Sandal toe post and strap system

Abstract

One embodiment of the present invention relates to an open toe footwear system including a base member, a toe post, a strap member, and two lateral foot posts. The strap member is coupled to both the toe post and the two lateral foot posts. The toe post and two lateral foot posts are coupled to the base member. The toe post includes a structural toe portion and a padded toe portion. The structural toe portion is composed of a material with a particular hardness and structural rigidity. The padded toe portion is composed of a soft material configured to minimize chaffing and bruising of a user's skin. The structural toe portion and padded toe portion are intercoupled to form a conventionally shaped cylindrical toe post. The intercoupling between the structural toe portion and the padded toe portion may include a bonding member configured to increase adhesion and prevent stretching and/or translation.

1 . An open-toe footwear system comprising:
 a base member;   a toe post coupled to the base member, wherein the toe post includes a structural toe portion and a padded toe portion;   two lateral foot posts coupled to the base member; and   a strap member intercoupled between the toe post and the two lateral foot posts, wherein the strap member includes a top surface and a bottom surface, and wherein the bottom surface is adjacent to the toe post, and wherein the strap member includes a structural strap portion and a padded strap portion.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded toe portion is superficially wrapped around the structural toe portion substantially covering the proximal side of the structural toe portion and creating a gap on the distal side of the structural toe portion. 
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded toe portion is superficially wrapped around the structural toe portion substantially encircling the structural toe portion. 
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded toe portion is oriented on the toe post to correspond to a region with the highest potential to cause user chaffing. 
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded toe portion includes a wider region adjacent to the strap member and a narrower region adjacent to the base. 
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the structural toe portion is composed of a material with a durometer within the range of 60-70 ESCA. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded toe portion is composed of a material with a durometer within the range of 20-40 ESCA. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the toe post further includes a bonding member disposed internally within the toe post between the structural toe portion and the padded toe portion. 
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein toe post further includes a mesh bonding member disposed between and coupled with the padded portion and the structural portion. 
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein toe post further includes a thread bonding member oriented through the center of the toe post and coupled to both the structural portion and the padded portion. 
     
     
         11 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded strap portion extends from the toe post across the bottom surface and inside edge surface of the structural strap portion. 
     
     
         12 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded strap portion is separated from the padded toe portion. 
     
     
         13 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein padded strap portion is disposed on both the bottom and proximal side of the strap member  420 . 
     
     
         14 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded strap portion extends between the toe post and the top surface of the strap member. 
     
     
         15 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded strap portion is oriented on the strap member to correspond to a region with the highest potential to cause user chaffing. 
     
     
         16 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the structural strap portion is composed of a material with a durometer within the range of 60-70 ESCA. 
     
     
         17 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the padded strap portion is composed of a material with a durometer within the range of 20-40 ESCA. 
     
     
         18 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein padded strap portion extends unilaterally further toward one of the lateral foot posts on the strap member. 
     
     
         19 . An open-toe footwear system comprising:
 a base member;   a toe post coupled to the base member, wherein the toe post includes a structural toe portion and a padded toe portion;   two lateral foot posts coupled to the base member; and   a strap member intercoupled between the toe post and the two lateral foot posts, wherein the strap member includes a top surface and a bottom surface, and wherein the bottom surface is adjacent to the toe post, and wherein the strap member includes a structural strap portion and a padded strap portion, and wherein the padded strap portion extends between the toe post and the top surface.   
     
     
         20 . An open-toe footwear system comprising:
 a base member;   a toe post coupled to the base member, wherein the toe post includes a structural toe portion and a padded toe portion, and wherein the padded toe portion is superficially wrapped around the structural toe portion substantially covering the proximal side of the structural toe portion and creating a gap on the distal side of the structural toe portion;   two lateral foot posts coupled to the base member; and   a strap member intercoupled between the toe post and the two lateral foot posts, wherein the strap member includes a top surface and a bottom surface, and wherein the bottom surface is adjacent to the toe post, and wherein the strap member includes a structural strap portion and a padded strap portion.