US20060130373A1 - Athletic shoe assembly - Google Patents

Athletic shoe assembly Download PDF

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Publication number
US20060130373A1
US20060130373A1 US11/290,789 US29078905A US2006130373A1 US 20060130373 A1 US20060130373 A1 US 20060130373A1 US 29078905 A US29078905 A US 29078905A US 2006130373 A1 US2006130373 A1 US 2006130373A1
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
color
shoe
tubing
rods
selectively
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Abandoned
Application number
US11/290,789
Inventor
David Snyder
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Zephyr Athletic Footwear Inc
Original Assignee
Individual
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Individual filed Critical Individual
Priority to US11/290,789 priority Critical patent/US20060130373A1/en
Priority to PCT/US2005/043146 priority patent/WO2006060400A2/en
Assigned to ZEPHYR ATHLETIC FOOTWEAR, INC. reassignment ZEPHYR ATHLETIC FOOTWEAR, INC. ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST (SEE DOCUMENT FOR DETAILS). Assignors: SNYDER, DAVID
Publication of US20060130373A1 publication Critical patent/US20060130373A1/en
Abandoned legal-status Critical Current

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    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B23/00Uppers; Boot legs; Stiffeners; Other single parts of footwear
    • A43B23/24Ornamental buckles; Other ornaments for shoes without fastening function
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B1/00Footwear characterised by the material
    • A43B1/0027Footwear characterised by the material made at least partially from a material having special colours
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B1/00Footwear characterised by the material
    • A43B1/0072Footwear characterised by the material made at least partially of transparent or translucent materials
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B3/00Footwear characterised by the shape or the use
    • A43B3/0036Footwear characterised by the shape or the use characterised by a special shape or design
    • A43B3/0078Footwear characterised by the shape or the use characterised by a special shape or design provided with logos, letters, signatures or the like decoration
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B3/00Footwear characterised by the shape or the use
    • A43B3/24Collapsible or convertible
    • AHUMAN NECESSITIES
    • A43FOOTWEAR
    • A43BCHARACTERISTIC FEATURES OF FOOTWEAR; PARTS OF FOOTWEAR
    • A43B3/00Footwear characterised by the shape or the use
    • A43B3/24Collapsible or convertible
    • A43B3/242Collapsible or convertible characterised by the upper

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to improvements in athletic shoes and more specifically to a piping design characterized by novel features of construction and arrangement including means for selectively changing the appearance or color of the piping.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide an athletic shoe characterized by novel features of construction and arrangement including a piping configuration on the surface of the shoe which is made of a transparent material and color rods which may be selectively threaded into the piping which are selected from one of a plurality of color rods of different colors.
  • the present invention therefore, provides an athletic shoe which is of attractive design and where the user can selectively vary the color scheme to match and/or contrast with other colors worn by the user.
  • the user can choose for example to adopt the school colors when using the athletic footwear as a participant on a team or as a cheerleader for a particular school.
  • the user can then change the colors when the user wants to wear the shoes for another function where the choice of the color rods will be dictated by the ensemble or other wearing apparel of the user.
  • FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an athletic shoe incorporating the selectively changeable piping feature of the present invention
  • FIG. 2 is a right side elevational view of the shoe assembly
  • FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the shoe incorporating piping in accordance with the present invention.
  • FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the shoe
  • FIG. 5 is left side elevational view of the athletic piping shoe in accordance with the present invention.
  • FIG. 6 is a view from the rear of the shoe
  • FIG. 7 is front elevational view of the piping shoe in accordance with the present invention.
  • FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the shoe as viewed from the rear of the shoe.
  • FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the portion of the shoe circled in FIG. 8 ;
  • FIG. 10 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 9 showing the latch overlying one end of the front piping;
  • FIG. 11 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 10 showing the color rod being withdrawn
  • FIG. 12 is a fragmentary view of the back portion of the shoe circled in FIG. 8 ;
  • FIG. 13 is a view similar to FIG. 12 with the rear latch in an open position
  • FIG. 14 is a view showing the piping rod being withdrawn.
  • FIG. 15 is a transverse sectional view taken on lines 15 - 15 of FIG. 14 showing the base of the tubing underlying the upper material of the shoe to secure the tubing in place by stitching.
  • the shoe is of a generally conventional construction comprising a sole 12 , an upper portion 14 and a tongue 16 .
  • the upper portion u-shaped cut out portion 15 and a series of openings 18 for a conventional shoe lace 20 ;
  • the shoe is provided with a novel ornamental feature including flexible tubing generally designated by numeral 30 secured to the upper of the shoe in a preselected pattern and color rods 32 are mounted in the tubing which can be selectively changed thereby presenting different color arrangements.
  • the flexible tube-color rod assembly is mounted on the upper 14 in two (2) generally parallel lines L 1 and L 2 on either side of the u-shaped opening 15 from a point near the foot opening 34 in the shoe downwardly to the toe at the point 36 .
  • the flexible tube-color rod assembly is also mounted on the heel area in a gently curved pattern running from the mid-sole on one side upwardly around the heel adjacent the foot opening and extending to the mid sole on the opposite side of the shoe. This arrangement is generally designated as L 3 .
  • the tubular member as best illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 is preferably made of a transparent plastic material and comprises a base 40 and a hollow tubular member 42 of circular cross section extending upwardly from the base 40 and of a size to accommodate the color rod 32 .
  • the base 40 may be secured to the shoe, for example, by stitching the extended flange portions 44 of the base 40 to the shoe. Note that the shoe material M overlies the flanges 44 and the stitching S secures the tubular member to the shoe exterior.
  • the heel assembly comprises two sections 43 and 45 and separate rods 44 for each section and a tab 50 which overlies the juncture 47 of the two heel sections 43 and 45 and locks with a velcro pad 52 on the shoe so it can be released when desired to replace the color rods in the heel.
  • a similar flap or tab 52 is provided on the upper ends of the Sections L 1 and L 2 for the same purpose. If desired, the tab 52 may simply overlie the end of the color rod and not be secured.
  • the user simply releases the velcro tabs 52 at the inner ends of the piping L 1 and L 2 and simply takes the color rod and pulls it out of the tubing and replace it with a different color.
  • the same procedure is followed for changing the color rod in the heel of the shoe.
  • the heel color rods are shown as separate elements, they may be one continuous element which is threaded from opposite ends into the tubing which is split to create a gap G adjacent the center of the heel portion as shown in FIG. 8 .
  • separate color rods for the heel portion offer more variety to the extent that the color rod on one side can be one color and the color on the other side may be of a contrasting different color.
  • the typical school colors are a combination of two colors and where the user desires to match the shoe piping colors with those of the school the separate left and right heel and toe piping facilitates two color designs.

