EP0068921B1 - Binding-device for holding the foot of a skier upon a ski, comprising a ski-boot and a toe-binding - Google Patents

Abstract

The toe abutment member of a ski binding is adapted to cooperate with a ski boot provided with a sole having a truncated front end and a toe-cap extension in overhung relation to the truncated front end. The abutment member comprises a feeler element placed directly beneath the toe-cap extension of the ski boot in close proximity to the toe-cap extension under normal skiing conditions. In the event of a forward fall, the feeler element undergoes a vertical displacement in the downward direction under the thrust exerted by said extension while producing a reduction in inherent stiffness of release of the toe abutment member.

Description

The subject of the present invention is an assembly for attaching the foot of a skier to a ski comprising a boot and a front ski binding stop, the sole of said boot comprising a front end truncated so that the front part of its upper is overhanging in front of said truncated end.

The stop of this assembly is of the type comprising a jaw formed by two arms for retaining the front part of the sole, rotatably mounted around at least one vertical pivot, and which cooperates with an elastic mechanism normally ensuring the immobilization of the arms in the shoe retaining position with an adjustable force, known as its own trigger hardness.

Certain front stops of this kind are provided with a feeler member adapted to be in contact with the front part of the shoe, and to act on the elastic mechanism in the event of a front fall, in order to reduce its own trigger hardness.

There is thus known from French patent FR-A-2099849 a front stop whose torsional hardness decreases in the event of a fall forward, by means of a member sensitive to the increase in pressure which occurs during the fall. front such as a membrane, formed under the location of the skier's big toe. The increase in pressure in this member is transmitted to the mechanism for adjusting the torsional hardness to reduce this hardness.

This realization requires a complicated transmission device between the underside of the sole and the hardness adjustment mechanism. In addition, another drawback of this device comes from the fact that after a jump or a passage over a bump, at the moment when the skier falls flat on his skis, the organ sensitive to the pressure of the foot is necessarily actuated even if the skier is not in a dangerous situation. The sudden decrease in trigger hardness that results can then cause an inadvertent trigger.

German patent application DE-A-2905837 also describes a front stop provided with a pressure-sensitive feeler member, disposed under the front of the shoe and which can be constituted, for example, by a flexible pocket filled with air connected by a pipe to the elastic mechanism, or else by rods capable of actuating a rod cooperating with a rocker which acts on the elastic mechanism by reducing the hardness during a forward fall.

These embodiments have the same drawbacks as that of French patent FR-A-2099849, in particular because of the danger of untimely triggering when a bump passes. Also known from the first addition _No. 78.802 to French Patent _No. 1220819 a binding comprising a linkage associated with an elastic member, and arranged so that the lifting of the heel of the shoe causes the linkage to rise under the action of the elastic return member, and correspondingly a decrease in the force with which the torsion retaining piece is applied to the front of the binding.

This realization is complicated by the fact that it requires the arrangement of a mechanism under the shoe. In addition, it risks being very easily blocked by the accumulation of snow or by frost, due to the complicated linkage arranged between the boot and the ski.

The object of the invention is to produce a fixing assembly, comprising a front stop designed to remedy these drawbacks and specially arranged to cooperate with a ski boot, the sole of which has a truncated front end, so that the front part of its upper is overhanging in front of said truncated end, this shoe forming an integral part of the fastening assembly according to the invention. A ski boot of this type is described for example in French patent FR-A-2410447.

The binding assembly according to the invention comprises a boot and a front stop for a ski boot, comprising a jaw formed by two arms for retaining the front part of the sole of the boot in the axis of the ski, rotatably mounted around at least one vertical pivot and which cooperate with an elastic mechanism normally ensuring the immobilization of the arms in the position for retaining the boot in the axis of the ski with an adjustable force, called its own trigger hardness, and a suitable feeler member to be in contact with the shoe and which is vertically movable, so as to lower under the thrust of said shoe to act on the elastic mechanism during a forward fall by causing a reduction in the natural hardness of lateral release.

This binding assembly is characterized in that the sole of the shoe comprises, in a manner known per se, a front truncated end so that the front part of the upper of the shoe is overhanging in front of said truncated end and in this that the feeler member of the stopper is arranged below the front part of the upper of the boot by touching this front part during normal skiing.

Thus, the feeler member is placed directly above the elastic mechanism, which in particular makes it possible to remove complicated transmission parts, and therefore considerably simplifies the production of the device.

