Patent Application
20090085313
The present invention relates to a blading boot and more particularly has reference to a blade insert assembly and frame for a blading boot that enables fitting of the blading boot with either wheels or blades in the frame for enabling use of the blading boot as a roller blading boot or as an ice skating boot.
The present invention is also concerned with the provision of an insert assembly and frame for a blading boot that are suitable for use in display acrobatics.
It is well known in the art to provide a blading boot possessing interchangeable frames, assemblies, mountings, or the like for enabling the boot to be deployed in a number of different skating environments. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,534,912 to Laub et al discloses such a boot providing for its use for roller blading, ice-skating, or skiing, the boot being formed with suitable trucks adapted for those uses. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 6,270,089 to Marechal describes a boot assembly having spaced apart mountings on its sole for the reception of specially designed mounts for different trucks. US Patent Application No. 2007/0096408 to Yang also provides for a multi-functional boot with interchangeable blades for roller-skating, ice skating or skiing.
My earlier U.S. Pat. No. 6,311,990 describes an ice skateboard provided with blade runners spaced apart on trucks secured to the base of the board. Cornelius discloses in his U.S. Pat. No. 6,068,268 an in-line roller blading boot having two pairs of in-line rollers mounted on a truck, the forward pair being spaced from the rearward pair to provide a gap which may be used for acrobatic manoeuvres, such as sliding across raised, surfaces, or sliding down rails for example. The gap provides a bearing surface with which the rail for example engages to allow the blader to slide therealong without the rollers impeding travel.
Currently there appears not to be available a blading boot for ice-skating which would facilitate acrobatic manoeuvres of this kind.
Accordingly, there is a need for a blade insert assembly and frame for a blading boot that has a simple configuration enabling ice-skating acrobatics of the ‘extreme’ kind mentioned in relation to the prior art.
In this specification, the term ‘blader’ is used to indicate a skater using the blading boot.
It is therefore a general object of the present invention to provide an improved assembly and frame for mounting of blades in a blading boot.
A more specific object of the invention is to provide a blade insert assembly and frame for an ice-skating boot with the capability of use by a blader for extreme skating involving acrobatics.
A further object of the present invention is to provide such a blade insert assembly possessing a safety feature for maintaining blade alignment.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a general-purpose assembly and frame which the ice-skating blade may be exchanged for a roller blade.
According to a first aspect of the invention, there is provided a blade insert assembly mounting of respective ice skating blading elements in a frame having a base securable to a sole of an in-line blading boot, downwardly depending webs defining a space occupied by spaced apart bosses defining zones for the frame, the webs being relieved centrally of the zones to provide arches, the blade insert assembly comprising:
Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with reference to the description in association with the following Figures, in which similar references used in different Figures denote similar components, wherein:
a is a side perspective view of an alternative embodiment of the blade insert assembly and frame shown in
a is a plan view similar to
With reference to the annexed drawings the preferred embodiments of the present invention will be herein described for indicative purpose and by no means as of limitation.
Referring to
The boot 1 has a sole 2 upon which the frame 4 is installed, with the frame 4 accommodating two blade elements 22, 24. Each blade element 22, 24 is secured to the frame 4 through the agency of adjustment means 10. The blade elements 22, 24 are provided at their leading and trailing edges with a set of teeth 6a, 6b respectively. The frame 4 is secured to the sole 2 of the boot 1 by suitable fasteners (not shown) extending through the frame 4 as at 3.
Complementary formations 13, 15 on each part 7, 9 project into the zones 17 upon assembly of the blade insert assembly 5 in the frame 4, typically by inserted mounting of the assembly 5 therein. A pad 18 of resilient shock-absorbing material is interposed between the formations 13, 15 of each part 7, 9 of the blade insert assembly 5 and the sole 2 of the boot 1. Each part 7, 9 of the blade insert assembly 5 is provided with a slot 20 for the reception of a blade element 22, 24, respectively, each element being formed with through fixing holes 23, 25 for registration with corresponding holes 26, 28 in each of the parts 7, 9. In turn, the frame 4 is provided with two pairs of fixing holes 27, 29.
In each one of the holes 26, 28 there are located spacers 30, 32, namely an internal spacer 30 and an external spacer 32. The external spacer 32 is threaded internally and the internal spacer 30 is externally threaded as shown in
A mounting pin 50 is provided and in use extends through the webs 11 of the frame 4, the internal spacers 30 and the holes 23, 25 in the blade elements 22, 24 to hold the elements to the blade insert assembly 5 and thus to the frame and ultimately to the boot via its sole. The mounting pin 50 is provided with a head 52, which in one position rests in a recess 60 provided on the outer side of the web 11. The pin 50 is threaded internally at its end remote from the head 52 for the reception in use of a locking screw 54, which may similarly rest within a recess (not shown) on the outside of the web 11.
Thus in the assembled condition the frame 4 and the blade insert assembly 5 with the blade elements 22, 24 are held together by the adjustment mechanism and the mounting pins 50 extending through these integers and locked in place by the interengagement of the spacers 30, 32 and the tightened locking screws 54.
In
a shows a frame 4 in the absence of a blade insert assembly 5 since the blading boot 1 has been custom built for ice-skating only and the frame is of unitary construction, the blade elements being accommodated directly in a slot 20 formed centrally and longitudinally of the frame. In all other respects, the adjustment means are the same and function in the same way as those described above in relation to the other figures.
The provision of the arches 11a in the side webs of the frame between the two blade elements 22, 24 enables use of the boot 1 in acrobatic or extreme skiing in which the blader jumps for example onto a rail, either horizontal or downwardly inclined, to slide down it to land on to ice to skate further. The blader seeks to ensure that the arches locate on the rail to provide a reasonably positive slideway.
The present invention thus provides a blading boot for ice-skating in an extreme manner, but with the added and useful feature of being able to correct the alignment of the two blades held in tandem in the frame. The manner of adjustment is relatively simple and swift.
It is to be understood that the blading boot of
While a specific embodiment has been described, those skilled in the art will recognize many alterations that could be made within the spirit of the invention, which is defined solely according to the following claims.
