WO2005072833A1

WO2005072833A1 - Snowboard and accessory therefor

Info

Publication number: WO2005072833A1
Application number: PCT/GB2005/000322
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nicholas John Howard Rawcliffe
Original assignee: Royal College Of Art
Priority date: 2004-01-30
Filing date: 2005-01-31
Publication date: 2005-08-11
Also published as: GB0402011D0

Abstract

The present invention provides a snowboard which comprises: a board (2) having a top (3), opposed sides (5) and a base (4); a plate (26) secured to the top of the board and at least one fin (32) connected to the plate and depending downwardly from the plate, the fin extending over a side (5) of the snowboard to below the level of the plate. Preferably, the height of the fin is adjustable.

Description

Snowboard and Accessory Therefor

Technical Field

The present invention relates to snowboards, that is to say unitary boards on which a user is supproted in order to slide down a slope formed of snow and/or ice.

Background Art

Snowboards are provided with foot bindings to hold the rider's feet directly to the board so the user can move his weight and so steer the board. Standard anchor points are usually provided on the snowboard in order to attach such bindings. The anchor points usually take the form of a tapped blind hole to receive a screw threaded fastener to secure the bindings to the board. The location of the anchor points within the board are standardised, that is to say they are provided in predetermined locations on snowboards.

Snowboards are generally flexible and are provided with steel edges. By changing his/her position on the board, it is possible to tilt and/or flex the board to allow the user to change the direction that the board is travelling in. This action can make the board skid, causing the rider to lose control of the snowboard, especially where the surface is particularly slippery e.g. icy snow, and so can be dangerous.

WO02/00312 discloses a snowboard having a handle that can be raised and lowered to steer the snowboard and support the rider. The handle is provided on a plate that can be mounted on the standard anchor points provided in the snowboard.

JP 2003102895 describes a snowboard having a handle mounted on the top of the board and demountable fins that are held within a recess on the underside of the snowboard and are held in place by a screw passing through the board into the fins.

US-4,165,091 describes a snowboard having runners or skis mounted on its underside.

The runners may be provided with a central ridge or fin on their undersides to help to stabilise the board during snow surfing. Definition of Invention

According to the present invention, there is provided an accessory for a snowboard, which comprises a plate configured to be secured to the top of a snowboard and at least one fin depending downwardly from the plate, the accessory being so configured that the plate can be secured to the top of a snowboard such that the fin extends over the side of the snowboard to below the level of the top of the snowboard and optionally to below the level of the base of the snowboard. Preferably the attachments are detachable from the snowboard.

As used herein the term "snowboard" encompasses snow scooters and their runners.

Preferably, the fin is of an adjustable height so that the distance it extends below the plate is variable. This can be achieved, for example, by making the fin pivotable, preferably along an axis extending generally out of the plane of the fin, such that the distance that the fin depends from the plate varies as the fin is pivoted. Alternatively, the fin can be slidable within a socket and fixed within the socket at a location within the socket to provide the desired distance that the fin depends. According to a further possibility, the fin can be provided with a series of fixings, e.g. one or more rows of holes, that can be used to secure the fin to the plate at a variety of different positions.

It is possible, in accordance with the present invention, to provide each snowboard with two plates, each having a fin so that the plates can be secured to the snowboard with the fins extending over opposed sides of the board. However, preferably, the plate extends across the full width of a snowboard and has a fm at each of its two ends.

The plate is preferably provided with fixings, e.g. openings, for securing the plate to the top of a snowboard. The openings are configured to align with anchor points within the snowboard, which anchor points are preferably the standard anchor points used for securing foot bindings in a standard snowboard. The present invention also provides a snowboard provided with an accessory as specified above. The accessory is preferably detachable from the snowboard, hi one embodiment, the fins could be operated by the rider in use so that the distance they depend can be controlled by the rider. This can be achieved, for example, by pressing down on the fins (or a mechanism attached to the fins) with the rider's foot.

Alternatively, the variable depth mechanism may be operated using a lever and cable in a similar manner to the application of a bicycle brake.

In the variable depth embodiment described, a resilient member, such as a spring, could be provided between the plate and the fm to bias the fin to a predetermined position, which will usually correspond to the minimum distance that the fin can depend below the plate.