In one embodiment of the invention, in which the elastic mechanism of the front stop comprises a U-shaped piston housed in a housing so as to slide along the axis of the ski, and constantly urged by at least one spring against a flat on the retaining jaw, the feeler member is constituted by a stirrup extending transversely to the ski, provided with two lateral tabs interposed between the sides of the piston and the housing and which cooperate with lateral lugs of the piston, so that, during normal skiing, the lugs keep the stirrup in the raised position by acting on its lateral legs, and that in the event of a fall before the front part of the rod makes the stirrup pivot down around an axe transverse to the ski and correspondingly the legs of the stirrup exert on the lugs a thrust which draws the piston away from the flat part of the jaw.

In normal position during skiing, the piston pushed by the elastic system constantly exerts, by its lateral lugs, a pressure on the legs of the stirrup, whose transverse branch forming a pedal is inclined on the horizontal in order to allow a tilting of the caliper assembly.

In a second possible embodiment, the piston is provided on its face in abutment against the flat part of the jaw, with a finger having an inclined ramp, on which is placed in sliding abutment a pusher provided with a conjugate ramp and constituting the feeler member, this pusher being mounted to slide vertically around the fixed pivot and resiliently biased towards its position raised by the finger of the piston.

During a forward fall, the front part of the shell of the shoe presses on the pusher which slides down along the pivot and causes, by respective sliding of the ramps of the pusher and the finger, a separation of the latter and of the piston in relation to the flat, which results in a reduction in the trigger hardness.

This embodiment is also very simple and reliable, and also does not run the risk of fouling by accumulation of snow or mud.

According to one feature, the invention also provides that the top of the feeler member is made up of removable plates, made of a material with a low coefficient of friction.

By having a set of pads of different thicknesses, it is possible to adjust the height of the feeler member with respect to the shoe so that the feeler surface is almost in contact with the shell of the shoe without being subjected to pressure. on the part of the latter outside a front fall.

• La fig. 1 est une vue en coupe longitudinale d'une première forme de réalisation de la butée avant selon l'invention, suivant I-I de la fig. 2, le palpeur étant relevé.
• La fig. 2 est une vue de dessus et en coupe partielle horizontale avec arrachements suivant II-II de la fig. 1.
• La fig. 3 est une vue en coupe verticale longitudinale et élévation partielle suivant III-III de la fig. 4, montrant l'organe palpeur abaissé lors d'une chute avant.
• La fig. 4 est une vue de dessus partielle et en coupe suivant IV-IV de la fig. 3.
• La fig. 5 est une vue en coupe longitudinale suivant V-V de la fig. 6 d'un second mode de réalisation de la butée avant selon l'invention, son palpeur étant en position relevée.
• La fig. 6 est une vue de dessus partielle et en coupe horizontale suivant VI-VI de la fig. 5.
• La fig. 7 est une coupe longitudinale suivant Vl I-VII de la fig. 8 montrant le poussoir abaissé lors d'une chute avant et le piston écarté de son méplat d'appui.
• La fig. 8 est une vue de dessus partielle et en coupe horizontale suivant VIII-VIII de la fig. 7.
• La fig. 9 est une vue en coupe longitudinale axiale suivant IV-IV de la fig. 10 d'une troisième forme de réalisation de la butée avant selon l'invention, son organe palpeur étant en position relevée.
• La fig. 10 est une vue de dessus partielle et en coupe horizontale suivant X-X de la fig. 9.
• La fig. 10a est un détail de la fig. 10 montrant le piston écarté de son méplat d'appui par suite d'une chute avant.
• La fig. 11 est une vue en coupe longitudinale suivant XI-XI de la fig. 12 d'une quatrième forme de réalisation de la butée avant selon l'invention.
• La fig. 12 est une vue de dessus partielle et en coupe avec arrachements suivant XII-XII de la fig. 11.
• La butée avant de fixation de ski représentée aux fig. 1 à 4 est destinée à coopérer avec une chaussure de ski 1, dont la semelle 2 comporte une extrémité avant tronquée 2a. De ce fait, la partie avant 1 a de la tige de la chaussure 1 est en surplomb en avant de l'extrémité tronquée 2a.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the description which follows, given with reference to the accompanying drawings in which several non-limiting embodiments of the invention have been shown.

