US3015492A

US3015492A - Collapsible ice skate scabbard

Info

Publication number: US3015492A
Application number: US20079A
Authority: US
Inventors: Richard N Kesner; Herbert B Hawes
Original assignee: St Lawrence Manufacturing Co Inc
Current assignee: St Lawrence Manufacturing Co Inc
Priority date: 1960-04-05
Filing date: 1960-04-05
Publication date: 1962-01-02
Anticipated expiration: 1979-01-02

Description

Jan. 2, 1962 R. N. KESNER ETAL 3,015,492

COLLPSIBLE ICE SKATE SCABBRD Filed April 5, 1960 TTORNEY United States Patent 4nice 3,015,492 Patented Jan. 2, 19162 3,015,492 COLLAPSIBLE ICE SKATE SCABBARD Richard N. Kesner, Needham, and Herbert B. Hawes,

East Brookfield, Mass., assignors to St. Lawrence Manufacturing Company, Inc., Gitard, Quebec, Canada,

a corporation of the Province of Quebec Filed Apr. 5, 1960, Ser. No. 20,079 8 Claims. (Cl. 280--11.38)

This invention relates to a guard or scabbard to be applied to the blade of an ice skate. It is a primary object of the invention to provide a scabbard of this type which can be economically constructed and assembled and which will be held safely in place whether the skates are stored or used for walking on dry ground.

lt is a further object to provide a scabbard comprising duplicate members for the forward and rearward end of the skate and which is usable with most popular types of skates such as gure skates, racing skates, etc.

A still further object relates to the manner in which the scabbard can be collapsed, so that it will occupy a minimum of space, collapsed into the single plane of the scabbard members and with either member above or below the other. v

I These and other objects will be understood from th following description when considered in connection with the drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the scabbard in position for application to an ice skate.

FIGS. 2 and 3 are top and bottom plan views of the two members of the scabbard, taken on the lines 2 2 and 3-3, respectively, of FIG. l.

FIGS. 4 and 5 are vertical sectional views, taken on the lines 4-4 and 5-57 respectively, of FIG. 1.

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal sectional view taken through the center of the right hand member shown in FIG. l.

FIG. 7 illustrates the collapsed scabbard.

FIG. 8 illustrates the scabbard applied to a skate.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view of the collapsed scabbard members illustrating a modification of the invention for locking the members together.

FIG. 10 is a transverse sectional view thereof, taken on the line 10-10 of FIG. 9.

The scabbard comprises two

members

10 and 12, for attachment over the forward and rearward ends of the skate 47, the inner ends thereof being connected together by an attachment device shown as a coil spring 14 encased in a plastic tube 15. While the two

members

10 and 12 are referred to as attached over the forward and rearward ends of the skate, the members are preferably duplicates so that neither is strictly a forward or rearward member. For convenience the head end of each member is referred to as the outer end and the attachvment end as the inner end.

Each

member

10 and 12 comprises

side tlanges

16 and 18 and a bottom tread portion 20, the side flanges being spaced to provide a longitudinal groove 22 for receiving the blade 47 of the skate. The groove 22 has a at bottom extending from near the inner end 24 of the member toward the head 26 thereof, being curved upwardly as the groove nears the vhead 26 to correspond with the curvature of most skate blades.

The terminal groove in the head 26 is especially shaped to accommodate either end of the most popular styles of present day skate blades. Thus there is a curved section 2S in the upper portion of the head, extending upwardly and terminating in a reverse bend 30 forming a pocketed end 32. The forward end of the groove 22, adjacent the lower portion of the head 26, extends forwardly beyond the curvature 28 to form an end pocket 34 for receiving and being secured over the reduced end of a skate blade, generally provided on the rearwardV end of figure skates tread portion is preferably formed with surface projections, shown as herringbone projections 36, although other forms of anti-skid surface may be applied.

Since the scabbard herein disclosed is intended for use, where the skater, for example, walks to or from the pond or rink, it is important to have the scabbard fold intoa small compact unit. The tension spring 14 must be of a certain diameter and strength to serve its function properly yet it should be accommodated within the contines of the scabbard members when collapsed and carried in the pocket.

The coil spring 14 has looped ends passed over pins or rivets 38. As shown the rivets 38 are solid pins headed on one end and with a hollow projection on the other which can be rolled outwardly into holding position. The pins extend through opposed projections 40 formed on the inner ends of the side flanges and tread portion of the members, the space between the projections being barely sufficient to loosely receive the looped ends of the spring, to form a pivot for the spring ends. l

To accommodate the -body of the spring within the scabbard members, when the scabbard is collapsed, there is provided a Vertical opening 42 in each scabbard member. The tread portion 20 is cut away centrally as indicated at 44, providing a tapered groove, preferably of cylindrical contour, in the central portion of `the ,tread (see FIG. 3) extending outwardly a short distance for receiving the spring 14 as shown in FIG. 7. The inner faces of the side ilanges 16 and 18 are cut away near their top edges, as indicated at 46, to widen the upper portion of the groove 22 adjacent the opening 42 (see FIG. 2) to accommodate the spring as shown in FIG. 7. Since the side flanges adjacent the opening are relatively thin, the projections 40 are provided to afford suitable anchoring elements for the ends of the spring.

