Shoes with variable wear properties

Abstract

The visual appearance of the shoe changes gradually due to protected and unprotected areas of an abradable material superimposed on a visually distinguishable base material. As the abradable material wears away, a new color, texture, pattern or other feature may be revealed. A structure that allows the visual appearance of a shoe to change gradually and a method of constructing the structure are provided.

Description

Field of the Invention

[0001] Various aspects of this document relate to structures and methods for providing a shoe having an appearance that evolves with use. More specifically, various aspects relate to an upper having variable wear properties so that the appearance of the shoe changes with use. Background of the Invention

[0003] Various shoe designs involving different aesthetic effects are known, including shoes with removable features (such as laces or clips) that can be replaced by the user of the shoe to change the color, overall appearance or design of the shoe. Alternatively, some wearers can customize the shoe using markers, pens, paints, etc. to gradually add images or colors to the shoe. Summary of the invention

[0004] This application involves but is not limited to the following aspects:

[0005] 1) A shoe upper, comprising: a base material having an outer surface; a wear-resistant material bonded to at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material and less than all of the outer surface of the base material; and a wear-prone material bonded to at least a portion of the wear-resistant material.

[0006] 2) The upper of 1), wherein the discontinuity in the wear resistant material defines a perimeter of at least one zone of the wearable material, adjacent to which no wear resistant material is present.

[0007] 3) The upper of 2), wherein the at least one area of ​​the easily abradable material adjacent to which no abrasion-resistant material is present corresponds to one or more aesthetic designs.

[0008] 4) The upper according to 2) or 3), wherein the easy-to-wear material is layered over substantially all of the base material, including the at least one region of the easy-to-wear material where no wear-resistant material is adjacent thereto.

[0009] 5) The shoe upper according to any one of 2) to 4), comprising a plurality of regions of the easily-worn material adjacent to which no wear-resistant material is present.

[0010] 6) An upper according to any one of 1) to 5), wherein the easy-to-wear material in one or more areas where wear-resistant material is present adjacent to the easy-to-wear material is less susceptible to wear than at least one area of ​​the easy-to-wear material where wear-resistant material is not present adjacent to the easy-to-wear material.

[0011] 7) The shoe upper according to any one of 1) to 6), wherein the base material and the easy-to-wear material have at least one different visual property.

[0012] 8) The upper of 7), wherein the different visual attributes include at least one of color, sheen, texture, pattern, and decoration.

[0013] 9) The shoe upper according to any one of 1) to 8), wherein the wear-resistant material has adhesion to the easy-to-wear material and the base material.

[0014] 10) The shoe upper according to 9), wherein the wear-resistant material is a hot melt adhesive.

[0015] 11) The shoe upper according to any one of 1) to 10), wherein the wear-resistant material comprises thermoplastic polyurethane.

[0016] 12. The shoe upper according to any one of 1) to 11), wherein the easily abradable material comprises paper or a lightweight non-woven fabric.

[0017] 13. The shoe upper according to any one of 1) to 12), wherein the base material comprises one of canvas or leather.

[0018] 14) A method for constructing a shoe upper having an aesthetic design that changes with wear, the method comprising: providing a base material; selectively applying a wear-resistant material to a portion of an outer surface of the base material and to less than all of the outer surface of the base material; and applying a wear-resistant material to the base material to cover at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material to which the wear-resistant material is applied and at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material to which the wear-resistant material is not applied.

[0019] 15) The method according to 14), wherein the wear-resistant material is an adhesive.

[0020] 16) The method according to 15), wherein the adhesive comprises one or more of a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive and a hot melt adhesive.

[0021] 17) A method according to 15) or 16), wherein the wear-resistant material is selectively applied to the portion of the outer surface of the base material by either or both of removing a first portion of the adhesive and forming a recess below the outer surface of the adhesive.

[0022] 18) A method according to any one of 15) to 17), wherein the wear-resistant material is selectively applied to the outer surface of the base material by laminating one or more of a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive or a hot melt adhesive with the base material and heating the one or more of the thermoplastic adhesive, the thermosetting adhesive or the hot melt adhesive.

[0023] 19) A method according to any one of 15) to 18), wherein the easy-to-wear material is applied to the wear-resistant material by laminating an extended portion of the easy-to-wear material with a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive or a hot-melt adhesive and heating the thermoplastic adhesive, the thermosetting adhesive or the hot-melt adhesive.

[0024] 20) The method according to 19), wherein the wear-resistant material is bonded to the base material and the wear-prone material in a single attachment step.

