WO1997024942A1

WO1997024942A1 - Retractable golf shoe cleat

Info

Publication number: WO1997024942A1
Application number: PCT/US1996/014053
Authority: WO
Inventors: John E. Fitzgerald
Original assignee: Fitzgerald John E
Priority date: 1996-01-11
Filing date: 1996-09-04
Publication date: 1997-07-17
Also published as: AU6910796A

Abstract

A retractable golf shoe cleat for replacing conventional fixed cleats includes a plate member for receiving a conventional cleat installation tool. The plate member includes a hole in a central portion and an outwardly extending peripheral portion with an insert member fitted to an inside surface of the plate member. The insert member has a threaded peripheral portion for threading within a standard golf shoe cleat receptacle. A retractable pin is fitted within the insert member and extensible through the hole of the plate member. A coil spring is fitted within an insert member axial bore for biasing the pin toward the hole in an extended cleat position. When walking on a hard surface wearing golf shoes having the retractable cleats, the force on the pin exceeds the spring biasing force thus causing the pin to be recessed into the insert. A stop is provided for limiting spring compression thus extending spring and cleat service life.

Description

RETRACTABLE GOLF SHOE CLEAT

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 08/273,878 filed August 19, 1994, for Apparatus and Method for Replacing Conventional Golf Shoe Cleats, which itself is a continuation-in part of application Serial No. 07/898,418 filed June 15, 1992, and issuing as U.S. Patent No. 5,351,422.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally to retractable cleats for shoes, and in particular relates to a method and apparatus for providing a retractable cleat capable of replacing a conventional fixed cleat useful on golf shoes or similar footwear. The prior art discloses a number of techniques and constructions for retractable cleats useful on footwear. For example, Norwegian Patent 69,127 to almqvist discloses a retractable cleat extensible in and out of a housing, and with a cylindrical spring biasing the cleat out of the housing. Similar arrangements are disclosed in the following prior art patent documents: French Patent 2,567,004 to Jarr; German Patents 3,046,811 and 3,644,812; U.S. Patent 1,361,078 to Lynn; and U.S. Patent 4,873,774 to Lafever.

Other prior art of interest includes the following United States Patents: 3,717,238 to Fox; 3,793,751 to Gordos; 4,271,608 to Tomuro; 4,375,729 to Buchanen, III; 4,715,133 to Hartjes et al; 4,821,434 to Chein; and 4,825,562 to Chuang.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has among its objectives the method and apparatus for providing a retractable cleat for replacing a conventional fixed cleat of a golf shoe. To this end, the present invention comprises in one example a plate with an inside flat surface and a unitary insert member extending laterally from the inside flat surface. The insert member has threads about its periphery which generally correspond in diameter and length to the threads of a conventional fixed golf cleat. An axial hole is formed through the plate and the insert member. A second, larger hole passes axially through the insert member to form a shoulder within the axial hole corresponding to a like shoulder on a retractable cleat which is fitted within the axial hole and extensible into and out of the hole from the outside flat surface of the plate. A biasing member is also fitted within the axial hole between a unitary flange formed across the extremity of the second hole at the distal end of the insert member and the inside surface of the retractable cleat, to effectuate the biasing of the cleat out of the hole and away from the outside flat surface. In the example described above, the plate and the insert member are machined from a unitary metal body. The distal end of the insert member is crimped to form the flange which retains the spring.

