Method and Product for Manufacturing Vulcanized Footwear or Cupsole Footwear
A vulc style and cupsole style footwear and a method for manufacturing the footwear are disclosed. The footwear includes a midsole that is directly attached to the upper. The midsole may be attached to the outsole by adhesive. In the method of manufacturing the footwear, the upper and an outsole are disposed a set distance apart. Polyurethane or other material for providing cushioning to the footwear is either injected between the upper and outsole or poured onto the outsole and the upper is traversed over the outsole so as to define the mold for defining the midsole. The polyurethane is directly attached to the upper and adhered to the outsole/cupsole.
Not Applicable
STATEMENT RE: FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENTNot Applicable
BACKGROUNDThe present invention relates to a method and product for manufacturing vulcanized style footwear or cupsole style footwear.
Referring now to
Other methods of fabricating the midsole are also known in the prior art. By way of example and not limitation, the midsole may be injection molded into the cupsole or between the lasted upper and the outsole. Unfortunately, the injection molded midsole may include ratholes or gaps between various components of the foxing, cupsole, outsole and upper. These gaps cause structural delamination of the various components of the shoe and also hinders force transfer between the foot and the outsole which may be crucial in various technical sports requiring tactile foot skill. Additionally, when the midsole is injection molded into the shoe, the midsole does not structurally attach the upper to the outsole or cupsole.
Accordingly, there is a need in the art for an improved vulc style shoe and cupsole style shoe as well as a method for manufacturing such shoes.
BRIEF SUMMARYThe product and method described herein address the needs discussed above, discussed below and those that are known in the art.
The footwear described herein has a midsole that is directly attached to an upper of the footwear. By way of example and not limitation, the midsole may be fused with or permeate a thin fabric material at a bottom of the upper. Moreover, the midsole may be substantially continuously attached to the bottom surface of the upper so that no gaps or rat holes are formed between the upper and the midsole. This provides for better anatomical fit and support, better force transfer from the foot to the outsole or cupsole of the footwear and a longer lasting sturdier footwear construction. The midsole may be adhered or otherwise attached to the outsole or cupsole.
Direct attachment of the midsole to the upper of the footwear also reduces manufacturing costs. In particular, the midsole provides structural stability to the shoe. The midsole joins the upper to the outsole or cupsole. In the process of manufacturing the midsole directly attached to the upper, an outsole or cupsole may be placed in a fixture. Adhesive may be lined on the exposed surface of the outsole or cupsole where the midsole is formed. Polyurethane may be disposed (e.g., poured or injected) on the outsole. As the polyurethane expands, the polyurethane is adhered to the outsole by way of adhesive. The polyurethane is directly bonded to the upper.
This process may be utilized both for vulc style footwear as well as cupsole style footwear. Additionally, the footwear may be formed by way of pouring polyurethane onto the outsole or cupsole or injecting polyurethane between the upper and the outsole/cupsole defining the mold of the midsole.
More particularly, a footwear is disclosed. The footwear may comprise an upper, a midsole and an outsole. The upper may define a bottom surface and an exterior shell. The midsole may be bonded to the bottom surface of the upper and a bottom peripheral portion of the exterior shell. The midsole may define a bottom surface. The outsole may be attached (e.g., adhered, interlocked, etc.) to the bottom surface of the midsole.
The midsole and the outsole may both be polyurethane. The polyurethane of the midsole may have a lower density compared to the polyurethane of the outsole so that the midsole provides cushioning and the outsole provide wear resistance. Also, foxing which provides wear resistance may be attached to the outer periphery of the outsole and the midsole.
The outsole may have a cupsole configuration. The midsole may be adhered to the interior surface of the cupsole and a lip of the cupsole may be adhered to the bottom peripheral portion of the upper.
A method of manufacturing footwear is also disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of disposing an outsole or cupsole on a first plate wherein the outsole defines a top surface; disposing a lasted upper in a second plate wherein the second plate is traverseable to a first position with respect to the first plate; disposing settable liquid on the top surface of the outsole; traversing the second plate to the first position with respect to the first plate so that a bottom surface of the lasted upper is adjacent to the settable liquid on an opposite side from the outsole, the top surface of the outsole and the bottom surface of the upper defines a mold for forming a midsole from the settable liquid; and curing the settable liquid to a solid state to bond the midsole to the bottom surface of the upper.
The method may further comprise the step of applying an adhesive to the upper surface of the outsole to adhere the midsole to the outsole.
