Patent Grant
7093839
The present invention relates generally to a wheel and an apparatus for use with a roller skate, an improved hockey stop multi-line roller skate, and a method of improving the performance of a roller skate.
Roller skating, specifically in-line and multi-line skating, has witnessed a boom in popularity in recent years. Aside from being a wonderful recreational and exercise activity, in-line and multi-line skating is frequently used by athletes as a cross-training activity for ice skating (i.e., figure skating, speed skating, short track skating, hockey, etc.) as well as for cross-country skiing. Many of the leg, and arm, motions in both ice skating and in-line and multi-line skating are similar. Thus, in-line and multi-line roller skating offers a wonderful dry land training activity for many athletes in the aforementioned sports, as well as others. Because of the cross training benefit of in-line and multi-line skating, ice skaters can improve their ice skating skills by using in-line or multi-line skates. Similarly, proficient roller skaters can more easily learn and improve their ice skating skills.
In-line and multi-line skating has some advantages over ice skating, such as the ability to skate in many more locations (i.e., roadways, parking lots, bike paths, gymnasiums, hard surfaces, etc.). With ice skating however one, obviously, is limited to only being able to skate where there is ice. Another advantage of in-line and multi-line skating, especially for the beginner, is that balancing is easier on the in-line and multi-line skate than with an ice skate.
Unfortunately, in-line and multi-line skates have some disadvantages when compared with ice skates, as well. With in-line and multi-line skates, it is much more difficult to learn how to stop effectively, if at all, on the pavement.
Further, to effectively complete a “hockey stop”, where one quickly places one, or both, skates transverse to the path of travel in order to stop quickly, it is close to impossible on a roller skate without falling. Currently, in order to change directions or stop, roller skaters employ a skating loop, use a heel-mounted rubber bumper, or transversely drag the trailing skate, in lieu of a hockey stop. None of these techniques allow for as quick a stop and change of direction as a hockey stop.
Additionally, one cannot complete as small a radius turn on roller skates as one can with ice skates.
Additionally, some roller skates are employing a wheel with a hybrid composition; that is multiple materials (i.e., composite) within the cross-section of the tread area. These hybrid composition wheels have very high manufacturing and replacement costs.
Additionally, the current designs of roller skates and their wheels do not simulate the ideal leg motions made during skating and stopping. Thus, while cross-training between ice skating and roller skating is feasible because the two activities are not dissimilar, there is room for improvement in increasing the similarity between the two activities thereby enhancing cross training efforts.
Accordingly, there is a need for an improved roller skate and wheel which makes improvements over both the above mentioned and other disadvantages of the in-line and multi-line skate.
The present invention provides a wheel for use with a roller skate, an apparatus for use with a roller skate, an improved roller skate, and a method of improving performance o-f a roller skate.
A first general aspect of the invention provides a wheel for use with a roller skate comprising:
a roller skate wheel with an asymmetrical cross-section.
A second general aspect of the invention provides an apparatus for use with a roller skate comprising:
a plurality of lines of wheels, wherein at least two lines of wheels have different coefficients of friction.
A third general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a plurality of lines of wheels wherein at least one wheel is asymmetrical in cross-section.
A fourth general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a center line of wheels, having a first coefficient of friction;
a first outer line of wheels, having a second coefficient of friction, wherein said second coefficient of friction is higher than said first coefficient of friction; and
a second outer line of wheels, having a third coefficient of friction, wherein said third coefficient of friction is higher than said first coefficient of friction.
A fifth general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a center line of wheels having a first diameter;
at least one outer line of wheels having a second diameter, wherein the second diameter is unequal to the first diameter.
A sixth general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a plurality of roller skate wheels wherein at least two wheels have different coefficients of friction.
A seventh general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a first line of wheels, having a first coefficient of friction;
a second line of wheels, having a second coefficient of friction, wherein said first coefficient of friction is not equal to said second coefficient of friction; and,
at least one of said first and second line of wheels are asymmetrical in cross-section.
An eighth general aspect of the invention provides a roller skate comprising:
a center line of wheels;
a first outer line of wheels;
a second outer line of wheels, wherein the coefficients of friction of said first and second outer lines of wheels is higher than the coefficient of friction of said center line, further wherein the wheels of said first and second outer lines of wheels are asymmetrical in cross-section.
A ninth general aspect of the invention provides a method of improving performance of a roller skate comprising:
providing a foot attachment device;
attaching to the foot attachment device a first line of wheels, having a first coefficient of friction; and
attaching to the foot attachment device a second line of wheels, having a second coefficient of friction wherein said second coefficient of friction is unequal to said first coefficient of friction.
The foregoing and other features of the invention will be apparent from the following more particular description of various embodiments of the invention.
Some of the embodiments of this invention will be described in detail, with reference to the following figures, wherein like designations denote like members, wherein:
Although certain embodiments of the present invention will be shown and described in detail, it should be understood that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims. The scope of the present invention will in no way be limited to the number of constituting components, the materials thereof, the shapes thereof, the relative arrangement thereof, etc., and are disclosed simply as an example of an embodiment. Although the drawings are intended to illustrate the present invention, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale.
