U.S. patent application number 09/965133 was filed with the patent office on 2002-12-12 for binding mounting method and apparatus.
Invention is credited to Barbieri, G. Scott, Breuer, Christian, Schaller, Hubert M..
Application Number | 20020185840 09/965133 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 26969621 |
Filed Date | 2002-12-12 |
United States Patent
Application |
20020185840 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Schaller, Hubert M. ; et
al. |
December 12, 2002 |
Binding mounting method and apparatus
Abstract
A method and system for mounting a binding to a gliding board.
In one embodiment, a single row of attachment features, e.g.,
threaded inserts, may be used to mount a foot binding to the
gliding board. The attachment features may be equally spaced along
the row, e.g., at 25 mm increments. In one embodiment, a binding
includes a hold down plate that may be attached to the gliding
board using only two fasteners, e.g., each fastener engaging with
an attachment feature on the board, or using only fasteners that
lie along a longitudinal line on the gliding board.
Inventors: |
Schaller, Hubert M.;
(Burlington, VT) ; Barbieri, G. Scott;
(Middlebury, VT) ; Breuer, Christian; (Knappen,
AT) |
Correspondence
Address: |
WOLF GREENFIELD & SACKS, PC
FEDERAL RESERVE PLAZA
600 ATLANTIC AVENUE
BOSTON
MA
02210-2211
US
|
Family ID: |
26969621 |
Appl. No.: |
09/965133 |
Filed: |
September 27, 2001 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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60296379 |
Jun 6, 2001 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
280/601 ;
280/14.22 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63C 10/24 20130101;
A63C 10/18 20130101; A63C 10/04 20130101; A63C 10/20 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
280/601 ;
280/14.22 |
International
Class: |
A63C 005/03 |
Claims
1. A system comprising: a snowboard having a tip, a tail, a pair of
metal edges, and a longitudinal centerline extending in a
tip-to-tail direction substantially equidistant between the metal
edges; at least three threaded inserts fixed in place and equally
spaced along the longitudinal centerline of the snowboard; and a
snowboard binding attached to the snowboard via at least one of the
threaded inserts.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the threaded inserts are arranged
in two spaced groups along the longitudinal centerline, the
threaded inserts within each one of the groups being equally spaced
from adjacent threaded inserts within the one of the groups, the
closest threaded inserts in different groups being spaced further
than adjacent threaded inserts within a group.
3. The system of claim 2, wherein the threaded inserts are spaced
approximately 25 millimeters from adjacent threaded inserts within
a same group.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the snowboard binding is attached
to the snowboard via only two of the threaded inserts.
5. The system of claim 4, wherein the only two of the threaded
inserts include two threaded inserts that have one threaded insert
positioned between them.
6. The system of claim 4, further including two fasteners, and
wherein the snowboard binding includes a hold down plate that is
attached to the snowboard by the two fasteners engaging with the
threaded inserts.
7. The system of claim 1, wherein the threaded inserts are arranged
to provide at least three attachment feature patterns that each
provides a binding mounting position, the at least three attachment
feature patterns providing a first mounting position, a second
mounting position adjacent the first mounting position, and a third
mounting position adjacent the second mounting position, wherein
the first and third mounting positions share one of the threaded
inserts.
8. The system of claim 1, wherein the snowboard binding includes a
hold down plate to hold the snowboard binding to the snowboard, and
wherein the hold down plate covers exactly three of the threaded
inserts when mounted to the snowboard via at least two of the
threaded inserts.
9. The system of claim 1, wherein substantially all of the threaded
inserts fixed in the snowboard are arranged along the longitudinal
centerline.
10. The system of claim 1, wherein all of the threaded inserts
fixed to the snowboard are arranged along the longitudinal
centerline.
11. A system comprising: a snowboard and a pair of snowboard
bindings mounted to the snowboard, the pair of snowboard bindings
comprising a front binding and a back binding; wherein the
snowboard comprises; a tip; a tail; metal edges; and a plurality of
threaded inserts adapted to mount the pair of snowboard bindings to
the snowboard, all of the plurality of threaded inserts being
disposed on a single line extending in a tip-to-tail direction, the
threaded inserts being arranged in a front group that mounts the
front binding to the snowboard and a back group that mounts the
back binding to the snowboard; wherein the front binding is mounted
to the front group of threaded inserts using only colinear inserts
within the front group; wherein the back binding is mounted to the
back group of threaded inserts using only colinear inserts within
the back group; wherein the front binding is mounted to the front
group of threaded inserts using at least two of the inserts within
the front group; and wherein the back binding is mounted to the
back group of threaded inserts using at least two of the inserts
within the back group.
12. The system of claim 11, wherein the front binding is mounted to
the front group of threaded inserts via only two of the front group
of threaded inserts, and wherein the back binding is mounted to the
back group of threaded inserts via only two of the back group of
threaded inserts.
13. The system of claim 12, wherein each of the threaded inserts in
the front group is spaced apart by approximately 25 millimeters
from adjacent threaded inserts in the front group, wherein each of
the threaded inserts in the back group is spaced apart by
approximately 25 millimeters from adjacent threaded inserts in the
back group, and wherein the single line on which all of the
plurality of threaded inserts are disposed is arranged along a
centerline of the snowboard substantially equidistant from the
edges.
14. The system of claim 12, wherein the two of the front group of
threaded inserts to which the front binding is mounted have another
of the front group of threaded inserts disposed between them, and
wherein the two of the back group of threaded inserts to which the
back binding is mounted have another of the back group of threaded
inserts disposed between them.
