Method for manufacturing shoes

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing shoes (1), particularly athletic shoes, and to provide an effective and cost-effective method for manufacturing shoes, the method comprising the steps of: a) manufacturing an upper (2) and a sole (3); b) joining the upper (2) and the sole (3) and inserting the joined upper (2) and sole (3) into a flexible storage element (4) that can be closed airtight; c) hermetically closing the storage element (4) and evacuating the storage element (4) so ​​that the storage element (4) presses the joined upper (2) and sole (3) within the storage element (4); d) connecting the upper (2) and the sole (3) to each other within the storage element (4); and e) venting the storage element (4) and removing the connected upper (2) and sole (3). [Selected figure] Figure 3

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing shoes, in particular athletic shoes. [Background technology]

[0002] The production of footwear usually requires considerable investment costs, which makes the production of the shoe correspondingly expensive. The upper on one side and the sole on the other side must be brought into close contact with each other before the joining process can take place. This must be done with a suitable geometric adjustment between the upper and the sole, which generates corresponding costs for the tooling system.

[0003] US Pat. No. 5,399,633 discloses the use of a membrane on which the upper and sole are placed. Furthermore, the interior of the membrane is evacuated to connect the upper and sole. A similar method is known from US Pat. No. 5,399,633. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] International Publication No. 99 / 24498 Brochure [Patent Document 2] US Patent Application Publication No. 2017 / 0129200 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The object of the present invention is in particular to provide a method for manufacturing shoes which allows a significant reduction in tooling costs, nevertheless targeting a good connection between the upper and the sole. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The solution to this object according to the invention is characterized in that the method comprises: a) manufacturing an upper and a sole; b) joining the upper and the sole and inserting the joined upper and the sole into a flexible storage element that can be closed so as to be airtight, the shoe last being placed in the upper, the upper and the sole being placed in a concave holding part for appropriate adjustment between each other, the holding part also being inserted into the flexible storage element; c) hermetically closing the storage element and evacuating the storage element so that the storage element presses the joined upper and sole within the storage element; d) connecting the upper and the sole to each other in the receiving element; e) ventilating the storage element and removing the joined upper and sole.

[0007] The receiving element is preferably a bag of elastic material, in particular a plastic bag, preferably made of polyethylene.

[0008] The storage element may comprise a closure element for opening and closing the storage element, which may be an airtight zipper.

[0009] The sole may consist of several parts, which are joined together before carrying out step b) above, where an adhesive may be applied between the parts.

[0010] The evacuation according to step c) above can be performed by connecting the receiving element to an evacuation pump, which can be performed via a valve element or a pipe socket provided on the receiving element.

[0011] The joining of the upper and the sole according to step d) above is preferably carried out by applying microwave radiation to the contact zone between the upper and the sole, the application of microwave radiation then being preferably carried out for a period of 15 to 60 seconds, in particular 20 to 40 seconds.

[0012] The connection between the upper and the sole according to step d) above may be performed by melting material of the upper and / or the sole in the contact zone between the upper and the sole and fusing the melted material with adjacent material of the upper and / or the sole. In that way, a welding process is performed.

[0013] Alternatively or additionally, it may be considered to apply an adhesive between the upper and the sole prior to joining the latter, which may then be a hot melt adhesive which is at least partially melted during step d) above.

[0014] Between steps d) and e) above, the joined upper and sole can be allowed to cool, preferably for 30 to 120 seconds, by placing the housing in a shoe at ambient conditions for a certain period of time.

[0015] Finally, in order to properly mold the shoe, it is beneficial to have the last positioned within the upper at least during steps b) through e) above.

[0016] That is, a vacuum bag is used to press the upper and sole together so that the parts are in intimate contact with each other and can then be joined by a corresponding joining process.

[0017] The various sole parts (midsole, outer sole, etc.) can be pre-connected to one another (eg by adhesive) before the sole is joined with the upper and both elements are placed in the mentioned bag.

