A method for automated manufacturing of shoe soles comprises the steps of: loading a transfer device with at least one outsole element and at least one supporting element, positioning the loaded transfer device adjacent a first part and a second part of a sole mold, transferring the at least one outsole element from the transfer device to the first part and transferring the at least one supporting element from the transfer device to the second part of the sole mold, filling the sole mold with a plurality of individual particles, and applying a medium to bond and/or fuse the particles with each other and with the at least one outsole element.

Described are methods for the manufacture of a plurality of shoes, an apparatus to perform such method, as well as shoes manufactured by such method. According to certain examples, the method for the manufacture of a plurality of shoes includes providing a plurality of first shoe components for the manufacture of the plurality of shoes, and moving the plurality of first shoe components with a transport means which is at least partially comprised of the plurality of first shoe components.

A system for manufacturing shoes is provided that includes two or more pieces of equipment used in the customization and manufacturing of shoes and an alignment fixture that may engage with each piece of equipment by way of an alignment mounting member. The alignment fixture may secure to it a portion of a shoe, such as an upper portion, wherein the shoe portion remains in a flat position, and in a fixed relationship to the alignment fixture, throughout the various processes performed by the pieces of equipment. These processes may include, for example, printing, laser, embroidery, forming, cutting, or the like.

A system for manufacturing shoes is provided that includes two or more pieces of equipment used in the customization and manufacturing of shoes and an alignment fixture that may engage with each piece of equipment by way of an alignment mounting member. The alignment fixture may secure to it a portion of a shoe, such as an upper portion, wherein the shoe portion remains in a flat position, and in a fixed relationship to the alignment fixture, throughout the various processes performed by the pieces of equipment. These processes may include, for example, printing, laser, embroidery, forming, cutting, or the like.

A shoe upper manufacturing method is provided. The shoe upper manufacturing method includes the steps of obtaining materials for shoe uppers, forming the shoe uppers, processing the shoe uppers, and printing the shoe uppers carried out in turn. Thus a multi-layer composite footwear fabric is produced and further processed to form shoe uppers required. Thereby different heating temperature and time are set for heat melting and adhesion of thermoplastic elastomer onto footwear fabric made from different materials in order to meet different requirements of users. Moreover, production efficiency is improved and production capacity is increased by combination of one upper mold with a plurality of lower molds. The present method is more efficient than those in current use.

A shoe upper manufacturing method is provided. The shoe upper manufacturing method includes the steps of obtaining materials for shoe uppers, forming the shoe uppers, processing the shoe uppers, and printing the shoe uppers carried out in turn. Thus a multi-layer composite footwear fabric is produced and further processed to form shoe uppers required. Thereby different heating temperature and time are set for heat melting and adhesion of thermoplastic elastomer onto footwear fabric made from different materials in order to meet different requirements of users. Moreover, production efficiency is improved and production capacity is increased by combination of one upper mold with a plurality of lower molds. The present method is more efficient than those in current use.

A self-cleaning ring conveyor includes a first roller having a first rotational axis and a second roller having a second rotational axis that is parallel with the first rotational axis. The conveyor also includes a first ring extending around a combination of the first roller and the second roller and a second ring extending around the combination of the first roller and the second roller. The first ring and the second ring are parallel to each other. The conveyor also includes a first scraper having a first scraping slot and a second scraping slot. The first ring extends through the first scraping slot and the second ring extends through the second scraping slot.

A multiple camera vision system captures discrete images having overlapping fields of view. Each of the cameras is calibrated and the images from the cameras are stitched together as a stitched image. A stitched image from the multiple cameras is then used in a calibration process to prepare the multiple camera vision system to be used in connection with a processing operation. A stitched image is used as an input for identifying a feature of the material and for determining a tool path for the material. The tool path determined with the stitched image is provided to a process station to perform an operation on the material.

A method for automated manufacturing of shoe soles comprises the steps of: loading a transfer device with at least one outsole element and at least one supporting element, positioning the loaded transfer device adjacent a first part and a second part of a sole mold, transferring the at least one outsole element from the transfer device to the first part and transferring the at least one supporting element from the transfer device to the second part of the sole mold, filling the sole mold with a plurality of individual particles, and applying a medium to bond and/or fuse the particles with each other and with the at least one outsole element.

A method for automated manufacturing of shoe soles comprises the steps of: loading a transfer device with at least one outsole element and at least one supporting element, positioning the loaded transfer device adjacent a first part and a second part of a sole mold, transferring the at least one outsole element from the transfer device to the first part and transferring the at least one supporting element from the transfer device to the second part of the sole mold, filling the sole mold with a plurality of individual particles, and applying a medium to bond and/or fuse the particles with each other and with the at least one outsole element.