Patent · US11633016B2 · B2 · US
Footwear article with tongue reinforcer
- (11) Publication number
- US11633016B2
- (21) Application number
- 17/482,809
- (22) Filing date
- 2021-09-23
- (30) Priority date
- 2018-12-21
- (43) Publication date
- 2023-04-25
- (45) Date of grant
- 2023-04-25
- (51) IPC
- A43B 11/00; A43B 23/08; A43B 23/26; A43C 11/08
- (52) CPC
- (73) Assignee
- Nike Inc
- (72) Inventors
- Austin J. Orand; Aaron B. Weast; II Peter P. Williams
- (54) Title
- Footwear article with tongue reinforcer
- (57) Abstract
A footwear article includes a tongue and a tongue reinforcer, which helps the tongue maintain a shape and position when the tongue is subjected to forces or adjustments, such as from other footwear-article elements or from a wearer. For example, the tongue reinforcer may help the tongue maintain a shape and position when a wearer is inserting his or her foot into the footwear article or when medial and/or lateral quarters press inward on the tongue.
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Claims (17)
- A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar movable between a lowered state positioned closer to the sole and a raised state positioned farther from the sole; a tongue; a medial-side connector having a width and a midpoint, the medial side connector attaching the tongue to the medial side; a lateral-side connector having a width and a midpoint, the lateral side connector attaching the tongue to the lateral side and spaced apart from the medial-side connector by a first length; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having a tongue-reinforcer medial edge and a tongue-reinforcer lateral edge that are spaced apart from one another by a second length, wherein the second length is equal to or greater than the first length.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having a first stiffness; and wherein the tongue reinforcer includes a second material layer having a second stiffness equal to or greater than the first stiffness.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the inward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the outward-facing surface.
- The footwear article of claim 3, wherein the tongue reinforcer is coupled to the inward-facing surface of the first material layer of the tongue.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the outward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the inward-facing surface.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the medial-side connector includes a first part of a first hook-and-loop connector, wherein a second part of the first hook-and-loop connector is attached to the medial side, wherein the lateral-side connector includes a first part of a second hook-and-loop connector, and wherein a second part of the second hook-and-loop connector is attached to the lateral side.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a tongue reference point that intersects a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article, and wherein a portion of the tongue reinforcer is positioned between the tongue reference point and a topline edge of the tongue.
- The footwear article of claim 7, wherein the entirety of the tongue reinforcer is positioned between the tongue reference point and a topline of the tongue.
- The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a tongue interior layer and a tongue exterior layer, and wherein the tongue reinforcer is located between the tongue interior layer and the tongue exterior layer.
- A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a forefoot region, a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar; a tongue having a topline edge nearer to the heel region than the forefoot region, and a tongue reference point intersecting a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article; at least one connector attaching the tongue to either the medial side or the lateral side; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having at least a portion that overlaps with the at least one connector, wherein the portion is positioned between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.
- The footwear article of claim 10, wherein a first distance between the tongue reference point and the portion is equal to or larger than half of a second distance extending from the tongue reference point to the topline edge.
- The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the connector includes a first part of a hook-and-loop connector, and wherein a second part of the hook-and-loop connector is attached to the medial side or the lateral side.
- The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the inward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the outward-facing surface.
- The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the outward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the inward-facing surface.
- A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar movable between a lowered state positioned closer to the sole and a raised state positioned farther from the sole; a tongue having a topline edge and a tongue reference point intersecting a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article; at least one connector attaching the tongue to either the medial side or the lateral side; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having a tongue-reinforcer width extending from a tongue-reinforcer medial edge to a tongue-reinforcer lateral edge and having a tongue-reinforcer length extending from a tongue-reinforcer top edge to a tongue-reinforcer bottom edge, wherein the tongue-reinforcer width is larger than the tongue-reinforcer length, and wherein the tongue-reinforcer top edge is between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.
- The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the tongue-reinforcer bottom edge is positioned between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.
- The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the tongue reinforcer includes a portion that overlaps with the at least one connector and wherein the portion is between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.
Description
This disclosure relates to a footwear article having a tongue reinforcer.
Some footwear articles include an ankle collar that is manipulated when the footwear article is put on. For example, the ankle collar may be depressed towards the sole as the wearer's foot is slid into the upper. Furthermore, some of these footwear articles include a collar elevator operable to move the ankle collar from the depressed or lowered state to the raised state. An example of one type of collar elevator is described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,820,527, and examples of other collar elevators are described in US Pat. Pub. 2018/0110292 and US Pat. Pub. 2018/0289109.
Some subject matter described in this disclosure makes reference to drawing figures, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.
FIG. 1 depicts a side view of a footwear article in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 2 depicts a top view of the footwear article of FIG. 1 in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 3 A- 3 C depict another footwear article having a collar elevator in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 4 A- 4 C depict another footwear article having an alternative collar elevator in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 5 depicts another footwear article in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 6 depicts the footwear article of FIG. 5 with a portion of the tongue cut away in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
FIG. 7 depicts the footwear article of FIG. 5 with the ankle collar in a lowered state in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.