[0025] 21) A shoe comprising an upper and a sole, wherein the upper comprises a base material having an outer surface, a wear-resistant material bonded to at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material, and a wear-resistant material bonded to at least a portion of the wear-resistant material; wherein the sole is distinguishable from a portion of the upper by at least one of construction and material.

[0026] 22) The shoe according to 21), wherein the base material has at least one visual property different from that of the easy-wear material.

[0027] 23) The shoe according to 22), wherein the different visual attributes include at least one of color, gloss, texture, pattern and decoration.

[0028] 24) A shoe according to any one of 21) to 23), wherein the wear-resistant material is bonded to at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material and less than all of the outer surface of the base material. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Various aspects of the present disclosure are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0031] Figure 1 is an exemplary side view of a shoe;

[0032] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a stacked material according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0033] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a stacked material according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0034] Figure 3A is a side view of a shoe prior to use according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0035] Figure 3B is a side view of a used shoe according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0036] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a stacked material according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0037] Figure 4A is a side view of a newly assembled shoe according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0038] Figure 4B is a side view of a shoe subjected to wear according to some aspects of the present disclosure;

[0039] Figure 5 is an exemplary flow chart of a method for arranging two or more material layers according to some aspects of the present disclosure; and

[0040] Figure 6 is an exemplary flow chart of a method for arranging two or more material layers according to some aspects of the present disclosure.

[0041] Detailed Description of the Invention

[0042] The present disclosure relates generally to shoe uppers. The shoe upper has areas that have various degradation properties, causing some materials to wear away faster than other materials in the shoe upper, for example, due to humidity, abrasion, etc. By layering materials that have different sensitivities to typical conditions in which the shoe is used, the shoe can gradually take on a different design, pattern, or overall aesthetic impression during use. These design changes may be influenced by the wearer, or may occur without the wearer's intervention.

[0043] Additional objects, advantages, and novel features of the disclosed shoe will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will become apparent to those skilled in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned by practice of the present disclosure.

[0044] An article of footwear, such as a shoe, sandal, boot, etc., having a gradually changing appearance is disclosed. For the purposes of discussion, the term "shoe" will be used herein to refer to a general article of footwear. The appearance of the shoe can change from normal use of the shoe without intentional manipulation by the wearer. Intervention by the wearer can increase or decrease the rate of change of the appearance of the shoe. The shoe can be composed of one or more layers. The three layers may have different resistances to common sources of degradation (e.g., normal wear and tear damage from shoe use). By layering materials with different visual effects (such as color, texture, decoration, etc.), the degradation of one or more layers before other layers changes the appearance of the shoe over the entire life cycle of the shoe.

[0045] As used in this disclosure, "deterioration" refers to the decomposition, erosion, abrasion, damage, rubbing or other destruction of a material so that it is worn away. Deterioration may be partial (e.g., thinning of a layer of material) or complete. For example, a material may be partially degraded due to rubbing or separation, but still exist. Deterioration may be complete in a portion of a material or layer. That is, upon visual inspection, a portion of a previously existing material may not be present after complete degradation, exposing the underlying material or structure, so that the underlying material or structure can be directly observed. It will be understood from the following description that some types of degradation may be intentional and / or desired, such as being intentionally and / or desired designed into a shoe.

[0046] As used in this disclosure, "wear" refers to the normal deterioration process that occurs when a shoe is worn; e.g., "wear and tears." Wear varies from shoe to shoe and from person to person. To avoid confusion with the wearing of a shoe (e.g., on a foot), the putting on and wearing of a shoe is described instead as "use" or "usage."

[0047] Figure 1 An exemplary shoe 10 is shown. In all contemplated embodiments, the shape and function of the shoe may vary widely. The concepts described herein may be applied, for example, to dress shoes, athletic shoes, casual shoes, dance shoes, slippers, boots, sandals, or any other type of footwear. Figure 1 As shown, the shoe 10 has a sole 12 and an upper 14. Many shoes have a sole 12 and an upper 14 that are visually distinguishable. For the purposes of this disclosure, the upper 14 is the portion that faces generally upward, toward the wearer or toward the periphery (e.g., laterally, medially, rearwardly, forwardly, etc.), away from the wearer's foot, and the sole 12 is the portion that is located between the user's foot and the ground during use. In some shoes, a portion of the upper may also be wrapped around the user's foot during use and combined with the portion of the sole that faces upward. The sole may be single, or may alternatively include an "insole" portion that faces the foot, an "outsole" portion that faces the ground, a "midsole" portion that is disposed between at least a portion of the insole and at least a portion of the outsole, or any combination of an insole, midsole, and outsole.

