Articles of footwear with knitted components and methods of manufacturing the same

Abstract

Footwear with integrally knit uppers having features for increasing containment around a wearer's foot, improving strength and durability, and incorporating touch feedback through increased coefficient of friction while removing weight due to traditional additional components. The knitted component may be radially knitted so that courses converge towards a common area, like the throat region of the upper. Additionally, a fusible yarn may be knit on at least the exterior-facing surface of a containment area of the knitted component to create additional lock-down along lines of containment. Further, tensile elements may be incorporated within the containment area to provide strength and lock-down along desired lines of containment. Additionally, the fusible yarn may be a grip yarn that creates areas with greater coefficients of friction.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An article of footwear, comprising:
 an upper, comprising:   a knitted component, comprising:   a plurality of radially-extending courses that extend from a common portion of the upper to an outer perimeter of the upper in at least a forefoot region of the upper, wherein the common portion is a throat region, and wherein the plurality of radially-extending courses are arranged into a plurality of wedge-shaped portions; and   a sole structure secured to the upper.   
     
     
         2 . The article of footwear of  claim 1 , wherein the knitted component comprises at least one inlaid tensile element. 
     
     
         3 . The article of footwear of  claim 2 , wherein the at least one inlaid tensile element is inlaid along the plurality of radially-extending courses, such that a plurality of tensile segments extend radially-outward from the common portion to the outer perimeter. 
     
     
         4 . The article of footwear of  claim 1 , wherein each wedge-shaped portion comprises a combination of longer knit courses and shorter knit courses. 
     
     
         5 . The article of footwear of  claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the plurality of radially-extending courses are positioned on an exterior-facing surface of the upper. 
     
     
         6 . The article of footwear of  claim 1 , wherein a spacing between the plurality of radially-extending courses at the common portion is smaller than a spacing between the plurality of radially-extending courses at the outer perimeter. 
     
     
         7 . The article of footwear of  claim 1 , wherein the knitted component comprises a fusible yarn that is fused. 
     
     
         8 . The article of footwear of  claim 7 , wherein the fusible yarn comprises a thermoplastic elastomer. 
     
     
         9 . The article of footwear of  claim 8 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or a styrene ethylene/butylene styrene (SEBS). 
     
     
         10 . An upper for an article of footwear, the upper comprising:
 a knitted component, comprising:   a plurality of radially-extending courses that extend from a common portion of the upper to an outer perimeter of the upper in at least a forefoot region of the upper, wherein the common portion is a throat region, and wherein the plurality of radially-extending courses are arranged into a plurality of wedge-shaped portions.   
     
     
         11 . The upper of  claim 10 , wherein the knitted component comprises at least one inlaid tensile element. 
     
     
         12 . The upper of  claim 11 , wherein the at least one inlaid tensile element is inlaid along the plurality of radially-extending courses, such that a plurality of tensile segments extend radially-outward from the common portion to the outer perimeter. 
     
     
         13 . The upper of  claim 10 , wherein a spacing between the plurality of radially-extending courses at the common portion is smaller than a spacing between the plurality of radially-extending courses at the outer perimeter in the forefoot region. 
     
     
         14 . The upper of  claim 10 , wherein the knitted component comprises a fusible yarn that is fused. 
     
     
         15 . The upper of  claim 14 , wherein the fusible yarn comprises a thermoplastic elastomer. 
     
     
         16 . The upper of  claim 15 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is a thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) or a styrene ethylene/butylene styrene (SEBS). 
     
     
         17 . The upper of  claim 15 , wherein the thermoplastic elastomer is fused on an outer-facing surface of the knitted component, and wherein the thermoplastic elastomer that is fused has a higher coefficient of friction than a remainder of the outer-facing surface of the knitted component. 
     
     
         18 . An article of footwear, comprising:
 an upper, comprising:   a knitted component, comprising:   a plurality of knitted courses that extend radially-outward from a throat region of the upper to an outer perimeter of the upper in at least a forefoot region of the upper, the plurality of knitted courses being integrally formed, and wherein a spacing between the plurality of knitted courses increases towards the outer perimeter of the upper; and   a sole structure secured to the upper.   
     
     
         19 . The article of footwear of  claim 18 , wherein at least one tensile element is inlaid in the knitted component, such that a plurality of tensile segments extend radially-outward from the throat region to the outer perimeter in at least the forefoot region. 
     
     
         20 . The article of footwear of  claim 18 , wherein at least one yarn of the knitted component is a fusible yarn that comprises a fusible material that has been thermoformed to fuse together one or more yarns of the knitted component. 
     
     
         21 . The article of footwear of  claim 20 , wherein the fusible material has a higher coefficient of friction than a remaining portion of the knitted component. 
     
     
         22 . The article of footwear of  claim 20 , wherein the fusible yarn comprises a core and a sheath, the sheath comprising the fusible material, and wherein the fusible material is a thermoplastic elastomer.