Boots – shoes – and leggings – Uppers – Closure
Reexamination Certificate
1999-08-20
2001-01-16
Sewell, Paul T. (Department: 3728)
Boots, shoes, and leggings
Uppers
Closure
C036S050500, C024S712000, C024S712100
Reexamination Certificate
active
06173509
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND
1. Field of Invention
This contribution to the art is related to the field encompassing means for securing devices to a shoe and is geared in particular to providing flexible means to secure a variety of shoe fastening and other devices to flaps of a shoe constructed with dual flaps on opposing sides of a tongue.
BACKGROUND
2. Discussion of Prior Art
The flap portions of a conventional shoe constructed with dual flaps on opposing sides of a tongue are by design the user operative portion of said shoe. These are the parts of the shoe that are fastened to secure the shoe onto the foot or unfastened to loosen shoe from foot or laterally spread apart to insert or remove foot from shoe. However since flap portions of shoes are mainly used in the fastening or unfastening of shoe onto foot the examples of devices employing use of said flaps portions will be geared mainly towards shoe fastening devices. A shoe is by design fastened by directing either one, but more usually both flaps towards each other, and thus virtually all shoe fastening devices for conventional shoes accomplish their task this way. Consequently whatever the device used to effect fastening it must be secured to the flaps in some way. The present contribution to the art is designed to provide flexible securement means that act as intermediary conduits through which the forces effecting fastening or unfastening of shoe from fastening device to flaps pass through, and where fastening devices and securement means work in unison with each other.
A number of securement means for shoe fastening devices have been described in prior art, and while these may be suitable for use with the particular shoe fastening device they were designed to be used with they would not be suitable for use with the range of fastening devices the present invention can be used with. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,526,585 describes an attachment device for use with a lace substitute hand actuable shoe closure system consisting of a buckle plate to which is attached either a peg or a hook and a corresponding opening for peg or hook. The buckle plate is designed to be used with a Velcro™ strap fastening system. Again U.S. Pat. No. 4,907,352 has an attachment mechanism designed to be used with Velcro™ straps, and as the title of U.S. Pat. No. 3,902,229 states, it is a fastening arrangement at the ends of two straps for the detachable connection thereof. Most of the attachment mechanisms which are novel and unobvious to someone having reasonable skill in the field seem to be geared to work mainly with strap fasteners. The present invention can be easily adapted to work in unison with all of the abovementioned strap fastening systems as well as most lacing systems and non strap fastening systems such as my patent application Ser. No. 09/126,478, patent application Ser. No. 09/206,122 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,259,094, as well as virtually any device which utilizes the flap portions of a conventional shoe to perform its function while providing flexibility and accommodating the twisting, shearing, and bending forces experienced by flaps of shoe especially during high activity use such as racquetball, hiking, dancing, and so on.
BACKGROUND
Objects and Advantages
As such one object of the of invention presented here is to provide flexible securement means for securing a variety of devices or parts thereof to the flap portion(s) of an associated shoe.
Another object of the invention presented here is to provide a flexible securement means which can be easily adapted to be integrated with and work in unison with virtually any device incorporating use of the flaps of shoe.
Yet another object of the of invention presented here is to provide a flexible securement means that can be adapted to be easily attached to and detached from a variety flaps including flaps containing regular or annular eyelets or loops or flaps containing neither as well as being permanently secured to said flaps.
A further object of the of invention presented here is to provide a flexible, securement means that is flexible enough to accommodate irregular twisting or bending of shoe especially during high activity use such as dancing, racquetball, and so on in the same or better manner than that achieved by laces.
A yet further object of the of invention presented here is to provide a flexible securement means which is durable in construction and can last the life of a conventional shoe.
An even further object of the invention presented here is to provide a flexible, securement means which can be easily and cost effectively manufactured either by itself and adapted to be used with a variety of corresponding fastening devices or as an integral with a shoe fastening device.
These together with other objects of the invention along with features of novelty which characterize the invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming a part of this disclosure. For a better understanding of the invention, its operating advantages and the specific objects attained by its uses, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which there is illustrated varying embodiments of the invention.
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Sewell Paul T.
Stashick Anthony
LandOfFree
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