34results about "Lacing hooks" patented technology

An article of footwear may include an upper configured to receive a foot of a wearer, the upper including one or more elastic portions and one or more substantially inelastic portions. The footwear may further include a plurality of lace receiving members fixedly attached to an outer surface of the upper on the inelastic portions of the upper. Also, the footwear may include a sole structure fixedly attached to the upper. In addition, the footwear may include a motorized tensioning system including a motorized tightening device and a tensile member extending through the plurality of lace receiving members, the tightening device being configured to apply tension in the tensile member to adjust the size of an internal void defined by the article of footwear by drawing two or more of the plurality of lace receiving members closer to one another.

To provide a removable tightening device.SOLUTION: The tensioning mechanism is removably couplable with an article without damaging the article so that, upon removal of the tensioning mechanism, the coupling of the tensioning mechanism with the article is unrecognizable or not readily detectable. The tensioning mechanism is operable with a tension member to maintain the tension of the tension member and thereby maintain the tightness of the article. The tension member is guided along a path about the article via one or more guide members, and is tensionable via the tensioning mechanism to tighten the article.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 10

An article of footwear may include an upper configured to receive a foot of a wearer, the upper including one or more elastic portions and one or more substantially inelastic portions. The footwear may further include a plurality of lace receiving members fixedly attached to an outer surface of the upper on the inelastic portions of the upper. Also, the footwear may include a sole structure fixedly attached to the upper. In addition, the footwear may include a motorized tensioning system including a motorized tightening device and a tensile member extending through the plurality of lace receiving members, the tightening device being configured to apply tension in the tensile member to adjust the size of an internal void defined by the article of footwear by drawing two or more of the plurality of lace receiving members closer to one another.

An article of footwear with a closure system includes an upper and sole structure defining a central plane penetrating a toe end and a heel end; a plurality of retainers arranged along the upper and intersecting the central plane; and a rope including a first section and a second section. The cord is configured to engage the plurality of retainers to adjust the tightness of the footwear such that at least one of the plurality of retainers is not engaged by the cord.

An article of footwear includes an upper, a sole structure coupled to the upper, a plurality of string pairs, a plurality of eyelets, and a reel-based closure system. Each string pair includes a first string and a second string. Each eyelet slidably couples the first string to the second string of one of the plurality of string pairs, and each eyelet defines a first aperture and a second aperture. The reel-based closure system is operatively coupled to at least one of the first string or the second string of at least one of the plurality of string pairs.

Systems and apparatus related to automated footwear platforms, including actuator assemblies for controlling footwear lacing devices, are discussed. In one example, a lacing assembly for an automated footwear assembly is discussed. In one example, the footwear assembly may include a floating tongue within an upper assembly. The lacing assembly may include a plurality of first or second lacing guides forming a first lacing region and a plurality of second lacing guides forming a second lacing region. The lacing assembly may also include a tongue lacing guide assembly secured to a proximal portion of the floating tongue.

A yarn or thread may include a plurality of substantially aligned filaments, with at least ninety-five percent of a material of the filaments being a thermoplastic polymer material. Various woven textiles and knitted textiles may be formed from the yarn or thread. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be thermal bonded to other elements to form seams. A strand that is at least partially formed from a thermoplastic polymer material may extend through the seam, and the strand may be thermal bonded at the seam. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be shaped or molded, incorporated into products, and recycled to form other products.

To eliminate the inconvenience of putting on and taking off lace shoes, to disperse the pressure sensation applied to the instep of the foot due to tightening at the time of putting on, and to ensure near-equal tightness of the shoelace tension after putting on with relative ease. A lace shoe is provided with blade parts inside and outside, one blade part having one more shoelace-throughs arranged than the other, a single shoelace alternating between shoelace-throughs arranged in both blade parts and passing through all shoelace-throughs with the shortest path length. A binding tool tying both ends of the shoelace in the same direction is locked to a binding-tool stop fixed to the upper part of the lace shoe.

