A sole structure for an article of footwear comprises a sole plate that has a forefoot region, and a stiffness enhancing assembly disposed in the forefoot region of the sole plate. The stiffness enhancing assembly further comprises a compression member disposed at a foot-facing side of the sole plate, and a tensile member disposed at an opposite side of the sole plate from the compression member. The tensile member is spaced apart from the compression member by a first distance in a first portion of a flexion range during dorsiflexion of the sole structure, and interferes with the compression member during a second portion of the flexion range that includes flex angles greater than in the first portion of the flexion range.

A sole structure for an article of footwear having an upper includes an outsole, a plate disposed between the outsole and the upper, and a first cushioning layer. The plate includes an anterior-most point disposed in a forefoot region of the sole structure, a posterior-most point disposed closer to a heel region of the sole structure than the anterior-most point, and a concave portion extending between the anterior-most point and the posterior-most point. The concave portion includes a constant radius of curvature from the anterior-most point to a metarsophalangeal (MTP) point of the sole structure. The MTP point opposes the MTP joint of a foot during use. The first cushioning layer is disposed between the concave portion and the upper.

A plate for an article of footwear includes a substrate, a first strand portion attached to the substrate via first stitching, and a second strand portion disposed on the first layer. The first strand portion includes first segments that each extend between two different locations along the substrate to form a first layer on the substrate. The second strand portion includes second segments that each extend between two different locations along the substrate to form a second layer on the first layer.

A midsole structure of a shoe includes an upper midsole, a lower midsole disposed below the upper midsole, and a wavy sheet interposed between the upper midsole and the lower midsole. The wavy sheet has a wavy shape at its medial and lateral side edge portions and a planar area at its central portion. The lower surface of the upper midsole and the upper surface of the lower midsole have wavy shapes that correspond to the wavy shape of the wavy sheet at their medial and lateral side edge portions and have a planar area that corresponds to the planar area of the wavy sheet at their central portions. The lower surface of the upper midsole and the upper surface of the lower midsole have a plurality of recesses that are disposed in the longitudinal direction at their central portions.

An article of footwear has a sole structure with multiple components. The sole structure includes a midsole member, an outsole member and an exterior support member. The midsole member and the outsole member have corresponding grooves. The exterior support member provides reinforcement for the midsole member. The outsole member includes a plurality of bristle members.

A method of forming a plate for an article of footwear is disclosed. The method includes applying a first strand portion to a base layer including positioning adjacent segments of the first strand portion to form a first layer on the base layer. The adjacent segments of the first strand portion having a greater density across a width of the plate between a medial side and a lateral side at a forefoot region of the plate than at a midfoot region of the plate and at a heel region of the plate. The method also includes applying at least one of heat and pressure to the first strand portion and to the base layer to conform the first strand portion and the base layer to a predetermined shape.

A sole body includes a groove whose inner wall surfaces can be caused to come close to, and separate from, each other with an adjustment mechanism, and a transformable portion provided in the groove, extending between the inner wall surfaces, and elastically deformable. The transformable portion includes: rising portions which are continuous with the inner wall surfaces and extend in the thickness direction of the sole body while the inner wall surfaces have come close to each other; and a coupling portion for coupling the rising portions to each other at one end. A first cavity is provided between the inner wall surfaces and the rising portions, while a second cavity is provided between the rising portions.

A sole body has an upper midsole made of an elastic material, staked over an upper side of a lower midsole, and having, on an upper surface thereof, a planta support surface. The upper midsole has a first recess recessed from the planta support surface in a downward direction and having a bottom, and a second recess recessed from a lower surface of the upper midsole toward the planta support surface, and having a bottom. The first and second recesses are alternately and continuously formed in the width direction of the foot.

A sole structure includes: an anti-skid layer, a rigid layer, an elastic piece and a soft layer which are superimposed upon one another. With the characteristic of the elastic piece being elastically deformable, a rebounding force can be produced to act on the foot to stimulate the ligaments and muscles of the foot, which consequently corrects the flatfoot.

A shoe sole includes a footbed, a midsole, and an outsole. The footbed includes deformable semi-tubular elements that protrude downward and are received in corresponding trough-shaped cavities of the midsole, which provide cushioning when the semi-tubular elements are compressed under load, and also provide a spring return effect. The semi-tubular elements may have a depth greater than a depth of a corresponding trough shaped cavity whereby the footbed is held in a raised position above the top surface of the midsole. The separation between the footbed and the top surface of the midsole is smaller in forefoot area and greater in the heel area. The separation provides shock absorption and resilience in the shoe because it allows the semi-tubular elements to deform under load and absorb impact shocks.