• Fig. 1 is a view in longitudinal section of a first embodiment of the front stop according to the invention, along II of FIG. 2, the probe being raised.
• Fig. 2 is a top view and in partial horizontal section with cutaway along II-II of FIG. 1.
• Fig. 3 is a view in longitudinal vertical section and partial elevation along III-III of FIG. 4, showing the feeler member lowered during a forward fall.
• Fig. 4 is a partial top view in section along IV-IV of FIG. 3.
• Fig. 5 is a view in longitudinal section along VV of FIG. 6 of a second embodiment of the front stop according to the invention, its feeler being in the raised position.
• Fig. 6 is a partial top view in horizontal section along VI-VI of FIG. 5.
• Fig. 7 is a longitudinal section along Vl I-VII of FIG. 8 showing the pusher lowered during a forward fall and the piston moved away from its support flat.
• Fig. 8 is a partial top view in horizontal section along VIII-VIII of FIG. 7.
• Fig. 9 is a view in axial longitudinal section along IV-IV of FIG. 10 of a third embodiment of the front stop according to the invention, its feeler member being in the raised position.
• Fig. 10 is a partial top view in horizontal section along XX of FIG. 9.
• Fig. 10a is a detail of FIG. 10 showing the piston separated from its support flat as a result of a front fall.
• Fig. 11 is a view in longitudinal section along XI-XI of FIG. 12 of a fourth embodiment of the front stop according to the invention.
• Fig. 12 is a partial top view in section with cutaway along XII-XII of FIG. 11.
• The ski binding front stop shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 is intended to cooperate with a ski boot 1, the sole 2 of which has a truncated front end 2a. Therefore, the front part 1a of the upper of the shoe 1 is overhanging in front of the truncated end 2a.

The front of the ski is on the left of the figures. The stop includes a jaw 3 formed by two arms 4 for retaining the front part of the shoe 1, and which are adapted to receive the truncated front part 2a. The jaw 3 is rotatably mounted around a vertical pivot 5 fixed to the ski 6, and cooperates with an elastic mechanism 7 normally ensuring the immobilization of the arms 4 in the shoe retaining position 1 with an adjustable force, called the own hardness of trigger.

The elastic mechanism 7 comprises, in this example, two helical springs 8 placed inside a U-shaped piston 9, having a transverse branch 9a held by the springs 8 bearing against a flat 11 formed vertically on the jaw 3. The springs 8 are supported on a part 12 placed between the lateral branches of the piston 9, and which is crossed by a screw 13 for adjusting the hardness of the springs 8.

The elastic mechanism 7 is housed in a housing 14 having, on the side of the jaw 3, an opening into which the jaw 3 penetrates so that its flat 11 can effectively come into contact with the piston 9. Plastic plates 15 having preferably good sliding qualities are interposed between the lateral branches of the piston 9 and the walls of the housing 14. The plates 15 may be constituted by vertical partitions forming integral parts of the base plate of the front stop. In the plates 15 are formed lights 16 whose role will be explained below.

The housing 14 is itself contained in a protective casing 17 fixed to the ski 6.

According to the invention, the front stop is provided with a feeler member 18 disposed below the front part 1a of the upper of the boot 1, by touching this front part 1a during normal skiing. This probe 18 can be moved vertically so as to lower itself under the thrust of the front part 1 a during a front fall, causing a reduction in the hardness of triggering of the elastic mechanism 7.

More precisely in the example described, the feeler member 18 consists of a stirrup extending transversely to the ski 6, provided with two lateral tabs 19 housed in the slots 16. The piston 9 is provided with two lugs 21 projecting in the slots 16, in contact with the legs 19. Under the thrust of the springs 8, the lugs 21 constantly exert pressure on the legs 19 tending to maintain the latter in the substantially vertical position of the fig. 1, to which corresponds a raised position of the transverse branch of the stirrup 18.

The stirrup 18 is therefore carried by the cover of the housing 14, the latter having openings for the passage of the lugs 19. The lugs 19 have, at the level of the cover of the housing 14, notches 22 into which the edge of housing cover 14.

The notches 22 allow the entire feeler stirrup 18 to pivot about an axis transverse to the ski 6 when the front part 1 a of the boot presses on the stirrup 18.

Appropriate sealing means such as bellows, which have not been shown for the purpose of simplification, may be provided to prevent snow or ice from penetrating on the one hand between the transverse part forming the pedal of the probe 18 and the top of the housing 17, on the other hand inside the housing 14.

