Patent Application
20120189803
The present invention relates to a compressible/resilient structure for various uses such as, for example, athletic shoes, regular shoes, boots, floor carpets, carpet pads, sports floors etc. The structure itself can be the final product or the structure can be a component of another structure. Uses envisioned include, but are not limited to: automobile parts and other composites; flooring; subfloors especially in gymnasiums or other sports arenas; press pads; ballistic cloth such as body armor or hurricane window protection; sporting equipment padding such as baseball catcher chest protectors; knee/elbow pads for runners, racers, skaters, volleyball players; cricket shin/knee pads; football hip pads; wall padding in stadiums, gymnasiums, arenas; shoe inserts (orthotics); heels/soles for athletic shoes e.g. running shoes; cushioning layer for bedding, vehicle seats, pillows; and other industrial uses where through thickness compressibility and resiliency is required.
While composites are usually a fiber reinforced resin matrix that is rigid and incompressible in all dimensions, certain uses such as for automobile bumpers require some flexibility and shock absorbing capability, plus the ability to return to the original shape once an impact force is removed. A bumper with the inventive structure as a layer, the structure layer free of resin in its interior to allow movement as desired, is an improvement over that currently used.
U.S. application No. 2007/0202314, PCT application WO 2007/067949 and U.S. application No. 2007/0194490 are examples where “crossless” structures are used as the substrate. Substitution of the present invention for at least some of these layers, the inventive layers not impregnated with resin to allow through thickness compression and spring back, results in an improved structure.
The present invention can also be used as shoe inserts or orthotic inserts, which are usually molded solid resin. Incorporation of a layer of the present invention improves the cushioning effect thereof. Soles/heels for sports shoes are usually solid viscoelastomeric materials, and some attempts to improve “cushioning” have been to mold in for example “air channels or pockets.” However, the rigidity of the molded material is such that cushioning effects are limited. Incorporation of the present invention as a layer in the cast structure, free of “resin” to allow movement, substantially improves the cushioning effect of running/athletic shoes.
Therefore, it would be an advancement in the state of the “pad-making” art to provide a pad that provides excellent elastic behavior under load with high through thickness recovery.
The present invention is a ‘shock-absorbing pad’ that utilizes a unique structure which provides extremely elastic behavior under load with high through thickness recovery. The instant structure utilizes an elastic media, which allows the entire structure to ‘collapse’ into itself based primarily upon the elasticity of this media and the structure to conform under pressure, and to rebound to its initial uncompressed thickness, thus allowing this unique behavior.
An object of the invention is to provide a structure that has improved recovery characteristics over memory foams, gels, spring systems, etc.
Another object of the invention is to form a smooth and uniform surface over the pad in order to improve support for the shoe and the foot.
Yet another object of the invention is to form a ‘planar,’ crossless structure of yarns with improved support of the carpet/sport floor/floor material.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide excellent retention of the recovery/dampening characteristics by utilizing the elastic material's ‘full’ recovery within the structure, as opposed to straight compression of materials. This is achieved due to the structure providing support between the sections of the elastic material, which avoids ‘overstressing’ the material, keeping it ‘alive’ and resulting in a longer useful lifetime.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide excellent resistance to moisture damage or problems due to water holding in certain applications due to the self-cleaning effect due to compression and subsequent recovery.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide an excellent compression recovery versus weight ratio, allowing significant dampening capability with light weight structures.
Yet another object of the invention is to provide excellent ‘breathability’ of the shock absorbing structure, allowing perspiration and other moisture to evaporate and/or be removed during the compression phase.
