Patent Application
20120126510
This application is based upon French patent application Ser. No. 10/04499, filed Nov. 19, 2010, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference thereto in its entirety, and the priority of which is claimed under 35 U.S.C. §119.
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device for retaining a boot on a sports apparatus, more particularly a device that includes a mechanism for reversibly locking an anchoring element of the boot.
The device of the invention can be used in fields such as skiing, particularly cross-country skiing, ski touring, telemark skiing, but also in snowshoeing, snowboarding, roller skating, and the like.
2. Background Information
A retaining device is known to use a reversible locking mechanism that includes a housing carrying a fixed jaw, a baseplate, and a slide carrying a movable jaw. The slide can be caused to slide in the housing in a direction moving the jaws relatively toward or away from one another at least partially by the actuation of a lever of the mechanism.
Such an arrangement is disclosed, for example, in French Patent Publication No. 2 638 974 and in related U.S. Pat. No. 5,052,710, in the field of cross-country skiing. According to these patent documents, the implementation of the mechanism, that is to say, the action that makes it possible to lock or unlock by moving the slide, is carried out by a knuckle-joint mechanism, i.e., an over-center or bi-stable mechanism. Conventionally, such a system includes two arms and three articulations, one of which connects the arms to one another. It is the relative position of the arms and of the articulation axes that holds the slide in a stable locked position or, conversely, in the unlocked position. Such system has the advantage of being reliable, in the sense that it is strong, wear-resistant, and operational in harsh conditions, such as those related to cold weather or in the presence of snow. It thereby provides satisfaction to the user. However, such a system has several disadvantages. In particular, it is relatively complex in that it comprises a significant number of parts, such as the arms and the articulations. This results in other drawbacks, such as the time required for assembly and the manufacturing costs. These factors increase in proportion to the complexity.
Given that the knuckle-joint system is part of the reversible locking mechanism, the disadvantages of the retaining device according to aforementioned patent documents can be said to include complexity, excessive production time, and relatively high production costs.
The invention provides an improved retaining device that includes a mechanism for reversibly locking an anchoring element of a boot. More specifically, the invention simplifies the structure of the locking mechanism. In addition the needed to assembly the constituent elements of the mechanism is reduced. Further, the manufacturing costs of the mechanism are reduced.
To these ends, the invention provides a device for retaining a boot on a sports apparatus, such as a ski, the device including a mechanism for reversibly locking an anchoring element of the boot, the mechanism including a housing that carries a fixed jaw, a baseplate, and a slide that carries a movable jaw, the slide being capable of sliding in the housing in a direction moving the jaws relatively toward or away from one another, the mechanism further including a lever. The lever has a cam surface, the lever being affixed by an articulation to one of the elements referred to as the housing and the slide, the other of the elements having a support surface, the cam and support surfaces cooperating so that, when in contact with one another, the jaws are moved closer to one another if the lever is in a locked position, and the jaws are spaced apart if the lever is in an unlocked position.
The retaining device of the invention includes an elastic mechanism capable of biasing the slide so as to cause the displacement of the movable jaw relative to the fixed jaw.
In fact, the arrangement of the locking mechanism organizes cooperation between the position of the lever and the position of the slide. This cooperation is achieved by contact between the cam surface of the lever and the support surface connected either to the housing or to the slide. The contact is direct, which means that it occurs without using other movable elements.
One particular advantage of the invention is simplicity, not only with respect to the structure of the locking mechanism, but also with respect to its use. Indeed, the relative friction of the cam and support surfaces provides accurate information to the user regarding the status of the mechanism, that is to say, regarding the position of the movable jaw, as the forces related to the locking are transmitted directly between the lever and the slide by the interaction of the cam and support surfaces.
Other advantages achieved by the invention include a reduction in the assembly time of the constituent elements of the mechanism, and a reduction in the manufacturing costs of the mechanism.
Other features and advantages of the invention will be better understood from the following description, with reference to the annexed drawings illustrating, by way of non-limiting embodiments, how the invention can be implemented, and in which:
The first embodiment described hereinafter relates more specifically to a device for retaining a boot on a cross-country or telemark ski. However, the invention applies to other devices and fields, such as those mentioned above.
