Background Art It is currently known to use laces to fasten, for example, the flaps of shoes; accordingly, it is known to provide eyelets whose function must be to guide the lace in order to allow optimum tensioning thereof.

This problem is worsened in certain shoes, such as for example mountain or trekking boots, in which correct and uniform tensioning would facilitate the sport practice.

US-5,682,654 discloses a closure element which can be associated with a lace used to fasten flaps of shoes or of items of clothing.

This conventional closure element is substantially constituted by a spiral elliptical structure whose tips are extended on a plane which is approximately perpendicular to the plane of the axis of the spiral, so as to form lateral arms which are connected to a flat base.

In this closure system, the lace is inserted in the helical structure, while the base is associated for example at the flap of an upper of a shoe.

This closure system, however, entails many drawbacks: since the spiral elliptical structure is arranged on a linear axis which cannot be modified by the presence of the arms connected to the base, tensioning of the lace is not followed by an optimum sliding thereof inside the spiral

elliptical structure.

During tensioning, the lace in fact slides at the first and last turns, dissipating part of the energy applied by the user in order to tension said lace and leading to rapid wear of said lace.

In this manner, the tension of the lace in the various parts of the instep is not constant, indeed due to the loss of energy caused by the sliding of the lace against the first and last turns. In particular, higher tension can occur at the instep region, which is where the highest tension is applied by the user.

This fact can cause uncomfortable pressure points in said region while others, such as the front region of the foot, are not tensioned sufficiently.

All this leads to a less than optimum comfort for the user.

Moreover, the radius of curvature of the lace in the redirection region is very tight, since the change in direction occurs at approximately 90°.

Accordingly, the tensions localized in this confined region of the lace generate a breakage region which, combined with the wear caused by sliding, quickly leads to the breakage of said lace.

Finally, the connection of the base to the shoe requires particular and specific operations and production steps which increase production costs.

Disclosure of the Invention An aim of the present invention is to solve the above- mentioned problems, eliminating the drawbacks of the cited prior art, by providing an element which allows to achieve

optimum tensioning of a lace, particularly for a shoe or for an item of clothing or for an element which has flaps to be fastened.

An important object of the present invention is to provide an element which allows to achieve optimum tensioning of the lace in all the regions of the element to which it is coupled and therefore, in the case of shoes, both at the metatarsal region and at the instep.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide an element which allows optimum sliding of the lace during tensioning.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an element which is capable of redirecting the lace with a sufficiently wide radius of curvature in order to avoid the occurrence of breakage regions due to localized tensions in said lace.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an element which is structurally simple and has low manufacturing and application costs.

The above aim and objects, as well as other objects that will become apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a guiding and redirection element, particularly for laces, characterized in that it comprises a base for connection to an element which has flaps to be joined, said base being provided with two arms whose mutually opposite ends are spiral-shaped and flexible.

Preferably, said spiral-shaped ends can flex along an arc.

Brief Description of the Drawings Further characteristics and advantages of the

invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of two particular but not exclusive embodiments thereof, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein: Figure 1 is a side view of a shoe with the invention applied thereto; Figure 2 is a partially sectional plan view of the invention; Figure 3 is a plan view of the invention with a tensioned lace applied thereto; Figure 4 is a plan view of a second embodiment; Figure 5 is a sectional view, taken along the plane V- V of Figure 4.

Ways of carrying out the Invention With reference to the above figures, the reference numeral 1 designates the guiding and redirection element, which is particularly useful for laces, designated by the reference numeral 2, used to fasten the flaps of an element such as a shoe 3, or an item of clothing or a suitcase or the like, or any other item having flaps to be joined.

The element 1 is preferably constituted by a metal wire shaped so as to form a preferably annular base 4 which must be associated, by conventional means such as for example stitching or riveting, at one of the flaps for example of the shoe 3 to be joined.

The base 4 has two arms 5a and 5b which protrude in the same direction from the base and are arranged side by side.

At the slightly mutually divaricated ends 6a and 6b of the arms 5a and 5b, the metal wire is shaped so as to form

a first spiral 7 and a second spiral 8 which have the same axis 9 and are thus mutually opposite.

The axis 9 is thus arranged approximately at right angles to the axis of the arms 5a and 5b.

The axes of the first and second spirals 7 and 8 can of course be mutually inclined, converging at the axis of symmetry of the guiding and redirection element 1, without thereby abandoning the scope of the inventive concept.

The guiding and redirection element 1 thus shaped forms a pair of free ends 7a and 8a respectively at the first spiral 7 and at the second spiral 8. The ends are free to flex under the tension of the lace.

The lace 2 can thus be arranged within the first and second spirals; during tensioning, it forces the flexing of the first and second spirals until they are arranged approximately along an arc, as shown in Figure 3.

Accordingly, the deformation of the first and second spirals assists and facilitates the sliding of the lace 2 therein and this adaptability of theirs reduces the friction surface between the lace and said first and second spirals, limiting it only to some of the central turns, particularly the turns that are initially connected to the ends of the arms 5a and 5b.

Moreover, the radius of curvature traced in this deformation is wide enough to redirect the lace without inducing local tensions.

It has thus been observed that the invention has achieved the intended aim and objects, an element having been provided which can be applied quickly, easily and at low cost at an element provided with flaps to be fastened,

said element also allowing easy insertion of the lace and optimum sliding thereof.

During tensioning, the first and second spirals in fact adapt to the forces applied by the user, assisting the sliding of the lace and therefore facilitating optimum and uniform fastening of the flaps.

The element according to the invention is also structurally very simple and accordingly has low manufacturing costs.

The guiding and redirection element according to the invention is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, within the scope of the appended claims.

Thus, for example, Figures 4 and 5 illustrate a different embodiment of a guiding and redirection element 101, which again comprises a preferably annular base 104 from which slightly inclined and mutually converging arms 105a and 105b protrude; a first spiral 107 and a second spiral 108 are present at the ends 106a and 106b thereof, and the axes 109a and 109b of said spirals are advantageously perpendicular to said arms 105a and 105b and therefore slightly inclined with respect to each other.

The first and second spirals 107 and 108 form two free ends, designated by the reference numerals 107a and 108a respectively, allowing the free flexing of the spirals under the tension of the lace.

Moreover, a plate 110 is associated with the element 101 and has a seat 111 for the base 104 and the arms 105a and 105b and a hole 112 for the connection of said plate to one of the flaps of, for example, a shoe.

The function of the plate 110 is to limit the

deformation of the central part of the element 101, besides constituting the actual element for connection to, for example, the shoe.

In this embodiment, therefore, the region for connecting the element to one of the flaps to be joined has a straighter shape, thus reducing the points of possible higher tension concentration which form in the bends of the wire in addition to aesthetically improving the element itself.

The plate 110 can therefore also have wings 113a and 113b for partially concealing and accommodating the first spiral 107 and the second spiral 108.

This solution, too, has achieved the intended aim and objects.

The materials and the dimensions that constitute the individual components of the structure may of course be the most pertinent according to specific requirements.

The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No.

TV98A000024 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.