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Record as JSON
{
"publication_number": "US11633016B2",
"country": "US",
"kind": "B2",
"title": "Footwear article with tongue reinforcer",
"abstract": "A footwear article includes a tongue and a tongue reinforcer, which helps the tongue maintain a shape and position when the tongue is subjected to forces or adjustments, such as from other footwear-article elements or from a wearer. For example, the tongue reinforcer may help the tongue maintain a shape and position when a wearer is inserting his or her foot into the footwear article or when medial and/or lateral quarters press inward on the tongue.",
"claims": [
"1. A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar movable between a lowered state positioned closer to the sole and a raised state positioned farther from the sole; a tongue; a medial-side connector having a width and a midpoint, the medial side connector attaching the tongue to the medial side; a lateral-side connector having a width and a midpoint, the lateral side connector attaching the tongue to the lateral side and spaced apart from the medial-side connector by a first length; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having a tongue-reinforcer medial edge and a tongue-reinforcer lateral edge that are spaced apart from one another by a second length, wherein the second length is equal to or greater than the first length.",
"2. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having a first stiffness; and wherein the tongue reinforcer includes a second material layer having a second stiffness equal to or greater than the first stiffness.",
"3. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the inward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the outward-facing surface.",
"4. The footwear article of claim 3, wherein the tongue reinforcer is coupled to the inward-facing surface of the first material layer of the tongue.",
"5. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the outward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the inward-facing surface.",
"6. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the medial-side connector includes a first part of a first hook-and-loop connector, wherein a second part of the first hook-and-loop connector is attached to the medial side, wherein the lateral-side connector includes a first part of a second hook-and-loop connector, and wherein a second part of the second hook-and-loop connector is attached to the lateral side.",
"7. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a tongue reference point that intersects a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article, and wherein a portion of the tongue reinforcer is positioned between the tongue reference point and a topline edge of the tongue.",
"8. The footwear article of claim 7, wherein the entirety of the tongue reinforcer is positioned between the tongue reference point and a topline of the tongue.",
"9. The footwear article of claim 1, wherein the tongue includes a tongue interior layer and a tongue exterior layer, and wherein the tongue reinforcer is located between the tongue interior layer and the tongue exterior layer.",
"10. A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a forefoot region, a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar; a tongue having a topline edge nearer to the heel region than the forefoot region, and a tongue reference point intersecting a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article; at least one connector attaching the tongue to either the medial side or the lateral side; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having at least a portion that overlaps with the at least one connector, wherein the portion is positioned between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.",
"11. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein a first distance between the tongue reference point and the portion is equal to or larger than half of a second distance extending from the tongue reference point to the topline edge.",
"12. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the connector includes a first part of a hook-and-loop connector, and wherein a second part of the hook-and-loop connector is attached to the medial side or the lateral side.",
"13. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the inward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the outward-facing surface.",
"14. The footwear article of claim 10, wherein the tongue includes a first material layer having an outward-facing surface and an inward-facing surface, and wherein the outward-facing surface is between the tongue reinforcer and the inward-facing surface.",
"15. A footwear article comprising: an upper coupled to a sole, the upper comprising a medial side, a lateral side, a heel region, and an ankle collar movable between a lowered state positioned closer to the sole and a raised state positioned farther from the sole; a tongue having a topline edge and a tongue reference point intersecting a latitudinal midline reference plane of the footwear article; at least one connector attaching the tongue to either the medial side or the lateral side; and a tongue reinforcer coupled to the tongue and having a tongue-reinforcer width extending from a tongue-reinforcer medial edge to a tongue-reinforcer lateral edge and having a tongue-reinforcer length extending from a tongue-reinforcer top edge to a tongue-reinforcer bottom edge, wherein the tongue-reinforcer width is larger than the tongue-reinforcer length, and wherein the tongue-reinforcer top edge is between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.",
"16. The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the tongue-reinforcer bottom edge is positioned between the tongue reference point and the topline edge.",
"17. The footwear article of claim 15, wherein the tongue reinforcer includes a portion that overlaps with the at least one connector and wherein the portion is between the tongue reference point and the topline edge."
],
"description_excerpt": "This disclosure relates to a footwear article having a tongue reinforcer.\n\nSome footwear articles include an ankle collar that is manipulated when the footwear article is put on. For example, the ankle collar may be depressed towards the sole as the wearer's foot is slid into the upper. Furthermore, some of these footwear articles include a collar elevator operable to move the ankle collar from the depressed or lowered state to the raised state. An example of one type of collar elevator is described in U.S. Pat. No. 9,820,527, and examples of other collar elevators are described in US Pat. Pub. 2018/0110292 and US Pat. Pub. 2018/0289109.\n\nSome subject matter described in this disclosure makes reference to drawing figures, which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.\n\nFIG. 1 depicts a side view of a footwear article in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 2 depicts a top view of the footwear article of FIG. 1 in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 3 A- 3 C depict another footwear article having a collar elevator in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 4 A- 4 C depict another footwear article having an alternative collar elevator in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 5 depicts another footwear article in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 6 depicts the footwear article of FIG. 5 with a portion of the tongue cut away in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.\n\nFIG. 7 depicts the footwear article of FIG. 5 with the ankle collar in a lowered state in accordance with an aspect of this disclosure.",
"cpc": [
"A43B 23/26",
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"ipc": [
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],
"assignees": [
"Nike Inc"
],
"inventors": [
"Austin J. Orand",
"Aaron B. Weast",
"II Peter P. Williams"
],
"filing_date": "2021-09-23",
"publication_date": "2023-04-25",
"grant_date": "2023-04-25",
"priority_date": "2018-12-21",
"application_number": "US-202117482809-A",
"family_id": "68314926",
"cited_by_count": 23,
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Record 791 of 8,000 in Patents full text (MLC-0201). Request the full dataset.