FR2645766A1 - SECURITY FIXING DEVICE FOR SLIDING SPORTS - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a binding device for sliding sports constituting, for each foot, a rocker member (1) which pivots on a support (2) interlocking with an adjustable plate (3), and a front stirrup (4) which is adjustable and inclinable. Each heel unit has an adjusting screw (5) which acts on an elastic means forming an automatic release device. A telescopic coupling bar (6) hinged to one end of the pivoting axle of each rocker member (1) thus connecting them mechanically, guarantees the simultaneity of the automatic release during a fall or when manually operated by acting upon one of the levers (7) provided for this use. Said device, according to the invention, is essentially designed for use in snow-surfing.

Description

 The invention relates to a safety binding device for sliding sports and more particularly for the practice of snowboarding.

 This device according to the invention comprises two bindings, one for each foot, mounted on the board so as to cooperate with their respective shoe and mechanically coupled together so as to allow the simultaneous release of the two shoes during a fall involving significant efforts on the legs of the surfer.

 A similar fixing device is already described in French patent application 89 02821 of the applicant. In this device, each heel piece includes a stirrup mounted rocking on a horizontal axis which is integral with it, and one of the ends of said axis serving as axial PTO to a transmission bar, articulated at its ends, allowing mechanical coupling of the stirrups between them. An adjustable tilting jaw fitted at the rear of each stirrup ensures, during a fall, the automatic and simultaneous release of the two feet.

 However, this relatively simple device has the disadvantage of being indirectly triggered. The coupling bar is stressed only by the rear tilting of the stirrup which is only made possible by lifting the jaw.

The amplitude of the angular movement of the stirrup is therefore found to be somewhat insufficient for perfect synchronism of opening of the heel pieces. It therefore appears desirable that the coupling bar have a greater angular movement and advantageously that it is in direct engagement with the triggering means.

 The invention therefore proposes to produce a safety binding in which each heel piece includes a means of putting on and taking off automatically with direct coupling and tilting according to a predetermined law offering a high opening / closing angle, and also having the qualities of simplicity, reliability, great ease of use, strong elastic stroke, good shock absorption and low cost price.

 Thus, the safety fastening device targeted by the invention comprises for each foot a heel piece and a front stirrup intended to keep the boot perfectly secured to the surf under normal conditions and to be released when applied to the surfer's leg. 'excessive efforts dangerous for his safety and this simultaneously for both feet.

 In accordance with the invention each heel piece consists essentially on the one hand, of a support formed by a bent metal blade co-operating at one of its ends with an adjustable plate fixed on the snowboard and at the other with body, mounted tilting around a horizontal axis comprising a retaining spoiler and on the other hand an elastic return system tending to keep the spoiler applied to the rear shoulder of the shoe Le Brevet Français n 1 294.261 describes, on the one hand, this type of heel piece. This type of rear attachment using a piston mounted sliding in the body of a sleeve and pressed elastically against a cam surface has been and is still widely used. It is a simple and compact device which provides an excellent elastic return on a great race while being remarkably resistant to shocks.

 On a snowboard, unlike skiing, the feet are positioned obliquely and even almost transverse for the - back foot, relative to the longitudinal axis of the board, which implies that in the majority of falls, an effort of lateral, forward or backward tilting is applied to the fixings. It turns out in practice that this heel with tilting body is quite clean, provided that some adjustments are made to it, to be triggered under lateral tilting forces. In the event of a complex fall combining the lateral tilting movements and in the event of a complex fall combining the tilting and bending movements of the leg, the vertical effect applied to the heel piece advantageously promotes heaving. cause heaving, it must have a certain degree of freedom on its front stirrup.

