US 7,581,337 B2 · Expandable shoe having screw drive assemblies

Abstract

An expandable shoe includes an outer shell and an adjustable inner assembly within the outer shell. The inner assembly includes a first sole portion, a second sole portion, and a screw drive. The screw drive has a screw passing through a screw insert mounted to one of the first and second sole portions and a screw-receiving portion attached to the other of the first and second sole portions, so that turning the screw causes the sole portions to move relative to one another, thereby adjusting a dimension of the shoe. The shoe includes a manually operable control to turn the screw without the need for tools. The control is operable between a first position in which the control resists movement around an axis defined by the screw and a second position in which the control can be used to turn the screw to adjust a dimension of the footwear.

Drawings

Drawings are temporarily unavailable. Open the PDF at USPTO

Drawings

Claims22

Dependent claims

Footwear, comprising:

an outer shell including an outer sole, the outer shell configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows a ball of a foot of a user to flex when walking and the outer sole to flex about the ball of the user's foot when the user is walking;
a screw drive assembly disposed within the outer shell, the screw drive assembly including a first member, a second member, and a screw in operative engagement with the first and second members so that turning the screw causes the first and second members to move relative to one another thereby causing a dimension of the footwear to change;
and
a control coupled to the screw for turning the screw and thereby adjusting a dimension of the footwear by adjusting the position of the first member relative to the second member, wherein the control requires only manual, tool-less operation to adjust a dimension of the footwear and wherein the control remains coupled to the screw when a user is walking in the footwear,
wherein the first member and second member are in overlapping engagement with each other and wherein the first and second members are shaped such that they are slidable relative to each other longitudinally and wherein the first member includes an extension shaped to fit within a corresponding portion of the second member and wherein at least one of the first and second members are configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows the at least one of the first and second members to flex when the user is walking.

2 more elements

Footwear comprising:

an outer shell including an outer sole, the outer shell configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows a ball of a foot of a user to flex when walking and the outer sole to flex about the ball of the user's foot when the user is walking;
a base;
a screw drive assembly disposed within the outer shell, the screw drive assembly including a first member, a second member, and a screw passing through the base and in operative engagement with the first and second members so that turning the screw causes the first and second members to move relative to one another thereby causing a dimension of the footwear to change;
and
a latching mechanism, coupled to the base and to the screw drive assembly, and operable between a first position in which the latching mechanism resists movement around an axis defined by the screw and a second position in which the latching mechanism can be used to turn the screw to adjust a dimension of the footwear by adjusting the position of the first member relative to the second member,
wherein the first member and the second member are in overlapping engagement with each other and wherein the first member includes an extension shaped to fit within a corresponding portion of the second member and wherein at least one of the first and second members are configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows the at least one of the first and second members to flex when the user is walking.

3 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Description3,322 words

Summary629 words

#1. Technical Field

#The present invention relates to expandable shoes that may be adjusted longitudinally.

#2. Discussion of Related Art

Brief description of the drawings11 figures

#In the Drawing,

#FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of the invention;

#FIG. 1B is an exploded view of an exemplary embodiment of the invention;

Detailed description2,531 words

#FIGS. 1A-B show an exemplary embodiment in perspective and exploded views. Shoe 10 includes a front outer sole 12 and a front upper 18 to form a front outer assembly 13, and a rear outer sole 16 and a rear upper 20 to form a rear outer assembly 17. The front outer assembly 13 is attached to one edge 15B of a bellows segment 14, and the rear outer assembly 17 is attached to a second edge 15A, in each case using conventional techniques, such as by using stitching to the uppers 18, 20 and glue along the outer soles 12, 16. The combination of front outer assembly 13, rear outer assembly 17, and bellows segment 14 forms an outer shell 21.

#An adjustable inner sole assembly 22 is placed within outer shell 21 so that a screw 26 extends through a screw port opening 31 of the rear outer sole 16. The inner assembly 22 is firmly attached to the front and rear outer assemblies 13, 17 but not to bellows 14. In this fashion, once the shoe is assembled and in use, a wrench 28 (e.g., with an allen-head design) may be used to turn a screw 26 to adjust the length of the inner sole assembly 22 (and correspondingly the entire shoe 10) in the direction A. A control feature 24 (more below) is positioned within guide slot 27 to facilitate the directional control of the shoe 10 as it is caused to expand or contract. Screw port plug 30 may be used to fit within screw port opening 31 to cover the screw 26 when the shoe is not being adjusted. To adjust the size of this embodiment, only the screw 26 needs to be turned. The size may be lengthened or shortened in fine increments corresponding to the pitch of the screw 26.

#FIG. 1C shows a transverse cross section of an assembled shoe. Not shown in FIGS. 1A-B, but shown here, are the inclusion of a midsole 21 and an inner sole 23. At area 25 the upper 18 is joined to the inner assembly 22 by glue or stitching. Analogous joinery may be used at a rear portion of the shoe. The inner sole 23 is conventional and the midsole may be conventional in embodiments using a last board or may be modified to form all or a portion of the inner assembly 22. This figure will illustrate to those skilled in the art, the simplicity of integrating the features of inner assembly 22 into the midsole or leaving it as a last board left in the shoe. Such integration is largely dictated by the type of shoe into which the principles of the invention will be realized, e.g., hiking shoes, dress shoes, biking shoes, ski boots, sandals and the like. Likewise, the stiffness of the last board and/or the midsole is dictated by the shoe type.

Facts

Application

10/875,973Filed 24 Jun 2004 · continuation in part

Priority

12 Nov 1999

Published

US 2005/0055848 A117 Mar 2005

Granted

1 Sep 2009

Term ended

2 Mar 2021

Estimated · how

20 years from earliest known nonprovisional domestic filing plus recorded patent term adjustment, including 476 days of adjustment. Maintenance-fee lapses, terminal disclaimers and statutory extensions have not been checked. The continuity chain may be incomplete; this is not an enforceability determination.

Classification5 codes

A43B 1/0072
Footwear characterised by the material: made at least partially of transparent or translucent materials
A43B 3/0078
Characterised by a special shape or design: provided with logos, letters, signatures or the like decoration
A43B 3/26
Footwear characterised by the shape or the use: adjustable as to length or size
A43B 23/24
Uppers; Boot legs; Stiffeners; Other single parts of footwear: ornamental buckles; Other ornaments for shoes without fastening function

Family

Application09/438,935Parent of this division · filed 12 Nov 1999

Application10/191,682Parent of this continuation-in-part · filed 9 Jul 2002

US 6,438,872 B1Parent of this division · filed 27 Aug 2002

US 2005/0055848 A1Pre-grant publication · published 17 Mar 2005

US 6,817,116 B2Parent of this continuation-in-part

Application10/191,682Parent of this division

US 2002/0178617 A1Published application

US 7,581,337 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.

Timeline

12 Nov 1999Priority claimedParent application 09/438,935
24 Jun 2004Application filedUS 10/875,973
16 Nov 2004Assigned to Inchworm, Inc.assignment of assignor's interest
17 Mar 2005PublishedUS 2005/0055848 A1
1 Sep 2009GrantedUS 7,581,337 B2
2 Mar 2021Term endedEstimated, includes 476 days of adjustment

Expandable shoe having screw drive assemblies

Life of this patent

Expandable shoe having screw drive assemblies

Life of this patent

Life of this patent

Abstract

Drawings

Drawings

Claims22

Description3,322 words

Drawings

Classification5 codes

Life of this patent

Description3,322 words