WO2000066231A1

WO2000066231A1 - Skate frame, particularly for in-line roller skates or ice skates

Info

Publication number: WO2000066231A1
Application number: PCT/EP2000/003760
Authority: WO
Inventors: Roberto Gorza
Original assignee: Benetton Group S.P.A.
Priority date: 1999-04-28
Filing date: 2000-04-26
Publication date: 2000-11-09
Also published as: ITTV990048A0; IT1311647B1; ITTV990048A1

Abstract

A skate frame, particularly for skates with in-line wheels or ice skates, comprising a frame body supporting wheels or a blade. The frame comprises first and/or second means for support and temporary connection to the heel and tip of a shoe, the means being rigidly coupled to a support which can slide selectively longitudinally with respect to the frame body.

Description

SKATE FRAME, PARTICULARLY FOR IN-LINE ROLLER SKATES OR ICE SKATES Technical field

The present invention relates to a skate frame, particularly for in-line roller skates or ice skates. Background art

Conventional skates comprise a frame associated with a shoe, produced for example by injection-molding plastic material so as to form a shell to which a quarter is articulated. The frame is associated at the sole of the shell, and is usually also made of plastics, and has a U-shaped cross-section, for supporting two or more in-line wheels.

These conventional skates have the severe drawback that they can be used only for skating, thus forcing the user to remove the walking shoes before putting on the skates. Swiss patent No. 602147 discloses a skate with in-line wheels which is composed of a shoe which can be detached with respect to a frame provided with a fixed abutment which protrudes at one of its ends, has an arc-like shape and interacts with the tip of the shoe so as to allow optimum centering thereof and prevent its lifting. The ends of a traction element are associated on the opposite side and laterally with respect to the frame. The traction element wraps around the rear of the heel of the shoe and is provided with a tensioning lever which interacts with the upper edge of the heel, and the free end is associated with the shoe by means of a strap which wraps around it. In the above skate, both abutments, located at the front and the rear traction element, require adapted seats formed in the shoe approximately at the sole. Moreover, the lever is provided with a strap which, by wrapping around the ankle, prevents the accidental disengagement of the lever.

Locking the shoe requires operations which, if not performed with the necessary care, may cause sudden disengagements of the frame and of the shoe with consequent injury to the user.

A skate with in-line wheels is also known which is marketed by the Italian company MGM under the trademark Hypno and provides a shoe which can be detached from a frame for supporting a plurality of mutually in-line wheels.

At the frame, a pivot engages a grip member which is constituted by a blade arranged below the sole of the shoe. The shoe is fastened to the frame by means of an H-shaped rod at the rear of said frame. The tips of the rod are pivoted to the frame at one end and pivoted, at the other end, to a lever which interacts with an adapted element which is associated with the shoe. While the above skate partially solves the above-noted drawbacks, it is nevertheless structurally and constructively complicated, because of the large number of parts used both in the shoe and in the frame in order to achieve the respective coupling. The complexity of the above-described skate is also due to the large number of production steps for the manufacture and complete assembly of the skate; all this accordingly entails high final weight and cost. Walking when the shoe is not coupled to the skate is awkward due to the weight and rigidity of the sole. EPA 98117250.5 discloses a device for connecting a shoe to a sports implement which is composed of a frame, which comprises one or more supporting bases for the sole of a shoe, between whose wings two or more wheels are pivoted which are arranged mutually in-line or not; the connection device is constituted by at least one first front element, which is fixed to the frame, and by a second self-locking rear element which is articulated to said frame and acts as an abutment and a retainer for containing the longitudinal, lateral and perpendicular movements of the shoe with respect to the frame.

The resulting skate allows to use normal walking shoes also for skating and allows the user, at any time, to walk normally or skate by simply connecting the shoe to the frame.

This solution has the drawback caused by the fact that the dimensions of the frame must be adapted to the dimensions of each size of the shoe worn by the user; accordingly, the user is forced to purchase a new frame whenever the dimensions of the shoe vary significantly, therefore entailing a considerable expense.

EPA 99116806.3 discloses a frame for skates which is composed of at least a first half-frame and a second half-frame which are mutually articulated, each half-frame being provided with means for detachable connection to a soft shoe.

