Systems and Methods for Accessory Coupling

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 63/568,117, filed Mar. 21, 2024, entitled “SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR ACCESSORY COUPLING” which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety for all purposes.

The present disclosure relates to accessory coupling, and more specifically to securely and releasably coupling personal items.

Customers often enjoy accessorizing personal articles, for example footwear. Children often enjoy carrying personal items on their person. Often such personal items can be dropped, misplaced, or stored in a manner that does not permit case of access by the child to the personal item, for example.

A system for attaching a personal item to a shoe according to embodiments of the present disclosure includes: a shoe, wherein the shoe is a molded shoe made from a stretchable material, the shoe having a plurality of expandable holes in an upper portion of the shoe; a shaft having first and second ends; a first shoulder secured to the first end of the shaft, the first shoulder being configured for insertion through a first expandable hole of the plurality of expandable holes and configured to engage an inner surface of the upper portion of the shoe; a second shoulder secured to the second end of the shaft; a mounting patch coupled to the second shoulder, the mounting patch comprising a receiving surface that extends at least to a second expandable hole of the plurality of expandable holes, the second expandable hole is adjacent to the first expandable hole; a personal item comprising an attachment surface, the attachment surface configured to securely yet releasably couple to the receiving surface when the attachment surface is placed into contact with the receiving surface.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a system for attaching a personal item to a shoe includes: a shoe, wherein the shoe is a molded shoe made from a stretchable material, the shoe having a plurality of expandable holes in an upper portion of the shoe; a shaft having first and second ends; a first shoulder secured to the first end of the shaft, the first shoulder being configured for insertion through an expandable hole of the plurality of expandable holes and configured to engage an inner surface of the upper portion of the shoe; a second shoulder secured to the second end of the shaft; a mounting patch coupled to the second shoulder, the mounting patch comprising a receiving surface comprising at least one of the hooks and the loops of a hook and loop coupling system; and a personal item comprising an attachment surface, the attachment surface comprising at least another of the hooks and the loops of a hook and loop coupling system, the attachment surface configured to securely yet releasably couple to the receiving surface via the hook and loop coupling system when the attachment surface is placed into contact with the receiving surface, wherein a maximum dimension of the personal item is less than twice a width of the shoe.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a system for attaching a personal item to a shoe includes: a shoe, wherein the shoe is a molded shoe made from a stretchable material, the shoe having a plurality of expandable holes in an upper portion of the shoe; a shaft having first and second ends; a first shoulder secured to the first end of the shaft, the first shoulder being configured for insertion through a first expandable hole of the plurality of expandable holes and configured to engage an inner surface of the upper portion of the shoe; a second shoulder secured to the second end of the shaft; a mounting patch coupled to the second shoulder, the mounting patch comprising a receiving surface that extends at least to a second expandable hole of the plurality of expandable holes, the second expandable hole is adjacent to the first expandable hole, the receiving surface comprising the hooks of a hook and loop coupling system, and wherein the mounting patch has a maximum dimension larger than a maximum dimension of the second shoulder; a personal item comprising an attachment surface, the attachment surface comprising the loops of a hook and loop coupling system, the attachment surface configured to couple to the receiving surface via the hook and loop coupling system when the attachment surface is placed into contact with the receiving surface, wherein a maximum dimension of the personal item is less than twice a width of the shoe.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0006], wherein the personal item is a toy.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0007], wherein the personal item is made of plush material.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0008], wherein a maximum dimension of the personal item is less than twice a width of the shoe.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0009], wherein the personal item comprises the loops of a hook and loop coupling system.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0010], wherein the personal item has at least one separate pair of hooks and loops of a hook and loop coupling system.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0011], wherein the personal item has at least two separate pairs of hooks and loops of a hook and loop coupling system.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0012], wherein the personal item's outer surface is made entirely of textile material.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0013], wherein the mounting patch extends above the surface of the first expandable hole by no more than one inch.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0014], wherein the personal item is in the form of an animal.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0015], wherein the second shoulder is configured to engage an outer surface of the upper portion of the shoe.

The system of any of paragraphs to wherein the mounting patch and attachment surface are large enough to enable the personal item to be securely attached at any rotational orientation of the personal item to the mounting patch.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0017], wherein the mounting patch has a radial maximum dimension larger than a radial maximum dimension of the second shoulder.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0018], wherein the shoe and the mounting patch are coupled together only via the first shoulder, the shaft, and the second shoulder.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0019], wherein the personal item and the mounting patch are coupled together only via the receiving surface and the attachment surface.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0020], wherein the receiving surface has a maximum dimension larger than a maximum dimension of the second shoulder.