In an alternate embodiment of the present invention, the replacement cleat is formed of a facile assembly comprising a plate member having a generally flat central portion with a hole therein, and a peripheral portion extending outwardly and out of the plane of the central portion to a peripheral extremity. A separate insert member is provided with a forward extension dimensioned to fit within the central hole of the plate member and is welded or brazed thereto. The insert member includes an annulus symmetrically formed with the forward extension and which has a dimension so that its inside surface lies in common plane with the peripheral extremity of the plate member, the plate member being angled at its outer portion to form that coplanar configuration. The insert member further includes a unitary neck which extends from the annulus and includes threads about its outer periphery. The insert member further includes two concentric passageways, one of which passes through the forward extension and is smaller than the second passageway extending through the unitary neck in order that a retractable cleat having a shoulder may be fitted and engaged within the insert member, and biased with a spring outwardly through the passageway extending through the forward extension of the insert member. This alternate embodiment is manufactured in a facile manner, and the coplanar relationship between the plate member and the insert member provides additional strength and rigidity to the assembly.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide an economical retractable golf shoe cleat with an extended service life. It is further an object of the present invention to provide such a cleat with a reliable biasing means and operate the biasing means so as to obtain maximum performance and life. In an improvement of the present invention herein described, a retractable cleat comprises a plate member having first and second surfaces wherein the plate member has a hole passing therethrough. An insert member is fitted to the plate member first surface and has a central passageway extending coaxially with the plate member hole. A cleat member having an upper end is fitted within the insert member wherein a lower end extends through the plate member hole and outward from the second surface. Means is provided within the passageway for biasing the cleat member outward from the plate second surface. The improvement for extending the cleat service life includes means for limiting axial movement of the insert member within the passageway. The limiting means cooperates with the biasing means for absorbing a portion of any axial opposing bias in excess of a predetermined amount. In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, a spring is placed within the passageway for biasing the cleat member axially through the hole toward the plate outside surface. The spring communicates between the cleat member and the insert member for compression thereof from an opposing biasing force imparted during operating of the cleat when worn on a golf shoe. The limiting means comprises the cleat member having an upper end bore for receiving the spring wherein the upper end further has an axial dimension sufficient for biasing against a closure plate within the passageway when the cleat member is fully retracted thereby supporting any load on the cleat member. The cleat member upper end dimension is sufficient for limiting the spring compression for maintaining a spring compression reserve thus extending the service life of the spring and cleat.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the invention, as well as alternate embodiments, are described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a retractable cleat in accordance with one example of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a rear plan view of the retractable cleat of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the retractable cleat shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, with a portion shown in the cross section along line 3-3 in FIG. 2 ;

FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a second example of a retractable cleat in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the second example shown in FIG. 4, and in which the side view is taken along the lines 5-5 in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a side view of a golf shoe having multiple retractable cleats in accordance with either the first or second examples of FIGS. 1-5; FIG.7 is an exploded perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the present invention illustrating principal elements of an improved cleat;

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the preferred embodiment illustrated with reference to FIG. 7, in which the side view is taken along the lines 8-8 in FIG. 7, wherein the cleat is illustrated in an extended position; and

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional side view of the preferred embodiment illustrated with reference to FIG. 7, in which the side view is taken along the lines 8-8 in FIG. 7, wherein the cleat is illustrated in a retracted position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

A first example of the method and apparatus for providing a replacement cleat capable of being installed in place of a conventional fixed cleat of a golf shoe will be described with reference to FIGS. 1-3.

The retractable cleat, referred to generally by the reference numeral 10, is formed in a unitary body, preferably of a high strength steel, to define a plate 12 having opposing inside and outside flat surfaces 14, 16 respectively. A bevelled surface 18 is provided along the periphery of the outside flat surface 16 and holes 20 within the plate 12 in order to enable cleat 10 to be inserted and removed from a golf shoe using a conventional tool for that purpose (not shown) .

As more particularly shown in the cross section of FIG. 3, the retractable cleat 10 is machined from the unitary body so as to define a unitary neck 22 extending away from the inside flat surface 14 into an insert member 24, the periphery of which contains threads 26. The length of the insert member 24 and the particular form of the threads 26 is not critical, but preferably the dimension and thread spacing of insert member 24 and threads 26 is such as to permit the retractable cleat 10 to be retro¬ fitted into a conventional golf shoe, in order to replace a conventional golf shoe cleat. It will of course be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the fabrication of the retractable cleat 10 from a high strength, unitary body so as to define rising neck portion 22 and insert member 24 permits the retractable cleat to be formed in a low cost, facile manner while providing a high degree of structural strength. Further in accordance with the first example, the retractable cleat 10 includes an axial hole extending from the distal end or extremity 25 of the insert member 24, through the insert member and through the plate member 12 between the inside and outside flat surfaces 14, 16. In the preferred form, the axial hole is formed by drilling two separate axial holes, including a first axial hole 28 extending from the outside flat surface 16 of the plate 12, inwardly a distance less than the entire dimension between the two flat surfaces, 14, 16. A second axial hole 30 is drilled from the distal extremity 25 of the insert member 24 inwardly to the junction with the first axial hole 28, the second hole 30 having a somewhat greater diameter than the first axial hole 28 so as to define a shoulder 32.