[0048] Design area 16 is shown as a portion of the upper 14 along the uppermost portion of the shoe near the wearer's ankle, however, design area 16 may occupy any portion of upper 14, including discontinuous portions of upper 14. For example, design area 16 may include an area near the toe of the shoe, an area near the laces or closure of the shoe (e.g., near the throat, front opening, eyelets), an area along one or both sides of the shoe, or the ankle portion of upper 14 if present, or a combination thereof. Design area 16 may extend across all or substantially all, e.g., more than 75%, of the surface of upper 14, such as Figure 3B The shoe with which the shoe is paired may have design areas 16 that are symmetrical, or mirror images, or identical, or non-matching or unrelated.

[0049] The design area 16 includes design elements 18. The design elements 18 are shown as discrete stars, however, any shape or design may be used. For example, the design elements 18 may be other geometric shapes, such as circles, squares, rectangles, triangles, hexagons, octagons, crosses, diamonds, etc., or irregular or random shapes, or combinations thereof. The design elements 18 may also be pictographic shapes, such as clouds, raindrops, hearts, skateboards, skulls and wishbones, alphanumeric characters, symbols, etc., or combinations thereof. The design elements 18 may be combined to form patterns, such as alternating stripes, circles formed by stars, rainbows of colored arcs, or individual letters, numbers, or other symbols that form words, messages, trademarks, or other visual marks).

[0050] Design element 18 may be formed using a material stack 26, such as Figure 2. A wear-susceptible material 20 may be provided. The wear-susceptible material may be, for example, crepe paper; a lightweight nonwoven material (i.e., a nonwoven material having a basis weight between 10 and 120 grams per square meter); a fabric loosely woven from fine threads or yarns; a thin foil, such as a thin foil of tin, aluminum, copper, or an alloy; other wear-susceptible materials; or a combination thereof. In addition to or in lieu of such exemplary materials, the wear-susceptible material 20 may be or include a water-soluble paint or pigment. The wear-susceptible material 20 (or any other layer in the material stack 26) may be a single continuous piece of material, or may be formed of two or more parts that are bonded together (e.g., by bonding them end-to-end or by bonding two or more sub-layers together) to form a single layer. For example, the wear-susceptible material 20 may be a patchwork of similar materials having two or more properties (e.g., color or texture). As another example, the wear-susceptible material 20 may be a double or triple fold thickness of a particular fabric. If the wearable material 20 is formed of two or more parts, the parts can be of the same or different materials. For example, the wearable material 20 can include crepe paper and a lightweight nonwoven material. In some embodiments, the layers within the material stack 26 can have different wear properties within the layer. For example, a film of material can be stretched unevenly, thereby creating thicker and thinner areas within the layer that will wear differently, or in the case of a wear-resistant material 22, different wear properties can be imparted to adjacent materials in the material stack 26. Of course, two or more or all of the layers in the material stack 26 can have different wear properties within each layer.

[0051] A layer of wear resistant material 22 may be provided. The wear resistant material may be, for example, thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or other thermoplastic, thermosetting or hot melt resin. The wear resistant material 22 may be bonded to the other layers of the material stack 26, or may be selected to at least partially impregnate one or more of the other layers in the material stack 26 when heated, so that when cooled, the wear resistant material 22 is attached or embedded in one or more of the other layers in the material stack 26.

[0052] The wearable material 20 is easy to wear relative to the wear-resistant material 22, and vice versa. The wearable material 20 can be selected to provide the desired rate of change of the appearance of the shoe 10. Materials that are highly sensitive to conventional wear sources such as stretching, moisture, abrasion, etc. or a combination thereof will present a faster appearance than materials that are less sensitive to conventional wear. In this regard, the wearable material can be a material that is not usually used for footwear, such as crepe paper or fragile fabric, because the wearable material is intended to degrade at a faster rate than the upper 14 and / or the rest of the shoe 10, so that the shoe is still usable when the wearable material 20 degrades. In some embodiments, wear resistance is particularly evaluated for abrasion. That is, wear resistance or wear resistance can be abrasion resistance or abrasion resistance. In some embodiments, wear resistance is particularly evaluated for humidity. That is, wear resistance or wear resistance can be moisture resistance or moisture sensitivity. In some embodiments, wear resistance is particularly evaluated for mechanical deformation. That is, wear resistance or wear resistance can be deformation resistance or deformation sensitivity.

