Patent ID: 8919750

Claim:
A cushioning element having a top cushioning surface and a bottom base surface, the cushioning element comprising: an elastomeric cushion member including: a first plurality of interconnected buckling walls having a first mean height and comprising an elastomeric material, the elastomeric material comprising an elastomeric polymer, each interconnected buckling wall of the first plurality having a first end in a first plane and a second end in a second plane, the first mean height measured from the first end of the interconnected buckling walls to the second end of the interconnected buckling walls; and a second plurality of buckling walls having a second mean height less than the first mean height, the second plurality of buckling walls comprising the elastomeric material, each buckling wall of the second plurality intersecting and connected to at least two buckling walls of the first plurality, each buckling wall of the second plurality having a first end and a second end, wherein at least one of the first end and the second end is disposed between the first plane and the second plane, the second mean height measured from the first end of the buckling walls to the second end of the buckling walls; wherein the first ends of the first plurality of interconnected buckling walls define the top cushioning surface of the cushioning element; and a stabilizing material secured to the second ends of the first plurality of interconnected buckling walls and separated from the second plurality of buckling walls, each buckling wall of the second plurality configured to move independently of the stabilizing material, a surface of the stabilizing material on a side thereof opposite the elastomeric cushion member defining the bottom base surface of the cushioning element.