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US 4,342,159 AGranted
Metatarsal guard safety shoe
AssigneeInterco Incorporated
InventorRobert G. Edwards
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A safety shoe with a concealed metatarsal guard enclosed, with a metal toe cap, and thick padding, between the vamp and the lining at the forepart of the shoe. The guard itself is of a relatively rigid but somewhat yieldable plastic material curved and formed both longitudinally and laterally, overlying the rear part of the toe cap and with thick padding beneath it where it overlies the metatarsal area of the shoe. The guard is designed to spread upon receiving a heavy falling object and thereby distribute the load over the entire area of the guard so as to minimize damage to the foot.
Claims6
In a safety shoe, a sole;
- a firm, force-resisting toe cap;
- an upper attached to the sole and extending over the toe cap and the metatarsal area of the shoe;
- a lining layer below the upper in the metatarsal area, a unitary metatarsal guard of relatively stiff, resilient material confined between the lining and the upper to underlie the upper, the guard having sufficient resiliency to spread under impact of heavy blows upon the top of it, the guard being shaped to have its forward edge overlie the toe cap, and to extend from the toe cap upward to at least substantially overlie the metatarsal area of the shoe, and to curve downward along the sides of such area below the upper, its side edges being displaced from the sole and free of the sole so as not normally to contact the sole and to be laterally movable relatively thereto, and a padding of energy-absorbent material secured to the shoe below the metatarsal guard, the arrangement being such as to permit the guard to spread and thereby to distribute blows applied to the top of the guard over a substantial area to reduce the damaging effect thereof upon a wearer's foot.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.