Granted Patent B2

US 8,020,322 · App. 12/033,180 · Granted Sep 20, 2011

Abstract

Claims (45)

1. A cleat for footwear comprising:

a hub having a top surface, a bottom surface, a periphery and a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular to said top and bottom surfaces;

connector means secured to said top surface of said hub for enabling the cleat to be attached to a connector mounted in a shoe sole;

an array of plural different types of angularly spaced traction elements secured to and depending from said bottom surface of said hub proximate said periphery;

wherein said traction elements are positionally angularly alternated in said array;

wherein a first type of said traction elements is a first dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing a load comprising the weight of a wearer of the footwear to trap grass blades between itself and an outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected;

wherein a second type of said traction elements is a first static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to bearing said load and is shorter than said first dynamic traction element; and

wherein a third type of said traction elements is a second dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing said load to trap grass blades between itself and the outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected, said second dynamic traction element being shorter than said first dynamic traction element but longer than said first static traction element.

2. The cleat of claim 1 wherein a fourth type of said traction elements is a second static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to said load and is substantially as long as said first static traction element.

3. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said dynamic traction elements are molded from a polymer material having a hardness on the Durometer scale in the range of 82A to 90A, and wherein said static traction elements are molded from a polymer material having a hardness on the Durometer scale in the range of 67D to 75D.

4. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said array includes plural sub-arrays, each sub-array including at least one each of said first, second, third and fourth types of cleats.

5. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said array is symmetrical about said axis.

6. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said first static traction element has a bottom surface with a relatively large surface area, and wherein said second type of static traction element has a bottom surface with a surface area that is much smaller than said large surface area.

7. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said first static traction element has a radially outward facing surface having a recessed notch defined therein, and wherein said second static traction element has a continuously smooth and unrecessed radially outward facing surface.

8. The cleat of claim 2 wherein said first static traction element further includes at least on downwardly projecting barb disposed on its bottom-most surface.

9. The cleat of claim 1 wherein said first dynamic traction element further includes at least one downwardly projecting barb disposed on its bottom-most surface.

10. A cleat for footwear comprising:

a hub having a top surface, a bottom surface, a periphery and a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular to said top and bottom surfaces;

connector means secured to said top surface of said hub for enabling the cleat to be attached to a connector mounted in a shoe sole;

an array of plural different types of angularly spaced traction elements secured to and depending from said bottom surface of said hub proximate said periphery;

wherein said traction elements are positionally angularly alternated in said array;

wherein a first type of said traction elements is a first dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing a load comprising the weight of a wearer of the footwear to trap grass blades between itself and an outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected; and

wherein a second type of said traction elements is a first static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to bearing said load and is shorter than said first dynamic traction element; and

wherein at least one of said first dynamic traction elements is disposed sufficiently proximate an adjacent one of said first static traction element to trap and pinch grass therebetween when said one of said first dynamic traction elements is flexed under load to thereby provide a friction effect in which grass blades disposed between said first dynamic and first static elements are frictionally trapped by said first dynamic and first static elements to provide lateral traction.

11. The cleat of claim 10 wherein said dynamic traction elements are molded from a polymer material having a hardness on the Durometer scale in the range of 82A to 90A , and wherein said static traction elements are molded from a polymer material having a hardness on the Durometer scale in the range of 67D to 75D.

12. A cleat for footwear comprising:

a hub having a top surface, a bottom surface and a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular to said top and bottom surfaces;

connector means secured to said top surface of said hub for enabling the cleat to be attached to a connector mounted in a shoe sole;

at least a first dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing a load comprising the weight of a wearer of the footwear to trap grass blades between itself and an outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected; and

at least a first static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to said load and is shorter than said first dynamic traction element;

wherein said first dynamic traction element is disposed sufficiently proximate said first static traction element to trap and pinch grass between said elements when said first dynamic traction element is flexed under load to thereby provide a friction effect in which grass blades disposed between said first dynamic and first static elements are frictionally trapped by said first dynamic and first static elements to provide lateral traction.

13. The cleat of claim 12 wherein said dynamic traction elements are longer than said static traction elements.

14. The cleat of claim 13 further comprising:

at least a second dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing a load comprising the weight of a wearer of the footwear to trap grass blades between itself and an outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected, said second dynamic traction element being longer than said first dynamic traction element.

15. The cleat of claim 14 further comprising:

at least a second static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to said load and that has a configuration that is different from the configuration of the first static traction element.

16. The cleat of claim 13 further comprising:

at least a second static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to said load and that has a configuration that is different from the configuration of the first static traction element.

17. The cleat of claim 13 wherein said first static traction element has a radially outward facing surface having a recessed notch defined therein to enhance lateral traction.

18. A cleat for footwear comprising:

a hub having a top surface, a bottom surface and a longitudinal axis oriented substantially perpendicular to said top and bottom surfaces;

connector means secured to said top surface of said hub for enabling the cleat to be attached to a connector mounted in a shoe sole;

at least a first dynamic traction element that is sufficiently flexible in response to bearing a load comprising the weight of a wearer of the footwear to trap grass blades between itself and an outsole of footwear to which the cleat is connected; and

at least a first static traction element that is relatively inflexible in response to said load and is shorter than said first dynamic traction element, said first static traction element having a radially outward facing surface having a radially inwardly recessed notch defined therein by two radially inwardly converging facets extending substantially the entire length of said radially outward facing surface to enhance lateral traction as the cleat moves horizontally through grass by directing grass blades into a nadir of the notch.

19. The cleat of claim 18 wherein said first static traction element further includes at least one downwardly projecting barb disposed on its bottom-most surface.

Assignments (10)