Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Nicholas Workman

Christopher Aldrich Brown

Jessica Shelsky

Michael Doyle

James J Muller

Andrew R Vickery

Lorenzo M Dube

Pedro D Oporto

Jessica K Y Cheu

Olivia G Steen

Winton Parker

Tristin J Carlton

Allysa Grant

Abigale McAdams

Josephine Bowen

Sarah Duquette

Eric Motler

A force absorbing device for a footwear appliance includes a shoe upper and a shoe sole having a planar sole surface, such that forces between the shoe upper and planar sole surface in ground contact are absorbed by force mitigation assemblies disposed in the shoe sole. A force mitigation assembly adapted for an athletic shoe includes a linkage to a wearer interface responsive to movement based on activity of the wearer. An attachment to a sole surface receives ground forces transmitted from frictional contact between the sole surface and a surface against which the sole is disposed, such as for running, turning, etc. A force mitigation assembly absorbs these forces received from the sole surface for directing the received force in a controlled manner. An elastic field in the force mitigation assembly is defined by a resilient material adapted to deform in response to the received force.

Footwear force mitigation assembly

A force absorbing device for a footwear appliance includes a shoe upper and a shoe sole having a planar sole surface, such that forces between the shoe upper and planar sole surface in ground contact are absorbed by force mitigation structures disposed in the shoe sole. A footwear article includes a split-sole system that redefines a shoe sole as coplanar surfaces having a force mitigating interface for receiving sudden forces and effectively mitigating these forces by storing kinetic energy and releasing it over time. An elastic field in the force mitigation structure is defined by a resilient material adapted to deform in response to the received force. Frictional engagement between the upper and lower sole may also be augmented by surface characteristics such as dimples, voids and lubricants, in addition to interference engagement with an elastic field.

Adjustable response elastic kinetic energy converter and storage field system for a footwear appliance

An impact absorbing footwear device employs opposed planar sole portions engaged by a selective resistance coupling that biases the opposed planar sole portions in a non-linear manner in response to forces exerted by the wearer against the sole portion in frictional contact with a floor surface. The planar sole portions are disposed in a footwear appliance that takes the form of an athletic shoe sole. The selective resistance coupling includes a plurality of resilient deformation members that engage the planar sole portions in an opposed circumferentially aligned manner, selectively deform in response to pressure exerted by the wearer for preventing ACL and other impact related injuries, and recover to an undeformed rest position without breakaway to allow the wearer uninterrupted usage while dampening forces that surpass an injury threshold from the resilient deformation that allows the planar sole portions to temporarily misalign.

Self-recovering impact absorbing footwear

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Worcester, MA, United States of America

Nicholas Workman