A shock absorbing system for impact energy dissipation employs removable unitary cells of compressible members in communication with a reservoir and containing a first working fluid. Resilient structural members may be placed intermediate the compressible members to deform responsive to compression to provide both energy dissipation and resilient recovery of the compression cylinders to their uncompressed state.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a midsole with a bladder system having a forefoot region, a midfoot region, and a heel region. The bladder system defines a first sealed chamber retaining fluid as a first cushioning layer, the first sealed chamber extending over the forefoot region, the midfoot region, and the heel region. The bladder system further defines multiple discreet sealed chambers retaining fluid in isolation from one another, each of the multiple discreet chambers disposed at one side of the first sealed chamber, and fluidly isolated from the first sealed chamber.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a forefoot region disposed adjacent an anterior end, a heel region disposed adjacent a posterior end, and a mid-foot region disposed intermediate the forefoot region and the heel region. The sole structure further includes fluid-filled bladder having a first segment extending along a medial side in the heel region, a second segment extending along a lateral side in the heel region, and a web area disposed between the first segment and the second segment. Additionally, the sole structure includes an outer sole member having an upper portion extending from a first end in the forefoot region to a second end in the heel region. The second end of the outer sole member is received on a first side of the web area. The outer sole member also includes a rib extending downwardly from the upper portion and defining a cavity.

A system may include an output manifold that may be in fluid communication with a reservoir and that may include multiple discharge ports. Each of the discharge ports may be configured to discharge electrorheological fluid into a housing. A recovery manifold may be in fluid communication with the reservoir and include multiple recovery ports. Each of the recovery ports may be configured to receive the electrorheological fluid from a housing. A gas remover may be positioned to extract gas from the electrorheological fluid received from the recovery ports. A housing may be connected to the system, and electrorheological fluid from the system may be pumped through the housing and the gas remover.

An article of footwear is provided and includes an upper, a fluid-filled chamber including a first portion in contact with the upper in a first region, and a midsole including a first portion disposed between the fluid-filled chamber and the upper in a second region.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a sole component having a plurality of hollow polymeric elements in contact with one another or with binder between the hollow polymeric elements and fixed relative to one another. Each of the hollow polymeric elements defines a sealed, fluid-filled internal cavity capable of retaining fluid at a predetermined pressure. A method of manufacturing a sole structure for an article of footwear includes placing a plurality of hollow polymeric elements in contact with one another or with binder between the hollow polymeric elements, and fixing the plurality of hollow polymeric elements relative to one another to form a sole component. Each of the hollow polymeric elements has a sealed, fluid-filled internal cavity capable of retaining fluid at a predetermined pressure.

An article of footwear includes an upper and a sole structure secured to an underside of the upper. The sole structure includes a midsole; a ground contacting outsole surface; and a cushioning system disposed between the midsole and the ground contacting outsole surface. The cushioning system includes a plate comprising an upper plate and a lower plate provided in a spaced relationship. The upper plate and lower plate are integrally connected at a posterior portion of the sole structure. A midfoot fluid-filled chamber is provided between the upper plate and the lower plate within the midfoot region, and a forefoot fluid-filled chamber is provided between the upper plate and the lower plate within the forefoot region.

A sole structure for an article of footwear, the sole structure including a forefoot region and a heel region. The sole structure further includes a chassis plate, an outsole plate extending from the forefoot region to the heel region, the outsole plate including a recess disposed in a top surface, wherein the outsole plate is disposed below the chassis plate, and a cushioning element disposed within the recess.

A big data artificial intelligence computer system is used for medical care connecting to sensor-equipped smartphones of users of footwear. The footwear has smartphone-connected soles with sensors and configurable structures. The smartphone is also connected to sensors located on the users' body, including proximate to its center of gravity and/or on the head. The web and/or cloud-based computer system is configured to use the big data techniques of machine learning in a database compiled from millions of smartphones to perform operations on billions of data sets from the smartphones of the footwear users. The correlations found from the big data operations provide solutions to medical problems of the footwear users involving their body structure and/or function. The solutions are implemented by configuring the users' footwear soles, including active configuration, including during running and/or walking to optimize corrections to the structure and/or function of their bodies.

A method for forming a plate includes attaching a first strand portion to a flexible substrate to form a first layer on the substrate and positioning a second strand portion on the first layer to form a second layer on the first layer in a plurality of discrete regions on the substrate. The method also includes positioning a plurality of traction elements into corresponding cavities formed into a first mold surface and positioning the substrate on the first mold surface to change a shape of the substrate. At least one of heat and pressure is applied to the first strand portion, the second strand portion, the substrate, and the traction elements to conform the substrate to the shape of the first mold surface and form the traction elements into the substrate at each of the discrete regions. The method also includes incorporating the substrate into an article of footwear.