15. The system of claim 14, wherein each of the front and back
groups of threaded inserts defines at least three attachment
feature patterns that each provides a binding mounting position,
the at least three attachment feature patterns providing a first
mounting position, a second mounting position adjacent the first
mounting position, and a third mounting position adjacent the
second mounting position, wherein the first and third mounting
positions share one of the threaded inserts.
16. The system of claim 13, wherein each of the front and back
bindings comprises a hold down plate and a base that is adjustable
relative to the hold down plate, the hold down plate comprising at
least two openings, spaced approximately 50 millimeters apart,
adapted to mate with two of the threaded inserts.
17. The system of claim 11, wherein the threaded inserts within
each one of the front and back groups are equally spaced from
adjacent threaded inserts within the one of the groups, and each of
the first and second groups of threaded inserts includes at least
five threaded inserts.
18. A method of attaching a pair of snowboard bindings to a
snowboard, the pair of snowboard bindings including a first binding
and a second binding, the method comprising acts of: (A) providing
a snowboard having a plurality of threaded inserts disposed along a
single line extending in a tip-to-tail direction of the snowboard,
the threaded inserts being arranged in a front group to mount the
first binding to the snowboard and a back group to mount the second
binding to the snowboard, the threaded inserts within each one of
the front and back groups being equally spaced from adjacent
threaded inserts within the one of the groups; (B) providing first
and second bindings that each comprises at least two openings
adapted to cooperate with a pair of the threaded inserts; (C)
attaching the first binding to the front group of threaded inserts
using only colinear inserts within the front group and using at
least two of the threaded inserts within the front group; and (D)
attaching the second binding to the back group of threaded inserts
using only colinear inserts within the back group and using at
least two of the threaded inserts within the back group.
19. The method of claim 18, wherein the act (C) includes an act of
attaching the first binding to the front group of threaded inserts
using only two of the threaded inserts within the front group; and
wherein the act (D) includes an act of attaching the second binding
to the back group of threaded inserts using only two of the
threaded inserts within the back group.
20. The method of claim 18, wherein the first and second bindings
each includes a hold down plate and a base that is rotatably
adjustable relative to the hold down plate, wherein the act (C)
includes an act of attaching the hold down plate of the first
binding to the front group, and wherein the act (D) includes an act
of attaching the hold down plate of the second binding to the back
group.
21. The method of claim 20, wherein the act (B) includes an act of
providing front and back bindings that each comprises a hold down
plate that comprises at least two openings spaced approximately 50
millimeters apart, wherein the act (C) includes an act of attaching
the first binding to the front group using the at least two
openings in the hold down plate of the first binding, and wherein
the act (D) includes an act of attaching the second binding to the
back group using the at least two openings in the hold down plate
of the second binding.
22. The method of claim 18, wherein the act (A) includes an act of
providing a snowboard, having metal edges, wherein each of the
threaded inserts in the front group is spaced apart by
approximately 25 millimeters from adjacent threaded inserts in the
front group, each of the threaded inserts in the back group is
spaced apart by approximately 25 millimeters from adjacent threaded
inserts in the back group, and wherein the single line on which all
of the plurality of threaded inserts are disposed is arranged along
a center line of the snowboard substantially equidistant from the
edges.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application claims the benefit of the filing date under
35 U.S.C. .sctn.119 of U.S. Provisional Application 60/296,379,
filed Jun. 6, 2001, which is hereby incorporated by reference in
its entirety.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to binding mounting methods and
apparatus, such as those used for snowboards, skis, snowshoes and
other devices.
DESCRIPTION OF RELATED ART
[0003] During riding, a snowboard rider's foot is typically secured
to the snowboard by a binding. The binding may be mounted to the
snowboard in a variety of different ways, but typically is mounted
using bolts or screws that engage with threaded metallic inserts
that are fixed within the snowboard. Although different insert
patterns have been proposed, inserts are usually fixed in
snowboards in one of two different pattern types.
[0004] One type of pattern, commonly called a 4.times.4
("four-by-four") pattern, includes inserts fixed in the snowboard
along two longitudinal lines parallel to the longitudinal, or
tip-to-tail, direction of the board. The inserts form one or more
square patterns of inserts, with inserts located at the corners of
each square pattern. A binding may be attached to the snowboard
using a hold-down disk (discussed below) having four holes arranged
to match one of the square patterns of inserts. Once the four holes
in the hold down disk are aligned with one of the square patterns
of inserts, screws may be inserted through the holes, engaged with
the inserts and tightened to secure the disk and the binding to the
snowboard. The binding may be adjusted in position along the
tip-to-tail direction by reattaching the disk to the snowboard
using a different square pattern of inserts.
[0005] A second insert pattern, commonly called the 3D.RTM. hole
pattern, is provided on snowboards from Burton Snowboards and
includes inserts arranged to form a plurality of equilateral
triangle patterns. Each equilateral triangle pattern has inserts
located at the vertices of the triangle and has one side parallel
to a lateral direction, or edge-to-edge direction, on the board. A
binding may be secured to a snowboard using a hold down disk that
has three holes at the vertices of an equilateral triangle. The
holes may be aligned with one of the triangular patterns of
inserts, and screws may be inserted through the holes to secure the
disk to the snowboard. An example of the 3D.RTM. pattern is shown
in U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,689 to Carpenter et al.