The second plate discussed in relation to the method may also include first and second parts that clamp around the lasted upper when the first and second parts are in a closed position. In this regard, the method may further comprise the steps of first applying adhesive to a lip of the cupsole, second traversing the second plate to the first position so that the lip of the cupsole is positioned between the upper and the first and second parts, and third traversing the first and second parts to the closed position to apply pressure on the lip of the cupsole to the upper. The method may also further comprise the step of activating the applied adhesive with light or heat. The traversing step may include the step of rotating the first and second plates with respect to each other about a common pivot axis.
Another method of manufacturing footwear is also disclosed. The method may comprise the steps of disposing an outsole on a first plate wherein the outsole defines a top surface; disposing a lasted upper in a second plate wherein the second plate is traverseable to a first position with respect to the first plate; traversing the second plate to the first position with respect to the first plate so that a bottom surface of the lasted upper is adjacent the outsole so as to define a mold for a midsole; injecting settable liquid between the bottom surface of the lasted upper and the outsole; curing the settable liquid to a solid state to form the midsole; and attaching the settable liquid to the upper and the outsole.
These and other features and advantages of the various embodiments disclosed herein will be better understood with respect to the following description and drawings, in which like numbers refer to like parts throughout, and in which:
Referring now to
Moreover, the process of directly attaching the midsole 10 to the upper 14 reduces the hand assembly time and cost required to manufacture the shoe 12. In the process, a lasted upper 16 may be secured to a top plate 18 of a footwear fixture 20, as shown in
The footwear described herein is in relation to a vulc style footwear and a cupsole style footwear. However, the various aspects of the footwear and methodology of manufacturing the footwear may be applied or employed to other types of footwear such as boots, slip-ons, sports shoes (e.g., football shoes, wrestling shoes, etc.). As such, the discussion of the footwear and methodology in relation to vulc style footwear and cupsole style footwear are for the purposes of convenience and not limitation. Additionally, the footwear and methodology described herein utilizes an outsole or cupsole for providing wear resistance with the ground. However, in certain shoes, the outsole may be eliminated.
More particularly, referring now to
Once the upper 14 is lasted, the lasted upper 16 is secured to the top plate 18, as shown in
An outsole 58 (see
After forming or disposing the outsole 58 in the cavity 60 of the bottom plate 22, a low density polyurethane for the purposes of providing cushioning to the footwear 12 may be poured onto the outsole 58. Prior to setting or curing of the polyurethane, the top plate 18 with the lasted upper 16 secured thereto is rotated about pivot axis 24 so that the bottom surface 26 of the lasted upper 16 is now above the curing polyurethane. The outsole 58, the bottom surface 26 of the lasted upper 16 and the walls 68 of the cavity 60 define the mold that forms the contour of the midsole 10. Prior to pouring of the polyurethane, an activatable adhesive may be applied (e.g., brushed, sprayed, etc.) to the exposed surface 59 (see
Alternatively, after forming or disposing the outsole 58 in the cavity 60 of the bottom plate 22, a low density polyurethane may be injection molded to form the midsole 10, as shown in
The activatable adhesive or PUR applied to the outsole 58 may cover the entire exposed surface of the outsole 58 or something less than the entire exposed surface of the outsole 58. By way of example and not limitation, the outer peripheral portion of the exposed surface of the outsole may be covered with adhesive or PUR for providing a peripheral seal between the midsole 10 and the outsole 58. Other patterns of adhesive or PUR coverage are also contemplated such as front/back, side to side, dotted, etc.
Referring now to
Referring back to
Referring now to
An activatable adhesive may be applied (e.g., sprayed, brushed, etc.) to the interior surface 78b of the cupsole 76b. With the cupsole 76b disposed on the bottom plate 22b, the adhesive may be activated (e.g., flash activated or heat activated). After activation, the lasted upper 16 may be brought down over the cupsole 76b so that the bottom surface 26b of the lasted upper 16b and the cupsole 76b define a mold for the midsole 10. Thereafter, the first and second parts 42b, 44b may be traversed to the closed position so that the first and second parts 42b, 44b may press against the lip 80b of the cupsole 76b onto the bottom peripheral edge portion 70b of the lasted upper 16b, as described in relation to
Referring now to
Referring now to
In manufacturing the vulc style footwear or cupsole style footwear, low density polyurethane may be attached or bonded to the bottom of the upper. In this process, the low density polyurethane expands and contacts the bottom of the lasted upper. The polyurethane conforms to the contour of the polyurethane so that a different fixture is not required for each different last. Generally, as long as the top gage 88 of the upper 14 remains the same, the same fixture may be used for lasts having a different bottom surface since the midsole 10 conforms to the contour of the bottom of the last 28.
