Methods for manufacturing cushioning elements for sports apparel
Assigneeadidas AG
InventorsAngus Wardlaw, Gerd Rainer Manz, Tru Huu Minh Le, Warren Freeman
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Abstract
Methods for manufacturing cushioning elements for sports apparel are described. A method is provided for manufacturing a cushioning element for sports apparel from randomly arranged particles of an expanded material. The method includes positioning a functional element within a mold and loading the mold with the particles of the expanded material, wherein the loading occurs through at least two openings within the mold and/or wherein the loading occurs between different movable parts of the mold.
Claims16
A method for the manufacture of a cushioning element for sports apparel from randomly arranged particles of an expanded material, the method comprising:
- loading a mold with particles of the expanded material,
- wherein the mold comprises at least a lower stamp and an upper stamp which can move relative to one another as well as at least one stationary part, and
- wherein loading the mold comprises the sub-steps of:
- moving the lower stamp out of the mold and then loading particles of the expanded material into the mold from above,
- subsequently moving the lower stamp back into the mold until it has assumed a final position, and
- further loading the mold with particles of the expanded material and/or closing the mold.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.