One further feature of the scabbard, illustrated in FIGS. 9 and l0, enables the scabbard members to be locked in collapsed position for storage. Thusin this form of the invention the side anges of each scabbard member are provided with stops 48 placed in the inner edge of each ange, the outer or forward vertical walls thereof being positioned in advance of the' inner or rearward walls 50 of projections 40 in the collapsed'positions shown in FIG. 7. Either

scabbard member

10 or 12 may thus be moved along the other scabbard'y member, in collapsed position, suciently to tension the spring 14 to cause the projections 40 to drop into place behind the vertical walls of stops 48. The rearward wallsA 50 thus become stops held against the stops 48 on the lower member. The two scabbard members are held firmly together due to the tension of spring' 14, then in angular relation to the plane of the contacting flanges o f the scabbard members.

From the above description the use of the ice skate scabbard will be clear. The scabbard can be worn with most present day skates, regardless of whether they Vhave curved ends `or straight or angled configurations, and

be held firmly in place while the user walks on non-icy surfaces. The coil spring is of su'cientstrength to hold the scabbard members firmly on the skates, yet it is sufciently elastic to permit the scabbard to be used on skates up to one inch different in length. Thus three sizes of scabbards have been found sullicient to accommodate most sizes of skates. The scabbard can be applied without thought as to thefront or back thereof, the two members of the scabbard being duplicates.

When removed the scabbard can be collapsed intoY a compact unit, the thickness of the scabbard. Either member may be moved to a position such that the lower plane surface of its side flanges are in contact with the upper plane surfaces of the flanges of the other member. The

spring ends constitute hinges for the attachment ends of the members. The spring attachment element is confined entirely within the scabbard when collapsed for storage or for carrying in the pocket. The stops 48 cause the collapsed members to be locked firmly together while not in use.

The scabbard herein disclosed can 'be readily formed by injection molding of resinous materials, with or without ber reinforcement, or it may be formed of metal, wood, or other material. If formed of wood it has been found preferable to form the scabbard members of three plies of material, one for each flange, extending to the bottom of the tread portion, and a central ply shaped in conformance with the contour of the base of the skate receiving groove. The stops 48 may be integral projections molded on the flanges of the members 10 and 1 2 or they may be in the form of pins inserted in or attached to the flanges.

The particular constructions here shown, while presently believed to be the best forms now known for the intended purpose, are set forth for purposes of illustration only, and not with any intention of limiting the invention, the scope of which is set forth in the claims ap-Y pended hereto.

We claim:

1. An iceY skate scabbard comprising duplicate forward and rearward skate holding members, each formed with an inner attachment end and anl outer pocketed skate holding head, each said member comprising spaced side flanges and lower tread surfaces, said side flanges .and tread-surface forming between them a skate receiving groove extending from the attachment end thereof to the said head of each, the groove in said head having ann upwardly and rearwardly extending end wall constituting a pocket for receiving Yand holding the end of the skate and a coiled tension spring secured to the attachment ends of said members for drawing them toward one another, said members being formed with a vertical opening in the rearward portion of said tread surface, adjacent the attachment ends thereof for receiving said coiled spring when said vmembers are collapsed and assembled for storage one above the other.

2. The ice skate scabbard recited in claim 1 and a surface groove on the bottom of each'of said tread surfaces extending 'from said opening along the central portion of said tread surfacefor a limited distance toward K said head, for receiving said coiled spring when the other of said members is collapsed beneath said member.

Y 3. The ice skate scabbard recited in claim 2, said Y groove being of gradually reduced depth as it extends along being Vwider adjacent said opening than in the mainv Vbody thereof for receiving said coiled spring when the other said member is collapsed above said member;Y

` V5. The ice skate scabbard recited in claim '4, and inwardly extending spaced projections on the rearward ends of said members, beyond said opening, facing inwardly toward one another, and means for securing said coiled spring between said projections.

6. An ice skate scabbard comprising duplicate forward and rearward skate holding members, each formed with an inner attachment end and an outer pocketed skate holding head, each lsaid member comprising spaced side flanges and lower tread surfaces, said side flanges and tread surface forming between them a skate receiving groove extending from the attachment end thereof to the said head of each, the groove in said head having an upwardly and rearwardly extending end wall constituting a pocket for receiving and holding the end of the skate and a coiled tension spring secured to the attachment ends of said members for drawing them toward one another, said members being formed with a vertical opening in the rearward portion of said tread surface, adjacent'the attachment ends thereof for receiving said coiled spring when said members are collapsed and assembled for storage one above the other, and stops on the upper and lower portions of the side flanges thereof, engageable when the skate holding members are collapsed to prevent relative movement of one member with respect to the other.

7. The ice skate scabbard recited in claim 6, said spring yieldably holding saidV stops in engagement, with said members maintained in locked collapsed position.

8. An ice skate scabbard comprising two duplicate guard members having inwardly directed attachment ends and outwardly directed headsrand lower surfaces having tread portions, a resilient attachment element connected Y to said inwardly directed ends for exerting force in pulling said members toward one another, each -of said members having side flanges spaced to provide a central longitudinal skate-receiving groove extending'for the major portion of the length thereof and terminating at the head end of said member in anupwardly and rearwardly eX- tending wall, constituting a pocket for securing said member over the end of the blade of an ice skate positioned therein, said members being provided with-upper and lower openings between said anges, adjacent the point of attachment of said attachment element to said attachment ends, for receiving said attachment element between said flanges when said members are collapsed with one said member positioned above the other said member.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,686,667 Kaskey Oct. 9, 1928 1,930,810 Johnson'y rOct. 17, 1933 FOREIGN PATENTS `740,567 Germany Oct. 23, 1943 270,069 Switzerland Nov. 1, 1950