US20150230558A1

US20150230558A1 - Shoelace having custom metal t-locking fastener

Info

Publication number: US20150230558A1
Application number: US14/181,856
Authority: US
Inventors: Jason Alexander Flores
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2014-02-17
Filing date: 2014-02-17
Publication date: 2015-08-20

Abstract

Some embodiments of the present disclosure include a shoelace device for securing a shoe onto a user, the device including a lace having a first end and a second end, a first t-locking fastener attached to the first end, and a second t-locking fastener attached to the second end. The lace may be made of an elastic material. Each t-locking fastener may be capable of pivoting about its respective end from a first position to a second position, wherein the second position is substantially perpendicular to a plane of a length of the lace.

Description

BACKGROUND

The embodiments herein relate generally to footwear, and more particularly, to a shoelace having a metal t-locking fastener.
Many types of shoes are secured to feet using shoelaces. Tying a shoelace can be a difficult task for many groups of people, including children, disabled people, the elderly, and many others. Additionally, tying shoelaces can be time consuming, especially if a person is lacking the dexterity required for tying shoelaces. A conventional shoelace is a single piece of material, such as a cord, having a first end and a second end, wherein the shoelace is threaded through openings on the top of the shoe and that the two ends are tied together to secure the shoe. Conventional shoelaces can also be unsightly to many people, as the end of the shoelaces hang down from the shoe. Other options are possible for securing shoes to a person's feet, but these options lack the look of typical shoelaces. For example, many shoes have a hook and loop fastener strap, such as a Velcro strap, to secure the shoe to the foot. Alternatively, some shoes have a plurality elastic straps that attach a first hole on the top of the shoe to a second hole on the top of the shoe, but the plurality of straps are not connected. Rather, each strap connects a pair of shoelace holes, instead of all of the shoelace holes being connected by a single lace.
Therefore, what is needed is a shoelace that has the appearance of a conventional shoelace, but is not required to be tied in order to secure the shoe to a foot.

SUMMARY

Some embodiments of the present disclosure include a shoelace device for securing a shoe onto a user, the device including a lace having a first end and a second end, a first t-locking fastener attached to the first end, and a second t-locking fastener attached to the second end. The lace may be made of an elastic material. Each t-locking fastener may be capable of pivoting about its respective end from a first position to a second position, wherein the second position is substantially perpendicular to the lace and creates a t-locking functionality.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The detailed description of some embodiments of the invention is made below with reference to the accompanying figures, wherein like numerals represent corresponding parts of the figures.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention shown in use.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention shown in use.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a perspective detail view of one embodiment of the present invention shown in use pre-insertion into a shoelace hole on a shoe.

FIG. 5 is a perspective detail view of one embodiment of the present invention shown in use post-insertion in a shoelace hole on a shoe.

FIG. 6 is a perspective detail view of one embodiment of the present invention shown in use pose-securement.

FIG. 7 is a detail section view of one embodiment of the present invention along line 7-7 in FIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a detail section view of one embodiment of the present invention along line 8-8 in FIG. 5.

FIG. 9 is a detail section view of one embodiment of the present invention along line 9-9 in FIG. 6.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS

In the following detailed description of the invention, numerous details, examples, and embodiments of the invention are described. However, it will be clear and apparent to one skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the embodiments set forth and that the invention can be adapted for any of several applications.
The device of the present disclosure may be used to secure a shoe to a foot and may comprise the following elements. This list of possible constituent elements is intended to be exemplary only, and it is not intended that this list be used to limit the system of the present application to just these elements. Persons having ordinary skill in the art relevant to the present disclosure may understand there to be equivalent elements that may be substituted within the present disclosure without changing the essential function or operation of the device.
1. Elastic Lace
2. T-locking fastener
The various elements of the shoelace device for securing a shoe on a user of the present disclosure may be related in the following exemplary fashion. It is not intended to limit the scope or nature of the relationships between the various elements and the following examples are presented as illustrative examples only.
By way of example, and referring to FIGS. 1-7, some embodiments of the shoelace device of the present disclosure comprise a lace 10 having a first end and a second end, wherein each of the first and the second ends has a t-locking fastener 12 attached thereto. As shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 4-9, the t-locking fastener 12 may be configured to engage with a shoelace hole 16 on a shoe 14. For example, as shown in FIGS. 3-9, the t-locking fastener 12 may be a solid material, such as plastic or metal, that is attached each end of the lace 10. The t-locking fastener 12 may be capable of pivoting about the end of the lace 10 from a first position, wherein the lace 10 is substantially aligned with the plane of the t-locking fastener 12, as shown in FIGS. 1, 3, 7, and 8, to a second position, wherein end of the lace 10 is substantially perpendicular to the plane of the t-locking fastener 12 and creates the locked-in function of the device to the shoe, as shown in FIGS. 2, 6, and 9.
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, when the t-locking fastener 12 is in the first position, the t-locking fastener 12 may be inserted through a shoelace hole 16 in a shoe 14. The t-locking fastener 12 may then be adjusted to its second position to secure the shoelace device in place, the t-locking fastener 12 preventing the shoelace device from slipping back through the shoelace hole 14 because of the resistance that the elastic lace 10 is creating against the secured fasteners 12. As shown in FIG. 9, the t-locking fastener 12 may secure the shoelace device in place by acting like a T-locking configuration with respect to the shoelace hole 14. Thus, the length of the t-locking fastener 12 may be greater than the diameter of a shoelace hole 14, such that the t-locking fastener 12 is prevented from slipping through the shoelace hole 14 when the t-locking fastener is in its second position.
In embodiments, the t-locking fastener 12 may be positioned into the second position by just letting go of the lace 10 once the t-locking fastener 12 is inserted through the shoelace hole 14 or by pulling on the lace 10 after the t-locking fastener 12 is inserted through the shoelace hole 14. Thus, in embodiments, a user may lace up their shoes using the shoelace device similarly to a conventional shoelace, but without having the need to tie the ends of the shoelace together.
The t-locking fastener 12 may have a first portion that clamps around the diameter of the lace 10, securing the lace 10 to the t-locking fastener 12, and a second portion that is configured to partially surround the lace 10 when the t-locking fastener 12 is in its first position. The first portion of the t-locking fastener 12 may curve inward toward an interior of the t-locking fastener to clamp onto the end of the lace 10, securing the lace to the t-locking fastener. For example, in some embodiments, the first portion of the t-locking fastener 12 may curve inward about 20°. When the t-locking fastener 12 is moved into the second position, the second portion no longer partially surrounds the lace 10, and the t-locking fastener 12 becomes perpendicular to the length of the lace 10.
The lace may be made of any suitable material and, in embodiments, is made of a material having an elastic property. When the lace has an elastic property, the lace is pulled taut from shoelace hole to shoelace hole, until lace is secured through the last pair of shoelace holes by the t-locking fastener. The elasticity of the lace will allow the shoe to be snugly secured to a foot. If the lace is not made of an elastic material, the lace may be too loose and the shoe may not be sufficiently secured onto the foot. In other words, the lace may have a length and an elasticity sufficient to lace up a shoe without there being any slack in the lace when the shoe is laced up. The lace may have any length necessary to secure a shoe to a foot, and the length of the lace may vary depending on the size, brand, or type of footwear. In some embodiments, the lace may be from about 10 to about 40 inches long.
The shoelace device of the present disclosure may be used to lace up any type of footwear that requires laces, such as sneakers, dress shoes, boots, and so on. The width of the shoelace device may vary and, in embodiments, is smaller than a diameter of a shoelace hole. A user may use the shoelace device by inserting the lace at the two holes at the base of the shoe, as with a conventional shoe lace, and proceeding to lace the remaining holes, securing the lace into the last two holes using the t-locking fasteners. As a result, the shoe may be secured to a user's foot comfortably without tying of laces being required, there being zero slack in the lace because of the elasticity of the lace.
Persons of ordinary skill in the art may appreciate that numerous design configurations may be possible to enjoy the functional benefits of the inventive systems. Thus, given the wide variety of configurations and arrangements of embodiments of the present invention the scope of the invention is reflected by the breadth of the claims below rather than narrowed by the embodiments described above.

Claims

What is claimed is:

1. A shoelace device for securing a shoe onto a user without requiring the user to tie a shoelace, the device comprising:

a lace made of an elastic material, the lace having a first end and a second end;

a first t-locking fastener attached to the first end; and

a second t-locking fastener attached to the second end,

wherein:

each t-locking fastener is capable of pivoting about its respective end from a first position to a second position, wherein the second position is substantially perpendicular to a plane of a length of the lace.

2. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein each of the t-locking fasteners comprises a first portion that is curved inward toward an interior of the t-locking fastener, resulting in a clamp that secures the lace to the t-locking fastener.

3. The shoelace device of claim 2, wherein each of the t-locking fasteners is curved inward at an angle of about 20°.

4. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein the first position of each of the t-locking fasteners is substantially parallel to the plane of the length of the lace.

5. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein each of the t-locking fasteners is configured to engage with a shoelace hole on the shoe to secure the shoelace device in place using a T-locking configuration with the t-locking fastener positioned in the second position.

6. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein a length of each of the t-locking fasteners is greater than a diameter of a shoelace hole.

7. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein the t-locking fastener is made of metal.

8. The shoelace device of claim 1, wherein the lace has length and an elasticity sufficient to prevent the lace from having any slack when the shoelace device is in use.

9. A shoelace device for securing footwear to a foot, the device comprising:

a first t-locking fastener attached to the first end; and

a second t-locking fastener attached to the second end,

wherein:

each of the t-locking fasteners pivots about its respective end of the lace from a first position to a second position, wherein the second position is substantially perpendicular to a plane of a length of the lace;

each of the t-locking fasteners is configured to engage with a shoelace hole on the footwear to secure the shoelace device in place using a T-locking configuration with the t-locking fastener positioned in the second position; and

the lace has length and an elasticity sufficient to prevent the lace from having any slack when the shoelace device is in use.

10. The shoelace device of claim 9, wherein each of the t-locking fasteners has a length greater than a diameter of the shoelace hole.