WO1996029128A1

WO1996029128A1 - In-line skates

Info

Publication number: WO1996029128A1
Application number: PCT/FR1995/001745
Authority: WO
Inventors: Joël Bourdeau; Olivier Senee
Original assignee: Salomon S.A.
Priority date: 1995-03-22
Filing date: 1995-12-28
Publication date: 1996-09-26
Also published as: FR2731915A1; FR2731915B1; AU4452196A

Abstract

An in-line skate (1) including a frame (5) connectable to the sole (4) of a boot (2) and at least three rollers secured to the frame (5) by fastening means, said frame (5) having an intermediate portion and two end portions. The further each roller is from the intermediate portion of the frame (5), the greater its width.

Description

Inline skates.

The invention relates to the field of roller skates and relates more particularly to inline skates.

Most roller skates can be classified into two main families:

a first family of skates whose wheels are arranged in groups of two substantially coaxial wheels, and with an axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the skate: these are the conventional roller skates,

- A second family of pads where each wheel is alone along a transverse axis of rotation of the pad.

This second family is that of so-called "inline skates", or "inline skates", because the wheels are generally all located substantially in the same longitudinal plane of the skate, and each rotate around a proper axis perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the skate, the axes being substantially parallel to each other.

Inline skates often have four or five wheels, the respective axes of which are positioned in the height direction, so that only wheels located under the middle of the foot are in contact with the ground when a user is in the orthostatic position. .

The skate wheels at the ends of the foot are higher and only come into contact with the ground when the skate is tilted. Such an arrangement of the wheels makes the skate very handy and allows quick and easy changes of direction.

However, this provision generates instability. The skate does not easily keep the desired trajectory, especially in curves.

Indeed, in a curve the shoe is inclined laterally at the same time as it tends to pivot relative to the axis of the wheel in contact with the ground. This scenario is similar to a ball joint type. Everything happens as if the skate is in contact with the ground by a point connection which gives it three degrees of freedom in rotation. This is why it is difficult for the user to maintain a stable trajectory with this type of skate.

There are skates for which the heights of the wheels are such that all the wheels touch the ground at the same time.

These skates have the advantage of being stable in all cases. But they are not handy and do not allow for quick and easy changes of direction. In addition, these skates do not fit well in the curve.

An alternative embodiment of an inline skate has been proposed by document WO 92/22363. According to this patent application, a skate comprises at least three wheels whose axes are parallel and distinct, at least one of the wheels being located in the longitudinal direction in a plane different from another plane containing at least two wheels.

According to a preferred embodiment of the document, two wheels are located one behind the other substantially in the middle of the foot in a plane close to the inner side of the foot, while a front wheel and a rear wheel are located in a plane shifted towards the outside of the foot, all the wheels touching the ground when the user is in the orthostatic position.

Each skate is therefore asymmetrical. The points of contact with the ground differ in turns between the shoe close to the center of curvature of the turn and the shoe distant from this center of curvature.

The shoe closest to the center of curvature is in contact with the ground only by its front and rear wheels, while the shoe furthest from the center of curvature is in contact with the ground only by its central wheels.

According to this document, it is therefore impossible to ensure that the two pads of the same pair are very handy at the same time or stable in curve at the same time.

An object of the invention is to provide an inline skate that allows for great stability in curves where the skate is inclined, while allowing easy and quick changes of direction.

Another object of the invention is to provide a skate which fits well in the curves.

Another object of the invention is to provide a pair for which the two pads behave in the same way, whether in a straight line or in a curve.

For this, an inline skate according to the invention comprises a chassis able to be connected to a shoe sole and at least three wheels secured to the chassis by connecting means, the chassis comprising a central zone and two zones of end.

The skate according to the invention is characterized by the fact that each wheel has its own width and by the fact that the width of each wheel is all the greater the further the wheel is from the middle zone of the chassis.

This arrangement makes it possible to offset the support point on the ground transversely, and / or to modify the support surface on the ground, between the different wheels by increasing the potential support surface of the wheels. It advantageously follows that the skate is very stable in a curve.

Preferably, a contact line, defined by the curve enveloping the points of contact of the lower end of each wheel with the ground, has a convex shape relative to the sole of the shoe. This arrangement allows quick and easy changes of direction without altering the stability of the skate.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will be better understood with the aid of the description which will follow, with reference to the appended drawing illustrating, by way of nonlimiting example, how the invention can be implemented and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an inline skate according to the invention,

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the skate according to one embodiment,

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 according to an alternative embodiment,

FIG. 4 is a section of the skate according to IV-rV of FIG. 3,

FIG. 5 is a view along V-V of FIG. 4 in the case where the shoe is perpendicular to the ground,

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5 in the case where the shoe is inclined relative to the ground, FIG. 7 represents the potential support zones of the wheels on the ground,

- Figure 8 shows an example of distribution of the wheel supports when cornering.

