NL2008172C2

NL2008172C2 - Shoe closure for lace-up shoes and shoe provided with such closure or parts thereof.

Info

Publication number: NL2008172C2
Application number: NL2008172A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Walter Petrus Johannes Slootweg
Original assignee: Walter Petrus Johannes Slootweg
Priority date: 2012-01-24
Filing date: 2012-01-24
Publication date: 2013-07-25

Description

Shoe closure for lace-up shoes and shoe provided with such closure or parts thereof.

The invention relates to a shoe closure for lace-up 5 shoes as well as to a shoe provided with such closure or parts thereof.

Lace-up shoes are generally known. In order to facilitate stepping in the shoe, the upper part of the shoe has a large opening. In order to obtain a close fit after 10 stepping in, the shoe is provided with a closure on top of the shoe. Such closure will help to stabilize the foot in the shoe. Also the closure may accommodate feet with different width. In general, in the edge of both flaps of the upper part of the shoe, adjacent to the shoe-opening, several eyelets are 15 provided for the lace. Instead of eyelets also other elements may be applied, such as hooks. Under the lacing, in general, a tongue will be provided that runs up under both flaps in order to cover the foot and to protect the top of the foot and to keep the laces from rubbing the foot. Untied, the lace may be 20 loose, providing a large entrance for the foot. By tightening the lace the shoe will come in close fit with the foot. This position will be maintained by tying the lace. Tying of the lace requires two hands. Tying of laces is difficult for younger children and for persons that are not able to use both 25 hands or do not have optimal control of both hands. For instance persons suffering from disability, paralysis, amputation, rheumatism, hand weakness, broken upper extremities or hands, etc. Those persons will be dependent on other persons for closing their shoes. This is undesirable. In 30 particular this also applies to persons in possession of lace-up shoes but temporarily not able to tighten and tie laces.

To overcome some of the mentioned drawbacks of lace-up shoes, shoes have been developed with Velcro closure. Such shoes are in general provided with Velcro straps. Such Velcro 35 strap may be attached to one flap of the shoe and reach through an opening in the other flap or through an eye attached to that other flap. By pulling the strap through the opening or the eye, back to the other flap and pushing both Velcro parts (hook and loop) together, the shoe will be 2 closed. Such Velcro strap may be closed with one hand. It is also a fast operation. A shoe may be provided by one or more of such flaps. When more than one flap is applied, for each part of the foot the optimal pressure may be obtained, which 5 is more difficult to obtain with a lace-up shoe. Therefore, shoes provided with the Velcro type of closing have become increasingly popular for children, disabled persons and for application requiring a tight fit. However, the Velcro closure has also some drawbacks. The hook and loop construction gets 10 easily polluted and may lose part or all of its properties. Further, Velcro closures limit the design freedom for shoes.

In general lace-up shoes are perceived as more fashionable and more suitable for certain dress codes.

The present invention intends to solve one or more of 15 the problems of the prior art as described above, and it is in particular an objective of the invention to provide a shoe closure for lace-up shoes that requires only one hand for closing.

The shoe closure for lace-up shoes according to the 20 invention is characterized by one or several of the appended claims .

According to the invention the shoe closure comprises at least one shoelace to be placed in one or more eyelets of a shoe and the shoelace is connected to a first part of Velcro 25 such that the shoelace may be pulled tight by that first part of Velcro and the shoelace may be maintained in tight position by placing the first part of Velcro on the second complementary part of Velcro. In this way a common lace-up shoe may be changed in a shoe with a Velcro closure that may 30 be operated with just one hand.

To a further aspect of the invention the first part of Velcro is connected to the second part of Velcro. Such shoe closure may also be easily removed so that the shoe may be applied as lace-up shoe again. This is in particular useful in 35 cases where an owner of common lace-up shoes is temporary not able to tie shoelaces.

Under certain circumstances such removal is not required and a most optimal connection with the shoe is preferred. In that case, to a further aspect of the invention 3 the second complementary part of Velcro may be attached to the shoe, for instance by stitching or bonding. In general, the user of the shoe will be able to perform such bonding, where stitching in general will be applied by a shoemaker.

5 According to a further embodiment of the invention, the shoelace is, at least partly, detachable connected to the first part of Velcro. In this way, threading of the shoelace through the eyelets is possible and easy. After threading, the shoelace may at one or both ends be connected to the first 10 part of Velcro.

Also another embodiment of the invention facilitates threading of the shoelace through the eyelets. In this embodiment the shoelace consists of two parts, the first and the second part of the shoelace at one end connected to the 15 first part of Velcro.