[0006] Inserts in a snowboard may increase the weight and cost of
the snowboard, while decreasing the strength of the board. For
example, an insert may weigh more than the portion of the board
that is replaced by the insert, and/or the board may require
reinforcement, e.g., additional fiberglass and/or a stronger core
material, in the vicinity of each insert to prevent board failure
or insert pull-out. Therefore, minimizing the number of inserts in
a snowboard while maintaining a same or improved range of binding
adjustment (i.e., a total length along the board over which a
binding may be mounted) and increment of adjustment (i.e., distance
between adjacent mounting positions) is generally desirable.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] In one illustrative embodiment in accordance with the
invention, a majority of attachment features on a board may be
arranged along one row generally extending in the tip-to-tail
direction of the board. For example, the board may have all or
substantially all inserts used to mount a binding to the board
arranged along a single row parallel to the board centerline.
Binding mounting positions may be provided by patterns of two or
three attachment features. For example, all of the attachment
features may be arranged along one row and binding mounting
positions provided by pairs or other groups of features in the row.
Alternately, attachment features may be arranged along two rows,
with a majority of the features arranged in one of the rows.
Binding mounting positions may be provided by triangular patterns
of features, e.g., two features in one row and a third in the other
row. Thus, the number of attachment features needed for a given
number of binding mounting positions may be reduced and/or the
number of binding mounting positions provided by a given number of
attachment features may be increased compared to other attachment
feature arrangements. In addition, concentrating attachment
features along one row may allow reinforcement of the board
intended to prevent feature pull-out or other detachment to be
concentrated along a more narrow portion of the board, potentially
decreasing the weight and/or cost of the board.
[0008] In another illustrative embodiment of the invention,
attachment features are arranged on a gliding board along a
longitudinal row to form a plurality of linear mounting patterns
for a binding. Each mounting pattern is formed by two attachment
features on the longitudinal row. The attachment features may be
equally spaced from each other, e.g., at 25 mm increments, and
arranged along or near the board longitudinal centerline.
[0009] In another aspect of the invention, a method of attaching a
binding to a snowboard includes providing a snowboard having a
plurality of attachment features fixed in a row in the snowboard,
and providing a hold down disk having two openings adapted to
cooperate with pairs of the attachment features. The hold down disk
is attached to the snowboard using only a pair of the attachment
features, and/or using only attachment features that lie along the
row. As used herein, the term "providing" is intended to include
any manner of obtaining, using, handling, or otherwise securing
possession of an object whether through purchase, loan,
manufacture, etc. Thus, for example, a technician hired or
otherwise employed to attach a binding to a snowboard "provides"
the snowboard and binding as the term is used herein even though
the snowboard and binding may have been manufactured by and/or is
owned by a person or entity other than the technician.
[0010] In another aspect of the invention, an apparatus includes a
gliding board, such as a snowboard having a tip and a tail, metal
edges and a base suitable for gliding on a snow surface, and at
least three attachment features to attach a binding to the
snowboard. The attachment features may be arranged in at least one
attachment feature pattern and along at least one row on the
snowboard, the at least one row extending in the tip-to-tail
direction of the snowboard. The apparatus may also include a
snowboard binding hold down disk having a tip-to-tail axis adapted
to extend in a tip-to-tail direction on the snowboard when the hold
down disk is mounted to the snowboard. The hold down disk may have
openings adapted to cooperate with an attachment feature pattern
including no more than three attachment features arranged on the
snowboard in no more than one or two rows to mount the hold down
disk to the snowboard.
[0011] In another illustrative embodiment in accordance with an
aspect of the invention, the centers of attachment features that
provide a plurality of binding mounting positions are located
within a rectangular area on the board having a width of no more
than 38 mm. In another aspect of the invention, the centers of the
attachment features may be located within no more than 19 mm of the
gliding board centerline. In one illustrative embodiment in
accordance with these aspects of the invention, the attachment
features may be arranged along two longitudinal rows that extend
within 19 mm of the board centerline. In another illustrative
embodiment, the attachment features may be arranged along a single
row that is parallel to the board centerline.
[0012] In another aspect of the invention, a gliding board includes
a plurality of attachment features arranged in a plurality of
patterns to provide at least three adjacent binding mounting
positions. The attachment features are arranged so that when a hold
down disk is mounted to the board using one of the attachment
feature patterns, no more than three attachment features are
covered by the hold down disk. In another aspect of the invention,
exactly three attachment feature are covered by the disk. This
feature can be provided by attachment feature patterns including
two or three features and by arrangements of attachment features
along one or two rows. This is in contrast to a conventional 3D or
4.times.4 pattern that provides three or more adjacent mounting
positions and has four inserts covered by a hold down disk when the
disk is mounted to the board.
[0013] In another aspect of the invention, a snowboard having a
tip, a tail and metal edges may have a plurality of attachment
features fixed to the snowboard and adapted to cooperate with a
hold down disk to attach a binding to the snowboard. The plurality
of attachment features may be arranged on the snowboard to provide
at least three binding mounting positions for the hold down disk on
the snowboard including a first mounting position, a second
mounting position adjacent the first mounting position, and a third
mounting position adjacent the second mounting position, wherein
the first and third mounting positions share one attachment
feature.
[0014] In another aspect of the invention, a gliding board, such as
a snowboard, includes a plurality of attachment features to attach
a binding to the board. The attachment features are arranged on the
board to form at least three adjacent binding mounting positions.
The binding mounting positions are provided by patterns of
attachment features such that only one attachment feature from
attachment feature patterns for each of any two adjacent binding
mounting positions is not shared.
[0015] One illustrative embodiment in accordance with the invention
includes a gliding board having a tip and a tail, and a plurality
of attachment features to attach a binding to the gliding board.
The attachment features are arranged along first and second rows
extending in the tip to tail direction of the gliding board so that
a first attachment feature in the first row, a second attachment
feature in the second row, and a third attachment feature in the
first row are at the vertices of at least one equilateral triangle.