The retractable cleat 10 is further provided with a cleat member 33 having a shoulder 34 corresponding to the shoulder 32 defined between the axial holes 28, 30. In this way, the cleat member 33 is retained within the plate 12, and prevented from exiting the first axial hole 28. The cleat 10 also includes an inner recess 31. A biasing member in the form of a conical spring 36 is placed within the second axial hole 30, and the insert member 24 is then crimped at its distal end 25 to form a retaining flange 38. A larger end 35 of the conical spring 36 is held within the flange 38 and a spring end 37 fits within the recess 31. Again, because of the high strength nature of the material forming the unitary body comprising the plate 12 and the insert member 24, the flange 38 defines a strong retaining construction which may be easily and simply formed during the fabrication of the retractable cleat 10. A second embodiment of a retractable cleat assembly 50 in accordance with the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. In this second arrangement, there is provided a plate member 52 having opposing surfaces 54 and 56 and a central hole 60 extending between the two surfaces. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the plate member 52 includes a central, generally flat portion 58 through which the central hole 60 extends and an outer peripheral portion 59 which is angularly disposed with respect to the central portion 58 such that the extremity of the plate member 52 lies in a different plane than the central portion 58 as is described in greater detail below.

The cleat assembly 50 further includes an insert member 62 generally comprising a forward extension 64, an annulus 65 from which the forward extension projects, and a neck member 70 extending generally normal to the annulus. The forward extension 64 of the insert member 62 is dimensioned so as to fit within the central opening or hole 60 of the plate member 52, and with the insert member 62 joined to the plate member 52 by a weld joint 78. The annulus 65 is defined by opposing surfaces 66, 68. As is shown in FIG. 5, the lower surface 66 is dimensioned to extend across the central, generally flat portion 58 of the plate member 52 with the weld joint 78 therebetween to insure sufficient rigidity between the plate member 52 and the insert member 62. As is further shown in FIG. 5, the annulus 65 of the insert member 62 is dimensioned between its upper and lower (i.e., inner and outer) surfaces 66, 68 so that the upper surface 68 is coplanar with the outer extremity of the plate member 52 when the forward extension 64 is fitted within the central opening 60 of the plate member 52 and welded thereto.

As is further shown in FIG. 5, the neck member 70 extends laterally from the insert member 62 at the upper surface 68 of the annulus and includes threads 72 about the outer periphery thereof for engagement within a threaded insert 89 extending into a sole 90 of a golf shoe. The insert member 62 includes two internal passageways, including a first passageway 76 extending through the neck member 70 and through at least a portion of the annulus 65; and a second passageway 79 extending through the forward extension 64. The second passageway 79 is smaller than the first passageway 76, so as to define a shoulder 74 to retain a retractable cleat within the insert member 62, as described next. The assembly 50 further includes a retractable cleat member or pin 82 having a shoulder 84 dimensioned to fit within the first passageway 76 and be retained within the second passageway 78 by appropriate dimensional relationship between the shoulder 84 of the cleat member 82 and those passageways. The retractable cleat member 82 includes a dimple 86 on its internal surface which is dimensioned to retain a spring 88 fitted within the first passageway 76 of the neck 70. The upper extremity of the neck member 70 is crimped at 80 to retain the spring 88. The retractable cleat assembly 50 of FIGS. 4 and 5 is manufactured and assembled in a facile manner, and provides a construction in which the angled plate member 52 having a peripheral extremity lying in the plane of the upper surface of the annulus 65 of the insert member 62 to impart additional strength and rigidity to the assembly 50.

It will of course be easily understood by those knowledgeable in the golf shoe industry that either of the examples described above with reference to FIGS. 1-5 may be used with a conventional golf shoe 92, shown in FIG. 6. The shoe 92 includes the sole 90 attached to a shoe upper 94.