In fact, if the shoe is fixed too rigidly to the front, it is forced to deform to allow the heel to tilt. Also the front caliper according to the invention is mounted tilting laterally on its support. It comprises an oblong ring capable of receiving the front end of the sole of a shoe1 which has been adapted for this purpose, extended by a bent round rod which cooperates with an adjustable plate, substantially curved transversely on its upper face, and with elastic means allowing a call back to the center of the stirrup
Finally according to one of the main aspects of the invention, the tilting bodies of the front and rear heel pieces are mechanically coupled by a telescopic coupling bar composed of a metal tube, for example of square section, in which slides at each end, a angled bar with cane section also for the part, sliding and with round section for the other. Each tilting body comprises, extending its rocking axis on its wall facing the other heel piece, a preferably metallic pin, in which is arranged an oblong orifice suitable for accommodating, by crossing the round section of a bent bar1 that -this being held on the pin by two rings, preferably in self-lubricating elastic material, placed on either side of the orifice on the bar. Each pin is integral with the tilting body to which it refers in a way completely rigid and in a position which can be fixed or adjustable
In addition, a metal lever, rocking on the back of the body of each heel, allows an easy manual heaving and can allow an automatic heaving in a rear fall on a descending slope, when one of the levers, or both, hang in the snow.

 In addition, a quick and adjustable means of fixing the heel support on its plate, and a means of lateral wedging of the boot aiming to reduce the harmful effect of the snow wedge "will be described in the following.

Other features and advantages of the invention will become apparent during the description which will now be made with reference to the accompanying drawings showing a non-limiting embodiment of the invention in which
Figure 1 shows in perspective the entire device according to the invention.

 Figure 2 is a sectional view along line 2-2 of Figure 1, of a tilting body / coupling bar joints, supplemented with a partial longitudinal section of the coupling bar.

 Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view along line 3-3 of Figure 1 of a heel piece in the closed position on a shoe.

 Figure 4 is a side view of a heel in the open position on a shoe.

 Figure 5 is a perspective view of a front bracket with its plate.

 Figure 6 is a vertical sectional view along line 3-3 of Figure 1, of a front caliper with its plate.

 Figure 1 shows the entire safety binding device according to the invention in place on the central part of a snowboard 15. On the right in the figure, binding A comprising a heel piece and a front stirrup, corresponds to the fixing the front leg; on the left, attachment B corresponds to the attachment of the rear leg. It will have been noted that for reasons of sporting practices, the rear foot is almost perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the board 15, while the front foot is oriented more obliquely forward; configuration which is not without impact on the coupling means as we will see more ahead.

 Each binding thus comprises a heel piece composed of a tilting body 1, of a shape suitable for accommodating the various components, rocking around an axis consisting of a screw 14, on a metal support 2 produced in a steel blade with spring, bent so as to engage, on the one hand horizontally under a plate 3 secured to the surface 15, and on the other hand almost vertically, in the base of the tilting body 1 which, for its part, can be produced, for example by molded plastic.

 Placed inside the tilting body 1 and opening upwards, a metal sleeve 10, of partially cylindrical shape, and comprising in its upper part a setting screw 5, contains an elastic means for holding and triggering.

On the front and at the base of the tilting body 1, a metal plate 12, substantially rectangular and concave, is fixed by one (or more> screws 11 on the body 1 or even advantageously on the lower part of the sleeve 10. This plate 12 will have a suitable shape suitable for maintaining the shoulder of the shoe heel and for accompanying it in its vertical movements up to the trigger point.

 If we now consider, more precisely the heel piece of the binding B, the latter receives on the left flank of its tilting body 1, a pin 13b, preferably metallic and substantially parallelepipedal, positioned in the natural extension of the screw 14 / constituting the horizontal tilting axis, which holds it firmly against the body 1 and through it.

Opposite on the heel of the binding A, a pin 13a identical to the previous one, is fixed in the same way, but on the right flank of its body 1, so as to receive from above a bent bar 8a which crosses said pin 13 right through, and which is held in place by two rings 9> preferably but not exclusively, in self-lubricating elastic material positioned on the bar 8a, on either side of the pin 13a, by compressing it slightly. A bent bar 8b cooperates in a substantially identical manner with the pin 13b of the heel piece of the binding B, but unlike the pin 13a, the bar is received on the pin 13b from below, two rings 9 holding it in place on this last.