The footwear and methodology described herein was described in relation to polyurethane material, both high density for wear resistance or low resistance for cushioning purposes. It is also contemplated that other materials may be utilized in the method and the footwear such as any thermoset material (e.g., blown rubber, rubber, etc.) or thermoplastic (TPR, TPU, etc.). Also, various blends of polyurethane may be utilized. Additionally, the fixture 20 is shown as a hand operated fixture. However, other automatic and mechanical fixtures are also contemplated. The first and second parts 42, 44 of the top plate 18 do not necessarily need to rotate about pivot axis 46. Rather, the first and second parts 42, 44 may be hydraulically operated to come together or spread apart in automated machinery. Furthermore, the top plate 18, bottom plate 22 and the mid plate 62 may all work together in an automated machinery environment.
The above description is given by way of example, and not limitation. Given the above disclosure, one skilled in the art could devise variations that are within the scope and spirit of the invention disclosed herein, including various other types of fixtures. Further, the various features of the embodiments disclosed herein can be used alone, or in varying combinations with each other and are not intended to be limited to the specific combination described herein. Thus, the scope of the claims is not to be limited by the illustrated embodiments.
Claims
1. A footwear comprising:
- an upper defining a bottom surface and an exterior shell;
- a midsole fused to the bottom surface of the upper, the midsole defining a bottom surface; and
- an outsole attached to the bottom surface of the midsole.
2. The footwear of claim 1 wherein the outsole is adhered to the bottom surface of the midsole.
3. The footwear of claim 1 wherein the exterior shell defines a bottom peripheral portion and the midsole is bonded to the bottom peripheral portion of the exterior shell.
4. The footwear of claim 1 wherein the midsole and the outsole are both polyurethane and the polyurethane of the midsole has a lower density compared to the polyurethane of the outsole so that the midsole provides cushioning and the outsole provide wear resistance.
5. The footwear of claim 1 wherein the outsole is a cupsole with the midsole adhered to the interior surface of the cupsole and a lip of the cupsole adhered to a bottom peripheral portion of the upper.
6. The footwear of claim 1 further comprising a foxing attached to the outer periphery of the outsole, and the midsole is adhered to the inner surface of the foxing and an upper surface of the outsole.
7. The footwear of claim 1 wherein the midsole is bonded to the entire bottom surface of the upper to facilitate force transfer between a wearer's foot and outsole.
8. A method of manufacturing footwear, the method comprising the steps of:
- disposing an outsole on a first plate, the outsole defining a top surface;
- disposing a upper in a second plate wherein the second plate is traverseable to a first position with respect to the first plate;
- disposing settable liquid on the top surface of the outsole;
- traversing the second plate to the first position with respect to the first plate so that a bottom surface of the upper is adjacent to the settable liquid on an opposite side from the outsole, the top surface of the outsole and the bottom surface of the upper defines a mold for forming a midsole from the settable liquid;
- curing the settable liquid to a solid state to bond the midsole to the bottom surface of the upper.
9. The method of claim 8 further comprising the step of applying an adhesive to the upper surface of the outsole to adhere the midsole to the outsole.
10. The method of claim 8 wherein the disposing an outsole on the first plate includes disposing a cupsole on the first plate.
11. The method of claim 10 wherein the second plate includes first and second parts that clamp around the lasted upper when the first and second parts are in a closed position, and the method further comprises the step of first applying adhesive to a lip of the cupsole, second traversing the second plate to the first position so that the lip of the cupsole is positioned between the upper and the first and second parts, and third traversing the first and second parts to the closed position to apply pressure on the lip of the cupsole to the upper.
12. The method of claim 11 further comprising the step of activating the applied adhesive.
13. The method of claim 12 wherein the activating step comprises the step of activating the applied adhesive with light or heat.
14. The method of claim 8 wherein the traversing step includes the step of rotating the first and second plates with respect to each other about a common pivot axis.
15. The method of claim 7 further comprising the step of lasting the upper and disposing the lasted upper in the second plate.
16. A method of manufacturing footwear, the method comprising the steps of:
- disposing an outsole on a first plate, the outsole defining a top surface;
- disposing a lasted upper in a second plate wherein the second plate is traverseable to a first position with respect to the first plate;
- traversing the second plate to the first position with respect to the first plate so that a bottom surface of the lasted upper is adjacent the outsole so as to define a mold for a midsole;
- injecting settable liquid between the bottom surface of the lasted upper and the outsole;
- curing the settable liquid to a solid state to form the midsole;
- attaching the settable liquid to the upper and the outsole.
Type: Application
Filed: Jan 28, 2010
Publication Date: Jul 28, 2011
Inventors: Vincent Fleming (Laguna Beach, CA), Aron Cabasan (Caloocan City), Lenny M. Holden (Trabuco Canyon, CA)
Application Number: 12/695,609
International Classification: A43B 1/10 (20060101); A43C 13/08 (20060101); A43B 13/32 (20060101); A43B 9/12 (20060101); A43B 13/04 (20060101);