Laced shoe

Abstract

A laced shoe having a shoelace which is conducted along guide elements disposed on opposing flaps of the shoe. The shoe includes spacers, disposed between the flaps, to serve as limiting stops to define the gap between the flaps. In this way, the tightness of the lacing in various sections of the shoe can be individually limited. The spacers may be tubes or helical springs threaded or clipped on sections of the shoelace.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A laced shoe comprising: 
 opposing flaps having guide elements mounted thereon;    a shoelace conducted along the guide elements; and    spacers disposed to define a gap between the flaps.    
     
     
         2 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the spacers comprise sleeves supported on sections of the shoelace.  
     
     
         3 . A laced shoe according to  claim 2  wherein the sleeves surround the sections of the shoelace.  
     
     
         4 . A laced shoe according to  claim 3  wherein the sleeves are threaded on the shoelace.  
     
     
         5 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the spacers are clipped on the shoelace.  
     
     
         6 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein each spacer comprises a tubular body.  
     
     
         7 . A laced shoe according to  claim 6  wherein each spacer has a notch extending longitudinally, and several notches extending circumferentially.  
     
     
         8 . A laced shoe according to  claim 6  wherein each spacer comprises two half-sleeves which are connected together by positively locking.  
     
     
         9 . A laced shoe according to  claim 6  wherein each spacer includes annular segments with circular segment-shaped openings.  
     
     
         10 . A laced shoe according to one  claim 1  wherein each spacer is a helical spring.  
     
     
         11 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the shoelace has a coating made of friction-reducing material.  
     
     
         12 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the spacers comprise perforated disks adapted to be threaded on the shoelace, and further comprising a fixing device for fixing the perforated disks to prevent shifting along the shoelace.  
     
     
         13 . A laced shoe according to  claim 12  wherein the fixing device comprises a toothed rod.  
     
     
         14 . A laced shoe according to  claim 12  wherein the fixing device comprises a perforated rod having a plurality of holes arranged in a row, and each perforated disk having a pin adapted to be inserted into the holes.  
     
     
         15 . A laced shoe according to  claim 12  further comprising a tongue and wherein the fixing device is formed integrally with the tongue.  
     
     
         16 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  further comprising at least one insert nut adapted to be affixed to one of said flaps of the shoe, and wherein the spacer comprises a threaded sleeve with external threads adapted to be screwed into at least one insert nut.  
     
     
         17 . A laced shoe according to  claim 16  wherein insert nuts are provided on both sides of the threaded sleeve.  
     
     
         18 . A laced shoe according to  claim 17  wherein the threaded sleeve has a section with left-hand threads and a section with right-hand threads.  
     
     
         19 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the spacer comprises telescoping parts adapted to be fixed in position relative to one another by a fastener.  
     
     
         20 . A laced shoe according to  claim 1  wherein the spacer comprises first and second hollow threaded rods, the first rod having an outer thread and the second rod having an inner thread so that the first rod can be screwed into the second rod.