The present disclosure relates to footwear and, more particularly, relates to an article of footwear with a fluid bladder extending between a sole assembly and an upper thereof.
Articles of footwear can include an upper, a midsole, and an outsole. The upper can include layers or sections of material that wrap about a substantial portion of the superior, anterior, posterior, medial and lateral portions of the wearer's foot. The upper can also include laces, straps, or the like for securing the footwear to the wearer's foot. The outsole can be a unitary piece of relatively high-friction material that provides traction for the footwear. Also, the midsole can include foam that is disposed between the outsole and the upper for providing cushioned support for the wearer.
In some cases, footwear can additionally include a bladder that contains a fluid, such as a gas or gel. The bladder can be embedded within the midsole, and weight of the wearer and other loading on the bladder can cause the fluid to displace within the bladder. As such, the bladder can resiliently deform and conform to the wearer's foot in order to provide better support and comfort than some midsoles made entirely out of foam. Also, some bladders can be included within the upper, and the bladder can help the upper to fit more snugly against the wearer's foot for greater comfort. These bladders within the upper can also provide a degree of cushioning for the wearer.
Although conventional footwear with bladders have been adequate for their intended purposes, they do suffer from certain disadvantages. Bladders that extend through only a localized portion of the footwear may not sufficiently support the wearer's foot. For instance, the foot may shift laterally within the footwear, and the foot may apply pressure to the footwear at locations that are spaced away from the bladder. As such, the bladder may not provide sufficient support and comfort for the wearer.
Accordingly, despite the improvements of known devices described above, there remains a need for an article of footwear that includes an upper that secures the article of footwear to a wearer. The upper has an anterior area, a posterior area, a medial area extending between the anterior and posterior areas, and a lateral area extending between the anterior and posterior areas and that is opposite the medial area. The article of footwear also includes a sole assembly operatively coupled to the upper. Furthermore, the article of footwear includes a bladder that contains a fluid. The bladder has a base operably supported by the sole assembly, an anterior portion that extends from the base toward the anterior area of the upper, a posterior portion that extends from the base toward the posterior area of the upper, a medial portion that extends from the base toward the medial area of the upper, and a lateral portion that extends from the base toward the lateral area of the upper. The anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral portions are operably supported by the upper.
An article of footwear is also disclosed that includes an upper for securing the article of footwear to a wearer. The upper includes a medial area, a lateral area opposite the medial area, and a superior forefoot area extending between the medial and lateral areas. The article of footwear also includes a sole assembly operatively coupled to the upper. Moreover, the article of footwear includes a bladder that contains a fluid. The bladder has a base operably supported by the sole assembly. The bladder also includes a medial portion operatively supported by the upper and extending from the base, through the medial area, and along the superior forefoot area. Furthermore, the bladder includes a lateral portion operably supported by the upper and extending from the base, through the lateral area, and along the superior forefoot area.
In still another aspect, an article of footwear is disclosed that includes an upper for securing the article of footwear to a wearer. The upper includes an anterior area, a posterior area, a medial area extending between the anterior and posterior areas, a lateral area extending between the anterior and posterior areas and that is opposite the medial area, and a superior forefoot area extending between the medial and lateral areas. The article of footwear also includes a sole assembly operatively coupled to the upper. In addition, the article of footwear includes a bladder that is embedded within both the upper and the sole assembly. The bladder contains a fluid, and the bladder has a base operably supported by the sole assembly and a plurality of ribs that radiate from the base. The base includes a plurality of through holes. Also, the plurality of ribs include an anterior rib that extends from the base, through the anterior area, and along the superior forefoot area. The plurality of ribs further include a plurality of posterior ribs that each extend from the base and toward the posterior area. Also, the plurality of ribs include a plurality of medial ribs that each extend from the base and toward the medial area. Moreover, the plurality of ribs include a plurality of lateral ribs that each extend from the base and toward the lateral area. The anterior, posterior, medial and lateral ribs are operably supported by the upper, and the anterior, posterior, medial and lateral ribs are in fluid communication with the base.
This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not a comprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features. Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the description provided herein. The description and specific examples in this summary are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only of selected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.
Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawings.
Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Referring initially to
As shown in
The article of footwear 10 can further include a sole assembly 24. The sole assembly 24 can be operatively coupled to the upper 12 and can extend between the anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral areas 14, 16, 18, 20. The sole assembly 24 can include an outsole 26 and a midsole 28. The outsole 26 can include a layer of material made of relatively high-friction material and can include various grooves, recesses, projections, indentations, or other features for improving traction of the footwear 10. Moreover, the midsole 28 can include a foam material that is disposed between the outsole 26 and the upper 12. The midsole 28 can provide cushioned support of the sole of the wearer's foot. In addition, the outsole 26 can be secured to the midsole 28 and/or the upper 12 in any suitable fashion, such as adhesives, stitching, and the like.
