US20170119100A1

US20170119100A1 - High-heeled footwear

Info

Publication number: US20170119100A1
Application number: US15/334,212
Authority: US
Inventors: Yasuyuki Yamada
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2015-10-28
Filing date: 2016-10-25
Publication date: 2017-05-04
Also published as: JP2017080105A

Abstract

A heel part is formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in the vertical direction, and a front end adjacent portion thereof is buried and fixed in an outer sole more on a toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of a high heel. A portion continuous with and behind the fixed portion is exposed from the outer sole and gradually spaced apart from a bottom face of the outer sole in a rearward direction and has a warp-curved part 3B in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot, and a buffer plate grounded during walking and standing is attached to the bottom face of the heel part in a position almost immediately below a rear end part of the outer sole.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to Japanese Application No. 2015-212209 filed Oct. 28, 2015. The contents of the foregoing are incorporated by reference.

STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTORS

The inventors of the present application authored and disclosed the subject matter of the present application on Jun. 14, 2015 (published online), Jun. 16, 2015 (published online), and Jun. 29, 2015 (published online). The prior disclosures have been submitted in an Information Disclosure Statement in the present application as “Yamada, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsgK4z1HSyY (Jun. 14, 2015 (online))”, “Yamada, https://vimeo.com/130859390 (Jun. 16, 2015 (online))” and “Yamada, “YaCHAIKA—comfy high heels, http://www.jamesdysonaward.org/ja/projects/yachaika/ (Jun. 29, 2015 (online)).”

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to high-heeled footwear such as high-heeled shoes, high-heeled sandals, and high-heeled boots, and more particularly to high-heeled footwear having a heel part formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in the vertical direction.

BACKGROUND ART

Nowadays, high-heeled footwear such as high-heeled shoes (hereinafter also simply referred to as “high heels”) and high-heeled sandals is one of essential fashion items for women; in particular, people working in the service industry such as dress shops staff, or career women, flight attendants, etc. usually wear high heels at work.
Conventional high heels are, however, designed for temporary use on occasions such as parties with priority being placed on the improvement in aesthetics when standing or walking, and little consideration is given in respect of natural, comfortable walking.
When walking in high heels, it is difficult to step out using the ankle or toe, so the knees and hips are involved in the walk, and a resultant extra load concentrated on the muscles of these portions not only causes fatigue but may also cause instability during walking or lead to the risk of falling.
Furthermore, a high, clicking impact sound is generated during walking in high heels on a road surface or stairs of concrete, for example, and the impact is directly transmitted to the body, which together with a leg posture in the high heels damages the joints and tendons, resulting in deterioration of a posture or causing arthralgia.
In order to solve this problem, English Translation of Japanese Patent Application No. 2007-508867 for example proposes: a technique of incorporating a spring A3 inside a high heel A2 of a high-heeled shoe A1 as shown in FIG. 13, so that the tip end of a heel stem A4 elastically expands/retracts to absorb impact; or another technique of connecting a heel B2 of a high-heeled shoe B1 to a shoe sole of the high-heeled shoe B1 through a plate spring component B3 as shown in FIG. 14, so that elastic and flexural deformation thereof absorbs impact; and yet another technique of providing under a heel C2 of a high-heeled shoe C1 a spring component C3 which is bent in an S-shape, so as to absorb impact as shown in FIG. 15.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,195,258 proposes a high heel D1 having a blade D2 forming a heel attached to a shoe sole as shown in FIG. 16. The blade D2 is formed in a U-shape and has a smoothly curved part D3, and the portion above the curved part D3 is fixed to the side of the shoe sole. The portion below the curved part D3 has its entire bottom surface formed as a flat grounded surface, so that elastic and flexural deformation of the curved part D3 during walking absorbs the impact received from the walking surface.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION

In the high-heeled shoe A1 shown in FIG. 13, the spring A3 and the heel stem A4 are incorporated in a narrow space in the heel A2, so it is not easy to keep the heel stem A4 unshakably expandable/retractable with respect to the heel A2, and external force acting on the heel stem A4 in the orthogonal direction to the expanding/retracting direction may increase frictional resistance and hinder smooth expanding/retracting movement.
Foreign matter, e.g. dust, coming into the gap between the heel A2 and the heel stem. A4 can also obstruct the expanding/retracting movement of the heel stem A4, and also the heel A2 must be formed thicker than normal high heels from a structural point of view, which can make the design less sophisticated.
In the high-heeled shoe B1 shown in FIG. 14, the lower end of the heel B2 is apart from the plate spring component B3, and reaction force in the front-back or left-right direction from the walking surface acting on the lower end of the heel B2 during walking flexes or twists the plate spring component B3, which may make the heel B2 shaky and the walking motion unstable.
Flexural deformation of the plate spring component B3 in the vertical direction causes the lower end of the heel B2 to be displaced by swinging relative to the shoe sole of the high-heeled shoe B1 around a point obliquely above and ahead thereof as an instantaneous center, and therefore while the toe side portion of the shoe sole and the lower end of the heel B2 are grounded on the walking surface at the same time, relative displacement in the front-back direction between the shoe sole and the heel part B2 is restrained by friction with the walking surface, so that the plate spring component B3 cannot function adequately.
In the high-heeled shoe C1 shown in FIG. 15, when force in the front-back direction is applied from the grounded surface on the spring component C3 bent in the S-shape, the component is in a shape that flexes easily in the front-back direction in response to the force, and therefore the walking motion can be unstable.
In the high-heeled shoe D1 shown in FIG. 16, the U-shaped blade D2 forming the heel is elastically displaced in the vertical direction mainly by the elastic deformation of the curved part D3 only and provides little buffering effect while the lower portion of the curved part D3 has its entire bottom face grounded, and therefore when the blade D2 is grounded in a position under the arch of the foot during walking on an irregular road surface for example, not only the walking motion can be unstable but also the risk of slipping and falling can be encountered for example by stepping on pebbles on the road surface.
Therefore, the present invention proposes a high-heeled footwear capable of solving the technical problem associated with the conventional footwear, reducing noise and impact transmitted to the body during walking, and allowing natural, comfortable and safe walking, without impairing design features.
High-heeled footwear according to the present invention provided for the object has a heel part formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in a vertical direction, the heel part has a front end adjacent portion in a longitudinal direction thereof buried and fixed in an outer sole of the footwear more on a toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of the footwear, a portion continuous with and behind the fixed portion is exposed from the outer sole and gradually spaced apart from a bottom face of the outer sole in a rearward direction and has a warp-curved part in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot, and an impact absorbing member grounded during walking or standing is attached to a bottom face of the heel part in a position almost immediately below a rear end part of the outer sole.
In the high-heeled footwear according to the present invention, a top face adjacent to a rear end part of the heel part and a bottom face adjacent to the rear end part of the outer sole are desirably connected by an auxiliary spring member that is elastically and flexibly deformable substantially in the vertical direction.
Desirably, in this case, the auxiliary spring member includes a plate spring convex-curved forward and substantially C-shaped in a side view, the auxiliary spring member has a top end part connected and fixed to a rear end part of a shank incorporated in the sole part of the footwear, and a second impact absorbing member is incorporated at a connecting part between the shank and the auxiliary spring member. In addition, the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are desirably integrally formed from a single tabular blank.
