Nike, Inc.

Ricardo Salinas, Jr

Thomas G Bell

Tobie D Hatfield

Brooke P Rapf

Chip Jones

John P Hlavacs

Ethan Lee

Darlan Zacharia

Michael J Hass

Mike Ekstrom

Nicole Mueller

Darien Curl

David Tu

Elizabeth Fulkerson

Dick Lin

An outsole for an article of footwear includes a plantar surface and a peripheral surface surrounding the plantar surface. The outsole for an article of footwear also includes an annular cleat set including a first plurality of traction elements arranged in series about a central axis on the plantar surface. The outsole for an article of footwear further includes one or more radial cleat sets each including a second plurality of the traction elements aligned along a respective radial axis intersecting the central axis. At least one of the second plurality of the traction elements includes a peripheral cleat formed on the peripheral surface.

Sole structure for article of footwear

Golf shoes include one or more of the following: (a) a foot stabilizer system that interacts with a shoe securing system to securely engage and/or wrap around a foot of a wearer; (b) a natural motion sole, optionally including flex grooves that allow a weight transfer from back-to-front and/or from side-to-side; (c) a six cleat configuration (e.g., four cleats in a forefoot region, two cleats in a heel region, and no cleats located directly under a big toe); (d) a forefoot moderator plate positioned to moderate or reduce user feel of the forefoot cleats; (e) a lateral half heel counter extending from a rear heel area to a lateral midfoot or lateral forward heel area of the shoe; and/or (f) one or more medial, forefoot, sidewall traction elements at or near a big toe area of the sole.

Golf shoe with natural motion structures

Cleat structures, e.g., for golf shoes, may include a flat and flexible interior surface and/or a generally disk-shaped perimeter area that includes features to promote in-molding of the cleat to a footwear sole component (e.g., to permanently engage the cleat with an outsole member). Such cleats may provide a flexible and comfortable base, including a low profile, e.g., to enable formation relatively thin and/or flexible footwear sole components. Footwear sole components and articles of footwear that include one or more in-molded cleat structures of this type also are described. Molds used for in-molding procedures and methods of using the molds to make articles with in-molded components (e.g., for making footwear sole structures including one or more in-molded cleats) also are described.

Cleats, cleated sole structures, molds, and molding methods for in-molding articles

Growing community of inventors

Hillsboro, OR, United States of America

Ricardo Salinas, Jr