OrthoLite extended its patent protection for the speckled appearance of its OrthoLite Hybrid Technology line, including Hybrid, HybridPlus-Bio and HybridPlus Recycled insoles.

Since the company was founded in 1997, all OrthoLite insoles include at least 5 percent recycled rubber. In addition to the strict performance qualities of OrthoLite insoles, this was an early commitment to reduce its use of virgin materials and the origin of the brand’s speckled appearance. 

OrthoLite Hybrid is GRS-certified and blends OrthoLite’s standard 5 percent recycled rubber with a select range of 15 percent to 43 percent production waste foam.

The company said that to the more than 550 footwear brands OrthoLite works with, the speckled appearance indicates “OrthoLite’s premium quality.” 

In the case of the OrthoLite Hybrid line, the patents protect the colored foam-speckled design that the company said represents “quality, comfort, and the inclusion of at least 20 percent recycled materials.”

 As of April 2, 2024, OrthoLite holds three design patents protecting the visual aesthetics of the Hybrid line against knock-off products should a competitor try to challenge OrthoLite’s intellectual property claim.

“For OrthoLite Hybrid, the distinctive speckled aesthetic is inextricable from our proprietary chemistry and, therefore, is inextricable from the function of the product,” said Glenn Barrett, founder and CEO of OrthoLite. “The patents ensure that no other insole supplier can imitate the visual design and try to confuse or obfuscate buyers around the product they’re selling.”

The three U.S. design patents on OrthoLite Hybrid foam include:

  • D941568, granted in the U.S. on Jan. 25, 2022;
  • D991659, granted in the U.S. on July 11, 2023, covers speckles on a “seed pearl” color foam as the background of the insole; and
  • D1020199, granted in the U.S. on April 2, 2024, is a continuation of patent #D991659 that covers colored speckles on any color foam as the background color.

What differentiates OrthoLite’s three design patents is the color and foam background for a shoe insole. U.S. patent protection for the visual “look” of the colored foam speckles in its Hybrid shoe insoles means that no other company can sell or market anything visually similar in a shoe insole in the U.S., or violates the patents.

The Hybrid design combines three responsibly-sourced options:

  1. Post-production recycled foam. OrthoLite owns the means of production and has recycling facilities where it reclaims and grinds the waste to meet its foaming specifications.
  2. Hybrid uniquely uses OrthoLite’s proprietary chemistry, reclaimed PU waste and recycled rubber. OrthoLite virgin PU is combined with the brand’s post-production PU waste foam with recycled outsole rubber to close the loop on manufacturing waste further. 
  3. All Hybrid technologies are third-party certified, validating the authenticity of the company’s claims.

Along with verifications, including Global Recycled Standard (GRS) certification and Recycled Claim Standards (RCS), patents provide confidence “that the OrthoLite supply chain is delivering precisely what it claims.” 

“We embrace the critical importance of accountability and providing full transparency through globally recognized third-party resources that demonstrate our ongoing progress and leadership in environmental sustainability in both product and process,” Barrett said.

For more product and patent information, go here.

Image courtesy Ortholite