Furthermore, in the high-heeled footwear according to the present invention, a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict an elastic flexure amount of the heel part is desirably incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and the top face of the heel part.
As a first aspect, during walking, the heel part elastically and flexibly deforms to be displaced in height by about 2 cm to 3 cm and thus absorbs impact imposed on the body, so that the load imposed on joints, muscles, and tendons of the legs can be reduced.
At the time, the heel part has a warp-curved part in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot of the sole part of the footwear, and therefore after the impact absorbing member at the bottom face of the heel part is grounded on the walking surface, as the sole part of the footwear approaches the walking surface, the effective flexibly deformable length of the heel part is reduced with flexure, so that the flexural rigidity (bending rigidity) of the heel part increases, and a soft and comfortable cushioning effect can be obtained.
When the heel part moves apart from the walking surface, the elastic restoring force acts to push the heel side of the shoe sole forward and obliquely upward and can effectively aid the foot in stepping out. At the time, the elastic restoring force of the heel part is great only at the start of stepping out when there is great flexure and is then rapidly reduced as the effective flexibly deformable length increases, which allows a smooth stepping out motion, so that smooth and comfortable walking can be experienced as if wearing sports shoes.
Furthermore, in the heel part, the lower portion of arch of foot is curved upward, and therefore the walking does not become unstable on an irregular surface like a stone pavement or the risk of stepping on pebbles on a road surface downward of arch of foot and falling by slipping can be avoided, while leg muscles can be prevented from stiffening by the cushioning effect of the heel part when remaining still in a standing posture, and therefore fatigue can be alleviated.
In addition, a high, clicking impact noise generated during walking on a hard road surface or stairs of concrete, for example, of conventional high-heeled shoes can be significantly reduced by a synergistic effect obtained by putting together the noise insulation effect of the impact absorbing member mounted at the bottom face of the rear end part of the heel part and the cushioning effect of the heel part.
As a second aspect, a bending moment applied on the connecting part between the front end adjacent portion of the heel part and the shoe sole is reduced by the auxiliary spring member, so that the durability of the connecting part can be increased, while a soft plate spring can be used for the heel part, so that the cushioning effect can be increased.
As a third aspect, the auxiliary spring member includes a plate spring substantially C-shaped in a side view, the twisting deformation of the heel part can be prevented, so that increased stability during walking can be provided.
Furthermore, the top end part of the auxiliary spring member is connected and fixed to the rear end part of the shank incorporated in the sole part of the footwear, and therefore the auxiliary spring member can be stably and securely fixed to the shoe sole. The second impact absorbing member is incorporated at the connecting part between the shank and the auxiliary spring member, and therefore impact transmitted from the heel part to the shoe sole through the auxiliary spring member can be effectively absorbed.
As a fourth aspect, the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are integrally formed from a single tabular blank, so that the parts count can be reduced, the durability can be increased, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. In addition, since the auxiliary spring member and the heel part are continuous to form a smooth curved surface with no connecting parts such as attaching screws therebetween, which can contribute to a sophisticated design.
As a fifth aspect, the sinking amount of the heel side of the footwear during walking and standing can be adjusted individually as desired.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1 as viewed from obliquely behind;