This solution, too, allows to use an ordinary shoe, since said shoe is associable with the frame in order to skate; also in this case, however, the dimensions of the frame must be suited to the dimensions of each shoe size and therefore the frame can be used only for shoes having the same dimensions.

Also in this case, therefore, the user has to purchase a new frame whenever the dimensions of the shoe are modified significantly.

US-5,475,936 discloses a roller skate with aligned wheels which is constituted by a wheel supporting frame to which the front part of a shell is rigidly coupled and to the rear of which a cuff is slidingly associated; said cuff can be rigidly coupled to said shell in a chosen position.

The movement of the cuff longitudinally to the frame therefore allows to vary the internal dimensions of the shell, thus allowing to use the skate even for different user foot sizes. However, this solution forces the user to use a structure, constituted by the shell and the quarter, which is substantially rigid, since it is made of plastics: therefore, in addition to the fact that the skate is not very comfortable to use, the user is also forced to carrv both the skates and the shoes for normal walking in order to be able to alternate walking with skating. US-5,678,833 discloses an in-line skate which comprises a shell which is divided into two parts, the front part being able to slide longitudinally with respect to the wheel supporting frame along the main axis of the skate and, as in the preceding case, allows to modify the internal dimensions of said shell.

In this manner, young skaters can use the same skate for a long time without having to buy several skates over a few years.

However, differently from the previously cited patents, this solution does not allow to use shoes which can be used for normal walking, thus forcing the user to carry several shoes in order to be able to alternate walking and skating. Disclosure of the Invention

The aim of the present invention is to solve the above-cited problems, eliminating the drawbacks of the cited prior art, by providing a frame which can be applied to walking shoes or sports shoes, in any case even to shoes of the soft type, and even if said shoes are of mutually different sizes.

Within the scope of this aim, an important object of the present invention is to provide a frame which allows the user to associate it with said shoes quickly and easily. Another important object of the present invention is to provide a frame which is structurally simple, compact, has reduced dimensions and can be manufactured with conventional machines and equipment.

These and other objects which will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a skate frame, having a frame body supporting wheels or a blade, characterized in that it comprises first and second means for temporary connection to the heel and tip of a shoe, said means being rigidly coupled to a first transverse support and to a second transverse support for said heel and tip, respectively, at least one of said first and second supports being able to slide selectively longitudinally with respect to said frame. Brief description of the drawings Further characteristics and advantages of the frame according to the present invention will become better apparent from the following detailed description of particular but not exclusive embodiments thereof, illustrated only by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a side view of the frame according to the invention, applied to a shoe;

Figure 2 is a side view of the shoe during coupling to the frame;

Figure 3 is a side view of the frame in a first type of arrangement of the support;

Figure 4 is a side view of the frame in a second type of arrangement of the support;

Figure 5 is a view of the frame according to the invention, for an ice- skating blade. Ways of carrying out the Invention

With reference to the above figures, the reference numeral 1 designates a frame which is constituted by a body 2 which has, in transverse cross- section, substantially the shape of an inverted letter U which is composed of two vertical wings 4, to which two or more wheels 5 are pivoted and are thus arranged in-line with respect to each other.

Alternatively, as shown in Figure 5, the body 2 comprises a pair of bases 3a, 3b from which wings 4 protrude between which an ice-skating blade 6 is rigidly coupled.

An adapted brake 7 is advantageously associated, in the case of a skate, at the rear region of the body 2.

The frame further comprises first supporting means 3 which are arranged transversely to the pair of vertical wings 4 and are connected thereto; said first supporting means 3 comprise a first base 18 which is preferably flat and is meant to support the sole 17 of the shoe 10 at the heel region. First means 8 for connection to the heel 9 of a shoe 10, which is of the soft type and therefore can be used for walking, are rigidly coupled at the first supporting means 3 proximate to the rear end of the body 2.

Said first means are constituted, for example, by two rigid or flexible arms 11a and lib which are pivoted laterally, at one end, to the first supporting means 3, and are pivoted, at the other end, at a lever 12 which has a first end 13 which can be arranged at the perimetric ridge of the heel 9, which protrudes to the rear, and a second end 14 with which a means for connection to the shoe, such as a band 15 adapted to wrap around the shoe at an instep region 16, is optionally associated. Advantageously, the ends of the band can be mutually closed by adapted temporary retention means, such as layers of materials known by the trade- name Velcro.

