FR2834183A1 - FOREWORD PROTECTION DISPSOITIVE, ESPECIALLY SUITABLE FOR WEARING CLASSIC DANCE SHOES - Google Patents

Abstract

The subject of the invention is a device for protecting the front of the feet, particularly suitable for wearing ballet slippers or figure skating shoes, and also covers slippers or shoes equipped with such devices.

Description

constitutes a slipper intended to be inserted in an external part for

form a shoe.

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  The invention relates to a forefoot protection device, particularly suitable for wearing ballet shoes or figure skating shoes, and also covers slippers

  or shoes fitted with such devices.

  We know that pointy exercises cause classical dancers, especially in the forefoot, to have certain pains and even injuries, such as corns, blisters, calluses, calluses,

  partridge, ingrown toenails, or hematomas.

  These drawbacks are considered inevitable and the dancers mitigate them by placing cotton or wool protections on the front of the slipper, or even dressings they apply.

  directly on the injured part, or in anticipation of a potential injury.

  These protections, however, have the disadvantage of being quite ineffective, because they can move and the dressings can easily be torn off during the movements of the dancer's foot, especially when it is performed on pointe, or those of a skater when

performs jumps.

  Indeed, if the dancer has, for example cotton or foam, at the bottom of the point, before putting her foot in the bootie, so as to cover the sensitive areas of the forefoot, these protective cushions can move as soon as the dancer starts dancing and quickly settle to the bottom of the point. This limits, if not prevents, the intimate contact of the foot with the ground and this results in a decrease in tactile perception of the foot with the risk of disturbing the gestures of the

  dancer when she evolves on pointe.

  In addition, such protections do not completely cover the most sensitive areas of the foot, and in particular the area

  metatarsophalangeal, especially when the foot is in motion.

  The foot therefore cannot really adapt to the shape of the toe and there appear to be games which make the foot mobile in the boot and

  can cause friction when the dancer is moving.

  In addition, materials such as cotton, wool or foam in which the protections are made, wear and degrade

  quickly, and are often irritating to the skin.

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  Consequently, the protections used until now only allow to reduce the pain felt on Instant, but not to act preventively, nor to avoid the medical problems related to the practice of the

  classical dance mentioned above.

  The invention provides, on the contrary, a solution, in particular a preventive solution, to all these problems thanks to a new particularly effective protection device which has, moreover, the advantage of being simple,

durable and easy to use.

  In accordance with the invention, such a protection device comprises, for each foot, an end piece consisting of a one-piece hollowed piece made of an elastically deformable solid material and limited by a continuous wall having a concave internal face with a profile corresponding to that of the front of the foot, and a convex external face with a profile corresponding to that of the interior of the shoe at the toe thereof, said internal face perfectly matching the front of the foot after donning on it the nozzle and said external face fitting perfectly into the part before the cha ussure after threading in

this of the foot provided with the end piece.

  Preferably, the concave internal face and the convex external face each have an asymmetrical profile adapted to the side of the foot, respectively.

  left or right, on which the tip is threaded.

  Particularly advantageously, in service, the concave internal face of the toe completely covers the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot and adapts perfectly to the contour thereof.

  elastic deformation of the material constituting the tip.

  The elastically deformable material constituting the tip is a flexible and incompressible material, which means that it cannot settle and can simply deform slightly while retaining its

  volume, the tip always returning to its original shape after use.

  Thanks to the flexibility of the material used, the mouthpiece according to the invention can adapt to various shapes and sizes of feet. Therefore, one can consider, for economy, to realize a small number of models or even a single model applicable equally to the left and right feet. However, it is preferable to make models left and right adapted, for example, to wide or narrow feet and one

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  can even consider, for an optimal result, to realize by molding

tailor-made tips.

  The elastic material constituting the end piece according to the invention will preferably be chemically neutral, hypoallergenic and block compatible. As usable material, mention may be made of silicone elastomers, and more particularly silicone elastomers of medical type.

or food.

  These silicone elastomers, in particular of medical type, have the advantage of being hypoallergenic, biocompatible, sterilizable and

chemically neutral.

  By biocompatible material is meant, within the meaning of the invention, a

  material tolerated by org an is me.

  The use of silicone elastomers for the production of a nozzle according to the invention makes it possible to avoid any irritation of the skin, thus insi q ue any risk of allergy or skin disease, these problems appearing so even more marked when, for example, the dancers do not wear stockings or socks, as is often the case for professional dancers. Moreover, such a tip made of silicone elastomer, or of any other synthetic material which can be used according to the invention, can be

  easily washed after each use.

  Washing can be done by hand or in a washing machine, preferably at a temperature less than or equal to 60 C, and better at 40 C. In case of machine washing of the nozzle, and in particular with linen , it is however preferable to use a protective bag suitable for machine washing in order to avoid any friction with the linen, which could

  possibly damage the tip.

  The use of such a nozzle is therefore hygienic and the rest during

  successive uses. Such a tip is therefore easily reusable.

  By hygienic is meant, within the meaning of the invention, the suppression of the undesirable effects produced by perspiration, such as the proliferation

bacteria and fungal infections.

