Nike selects Air Max Dn for Dynamic Air take-off
US athletic shoe business Nike has launched footwear cushioning technology Dynamic Air with its new Air Max Dn trainer.
Built on a new dual-chamber, four-tubed Nike Air unit surrounded by injected Phylon foam, the inspiration was “what it feels like to walk on Air”, the brand said.
This has been facilitated by two pressurised chambers, each composed of two tubes at both front (five pounds per square inch or PSI) and back (15 PSI), to “allow air to respond to the pressure as you move”, delivering a bouncy and smoothly “interactive” design.
“We call it dynamic motion,” commented Nike Lifestyle Footwear product director, Reggie Hunter. “The independent setup of the chambers means that the air unit can respond to the load of your body with each step.
“The Nike Air Max Dn was the first time we were able to unlock that feeling.”
In-house technologies such as Finite Element Analysis meant product developers could test the air unit “more quickly and accurately” ahead of prototyping and then “real-life testing in the lab”, the company continued.
A year’s worth of wear and tear could be digitally simulated “in just a few hours”, for instance.
“Counterintuitively, these exacting methods of testing create more opportunities for us to be surprised,” commented vice-president for Nike’s NXT Footwear. “For example, in the Dn, you’d think the softest tube in terms of PSI should go in the heel for crash landing and better transition. We actually found that the transition was best when the firmest tube was under the heel and the softest was under the midfoot.”
The shoe, described as “a completely new paradigm for how a seminal footwear silhouette looks and feels underfoot”, was a joint project by Nike Air Manufacturing Innovation and the team at Nike Sport Research Lab.
A thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) shank arch clip provides support and enhanced structure around the midfoot, while an integral TPU heel counter supports the Achilles.
Image: Nike.