It is well known that if a spring such as compression springs used in the present invention is completely compressed or takes a set repeated times, the service life of the spring is greatly reduced. By way of example, if force versus deflection linearity is critical, spring manufacturers recommend using only the center sixty to eighty percent of the deflection range of the spring. In other words, it is recommended that the first and last fifteen to twenty percent of the range be reserved and not used in operation of the spring. With such, the service life of a spring might be extended from typically 100,000 depressions to 1,000,000 with infrequent breakage. To this end, the preferred embodiment of the invention, as illustrated with reference to FIGS. 7 - 9, includes means for limiting the depression of the spring. An improved retractable cleat 100, the preferred embodiment of the present invention, fundamentally comprises the elements as described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. In addition, the following described elements for limiting spring depression and enhancing cleat member 82 movement from its fully extended position 110, as illustrated with reference to FIG. 8, to its fully retracted position 112, as illustrated with reference to FIG. 9.

The cleat 100 further comprises a tube 114 extending from the shoulder 84 inwardly into the neck member 70. The cylindrical portion has a bore 116 dimensioned for receiving a spring 118, which in the preferred embodiment is itself cylindrical. The tube wall 120 has an outside dimension for being closely received by the first passageway 76. With such an arrangement, the cleat member 82 comprises an increased bearing surface, tube wall 120 to wall of first passageway 76, when compared to that provided by the shoulder 84 of FIG. 5 alone. The increased bearing surface permits the cleat member 82 to travel move smoothly between its extended 110 and retracted 112 positions, an object of the present invention.

To limit spring compression, the tube 114 has a length dimension which prevents the spring 118 from being fully compressed as it is contained in the tube bore 116, as illustrated with reference to FIG. 9. The tube wall distal end 122 contacts the crimped neck member upper extremity 80 when the cleat member 82 is forced into its fully retracted position. This permits the cleat member 82 integrally including its integrally formed tube wall 120 to absorb any force on the cleat member 82 before the spring 118 is set or fully compressed. The tube wall distal end 122 biases against the stop formed by the crimped upper extremity 80 with reserve compression remaining in the spring 118 as illustrated with reference to FIG. 9. Such an improvement is economically made to the cleats 50 and 10 earlier described. Other spring limiting means are anticipated, such as an extension of the dimple 86 described with reference to FIG. 5, but the extended shoulder 84 in the form of the tube wall 120 provides the additional bearing surface feature which further improves cleat operation and extends cleat service. The spring 118 compression characteristics are such that typical use of the cleat 100 within the golf shoe 92 provides penetration into soils and grass surfaces yet fully retract when the shoe 92 is worn while walking on hard surfaces such as wood, asphalt or concrete. On such hard surfaces, the cleat member 82 is fully retracted for the cleat member 82 or the plate member 52 or 12 supporting the weight of the shoe wearer. In the preferred embodiment, the tube wall 120 contacting the crimped neck member upper extremity 80 permits the cleat member lower end 124 to remain slightly exposed when the cleat member 82 is in its fully retracted position 112, as illustrated in Fig. 9. Such permits cleat traction even during a fully retracted cleat while still enhancing the cleat service life.

While specific embodiments of the invention have been described in detail herein above, it is to be understood that various modifications may be made from the specific details described herein without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the appended claims. Having now described the invention, the construction, the operation and use of preferred embodiments thereof, and the advantageous new and useful results obtained thereby, the new and useful constructions, and reasonable mechanical equivalents thereof obvious to those skilled in the art, are set forth in the appended claims .

Claims

What is claimed is;

1. A retractable cleat useful in a golf shoe, the cleat comprising: a plate member having first and second surfaces, the plate member having a hole passing therethrough from the first to the second surfaces; an insert member fitted to the plate member first surface, the insert member having a central passageway extending coaxially with the plate member hole; a cleat member having an upper end fitted within the insert member and a lower end extending through the plate member hole and outward from the second surface; means within the passageway for biasing the cleat member outward from the plate second surface; and means for limiting axial movement of the insert member within the passageway, the limiting means cooperating with the biasing means for absorbing a portion of any axial opposing bias in excess of a predetermined amount .

