Customized footwear and process for manufacturing such footwear

Abstract

An article of footwear for distributing pressure evenly on various regions of the foot comprising an upper and at least one moldable foam piece attached to an inner surface of the upper is provided, together with an article of footwear manufactured by a process comprising attaching at least one moldable foam piece to the inner surface of the upper of the footwear and stretching the upper over a footwear last comprising at least one cavity cut into the surface of the last that accommodates the moldable foam piece.

1 . An article of footwear comprising: 
 an upper;    an insole; and    at least one moldable foam piece attached to an inner surface of either the upper or the insole,    wherein when a user's foot is inserted in the footwear, the moldable foam piece is positioned in a region where the foot exerts high pressure against an inner surface of the footwear.    
     
     
         2 . An article of footwear comprising: 
 an upper;    an insole; and    at least one moldable foam piece attached to an inner surface of either the upper or the insole,    wherein the moldable foam piece is located in a region selected from the group consisting of: top region of the toes, instep of the foot, upper region of the ankle, back and lower region of the heel, and under the ball of the foot.    
     
     
         3 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the upper is constructed of an inelastic material selected from the group consisting of: leather, synthetic leather, woven fabrics, and the like.  
     
     
         4 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece has a thickness between 6 and 10 mm.  
     
     
         5 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece has a density thickness between 20 and 40 on the Shore C scale.  
     
     
         6 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece comprises a generally tapered outer edge in a manner such that when the moldable foam piece is attached to the inner surface of the upper or the insole, an outer edge of the moldable foam piece forms an obtuse angle with respect to the inner surface of the upper or the insole.  
     
     
         7 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece is symmetrical with respect to the perimeter of the moldable foam piece.  
     
     
         8 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece is asymmetrical with respect to the perimeter of the moldable foam piece.  
     
     
         9 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the moldable foam piece is a closed-cell expanded foam selected from the group consisting of: ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), polyurethane, or Pebax® foam.  
     
     
         10 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the footwear is provided with at least two pull tabs attached to an Achilles notch area of the footwear.  
     
     
         11 . A method of manufacturing an article of footwear comprising: 
 attaching at least one moldable foam piece to an inner surface of an upper of the footwear;    stretching the upper over a footwear last comprising at least one cavity cut into the surface of the last that accommodates the moldable foam piece; and    skiving the moldable foam piece around the perimeter of the at least one cavity, wherein the moldable foam piece remains uncompressed when the upper of the footwear is stretched over the last.    
     
     
         12 . An article of footwear manufactured by the method of  claim 11 .  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 11  wherein the at least one cavity is cut into a region of the footwear last selected from the group consisting of: an upper toe region, an instep region, an lower ankle region, a back and lower region of the heel, and combinations thereof.  
     
     
         14 . An article of footwear manufactured by the method of  claim 13 .  
     
     
         15 . A method of manufacturing an article of footwear comprising: 
 attaching at least one moldable foam piece to an inner surface of an insole of the footwear;    stretching the insole over a footwear last comprising at least one cavity cut into the surface of the last that accommodates the moldable foam piece; and    skiving the moldable foam piece around the perimeter of the at least one cavity, wherein the moldable foam piece remains uncompressed when the insole of the footwear is stretched over the last.    
     
     
         16 . An article of footwear manufactured by the method of  claim 15 .  
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the at least one cavity is cut into of the footwear last about a region under the ball of the foot.  
     
     
         18 . An article of footwear manufactured by the method of  claim 17.