The loose ends of the one or two piece shoelaces may be connected together after threading through the eyelets, for instance by knotting. Alternatively, the first and/or the second part of the shoelace, at its loose end, is provided 20 with connecting means to connect both loose ends. Such connecting means may, according to a possible embodiment of the invention, be a bayonet or a screw type connector.

The first and/or the second part of Velcro may be attached to a carrier. Such carries makes the shoe closure 25 easy to handle. The material and color of the carrier may be chosen more or less similar to that of the shoe or just different, in order to obtain an desired esthetic result.

The shoe according to the invention is provided with a shoe closure of the invention.

30 A shoe according to the invention may, to a further aspect of the invention, be provided with a second complementary part of Velcro intended for connection with a first part of Velcro of a shoe closure for lace-up shoes according to the invention. Such second part of Velcro may be 35 stitched or bonded to the shoe.

The various aspects of the invention will now be described in more detail and will be elucidated, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawing which shows in 4

Figure 1, a perspective view of a lace-up shoe provided with a lace;

Figure 2, a perspective view of the shoe of figure 1, however, without a lace; 5 - Figure 3, a perspective view of a first embodiment of the shoe closure according to the invention;

Figure 4, a perspective view of the shoe of figure 2 provided with the shoe closure of figure 3;

Figure 5, a detachable connection for the shoelace to the 10 Velcro part;

Figure 6, a detachable connection of the first and the second part of the shoelace;

Figure 7, a screw connector for the shoelace;

Figure 8, an bayonet connector for the shoelace; 15 - Figure 9, a perspective view of another embodiment of the shoe closure of the invention; and

Figure 10, a perspective view of a one piece shoe closure provided with two laces and one Velcro pull part.

Figure 1 shows a generally known lace-up shoe 1 with 20 a shoe lace 2 threaded through the eyelets 3. The eyelets 3 being provided in flaps 4. Under the flaps 4 a shoe tongue 5 is provided so that the shoelace will not have direct contact with the foot. These flaps 4 may be moved outward in order to enlarge the entrance for the foot. When the foot has entered 25 the shoe 1, in order to obtain a close fit of the shoe 1 to the foot, the lace 3 is tightened. This requires pulling with two hands. The lace 3 is maintained in tightened position by tying the lace 3. Also such tying requires both hands. Persons lacking control of both hands will therefore observe 30 difficulties in putting their shoes on and may require help.

Such sensitive operation is even with two hands difficult for children and also persons that lack complete and/or sensitive control of both hands may observe problems. Moreover persons may for instance for aesthetic reasons prefer lace-up shoes or 35 may be in possession of lace-up shoes and are temporary unable to tie their own shoes.

Figure 2 shows the same shoe, however without a shoelace. This shoe will instead of that shoelace 3 be closed by a shoe closure according to the invention. An embodiment of 5 this shoe closure is shown in figure 3. The shoe closure 6 consists of a first Velcro part 7 and a second Velcro part 8. Both Velcro parts are in this case interconnected. They are provided with the typically complementary hook 10 and loop 11 5 substrate of Velcro. On the first Velcro part 7 a lace 9 is provided. In order to have this lace thread through the eyelets 3 of shoe 1, the lace 9 is either detachable connected to the first part of Velcro 7 or is a two-piece lace of which the loose ends are connectable.

10 Figure 4 shows that the lace 9 of shoe closure 6 is threaded through the eyelets 3 and that it is placed between the first and second part of Velcro at the position where the first and second part of Velcro are connected. By pulling the second part of Velcro 8, also the first part of Velcro 7 will 15 be pulled, tightening the lace. By putting second part of

Velcro 8 on first part of Velcro 7, the lace 9 will maintain in tightened position. As can be seen, pulling the Velcro parts 7 and 8, and pushing them together, just requires one single hand. In this way the lace-up shoe is turned into an 20 easy to handle Velcro type of shoe.

In figure 5 a shoe closure 6 is shown for detachable connection with the lace. The shoe closure 6 again consists of interconnect-able and complementary first and second Velcro parts 7 and 8. In this case a third Velcro part 12 is provided 25 that, if turned around their connection 13, is complementary to the first part of Velcro. If the lace is positioned at connection area 13 it will become enclosed between the first 7 and the third part 12 of Velcro, when they are pushed and locked together with their hooks and loops.

