680 results about "Forefoot" patented technology

An article of footwear includes a sole having a forefoot portion, a heel portion and an outsole having a bottom surface including a primary ground contacting surface. The bottom surface of the outsole includes a forefoot bulge and a heel bulge which provide the footwear with controlled instability for providing dynamic conditioning of the wearer's muscles during the gait cycle.

An Active Ankle Foot Orthosis (AAFO) is provided where the impedance of an orthotic joint is modulated throughout the walking cycle to treat ankle foot gait pathology, such as drop foot gait. During controlled plantar flexion, a biomimetic torsional spring control is applied where orthotic joint stiffness is actively adjusted to minimize forefoot collisions with the ground. Throughout late stance, joint impedance is minimized so as not to impede powered plantar flexion movements, and during the swing phase, a torsional spring-damper (PD) control lifts the foot to provide toe clearance. To assess the clinical effects of variable-impedance control, kinetic and kinematic gait data were collected on two drop foot participants wearing the AAFO. It has been found that actively adjusting joint impedance reduces the occurrence of slap foot, allows greater powered plantar flexion, and provides for less kinematic difference during swing when compared to normals.

A midsole structure for a shoe which improves a ride feeling and stability of the midfoot portion of the sole assembly during running. The sole assembly 1 of the shoe includes the upper plate 3 disposed on the upper side of the midfoot portion M and formed of a hard elastic member, the lower plate 4 disposed under the upper plate 3 to form the void S with the upper plate 3, formed of a hard elastic member, and having a downwardly convexedly curved shape, the midfoot outsole 6 attached on the bottom surface 4a of the lower plate 4, having the ground contact surface 6a, and provided discretely in the longitudinal direction from the outsole 5 of the heel portion H and the outsole 7 of the forefoot portion F of the sole assembly 1, and the connections 8, 9 provided on the front and rear ends of the midfoot portion M and interconnecting the upper plate 3 with the lower plate 4 in the vertical direction.

A sole for an article of footwear includes: a foam base; a lateral pod assembly haying a plurality of pods fluidly connected in series disposed below the foam base, wherein the lateral pod assembly extends from a heel portion of the sole to a forefoot portion of the sole along a lateral side of the sole; and a medial pod assembly having a plurality of pods fluidly connected in series disposed below the foam base, wherein the medial pod assembly extends from a heel portion of the sole to a forefoot portion of the sole along a medial side of the sole, wherein a portion of the foam base extends between the lateral pod assembly and the medial pod assembly.

There is disclosed a golf shoe having a plurality of first and second traction projections extending out from the outsole to define a ground engaging surface. The first traction projections are arranged around a first pivot point located in the forefoot portion and a second pivot point located in the rearfoot portion of the outsole. The first traction projections have a body orientated lengthwise toward the pivot points. The second traction projections extend out from the outsole along the periphery of the outsole. The first and second traction projections define a ground engaging surface which, in use, enhance the traction of the outsole during the full golf swing motion.

An article of footwear includes a sole having a shank area located between a forefoot portion and a rear foot portion of the sole, an upper including an inner counter and an outer counter, and a pivot mechanism attaching the outer counter to the sole so as to permit the outer counter to pivot relative to the inner counter at a pivot point located at the shank area of the sole. The outer counter pivots between an open position away from the inner counter and a closed position in supporting engagement with the inner counter. The pivot mechanism may be a mechanical, composite, or living hinge. The article of footwear may further include a locking mechanism for selectively securing the outer counter in the closed position in supporting engagement with the inner counter.

A sole for an article of footwear includes a base having an outer edge defining a perimeter, the base having a forefoot portion, a midfoot portion and a heel portion; and a plurality of resilient projections extending from the base, wherein the plurality of projections includes a plurality of projections extending non-orthogonally from the base about the perimeter of the base and a plurality of projections extending substantially orthogonally from the base within the non-orthogonal projections.

A sole for an article of footwear includes: an upper sole portion; and a pod assembly having a plurality of pods fluidly connected in series disposed below the upper sole portion, wherein the pod assembly extends from a lateral heel portion of the sole to a medial forefoot portion of the sole such that the plurality of pods compress substantially in sequence through a gait cycle of a wearer.