To improve a function of a footwear upper and a lacing system to fit a shape of a foot with a desired tension.SOLUTION: A tensioner includes: an elastic member extending between two lace guides of a plurality of lace guides; an elastic member extending between a first portion and a second portion of an upper; an elastic member extending between a part of the upper and one lace guide of the plurality of lace guides; a heel channel connected to a heel portion of the upper and configured to facilitate access to an interior space; an elastic member coupled to a footwear assembly and functioning to smooth out a torque versus lace displacement curve during tightening of a lace cable; a tensioning member secured to a side of the upper proximate a toe box and the lace cable; and a floating overlay attached to a side of the upper proximate the toe box and the lace cable.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 20

In an automated lacing engine, the upper and lacing system function better to conform to the shape of the foot at the desired tension. [Solution] The tensioner can include an elastic member extending between two of the plurality of lace guides, an elastic member extending between a first portion and a second portion of the upper, an elastic member extending between a portion of the upper and one of the plurality of lace guides, a heel channel connected to a heel portion of the upper and configured to facilitate access to the internal space, an elastic member connected to the footwear assembly and functioning to smooth the torque versus lace displacement curve during tightening of the lace cable, a tension member fixed to a side of the upper near the toe box and the lace cable, and a floating overlay attached to a side of the upper near the toe box and the lace cable.

The present invention relates to a wire guide device for a shoe, the device comprising: a fixing unit having a lower surface that faces the upper of a shoe; and a guide unit which is embedded in the fixing unit and which rotates and guides the direction of a wire that passes through the fixing unit to bring the upper and a foot of a user into close contact with each other and tie the shoe, and thus uniform tension is generated over the entire wire functioning as a shoelace, so that the entire shoe can be smoothly tied.

A yarn or thread may include a plurality of substantially aligned filaments, with at least ninety-five percent of a material of the filaments being a thermoplastic polymer material. Various woven textiles and knitted textiles may be formed from the yarn or thread. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be thermal bonded to other elements to form seams. A strand that is at least partially formed from a thermoplastic polymer material may extend through the seam, and the strand may be thermal bonded at the seam. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be shaped or molded, incorporated into products, and recycled to form other products.

A footwear upper (16) comprising a front section (16A) at least partially defining a foot-receiving cavity (33) and a foot entry opening (48) in communication with the foot-receiving cavity (33); a rear section (16B) having a central portion (16C) secured to the front section (16A), the rear section (16B) pivotable at a heel region (24) of the footwear upper (16) between an access position and a use position; a medial zipper (40) extending along a medial edge (34) of the front section (16A) at the foot entry opening (48); and a lateral zipper (42) extending along a lateral edge (36) of the front section (16A) at the foot entry opening (48) with the central portion (16C) of the rear section (16B) between the medial zipper (40) and the lateral zipper.

The fastener has an original role of keeping the mouth of the drawstring bag in a closed state, and also has another role of allowing the drawstring bag to be attached to various objects. [Solution] Of the drawstrings 104 attached to the opening of the bag 101 of an umbrella 201, one end of the drawstring 104 exposed to the outside and the other end of the drawstring 104 are slidably attached to each other, and end rings 51 are connected, each having an annular shape, for example a ring shape with a portion missing and two ends facing the missing portion. One surface of the slider 31 is provided with a connecting portion 35 that detachably connects the end rings 51. The connecting portion 35 fits into the hollow portion of the end ring 51 to connect to the end ring 51. By connecting the end ring 51 to the connecting portion 35, the drawstring 104 is given a loop shape that surrounds a portion of the object to which the fastener 11 is attached, for example, the shoulder strap 302 of a bag 301.

A boot, such as a ski boot, may include a lower portion or shell that is configured to accommodate a foot and an upper portion or cuff that extends upward from the lower portion and that is configured to accommodate a lower leg of a wearer. The boot may also include a tightening system that is coupled with the lower portion of the boot in order to close and tighten the lower portion about the foot. The tightening system includes a reel based closure device and a tension member that is operably coupled with the reel based closure device so that an operation of the reel based closure device effects tensioning of the tension member. The tightening system also includes a plurality of guide members that route or direct the tension member along a path and a terminal member that is fixedly coupled with the tension member.

