Dance shoe and method of manufacture thereof

Abstract

A dance shoe ( 100 ) is provided which comprises an upper ( 102 ) and a sole ( 104 ) attached to the upper ( 102 ). Heel and tip portions ( 10, 40 ) formed from a moulded plastics material are attached to rear and front portions of the sole ( 104 ), respectively. A method of forming such a shoe is also provided. By forming the heel and tip portions from a moulded plastics material the shape, weight and sound created by the heel and tip portions will be consistent across different pairs of the dance shoe.

1 . A dance shoe comprising:
 an upper;   a sole attached to the upper;   a heel portion attached to a rear portion of the sole;   a tip portion attached to a front portion of the sole; and   wherein the heel and tip portions are each formed from a moulded plastics material.   
     
     
         2 . The shoe of  claim 1 , wherein at least one of the heel and tip portions is substantially hollow. 
     
     
         3 . The shoe of  claim 2 , wherein the at least one hollow portion includes one or more strengthening members located therein which define a plurality of cavities. 
     
     
         4 . The shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the tip portion has an upper surface adapted to be attached to the sole and an exposed lower surface which is convex. 
     
     
         5 . The shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the plastics material is a thermoplastic material selected from the group comprising polyoxymethylene (acetal resin), acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), glass filled nylon, and glass filled acetal resin. 
     
     
         6 . The shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the heel and tip portions are formed from different plastics materials. 
     
     
         7 . The shoe of  claim 1  further comprising a plurality of mechanical fixtures adapted to fix the heel and tip portions to the sole. 
     
     
         8 . The shoe of  claim 7 , wherein each of the heel and tip portions includes a plurality of bores adapted to receive the mechanical fixtures. 
     
     
         9 . The shoe of  claim 7  further comprising a resilient plate member adapted to be located between the upper and sole. 
     
     
         10 . The shoe of  claim 9  further comprising a plurality of interchangeable plate members having varying degrees of resilience or flexibility. 
     
     
         11 . The shoe of  claim 9 , wherein the plate member includes apertures adapted to receive the mechanical fixtures, whereby the heel and tip are fixed to the plate member by the fixtures. 
     
     
         12 . The shoe of  claim 1  further comprising a layer of shock-absorbing material located over the heel portion of the shoe. 
     
     
         13 . The shoe of  claim 1 , wherein the heel portion comprises an upper surface adapted to be attached to the sole, a lower surface spaced from the sole, and inner and outer side walls extending between the upper and lower surfaces, wherein the inner side wall has a projecting portion extending outwardly from the inner side wall. 
     
     
         14 . The shoe of  claim 13 , wherein the inner side wall is convex. 
     
     
         15 . A method of manufacturing a dance shoe, the method comprising the steps of:
 forming a sole;   moulding each of a heel and tip portion from a plastics material;   attaching the heel and tip portions to rear and front portions of thesole, respectively;   forming an upper; and   attaching the upper to the sole.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the step of attaching the heel and tip portions to the sole is achieved using mechanical fixtures. 
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 16 , wherein the step of moulding the heel and tip portions includes forming a plurality of bores therein, the bores adapted to receive the mechanical fixtures. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the step of moulding one or both of the heel and tip portions includes forming a cavity therein, and forming one or more strengthening members in the cavity which define a number of smaller cavities. 
     
     
         19 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the step of moulding the tip includes forming an upper surface adapted to be attached to the sole and forming an exposed lower surface which is convex. 
     
     
         20 . The method of  claim 15  further comprising the step of inserting a resilient plate member between the upper and the sole. 
     
     
         21 . The method of  claim 15  further comprising the step of locating a layer of shock-absorbing material over the heel portion. 
     
     
         22 . The method of  claim 15 , wherein the step of moulding the heel portion comprises forming an upper surface adapted to be attached to the sole, a lower surface spaced from the sole, and inner and outer side walls extending between the upper and lower surfaces, wherein the inner side wall is formed such that a projecting portion extends outwardly from the inner side wall. 
     
     
         23 . The method of  claim 22 , wherein the heel portion is moulded such that the inner side wall is convex.