US-12622490-B2 - Sole plate

US12622490B2US 12622490 B2US12622490 B2US 12622490B2US-12622490-B2

Abstract

An article of cleated footwear includes an outsole plate and an upper. The outsole plate includes a rigid first member and a second rigid member. The first rigid member extends substantially along the length of the outsole, and the rigid second member is attached to the first member. The first member and/or the second member has a ground-engaging profile. The upper is attached to the first member.

Inventors

Nicholas Karl Schiller
Florian FLEISCHER
Stefan Jürgen Schneider
David Artner
Adrien Francois Michel Noirhomme
Richard Ward
Philipp Alexander Hagel

Assignees

ADIDAS AG

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20241211
Priority Date: 20170713

Claims (16)

1 . A method for producing an article of cleated footwear, comprising: supplying an outsole plate comprising: forming a rigid first member that extends substantially along a length of the outsole plate, and forming a rigid second member, wherein at least one of the first member or the second member comprises a ground-engaging profile; supplying an upper; attaching the upper to the first member, wherein attaching the upper to the first member comprises: sewing a second part of the upper to a sheet and attaching the sheet to a second region of the first member; lasting a first part of the upper around a first region of the first member; and arranging at least a portion of the first part of the upper between the first member and the second member in at least a portion of the first region; and attaching the first member to the second member.
2 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , further comprising arranging the second member of the outsole plate to extend over at least a part of the second region and a part of the first region such that the second member covers a transition point between the second region and the first region.
3 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , further comprising: arranging the second region in at least one of a heel region or a shank region of the article of cleated footwear; and arranging the first region in a forefoot region of the article of cleated footwear.
4 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , further comprising forming a cut-out region in the sheet.
5 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein the sheet is made from at least one of a synthetic material, leather, or a textile.
6 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein attaching the sheet to the first member comprises using at least one of an adhesive or welding.
7 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the first member or second member is formed by injection-molding.
8 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein: the first member comprises a first ground-engaging profile that comprises at least one stud of a first type; and the second member comprises a second ground-engaging profile that comprises at least one stud of a second type.
9 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein the second member is formed to be shorter along a longitudinal direction of the outsole plate than the first member.
10 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , further comprising forming at least one positioning hole in the second member, forming at least one positioning stud in the first member, and formfitting the positioning stud into the positioning hole when the first member is attached to the second member.
11 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , further comprising at least one of: forming weight-reducing perforations in at least one of the first member or the second member; forming a heel counter in the first member; or forming a spine in the second member and forming a corresponding recess in the first member.
12 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of: the first member is made from at least one of polyamide 11 or polyamide 12; or the second member is made from thermoplastic polyurethane, polyurethane, or polyether block amide.
13 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein attaching the first member to the second member forms a non-detachable connection.
14 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein attaching the first member to the second member forms a detachable connection.
15 . The method for producing an article of cleated footwear according to claim 1 , wherein forming the second member includes forming the second member to include a perimeter region surrounding a central region; and wherein attaching the upper to the first member comprises: lasting a first part of the upper around a first region of the first member; and attaching the second member to the first member in the central region such that at least a portion of the first part of the upper is arranged between the first region of the first member and the perimeter region of the second member and such that the central region of the second member is uncovered by the upper.
16 . A method for producing an article of cleated footwear, comprising: supplying an outsole plate comprising: supplying a rigid first member that extends substantially along a length of the outsole plate, and supplying a rigid second member to include a perimeter region surrounding a central region, wherein the second member is shorter along a longitudinal direction of the footwear than the first member, wherein at least one of the first member or the second member comprises a ground-engaging profile; supplying an upper; lasting a first part of the upper around a first region of the first member; and attaching the first member to the second member in the central region of the second member such that at least a portion of the first part of the upper is arranged between the first region of the first member and the perimeter region of the second member and such that the central region of the second member is uncovered by the upper.

Description

REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 17/985,263, filed Nov. 11, 2022 and entitled SOLE PLATE, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 16/002,568, filed on Jun. 7, 2018 and entitled SOLE PLATE, now U.S. Pat. No. 11,523,661, which is related to and claims priority benefits from German Patent Application No. DE 10 2017 212 045.2, filed on Jul. 13, 2017, and entitled SOLE PLATE, all of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entireties. FIELD OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an article of cleated footwear, and in particular an article of cleated footwear with a two-piece outsole plate. Moreover, the present invention relates to a method for producing an article of cleated footwear with a two-piece outsole plate. BACKGROUND Cleated footwear is used in a variety of sports such as soccer, American football, rugby, golf, baseball, lacrosse, high jump, running, etc. to provide improved grip for an athlete especially on slippery or soft ground. Cleated footwear is subject to particularly high mechanical forces and torques. For this reason, the production of cleated footwear represents challenges not encountered in the production of non-cleated footwear. It is a firm belief in the prior art that the sole of cleated footwear should therefore be formed of a single piece. As a consequence, the production methods are rather inflexible and the ways to modify an existing article of footwear to adapt it for different requirements based on, for example, the anatomy of the athlete, the sport, the surface properties of the sports ground (e.g. hard, soft, artificial turf) are very limited. Entirely new outsoles have to be designed and manufactured for different models of an article of footwear which is a costly and time-consuming process. Furthermore, an insole board, also known as a lasting board, is typically required to provide sufficient mechanical performance, which adds to the weight of the article of footwear and the complexity of the production process as an upper has to be attached to both the lasting board and the outsole. Existing solutions to individualize cleated footwear involve exchanging the studs one by one and/or the upper. EP 1 574 143 discloses a studded sports shoe comprising a sock-like upper with an upper side and a lower side, a chassis releasably arranged in the interior of the upper and a plurality of studs, wherein each stud is releasably attached to the chassis through the lower side of the sock-like upper. The disadvantage of this method is that this assembly process is slow and complex. Furthermore, it requires an insole or lasting board and therefore the resulting article of footwear is heavy and has a higher profile than desirable. Furthermore, single studs can get lost easily. An alternative approach is described in DE 10 2015 2005 23 A1, which discloses a modular shoe, with a sock like outer shoe and a frame. The sock like outer shoe is provided for a releasable arrangement around the frame. The sock like outer shoe may comprise a plurality of profile elements, wherein at least one of the profile elements extends from an outer side of the sock like outer shoe. A region of the at least one of the profile elements may be configured to releasably engage in a formfitting manner with a lower side of the frame of the modular shoe. The disadvantage of this approach is a lower stability of the outer shoe compared with conventional cleated footwear as well as the added weight and increased profile due to the sock like outer shoe. Several approaches are known in the prior art that use different types of studs in different regions of the sole. U.S. Pat. No. 9,032,645 discloses an article of footwear that may include an upper and a sole structure fixedly attached to a bottom portion of the upper. The sole structure may include a sole component including a baseplate having a bottom surface and at least a first ground engaging member extending substantially downward from the bottom surface of the baseplate, the first ground engaging member having a substantially circular cross-sectional shape. U.S. Pat. No. 8,776,403 discloses an article of footwear including a sole structure with multiple cleat systems. A first cleat system has a first cleat design and one or more cleat member sets that are tuned to provide different levels of traction and flexibility to different regions of the sole structure. A second cleat system has a second cleat design and is disposed on the sole structure in a location to provide maximum traction for various playing surfaces. The sizes, material properties and arrangement of each cleat system are varied. It is also known that the lasting board can be integrally formed with the molding material to reduce the height profile of the article of footwear. U.S. Pat. No. 8,826,569 discloses a golf shoe including a sole member integrally formed with a molding material, a structu