Shoe insole with layered partial perforation

Abstract

A shoe insole which, within a shoe, combines shock cushioning, heat dissipating, moisture-removing, and low-frictioning contact with the underside of the foot. The insole preferably includes two adhesively bonded layers. The lower layer is a shock-cushioning layer which includes plural, elongate, through-bore perforations that are distributed in a grid fashion throughout the layer, with each perforation extending completely through the thickness of this lower layer, and opening to opposite (upper and lower) faces in the lower layer. The upper layer is a continuous, non-perforated moisture-wicking, low-frictioning, fabric layer which extends across and spans the upper, otherwise open ends of the perforations.

We claim:  
     
         1 . A shoe insole comprising 
 a cushioning underlayer having upper and lower faces which constitute opposite faces in this layer,    plural perforations extending through, and opening to opposite faces of, said cushioning layer, and    an overlayer expanse of low-frictioning, moisture-wicking, fabric material distributed as a continuum over the upper face of said cushioning layer, and effectively completely spanning said perforations where they open to and are exposed at the upper face of said cushioning layer.    
     
     
         2 . The insole of  claim 1 , wherein said cushioning layer is formed of an acceleration-rate-sensitive, viscoelastic material.  
     
     
         3 . The insole of  claim 1 , wherein said cushioning layer and said fabric overlayer are joined to one another through adhesive bonding.  
     
     
         4 . The insole of  claim 1 , wherein said perforations are distributed in a uniform grid pattern over and through said cushioning layer.  
     
     
         5 . The insole of  claim 4 , wherein said perforations are generally cylindrical in nature, with their respective axes of cylindrical symmetry extending through said cushioning layer between its upper and lower faces.