Rotatable Shoe Cleats

Abstract

A rotatable cleat system is disclosed herein. The rotatable cleat system includes a plurality of rotatable members each having a bearing assembly and a cleat. Each of the plurality of rotatable members insert into a recessed aperture within a sole of one or more shoes and allows a wearer of the shoe(s) to comfortably rotate their foot. Particularly, the shoe(s) can be worn by a golfer during play of golf, enabling the golfer to increase their distance and accuracy of drives and limiting injuries to hips and knees by aiding rotation during a swing.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present disclosure. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art nor material to the presently described or claimed inventions, nor that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to the field of footwear of existing art and more specifically relates to footwear for sporting purposes.

RELATED ART

Golf is a sport that involves a golfer using a selected golf club and swinging the golf club to strike a golf ball into a hole. When swinging the golf club during shots requiring the golf ball to travel a greater distance (shots further away from the hole), golfers will typically swing, or twist, their bodies to increase momentum and force applied to the golf ball; thereby increasing distance traveled by the golf ball when struck. It is important to perform this movement correctly to maximize the swing of the golf club and therefore maximize distance and accuracy of the golf ball.

However, this swing typically requires considerable effort and places a lot of stress on the golfer's body; particularly the back, hips and knees. As such, not only is injury an ever prevalent threat for golfers, but this stress can also inhibit fluidity of the swing and prevent the golfer from striking the ball to the best of their ability. Thus, this results in diminished accuracy and decreased distance of the golf ball when struck. As such, a suitable solution is desired.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the foregoing disadvantages inherent in the known sport footwear art, the present disclosure provides novel rotatable shoe cleats. The general purpose of the present disclosure, which will be described subsequently in greater detail, is to provide a rotatable cleat system for one or more shoes, particularly golf shoes, to enable easier rotation for a golfer during a swing.

A rotatable cleat system for at least one shoe is disclosed herein. The at least one shoe includes a sole having a plurality of recessed apertures each defining a rotational axis. The rotatable cleat system may include a plurality of rotatable members configured for attachment about the sole of the at least one shoe. Each of the plurality of rotatable members may include a bearing assembly and a cleat. The bearing assembly may include an outer bearing race, an inner bearing race and a plurality of bearing balls. The outer bearing race may be configured for insertion into one of the recessed apertures in the sole of the at least one shoe; the inner bearing race may be located within the outer bearing race; and the plurality of bearing balls may be disposed between the inner bearing race and the outer bearing race.

The inner bearing race may define a center opening and may be configured for rotation about the rotational axis of the one of the recessed apertures (when attached therein). The cleat may be configured for insertion into the center opening of the inner bearing race and placed into contact therewith such that the cleat is also rotatable about the rotational axis of the one of the recessed apertures. Further, the cleat may include at least one spike for piercing a ground surface.

According to another embodiment, a method of installing a rotatable cleat system to at least one shoe is also disclosed herein. The method may include: providing the rotatable cleat system as above in addition to a locking tool including at least one bearing engagement portion on at least one end thereof; inserting the outer bearing race of one of the plurality of rotatable members into one of the recessed apertures in the sole of the at least one shoe; engaging the at least one bearing engagement portion of the locking tool with at least one tool engagement portion of the inner bearing race, thereby temporarily arresting rotation of the inner bearing race; inserting the cleat into the center opening of the inner bearing race; removing the locking tool from the inner bearing race, thereby enabling the inner bearing race and the cleat to rotate about the rotational axis of the one of the recessed apertures; and repeating previous steps (from step two of inserting the outer bearing race) until each of the plurality of rotatable members are attached to a recessed aperture.

For purposes of summarizing the invention, certain aspects, advantages, and novel features of the invention have been described herein. It is to be understood that not necessarily all such advantages may be achieved in accordance with any one particular embodiment of the invention. Thus, the invention may be embodied or carried out in a manner that achieves or optimizes one advantage or group of advantages as taught herein without necessarily achieving other advantages as may be taught or suggested herein. The features of the invention which are believed to be novel are particularly pointed out and distinctly claimed in the concluding portion of the specification. These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the following drawings and detailed description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures which accompany the written portion of this specification illustrate embodiments and methods of use for the present disclosure, rotatable shoe cleats, constructed and operative according to the teachings of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a rear perspective view of a rotatable cleat system in use on golf shoes, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a magnified view of the rotatable cleat system of FIG. 1 illustrating a plurality of rotatable members attached to the golf shoes, according to an embodiment of the disclosure.