The front part of the sole 2 rests on a plate 23 with a low coefficient of friction, carried by the base plate of the front stop.

On the top of the stirrup 18 is fixed a plate 24 also with a low coefficient of friction (for example PTFE). It is advantageous to provide a removable mounting of the plate 24, for example by clipping, the plate can in this case be replaced by a plate of different thickness to take account of the inevitable differences in the dimensions of the different shoes and their wear. It is indeed important that the feeler 18 is not stressed during normal skiing, but only if the skier is tilted forward.

The operation of the front stop which has just been described is as follows.

During normal skiing, the feeler member and the boot 1 are in the respective positions of FIG. 1. The transverse branch of the probe 18 is inclined to the horizontal, and its upper edge grazes the front front part 1a of the shoe. During a front fall (fig. 3 and 4), the front part 1 has overhang of the shoe 1 exerts on the feeler stirrup 18 a push downwards, so that the stirrup 18 swings around the transverse axis connecting the notches 22, to the position visible in Figs. 3 and 4.

During the tilting of the stirrup 18, the lugs 19 pivot and thereby exert on the lugs 21 a force directed towards the front of the ski, which slightly advances the piston 9 relative to the flat 11 by compressing the springs 8 , as seen in Figs. 3 and 4. The jaw 4 can therefore pivot freely over a certain angular travel. Tests have shown that this initial freedom of movement of the jaw around its vertical pivot 5 compensated for parasitic friction appearing between the front of the shoe and the pad 23 as well as between the front of the shoe and the jaw 4 by following the inclination of the skier forwards, so that the trigger hardness of the front stop in torsion is kept approximately constant, whatever the inclination of the skier forwards.

The front stop according to the invention therefore provides very high security in the combined ch utes before twisting.

In the event of a pure forward fall, the probe 18 sinking, the escape of the shoe from the heel piece (not shown) is obviously not thwarted.

As soon as the abnormal forces which have appeared during skiing have ceased or as soon as the boot has left the binding, the springs 8 act on the lugs 19 by means of the lugs 21 to return the feeler 18 to its initial position of FIGS. 1 and 2.

It would also be possible to provide a small additional spring to help lift the probe 18.

The feeler device according to the invention is very simple and very effective while being inexpensive thanks to the fact that it is incorporated into the stopper itself, to which it is therefore not connected by complicated means such as linkages.

In the second embodiment illustrated in FIGS. 5 to 8, the probe 27 is constituted by a pusher mounted to slide vertically around the fixed pivot 28. The pusher 27 is therefore hollow as can be seen in FIG. 5, while the head of the pivot 28 is provided with a projecting flange 29, serving as a height stop for the pusher 27.

The latter and the pivot 28 are housed in a cavity 31 formed in the jaw 26 and flared towards the front of the ski, the two nozzles thus arranged ending in cams or vertical flats 33 on which the transverse branch 9a of the piston 9, pushed by the springs 8. The jaw 26 is provided with two arms 32 for retaining the boot similar to the arms 4.

The piston 9 is provided, on its face bearing against the flat 33, with a central finger 34 having an inclined ramp 34a, on which is placed in sliding bearing a conjugate ramp 27a formed at the lower end of the pusher 27, the occurrence a conical part.

Furthermore, this front stop is identical to that of FIGS. 1 to 4.

It will be noted that the front part 1 a of the shell of the shoe is provided with a reinforcement insert 1 b intended to come into contact with the pusher 27 so as to avoid deformation of the wall of the shell 1 a at this location . Insert 1b presents preferably good sliding characteristics.

The operation of the front stop of figs. 5 to 8 is as follows. During normal skiing, the pusher 27 is held in the raised position by the finger 34 secured to the piston 9, and this by means of the corresponding ramps 34a, 27a.

In the event of a front fall, part 1a of the shoe presses, via the reinforcement 1b, on the pusher 27. The latter slides vertically downwards along the pivot 28. The ramp 27a pushes forward from the ski, the ramp 34a carried by the finger 34, so that the piston 9 is moved away from the flat 33.

At the end of this movement, the pusher 27, the piston 9 and the shoe 1 are in the positions illustrated in FIGS. 7 and 8, in which the inherent hardness of triggering of the elastic mechanism is lowered since the piston 9 is no longer in abutment against the flat 33 (fig. 7 and 8). This compensates for parasitic friction, so that the overall opening hardness of the front stop remains practically unchanged.