The system of any of paragraphs [0004] to [0021], wherein the personal item is a tool, a bag, a memento, a portable item, or a movable item.

While multiple embodiments are disclosed, still other embodiments of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, which shows and describes illustrative embodiments of the disclosure. Accordingly, the drawings and detailed description are to be regarded as illustrative in nature and not restrictive.

While the disclosure is amenable to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been shown by way of example in the drawings and are described in detail below. The intention, however, is not to limit the disclosure to the particular embodiments described. On the contrary, the disclosure is intended to cover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling within the scope of the disclosure as described and as defined by the appended claims.

illustrates a shoehaving a plurality of expandable holes. The shoehas a first expandable holeand a second expandable hole. The shoemay also have a plurality of expandable holes, including more than two expandable holes. Holemay be flexible and/or stretchable. In other embodiments, the shoecan be replaced with a different article of clothing that has expandable holes.

illustrates a systemfor attaching a personal itemto a shoein accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. In the illustrated embodiment, the personal itemcan be, or serve as, a toy. In other embodiments, the personal item is another object that is small enough to be moved or carried, for example, a bag, article of clothing, tool, or other object. The personal itemhas an attachment surfaceconfigured to couple to a receiving surface. Receiving surfaceis coupled to a mounting patch. In some embodiments the systemincludes shoe. While personal itemdescribed herein is a plush bear that can be, or serve as, a toy, a person of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate, based on the present disclosure, that the structures and functions of the personal itemapply also to, and describe, other personal items.

In some instances, the attachment surfaceis or is formed as an integral part of the personal item. In other instances, the attachment surfaceis otherwise coupled to the personal item. According to some embodiments, the attachment surfacecouples the personal itemto the receiving surfaceof the mounting patch. In some embodiments, the attachment surfaceand receiving surfacecouple to one another via a pair of hook and loop couplers. According to some embodiments, the attachment surfaceand receiving surfaceinclude several pairs of hook and loop couplers, for example each of the attachment surfaceand receiving surfaceincludes a hook portion and a loop portion of a hook and loop coupling system, and the surface at the other side can have a corresponding hook portion and loop portion.

In some embodiments, the attachment surfaceincludes only the loop portion of a hook and loop coupling system. Such a configuration can promote softness and/or gentleness of the personal item. Configuring the hook and loop coupling system in this manner facilitates touching of the personal itemby children and/or skin contact with the personal item by children, such as occurs through hugging or cuddling of the personal item. Using the loop portion of the hook and loop coupling system may thus present a surface that is less abrasive than using the hook portion on the personal item, for example. In other embodiments, the personal itemincludes some or all of the hook portion of the hook and loop coupling system.

In some embodiments, the attachment surfacecovers the entire outer surfaceof the personal item. Such configurations can allow users of the systemto attach the personal itemin many different locations, according to the user's preference. In some embodiments, the attachment surfacecovers a portion of the outer surfaceof the personal itemthat is less than the entire outer surface.

As illustrated in, the receiving surfaceis located on at least one surface of the mounting patch. In some embodiments, the receiving surfaceis formed integrally with the mounting patch. In other embodiments, the receiving surfaceis coupled to the mounting patch, for example via a sewing process, glue, and/or other coupling mechanisms. According to some embodiments, the receiving surfacecovers an entire surface of the mounting patchto present a surface area of larger size. In other embodiments, the receiving surfaceincludes a portion of a surface of the mounting patch. In other embodiments, the receiving surfaceis distributed along and/or across multiple surfaces of the mounting patch.

In some embodiments, the receiving surfaceis the same size and shape as the attachment surface. In other embodiments, the receiving surfacehas a larger area than the attachment surface, and in yet other embodiments the receiving surface has a smaller area than the attachment surface. Selecting the relative sizes of the receiving surfaceand the attachment surfacecan allow a user flexibility in using the systemto attach the personal itemin different configurations. For example, the user may desire to attach the personal itemin different rotational orientations, and certain configurations of receiving surfaceand attachment surfacemay allow for different attachment orientations. Some configurations allow for the personal itemto attach at any orientation to the mounting patch. Further, in some embodiments, the systemcan be rotated while engaged with the shoe, so that the mounting patchcan be rotated to different rotational orientations, allowing different attachment orientations of the personal itemrelative to the shoewithout disengaging the systemfrom the shoe.

