Shoe with lace tightening assembly

Information

  • Patent Grant
  • 6779281
  • Patent Number
    6,779,281
  • Date Filed
    Wednesday, February 12, 2003
    21 years ago
  • Date Issued
    Tuesday, August 24, 2004
    20 years ago
  • Inventors
  • Examiners
    • Patterson; M. D.
    Agents
    • Foley & Lardner LLP
Abstract
A lace tightening assembly is applied to a shoe body having eyelet tabs, and includes a mounting seat, a tightening member mounted pivotally in the mounting seat, and a pull cord for operating the tightening member to pivot between a shoe lace tightening position and a shoe lace loosening position.
Description




BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION




1. Field of the Invention




The invention relates to a shoe, more particularly to a shoe with a lace tightening assembly.




2. Description of the Related Art




In co-pending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/920,946, the applicant disclosed a double-bow shoe lace device for a shoe. The double-bow shoe lace device includes a shoe lace, a clamp member, and an assembly of two loops and a decorative knot. The shoe lace has a first lace segment that is strung on the shoe so as to form a criss-cross pattern on the eyelet tabs, and a second lace segment that includes first and second lace portions. Each of the lace portions has a lower end connected to the first lace segment so as to be anchored on a respective one of the eyelet tabs. The clamp member is sleeved slidably on at least one of the lace portions. Downward and upward movements of the clamp member along at least one of the lace portions result in tightening and loosening of the shoe. The assembly is disposed on and externally of the clamp member.




SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION




An object of the present invention is to provide a lace tightening assembly for use with a shoe body, which facilitates tightening and loosening of a shoe lace.




Another object of the present invention is to provide a shoe with a lace tightening assembly that facilitates tightening and loosening of a shoe lace, and that is relatively effective for hiding the lace tightening assembly.




The lace tightening assembly for use with a shoe body according to one aspect of this invention is adapted for use with a shoe body that has a front end, a rear end, a shoe opening adjacent to the rear end, a shoe tongue that extends along a reference line from the front end toward the shoe opening, a pair of eyelet tabs disposed on opposite lateral sides of the shoe tongue, and a shoe lace tied to the eyelet tabs and having a pair of distal lace segments. The lace tightening assembly includes a connecting member and two lace tightening units.




The connecting member has two opposite end segments and an intermediate segment between the end segments. The intermediate segment extends along a longitudinal direction transverse to the reference line when the connecting member is disposed on the shoe body.




The lace tightening units are connected to the opposite end segments of the connecting member, respectively. Each of the lace tightening units includes a mounting seat, a pivot axle, a tightening member, and a pull cord.




The mounting seat includes a pair of side walls spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to the reference line when the mounting seat is disposed on the shoe body. Each of the side walls has proximate and distal edges respectively disposed proximate to and distal from the connecting member. Each of the side walls further has a top edge that interconnects the proximate and distal edges. The mounting seat further includes a top wall that interconnects the top edges of the side walls and that cooperates with the side walls to form a lace receiving space. The top wall has an inner wall surface that confronts the lace receiving space and that has first and second wall ends spaced apart from each other. The top wall further has a hole formed therethrough for access to the lace receiving space.




The pivot axle extends between the side walls, and is disposed between the distal and proximate edges of the side walls and distal from the top wall.




The tightening member is disposed in the lace receiving space, and has a pivot portion mounted pivotally on the pivot axle, a clamping portion extending from the pivot portion, and an actuating portion extending from the pivot portion and distal from the clamping portion. The tightening member cooperates with the inner wall surface of the top wall to confine a lace passage within the lace receiving space. The lace passage has a first passage opening defined by the first wall end and the actuating portion, and a second passage opening defined by the second wall end and the clamping portion.




The pull cord extends through the hole in the top wall and is connected to the actuating portion of the tightening member.




The lace passage in the mounting seat of each of the lace tightening units is adapted to permit passage of a respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace therethrough.




The tightening member of each of the lace tightening units is pivotable inside the lace receiving space between a shoe lace tightening position, in which the actuating portion is urged by the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace to pivot toward the reference line to cause the clamping portion to move toward the reference line to thereby clamp the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace at the second passage opening, and a shoe lace loosening position, in which the actuating portion is pulled to pivot away from the reference line upon application of a pulling force on the pull cord to cause the clamping portion to move away from the reference line to thereby release the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace from being clamped at the second passage opening.




The shoe according to another aspect of this invention includes a shoe body, a lace tightening assembly, and a shoe lace.




