The invention relates to heeled footwear such as a shoe or boot comprising a sole assembly and a heel part. The heel part comprises an insert formed in a first material. The insert comprises a core body delimited by an upper surface, a lower bottom surface, and an outer surface connecting the upper and lower surfaces. At least a part of the outer surface is encased in a second material different from the first material. The outer material forms an outer contour layer of the heel part, and the sole assembly comprises an outsole formed in the second material, said second material being softer than the first material. The outsole and the outer contour layer are designed to be formed in one piece providing an outer sole unit being one component.

An upper for a shoe, where said shoe comprises said upper and a sole connected to the lower edge of the upper via injection molding, the upper including knitted areas with a low stitch density providing ventilation through the upper, where the lower edge is knitted with a high stitch density, thereby limiting the flow of molding material through the edge of the knitted upper.

A shoe and a corresponding method for making a shoe are disclosed. A shoe according to an embodiment includes: an upper including a main body; a midsole, an outside edge of the midsole being attached to a lower edge of the main body, the midsole being formed to define a first accommodation space; and a first fill injected in the first accommodation space.

A last for forming an upper of an article of footwear includes a first portion including a lateral side and a medial side that opposes the lateral side, and a second portion connected with and extending upward and transversely outward in an angled manner away from the first portion such that a terminal end of the second portion is distanced from the first portion. An exterior surface of the last can include a plurality of three dimensional structural surface components disposed over at least 50% of the exterior surface of the last.

Physical foaming a footwear component with a single-phase solution of a polymeric composition and a supercritical fluid is provided. The method include temperature conditioning a mold and then engaging the mold with a robot that conveys the mold to a press. At the press a gas counter pressure is applied to a cavity of the mold before injecting a single-phase solution of a polymeric composition and a supercritical fluid into the cavity of the mold. The process continues with releasing the gas counter pressure from the cavity of the mold and then removing the footwear component from the cavity of the mold. The parameters of the method are configured for the formation of the footwear component in an automated manner.

A foam article, such as a cushioning element for an article of footwear, apparel or sporting equipment is provided that comprises a foam component, such as a midsole, having a number of beneficial physical characteristics. The cushioning element is a low-density foamed component with a surface skin that encases the remaining foam volume. The cushioning element has a number of foam volumes, arranged to achieve a more consistent foam component. Additionally, the cushioning element includes a series of concentric ridges extending radially outwardly from injection gate vestige locations, and a number of striation bands near the perimeter of the cushioning element. The location of the gate vestiges can be beneficially arranged to produce intersecting flow boundaries that are located away from key strain areas of the cushioning element. The cushioning element is more environmentally-friendly, requiring less energy to produce while still providing acceptable energy return and low density.

A heeled footwear such as a shoe or boot includes a sole assembly and a heel part, wherein the heel part includes an insert formed in a first material. The insert includes a core body delimited by an upper surface, a lower bottom surface, and an outer surface connecting the upper and lower surfaces. At least a part of the outer surface is encased/enclosed in a second material different from the first material. The outer material forms an outer contour layer of the heel part. The sole assembly includes an outsole formed in the second material, and the second material is softer than the first material. The outsole and the outer contour layer are designed to be formed in one piece providing an outer sole unit being one component.

An upper for an article of footwear includes a spray formed first layer including a first material, and a second layer including a second material, the second layer being adhered to the first layer. A transition zone is defined at a transition between the first layer and the second layer, and the transition zone includes a mixture of the first and second materials.

A last for forming an upper of an article of footwear includes an exterior surface, where the exterior surface includes a plurality of three dimensional structural surface components disposed over at least 50% of the exterior surface of the last.

A method of forming an upper for an article of footwear includes providing a first material layer over a shoe last, providing a second material layer over the first material layer such that the first and second material layers adhere to each other at an interface between the first and second material layers, where one or both of the first material layer and second material layer is provided by spray forming a polymer material onto the last. The material layers are removed from the last and turned inside out such that the first material layer includes an exposed surface that forms an exterior surface of the upper.