FIG. 3A is a bottom view of a sole of a shoe including the plurality of rotatable members, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 3B is a bottom view of the sole of FIG. 3A and illustrating the plurality of rotatable members having been rotated, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-section view of the rotatable cleat system, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 5 is a magnified view of the rotatable cleat system of FIG. 4 and illustrating each of the plurality of rotatable members including a bearing assembly and a screw-in cleat, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 6 is an exploded view of the rotatable cleat system illustrating one of the plurality of rotatable members, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 7 is a bottom view of the sole of the shoe and illustrating a locking tool being used to arrest rotation of an inner bearing race of one of the plurality of rotatable members, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-section view of the rotatable cleat system, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a magnified view of the rotatable cleat system of FIG. 8 and illustrating each of the plurality of rotatable members including a bearing assembly and a clip-in cleat, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10 is an exploded view of the rotatable cleat system illustrating one of the plurality of rotatable members, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of installing a rotatable cleat system to at least one shoe, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

The various embodiments of the present invention will hereinafter be described in conjunction with the appended drawings, wherein like designations denote like elements.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above, embodiments of the present disclosure relate to golf footwear and more particularly to rotatable shoe cleats. Generally, the rotatable shoe cleats may include golf shoes with built in bearings, in which cleats can be screwed, clipped, or otherwise inserted into the bearings, thereby enabling the cleats to rotate. The rotatable shoe cleats may enable a golfer to increase their distance and accuracy of drives and limit injuries to hips and knees.

Referring now more specifically to the drawings by numerals of reference, there is shown in FIGS. 1-10, various views of a rotatable cleat system 100. As shown, the rotatable cleat system 100 may include a plurality of rotatable members 110 each having a bearing assembly 120 and a cleat 130 for attachment to at least one shoe 5. The at least one shoe 5 may include a sole 6 having a plurality of recessed apertures 7 each defining a rotational axis 8 (which is substantially vertical relative to a ground surface 10 when the shoe(s) 5 are worn) around which each of the plurality of rotatable members 110 rotate (when attached thereto).

As shown in FIG. 1, the at least one shoe 5 may preferably be one or more golf shoes. In some embodiments, the rotatable cleat system 100 may be designed for application to only one shoe 5. For example, a left handed golfer may benefit from just their right shoe 5 including the plurality of rotatable members 110; or a right handed golfer may benefit from just their left shoe 5 including the plurality of rotatable members 110. However, it should be appreciated that the rotatable cleat system 100 is not limited to just one shoe. It should also be appreciated that the rotatable cleat system 100 is not limited for use with golf shoe(s). In some embodiments, the at least one shoe 5 may be a custom shoe designed specifically for acceptance of the rotatable cleat system 100. In other embodiments, the rotatable cleat system 100 may be designed for use with any existing shoe(s). In some examples, the plurality of recessed apertures 7 may be pre-existing apertures in the sole 6. In other examples, the plurality of recessed apertures 7 may be formed by a user.

As shown in FIGS. 1-10, the plurality of rotatable members 110 are configured for attachment in various locations about the sole 6 of the at least one shoe 5. Particularly, the plurality of rotatable members 110 may be spaced apart about an entirety of the sole 6. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the plurality of rotatable members 110 may be located at a particular section of the sole 6; for example, toward a heel section or a toe section.

The cleat 130 may include at least one spike 131 configured for piercing the ground surface 10 (FIG. 1) and thereby providing stability to a wearer (a section of the plurality of rotatable members 110 that are piercing the ground surface 10 are shown via broken lines in FIG. 2 for clarity). As shown in FIGS. 1-6 and FIGS. 8-10, in some embodiments, the cleat 130 may include a cluster of spikes 131 arranged about a center point 132 (FIG. 6).

As above, the plurality of rotatable members 110 are configured to rotate, thereby enabling the wearer to comfortably rotate their foot during a swing. To enable rotation of the plurality of rotatable members 110, each of them may include a bearing assembly 120, as discussed above. As shown in the figures, each of the plurality of rotatable members 110 are identical and as such, only one of the bearing assemblies will be discussed below and demonstrated in these figures via one set of reference numbers.

As shown in FIGS. 4-6 and FIGS. 8-10 particularly, each bearing assembly 120 may include an outer bearing race 121, an inner bearing race 122 and a plurality of bearing balls 123. In some embodiments, each bearing assembly 120 may be made from plastic material. As shown in FIGS. 4-10, the outer bearing race 121 may be configured for insertion into one of the recessed apertures 7 in the sole 6 of the at least one shoe 5, thereby attaching the rotatable member 110 to the sole 6 of the at least one shoe 5. In some embodiments, the outer bearing race 121 may be fixedly attached to the one of the recessed apertures 7. For example, the outer bearing race 121 may be adhesively attached to the one of the recessed apertures 7.

