Anti-Stretch Treatment Of Leather For Articles Of Footwear

• US 20140202034A1
• Filed: 01/23/2013
• Published: 07/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/23/2013
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nike, Inc.
• Inventors: VanAtta, Dylan S.
• Application Number:
  US13/747,536
• Publication Number:
  US 20140202034A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 36/84
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0215 Plastics or artificial leather
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0245 characterised by the constructive form
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0255 assembled by gluing or thermo bonding
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0265 having different properties in different directions
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/04 Uppers made of one piece; Uppers with inserted gussets

Abstract

An anti-stretch treatment of natural leather or suede materials for articles of footwear is provided. The anti-stretch treatment is used to prevent or reduce the degree or amount of variation in stretch property of an upper or vamp of articles of footwear. The anti-stretch treatment includes a plurality of welds in the material of the upper that provide resistance to stretching along a longitudinal direction, a lateral direction, or both, that assists with preventing or reducing stretching out of the upper of an article of footwear or otherwise losing shape or form.

Claims

1. An article of footwear comprising:

an upper, the upper being made of a natural leather or suede material;

the upper including a vamp portion disposed across a midfoot region of the article; and

an anti-stretch treatment disposed across at least a portion of the vamp portion;

wherein the anti-stretch treatment comprises a plurality of welds in the material of the upper.

2. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of welds includes at least one weld that is disposed across the upper in a generally lateral direction.

3. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of welds includes at least one weld that is disposed across the upper in a generally longitudinal direction.

4. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the anti-stretch treatment includes a first group of welds and a second group of welds;

and

wherein the first group of welds and the second group of welds are disposed in different directions across the upper.

5. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the anti-stretch treatment extends along the vamp portion of the upper from at least a top end portion of the upper adjacent to an entry hole for a foot in a direction towards a toe end portion of the upper disposed in a forefoot region of the article.

6. The article of footwear according to claim 5, wherein the anti-stretch treatment further includes at least one weld disposed on the upper adjacent to the toe end portion of the upper in the forefoot region.

7. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment have an approximately uniform spacing between each of the welds.

8. An article of footwear comprising:

an upper made of a natural leather or suede material;

the upper including a vamp portion disposed across a midfoot region of the article; and

an anti-stretch treatment comprising a plurality of welds in the upper disposed across at least a portion of the vamp portion;

wherein the upper is associated with a first width across the vamp portion between a midfoot lateral edge and a midfoot medial edge when the article is in an unstretched configuration;

wherein the upper is associated with a second width across the vamp portion between the midfoot lateral edge and the midfoot medial edge when the article is in a stretched configuration; and

the first width being approximately equal to the second width.

9. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment are disposed on the vamp portion between the midfoot lateral edge and the midfoot medial edge.

10. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the anti-stretch treatment is configured to resist stretching of the upper along at least one of a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction.

11. The article of footwear according to claim 10, wherein the anti-stretch treatment is configured to resist stretching of the upper along both of the longitudinal direction and the lateral direction.

12. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment are disposed in a curved arrangement across the vamp portion of the upper.

13. The article of footwear according to claim 12, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment have an approximately uniform spacing between each of the welds.

14. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the anti-stretch treatment includes a first group of welds and a second group of welds;

and

wherein the first group of welds and the second group of welds are disposed in different directions across the upper.

15. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the article of footwear further includes a plurality of tensile strand elements disposed along at least one of a lateral side and a medial side of the upper adjacent to the anti-stretch treatment.

16. A method of providing a resistance to stretching to an article of footwear having an upper made of natural leather or suede materials, the method comprising:

welding a portion of the material of the upper across a vamp portion of the upper to form a plurality of welds in the material;

wherein the plurality of welds in the material form an anti-stretch treatment that is disposed across a generally lateral direction of the upper; and

wherein the anti-stretch treatment provides resistance to stretching in the lateral direction to the upper.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising:

welding a first group of welds across the vamp portion of the upper in the generally lateral direction; and

welding a second group of welds across the vamp portion of the upper in a generally longitudinal direction.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein the second group of welds are configured to provide resistance to stretching in the longitudinal direction of the upper.

19. The method according to claim 16, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment are disposed in a curved arrangement across the vamp portion of the upper.

20. The method according to claim 16, wherein the plurality of welds of the anti-stretch treatment have an approximately uniform spacing between each of the welds.