Preferably the fin is attached to the back of a snowboard since its primary function is to deter the back of the snowboard from skidding during a turn. Also, the attachment at the rear of a snowboard will help to keep the board aligned and stable.

The present invention has the considerable advantage over the prior art arrangements of fins in that they can used with standard snowboards and attached when required and detached when not.

Brief Description of Drawings

The present invention will now be described, by way of example only, by reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of an accessory in accordance with the present invention, which is shown with a snowboard; Figure 2 is a plan view of components of a second embodiment of the accessory according to the present invention; Figure 3 is an front view of the accessory of Figure 2, once it has been assembled; Figure 4 a to c are a series of views of the fins showing them in three different positions; and Figure 5 is a plan view a third embodiment of the accessory according to the present invention.

Best Mode of Putting the Invention into Operation

Referring initially to Figure 1, there is shown a snowboard 2 having a series of standard anchor points in the foπn of threaded openings capable of receiving standard bolts, e.g. M6 or M10 bolts. The snowboard has an upper surface 3, an underneath surface, indicated by the reference number 4, and sides 5. The thickness of the sides 5 is shown on Figure 1 as thickness "t".

The accessory 1 includes a plate 6 that can be secured to the snowboard 2 by means of M6 or M10 bolts 8 which pass through corresponding holes 9 in the plate and engage in the blind threaded anchor points 7 on the snowboard. The plate 6 is just wider than the snowboard so that fins 10 that extend downwardly from the plate fit over the sides 5 of the snowboard. The depth "d" of the fins is greater than the thickness "t" of the snowboard and therefore the fins extend downwards below the bottom surface 4 of the snowboard; however, as described below, even if the fins extend by a distance less than "t", they can still engage the snow during turns and so engage the snow/ice. By engaging the snow/ice surface on which the board is sliding, the fins 10 increases the resistance of the snowboard to sliding sideways, that is to say in the direction of arrow A or B. However, because the fins are relatively thin along the axial direction of the snowboard, they do not provide substantial resistance to the forward movement of the snowboard. Accordingly, the fins acts in the same way as a keel in a sailing boat and prevents the sideways slippage of the snowboard and make it easier and safer to ride.

The level of the fins can be set according to conditions. Generally, the deeper the snow, the greater should be the distance that the fins depend below the plate. Even if located to extend to between the top and the base of the snowboard, i.e. by a distance less than "t", they can still engage the snow/ice when the board is tipped during a turn, which is the most critical time for providing the anti-skidding effects of the fins. In these circumstances, the fin should be spaced apart from the sides of the snowboard by a gap, and generally, this is preferably the case. The snowboard can be used in conjunction with the handle arrangement described in WO02/00312.

The accessory may be made of 2.5 or 3mm stainless steel or galvanised mild steel, for example.

Referring now to Figures 2 and 3, the second embodiment of the accessory of the present invention is shown having a plate 26 provided with holes 29 that operate in the same way as corresponding plate and holes 6 and 9 shown in Figure 1 and described above. However, instead of having fins fixed at the sides of the plate, as is the case in Figure 1, the plate is formed with a tab 30 at each of its sides. As shown in Figure 2, the tab has not yet been bent up but, before being fitted, it is bent around the dotted lines shown in Figure 2 so that the tabs lie at 90° to the plate 26, as shown in Figure 3, although the exact angle is not critical. The tabs 30 have a pair of tapped holes 33 that can receive a bolt 31 to secure fins 32 with respect to the plate (see Figure 3). The fins 32 are shown in Figure 2 and have a single hole 34 and 3 further holes 35a, 35b, 35c arranged in an arc around the single hole 34.

In use, a bolt 31 is passed through the hole 34 in the fin and secured in one of the tapped holes 33 in the tab 30. The distance that the fin extends below the snowboard 2 (shown as distance "c" in Figure 3) can be set by choosing which of holes 35a, 35b or 35c is used to secure the fin to the other hole 33 in tab 30. This is shown in connection with Figure 4; in Figure 4a, the bolt 31 passes through holes 34 and 35 a, resulting in a distance "e" between the bottom of the fin and the screw holes. In

Figure 4b, the screws 31 secure the fin using holes 34 and 35b, which results in the distance between the holes and the bottom of the fin shown by reference "f in Figure 4b. Distance "f ' is smaller than distance "e" of Figure 4a. Likewise, the fin can be secured to the tab using holes 34 and 35c; as shown in Figure 4c, this results in a distance between the holes and the bottom of the fin shown by reference "g". "g" is smaller than distances "e" and "f ' . Thus by choosing the holes used to secure the fin to the plate, the depth "c" (See Figure 3) of the fin below the snowboard can be chosen.