There are essentially two separate and distinct motions made in skating. There is a gliding motion and a pushing motion. The pushing motion is when one pushes, or propels, themselves during skating. The pushing motion is made by pushing the leg and skate both sideways and behind the body (e.g., diagonally back away from the body). In ice skating, for example, the skater predominantly uses the friction of the inside edge of the pushing skate against the ice to create purchase with the ice. At the interface of the purchasing (i.e., inside) edge of the skate and the ice is where energy is translated from the leg to the ice. This is how a skater propels themself and accelerates on the ice. In general, the greater the friction and purchase between the skate blade and the ice the greater the force can be translated from the leg to the ice. This results in more efficient skating and greater speed.
The second motion made during skating is the gliding motion. This is made when the skate is pointing straight ahead in the same direction as the motion of travel. Typically, with one exception being during startups, one skate is doing the gliding motion while the other is doing the pushing motion. Also, during coasting, both skates are using the gliding motion. Sometimes during fast startups, the skater will employ the pushing motion on both skates until the desired speed is attained.
Finding the correct amount of friction between the skate and skating surface, is needed in order to stop as well. When an ice skater turns a skate transverse to the skating direction in order to stop and the skate is straight up (i.e., not angulated) the skate blade is very “slippery” (i.e., low coefficient of friction) and as a result less apt to stop the skate and skater. In this position, the skate blade would tend to slide more along the ice surface. However, when the ice skater turns the skate transverse to the skating direction and angulates (e.g., bends the blade off center) the skate, the skater is able to stop more quickly. When the skate is angulated the coefficient of friction increases. Thus, the ice skater, through practice, is able to find the appropriate amount of angulation of the skate(s) that, in turn, provides the optimal coefficient of friction and hence, stopping power to the skates. For example, for the ice skater to successfully complete a hockey stop, the skater needs to turn the skate, or skates, transverse to the direction of travel and essentially find, by angulating the skate, the ideal amount of friction between the skate and surface to slow the skate down to a full stop is the desired distance. If the ice skater obtains too much friction (i.e., “grab”) the skate will grab the skating surface and stop suddenly resulting in the skater most likely falling over. This can be seen in the shortcoming of current roller skates where the wheels, in general, have too high a coefficient of friction, and thus grab the pavement too readily. The result is that it is nearly impossible to complete standard ice skating stops, such as a hockey stop, with roller skates.
As with the pushing motion, greater friction is needed during turning, as well. Friction between the surface and the skate when the skate is angulated allows the skater to turn without slipping or having the skates slide out from underneath the skater. Thus, the skater is increasing friction by angulating the skate. Greater friction will also aid in completing a tighter radius turn. Additionally, whether with an ice skate, or roller skate, the shorter the ice blade, or wheel base, the tighter the turning radius the skate is capable of making.
Thus, the present invention through its design improves roller skating by more accurately matching the skating motions and by reflecting the frictional requirements of stopping and turning. This is done via both the unique wheel design and by the unique placement and configuration of the plurality of wheels on the roller skate. Various embodiments of the present invention include, inter alia, varying the coefficients of friction of various wheels based on their use; varying the diameters of wheels based on their use; varying the layout of the lines of wheels; and, including asymmetrical wheels in some locations.
Specifically, this invention utilizes two different wheel types for a roller skate to more accurately match the two different skating motions. A first type of wheel, called the glide slide wheel, is shaped and made of a lower coefficient of friction material. The glide slide wheel is used more during the gliding motion and assists in reducing friction (i.e., “slide”) during the stopping motion. The second type of wheel, called the push, turn & stop wheel, is typically made of a higher coefficient of friction material than the glide slide wheel. The push, turn & stop wheel is used more during pushing, turning and stopping.
This invention also uses a unique asymmetric shape for the push, turn & stop wheel, thereby allowing the skater to be able to alter the magnitude of friction applied to the skating surface more easily. The asymmetric portion of the push, turn & stop wheel is in the area of the tread area or contact surface. The asymmetric shape allows the skater to, via angulating the skate to varying degrees, have different amounts of the wheel tread contact the pavement. Another advantage of having a wheel with an asymmetric cross section is that they wear better than a symmetric wheel. Symmetric wheels will eventually wear in a pattern similar to an asymmetric wheel, depending on the skating and stopping patterns of the skater. Therefore, the skate can use symmetric wheels throughout, but it is not as efficient as having some asymmetric wheels on the skate.
By having a combination of heights of wheels with varying coefficients of friction, the skater can apply numerous amounts of friction to the pavement quite readily merely by angulating the skate in different amounts. By allowing for this changing of the magnitude of friction applied to the pavement depending on whether the skater is turning, stopping, gliding, or pushing results in an improved roller skate.
The numerous
As
Other wheel and rail 18 configurations are possible beyond those depicted in the figures.