The first embodiment is described below with reference to
As can be understood with reference to all of the figures, a retaining device 1 is provided to reversibly retain a boot 2 on the ski 3. For reasons of convenience, the boot 2 is shown only partially, in dot-and-dash lines. The boot 2 includes an anchoring element 4 in the exemplary form of a rigid pin or rod having a circular cross section, oriented transversely and parallel with respect to the sole assembly 5 of the boot.
Still for convenience, the ski 3, shown partially and stylized, is well-known to one of ordinary skill in the art.
Regardless of the number of subassemblies provided to constitute the retaining device 1, the first locking mechanism 6, here referred to simply as the locking mechanism 6, or the reversible locking mechanism, includes a housing 11 carrying a fixed jaw 12, a baseplate 13, and a slide 14 carrying a movable jaw 15. The construction and operation of the elements 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15 are further described below.
The retaining device 1, i.e., the locking mechanism 6, further includes a lever 16. The lever 16 is used to lock or unlock the mechanism, for example via an external action, such as a manual actuation or manipulation by the user. The structure and operation of the lever 16 is described in greater detail below.
As shown in the exemplary embodiment of the invention shown in
The lever 16 acts directly on the housing 11 or the slide 14 by contact of the cam 21 and support 23 surfaces. This direct action enables the user to perceive the position of the slide accurately and, therefore, the position of the movable jaw 15 when the user manipulates the lever 16. Moreover, due to the simplicity of its structure, the locking mechanism 6 accurately transmits the steering impulses, or the sensory information, between the boot 2 and the ski 3.
in a non-limiting manner, according to the first embodiment of the invention, as can be understood with reference to
The housing 11 is affixed to the baseplate 13 by the lateral walls 25, 26 and the rear wall 28. In fact, the baseplate 13 and the housing 11 here form a unitary, single piece element. Consequently, the cover 29 is parallel to the baseplate 13 and is located, for example, in the same plane as the baseplate 13. The baseplate 13 is made in the form of a plate which extends at the base of the housing 11, in a forward direction, that is to say, away from the rear wall 28, but also on the sides.
The slide 14, positioned in the housing 11, is translationally movable parallel to the baseplate 13. Given that the baseplate 13 is adapted to be supported on the ski 3, directly or indirectly, the slider 14 itself is translationally movable along the length of the ski 3. As a result, the jaw 15 is translationally movable parallel to the baseplate 13, along the length of the ski 3, when the mechanism 6 is mounted on the ski 3. This promotes cooperation with the transverse anchoring element 4 of the boot 2.
According to the first embodiment of the invention, the lever 16 is affixed to the slide 14. Consequently, the lever 16 follows the movements of the slide 14, both in a locking direction and in an unlocking direction.
The lever 16 extends lengthwise between an articulation end 33 and a free end 34. The articulation 22 affixes the articulation end 33 of the lever 16 to the slide 14. The articulation 22, in the form of a pivot, includes a pin which extends along an axis 35. The free end 34 of the lever is adapted to be manipulated by the user, as described in greater detail below.
The axis 35 of the articulation 22 of the lever 16, in this exemplary embodiment, is parallel to the baseplate 13. This makes it possible to manipulate the free end 34 in a direction moving away from or toward the baseplate 13, therefore, by a cause-and-effect relationship, also away from or toward the ski 3. This manipulation has the advantage of being simple to perform.
In a non-limiting manner, the axis 35 of the articulation 22 of the lever 16 is perpendicular to the direction of movement of the slide 14 in the housing 11. As a result, the lever 16 pivots in a plane perpendicular to the baseplate 13 or to the ski 3. The lever 16 therefore remains above the baseplate 13 and the ski, which guarantees that there is no interference from contact with another retaining device used for the second foot, or with any other obstacle. Therefore, the use of the device 1 is simplified.
