Principle of Structure Design for Leather Shoe Uppers

Author: Gao Shigang (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publish Date: April 1, 1997
Features: Putting on shoes and clothes is a necessity for humans. With the evolution of clothing, shoes have also undergone various changes. Whether in terms of structure, shape, style, material, color, or decoration, each historical period has had shoes that represented its era's characteristics. Examples include grass sandals, hemp shoes, wooden clogs, leather boots, as well as barefoot sandals, shin guards, leather boots, and embroidered shoes, all of which once enjoyed their own glory.
Leather shoe design is a form of planning before the production of leather shoes. Early leather shoe design involved the method of measuring feet to make shoes. After the invention of shoe lasts, the method of making shoes based on lasts emerged. Through the accumulation of long-term experience, traditional empirical design methods gradually formed. With the development of science and technology, especially through the measurement of human foot shapes, and based on mastering the patterns of foot shape changes, flat design methods have been established in recent years. Today, the advancement of high technology has further driven leather shoe design, leading to the emergence of computer-aided design. At the same time, design methods from foreign countries, such as the British design method and the Italian design method, have been continuously introduced into China. Currently, there are various popular design methods, especially certain methods are divided into many schools due to differences in operators' techniques, habits, and requirements.
Facing numerous design methods, how should one learn them? Beginners often have the desire to master all methods, while technicians with existing design capabilities hope to find the best design method. However, in reality, it is often beyond reach. Shoe Upper Structure Design Principles attempts to find the commonality in the many design methods, known as "various methods, principles." In the chapter on shoe upper structure design principles, it introduces the principles of selecting lasts, determining design points, replicating last side patterns, the cross-tongue principle, the principles of drawing upper structure design drawings, and the principles of making upper patterns. Among these, the cross-tongue principle is a new concept. Through the analysis of positioning tongue, alignment tongue, and conversion tongue, one can gain a fresh understanding of the tongue. The tongue plays a pivotal role in upper structure design. Once the tongue principle is mastered, the patterns of tongue methods are also mastered, and when designing upper patterns, one can become adept and achieve effortless results.
Before mastering design methods, one should first grasp design principles. This is because design principles are the core of design methods, and different design methods are merely different means to achieve design goals. For example, when using a computer for design, the tool is the electronic computer, and the design method involves inputting and outputting certain programs to complete the design drawings. The design principles of computer-aided design are the same as those of manual design.
The duplicate pattern design method introduced in this book has evolved from the cross-tongue principle. By directly starting with design principles to create upper structure designs, the design process is greatly simplified, making the method more convenient, practical, accurate, and easy to understand. Through the analysis of finished product structure diagrams and the drawing of upper structure diagrams, the design task is completed. The duplicate pattern design method has become increasingly refined through repeated practice in teaching and production over the past ten years. The hundreds of examples listed in this book are all arranged around the cross-tongue principle and the duplicate pattern design method.