Nike to produce self-lacing shoes

The new Nike HyperAdapt 1.0 will be the first running shoe with "power lacing" and also self-fitting. The company has spent a decade securing patents for the shoe.

The sports wear giant headquartered in Beaverton, Oregon claimed it would be the first mass-produced sneaker of its kind. Tinker Hatfield, who created the shoe and is lead designer, said: "We think this is going to change the way all shoes are made in the future."

The creation of the self-tying shoes has a long history going back to the 1989 film Back to the Future II. Michael J Fox starred in the film as Marty. Marty wore self-tying shoes:"The film shows Marty putting on Nike "Air Mag" tennis shoes with automatic shoelaces. Nike released a version of their Hyperdunk Supreme shoes, which appear similar to Marty's, in July 2008. Fans dubbed them the Air McFly.[22] In April 2009, they filed the patent for self-lacing shoes, and their design bears a resemblance to those worn by Marty in the film.[23] In 2010, a fan named Blake Bevin created shoes that tie themselves.[24] Though Nike had made very limited quantity of Air Mags in the same style as the movie, they stated in September 2011 that their consumer-line MAG line of shoes would not feature the self-lacing feature shown in it.[25][26] Tinker Hatfield, one of the shoe's designers, indicated in 2014 that they would introduce shoes with power-lacing technology the following year,The shoe finally was announced this March.

The shoe automatically adjusts to the wearer's foot, but can be adjusted by plus and minus buttons that are on the soles of the shoe. There is a sensor inside the shoe that detects a heel sliding in causing the shoe to tighten around the foot. The shoe uses FlyWeave and Flywaire technology that Nike had previously introduced. Chief Executive Officer of Nike, Mark Parker said: "I think there's a wide range of people that are really interested in this whole self-lacing, adaptive performance. Obviously, you have the Sneaker Heads who are all over it. I mean, this has been a buzz for them for years." There was even a write-in petition asking Nike to finish the product.

The HyperAdapt 1.0 is to be available for the 2016 holiday season in three color variations. The price has yet to be determined. While the new "adaptive lacing" is starting off small it is expected to make its way into other types of sport shoes. Hatfield said that Nike was already working on a second version of the shoe. He said: "This is our first effort. We know it's not perfect but it's a big step forward." Atlhletes will be able to purchase the shoes only if they are members of Nike +. The shoes look like fairly normal versions of Nike's Mag high-top sneakers.