[0053] In contrast, the wear-resistant material 22, which may be covered in a portion of the wearable material 20 or become embedded in a portion of the wearable material 20, may be highly resistant to conventional wear sources and may have a similar service life as the upper 14 and / or the sole 12. In some cases, the wear-resistant material 22 may extend the service life of the upper 14 and / or the sole 12 by increasing the durability of the upper 14 relative to an upper that does not include the wear-resistant material 22. In one exemplary aspect, the wear-resistant material 22 may optionally have a longer life than the wearable material 20 and a shorter life than the base material 24.

[0054] The material stack 26 may also include a base material 24. The base material 24 may be a conventional upper material such as canvas, leather, suede, artificial leather, a polymer-based material, or a combination thereof. In exemplary aspects, if leather or suede is used, a low oil content material (e.g., a material having an oil content of less than 5% by weight) may be preferred to facilitate adhesive-based bonding of the base material 24 to other layers in the material stack 26. If the base material 24 is bonded to one or more overlying materials using non-adhesive bonding methods such as stitching, rivets, embossing, etc., the base material 24 may have a relatively high oil content, such as an oil content of greater than 5% by weight. Compared to the wearable material 20, the base material 24 may be less susceptible to abrasion and / or other conventional wear sources. The base material 24 may be selected for heat resistance during processing, as may the wear-resistant material 22 and the wearable material 20. For example, if the upper 14 is bonded to the sole 12 by a vulcanization process, all materials in the material stack 26 can withstand vulcanization conditions, which can include exposure to a temperature of 100-180° C. for 10-20 minutes depending on the composition of the rubber or rubber substitute used in the sole. If the wear-resistant material 22 is a hot melt or thermoplastic material, the base material 24 and the wear-resistant material 20 can be able to withstand temperature and pressure conditions sufficient to melt the wear-resistant material 22.

[0055] Material stack 26 may include base material 24, which may be suitable for forming upper 14 or for bonding to upper 14 or a portion thereof. The layers in material stack 26 may be attached together before or after incorporation into shoe 10. This may be accomplished by heat treatment and may use only wear-resistant material 22 as an adhesive, or may use supplemental adhesives, resins, or other bonding techniques, such as welding and / or stitching. The perimeter of design element 18 may be defined or delimited by the perimeter of a discontinuity in wear-resistant material 22. Figure 3 As shown in FIG, the design element 18 may be cut from the wear-resistant material 22. The wearable material 20 is unprotected at the design element 18 and is otherwise attached to and / or impregnated with the wear-resistant material 22. When the shoe 10 is subjected to normal stretching, abrasion, moisture, and other degradation-inducing conditions, the wearable material 20 at the design element 18 will degrade more quickly, while areas other than the design element 18 where the wear-resistant material 22 is present will become less susceptible to wear due to their association with the wear-resistant material 22.

[0056] Figure 3 The final product of the material stack 26 shown in FIG. Figure 3A. In this exemplary view, the wearable material 20 is a solid color crepe paper attached to a solid color canvas base material 24 by a hot melt NASA-T layer used as the wear-resistant material 22. NASA-T is a hot melt TPU film commercially available from SAMBU FINE CHEMICAL of South Korea. From the outer surface of the upper 14, the solid color crepe paper that constitutes the wearable material 20 is initially only visible or primarily visible. In some embodiments, the wearable material 20 can be at least translucent or translucent, which can allow one or more of the materials below the wearable material to be visible to a certain extent.

[0057] As the shoe 10 is used, the wearable material 20 wears away where it is not bonded to the wear-resistant material 22, such as in the design elements 18 cut out of the wear-resistant material 22 prior to forming the material stack 26. Figure 3B As shown in FIG. 1 , where the wearable material 20 is worn away, the base material 24 becomes visible at the design element 18. Figure 3B , the edges of the design elements 18 can be uniform and neat. If desired, the easily abradable material 20 can be selected to leave remnants of the easily abradable material 20, such as frayed threads from a fragile fabric. The shape or pattern of the design elements 18 can be selected to promote the formation of remnants and / or to promote the formation of remnants of a particular shape or location. For example, a fine point in a star shape may tend to produce a different pattern of frayed fabric remnants than a circle.

