1. Field of the Invention
The instant invention is related to a boot, specifically a sports boot, such as a hiking boot, which accommodates moisture drainage and evacuation.
2. Description of Background and Relevant Information
The problem of circulation and evacuation of air from inside a boot is a long-standing one, and it has never been resolved in a totally satisfactory manner.
As such, the alpinist ski boot, known by its trade name "CLIMA-COMPREX" by Kolfach, consists of an impermeable outer envelope and an inner liner, equipped on its outer wall with longitudinal channels that communicate with through holes of the liner and are adapted to evacuate the moisture laden air.
The problem with such a boot is that the air evacuation output is very limited and, consequently, there is inadequate airing for the elimination of moisture. Furthermore, the spacing of the foot from the outer wall of the liner causes condensation problems, and this becomes accentuated because the outer envelope is exposed to the cold.
Various constructions have also been attempted with the so-called "breathable waterproof" materials, i.e., materials that are permeable to water vapor but impermeable to water. These constructions certainly provide an excellent impermeability against the elements, but they have the disadvantage of being inadequate in terms of breathability or evacuation of moisture.
As a matter of fact, the so-called "breathable waterproof" materials or membranes provide very little breathability, and indeed only fulfill 10% of the moisture evacuation needs of the foot.
More recently, as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2, the company Boreal has developed a mountaineering boot constituted of an external upper 1 made of leather, and a lining 2 shaped like a liner, adapted to evacuate moisture, and constituted of a lower portion 21 surrounding the actual foot portion and an upper portion 22 surrounding the ankle portion.
As shown in greater detail in FIG. IA, the lower portion 21 of the lining 2 is made of a multi-layered material, consisting of, from the inside outwards:
a three dimensional fabric 25, PA1 a "breathable waterproof" membrane, of the type known by the trade name "Sympatex", adhered to the protective textile layer 26 (abrasion resistance), PA1 a leather layer constituting the external upper 1.
The upper portion 22 of the lining is constituted of a leather layer 27 and foam layer 28.
The two parts 21-22 are connected via a top peripheral stitch 23, while a bottom peripheral stitch 24 provides the assembly of the lower portion 21 of the liner.
The use of the three-dimensional fabric 25 is adapted to allow the evacuation of water vapor towards the outside in a vertical and transverse direction.
In practice, however, this evacuation is blocked in the vertical direction by the presence of the top peripheral stitch 23 and the bottom peripheral stitch 24.
As a result, the perspiration can only be evacuated transversely in the lower portion 21 of the lining, through the "breathable waterproof" membrane 26 and the external leather wall of the external upper 1.
However, as indicated previously, these "breathable waterproof" materials do not provide an adequate evacuation of moisture, and the resulting effect is therefore not satisfactory.