Patent ID: 6805825
Filing Date: 2004-10-19
Classification: A43D,B29D

Abstract:
A method of making an item of footwear, the method comprising the steps of:forming an upper for the item of footwear on a forming last, the forming last including a body having the general shape of a foot around which the upper of the footwear item is formed in a series of separate operations, the last body having a base corresponding to a sole of the foot shape; providing an apparatus having a plurality of separate workstations for performing discrete footwear fabrication operations, including a moulding workstation for moulding a rubber sole; removably mounting the forming last on the apparatus and moving the last sequentially through the plurality of separate workstations to complete the upper before moving the last with the formed upper thereon to the moulding workstation; and moulding a rubber sole onto the formed upper while it is still mounted on the forming last, the forming last being heated before and/or during the moulding step, wherein the step of heating the forming last includes heating the base of the last body, whilst substantially preventing the heating of parts of the body other than the base.