[0018] Advantageously, by using the described process, extensive cleaning processes of the components prior to bagging them are made redundant, and roughening processes of the components to be joined are usually not necessary.

[0019] If the connection between the upper and the sole is made by microwave radiation, it may be advantageous to apply an adhesive to the surfaces that have to be connected. This is advantageously redundant if the two materials that have to be connected are made of the same material. In this respect, preferably thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is used.

[0020] A specific resulting advantage of the proposed solution is that the combination of a storage element (bag) evacuated with microwave radiation for the connection of the upper and the sole results in a fast and stable connection between the components with low tooling and manufacturing costs.

[0021] To ensure that the upper and sole remain properly adjusted relative to one another (e.g., before being joined by microwave radiation), it may be helpful to use clips or tape to temporarily join the mentioned parts. Another possibility for making this connection is the use of a concave holding part (e.g., a deep-drawn part) that holds the components together and that is also inserted into the receiving element.

[0022] Upon evacuation of the storage element, the parts (upper and sole) are pressed together by the vacuum in the storage element. A subsequent joining process (eg by microwave radiation) firmly joins the components together.

[0023] The use of the described method has the great advantage that the tooling costs are very low, i.e. the tooling required is essentially limited to a vacuum housing and a vacuum pump.

[0024] Furthermore, the handling of the process is very easy and can be carried out even by less trained personnel.

[0025] Equal contact pressure is obtained in all relevant areas between the upper and the sole.

[0026] Also, a sole having an undercut (for example, a soccer sole with a heel cap) can be easily pressed against the upper.

[0027] In the drawings, embodiments of the invention are shown. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0028] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 shows the upper and sole still separated, and the elastic bag. [Diagram 2] FIG. 13 shows the joined upper and sole being inserted into the bag. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 shows a bag being evacuated during the upper and sole joining process. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0029] In Fig. 1, the upper 2 and the sole 3 are shown in the left part of the figure, where the two components 2, 3 are still separate from each other. Both components 2, 3 are manufactured separately by respective processes and are attached at the beginning of the joining process, as will be described later.

[0030] The shoe last 10 is inserted into the upper 2 to maintain the desired shape of the upper 2 .

[0031] The sole 3 also currently consists of a first part 6 and a second part 7. More specifically, the first part 6 is the base of the sole and the second part 7 is an insert that is placed in a corresponding recess in part 6. This is only shown diagrammatically in FIG. 1. Of course, it is possible to use different molded parts or inserts together with the base of the sole to form the entire sole 3. A part of the sole may for example consist of a rubber material and be connectable with the base of the sole by a hot melt powder coating process, for example by using a hot melt film or by a cement coating. The part may be foamed or non-foamed.

[0032] Specifically, a midsole element can be combined with several rubber elements (which later form the outer sole) and the entire arrangement can be placed in a (deep draw) gripper that holds the parts together during the subsequent joining process with the upper.

[0033] Concerning the various parts forming the sole, pre-molded parts made of expanded TPU, EVA, polyurethane or other materials can be considered. Also free beads (especially made of expanded TPU) placed on the sole element and connected thereto by suitable connecting methods can be considered. Here, the gripping tools mentioned are particularly suitable.

[0034] The upper 2 and sole 3 are brought into contact as indicated by the arrows in FIG.

[0035] Furthermore, the (still loosely) combined or joined parts 2, 3 are placed in a receiving element 4 (see large arrow in Figure 1), in this case a plastic bag made of polyethylene (this material is not affected by microwave radiation).

[0036] The receiving element 4 has a closure element 5 at one open end for hermetically closing the receiving element 4 after the components 2, 3 have been placed in the element 4. After this has been done, the closure element 5 is closed, so that the components 2, 3 are hermetically contained within the receiving element 4.