Accordingly, one embodiment of the invention is an ultra-resilient pad for use in sports shoes, running shoes, regular shoes, boots etc. The invention according to another embodiment is an ultra-resilient ‘carpet pad’ for use in floor carpets, sports floor, floor coverings etc. An elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet that is defined as elastic, compressible, and resilient in its thickness direction, and extensible, bendable, and ultra-resilient in its length and transverse directions is required for all the embodiments discussed herein. The elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet can optionally be perforated so as to have a plurality of through holes distributed in a predetermined symmetric pattern or in a random asymmetric pattern. The elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet can be composed of any elastic material, such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or any other elastic material. Examples of good elastic materials include, but are not limited to, polymers such as polyurethane, rubber, silicone or that sold under trademarks Lycra® by Invista or Estane® by Lubrizol. The through holes formed in the elastic nonwoven film or sheet may have a suitably sized circular or non-circular shape. The non-circular shapes may include, but are not limited to, square, rectangular, triangular, elliptical, trapezoidal, hexagonal and other polygonal shapes.
A first embodiment employs a structure in its simplest form described as follows. Layer (1), which is the uppermost layer, is an array of parallel yarns, including any type of yarn as known by ordinarily skilled artisans, although polyamide would be a desired polymer choice. These yarns can be of any size, shape, material or form as required for the particular application known to those skilled in the art, for example, they can have a circular or non-circular cross-sectional shape including, but not limited to, square, rectangular, triangular, elliptical, trapezoidal, hexagonal and other polygonal shape. The next layer (2) is the required elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet. A third layer (3) is also a parallel array of yarns that are located on the opposite side of layer (2); however, the yarns in layer (3) are arranged such that each layer (3) yarn lines up with the space between two adjacent layer (1) yarns causing what is called “nesting.” The layers of the structure can be held together in any manner known to one of ordinary skill in the art. For instance, they can be attached using a fibrous layer, or the yarns in one layer can be attached to the elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet in an adjacent layer at the point where they touch the extruded film or sheet via use of glues, adhesives, or a thermal fusion/welding method as known to those skilled in the art.
Note yarn systems (1) and (3) can be the same as each other or they can be different in terms of material, form, shape, etc. It is only required that the yarns in layer (3) are spaced to fit between adjacent yarns of layer (1) or vice versa.
Also note there does not have to be a one to one relationship between the number of yarns of layers (1) and (3), and the number of yarns in layer (3) can be only a fraction of the number of yarns in layer (1) or vice versa. For example, layer (3) may contain only half the yarns of layer (1) so that there are spaces between the yarns of layer (3) in use.
Other functional layers can also be attached, for example by lamination, for either functionality or property enhancement of the final structure. For example, one or more cross-directional yarn arrays may be attached on top of layer (1) or under layer (3) to provide cross-directional stability. The cross-directional yarns in one layer can be attached to the surface in an adjacent layer at points where they touch each other via use of glues, adhesives, or thermal fusion/welding methods known to those skilled in the art. One or more layers of fibrous batt may be applied to this structure by methods known to those skilled in the art to enhance bonding between the layers. As a further example, a functional coating may be applied on one or both sides of the structure to improve resistance to contamination and/or abrasion, for example.
Accordingly, one exemplary embodiment of the present invention is a compressible ultra-resilient pad comprising one or more layers of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet, wherein the nonwoven extruded film or sheet is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and ultra-resilient in the length and transverse directions, and two or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel longitudinal yarns attached on either side of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet so as to allow “nesting” of the parallel longitudinal yarns from one layer between the parallel longitudinal yarns of the other layer. The pad can also include one or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns attached on the outside of the two or more layers of parallel longitudinal yarns.
Another exemplary embodiment of the present invention is a compressible ultra-resilient pad comprising (a) a first layer of a plurality of substantially parallel yarns, (b) a second layer of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet, wherein the nonwoven extruded film or sheet is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and ultra-resilient in the length and transverse directions, (c) a third layer of a plurality of substantially parallel yarns, (d) a fourth layer of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns, (e) a fifth layer of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet, (f) a sixth layer of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns, and (g) a seventh layer of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method of forming a compressible ultra-resilient pad. The method includes providing one or more layers of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet, wherein the nonwoven extruded film or sheet is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and ultra-resilient, extensible and bendable in the length and transverse directions, and attaching one or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel yarns on top of and under the nonwoven extruded film or sheet. The method can also include the step of attaching one or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns on top of or under the one or more layers of parallel longitudinal yarns.
