The present finding refers to a press used for personalising products by applying heat transferable material, according to the general part of claim 1.

As it is known, it is very common to personalise clothing items, from T-shirts, to caps, to shoes, through the use of heat transferable films, which have drawings/writing to be transferred with a hot press onto the object to be personalised. Of the various machines used in the operation of "transferring" heat fix materials on fabrics or other supports, manual or automatic heat presses are widespread substantially made up of a fixed base plate, on which the garment and the heat transferable film are spread out, an upper heated plate and means for pressure clamping the two plates.

At the state of the art such types of presses (as an example see that described in patent document n. VI1996O000049, by the same applicant) are used in an optimal manner for transferring on flat garments, such as T-shirts, or also slightly curved ones, like the bill of caps. On the other hand, the personalisation of packed shoes is more difficult, since on said machines it is not possible to obtain a suitable arrangement of the shoe so as to apply the materials for the personalisation on the sides of the upper and on the heel.

Currently, in order to decorate shoes, the parts of the shoe (the upper spread out flat) with the heat transferable materials are firstly personalised, then the shoe itself is manufactured (sewing of the upper to the sole).

The main purpose of the present finding is to make a press for applying heat transferable materials, which makes it possible to personalise, in addition to clothing items, also finished shoes, in a rapid and simple manner and without jeopardising the decoration quality and the resistance of the adhesive over time.

A further purpose of the finding is that of making a press for personalising finished shoes of different types, sizes and materials (for recreational activities, made from canvas, sports shoes, made from rigid technical materials, made from leather, made from artificial leather) even simultaneously and on a wide surface of the upper and of the heel.

Such purposes are obtained by making a press, which is characterised in that it has the lower plate that is shaped so as to allow the positioning of two or more finished shoes arranged with the lateral side of the upper in the horizontal position, in opposition to the upper heated plate.

The finding shall become clearer with the description of a possible embodiment thereof, given purely as an example and not for limiting purposes, with the aid of the attached tables with figures, in which:

• figs. 1-2 (table I-II) represent the press according to the finding, which is equipped for the personalisation of the sides of the upper of the finished shoes, in the resting and usage conditions, respectively;
• figs. 3-4 (table III-IV) represent the press according to the finding equipped for the personalisation of the heel of the finished shoe, in the resting and usage conditions, respectively.

As visible in fig. 1, the press comprises a base plate 1, on which the object to be personalised is arranged and an upper heated counter-plate 2, both supported through a frame 3 and compressed through an elastic member 4, which is manoeuvred by the handle 5, all as per se known.

As visible in fig.2 the new characteristic of the finding consists of the fact that the base plate 1, instead of having a quadrilateral shape, like in machines in use, is shaped so as to allow at least two finished shoes to be held.

Specifically, the plate 1 has at least two opposite protuberances 10, on which the two shoes are fitted so as to have the lateral part "P" of the upper that is arranged horizontally (see fig.2).

Again specifically, the plate 1 can be equipped with other two protuberances 11, which are opposite to the previous ones and have sizes and shapes that are the same as or different from the previous ones, so as to be able to simultaneously "personalise", with the same heated plate 2, same or different finished shoes. Moreover, the plate 1 is advantageously applied onto the frame 3 in a removable manner, so as to be an "accessory" of the machine that is replaceable and interchangeable in relation to the different types of shoes to be personalised.

As visible in figs. 3 and 4, the machine described above is also equipped with a lower shaped support 20 and with a heated pressure blade 30, which replace the two previous plates 1 and 2 so as to complete the personalisation of the shoe at the heel "T", through the same heat process.

Analogously to the base plate 1, also the shaped surface 20 is applied onto the frame 3 in a removable manner, so as to be an "accessory" of the machine that is replaceable or interchangeable in relation to the different types of shoes to be personalised.

From what has been described above, the operative advantages of the finding are clear, allowing anybody from the craftsman to the final user to personalise finished shoes, even with very limited runs, with the application of very precise decorations and in a rapid and cost-effective manner.

The finding thus conceived can undergo variants and its details can be replaced by technically equivalent elements, all covered by the inventive concept defined by the following claims.