EP0833575A1

EP0833575A1 - Ski boot

Info

Publication number: EP0833575A1
Application number: EP96915907A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Josef LÖCKER
Original assignee: Atomic Austria GmbH
Current assignee: Atomic Austria GmbH
Priority date: 1995-06-23
Filing date: 1996-06-17
Publication date: 1998-04-08
Anticipated expiration: 2016-06-17
Also published as: AT402591B; DE59603015D1; WO1997000625A1; ATA108195A; EP0833575B1

Abstract

The disclosure relates to a ski boot (1) with a shell (2) containing a sole inlay (5) situated above the sole (3), to which sole inlay (5) a height-adjustment mechanism (12) operable from outside is assigned. The height-adjustment mechanism can be used to adjust the height of one long side (7') of the sole inlay (5) relative to the other long side (6'). To reinforce the edge engagement in a ski shoe of this type, the sole inlay (5) is subdivided along the length of the sole (3) into an inside section (7) and an outside section (6), the two sections (6, 7) being connected by a joint (8) whose axis in the region adjacent to the outside long side (6') of the sole inlay (5) extends along the length of the sole. The outside section (6) of the sole inlay (5) is securely connected to the sole (3) of the ski boot (1) and the height-adjustment mechanism (12) is assigned to the inside section (7) of the sole inlay (5).

Description

"Ski boot"

The invention relates to a ski boot with a shell, in which a sole insert is contained above a sole, to which an externally operable height adjustment mechanism is assigned, with which one long side of the sole insert is height-adjustable relative to the other long side.

Such a ski boot is known from DE 29 53 208 A, the sole insert with the height adjustment mechanism making it possible to adjust the height of the foot relative to the shell. For this purpose, four supports are provided below the sole insert, which are formed on the one hand by two vertically adjustable bolts in the forefoot area and on the other hand by two elastically deformable sleeves in the heel area; these sleeves can be contracted by means of horizontally adjustable screw bolts and thus their height can be adjusted. This height adjustment device is intended to achieve a comfortable, orthopedic and ski functionally correct position of the foot in adaptation to a wide variety of foot shapes and foot positions. Because of the four supports, however, the screw bolts must be carefully adjusted so that there is no "wobbling" of the sole insert if one of the supports is too high or too low.

Similar ski boots, in which a sole insert can be adjusted for reasons of adaptation, are described in DE 29 06 310 A, DE 29 53 208, DE 27 26 778 C and US 3 922 800 A. A range adjustment of a sole insert for orthopedic reasons, namely in the arch or in the heel area, is also provided for the ski boots according to US 47 31 940 A or US 5 090 139. Finally, from DE 39 42 174 A an inner foot holding device for a ski boot is known, in which support plates to be placed laterally on the foot can be adjusted horizontally with the aid of cams and shafts.

In alpine ski racing, the so-called "edge grip" of a ski is of primary importance, especially in the technical disciplines. When the direction of travel changes, there is an angle between the ski running surface and the slope surface, which is mainly due to the weight of the skier, the speed, the radius of the curve and in particular the Snow conditions. The more icy the surface is, the greater this angle, so that the edge grip is increased.

The object of the invention is now to provide a ski boot with which the edge grip of the ski and thus the power transmission to the ski when the direction of travel changes can be preset as easily as possible and in particular in adaptation to the nature of the slope from the outside, with a nevertheless stable hold of the foot in the shoe can be achieved with all settings.

This object is achieved according to the invention in the ski boot of the type mentioned at the outset in that the sole insert is divided in the longitudinal direction of the sole into an inside part and into an outside part, and that one part of the sole insert is firmly connected to the sole of the ski shoe and the other part the sole insert of the height adjustment mechanism is assigned. With such a design of the ski boot, the inside of the foot can be set higher than the outside of the foot relative to the sole, so that advantageously a reinforced edge grip of the respective inside edge of the ski is obtained during cornering or swings without the skier's lower legs or have to tilt your feet excessively. In this way, a safer, more aggressive driving style is made possible, especially in ski racing, slalom and giant slalom. Height adjustments in the range of a few mm or a few degrees of angle are sufficient, so that surprisingly, despite the fact that the sole insert is angled in about a longitudinal axis - near the outside of the foot - the firm, sufficiently comfortable hold of the foot in the ski shoe is not affected. On the other hand, the firm connection of one part of the sole insert to the sole in the region of the one long side ensures a stable hold of the foot in the ski boot, which is particularly important in racing.