In the third embodiment of the front stop illustrated in FIGS. 9, 10 and 1 Oa, the jaw 35 is integral with the body 36 of the stop, inside which is housed the elastic mechanism 7, 9. The body 36 is rotatably mounted on a fixed vertical pivot 37 having a flat 37a against which applies the transverse branch 9a of the piston 9. An adjustment screw 13 screwed into the body 36 makes it possible to modify the trigger hardness exerted by the springs 8 constituting the elastic system 7.

In the fixed pivot 37 are mounted a slide 38 in the form of a wedge which is guided to move along the axis of the ski as well as a feeler constituted by a pusher 39 with an enlarged head 41, movable vertically along the axis of the pivot 37 .

The lower end of the pusher 39 has an inclined face 39a which bears against a complementary inclined plane 38a formed on the slide 38.

The slide 38, which in top view has the shape of a T, opens towards the front of the ski by its enlarged end in the flat 37a, opposite the transverse branch 9a of the piston 9.

At this level the width d of the slide 38 is less than the width D of the flat 37a (FIG. 10a).

During a forward fall, the projection 1a of the boot shell presses on the head 41 of the pusher 39 which slides vertically downwards in the pivot 37 while advancing the slider 38 by means of the ramps 39a and 38a. The piston 9 is therefore moved away from the flat 37a of width D and now bears against the front face of width d of the slide 38. Due to the decrease in the lever arm (which has gone from D to d), the tripping torque of the front stop is therefore reduced, which makes it possible to compensate for parasitic forces due to friction.

The fourth embodiment of the front stop shown in FIGS. 11 and 12 comprises two independent arms 42, each pivotally mounted around a vertical axis 43. The arms 42 are each provided with a nose 44, nose directed towards one another, and which are introduced into an annular groove 45 formed in the head 46 of a tie rod 47 disposed axially on the ski 6.

The rod 48 of the tie rod 47 is guided in a flange 51 formed at the rear of the fixed stop body 49. The front part of the rod 48 is provided with a thread and is screwed onto a part 53 guided in translation in the body 49 to move along the axis of the ski. A compression spring 52 housed in the body 49, and bearing against the rear bottom of the latter, acts on the part 53 to strongly apply the head 46 of the tie rod against the flange 51 and, correspondingly, hold the arms 42 in position shoe retention.

This type of front stop is well known and is commercially available. According to the invention, the front stop is equipped with a feeler member. This consists of a pedal 54 articulated around a transverse axis 55 carried by the body 49 and located above the annular groove 45. The pedal 54 comprises a transverse branch 56 situated at a certain height above the cover of the housing 49, so as to be practically in contact with the part 1 a of the shell of the shoe, as well as a lower extension 57 in the form of a nose, coming to engage in the groove 45.

As in the previous embodiments, the top of the pedal 54 is advantageously lined with a plate 58 made of a material with a low coefficient of friction possibly interchangeable.

Under these conditions, during normal skiing, the feeler 54 is in the position illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 12, raised above the housing 49 and not undergoing any pressure from the shoe. During a forward fall, the front part 1a overhanging the shoe presses on the pedal 54 which pivots around the axis 55, so that the lower extension 57 drives the head 46 of the piston 47 in the direction of the shoe, that is to say in the direction which facilitates the separation of the arms 42 and the escape of the shoe.

This result is made possible by the fact that the transverse branch 56 of the pedal 54 extends towards the front of the ski with respect to the pivot axis 55.

After the shoe has escaped, the return spring 52 returns the entire mechanism and the probe 54 to their initial position.

The invention is not limited to the various embodiments described above and can include numerous variant embodiments. Thus, the feeler members described can be produced in any other equivalent way, insofar as they remain movable vertically under the pressure exerted by the front part overhanging the upper of the truncated shoe, causing a reduction in the trigger hardness of the stop.

Thus, for example, it would be possible to provide an adjustment of the reduction ratio between the vertical force exerted on the probe and the horizontal force which results therefrom on the piston of the elastic mechanism. This could be achieved in the case of the first embodiment by providing means for varying the axis of tilting of the probe 18 against the cover of the housing 14, for example by providing several notches 22 on each of the tabs 19.

It would be possible to equip the top of the feeler member with rolling members (needles or rollers) instead of a sliding plate.

