EP1559456A1 - Skibinding with integrated unlocking device - Google Patents

Abstract

The device has a flexible link (36) that is linked to a lock (28) and cooperates with a return unit (52) that is arranged on a rear end of a slide (60). The slide, a spigot on front end of the slide, and a control button controls the return unit between opening and closing states such that the link provokes movement of the lock towards open or closed position depending on the state of the return unit.

Description

The invention relates to a device for attaching a shoe to a sports article.

The invention can be applied in particular to devices for fixing a shoe on a ski. It can notably be used for the design of ski bindings alpine ski touring, Nordic ski touring or Telemark skiing. She may also be used for the design of ice-skate bindings, casters or rackets.

An example of such a type of attachment is described in the patent application WO00 / 13755 to which will be usefully referred to for a global understanding of the functioning of a such fixation. A similar device, more specifically dedicated to alpine hiking and Telemark is described in EP-A1-890,379.

The principle of these devices is to allow a fixation of the shoe on the ski which is perfectly rigid in torsion but which allows a free raising of the heel of the shoe. The device described in WO00 / 13755 is an improvement of the fastening systems currently used for example in cross-country skiing or ski touring wherein the shoe is articulated by its front end about a transverse axis by compared to skiing. Indeed, the movement of the foot relative to the ski, during the lifting of the heel, is a movement that is no longer a simple rotation and is as close as possible the natural movement of the foot.

The invention may also be implemented in the context of a fixing device of the type those described in WO96 / 37269, EP-1,106,218 or 1,364,685.

In any case, the shoe is no longer attached to the sports article by one or more fixed points, but it is attached (and secured) to a liaison organ which can itself be move relative to the sport article. This displacement can be a simple rotation but, in the examples cited above, it is rather a complex displacement mixing several rotational and / or translational movements.

In all cases, these types of fasteners may comprise elastic return means which return the connecting member to its lower position which corresponds to the position it occupies when the shoe to which it is linked is in support of the front and the back on the ski. Of such elastic return means will for example be very useful when the fixing device is intended for cross-country skiing, ice skating, roller skating.

In WO00 / 13755 and WO96 / 37269, it is not described how the shoe is intended to be hooked to the connecting member. In WO-01/93963, it is not described how the unlocking of the shoe is performed with respect to the liaison body.

Indeed, when you want the shoe can be detached from the sports article, it is necessary to provide that the hooking and unhitching maneuver is done in the easiest way possible for the user. The catching and unhooking mechanism must therefore be simple, reliable and lightweight, and in particular must include a minimum number of parts for remain compact and inexpensive to produce.

• un lien souple qui est lié au verrou et qui coopère avec au moins un organe de renvoi ; et
• un mécanisme de commande du renvoi entre deux états d'ouverture et de fermeture de telle sorte que, en fonction de l'état du renvoi, le lien souple provoque le déplacement du verrou vers sa position ouverte ou vers sa position fermée.

For this purpose, the invention proposes a device for attaching a boot to a sports article, of the type comprising a lock which is movable between an open position and a closed position in which the lock cooperates with a tied anchor member. to the shoe to ensure the attachment of the boot on the device, characterized in that the device comprises at least:

• a flexible link which is linked to the lock and which cooperates with at least one return member; and
• a control mechanism of the return between two states of opening and closing so that, depending on the state of the return, the flexible link causes the movement of the lock to its open position or to its closed position.

• la figure 1 est une vue simplifiée en coupe longitudinale d'un exemple de réalisation d'un dispositif de fixation conforme aux enseignements de l'invention, en l'occurrence dans une version munie d'un organe de liaison mobile sur lequel une chaussure est destinée à être accrochée ;
• la figure 2 est une vue agrandie d'une partie du dispositif de la figure 1, dans lequel le verrou est en position ouverte ;
• la figure 3 est une vue similaire à celle de la figure 2 dans laquelle le verrou est en position fermée ; et
• la figure 4 est une vue similaire à celle de la figure 2 dans laquelle le verrou est en position fermée et l'organe de liaison est dans une position haute.

