CA2084958A1 - Ice skate - Google Patents

Abstract

ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE

There is taught an ice skate which includes an integrally formed blade holder and boot shell of a plastic material. The molding of the boot may be carried out in a single operation.

Description

. The present invent.ion relates to ice skates and more particular].y, relates to improvements in ice skates and ice ~kate runners or b].ade ho].ders.
he manufclcture o~ ice skates .is well known and .. ma1~y di.fEerellt str~lctu~es and materia].s have been emp].oyed `-~ in their manufacture. In the case of skates adapted for :~ hockey ~n~e, it is necessary for the foot.wear to be structured "
. and dimensioned to withstand the various stresses and violent , motions and movements which occur. As technology has advanced, ~': 10 skates are now frequently manufactured using a runner (blade ., holder) which is formed of a plastic material and has a -~. metallic blade embedded therein. Reference may be had to ';1 ~'1 Canadian Patent 1,102,842 illustrating such a structure.
The runner is subsequently attached to the boot portion of . ~ the skate by suitable mechanical meàns.
It is an object of the present invention to provide ~, : an ice skate wherein the manufacturing of a skate is simplified ;~ while providing a strong skate. It is a further object of the present invention to provide an ice skate wherein the runner or blacle holder is formed in a manner so as to minimize .
stresses.
In one aspect of the invention, there is provided ~:
a runner for an ice skate, the runner including a longitudinally c~tc~ mct.l.l.lic ~].adc cmbc(l~lc(1 in .n l~ladc ho].der o~ a c n~ateri.. -ll, the hl.ade havin~ a pair of apertures ].ocated .
.t o~y~se(l ~l~ds ~ er(:oE, d~lCI cl ~ SllapeCl projection ].ocated ;~

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. centrally on an upper marginal edge, the whole of the upper .~ portion of the blade being embedded in the blade holder.
- In a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a method of forming an ice skate which includes the ~ s~cr,s ~ I)rovidin~ st. ;~ncl n mo.l.d, wr;lpl~ quit.~h.l.a heat resistant material about the boot portion of the last, placing the blade in a desired position, and injection molding . ~
~ ! the skate to permit a molten plastic material to Elow about .,i l:he ~,].~clc and at le~st a port.ion of the boot such th~t the ~ 10 ~)lastic L~rms a blacle holder which is il~tegral with a boot '!
shell, the boot shell including at l.east a toe portion, a heel .~. portion and a foot bed.

~ The novel runner of the present invention, as ~ previously mentioned, has a blade which includes a T-shaped projection extending from an upper marginal edge of the blade.

The arms of the T-shaped projection, which extend in opposite ;1 clirectiolls - i.e. -towards the extremities of the blade, are ~: formed so as to permit a shrinkage of the plastic therefrom ;~.. ~ :
c~nd to thereby mirlimize stress in the solidified plastic. .
In conjunction with the above, there are provided ~`1 IlleallS .It either extremity to anchor the plastic. The anchoring ::~
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means comprieses an aperture at either extremity or in the alternative, a projection with an arm extending in the same direction as the arm of the T-projection such that the plastic ~:~
hl~de hol~ler is anchored at the extremit.y of the blade and a tl~ ro~.~.c~cl ShrirlkdC3e iS permitted from the center of the T-shaped .rojection. The shrinkage from the center to the re3pective ends ~ ~
does not leave any possibility of metal being exposed at the ends .-tJhich could be ].ess deslrab].e from the safety viewpoint. :~
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The blade holder for the blade is, as mentioned ~` above, formed of a plastic material and in the preferred ~ embodiment of the present invention, h~s a corrugated .; ct~1,s~ruc~ior~. T1-c 1~ c hol(ler .is ~ormetl integral].y with ~; a boot shell an~ thus eliminates the need for a mechanical al- ~.~clllllcllt ~c~weell the ~oot 1nd rw1ne~. ny utilizin~ this ~;1 type of construction, the manufacturing proces~ is simplified while a strong comfortable skate may be provided.
;~ Having thus generally described the invention, reference will be made to the accompanying drawings illus-tratir,g embodiments thereof, in which:-FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an ice skate in accordance with the pre~ent invention;
FIGURE 2 is a side elevational view with à partiàl cutaway view of the ice skate of Figure l;
,~ ~ FIGURE 3 is a side sectional view illustrating a ~ ~ manufacture of the ice skate;
c~ ~ FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along the line 4-4 : of Figure 3;
~; ~ ~ 20 FIGURE S is a front elevational view i}lustrating production of the skate in a mold; -. .
FIGURE 6 is a detailed sectional view of a portion ;-~

