Patent ID: 8020320

Claim:
An article of footwear comprising: an upper adapted to substantially cover a user's foot and comprising a first flexible material; and a flexible sole fixed to said upper, wherein said sole includes: a second flexible material different from said first flexible material, wherein said second flexible material is a foam material, and a plurality of laterally extending flexure lines that extend across a width of said sole so as to divide said sole into a plurality of sole plates that flex with respect to one another, wherein said sole includes an arch area, wherein at least one of said laterally extending flexure lines divide said sole at said arch area, the at least one of said laterally extending flexure lines defining two sole plates at said arch area which flex with respect to one another, wherein at least one of said two sole plates extends the width of said sole and is undivided by a flexure line, wherein the one of said two sole plates extends from a lateral side of said sole to a medial side of said sole.