Patent ID: 7581337

Claim:
Footwear, comprising: an outer shell including an outer sole, the outer shell configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows a ball of a foot of a user to flex when walking and the outer sole to flex about the ball of the user's foot when the user is walking; a screw drive assembly disposed within the outer shell, the screw drive assembly including a first member, a second member, and a screw in operative engagement with the first and second members so that turning the screw causes the first and second members to move relative to one another thereby causing a dimension of the footwear to change; and a control coupled to the screw for turning the screw and thereby adjusting a dimension of the footwear by adjusting the position of the first member relative to the second member, wherein the control requires only manual, tool-less operation to adjust a dimension of the footwear and wherein the control remains coupled to the screw when a user is walking in the footwear, wherein the first member and second member are in overlapping engagement with each other and wherein the first and second members are shaped such that they are slidable relative to each other longitudinally and wherein the first member includes an extension shaped to fit within a corresponding portion of the second member and wherein at least one of the first and second members are configured with materials having a degree of flexibility that allows the at least one of the first and second members to flex when the user is walking.