Patent ID: 8181320

Claim:
A lace adjuster for selectively adjusting and securing a shoelace of a shoe, the shoelace including a first end and a second end, the lace adjuster comprising: an inner frame having a first inner frame aperture and a spaced apart second inner frame aperture; an outer frame that receives at least a portion of the inner frame, the outer frame having a first outer frame aperture and a spaced apart second outer frame aperture; a resilient member that is secured to the inner frame and the outer frame, the resilient member allowing the inner frame and the outer frame to move relative to each other between an unlocked configuration and a locked configuration, wherein the first inner frame aperture and the first outer frame aperture are substantially aligned with each other when the inner frame and the outer frame are in the unlocked configuration, wherein the second inner frame aperture and the second outer frame aperture are substantially aligned with each other when the inner frame and the outer frame are in the unlocked configuration, wherein the first inner frame aperture and the first outer frame aperture are not aligned when the inner frame and the outer frame are in the locked configuration, wherein the second inner frame aperture and the second outer frame aperture are not aligned when the inner frame and the outer frame are in the locked configuration, the first inner frame aperture and the first outer frame aperture being adapted to receive the first end of the shoelace, and the second inner frame aperture and the second outer frame aperture being adapted to receive the second end of the shoelace; and a bracket that is movable between a closed configuration and an open configuration, wherein the bracket is adapted to receive a portion of the shoelace when the bracket is in the open configuration, and wherein the bracket is adapted to retain a portion of the shoelace when the bracket is in the closed configuration.