Article of footwear having a fluid-filled bladder with a reinforcing structure

• US 20060137221A1
• Filed: 10/14/2005
• Published: 06/29/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Inventors: Foxen, Thomas, Dojan, Frederick J., Aveni, Michael A., Lindner, Troy C., Holt, Scott C., Pisciotta, Jeffrey C.
• Granted Patent: US 7,562,469 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 36/29
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/146 Concave end portions, e.g. with a cavity or cut-out portion
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/20 Pneumatic soles filled with a compressible fluid, e.g. air, gas inflatable linings for skiboots A43B5/0407
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 13/223 Profiled soles
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 15/00 Welts for footwear
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 21/28 Pneumatic heels filled with a compressible fluid, e.g. air, gas
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 35/122 Soles

Abstract

A sole component and a method of manufacturing the sole component are disclosed. In general, the sole component includes a fluid-filled bladder and a reinforcing structure extending around the bladder. The reinforcing structure is bonded to the exterior of the bladder, and may be recessed into the bladder. In some embodiments, the reinforcing structure extends along the side surfaces of the bladder and between upper and lower surfaces of bladder. In manufacturing the sole component, the reinforcing structure may be located within a mold, and the polymer material forming the bladder may be bonded to the reinforcing structure during the molding process.

Claims

1. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having at least a first surface and an opposite second surface;

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the barrier; and

a supplemental layer bonded to the second surface.

2. The article of footwear recited in claim 1, wherein a material of the supplemental layer is the same as a material of the barrier.

3. The article of footwear recited in claim 1, wherein the first surface is positioned proximal the upper and the second surface faces away from the upper.

4. The article of footwear recited in claim 1, wherein the first surface defines various contours extending into an interior area of the bladder, the polymer layer extending across the contours and to be absent from the interior area.

5. The article of footwear recited in claim 1, wherein the bladder includes a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface.

6. The article of footwear recited in claim 5, wherein the reinforcing structure is recessed into the sidewall and extends at least partially between the first surface and the second surface.

7. The article of footwear recited in claim 1, further including an outsole secured to at least one of the second surface and the supplemental layer.

8. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a polymer barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having at least a first surface, an opposite second surface, and a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface, the first surface being bonded to the second surface to define a plurality of interior bonds spaced inward from the sidewall, the interior bonds including an inclined bond that is sloped with respect to a plane of the first surface; and

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the barrier material.

9. The article of footwear recited in claim 8, wherein the inclined bond includes an upper portion that is positioned proximal the first surface, and the inclined bond includes a lower portion that is positioned away from the first surface, the upper portion being closer to the sidewall than the lower portion.

10. The article of footwear recited in claim 9, wherein the inclined bond is positioned adjacent a medial side of the footwear.

11. The article of footwear recited in claim 9, wherein the inclined bond is positioned adjacent a lateral side of the footwear.

12. The article of footwear recited in claim 8, wherein the interior bonds include another inclined bond, the inclined bond being positioned adjacent a medial side of the footwear, and the another inclined bond being positioned adjacent a lateral side of the footwear.

13. The article of footwear recited in claim 12, wherein each of the inclined bond and the another inclined bond have a downward slope oriented toward a central area of the bladder.

14. The article of footwear recited in claim 8, wherein the reinforcing structure is recessed into the sidewall and extends at least partially between the first surface and the second surface.

15. A method for manufacturing a sole component of an article of footwear, the method comprising steps of:

forming an unpressurized bladder having a first surface and an opposite second surface, at least a portion of the second surface having a concave configuration;

recessing a reinforcing structure into the bladder and bonding the reinforcing structure to the bladder; and

pressurizing the bladder to extend the second surface from the concave configuration to a substantially planar configuration.

16. The method recited in claim 15, wherein the step of forming includes defining a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface.

17. The method recited in claim 16, wherein the step of recessing includes securing at least a portion of the reinforcing structure to the sidewall.

18. The method recited in claim 16, further including a step of bonding the first surface to the second surface to form a plurality of interior bonds spaced inward from the sidewall.

