US2096563A - Arch support - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 19, 1937. w. M, SCHOLL ARCH SUPPORT Filed March 25, 1935 a, 8 5 UP Z/zf/zkm 62 2501! Q4, 5;

Patented Oct. 19, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFiCE 2,096,563. ARCH SUPPORT William M. Scholl, Chicago, In.

Application March 25, 1935, Serial No. 12,775.

' Y 1 Claim. (01. 36-71) y to aid in the correction or relief of defects, de-

formities and various ailments of the foot, although the device may have other uses and purposes as will be apparent to one skilled in the.

art.

More specifically, the invention belongs to that class of arch supports wherein a metallic spring plate properly shaped for supporting the longitudinal arch of the foot is utilized, this plate being provided with a covering of some suitable material, such as leather, if so desired. Usually, such arch supporting devices are for disposition within a shoe or other article of footwear, beneath the foot of the user.

Difiiculty has heretofore been experienced with plates of this character, in that the plate was likely to break after continued usage, such breaking of the plate being what might be termed a tearing. In other words, the plate would split adjacent a side edge thereof and during repeated usage, the split would tend to widen until the plate was worthless for the purpose for which it was intended. Another objectionable feature of these plates resided in the fact that the forward edge thereof would gouge through the insole of a shoe, thereby ruining the shoe and rendering the plate much less effective as a corrective medium.

It has also been found in the past that where a leather or equivalent covering was utilized over H a'metallic spring plate, the covering material was not sufficiently firmly and tightly connected to the plate'.' This was due in most instances to the disposition of the connecting means, commonly rivets. A loose or even very slightly shiftable cover would result in a movement of the foot relatively to the plate at each step causing a rubbing of the foot against theshoe or other irksorne trouble.

Further .difiiculties experienced with plates of this character lay in the fact that while the plate may give to some extent vertically due to its arch formation, it was not flexible in the manner of a shoe, so that if the plate projected beneath the oscalcis or heel of the foot, it would tend to push the wearers heel out'of the shoe at each step. During a step, when the wearer was carrying his weight upon the phalanges and metatarsal heads, and consequently a considerable portion of the weight upon the forward end of the plate, the rear end of the plate would elevate,

and such leverage would tend to push the foot out of the shoe.

Difficultywas experienced in properly providing supporting means for the anterior or metatarsal arch of the foot in conjunction with a '5 metallic plate for supporting the longitudinal arch. This was centered mainly in maintaining a supporting memberin proper position, and also in providing a metatarsal supporting member of proper size together with a longitudinal arch supporting -member of proper size, there being a great relative variance between these parts in ailing feet-Z i While the arch supporting devices as a whole are usually designated by different sizes proportionate to the'size of the foot or shoe, such sizing wouldv not lend material aidto the determination of the proper height of the longitudinal arch supporting means and the metatarsal arch supporting means, especially in the event both of these means were essential for treatment of the same foot. 7

With the foregoing in mind, it is an'object of the present invention to provide a unitary arch supporting device capable of" overcoming all of the aforesaid defects and objections.

Another object of this invention is'the provision of an'arch supporting construction including ametallic spring plate structure especially arranged to prevent gouging into the insole of a shoe and'also to substantially prevent cracking or breaking of the plate.

Still another object of this invention is the provision of a metallic arch supporting unit made up of two separate members permanently attached together, the construction being such to substantially eliminate the likelihood of breakage of any part of the unit and to prevent gouging into the insole of a shoe. I

It is also an aim'of' this invention to provide an arch supporting structure, including a metallicplate shaped so as to give the required cor rective support and eliminate a leverage action of the plate tending to push the foot of the user out of the shoe. 7

Also an object 'of this invention is the pro- 45 vision of an arch supporting structure embodying a metallic spring plate and a covering ele- 1 ment disposed thereover, the covering element being united to the plate in such a manner as to be immovable relatively thereto and retain a firm connection with the plate.

Still a further object of this invention is the provision of an arch supporting structure embodying both means for supporting the longitudinal arch of a foot'and means for supporting 55 the metatarsal arch of a foot, one of the means being arranged to permit variations in size and thickness thereof.

The invention also contemplates the provision of an arch supporting structure including a metallic spring plate, and means associated with said plate for holding metatarsal arch supporting parts in a manner permitting the ready removal and replacement of the parts, so that the parts may be interchanged as may. be.deemed desirable.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of an arch supporting structure embodying a metallic element, and a flexible covering element, the latter being formed to provide a pocket for the insertion of meansto support a part of the foot.

While some of the more salient features, characteristics and advantages of this invention have been above pointed out, others will become apparent from the following disclosures."

The invention includes these and other features of construction and combinations of parts hereinafter described and shown in a preferred form in the drawing, as more particularly indicated by the claim.

On the drawing:

Figure 1 is a top plan View of an arch supporting structure embodying features and principles of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a bottom plan view of the structure shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a central vertical sectional view of the arch supporting structure taken substan tially as indicated by line IIIIII of Figure 2, looking in the direction of the arrows, and showing in dotted lines a foot positioned upon the arch support.

