How it works
The mechanism behind Nike’s ‘power laces’ was described inUS patent 8769844, published 8 July 2014. Basically, each shoe contains a motorized system where the laces and straps are tightened by winding them around spools. The automatic lacing system consists of two separate parts around the foot and ankle.
Nike Mag automatic lacing systems
In the lower part, the self-lacing system (annotated ’122′ in figure 13 of the patent application) has a strap moving mechanism (1202) located in a cavity (1287) within the sole of the shoe. It’s powered by a small motor (1230) that rotates a driveshaft (1232) with two gears (1240 and 1242). The gears transfer power to two belts (1250 and 1252) attached to the laces (111 to 114).
The ankle cinching (belt) system in the shoe’s upper part (’124′ in fig. 22) uses a different mechanism (2222) and would lie behind your achilles tendon. It uses a coil spring (2204) wrapped around a shaft (2232) that ultimately pulls on the ankle strap (150). The belt stays tight thanks to a locking mechanism (2299), which is disengaged by the shoe’s control system.
Nike Mag automatic lacing systems
The two strap moving mechanisms are automatically triggered after your body mass is detected by a weight sensor in the heel (’1606′ in fig. 17). Both are connected to the shoe’s central control system (1650). For adjustments, there are manual controls (’1004′ in fig. 10): press a green button to tighten the straps, red to loosen them.
Although the ‘power laces’ in the lower part of the trainers might gain the most attention, it’s actually the belt around the ankle that could prove really useful.
2015 Nike Mag
As Nike CEO Mark Parker hints in the press release, “We started creating something for fiction and we turned it into fact, inventing a new technology that will benefit all athletes.”
Advantages for athletes
The automatic lacing system could in principle be used in any shoe, but including it in a high-top sneaker – what the patent calls the ‘preferred embodiment’ – could be useful for people who play sports and are prone to roll or twist their ankles, such as tennis star Andy Murray, who wears ankle braces. Nike’s ankle cinching system could help protect sprains and prevent injury.
The 2015 Nike Mag isn’t available to buy in the shops, but will be sold via auction next year, with all proceeds going to the Michael J Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research. Within a few years, however, everyone will be able to wear sneakers with power laces.
source: http://www.forbes.com/