The present invention is thus based on the knowledge that a specific height adjustment, ie a tilting, of one part of a sole insert, which is longitudinally divided into two parts, for driving during turns in the sense of a reinforced edge grip or grip of the ski, in particular in icy slope conditions , can be used, so to speak a Angular "presetting" of the ski boot and thus of the ski (comparable to a "preload") is obtained with unchanged alignment of the legs. In the case of ski boots in which a shaft or a cuff is articulated on the shell in a conventional manner, which not only allows the forward inclination to be adjusted, but also allows the side inclination to be adjusted (so-called canting), it is of course also advantageous a corresponding side inclination adjustment of the shaft or the cuff can be carried out in connection with the sole insert adjustment mentioned.

A structurally simple embodiment, which is particularly favorable in terms of simple installation and stability during operation, is characterized in that the parts of the sole insert have an axis in the longitudinal direction of the sole adjacent to one longitudinal side of the sole insert fenden joint are connected.

In principle, the height adjustment of the sole plate can be carried out in such a way that one part of the sole insert, which is located on the outside of the shoe or the outside of the ski, is lowered relative to the part of the sole insert located on the inside, as a result of which the desired relative increase in the inside of the foot is achieved in the shoe. For reasons of stability and for reasons of a simpler construction, however, the inner part of the sole insert is advantageously inclined relative to the outer part, i.e. pivoted up, as mentioned, by a few degrees, approximately in the range between 0 ° and 7 °, which can correspond to a rise on the inside of the foot by up to 7 mm. Accordingly, it is advantageous if the height adjustment mechanism is assigned to the inner part of the sole insert.

It has proven to be advantageous in practice if the joint - or generally the dividing line between the parts of the sole insert - at the point of the maximum width of the sole insert is at a distance from the one longitudinal side of the sole insert of approximately one third of the Sole width runs. Here, an optimal compromise is achieved between a sufficiently large area of the tilted-up part of the sole insert and stable fixing of the sole insert in the ski boot.

A structurally particularly advantageous, stable training of a joint between the two parts of the sole insert is that the joint is a hinge. Of course, not only a conventional piano hinge (with a pin joint) can be used, but depending on the material used for the sole insert, a "hinge" formed by the material of the sole insert itself.

It is particularly advantageous here if the sole insert is made of plastic and the joint in the form of a film hinge due to a material weakening, e.g. in the form of a groove in the longitudinal direction.

It is particularly preferred if the sole insert is made of plastic and the joint is formed by a material weakening in the form of elongated holes spaced apart from one another.

According to a preferred embodiment of the ski boot, it is also provided that on the underside of the other part of the sole insert is arranged a wedge ledge running essentially over the entire length of the sole insert, which wedge bar is arranged on the bottom of the sole and can be moved transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot, e.g. rail-shaped wedge works together. This ensures a rigid construction and support of one part of the sole insert when pivoting.

It is also advantageous here if the displaceable wedge is provided with a threaded bore running transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot, through which an adjusting spindle, which is rotatably mounted in the side wall of the sole and is secured against axial displacement, is screwed, the insert on the sole arranged wedge bar in the area of the adjusting spindle has a vertically running recess which allows a relative movement of the wedge bar and adjusting spindle. With this design, a quick and problem-free adjustment of the sole insert is made possible at a mere single point, namely at the adjusting spindle, which is preferably arranged approximately in the middle of the foot.

A structurally simple measure for securing the adjusting spindle against axial displacement to the outside consists in the adjusting spindle having a collar which is located on the Supported inner surface of the side wall of the sole.

In order to ensure a particularly stable construction of the height adjustment mechanism, with a securing of the adjustment spindle against lateral deflection, it is advantageous if the adjustment spindle with its free inner end protrudes beyond the displaceable wedge in one with the sole connected bearing block is freely rotatable and is secured against axial displacement in the direction away from the sole side wall supporting the adjusting spindle.

It has proven to be mechanically advantageous here if the adjusting spindle extends essentially over half the width of the sole and the bearing block is arranged essentially in the longitudinal center of the sole.

