AU711878B3

AU711878B3 - Base structure for roller skates

Info

Publication number: AU711878B3
Application number: AU14231/99A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Chun-Cheng Chang
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1999-01-27
Filing date: 1999-01-27
Publication date: 1999-10-21
Anticipated expiration: 2005-01-27
Also published as: IL133145A; IL133145A0; CA2258980A1

Description

I 1 II P/00/012 28/5/91 Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990

ORIGINAL

COMPLETE SPECIFICATION PETTY PATENT Invention Title: Name of Applicant: Actual Inventor(s): Address for service: "Base Structure for Roller Skates" Chun-Cheng Chang Chun-Cheng Chang WRAY ASSOCIATES 239 Adelaide Terrace Perth, WA 6000 Attorney code: WR The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me:- Base Structure for Roller Skates Background of the Invention 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a base structure for roller skates.

2 Description of the Related Art The wheels of a typical roller skate are fixed to an underside of the roller skate, and the user has to wear a pair of shoes (generally sport shoes) before putting the roller skates on. The user cannot walk on rugged surfaces when wearing the roller skates. Thus, the user faces troublesome actions of putting on and taking off of the roller skates when he/she starts or stops skating.

Taiwan Utility Model Publication No. 339688 issued on Sep. 1, 1998 discloses a roller skate includes a base and a number of wheels that can be pivoted to storage positions in the base such that the user may directly walk through rugged surfaces without troublesome actions of taking off and re-putting on of the roller skates. However, as shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings, the base 1 includes a number of shoulder sections 2 to which the wheel seats 3 may bear against. The shoulder sections 2 and the overall base 1 must be made of rigid material to support the user. As a result, the user feels uncomfortable when standing on the rigid base. In addition, the wheel assemblies are mounted to the base 1 via an interior of an upper 4 that limits assembly of the wheel assemblies.

The present invention is intended to provide a base structure for roller skates that mitigates and/or obviates the above problems.

Summary of the Invention It is a primary object of the present invention to provide a base structure for roller skates in which the wheels may be stored in the base structure, and assembly of the base structure is easy to accomplish.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a base structure for roller skates that causes no uncomfortable feeling to the user during wearing.

A base structure for a roller skate in accordance with the present invention comprises a base having at least two compartments, a bottom plate secured to the base, and a corresponding number of wheel assemblies each of which is mounted in an associated compartment. The bottom plate includes a number of blocks formed on the underside thereof, each block being received in an associated compartment. Each wheel assembly includes a pivotal seat having a first end secured to the underside of the bottom plate, a wheel seat having a first end pivotally connected to a second end of the pivotal seat, and a wheel rotatably mounted to a second end of the wheel seat. Each wheel seat may be pivoted to a storage position in the associated compartment when not in use. When skating is required, each wheel seat is pivoted to an operative position, in which each wheel seat bears against an underside of an associated block while the wheel rotatably attached to each wheel seat extends beyond the base for skating.

The base may be made of resilient and shock-absorbing material as the base merely accommodates the wheel assemblies. In addition, assembly of the base structure can be finished before attaching the shoe upper to avoid assembly of the wheel assemblies via the interior of the shoe upper.

Other objects, advantages, and novel features of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Brief Description of the Drawings Fig. 1 is a side view, partially sectioned, of a conventional roller skate; Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a roller skate in accordance with the present invention; Fig. 3 is a side view, partially sectioned, of the roller skate in accordance with the present invention, wherein the wheels are in operative positions; Fig. 4 is a side view similar to Fig. 3, wherein the wheels are in storage positions; Fig. 5 is an exploded perspective view of another embodiment of the roller skate in accordance with the present invention; and Fig. 6 is a side view, partially sectioned, of the roller skate in Fig. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments Referring to Figs. 2 and 3, a roller skate in accordance with the present invention generally includes a base or sole 11 having two compartments 12 and 13 defined therein, a bottom plate 21 mounted to an upper side of the base 11, and two wheel assemblies 31 and attached to an underside of the bottom plate 21. As can be seen from Fig. 3, the compartment 12 receives the wheel assembly 31, while the compartment 13 receives the wheel assembly The bottom plate 21 includes two blocks 22 and 25 formed on the underside thereof and a number of positioning holes 23. Each wheel assembly 31, 35 includes a pivotal seat 34, 36 having a first end attached to the underside of the bottom plate 21 by means of extending fasteners bolts 24) through associated positioning holes 23 in the bottom plate 23 and positioning holes 39 in the pivotal seat 34, 36. Each pivotal seat 34, 36 further includes a second end to which an end of a wheel seat 33, 37 is pivotally connected. The other end of each wheel seat 33, 37 includes a wheel 32 rotatably mounted thereto.

In assembly, the pivotal seats 34 and 36 are attached to the underside of the bottom plate 21 by the bolts 24, and the bottom plate 21 is then secured to the base 11 by an adhesive agent. The base structure of the present invention can be attached to an upper 41 after assembly of the base structure of the present invention. The upper 41 includes an interior 42 for receiving a foot of the user.

When the wheel seats 33 and 37 are pivoted to extend beyond the base 11, the wheel seats 33 and 37 bear against undersides of the blocks 22 and 25, respectively. Thus, the roller skate may perform its skating function, as shown in Fig. 3. When the wheel seats 33 and 37 are pivoted to the storage positions shown in Fig. 4, the roller skate can be used as a normal shoe such that the user may walk through rugged roads or surfaces.

The bottom plate 21 and the blocks 22 and 25 are made of rigid material semirigid plastic material) to reliably support the skater during skating. The base 11 may be made of resilient and shock-absorbing material as the base 11 merely accommodates the wheel assemblies 31 and Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate another embodiment of the invention, wherein a reinforcing plate 51 is secured to an upper side of the bottom plate 21 by means of extending the screws 24 through positioning holes 52 in the reinforcing plate 51. The reinforcing plate 51 is made of rigid material, metal to provide additional support for the pivotal seats 34 and 36.

According to the above description, it is appreciated that the base structure for roller skates in accordance with the present invention may completely accommodate the wheel assemblies when not skating such that the base may be made of resilient and shock-absorbing material to provide a comfortable wearing for the user. In addition, the base structure may be assembled before attaching to an upper. The assemblyprocedure is easier.

Although the invention has been explained in relation to its preferred embodiment, it is to be understood that many other possible modifications and variations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as hereinafter claimed.

Throughout the specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise" or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated integer or group of integers but not the exclusion of any other integer or group on integers.

Claims

1. A base structure for a roller skate, comprising: a base having at least two compartments; a bottom plate secured to the base and including an underside and an upper side, the bottom plate further including a corresponding number of blocks formed on the underside thereof, each said block being received in an associated said compartment; and a corresponding number of wheel assemblies each of which is mounted in an associated said compartment, each said wheel assembly including a pivotal seat having a first end secured to the underside of the bottom plate and a second end, a wheel seat having a first end pivotally connected to the second end of the pivotal seat and a second end. and a wheel rotatably mounted to the second end of the wheel seat; wherein each said wheel seat is pivotable between a first operative position and a second storage position in the associated compartment, and wherein when each said wheel seat is in the first operative position, each said wheel seat bears against an underside of an associated said block while the wheel rotatably attached to each said wheel seat extends beyond the base for skating.

2. The base structure for a roller skate as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a metallic reinforcing plate attached to the upper side of the bottom plate. and further comprising a plurality of fasteners for securely mounting the reinforcing plate and the pivotal seats to the bottom plate.

3. The base structure for a roller skate as claimed in claim 2, wherein the fasteners are bolts.