The shoe body has a front end, a rear end, a shoe opening adjacent to the rear end, a shoe tongue that extends along a reference line from the front end toward the shoe opening, and a pair of eyelet tabs disposed on opposite lateral sides of the shoe tongue. Each of the eyelet tabs is formed with a plurality of eyelets.




The lace tightening assembly includes a mounting seat, a pivot axle, a tightening member, and a pull cord.




The mounting seat includes a pair of side walls spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to the reference line when the mounting seat is disposed on the shoe body. Each of the side walls has proximate and distal edges respectively disposed proximate to and distal from the reference line when the mounting seat is disposed on the shoe body. Each of the side walls further has a top edge that interconnects the proximate and distal edges. The mounting seat further includes a top wall that interconnects the top edges of the side walls and that cooperates with the side walls to form a lace receiving space. The top wall has an inner wall surface that confronts the lace receiving space and that has first and second wall ends spaced apart from each other in a direction transverse to the reference line when the mounting seat is disposed on the shoe body. The top wall further has a hole formed therethrough for access to the lace receiving space.




The pivot axle extends between the side walls, and is disposed between the distal and proximate edges of the side walls and distal from the top wall.




The tightening member is disposed in the lace receiving space, and has a pivot portion mounted pivotally on the pivot axle, a clamping portion that extends from the pivot portion, and an actuating portion extending from the pivot portion and distal from the clamping portion. The tightening member cooperates with the inner wall surface of the top wall to confine a lace passage within the lace receiving space. The lace passage has a first passage opening defined by the first wall end and the actuating portion, and a second passage opening defined by the second wall end and the clamping portion.




The pull cord extends through the hole in the top wall and is connected to the actuating portion of the tightening member.




The shoe lace is tied to the eyelet tabs in the eyelets. The shoe lace has a fixing segment fixed on the mounting seat, a positioning segment with an upper end connected to the fixing segment and a lower end anchored on one of the eyelet tabs proximate to the shoe opening, and a distal segment extending from the other one of the eyelet tabs proximate to the shoe opening and through the lace passage in the mounting seat.




The tightening member is pivotable inside the lace receiving space between a shoe lace tightening position, in which the actuating portion is urged by the distal segment of the shoe lace to pivot toward the reference line to cause the clamping portion to move toward the reference line to thereby clamp the distal segment of the shoe lace at the second passage opening, and a shoe lace loosening position, in which the actuating portion is pulled to pivot away from the reference line upon application of a pulling force on the pull cord to cause the clamping portion to move away from the reference line to thereby release the distal segment of the shoe lace from being clamped at the second passage opening.











BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS




Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:





FIG. 1

is an exploded perspective view of the first preferred embodiment of a lace tightening assembly according to this invention used with a shoe body;





FIG. 2

is a perspective view of the shoe body including the first preferred embodiment;





FIG. 3

is a schematic view of the first preferred embodiment;





FIG. 4

is a schematic view of the first preferred embodiment in a lace loosening state;





FIG. 5

is a schematic view of the first preferred embodiment in a lace tightening state;





FIG. 6

is a fragmentary perspective view of the second preferred embodiment of a lace tightening assembly according to this invention; and





FIG. 7

is a fragmentary schematic view showing a shoe body incorporating the second embodiment.











DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS




Referring to

FIGS. 1

,


2


and


3


, the first preferred embodiment of a lace tightening assembly


30


according to this invention is shown to be applied to a shoe body


10


that has a front end


14


, a rear end


13


, a shoe opening


11


adjacent to the rear end


13


, a shoe tongue


15


that extends along a reference line (L


1


) from the front end


14


toward the shoe opening


11


, a pair of eyelet tabs


12


disposed on opposite lateral sides of the shoe tongue


15


, and a shoe lace


20


tied to the eyelet tabs


12


and having a pair of distal lace segments


23


. Each of the eyelet tabs


12


is formed with a plurality of eyelets


121


. The shoe lace


20


further has a shoe lace portion tied to the eyelet tabs


12


by stringing through the eyelets


121


of the eyelet tabs


12


to form a criss-cross pattern on the eyelet tabs


12


.




The lace tightening assembly


30


includes a connecting member


312


and two lace tightening units


30


′.




The connecting member


312


has two opposite end segments


312


′ and an intermediate segment


312


″ between the end segments


312


′. The intermediate segment


312


″ extends along a longitudinal direction transverse to the reference line (L


1


) when the connecting member


312


is disposed on the shoe body


10


. The intermediate segment


312


″ of the connecting member


312


is formed with a plurality of fixing holes


317


.




