Tapered Sole Bladder Chambers for Responsive Footwear Cushioning
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing sole structures for footwear with fluid-filled bladders lack optimal design for balanced cushioning and support, particularly in accommodating the natural shape and movement of the foot, leading to inefficiencies in responsiveness and durability.
Innovation Solution
A sole structure featuring a bladder with alternating series of tapered chambers and a chassis with interconnected ribs, where the bladder is formed by barrier layers with varying thickness and width, providing a more dynamic cushioning and support system.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a fluid-filled bladder with uniform thickness is used in the midsole, then the bladder provides basic cushioning through fluid compression, but the cushioning responsiveness and support are insufficient due to inability to adapt to varying foot pressure distributions
Solution Approach 1:
The bladder is designed with non-uniform thickness, featuring a forefoot region with greater thickness than a heel region. This local variation in thickness allows different regions of the bladder to respond differently to applied loads, with thicker regions providing greater cushioning capacity where needed. The bladder thereby adapts to the natural pressure distribution of the foot during movement.
2Adaptability or versatility
If a fluid-filled bladder with varying thickness is used to improve cushioning adaptability, then responsiveness to foot movement is enhanced, but the structural stability and shape retention are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The bladder is segmented into multiple discrete chambers rather than forming a single continuous cavity. Each chamber is defined by partitions within the bladder structure. This segmentation allows each chamber to independently respond to localized pressure while the collective arrangement of chambers maintains overall structural stability and prevents excessive deformation of the bladder.
3Stability of the object's composition
If tensile members are added to the bladder to improve shape retention, then structural stability is enhanced, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The tensile members are integrated directly into the bladder wall structure itself, forming an composite construction where the tensile-reinforced bladder wall acts as a unified structural element. This merging of the tensile reinforcement with the bladder wall eliminates the need for separate, discrete tensile member components and their associated attachment mechanisms, thereby reducing overall device complexity while maintaining shape retention.
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
Enhances cushioning and support by adapting to foot movement, improving responsiveness and durability through a balanced distribution of pressure and force, while maintaining consistent fluid pressure across chambers.
Implementation Method 1
The fluid-filled bladders are pressurized with a fluid such as air, and may incorporate tensile members within the bladder to retain the shape of the bladder when compressed resiliently under applied loads
Implementation Method 2
The fluid-filled bladders are pressurized with a fluid such as air
Implementation Method 3
The midsole provides cushioning for the foot and may be partially formed from a polymer foam material that compresses resiliently under an applied load to cushion the foot by attenuating ground-reaction forces
Data Source
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AI summary
A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a bladder having a plurality of tapered chambers including (a) a series of first tapered chambers tapering from a first end on a medial side of the bladder to a second end on a lateral side of the bladder, and (b) one or more second tapered chambers tapering from a first end on the lateral side of the bladder to a second end on the medial side of the bladder. Each of the one or more second tapered chambers is interposed between adjacent ones of the first tapered chambers. The sole structure also includes a chassis disposed on a first side of the bladder and having a plurality of first ribs each disposed between adjacent ones of the first tapered chambers and the second tapered chambers.