Yet another embodiment of the present invention is a method of forming a compressible ultra-resilient pad. The method includes (a) providing a first layer of a plurality of substantially parallel longitudinal yarns, (b) attaching a second layer of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet on top of the first layer, wherein the nonwoven extruded film or sheet is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and ultra-resilient in the length and transverse directions, (c) attaching a third layer of a plurality of substantially parallel longitudinal yarns on top of the second layer, (d) applying a fourth layer of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns on top of the third layer, (e) applying a fifth layer of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet on top of the fourth layer, (f) applying a sixth layer of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-directional yarns on top of the fifth, and (g) applying a seventh layer of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet on top of the sixth layer.
In the disclosure and the embodiments herein, in the pad, the structure can be either a final product or the structure can be a component of another structure. The pad can be included in or can be a product selected from the group of products including footwear; shoes; athletic shoes; boots; flooring; carpets; carpet pads; sports floors; automobile parts; composites; subfloors; gymnasium subfloors; sports arena subfloors; press pads; ballistic cloth; body armor; hurricane window protection; padding; sporting equipment padding; baseball catcher chest protectors; knee/elbow pads; hip pads; wall padding; shoe inserts and orthotics; heels/soles for athletic shoes; a cushioning layer for bedding; and vehicle seats. The structure can also include a layer of material that allows a surface to be exchangeable; the material can be a hook and loop type surface.
In the disclosure and the embodiments herein, the layers of the structure can comprise a plurality of adjoining layers comprising the elastic material.
For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and specific objects attained by its uses, reference is made to the accompanying descriptive matter in which preferred, but non-limiting, embodiments of the invention are illustrated.
Terms “comprising” and “comprises” in this disclosure can mean “including” and “includes” or can have the meaning commonly given to the term “comprising” or “comprises” in US Patent Law. Terms “consisting essentially of” or “consists essentially of” if used in the claims have the meaning ascribed to them in U.S. Patent Law. Other aspects of the invention are described in or are obvious from (and within the ambit of the invention) the following disclosure.
Thus by the present invention its objects and advantages will be realized, the description of which should be taken in conjunction with the drawings wherein:
a)-3(c) illustrate a method of making a compressible ultra-resilient pad, according to one embodiment of the present invention;
a)-8(c) are cross-sectional views of a compressible ultra-resilient pad, according to one embodiment of the present invention; and
The invention, according to one embodiment, is a ‘shock-absorbing’ pad that utilizes a unique structure which provides extremely elastic behavior under a normal pressure load with high caliper recovery. This structure 10 utilizes an elastic media, which allows the entire structure to ‘collapse’ into itself, based upon the elasticity of this media and the base fabric structure to conform under pressure, and then recover to substantially the same original form and thickness, thus allowing a unique behavior.
One embodiment of the invention is shown in
An elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet that is defined as elastic, resilient, and compressible in its thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and resilient in its length and transverse directions is required for all the embodiments discussed herein. The elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet can optionally be perforated so as to have a plurality of through holes or voids distributed in a predetermined symmetric pattern or in a random asymmetric pattern. The elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet can be composed of any elastic material, such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or any other elastic material. Examples of good elastic materials include, but are not limited to, polymers such as polyurethane, rubber, silicone or that sold under trademarks Lycra® by Invista or Estane® by Lubrizol. The through holes formed in the nonwoven film or sheet may have a suitably sized circular or non-circular shape. The non-circular shapes may include, but are not limited to, square, rectangular, triangular, elliptical, trapezoidal, hexagonal and other polygonal shapes. Holes can be formed in the film or sheet when it is extruded, or they can be mechanically punched or thermally formed after the film or sheet is extruded.