[0058] The base material 24 may have one or more visual attributes that are different from the easily-abrasive material 20. The different visual attributes include color, gloss, texture, pattern, decoration, and combinations thereof. Suitable decorations may include glitter, rhinestones, metals, stones, buttons, studs, and combinations thereof. The difference in one or more visual attributes may not be noticeable. For example, the base material 24 may be a different shade of the same common color as the easily-abrasive material 20. As a more specific example, the base material 24 may be light gray, and the easily-abrasive material 20 may be white or medium gray. As another example of different visual attributes, the base material 24 may have substantially the same color as the easily-abrasive material 20, but have a canvas or leather texture, while the easily-abrasive material 20 has a paper-like texture.

[0059] Figure 3Design elements are shown with discontinuities cut out of the wear resistant material 22, however, other discontinuities are possible. The discontinuities in the wear resistant material 22 may be formed, for example, by cutting, stamping, embossing, etching, cutting, or a combination thereof. For example, the wear resistant material 22 may be deformed or recessed to form the design element 18 such that the wear resistant material 22 is not bonded to the wearable material 20 at the design element 18. Alternatively, the wear resistant material 22 may be applied in a form in terms of the shape, design, or pattern of the design element 18 such that the design element 18 retains the appearance of the wearable material 20 and the area of ​​the wearable material 20 outside the design element 18 tends to degrade to reveal one or more layers underneath.

[0060] Figures 2 to 4 A three-layer material stack 26 is shown for providing a structure for an evolving shoe appearance. Additional layers may be used. For example, two or more layers of wearable material 20 may be used. As a more specific example, a foil or woven fabric may be coated with a water-soluble paint or pigment, in which case the pigment will dissolve away before the foil or fabric degrades to provide additional stages of change in the appearance of the shoe. As another example, additional layers of wear-resistant material 22 and wearable material 20 may be used. Layers closer to base material 24 may have progressively greater wear resistance. In some embodiments, material stack 26 may include base layer 24 directly overlaid with wear-resistant material 22, which may be directly overlaid with wearable material 20, such as Figure 2 In some embodiments, a base layer 24 may be superimposed with a wearable material 20, which may be superimposed with a wear-resistant material 22. In some embodiments, a base layer 24 may be superimposed with a wearable material 20, which may be superimposed with a wear-resistant material 22, which may be superimposed with another wearable material 20. As previously described, other material sequences and / or other intermediate or additional layers may be used as desired.

[0061] Figure 4 A material stack 26 is shown having a wearable material 20 that includes its own design element 28 that is independent of the design element 18 in the wear-resistant material 22. Figure 4 and Figure 4A As shown in FIG, the design element 28 on the wearable material 20 includes stripes that alternate between two colors. In other embodiments, the design element 28 can be any shape, design or pattern. Figure 4A As shown in FIG, the design element 28 on the wearable material 20 is only or primarily visible in a newly assembled shoe. When the shoe is subjected to normal wear, the wearable material 20 will tend to be in areas not protected by the wear-resistant material 22 (e.g. Figure 4 The star-shaped design element 18) is eroded. Figure 4BAs shown in , where the wearable material 20 has been eroded at one or more design elements 18, the base material 24 may be visible, thereby creating a combination of design elements 28 in areas of the wearable material 20 that are protected by the wear-resistant material 22 and design elements 18 in areas of the wearable material 20 that are not protected by the wear-resistant material 22. The design elements 28 may complement the design elements 18 in terms of theme, pattern, color, etc. For example, Figure 4B As shown in , design elements 18 and design elements 28 may be combined to create a stars and stripes theme.

[0062] If the grindable material 20 includes a design element 28, the design element 28 may be inherent to the grindable material 20 or may be optionally applied to the grindable material 20. For example, Figure 4 The stripes of the design elements 28 in the pattern can be woven or knitted into a consumable fabric used as the wearable material 20. Optionally, the wearable material 20 can be dyed or printed with an indelible or soluble ink. Any suitable printing or coloring process can be used, including screen printing, tie-dyeing, sublimation printing, inkjet printing, spraying, embroidery, laser cutting, additive manufacturing, painting, engraving, polishing, transfer printing, water dipping, and combinations thereof.

