Footwear article having cord structure

• US 10,390,584 B2
• Filed: 01/19/2017
• Issued: 08/27/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 01/19/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Fuerst Group, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Fuerst Group, Inc.
• Inventors: Fuerst, Jr., Rory, Del Biondi, Stefano
• Primary Examiner(s): Hurley, Shaun R
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Bao-Thieu L
• Application Number:
  US15/410,676
• Publication Number:
  US 20170202296A1
• Time in Patent Office: 950 Days
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 1/04 braided, knotted, knitted or crocheted
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/04 Plastics, rubber or vulcanised fibre
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/223 Profiled soles
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/00 Uppers; Boot legs; Stiffeners; Other single parts of footwear
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/027 with a part of the upper particularly flexible, e.g. permitting articulation or torsion
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0275 with a part of the upper particularly rigid, e.g. resisting articulation or torsion
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0295 Pieced uppers
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 3/00 Footwear characterised by the shape or the use
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 3/26 adjustable as to length or size
• CPC Class Codes: A43C 1/04 with rings or loops

Abstract

A footwear article is provided herein. The footwear article may include a cord structure including interconnected bights in a vamp cord and a rand cord forming a loop line extending along at least a portion of the footwear article, and further including an anchor cord extending along the portion of the footwear article and parallel to the loop line. The rand cord may couple to the anchor cord. In this way, the cord structure may be tensioned independently of other upper materials.

Claims

1. A footwear article, comprising:

an upper, at least a portion of which is formed via two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords configured to at least partially enclose a foot, wherein the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords form a loop line extending in a direction from a heel side of the footwear article to a toe side of the footwear article and wherein one cord of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords is engaged with an anchor cord traversing around a portion of the upper, wherein the anchor cord is parallel to the loop line and positioned in the upper between the loop line and a sole.

2. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein one of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords engages with another cord of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords at a plurality of selected locations.

3. The footwear article of claim 2, wherein the plurality of selected locations is positioned along the loop line including the loop line traversing around a portion of the upper.

4. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords are flexible to bend in any direction, yet retains their shape at least partially in a free-state.

5. The footwear article of claim 1, further comprising the sole coupled to the upper, wherein the anchor cord is positioned away from a bottom of the sole.

6. The footwear article of claim 5, further comprising an open space between at least a portion of a fabric component of the upper and the sole, wherein the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords at least partially cover the open space, and wherein the anchor cord is parallel to the open space.

7. The footwear article of claim 5, wherein the anchor cord is not parallel to the sole.

8. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords are engaged with the anchor cord via a plurality of anchor connection bights formed by the one cord of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords.

9. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein a first cord of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords forms a first plurality of loops and a second cord of the two or more slippably-engaged and intertwined cords forms a second plurality of loops, wherein a first loop of the first plurality of loops is intertwined with and slidably movable relative to at least two loops of the second plurality of loops, wherein a second loop of the at least two loops is intertwined with and slidably movable relative to at least two loops of the first plurality of loops including the first loop.

10. A footwear article, comprising:

a sole;

an upper coupled to the sole, the upper comprising a fabric structure and a cord structure, the cord structure comprising at least two cords intertwined with each other via a plurality of loops to form a loop line, one cord of the at least two cords of the cord structure engaged with an anchor cord, the anchor cord parallel to the loop line and positioned below the loop line.

11. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the anchor cord is stitched through the fabric structure of the upper.

12. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the anchor cord extends peripherally around at least a portion of the upper.

13. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the anchor cord is positioned on a medial side of the upper, and further comprising a second anchor cord positioned on a lateral side of the upper and engaged with at least one cord of the cord structure.

14. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein a first portion of the sole is formed from ethylene-vinyl acetate and a second portion of the sole is formed from rubber.

15. A footwear article, comprising:

a looped upper with cords forming a structure configured to enclose a foot, the cords in the upper in slippable engagement with respect to one another, one of the cords further engaged with an anchor cord positioned away from and not parallel to a bottom of a sole coupled to the upper, wherein a first cord of the cords forms a first plurality of loops and a second cord of the cords forms a second plurality of loops, wherein a loop of the first plurality of loops is in slippable engagement with at least two loops of the second plurality of loops, and wherein a loop of the second plurality of loops is in slippable engagement with at least two loops of the first plurality of loops, wherein the slippable engagement of the first plurality of loops and the second plurality of loops forms a loop line parallel to the anchor cord, the anchor cord positioned at the upper between the loop line and the sole.

16. The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the slippable engagement is formed at cord interfaces, the cord interfaces positioned along the loop line traversing across lateral and medial sides of the upper, and further across at least one of a forefoot and a toe region, wherein the cord interfaces comprise a first loop intertwined with and slidably movable with respect to a second loop, the first loop and the second loop formed from the cords.

17. The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the looped upper is formed in an intertwined pattern at a plurality of slippable interfaces positioned away from the sole.

18. The footwear article of claim 15, further comprising a bootie at least partially enclosed by the structure.