FIG. 3 is a rear side front view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B are a set of cross-sectional views of a portion in the vicinity of a top end part of an auxiliary spring member, where FIG. 6A shows how the auxiliary spring member is assembled to a shoe sole, and FIG. 6B is an exploded view thereof;

FIGS. 7A to 7E show stages of a walking motion in the high heel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a third embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention as viewed from obliquely behind;

FIG. 12 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a side view of an example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed;

FIG. 14 is a side view of another example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed;

FIG. 15 is a perspective view of yet another example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed; and

FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a still further example of conventional high-heeled footwear that has been proposed.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Now, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a side view of a high heel as high-heeled footwear according to a first embodiment of the present invention, FIGS. 2, 3, and 4 are a perspective view thereof as viewed from obliquely behind, a rear side front view thereof, and a bottom view thereof, respectively. FIG. 5 is a longitudinal sectional view of the high heel. Note that a pair of high heels has a symmetric structure between the left foot side and the right foot side, and therefore only the left foot side is shown in the drawings.
As shown in these drawings, the high heel 1 according to the embodiment has an upper 2 in a similar structure to a normal high heel, while a heel part 3 is formed in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in the vertical direction unlike a conventional heel part.
According to the embodiment, the heel part 3 is produced by press-forming a stainless steel plate for spring and has a front end adjacent portion in the longitudinal direction buried and adhesively fixed in an outer sole 4 more on the toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of the high heel 1. Herein, the section of arch of foot refers to a range of the high heel 1 corresponding to the arch of the foot when one wears the high heel.
As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the outer sole 4 includes a top part of outer sole 4A attached to the entire bottom face of the upper 2 and a bottom part of outer sole 4B placed and joined on the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A more on the toe side than the section of arch of foot, and the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 is sandwiched between these parts as if buried therebetween and fixed by an adhesive.
As shown in FIG. 4, according to the embodiment, the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 has its width expanded to form a dovetail or paddle-like shape in a plan view. Although not specifically shown, the portion has its both surfaces provided with a large number of small irregularities formed by embossing, and these irregularities increase the effective adhesion area between the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A and the top face of the bottom part of outer sole 4B, so that the strength of adhesive bonding between the heel part 3 and the outer sole 4 is increased.
Note that the outer sole 4 may be produced by integrally forming the bottom part of outer sole 4B and the top part of outer sole 4A using a material such as synthetic rubber, a recess adapted to the front end adjacent portion 3A of the heel part 3 may be provided inside, and the front end adjacent portion 3A may be fitted into the recess and fixed. Alternatively, the front end adjacent portion 3A may be fixed to the outer sole 4 using a bolt or a rivet.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, a rear portion of the heel part 3 continuous with the front end adjacent portion 3A is exposed rearward from a rear end surface of the bottom part of outer sole 4B, gradually spaced apart from the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A in the rearward direction and has a warp-curved part 3B in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot.
A rear end part 3C of the heel part 3 is curved upward, and a buffer plate 5 as an impact absorbing member grounded during walking and standing is adhesively fixed to the bottom face of a portion between the curved part 3B and the rear end part 3C. The buffer plate 5 is formed using high friction hard rubber in a thin tabular form as an important member adapted to absorb noise and impact generated during walking on a hard road surface or stairs of concrete for example and make the shoe less slippery and provided in a position almost immediately below the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A.
An auxiliary spring member 6 including a plate spring convex-curved forward and substantially C-shaped in a side view is incorporated between the top face adjacent to the rear end part of the heel part 3 and the bottom face adjacent to the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A. The auxiliary spring member 6 is produced from a stainless steel plate for spring similar to the heel part 3 and has an attaching hole 6A formed at a lower end thereof as shown in FIG. 5.
In the meantime, a screw hole 3D is formed in a positon opposed to the attaching hole 6A in a position adjacent to the rear end part 3C of the heel part 3, and an attaching screw 7 is fitted into the screw hole 3D through the attaching hole 6A, so that the auxiliary spring member 6 is fixed to the heel part 3.
Although not specifically shown, the attaching screw 7 has a hexagonal socket formed at a head part thereof for receiving an Allen wrench and a screw part having a length not extending beyond the bottom face of the heel part 3. The lower end of the screw hole 3D is blocked by the buffer plate 5 fixed to the bottom face of the heel part 3 with an adhesive.
