Article of footwear with soil-shedding performance

• US 10,405,604 B2
• Filed: 08/27/2015
• Issued: 09/10/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/27/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Inventors: Dyer, Caleb W., Wright, Zachary C., Walker, Jeremy D., Maurer, Myron, Schiller, Denis, Baghdadi, Hossein A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Higgins, Gerard
• Application Number:
  US15/506,150
• Publication Number:
  US 20170238654A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,475 Days
• 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 13/141 with a part of the sole being flexible, e.g. permitting articulation or torsion
• 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 13/223 Profiled soles
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 5/02 Football boots or shoes, i.e. for soccer, football or rugby
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 7/12 Special watertight footwear overshoes A43B3/16
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 7/125 provided with a vapour permeable member, e.g. a membrane A43B23/022 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 9/12 Stuck or cemented footwear
• CPC Class Codes: A43C 15/161 characterised by the attachment to the sole
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 3/10 characterised by a discontinuous layer, i.e. formed of separate pieces of material
• 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 articles of footwear (100) and components thereof, including outsoles (112), which can be used in conditions normally conducive to the accumulation of soil on the outsoles (112). In particular, the disclosure relates to articles of footwear (100) and components thereof including an outsole (112) with a material (116) including a polymeric network formed of a plurality of polymer chains, where the material (116) defines external ground-facing surface or side of the outsole (112). The outsoles (112) can prevent or reduce the accumulation of soil on the footwear (100) during wear on unpaved surfaces such as sporting fields.

Claims

1. An outsole for an article of footwear, the outsole comprising:

a first surface of the outsole configured to be ground-facing; and

a second surface of the outsole opposing the first surface, the second surface of the outsole configured to be secured to an upper for an article of footwear;

wherein the outsole comprises a material defining at least a portion of the first surface, and the material comprises a crosslinked polymeric network, wherein the crosslinked polymeric network comprises crystalline regions and amorphous hydrophilic regions, and wherein the crystalline regions are covalently bonded to the amorphous hydrophilic regions, wherein the amorphous hydrophilic regions are present in the crosslinked polymeric network at a ratio of at least 20;

1 by weigh relative to the crystalline regions, and wherein the outsole comprises one or more traction elements on the first surface.

2. The outsole of claim 1, wherein the amorphous hydrophilic regions are covalently bonded to the crystalline regions through carbamate linkages.

3. The outsole of claim 1, wherein a ratio of the amorphous hydrophilic regions to the crystalline regions ranges from 20:

1 to 110;

1 by weight.

4. The outsole of claim 1, wherein the crosslinked polymeric network is a physically crosslinked polymer network.

5. The outsole of claim 1, wherein the crosslinked polymeric network includes carbamate linkages.

6. The outsole of claim 1, wherein each of the one or more traction elements comprises a terminal edge, and wherein the material is not present on the terminal edges of any of the one or more traction elements.

7. The outsole 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.

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

9. The outsole of claim 1, wherein the traction elements are removable traction elements.

10. An article of footwear comprising the outsole of claim 1 and an upper for an article of footwear secured to the second surface of the outsole.

11. The article of footwear of claim 10, wherein each of the one or more traction elements comprises a terminal edge, and wherein the material is not present on the terminal edges of any of the one or more traction elements.

12. The article of footwear of claim 10, wherein one or more of the traction elements is selected from the group consisting of:

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

13. The article of footwear of claim 10, wherein the traction elements are integrally formed with the outsole.

14. The article of footwear of claim 10, wherein the traction elements are removable traction elements.

15. A method of manufacturing an article of footwear, the method comprising:

providing an outsole according to claim 1, providing an upper; and

securing the outsole and the upper to each other such that the material defines a ground-facing surface of the article of footwear.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the material is a thermoplastic material, wherein the outsole further comprises a backing substrate, and wherein the material is secured to the backing substrate by co-extruding the material and the backing substrate.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein each of the one or more traction elements comprises a terminal edge, and wherein the material is not present on the terminal edges of any of the one or more traction elements.

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

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

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the traction elements are integrally formed with the outsole.

20. The method of claim 15, wherein the traction elements are removable traction elements.