[0063] Wearable material 22 can be colored, printed and / or decorated. Colored and decorated hot melt adhesives are commercially available, including NASA-V and NASA-SKIN series products from SAMBU FINE CHEMICAL of South Korea. For example, a transparent or light-transmissive wearable material 20 can be used, which can be used together with a colored or decorated wearable material 22 and / or a base material 24. If necessary, two or more layers of colored, patterned and / or decorated wearable materials 22 can be used, wherein different colors, patterns and / or decorations are provided in different layers and / or different regions of a particular layer. In addition to being transparent or light-transmissive or replacing transparent or light-transmissive, wearable material 20 can have a cutout. For example, a cutout or other discontinuous portion can be formed in wearable material 20 by cutting, stamping, embossing, etching, cutting or a combination thereof. If there is a separated design element 28, the cutout in the wearable material 20 can be a design element 28, or can be different from the design element 28. The cutouts in the wearable material 20 may not be completely aligned or aligned, or may be at least partially misaligned with the design elements 18 in the wear-resistant material 22. Assuming a three-layer material stack 26 including a layer of wearable material, a layer of wear-resistant material, and a layer of base material, if the cutouts in the wearable material 20 are closely aligned with the design elements 18, the underlying layer (e.g., base material 24) will be visible before the shoe is worn. However, if the cutouts and design elements 18 have different shapes, sizes, or spacings from each other, the cutouts in the wearable material 20 may at least partially overlap with one or more design elements 18 and still provide a change in appearance when the shoe is worn. In more complex material stacks, it may be desirable to align the cutouts and design elements 18 in some layers, or to align the cutouts and design elements 18 in some layers but not in other layers.

[0064] The material stack 26 may be used to form the shoe 10 using one of several possible processes. An exemplary process is Figure 5 and Figure 6 The process is shown in the flow chart. Figure 5 and Figure 6 The order of steps shown in the drawings illustrates exemplary embodiments, but is non-limiting, and the intended embodiments have a broader scope, as would be recognized by one of ordinary skill in view of the entire description, drawings, and claims in this application. The process of incorporating the material stack 26 into the shoe 10 or upper 14 may involve additional steps, or may involve performing the steps in a different order, or may involve performing less than all of the steps depicted. For example, in a first step 500, the base material 24 may be formed into the shape of the upper and then attached to the wear-resistant material 22 in a second step 510. In the same attachment of the second step 510 or in a separate attachment step 520, the wear-resistant material 20 may be bonded to the wear-resistant material 22. Optionally, as Figure 6 As shown in , the base material 24, the wear-resistant material 22, and the wearable material 20 can be combined in a single step 600. Then, in step 610, the material stack 26 of the base material 24, the wear-resistant material 22, and the wearable material 20 that are combined to form an integral laminate can be made into the upper 14 or the design area 16 of the upper 14. In some processes, the wearable material 20 can be laminated on the base material 24, and the wear-resistant material 22 can be laid on the wearable material 20 and / or the base material 24 and bonded to the wearable material 20 and / or the base material 24. Optionally, as Figure 2 As schematically shown in FIG. 1 , the wear-resistant material 22 may be layered on the base material 24, and the wear-prone material 20 may be laid on and bonded to the wear-resistant material 22 and / or the base material 24. In at least one embodiment, two or more material layers may be formed into the shape of an upper after bonding the two or more material layers to each other.

[0065] In some processes, the wear-resistant material 22 bonds the base material 24 to one or more wearable materials 20. The wear-resistant material may be an adhesive, and / or may be a thermosetting material, a thermoplastic material, or a hot melt material. In some aspects, the wear-resistant material is capable of wetting or impregnating the wearable material 20 and / or the base material 24 during the manufacturing process, and becomes a solid that is stable at normal use temperatures (e.g., 0 to 30° C.; in some cases lower or higher) after curing and / or cooling. The material stack 26 may be bonded by other means, such as stitching, embossing, spot welding or seam welding, adhesives, etc. If the wear-resistant material 22 does not penetrate the wearable material 20, wear resistance should be introduced to those areas of the wearable material outside the design element 18 in other ways. For example, the wear-resistant material 22 may be superimposed on the wearable material 20 so that only those portions of the wearable material 20 within the discontinuity of the wear-resistant material 22 (e.g., the discontinuity forming the design element 18) are exposed to degradation conditions.

[0066] The material stack 26 can be bonded to each other in one or more steps. If the wear-resistant material 22 is a thermosetting material, a thermoplastic material, or a hot melt material, the layers of the base material 24, the wear-resistant material 22, and the wearable material 20 can be bonded by heating (e.g., pressing or ironing) the material stack 26 at ambient atmospheric pressure or at a higher pressure until the wear-resistant material 22 melts. When the wear-resistant material 22 has melted to a desired degree, such as having sufficient fluidity to at least partially wet the base material 24 and the wearable material 20, the material stack 26 can be cooled to solidify the wear-resistant material 22. After the layers are bonded to each other, the material stack 26 can be formed into the upper 14. Bonding the material stack 26 before assembling the upper 14 can help avoid misalignment of the design elements 18 and / or the design elements 28 on the shoe 10.