This triangular pattern of attachment features may be used to
attach the binding, such as a strap-type foot binding, to the
gliding board.
[0016] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features are
arranged on a gliding board having a tip and a tail and a
tip-to-tail direction extending therebetween. The attachment
features are evenly spaced only along first and second rows that
generally extend in the tip to tail direction of the gliding board.
The first and second rows are longitudinally offset so that no
attachment feature in the first row lies on a same lateral line,
perpendicular to the rows, as an attachment feature in the second
row.
[0017] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features to
attach a binding to the gliding board are arranged on the gliding
board to provide at least two binding mounting positions spaced
apart along the length of the board. The increment of adjustment
along the length of the board between the two binding mounting
positions is less than a minimum distance between any two of the
plurality of attachment features that provide the at least two
binding mounting positions.
[0018] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features to
attach a binding to the gliding board are arranged so that at least
one of the plurality of attachment features is equally spaced from
four adjacent attachment features.
[0019] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features to
attach a binding to the gliding board are arranged to form at least
one non-right triangular pattern of adjacent attachment features.
The at least one non-right triangular pattern provides a binding
mounting position, and each attachment feature is positioned at a
vertex of the at least one non-right triangle. One leg of the
non-right triangle extends substantially parallel to a tip-to-tail
direction on the gliding board.
[0020] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features are
arranged on the gliding board to form at least one equilateral
triangular pattern of attachment features that provides a binding
mounting position and has no leg parallel to an edge-to-edge
direction on the gliding board.
[0021] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features are
arranged on the gliding board to form a plurality of adjacent
binding mounting patterns each having a center. In this embodiment,
the centers of adjacent binding mounting patterns are offset on
alternate sides of a line extending in a tip-to-tail direction on
the board.
[0022] In another illustrative embodiment, attachment features are
arranged on a snowboard along first and second longitudinal rows to
form a plurality of equilateral triangular patterns of attachment
features. The first and second longitudinal rows are parallel to a
tip-to-tail direction on the snowboard, and each equilateral
triangular pattern provides a binding mounting position formed by a
first attachment feature on one of the first and second rows and
second and third attachment features adjacent the first attachment
feature on the other of the first and second rows. A pair of
snowboard bindings are attached to the snowboard with each binding
attached to the snowboard via one of the plurality of equilateral
triangular patterns of attachment features.
[0023] In another aspect of the invention, the number of binding
mounting positions that is provided by plurality of attachment
features on a board is equal to two less than the number of
attachment features. For example, if a set of attachment features
that provide a plurality of binding mounting positions has a total
of five attachment features, the set of attachment features may
provide three binding mounting positions (5 features -2=3 mounting
positions). Such a relationship between the number of attachment
features and the number of binding mounting positions may be
present in attachment feature patterns that include two or three
attachment features and in which attachment features are arranged
along one or two rows. This is in contrast to 4.times.4 patterns,
e.g., a 4.times.4 pattern that provides three binding mounting
positions includes six attachment features, and 3D patterns, e.g.,
a 3D pattern that provides three binding mounting positions
includes at least six and likely seven attachment features.
[0024] A snowboard binding hold down disk in accordance with the
invention has a center and a tip-to-tail axis adapted to extend in
a tip-to-tail direction on a snowboard when the hold down disk is
mounted to the snowboard. The hold down disk has at least three
openings that form a triangle and are adapted to cooperate with
attachment features arranged on the snowboard. The at least three
openings are arranged so that no leg of the triangle is
perpendicular to the tip-to-tail axis.
[0025] In another illustrative embodiment, a snowboard binding hold
down disk has at least three openings that form a triangle and are
adapted to cooperate with attachment features arranged on the
snowboard. The at least three openings are arranged in the disk so
that a leg extending parallel to the tip-to-tail axis is as long as
any other leg of the triangle.
[0026] In another illustrative embodiment, a snowboard binding hold
down disk has at least three openings that form an equilateral
triangle and are adapted to cooperate with attachment features
arranged on the snowboard. The equilateral triangle has a leg that
is parallel to the tip-to-tail axis.
[0027] In another illustrative embodiment, a snowboard binding hold
down disk has at least three openings that form at least one
triangle and are adapted to cooperate with attachment features
arranged on the snowboard. The at least one triangle includes at
least one central triangle, and the center of the at least one
central triangle is offset from the center of the hold down
disk.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0028] Illustrative embodiments in accordance with aspects of the
invention are described in connection with the following drawings,
in which like numerals reference like elements, and wherein:
[0029] FIG. 1 is a top view of a snowboard having an attachment
feature pattern according to one embodiment of the invention and a
compatible hold down disk;
[0030] FIG. 2 is a geometrical representation of a portion of the
attachment feature pattern in the embodiment shown in FIG. 1;
[0031] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a binding mounted, using a
hold down disk, to a snowboard with the attachment feature pattern
of FIG. 1;
[0032] FIG. 4 is a top view of a hold down disk according to one
embodiment of the invention that may, for example, be used with the
attachment feature pattern shown in FIG. 1;
[0033] FIG. 5 is a top view of a snowboard having an attachment
feature pattern according to one embodiment of the invention and a
compatible hold down disk;
[0034] FIG. 6 is a geometrical representation of a portion of the
attachment feature pattern in the embodiment shown in FIG. 5;
[0035] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a binding mounted, using a
hold down disk, to a snowboard with the attachment feature pattern
of FIG. 5;
[0036] FIG. 8 is a top view of a hold down disk according to one
embodiment of the invention that may, for example, be used with the
attachment feature pattern shown in FIG. 5;
[0037] FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a snowboard having
reinforcement strips according to an embodiment of the
invention;
[0038] FIG. 10 is a schematic diagram of a snowboard having
reinforcement strips according to an alternate embodiment of the
invention; and
[0039] FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a hold down disk having a
mounting plate in accordance with an illustrative embodiment of the
invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0040] In one aspect of the invention, a plurality of attachment
features (e.g., metallic inserts) is arranged on a gliding board,
such as a snowboard, so that an additional binding mounting
position can be added in all cases when a single additional
attachment feature is appropriately added to the board. This can be
accomplished in multiple ways. For example, in one embodiment for
use with a binding that is attached to the board via only two
fasteners, the attachment features may be arranged in a single row
along the centerline of the snowboard. Pairs of attachment features
in the row may each provide a binding mounting position, and the
addition of one attachment feature to either end of the row may add
another binding mounting position. This is in contrast to
conventional snowboards. For example, with the 4.times.4 pattern,
two attachment features must be added to add another binding
mounting position. With the 3D.RTM. pattern, another binding
mounting position may be added at certain positions in the pattern
by adding a single attachment feature, but not in all positions in
the pattern. For example, with a 3D.RTM. pattern that includes
eight attachment features, at least two attachment features must be
added to provide another binding mounting position on either end of
the pattern.
