发明人：
CONSTANTINOU, JAY | DOREMUS, HARLEIGH | FOLGAR, LUIS | KVAMME, BRANDON | SCHILLER, DENIS | YETMAN, KRISSY
摘要：
Methods for manufacturing articles of footwear are provided. In various aspects, the methods comprise utilizing additive manufacturing methods with foam particles. In some aspects, the additive manufacturing methods comprise increasing the temperature of a plurality of foam particles with actinic radiation under conditions effective to fuse a portion of the plurality of foam particles comprising one or more thermoplastic elastomers. Increasing the temperature of the foam particles can be carried out for one or multiple iterations. The disclosed methods can be used to manufacturer articles with sub-regions that exhibit differing degrees of fusion between the foam particles, thereby resulting in sub-regions with different properties such as density, resilience, and/or flexural modulus. This abstract is intended as a scanning tool for purposes of searching in the particular art and is not intended to be limiting of the present disclosure.
技术功效语段：
The patent text describes methods of manufacturing articles using foam particles in additive manufacturing methods, such as selective laser sintering. The technical effects of the patent text include improved performance, comfort, and durability of athletic equipment and apparel as well as footwear. The use of foam particles in these methods allows for the creation of lightweight, flexible articles that meet the demands of performance and comfort. The patent also describes the use of differential scanning calorimetry data to analyze the properties of the foam particles used in the manufacturing process. Overall, the patent text provides methods for creating high-quality articles using foam particles in additive manufacturing methods.
权利要求：
1. A method of making an article (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64; 120) having a plurality of sub-regions (121a, 121b, 121c, 122, 123; 123, 124a, 124b, 124c) comprising differentially fused foam particles, the method comprising: arranging a plurality of foam particles such that the plurality of foam particles comprise a first foam particle having a first surface formed of a first thermoplastic elastomer material in contact with a second surface of an adjacent foam particle, the second surface of the adjacent foam particle being formed of a second thermoplastic elastomer material; increasing a temperature of at least a portion of the plurality of foam particles with actinic radiation under conditions effective to melt or soften a portion of the first thermoplastic elastomer material of the first surface of the first foam particle, or the second thermoplastic elastomer material of the second surface of the adjacent foam particle, or both; and decreasing the temperature of the melted or softened portion of the first thermoplastic elastomer material, of the second thermoplastic elastomer material, or of both, thereby solidifying the melted or softened portion of the first thermoplastic elastomer material, of the second thermoplastic elastomer material, or of both, and forming a plurality of fused foam particles; wherein the plurality of foam particles has a number average particle size of 0.04 millimeters to 10 millimeters in the longest dimension; wherein the arranging and the increasing of the temperature are repeated; wherein an iteration of the arranging comprises depositing a layer comprising the plurality of foam particles; and wherein the article (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64;120) is formed layerwise from a plurality of layers.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the increasing the temperature of at least a portion of the plurality of foam particles with actinic radiation under conditions effective to melt or soften a portion of the first thermoplastic elastomer material of the first surface of the first foam particle or the second thermoplastic elastomer material of the second surface of the adjacent foam particle further comprises intermingling melted first thermoplastic elastomer material from the first surface of the first foam particle with melted second thermoplastic elastomer material from the second surface of the adjacent foam particle; and wherein the decreasing the temperature of the melted or softened portion of the first thermoplastic elastomer material or the melted or softened portion of the second thermoplastic elastomer comprises decreasing a temperature of the intermingled thermoplastic elastomer material, thereby solidifying the melted portion of the thermoplastic elastomer and forming the plurality of fused foam particles; wherein the arranging a plurality of foam particles optionally comprises depositing an essentially planar layer comprising the plurality of foam particles; and/or wherein the plurality of foam particles optionally has a bulk density of 80 grams per liter to 200 grams per liter.
3. The method according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first or second thermoplastic elastomer material comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane elastomer, a thermoplastic polyurea elastomer, a thermoplastic polyether elastomer, a thermoplastic copolyetherester elastomer, a thermoplastic polyamide elastomer, a thermoplastic polystyrene elastomer, a thermoplastic polyolefin elastomer, a thermoplastic copolyetheramide elastomer, a thermoplastic styrene diene copolymer elastomer, a thermoplastic styrene block copolymer elastomer, a thermoplastic polyamide elastomer, a thermoplastic polyimide elastomer, any copolymer thereof, or any blend thereof; or wherein the first or second thermoplastic elastomer material comprises a thermoplastic polyether block amide copolymer; and
4. The method according to any one of claims 1-3, wherein the first or second thermoplastic elastomer material is characterized by a range of at least 10 degrees C over which the first thermoplastic elastomer material or the second thermoplastic elastomer material exhibits softening and melting behavior as determined using differential scanning calorimetry.
5. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the increasing the temperature of at least a portion of the plurality of foam particles comprises increasing the temperature of a target area of the plurality of foam particles
6. The method according to claim 5, wherein the increasing the temperature of the target area of the plurality of foam articles comprises increasing the temperature of the target area of the plurality of foam articles with a directed energy beam of actinic radiation, such as a laser beam, optionally having a beam width of 0.1 millimeter to 0.7 millimeter.
7. The method according to according to claim 6, wherein the directed energy beam of actinic radiation has a scan pattern such that the directed energy beam of actinic radiation is directed in an x-y plane; and wherein the directed energy beam of actinic radiation is configured to vary an amount of energy for an amount of time directed to each point in the x-y plane.
8. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, further comprising applying a coating to the plurality of fused foam particles, wherein the coating is optionally a polyurea coating or a polyurethane coating.
9. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the article formed is a component (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64; 120) used in manufacture of an article of footwear, apparel or sporting equipment, optionally a cushioning element or an impact absorbing element.
10. The method of claim 1, wherein the heating of a target area fuses a first foam particle to a second foam particle in the target area, wherein the first foam particle is melted to a depth of 10 micrometers to 500 micrometers measured from the surface of the first foam particle, and wherein the second foam particle is melted to a depth of 10 micrometers to 500 micrometers measured from the surface of the second foam particle.
11. The method of claim 1, wherein a target area comprising a plurality of foam particles is heated with a directed energy beam under conditions effective to fuse a portion of the plurality of foam particles comprising one or more thermoplastic elastomers; wherein the target area is a portion of a layer of a plurality of foam particles; and wherein the actinic radiation is provided via a directed energy beam that is used to increase the temperature of a subset of a plurality of foam particles in certain portions of the layer of the plurality of foam particles.
12. An article (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64; 120) made by a method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, having a plurality of sub-regions comprising differentially fused foam particles.
13. The article (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64; 120) according to claim 12, wherein the article is a component used in manufacture of an article of footwear, apparel or sporting equipment.
14. The article (14; 26; 36; 60; 62; 64; 120) according to claim 13, wherein the component used in manufacture of an article of footwear, apparel or sporting equipment is a cushioning element or an impact absorbing element.