For parallel displacement of the movable wedge, i.e. a shift while maintaining an alignment of the wedge exactly parallel to the dividing line between the parts of the sole insert is advantageously provided that the displaceable, rail-shaped wedge is provided at its front and rear ends with guide projections which run transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe and which are Support slidingly on the projections of the sole, which are oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot, for guiding the wedge during the transverse displacement.

Another, possibly additional measure for guiding the displacement as well as for stiffening and supporting the sole insert advantageously consists in that at least one guide web running transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe is arranged on the underside of the sole insert, which is in a corresponding groove engages in the top of the sliding wedge.

The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of preferred exemplary embodiments illustrated in the drawing, to which, however, it should not be restricted.

Show it:

Fig.l shows a ski boot with a height adjustment mechanism for a sole insert in longitudinal section along the line I-I in Figure 2;

2 shows a top view of the sole insert in the ski boot according to FIG. 1, partially cut or broken away;

3 shows a section along the line III-III in Figure 2 on a larger scale; and the 4 and 5 two further embodiments in similar sections as shown in Fig.3.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, which relate to the embodiment that is at least currently particularly preferred, 1 generally designates a — only partially illustrated — ski boot that has a shell 2 and a sole 3. Above the top of the bottom 4 of the sole 3 there is a generally plate-shaped, essentially rigid sole insert 5, which consists in particular of plastic and, as can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, is formed in two parts, with a relatively narrow part 6 on the outside longitudinal side 6 'of the sole insert 5 and a wide part 7 adjoining the inside longitudinal side 7' (under "inside" or "outside" is "on the inside of the shoe or ski" or "understood on the outside of the shoe or ski"). The two parts 6, 7 of the sole insert 5 are connected to one another at the point of their dividing line 9 by a joint 8, preferably in the manner of a hinge; this joint 8 runs at the location of the maximum width B of the sole insert 5 (FIG. 2) at a distance C from the outer edge of the outer part 6 of approximately one third of the sole width. The outside part 6 - and thus the outer longitudinal side 6 '- of the sole insert 5 is firmly connected to the sole 3, for example via base 10, which is formed on the underside of the sole insert 5 and is attached to the sole 3 by means of screws 11 indicated in the drawing ¬ are screwed.

The inside part 7 of the sole insert 5 can thus be pivoted upwards relative to the outside part 6 about the axis of the joint 8 running in the longitudinal direction of the shoe, and a height adjustment mechanism 12 is provided for this adjustment or pivoting. The height adjustment mechanism 12 contains a ramp or wedge strip 14 which is integrally formed on the underside 13 of the inner part 7 of the sole insert 5 and extends essentially over the entire length of the sole insert 5, and one arranged at the bottom 4 of the sole 3 and transverse to it The longitudinal direction of the ski boot 1 is displaceable, for example rail-shaped wedge 15, which cooperates with the wedge bar 14 fixedly arranged on the sole insert 5 and which is also referred to below as the wedge rail 15. This wedge rail 15 is provided with a threaded bore 16 extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot 1, through which an adjusting spindle 19 rotatably mounted in a bore 17 in the side wall 18 of the sole 3 (see FIG. 3) is screwed. In this exemplary embodiment, the wedge rail 15 is formed around the area of the threaded bore 16 deviating from the wedge shape as a cuboid 20, which engages in a corresponding vertically running recess 21 of the wedge strip 14 of the inside part 7 of the sole insert 5, so that this inner part 7 can be swung up vertically when the adjusting spindle 19 is rotated due to the wedge displacement without being obstructed by the adjusting spindle 19.

To secure against axial displacement in the direction of arrow i in FIG. 2, the adjusting spindle 19 is provided with a collar 22 which is supported on the inside of the side wall 18 of the sole 3. The collar 22 is adjoined by a head 23 which penetrates the side wall 18 and which has a slot 24 for an adjusting tool, e.g. a screwdriver.

To additionally secure the position, the free inner end of the adjusting spindle 19 projects beyond the wedge rail 15 in a bore 26 of a bearing block 25 which is fixedly connected to the sole 3, and is freely rotatable. To secure against axial displacement of the adjusting spindle 19 in the direction of arrow a, a spring ring 27 is applied to the adjusting spindle 19 in the example shown, which is supported on the bearing block 25 (see FIGS. 2 and 3). The bearing block 25 can be formed in one piece with the sole 3 and can be provided on the upper side with a longitudinal slot 28, the width of which is smaller than the diameter of the adjusting spindle 19, and which extends as far as the bore 26 and thereby simple assembly of the adjusting spindle 19 Pressing the same through the longitudinal slot 28 into the bore 26 allows (see Fig.l). The adjusting spindle 19 extends essentially over half the width of the sole 3, and the bearing block 25 is arranged essentially in the longitudinal center of the sole 3.