of the skate runner;
FIGURE 6A illustrates an a].ternative form o~
~nr:.hor i n~ ( `. I In;;
FIGURE 7 is a sectional view taken along the line 7-7 ~;~

of Figure 3;

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' ' ~ FIGURE 8 iS a sectional view taken along the :~ line 8-8 of Figure 3;
FIGURE 9 is a sectional view taken along the line ' 9-9 of Figure 3;
. , ., FIGURE lO is a side elevational view of a portion ;}~ ~,f t-ho sl:ilte ~orlned ,in an (~J.terllatc mal~l)cr; al)d . .
',", FIGUR~ 11 is a sectiona]. view taken along the !
',, line 1].-11 oE Figure 10.
~, Referring to the drawings in greater detail and ,',.'~ 10 l~y rcE~rcllce numer~].s thereto, Figure 1 i],].ustrates all ice ::;
,,,r~r;l, skate formed according to one embodiment of the present ,,, invention. Ice skate 10 can generally be characterized by ,:~, ~ having two portions, a runner 12 and a boot 14.
,~ A portion of runner 12 is illustrated in Figure 6 ,~ and reference will now be made thereto. Runner 12 includes a ;~
metallic ice contacting blade 16 and a blade holder generally :~
designated by reference numeral 18. Blade holder 18 is ~; formed of a suitable plastic material and it is adapted to ~: retain the blade 16 in the desired position,and act as the connecting portion between blade 16 and boot 14. As may be ,~.
~.~: seen from Figures 3 and 4, blade ho]der 18, in the illustrated .', ~ embodiment, is formed with three sections extending vertically '::~
between the boot and blade 16 with one situated at the front of the skate, another at the rear and one intermediate the front and rear of the skate. Each of the sections of blade .
i~o~del^ 18 is constructed .in a corrugated manner (see Figure 4) ,~

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to provide maximum support with the minimum use of material , O
; thus minimizing the weight of the skate.
slade 16 as shown in Figure 6, has along an upper edcJe thereof and located at a]ternate ends of the .
1~1L1dC ul)wardly extel~dillg portions 20, each of~which has an perture 22 extendinq -therethrough. Apertures 22 serve as ,~j ~ anchoring points for the plastic as discussed hereinbelow.
,~ r~ocated at the central portion of b]ade 16 is a further ;i upwardly extending portion 24 which has a generally T-shapedconiguration: a pair of arms 26 extend in opposite directions I:oward the front and rear of -the skate. Thus, during the manufacture of the skate wherein blade holder 18 is formed by injection molding, the molten plastic material ~lowa through apertures 22 and about arms 26. When the plastic material starts to solidify, there is a shrinkage o~ the plastic in the lengthwise direction as indicated by arrows 28.
This shrinkage is controlled and guided by th~ design of the blade so that the blade remains embedded and solidly supported in the plastic with minimized internal stress. As will be noted in FigureS 1, 2 and 6, an aperture or slit remains in the plastic above portlon 24 to again minimize stress in the ;~
solidifecl plastic. ~
-~ ~ In an alternative mebodiment in Figure 6A, instead ~i ,:~ ~: ~
i~ .f U9ill~ ~Ipertures 22 as anchoring means, portions 20' have a of the b]ade.