A foldable sandal includes a forefoot portion that is adapted to be disposed under a front portion of a wearer's foot, a rear-foot portion that is adapted to be disposed under a rear portion of the wearer's foot, and a folding member outsole that functions as the folding member and the bottom layer of the sandal. The folding member is operatively coupled to both the forefoot portion and the rear-foot portion wherein the folding member is adapted to enable the foldable sandal to be selectively moved between an open configuration suitable for wearing and a folded configuration suitable for storage. The sandal may also have a retaining member fastened to the folding member outsole or the forefoot portion and/or the rear-foot portion to hold the sandal on the wearer's foot.

An insole for insertion into footwear, comprising a forefoot portion, a midfoot portion and a heel portion; the midfoot portion connecting together the forefoot portion and the heel portion; said insole comprising a cushioning layer of a viscoelastic gel material which provides a cushioning function; and wherein the midfoot portion and the heel portion comprise a peripheral edge that curves upwards.

An article of footwear with primary cleats and secondary cleats is disclosed. The primary and secondary cleats are preferably disposed on an outer peripheral zone of a forefoot portion of a sole and present a walled cleat system on a portion of the outer peripheral zone. The article of footwear also includes bladed toe cleats.

A midsole insert for use with a shoe is provided. The midsole insert includes a heel portion, a midfoot portion, and a forefoot portion, and a plurality of grid systems located on the midsole insert, where each grid system includes a plurality of openings cut into the midsole insert forming a lattice pattern. The plurality of grids may be located on at least one of the heel portion, the midfoot portion, and the forefoot portion, constructed to provide energy return features. The midsole may further be constructed and arranged to attach directly to an upper during a manufacturing step, to secure the shape of the upper on a last. By attaching directly to the upper, the midsole insert eliminates the need for a stroble board, which is typically used to secure the upper to the last. By eliminating the stroble board, the present invention places the midsole insert and the energy return grid system closer to the foot, which maximizes reaction time and performance. The midsole insert may be formed of at least two materials having different hardnesses, such that the heel portion has a greater hardness than the forefoot portion.

A shoe sole structure includes a midsole body that extends from the heel region to the forefoot region of a shoe and an outsole that is attached to the midsole body. The outsole includes a plurality of protrusions arranged transversely to the longitudinal axis of the shoe, while extending at least partially between the lateral edge and the medial edge of the shoe. One or more of the half tube structures can include grooves and/or projections to enhance traction on a contact surface.

A footwear sole includes a shank with a honeycomb reinforcement structure, heel aperture and rib receptacle in the bottom side of a front region of the shank. A fabric sheath surrounds the shank. Polymers are formed in the rib receptacle, in the heel aperture and on the top side of the shank. A foot bed insert is used with the shank. The foot bed insert includes a fabric upper layer, a foam forefoot component, a foam matrix connected to the foam forefoot component, a heel cradle and a heel strike region.

Torsion control devices for use in an article of footwear are disclosed. An article of footwear comprises: a sole having a forefoot portion and a rearfoot portion; and a torsion element disposed in the sole, wherein the torsion element allows the forefoot portion to rotate in a first direction relative to the rearfoot portion and restricts rotation of the forefoot portion relative to the rearfoot portion in a second direction.

The invention relates to a shoe, in particular a sprint shoe, including a plate arranged in a sole area of the shoe. The plate extends essentially over the complete length of the sole area and is substantially planar in a forefoot part and is constructed of a material and configured to allow for elastic bending of the plate in the longitudinal direction, and is configured to three-dimensionally encompasses a rearfoot part of the foot. Optionally, the plate includes a heel cup in the rearfoot part to cradle the foot. Further, a wedge- or rib-like raised part may be arranged below the heel cup.

The present invention is generally directed to a sole for an article of footwear. The sole generally defining a heel region, a forefoot region and an arch region that is disposed between the heel region and the forefoot region. The sole has a foot support extending from the heel region to the forefoot region, with a shank plate coupled to a lower surface of the foot support. The sole further includes a lateral heel piece and a medial heel piece, such that at least one of the medial or lateral heel pieces includes a plurality of tubes. A heel outsole is coupled to at least one of said medial or lateral heel pieces.

A removable full length insole for insertion into open style footwear, includes a forefoot portion, a heel portion and a mid-foot portion connecting together the forefoot portion and the heel portion; a uniform thickness cushioning layer of a resilient material extending through the forefoot portion, heel portion and mid-foot portion; a substantially dome shaped pillow extending down from the cushioning layer at the forefoot portion and heel portion; and an arrangement for maintaining the insole in position in the footwear during a gait.