OUTER SOLE HAVING RESILIENT MID-SOLE WITH FLOATING HINGES
First Claim
1. An outer sole comprising:
- an upper sole;
a tread layer disposed below the upper sole; and
a resilient mid-sole disposed between the upper sole and the tread layer and being configured to resist compression under load, the mid-sole comprising at least one floating hinge extending transversely to a longitudinal axis of the sole, each said floating hinge including an upper resilient convex leaf spring, a lower resilient convex leaf spring, and a U-spring joining the leaf springs together, each said leaf spring having a root and a head opposite the root, each said U-spring having a pair of integrally-formed legs, each said upper leaf spring being integrally formed at the root thereof with the upper sole, each said lower leaf spring being integrally formed at the root thereof with the tread layer, the leaf springs of each said floating hinge being integrally joined at their respective heads to a respective one of the legs of the associated U-spring.
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
An outer sole includes an upper sole, a tread layer disposed below the upper sole, and a resilient mid-sol disposed between the upper sole and the tread layer. The mid-sole resists compression under load, and comprises at least one floating hinge extending transversely to the longitudinal axis of the sole. Each floating hinge includes an upper resilient convex leaf spring, a lower resilient convex leaf spring, and a U-spring joining the leaf springs together. Each leaf spring has a root and a head opposite the root. Each U-spring has a pair of integrally-formed legs, each upper leaf spring is integrally formed at the root thereof with the upper sole, and each lower leaf spring is integrally formed at the root thereof with the tread layer. The leaf springs of each floating hinge are integrally joined at their heads to one of the legs of the associated U-spring.
-
Citations
16 Claims
-
1. An outer sole comprising:
-
an upper sole; a tread layer disposed below the upper sole; and a resilient mid-sole disposed between the upper sole and the tread layer and being configured to resist compression under load, the mid-sole comprising at least one floating hinge extending transversely to a longitudinal axis of the sole, each said floating hinge including an upper resilient convex leaf spring, a lower resilient convex leaf spring, and a U-spring joining the leaf springs together, each said leaf spring having a root and a head opposite the root, each said U-spring having a pair of integrally-formed legs, each said upper leaf spring being integrally formed at the root thereof with the upper sole, each said lower leaf spring being integrally formed at the root thereof with the tread layer, the leaf springs of each said floating hinge being integrally joined at their respective heads to a respective one of the legs of the associated U-spring. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16)
-
Specification