[0067] Only using wear-resistant material 22 to protect some parts of easy-wear material 20 allows the unprotected parts of easy-wear material 20 to wear, to expose one or more layers below. Exposing the layers below can gradually change the appearance of the shoe, for example, if one or more layers below are visually different from the upper layer in one or more aspects. In addition, the wear pattern changes not only based on the shoe design but also based on the individual using the shoe. For example, a person who tends to pivot her feet at the tip of her shoe may have different wear patterns from a person who tends to cross her legs at the ankle, and both may have different wear patterns from a person who makes the shoes rub against each other when walking. Therefore, according to different uses, the visual design on the shoe is unique for different individuals, and may also be different even between two shoes in a pair of shoes. The wear pattern can reflect the use of a shoe or multiple shoes, but is not necessarily an indicator of the service life of the shoe. After the easy-wear material 20 has been worn away in the unprotected area of ​​the easy-wear material 20, the base material 24 can maintain use for a long time.

[0068] An individual who likes a particular pattern may take care to protect the shoe from conditions that promote degradation, such as puddles or excessive abrasion. Conversely, an individual who likes to observe visual design changes on a shoe or wishes to make the wear on a particular shoe or pair of shoes more uniform (or less uniform) may take active steps to wear away the abrasive material, such as rubbing the shoe or shoes with sandpaper or a hard brush. As a result, the shoe as described herein provides a changing pattern that prolongs the user's engagement with the shoe, and allows the user to determine whether the engagement is passive entertainment or active manipulation of the visual design.

[0069] Example 1: A light gray canvas base material is overlaid with a film of NASA-T hot melt adhesive having a melting temperature of approximately 275°F (135°C). The NASAT film is commercially available from SAMBU FINE CHEMICAL of Korea. The film thickness ranges from 0.05 mm to 0.3 mm and is transparent. The NASA-T film has a star-shaped cutout. The NASA-T film is overlaid with white crepe paper. Crepe paper is wood pulp paper and has a basis weight of approximately 9-11 pounds per square yard (approximately 4882-5968 grams per square meter). The crepe paper is slightly wrinkled due to the processing, and the wrinkles are not removed due to the texture and visual changes created in the crepe paper. The three-layer stack of canvas, NASA-T and crepe paper is then heated in a commercially available multi-purpose heat press commonly used to transfer thermal transfer images onto T-shirts. NASA-T penetrates the canvas and crepe paper to form an integral laminate in which the crepe paper is attached to the NASA-T and canvas material except for those portions where the NASA-T is cut away, where the crepe paper is partially unattached to the NASA-T and / or canvas material. The entire laminate initially has the appearance of white crepe paper. When abraded, the crepe paper is worn away in the area of ​​the cutout of the NASA-T, revealing a star-shaped portion of the light gray canvas material underneath. Abrasion is performed using sandpaper of varying grits, a buffing wheel, or a metal brush.

[0070] Example 2: The integral laminate as described in Example 1 was formed into an upper including a tongue. Additional material was added to form eyelets for lacing and a trimmed edge along the perimeter of the laminate. The laminate was bonded to a preformed rubber sole and subjected to vulcanization. The laminate was able to withstand the vulcanization process, retaining the original appearance of white crepe paper on the portion of the shoe containing the laminate. The unattached areas of the crepe paper were manually abraded with a metal brush, sandpaper, or damp cloth, causing the unprotected crepe paper to degrade and reveal the star-shaped portion of light gray canvas underneath.

[0071] From the foregoing it will be seen that the claimed invention is one that is well adapted to attain the numerous functional, structural, and aesthetic advantages as set forth above, as well as other advantages that will be appreciated by those skilled in the art in view of the entire specification including the appended claims and drawings.

[0072] It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims.

[0073] Since many possible embodiments could be made by the present invention without departing from the scope of the invention, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Claims

1. A shoe upper, comprising: a base material having an outer surface; a wear resistant material bonded to at least a portion of said outer surface of said base material and less than all of said outer surface of said base material; and a wearable material bonded to at least a portion of the wearable material, wherein the discontinuity in the wearable material defines a perimeter of at least one zone of the wearable material adjacent to which no wearable material is present, the wearable material being intended to degrade at a faster rate than the base material and the wearable material to expose the base material and / or the wearable material, wherein the wearable material in one or more zones bonded to the wearable material is less susceptible to wear than at least one zone of the wearable material adjacent to which no wearable material is present.

