Article Of Footwear Incorporating A Knitted Component
AssigneeNIKE, Inc.
InventorsBruce Huffa, Dua Bhupesh
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An article of footwear may include an upper incorporating a knitted component. An inlaid strand extends through the knitted component. A combination feeder may be utilized to inlay the strand within the knitted component. As an example, the combination feeder may include a feeder arm that reciprocates between a retracted position and an extended position. In manufacturing the knitted component, the feeder inlays the strand when the feeder arm is in the extended position, and the strand is absent from the knitted component when the feeder arm is in the retracted position.
Claims40
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper including a knitted component comprising:
- a first yarn and a second yarn that are knitted together to form an area of the knitted component, the first yarn being at least partially formed from a thermoplastic polymer material, and the second yarn being entirely formed from at least one of a thermoset polymer material and natural fibers;
- and
- an inlaid strand extending through the area of the knitted component.
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper including a knitted component comprising:
- a fusible yarn and a non-fusible yarn that are knitted together to form a plurality of intermeshed loops defining courses and wales;
- and
- an inlaid strand extending along at least one of the courses.
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper comprising:
- a knit element defining a portion of an exterior surface of the upper and an opposite interior surface of the upper, the interior surface defining a void for receiving a foot, the knit element extending from a throat area of the upper to a lower area of the upper, and the knit element defining a plurality of apertures located within the throat area;
- an inlaid strand extending through the knit element from the throat area to the lower area, the inlaid strand extending at least partially around the apertures in the throat area, and the inlaid strand being located between the exterior surface and the interior surface in the throat area;
- and
- a lace extending through the apertures.
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper comprising:
- a knit element forming a portion of an exterior surface of the upper and an opposite interior surface of the upper, the interior surface defining a void for receiving a foot, the knit element extending from a throat area of the upper to a lower area of the upper;
- and
- an inlaid strand extending through the knit element from the throat area to the lower area,
- wherein a portion of the knit element forming the exterior surface exposes multiple sections of the inlaid strand in an area between the throat area and the lower area, and a portion of the knit element forming the interior surface covers substantially all of the inlaid strand between the throat area and the lower area.
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper comprising:
- a first knitted layer that forms at least a portion of an exterior surface of the upper;
- a second knitted layer formed of unitary knit construction with the first knitted layer, the second knitted layer being positioned adjacent to the first knitted layer and at least partially coextensive with the first knitted layer to define a tube between the first knitted layer and the second knitted layer;
- and
- a plurality of floating yarns located within the tube and extending in a direction that is substantially parallel to the first knitted layer and the second knitted layer,
- wherein the first knitted layer and the second knitted layer are at least partially formed from a yarn that stretches at least one hundred percent.
An article of footwear having an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, the upper comprising:
- a knit element including at least one yarn that forms a plurality of intermeshed loops, the knit element defining a portion of an exterior surface of the upper and an opposite interior surface of the upper, the interior surface defining a void for receiving a foot, the knit element having a configuration of a single textile layer that forms a portion of the exterior surface and the interior surface;
- and
- an inlaid strand extending through the knit element and located between the exterior surface and the interior surface.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.