Lace system for footwear

Abstract

A snowboard boot incorporating techniques for making the process of tightening and loosening the laces of a snowboard boot more convenient for the wearer is disclosed. The snowboard boot may be provided with at least two independent lacing zones, the tensions of which are separately adjustable by the wearer. The zones may be secured by pulling on two laces, each of which tightens one of the two independent lacing zones. This arrangement allows the wearer to simultaneously tighten each zone, providing the wearer with the “feel” as though he or she is tightening a conventional single lacing zone snowboard boot. The laces may be simultaneously, yet independently secured by a lace lock at the upper and/or forward region of the snowboard boot. Slack may be created to facilitate loosening of the snowboard boot and easy removal of a foot from the snowboard boot by unhooking the lace from the lace guide without a corresponding distance of lace traveling through the lace lock. A release strap, graspable by the wearer, facilitates unhooking the lace.

1 . A snowboard boot comprising:
 a snowboard boot body;   a lace coupled to the snowboard boot body and adapted to be tensioned to tighten the snowboard boot body at least about a foot of a wearer; and   a lace recoil device to which the lace is attached, the lace recoil device adapted to take up excess lace.   
     
     
         2 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace recoil device comprises a self-winding spool about which the excess lace is wound. 
     
     
         3 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace recoil device comprises a lock constructed and arranged to lock the lace. 
     
     
         4 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , further comprising a lace lock engageable with the lace to hold the lace to tighten the boot body. 
     
     
         5 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 3 , further comprising a lace lock engageable with the lace to hold the lace to tighten the boot body. 
     
     
         6 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 4 , wherein the lace lock is mounted to the snowboard boot body. 
     
     
         7 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 5 , wherein the lace lock is mounted to the snowboard boot body. 
     
     
         8 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the lace lock comprises a lace cleat comprising a having opposing walls with locking teeth formed on each wall, the walls converging to form a wedge-shaped channel, the channel and locking teeth cooperating to hold a portion of the lace within the body of the cleat. 
     
     
         8 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 6 , wherein the boot body comprises a tongue opening disposed in a shin-to-toe direction and a tongue disposed within the opening, wherein the cleat is mounted to the boot body such that each wedge-shaped channel is substantially parallel to the tongue opening. 
     
     
         9 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 7 , wherein the lace lock comprises a lace cleat comprising a having opposing walls with locking teeth formed on each wall, the wails converging to form a wedge-shaped channel, the channel and locking teeth cooperating to hold a portion of the lace within the body of the cleat. 
     
     
         10 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 9 , wherein the boot body comprises a tongue opening disposed in a shin-to-toe direction and a tongue disposed within the opening, wherein the cleat is mounted to the boot body such that each wedge-shaped channel is substantially parallel to the tongue opening. 
     
     
         11 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace comprises a free end, wherein the free end is anchored to the lace recoil device. 
     
     
         12 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace comprises a free end, wherein the free end is anchored to the self-winding spool. 
     
     
         13 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace is laced in a lacing pattern characterized in that the lace follows a meandering path and does not cross over itself. 
     
     
         14 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the lace comprises an anchor end attached to the snowboard boot adjacent a toe-area. 
     
     
         15 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 1 , wherein the snowboard boot body further comprises a lower, foot region adapted to cover a foot of a wearer, and an upper, shin region adapted to cover at least a portion of a shin of the wearer, the snowboard boot further comprising a lower lacing zone comprising a lace adapted to tighten the lower region and an upper lacing zone comprising a lace adapted to tighten the upper region, wherein a lace recoil device is attached to the lace of each lacing zone. 
     
     
         16 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , wherein the lace of the upper zone and the lace of the lower zone may be tightened independently to achieve different levels of tightness in the upper lacing zone and the lower lacing zone. 
     
     
         17 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , further comprising a lace lock to hold the lace to tighten the boot body wherein the at least one lace lock comprises a first lace lock engageable with the lace of the upper lacing zone and adapted to secure the lace of the upper zone and a second lace lock engageable with the lace of the lower lacing zone and adapted to secure the lace of the lower zone. 
     
     
         18 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , further comprising an indicator to indicate to the wearer that a lace corresponds to a particular lacing zone. 
     
     
         19 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 18 , wherein the indicator comprises a first indicator on the lace of the lower zone, wherein the first indicator comprises the word “LOWER”, and a second indicator on the lace of the upper zone, wherein the second indicator comprises the word “UPPER”. 
     
     
         20 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , wherein the lace of the upper zone and the lace of the second zone are sequentially or simultaneously securable at the upper region. 
     
     
         21 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , wherein each zone is tightened with a separate lace. 
     
     
         22 . The snowboard boot according to  claim 15 , wherein the lace of the lower zone has a portion that is disposed in the upper region and wherein the lace of the upper zone has a portion that is disposed in the upper region. 
     
     
         23 . A method of tightening a snowboard boot, the snowboard boot comprising a snowboard boot body, a lace coupled to the snowboard boot body, and a lace recoil device to which the lace is attached, the method comprising:
 drawing the lace to tighten the boot about at least a foot of a wearer; and   allowing the lace recoil device to recoil to take up excess lace.   
     
     
         24 . The method according to  claim 23 , wherein the lace recoil device comprises a lock, wherein the method further comprises locking the lace by the lock of the recoil device. 
     
     
         25 . The method according to  claim 23 , wherein the snowboard boot further comprises a lace lock, wherein the method further comprises securing the lace by the lace lock. 
     
     
         26 . The method according to  claim 25 , wherein the snowboard boot further comprises a lace lock, wherein the method further comprises securing the lace by the lace lock. 
     
     
         27 . The method according to  claim 23 , wherein the snowboard boot comprises a lower lacing zone having a lace, the lower lacing zone cooperating with a lower region of the snowboard boot body, and an upper lacing zone having a lace, the upper lacing zone cooperating with an upper region of the snowboard boot body, the method further comprising: drawing the lace of the lower lacing zone in a tightening direction to tighten the lower region of the boot body; and drawing the lace of the upper zone in a tightening direction to tighten the upper region of the boot body. 
     
     
         28 . The method according to  claim 27 , further comprising tightening the upper and lower lacing zones independently of each other to achieve different levels of tightness in the upper and lower regions, respectively. 
     
     
         29 . The method according to  claim 27 , wherein the snowboard boot further comprises at least one lace lock mounted in the upper region, wherein the method further comprises securing the lace of the upper and lower lacing zones at the upper region of the boot body. 
     
     
         30 . A snowboard boot comprising:
 a snowboard boot body;   a lace lock mounted to the snowboard boot body;   a lace coupled to the snowboard boot body and adapted to be tensioned to tighten the snowboard boot body at least about a foot of a wearer, the lace being secured by the lace lock after the snowboard boot body is tightened about the foot of the wearer to maintain tension in the lace, the lace having an excess lace portion extending beyond the lace lock; and   a lace recoil device to which the lace is attached, the lace recoil device adapted to take up the excess lace portion.