2. The shoe upper according to claim 1, wherein the at least one area of ​​the easily wearable material without the wear-resistant material adjacent thereto corresponds to one or more aesthetic designs, the easily wearable material having abrasion susceptibility, moisture sensitivity and / or deformation sensitivity.

3. The upper of claim 1, wherein the wear-resistant material is layered over all of the base material, including the at least one region of the wear-resistant material where no wear-resistant material is adjacent thereto.

4. The shoe upper according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the wear-prone material comprises a plurality of regions where no wear-resistant material is present adjacent thereto.

5. The shoe upper according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the easily-worn material is at least semi-transparent or semi-light-transmissive.

6. The shoe upper according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the base material and the easy-wear material have at least one different visual property.

7. The upper of claim 6, wherein the different visual attributes include at least one of color, sheen, texture, pattern, and ornamentation.

8. The shoe upper according to any one of claims 1 to 3 and 7, wherein the wear-resistant material has adhesion to the easy-to-wear material and the base material.

9. The shoe upper of claim 8, wherein the wear-resistant material is a hot melt adhesive.

10. The shoe upper of any one of claims 1 to 3, 7 and 9, wherein the wear-resistant material comprises thermoplastic polyurethane.

11. The shoe upper according to any one of claims 1 to 3, 7 and 9, wherein the easily abradable material comprises paper or a lightweight non-woven fabric.

12. The shoe upper of any one of claims 1 to 3, 7 and 9, wherein the base material comprises one of canvas or leather.

13. A method for constructing an upper for a shoe having an aesthetic design that changes with wear, the method comprising: Provide basic materials; applying a wear resistant material to a portion of an outer surface of said base material and to less than all of said outer surface of said base material; and applying a wearable material to the base material to cover at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material to which the wear-resistant material is applied and at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material to which the wear-resistant material is not applied, wherein the discontinuity in the wear-resistant material defines a perimeter of at least one zone of the wearable material, wherein no wear-resistant material is present adjacent to the at least one zone, the wearable material being intended to degrade at a faster rate than the base material and the wear-resistant material to expose the base material and / or the wear-resistant material, wherein the wearable material in one or more zones incorporated into the wear-resistant material is less susceptible to wear than at least one zone of the wearable material where no wear-resistant material is present adjacent to the wearable material.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the wear resistant material is an adhesive.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the adhesive comprises one or more of a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive, and a hot melt adhesive.

16. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The wear resistant material is applied to the portion of the outer surface of the base material by either or both of removing a first portion of the adhesive and forming a recess below the outer surface of the adhesive.

17. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein: The wear resistant material is applied to the outer surface of the base material by laminating one or more of a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive, or a hot melt adhesive with the base material and heating the one or more of the thermoplastic adhesive, the thermosetting adhesive, or the hot melt adhesive.

18. The method according to any one of claims 14 to 16, wherein: The easy-to-wear material is applied to the wear-resistant material by laminating the easy-to-wear material with a thermoplastic adhesive, a thermosetting adhesive, or a hot-melt adhesive and heating the thermoplastic adhesive, the thermosetting adhesive, or the hot-melt adhesive.

19. The method of claim 18, wherein the wear resistant material is bonded to the base material and the wear susceptible material in a single attachment step.

20. A shoe comprising an upper and a sole, the upper comprising a base material having an outer surface, a wear-resistant material bonded to at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material, and a wear-resistant material bonded to at least a portion of the wear-resistant material; wherein the sole is distinguishable from a portion of the upper by at least one of construction and material, wherein, The discontinuity in the wear resistant material defines the perimeter of at least one zone of the wearable material, wherein no wear resistant material is present adjacent to the at least one zone, the wearable material being intended to degrade at a faster rate than the base material and the wear resistant material to expose the base material and / or the wear resistant material, wherein the wearable material in one or more zones incorporated into the wear resistant material is less susceptible to wear than at least one zone of the wearable material wherein no wear resistant material is present adjacent to the wearable material.

21. The shoe of claim 20, wherein the base material has at least one visual attribute that is different from the wearable material.

22. The shoe of claim 21, wherein the different visual attributes include at least one of color, sheen, texture, pattern, and ornamentation.

23. A shoe according to any one of claims 20 to 22, wherein the wear resistant material is bonded to at least a portion of the outer surface of the base material and less than all of the outer surface of the base material.

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