[0041] In another illustrative embodiment for use with a binding
that is attached to the board with three fasteners, attachment
features may be arranged along two rows in the board with binding
mounting positions provided by triangular patterns of attachment
features such that two attachment features in each pattern are
positioned in a first row and a third attachment feature in the
pattern is positioned in the other row. The rows of attachment
features are offset so that the addition of one attachment feature
to the end of one of the rows adds another binding mounting
position. Thus, additional binding mounting positions may be added
with the addition of a fewer number of attachment features than
with conventional hole patterns, e.g., the addition of one
attachment feature may add one binding mounting position.
[0042] In another aspect of the invention, non-adjacent binding
mounting positions may share at least one attachment feature. This
is in contrast, for example, to 4.times.4 and 3D patterns in which
adjacent binding mounting positions share attachment features, but
non-adjacent binding mounting positions do not share attachment
features. By having non-adjacent binding mounting positions share
at least one attachment feature, more efficient use of attachment
features in the board may be made. In one illustrative embodiment
for use with a binding that is attached via two fasteners,
attachment features may be arranged in a single row with the
attachment features equally spaced from each other along the row.
Binding mounting positions may be provided by attachment feature
patterns that include two attachment features along the row that
are separated from each other by one attachment feature. In another
illustrative embodiment for use with a binding that is attached via
three fasteners, attachment features may be arranged along two rows
so that binding mounting positions are provided by triangular
patterns of attachment features. Non-adjacent binding mounting
positions may share one attachment feature, e.g., first and third
binding mounting positions that are adjacent to a second mounting
position located between the first and third binding mounting
positions may share one attachment feature. Also, in certain
embodiments, first, second and third binding mounting positions may
share one attachment feature.
[0043] FIG. 1 is a top view of an illustrative embodiment of a
snowboard 1 that incorporates several of the aspects of the
invention described above. A variety of different illustrative
embodiments are described herein that incorporate various different
aspects of the invention. Aspects of the invention are not limited
to the illustrative embodiments described below.
[0044] The snowboard 1 shown in FIG. 1 has a plurality of
attachment features 2 that may be used to attach a snowboard
binding or other mounting device (not shown) to the snowboard 1.
The attachment features 2 may be any feature compatible with a
corresponding mating feature for mounting a binding to the
snowboard 1, as the invention is not limited to any particular type
of attachment feature. For example, the attachment features 2 may
be threaded plastic or metallic inserts or studs fixed within holes
formed in the snowboard 1 using any suitable technique, a metal or
plastic plate attached to the snowboard 1 having threaded or
non-threaded studs or holes in the plate, or any other suitable
feature. In some embodiments, the attachment features 2 are
separate from other attachment features, as is the case with
individual metallic inserts commonly used in snowboards. In other
embodiments, the attachment features 2 may be connected together,
such as when a plurality of metallic inserts are integrally formed
from a single plate or otherwise attached together to form a unit
that is mounted within a snowboard. The attachment features 2 may
be fixed on the snowboard 1, e.g., metallic inserts may be molded
or otherwise secured within the board.
[0045] In the illustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the
attachment features 2 are arranged on the snowboard 1 in two groups
17 and 18, each group for mounting a different binding to the
snowboard 1. A first group 17 includes the attachment features 2A
through 2F, and the second group 18 includes the attachment
features 2G through 2M. As an example, the first group 17 may be
used to attach a left foot binding (bindings not shown in FIG. 1)
to the snowboard 1, and the second group 18 may be used to attach a
right foot binding to the snowboard 1. The attachment features 2
are arranged so that suitable groups of attachment features 2 form
attachment feature patterns that each provides a binding mounting
position. The attachment feature patterns may have any suitable
configuration. For example, an attachment feature pattern may be
formed by the attachment feature pairs 2A and 2B, 2B and 2C, and so
on. In this case in accordance with an aspect of the invention,
adjacent attachment feature patterns, e.g., the pattern with
features 2A and 2B and the pattern with features 2B and 2C, share
one attachment feature, and only one attachment feature in the
adjacent patterns is not shared. Alternately, attachment feature
patterns may be formed by other groupings of attachment features,
such as patterns formed by alternate attachment features 2A and 2C,
2B and 2D, 2C and 2E, and so on. In this case in accordance with
one aspect of the invention, adjacent attachment feature patterns,
e.g., patterns including features 2A and 2C and 2B and 2D, do not
share any attachment feature. Another aspect of the invention
illustrated by this type of attachment feature pattern is that
non-adjacent attachment feature patterns, e.g., patterns including
features 2A and 2C and 2C and 2E, may share at least one attachment
feature, e.g., feature 2C. In another embodiment, groups of three
adjacent attachment features, e.g., features 2A, 2B and 2C, may
provide a binding mounting position.