The bars 8a and 8b of round section in their part which cooperates with the pins 13a and 13b, are bent at angles suitable for them to slide freely in the coupling bar 6 made up, advantageously but not exclusively of a tube with square section. In their sliding part, the bars 8a and 8b are naturally of an identical profile, with a section very slightly smaller than the tube constituting the coupling bar 6 which receives them. This coupling bar 6, whose role is to transmit with the more fidelity possible, the rocking movements of the rocking body 1 of the heel piece of fixation B and vice versa, must have a high torsional rigidity and a minimum clearance between the elements which compose this transmission member, i.e. the bar coupling 6, the bent bars 8a 8b and the pins 13a 13b must be sought.

 I1 should be specified that the coupling bar 6 which, cooperating with the bars 8a and 8b in a sliding manner constitutes a rotary transmission whose telescopic effect is not absolutely imperative to the perfect synchronization of triggering of the two heel pieces. However, this arrangement is very advantageous when it is known that the surfing undergoes deformations, mainly in bending, very large, which implies that the spacing between the two tilting bodies 1 is very variable.

Consequently, these variations in spacing can only be absorbed by the transmission at the location of the pins 13a and 13b where the oblong orifices which accommodate the bars 8a and 8b can be lengthened1 or at the location of the coupling bar. 6, an arrangement which is mechanically advantageous and which also facilitates rapid detachment of the heels from their fixing plate 3.

 An automatic release allowing the simultaneous release of the feet in the event of a fall being sought, the fact remains that a manual release allowing an easy release at the end of use is essential. It is obtained by an action on one or the other of the rocking levers 7 constituted by a bent metal rod in a pin and articulated in rotation on each of the lateral flanks of each rocking body 1, slightly above the rocking axis 14. Shoulders are arranged on each body 1, adapted to limit the front and rear travel of each lever 7. An elastic means 21 cooperating with the tilting body 1 let the lever 7 causes a permanent return of the latter forward , which makes it suitable for repositioning in the immediate vicinity of the shoe's buttress after each tilting. Advantageously, it turns out in use, that these metal levers 7 can be at the origin of the automatic triggering of the heels during rear falls on a descending slope. Indeed, insofar as the levers 7 are permanently spaced by only about ten millimeters from the buttress of the shoe, the hooking in the snow, on one of the two, or even of the two levers 7, causes the immediate tilting of the tilting body 1 of the heels and the release of the feet.

 The means ensuring manual and automatic heaving having just been described, let us now look at the footwear means. Putting on a snowboard is an operation that is both simple and delicate. Unlike skiing, the use of "sticks" does not occur in the practice of surfing. As a result, the surfer has no accessories allowing him to hold back when putting on shoes to prevent his departure; therefore it is imperative that it be as easy as possible.

 To this end, the device according to the invention allows the following fitting procedure: the heel pieces being in the open position, that is to say, the tilting body 1 sensitive -ment horizontally; the rear foot is put in place in binding B. If the shoe size adjustment has been correctly carried out, there is nothing to prevent it. The front foot then rests on the ground, or rather in the snow, and prohibits (in principle) any untimely starting. From the moment the surfer decides to put the front foot on, the boot must be very fast from that moment. It is obtained by the addition of protruding spoiler gods 17 positioned judiciously at the base of the tilting body 1 of the front fixing heel piece A and on which the heel is applied when putting on the shoe. The strong pressure of the heel on the spoilers 17, obtained by a displacement of the surfer's body on the forefoot instantly provokes the tilting of the body 1 of each heel piece which thus, using its plate 12, compresses the shoulder of each heel, blocking each shoe in its binding . The descent can be started from this moment. It will be noted that only one of the tilting body 1 has spoilers 17 for automatic fitting. Not that the same arrangement on both feet is not totally to be avoided, but it does not bring any ease to quick putting on, quite the contrary. On the other hand, some may prefer to put on the front foot first; in this case, the heel piece of the rear foot must be fitted with projecting spoilers 17.