An inline skate 1 according to the invention is shown in FIG. 1. It comprises means for holding the foot here produced in the form of a shoe 2, the shoe 2 comprising in particular a upper 3 and a sole 4.

A chassis 5 is secured to the shoe 2 by any known means. For example, chassis bases can come into contact with the sole 4 and be held on the sole 4 by removable means such as screws, or by irremovable means such as rivets, glue, a weld. The chassis can also be obtained by molding with the shoe 2 or the sole 4.

Figure 1 shows two bases 6, 7 of the chassis fixed to the sole 4 by rivets. Two other bases 8, 9 will appear in subsequent figures.

Wheels 10, 11, 12, 13, 14 are secured to the chassis 5 by connecting means which may, for example, be hubs 15, 16, 17, 18, 19 respectively immobilized between two longitudinal rails 20 and 21 of the chassis 5.

As an accessory, a brake 22 is attached to the chassis 5 at the rear of the inline skate 1 by any known means.

Figure 2 is a bottom view of an inline skate 1 according to the invention. It can be either the right skate or the left skate of a pair. FIG. 2 shows the bases 6, 7, 8 and 9 of the chassis 5 and the longitudinal rails 20, 21. The bases 6, 7, 8 and 9 are fixed to the sole 4 by rivets 23.

An axis X-X 'denotes the longitudinal direction of the pad 1, the letter X being towards the front of the pad 1 while the letter X' is towards the rear.

The wheels 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 are substantially aligned one behind the other along the axis XX ′ to form a longitudinal train of wheels. These wheels have a width the greater the greater the distance of the wheel from the central region of the chassis. We can compare the dimensions of the wheels using the table that follows, knowing that:

the wheel 10 is the front wheel,

wheel 11 is the second wheel,

wheel 12 is the middle wheel,

wheel 13 is the fourth wheel,

the wheel 14 is the rear wheel,

- the expression "wheel" is used to locate a wheel in the direction of the axis XX ',

- the letter 1 designates the width of a wheel expressed in millimeters, the letter 0 designates the diameter of a wheel expressed in millimeters.

Front Wheel Second Median Fourth Rear

1 25 16 16 16 25

0 60 60 60 60 60 This exemplary embodiment is in accordance with the spirit of the invention: the front 10 and rear 14 wheels are wider than the wheels 11, 12 and 13, because these are the ones which are furthest from the middle zone of the chassis 5 where the middle wheel is located 12. Such a construction makes it possible to increase the potential bearing surface A of the front and rear wheels, as will be explained in more detail with reference to FIGS. 7 and 8, and therefore makes it possible to increase the support of the skate, and consequently its stability in curve. The variation in width of the wheels is here discontinuous, since only the 2 extreme wheels are wider.

This embodiment is therefore an economical mode which makes it possible to lower the manufacturing costs, since it requires only two types of wheels: wide wheels 10, 14 identical at the front and at the rear of the shoe 1, and narrower wheels 11, 12, 13 but also identical to each other, between the front wheels 10 and rear wheels 14 in the middle zone of the shoe.

As shown in Figure 3 and without departing from the spirit of the invention, one can provide a slightly different embodiment in the sense that the variation in width of the wheels is progressive and continuous.

The table below is the image of this embodiment.

Front Wheel Second Median Fourth Rear

1 23 15 12 15 23

0 60 60 60 60 60

The front wheels 10 and rear 14 are the widest, the second wheels 1 1 and fourth 13 have an intermediate width and the middle wheel 12 is the narrowest, hence a more gradual and continuous variation in the width of these wheels.

This embodiment has the advantage of giving a skate which fits very well in the turns by increasing in transverse direction, bearing surfaces A whatever the inclination α of the skate, as will be explained in connection with Figures 7 and 8. These support zones are shown in Figures 7 and 8.

Figure 7 is a bottom view of the pad 1 where each dotted area of a wheel 10, 11, 12, 13 or 14 corresponds to a potential bearing surface A, part of which is capable of coming into contact with the ground S when the skate is tilted.

This FIG. 7 clearly shows the transverse increase in the potential bearing surfaces A by using larger wheels.