The article of footwear 10 can additionally include a bladder 30, which is shown in phantom in
The bladder 30 can generally include a base 32, which can be embedded within the midsole 28. The bladder 30 can further include an anterior portion 34, a posterior portion 36, a medial portion 38 and a lateral portion 40. Each of the anterior, posterior, medial and lateral portions 34, 36, 38, 40 can extend and radiate from the periphery of the base and can wrap up and into the upper 12 as will be discussed. The anterior, posterior, medial and lateral portions 34, 36, 38, 40 can be embedded and operably supported by the upper 12. For instance, the upper 12 can include at least two layers of material (i.e., inner and outer layers) that cooperate to encase the anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral portions 34, 36, 38, 40 of the bladder 30. In other embodiments, the anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral portions 34, 36, 38, 40 can be exposed from the upper 12.
The base 32 of the bladder 30 can be in fluid communication with one or more of the anterior, posterior, medial, and lateral portions 34, 36, 38, 40 of the bladder 30. As such, fluid within the bladder can flow between the base 32 and the various portions 34, 36, 38, 40 of the bladder 30. Accordingly, the bladder 30 can provide cushioned support for the wearer by resiliently deflecting from the weight loads and other loads of the wearer.
Referring now to
It will be appreciated that the base 32 of the bladder 30 can have any suitable shape. Furthermore, the base 32 can be substantially continuous instead of including the holes 42, 44a-44f, 46, 48 of the exemplary embodiments shown in
Furthermore, the anterior portion 34 of the bladder 30 can include an anterior rib 50, as shown in
The posterior portion 36 of the bladder 30 can include a posterior rib 52. As shown in
Still further, the medial portion 38 of the bladder 30 can include a plurality of forward ribs 62a, 62b, 62c, as shown in
The medial portion 38 can also include a plurality of rearward ribs 64a, 64b. Each of the rearward ribs 64a, 64b can be elongate and can be non-linear in plan view (
Also, the medial portion 38 can include a central rib 66. The central rib 66 can be substantially wider than the forward and rearward ribs 62a, 62b, 62c, 64a, 64b. Also, the central rib 66 can include a plurality of branches 68a, 68b, 68c, 68d that extend either toward the anterior portion 34 or the posterior portion 36 of the bladder 30. Moreover, the central rib 66 can include a central hole 70 (
The lateral portion 40 of the bladder 30 can include a plurality of forward ribs 72a, 72b, 72c, as shown in
The lateral portion 40 can also include a plurality of rearward ribs 74a, 74b. Each of the rearward ribs 74a, 74b can be elongate and can be non-linear in plan view (
Also, the lateral portion 40 can include a central rib 76. The central rib 76 can be substantially wider than the forward and rearward ribs 72a, 72b, 72c, 74a, 74b. Also, the central rib 76 can include a plurality of branches 78a, 78b, 78c, 78d that extend either toward the anterior portion 34 or the posterior portion 36 of the bladder 30. The forward rib 72c can be joined to the branch 78a of the central rib 76 as shown in
As shown in
Accordingly, the bladder 30 of the article of footwear 10 can wrap around and cradle the foot of the wearer. This is because the bladder 30 extends about and cushions a substantial part of the foot. However, the bladder 30 is unlikely to increase the weight of the footwear 10 because it is fluid-filled and because it includes elongate ribs 62a-62c, 64a-64b, 66, 72a-72c, 74a, 74b, 76. Accordingly, the footwear 10 can provide improved fit, comfort, and support of the foot.
Referring now to
As shown in
Referring now to
As shown, the bladder 230 can include an attachment device 294. The attachment device 294 can be a thread, rope, bungee cord, rigid cord, or any other suitable type. Also, the bladder 230 can include a plurality of holes 295 included at respective ends of the ribs 250, 252, 262a-262c, 264a, 264b, 266, 272a-272c, 274a-274b, 276 of the bladder 230. The attachment device 294 can be threaded through the plurality of holes 295 to thereby maintain the ribs 250, 252, 262a-262c, 264a, 264b, 266, 272a-272c, 274a-274b, 276 wrapped around the foot of the wearer. Accordingly, the attachment device 294 can maintain the bladder 230 in position against the foot to ensure proper support and fit. Also, in some embodiments, the attachment device 294 can facilitate manufacturing of the article of footwear 210 because the bladder 230 is held in a desired shape while the footwear 210 is assembled.
The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention. Individual elements or features of a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particular embodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be used in a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described. The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the invention, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of the invention.
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