FIGS. 6A and 6B are partly sectional views of a portion in the vicinity of a top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6, FIG. 6A shows how the member is assembled to the shoe sole, and FIG. 6B is an exploded view thereof. As shown in FIG. 6B, the top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6 has a pair of attaching holes 6B side by side in the longitudinal direction thereof for passing stepped attaching screws 8 therethrough.
In the meantime, a rectangular hole 4C is formed in a position adjacent to the rear end part of the top part of outer sole 4A, and an impact absorbing block 9 as a second impact absorbing member is provided therein. The impact absorbing block 9 is produced using a rubber material in a flat rectangular solid shape adapted to the inner surface of the rectangular hole 4C and has a thickness slightly larger than the thickness of the top part of outer sole 4A when no external force acts thereon. The impact absorbing block 9 has through holes 9A formed in positions overlapping the pair of attaching holes 6B and having substantially the same diameters as these attaching holes.
As shown in FIG. 6A, the top face of the impact absorbing block 9 is in abutment against the bottom face of a rear end part 11A of a shank 11 buried in a rear part of inner sole 10, and the top end part of the auxiliary spring member 6 and the rear end part 11A are coupled with each other by the pair of stepped attaching screws 8 with the impact absorbing block 9 interposed therebetween.
The rear part of inner sole 10 is produced using a paper material impregnated with resin and fixed to the top face of the top part of outer sole 4A for a range of the inside sole part of the upper 2 corresponding to a part between the arch of the foot and the heel. As shown in FIG. 5, a front part of inner sole 12 made of fabric is fixed to the top face of the top part of outer sole 4A continuously with the front of the rear part of inner sole 10, and an insole 13 is removably overlapped on the rear part of inner sole 10 and the front part of inner sole 12.
As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the stepped attaching screws 8 each have a head part 8A provided with a hexagonal socket for receiving an Allen wrench similarly to the attaching screw 7, a short columnar large-diameter part 8B, and a screw part 8C.
The large diameter part 8B has an outer diameter adapted to the inner diameters of the attaching hole 6B of the auxiliary spring member 6 and the through hole 9A of the impact absorbing block 9 and a length arranged slightly shorter than the total thickness of the thickness of the impact absorbing block 9 when there is no compression force applied thereon and the thickness of the auxiliary spring member 6, and the screw part 8C has a length arranged to be equal to or shorter than the thickness of the rear end part 11A of the shank 11.
As shown in FIG. 6B, the rear end part 11A of the shank 11 has screw holes 11B into which the screw parts 8C of the attaching screws 8 are fitted, and as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6A, while the attaching screws 8 are fitted into these screw holes 11B and fixed until the end faces of the large diameter parts 8C abut against the bottom face of the rear end part 11A, the impact absorbing block 9 is elastically compressed in a thickness-wise direction thereof to have both top and bottom faces thereof closely contacted to the bottom face of the rear end part 11A and the top face of the rear end part of the auxiliary spring member 6, respectively, so that the impact absorbing block can function to absorb impact transmitted from the auxiliary spring member 6 to the shoe sole side.
Now, stages of a walking motion in the high heel 1 having the above-described structure will be described with reference to FIGS. 7A to 7E. FIG. 7A shows the high heel 1 on the side of the stepped out foot at the moment at which the bottom face of the buffer plate 5 attached to the heel part 3 of the high heel 1 is grounded on the walking surface such as a road surface.
At the moment, the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 have not been flexibly deformed yet and are in the process of approaching the walking surface integrally with the upper 2 as the stepping out of the foot proceeds. In the process, the bottom face of the buffer plate 5 strikes the walking surface first, and a striking sound generated at the time is absorbed by the buffer plate 5, so that a noise that would be generated during walking in conventional normal high heels is not generated.
Then, as shown in FIG. 7B, in the stage in which the upper 2 further approaches the walking surface together with the foot, the rear end part of the heel part 3 receives upward reaction force from the walking surface through the buffer plate 5, so that the rear end side of the heel part 3 deforms elastically and flexibly upward relative to the upper 2 as a result, along with which the auxiliary spring member 6 also elastically and flexibly deforms to provide a cushioning effect, while elastic energy corresponding to the amount of flexural deformation is stored each at the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6.
Note that as the flexural deformation increases, the portion behind the front end adjacent portion 3A shown in FIG. 5 abuts against the bottom face of the outer sole 4 sequentially in the rearward direction, and the heel part 3 has a reduced effective flexibly deformable length, so that the flexural rigidity (bending rigidity) of the heel part 3 increases and a soft and comfortable cushioning effect can be obtained.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7C, when a point P1 at the front of shoe sole of the high heel 1 is grounded as the walking motion proceeds, a part of the load imposed on the rear end side of the heel part 3 moves toward the point P1, so that the load imposed on the heel part 3 is reduced. Then, the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 try to regain their original shapes by respective elastic restoring force.
