ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 30 -- United States Patent no. 12,370,414, issued on July 29, was assigned to adidas AG (Herzogenaurach, Germany).

"Ball and method for its manufacture" was invented by Tru Huu Minh Le (Herzogenaurach, Germany) and Hans-Peter Nurnberg (Herzogenaurach, Germany).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "Described are balls, in particular a football, and a method for its manufacture. The ball comprises particles of an expanded material. As examples, the particles are connected, at least partially, to each other by radio frequency welding and/or infrared welding. As examples, the ball has a first layer of the particles of the expanded material, wherein the first layer is provided as an ...