[0046] Each left and right foot binding may, for example, be
mounted via a hold down disk 32 or otherwise to the snowboard 1 at
a selected mounting position with holes 34 arranged to cooperate
with patterns of attachment features 2 on the board 1. A width of a
rider's stance on the snowboard 1 may be adjusted, e.g., narrowed
or widened, by adjusting the mounting position of either or both
the left and right foot bindings using different patterns of
attachment features 2 to secure the bindings to the snowboard
1.
[0047] In the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 1, the hold down disk
32 includes two holes 34 that are adapted to cooperate with
patterns of two attachment features 2 that are arranged so that a
third attachment feature is positioned between the two features in
the pattern. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the holes 34 in the
hold down disk 32 may cooperate with the pattern including
attachment features 2A and 2C, which has the attachment feature 2B
positioned between the features 2A and 2C. Of course, the holes 34
may be arranged in any suitable way, e.g., to cooperate with pairs
of adjacent features (2A and 2B) or sets of three attachment
features (2A, 2B and 2C).
[0048] One aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 1 is that
when the hold down disk 32 is mounted to the board 1 by an
attachment feature pattern, such as features 2A and 2C, three
attachment features are covered by the disk 32, i.e., features 2A,
2B and 2C. By "covered", it is meant that the attachment features 2
are completely covered over by a bottom portion of the disk 32 that
is in contact with, or positioned near, the board top surface when
mounted to the board. In one illustrative embodiment of the
invention, the disk 32 has a diameter of approximately 100
millimeters and the attachment features 2 are spaced at 25
millimeters from each other along the row, e.g., feature 2B is
spaced 25 mm from both features 2A and 2C, feature 2D is spaced 25
mm from both features 2C and 2E, and so on. Thus, the holes 34 in
the disk 32 may be positioned so that only three attachment
features 2 are covered by the disk 32 when mounted to the board,
e.g., the holes 34 may be positioned 50 millimeters apart along a
diametric line of the disk 32 at approximately 25 mm from the outer
periphery of the disk 32. The disk may have a frustoconical or
stepped shape such that the disk 32 has a maximum diameter of
approximately 100 millimeters at a wider, upper portion of the disk
32 normally positioned away from the board 1, and a diameter of
approximately 85 millimeters at a smaller, bottom portion of the
disk 32 that normally contacts the board top surface when mounted
to the board 1. In this case, the holes 34 may be positioned
approximately 50 millimeters apart along a diametric line on the
disk 32 so that one of the holes 34 is positioned about 17.5
millimeters from the center of the disk 32 and the other hole 34 is
positioned about 32.5 millimeters from the center of the disk 32.
With such an arrangement, the disk 32, i.e., the smaller, bottom
portion of the disk 32, will not cover more than three attachment
features 2 when mounted to the board having attachment features 2
spaced at 25 millimeters.
[0049] It should be appreciated that with the FIG. 1 embodiment, an
additional mounting position may be added to the board 1 with the
addition of a single attachment feature 2 to the board 1 for all
positions in the pattern. For example, an attachment feature 2 may
be added to either end of the row of features 2 in the first group
17 to add another binding mounting position, e.g., a feature 2 may
be added to the right of attachment feature 2F and arranged to
cooperate with the feature 2E to form another attachment feature
pattern. This can make efficient use of attachment features 2 since
a minimum number of attachment features may be added to provide
additional mounting positions.
[0050] Another aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 1 is
that a majority of the attachment features 2 are arranged along a
first row on the board 1. In fact, in this embodiment, all of the
attachment features used to mount a binding to the board are
arranged along a first row that is colinear with the board
centerline CL. Other aspects of the invention illustrated are that
centers of the attachment features 2 are located within 19
millimeters of the board centerline CL, and the attachment features
2 are positioned within a rectangular area having a width (e.g., a
dimension measured perpendicular to the centerline CL) that is no
more than 38 millimeters. These aspects of the invention allow
closer spacing of the attachment features 2 to a single line along
the board 1, allowing reinforcement of the board to be concentrated
in a more narrow zone that that possible with other attachment
feature arrangements. For example, the single row of attachment
features in FIG. 1 permits the use of a relatively narrow hardwood
strip or other board reinforcement in a more narrow area near the
centerline CL as compared to other arrangements such as 4.times.4
and 3D. It should be appreciated that this aspect of the invention
is not limited to having attachment features positioned along a
single row colinear with or parallel to the centerline CL. Instead,
attachment features may be positioned in any suitable way within 19
mm or less of the centerline, or within a rectangular area having a
width of no more than 38 millimeters. The rectangular area may be
aligned along the centerline CL or transverse to the centerline CL.
The centerline CL is an imaginary line that extends in a
longitudinal, or tip-to-tail, direction of the snowboard 1 and is
equally spaced from the edges 16 of the board.
[0051] In another aspect of the invention, the arrangement of
attachment features 2 shown in FIG. 1 also provides an overall
range of adjustment, i.e., a total distance over which a binding
may be mounted to a snowboard 1, that is greater than 4.times.4 and
3D.RTM. patterns having a same number of attachment features. For
example, a 4.times.4 pattern that provides a same number of
mounting positions and total range of adjustment as a pattern shown
in FIG. 1 would necessarily require more attachment features 2,
since four attachment features 2 are used to mount a binding at
each mounting position and two additional attachment features 2
must be added to the pattern for each new mounting position.
