drainage channels 354; the bottom sheet member 36 has 5 mounting holes (not shown) for the mounting of the mounting portions 22 of the vamp 20.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A paddle slipper, comprising:

an insole for the contact of the sole of a user's foot; and

an outsole bonded to a bottom side of said insole for contacting the ground, said outsole comprising, at a bottom side thereof:

a front open zone extending backwardly from a front edge thereof;

a front support zone located on a front half of the bottom side thereof and disposed at a rear side relative to said front open zone, said front support zone comprising at least two front protruding blocks and a front groove defined between two said front protruding blocks; and

a rear support zone disposed at a rear side relative to said front support zone, said rear support zone comprising at least one rear protruding block.

2. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said rear support zone of said outsole comprises two rear protruding blocks and a rear groove defined between said two rear protruding blocks.

3. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front protruding blocks and said at least one rear protruding block extend transversely between left and right sides of said outsole.

4. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front protruding blocks and said at least one rear protruding block are corrugated.

5. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein, the point at the bottom side of said outsole that is spaced from the front edge of said outsole at a distance equal to ⅓ of the length of the paddle slipper is within said front groove.

6. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein the point at the bottom side of said outsole that is spaced from a rear edge of said outsole at a distance equal to ⅙ of the length of the paddle slipper is within said rear support zone.

7. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front protruding blocks and said at least one rear protruding block each have a corrugated bottom wall.

8. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said outsole has a front bevel located on a front side of a bottom wall thereof.

9. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said outsole further comprises a rear open zone located on the bottom side thereof, said rear open zone extending forwardly from a rear edge thereof and disposed at a rear side relative to said rear support zone.

10. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 9, wherein said outsole has a rear bevel located on a rear side of a bottom wall thereof.

11. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 9, wherein said rear open zone has a length about 6˜9% of the length of the paddle slipper.

12. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front open zone has a length about 12˜18% of the length of the paddle slipper.

13. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said front support zone comprises a plurality of front protruding blocks space around a circle; said rear support zone comprises a plurality of rear protruding blocks spaced around a circle.

14. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said outsole is formed of a plurality of block members bonded together.

15. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said insole comprises a plurality of horizontal drainage channels and a plurality of vertical drain holes respectively disposed at a top side in communication with said horizontal drainage channels.

16. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 1, wherein said outsole comprises an outsole body made directly by means of injection molding, or prepared from a blank and then shaped by cutting or grinding.

17. A paddle slipper, comprising:

an insole for the contact of the sole of a user's foot; and

a front open zone extending backwardly from a front edge thereof;

a front support zone disposed at a rear side relative to said front open zone, said front support zone comprising at least two front protruding blocks; and

a rear support zone located on a rear half of said outsole and disposed at a rear side relative to said front support zone, said rear support zone comprising at least two rear protruding blocks and a rear groove defined between two said rear protruding blocks.

18. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 17, wherein the point at the bottom side of said outsole that is spaced from a rear edge of said outsole at a distance equal to ⅙ of the length of the paddle slipper is within said rear support zone.

19. The paddle slipper as claimed in claim 17, wherein said outsole further comprises a rear open zone located on the bottom side thereof, said rear open zone extending forwardly from a rear edge thereof and disposed at a rear side relative to said rear support zone.