The cam surface 21 of the lever 16 has a convex portion 41 formed by a series of lines juxtaposed and parallel to the axis 35 of the articulation 22. As is evident from the following description, the orientation of the surface 21 enables the lever 16 to bias the slide 14 using forces oriented along the direction of movement of the slide 14. This optimizes the performance of the locking mechanism 6, by reducing as much as possible the forces required to obtain the locking position.
To cooperate with the lever 16, a stop 42 is affixed to the housing 11, the stop 42 having the support surface 23 adapted to cooperate with the cam surface 21 of the lever 16. More specifically, the stop 42 here is affixed to the baseplate 13, which is affixed to the housing 11. In other words, the stop 42 is affixed to the housing 11 via the baseplate 13. The stop 42 is indirectly affixed to the housing 11. The use of a stop 42 makes it possible to select the best fulcrum for the lever 16, as will be understood from the following description.
The stop 42 is arranged on the baseplate 13 so that the articulation 22 of the lever 16 is located between the stop 42 and the slide 14. The support surface 23 of the stop 42, adapted to cooperate with the cam surface 21 of the lever 16, is in the path of the slide 14. This surface 23 therefore lies within the extension of the longitudinal cavity 24. This makes it possible to bias the slide 14 in its direction of movement in the housing 11.
Although not essential to various possible embodiments of the invention, the support surface 23 of the stop 42 of the illustrated embodiment is flat. The support surface 23, together with the baseplate 13, forms an angle α whose value can be between 60° and 90° or, in more limited embodiments, between 75° and 85°, which yields good results. The support surface 23 is inclined with respect to the baseplate 13, so that its top 43 is closer to the housing 11 than its base 44. This inclination, as is apparent from the further description below, provides stability to the locking position of the mechanism 6.
According to the non-limiting first embodiment, the stop 42 forms a unitary, single piece element with the baseplate 13. The housing 11, the baseplate 13, and the stop 42 can be formed as a unitary, single piece element. This saves time in manufacturing. Nevertheless, the stop 42 can be provided, in an alternative embodiment, as an element attached to the baseplate, such as by means of adhesive, glue, weld, or other expedient.
The operation of the device 1 is described in detail below with reference to
First, in
Upon bringing the boot closer, the user can press it down on the device 1, as shown in
When locking is achieved, according to
According to the first embodiment of the invention, an elastic mechanism 51 is also provided to bias the slide 14 in a direction that tends to cause relative movement between the fixed jaw 12 and the movable jaw 15 away from one another. The bias is directed toward the stop 42. The elastic mechanism 51 facilitates the spacing apart of the jaws 12, 15 and, thereby, allowing the anchoring element 4 to be released, when the user returns the lever 16 to the unlocked position, shown in
The elastic mechanism 51 maintains the contact between the cam surface 21 and the support surface 23, which provides stability and enables proper functioning of the locking mechanism 6. The elastic mechanism 51 biases the slide 14 so as to oppose its initial movement that is generated during the transition from the locked position to the unlocked position and vice versa.
If the elastic mechanism were not used, it would still be possible to move the lever 16 to the unlocked position shown in
In a non-limiting manner, the elastic mechanism 51 is a spring. For example, it is a helical spring housed in the housing 11, between the slide 14 and the rear wall 28. The spring is compressed when the mechanism 6 is in the locked position, with the jaws 12, 15 being close to one another. This arrangement is simple and easy to implement. Any other structure can be provided for the elastic mechanism, such as a block of elastomeric material, or the like.
It has just been shown that the movement of the slide 14, in a direction opening the jaws 12, 15, occurs due to an action of the elastic mechanism 51 or to a thrust from the boot. This means, therefore, that it is not the contact of the cam 21 and support 23 surfaces that causes the opening. The support surface 23 of this illustrated embodiment of the invention is a single surface, in the sense that it is the only surface provided to cooperate with the cam surface 21 in a direction closing the jaws. In other words, the support surface 23 is provided, exclusive of any other surface that could have been used in order for the lever to bias the opening. This simplifies the structure of the locking mechanism 6 and, therefore, of the retaining device 1.