Abstract

For wearing apparel, piping in a predetermined pattern comprising transparent hollow tubing secured to the wearing apparel and rods of various colors removably inserted in said tubing whereby the color effect of the wearing apparel may be changed by selectively interchanging the color rods in the tubing.

Description

  • This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application Ser. No. 60/631,911 filed Nov. 30, 2004.
  • FIELD OF THE INVENTION
  • The present invention relates to improvements in athletic shoes and more specifically to a piping design characterized by novel features of construction and arrangement including means for selectively changing the appearance or color of the piping.
  • BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
  • In the past, athletic shoes from different sporting goods companies tended to generally to look alike or have a basic similar appearance. In recent times there has been a trend toward more stylish multi-colored designs. These different and distinctive designs are associated with the more well recognized sports personalities and by reason of this association enhance the sales of the athletic shoes sponsored by these well known personalities. It is noted, even though shoes are stylish and multi-colored, the color design is fixed and cannot be selectively changed. In other words, these unusual colorful designs are identifiable with a specific sports personality and the fixed color scheme does not serve any functional feature of the athletic shoe.
  • SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
  • With the foregoing in mind, it is an object of the present invention to provide a novel athletic shoe arrangement wherein the design of the shoe and particularly the colors of the design may be selectively varied by the user.
  • Another object of the present invention is to provide an athletic shoe characterized by novel features of construction and arrangement including a piping configuration on the surface of the shoe which is made of a transparent material and color rods which may be selectively threaded into the piping which are selected from one of a plurality of color rods of different colors.
  • The present invention therefore, provides an athletic shoe which is of attractive design and where the user can selectively vary the color scheme to match and/or contrast with other colors worn by the user. By the interchangeability of the color rods, the user can choose for example to adopt the school colors when using the athletic footwear as a participant on a team or as a cheerleader for a particular school. The user can then change the colors when the user wants to wear the shoes for another function where the choice of the color rods will be dictated by the ensemble or other wearing apparel of the user.
  • BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
  • These and other objects of the present invention and the various features and details of the operation and construction thereof are hereinafter more fully set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:
  • FIG. 1. is a perspective view of an athletic shoe incorporating the selectively changeable piping feature of the present invention;
  • FIG. 2 is a right side elevational view of the shoe assembly;
  • FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the shoe incorporating piping in accordance with the present invention;
  • FIG. 4 is a bottom plan view of the shoe;
  • FIG. 5 is left side elevational view of the athletic piping shoe in accordance with the present invention;
  • FIG. 6 is a view from the rear of the shoe;
  • FIG. 7 is front elevational view of the piping shoe in accordance with the present invention;
  • FIG. 8 is a perspective view of the shoe as viewed from the rear of the shoe;
  • FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view of the portion of the shoe circled in FIG. 8;
  • FIG. 10 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 9 showing the latch overlying one end of the front piping;
  • FIG. 11 is a fragmentary view similar to FIG. 10 showing the color rod being withdrawn;
  • FIG. 12 is a fragmentary view of the back portion of the shoe circled in FIG. 8;
  • FIG. 13 is a view similar to FIG. 12 with the rear latch in an open position;
  • FIG. 14 is a view showing the piping rod being withdrawn; and
  • FIG. 15 is a transverse sectional view taken on lines 15-15 of FIG. 14 showing the base of the tubing underlying the upper material of the shoe to secure the tubing in place by stitching.
  • DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
  • Referring now to the drawings, there is illustrated a shoe incorporating a novel ornamental piping arrangement in accordance with the present invention generally designated by the numeral 10. The shoe is of a generally conventional construction comprising a sole 12, an upper portion 14 and a tongue 16. The upper portion u-shaped cut out portion 15 and a series of openings 18 for a conventional shoe lace 20;