The lace tightening units


30


′ are connected to the opposite end segments


312


′ of the connecting member


312


, respectively. Each of the lace tightening units


30


′ includes a mounting seat


31


, a pivot axle


32


, a tightening member


33


, and a pull cord


34


.




The mounting seat


31


includes a pair of side walls


311


spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to the reference line (L


1


) when the mounting seat


31


is disposed on the shoe body


10


. Each of the side walls


311


has proximate and distal edges


311


″,


311


′ respectively disposed proximate to and distal from the connecting member


312


. Each of the side walls


311


further has a top edge


318


that interconnects the proximate and distal edges


311


″,


311


′. The mounting seat


31


further includes a top wall


319


that interconnects the top edges


318


of the side walls


311


and that cooperates with the side walls


311


to form a lace receiving space


313


. The top wall


319


has an inner wall surface


315


that confronts the lace receiving space


313


and that has first and second wall ends


319


′,


319


″ spaced apart from each other. The top wall


319


further has a hole


316


formed therethrough for access to the lace receiving space


313


.




The pivot axle


32


extends between the side walls


311


, and is disposed between the distal and proximate edges


311


′,


311


″ of the side walls


311


and distal from the top wall


319


.




The tightening member


33


is disposed in the lace receiving space


313


, and has a pivot portion


332


mounted pivotally on the pivot axle


32


, a clamping portion


331


extending from the pivot portion


332


, and an actuating portion


336


extending from the pivot portion


332


and distal from the clamping portion


331


. The tightening member


33


cooperates with the inner wall surface


315


of the top wall


319


to confine a lace passage within the lace receiving space


314


. The lace passage


314


has a first passage opening


314


′ defined by the first wall end


319


′ and the actuating portion


336


, and a second passage opening


314


″ defined by the second wall end


319


″ and the clamping portion


331


. The actuating portion


336


is provided with a limit member


333


that extends toward the inner wall surface


315


of the top wall


319


, the purpose of which will be described in the succeeding paragraphs.




The pull cord


34


extends through the hole


316


in the top wall


319


, and is connected to the actuating portion


336


of the tightening member


33


at the limit member


333


. The limit member


333


is formed with a hole


333


′ that permits passage of the respective one of the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace


20


therethrough.




The lace passage


314


in the mounting seat


31


of each of the lace tightening units


30


′ permits passage of a respective one of the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace


20


therethrough.




The lace tightening assembly


30


further includes a decorative member


40


having a fixing portion


41


fixed on the fixing holes


317


of the connecting member


312


and two operating portions


42


extending from the fixing portion


41


and connected to the pull cords


34


of the lace tightening units


30


′, respectively. The fixing portion


41


is a knot, and the operating portions


42


are loops connected to the knot so as to cooperate with the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace to form a double-bow configuration to hide the lace tightening assembly


30


thereunder.




The tightening member


33


of each of the lace tightening units


30


′ is pivotable inside the lace receiving space


313


between a shoe lace tightening position illustrated in

FIG. 5

, in which the actuating portion


336


is urged by the respective one of the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace


20


to pivot toward the reference line (L


1


) to cause the clamping portion


331


to move toward the reference line (L


1


) to thereby clamp the respective one of the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace


20


at the second passage opening


314


″, and a shoe lace loosening position illustrated in

FIG. 4

, in which the actuating portion


336


at the limit member


333


is pulled to pivot away from the reference line (L


1


) upon application of a pulling force on the pull cord


34


by pulling upward the corresponding one of the operating portions


42


of the decorative member


40


to cause the clamping portion


331


to move away from the reference line (L


1


) to thereby release the respective one of the distal lace segments


23


of the shoe lace


20


from being clamped at the second passage opening


314


″. The limit member


333


of the pivot portion


332


extends toward the inner wall surface


315


of the top wall


319


to limit extent of pivoting movement of the tightening member


33


from the shoe lace tightening position to the shoe lace loosening position. Furthermore, the clamping portion


331


is formed with a pair of stop units


334


for engaging the side walls


311


to limit extent of pivoting movement of the tightening member


33


from the shoe lace loosening position to the shoe lace tightening position.




