Sports shoe for activities which involve kicking a ball

• US 5,437,112 A
• Filed: 02/16/1993
• Issued: 08/01/1995
• Est. Priority Date: 06/19/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Adidas International BV (Adidas AG)
• Original Assignee: Zermatt Holdings Limited
• Inventors: Johnston, Craig
• Primary Examiner(s): Sewell, Paul T.
• Assistant Examiner(s): DAYOAN, BETHANNE CAROLINE
• Application Number:
  US07/969,196
• Time in Patent Office: 896 Days
• Field of Search: 36/133, 36/128
• US Class Current: 36/128
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/02 Uppers; Boot legs
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/0235 Different layers of different material
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 23/029 Pneumatic upper, e.g. gas filled
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 5/02 Football boots or shoes, i.e. for soccer, football or rugby
• CPC Class Codes: A43B 5/025 characterised by an element which improves the contact between the ball and the footwear
• CPC Class Codes: A43D 999/00 Subject matter not provided for in other groups of this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: B29D 35/146 Uppers

Abstract

A football boot (10) comprises an upper (12) formed with a ball contact surface (24) which is resilient. The ball contact surface may be generally flat and/or concave and provided with a plurality of formations formed of an elastomeric material, wherein the ball contact surface (24) and/or the formations are deformable upon contact with a ball. The boot allows a player to have greater ball control and execute more powerful and accurate kicks than with a conventional boot.

Claims

1. A sports shoe for activities which involve kicking a ball, the sports shoe having an upper and a sole both having a longitudinal extension, wherein at least one preferred ball contact surface region of an outer surface of said upper is provided with a plurality of resiliently deformable strip formations spaced longitudinally apart from each other and arranged in a substantially parallel relation to each other and extending over said upper transversely with respect to said longitudinal extension, each strip formation having a free edge forming a crest of the strip formation and a lower edge extending oppositely therefrom so as to merge into the upper of the shoe thereby providing a strip formation having a substantially triangular cross-section over substantially the entire length of said strip formation and wherein at least one of the strip formations includes a plurality of slits therein which extend substantially in parallel to said longitudinal extension and which divide said crest of each strip formation into separately deformable strip formation portions, thereby providing an improved gripping surface when contacting a ball.

2. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the strip formations are in the form of a plurality of bars.

3. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the cross section of each strip formation has an asymmetric triangular configuration such that a base of the triangle is connected with the upper and a free edge is displaced, with respect to said base, toward a tip of the shoe.

4. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the upper includes lacing and in that strip formations provided on lateral regions of the shoe upper extend between adjacent sections of the lacing.

5. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one of said ball contact surface regions is provided with a resilient pad and said strip formations are formed on the pad.

6. A sports shoe according to claim 5, characterized in that the resilient pad is a cellular material including voids filled with one of gas and air.

7. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one of said ball contact surface regions is generally flat.

8. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one of said ball contact surface regions is generally concave.

9. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one of said ball contact surface regions is partly flat and partly concave.

10. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that an upwardly facing ball contact surface region provided at a top surface of the shoe upper is generally parallel to the sole of the shoe.

11. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that a sidewardly facing ball contact surface region provided at a side of the shoe upper is generally perpendicular to the sole of the shoe.

12. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the material of the resiliently deformable formations comprises at least one of styrenebutadiene, polyurethanes and rubbers.

13. A sports shoe according to claim 12, characterized in that the material of the resiliently deformable formations is moulded onto a lining.

14. A sports shoe according to claim 13, characterized in that the lining is one of leather and a like porous material and forms said upper of the shoe.

15. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the material forming the resiliently deformable strip formations comprises styrene and butadiene.

16. A sports shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the crest of the strip formations are a substantially constant thickness above the surface of the upper.

17. A sports shoe as defined in claim 1, wherein the strip formations comprise a moulding, the moulding including means for securing said moulding to the upper of the sports shoe.