19. The method recited in claim 18, wherein the step of bonding includes orienting at least one of the interior bonds to be sloped relative to a plane of the first surface.

20. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having a first surface, an opposite second surface, and a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface; and

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the sidewall, the reinforcing structure having a first portion formed from a first material, and the reinforcing structure having a second portion formed from a second material, the first material having a lesser stiffness than the second material.

21. The article of footwear recited in claim 20, wherein the first portion is positioned adjacent the first surface and the second portion is positioned adjacent the second surface.

22. The article of footwear recited in claim 20, wherein the first portion is at least partially positioned on a lateral side of the bladder and the second portion is positioned on a medial side of the bladder.

23. The article of footwear recited in claim 20, wherein the reinforcing structure includes an upper portion positioned adjacent the first surface, a lower portion positioned adjacent the second surface, and a plurality of connecting portions extending between the upper portion and the lower portion.

24. The article of footwear recited in claim 23, wherein the upper portion is formed from the first material and the lower portion is formed from the second material.

25. The article of footwear recited in claim 23, wherein the upper portion is formed from both the first material and the second material, the first material being located on a lateral side of the bladder, and the second material being positioned on a medial side of the bladder.

26. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having a first surface, an opposite second surface, and a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface; and

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the sidewall, the reinforcing structure having an upper portion positioned adjacent the first surface, a lower portion positioned adjacent the second surface, and a plurality of connecting portions extending between the upper portion and the lower portion, the connecting portions including at least a first connecting portion and a second connecting portion with different dimensions.

27. The article of footwear recited in claim 26, wherein the first connecting portion is located on a medial side of the bladder, and the second connecting portion is located on a lateral side of the bladder, the first connecting portion having a greater thickness than the second connecting portion.

28. The article of footwear recited in claim 26, wherein the first connecting portion is located on a medial side of the bladder, and the second connecting portion is located on a lateral side of the bladder, the first connecting portion having a greater width than the second connecting portion.

29. The article of footwear recited in claim 26, wherein the first connecting portion is located behind the second connecting portion.

30. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a polymer barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having at least a first surface positioned adjacent the upper, an opposite second surface, and a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface;

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the barrier material; and

an outsole secured to the second surface, at least one side portion of the outsole extending onto and being bonded to the sidewall.

31. The article of footwear recited in claim 30, wherein the sidewall defines an indented area adjacent the second surface, and the side portion of the outsole extends into the indented area.

32. The article of footwear recited in claim 31, wherein an exterior surface of the reinforcing structure is flush with an exterior surface of the outsole.

33. The article of footwear recited in claim 31, wherein a portion of the indented area is located in a forefoot region of the footwear.

34. The article of footwear recited in claim 31, wherein a portion of the indented area is located in a heel region of the footwear.

35. The article of footwear recited in claim 31, wherein a portion of the indented area is located on both a medial side and a lateral side of the footwear.

36. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having at least a first surface and an opposite second surface; and

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the barrier, the bladder and reinforcing structure being located in a heel region of the footwear, and the bladder forming a tapered area in a midfoot region of the footwear, the first surface approaching the second surface to decrease a thickness of the bladder in the tapered area.

37. The article of footwear recited in claim 36, wherein the tapered area interfaces with a foam element, the foam element extending from the tapered area to a forefoot region of the footwear.

38. The article of footwear recited in claim 36, wherein a portion of the foam element extends above the tapered area and contacts the first surface.

39. An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the sole structure comprising:

a bladder formed from a polymer barrier that encloses a pressurized fluid, the bladder having at least a first surface positioned adjacent the upper, an opposite second surface, and a sidewall extending between the first surface and the second surface;

a reinforcing structure secured to an exterior of the bladder and at least partially recessed into the barrier material; and

an outsole secured to the second surface, the outsole including a first portion and a second portion, the first portion being formed of a first material and located in a heel region of the footwear, and the second portion being formed of a second material, the first material having greater stiffness than the second material.

40. The article of footwear recited in claim 39, wherein the firs portion has a U-shaped configuration.