Still in the context of optimizing the use of the retaining device 1, the slide 14 carries a reversibly elastically deformable stop 52, the stop being shaped to contact a front portion 53 of the boot 2. The purpose is to eliminate the mechanical play between the front 53 and the locking mechanism 6. Therefore, the stop 52 is sized to be slightly compressed between the front 53 and the mechanism 6 when the boot 2 is retained.
The movable jaw 15 has a concave shape in order to cooperate with the anchoring element 4 which has a complementary surface. Thus, the jaw 15 can house the anchoring element 4, so that the latter is retained using a connection by obstacle or blocking, as opposed to a connection by friction. This ensures a reliable retention. Moreover, the concave shape here is semicircular in order to more closely fit the anchoring element 4, whose transverse cross section, in this non-limiting embodiment, is circular.
In the exemplary illustrated embodiment, the fixed jaw 12 is flat, which enables it to cooperate easily with the movable jaw 15 for retaining the anchoring element 4. This also serves as a guide for positioning the anchoring element 4 between the jaws 12, 15.
Other embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to
The second embodiment is described with reference to
This embodiment also features a retaining device 1 with a locking mechanism 6. As with the description above, the retaining device 1 includes a housing 11, a baseplate 13, a slide 14, and a lever 16.
Specific to the second embodiment illustrated in
According to the second embodiment, the stop 62 is an element attached on the baseplate 13 and affixed thereto by any means. This may be something permanent, such as an adhesive bond, a rivet, or the like, or something removable, such as a screw, or a shape that allows nesting, or the like.
The support surface 23, adapted to cooperate with the cam surface 21 of the lever 16, is formed in the embodiment of
The third embodiment is next described with reference to
This embodiment features a retaining device 1 with a locking mechanism 6. The retaining device includes a housing 11, a baseplate 13, a slide 74, and a lever 76.
The third embodiment of
For the third embodiment, when the lever 76 is in the locked position, the contact point 79, or area, between the cam surface 81 of the lever 76 and the support surface 83 of the slide 74 is farther away from the baseplate 13 than the axis 84 of the articulation 78 of the lever 76. In this configuration, the contact point 79 is behind the articulation axis 84. This provides greater stability for the locked position of the locking mechanism 6. Indeed, the arrangement of the contact point 79 relative to the articulation axis 84 makes it possible to generate a torque that tends to press the lever 76 flat against the baseplate 13, that is to say, to keep the lever in the locked position when moving the slide 74, and therefore the contact point 79, towards the front.
In any case, the invention can be made from materials and using techniques of implementation known to one of ordinary skill in the art.
The invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described above, but includes all equivalents that fall within the scope of the claims that follow.
In particular, a number of alternative structures may be provided for the slide or the lever.
The invention also includes an inverted locking mechanism 6, that is to say, a mechanism favoring a locked position. In this fourth embodiment, not shown, the elastic arrangement 51 biases the slide in a direction bringing the fixed jaw 12 and the movable jaw 5 relatively closer together. The first stable position is the locked position. The lever, when actuated, causes the slide to move so as to space the jaws apart. This displacement is obtained by a solution similar to the previous solutions, due to the cooperation of a cam surface with a support surface. In this unlocking configuration, the slide is more biased by the elastic arrangement 51 than in the previous embodiments. Due to this alternative, the mechanism is not biased as much. Indeed, the retaining device is more often in the locked position. However, because the elastic mechanism is less constrained in this configuration, it does not bias the other elements of the device as much.
The elastic arrangement 51 can therefore bias the slide in a direction spacing apart the fixed jaw 12 and the movable jaw 15, as is the case in the first three embodiments. However, it can also bias the slide in a direction bringing the fixed and movable jaws 12, 15 relatively closer together, as is the case in the fourth embodiment. The elastic mechanism 51 is thus capable of biasing the slider so as to cause the relative displacement of the movable jaw 15 with respect to the fixed jaw 12. The elastic mechanism acts on the slide when it is biased, for example when compressing a compression spring.
In addition to the foregoing, the invention disclosed herein by way of exemplary embodiments suitably may be practiced in the absence of any element or structure which is not specifically disclosed herein.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10/04499 | Nov 2010 | FR | national |