The glide slide wheel 20 and push, turn & stop wheel 30, as depicted in
The glide slide wheel 20 may be made of a material of lower coefficient of friction than the push, turn & stop wheel 30. For example, the glide slide wheel 20 may be made of metal, plastic, rubber, ceramic, or composite. The push, turn & stop wheel 30, for example, may be made of any of these same materials, but just of higher coefficients of friction.
The push, turn & stop wheel 30 has a cross section that may not be symmetric. The inboard edge (i.e., edge facing the center line 15B) of the push, turn & stop wheel 30 will be larger in diameter than the outboard edge (i.e., edge towards outsides of skate 10) of the push, turn & stop wheel 30. The diameter of the push, turn & stop wheel 30 decreases fairly quickly when moving from the inboard edge towards the outboard edge. This allows the skater to angulate the skate 10 and obtain varying amounts of contact between the tread surface 19 and the skate surface. Depending on the amount of angulation of the skate 10 either just the glide slide wheel 20 contacts the pavement, or a combination of the glide slide wheel 20 and push, turn & stop wheel 30 contacts the pavement, of only the push, turn & stop wheel 30 contacts the pavement. By varying the angulation appropriately the skater can find the desired, and appropriate, amount of friction for stopping.
The glide slide wheel 20, conversely, is substantially symmetrical at the tread surface 19. The shape of the tread surface 19 can be square, rounded, triangular, or other shape. The filler material 23 can be of the same material as the tread surface 19. In other embodiments, the filler material 23 of the glide slide wheel 20 may be softer than the tread material 19 so that some ride cushioning is provided.
Replacement of the tread material 19 alone of either wheel 20, 30 can be done without needing to replace the bearing 17, wheel backing 21, washer nut 22, or filler material 23. This results in an advantage of being easier and cheaper to both manufacture, rebuild, and replace the wheels 20, 30.
The diameter of the glide slide wheel 20 and the push, turn & stop wheel 30 may be the same. In an alternative embodiment the diameter of-the push, turn & stop wheel 30 at the inward, or inboard, edge may be slightly smaller the diameter of the glide slide wheel 20. In still another embodiment, the push, turn & stop wheels 30 are placed such that the glide slide wheels 20 extend slightly below the bottom edge of the push, turn & stop wheels 30. Thus, the push, turn & stop wheels 30 contact the pavement only during turning, stopping, and the pushing motion (i.e. during angulation of the skate 10). In still another embodiment, the glide slide wheels 20 are of a smaller diameter than the push, turn & stop wheels 30, but the glide slide wheels 20 are situated so that they still extend lower from the skate 10 than the larger diameter push, turn & stop wheels 30. This is done by raising the height of the axles 16 of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 so that they are higher than the axles 15 of the glide slide wheels 20. This configuration still allows for the glide slide wheels 20 to contact the pavement during gliding and sliding, where the majority of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 would only contact the pavement during skate angulation. In various embodiments, a small, narrow portion of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 may either marginally contact the skating surface, or not at all, during gliding and sliding (i.e., while skate is vertical). In other words, the bottom edge of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 can either be coplanar with the bottom edge of the glide slide wheels 20 or slightly higher.
In one embodiment, the coefficient of friction of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 is the same in both outer banks 15A, 15C. The coefficient of the push, turn & stop wheels 30 is higher than the glide slide wheels 20 in the center bank 15B. In another embodiment, although the coefficient of all the push, turn & stop wheels 30 is higher than the coefficient of the glide slide wheels 20, the coefficient of friction in the push, turn & stop wheels 30 in one outer bank 15A is different than the coefficient of friction in the push, turn & stop wheels 30 in the other outer bank 15C. For example, for short track skating, where the skater is turning in predominantly one direction, the skater might desire to have the higher coefficient of friction on the push, turn & stop wheels 30 on the bank 15 that is on the inside edge of the skate 10 in the direction of the turn.
Although a boot 11 is shown in several figures, some embodiments allow for various other attachment means of the wheels to the foot of the skater in lieu of the boot 11. For example, there can be no boot 11 where the skate 10 could be attached to a foot via buckles or VELCRO straps.
Similarly, other embodiments of the rail 18 are possible than shown in the figures. The rails 18 may be continuous or discontinuous. The rail 18 need not be solid. The rail 18 could be perforated. The rail 18 could be of various shapes. The attachment means of the wheels to the boot 11 may be individual attachments of the axles 16 to the bottom of the boot 11 or other means.
Although the embodiment of a skate 10 is shown in several figures, several embodiments of the current invention include only portions of the skate 10. For example, replacement wheels can be available to the skater. A skater can obtain a single glide slide wheel 20 or push, turn & stop wheel 30 or sets of the same when replacements are required. Similarly, a skater could experiment with altering coefficients of friction for the push, turn & stop wheels 30 or the glide slide wheels 20 depending on the skater's physiology, skating technique, uses, pavement, etc. Additionally, a skater could purchase an entire line 15 of wheels, or all three lines 15 of wheels, already attached to the rails 18 for subsequent attachment to a boot 11.
While this invention has been described in conjunction with the specific embodiments outlined above, it is evident that many alternatives, modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the embodiments of the invention as set forth above are intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.
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