US2899758A - Adjustable orthopedic support - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 1s, 1959 A,SAMUELS ETAL 2,899,758

ADJUSTABLE ORTHOPEDIC SUPPORT Filed Aug. 6, 1958 INVENTOR ABE SAMUELS doH/v CALL/60N ATTORNEYS 'United States Patent ADJUSTABLE ORTHOPEDIC SUPPORT Abe Samuels and John F. Callison, Douglas, Ariz.

Application August 6, 1958, Serial No. 753,555

3 Claims. (Cl. 36-71) The present invention relates to adjustable orthopedic supports for shoes, and has particular reference to an improved adjustable orthopedic support formed vby two plates positioned between inner and outer soles of shoes, having coupling means to align the plates together, and an adjusting member to vary the distance between the plates.

In the art of orthopedic supports, it has always been desirable to provide -an adjustable orthopedic support that is easily assembled into the structure of the shoe. However, with most such supports diiculty has been encountered in making the adjustment in the support necessary to satisfy the needs of the user, after the support has been assembled in the shoe. In part this has been due to the fact that the pair of plates forming the support are oriented with respect to each other at only one point, namely, at the point of the adjusting member.

Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an adjustable orthopedic support for a shoe in which both plates are knurled or pronged throughout the surface engaging the inner and outer soles, or are provided with a coupling means such as a tongue and slot arrangement so that the possibility of any misalignment of the pair of plates to each other and to the inner and outer soles is eliminated.

Another object of the invention is to provide an adjusting member for varying the distance between the plates wherein the adjusting member has a right hand thread beginning at the center and progressing to one end thereof, and a left hand thread beginning also at the center and progressing to the other end. The pair of plates are so provided that one plate is tapped to receive the right hand thread of the adjusting member and the other plate is tapped to receive the left hand thread of the adjusting member.

A complete understanding of my invention may be had from the following description of a particular embodiment of the invention. In the description, reference is made to the accompanying drawings of which:

Figure 1 is a portion of a plan view of a shoe showing the manner in which the pair of plates forming the adjustable orthopedic supports of the invention are assembled;

Figure 2 is a plan view showing details of one plate in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is a plan view showing details of one plate in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

Figure 4 is a portion of a side View of an adjustable orthopedic support of the invention taken along line 4-4 of Figure l;

Figure 5 is a portion of an enlarged cross-sectional side View of a pair of plates in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 6 is a portion of an enlarged cross-sectional side view of a pair of plates in accordance with another embodiment of the invention;

Figures 7 and 8 show enlarged end views of an adrice 2 l justing member used in accordance with the invention;

Figs. 9 and 10 are perspective views of details of a pair of the plates before they are assembled between the inner and outer soles of a shoe in accordance with the invention. Y

Referring now to Figures l to 4 there is shown a portion of a shoe 10 having an inner sole 12 and an outer sole 14. Between these soles are positioned a plurality of pairs of substantially resilient plates 16 composed of a material such as steel, aluminum, or a non-corrosive material such as plastic. The pairs of plates may be of various sizes and configurations, dependent on the desired location in which the plates are interposed be-l. tween the inner and outer soles. v

The pairs of plates 16 are secured to the adjacent respective inner sole and outer sole by staples, rivets, or stitching, which is inserted either through openings 1 8, in the embodiment of plate shown in Figure 3 or through serrated or scalloped vedges 20 in the'embodiment of plate shown in Fig. 2. The `openings and scalloped edges are prepared so that the spacing of the openings thereof may accommodate the stitching operation of a sewing machine, a riveting machine, o1' a stapling machine, or the like. The plate adjacent the inner sole may be sewed or attached to the inner sole, and the other plate may be sewed or attached to the outer sole.

An adjusting member 22 extends through at least a portion of the pair of plates 16 so that the distance between the plates may be varied as desired. One manner in which this may be achieved is to -provide the adjusting member with right hand threads beginning at one end` of the adjusting member and vprogressing toward'the center thereof, and with left hand threads'beginning at the other end of the adjusting member yand progressing also toward the center thereof. One of the pair of plates is tapped to receive the right hand thread of the adjusting member and the other plate of the pair is tapped to receive the left hand thread of the adjusting member. The tapped portion of each of the plates is positioned at substantially corresponding points of the pair of plates and is generally at a position inward from peripheral portions of the plates.

