Rubber soled shoe and method of making same

Application filed November

My invention relates to improvements in shoes, and the method of malting same, wherein a rubber sole is vulcanized onto the upper and has a foxing extending upwardly therefrom around and attached to the lower portion of the upper, this invention having reference more particularly to the utilization of the foxing as the means for lasting the upper to the sole.

10. The principal objects of my invention are to simplify the construction of rubber soled shoes of the character above referred to; to minimize the amount of materials required; to avoid unnecessary layers of material and

1® undesirable thickness along the lasted edge; to enhance the appearance and increase the serviceability of the shoe, and in general to facilitate the manufacture, improve the construction and minimize the cost of rubber ²⁰ soled shoes of the type to which my invention relates.

In the methods commonly employed in manufacturing shoes, such for example as athletic shoes, wherein a rubber sole is vulcanized onto a fabric upper, it is customary to last the edge of the upper over the insole and in addition to provide a foxing which is cemented around the lower portion of the upper and turned in over the lasted edge ³⁰ thereof. This not only entails considerable work which must be performed very carefully in order to insure an adequate coating of cement of definite width around the lower portion of the upper,—to apply the foxing ⁰ strip evenly over this cemented area and roll it down into firm adherence,—and to turn the edge in properly over the lasted edge of the upper, but moreover it is practically impossible. even with the utmost care, to avoid the presence of some cement on the upper above the foxing strip and this necessarily detracts from the neat and finished appearance of the shoe. The edges of the cemented foxing also tend to loosen in service and this not only impairs the appearance of the shoe but shortens the life thereof. Furthermore, the.lasting of the edge of the upper over the insole and the turning in of the lower edge of the foxing thereover not onlv affords increased thickness around the edge of the

1, 1930. Serial No. 492,631.

sole which must be compensated for by extra filler but there is also the additional wastage of stock due to the unnecessary provision of both the upper and the foxing strip with cor- responding edge portions which are adapted m to be turned in and lasted to the sole.

In my preferred construction the lasting edge of the upper is entirely omitted, said upper being merely of sufficient length to extend down around the marginal edge of the inner sole substantially to the under face of the latter, and 'this upper has a foxing ^securi‘d therearound and projecting sufficiently below the lower edge of the upper so that this projecting edge of the foxing alone serves as the means for lasting the upper to the sole. This foxing strip is of suitable material, as for example, a rubber faced fabric, which will insure a permanent and dependable connection of the lipper with the sole and it may be secured to the upper in any convenient manner, preferably by stitching the foxing along its upper edge to the shoe upper as this insures a strong and dependable connection and avoids the un- 75 sightly presence of cement on the upper which almost necessarily occurs if cement is used for this purpose.

In sftme cases, however, it may be desired to reinforce or strengthen the connection of 80 the upper and sole at places where excessive strains occur, as for example, at the heel where the shoe may have a stiff counter which tends to cut and loosen up the foxing strip, and this may be accomplished by pro^ S5 viding the upper at or around the heel portion, with an extended edge for lasting over the insole in the usual manner,· the lasting edge of the upper being omitted along the shank, vamp and toe portions of the upper, 00 or this reinforcing may be accomplished by increasing the strength of the foxing strip where additional strength is required.

While I prefer, for the reasons above indicated. to stitch the foxing to the upper, the 05 foxing may be attached merely by cementing same to the upper with the lower edge of the foxing projecting sufficiently beyond the lower edge of the upper to serve as the means for lasting the upper to the insole, or the ¹⁰⁰

034

This foxing strip which is made of suitable material to insure a permanent and dependable connection, preferably consists of a strip 10 of frictioned fabric with a facing 11 of rubber composition on the outer 70 side and is stitched along its upper edge as at 12 (two lines of stitching being preferably employed) to the upper so that sufficient of the foxing strip projects below the lower edge of the upper for satisfactorily lasting <5 over the insole.

The foxing may be additionally secured to the upper, if desired, by stitching the upper along its lower edge to the foxing as indicated at 13 in Fig. 3, or any or all of the sur- 80 face of the upper underneath the foxing may be cemented to the foxing as at 14 in big. 4, the stitching, however, being preferred as it may be conveniently accomplished as the other parts of the upper are stitched to- 85 gether.