In the meantime, the grounded point between the shoe sole of the high heel 1 and the walking surface further moves continuously from the point P1 to a point P2 on the toe side shown in FIG. 7D as the ankle turns, and during the movement, the elastic restoring force of the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 acts to push the heel side of the shoe sole forward and obliquely upward to release the elastic energies stored therein and aid the walking motion.
After the heel part 3 and the auxiliary spring member 6 are elastically restored to their original positions and the buffer plate 5 is apart from the walking surface, the walking motion is the same as that by a normal high heel, and lastly a point P3 at the tip end of the shoe sole is apart from the walking surface as shown in FIG. 7E.
Note that while in the above-described embodiment, the auxiliary spring member 6 that is substantially C-shaped in a side view is used, the form of the auxiliary spring member is not limited to this, and the auxiliary spring member may be a compression coil spring or a volute spring. However, in order to stabilize the movement of the heel part, the spring member is desirably formed using a spring in a hardly deformable form in the lateral direction such as a plate spring curved in a V-shape or an S-shape in a side view.
Furthermore, in a high heel 1′ shown in FIG. 8 as high-heeled footwear according to a second embodiment of the present invention, a wedge-shaped member 14 adapted to restrict the elastic flexure amount of the heel part 3 is incorporated between the bottom face of the top part of outer sole 4A and the top face of the heel part 3, and in FIG. 8 the portions designated by the same reference characters as those in FIG. 1 have the same structures as those of the high heel 1.
According to the embodiment, the wedge-shaped member 14 has one side surface formed of hard rubber and fixed to the side of the outer sole 4 and the other side surface opposed to the top face of the heel part 3 with a small gap therebetween in a no-load state.
When a load is imposed on the heel side of the high heel 1′ and the heel part 3 elastically and flexibly deforms for a prescribed amount, the top face of the heel part 3 abuts against the wedge-shaped member 14. As a result, the heel part 3 has a substantial flexibly deformable length reduced, and therefore the heel part 3 has an increased apparent spring constant in the elastic and flexural deformation after the abutment and is less easily flexed, so that downward displacement of the heel side can be restrained. The sinking amount of the heel side in wearing the high heel 1′ can be adjusted individually as desired by changing the gap or selecting rubber hardness for the wedge-shaped member 14.
A high heel 1 a shown in FIG. 9 as high-heeled footwear according to a third embodiment of the present invention has a heel part 3 a and an auxiliary spring member 6 a integrally formed from a single tabular blank of stainless steel, and the auxiliary spring member 6 a is formed by cutting a center part of the rear half portion of the heel part 3 a into a substantial C-shape in a side view.
The other portions of the high heel 1 a according to the embodiment are the same as those of the high heel 1 according to the foregoing embodiments, and in FIG. 9 the portions designated by the same reference characters as those in FIG. 1 have the same structures as those of the high heel 1. In the high heel 1 a shown in FIG. 9, the auxiliary spring member 6 a and the heel part 3 a can be produced integrally from the same blank, so that the parts count can be reduced, the durability can be increased, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced. Since the heel part 3 a and the auxiliary spring member 6 a are continuous to form a smooth curved surface, which is advantageous in terms of design features.
A high heel 1 b shown in FIG. 10 as high-heeled footwear according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention has an auxiliary spring member 6 b formed by cutting both outer sides of the rear half portion of the heel part 3 b into strip shapes. A high heel 1 c as shown in FIG. 11 as high-heeled footwear according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention has an auxiliary spring member 6 c formed by cutting one side of the rear half portion of the heel part 3 c into a strip shape.
Furthermore, a high heel 1 d shown in FIG. 12 as high-heeled footwear according to a sixth embodiment of the present invention is formed by removing the auxiliary spring member 6 from the high heel 1 described above in conjunction with FIGS. 1 to 5. Note that the high heel 1 d in FIG. 12 must receive a load acting on the heel side of the high heel 1 d only by a heel part 3 d, and therefore the heel part 3 d has a greater flexural rigidity than those according to the above embodiments.
According to the embodiments described above, stainless steel for spring (SUS 304 for example) is used as the material of the heel part or the auxiliary spring member, while the material is not limited to stainless steel, and a greatly elastically deformable metal material such as spring steel provided with antirust treatment for example by chromium plating may be used.
These materials may be a non-metal material such as glass fiber reinforced plastic (GFRP) and carbon fiber reinforced plastic (CFRP) or a multi-layer composite material including a metal and resin in order to reduce the weight or vibrations or noises generated during waking.
The heel part and the auxiliary spring member may be obtained by placing a plurality of thin plates upon one another in a plate spring shape like a plate spring structure for use in holding the axle of an automobile, so that a vibration damping effect may be provided utilizing sliding frictional resistance between adjacent plates.
The high-heeled footwear according to the present invention is applicable to a wide range of high-heeled footwear in general including high-heeled shoes, high-heeled sandals, and high-heeled boots for women and those for men.