  • In accordance with the present invention, the shoe is provided with a novel ornamental feature including flexible tubing generally designated by numeral 30 secured to the upper of the shoe in a preselected pattern and color rods 32 are mounted in the tubing which can be selectively changed thereby presenting different color arrangements. As illustrated in FIGS. 2-7 inclusive, the flexible tube-color rod assembly is mounted on the upper 14 in two (2) generally parallel lines L1 and L2 on either side of the u-shaped opening 15 from a point near the foot opening 34 in the shoe downwardly to the toe at the point 36. The flexible tube-color rod assembly is also mounted on the heel area in a gently curved pattern running from the mid-sole on one side upwardly around the heel adjacent the foot opening and extending to the mid sole on the opposite side of the shoe. This arrangement is generally designated as L3.
  • The tubular member as best illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9 is preferably made of a transparent plastic material and comprises a base 40 and a hollow tubular member 42 of circular cross section extending upwardly from the base 40 and of a size to accommodate the color rod 32. The base 40 may be secured to the shoe, for example, by stitching the extended flange portions 44 of the base 40 to the shoe. Note that the shoe material M overlies the flanges 44 and the stitching S secures the tubular member to the shoe exterior. In the present instance, the heel assembly comprises two sections 43 and 45 and separate rods 44 for each section and a tab 50 which overlies the juncture 47 of the two heel sections 43 and 45 and locks with a velcro pad 52 on the shoe so it can be released when desired to replace the color rods in the heel. A similar flap or tab 52 is provided on the upper ends of the Sections L1 and L2 for the same purpose. If desired, the tab 52 may simply overlie the end of the color rod and not be secured.
  • Assume that the user wants to change color rods to from those now in the athletic shoe, the user simply releases the velcro tabs 52 at the inner ends of the piping L1 and L2 and simply takes the color rod and pulls it out of the tubing and replace it with a different color. The same procedure is followed for changing the color rod in the heel of the shoe. It is noted that even though the heel color rods are shown as separate elements, they may be one continuous element which is threaded from opposite ends into the tubing which is split to create a gap G adjacent the center of the heel portion as shown in FIG. 8. Of course, separate color rods for the heel portion offer more variety to the extent that the color rod on one side can be one color and the color on the other side may be of a contrasting different color. The typical school colors are a combination of two colors and where the user desires to match the shoe piping colors with those of the school the separate left and right heel and toe piping facilitates two color designs.
  • Even though a particular embodiment of the present invention have been illustrated and described herein, it is not intended to limit the invention and changes and modifications may be made therein wither the scope of the attached claims.

Claims (5)

1. For wearing apparel, piping in a predetermined pattern comprising transparent hollow tubing secured to the wearing apparel and rods of various colors removably inserted in said tubing whereby the color effect of the wearing apparel may be changed by selectively interchanging the color rods in the tubing.
2. An athletic shoe comprising an upper portion and a sole portion, means defining a pattern of piping comprising hollow translucent tubing mounted on the exterior of the shoe portion and color rods selectively removably mounted in the tubing whereby the user may selectively interchange the color rods for changing the color effect of the shoe assembly.
3. A shoe assembly as claimed in claim 2 wherein the translucent tubing has at least one open end for insertion and removal of a color rod and including a tab having a velcro face adjacent said open end of said tubing for selectively covering the open end and which can be detached to access the open end to facilitate removal of the color rod when it is desired to replace it with a rod of different color.
4. A shoe assembly as claimed in claim 2 wherein said housing for the color rod comprises an elongated hollow tubular member of circular cross section and a base for attaching it to the shoe.
5. A shoe assembly as claimed in claim 4 wherein the base has two flange portions providing means for stacking the base and tubular member formed integrally therewith to the shoe by stitching.
US11/290,789 2004-11-30 2005-11-30 Athletic shoe assembly Abandoned US20060130373A1 (en)