Claims (7)

1. Ski-binding assembly for fastening a skier's foot on a ski, comprising a boot (1) and a ski-binding toe abutment member including a jaw unit (3, 26, 35) formed by two arms (4,32,42) for retaining the front portion (2a) of the sole (2) of the boot (1) in the axis of the ski, which are rotatably mounted on at least one vertical pivot (5,28,37,43) and which cooperate with a resilient mechanism which normally serves to lock the arms (4, 32, 42) in a position for retaining the boot (1 ) in the axis of the ski with an adjustable force or so-called inherent stiffness of release, and a feeler element (18, 27, 39, 54) which is adapted to be in contact with the boot (1) and which is vertically displaceable in such a manner as to move downwards under the thrust exerted by said boot (1) in order to produce action on the resilient mechanism in the event of a forward fall while producing a reduction in the inherent stiffness of lateral release, characterized in that the sole (2) of the boot (1) is provided in a manner known per se with a truncated front end (2a), with the result that the front portion (1 a) of the upper of the boot (1 ) is in an overhung position in front of said truncated end (2a) and that the feeler element (18, 27, 39, 54) of the toe abutment member is placed beneath the front portion (1 a) of the upper of the boot (1) in close proximity to this front portion (1 a) while normal skiing is in progress.

2. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with claim 1, wherein the resilient mechanism comprises a U-shaped piston (9) which is housed within a box unit (14) so as to be capable of displacement in sliding motion along the axis of the ski (6) and is continuously urged by at least one spring (8) against a flat bearing surface (11) of the retaining jaw unit (3), characterized in that the feeler element (18) is constituted by a yoke which extends transversely with respectto the ski (6) and is provided with two lateral arms (19) which are interposed between the sides of the piston (9) and the box unit (14) and which cooperate with lateral lugs (21 ) of the piston (9) so that, under normal skiing conditions, the lugs (21 ) maintain the yoke (18) in the raised position by producing action on its lateral arms (19) and that, in the event of a forward fall, the front portion (1 a) of the boot-upper causes a downward pivotal displacement of the yoke (18) about an axis transverse to the ski (6) and the arms (19) of the yoke (18) exert cor- relatively on the lugs (21 ) a thrust which moves the piston (9) away from the flat bearing face (11 ) of the jaw unit (3).

3. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with claim 1, in which the resilient mechanism comprises a U-shaped piston (9) which is housed within a box unit (14) so as to be capable of displacement in sliding motion along the axis of the ski (6) and is continuously urged by at least one spring (8) against a flat bearing surface (33) of the jaw unit (26), characterized in that the piston (9) is provided on that face which is applier against the flat bearing face of the jaw unit with a lug (34) having an inclined ramp (34a) against which is slidably applied a push-member (27) provided with a corresponding ramp (27a) and constituting the feeler element, this push-member (27) being slidably mounted around the stationary pivot (28) and resiliently urged to its raised position by the lug (34) of the piston (9).

4. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with claim 1, in which the retaining jaw unit (35) is rigidly fixed to a box unit (36), the complete assembly being rotatably mounted on the vertical pivot (37) on which is formed a flat portion (37a) against which the piston (9) of the resilient mechanism is applied, characterized in that the feeler element is constituted by a push-member (39) which is mounted for vertical sliding motion within the stationary pivot (37) and which cooperates with a slide-block (38) mounted within the stationary pivot (37) between the push-member and the piston (9), the lower end of the push-member (39) being provided with an inclined bearing ramp (39a) slidably applied against a corresponding inclined bearing ramp (38a) of the slide-block (38).

5. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with claim 4, characterized in that the slide-block (38) has a face which bears on the piston (9) and the width (d) of which is smaller than the width (D) of the flat portion (37a).

6. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with claim 1, in which the jaw unit is constituted by two arms (42) which are each mounted for pivotal displacement about a vertical axis (43) and which are engaged with a central tie-bolt (47) actuated by a resilient member (52), characterized in that the feeler element is formed by a pedal (54) pivotally mounted on a cross-pin (55) carried by a casing (49) which contains the resilient member (52), and this pedal (54) is provided with a lower extension (57) engaged in the tie-bolt so that a pivotal displacement of the pedal (54) at the time of a forward fall produces a displacement of the tie-bolt (47) by means of said extension (57) in a direction which facilitates opening-out of the arms (42), that is to say towards the boot (1).

7. Ski-binding assembly in accordance with any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the top face of the feeler element (18, 27, 54) is fitted with small slide-plates which may be detachable (24,58).

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