Method of knitting a gusseted tongue for a knitted component
First Claim
1. A knitted component for an article of footwear, the knitted component comprising:
- a knit element defining an upper of the article of footwear, the upper including a portion of an exterior surface of the knit element and an opposite interior surface of the knit element, the interior surface configured to define a void for receiving a foot;
a gusseted tongue formed of unitary knit construction with the knit element and extending through a portion of an instep area of the upper;
the knit element including a lateral inner edge and an opposite medial inner edge extending through the portion of the instep area of the upper, the lateral inner edge and the medial inner edge being spaced apart by a gap;
wherein at least a portion of the knit element including the lateral inner edge and the medial inner edge overlaps a lateral side edge and a medial side edge of the gusseted tongue along opposite sides of the instep area, the lateral side edge and the medial side edge remaining unsecured to the knit element from a top end of the gusseted tongue to a forward portion of the instep area of the upper;
wherein the gusseted tongue is joined to the knit element at the forward portion of the instep area across a width of the gusseted tongue; and
wherein the lateral side edge and the medial side edge of the gusseted tongue are secured to the knit element along the forward portion of the instep area of the upper so as to form the knitted component as a one-piece element.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A knitted component including a knit element and a gusseted tongue is incorporated into an upper of an article of footwear. The knit element defines a portion of an exterior surface of the upper and an opposite interior surface of the upper, with the interior surface defining a void for receiving a foot. The knit element and the gusseted tongue are formed together as a knitted component during a knitting process as a one-piece element. The gusseted tongue is formed of unitary knit construction with the knit element and is joined with the knit element in an instep area of the upper. The knitting process includes steps of forming portions of the knitted component, transferring portions of the knitted component to opposite needle beds, shifting needle beds along a lateral direction to cause portions to overlap, and joining the overlapped portions by knitting to form the gusseted tongue.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. A knitted component for an article of footwear, the knitted component comprising:
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a knit element defining an upper of the article of footwear, the upper including a portion of an exterior surface of the knit element and an opposite interior surface of the knit element, the interior surface configured to define a void for receiving a foot; a gusseted tongue formed of unitary knit construction with the knit element and extending through a portion of an instep area of the upper; the knit element including a lateral inner edge and an opposite medial inner edge extending through the portion of the instep area of the upper, the lateral inner edge and the medial inner edge being spaced apart by a gap; wherein at least a portion of the knit element including the lateral inner edge and the medial inner edge overlaps a lateral side edge and a medial side edge of the gusseted tongue along opposite sides of the instep area, the lateral side edge and the medial side edge remaining unsecured to the knit element from a top end of the gusseted tongue to a forward portion of the instep area of the upper; wherein the gusseted tongue is joined to the knit element at the forward portion of the instep area across a width of the gusseted tongue; and wherein the lateral side edge and the medial side edge of the gusseted tongue are secured to the knit element along the forward portion of the instep area of the upper so as to form the knitted component as a one-piece element. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
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Specification