Polyhedral Hollow Cell Shoe Sole for Impact Absorption
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional shoe soles with air cushions are prone to bursting or tearing under severe impact, leading to inconsistent quality and performance due to irregular gaps between elastomeric balls, which complicates the commercialization of effective impact absorption.
Innovation Solution
A shoe sole structure comprising polyhedral hollow cells made of synthetic resin, bonded by a hot melt adhesive, where the cells are formed by compressing and heating elastic balls in a vacuum atmosphere to create a stable, impact-absorbing sole that maintains structure even if individual cells burst or tear, with controlled elasticity and hardness characteristics.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If air cushions are mounted in the heel portion of the midsole to absorb impact, then shock absorption capability is improved, but the air cushion may burst or tear when exposed to severe impact or pointed objects
Solution Approach 1:
The air cushion is divided into multiple independent polyhedral hollow cells (30 units of 15mm diameter or 64 units of 10mm diameter). Each cell is separated by partition walls, so that when one cell is punctured, the others remain intact and continue to provide shock absorption. This segmentation transforms a single vulnerable air cushion into multiple resilient units, resolving the contradiction between impact absorption and resistance to bursting.
Solution Approach 2:
The shoe sole combines multiple materials including the synthetic resin inner layer, hot melt adhesive outer layer, and polyhedral hollow cell structure. This composite construction enhances the overall strength and puncture resistance while maintaining the shock absorption function, addressing the vulnerability of single-material air cushions.
2Reliability
If elastomeric balls are provided in accommodating portions to absorb impact, then shock absorption is improved, but the gaps between balls are formed irregularly making it difficult to control quality and performance consistency
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses identical polyhedral hollow cells with uniform dimensions (15mm or 10mm diameter) and consistent wall thickness throughout the shoe sole. This homogeneity ensures that each cell contributes equally to shock absorption and provides consistent elasticity and hardness characteristics across the entire product, eliminating the quality variation caused by irregular ball arrangements.
Solution Approach 2:
The polyhedral hollow cells are pre-formed with precise dimensions and regular geometries before being assembled into the shoe sole. This preliminary precision manufacturing of individual cells ensures that when assembled, they maintain uniform gaps and consistent performance characteristics, avoiding the irregularities that occur with freely moving elastomeric balls.
3Reliability
If the entire sole is configured as an air cushion structure to maximize impact absorption, then shock absorption capability is improved, but the sole can easily be burst or torn
Solution Approach 1:
The entire sole air cushion structure is segmented into 30 or 64 individual polyhedral hollow cells with partition walls between them. This segmentation means that while the entire sole provides comprehensive impact absorption, each individual cell is isolated, so puncture or tearing of one cell does not compromise the entire structure. The segmentation resolves the vulnerability of full air cushion designs.
Solution Approach 2:
Each polyhedral hollow cell is constructed with flexible synthetic resin walls that can deform to absorb impact while maintaining structural integrity. The flexible nature of these thin-walled cells allows them to withstand severe impact without bursting, unlike rigid air cushion structures.
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 polyhedral hollow cell structure effectively maximizes impact buffering, maintains sole integrity, and allows precise control over elasticity and hardness, ensuring consistent performance and safety without voids between cells.
Implementation Method 1
heating and compressing the elastic balls loaded in the shoe sole mold under a vacuum atmosphere such that ball-shaped synthetic resin inner layers of the elastic balls are transformed into polyhedral hollow cells by compression, the cells being polyhedrons and each having an empty space formed therein, and hot melt outer layers of the elastic balls are transformed into a molten hot melt that is melted by heating and fills between multiple polyhedral hollow cells
Implementation Method 2
cooling the polyhedral hollow cells while maintaining the compression state after the heating and compressing such that the molten hot melt is cooled and transformed into a hot melt adhesive part
Implementation Method 3
heating and compressing the elastic balls loaded in the shoe sole mold under a vacuum atmosphere such that ball-shaped synthetic resin inner layers of the elastic balls are transformed into polyhedral hollow cells by compression
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a shoe sole having a structure in which a polyhedral hollow cell made of a synthetic resin, configured as a polyhedron, and having an empty space formed therein is bonded with other polyhedral hollow cells by a hot melt adhesive part, wherein the hot melt adhesive part is provided between the multiple polyhedral hollow cells so that no voids are formed therebetween, and a plane structure of the polyhedral hollow cells bonded with each other has a shape of a human sole.