Nike patents shoe sole design with internal supports for cushioning
Nike has been granted a patent for a footwear design where the sole sits inside the shoe's upper structure. The sole has small extensions that fit into specific supports on the bottom of the upper, creating a stable base. This setup allows a cushioning element at the heel to press against these supports, potentially improving how the shoe absorbs impact.
In the filing’s own words
An article of footwear having an anterior end and a posterior end opposite the anterior end, and an upper including an interior void partially defined by a ground-facing surface. The ground-facing surface has a plurality of supports; a sole including a first surface facing the interior void and a second, ground-facing surface, the sole disposed within the interior void of the upper, wherein the sole includes one or more extensions extending from the second surface, wherein each of the one or more extensions is received by a respective one of the plurality of supports; and a cushioning element extending from the posterior end toward the anterior end, the cushioning element including a first surface facing the upper and a second, ground-facing surface, wherein the one or more supports and one or more extensions engage the first surface of the cushioning element.
What exactly they claim (claim 1)
1. An article of footwear comprising: an anterior end and a posterior end opposite the anterior end; an upper including an interior void partially defined by a ground-facing surface; a sole including a first surface facing the interior void and a second, ground-facing, surface, the sole disposed within the interior void of the upper, wherein the sole includes one or more extensions extending from the second surface, wherein each of the one or more extensions is received by the ground-facing surface of the upper such that the combination of the one or more extensions and the ground-facing surface of the upper form a plurality of supports; and a cushioning element extending from the posterior end toward the anterior end, the cushioning element including a first surface facing the upper and a second, ground-facing surface, wherein the plurality of supports engage the first surface of the cushioning element.
Facts
- Company
- Nike (Nike, Inc.)
- Official title
- Article of footwear including a sole structure
- Patent number
- US12757975B2
- Application number
- 18605050
- Filed
- Mar 14, 2024
- Granted
- Oct 13, 2026
- Inventors
- 11
- Claims
- 17
Classified under
A43B 13/20 Human necessitiesA43B 13/145 Human necessitiesA43B 13/206 Human necessitiesMore from Nike in Clothing & sport
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Summaries are simplified from the filing’s own abstract and first claim. A patent filing is not a product announcement.
Patent data and drawings: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Nebula is not affiliated with or endorsed by the USPTO.