An article of footwear includes a tubular knit upper and an outsole. Further, a thermoplastic polyurethane skin layer is disposed between the tubular knit upper and the outsole. The outsole comprises a plurality of regions intended to support and stabilize a foot of a user when the user sits in various sedentary positions.

A shoe includes a first plate, a second plate, a third plate, filler material, springs, an insole, and a midsole. The first plate and the second plate are hingedly connected to each other. The filler material is located between the first plate and the second plate. The springs are located within openings in the filler material. The third plate is affixed to a top surface of the first plate. The insole is located above the third plate. The first plate is made of a thermoplastic elastomer, and the third plate is made of carbon fiber. Another shoe includes a midsole, a plate located above the midsole, springs located at least partially within openings in the midsole, and a spring holding unit located below the midsole for holding the springs. The spring holding unit includes spring holding members and branches connecting corresponding spring holding members.

Shoe sole comprising a main structure that defines a tread surface and opposing sides of the sole, said main structure comprising a top layer facing, in use, the sole of the foot, a bottom layer facing the ground, and a reinforcing member interposed between said top and bottom layers. The reinforcing member is made of a material with greater rigidity than the bottom layer, and comprises a front portion and a rear portion joined together by a bridging section. A forefoot through opening is defined on the front portion and a hindfoot through opening is defined on the rear portion, in such a way that a midfoot through opening is defined between the bridging section and the bottom layer.

A footwear sole structure having a fluid-filled chamber including a tensile member is provided. The fluid-filled chamber includes a first barrier sheet, a second barrier sheet and the tensile member. The first barrier sheet is formed from a first thermoplastic material. The second barrier sheet is attached to the first barrier sheet and is formed from a second thermoplastic material. The first barrier sheet and the second barrier sheet cooperate to define an internal cavity. The tensile member is disposed within the internal cavity and is formed from a third thermoplastic material. A first weld attaches the first barrier sheet, the second barrier sheet, and the tensile member together by melding the first thermoplastic material of the first barrier sheet, the second thermoplastic material of second barrier sheet, and the third thermoplastic material of the tensile member.

A shock-absorbing structure for a sole includes a wavy sheet laminated body in which a plurality of wavy sheets of a wave shape are laminated in the up-down direction to compose three or more layers, one-end sidewall portion provided at one end side in the wave direction of the wave shape of the wavy sheet laminated body and restraining the plurality of wavy sheets, the other-end sidewall portion provided at the other end side in the wave direction of the wave shape of the wavy sheet laminated body and restraining the plurality of wavy sheets, and a connecting portion in which at least a portion of a contact region of the plurality of wavy sheets is connected to one another.

A fluid-filled chamber may have a barrier, a stacked tensile member, and a fluid. The barrier may be formed from a polymer material that is sealed to define an interior void. The stacked tensile member may be located within the interior void and includes a first tensile element and a second tensile element that are joined to each other. Additionally, opposite sides of the stacked tensile member are joined to the barrier. The fluid is located within the interior void and may be pressurized to place an outward force upon the barrier and induce tension in the stacked tensile member. In some configurations, each of the tensile elements may be a spacer textile.

Presented are footwear sole structures with split midsole designs having peripheral walls for lateral stability, footwear fabricated with such sole structures, and methods for making/using such footwear and/or sole structures. A sole structure for an article of footwear includes mating first and second midsole sections each having a respective midsole sidewall that extends between and adjoins respective upper and lower midsole surfaces. The first midsole section's lower surface has a first waveform geometry, such as an anteroposterior-undulating curviform wave, and the second midsole section's upper surface has a complementary, mirrored waveform geometry that seats therein and intermeshes with the first waveform geometry. The second midsole section includes one or more peripheral walls that extend upward from the second sidewall; inboard surfaces of the peripheral wall(s) abut outboard surfaces the first sidewall. An outsole, which defines the footwear's ground-contacting surface, is attached to the lower surface of the second midsole section.

An article of footwear has a sole structure including a heel cushioning unit. The heel cushioning unit has a top portion, a bottom portion, a body portion connecting the top portion to the bottom portion, medial support fins in a medial side recess at a medial side of the heel cushioning unit and lateral support fins in a lateral side recess at a lateral side of the heel cushioning unit. Both the medial support fins and the lateral support fins extend transversely outward from the body portion and extend from the top portion to the bottom portion. The heel cushioning unit defines a through hole extending from the medial side to the lateral side and disposed rearward of the medial support fins and the lateral support fins. The article of footwear has an outsole with arch portions defining stepped ridges extending lengthwise in a fore-aft direction of the sole structure.

A dynamic footwear midsole has an upper layer and a lower layer that are connected by a group of heel slats and a group of forepart slats, each slat being connected at hinge regions to the upper and lower layers. The slats in each group are arranged in generally paralleling planes with the heel slats and forepart slats being arranged to cause one group to collapse as the other group expands. An arch segment is provided at the midportion of the upper layer is constructed and supported by an arch support structure that enables the upper layer and arch support structure to rock, as a unit, about a pivot region at the lower end of the support structure.

A sole structure for an article of footwear comprises a midsole including a first cushioning layer, a second cushioning layer, and a third cushioning layer. The first cushioning layer has a central portion, and a peripheral portion surrounding the central portion. The first cushioning layer, the second cushioning layer, and the third cushioning layer are stacked with the second cushioning layer directly overlying the peripheral portion of the first cushioning layer, and the third cushioning layer overlying the second cushioning layer and directly overlying the central portion of the first cushioning layer. The first cushioning layer has a domed lower surface extending away from the second cushioning layer and the third cushioning layer and substantially centered under the central portion.