Priority Applications (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US11/290,789 US20060130373A1 (en) 2004-11-30 2005-11-30 Athletic shoe assembly
PCT/US2005/043146 WO2006060400A2 (en) 2004-11-30 2005-11-30 Athletic shoe assembly

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
US63191104P 2004-11-30 2004-11-30
US11/290,789 US20060130373A1 (en) 2004-11-30 2005-11-30 Athletic shoe assembly

Publications (1)

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US20060130373A1 true US20060130373A1 (en) 2006-06-22

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US11/290,789 Abandoned US20060130373A1 (en) 2004-11-30 2005-11-30 Athletic shoe assembly

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WO (1) WO2006060400A2 (en)

Cited By (2)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20110192058A1 (en) * 2010-02-11 2011-08-11 Nike, Inc. Article Of Footwear Incorporating Illuminable Strands
US8544197B2 (en) 2010-02-11 2013-10-01 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating an illuminable panel

Citations (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3251144A (en) * 1963-09-03 1966-05-17 Dorothea M Weitzner Tubular base shoes
US5052131A (en) * 1989-10-26 1991-10-01 Paul Rondini Strapped footwear with decorative lighting
US5604999A (en) * 1994-05-04 1997-02-25 Barker; Dale E. Footwear with illuminated linear optics
US5720121A (en) * 1994-05-04 1998-02-24 Barker; Dale E. Footwear with illuminated linear optics
US5722757A (en) * 1996-03-11 1998-03-03 Chien; Thang Lu Distributed illumination arrangement for a soft object
US6082867A (en) * 1996-11-29 2000-07-04 Chien; Tseng-Lu Lighting arrangements including a three-dimensional electro-luminscent element
US20010004808A1 (en) * 1998-11-23 2001-06-28 Hurwitz Marni M. Safety and sports equipment, apparel and accessories using electroluminescent fibers for illumination
US6976762B2 (en) * 2002-06-14 2005-12-20 Tseng-Lu Chien Tubular electro-luminescent light device

Patent Citations (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3251144A (en) * 1963-09-03 1966-05-17 Dorothea M Weitzner Tubular base shoes
US5052131A (en) * 1989-10-26 1991-10-01 Paul Rondini Strapped footwear with decorative lighting
US5604999A (en) * 1994-05-04 1997-02-25 Barker; Dale E. Footwear with illuminated linear optics
US5720121A (en) * 1994-05-04 1998-02-24 Barker; Dale E. Footwear with illuminated linear optics
US5722757A (en) * 1996-03-11 1998-03-03 Chien; Thang Lu Distributed illumination arrangement for a soft object
US6082867A (en) * 1996-11-29 2000-07-04 Chien; Tseng-Lu Lighting arrangements including a three-dimensional electro-luminscent element
US20010004808A1 (en) * 1998-11-23 2001-06-28 Hurwitz Marni M. Safety and sports equipment, apparel and accessories using electroluminescent fibers for illumination
US6976762B2 (en) * 2002-06-14 2005-12-20 Tseng-Lu Chien Tubular electro-luminescent light device

Cited By (8)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20110192058A1 (en) * 2010-02-11 2011-08-11 Nike, Inc. Article Of Footwear Incorporating Illuminable Strands
US8453357B2 (en) * 2010-02-11 2013-06-04 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating illuminable strands
US8544197B2 (en) 2010-02-11 2013-10-01 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating an illuminable panel
US20130333250A1 (en) * 2010-02-11 2013-12-19 Nike, Inc. Article Of Footwear Incorporating Illuminable Strands
US8813395B2 (en) * 2010-02-11 2014-08-26 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating illuminable strands
US9351538B2 (en) 2010-02-11 2016-05-31 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating an illuminable panel
US9364045B2 (en) 2010-02-11 2016-06-14 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating an illuminable panel
US10159298B2 (en) 2010-02-11 2018-12-25 Nike, Inc. Article of footwear incorporating an illuminable panel

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2006060400A2 (en) 2006-06-08
WO2006060400A3 (en) 2006-10-19

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Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
AS Assignment

Owner name: ZEPHYR ATHLETIC FOOTWEAR, INC., PENNSYLVANIA

Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNOR:SNYDER, DAVID;REEL/FRAME:017248/0933

Effective date: 20060119

STCB Information on status: application discontinuation

Free format text: ABANDONED -- FAILURE TO RESPOND TO AN OFFICE ACTION