 Complementarily and advantageously, two metal arches 30 fixed on the lateral flanks of each plate 3 and protruding on the top of about twenty thousand meters have the role of keeping the heel of the shoe at the center of the binding and ensuring thus a perfect functioning at the heel. The choice of metal arch 30 is based on the advantage that they have in not containing the snow which is caused to settle on the adjustable plate 3 and which may be detrimental to the tripping stroke of the elastic means of each heel piece. Additionally also, a latch 31 mounted elastically in the middle on the longitudinal axis and on the top of each plate 3 with which it cooperates, ensures rapid and adjustable mounting of the support 2 on the plate 3 at the same time as rapid removal and easy.

 Figure 1 also shows us the stirrup 4 consisting of an oblong metal ring having a shape capable of holding the front end of a shoe sole. This stirrup 4 can tilt laterally, towards the front or towards the rear of the board, so as to accompany the movement of the shoe which it maintains on the plate 40, itself secured to the board by the fixing screws 41 Advantageously, the top of the plate 4 is of substantially convex shape in the lateral direction for the same reasons. The stirrup 4 mounted on the plate 40 is of course fixed on the surf in the natural extension of the.

plate 3 of each attachment.

 Figure 2 shows in detail and in section the articulated connection between the rocking body 1 and the coupling bar 6 which comprises a pin 13 preferably metal secured to a side wall of the body 1 in a housing 35 capable of receiving it and preventing it all rotations on the screw 14 which holds it and which also constitutes the tilting axis of the body 1 on the support 2. This pin 13 can indifferently be mounted on the left or right side of the body 1 a metal piece 20 occupies a housing identical to the previous arranged on the opposite wall. The metal sleeve 10 which contains in its upper part the elastic return means (not shown in the figure) cooperates in its lower part with the upper end of the support 2 by means of the axis 14 which passes through them, the support 2 being placed between its side walls. Each pin 13 is crossed by an oblong orifice 18, the walls of which can be coated with an anti-friction metal lining so that the bent bar 8 can debate inside the orifice, without prejudice to the pin 13 which, perfectly fixed on the tilting body must transmit a rotational movement, with a torque which can be quite significant when the elastic triggering means is strongly compressed. For this articulation to play its role and perfectly fulfill its function it is essential that the bar 8, the cross section of which is round in the part which cooperates with the pin 13, or of a diameter substantially identical to the width of the oblong orifice 18, that said orifice is elongated substantially in the extension of the axis 14, and that its elongation is at least one and a half times the diameter of the bent bar 8. The latter can thus debate in inclination and rotation inside the orif ice 18 of the pin 13 or it is held in place using two rings 9 made of an elastic anti-friction material which enclose it. One of these rings 9 is positioned on the bent bar 8, in the immediate vicinity of the bent part, using a metal ring 16 acting as a stop to prevent it from sliding towards the elbow under the push of the pin 13 as for the other ring 9, it is positioned on the end: of the bar 8 and maintained, to prevent its ejection, by a retaining screw 19, screwed at the end of the bar 8. The rings 9 which have a shape suitable for their use, press elastically, without excess, the pin 13 and the bar 8 can thus evolve inside the orifice 18 in a limited manner but with great flexibility.