2. The cleat as recited in claim 1, wherein the insert member further comprises an annulus extending across the first surface of the plate member, the annulus having a surface extending generally coplanar with a peripheral extremity of the plate member.

3. The cleat as recited in claim 2, wherein the annul further comprises an extension extending into the plate member.

4. The cleat as recited in claim 3, wherein the insert member is joined with the plate member by a joint between the extension and the plate member about the periphery of the hole.

5. The cleat as recited in claim 1, wherein the insert member is joined to the plate member with a weld joint along a forward face of the insert member and across a portion of the plate member.

6. The cleat as recited in claim 1, wherein the insert member comprises outer threads for engaging threads of a golf shoe cleat insert.

7. The cleat as recited in claim 1, wherein the biasing means comprises a cylindrical compression spring.

8. The cleat as recited in claim 1, wherein the limiting means comprises a stop means for limiting axial movement of the cleat member into the passageway wherein the stop means provides for biasing of the cleat member directly against the insert member in a retracted position of the cleat member within the insert member.

9. The cleat as recited in claim 8, wherein the stop means comprises the cleat member upper end formed as a cylindrical tube having a bore dimensioned for receiving a spring portion therein, the tube having a wall length extending into the passageway sufficient for biasing against the inner member in a fully retracted cleat position and thus limit compression a spring placed within the bore.

10. A retractable golf shoe cleat comprising: a plate member having a central portion with a hole therein, the plate defined by an inside surface, an outside surface, and a peripheral portion extending outwardly from the central portion to a peripheral extremity; an insert member fitted to the plate member at the inside surface, the insert member having a central passageway extending coaxially with the plate hole; a retractable cleat member fitted with the insert member for axial movement into and out of the passageway through the plate hole; a spring within the passageway for biasing the cleat member axially through the hole toward the plate outside surface, the spring communicating between the cleat member and the insert member for compression thereof with an opposing biasing force imparted during operating of the cleat when worn on a golf shoe; and means for limiting spring compression to a range for providing the spring with a compression reserve throughout operation of the cleat member from a fully extended cleat member position wherein the cleat member extend outward from the outside surface to a fully recessed position wherein the cleat member is recessed within the insert member passageway.

11. The cleat as recited in claim 10, wherein the insert member further includes an annulus extending across the plate inside surface, the annulus having an inside surface extending generally coplanar with the plate peripheral extremity.

12. The cleat as recited in claim 11, wherein the insert member is joined to the plate member with a weld joint along a forward face of the insert member and across the plate member flat central portion.

13. The cleat as recited in claim 10, wherein the spring compression reserve is at least ten percent .

14. The cleat as recited in claim 10, wherein the retractable cleat member further comprises: a shoulder portion for limiting cleat member movement out of the passageway; a tube portion extending into the passageway, the tube portion having a wall dimensioned for providing smooth axial movement of the cleat member within the passageway; and a lower end extending out of the insert member through the plate hole.

15. A golf shoe cleat comprising: a unitary housing having a hollow cylinder with a closed upper end and an open lower end, the closed upper end further having a threaded outside wall surface for attachment to threaded cleat fixtures within a golf shoe sole; a cleat member having an upper end and a lower end, the upper end positioned within the housing, the lower end extending outwardly from the housing for communicating with a walking surface upon which the golf shoe sole contacts; a spring within the housing for biasing the lower end of the cleat member outward to an extended position, while allowing the cleat member lower end to be pushed upward into a retracted position within the housing; and means for limiting spring compression wherein the spring has a compression reserve when the cleat member is in the retracted position.

16. The cleat as recited in claim 15, further comprising an apertured closure plate attached to the cylinder lower end for securing the spring and the cleat member upper end within the housing while permitting the cleat member lower end to extend therethrough.

17. The cleat as recited in claim 16, wherein the limiting means comprises the cleat member having an upper end bore for receiving the spring, the upper end further having an axial dimension sufficient for biasing against the closure plate when the cleat member is fully retracted thereby supporting any load on the cleat member, the upper end dimension sufficient for limiting the spring compression for maintaining the compression reserve.

18. The cleat as recited in claim 15, wherein the cleat member upper end comprises a bore for receiving a portion of the spring.