  In addition, silicone elastomers are very

  resistant, which also exhibit very good resistance over time.

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  Generally, the silicone tips according to the invention have a hardness from 4 to 15 Shore, preferably from 4 to 10 Shore, and better still from 4 to 6 Shore. The invention also covers other characteristics

  advantageous which are the subject of the subclaims and it will be better

  understood by the following description of a particular embodiment,

  given by way of example and shown in the accompanying drawings.

  Figure 1 shows in perspective, a tip according to the invention, seen

next to.

  Figure 2 is a rear view, in perspective of a nozzle

for right foot.

  FIG. 3 and FIG. 4 show, respectively in top view and in side view, a foot provided with an end piece according to the invention and

put on a ballet shoe.

  In Figures 1 and 2 there is shown, in perspective, a tip 1 according to the invention consisting of a single piece made by molding a synthetic material such as a silicone elastomer and forming a hollow body 1 limited by a thin wall 10 having a peripheral edge 13 and comprising a lower partition 2 and an upper partition 3 extending respectively below and above the foot and connected by a side wall 4. This side wall 4 has a contour in the portion of an ellipse surrounding the front of the foot and comprises an internal lateral part 41 and an external lateral part 42 which go up over the entire length of the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot and are connected to a part

  central 43 forming the tip of the nozzle.

  Preferably, the end piece 1 has an asymmetrical profile adapted to the side of the foot, respectively left or right, on which it is threaded, the external lateral part 42 being slightly longer than the internal lateral part 41, so as to completely cover the metatarso part

phalangeal of the foot.

  Advantageously, the lower partition 2 is in the shape of a half-ellipse and is provided with a notch 20 so as to pass under the two sides of the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot, tapering to the edge of the toe, and the upper partition 3 is in the form of a half

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  ellipse and is provided with a notch 30 so as not to exceed the outside of the

  liner after threading the foot capped therein 1.

  In Figures 3 and 4, there is shown, respectively in horizontal section and in vertical section, a dance shoe 5 in which is threaded the foot 6 shown in phantom and whose tip is threaded

  itself in a tip 1 according to the invention.

  It can be seen in these figures that the thickness of the side wall 4 which surrounds the foot decreases progressively and continuously from the front part 43 and to the edge 13 of the end piece, along the two side parts, respectively interior 41 and exterior 42. In addition, the wall 10 of the end piece 1 is limited by a concave internal face 11 which corresponds substantially to the profile of the front 61 of the foot 6 and an external face 12 which corresponds to the internal profile of the front part or upper 51 of the boot, at the front thereof. By upper means, within the meaning of the invention, the front part of

  the upper of the bootie, from the instep to the toe.

  In FIGS. 3 and 4, the upper 51 of the boot is hatched and

  the wall 10 of the endpiece is dotted.

  As is known, a ballet shoe must be fairly light, but to maintain the foot perfectly, the upper 51 must be relatively rigid and hard, as well as the sole 52, these parts having a

  significant thickness, as shown in Figures 3 and 4.

  The entire bootie is covered with a fabric, usually satin or

cotton.

  The external face 12 of the end piece 1 is therefore shaped so as to

  fit perfectly inside the rigid upper 51.

  Similarly, the internal face 11 of the end piece 1 has a profile adapted to the contour of the foot. This contour may vary slightly depending on the person, but the elasticity of the wall 10 of the end piece 1 allows it to fit

  perfectly the shape of the front 61 of the foot 6.

  As indicated, the thickness of the wall 10 can vary between the front part 43 which provides shock absorption and the rear part which must remain deformable. For example, the thickness of the wall 10 is of the order of 1 to 3 mm along the peripheral edge 13 and of the order of 4 to 5 mm on the

front part 43 of the end piece 1.

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  Due to this small thickness and the elasticity of the material, the peripheral edge 13 of the end piece is extensible, which facilitates threading of the foot and the perfect application, on its front 61, of the internal face 11 of the

wall 10.

  The foot 6 is therefore wrapped, over its entire metatarsophalangeal part 61, with a sort of second skin which forms a cushion

shock absorber of variable thickness.

  Indeed, thanks to the use of a material such as a silicone elastomer, which remains firm without being hard and can deform elastically at constant volume, the tip 1, clamped between the upper 51 of the liner 5 and the front of the foot can follow, like a skin, the movements of the metatarsophalangeal bone part, while remaining perfectly

fitted into the upper 51.

  The contact with the silicone elastomer wall is pleasant and makes the presence of the end piece practically imperceptible, which gives the

  dancer a feeling of balance necessary during movements.

  On the other hand, without excessively increasing the length of the foot capped with the end piece 1, the progressive increase in the thickness of the end piece on its front part 43 exerts a shock-absorbing and pressure-reducing effect. felt by the foot, in particular when the latter is in contact with the front of the foot as is the case in classical dance, when the dancers move on the point or in skating

  artistic, when skaters perform jumps.

  We know, in fact, that in classical dance, especially during movements on points and whatever the dance step, the dancer's weight rests mainly on two or three toes, that is to say

a few square centimeters.