FIG. 8 is an example of the distribution of the supports on the ground of the shoe 1 in a bend with a radius of curvature C. All the wheels 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 are in permanent contact with the ground, which would not be the case with wheels having a constant width corresponding to that of the central wheel 12. Each wheel presses through a part of the potential bearing surface A of the wheel. This part is hatched in the figure and is all the more transversely distant from the reference axis XX ′ as the wheel is close to one end of the shoe 1.

It is therefore understandable that the increase, in transverse direction of the potential bearing surface A of each wheel makes it possible to keep each wheel in contact with the ground itself with a strong inclination α of the skid and therefore considerably increases the stability of the assembly when cornering, bending.

However the widths of the wheels vary, it is interesting to provide that a contact line L, defined by the curve enveloping the points of contact of the lower end of each wheel with the ground S, has a shape convex relative to the sole 4 of the shoe 2, so as to increase the maneuverability of the skate.

This contact line L appears in FIG. 4.

This figure shows shoe 1, seen from the side, when a user is in an upright position. In this case, only the middle wheel 12 is in contact with the ground S, which amounts to saying that the distance di2 which separates the wheel 12 from the ground S is zero. On the other hand, the wheels 10, 11, 13 and 14 are located respectively at distances dio, di i, dπ and di4 from the ground.

Preferably, all the wheels have the same diameter 0 and are linked to the chassis 5 at different distances or heights from the ground S, thus making it possible to obtain the convex curve L.

An example is illustrated by the table below in which:

- the expression "wheel" is used to identify a wheel in the direction of the axis XX ',

- the subscripted letter x denotes the height in millimeters between the ground S and the lower end of the wheel x,

- the letter 0 denotes the wheel diameter in millimeters.

Front Wheel Second Median Fourth Rear dx dιo = 5 du = 2 di2 = 0 di3 = 2 di4 = 5

0 60 60 60 60 60

The wheel centers e can for example be of the order of 70 mm.

The convex or arcuate shape of the contact line L gives the shoe 1 excellent maneuverability and allows quick and easy changes of direction in the orthostatic position; indeed, only the middle wheel 12 is in contact with the ground when the user stands straight to change direction.

On the other hand, the differences in the widths of the wheels always give skate 1 very good stability and a very good ability to register when cornering.

In fact, the number of wheels in contact with the ground S changes when the shoe 1 tilts in a curve. Figures 5 and 6 show this phenomenon.

FIG. 5 is a diagram which represents, by way of example, the middle 12 and second 11 wheels according to V-V of FIG. 4 in the case where the shoe 1 is perpendicular to the ground S.

In this case, the middle wheel 12 is in contact with the ground S by its lower end curved at the radius of curvature r. The curved lower end of the second wheel 11, the radius of curvature of which is R, is normally located at a distance from the ground S. In other words, when the pad 1 is straight, only the wheel 12 is in contact with the ground.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 6, when the shoe tilts in a turn with an angle value α, then the second wheel 11 also comes into contact with the ground S thanks to its more large width. As a result, cornering stability is increased since the number of wheels in contact with the ground S is greater.

This phenomenon is not limited to two successive wheels. If the skate tilts a little more, then the other wheels will in turn come into contact with the ground. The phenomenon applies both to the front wheels and to the rear wheels.

In our example, the wheels 11 and 13 first come into contact with the ground S for a small inclination of the shoe 1, then the front wheels 10 and rear 14 in turn come into contact with the ground S if the inclination s' accentuates.

Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiments thus described, and includes all the technical equivalents which may fall within the scope of the claims which will follow.

In particular, provision may be made for the convex shape of the contact line L to be obtained by using wheels of different diameters.

One can also imagine all the possible combinations in the choice of materials and in the dimensions of the wheels to adjust the dynamic behavior of the shoe 1. In particular, it is not necessary to have a symmetry of the widths of the wheels with respect to the middle wheel.

Claims

1- Inline skate (1) comprising a chassis (5) able to be connected to a sole (4) of shoe (2) and at least three wheels secured to the chassis (5) by means of connection, the chassis (5) comprising a central zone and two end zones, characterized in that each wheel has its own width and in that the width of each wheel is all the greater the further the wheel is from the zone chassis middle (5).

2- shoe (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the variation in width of the wheels is progressive and continuous.

3- shoe (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the variation in width of the wheels is discontinuous.

4 shoe (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that a contact line (L), defined by the curve envelopes the points of contact of the lower end of each wheel with the ground ( S), has a convex shape relative to the sole (4) of the shoe (2).

5- shoe (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that all the wheels have the same diameter (0) and are linked to the chassis (5) at different heights (d _x ) relative to the ground (S).

6- shoe (1) according to claim 4, characterized in that the convex shape of the contact line (L) is obtained by using wheels of different diameters.