autolacing
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Nike teases Back to the Future shoes, creepily leaks the contents of Marty McFly's closet (video)
What's this? Nike is rounding up shoe-nerds (and Back to the Future fans) to taunt them with futuristic metal shield glasses, 1980s candy, and a personal messages from Doc Brown? Could this shoe-filled YouTube tease (uploaded by DocEmmettBrown88) mean that Nike is bringing nerdom's coolest kicks back from the future? Probably. After all, you don't patent power-laces just to make a normal shoe, do you? [Thanks, Rob]
Nike files patent for auto-lacing sneakers, Marty McFly doth protest
We've seen some extremely DIY auto-lacing sneakers, but it looks like the big boys -- Nike -- have thought about getting in on the game as well. Patent filings which occurred in early through late 2009 show off an automatic lacing system that is pretty reminiscent of Marty McFly's invention in Back to the Future, and we can tell you that from the looks of it, it's a future we'd definitely like to inhabit. The shoes appear to boast a charging system and lights in addition to the lacing component, and while so few patent apps ever lead to a real retail product, we're really rooting for this one. One more image below.
Auto-lacing sneaker laces itself, is looking for a friend
In the future, even the most menial, second nature tasks will be automated, because why not? Taking a page from the book of Back to the Future II, a fashionable DIYer has gone ahead and brought a little piece of the future to us, with this autolacing sneaker. There's only one so far, but it's got a force sensor which reads the pressure of your foot when you put it in the shoe, and that activates the two servos which tighten the laces. There's also a switch to reverse the servo and loosen the laces. Check out the video of its operation below, and hit up the source if you want to make one (or two!) of your own.
