Heel seat cushioning attachment and the method of applying the same

July 10, 1934.

G. H. GILLIS

HEEL SEAT CUSHIONING ATTACHMENT AND THE METHOD OF

1,966,293

APPLYING THE SAME

Filed Aug. 19,' 1933

<img file="US1966293A_D0001.tif" />

Patented July 10, 1934

1,966,293

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE

1,966,293

HEEL SEAT CUSHIONING ATTACHMENT AND THE METHOD OF APPLYING THE SAME

George H. Gillis, Fitchburg, Mass.

Application August 19, 1933, Serial No. 685,800

Claims. (Cl. 36—36)

This invention relates to a detachable rubber heel and an improved method of applying the same to the heel seat of a shoe in such manner that when the heel is worn out it may be quickly 5 and conveniently removed, and another substituted for it.

The attachment includes a resilient U-shaped rubber base adapted to bear on and be permanently secured to a heel seat, and a resilient rubber 10 heel engageable with the base by a rearward movement of the heel relative to the base and the heel seat to which it is attached, means being provided for interengaging the heel with the base to prevent the accidental forward movement o± 15 the heel, said base and heel collectively constituting a resilient cushion which is entirely compressible between the tread face of the heel and the face of the base which bears on the heel seat.

Of the accompanying drawing forming a part 20 of this specification,—

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the base.

Figure 2 is a perspective view of the rubber heel, a portion thereof being broken away.

Figure 3 is a perspective view showing the base 25 and heel assembled.

Figure 4 is a fragmental section on line 4—4 of Figure 3 showing the heel seat of a shoe by dotted lines, portions of the heel and base, and one of the fasteners attaching the base to the 30 heel seat. _

Figure 5 is an end view looking toward the breast ends of the base and heel, and showing the base and heel assembled.

Figure 6 is an end view of the base looking to35 ward the breast end thereof.

Figure 7 is a section on line 7—7 of Figure 5.

Figure 8 is an end view showing by dotted lines the heel seat of a shoe, and the breast ends of the base and rubber heel, the base being attached 40 to the heel seat and its outer margin compressed against the heel seat, the rubber heel being shown by dotted lines.

Figure 9 shows in perspective the base and a form preserving filler separably engaged there45 with, for a purpose hereinafter stated.

Figure 10 is a perspective view of the filler, a portion thereof being broken away.

Figure 11 is a perspective view showing a modified form of the filler.

Figure 12 is a section on line 12—12 of Figure 9.

Figure 13 ^fs a sectional view showing a portion of a heel seat and the base, and illustrating the function of the filler.

The same reference characters indicate the 55 :same parts in all of the figures.

In the drawing,—12 designates a U-shaped base which is made of resilient rubber of the kind usually employed in making rubber heels customarily used on shoes.

The base 12 is permanently fastened to the 60. usual heel seat 13 of a shoe. The fastening.means may be nails 14 indicated by dotted lines in Figures 3 and 4, although any other suitable fastening means may be employed.

The U-shaped base has an inner marginal face 65 15 which is beveled as best shown by Figure 1 to constitute a member of a dovetail joint.

designates a resilient rubber heel having at one side a tread face, and at its opposite side a tenon 17 with a beveled U-shaped marginal face 70 18 constituting a dovetail joint face formed to engage the joint face 15 of the base, as shown by Figure 3. The tenon 17 is offset inwardly from the curved margin of the heel, so that the heel has a U-shaped top face 220, the ends of which 75 intersect the breast portion of the heel.

The heel 16 is engageable with the base by a rearward endwise movement, said movement being arrested when the tenon abuts the rear portion of the base. ⁸⁹

The forward end portions of the base are provided with sockets 19, one of which is shown by Figures 1 and 4. The forward end portions of the heel face 220 are provided with studs 20 arranged to enter the sockets 19, and prevent forward move- 85 ment of the heel relative to the base and the heel

The studs 20 are located outside the tenon 17, and on resilient corner portions of the heel face 220. These portions are adapted to be sprung 90 outward by hand while the heel is being moved to place, to permit registration of the studs with the sockets, and permit the studs to spring into the sockets when the heel is in place. When the heel is in place the studs 20 spring into the sock- 95 ets 19

It is obvious that the sockets 19 may be formed in the corner portions of the heel face 220, and that the studs 20 may be formed on the end portions of the base, without departing from the spirit 100 of the invention. The sockets and studs constitute complemental stop members which are .automatically interengageable by the inward springin°· of said corner portions when the heel has been moved to its operative position on the base. 105 The corner portions of the heel formed in part by the end portions of the face 220 are considerably thinner and more freely flexed than the heel portion having the tenon 17, hence the stop members on said corner portions may be freely 110

1,966,293 engaged with and separated from the stop members on the base, and when so engaged prevent liability of accidental forward movement of the heel 16 relative to the base and heel seat.

⁵ The resilient rubber base constitutes a resilient element of the cushioning attachment which therefore has a maximum compressibility and resilience.

For a reason hereinafter appearing I prefer to 1θ impart to the top face 22 of the base an approximately concave form from end to end. Said face intersects the outer margin of the base to form an acute angle 23. The inner margin of the base face 22 is flush with the top surface of the tenon 15 17.

When the fasteners 14 are driven, they compress the acute angled edge 23 of the base against the bottom face of the heel seat 13, so that the top face 22 is flattened as indicated by Figure 2C 8, and forms a close water-excluding joint with the bottom face of the heel seat.

When the heel 16, shown by the dotted lines in Figure 8, is engaged with the base, the margin of the top face of the tenon 17 bears closely against 23 the bottom face of the heel. The top face of the tenon is preferably concave so that its margin has an acute angle adapted to be flattened against the heel seat and frictionally oppose accidental forward movement of the heel.

3C ' It will now be seen that the resilient rubber base and the resilient rubber heel collectively constitute a resilient cushioning attachment whose thickness and resilience are determined by the thickness of both the base and the heel, and that 35 said cushion is entirely compressible between the tread face of the heel and the face of the base bearing on the heel seat. The base therefore performs two functions in that it secures the heel to the heel seat and increases the resilience of the 40 cushioning attachment.

It is desirable to stiffen the resilient base 12 during the operation of driving the fasteners 14 in order that the base may not be bent or distorted from its predetermined form required to cause a 45suitable fit of the tenon 17 in the base. To this end I provide a form-preserving filler 25 having a beveled margin 26 complemental to the beveled margin 15 of the base 12. The bottom face of the finer shown by Figures 10, 12, and 13 is pro50 vided with ribs 27 whose ends form projecting tongues 28 arranged to bear on the under side of the base 12, as shown by Figure 9. The filler is separably engageable with the base, and is adapted to prevent any change of the form there55 of during the operation of attaching it to a heel seat. The filler may be of fiber, metal, or any other suitable relatively rigid material, and is used only during the operation of attaching the base 12 to a heel seat 13.

Figure 11 shows a modification in which a con- 80 tinuous U-shaped flange 30 is substituted for the tongues 28.

The engagement of the filler 25 with the resilient base 12 before the latter is nailed to the shoe heel, the application of the base and the form 85 preserving filler to the bottom face of the heel seat, the nailing of the base to the heel seat, and the subsequent removal of the filler from the base and heel seat, constitute steps of an improved method of applying the cushioning attachment 90 to the heel seat.