Other features and advantages of the invention will appear on reading the detailed description which follows, as well as in view of the appended drawings in which:

• FIG. 1 is a simplified view in longitudinal section of an exemplary embodiment of a fastening device according to the teachings of the invention, in this case in a version provided with a movable connecting member on which a shoe is intended to be hung;
• Figure 2 is an enlarged view of a portion of the device of Figure 1, wherein the latch is in the open position;
• Figure 3 is a view similar to that of Figure 2 wherein the latch is in the closed position; and
• Figure 4 is a view similar to that of Figure 2 wherein the latch is in the closed position and the connecting member is in a high position.

The invention will be described here in an embodiment in which the fixing device is particularly intended for cross-country skiing. The fixing device 10 illustrated on the Figures 1 and 2 comprises a base 12 which is intended to be fixed on a sports article 11, but that could also be directly integrated into it. The base 12 could also be made in several parts, some or not of these parts being integrated in the article sports 11.

In the example illustrated, the device is intended to ensure the attachment of a shoe having two connection areas. The shoe has two anchoring members 16, 18 which are arranged in the sole of the shoe so as to be flush beneath it. of the anchoring members 16, 18 of this type are described in patent applications EP-A-913.102 and EP-A-913,103 which will be usefully referred to for further details. So, this is about two cylindrical bars of revolution arranged across a longitudinal groove arranged in the underside of the sole. For the clarity of the drawings, only the bars 16, 18 are illustrated in Figures 3 and 4. The front bar 16 is for example located at near the front end of the sole and the rear bar 18 is shifted backwards a defined distance to be arranged at or in front of an area of the shoe corresponding to the metatarsophalangeal flexion zone of the user's foot. This the layout of the connecting areas is particularly appreciated in cross-country skiing because it allows, with a soft-soled shoe, keep a corresponding bending of the shoe to that of the foot. However, the invention could be implemented with anchor having another geometry. Each of the liaison bodies thus constitutes, with the corresponding portion of the sole, an embodiment of a connecting zone of the shoe.

The fastening device according to the invention comprises first of all, at the front of the base 12, a fixed hook 20 which delimits a groove 22 open longitudinally towards the rear, and which is provided to receive the cylindrical bar before 16 of the shoe. The throat 22 presents a height that is substantially identical or slightly greater than the diameter of the bar before 16 so that the front bar is received in the throat with a minimum of play in the vertical direction. In the example illustrated in the figures, the groove 22 presents a profile which is elongated along a rectilinear path. However, the throat 22 could also have a curved profile plunging forward and down. So when the bar before 16 of the shoe moves longitudinally in the throat 22, which she is free to to do, it is guided vertically along a path determined by the profile of the throat.

The hook 20 is arranged above the upper face of the base 12. This hook is intended to be received in the longitudinal groove of the sole of the shoe in such a way that, by cooperation of forms, he participates in guiding the shoe in translation according to a transverse direction (perpendicular to the plane of the figures) and in rotation along an axis vertical. In this way, the hook 20 has substantially the same width as the section corresponding groove of the shoe, and the groove 22 is transversely opening in the two lateral faces of the hook 20.

In the example illustrated, the fastening device 10 comprises an attachment arm 24 of fixed length which is articulated in two fixed points on the one hand on the base 12 and on the other hand on the second binding zone of the boot, namely in this case the rear bar 18. The arm 24, which forms a connecting member on which the shoe is attached, is articulated on the base 12, by its front end, about a transverse axis A1 which is arranged behind of the hook 20. It is thus likely to move with respect to the sport article between a low position (shown in Figures 1 to 3) and a high position (shown in Figure 4).

The attachment arm 24 also has, on its rear part, a lock 28 which is provided to lock the rear cylindrical bar 18 of the shoe. According to this example, the arm 24 has a fixed jaw which consists of a groove 26 open towards the top, and a sliding movable jaw, the latch 28, which is movable between a position rear opening (Figures 1 and 2) and a front closure position shown in Figures 3 and 4. In this closed position, the two jaws define a section housing corresponding to that of the rear bar 18 of the shoe. The bar 18 is then trapped and locked in the housing closed by the latch 28, while allowing a relative movement of rotation of the bar 18 relative to the latching arm 24, around the axis of the cylindrical bar 18.

The attachment arm is preferably also received in the groove of the sole and its dimensions are preferably provided so that the arm also participates in guiding transverse of the shoe.

In its lower position illustrated in Figure 1, at rest, the attachment arm is oriented substantially horizontally. In this position, it is possible to hang the shoe from very simple way on the device. For this, simply engage the bar before 16 of the shoe in the throat 22, then by rotating around the front bar, lowering the shoe to come lock the rear bar 18 on the hook arm 24. It is noted that the latch 28 which receives the rear bar of the shoe is arranged behind the axis A1 articulating the arm 24 on the device 10.

