A cat in shoes, tires and chestnuts or - for all runners... Cat's paw

Companies have developed shoes and tires inspired by elements from nature

By: Shimon Bogan

A. running.
Athletes in the running professions aim to run faster with less effort. After desire, talent, training and fitness, the next factor on the list is the shoes. Manufacturers of running shoes spare no effort in developing and testing new models to improve runners' achievements and to establish their brand in the competitive market.
These envy the amazing running abilities of all those wild cats, and these respond and closely examine the anatomical and biomechanical characteristics of the feet of the cougar, the cheetah, the lioness, and the wild cats.
Puma's chief designer, Ray Horatzek, Examine existing solutions in nature, and build a sole with rubber cushions with a structure that expands and contracts in the form of cat's foot cushions to increase the grip on the ground, plus a unique component of a rigid loop in the shape of the number 8 in the curvature of the sole to give extra springiness in tracking between steps.
The biomimetic model is called: Puma Mobium Elite

B. braking.

Car manufacturers, authorities and drivers are looking for effective ways to shorten the vehicle's braking distance, especially in emergency braking situations.

The developers and engineers of the tire manufacturer Continental Turn to existing solutions in nature, and examine the amazing braking and stopping abilities of cats during their ultra-fast running in pursuit of prey. They too were fascinated by the instinctive expansion of the pads on the cat's feet and the increase in their contact area with the ground during the braking process.

The special tire that was originally developed and assembled today in very fast cars of the first class, such as: Mercedes, BMW, Volvo and Audi, is produced by a combined molding process of two types of rubber compounds - hard and rigid, soft and flexible - in different areas of the tire, similarly to a cat's paw, according to the function required in each of the vehicle's modes.

Said biomimetic model is called ContiSportContact2 and its new generations 3 and 5:

Thanks to the bumps and cushions in the tire structure, forces perpendicular to the tire act during braking, which cause the areas of the soft rubber to expand to the sides more than in a standard tire.

Thanks to the rolling momentary expansion, a larger contact area is created between the tire and the road, causing greater friction between the rubber and the surface, resulting in a shorter braking and stopping distance. Just like with the cat and his family members.

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