Final Project Proposal

My Shoe


I am planning on designing a revolutionary basketball shoe with a built in ankle brace. The player wearing the shoe will have the option to use the built in brace or not. This will allow the shoe to be worn by a more versatile audience.

One of the largest problems with team shoe design is that most high school and college teams are required to wear ankle braces, but the current team shoes are not designed with this in mind. The shoes become bulky, laces are then to short, and the straps across the top of the upper can’t reach the velcro on the other side of the shoe.

This new shoe would have a typical solid rubber outsole with a modified herringbone, a typical court pattern, across the bottom. It would also have an outrigger on the outside of the forefoot to increase stabilization.

The mid-sole would contain cushlon foam, one of the lightest and softest foams made by Nike. This greatly decreases the overall weight of the shoe and increases performance. This foam also breaks down slower than other foams of similar weight.

The shoe will have a typical synthetic material as the upper, along with a typical lacing system.

Most ankle sprains are inversion sprains where the anterior ligament on the outside of the ankle is stretched or torn. To help increase stabilization player would wear a thin sock like component with a velcro band 3in wide all the way around the top of the sock. The top of the sock will be 6in taller than the shoe. There will be a “supplemental ligament” that will connect two inches above the instep or arch of the shoe and wrap under the arch and connect to the upper 3in of the velcro of the sock.

The supplemental ligament would be made from a canvas like material for strength and would have a twist and lock fastening system to lock it to the instep of the shoe. There will be a T shape made of a strong solid material on one end of the “supplemental ligament”. The T shape when vertical would slide into a crevice that has two parallel bars on each side of the T. The player would then turn the T shape to allow the T to be under the parallel bars that are connected to the instep of the shoe. This would hold that end secure to the shoe. The player would then pull the strap under the shoe in the arch crevice and pull the strap up the outside of their shoe and ankle. The velcro on the sock would then connect to the other piece of velcro on the “supplemental ligament”.

There will be a second piece of elastic and velcro material it will cover the velcro on the sock only after the “supplemental ligament” is connected to the outside of the shoe and the sock. This piece will hold the “supplemental ligament” tighter to the sock to help prevent slippage or scratching from the velcro.


The shoe could be produced in a multitude of colors to match school colors, and the socks and supplemental ligaments could also be produced in these colors.