The other end of the bent bar 8 which cooperates with the coupling bar 6 by sliding in one of its ends is of square section. The shape of this section is not imperative, it is given by way of example, and may as well, without departing from the scope of the invention, take any other form (hexagonal, grooved, etc.). we have seen above that it is entirely advantageous for the coupling bar 6 to be mounted telescopically, but it is moreover imperative that it be mounted very rigid in torsion1 which justifies the profile of the bar 8 and of the coupling bar 6 which are similar. In order to allow constant centering of the coupling bar 6 between its two bars 8, a bar 22 fixed in the center and inside said bar, maintains on each of its ends a helical spring of compre -ssion 23, which in turn maintains at the other of its ends a small sliding piston 25, the role of which is to bear on the square end of the bent bar 8.We will have understood that the thrust of the two springs 23 on the bent bars 8 balancing, the centering bar 6 is constantly centered. Incidentally, an anti-friction coating 24, PTFE for example, can advantageously coat the interior walls of the coupling bar 6. The present figure represents only half of the transmission assembly, it will have been noted that the latter has an elongated S-shaped configuration and that, moreover, the curvatures of each bar 8 may be different; the angulations having a direct relation with the positioning of the binding A and B on the surf (see figure 1)
Figure 3 shows in section, in detail, all of the main components of a heel piece in the device according to the invention in which the metal support -bent angled 2 is slidably mounted, in the longitudinal direction of the attachment , in a groove located at the base and in the center of the plate 3, with which it cooperates in its lower part.

An elastic latch 31, placed on top of the plate 3, and comprising a conical lug 34, passes through this same plate at the same time as the support 2, through one of the conical orifices 33 arranged on its median line, with regular spacings. A plate 32, made of PTFE, placed between the plate 3 and the surface 15 promotes the sliding of the support 2. The manual lifting of the latch 31, by its free end, releases the support 2 from the lug which holds it integral with the plate 3, allowing it to be disassembled or adjusted in an easy manner.

 In the upper part of the support 2 and in the natural extension of the metal blade which constitutes it, a pin 29, forged or attached to said blade, has an orifice passing through it horizontally and transversely, intended to receive the axis 14 which also passes through on either side of the support 2, the walls of the sleeve 10 and those of the tilting body 1. A flat is arranged on the upper part of the pin 29 which can thus cooperate, in a known manner, with the piston 28 which compresses the spring 27 on an adjustable stop 26 positioned by a setting screw 5; the assembly constituting the elastic triggering device.

 This figure also shows us, the trigger lever -ment 7 in the rear tilted position and biased by the elastic means 21. It also specifies the mounting of the concave plate 12, using the fixing screw 11 on the lower front part of the sleeve 10 and the quasi-vertical position of one of the automatic boot spoilers 17. it will finally be noted that advantageously the shoe 50 is fitted on the rear of its heel 1 with a metal shell 52 which perfectly matches the lower part of the buttress as well as the heel shoulder. This shell 52 which effectively protects the shoe 50 from any deterioration, at the same time promotes the precision of the triggering when the shoe is subjected to a significant lateral force, corresponding to a front or rear fall.

 FIG. 4 shows in a side view of the heel allowing the automatic putting on in the open position, a shoe 50 fitted with a protective shell 52, positioned on the spoilers 17 placed on either side of the support 2, for the shoe. The various arrows indicate the relative movements of the shoe and of the tilting body 1 leading to automatic putting on according to a widely known principle. This figure first specifies the position of the pin 13 placed in a housing 35 preventing it from rotating, and centered on the axis of tilting of the body lt while the axis of the oblong orifice forms an angle of about 45 on the rear of the longitudinal axis of said body. This angle corresponds approximately to half of the total movement of the tilting body 1 on its support 2. Such positioning of the pin 13 is essential for the proper functioning of the transmission mechanically coupling the tilting body 1 of each heel piece.

 On this same figure, the rocking lever 7 articulated on one axis 36 is held parallel to the longitudinal axis of the body 1 by means of elastic means 21 which recalls it against the stop 37; the stop 38 serving to limit its travel when the latter is biased towards the rear of the body 1. These stops 37 and 38 are arranged identically on each of the side walls of the tilting body 1. Finally, the positioning of one of the hoops 4 serving as a lateral wedging stop for the shoe, the ends of which are bent so as to be fixed on the lateral flanks of the plate 3 that they penetrate.