Figure 4 is a transverse vertical sectional view taken substantially as indicated by the line IV-IV of Figure 1, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

As shown on the drawing:

In the illustrated embodiment of this invention, there is seen a metallic spring plate 5 which is bowed upwardly in the center and. provided with the proper configuration for supporting the longitudinal arch of a foot. At the forward end the plate terminates short of the desired length of the metallic supporting structure utilized in the present invention. Across this forward end of the plate 5, a transverse metallic member 6 is disposed, the member 6 being of suflicient width to make up the desired length of the metallic supporting structure as a whole. The member 6 is preferably secured to the member 5 by means of welding, but may be'secured thereto in any other suitable manner so that both of the metallic members make up a single, firm integral unit.

It will be noted that the member 6 is provided at the forward edge thereof with an upturned lip l, which effectively prevents any part of'the metallic plate structure from gouging into the insole of a shoe. This member B'not only prevents gouging into the shoe, but in addition, re-' inforces or strengthens the plate 5 in a manner substantially eliminating the likelihood of breakage in any part of the composite fabricated plate structure. Of course, a single one-piece plate structure could be provided with substantially the same configuration as the fabricated plate structure herein shown and described. However, a one-piece structure would lack the reinforcing advantage furnished by the two-piece structure,

and would be more likely to break. A Weak, deformed or otherwise ailing foot tends to apply a twisting action upon the supporting structure during a step, and it being remembered that three to four thousand steps a day is not an unusual amount, this twisting action will in time fatigue the metallic plate and render the same subject to breakage.

In the present instance, the metallic plate structure is provided with a suitable flexible covering 8 which is shown as comprising a single piece of leather, but which, of course, may be made of other equivalent material. The leather covering 8, in this instance, is provided with a smooth upper surface while the undersurface is left in a .relatively roughened or unfinished state so as to grip the insole of a shoe in a better manner.

The covering is attached to the plate by means of a plurality of rivets 9, these rivets preferably being four in number. It will be noted from the showing in Figure 2 that the rivets are disposed at relatively widely spaced intervals and very closely adjacent the margin of the plate 5. By holding the cover 8 in somewhat stretched contact with the plate 5 while placing the rivets and using a number of rivets similar to that shown, the cover is firmly and securely attached to the plate structure and relative movement therebetween is substantially eliminated, even after the cover begins to show the effect of continued usage.

At the forward end thereof and along the inside edge, as indicated at In, the cover 8 is skived to afford a better fit of the arch supporting device within a shoe. The skiving is left with a relatively roughened under surface to aid in preventing slipping.

With references to Figures 2 and 3, it will be noted that the metallic plate 5 is terminated along an edge II which is short of the s calcis of a foot. A foot I2 is indicated in dotted lines in Figure 3, and it will be noted that the os calcis or heel portion of this foot rests upon the cover 8, but that the 0s calcis bearing point of the foot is back of the plate 5. Such construction, since the leather cover 8 is flexible, causes the arch support to become self-adjusting so as to assume the proper position in a shoe regardless of the customary variance in the height of shoe heels. This construction further eliminates a leverage action of the arch support tending to push the heel of the foot out of the shoe during a stride.

Means are also provided in the present invention for giving corrective support to the metatarsal arch or the metatarsal region of a foot. In this instance, the means are so arranged as to be variable as to size and thickness so that a single foot may be given proper support both as to the metatarsal region and as to the longitudinal arch by the same device, without necessitating the construction of a special device built for a single foot.

. In this instance, the forward portion of the cover 8 is split rearwardly any desirable distance, a distance back to the point l3 (Figure 3) being suitable. The side marginal portions of the leather flap resulting from the split are glued or otherwise secured together, leaving the front open to provide access to the pocket l4 (Figure 3) so provided. To insure the tightness of the pocket [4, a line of stitching I is passed through both flaps of the cover 8 and this line of stitching is preferably so run as to define a pocket of the general shape of the particular pad desired. Within the pocket a suitable metatarsal supporting pad l6 of any desirable cushioning material, such as soft rubber, is loosely inserted. Consequently, this pad is very readily removable from the pocket, and in the choosing of an arch supporting device for a particular foot, after a device of the proper size and with the proper height or configuration in the metallic plate structure has been selected, it is a simple expedient to insert a pad of the proper thickness and size in the pocket 44 for that particular foot. Accordingly, many arch supporting structures of the character of this invention may be kept on hand at all times and very readily made to fit substantially any foot.

In order toinsure the smooth surface for contact with the underside of the lower flap of the split portion of the cover 8, the joint between the plate 5 and the member 6 is covered with a strip ll of any desirable material, adhesive tape or the like being suitable.

From the foregoing, it will be apparent that I have provided an arch supporting structure embodying a metallic spring plate structure which will not gouge into the insole of a shoe, will not tend to force a foot out of a shoe, and which is substantially not subject to breakage. It will further be apparent that the arch supporting structure is self-adjusting for various types of footwear and. capable of supporting different portions of the foot, the arrangement being such as to permit variations in size and thickness of certain supporting parts of the structure. It is also to be noted that the entire structure is simple, easily assembled and economical to manufacture.

I am aware that many changes may be made and numerous details of construction may be varied through a Wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and I, therefore, do not purpose limiting the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the prior art and the scope of the appended claim.

I claim as my invention:

In an arch support, a metallic arch supporting plate, a metallic strip disposed transversely across the forward end of said plate and secured thereto against the undersurface thereof, said strip having a portion extending forwardly of said plate and upturned in a manner to prevent gouging into a shoe, a flexible cover overlying said plate and strip, and means covering the joint between said plate and strip disposed beneath said flexible cover. r

, WILLIAM M. SCI-IOLL.

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