A lacing system for an article of footwear includes a sole structure, an upper attached to the sole structure, the upper comprising a lateral side, a medial side, and a tongue, and a housing disposed adjacent the tongue. A plurality of lateral eyelets are disposed along the lateral side of the upper and a plurality of medial eyelets are disposed along the medial side of the upper. A first lace extends from the housing through the plurality of lateral eyelets, and a second lace extends from the housing through the plurality of medial eyelets.

An article of footwear includes an upper having a tensioning element operable to move the upper between a tightened state and a loosened state. The tensioning element includes a first strand having (i) a first portion extending along a lateral side of an ankle opening of the upper to a first turn in the heel region, and (ii) a second portion extending from the first turn and along the lateral side of the ankle opening to a second end at an anterior end of the ankle opening. The tensioning element also includes a second strand having (i) a first portion extending along a medial side of the ankle opening to a second turn in the heel region, and (ii) a second portion extending from the second turn and along the medial side of the ankle opening to a fourth end at the anterior end of the ankle opening.

A sole structure for an article of footwear includes a chassis including a footbed having an interior surface and an outer surface formed on an opposite side from the interior surface, the interior surface defining one or more sockets. The sole structure also includes one or more haptic elements each having a bottom surface received within a respective one of the one or more sockets and a top surface protruding from the interior surface of the chassis, each of the one or more haptic elements having a different hardness than the footbed.

A spine for an article of footwear includes a base extending from a first end to a second end. The spine also includes a sidewall extending transversely from the base from the first end to the second end. The sidewall has a plurality of sidewall supports including a forefoot sidewall support at the first end, a heel sidewall support at the second end, and a mid-foot sidewall support disposed between the first end and the second end and defining a maximum height of the sidewall.

An article of footwear includes a sole, an upper defining a foot cavity, and a brace member. The brace member is comprised of a non-elastic resilient material. The brace member is positioned within a pocket in the upper and extends from a heel portion to above an ankle portion of the upper. The brace member may be provided with a top plate member and a base plate member with a central shaft extending between the top plate member and the base plate member. The central shaft may have a C-shape that curves around an ankle of a human foot positioned within the foot cavity.

An article of footwear has an upper and a sole structure connected to the upper. The sole structure includes a casing having a bottom surface and a sidewall. The bottom surface and the sidewall define a cavity. A mixture is provided in the cavity that includes a binder and a plurality of plastic bodies.

The invention relates to a shoe (1), especially to a sports shoe, comprising a shoe upper (2) and a sole (3) which is connected with the shoe upper (2), wherein the shoe upper (2) comprises a knitted structure (4) which at least partially surrounds a foot of a wearer during intended use of the shoe (1). To make the shoe waterproof but to allow a moisture transfer from the inner of the shoe to the outer side of the same combined with an optimized fit of the shoe at the foot of the wearer the invention is characterized in that the knitted structure (4) comprises a first set of openings (5, 6) arranged side by side along a longitudinal extension (L) of the shoe upper (2) at a lateral and a medial side of the shoe upper (2), wherein both sets of first openings (5, 6) are arranged in a defined first height level (h1) of the shoe upper (2) measured from the bottom (7) of the sole (3), that the knitted structure (4) comprises a second set of openings (8, 9) arranged side by side along the longitudinal extension (L) of the shoe upper (2) at the lateral and medial side of the shoe upper (2), wherein both sets of second openings (8, 9) are arranged in a defined different second height level (h2) of the shoe upper (2), and that a semi-permeable membrane (10) is arranged between the foot of the wearer and the knitted structure (4) which covers the openings (5, 6, 8, 9) of the knitted structure (4).

A string includes an outer layer and a core material placed inside the outer layer, wherein: the outer layer comprises knob parts that are constituted by outer layer yarns woven loosely, and link parts that are constituted by outer layer yarns woven densely and also having a smaller diameter than the knob parts, wherein the knob parts of the outer layer are elastically deformable; and the core material is constituted by a stretchable string and placed inside the knob parts in a slackened and/or meandering state. The above string features an elastically deformable string that does not require knots, is to allow the string, after it has been deformed, to restore its original shape by stronger elastic forces.

Systems and apparatus related to an automated footwear platform including an actuator assembly for controlling a footwear lacing apparatus are discussed. In an example, an Lacing architectures for automated footwear assemblies are discussed. In an example, a footwear assembly can include a floating tongue within an upper assembly. The lacing architecture can include a first plurality or lace guides forming a first lacing zone and a second plurality of lace guides forming a second lacing zone. The lacing architecture can also include a tongue lace guide assembly secure to a proximal portion of the floating tongue.

An article of footwear includes an upper having an instep region at an anterior end of an ankle opening, a heel counter at a posterior end of the ankle opening, and a quarter region extending between the instep region and the heel counter. The article of footwear also includes a sole structure attached to the upper, a heel strap disposed at the heel counter of the upper, and a cable lock disposed within the sole structure. The article of footwear further includes a tensioning system, including a tensioning element having a heel portion extending from the cable lock to the heel strap, and a control element extending from the cable lock to an exterior surface of the upper. The control element is operable to move the tensioning element between a first position and a second position.