 FIG. 5 represents a stirrup 4 in the form of an elongated ring capable of holding the end of the sole of a shoe, in cooperation with a plate 40, itself fixed to the board by fixing screws 41. In the center and at the bottom of the ring constituting the stirrup 4, a bent rod 44 forming an integral part with the ring, is arranged longitudinally between the plate 40 and the sole 42 so as to be able to tilt laterally under the stress of the shoe. As already explained in the description of FIG. 1, the convex shape of the top of the plate 40 contributes favorably to reducing the stresses.

 Figure 6 shows, in longitudinal section, what has just been described above, and where appears positioned between the plate 40 and the sole 42, the bent rod 44 extending the yoke 4. The latter is held resiliently on the plate 40 by a frustoconical ring 43 of flexible material, inserted in a housing 46 arranged on the top towards the rear and in the center of the plate 40, by its bent upward end which passes through said ring 43. Such a mounting, simple and robust can guarantee a total lateral movement of 40 to 60Ur compatible with a good functioning of the heel pieces while providing a slight damping effect towards the front.

 This safety fixing device according to the invention will be produced, according to the stresses exerted on its various components, in the most suitable materials, whether plastic or metallic. It goes without saying that the present invention is in no way limited to the embodiments described and shown, it is susceptible to some variants accessible to those skilled in the art according to the applications envisaged and without one s deviates from the spirit of the invention. For example, a set of ancillary means aimed at sealing the joints and the slides constituting the mechanical connection between the heel pieces.

Claims (13)

R E V E N D I C A T I O N S  1) - Safety binding device for sports  glide comprising for each foot, a rear retaining means  called tilting body and a retaining means at the front called tilting stirrup, intended to maintain each shoe in normal conditions and release them during efforts on the  legs, dangerous for the safety of the user, characterized in that a mechanical coupling means ensures the simultaneous release of the two feet during a fall.  2) - Fastening device according to claim 1 characterized in that the tilting body is rotated on a support consisting of a bent steel blade which engages, on the one hand almost vertically under the tilting body1 and on the other hand, horizontally under a mounting plate.  3) - Fastening device according to claim 1 characterized in that the retaining means cooperating with the heel of each shoe consists of a substantially rectangular and concave metal plate fixed on the front and at the base of the tilting body by a or several screws, of an aaequate shape suitable for maintaining the shoulder of the shoe heel  and to accompany it in its vertical movements up to the trigger point.  4) - Device -from fasteners according to claim 1 characterized in that each tilting body is equipped, on at least one of its lateral flanks in the extension of the tilting axis, with a pin intended to receive, in an orifice oblong which passes through it, the end of a mechanical coupling means  5) - Fastening device according to one of claims 1 or 4, characterized in that the mechanical coupling means is constituted at each end of a bent bar cooperating in rotation with the pin of one of the two tilting bodies.  6) - Fastening device according to claim 5 characterized in that each bar is maintained positioned on its pin by two elastic rings forming stops, placed on either side of said pin.  7) - Fastening device according to one of the preceding claims characterized in that the mechanical coupling means is mounted telescopically using a coupling bar consisting of a tube of polygonal cross section accommodating the ends, of identical profile , bent bars in  which they slide.  - 8) - Fastening device according to one of the preceding claims characterized in that the bent bars are positioned on the coupling bar so as to form a Elongates.  9) - Fastening device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each rocking body is equipped with a lever, also rocking backwards, provided with an elastic return means, ensuring manual heaving.  10) - Fixing device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that an elastic means ensures the centering of the coupling bar on the bent bars.  11) - Fastening device according to claim 1 characterized in that the rear fixing plate is equipped with a lug lug which cooperates with the support with bent blade.  12) - Fastening device according to claim 1 characterized in that the front bracket consists of a bent rod extended by an oblong ring, which cooperates along a horizontal and longitudinal axis with a fixing plate so as to tilt laterally .  13) - Fastening device according to claims 1 and 12 characterized in that an elastic centering ring cooperates with the bent end of the stirrup rod.