Referring to

FIGS. 6 and 7

, the second embodiment of a lace tightening assembly


300


is applied to a shoe body


100


including a shoe lace


200


tied to the eyelet tabs


120


in the eyelets


12


. The shoe lace


200


has a fixing segment


400


fixed on the mounting seat


310


of the lace tightening assembly


300


, a positioning segment


230


with an upper end


231


connected to the fixing segment


410


and a lower end


232


anchored on one of the eyelet tabs


12


proximate to the shoe opening (not shown), and a distal segment


440


extending from the other one of the eyelet tabs


12


proximate to the shoe opening and through the lace passage


360


in the mounting seat


310


. The lower end


232


of the positioning segment


23


of the shoe lace


200


is formed with a positioning knot


250


under the one of the eyelet tabs


12


so that the positioning segment


230


of the shoe lace


200


has a constant length. Preferably, the mounting seat


310


is formed with an anchoring loop


350


for mounting the fixing segment


400


of the shoe lace


200


thereon. The fixing segment


400


of the shoe lace


200


includes a knot


410


connected to the upper end


231


of the positioning segment


230


and fixed to the anchoring loop


350


. The fixing segment


400


of the shoe lace


200


further includes first and second loop sections


420


connected to the knot


410


, and a distal lace section


430


connected to one of the first and second loop sections


420


. Therefore, the fixing segment


400


cooperates with the distal segment


440


to form a double-bow configuration on the lace tightening assembly


300


. The pull cord


340


is connected between one of the first and second loop sections


420


and the tightening member


330


so as to operate the shoe lace


200


between the lace tightening position and the lace loosening position.




In view of the aforesaid, the lace tightening assembly of this invention facilitates tightening and loosening of a shoe lace, and is relatively effective for hiding the lace tightening assembly.




While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.