To provide a footwear assembly including a lacing system.SOLUTION: A footwear assembly comprises an upper, a lace cable, a plurality of lace guides, and a tensioner. The tensioner includes: an elastic member extending between two lace guides out of the plurality of lace guides; an elastic member extending between a first and second parts of the upper; an elastic member extending between the part of the upper and one lace guide out of the lace guides; a heel channel which is coupled to a heel part of the upper, for facilitating access to an internal space; an elastic member which is coupled to the footwear assembly, for smoothing torque to lace displacement curve in tightening of the lace cable; a tension member which is fixed to a toe box and a side of the upper in the vicinity of the lace cable; and a floating overlay which is fitted to the toe box and the side of the upper in the vicinity of the lace cable.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 20

The footwear includes an upper and a sole structure that define a central plane extending through the toe tip and the heel end, a plurality of retainers disposed along the upper and intersecting the central plane, and a cord including a first segment and a second segment. The cord is configured to engage the plurality of retainers to adjust the tightening degree of the footwear such that at least one of the plurality of retainers is not engaged by the cord. The distance between the plurality of retainers and the sole structure varies from a first retainer to a second retainer.

A yarn or thread may include a plurality of substantially aligned filaments, with at least ninety-five percent of a material of the filaments being a thermoplastic polymer material. Various woven textiles and knitted textiles may be formed from the yarn or thread. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be thermal bonded to other elements to form seams. A strand that is at least partially formed from a thermoplastic polymer material may extend through the seam, and the strand may be thermal bonded at the seam. The woven textiles or knitted textiles may be shaped or molded, incorporated into products, and recycled to form other products.

To provide a shoe with an improved shoelace closure system that can easily be tightened with one hand and that enables a user to make micro-adjustment.SOLUTION: A closure system for a shoe includes a single shoelace 12 which can be secured and tightened by one hand. The shoe includes a button 14 around which the shoelace is wrapped for easy removal of the shoe. In one embodiment, one end of the shoelace is secured to under the upper of the shoe near the toe, and a second end of the shoelace is secured into a slider 42 that is slidably mounted on the rear of the shoe to provide micro-adjustment of the tightness of the shoe. Alternatively, the shoe includes a strip of piping around the rear of the shoe, in which the second end of the shoelace is accommodated to slide along the piping when the user wants to make micro-adjustment. The adjustment of the tightness of the shoe can also be made by sliding a barrel that is located over the top of the tongue.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

An article of footwear and related methods include a midsole, an upper fixed relative to the midsole, and a lace extending through the upper. A motorized lacing system is positioned within the midsole and configured to engage the laces to increase and decrease tension on the laces. The motorized lacing system includes: a motor including a motor shaft; a spool coupled to the motor shaft and configured to wind and unwind the laces based on rotation of the motor shaft; a processor circuit; and an optical encoder. The optical encoder includes: a three-dimensional encoder defining a main axis and having a surface including a first plurality of segments, the first plurality of segments being positioned between a second plurality of segments; and an optical sensor positioned within an optical range of the cylindrical encoder and configured to output a signal to the processor circuit indicating a detected one of the first and second pluralities of segments.

The present invention relates to a wire guide device for a shoe, the device comprising: a fixing unit, which has a lower surface that faces the upper of a shoe, and which is fixed to the upper; and a guide unit which is embedded in the fixing unit in order to rotate and guide the direction of a wire that passes through the fixing unit to bring the upper and a foot of a user into close contact with each other and tie the shoe, and thus uniform tension is generated over the entire wire functioning as a shoelace, so that the entire shoe can be smoothly tied.

According to one embodiment, a removable tightening device is described. The tensioning mechanism is removably coupleable with an article without damaging the article so that upon removal, the coupling of the tensioning mechanism with the article is unrecognizable or not readily detectable. The tensioning mechanism is operable with a tension member to maintain a tension of the tension member and thereby maintain a tightness of the article. The tension member is guided along a path about the article, via one or more guide members, and is tensionable, via the tensioning mechanism, to tighten the article.