US2264138A

US2264138A - Shoe tree

Info

Publication number: US2264138A
Application number: US387580A
Authority: US
Inventors: Donald B Mackay
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1941-04-09
Filing date: 1941-04-09
Publication date: 1941-11-25
Anticipated expiration: 1958-11-25

Description

Nov. 25, 1941. D. B. MACKAY 2,264,138

SHOE TREE Filed April 9, 1941 iatented Nov. 25, 1941 OFFICE SHOE TREE. Donald B. Mackay, New York, N. Y. Application April 9, 1941, Serial No. 387,580

Claims.

This invention relates to shoe trees and more particularly to an article of this character provided with means by which the tree may be adjusted to accurately fit shoes of different size and the adjustment thereof, when secured, may be mm'ntained.

At the present time shoe trees are provided with various types of adjusting means, but such means generally employed permits only a rough adjustment of the tree within the shoe.

The primary object of the present invention is to provide an adjusting means by which an accurate and snug fit of thetree within the shoe is attained and when the proper adjustment has been once secured, such adjustment may be indefinitely maintained.

More particularly, the invention contemplates the provision of an adjusting means by which the forward or toe portion of the tree may be spaced at a selected distance from the rear or heel por- 1.

1, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 3

is a plan view of the rear or heel portion of the shoe tree showing the adjusting mechanism; Fig.

4 is a horizontal sectional view through the adjusting mechanism; Fig. 5 is a View of the rear or heel portion of the tree with the adjusting mechanism removed; and Fig. 6 is a view of the underside of the pinion and attached adjusting knob.

As shown in Fig. 1 of the drawing, the shoe tree is primarily composed of two main parts, that indicated at I constituting the forward or toe portion of the tree and that indicated at 2 being the rear or heel portion. These parts may be made of any suitable material such as wood, metal or the like and may be generally of conventional form. The rear portion is provided on its top 3 with a suspension loop 4 pivotally mounted in the lugs 5 formed on the plate 6 which is secured by screws 1 to the top of the portion 2 of the shoe tree.

The forward part I of the shoe tree is provided with a flattened top surface 8 to which is secured, by the screws 9, a hinge leaf pivotally secured to a slotted hinge leaf or plate H by means of the pintle l2. The plate H has its longitudinal side edges bent downwardly to form guide flanges l3 which are slidable in the parallel slots I4 formed in the fiat top 15 of the rear or heel portion 2 of the shoe tree.

The leaf -II is also formed with a centrally disposed, longitudinally extending, slot it, one edge'of said slot being provided with a plurality of teeth I! constituting a rack and in mesh with a pinion I8secured or formed on the bottom of a knurled adjusting knob Hi. The adjusting knob and attached pinionv I8 are rotatable on a screw 28 received in an internally threaded bushing 2| sunk in the rear portion 2 of the shoe tree, as clearly indicated in Fig. 5. ,Rotative movement of the bushing 21 withinthe portion 2 of the shoe tree is prevented by means of a pin 22 acting as a set screw against the side of the bushing. The screw is provided with a winged head 23 in order to enable it to be manually tightened when desired to hold the knob l9 and pinion it against rotative movement, as will be explained.

From the foregoing, the operation of the improved shoe tree will be readily understood. When the tree is to be fitted into a shoe, the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 1, at which time the screw 20 is unthreaded out of bushing 2| for a sufficient extent so that the adjusting knob' 19 and pinion l8 may be manually rotated. The shoe tree is placed within the shoe and then the knob I9 is rotated to cause the pinion E8 to move the leaf Ii, said leaf forcing the portion I of the shoe tree away from portion 2 to the required extent to cause the tree to fit snug within the shoe. Because of the rack and pinion engagement between the two parts I and 2 of the shoe tree, the operation of the device is extremely smooth and an accurate and snug fitment of the tree within the shoe can be obtained. As soon as the tree is fitted within the shoe by adjustment of the parts as above mentioned, the position of the parts I and 2 relative to one another may then be maintained by tightening the screw 23 so that the head of the same bears firmly down upon the adjusting knob l9 and holds the same against rotative movement. The knob 19 being thus clamped against leaf Il', holds leaf H tightly against the fiat top 15 so that the several parts are thus held in clamped relationship and cannot be shifted until the screw 20 is first manually loosened.

By means of the arrangement described, adjustment of the shoe tree is smoothly and easily secured and maintained.

What I claim is:

1. A shoe tree having a toe portion and a heel portion, the toe portion having a hinge, the hinge having a leaf slidably engaging the heel portion, said leaf being provided with an elongated slot, a toothed rack disposed within the slot, a screw extending through said slot and received into the heel portion, a. manually rotative pinion through which the screw passes, said pinion being in meshed engagement with the rack and adapted to be held against rotative movement when the screw is tightened.

2. A shoe tree having a toe portion and a heel portion, the toe portion having a hinge, one leaf of said hinge being secured to the toe portion, the second leaf thereof being in slidable engagement with the heel portion, guide means in'th'e heel portion for engaging said second leaf, saidv second leaf being provided with a slot, one'edge of said slot being formed with a pluralityof teeth, an internally threaded bushing fixed in the heel portion, a screw adjustable in said bushing, a m ma-1 v retat e Pimps on i screw and a d' i hi he 9? a d nme edensaeem with the teeth thereof, and elements, on said pinion for engagement by the screw when said screw is tightenedin the bushing to hold thepin- 21 end att din a nst. mo emen 3. A shoe treehaving, a' toe portion and a heel portion, each ofsaid portions being provided with afiat upper face, a hinge attached to the flat upper faceof the toe portion, saidhingehavingaleaf overlying the flat upper face, of the heel portion, saidvface of theheel portion being provided-with guide grooves, the leaf having edge flanges guided in said grooves, the leaf being formed with a toothed rack, a screw threadedlverticallyinto the heel portion, said screw extending through the slot in the leaf, a pinion disposed on the screw and located in the slot and in meshed engagement with the rack, a knob on said pinion, and an enlarged head on the screw for engagement with the knob when the screw is tightened to hold the knob against the leaf and prevent rotative movement of the pinion with respect to the rack.

4. A shoe tree provided with a toe portion and a heel portion, a hinge having a leaf fixedly attached" to one of said portion and having a second leaf slidably attached to the other portion, the slidable leaf being provided with means guided by the shoe tree portion over which said leaf is slidable, said shoe tree portion having a rotatively mounted pinion, a rack carried by the slidable leaf and engaging the pinion, and clamping means by which the slidable leaf is clamped between a part of the pinion and the shoe tree portion over which said; leaf is slidable, and he 91. 9 1 and a v lid b e f hereby he 'va ins p e nt.

A 1 t eh r ne a Q H f iQ d a he l portion adjustably connected thereto, the connection between the toe and heel portions in cluding a rack overlying, the heel portion, a screw adjustable in the heelportion, a pinion meshed with the rack and rotatively carriedon the screw and adapted:bymanualrotationto move the rack, said screw when tightened,- acting toclamp the rackand pinion between. it and theheel portion to thereby hold said. rackand pinion against movement.

' DONALD B. MACKAY.