Footwear upper components having contoured foam regions and methods of forming such components
An upper shell panel may be placed between first and second sections of a mold. The first section may include one or more expansion cavities and the second section may include one or more pour cavities. A foam-producing chemical mixture may be delivered into the one or more pour cavities and the mold may be closed. The delivered foam-producing chemical mixture may be allowed to expand within the closed mold and to force regions of the upper shell panel into the one or more expansion cavities. The upper shell panel may then be removed from the mold subsequent to the expansion of the delivered mixture.
1. A method comprising: delivering a foam-producing chemical mixture into one or more pour cavities formed in a working face of a first mold element; pressing, after delivering the foam-producing chemical mixture into the one or more pour cavities, an upper shell panel between the working face of the first mold element and a working face of a second mold element, wherein the working face of the second mold element comprises one or more expansion cavities formed therein, and wherein, during the pressing, each of the one or more expansion cavities is positioned opposite, and separated by a corresponding one of one or more portions of the upper shell panel from, a corresponding one of the one or more pour cavities; allowing, while the upper shell panel is pressed between the working face of the first mold element and the working face of a second mold element, the delivered mixture to expand and force the one or more portions of the upper shell panel into the one or more expansion cavities; removing the upper shell panel from the mold elements subsequent to the expansion of the delivered mixture; and forming a footwear shell from the upper shell panel.
2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the pressing comprises coupling the upper shell panel to the working face of the second mold element and then moving the working face of the second mold element and coupled upper shell panel toward the working face of the first mold element.
3. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upper shell panel is in an unfolded condition when pressed between the working face of the first mold element and the working face of the second mold element.
4. The method of claim 1 , wherein the footwear shell is a footwear upper shell, and the forming of the footwear upper shell from the upper shell panel occurs after removal of the upper shell panel from the mold elements.
5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the forming comprises folding the upper shell panel.
6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the forming comprises attaching one portion of the folded upper shell panel to another portion of the folded upper shell panel.
7. The method of claim 5 , further comprising attaching a lasting element to the formed footwear upper shell.
8. The method of claim 4 , further comprising attaching one or more sole structure elements to the formed footwear upper shell.
9. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the upper shell panel includes regions corresponding to medial and lateral regions of a completed upper,
the upper shell panel removed from the mold elements includes contoured foam regions formed during the allowing step, and
the contoured foam regions are located in the upper shell panel regions corresponding to the medial and lateral regions of the completed upper.
10. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the upper shell panel includes regions corresponding to medial and lateral forefoot regions of a completed upper, medial and lateral midfoot regions of a completed upper, and medial and lateral heel regions of a completed upper,
the upper shell panel removed from the mold elements includes contoured foam regions formed during the allowing step, and the contoured foam regions are located in the upper shell panel regions corresponding to the medial and the lateral forefoot regions of the completed upper, in the upper shell panel regions corresponding to the medial and the lateral midfoot regions of the completed upper, and in the upper shell panel regions corresponding to the medial and the lateral heel regions of the completed upper.
11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the working face of the second mold element includes a plurality of registration projections, and further comprising:
placing, prior to the pressing, the upper shell panel on the working face of the second mold element so that the registration projections extend through corresponding registration openings in the upper shell panel.
12. The method of claim 1 , wherein the working face of the first mold element includes a planar base surface and a plurality of first contoured surfaces, each of the first contoured surfaces being recessed into the first mold element and defining one of the pour cavities, and wherein the working face of the second mold element includes a planar base surface and a plurality of second contoured surfaces, each of the second contoured surfaces being recessed into the second mold element and defining one of the expansion cavities.
13. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upper shell panel comprises a composite upper shell panel including a plurality of bonded panels.
14. The method of claim 1 , wherein the upper shell panel includes a skin/textile composite panel, the skin/textile composite panel comprising an elastic textile material bonded to a polymer skin material, and wherein the pressing comprises placing the upper shell panel so that the one or more portions separating the one or more pour cavities and the one or more expansion cavities comprise the skin/textile composite panel.
15. The method of claim 1 , wherein
the working face of the first mold element comprises a planar first base surface having the one or more pour cavities formed therein, and
the working face of the second mold element comprises a planar second base surface having the one or more expansion cavities formed therein.
16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the working face of the second mold element comprises one or more registration projections extending outward from the working face of the second mold element.
17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the one or more expansion cavities comprise a plurality of expansion cavities, and wherein the plurality of expansion cavities have positions on the working face, of the second mold element, corresponding to medial and lateral forefoot regions, medial and lateral midfoot regions, and medial and lateral heel regions of a flattened footwear upper.
18. The method of claim 15 , wherein the one or more expansion cavities comprise a plurality of expansion cavities, and wherein the plurality of expansion cavities have positions on the working face, of the second mold element, corresponding to medial and lateral forefoot regions, medial and lateral midfoot regions, and medial and lateral heel regions of a flattened footwear upper.