US3270927A

US3270927A - Lace puller

Info

Publication number: US3270927A
Application number: US469598A
Authority: US
Inventors: Mark K Wallach
Original assignee: Wolverine World Wide Inc
Current assignee: Wolverine World Wide Inc
Priority date: 1965-07-06
Filing date: 1965-07-06
Publication date: 1966-09-06
Anticipated expiration: 1983-09-06

Description

P 1966 M. K. WALLACH 3,270,927

LACE FULLER Filed July 6, 1965 INVENTOR. W016? 11/411466 ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,270,927 LACE PULLER Mark K. Wallach, Grand Rapids, Mich., assignor to Wolverine Shoe & Tanning Corporation, Rockford, Mich., a corporation of Michigan Filed July 6, 1965, Ser. No. 469,598 2 Claims. (Cl. 223113) This invention relates to sports equipment, and more particularly to a lace puller for loosening and tightening laces of boot type footwear, particularly ski boots and ice skates.

The process of tightening boot laces to a snug condition is normally achieved by pulling the laces several times with the hands as the boots are laced up. Frequently. some persons have difiiculty pulling the laces tightly enough, particularly for ski boots and ice skates. The laces also tend to create sore spots around the base of the index fingers and around the base of the little fingers, particularly after a weekend of skiing.

Pulling wet, tight laces loose can be troublesome too. It is difficult to get a finger under the tight laces, for example, in order to get a decent grip on them.

It is an object of this invention to provide a simple, inexpensive, but effective, one piece, metal stamping, lace puller enabling boot laces to be readily pulled for tightening or loosening. The device can be carried neatly in a pocket, or hung from part of the ski or skating outfit. With the device, the laces can be booked and pulled very snugly, while the pulling pressure is distributed over the pulling fingers, rather than concentrated in one spot on one or two fingers. The device is also useful for adjusting ski bindings.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent upon studying the following specification in conjunction with the drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of the novel lace puller; and

FIG. 2 is an end elevational, fragmentary view of the device in FIG. 1, taken in the direction indicated by the arrow II in FIG. 1.

Referring now specifically to the drawings, the lace puller there shown comprises a metal stamping of about No. 14 stock steel (i.e. about 0.074 inch in thickness). It has an elongated body portion 12 with a hooking, downwardly extending lace pulling tang 14 extending from one end. This pulling tang has an orientation generally transverse to the main dimension of body 12, and extends below the lower edge portions of the body in order to conveniently engage beneath a tight lace. Also along this lower side of the device, but on the opposite end from tang 14, is a pair of adjacent finger receiving concavities or

grooves

16 and 18, to receive a pair of fingers. Cooperative with these, but positioned on the upper edge of the device and closer to the end of the body containing tang 14, is a forwardly opening index finger receiving groove 20. This groove or concavity is backed by an upwardly projecting protrusion 22 causing the index finger receiving groove to be enclosed for about 180 of its peripheral extent. This achieves an excellent gripping relationship for the index finger, particularly when combined with

finger grooves

16 and 18 on the lower side of the device. The concavities on the opposite edges of the body enable the unit to be retained readily without slippage while force is applied axially along the long dimension of the lace puller.

The convexly curved nose 15 of the body adjacent pulling tang 14 enables prying loose of laces also, by insertion of the tang under the laces and pushing on the Patented Sept. 6, 1966 device. It effects prying leverage by rolling the puller over this nose.

With this ski lace puller, ski laces can be pulled loose simply by engaging tang 14 beneath the laces and then with the fingers in position, pried and/or pulled loose. Laces can likewise be pulled tight simply by holding the loose ends of the laces with one hand engaging the ski laces with tang l4, and pulling on the device. The pulling force is distributed to the several fingers on the device. The upper edge portion of the device is generally convexly curved to fit smoothly in the palm of the person's hand.

As noted, the device can be carried in a pocket, or can be suspended from any suitable part of the outfit, such as the jacket, by running a lace through the center opening 26.

The lace puller also preferably has a multiple use. More specifically, it preferably has a sharpened or convergent rear end portion 28 that will serve as a screwdriver, has a pair of wrench-type.

polygonal concavities

30 and 32 in its periphery to fit different type ski bindings for adjusting the bindings, and has a bottle opener 34 along its upper edge.

It will be realized that the device is very simple in nature. In fact, its simplicity is one of its main attributes, when considering the function it performs. It can be formed inexpensively from sheet metal stock stamping.

This invention is intended to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims, and the reasonably equivalent structures to those defined therein.

I claim:

1. A boot lace puller comprising: a generally fiat, one piece, integral plate stamping having an elongated body portion with upper and lower edges; said body portion having a hooking, lace-engaging tang extending on one end thereof generally tranverse to the long dimension of said body, and generally toward said lower edge; an arcuate index-finger-receiving-cavity rearwardly of said tang along said upper edge of said body; a palm engaging surface along said upper edge between said index-finger-receivingcavity and the body end opposite said one end; and at least two arcuate, finger receiving cavities in said lower edge adjacent said opposite end.

2. A boot lace puller comprising: a generally fiat, one piece, integral plate stamping having an elongated body portion with upper and lower elongated edges; said body portion having a booking, lace-engaging tang extending on one end thereof generally tranverse to the long dimension of said body and toward said lower elongated edge; said stamping having a convex nose on said one end adjacent said tang for providing prying leverage; an arcuate index-finger-receiving-cavity along the upper elongated edge of said body; a palm engaging surface along said opposite side of the body end opposite said one end; at least two arcuate, finger receiving cavities on said one side adjacent said opposite end; and polygonal ski binding adjusting cavities in the periphery of said body.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 45,815 5/1914 Marion 7-17 241,893 5/1881 Thayer 7-17 2,877,045 3/1959 Payne 294-26 3,027,057 3/1962 Johns 223113 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

G. H. KRIZMANICH, Assistant Examiner.

Claims

1. A BOOT LACE PULLER COMPRISING: A GENERALLY FLAT, ONE PIECE, INTEGRAL PLATE STAMPING HAVING AN ELONGATED BODY PORTION WITH UPPER AND LOWER EDGES; SAID BODY PORTION HAVING A HOOKING, LACE-ENGAGING TANG EXTENDING ON ONE END THEREOF GENERALLY TRANSVERSE TO THE LONG DIMENSION OF SAID BODY, AND GENERALLY TOWARD SAID LOWER EDGE; AN ARCUATE INDEX-FINGER-RECEIVING-CAVITY REARWARDLY OF SAID TANG ALONG SAID UPPER EDGE OF SAID BODY; A PALM ENGAGING SURFACE ALONG SAID UPPER EDGE BETWEEN SAID INDEX-FINGER-RECEIVINGCAVITY AND THE BODY END OPPOSITE SAID ONE END; AND AT LEAST TWO ARCUATE, FINGER RECEIVING CAVITIES IN SAID LOWER EDGE ADJACENT SAID OPPOSITE END.