  Thanks to the holding and damping effect thus obtained, the dancer is less sensitive to shock waves, the front of her foot is less deformed, which allows her to dance much longer without

  feel pain during rehearsals and shows.

  As indicated, the underside 2 of the end piece 1 is advantageously provided with a notch 20 of asymmetrical shape, in order to take account of the relative positions of the support parts, respectively

internal and external of the foot.

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  For the same reason, the upper face 3 of the tip is also provided with a notch 30 which follows the profile of the toes and can, moreover, be enlarged so as to make the tip invisible when it is fitted.

in the upper 51 of the liner 5.

  Because the toe 1 follows the movements of the foot while remaining perfectly tight in the upper 51, the games disappear, as well as the

  friction which previously caused irritation of the foot.

  In addition, it is known that ballet shoes are generally very fragile articles, in particular in their front part, in particular at the level of the vamp, which must be rigid and hard enough to keep the foot on the points. Thanks to its damping effect, the tip according to the invention makes it possible in particular to reinforce the rigidity of the vamp while avoiding

  risks of softening which render the tip unusable.

  The use of the toe according to the invention will therefore increase the lifespan of the slippers which, usually, is only about a week for professional dancers and

  six months for amateur dancers.

  Of course, the invention is not limited to the details of the embodiment which has just been described by way of simple example and covers the

  variants or other applications remaining within the scope of the claims.

  In particular, if the use of silicone elastomer makes it possible to obtain excellent results, other materials could have the same qualities of firmness and flexibility allowing the tip to remain

perfectly applied to the foot.

  On the other hand, the tips according to the invention are particularly suitable for dance shoes but can also find an application in all activities where the tip of the foot is particularly stressed, for example for figure skating which also requires movements on points and jumps. In this case, obviously, the shape of the nozzle and the thickness of the wall would be adapted to the shape of the

  skating shoe and the fact that it is rigid.

  The reference signs inserted after the technical characteristics

  mentioned in the claims, have the sole purpose of facilitating the

  understanding of them and in no way limit their scope.

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Claims (15)

  1. Device for protecting the forefoot in a shoe (5), characterized in that it comprises, for each foot (6), a toe (1) consisting of a one-piece hollow part (1) produced made of an elastically deformable solid material and limited by a continuous wall (10) having a concave internal face (11) with a profile corresponding to that of the forefoot, and a convex external face (12) with a profile corresponding to that from the inside of the shoe (5) to the toe thereof, said internal face (11) perfectly matching the front (61) of the foot (6) after the toe (1) has been threaded thereon and said external face (12) fitting perfectly into the front part (51) of the shoe (5) after threading therein the foot (6) provided with the end piece (1).   2. Protective device according to claim 1, characterized in that the concave internal face (11) and the convex external face (12) each have an asymmetrical profile adapted to the side of the foot, respectively   left or right, on which the tip is threaded.   3. Protective device according to claim 2, characterized in that, in service, the concave internal face (11) completely covers the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot and adapts perfectly to the contour thereof by elastic deformation of the constituent material the end piece (1).   4. Protection device according to one of claims   above, characterized in that the wall (10) of the end piece (1) has a thickness which varies progressively and continuously between an outer edge (13) sufficiently thin to allow the end piece to be threaded onto the foot by elastic deformation, and a front part (43) thick enough to protect the toe without significant increase in length of it.   5. Protection device according to one of claims   previous, characterized in that the front part (43) of the wall (10) 9 2834183   of the mouthpiece (1) is extended, on each side of the foot, by two inner (41) and outer (42) lateral parts which go up over the entire length   of the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot.   6. Protective device according to claim 5, characterized in that the wall (10) of the end piece (1) comprises a lower partition (2) in the form of a half-ellipse provided with a notch (20) so to pass under the two sides of the metatarsophalangeal part of the foot, in   tapering to the edge of the tip.   7. Protective device according to claim 5, characterized by the fact that the wall of the end piece comprises a partition (3) upper in the form of a half-ellipse provided with a notch (30) so as not to exceed the of the shoe after putting it on the foot fitted with the end piece (1).   8. Protection device according to claim 4, characterized in that the front part (43) of the wall (10) of the end piece (1) has a thickness of the order of 4 to 5 mm.   9. Protective device according to claim 4, characterized in that the peripheral edge (13) of the wall (10) of the end piece (1) has   a thickness of the order of 1 to 3 mm.   10. Protection device according to one of claims   above, characterized in that the material constituting the wall (10) of   the tip (1) is chemically neutral, hypoallergenic and block compatible.   11. Protection device according to one of claims   previous, characterized in that the end piece (1) is washable and hygienic. 12. Protective device according to claim 10 or 1 1, characterized in that the material constituting the wall (10) of the tip (1) is a silicone elastomer. 1 0 2834183   13. Use of a protective device according to one of the   claims 1 to 12 for protecting the forefoot in booties   dense. 14. Use of a protective device according to one of the   Claims 1 to 12 for extending the life of the slippers.   15. Use of a Solon protection device one of the   Claims 1 to 12 for protecting the forefoot in protective shoes