One exemplary embodiment of the present invention is a compressible ultra-resilient pad including one or more layers of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet, wherein the nonwoven extruded film or sheet is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and resilient in the length and transverse directions, and one or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel functional longitudinal yarns attached on top of and under the nonwoven extruded film or sheet. The pad can also include one or more layers of a plurality of substantially parallel cross-direction yarns attached on the outside of the one or more layers of parallel longitudinal yarns.
Turning now more particularly to the drawings, a method of making an pad base structure 10 is shown, for example, in
A second or middle (2) layer 16 of an elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet 16 having the elastic features as aforesaid is provided. As aforementioned, the elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet 16 can optionally be perforated so as to have a plurality of through holes 15 distributed in a predetermined symmetric pattern or in a random asymmetric pattern. The elastic nonwoven extruded film or sheet 16 can be composed of any elastic material, such as thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or any other elastic material. Examples of good elastic materials include, but are not limited to, polymers such as polyurethane, rubber, silicone or that sold under trademarks Lycra® by Invista or Estane® by Lubrizol. The through holes 15 formed in the nonwoven film or sheet 16 may have a suitably sized circular or non-circular shape. The non-circular shapes may include, but are not limited to, square, rectangular, triangular, elliptical, trapezoidal, hexagonal and other polygonal shapes. Holes 15 can be formed in the film or sheet when it is extruded, or they can be mechanically punched or thermally formed after the film or sheet is extruded.
A third or bottom (3) layer 20 comprised of functional yarns 22 is provided in the form of a parallel array on the other side of layer 16. As it can be seen, yarns 22 in layer 20 are positioned or aligned within the spaces between adjacent yarns 14 in top (1) layer 12. This is more apparently seen in
A schematic of a compressible ultra-resilient pad formed according to this exemplary embodiment is shown in
The layers of the structure can be held together in any manner known to one of ordinary skill in the art. For instance, they can be attached using a fibrous batt layer, or the yarns in one layer can be attached to the nonwoven extruded film or sheet in an adjacent layer at the point where they touch the extruded film or sheet via use of glues, adhesives, or a thermal fusion/welding method as known to those skilled in the art.
Note yarn systems (1) and (3) can be the same as each other or they can be different in terms of material, form, shape, etc. It is only required that the yarns in layer (3) are spaced to fit between adjacent yarns of layer (1) or vice versa.
Also note there does not have to be a one to one relationship between the number of yarns of layers (1) and (3), and the number of yarns in layer (3) can be only a fraction of the number of yarns in layer (1) or vice versa. For example, layer (3) may contain only half the yarns of layer (1) so that there are spaces between the yarns of layer (3) in use.
Upon application of a compressive load on the pad, the nonwoven extruded layer 16 compresses and stretches around functional yarns 14, 22, allowing the yarns 14 and 22 to move towards each other and to “nest” between each other, virtually almost in the same plane. At this point, nonwoven extruded layer 16 conforms to this nesting, and bends and flattens around yarns 14, 22 in the top layer 12 and bottom layer 20. For ease of comprehension, an exaggerated view of base structure 10 in such a state is shown in
It is important to note that the member arrays of layers 12 and 20 can also be oriented in the cross-direction in the pad in use so long as the elastic nonwoven film or sheet 16 separates and is in between these layers, and at least one functional layer on the outer side of the pad is oriented in the longitudinal direction to bear any tensile load and provide adequate strength and stretch resistance to the structure in use. Additional functional yarns 14, 22 can be in oriented in longitudinal direction, cross-direction or in both directions, depending on the end use of the structure. For example, in applications such as a ballistic cloth, which may require added impact resistance, functional yarns 14, 22 may be disposed in both longitudinal and cross-directions. It is also important to note that although functional yarns 14, 22 are illustrated as having a round cross-section in some figures, they can be of any size, shape, material or form suitable for the purpose.
Another embodiment employs a similar principle as above, but the structure includes a fourth layer (4) of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet on the opposite side of the third layer (3) as the second layer, and a fifth layer (5) of parallel yarns in the same direction as the first layer (1). In this embodiment, the yarns of the fifth layer (5) are aligned in the same vertical plane in a through thickness direction as that of the first layer (1).
