GB2304063A

GB2304063A - Skate blade sharpener

Info

Publication number: GB2304063A
Application number: GB9601832A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Anthony Osler Mcintyre
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1995-08-04
Filing date: 1996-01-30
Publication date: 1997-03-12
Also published as: WO1997005988A1; GB9601832D0

Abstract

A portable electric skate sharpener has a body 25 containing a motor and batteries. Different grinding honing and conditioning heads 26 fit various blade types and perform various finishing operations upon the blade. The head fits over the skate blade with the provided slot clamps, and the motor switched on. The grinding/honing device reciprocates along the blade direction and may oscillate transversely. Where a cylindrical grinding device is used it is rotated incrementally as it reciprocates. (Fig. 9, not shown). A hand operated honing device 13 is housed in the motor body when not in use. The sharpener may be stored on a stand containing a recharging device.

Description

Portable skate blade sharpener This invention relates to a portable skate blade sharpener.

Ice skate blades need to be kept sharp for maximum skating performance. Most professional skaters will hone or sharpen the blades of their skates after each skating session, be they ice hockey players or figure skaters. Most amateurs have not got access to the sophisticated electric machinery required for quality sharpening, and if they had, constant sharpening would be an expensive exercise. The quality of sharpening available to most general skaters is also not of the highest. A number of hand operated skate sharpeners exist. These too vary in the quality of finish they produce, their ease of use, and their adaptability to a wide variety of skate blade types.

It is known that ice skate blades are hollow ground, that is, ground with a concave radius along their length. The radius of this hollow grinding should be varied with the weight of the individual, the width of the skate blade, the hardness of the ice, and personal preference.

It is the object of this invention to provide a skate sharpener that is portable and easier to use than known hand operated skate sharpeners, but which provides a finish comparable with that of electric machinery.

According to the present invention, there is provided a portable skate sharpener comprising a motor unit having a battery operated motor and a sharpening head having a sharpening member movable on actuation of the motor to provide the required sharpening action on a skate blade. By "sharpening action" is to be understood grinding, honing, polishing, or otherwise conditioning. Preferably, the sharpening head is readily detachable from the motor unit for replacement by a similar head or by a head providing a different sharpening action. Thus, by using appropriate sharpening heads, it is possible to provide various degrees of finish or sharpening for a number of different skate widths and types, and allow for future compatibility with any skate blade developments.

One embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a front view of a skate sharpener in accordance with the invention showing the motor unit with sharpening head attached, Figure 2 is a side view of the skate sharpener of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a sectional view through the sharpening head of the skate sharpener of Figure 1 taken along the lines III-III and IV-IV of Figures 4 and 5, Figure 4 is a sectional view through the sharpening head of the skate sharpener of Figure 1 taken along the lines IV-IV of Figures 3 and 5, Figure 5 is an underside view of the sharpening head of the skate sharpener of Figure 1, Figure 6 is front view of an alternative sharpening head, Figure 7 is a side view of the alternative sharpening head of Figure 6, Figure 8 is a sectional view through the alternative sharpening head of Figure 6 taken along the line VIII-VIII of Figure 7, Figure 9 is a sectional view through the alternative sharpening head of Figure 6 taken along the line IX-IX of Figure 6, Figure 10 is an underside view of the alternative sharpening head of Figure 6, Figure 11 is an end view of the removable skate edge honing device of the skate sharpener of Figure 1, Figure 12 is a side view of the removable skate edge honing device of Figure 11, Figure 13 is an underside view of the removable skate edge honing device of Figure 11.