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As previously mentioned, in conventional skates, the blade holder and the boot portion are formed separately with the blade holder being secured to the boot by suitable means (normally mechanical fasteners). A feature of the present invention is that the boot is formed in a single . ~
oper~tioll with the b~ade ho]der being formed integral]y with at least a portion of the boot.
~i As shown in Figure 5, a conventional mold `I arrangement is utilized. The mold comprises two mold halVes '~ 28 movable as shown by arrows 30. A last 32 is provided for the boot portion and mold haves 28 include portions 34 to form the runner of the skate.
,~ In manufacture, and referring to Figures 3 to 9, last 32 is provided with an outer liner 36 of a suitable material (such as a reinforced nylon) formed thereabout.
An inner liner, (not shown) of a suitable material may also be provided. The mold is then closed and a molten plastic material injected to a runner system generally designated by reference numeral 38. As may be seen in Figure 3, the molten plastic will flow to form the blade holder 18, a foot A I I
bed 40, a toe portion 42, and a hee] portion 44. As will be ; seen from Figures 3 and 8, there is provided a mold section 46 pivotable about pivot point 48 which has a runner system 38' - ~:
~¦ therein, the runner system 38' being adapted to allow the plastic to ~low from toe section 42 to form eyelets 48 for event~ cil~l o~ t-~c ~oot.
As shown in Figure 9, the last includes a section S0 adapted to stabilize and hold the last in the desired positlon while being injection molded.

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In one embodiment of the present invention, the section generally designated by reference numeral 52 in Figure 3 may be replaced by a further section as shown in igures 10 and 11. As shown therein, a runner 54 is provided i.~.i ~i to commu~icate with heel section 44 thereby permitting an uppar se(tioll 56 to be formed of the p]astic materia], wllicll ~ )or SOC~iOIl 56 is prc)~illl.lte the allkle of the wearer to provide additional support. A removable insert 58 is provided additional support. A removable insert 5B is provided for the mold to allow for the upper section 56 to ~
be formed as illustrated. Mold insert 58 is suitably secured i; to the mdin body of the mold by mechanical fasteners 60.
Following the molding of the shell about the boot ~;, with the integral blade holder, a conventional tongue 62 may be provided.
During the molding operation, the outer liner 36 may, if required, be treated to ensure proper adherence of the molten plastic to the liner. Suitable treatment for the liner is known to those skilled in the art. As will be seen from the above, the use of an injection molding system to form an integra] blade holder and boot she]] greatly simplifies the manufacturil)g process compared to the operation~ wherein i~ was required to form a separate runner and subsequently attach the same to the boot portion.

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-' It will be understood that the above-described .. embodiments are for purposes of illustration only and that ' changes and modifications may be made without departing .~1 from the spirit and scope of the invention.
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Claims (7)

1. In an ice skate which includes a blade portion and a molded blade holder, the improvement wherein said blade has anchoring means located along the upper portion of the blade at each extremity thereof and a generally T-shaped projection along the upper portion and located centrally of the blade, the whole of the upper portion of the blade being embedded in the blade holder by a plastic injection molding process whereby said anchoring means permits a controlled longitudinal shrinkage of the plastic to occur from the T-shaped projection towards the anchoring means,

2. The improvement of claim 1 wherein said anchoring means comprises an upwardly extending portion from an upper marginal edge of the blade at each extremity thereof, said portion having an aperture extending therethrough to thereby permit the plastic to flow through the aperture and anchor the plastic.

3. The improvement of claim 1 wherein said anchoring means comprises a pair of hook-shaped members, one located proximate each extremity of the blade, each member having a first arm extending upwardly and a second arm extending towards the extremity of the blade.

4. A method of forming an ice skate comprising the steps of providing a last and a mold, forming an outer boot liner of a heat resistant material about the last, placing a metallic blade in a desired position in the mold and injection molding the skate to thereby permit a molten plastic material to flow about the blade and a portion of the boot such that the plastic forms a blade holder integral with a boot shell, the boot shell including a toe portion, a heel portion and a foot bed.

5. The method of claim 4 wherein the step of injection molding includes the step of providing a runner system to permit the molten plastic material to form eyelets on said boot liner.

6. An ice skate comprising a boot portion, a blade, and a blade holder, characterized in that the blade holder is formed of a plastic material and is integral with and forms a portion of the boot shell including a foot bed, a heel portion and a toe portion.

7. The ice skate of claim 6 wherein said blade holder is formed of a corrugated construction.