Claims
  • 1. A lace tightening assembly adapted for use with a shoe body that has a front end, a rear end, a shoe opening adjacent to the rear end, a shoe tongue that extends along a reference line from the front end toward the shoe opening, a pair of eyelet tabs disposed on opposite lateral sides of the shoe tongue, and a shoe lace tied to the eyelet tabs and having a pair of distal lace segments, said lace tightening assembly comprising:a connecting member having two opposite end segments and an intermediate segment between said end segments, said intermediate segment extending along a longitudinal direction transverse to the reference line when said connecting member is disposed on the shoe body; and two lace tightening units connected to said opposite end segments of said connecting member, respectively, each of said lace tightening units including a mounting seat including a pair of side walls spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to the reference line when said mounting seat is disposed on the shoe body, each of said side walls having proximate and distal edges respectively disposed proximate to and distal from said connecting member, each of said side walls further having a top edge that interconnects said proximate and distal edges, said mounting seat further including a top wall that interconnects said top edges of said side walls and that cooperates with said side walls to form a lace receiving space, said top wall having an inner wall surface that confronts said lace receiving space and that has first and second wall ends spaced apart from each other, said top wall further having a hole formed therethrough for access to said lace receiving space, a pivot axle extending between said side walls, and disposed between said distal and proximate edges of said side walls and distal from said top wall, a tightening member disposed in said lace receiving space and having a pivot portion mounted pivotally on said pivot axle, a clamping portion extending from said pivot portion, and an actuating portion extending from said pivot portion and distal from said clamping portion, said tightening member cooperating with said inner wall surface of said top wall to confine a lace passage within said lace receiving space, said lace passage having a first passage opening defined by said first wall end and said actuating portion, and a second passage opening defined by said second wall end and said clamping portion, and a pull cord extending through said hole in said top wall and connected to said actuating portion of said tightening member; said lace passage in said mounting seat of each of said lace tightening units being adapted to permit passage of a respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace therethrough; said tightening member of each of said lace tightening units being pivotable inside said lace receiving space between a shoe lace tightening position, in which said actuating portion is urged by the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace to pivot toward said reference line to cause said clamping portion to move toward said reference line to thereby clamp the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace at said second passage opening, and a shoe lace loosening position, in which said actuating portion is pulled to pivot away from said reference line upon application of a pulling force on said pull cord to cause said clamping portion to move away from said reference line to thereby release the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace from being clamped at said second passage opening.
  • 2. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a decorative member having a fixing portion fixed on said connecting member and two operating portions extending from said fixing portion and connected to said pull cords of said lace tightening units, respectively.
  • 3. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 2, wherein said fixing portion is a knot, and said operating portions are loops connected to said knot.
  • 4. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein said clamping portion is formed with a stop unit for engaging one of said side walls to limit extent of pivoting movement of said tightening member from said shoe lace loosening position to said shoe lace tightening position.
  • 5. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 1, wherein said actuating portion is provided with a limit member that extends toward said inner wall surface of said top wall to limit extent of pivoting movement of said tightening member from said shoe lace tightening position to said shoe lace loosening position.
  • 6. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein said pull cord is tied to said actuating portion at said limit member.
  • 7. The lace tightening assembly as claimed in claim 5, wherein said limit member is formed with a hole that permits passage of the respective one of the distal lace segments of the shoe lace therethrough.
  • 8. A shoe, comprising:a shoe body that has a front end, a rear end, a shoe opening adjacent to said rear end, a shoe tongue that extends along a reference line from said front end toward said shoe opening, and a pair of eyelet tabs disposed on opposite lateral sides of said shoe tongue, each of said eyelet tabs being formed with a plurality of eyelets; a lace tightening assembly including a mounting seat including a pair of side walls spaced apart from each other in a direction parallel to said reference line when said mounting seat is disposed on said shoe body, each of said side walls having proximate and distal edges respectively disposed proximate to and distal from said reference line when said mounting seat is disposed on said shoe body, each of said side walls further having a top edge that interconnects said proximate and distal edges, said mounting seat further including a top wall that interconnects said top edges of said side walls and that cooperates with said side walls to form a lace receiving space, said top wall having an inner wall surface that confronts said lace receiving space and that has first and second wall ends spaced apart from each other in a direction transverse to said reference line when said mounting seat is disposed on said shoe body, said top wall further having a hole formed therethrough for access to said lace receiving space, a pivot axle extending between said side walls, and disposed between said distal and proximate edges of said side walls and distal from said top wall, a tightening member disposed in said lace receiving space and having a pivot portion mounted pivotally on said pivot axle, a clamping portion that extends from said pivot portion, and an actuating portion extending from said pivot portion and distal from said clamping portion, said tightening member cooperating with said inner wall surface of said top wall to confine a lace passage within said lace receiving space, said lace passage having a first passage opening defined by said first wall end and said actuating portion, and a second passage opening defined by said second wall end and said clamping portion, and a pull cord extending through said hole in said top wall and connected to said actuating portion of said tightening member; and a shoe lace tied to said eyelet tabs in said eyelets, said shoe lace having a fixing segment fixed on said mounting seat, a positioning segment with an upper end connected to said fixing segment and a lower end anchored on one of said eyelet tabs proximate to said shoe opening, and a distal segment extending from the other one of said eyelet tabs proximate to said shoe opening and through said lace passage in said mounting seat; said tightening member being pivotable inside said lace receiving space between a shoe lace tightening position, in which said actuating portion is urged by said distal segment of said shoe lace to pivot toward said reference line to cause said clamping portion to move toward said reference line to thereby clamp said distal segment of said shoe lace at said second passage opening, and a shoe lace loosening position, in which said actuating portion is pulled to pivot away from said reference line upon application of a pulling force on said pull cord to cause said clamping portion to move away from said reference line to thereby release said distal segment of said shoe lace from being clamped at said second passage opening.
  • 9. The shoe as claimed in claim 8, wherein said lower end of said positioning segment of said shoe lace is formed with a positioning knot under said one of said eyelet tabs so that said positioning segment of said shoe lace has a constant length.
  • 10. The shoe as claimed in claim 8, wherein said mounting seat is formed with an anchoring loop for mounting said fixing segment of said shoe lace thereon.
  • 11. The shoe as claimed in claim 10, wherein said fixing segment of said shoe lace includes a knot connected to said upper end of said positioning segment and fixed to said anchoring loop.
  • 12. The shoe as claimed in claim 11, wherein said fixing segment of said shoe lace further includes first and second loop sections connected to said knot, and a distal lace section connected to one of said first and second loop sections.
  • 13. The shoe as claimed in claim 12, wherein said pull cord is connected to one of said first and second loop sections.
  • 14. The shoe as claimed in claim 8, wherein said clamping portion of said tightening member is formed with a stop unit for engaging one of said side walls to limit extent of pivoting movement of said tightening member from said shoe lace loosening position to said shoe lace tightening position.
  • 15. The shoe as claimed in claim 8, wherein said actuating portion of said tightening member is provided with a limit member that extends toward said inner wall surface of said top wall to limit extent of pivoting movement of said tightening member from said shoe lace tightening position to said shoe lace loosening position.
  • 16. The shoe as claimed in claim 15, wherein said pull cord is tied to said actuating portion at said limit member.
  • 17. The shoe as claimed in claim 15, wherein said limit member is formed with a hole that permits passage of said distal segment of said shoe lace therethrough.
US Referenced Citations (6)
Number Name Date Kind
3122805 Hakim Mar 1964 A
6003214 Lee Dec 1999 A
6370743 Choe Apr 2002 B2
6510627 Liu Jan 2003 B1
6532688 Bouvier Mar 2003 B2
6536086 Liu Mar 2003 B2