[0037] This situation is shown in figure 2. Here, upper 2 and sole 3 are placed in a receiving element 4 which is geometrically adjusted to one another and which is here closed by a closure element 5. Upper 2 is supported by a shoe last 10.

[0038] Here, the evacuation process is carried out as shown in Fig. 3. The receiving element 4 has a valve element or a pipe socket 9 suitable for a fluid connection with a vacuum pump (not shown). In Fig. 3 it is indicated that the receiving element 4 made of elastic material presses the upper 2 and the sole 3 by the vacuum in the receiving element 4.

[0039] Here, microwave radiation, indicated by the several arrows in Figure 3, is applied to the contact area between the upper 2 and the sole 3 to firmly connect both components, whereby the material in the contact zone between the upper 2 and the sole 3 is meltable so that a deep connection is created between the components.

[0040] That way, a finished shoe 1 is obtained. After a certain time of cooling, the closure element 5 is opened, thereby allowing the interior of the storage element 4 to be ventilated. The shoe 1 can then be removed from the storage element 4.

[0041] In particular, the manufacturing process can be made less expensive since the bag (containment element) 4 is reusable. [Explanation of symbols]

[0042] 1. Shoes 2. Upper 3 Sole 4. Containment elements 5 Closure elements 6 Sole part 7 Sole part 8 Valve element / pipe socket 9. Microwave Radiation 10 shoe last

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing a shoe (1), comprising the steps of: a) manufacturing an upper (2) and a sole (3); b) joining the upper (2) and the sole (3) and inserting the joined upper (2) and the sole (3) into a flexible storage element (4) that can be closed so as to be airtight, in which a shoe last (10) is placed in the upper (2), the upper (2) and the sole (3) are placed in a concave holding part that holds the upper (2) and the sole (3) for proper adjustment between the upper (2) and the sole (3), and the concave holding part is also inserted into the flexible storage element (4); c) hermetically closing the storage element (4) and evacuating the storage element (4) so ​​that the storage element (4) presses the joined upper (2) and sole (3) within the storage element (4); d) connecting said upper (2) and said sole (3) together in said storage element (4); e) ventilating said storage element (4) and removing said joined upper (2) and sole (3) from said storage element (4).

2. 2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the receiving element (4) is a bag of elastic material.

3. 3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the receiving element (4) is a plastic bag.

4. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the receiving element (4) is provided with a closure element (5) for opening and closing the receiving element (4).

5. 5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that the closure element (5) is an airtight zipper.

6. 6. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the sole (3) consists of several parts (6, 7), said parts (6, 7) being connected to each other before carrying out step b) according to claim 1.

7. 7. Method according to claim 6, characterized in that an adhesive is applied between said parts (6, 7).

8. 8. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that the evacuation according to step c) of claim 1 is performed by connecting the receiving element (4) with an evacuation pump.

9. 9. The method according to claim 8, characterized in that the connection between the receiving element (4) and the evacuation pump is effected via a valve element or a pipe socket (8) provided on the receiving element (4).

10. 10. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the joining of the upper (2) and the sole (3) according to step d) of claim 1 is performed by applying microwave radiation (9) to the contact zone between the upper (2) and the sole (3).

11. 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the applying of microwave radiation occurs for 15 to 60 seconds.

12. 12. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the joining of the upper (2) and the sole (3) according to step d) of claim 1 is performed by melting material of the upper (2) and / or the sole (3) in the contact zone between the upper (2) and the sole (3) and fusing the melted material with adjacent material of the upper (2) and / or the sole (3).

13. 12. The method according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that, before joining the upper (2) and the sole (3), an adhesive is applied between the upper (2) and the sole (3).

14. 14. The method of claim 13, characterized in that the adhesive is a hot melt adhesive which is at least partially melted during step d) of claim 1.

15. 15. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that between steps d) and e) of claim 1, the joined upper (2) and sole (3) are allowed to cool for a period of between 30 and 120 seconds.

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