Obviously, the arrangement of a single hole 34 and an arcuate arrangement of three other holes shown in Figures 2 to 4 is only one example of the way that the distance "c" of the fin below the plate can be adjusted. As will be appreciated, for example, a number of pairs of holes can be provided in the fin so that the fin can be secured by passing a bolt 31 through the two holes of each pair and the distance "c" of the fin below the plate is set by choosing the appropriate pair of holes to secure the fin.

Figure 5 shows a third embodiment and provides an alternative arrangement of a plate 40. Instead of providing the plate in the form of a single strip 6, 26, as shown in Figures 1 and 2, it can have the form of a foot plate 40, as shown in Figure 5. The foot plate 40 has holes 42 for securing the foot plate to the snowboard using standard M10 bolts and holes 44 that can be used to secure the foot plate 40 to the snowboard using standard M6 bolts. The foot plate 40 also has a pair of tabs 46. Figure 5 shows these tabs 46 lying in the same plane as the plate 40 but, similar to Figure 2, they ate bent upwards through an angle so that they are upright with respect to the rest of the plate. Figure 5 shows the line x about which the tabs are bent described above. Fins of the same shape as fins 32 shown in Figure 2 may be attached to the upwardly bent tabs 46 in the same way as described in connection with Figures 2 to 4. The plate 40 can also include sections 48, 50, 52, 54 that can also be bent upwards to form ridges that engage the heel of a user's boot and prevent it slipping on the plate 40.

The plate is made out of 2.5 or 3mm stainless steel or galvanised mild steel.

The attachments can also be used for snow scooters and snow scooter runners.

Claims

1) An accessory for a snowboard, which comprises a plate configured to be secured to the top of a snowboard and at least one fin depending downwardly from the plate, the accessory being so configured that the plate can be secured to the top of a snowboard such that the fm extends over the side of the snowboard to below the level of the top of the snowboard.

2) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in claim 1, wherein the accessory is configured such that the fin extends over the side of the snowboard to below the level of the of the base of the snowboard.

3) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the at least one fin is of an adjustable height so that the distance it extends below the plate is variable.

4) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least one fin is pivotable with respect to the plate such that the distance that the fin depends from the plate varies as the fin is pivoted.

5) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in claim 3, wherein the at least one fin is slidable within a socket and can be fixed within the socket at a location to provide a desired distance that the fin depends from the plate.

6) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein at least two fins are provided, the fins being configured such that the fins extends over opposed sides of the snowboard.

7) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the width of the plate is wider than the width of a snowboard and has a fm at each of its two sides. 8) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the plate has ridges that define at least part of the outline of a heel.

9) A snowboard which comprises: a board having a top, opposed sides and a base; a plate secured to the top of a snowboard and at least one fin connected to the plate and depending downwardly from the plate, the fin extending over a side of the snowboard to below the level of the top of the snowboard.

10) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in claim 9, wherein the fin extends over a side of the snowboard to below the level of the base of the snowboard.

11) A snowboard as claimed in claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the at least one fin is so connected to the plate that its height is adjustable so that the distance it extends below the plate is variable.

12) A snowboard as claimed in claim 11 , wherein the at least one fm is pivotable with respect to the plate such that the distance that the fin depends from the plate varies as the fin is pivoted.

13) A snowboard as claimed in claim 11, wherein the at least one fin is slidable within a socket and can be fixed within the socket at a location to provide a desired distance that the fin depends from the plate.

14) A snowboard as claimed in any of claims 9 to 13, wherein at least two fins are provided that extend over opposed sides of the snowboard.

15) An accessory for a snowboard as claimed in any of claims 9 to 14, wherein the width of the plate is wider than the width of a snowboard and has a fin at each of its two sides. 16) A snowboard as claimed in any of claims 9 to 15, wherein the plate has upstanding ridges that define at least part of the outline of a heel.

17) A snowboard as claimed in any of claims 9 to 16, wherein the plate is releasably secured to the board, e.g. by releasable fasteners.