30 In the embodiment of shoe closure 6 of figure 6, the lace 9 consists of two pieces 9a, 9b. Both lace parts 9a and 9b are at one end attached to the first part of Velcro. At their loose ends they may be interconnected by a simple knot, however, for aesthetic and comfort reasons in this embodiment 35 they are at their loose ends provided with connection means 14. As can be seen in figure 7, the connecting means 14 are of the screw type. Lace part 9a is pushed through screw part 14a and provided with a knot. The same applies to lace part 9b that is pushed through and knotted to screw part 14b. Screw 6 parts 14a and 14b, when screwed together, will close lace 14 in a detachable way. Therefore shoe closure 6 is easy detachable. The shoe may then be used again as the original lace-up shoe, or the shoe closure may be replaced by a new 5 one, for instance when the Velcro is polluted and has lost part or most of its function, a general know problem of Velcro type shoes.

As can be seen in figure 8, alternatively a bayonet connection 16a, 16b may be applied. Such connection may be 10 clamped on the ends of lace parts 9a and 9b. The bayonet connection is sufficiently small to be threaded through the eyelets .

In another embodiment of the invention as shown in figure 9, the second part of Velcro is attached to shoe 1. The 15 Velcro part may for instance be stitched or bonded to the shoe 1. In this embodiment the first part of Velcro 7 is attached to a carrier 16. Such carrier may for instance have a look, material and/or colour similar to that of the shoe. In this embodiment two laces 9a and 9b are connected to carrier 16 and 20 first part of Velcro 7. This will result in a close fit along all of the length of the flaps 4.

In figure 10 the shoe 1 is provided with a one piece shoe closure 17. The shoe closure 17 is provided with two laces 9. The laces 9 are threaded through the eyelets 3. Both 25 laces 9 are two-part laces, which lace parts are interconnected by connecting means 14. Both laces 9 are connected with a leg 19 of an U-shaped carrier 18. The two second parts of Velcro 7 are each attached to one of the legs 19 of the U shaped carrier 18. Both legs 19 of the U-shaped 30 carrier 18 are pushed by the laces 9 against both flaps 4 of the shoe 1. Both legs 19 are connected to the bridge part 20 of the U-shaped carrier 18. On the bridge part 20 two first parts of Velcro 8 are attached. This embodiment provides an easily detachable shoe closure for lace-up shoes. The one 35 piece construction makes its application convenient. The both laces 9 guarantee an optimal tightening of the shoe along the instep. The bridge part 20 facilitates the single hand operation and tightening.

7

To the person skilled in art it is obvious that the above given embodiments represent only a few of the many possible variations in which the shoe closure according to the invention may be embodied. Therefore the embodiments given 5 here must be understood as an elucidation to the appended claims without limiting the scope of the invention. Within the protective scope numerous variations are conceivable. For instance, instead of threading and tightening the lace 9 in transverse direction, according to the teaching of the 10 invention the lace may also be laced and tightened in longitudinal direction of the shoe. Dependent on the type of shoe and the person wearing the shoe, laces with different length may be required. It will be clear that according to the invention the lace may be cut to the appropriate length. Even, 15 in some cases, the original lace of the lace-up shoe may be applied. The invention applies for hoes in a broad context, which includes all types of footwear such as orthopaedic shoes, (roller)skates, etc.

Claims

A shoe closure (6) for lace-up shoes comprising at least one shoelace (9) for placement in one or more eyes of the shoe and connected to a first part (7) of Velcro, wherein the lace can be pulled tightly by the first part (7) of Velcro and wherein the shoelace (9) can be maintained in a tight condition by placing the first part (7) of the Velcro on a second complementary part (8) of the Velcro.

Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the first part (7) of the Velcro is connected to the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro.

3. Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro can be connected to the shoe (1).

4. Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 3, characterized in that the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro can be stitched onto the shoe (1).

Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 3, characterized in that the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro can be glued to the shoe.

Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the shoelace (9) can be detachably connected, at least in part, to the first part (7) of the Velcro.

7. Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 1, characterized in that the shoelace (9) consists of two parts (9a, 9b), wherein the two parts of the shoelace are or can be connected to at least one end connected to the first part (7) of the Velcro.

8. Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the shoelace (9, 9a, 9b) is provided with connecting means (14, 15) at at least one of the loose ends connect the loose ends.

Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 8, characterized in that the connecting means comprise a bayonet closure (15).

Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to claim 8, characterized in that the connecting means comprise a screw connection (14).

11. Shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the first (7) and / or the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro is connected to a carrier (16).

Shoe (1) provided with a shoe closure according to one of the preceding claims.

13. Shoe (1) provided with a second Velcro complementary part (8) intended for connection to a first Velcro part (7) of a shoe closure (6) for a lace-up shoe according to one of the preceding claims.

Shoe (1) according to claim 13, characterized in that the second complementary part (8) of the Velcro is stitched on the shoe (1).

Shoe (1) according to claim 13, characterized in that the second complementary part (8) is glued to the shoe (1).