After the upper has been prepared as above, with the foxing 10—-11 attached thereto it is applied on a last in the usual manner and the insole, which in my present con- ⁹⁹struction consists of a layer 15 of rag stock compound with an adhesively attached fabric sock sole 16, is placed in position with the edge portion of the upper overlapping the edae face of the insole and terminating sub- ⁹⁵stantially at the exposed face of the insole substantially as shown in Fig. 5. The Injecting edge of the foxing 10—11 is then turned inwardly over the edge of the upper and lasted onto the inner sole, the exposed ¹face of which has previously been coated with rubber cement so that the foxing will adhere thereto, and the remainder of the sole is then assembled. In the illustrated construction this comprises a middle sole 17 of rag stock composition with fabric facing 18 adhesively attached to what constitutes the bottom face thereof in the finished shoe, which said middle sole is adhesively attached to the inner sole layer 15 and the inturned edges of the ¹¹⁰foxing, said parts having been previously provided with a coating of rubber cement in the usual manner for this purpose. The exposed face of the assembled sole structure is then coated with rubber cement after which the outer sole 19 of rubber composition is cemented in place with the edges thereof fitted along and secured to the foxing slightly up the side of the latter substantially to the top of the inner sole somewhat as shown in Figs ¹2, 3 and 4 and this, in case the bottom edge of the upper is stitched to the foxing as at 13 in Fig. 3 covers and protects the stitches 13. After the shoe has been assembled as above, it is vulcanized in the usual manner.

With this construction the upper is not attached directly to the insole but merely extends down around the marginal edge of the insole substantially to the bottom face of the latter and is lasted to the insole by the pro- ¹³⁰

1,8δ3, foxing may be stitched to the upper and also cemented thereto in which case the cementing may be confined to a narrow width along the lower edge of the upper or may be used over the entire surface underneath the foxing. Various arrangements of stitching may also be employed, for example, the upper may be stitched along its lower edge to the foxing which latter is stitched along its up10 per edge to the upper, and moreover this stitching of the foxing to the upper may be used to advantage in rubber shoes made in accordance with the previous practice whei ein the edge portions of both the upper and 15 foxing are lasted over the insole, as the stitching insures a secure and permanent attachment of the foxing to the upper and avoids loosening up of the foxing in service which impairs the appearance and shortens the life

SO of the shoe. .

In order that my improvements may be more fully understood, I have shown in the accompanying drawings, an athletic shoe constructed in accordance with my invention, Si and in said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view ot the shoe taken from the side; ...

Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail sectional view on the line 2—2 of Fig. 1;

SO Fig. 3 is a similar sectional view showing a modification; .

Fig. 4 is a similar sectional view showing another modification; and

Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing the arte rangement of the upper and insole preparatory to the lasting of the foxing onto the insole.

Referring to the drawings the reference numeral 1 indicates the shoe upper which 40 preferably consists of an outer layer 2 of canvas or other suitable fabric, a fabric lining 3, and a tongue 4 which terminates at its lower end in a toe portion 5 which is stitched between the forward ends of the side ports tions of the upper. Lacing strips 6, a toe cap 7, a heel counter 8 and ankle strips 9 are also provided and stitched to the upper in the usual manner. This upper structure, however, instead of being made of the usual SO length to provide a marginal portion around the lower edge for lasting over the insole, is made merely long enough so that when placed on the last for assembling the sole, the lower marginal edge of the upper extends around 55 the marginal edge of and terminates substantially at the outer face of the insole. In other words, the marginal edue portion of the upper that is usually provided for lasting over the insole is omitted in mv present conS0 struction, and in lieu thereof I provide the upper with a foxing strip around and extending beyond the lower edge of the upper so that the extended edge portion of the foxing serves alone as the means for lasting the upS5 per to the insole.

1,853,084 jftcted edge of the previously attached foxing. Thus a material saving in the upper stock is not only effected, but the decrease in the thickness of the inturned edge permits a substantial saving in filler and greater flexibility. Moreover, the attachment of the foxing to the upper as herein contemplated, results in a shoe of greatly improved appearance which in *1 P^rodu^ more readily and with less labor ¹⁰ than previous shoes of this character.

While I have shown and described my invention in a preferred form, I am aware that various changes and modifications may be made therein without departing from the principles of my invention, the scope of which is to be determined by the appended claims.