Mizuno Corporation

Tatsuya Dazai

Takao Oda

Takeshi Takeshita

Takaya Kimura

Kazunori Iuchi

Yoshitaka Takahashi

Tomoyuki Yonekawa

A midsole structure for a shoe not only maintains stability at the time of impacting the ground and improves cushioning property but also eliminates discomfort to a foot sole and improves ride feeling during running. The midsole structure () comprises at least two midsoles provided at a heel region of the shoe and having a hardness difference. On opposite sides of the heel region, an upper midsole () of a greater hardness has a thickness greater than a thickness of a lower midsole () of a smaller hardness. In a central part of the heel region, the lower midsole () of a smaller hardness has a thickness greater than a thickness of the upper midsole () of a greater hardness. Boundary surfaces (B,A) between the upper midsole () and the lower midsole () do not appear on a top surface of the midsole structure () (that is, a foot sole contact surface (A) of the upper midsole ()).

Midsole structure for a shoe

A sole structure for shoes includes a midsole and a plate member made of a hard resin harder than the midsole, which is joined to a lower surface of the midsole. The plate member includes a first reinforcement portion extending rearwardly from a position corresponding to a portion in the rear of a thenar of a user along a medial side arch region and a second reinforcement portion extending rearwardly on a lateral side from the position corresponding to the portion in the rear of the thenar of the user so as to avoid a position corresponding to a portion more frontward than a center of a fifth metatarsal bone.

Sole structure for shoes

The heel counter structure includes a sole plate provided at least at the heel region of the shoe and having a peripheral portion. The peripheral portion is upraised along the heel region of the shoe so as to enclose the lower portion of the heel portion of the foot of the wearer. The heel structure also includes a pair of heel counter portions provided on the medial and lateral sides of the heel region of the shoe so as to sandwich the heel portion of the foot sideways. The heel counter portions are coupled to the peripheral portion of the sole plate at the lower ends of the heel counter portions so that the heel counter portions can tilt inwardly and outwardly independently of the sole plate. The heel counter portions are separated from the peripheral portion of the sole plate except the lower ends of the heel counter portions.

Heel counter structure for a shoe

Shoe sole

Growing community of inventors

Nishinomiya, Japan

Tatsuya Dazai