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US 11,297,903 B2Granted
Reel-based lacing system
AssigneeBoa Technology Inc.
InventorsMark S. Soderberg, Michael J. Nickel, Sean Cavanagh
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A lacing system configured to selectively adjust the size of an opening on an object and allow for the incremental release of the lace within the lacing system. The lacing system can have a reel that includes a housing, a spool supported by the housing, and a knob supported by the housing. The reel can be configured so that cable is gathered in the channel formed in the spool when the spool is rotated in a first direction relative to the housing, and so that cable can be incrementally released from the spool when the spool is rotated in a second direction relative to the housing.
Claims19
A reel for use in a lacing system, the reel comprising:
- a housing having an interior region;
- a spool rotatably positioned within the interior region of the housing, the spool having an upper disc and a lower disc with a channel defined there between, the spool being rotatable within the interior region in a first direction to wind a tension member about the channel and being rotatable in a second direction to unwind the tension member from about the channel;
- a pawl component that is separate from the spool and that is removably attachable to the spool so that the pawl component is rotatable with the spool in the first direction, the pawl component including four pawl arms that extend from the pawl component, wherein each pawl arm includes a fixed end that is attached to the pawl component and a free end that is positioned opposite the fixed end;
- a plurality of teeth that are configured to engage with the free end of each pawl arm, the plurality of teeth and each pawl arm being configured so that as the pawl component and spool are rotated in the first direction, the free end of each pawl arm is deflected radially inward by the teeth and so that as the pawl component and spool are rotated in the second direction, the free end of each pawl arm engages with at least one tooth of the plurality of teeth to prevent the spool from rotating in the second direction;
- wherein the pawl component includes a bottom surface that is positioned atop and directly engages the upper disc of the spool when the pawl component is attached to the spool.
2 more elements
A reel for use in a lacing system, the reel comprising:
- a housing having an interior region;
- a knob that is rotatably coupled with the housing;
- a spool rotatably positioned within the interior region of the housing, the spool being rotatable within the interior region in a first direction to wind a tension member about the spool and being rotatable in a second direction to unwind the tension member from about the spool;
- a pawl component that is separate from the spool and from the knob, the pawl component being removably attachable to the spool so that the pawl component is rotatable with the spool in the first direction and in the second direction, the pawl component including at least one pawl arm that extends from the pawl component, the at least one pawl arm including a fixed end that is attached to the pawl component and a free end that is positioned opposite the fixed end;
- a plurality of teeth that are configured to engage with the free end of the at least one pawl arm, the plurality of teeth and at least one pawl arm being configured so that as the pawl component and spool are rotated in the first direction, the free end of the at least one pawl arm is deflected radially inward by the teeth and so that as the pawl component and spool are rotated in the second direction, the free end of the at least one pawl arm engages with at least one tooth to prevent the spool from rotating in the second direction;
- and
- at least one drive member positioned between the plurality of teeth and a portion of the at least one pawl arm, wherein the at least one drive member is movable relative to the plurality of teeth and the at least one pawl arm and is configured to engage an outer edge of the at least one pawl arm to displace the free end of the at least one pawl arm radially inward to disengage the free end of the at least one pawl arm and the at least one tooth and thereby allow the spool to rotate in the second direction;
- wherein a bottom portion of the pawl component is positioned atop and directly engages an upper portion of the spool.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.