US3066678A - Orthopedic sandal - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 1962 G. c. RiECKEN ORTHOPEDIC SANDAL 2 Sheets-Sheet .1

Filed Sept. 8, 1960 INV E NTOR 650ml: (he: F/fCkf/V.

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ATTORNEY Dec. 4, 1962 G. c. RIECKEN 3,066,678

ORTHOPEDIC SANDAL Filed Sept. 8, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,666, d78 GRTHGPEDlC SANDAL George Carl Rieelren, 140% Washington Ave, Evansville 14, End. Filed Sept. 8, 1969, Ser. No. 54,626 Glairns. (Cl. l2$6ll7) This invention relates in general to new and useful improvements in orthopedic footwear, and more specifically relates to a novel orthopedic sandal for the treatment of hallux valgus.

Hallux valgus is a deformity of the foot, in which the head of the first metatarsal bone is adducted and separated from its fellows, while the great toe is turned outward or abuductcd to a greater or lesser degree. Thus, although the area of the toes is contracted, the fore-foot is actually broadened. A painful bunion frequently, but not necessarily, accompanies hallux valgus. l-lallux valgus is most frequently caused by improper footwear, al though it may be a result of an injury or a disease such as gout or rheumatoid arthritis.

Mild cases of hallux valgus are customarily treated by the use of a rubber device inserted between the great toe and the second toe. On the other hand, more serious cases are treated through the use of a device which is clamped about the arch and the great toe and employs a spring to urge the great toe away from the second toe. Neither of these devices is suitable to a person wearing a shoe and as a result is normally only worn at night time, thereby greatly restricting the period of treatment.

In View of the foregoing, it is the primary object of this invention to provide a simple orthopedic sandal which may be worn for walking purposes without unnecessary discomfort and at the same time serving to gradually bring the first metatarsal bone back into the normal alignment with the first proximal phalanx bone.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel orthopedic sandal which incorporates a strap for holding the sole of the sandal in position with respect to the foot through the use of a strap for engagement with the foot in the vicinity of the arch and heel, and a toe strap carried by the sole and adjustable to gradually urge the great toe back into position.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sole and strap relationship in an orthopedic sandal, the sole being formed of at least three layers including an outsole, an insole and a midsole, the midsole being provided with suitable strap receiving channels whereby adjustment of the strap may be accomplished by sliding the strap through the sole.

A further object of the invention is to provide a very simple orthopedic sandal for the treatment of hallux valgus, the sandal being formed primarily of a sole, orthopedic heel and a securing strap, said strap being adjustable relative to the sole and in addition to serving the function of securing the sandal to the foot, including a forward toe loop for receiving the great toe and urging the bones of the great toe back into alignment with the normal line which passes through the center of the heel from the center of the great toe, the toe loop being adjustable to provide the proper corrective pressure to naturally ease the toe into the normal alignment.

Hallux valgus is frequently produced by a weak foot and flatfoot as a result of excessive weight-bearing upon the inner side of the foot, thus pushing the great toe out wardly. To this end, it is also an object of the invention to provide a novel orthopedic sandal for the treatment of hallux valgus which, in addition to providing means for urging the bones of the great toe back into the normal alignment, includes an arch support incorporated in the sole of the sandal to provide the necessary arch support.

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With the above, and other objects in view that will hereinafter appear, the nature of the invention will be more clearly understood by reference to the following detailed description, the appended claims .and the several views illustrated in the accompanying drawings:

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is an elevation perspective view of a right orthopedic sandal formed in accordance with the invention.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of the insole and shows the arrangement of strap receiving openings formed therein.

FIGURE 2A is a perspective view of tie arch support insert for the sandal sole.

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view of the midsole and shows the arrangement of strap channels formed therein.

FIGURE 4 is a perspective view of the outsole.

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of the orthopedic heel removed from the sole of the sandal.

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view taken along the line 6-6 of FIGURE 1 and shows the relationship of the strap with respect to the sole which permits the adjustment of the strap.

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view on a reduced scale showing the relationship of the sandal and a foot including the position of the great toe prior to the adjustment of the strap, the strap being only partially shown and the foot being shown in dotted lines for the purposes of clarity.

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view on a reduced scale and is similar to FIGURE 7, but shows the strap in an adjusted large toe strai htening position.

Reference is now made to the drawings in detail wherein the details of a right orthopedic sandal formed in accordance with the invention, are illustrated. The overall sandal is generally referred to by the numeral 9 and is best illustrated in FIGURE 1. The sandal 9 is primarily formed of a sole, generally referred to by the numeral It an orthopedic heel 11, and a single strap 12.

Reference is now made to FIGURES 1, 2, 3 and 4 wherein the details of the sole 1%} are clearly illustrated. The sole lltl is formed of a bottom sole or outsole 13, a midsole l4 and an insole 15, all of which are of the same size and have the same outline. These components of the sole it) are secured together in the customary manner, the details of which are not shown. As is best shown in FIGURE 4, the outsole 13 is of a fiat construction and is devoid of openings.

The insole 35, as is best shown in FIGURE 2, is provided with a plurality of slots or openings in the form of cut outs. The slots include a forward most slot '16, a pair of slots l7, 18 disposed adjacent the left edge of the insole 15, a pair of slots 19, 29 disposed adjacent the right edge of the insole l5 and diagonally aligned with the slots l7, 18, respectively, and a pair of remotely disposed slots 21, 22 in the heel area of the insole 15.

