Fiber Sheet Shoe Upper with Localized Density for Foot Stability
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Solution Overview
Problem
Shoes with upper materials made of fiber sheets provide excellent lightweight properties but can be uncomfortable due to excessive foot motion leading to significant foot protrusion during intense movements, lacking a sufficient solution to maintain comfort and shape integrity.
Innovation Solution
The shoe design incorporates a fiber sheet upper material with specific tensile characteristics, including low energy loss, minimal permanent strain, and appropriate elasticity, arranged at strategic angles to enhance shape retention and foot stability during intense movements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If upper materials are made of fiber sheets, then lightweight properties are improved, but foot stability deteriorates due to excessive foot motion
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by creating regions of different fiber sheet densities and elasticities in specific areas of the upper material. High-density regions are placed in areas requiring stability (toe box, heel counter) while lower-density regions are used where flexibility is needed, thus maintaining foot stability without sacrificing overall lightweight properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses composite materials by combining fiber sheets with different mechanical properties in a single upper structure. The fiber sheet incorporates regions with varying tensile characteristics, creating a composite structure that provides both lightweight properties and localized stability to prevent excessive foot motion during intense movements.
2Ease of operation
If fiber sheet upper material deforms easily, then comfort is improved, but shape integrity deteriorates during intense movements
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by designing the fiber sheet with time-dependent mechanical properties. The material exhibits high elasticity and deformability during initial contact and low-intensity movements for comfort, but demonstrates enhanced shape retention and resistance to permanent deformation during intense movements through its specific tensile characteristics and energy loss properties.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes material parameters by selecting fiber sheets with specific tensile characteristics including controlled energy loss and permanent strain values. The fiber sheet is engineered to have appropriate elasticity coefficients that allow easy deformation for comfort while maintaining shape integrity, achieving a parameter optimization between softness and structural stability.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The design effectively prevents foot protrusion and maintains shape integrity during sports activities, ensuring comfort and durability by utilizing fiber sheets with controlled deformation and restoration properties.
Implementation Method 1
the fiber sheet has appropriate elasticity so as to enable the fiber sheet to easily deform
Implementation Method 2
an energy loss of a 10-mm-wide strip-shaped test piece made of the fiber sheet, when a load with a tensile energy of 50 mJ is applied to the test piece in the length direction and is then removed, of 40 % or less; and a permanent strain of the test piece after a million times of deformation and restoration
Data Source
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AI summary
An object of the present invention is to provide a shoe having excellent comfort. The present invention provides a shoe including an upper material that is partially or fully formed of a fiber sheet, wherein the fiber sheet exhibits specific tensile characteristics at least in one direction.