Once the shoe and locked, we see that it is the hanging arm 24 that will control the relative movement of the shoe with respect to the sport articule. With the provision of the invention, the rear bar of the shoe described, when the user raises the heel of the shoe in relation to the sport article, an arcuate trajectory around the axis A1 articulation of the arm 24 on the base. Indeed, once the rear bar 18 locked on the arm 24, it remains at a constant distance from the axis A1. During this perfectly determined movement of the rear bar 18, that is to say of a zone of the shoe that corresponds substantially to the metatarsophalangeal joint of the foot of the user, the front bar 16 is free longitudinally and moves in the groove 22, in the occurrence towards the front of this one. While moving longitudinally, this bar before is perfectly guided along a path defined by the profile of the groove 22. In the illustrated example, the groove 22 controls a downward movement of the front bar 16 when the heel of the shoe rises. This diving movement is particularly sensitive at the end of the movement.

The overall kinematics of the device is therefore mainly given by the arm of lock 24, but it is also influenced by the geometry of the guide groove 22. This may have a different profile than the one shown here.

Moreover, it can be seen that when the shoe is in the lower position as illustrated in FIG. Figure 1, the front end of the shoe can not lift vertically upward, thanks at the front bar which is blocked in this direction in the groove 22.

The fixing device 10 also comprises an elastic return system of the arm latch 24 to its low position.

Advantageously, the elastic return system comprises at least one elastic member 34 which is related to the sport article 11, and a flexible link 36 which connects the elastic member 34 to the arm 24 and which cooperates with at least one return member 52, which will be seen by the following that it is mounted mobile on the base 12.

In the example shown, the fixing device 10 comprises a guide edge 38 which is formed of a section of parallelepipedal section and which extends longitudinally towards the rear, behind the hook arm 24. In known manner, this guide edge 38 is provided to cooperate with the groove of complementary section arranged in the sole of the shoe to provide lateral guidance of the shoe / fastener assembly. This edge of guide 38 thus extends the hook 20 and the attachment arm 24 towards the rear. Advantageously, the elastic member 34 is integrated inside a housing 40 formed in the inside of this edge 38. In the example illustrated, the elastic member 34 is a spring of compression which is arranged horizontally and longitudinally in the housing 40. The front end of the spring 34 bears against a front face 42 of the housing 40. front end of the spring is fixed. The rear end of the spring bears against a mobile carriage 44 which can slide longitudinally relative to the base 12 and to the edge 38. More specifically, the carriage 44 has a front end 46 which moves at the level of a front opening 48 of the housing 40, and a rear end 50 which moves in the housing 40 and on which rests the rear end of the spring 34.

Such an arrangement of an elastic member and a movable carriage is similar to that which found in the device described in EP-768.103 and in some of the devices for cross-country ski bindings marketed by the applicant. However, contrary to this prior art in which the elastic member is connected to the shoe by a rod, the device shown here comprises a flexible link 36 which connects the elastic member 34 to the latching arm 24.

As can be seen in the figures, the link 36 is not hooked directly on the elastic member 34 but on the front end 46 of the carriage 44. It passes on a reference 52 which here consists of a simple rod mounted on a drawer 60 which is capable of sliding longitudinally on the base 12. The return 52 could also consist of a pulley or any other sliding surface, preferably curved.

Preferably, the flexible link is substantially inextensible. It can for example be a wire rope or a fiber cable with very low extensibility, for example a cable made of aramid fibers. It can also be envisaged that this link is made in the form of a band. This traction band may for example be made in the form of a metal strip, a simple band of braided wires, or a bundle of parallel fibers embedded in a polymeric material. Preferably, the link is sufficiently flexible and flexible not to provide noticeable elastic effect, and especially to support an angle of about 90 degrees.

The other end of the flexible link 36 is hooked on the attachment arm 24, plus on the latch 28 carried by the arm 24. The latch is in this case a part which is slidably mounted on the arm 24 between an open retracted position (illustrated Figures 1 and 2) and a closed forward position (illustrated in Figures 3 and 4). For this the lock 28 includes two guide bars, front 23 and rear 25, which slide in complementary guide lights 27 arranged in the arm 24. The profile of these lights 27 determines the stroke of the latch 28 between its open and closed positions. However, the invention could also be implemented with a pivoting latch, or more typically with any lock that can move from an open state to a closed state.