So that the wedge rail 15 remains aligned with its longitudinal direction exactly parallel to the axis 29 of the joint 8 when adjusting (moving) and tilting is avoided, transverse to the front and rear ends of the wedge rail 15 Guide projections 30 are arranged, which are slidably supported on projections 31 of the sole 3 oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot 1 for guiding the wedge rail 15. To additionally support this effect and to increase the bending stiffness of the sole insert 5, a plurality of guide webs 33 extending transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe 1 are arranged on the underside 32 thereof, which can be designed in a stepped manner and in the region of the inner part 7 of the sole insert 5 engage in corresponding grooves 34 on the top of the wedge rail 15, whereas the guide webs 33 rest on the bottom 4 of the sole 3 in the region of the outside part 6.

As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, the joint 8 is formed by weakening the material of the sole insert 5, which is preferably made of polypropylene, for example by an elongated groove 36 and / or by slots 37 provided at intervals from one another, so that through the Groove 36 or a kind of film hinge 38 is formed between the elongated holes 37. Of course, a conventional hinge with a pin joint (not shown) could also be used. On the other hand, other joint designs can also be provided, for example with thin, band-like, flexible connecting webs which are distributed over the length of the joint 8, for example at the front end, at the rear end and optionally in the middle of the sole insert 5 Theoretically, with appropriate securing of the inside part 7 of the sole insert 5 in the ski boot 1 (for example by - flexible - connections of this part 7 to the sole 3 in the area of the dividing line 9), a physical connection of the two sole insert parts 6, 7 in the area of the joint 8 are omitted.

To reduce the friction between the wedge bar 14 and the wedge rail 15, one of these two elements can be provided with a convex wedge surface, as can be seen in FIG.

A further reduction in the friction is achieved in the embodiment according to FIG. 4 in that instead of the displaceable wedge rail to achieve the wedge effect, two rollers 39, which are arranged one behind the other in the axial direction and are also displaceable transversely to the longitudinal direction of the shoe, are provided are each rotatably mounted on an axle 40, the axles 40 starting from a cylinder 41 corresponding in function to the cuboid 20, the diameter of which is somewhat smaller than the diameter of the rollers 39 and which has a threaded bore 16 'for receiving one in a bearing block 25 'mounted adjusting spindle 19', as in the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 3, is provided, so that a detailed description is unnecessary. In this embodiment too, for the parallel displacement of the rollers 39, guide extensions (not shown, but see the guide extensions 30 in FIG. 2) can be attached to the ends of the axes 40, which extend on corresponding sole projections (31 in Fig.2) slide. Likewise, the function of the grooves 34 according to the embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 3 can be replaced by circumferential grooves (not shown) on the rollers 39.

In the embodiment according to FIG. 5, the height adjustment mechanism 12 has a roller 42 running parallel to the longitudinal axis of the ski boot 1, which carries eccentrically arranged stub axles 43 at its ends, which heels on the wall 17 of the sole 3 and are mounted on the shoe tip side, one end of one of the two stub axles 43 being guided outwards from the sole 3 for rotating the roller 42. So that the roller 42 can be fixed in its rotational position at a desired height adjustment of the longitudinal side 7 resting on the roller 42, a ratchet wheel with peripheral teeth, in which a pawl (not shown) engages, can be attached as a locking mechanism, for example, on one of the stub axles 43 that only allows rotation in one direction. In this embodiment too, the function of the grooves 34 according to FIGS. 1 to 3 can be replaced by circumferential grooves (not shown) of the roller 42.

In the heel area of the sole 3, an additional height adjustment device 44 known per se can be provided, as indicated by dash-dotted lines in FIG. 1, so that the heel area of the sole insert 5 can be raised relative to the front area if necessary, cf. . also US 5,090,139 A.

