Abstract: A shoe sole comprising a foot engaging plate for accommodating a foot of a user and a ground engaging surface/plate. The foot engaging plate is sufficiently rigid so as to resist distortion of the foot engaging plate, during use of the shoe sole, so that the foot remains supported by the foot engaging plate during use of the shoe sole. A pivot member is located between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate to facilitate relative pivoting motion between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate. A layer of resilient material is sandwiched between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate. The resilient material may have one or more bores formed therein which accommodate a compressible material therein to facilitate programming of a desired compression characteristic for the shoe sole.

Abstract: A shoe sole comprising a foot engaging plate for accommodating a foot of a user and a ground engaging surface/plate. The foot engaging plate is sufficiently rigid so as to resist distortion of the foot engaging plate, during use of the shoe sole, so that the foot remains supported by the foot engaging plate during use of the shoe sole. A pivot member is located between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate to facilitate relative pivoting motion between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate. A layer of resilient material is sandwiched between the foot engaging plate and the ground engaging surface/plate. The resilient material may have one or more bores formed therein which accommodate a compressible material therein to facilitate programming of a desired compression characteristic for the shoe sole.

Abstract: A binding system is provided that is effective for use on recreational device, such as a snowboard, and that is adapted to mate to, or that includes, a boot or other footwear worn by the user. In general, the binding system includes a base plate for support a rider's foot, and a connecting element for mating the base plate to an elongate board, e.g., a snowboard. The connecting element is effective to mate the base plate to a snowboard about a fixed central axis and to allow pivotal movement of the base plate about the central axis with respect to the snowboard. The binding system can also include at least one compression member mated to the base plate and/or to a snowboard. The compression member(s) are effective to compress between the base plate and the snowboard in response to a force applied to at least one of the base plate and the snowboard.

Abstract: A sole for a shoe with a foot guiding mechanism which has the particularity that the sole comprises a sole body which has, on an outer face thereof, at least one protrusion. The at least one protrusion is flexible in order to produce a desired movement of the protrusion which is suitable to force a guided sequence for a foot, wearing the shoe sole, from when the heel section initially contacts a ground surface to when the front edge of the sole breaks contact with the ground surface.

Abstract: A foot measuring or sizing device comprising a base platform, a heel support (28), an alignment fin (6) and a measurement scale (16). The heel support is pivotally connected to the base platform and the foot fin being slidably along an elongate slot formed in the base platform to facilitate alignment of the foot to be measured with a central axis or plane of the foot measuring or sizing device prior to determining a length, measuring a width and/or determining the amount of lift or adjustment of the foot to be measured is necessary to properly support a foot while using footwear.

Abstract: A sole assembly for a shoe. The sole assembly comprises an exterior sole for engaging with a ground surface with the exterior sole having an upwardly facing surface. A foot bed having an undersurface, facing the upwardly facing surface of the exterior sole, and an upwardly facing surface for supporting a foot of a wearer. At least one lug is secured to the undersurface of the foot bed to space the undersurface from the upwardly facing surface of the exterior sole.

Abstract: A footwear sole structure for dynamically directing interacting forces between a user's foot and the footwear during a stride, including an inner sole located adjacent the user's foot, a mid-sole located between the inner sole and the footwear, and a rib ribbon force transfer structure located between the inner sole and the mid-sole wherein the rib ribbon includes a plurality of ribs spaced along and transversely to a spine axis and attached to a longitudinally extending spine. The rib ribbon resists flexing about an axis parallel to the spine axis and allows a relatively greater degree of flexing about an axis transverse to the spine axis and the rib ribbon is located along a path between the inner and mid-soles to dynamically direct the interacting forces between a user's foot and the footwear as the user's weight shifts from a heel to a toe position during a stride.

Abstract: A sole for a shoe with a foot guiding mechanism which has the particularity that the sole comprises a sole body which has, on an outer face thereof, at least one protrusion. The at least one protrusion is flexible in order to produce a desired movement of the protrusion which is suitable to force a guided sequence for a foot, wearing the shoe sole, from when the heel section initially contacts a ground surface to when the front edge of the sole breaks contact with the ground surface.