The details of the midsole 14 are shown in FIGURE 3, the midsole having a plurality of cut outs formed therein. The cutous include a forward most slot 23 which is aligned with the slot 16 of the insole 15 in underlying relation. A first elongated cutout or channel 24 extends transversely and diagonally of the midsole from a position underlying the slot 17 to a position underlying the slot 1?. A second channel 25 also extends diagonally and transversely of the midsole 14, the channel 25 extending from a position underlying the slot 18 to a position underlying the slot it). The cutouts in the midsole 14 also include a pair of remote notches 25, 27 opening through opposite edges of the midsole 14 in the heel area thereof. The notches 26, 27 being aligned in underlying relation with the slots 21, 22, respectively.

One end of the single strap 12 is suitably anchored between the outsole l3 and the midsole 14 adjacent the slot 23 in a manner not shown. The strap 1.2 extends up through the aligned slots 16 and 23 and down through the slot 17 into the channel 24 to form a loop 23 for receiving the great toe. The strap 12 then passes beneath the insole 15 within the channel 24 and extends up through the slot 19. The strap 1.2 next pacses across the insole 1S and down through the slot fit; to define a loop 29 for engaging and confining the arch portion of the foot.

The strap 12 again passes beneath the insole 15, this time passing through the channel 25. The strap is now shaped to define an ankle encircling loop 30 and termimates in a perforated terminal portion 31. A small looped strap 32 encircles the forward part of the loop 35 and is slidable thereon for adjustment. The strap 32 carries a buckle 33 which is engageable with the perforated terminal portion 31 to complete the loop A short strap 34 is secured to the outsoie 1.3 in a manner not shown and extends up through the notcn 26 and the slot 21. The upper end of the strap is shaped to define an eye 35. A similar short strap 36 is secured to the outsole 13 and extends up through the notch 27 and the slot 22. Like the strap 34, the upper end of the strap 36 is shaped to define an eye 37. The eyes 35 and 37 receive side portions of the loop 3i to limit upward movement of the loop 3t) and to retain the loop in engagement with the heel of the wearers foot.

The general wedge shape of a triangular arch support 38 is clearly shown in FIGURE 2A. As is best shown in FIGURE 1, the arch support 38 is inserted between the midsole 14 and the insole 15 to upwardly shape the insole intermediate the slots 18 and 21.

In FTGURE 5 the general details of the shape of the orthopedic heel 11 are shown. The heel 11 may be secured to the sole 1% in any customary manner.

In the use of the orthopedic sandal 9, the foot F is placed on the sole it) with the forward part of the strap 12 extending up between the big toe and the second toe, as is shown in FIGURE 7, and with the great toe received in the loop 23, as is best shown in FIGURE 8. The loop 28 is adjusted to gently urge the great toe back into its normal alignment without exerting a pain causing pressure on the great toe. As the treatment progresses and the great toe is gradually moved back towards the normal alignment, the strap 12 is adjusted to decrease the size of the loop 28 and increase the pressure exerted on the great toe until the great toe is back into the normal alignment.

Due to the frictional engagement of the strap 12 with the sole 10, the size of the loop 23 may be varied and maintained while the remainder of the strap may be tensioned. Thus, the strap 12 may be tensioned as is necessary to maintain the sandal 9 on the foot F in the proper position while the necessary pressure is being applied to the great toe.

From the foregoing, it will be seen that novel and advantageous provision has been made for carrying out the desired end. However, attention is directed to the fact that variations may be made in the example foot- 4 Wear disclosed herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

1 claim:

1. An article of footwear particularly adapted to correct hallux valgus, said footwear being in the form of an orthopedic sandal comprising a sole, 2. heel on the sandal sole, first means carried by said sole for firmly anchoring the sole to a wearers foot, and second means carried by said sole for engaging the great toe of the vvcarefs foot and applying an outwardly directed corrective force thereon to urge the great toe into its normal alignment, said first means including arch engaging loop and an ankle encircling loop, and said second means being in the form of a great toe receiving loop, all 01 said loops being formed by a single strap having one end anchored to said sole.

2. An article of footwear particularly adapted to correct hallux valgus, said footwear being in the form of an orthopedic sandal comprising a sole, a heel on the sandal sole, and a single strap connected to said sole, said strap having one end fixedly anchored to said sole and intermediate portions adjustably anchored to said sole to define a rear ankle encircling loop and an intermediate arch clamping loop to firmly engage the wearers foot and a forward loop for receiving a wearers great toe for exerting a corrective pressure thereon.

3. T he article of footwear of claim 2 wherein said sole is of a generally multiple layer construction and has incorporated therein between the layers an arch support to shape the insole surface of said sole to provide the necessary arch support.

The article of footwear of clain 2 wherein said rear ankle encircling loop is defined by a buckle slidably carried by an intermediate portion of said strap and a perforated terminal portion of said strap cooperating with said buckle.

5. The article of footwear of claim 2 wherein said sole is provided with two short straps terminating in upper eyes receiving intermediate portions of said ankle encircling loop to restrict upward movement thereof.

References fired in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS FOREIGN PATENTS 760,714 France Dec. 14, 1933 560,835 Great Britain Apr. 21, 1944 1,029,757 France Mar. 11, 1953

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