Footwear Side Lacing System with Intermediate Exit
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional lacing systems in footwear face issues with friction and wear, as well as inefficiencies in tightening the upper portion, often requiring staged tightening and leading to lace crisscrossing, which increases friction and reduces the lace's lifespan.
Innovation Solution
A lacing system with a side lacing pattern and 90-degree turns at each lace-receiving passage, where the lace extends directly between passages on the same row or adjacent rows, minimizing friction and wear, and allowing for a single pull to tighten the upper over multiple rows, with intermediate side lacing and the lace traveling under the upper to reduce exposure and snagging.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional lacing patterns are used, then the lacing system can secure the footwear, but friction and wear increase, reducing lace lifespan
Solution Approach 1:
The lacing system divides the lace path into distinct segments that travel through separate rows of lace-receiving passages. The lace is routed to exit from an intermediate row rather than continuing to the top row, creating discrete lacing zones that reduce cumulative friction and wear at any single location.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of routing the lace from the bottom row to the top row (conventional direction), the system inverts the routing by having the lace exit from an intermediate row after traveling through only a portion of the rows. This reverse routing approach minimizes the total path length and reduces friction accumulation.
2Productivity
If conventional lacing patterns are used, then the footwear can be tightened, but staged tightening is required, reducing efficiency
Solution Approach 1:
The lace is pre-routed through the lace-receiving passages in a specific pattern that allows a single pulling action to tighten multiple rows simultaneously. The intermediate exit point is predetermined in the design, enabling the user to achieve full tightening in one motion rather than requiring multiple staged adjustments.
3Reliability
If conventional lacing patterns are used, then the lace can secure the footwear, but crisscrossing increases, reducing lace lifespan
Solution Approach 1:
The system extracts the lace from the conventional continuous crisscrossing pattern by having it exit from an intermediate row. This removes the harmful crisscrossing element from the lacing system, as the lace no longer needs to cross over itself to reach the top row, thereby reducing wear and extending lifespan.
4Area of stationary object
If the lace extends through all rows to the top, then full coverage is achieved, but friction and contact area increase
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of routing the lace through all rows to the top (excessive action), the system uses partial action by having the lace exit from an intermediate row after traveling through only the necessary portion of the rows. This partial routing achieves sufficient tightening coverage while minimizing the total contact area and friction accumulation.
Data Source
AI summary
An article of footwear comprising a side lacing pattern features laces ending on the same side of the footwear with both lace ends exiting from the side of an intermediate row of the footwear. The lace travels in a single pass between the upper and lower rows of eyelets, beneath the outer surface of the upper such that the lacing uses each eyelet once without overlapping, using right angle turns at each eyelet within the lacing pattern.