The inner bearing race 122 may be located within the outer bearing race 121 and the plurality of bearing balls 123 may be disposed between the inner bearing race 122 and the outer bearing race 121, bordering an outer circumference of the inner bearing race 122. The inner bearing race 122 may be configured for rotation about the rotational axis 8 of the one of the recessed apertures 7 and the plurality of bearing balls 123 may aid in this rotation by reducing rotational friction.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, FIG. 7 and FIG. 9, the inner bearing race 122 may define a center opening 124 that is coaxial with the rotational axis 8 of the one of the recessed apertures 7 when the bearing assembly 120 is inserted therein. Further, the cleat 130 may be configured for insertion into the center opening 124 of the inner bearing race 122 and placed into contact therewith. As such, the center point 132 may also be placed coaxial with the rotational axis 8 and the cleat 130 is thus rotatable about the rotational axis 8 of the one of the recessed apertures 7.

In some embodiments, as demonstrated in FIGS. 4-6, the cleat 130 may be screwed into the center opening 124 of the inner bearing race 122. As such, an inner circumference of the inner bearing race 122 may include threads, and the center point 132 of the cleat 130 may also include threads to mate with the inner bearing race 122. The cleat 130 may be screwed into the inner bearing race 122 using a golf spike wrench/cleat wrench (not illustrated). To facilitate the attachment of the cleat 130, it is contemplated that the rotation of the inner bearing race 122 may be temporarily arrested. As such, in some embodiments, as shown in FIG. 7, a locking tool 140 may be provided.

The locking tool 140 may include at least one bearing engagement portion 141 on at least one end thereof. In this embodiment, the inner bearing race 122 may include at least one tool engagement portion 125 configured to engage with the at least one bearing engagement portion 141 (FIG. 5-6). Engagement of the at least one bearing engagement portion 141 with the at least one tool engagement portion 125 arrests rotation of the inner bearing race 122, such that a user is able to utilize the golf spike wrench/cleat wrench to screw the cleat 130 into the inner bearing race 122 (without the rotation of the inner bearing race 122 preventing the cleat 130 from being screwed into the center opening 124).

As shown in FIG. 7, the locking tool 140 may include a body 142 having a first end 143 opposite a second end 144. Each of the first end 143 and the second end 144 may include a pair of bearing engagement portions 141, or more particularly, a pair of tabs 145 located opposite each other; and the at least one tool engagement portion 125 may include a pair of openings 126 (FIGS. 5-6) located opposite each other and each configured to receive one of the pair of tabs 145, as shown in FIG. 7. Preferably, the locking tool 140 may lay flat against the sole 6 of the at least one shoe 5 when the at least one bearing engagement portion 141 is engaged with the at least one tool engagement portion 125, so as to not obstruct the golf spike wrench/cleat wrench. As such, the body 142 of the locking tool 140 may be substantially flat.

Referring more specifically to FIGS. 8-10, there is shown an alternative embodiment wherein the cleat 130 may be ‘clipped’ into the center opening 124 of the inner bearing race 122. In this embodiment, the center point 132 of the cleat 130 may include a male member 133; and the center opening 124 may include a female member 127 configured to receive and retain the male member 133 therein.

Referring now to FIG. 11 showing a flow diagram illustrating a method 200 of installing a rotatable cleat system to at least one shoe, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. In particular, the method 200 may include one or more components or features of the rotatable cleat system 100 as described above. As illustrated, the method 200 may include the steps of: step one 201, providing the rotatable cleat system as above; step two 202, inserting the outer bearing race of one of the plurality of rotatable members into one of the recessed apertures in the sole of the at least one shoe; step three 203, engaging the at least one bearing engagement portion of the locking tool with the at least one tool engagement portion of the inner bearing race, thereby temporarily arresting rotation of the inner bearing race; step four 204, inserting the cleat into the center opening of the inner bearing race; step five 205, removing the locking tool from the inner bearing race, thereby enabling the inner bearing race and the cleat to rotate about the rotational axis of the one of the recessed apertures; and step six 206, repeating previous steps (from step two 202) until each of the plurality of rotatable members are attached to a recessed aperture.

In some embodiments, step two 202, may include adhesively attaching the outer bearing race to the one of the recessed apertures. Further, in some embodiments, step four 204 may include one of screwing or clipping the cleat into the center opening of the inner bearing race. Further, as discussed above, in some embodiments, the plurality of recessed apertures may be created by the user. As such, in some embodiments, prior to step two 202, the user may form the plurality of recessed apertures in the sole of the at least one shoe.

It should be noted that certain steps are optional and may not be implemented in all cases. It should also be noted that the steps described in the method of use can be carried out in many different orders according to user preference. The use of “step of” should not be interpreted as “step for”, in the claims herein and is not intended to invoke the provisions of 35 U.S.C. § 112(f). It should also be noted that, under appropriate circumstances, considering such issues as design preference, user preferences, marketing preferences, cost, structural requirements, available materials, technological advances, etc., other methods for using and/or installing a rotatable cleat system to a shoe are taught herein.

