ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 19 -- United States Patent no. 12,329,245, issued on June 17, was assigned to NIKE Inc. (Beaverton, Ore.).
"Modular spool for automated footwear platform" was invented by Summer L. Schneider (Portland, Ore.) and Narissa Chang (Portland, Ore.).
According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "A footwear lacing apparatus can comprise a housing structure, a modular spool and a drive mechanism. The housing structure can comprising a first inlet, a second inlet, and a lacing channel extending between the first and second inlets. The modular spool can be disposed in the lacing channel and can comprise a lower plate including a shaft extending from the lower plate, and an upper plate including a d...