Thermoplastic non-woven textile elements

Abstract

A non-woven textile may be formed from a plurality of thermoplastic polymer filaments. The non-woven textile may have a first region and a second region, with the filaments of the first region being fused to a greater degree than the filaments of the second region. A variety of products, including apparel (e.g., shirts, pants, footwear), may incorporate the non-woven textile. In some of these products, the non-woven textile may be joined with another textile element to form a seam. More particularly, an edge area of the non-woven textile may be heatbonded with an edge area of the other textile element at the seam. In other products, the non-woven textile may be joined with another component, whether a textile or a non-textile.

1 .- 8 . (canceled) 
     
     
         9 . An article of apparel comprising:
 at least one element selected from a textile, a polymer foam, and a polymer sheet;   wherein the at least one element comprises a recycled first thermoplastic polymer material;   wherein the recycled first thermoplastic polymer material is a product of extracting and recycling a first thermoplatic polymer material from first filaments; and   wherein substantially all of the first filaments are formed of the first thermoplastic polymer material.   
     
     
         10 . The article of apparel of  claim 9 , wherein the recycled first thermoplastic polymer material is substantially free of a thermoset polymer material, a second thermoplastic polymer material, or both. 
     
     
         11 . The article of apparel of  claim 9 , wherein the first thermoplastic polymer material comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane. 
     
     
         12 . The article of apparel of  claim 9 , wherein the at least one element includes the textile, and the textile includes second filaments comprising the recycled first thermoplastic polymer material. 
     
     
         13 . The article of apparel of  claim 12 , wherein the textile is a non-woven textile. 
     
     
         14 . The article of apparel of  claim 12 , wherein the textile is a mechanically-manipulated textile comprising a yarn, and the yarn includes the second filaments. 
     
     
         15 . The article of apparel of  claim 12 , wherein the article of apparel is an article of footwear including an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, and the upper includes the textile or the polymer sheet or both. 
     
     
         16 . The article of apparel of  claim 9 , wherein the article of apparel is an article of footwear including an upper and a sole structure secured to the upper, and the sole structure includes the polymer foam or the polymer sheet or both. 
     
     
         17 . The article of apparel of  claim 9 , wherein the article of apparel is a garment, and the garment includes the textile or the polymer sheet or both. 
     
     
         18 . An article of apparel comprising:
 at least one element with recycled content, wherein the at least one element comprises an extracted first thermoplastic polymer material, and the at least one element is selected from a first textile, a polymer foam, a polymer sheet, and combinations thereof;   wherein the at least one element with recycled content is obtained by:
 extracting a first thermoplastic material from first filaments, wherein substantially all of the first filaments are formed of the first thermoplastic polymer material; and 
 using the extracted first thermoplastic polymer material to form the at least one element with recycled content. 
   
     
     
         19 . The article of apparel of  claim 18 , wherein the process of obtaining the at least one element with recycled content further comprises recycling a garment, an element of a garment, an article of footwear, an element of an article of footwear, or any combination thereof, to obtain the first filaments. 
     
     
         20 . The article of apparel of  claim 19 , wherein the recycled garment, the recycled element of a garment, the recycled article of footwear, the recycled element of an article of footwear, or any combination thereof, is a recycled non-woven textile. 
     
     
         21 . The article of apparel of  claim 19 , wherein substantially all of the recycled garment, the recycled element of a garment, the recycled article of footwear, the recycled element of an article of footwear, or any combination thereof, is formed of the first thermoplastic polymer material. 
     
     
         22 . The article of apparel of  claim 18 , wherein the first thermoplastic polymer material comprises a thermoplastic polyurethane. 
     
     
         23 . The article of apparel of  claim 18 , wherein the at least one element with recycled content includes the first textile, and second filaments of the first textile comprise the extracted first thermoplastic polymer material. 
     
     
         24 . The article of apparel of  claim 23 , wherein the at least one element with recycled content is the first textile, the first textile is a non-woven first textile, and the non-woven first textile is obtained by using the extracted first thermoplastic polymer material to form second filaments and using the second filaments to form the non-woven first textile. 
     
     
         25 . The article of apparel of  claim 23 , wherein the at least one element with recycled content is the first textile, the first textile is a mechanically-manipulated first textile, and the mechanically-manipulated first textile is obtained by using the extracted first thermoplastic polymer material to form second filaments, using the second filaments to form a yarn, and mechanically manipulating the yarn to form the mechanically-manipulated first textile. 
     
     
         26 . The article of apparel of  claim 23 , wherein the first textile includes a first region and a second region, wherein filaments of the first region are fused to a greater degree than filaments of the second region. 
     
     
         27 . The article of apparel of  claim 23 , wherein the article further comprises a second textile joined to the first textile at a seam, and the seam includes a heatbond. 
     
     
         28 . The article of apparel of  claim 18 , wherein the article of apparel is an article of footwear.