Another variant of the instant “crossless” structure is shown in
As shown in
According to one exemplary embodiment, the nonwoven extruded film or sheet, which is elastic, resilient, and compressible in a thickness direction and extensible, bendable, and resilient in its length and transverse directions may have continuous grooves formed on a surface thereof to partially embed the yarns in the grooves, and to ensure uniform spacing of the yarns, such as that shown in
In all of the embodiments described herein, the longitudinal direction or cross-direction yarns in one layer can be attached to the nonwoven extruded film or sheet in an adjacent layer or to each other at contact points where they contact each other via use of glues, adhesives, or a thermal fusion/welding method as known to those skilled in the art. Alternatively, the longitudinal direction and/or cross-direction yarns are attached to the nonwoven extruded films or sheets by needling one or more layers of a fibrous batt material through the structure from either or both outside surfaces.
The longitudinal direction and cross-direction yarns used in the present invention are preferably monofilaments, although other forms such as multifilaments, plied monofilaments or multifilaments, wrapped members comprising different materials, knitted members, twisted members, multicomponent members, and braided members can also be used in the practice of the invention. In structures where monofilaments are used, the monofilaments can have any cross-sectional shape, such as for example, circular, non-circular, square, rectangular, triangular, elliptical, polygonal, trapezoidal or lobate. Similarly, filaments used in twisted, knitted, or braided members can also be non-round in cross-sectional shape. The monofilaments in all of the above structures preferably have an effective diameter in the range of 0.8-4.0 mm, for example.
Any of the pads discussed above can include one or more layers of a fibrous batt material, which can be needled into the pad to hold the various layers together. For example, pad 100 in the above embodiment can be needled using a fibrous batt material 124 to form a consolidated structure 200, such as that shown in
Also the degree of compression/resiliency is controlled by the elasticity or compressibility of the required nonwoven extruded film or sheet, number of layers of the elastic film or sheet, and of course the totality of the structure itself. The placement of the nonwoven extruded film or sheet must be such that the nonwoven extruded film or sheet compresses upon a normal load being applied to the base pad, and the base pad ‘springs back’ upon removal of that load. The inventive structure can also be part of a laminate with other yarn arrays or base pads attached thereto.
The fabric as aforementioned can be needled, if necessary, with fibers to produce a smooth surface, and can be coated with foams, polymeric coatings, or partially or fully fused particulates. Other embodiments can include a membrane, a yarn array, or another fabric can be laminated to the pad. The pad must be constructed to have a sufficient degree of compressibility as well as have sufficient elasticity as well as strength to allow the structure to rebound, or ‘spring back.’ In all of the embodiments described herein, the term “yarn” may refer to a conventional textile yarn, such as a monofilament or multifilament, or it may refer to a “tape from a slit film,” or any other “member” that can be used in place of a functional yarn. As described earlier, the functional yarns can be in oriented in longitudinal direction, cross-direction or in both directions, depending on the end use of the structure. The compression and rebounding of the structure has the following benefits:
The pad structures disclosed herein may be used in sports shoes, running shoes, regular shoes, boots etc., or can be used in floor carpets, sports floor, floor coverings etc. The structure itself can be the final product or the structure can be a component of another structure. Uses envisioned include, but are not limited to: automobile parts and other composites; flooring; subfloors especially in gymnasiums or other sports arenas; press pads; ballistic cloth such as body armor or hurricane window protection; sporting equipment padding such as baseball catcher chest protectors; knee/elbow pads for runners, racers, skaters, volleyball players; cricket shin/knee pads; football hip pads; wall padding in stadiums, gymnasiums, arenas; shoe inserts (orthotics); heels/soles for athletic shoes e.g. running shoes; cushioning layer for bedding, vehicle seats, pillows; and other industrial uses where through thickness compressibility and resiliency is required.
Modifications to the present invention would be obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art in view of this disclosure, but would not bring the invention so modified beyond the scope of the appended claims.
