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EP-3967174-B1 - STANDOFF UNIT FOR A FOOTWEAR CONTROL DEVICE

EP3967174B1EP 3967174 B1EP3967174 B1EP 3967174B1EP-3967174-B1

Inventors

  • BEERS, TIFFANY A.
  • OWINGS, ANDREW A.

Dates

Publication Date
20260506
Application Date
20170314

Claims (11)

  1. An article of footwear (100), the article of footwear comprising: an upper (102) and a sole (104) attached to the upper, the upper forming an interior void (118) and including an inner surface and an outer layer; and a control device (140); characterised in that : the control device includes a button module (120) disposed beneath the outer layer of the upper and adjacent to the inner surface within the interior void, the button module comprising a circuit board (204), a raised standoff assembly (202), a first portion (510), a second portion (520), and a bridge portion (530) extending between the first portion and the second portion, wherein the bridge portion has a bridge width (540) that is smaller than a width (550) of the first portion; the circuit board including a panel portion (292); a first button (208) mounted on the panel portion of the circuit board and a second button (210) also mounted on the panel portion of the circuit board; the raised standoff assembly secured on the panel portion of the circuit board; the raised standoff assembly comprising a first standoff portion (260) and a second standoff portion (262), wherein the first standoff portion is joined to the second standoff portion by an intermediate standoff portion having a width smaller than a width of the first standoff portion and smaller than a width of the second standoff portion; the first standoff portion including a first annular ridge (272) and the second standoff portion including a second annular ridge (274), the raised standoff assembly including provisions for engaging and/or being secured to the circuit board such that the first annular ridge surrounds the first button and the second annular ridge surrounds the second button; the first annular ridge having a first ridge height (672) that is at least as high as a first button height (608) of the first button or higher; and the outer layer of the upper is arranged across an uppermost surface of the first annular ridge such that the outer layer extends over the first button thereby inhibiting the outer layer from exerting pressure against the first button.
  2. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the second annular ridge (274) has a second ridge height (674) that is at least as high as a second button height (610) of the second button.
  3. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the control device (140) further comprises a wiring portion (136) coupling the button module to an auto-lacing system.
  4. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the bridge width (540) is also smaller than a second width of the second portion (560).
  5. The article of footwear according to claim 4, wherein the bridge width (540) of the bridge portion relative to the width (550) of the first portion (510) and the second width of the second portion (520) permits the first portion (510) to move relative to the second portion (520).
  6. The article of footwear according to claim 4 or claim 5, further comprising a sleeve (900) attached to the inner surface of the upper, and configured to receive and secure the button module (120) in the interior void (118) of the article of footwear.
  7. The article of footwear according to claim 6, wherein the bridge portion (530) is enclosed in the sleeve (900).
  8. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the button module (120) is disposed adjacent to and beneath a button region (1002) of the upper (102), and wherein the button region is configured to extend over the button module from a first end of the button module to a second end of the button module.
  9. The article of footwear according to claim 8, wherein the article of footwear further comprises a tensioned state and a loosened state, wherein the button region (1002) of the upper (102) is stretched to a greater degree in the tensioned state relative to the loosened state, and wherein the button region exerts a substantially similar force on the first button in the tensioned state as in the loosened state.
  10. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the raised standoff assembly (202) further includes a lip portion (350) extending along a peripheral edge of the raised standoff assembly, and wherein the lip portion surrounds an outer edge of the panel portion.
  11. The article of footwear according to claim 1, wherein the first portion (510) is configured to torsionally twist relative to the second portion (520) due to the bridge portion (530).

Description

PRIORITY This application claims the benefit of priority to U.S. Patent Application No. 15/070,162, "Standoff Unit For a Control Device in an Article of Footwear", filed March 15, 2016. TECHNICAL FIELD The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to a standoff unit for a footwear control device. BACKGROUND Articles of footwear generally include two primary elements: an upper and a sole structure. The upper is often formed from a plurality of material elements (e.g., textiles, polymer sheet layers, foam layers, leather, synthetic leather) that are stitched or adhesively bonded together to form a void on the interior of the footwear for comfortably and securely receiving a foot. More particularly, the upper forms a structure that extends over instep and toe areas of the foot, along medial and lateral sides of the foot, and around a heel area of the foot. The upper may also incorporate a lacing system to adjust the fit of the footwear, as well as permitting entry and removal of the foot from the void within the upper. Likewise, some articles of apparel may include various kinds of closure systems for adjusting the fit of the apparel. US2015/289596 describes a motorized tensioning system including a tensile member and a motorized tightening device attached to an outer surface of the article of footwear, the tightening device configured to apply tension in the tensile member to adjust the size of an internal void defined by the article of footwear. The article of footwear may also include a tightening device cover configured to be removably attached to the article of footwear over the tightening device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The embodiments can be better understood with reference to the following drawings and description. The components in the figures are not necessarily to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon illustrating the principles of the invention. Moreover, in the figures, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the different views. FIG. 1 is an isometric side view of an embodiment of an article of footwear and a control device;FIG. 2 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a control device;FIG. 3 is an exploded view of an embodiment of a control device;FIG. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional sequence of an embodiment of attaching a raised standoff assembly to a circuit board;FIG. 5 is an isometric view of an embodiment of a control device;FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view of an embodiment of a control device;FIG. 7 is a schematic isometric view of an embodiment of a control device being twisted;FIG. 8 is a schematic isometric view of an embodiment of a control device being bent;FIG. 9 is an isometric view of an embodiment of a control device installed in an article of footwear;FIG. 10 is an isometric view of an embodiment of a control device installed in an article of footwear with a cross-sectional view of an upper extending over the control device;FIG. 11 is a schematic isometric side view of an embodiment of an article of footwear with a cross-sectional view of a control device in a loosened state;FIG. 12 is a schematic isometric side view of an embodiment of an article of footwear with a cross-sectional view of a control device in a tensioned state;FIG. 13 is a depiction of a user engaged in an activity, where the user is wearing an article of footwear that includes a control device; andFIG. 14 is a flow chart depicting a method of assembling an article of footwear with a control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION The invention relates to an article of footwear as disclosed by the appended independent claim 1. Preferred embodiments are disclosed in the appended dependent claims. Example methods and systems are directed to a standoff for a footwear control unit. Examples merely typify possible variations. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, components and functions are optional and may be combined or subdivided, and operations may vary in sequence or be combined or subdivided. In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of example embodiments. It will be evident to one skilled in the art, however, that the present subject matter may be practiced without each or all of these specific details. A closure system has been developed that includes a motor to place tension on laces that secure the article of footwear to a foot of a wearer. The motor may be controlled by various mechanisms, including with user input devices, such as buttons and the like, that allow a user to manually increase and decrease the tension on the lace and, as a result, tighten and loosen the laces. Such buttons may, in various examples, be positioned on the upper of the article of footwear to be accessible to the wearer But because uppers are typically flexible, placing buttons and other user input devices on the upper may present challenges. In particular, the buttons may desirably be positioned with