Footwear or other foot-receiving devices include various conforming fit, stability, and/or locked down feel features. The uppers (or foot-covering components) for such articles of footwear (or other foot-receiving devices) may include one or more of: (a) an upper shell defining an interior chamber, wherein the upper shell includes a plantar support surface and sidewalls extending from an outer perimeter of the plantar support surface; (b) a bootie component (e.g., formed as a sock or sock-like garment) received in the interior chamber; (c) one or more foot wrapping bands; and/or (d) an interior midsole within the bootie component. The bootie component and/or the foot wrapping band(s) may be secured to the upper shell at a location inside an outer perimeter of the plantar support surface of the upper shell and beyond the bight line between the sidewalls of the upper and the plantar support surface.

Presented are footwear sole structures with foot-cushioning insoles movably mounted onto impact-attenuating midsoles, methods for making/using such sole structures, and footwear fabricated with such sole structures. A multilayered sole structure assembly includes an insole movably mounted on a midsole. The midsole is formed with a first compressible material and includes opposing upper and lower midsole surfaces, multiple protrusions projecting from the upper midsole surface, and multiple pockets recessed into the upper midsole surface and interleaved with the midsole protrusions. The insole, which is formed with a second compressible material distinct from the first compressible material, includes opposing upper and lower insole surfaces, multiple protrusions projecting from the lower insole surface and interleaved with the midsole protrusions, and multiple pockets recessed into the lower insole surface and interleaved with the insole protrusions. Each midsole protrusion nests within a respective insole pocket, while each insole protrusion nests within a respective midsole pocket.

Beads may be stitched to a substrate layer and then fused to form structures including foam midsoles, foam pads, and other foam structures. Beads may be embroidered to multiple substrate layers and then folded or stacked together to form a preform used in a mold to form a midsole.

A footwear construction includes a sole assembly including a first midsole platform, a second midsole platform below the first midsole platform, a spring plate disposed between the first and second midsole platforms, and an outsole layer disposed below and joined directly with at least one of the plate, the first and the second midsole platforms. The outsole layer can be substantially the only layer below the plate in the forefoot region of the footwear so an underfoot force engaging the outsole layer is transmitted directly to the plate, which also can have an upward curving, multi-radii transition portion extending from a lowermost portion to a forward most portion of the plate so as to roll a wearer's foot forward into a next stride in a gait cycle of the wearer. The plate can define an aperture. A mounting cap can extend through the aperture and can receive a traction spike.

A shock absorber includes a three-dimensional structure composed of a unit structure repeatedly, regularly and continuously arranged in at least one direction, the unit structure being a three-dimensional shape formed by a wall having an external shape defined by a pair of parallel planes or curved surfaces. In the shock absorber, a differently shaped portion which does not correspond to the wall defining the unit structure is locally provided in a shock absorbing region which is a region in which the three-dimensional structure has the unit structure disposed.

A sandal having releasable strap fastening, comprising a sole, at least one strap and at least one clamping buckle and/or at least one anchor buckle. According to the invention, the sandal is modularly constructed and can be easily assembled and disassembled. The sole and the at least one strap are connected to each other by guiding the at least one strap through eyes provided in the sole. The two ends of the at least one strap, which form two strap ends, are either fastened to the strap again by means of at least one of the clamping buckles so as to form a loop or are anchored to one of the eyes by means of at least one of the anchor buckles.

An intermediate sole structure for an article of footwear includes a foamed thermoplastic sole component. The foamed thermoplastic sole component has a foamed thermoplastic base layer and a foamed thermoplastic outer layer that is integrally formed with the foamed thermoplastic base layer. The outer layer includes a plurality of sipes extending through the outer layer and terminating at the base layer. The thermoplastic sole component has an inner surface defined by the base layer, an opposite, outer surface defined by the outer layer, and a thickness defined between the inner surface and the outer surface. The inner surface is substantially planar and is operative to be adhered to a ground-facing surface of an upper. Additionally, the thickness is smaller at a peripheral edge of the sole component than within a central region.

Methods for manufacturing articles of footwear are provided. In various aspects, the methods comprise utilizing additive manufacturing methods with foam particles. In some aspects, the disclosed methods comprise selectively depositing a binding material on foam particles in a target area such that the binding material coats at least a portion of defining surfaces of the foam particles with the binding material. The binding material is then cured to affix foam particles in the target area to one another. In various aspects, the disclosed methods can be used to manufacturer articles with sub-regions that differential levels of affixing between the foam particles, and thereby resulting in sub-regions with different properties such as density, resilience, and/or flexural modulus. This abstract is intended as a scanning tool for purposes of searching in the particular art and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure.

The present disclosure is directed to articles that include one or more coated fiber(s) (i.e., fiber(s) with a cured coating disposed thereon), where the coating includes a matrix of crosslinked polymers and optionally a colorant (e.g., pigment particles or dye or both). The cured coating is a product of crosslinking a coating composition including uncrosslinked polymers (e.g., a dispersion of uncrosslinked polymers in a carrier, wherein the uncrosslinked polymers are crosslinked to form the matrix of crosslinked polymers). The present disclosure is also directed to articles including the coated fibers, methods of forming the coated fibers and articles, and methods of making articles including the coated fibers.

Expandable thermoplastic polyurethane comprising blowing agent, wherein the Shore hardness of the thermoplastic polyurethane is from A 44 to A 84.