In Figures 1 to 5, a portable skate sharpener comprises a motor unit 1, with the means of attaching a variety of sharpening heads 2 and 15 (see Figures 6-10), by means of clips 3 which may be released by springs 4 integral with the motor casing. The sharpening head is provided with a connecting piece 5 which transfers reciprocating motion, indicated by the arrows 11 and 12 in Figure 3, from the motor to the sharpening stone 8, 18 attached to a carriage 7 slidingly mounted in the'head 2. In the case of the alternative sharpening head shown in Figures 6-10, a rotational movement, indicated by arrow 23, is imparted to a cylindrical stone 18 by means of notches 21 in the carriage support arm, as these are engaged on each reciprocating stroke by teeth 20 in the sharpening head body 16.The stone rotates a fraction of its circumference for each stroke, upon its central shaft 19 which passes through circular holes in the reciprocating carriage arm 17.

The rotary motion of the motor is converted into reciprocating motion by means of a gearing arrangement driving a wheel 31 with a eccentrically mounted pin 32, which in turn is made to drive a reciprocating member 33 with means 34 of accepting the sharpening head connecting piece 5.

The motor unit also contains a battery housing, which may enclose either replaceable batteries or a rechargeable battery unit. In the latter case there may also be provided a recharging unit in or on which the motor unit may be stored.

The sharpening heads may be provided with dressing tools which fit within their slots and allow the sharpening stone to be trimmed to a correct profile by means of the motors battery powered action.

Heads may be provided to perform other operations upon the skate blade, whether it be honing the edges to remove the burr produced by grinding, polishing the blade, or the like.

In operation a person will fit the appropriate sharpening head 2,15 onto the motor body 1. He or she will steady the skate on a suitable surface or between the knees, and may apply to the blade water, oil or some other suitable lubricant. He or she will use a switch 14 to turn on the electric motor 1 and place the slot 9 of the sharpening head 2, 15 over the skate blade and pass the sharpener up and down the length of the blade while applying pressure enough to allow the sharpener to remove metal from the blade. The slot 9 on the sharpening head 2, 15 is specially shaped to allow the sharpening stone to reach the curved ends of the skate blade. The user may fit a sharpening head with a finer grit sharpening stone in order to execute a finer finish on the blade.The user may fit a polishing head, and apply a polishing compound to the blade, in order to execute a polished finish on the blade.

At any time a user may remove from the motor body 1 where it is housed a hand operated honing device 13 whose purpose is to remove the edge burring produced by the hollow grinding of the blade. This device incorporates a holding section with one or more projecting pins 24, 25 that may be made to pass along the edge of the blade.

A second embodiment of the invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 14 is a front view of a skate sharpener in accordance with the invention showing the motor unit with sharpening head attached, Figure 15 is a side view of the skate sharpener of Figure 14, Figure 16 is a sectional view through the sharpening head of the skate sharpener of Figure 14 taken along the line XVI-XVI of Figure 17, Figure 17 is a sectional view through the sharpening head of the skate sharpener of Figure 14 taken along the lines XVII-XVII of Figure 16.

In Figures 14 to 17, a portable skate sharpener comprises a motor unit 25, with the means of attaching a variety of sharpening heads 26 (see Figures 16 and 17), by means of clips 27 which may be released by springs 28 integral with the motor casing.

The sharpening head is provided with means 29 for gripping the skate blade so that in use the sharpening head remains in proper alignment with the skate blade inserted between the gripping means. The gripping power may be supplied by springs 30. The motor unit is also provided with a connecting piece 31 provided with an eccentric pin 35 engaging an aperture in a carriage 34 slidingly mounted on an axle 32 and carrying a sharpening stone 33. Rotational motion of the motor is converted via the connecting piece 31 with an eccentric pin 35 into reciprocating motion of the carriage 34 along the axle 32 as indicated by arrow 36 in Figure 16, and also rocking motion of the carriage 34 about the axle 32, as indicated by arrow 37 in Figure 17.The sharpening stone 33 by virtue of its rocking motion indicated by arrow 37 will hone the skate blade to a hollow radius and will maintain its curved profile over time.

The sharpening heads may be provided with dressing tools which fit within their slots and allow the sharpening stone to be trimmed to a correct profile by means of the motor's battery powered action.