Reducing the number of attachment features 2 in the snowboard 1 may
allow for a lower weight board and/or require less reinforcement of
the board near the attachment features 2 to prevent pull-out or
other detachment of the features 2 from the snowboard 1.
[0052] The first group 17 of attachment features 2 in FIG. 1
includes six attachment features 2, whereas the second group 18
includes seven attachment features 2. However, it should be
understood that the first and second groups of attachment features
2 each may include any suitable number of attachment features 2
other than six or seven attachment features 2, e.g., to provide a
different range of adjustment for a binding, as the invention is
not limited to using any particular number of attachment features
2. In addition, the first and second groups 17 and 18 of attachment
features 2 may include a same number of attachment features 2,
e.g., six inserts.
[0053] In the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 1, the attachment
features 2 are arranged along the centerline CL. However, this
arrangement is not necessary. For example, a first group 17 of
attachment features 2 may be arranged along a first row, and a
second group 18 of attachment features 2 may be arranged along a
second row. The first and second rows may or may not be parallel to
or colinear with each other and/or the centerline CL. Thus, first
and second groups 17 and 18 of attachment features 2 may be
arranged along lines that are at an angle with respect to each
other and/or at an angle with respect to the centerline CL.
Further, the snowboard 1 need not include two distinct groups 17
and 18 of attachment features 2, but instead may have a single
continuous group of equally spaced attachment features 2.
[0054] The snowboard 1 or other gliding board may be manufactured
in any suitable way using any suitable materials. For example, the
snowboard 1 may be a side wall-type board having a wood core
positioned between upper and lower layers of fiber-reinforced
material (e.g., fiberglass), and may include a plastic base
material and metal side edges. The snowboard 1 may also be a
cap-type snowboard, or may be formed from other materials, as the
invention is not limited in the manner in which the snowboard 1 is
constructed, the shape of the snowboard 1, or materials included in
the snowboard 1.
[0055] FIG. 2 shows a more detailed geometrical representation of
the first group 17 of attachment features 2 in a specific
illustrative embodiment of FIG. 1. In this illustrative embodiment,
attachment features 2 are positioned at or near each of the points
A-F, which are arranged in a single row. In this illustrative
embodiment, the points A-F are separated by 25 millimeters from a
nearest, adjacent point, and pairs of points separated by a single
point provide a binding mounting position for a binding. For
example, points A and C provide a binding mounting position P1,
points B and D provide a binding mounting position P2, and so on.
As used herein, a binding mounting position is a point along the
centerline CL or other longitudinal reference line on the board 1
that lies on the same lateral line as a centerpoint of an
attachment feature pattern, i.e., the pattern centerpoint is
equidistant from attachment features in the pattern that provide
the binding mounting position. Thus, in this illustrative
embodiment, the binding mounting position P1 is positioned at the
centerline CL equidistantly from points A and C. An increment of
adjustment between binding mounting positions, i.e., the distance
between adjacent mounting positions, in this illustrative
embodiment is equal to the minimum spacing between attachment
features.
[0056] Another aspect of the present invention illustrated by the
attachment feature pattern shown in FIG. 2 is that an additional
binding mounting position P may be added to all positions in the
pattern by adding a single additional attachment feature 2. For
example, by adding an attachment feature at the point G in FIG. 2,
an additional binding mounting position P5 is added. This is not
the case with 4.times.4 and 3D.RTM. patterns. In the case of the
4.times.4 pattern, four inserts are used to mount a binding at a
mounting position, so that two additional inserts must be added to
an existing pattern to provide an additional mounting position. In
the case of the 3D.RTM. pattern, while in some cases an additional
binding mounting position may be added by providing a single
additional insert, this is not true for all positions in the
pattern. That is, in some positions in the pattern, two additional
inserts must be added to provide an additional mounting
position.
[0057] It should also be understood that the aspect of the
invention where only one attachment feature may be added to provide
an additional mounting position is not limited to the specific
pattern shown in FIG. 2, as other attachment feature patterns can
be used that achieve this result.
[0058] In another aspect of the invention, the number of binding
mounting positions P provided by the attachment features is equal
to two less than the number of attachment features. In FIG. 2, six
total attachment features at points A-F may provide four binding
mounting positions P1-P4. Since an additional binding mounting
position may be added with each addition of an attachment feature,
the relationship of the number of binding mounting positions to
total number of attachment features will remain the same. This is
the case, for example, if an attachment feature is provided at
point G, whereby the mounting position P5 is added.
[0059] As discussed above, a binding 3 may be attached to the
snowboard 1 as shown in FIG. 3 using a hold down disk 32 that has
holes 34 arranged to overlie attachment features 2 in the snowboard
1. In FIG. 3, the binding 3 is shown as a conventional tray binding
with a toe strap 37 and highback 38, but the present invention is
not limited to a binding 3 including these and/or any other
particular elements, as the binding 3 may be any type of binding,
such as a strap binding, step-in binding, plate binding, or any
other type of device used to attach a rider's foot to a snowboard
1, whether the rider is wearing soft or hard snowboard boots, or
other footwear, as the invention is not limited to use with any
particular type of binding 3. In contrast to other types of
bindings, such as water ski bindings, the binding 3 may be a
non-safety release binding such that once a rider's foot is secured
in the binding, the foot is not released from the binding unless
the straps or other securements are released. In typical water ski
and snow ski bindings, for example, a rider/skier's foot may be
removed from the binding, e.g., during a fall.