The embodiments of the invention described herein are exemplary and numerous modifications, variations and rearrangements can be readily envisioned to achieve substantially equivalent results, all of which are intended to be embraced within the spirit and scope of the invention. Further, the purpose of the foregoing abstract is to enable the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the public generally, and especially the scientist, engineers and practitioners in the art who are not familiar with patent or legal terms or phraseology, to determine quickly from a cursory inspection the nature and essence of the technical disclosure of the application.

Claims

1: A tool holder comprising:

at least one garment, the at least one garment including a garment-body being configured for wear on a hand of a user, and a cuff being configured for wear on a wrist of the user, the cuff being attached to the garment-body, the at least one garment further including a rear side relative to the hand of the user when worn and a palm side opposite the rear side and relative to the hand of the user when worn; and

a set of tool holding-means located about at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool holding-means configured to attach a plurality of tools to said at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool-holding means including at least two fasteners, the at least two fasteners each configured to attach at least one tool from the plurality of tools to the at least one garment.

2: The tool holder of claim 1, wherein the at least one garment includes a pair of garments, and wherein the pair of garments each includes a left garment and a right garment.

3: The tool holder of claim 1, wherein the garment-body further includes a set of digit-receiving sections for receiving digits of the hand of the user.

4: The tool holder of claim 1, wherein the set of tool-holding means further includes at lest one pocket.

5: The tool holder of claim 4, wherein the set of tool holding-means are further configured to attach a plurality of tool-accessories to the garment-body.

6: The tool holder of claim 5, wherein the plurality of tools includes at least one pencil.

7: The tool holder of claim 6, wherein the at least one pencil is attached to between two digit-receiving sections of the set of digit-receiving sections such that the at least one pencil is useable when attached to the garment-body.

8: The tool holder of claim 7, wherein the plurality of tools further includes at least one measuring device.

9: The tool holder of claim 8, wherein the plurality of tools further includes at least one light device.

10: The tool holder of claim 9, wherein the plurality of tools further includes at least one knife.

11: The tool holder of claim 10, wherein the plurality of tool-accessories includes at least one screw.

12: The tool holder of claim 11, wherein the plurality of tool-accessories includes at least one drill bit.

13: The tool holder of claim 12, wherein the at least two fasteners includes at least one magnet.

14: The tool holder of claim 12, wherein the magnet is located about the cuff.

15: The tool holder of claim 14, wherein the cuff is pivotably-attached to the glove-body.

16: The tool holder of claim 15, wherein the at least two fasteners includes at least one clip.

17: The tool holder of claim 16, wherein at least one digit-receiving section from the set of digit-receiving sections includes an electrically conductive material configured for use with a touchscreen.

18: A tool holder comprising:

a pair of garments each configured for wear on a hand of a user, the pair of garments including a left garment and a right garment, each of the left garment and the right garment including a garment-body each being configured for wear on a hand of a user, and a cuff being configured for wear on a wrist of the user, the cuff being attached to the garment-body, the at least one garment further including a rear side relative to the hand of the user when worn and a palm side opposite the rear side and relative to the hand of the user when worn; and

a set of tool holding-means located about at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool holding-means configured to attach at least one of a plurality of tools and a plurality of tool-accessories to said at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool-holding means including at least two fasteners, the at least two fasteners each configured to attach one of a tool and a tool-accessory to the at least one garment;

wherein the plurality of tools is selected from the group consisting of at least one pencil, at least one measuring device, at least one light device, and at least one knife;

wherein the plurality of tool-accessories is selected from the group consisting of at least one screw and at least one drill bit; and

wherein the at least two fasteners is selected from the group consisting of at least one magnet and at least one clip; and

wherein the set of tool-holding means further includes at least one pocket.

19: A method of using a tool holder, the method comprising the steps of:

providing the tool holder, the tool holder including: at least one garment, the at least one garment including a garment-body being configured for wear on a hand of a user, and a cuff being configured for wear on a wrist of the user, the cuff being attached to the garment-body, the at least one garment further including a rear side relative to the hand of the user when worn and a palm side opposite the rear side and relative to the hand of the user when worn; and a set of tool holding-means located about at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool holding-means configured to attach a plurality of tools to said at least one of the garment-body and the cuff, the set of tool-holding means including at least two fasteners, the at least two fasteners each configured to attach at least one tool from the plurality of tools to the at least one garment;

attaching the garment-body to the hand of the user and the cuff to the wrist of the user;

attaching the plurality of tools to said at least one of the garment-body and the cuff via the at least two fasteners; and

selectively using the plurality of tools.

20: The method of using a tool holder, further comprising the steps of:

providing the set of tool holding-means further configured to attach a plurality of tool-accessories to at least one of the garment-body and the cuff;

attaching the plurality of tool-accessories to said at least one of the garment-body and the cuff via the at least two fasteners; and

selectively using the plurality of tool-accessories.