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US 5,956,870 AGranted
Shoes with retractable spikes and method for use thereof
OwnerGerald Grossman, Thomas Roneyinventors
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A shoe has spikes that can be retracted merely by moving an external operating member. Replaceable lower sole members can be selected and attached to the shoe based on ground surface conditions. Also, a shoe package includes one shoe with spikes and one shoe with retractable spikes or without spikes. A method of swinging a golf club using the shoe package permits a golfer's rear foot to be firmly planted while allowing the golfer's front foot to rotate and glide thus facilitating proper follow through.
Claims7
A shoe having retractable spikes, comprising:
- an upper for receiving a foot of the wearer;
- a sole disposed on a lower surface of said upper;
- at least one spike;
- a retraction mechanism disposed in a cavity defined in said sole and coupled to said at least one spike and configured to move between a retracted position, wherein said at least one spike does not protrude from said sole, and an extended position, wherein said at least one spike protrudes from said sole, said retraction mechanism including a rotatable cam member having a plurality of cam surfaces defined thereon, and a resilient member having a stationary central portion and a plurality of resilient portions extending from said central portion, each of said resilient portions supporting at least one of said spikes and each of said resilient portions being coupled to a respective one of said cam surfaces;
- and
- an operating member coupled to said retraction mechanism and configured to move said retraction mechanism between the retracted position and the extended position whereby movement of said operating member causes said cam member to rotate whereby said cam surfaces move relative to said resilient portions to thereby flex said resilient portions and cause said retraction mechanism to move between the retracted position and the extended position.
3 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.