Article of footwear with soil-shedding performance

• US 10,070,685 B2
• Filed: 07/30/2015
• Issued: 09/11/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nike Innovate C.V. (Nike, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Inventors: Walker, Jeremy D., Dyer, Caleb W., Wright, Zachary C., Maurer, Myron, Schiller, Denis, Baghdadi, Hossein A.
• Primary Examiner(s): HIGGINS, GERARD T
• Application Number:
  US14/814,131
• Publication Number:
  US 20160058114A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,139 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/02 characterised by the material
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/04 Plastics, rubber or vulcanised fibre
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/122 characterised by the outsole or external layer
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/16 Pieced soles with several layers of different material A43B13/12
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/22 Soles made slip-preventing or wear-resisting, e.g. by impregnation or spreading a wear-resisting layer
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/26 projecting beyond the sole surface
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 3/0036 characterised by a special shape or design
• CPC Class Codes: A43C 15/02 attached to the sole
• CPC Class Codes: A43C 15/16 Studs or cleats for football or like boots
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 35/142 Soles
• CPC Class Codes: C08J 3/075 Macromolecular gels
• CPC Class Codes: C08L 75/04 Polyurethanes
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24802 Discontinuous or differential coating, impregnation or bond [e.g., artwork, printing, retouched photograph, etc.]

Abstract

The disclosure relates to methods of using articles of footwear and components thereof, including outsoles, in conditions normally conducive to the accumulation of soil on the outsoles. In particular, the disclosure relates to a method of using an article of footwear having an outsole that includes a dispersion on its ground facing surface. When the outsoles are wetted with water, the outsoles can become more compliant and/or can rapidly uptake and/or expel water, which can prevent soil from adhering to the outsole and/or can assist in shedding soil present on the outsole. Thus, the methods provided herein can prevent or reduce the accumulation of soil on the footwear during wear on unpaved surfaces such as sporting fields.

Claims

1. An article of footwear, the article comprising:

an outsole having a ground-facing side, a dispersion present on at least a portion of the ground-facing side, the dispersion comprising a polymeric continuous phase and a hydrophilic dispersant, wherein the outsole comprises a plurality of traction elements on the ground-facing side of the outsole and;

an upper at least partially secured to an opposing second side of the outsole; and

wherein the article of footwear prevents or reduces soil accumulation on the outsole such that the article of footwear retains at least 15% less soil by weight as compared to a second article of footwear which is identical to the article of footwear except that the second article of footwear is free of the dispersion.

2. The article of claim 1, wherein the dispersion is present on at least 80% of the ground-facing side of the outsole.

3. The article of claim 1, wherein the outsole further comprises a water-permeable membrane, and the water-permeable membrane is present on at least a portion of the ground-facing side of the outsole.

4. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises a crosslinked polymer.

5. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises carbamate linkages.

6. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises amide linkages.

7. The article of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant is present in a concentration in a range of from 5% by weight to 40% by weight, based on a total weight of the dispersion in the article of footwear prior to wetting the article of footwear or exposing the article of footwear to soil.

8. The article of claim 7, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant is present in a concentration in a range of from about 10% by weight to 20% by weight, based on the total weight of the dispersion in the article of footwear prior to wetting the article of footwear or exposing the article of footwear to soil.

9. The article of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant has an average particle size ranging from 10 micrometers to 1 millimeter.

10. The article of claim 9, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant has an average particle size ranging from 10 micrometers to 500 micrometers.

11. The article of claim 10, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant has an average particle size ranging from 10 micrometers to 100 micrometers.

12. The article of claim 1, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant comprises a superabsorbent polymer.

13. The article of claim 12, wherein the hydrophilic dispersant comprises cellulose, polyether, polyacrylic acid, or a derivative of polyacrylic acid.

14. The article of claim 1, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises a covalently crosslinked polymer.

15. The article of claim 1, wherein one or more of the traction elements is selected from the group consisting of:

a cleat, a stud, a spike, and a lug.

16. The article of claim 1, wherein the traction elements are integrally formed with the outsole.

17. The article of claim 1, wherein the traction elements are removable traction elements.

18. A method of using an article of footwear, the method comprising:

providing the article of footwear having an upper and an outsole operably secured to the upper, wherein the outsole includes a ground-facing side and a dispersion present on at least a portion of the ground-facing side, and wherein the dispersion comprises a polymeric continuous phase and a hydrophilic dispersant, wherein the outsole comprises a plurality of traction elements on the ground-facing side of the outsole;

exposing the dispersion to water to take up the water into the dispersion to provide a wetted dispersion;

pressing the outsole with the wetted dispersion onto the ground to compress the wetted dispersion, wherein the compression of the wetted dispersion expels a portion of the taken up water from the film into soil of the ground;

lifting the outsole from the ground to release the compression from the dispersion; and

taking up additional water into the wetted dispersion after releasing the compression from the dispersion.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises a covalently crosslinked polymer.

20. The method of claim 18, wherein the polymeric continuous phase comprises a hydrophobic polymer.

21. The method of claim 18, wherein the method further comprises pressing at least a portion of the traction elements into the ground prior to pressing the wetted dispersion onto the ground.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising pre-conditioning the ground-facing side by contacting the ground-facing side to water before contacting the ground-facing side to wet soil.

23. The method of claim 18, wherein one or more of the traction elements is selected from the group consisting of:

a cleat, a stud, a spike, and a lug.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein the traction elements are integrally formed with the outsole.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein the traction elements are removable traction elements.