Self-recovering Footwear Sole with Selective Resistance Coupling
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional athletic protection methods fail to effectively absorb extreme forces in multiple directions, leading to ACL injuries during sudden movements in sports, as they often disengage and require manual reset, lacking simultaneous shear and normal force absorption.
Innovation Solution
The development of impact-absorbing footwear with a selective resistance coupling using resilient deformation members that engage in a non-linear manner, providing increasing resistance below an injury threshold and decreasing resistance above it, allowing for force mitigation and quick recovery to prevent ACL injuries without disrupting the athlete's gait.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If breakaway approaches are used to mitigate extreme forces, then injury prevention is improved, but the equipment becomes inoperative and requires manual reset
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies the discarding and recovering principle by designing a breakaway mechanism that can be automatically reset. The binding system allows the ski to detach during extreme forces to prevent injury, then recovers by automatically resetting the binding to its engaged state, eliminating the need for manual intervention and maintaining equipment continuity.
2Device complexity
If single direction force absorption is used, then device complexity is reduced, but effectiveness against multi-directional ACL injuries is insufficient
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies universality by designing a binding system that performs multiple functions: it absorbs forces in both vertical and lateral directions, provides both shock absorption and lateral stability, and protects against various types of ACL-injurious movements through a unified multi-functional mechanism.
3Object-affected harmful factors
If resilient deformation members allow displacement above injury threshold, then force mitigation is improved, but loss of traction control occurs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by designing a resilient deformation mechanism that dynamically adjusts its properties based on applied force. Below the injury threshold, the system maintains rigid traction control; above the threshold, it transitions to a deformable state that mitigates harmful forces while automatically recovering to restore traction control.
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 solution effectively mitigates injurious forces by allowing displacement only when forces exceed a control threshold, preventing ACL injuries and enabling continuous use without manual intervention, as the system automatically recovers to its original state, ensuring uninterrupted athletic performance.
Implementation Method 1
a plurality of resilient deformation members that engage the planar sole portions in an opposed circumferentially aligned manner, selectively deform in response to pressure exerted by the wearer for preventing ACL and other impact related injuries, and recover to an undeformed rest position without breakaway
Implementation Method 2
forces exerted by the wearer against the sole portion in frictional contact with a floor surface
Data Source
AI summary
An impact absorbing footwear device employs opposed planar sole portions engaged by a selective resistance coupling that biases the opposed planar sole portions in a non-linear manner in response to forces exerted by the wearer against the sole portion in frictional contact with a floor surface. The planar sole portions are disposed in a footwear appliance that takes the form of an athletic shoe sole. The selective resistance coupling includes a plurality of resilient deformation members that engage the planar sole portions in an opposed circumferentially aligned manner, selectively deform in response to pressure exerted by the wearer for preventing ACL and other impact related injuries, and recover to an undeformed rest position without breakaway to allow the wearer uninterrupted usage while dampening forces that surpass an injury threshold from the resilient deformation that allows the planar sole portions to temporarily misalign.