In general, when the latching arm 24 moves from its low position to its high position, the flexible link 36 pulls the movable carriage 44 forward and causes the compression of the spring 34, which therefore provides a return force which tends to bring the shoe to a horizontal position with respect to the sport article. The flexible link makes part of return system of the connecting member to its lower position.

The device according to the invention could also comprise a stop system in the end run (not shown), elastic or not, for example made in the form of a buffer arranged at the front end of the device, and intended to cooperate with a bearing surface before the sole.

However, according to one aspect of the invention, the flexible link is also used to determine the relative position of the lock 28 with respect to the pivoting arm 24.

Indeed, it can be seen in the figures that the device comprises control means of the reference 52 between a retracted position illustrated in Figures 1 and 2, and an advanced position illustrated in Figures 3 and 4, this by a longitudinal displacement of the drawer 60 at the end rear of which the referral is arranged. Indeed the drawer has, at its front end, a lug 62 which is received in an eccentric groove 63 arranged in the underside of a button control unit 64 rotatably mounted at the front end of the base 12 about a vertical axis A2. Any other control device to move the drawer and / or the return is well heard possible.

Furthermore, the link 36 is attached to the lock 28 via its bar of front guide 25.

When the swivel arm is in the down position, which is its rest position, and the swivel 52 is in the retracted position, we see that the return is arranged behind the point of attachment 23 of the link 36 on the lock 28. In this way, the flexible link 36, which is subject to the recall effort of the elastic member 34, tends to back the lock to its retracted open position. Indeed, it can be seen that the portion of the flexible link that extends between the return 52 and the lock 28 is then directed backwards in relation to the orientation of the trajectory of the lock between its positions open and closed, and that it drives the lock to the rear.

On the contrary, when the return 52 is brought to its advanced position of closure, such illustrated in Figure 3, we see that the return is then in front of the attachment point 23 of the link 36 on the lock 28. In this way, the flexible link 36, which is still subject to the recall effort of the elastic member 34, tends to advance the lock to its closed forward position. In Indeed, it can be seen that the portion of the flexible link that extends between the return 52 and the lock 28 is then directed forward with respect to the orientation of the trajectory of the lock between its open and closed positions, and that it drives the lock forward.

When the latch 28 is closed on the rear bar 18 of the shoe, and that it causes the pivoting arm to its high position as shown in Figure 4, we see that the attachment point of the link on the lock (in this case the bar 23) can possibly be find in front of the return 52 in the horizontal and longitudinal direction of the base, however, if we observe the part of the flexible link that extends between the return 52 and the lock 28, we see that its orientation is then directed forward with respect to the orientation of the trajectory of the lock between its open and closed positions (in this case the orientation of the light profile 27), and that the flexible link continues to drive the latch forward in its closed position.

To ensure the attachment of the shoe on the device, there will be two possibilities. We may choose to open the latch 28 by moving the return 52 to its rearward opening position by manipulating the control knob 64. Then, after having engaged the bar before 16 of the shoe in the hook 20 and the rear bar 18 in the groove 26, the user turns the control button 64 to advance the return 52, which has the effect of moving the latch 28 to its closed position.

However, it is also noted that the latch 28 has an inclined ramp 32 which is arranged so that when the latch 28 is in the closed position (in the absence of shoe), it suffices that the bar 18 exerts on the ramp 32 a substantially vertical force, from top to bottom, to push the latch 28 to its open position in which it allows access to the groove 26. This is of course when the lock 28 is initially in closed position, and the recoil of the lock is against the elastic return force exerted on the lock by the link 36 and the spring 34. Also, when the bar 18 has entered the throat 26, these return means 34, 36 automatically return the latch 28 to its position closed. In this way, it can be seen that the device according to the invention allows a boot of the type "step-in" where the lock is done automatically, without user action on the button control.

Moreover, it is understood that the locking force imposed on the lock by the flexible link is related to the tension force imposed on the flexible link by the elastic member 34. Or the arm swivel 24 is raised upwards, the higher the tension force is, which is only strengthen the lockout effort. In this way, the locking provided by the device of the invention is particularly reliable. In addition, one could also provide that the device has a mechanism for adjusting the stiffness of the elastic member 34.

