Footwear for Use in Specialized Activities

Abstract

Footwear for use during a specialized activity such as skiing, cycling, skating and many other sports or industrial uses, and provides a dorsal element engaging the dorsal aspect of the foot for enabling the user to control relative to the plantar aspect the maximum height of the arch of the foot at substantially all times during the activity regardless of the position or orientation of the foot. A pivotal arm is mounted on a frame attached to the planter aspect for pivotal movement about an axis transverse to the foot and is compressed by an adjustable element operable by the user.

1 . Footwear for use during a specialized activity by a user, the footwear comprising:
 elements for engaging the foot of the user;   elements for engaging elements to be used in the activity;   a device for enabling the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot wherein the device is arranged to enable the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot at substantially all times during the activity regardless of the position or orientation of the foot.   
     
     
         2 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the device is arranged to enable the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot at all orientations and positions of the foot of the user relative to the elements to be used in the activity. 
     
     
         3 . The footwear according to  claim 1  or  2  wherein the activity is cycling and the footwear engages a pedal or crank of the cycle and the device is arranged to enable the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot at substantially all positions of the crank. 
     
     
         4 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the device includes elements engaging the plantar contact points of the foot and elements providing contact with the posterior aspect of the dorsum of the foot. 
     
     
         5 . The footwear according to  claim 4  wherein for the elements for engaging the dorsum include an arm which is pivotal on the plantar element to facilitate adjustment of the height of the arch of the foot of a user. 
     
     
         6 . The footwear according to  claim 5  wherein the arm is pivotal about an axis transverse axis to the plantar element so that the force applied thereby is perpendicular to the transverse axis of the plantar element. 
     
     
         7 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein physiologic effects render the foot into various degrees of rigidity by reducing laxity between the joints of the hard tissue that comprise the arch of the foot. 
     
     
         8 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein reducing the maximum height of the arch acts to reduce the laxity of the joints of the arch of the foot for up to 100% the entirety of the activity. 
     
     
         9 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the device is arranged such that the force applied to the dorsum of the foot is substantially perpendicular to the transverse axis of the plantar element. 
     
     
         10 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the device has not more than two contact elements for the foot where a first element of the device is disposed on the plantar aspect of the foot and a second element of the device disposed on the dorsal aspect of the foot. 
     
     
         11 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the device includes an inclined rear stop element for the posterior aspect of the heel of the user. 
     
     
         12 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the maximum height of the arch of the foot is maintained at a value less than that when the foot is unweighted. 
     
     
         13 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the plantar aspect of the foot includes a bi-planar surface where a base element having not more than two discrete aspects is set in different planes, each aspect for contacting at least a portion of the plantar surface of the foot of a user, the first aspect being a mono-planar surface for contact with plantar surface underlying the bases of the five metatarsals and associated phalanges including at least a portion of the anterior aspect of the lateral aspect of the fifth metatarsal of the foot of a user but excluding the portion of the plantar aspect of the foot underlying the base of the calcaneus with a second mono-planar aspect disposed above the plane of the first aspect for contact with at least the portion of the plantar aspect of the foot underlying the base of the calcaneus. 
     
     
         14 . The footwear according to  claim 1  wherein the dorsal element is mounted on inner footwear and is held downwardly onto the foot by an outer frame. 
     
     
         15 . Footwear for use during a specialized activity by a user, the footwear comprising:
 elements for engaging the foot of the user;   elements for engaging elements to be used in the activity;   a device enabling the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot;   wherein the device includes elements engaging the plantar contact points of the foot and elements providing a point of contact with the posterior aspect of the dorsum of the foot;   
     
     
         16 . Footwear for use during a specialized activity by a user, the footwear comprising:
 elements for engaging the foot of the user;   elements for engaging elements to be used in the activity;   a device for enabling the user to control the maximum height of the arch of the foot;   wherein the elements for engaging the dorsum include an arm which is rotatable to facilitate adjustment of the height;   and wherein the arm is pivotal about an axis parallel to a transverse axis of the plantar element so that the force applied thereby is perpendicular to the transverse axis of the plantar element.   
     
     
         17 . Footwear for use during a specialized activity by a user, the footwear comprising:
 elements for engaging the foot of the user;   elements for engaging elements to be used in the activity;   a device for enabling the user to control the maximum height the arch of the foot;   wherein the device includes elements engaging the plantar contact points of the foot and elements providing a point of contact with the posterior aspect of the dorsum of the foot;   and wherein the device is arranged such that the force to the dorsum of the foot is perpendicular to the transverse axis of the plantar element.