In operation a person will fit the appropriate sharpening head 26 onto the motor body 25. He or she will steady the skate on a suitable surface or between the knees, and may apply to the blade water, oil or some other suitable lubricant. He or she will use a switch 39 to turn on the electric motor, open the slot clamp 29 by means of levers 38, and place the grips 29 of the sharpening head 26 over the skate blade, release the slot levers 38, and pass the sharpener up and down the length of the blade while applying pressure enough to allow the sharpener to remove metal from the blade.

The slot clamps 29 on the sharpening head 26 are specially shaped to allow the sharpening stone 33 to reach the curved ends of the skate blade. By virtue of the fact that the slot clamps share a common pivotal axis with the rocking motion of the sharpening stone 33, the motor unit 39 may be moved laterally to some degree in relation to the sharpening head during use without disturbing the relationship of the grips 29 or the radius of the sharpening stone 33 to the skate blade, thus ensuring a symmetrical honing action upon the blade. The user may fit a sharpening head with a finer or coarser sharpening stone according to the initial condition of the blade and the desired degree of finish. The user may fit a polishing head, and apply a polishing compound to the blade, in order to execute a polished finish on the blade.

At any time a user may remove from the motor body 25 where it is housed a hand operated honing device 13 (see Figures 11, 12, 13) whose purpose is to remove the edge burring produced by the hollow grinding of the blade. This device incorporates a holding section with one or more projecting pins 24, 25 that may be made to pass along the edge of the blade.

Claims

1. A portable skate sharpener comprising a motor unit having a battery operated motor and a sharpening head having a sharpening member movable on actuation of the motor to provide the required sharpening action on a skate blade.

2. A portable skate sharpener according to claim 1, wherein the sharpening head is readily detachable from the motor unit for replacement by a similar head as by a head providing a different sharpening action.

3. A portable skate sharpener according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the motor unit has a housing for one or more batteries.

4. A portable skate sharpener as claimed in claim 3, wherein the battery is rechargeable.

5. A portable skate sharpener according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the motor is operatively connected to the sharpening member to provide a rotational motion thereof.

6. A skate sharpener according to any one of claims 1 to 4, operatively connected to give an oscillating motion to the sharpening member whereby the sharpening member is made to move side to side about its axis of rotation.

7. A skate sharpener according to any one of claims 1 to 4, operatively connected to give a reciprocating axial motion to the sharpening member whereby the sharpening member is made to move back and forth along its radial axis.

8. A portable skate sharpener according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the motor is operatively connected to the sharpening member to reciprocate axially and simultaneously rock from side to side about an axis of rotation.

9. A portable skate sharpener according to claim 8 wherein the sharpening member is mounted on a carriage slidable on an axle in the sharpening head and operatively connected to the motor via a rotational connection having an eccentric pin engaging an aperture in the carriage to provide the reciprocal axial and rocking movements thereof.

10. A portable skate sharpener according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the sharpening head has means for supporting a skate blade in a correct position against the sharpening member during sharpening.

11. A portable skate sharpener as claimed in claim 10, wherein the supporting means is pivotally mounted on the sharpening head on the axis of movement of the sharpening member, so as to provide correct alignment of the blade and sharpening member.

12. A portable skate sharpener according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the said means are adaptable to accept a variety of differing skate blade widths.

13. A portable skate sharpener according to claims 10, 11 and 12 wherein the supporting means are formed by a slot and side surfaces thereof in the sharpening head.

14. A portable skate sharpener according to any one of the preceding claims and further comprising a detachable hand operated honing device for removing edge burring produced by hollow grinding a blade.

15. A portable skate sharpener as claimed in claim 14, wherein the honing device comprises a holding portion with one or more projecting pins for passing along the edge of a blade.

16. A portable skate sharpener according to any one of the preceding claims and further comprising a dressing device for dressing the sharpening member on activation of the motor.