As can be seen in the comparison of FIGS. 3 and 4, the point of attachment on the latch is preferably arranged such that the portion of the flexible link 36 extending between the 52 and the latching arm 24 is substantially vertical, so that the effort of return on the latching arm 24 is mainly directed downwards, including when the latter is in a high position as shown in Figure 3. In this case, the reference and latch 28 are arranged near the metatarsophalangeal joint area of the foot of the user when the shoe is attached to the device. In this way, the effort of recall exercised on the connecting member 24 is oriented in a direction close to that of the trajectory of the swivel arm between its high and low positions for optimal efficiency of the booster effect.

On the contrary, the part of the link 36 which goes from the reference 52 to the elastic member 34 extends according to a substantially horizontal direction, directly in the sliding direction of the trolley 44 and compression of the spring 34.

Unlocking the device requires the user to return the connecting member 24 by lower position, then to actuate the control knob 64 to move back the reference 52 of in order to cause the latch 28 to open, the opening energy being supplied by the organ spring 34. Once the lock is open, it is initially possible to release the rear bar 18, vertically upwards, and in a second time the release of the front bar 16, longitudinally rearward and / or upward.

The invention thus makes it possible to obtain a locking / unlocking device whose construction is relatively simple and which allows for locking and perfectly reliable unlocking of the shoe. This device is likely to be integrated to many types of fasteners.

Indeed, the invention can be integrated with fastening devices including the connecting member has a convex surface which bears on the sports article, and / or whose binding is linked to the sports article by a mechanism comprising at least one link. Of even the invention applies equally well in the case of a device having a lock articulated only in the case of a device in which the lock is sliding. Finally, we will also provide that the device comprises a mechanism for adjusting the stiffness of the organ elastic.

Claims (16)

Device for attaching a boot to a sports article, of the type comprising a lock (28) which is movable between an open position and a closed position in which the lock cooperates with an anchoring member (18) linked to the boot to ensure the attachment of the boot on the device, characterized in that the device comprises at least: a flexible link (36) which is connected to the lock (28) and which cooperates with at least one return (52), a return control mechanism (60, 62, 64) between two opening and closing states so that, depending on the state of the return, the flexible link (36) causes the lock to move (28) to its open position or to its closed position. Fastening device according to claim 1, characterized in that the return (52) is mounted movably on the device, and in that the states of opening and closing of the return correspond to two positions of the return. Fastening device according to one of claims 1 or 2, characterized in that the flexible link (36) is held in tension by an elastic member (34) Fastening device according to claim 3, characterized in that the flexible link (36) is connected to the sports article via the elastic member (34) Device for attaching a shoe to a sports article according to claim 4, characterized in that it comprises a link member (24) for the boot which is capable of moving relative to the sports article between a low position and a high position, in that the latch (28) is integral with the connecting member (24), and in that the elastic member (34) for controlling the latch (28) provides the elastic return of the connecting member (24) to its lower position. Fastening device according to claim 5, characterized in that the shoe comprises a first anchoring member (16) arranged at the front of the boot and a second anchoring member (18) located behind the first, and in that the connecting member (24) is of fixed length and is articulated at two points on the one hand on a base (12, A1) connected to the sports article (11) and on the other hand, by the latch (28) on the second anchoring member (18) of the boot. Fastening device according to claim 5, characterized in that the connecting member has a convex surface which is supported on the sports article. Fastening device according to one of claims 5 or 6, characterized in that the connecting member is connected to the sports article by a mechanism comprising at least one connecting rod. Fastening device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the change of state of the return causes a change in the angle between on the one hand the orientation of the part of the flexible link extending between the return and the latch, and secondly the orientation of the trajectory of the latch (28) between its open and closed positions. Fastening device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the latch (28) is slidable. Fastening device according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the latch is hinged. Fastening device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the return comprises a pulley. Fastening device according to any one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the return comprises at least one curved sliding surface (52) on which rests and slides the flexible link. Fastening device according to claim 5, characterized in that it comprises, in addition to the elastic return system formed by the flexible link and the elastic member, a rigid or elastic stop acting at the end of the shoe stroke. Fastening device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it comprises a mechanism for adjusting the stiffness of the elastic member (34). Fixing device according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the latch (28) is arranged close to the metatarsophalangeal articulation zone of the user's foot when the boot is fixed on the device.

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