Patent Application
20160287972
Waxing is a surface treatment used on winter sports equipment such as skis or snowboards. It consists of applying a layer of ski wax on the surfaces that come into contact with the snow (e.g., soles or sliding surfaces). Ski wax improves the smoothness of the treated surface and maximizes performance of the treated equipment. Various waxes can be applied for top performance in various snow conditions, such as icy or loose powder.
Wax can be manually applied cold on the sole of sporting equipment by spraying liquid ski wax or rubbing solid wax along the surface of the sole. The wax adheres to the surface of the sole. Subsequent scraping may be used to remove excess ski wax and level the layer of wax along the sole. Alternatively, hot wax may be manually applied to the sole when wax is heated past its melting point and is then deposited on the sole by, e.g., rollers or is dripped on the sole and smoothed by a heated plate.
Waxing of winter sporting equipment is usually performed manually by applying the wax on the sole to be treated and removing excess wax, particularly from edges of the equipment. This may be done using an iron to spread melted wax on the sole and a spatula to remove excess, or by heating the equipment itself and applying solid wax which then locally melts upon contacted the heated equipment. This can require substantial time investment for proper wax application, scraping off excess, and brushing to smooth the wax surface to prepare equipment for optimal performance.
Semi-automated waxing devices apply wax by passing skis or snowboards over a stationary roller which dips into a reservoir of melted wax. Equipment can be heated in advance of wax being deposited on them to allow for better wax absorption on porous equipment soles. These waxing devices then can scrape off excess wax with brushes and/or scraping mechanisms. These waxing devices require a great deal of space for operation since skis are passed over the roller so twice the lateral length of skis are required for operation. They are generally intended for use in professional equipment technician shops and ill-suited for public use. This requires foresight for those participating in winter sports to plan ahead on tuning up their equipment and trying to select wax products for snow conditions in the future. State of the art waxing devices are also unfit for use in outdoor environments and require professional oversight and training for use.
In either manual or semi-automated waxing it is beneficial to select appropriate wax products to match snow conditions for optimal performance and desired results. However, when waxing equipment in advance one has to effectively make a best guess as to snow conditions in the future when participation in skiing or snowboarding will occur. This can lead to selection of improper wax with inaccurate characteristics for conditions the day of use. Also, either manual waxing or waxing performed by a technician requires substantial time investment by equipment owners which can be cumbersome.
A substantial unmet need in the art is for an automated device for applying wax to winter sport equipment that can be used publically, requires a limited amount of space for operation, and assists in proper selection of wax for snow conditions.
The invention overcomes the problems of the prior art by providing an automated device which cleans winter sporting equipment, applies wax, and scrapes off excess wax while contained in a housing that requires limited space and assists in selection of wax based on most current snow conditions. The invention also provides for a public kiosk where skiers and snowboarders can insert their equipment and have it waxed on-site. This does not require either a significant time investment in manual waxing or cumbersome acts of bringing equipment to a technician ahead of time.
Other aspects and advantages of embodiments of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, illustrated by way of example of the principles of the invention.
Alternatively mounting mechanism 100 can be fixed and track 202 can be raised to meet mounting mechanism 100. The substantially vertical alignment of automated waxing device 200 is particularly advantageous as compared to any prior art device at least because it requires the least horizontal footprint for performing cleaning, waxing, scraping, and brushing. In the configuration depicted in
Cleaning portion 204 may, for example, be a substantially cylindrical roller with damp course bristles 503. A dispensing device (not shown) such as a spray nozzle may dispense a cleansing agent on cleaning portion 204 which may be applied by spinning bristles 503 over a sole of skis 101. Alternatively, for example, cleaning portion 204 may apply a spray to a sole of skis 101 and remove the spray with bristles 503. Cleaning portion 204 should be made of materials and cleansing agents which clean a sole of skis 101 and remove, for example, snow, ice, slush, dirt, preexisting wax, or any other substance which can interfere with the application of wax to a sole of a ski or snowboard. Additionally, any cleansing agent dispensed by a dispensing device or applied by cleaning portion 204 may be composed to dry quickly to enable application of wax by waxing portion 205 soon after cleaning a portion of the sole of skis 101.
Waxing portion 205 consists of, for example, a substantially cylindrical heated roller 504 which contacts wax block 501. A portion of wax block 501 melts upon being heated by heated roller 504 and is applied to a sole of skis 101 as it is carried along a portion of the circumference of heated roller 504 as it contact skis 101 by virtue of the viscosity of the melted wax. Heated roller 504 may include, for example, grooves or indents which may align with skis 101 or a snowboard to better perform application of wax.