In some embodiments, the receiving surfaceand attachment surfacecan securely and releasably attach the personal itemto the mounting patch. According to some embodiments, the personal itemsecurely attaches to the mounting patchsuch that during normal walking or running, or otherwise foreseeable uses of the shoe, the personal itemremains coupled to the mounting patchand does not detach. According to some embodiments, the personal itemreleasably attaches to the mounting patchsuch that a user (e.g., a child) can manually attach and/or detach the personal itemto/from the mounting patch. According to some embodiments, the personal itemsecurely and releasably attaches to the mounting patch.

In some embodiments, the system, and particularly mounting patch, is sized and shaped to accommodate normal use of shoe. For example, the mounting patchcan be sized so that it does not extend too far outwardly from the surface of the shoe, from the surface of first expandable hole, other expandable holes. The mounting patchmay be sized to extend from the surface of the shoein a low-profile manner. Other aspects of the system, for example the shaftor second shoulder, can be configured to also assume a low profile (or other size, shape, or ergonomic benefit) when in use.

According some embodiments, the receiving surfaceand attachment surfacecouple to one another with one or more of magnets, physical straps, chemicals, glue, or the like.

A shoeis described as an example in the present disclosure, but in other embodiments the systemincludes one or more other forms of clothing, wearable items, and/or personal items that include molded, expandable, flexible, or stretchable holes. For example the systemcan be used with a wide array of items, for example footwear, bags, clothing, hats, belts, watches, bracelets, necklaces, toys, water bottles or other drinking vessels, purses, backpacks, fanny packs, phone cases or other electronics cases, bed frames, other personal items or objects, and the like.

illustrates attachment charm system. In some embodiments, systemcomprises attachment charm system. In other embodiments, systemdoes not comprise attachment charm system. The attachment charm systemincludes a first shoulder, second shoulder, shaft, mounting patch, and receiving surface. The first shoulder, shaft, and second shoulderof the attachment charm systemmay be configured in the manner, and operate as, described with respect to the attachment systems described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,698,836, granted on Apr. 20, 2010, which is incorporated by reference here in its entirety for all purposes.

First shouldercan be inserted through an expandable hole (for example, first expandable hole). In some embodiments, the diameter of first shoulderis larger than the diameter of the expandable hole when the hole is in its unexpanded state. When inserted through the expandable hole, first shoulderhelps to secure the attachment charm systemto the shoe.

In some embodiments, the shaftis coupled to first shoulderand second shoulder, and in some embodiments the first shoulderand second shoulderare coupled to opposite ends of the shaft. In these embodiments, when the first shoulderis inserted through the first expandable hole, the shaftextends through the holeand second shoulderis effectively secured on the other side of the expandable hole.

In some embodiments, the mounting patchis coupled to the second shoulder, for example by adhesive coupling, mechanical coupling, and/or integral formation. As illustrated in, the second shouldermay comprise the mounting patch.

D1 is a maximum dimension of mounting patch, and D2 is a maximum dimension of the second shoulder. These maximum dimensions may be taken in a radial direction as shown in. As used herein, the “maximum dimension” of an element is used in its broadest sense to refer to a longest distance between two points of the element along a plane intersecting the element. In some embodiments D1 is larger than D2, and in some embodiments D1 is equal to D2. In other embodiments, the radial maximum dimension of the mounting patchis larger than the radial maximum dimension of the second shoulder. In some embodiments, the distance D1 is at least a multiple of distance D2, for example D1 is at least a multiple of D2 by 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 2, 2.5, 3, 3.5, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8.

In some embodiments, systemincludes multiple attachment charm systemsand a shoe, each of the multiple charm systemscompatible with the shoe. With multiple attachment charm systems, a personal item or personal itemscan be placed on the shoein different locations depending on a user's preference. For example, in some embodiments two different attachment charm systemscan be placed on a shoe. In such embodiments, a user could decide whether to place the personal itemon the first attachment charm systemor the second attachment charm system. In some embodiments, the user can use two or more attachment charm systemsin a way that allows the personal itemto attach to multiple attachment charm systems. In certain embodiments multiple different attachment charm systemsuse the same coupling mechanism for coupling to personal item, and in some embodiments the multiple different attachment charm systemsuse different coupling mechanisms for coupling to personal item. In some embodiments the personal itemhas multiple different coupling mechanisms and in other embodiments the personal itemonly has one form of coupling mechanism (e.g., only hook and loop coupling, only magnets, and/or the like). In some embodiments, the personal itemcan be used interchangeably with attachment charm systemsworn by other users, in addition to the attachment charm systemworn by the user.