As the studies have shown, the design of the adjustment facility for the sole insert 5 can be made such that - in the case of an average adult shoe - large - the inside 7 'of the sole insert 5 can be lifted by a maximum of approximately 5 to 7 mm, which means a pivoting angle for the inner part 7 of a total of approximately 5 ° -7 ° from the horizontal 0 ° position upwards (see Fig .4) corresponds.

As mentioned, the sole insert 5 including molded wedge strip 14 and molded webs 33 and bases 10 preferably consists of an integral plastic part, in particular of polypropylene (PP); the wedge rail 15 can also be made of plastic, such as PP, or of light metal, and it is also conceivable to save weight to provide the wedge rail 15 with recesses several times over their length and to make them flat or thin in these recess regions.

Claims

Claims:

1. Ski boot (1) with a shell (2), in which a sole insert (5) is contained above a sole (3), which is assigned an externally operable height adjustment mechanism (12), with which a longitudinal side of the sole insert (5) Height-adjustable relative to the other long side, characterized in that the sole insert (5) in the longitudinal direction of the sole (3) is divided into an inside part (7) and an outside part (6), and that one part (6) of the Sole insert (5) is firmly connected to the sole (3) of the ski boot (1) and the other is assigned to the inside part (7) of the sole insert (5) of the height adjustment mechanism (12).

2. Ski boot according to claim 1, characterized in that the parts (6, 7) of the sole insert (5) by one in the area neighbors one longitudinal side (6 ') of the sole insert (5) with its axis in the longitudinal direction of the sole Joint (8) are connected.

3. Ski boot according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the height adjustment mechanism (12) is assigned to the inside part (7) of the sole insert (5).

4. Ski boot according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that the dividing line (9) between the parts (6, 7) of the sole insert (5) at the location of the maximum width (B) of the sole insert (5) in a distance from the one long side (6 ') of the sole insert of approximately one third of the sole width.

5. Ski boot according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that the joint (8) is a hinge.

6. Ski boot according to claim 5, characterized in that the sole insert (5) consists of plastic and the joint (8) in the form of a film hinge (38) due to a material weakening, e.g. in the form of a groove (36), is formed in the longitudinal direction.

7. Ski boot according to claim 5 or 6, characterized in that the sole insert (5) consists of plastic and the joint (8) is formed by a material weakening in the form of slots (37) provided at intervals from one another.

8. Ski boot according to one of claims 1 to 7, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that on the underside (13) of the other part (7) Sole insert (5) has a wedge ledge (14) running essentially over the entire length of the sole insert (5), which wedge bar is arranged, in particular, with a bottom (4) of the sole (3) and can be moved transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe (1) rail-shaped wedge (15) works together.

9. Ski boot according to claim 8, characterized in that the displaceable wedge (15) with a transverse to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot (1) is provided threaded bore (16) through which one in the side wall (18) of the sole (3) rotatable mounted and secured against axial displacement adjusting screw (19) is screwed, the wedge bar (14) arranged on the sole insert (5) having a vertically extending recess (21) in the area of the adjusting spindle (19), which has a relative movement of the wedge bar ( 14) and adjusting spindle (19) allowed.

10. Ski boot according to claim 9, characterized in that the adjusting spindle (19) has a collar (22) which is supported on the inner surface of the side wall (18) of the sole (3).

11. Ski boot according to one of claims 8 to 10, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that the adjusting spindle (19) with its free inner end projecting beyond the displaceable wedge (15) in a bearing block (25) firmly connected to the sole (3) rotatably supported and secured against axial displacement in the direction away from the sole side wall (18) supporting the adjusting spindle (19).

12. Ski boot according to claim 11, characterized in that the adjusting spindle (19) extends substantially over half the width of the sole (3) and the bearing block (25) is arranged in the longitudinal center of the sole (3) .

13. Ski boot according to one of claims 8 to 12, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that the displaceable, rail-shaped wedge (15) is provided at its front and rear ends with transverse to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe (1) extending guide extensions (30), which Support slidingly on projections (31) of the sole (3) oriented transversely to the longitudinal direction of the ski boot (1) for guiding the wedge (15) during the transverse displacement.

14. Ski boot according to one of claims 8 to 13, characterized gekenn¬ characterized in that on the underside (32) of the sole insert (5) zu¬ at least one transverse to the longitudinal direction of the ski shoe (1) extend the guide web (33) is arranged, which engages in a corresponding groove (34) in the upper side (35) of the displaceable wedge (15).