Heated roller 504 may also locally heat a sole of skis 101 (or a snowboard) as it passes to improve wax absorption. Alternatively, carriage 203 may also include a heating element (not shown) which also heats skis 101. Wax block 501 may be carried by wax carriage 502 that includes a mechanism for maintain contact between wax block 501 and heated roller 504. Additionally, wax carriage 502 may supply heat to heated roller 504. Also, for example, wax carriage 502 may collect and store unused melted wax drippings for future use. Automated waxing device 200 may allow for selection of wax blocks 501 based on current snow conditions and may dispense a wax block 501 which is placed upon or secured to wax carriage 502 prior to activating automated waxing.
Brushing portion 206 may be a substantially cylindrical rotating brush with, for example, fine bristles employed in smoothing wax in preparation for scraping. Brushing portion 206 may be rotated by motor 208 at a variety of speeds appropriate to provide desired texture according to the properties of wax applied to skis 101 and for the snow conditions. Alternatively brushing portion 206 may be aligned below scraping mechanism 207 or a second brushing portion 206 may be aligned such that brushing occurs before and after scraping a sole of skis 101. In this example, a first brushing portion 206 may be of a more coarse texture to maximize effectiveness of scraping portion 207 and second brushing portion 208 may be of a more fine texture to ensure additional smoothing of a sole of skis 101. Second brushing portion 208 may only be optionally used as carriage 203 passes along a sole of skis 101 and may be disengaged from contact skis 101 if snow conditions call for a less smooth wax application on a sole of skis 101.
Scraping portion 207 may be, for example, a hooked scraping edge 209 and a detritus collection area 210. As scraping portion 207 passes along a sole of skis 101, scraping edge 209 contacts wax applied by waxing portion 204 and scrapes off at least some wax to smooth the outer surface of the sole of skis 101. Scraping portion 207 may be formed of a material which provides adequate resistive force to enable an appropriate amount of scraping by scraping edge 209, or, alternatively, may consist of a spring mechanism to maintain contact between scraping edge 209 and a sole of skis 101. As an additional example, scraping edge may be a tapered hard plastic, a blade, a sharp edge, or any other known substance or configuration known in the art for scraping unwanted wax. As an additional example, scraping portion 207 can apply selective resistive force such that scraping edge 209 scrapes a desired amount of wax from selected wax block 501, or scrapes different portions of a sole of skis 101 differently (e.g., scrapes the center of a sole of skis 101 less than the upper or lower portions of a sole of skis 101). Scraping portion 207 may also contain wax collection area 210 which can collect wax scrapings from scraping edge 209 for recycling into new wax blocks 501.
Alternatively, if additional deposition of wax layers is desired or programmed, carriage 203 may return to its starting position after completing one pass along track 202 and perform one or more additional passes along the length of skis 101 or a snowboard.
Once access to a housing 201 is permitted in step 902, a user inserts at least one pair of skis 101 or snowboard into mounting mechanism 100. Mounting mechanism 101 may be manually secured by the user, automatically secured by motors 208, or some combination thereof and housing 201 may be closed. Step 902 may be performed by displacing a lower portion track 102 or an upper portion track 103 to contact a first and second end of said at least one pair of skis or snowboard. If automated waxing device is so configured or a wax is manually selected by the user, a wax block 501 may be selected from a variety of wax blocks in step 903 based on the information input in step 911 and placed upon or secured to wax carriage 502. In 904 mounting mechanism 100 and carriage 203 are brought into proximity (either by moving one or both) to allow contact between cleaning device 204, waxing mechanism 205, brushing mechanism 206 and scraping portion 207 and a sole of the inserted at least one pair of skis 101 or snowboard. In step 905 cleaning device 204 cleans the at least one pair of skis 101 or snowboard. In step 906 waxing device 205 applies wax (heated or at ambient temperature) to at least a portion of the sole of the at least one pair of skis 101 or snowboard. In step 907 a scraping portion removes excess wax deposited during step 906. Step 907 may also include brushing. In step 908, mounting mechanism 100 and carriage 203 are returned to substantially their original positions. In step 909 after a predetermined period of time to allow for cooling, locking mechanism 212 may be opened and the at least one pair of skis 101 or snowboard are released for removal from automated waxing device 200. Steps 905, 906, and 907 may be performed in a single pass of carriage 203 along track 202. Alternatively Steps 905, 906, and 907 may be performed in a more than one pass of carriage 203 along track 202. Further steps 905, 906, and 907 may be performed in a pre-programmed manner to optimize application of wax for the type of wax selected in step 903.
While the invention has been shown and described with reference to certain exemplary embodiments thereof, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes in form and details may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims and their equivalents.