In some embodiments, one or more of the system, attachment charm system, and personal itemare modular. For example, in some embodiments the attachment charm systemis configured to engage both the left shoe and right shoe that constitute a pair of shoes, and in further embodiments attachment charm systemcan be configured for engagement with different pairs of shoes. In such embodiments, for example, a user can use attachment charm systemwith their own shoes, and can use the same attachment charm systemwith another person's pair of shoes. In some embodiments, the systemis configured to selectively engage with both shoes in a pair of shoes, and in other embodiments the systemcan be used with different pairs of shoes.

In some embodiments personal itemcan be bundled with, packaged with, and/or sold alongside systemand/or attachment charm system, and in other embodiments these elements are unbundled, separately packaged, and/or sold separately. In some embodiments, multiple personal itemsare sold together, in other embodiments multiple attachment charm systemsare sold together, and in further embodiments, multiple personal itemsare bundled with, packaged with, and/or sold alongside multiple attachment charm systems.

illustrates a personal item, according to some embodiments. In some embodiments the personal itemis in the form of a toy bear. In other embodiments, as described further below, personal itemmay take other forms or be entirely different items.

In some embodiments, personal itemhas a first pair of couplers. In certain embodiments, the first pair of couplersis a pair of hook and loop couplers. For example, in an embodiment in which the personal itemhas limbs, as illustrated in, the first pair of couplerscan be located on the limbs, for example on the bear's hands. In such an embodiment, this placement enables the limbs, for example the hand regions of the personal item, to be releasably coupled. Further, in some embodiments, one of the two regions that comprise the first pair of couplerscan also be attached to the attachment surfaceof the personal itemor to the receiving surfaceof the mounting patch, depending on the compatibility of each of the fastening regions involved.

According to some embodiments, the personal itemalso includes a second pair of couplersin addition to the first pair of couplers. In some embodiments the second pair of couplersis a pair of hook and loop couplers. In the example according to which the personal itemhas limbs, for example four limbs like the bear shown in, the second pair of couplerscould be located on the bear's feet to enable the bear's feet to be fastened together. According to some embodiments, the first pair of couplersis separate from and/or independent of the attachment surface. According to some embodiments, the first pair of couplers, the second pair of couplers, and the attachment surfaceare each separate from and/or independent of one another.

In some embodiments, the receiving surfaceand attachment surface, the first separate pair of couplers, and the second separate pair of couplers, couple in the same manner. In such an embodiment the relevant portions of these pairs of couplers could be interoperable with other relevant portions of the other pairs of couplers. For example, one region comprising the first separate pair of couplerscould couple with one of the attachment surface, the receiving surface, or one region of the second separate pair of couplers. In such an embodiment, a user of the personal item, system, or attachment charm systemcould attach the personal itemto mounting patchin many different configurations, depending on the preference of the user.

In further embodiments the personal itemis not shaped like a bear but is shaped like a different animal. In some embodiments the personal itemis not shaped like an animal. The personal itemmay be shaped in many ways, including other popular configurations for kids such as imaginary animals, television or movie characters, fictional characters, nonfictional characters, abstract shapes, or the like. Further, instead of being shaped as described above, personal itemmay also be, for example, a tool, bag, memento, or any item that can be easily moved or carried.

In some embodiments, the outer surfaceof the personal itemother than the attachment surfaceis comprised of plush material. In other embodiments, the outer surfaceconsists entirely of plush material. In some embodiments, the ratio of the surface area of attachment surfaceto the total surface area of outer surfaceis at least a multiple, for example the ratio of the surface area of attachment surfaceto the total surface area of outer surfaceis at least a ratio of 0.01, 0.02, 0.03. 0.04, 0.05, 0.1, 0.15, 0.2, 0.25, 0.3, 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.7, 0.8, 0.9, or 1.

In other embodiments, the outer surfaceof the personal itemcan be made with different materials, such as velvet, polymer, silk, textile material, or the like. Incorporating different materials into outer surfacecan allow the user to select a desired material based on different preferences, including for example the personal item's comfort when pressed against the skin or otherwise used as a personal item may be used. Further, varying the relative size of the attachment surfaceto the remainder of the personal item'souter surfacecan allow for the personal itemto be attached in multiple different orientations based on the user's desire.