The adjusting member 22 is shown in detail in Figures 6 and 7 and a second embodiment is `shown in Figure 8. The member may have an Allen type head 24 as shown in Figure 8 or preferably may have a slotted head 26 as seen in Figure 7. The outer sole 14, shown in Figure 1, is provided with opening 23 therethrough to provide for the manipulation or adjustment of the adjusting member 22 by turning the Allen type head 24 or the slotted head 26 with an appropriate tool.

Referring to Figure 5 there is illustrated an embodiment of the invention wherein the pair of plates 16 is formed of a non-metallic or soft metal material having threaded steel bushings or inserts 28 provided to receive the correspondingly threaded portions of the adjusting member.

According to the preferred construction of the invention the pair of plates are provided with a coupling means such as a tongue and slot `arrangement shown at 30 in Figures 9 and l0. The tongue and slot arrangement 30 comprises a tongue 31 in one plate which enters a slot 33 in the other plate. This construction is found to eliminate the possibility of any misalignment of the pair of plates as the plates are assembled with the inner and outer soles of the shoe, and during the normal use of the adjustable orthopedic support.

The exterior surfaces of the pair of plates are preferably knurled or pronged or the like, to assist and simplify the attachment of the exterior surfaces to the respective adjacent inner sole and outer sole. This is exemplified in Figures 2, 3, 9 and 10 of the drawings by the struck out tabs 35. A lip 32 at a periphery of the plate adjacent the outer sole is provided to eliminate theiaccumulation within the area between the plates of such foreign material as gravel, mud, etcv The adjustable orthopedic support of the invention may be installed in the shoe during the manufacturing process, or after such manufacture by placing the support in position after separating the inner Vand outer sole of the shoe.

It will be thus apparent that the new apparatus may be used to eliminate the possibility of error which has previously existed in modifying standard shoes to pro- Vide orthopedie correction. The height of the Support prescribed for the same foot may vary from time to time as the foot becomes stronger or weaker, or otherwise changes in its characteristics and this change may be accommodated by the device of this invention. Adjustment of the support to correct for such variations is simply accomplished by a turn of the adjusting member. Shoes may be manufactured with the orthopedic support in them and then simply Iadjusted by the retailV dealer or physician to provide the desired amount of correction.

The invention may be embodied in other specic forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. The present embodiments are therefore to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, the scope of the invention being indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

What is claimed and described to be secured by United States Letters Patent is:

1. An orthopedic support for a shoe having inner and outer soles comprising a pair of spaced substantially parallel resilient plates having similar areas less than half the width and length of a shoe, said pair of plates being interposed in stacked relation between the inner sole and the outer sole of the shoe, a coupling means formed at corresponding peripheral positions of said plates aligning each plate to the other when in the interposed stacked relation, spaced means along the edge of one of said plates remote from said coupling means for attaching to a peripheral portion of one of said soles and a rotatable adjusting screw member extending through at least a portion of each of said plates at a position adjacent said edge of said one plate for varying the spacing of said plates.

2. An orthopedic support as set out in claim 1, wherein one of said pair of resilient plates includes a lip at the outer peripheral portion thereof to eliminate the entry and accumulation of foreign material between the pair of plates of the orthopedic support.

3. An orthopedic support as set out in claim 1 wherein said adjusting screw member comprisingV a screw threaded in one direction through one of the plates and in the opposite direction through the other plate.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNlTED STATES PATENTS 912,584 Lowe Feb. 16, 1909 1,523,353 Winchell Ian. 13, 1925 1,662,814 Alfred Mar. 20, 1928 1,853,550 Copithorn Apr. 12,. 1932 2,018,386 Sherman Oct. 22, 1935 2,050,006 Heuer Aug. 4,V 1936 2,050,973 Kurtz Aug. 1I,A 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE 0F CORRECTION Patent No., l$899,758 August 189 1959 Abe Samuele et al.,

It is hereby certified that error appears in the-printed specification of' the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

Column ,r, line 6, for "positions" reed m 'portions Signed and sealed this 9th day of February 1960.,

(SEAL) Attest:

KARL Ho AXINE ROBERT C. WATSON Commissioner of Patents Attesting Officer

Images