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST

1, 1′, 1 a, 1 b, 1 c, 1 d High heel
2 Upper
3, 3 a, 3 b, 3 c, 3 d Heel part
3A Front end adjacent portion
3B Curved part
3C Rear end part
3D Screw hole
4 Outer sole
4A Top part of outer sole
4B Bottom part of outer sole
4C Rectangular hole
5 Buffer plate (impact absorbing member)
6, 6 a, 6 b, 6 c Auxiliary spring member
6A, 6B Attaching hole
7 Attaching screw
8 Stepped attaching screw
8A Head part
8B Large-diameter part
8C Screw part
9 Impact absorbing block (second impact absorbing member)
9A Through hole
10 Rear part of inner sole
11 Shank
11A Rear end part
11B Screw hole
12 Front part of inner sole
13 Insole
14 Wedge shaped member

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. High-heeled footwear comprising a heel part, wherein

the heel part is constituted in a plate spring shape that is elastically and flexibly deformable in a vertical direction, and

the heel part includes a front end adjacent portion in a longitudinal direction thereof buried and fixed in an outer sole of the footwear more on a toe side than a section of arch of foot of a sole part of the footwear, a portion continuous with and behind the fixed portion being exposed from the outer sole and gradually spaced apart from a bottom face of the outer sole in a rearward direction and having a warp-curved part in an upward arch shape in a side view in a lower region of the section of arch of foot, and an impact absorbing member grounded during walking or standing being attached to a bottom face of the heel part in a position almost immediately below a rear end part of the outer sole.

2. The high-heeled footwear of claim 1, further comprising an auxiliary spring member, wherein the auxiliary spring member connects a top face adjacent to a rear end part of the heel part and a bottom face adjacent to the rear end part of the outer sole, and the auxiliary spring member is elastically and flexibly deformable substantially in the vertical direction.

3. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein the auxiliary spring member is constituted by a plate spring convex-curved forward and substantially C-shaped in a side view, the auxiliary spring member has a top end part connected and fixed to a rear end part of a shank incorporated in the sole part of the footwear, and a second impact absorbing member is incorporated at a connecting part between the shank and the auxiliary spring member.

4. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are integrally formed from a single tabular blank.

5. The high-heeled footwear of claim 1, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

6. The high-heeled footwear of claim 3, wherein the heel part and the auxiliary spring member are integrally formed from a single tabular blank.

7. The high-heeled footwear of claim 2, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

8. The high-heeled footwear of claim 3, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

9. The high-heeled footwear of claim 4, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the bottom face of the outer sole of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.

10. The high-heeled footwear of claim 6, wherein a wedge-shaped member adapted to restrict a flexure amount of the heel part is incorporated between the outer sole of the bottom face of the footwear and a top face of the heel part.