The frame is further constituted by second supporting means 22 which comprise a second base 23 which is preferably flat and is meant to support the tip region of the sole 17.

Second means 19 for temporary connection to the tip 20 of the shoe 10 are further provided and are constituted by a U-shaped ring 21, whose ends are laterally rigidly coupled to the second supporting means 22.

The ring 21 is shaped appropriately so as to interact with the perimetric ridge that protrudes in front of the tip 20 of the shoe 10, so as to lock said tip in combination with the arrangement of the second end 14 of the lever 12 on the corresponding ridge of the heel 9 and with the fastening of the band

15.

The second supporting means 22 are connected to the pair of vertical wings 4 and can selectively slide longitudinally thereto.

For the sake of convenience, the first and second supporting means are also designated hereafter as first and second support.

The second support 22 therefore has two flaps 24 which preferably lie parallel to the wings 4; adapted means or elements for the mutual guiding and sliding of the second support 22 and the pair of vertical wings 4 may optionally be provided.

The support 22 can selectively slide longitudinally with respect to the pair of vertical wings 4, since a first hole 25 is formed transversely to said flaps 24 and second holes 26 are formed at the same height at the wings 4 and are advantageously mutually equidistant longitudinally to the body 2.

The first hole 25 can therefore be arranged at one of said second holes 26 so that said holes have the same axis, allowing mutual locking of the position by using adapted screws 27.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, it is thus possible to vary the position of the support 22 according to the size of the shoe that is associable with the frame, and this operation can be performed quickly and easily even by the user.

It has thus been observed that the invention has achieved the intended aim and objects, a frame having been provided which can be applied to walking shoes or sports shoes, in any case even to shoes of the soft type, and even if said shoes are of mutually different sizes.

Moreover, this solution allows the user to associate the frame with said shoes quickly and easily.

The invention is structurally simple and compact, has reduced dimensions and can be manufactured at a low cost.

The skate frame according to the invention is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, within the scope of the appended claims.

For example, also the first support 3 may be able to selectively slide longitudinally with respect to the pair of vertical wings 4 in a manner which is straightforward and obvious for the expert in the field.

Figure 5 illustrates the frame, which is composed of the first and second supports 3a and 3b. which are connected, at least one of said supports being able to selectively slide longitudinally to the pair of vertical wings 4, between which an ice-skating blade 6 is rigidly coupled. The materials and the dimensions of the individual components of the invention may also be the most pertinent according to specific requirements. The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. TV99A000048 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.

Claims

1. A skate frame, having a frame body supporting wheels or a blade, characterized in that it comprises first and second means for temporary connection to the heel and tip of a shoe, said means being rigidly coupled to a first transverse support and to a second transverse support for said heel and tip, respectively, at least one of said first and second supports being able to slide selectively longitudinally with respect to said frame.

2. The frame according to claim 1, characterized in that first means and/or second means for connection to the heel or tip of a shoe, which may be soft and accordingly can be used for walking, are slidingly associated at the rear and front regions of said frame body.

3. The frame according to claim 2, characterized in that said first and/or second means are associated with a support which is shaped complementarily to the front or rear regions of said frame body.

4. The frame according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one support is shaped as an inverted letter U so as to form a base which can slide above said frame.

5. The frame according to claim 1, characterized in that said at least one support slides at adapted guides which are provided on said frame body.

6. The frame according to claim 5, characterized in that said at least one support has two flaps which are arranged parallel to said frame body.

7. The frame according to claim 6, characterized in that said pair of flaps has adapted means or elements for guiding and sliding with respect to said frame body.

8. The frame according to claim 7, characterized in that said at least one support can selectively slide longitudinally to said frame body, at least one first hole being formed transversely to said flaps, second holes being formed at said frame body and being equidistant longitudinally to said frame body.

9. The frame according to claim 8, characterized in that said at least one first hole can be arranged at one of said second holes so as to have the same axis and allow mutual locking of the position by using fasteners such as screws.