[0060] When mounting the binding 3 to the snowboard 1, holes 34 in
the hold down disk 32 may be aligned with corresponding attachment
features 2 at a suitable mounting position, and the disk 32 secured
to the snowboard 1 at the mounting position, e.g., by engaging
screws with the attachment features 2. The hold down disk 32 may
engage with an opening formed in the baseplate 33 of the binding 3.
The hold down disk 32 may have any suitable features to engage with
the opening in the baseplate 33 to secure the binding 3 to the
snowboard 1 and/or prevent rotation of the baseplate 33 relative to
the hold down disk. For example, although the invention is not
limited to such an arrangement, the hold down disk 32 may have a
frusto-conical portion having teeth on its undersurface that engage
with corresponding teeth formed in the baseplate 33 near the
opening as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,689. The holes 34 in
the hold-down disk 32 may be arranged to provide a plurality of
adjustment positions, e.g., to allow adjustment of the binding 3 in
the edge-to-edge direction. Such an arrangement may provide more
than one location for a binding to be mounted to the board using
the same attachment features in the board. The hold down disk 32
may have hole patterns to accommodate attachment feature patterns
in addition to those of the present invention discussed above
(e.g., the 4.times.4 and/or 3D.RTM. pattern). Thus, the hold down
disk 32 may be a so-called universal disk that provides for
attachment of the disk 32 using two or more different attachment
feature 2 patterns.
[0061] FIG. 4 shows one illustrative embodiment of a hold down disk
32 in accordance with another aspect of the invention. The hold
down disk 32 is specially adapted for use with the attachment
feature patterns discussed above in connection with FIGS. 1 and 2
and has two through holes 34 to receive fasteners (e.g., screws) to
attach to the attachment features 2. In this illustrative
embodiment, each hole 34 has scalloped portions to provide seven
different adjustment positions, e.g., so that the hold down disk 32
and corresponding binding 3 may be adjusted in position in an
edge-to-edge, or lateral, direction on the snowboard 1. That is, in
this embodiment, each hole 34 provides for seven different lateral
adjustment positions (e.g., spaced at 5 millimeter increments) at
which a screw may pass through the hole 34 and secure the disk 32
to the snowboard 1. Sufficient holes 34 may be provided to provide
a range of edge-to-edge, or lateral, adjustment that is at least 25
mm, 30 mm, 35 mm, 40 mm or more. Such ranges of adjustment may be
provided with a hold down disk 32 that has a diameter of
approximately 100 mm. This is in contrast to 4.times.4 or 3D
pattern hold down disks in which a maximum of approximately 20 mm
lateral adjustment is provided. These disks tend to be limited in
the range of lateral adjustment provided because the 4.times.4 and
3D patterns force the holes in the disk to be positioned near the
outer periphery of the disk. Since the holes are positioned near
the periphery, the range of holes is typically limited so as to
avoid weakening the disk and/or forming the holes too close to the
periphery. Of course, the aspects of the invention directed to a
new hold down disk 32 are not limited to one using holes 34 with
six or seven scalloped adjustment positions, as each hole 34 may
provide only a single adjustment position, may be replaced by
multiple spaced holes each providing a single adjustment position,
may be formed as an oblong hole not having any discrete adjustment
positions, or may include different numbers of adjustment
positions. Thus, in another aspect of the invention, the disk 32
may include two parallel rows of spaced holes, i.e., the slot holes
34 in FIG. 4 may be replaced with separate, distinct holes at any
suitable spacing. One set of the holes may be adapted to locate the
center of the disk at the board centerline CL.
[0062] One aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4 is at
least two elongated slot holes 34 in the disk 32 intersect the
tip-to-tail axis of the disk 32. This is not the case in typical 3D
and 4.times.4 disks in which two or more slots adapted to cooperate
with attachment feature patterns to mount the disk do not intersect
the tip-to-tail axis of the disk. The tip-to-tail axis of the disk
is an imaginary line on the disk that passes through the disk
center and is oriented parallel to the board centerline CL when the
disk 32 is mounted to the board 1. In the illustrative embodiment
of FIG. 4, the holes 34 are perpendicular to the tip-tail axis. The
holes may be arranged in any suitable way, e.g., to cooperate with
attachment feature patterns including two attachment features
spaced 50 mm or any other suitable distance from each other in a
row. Likewise, the disk 32 may have three holes 34 so that the disk
may be mounted to the board by a linear pattern of three attachment
features 2. In this case, three slot holes 34 may intersect the
tip-tail axis.
[0063] Another aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4 is
that the slot holes 34 are adapted to cooperate with an attachment
feature pattern so that the hold down disk may be attached to the
board in first and second different orientations using the same
attachment feature pattern on the snowboard and the same slot
openings in the hold down disk, while still providing for
adjustment of the hold down disk in a direction transverse to the
tip-to-tail direction, e.g., in the lateral direction. This lateral
adjustment may be made without altering the position of the hold
down disk in the tip-to-tail direction. The difference between the
first and second orientations may be a 180 rotation of the disk
relative to the board, and may result in positioning the center of
the disk in at a different position along the centerline CL. In
this illustrative embodiment, the hole 34A is positioned
approximately 18.75 mm from the center OD of the disk, and the hole
34B is positioned approximately 31.25 mm from the center OD. Since
the holes 34A and 34B are separated by about 50 mm, the midpoint
between the holes is offset from the disk center OD by about 6.25
mm. Thus, for example, if the disk 32 is mounted to the attachment
features 2A and 2C in FIG. 2 in the orientation shown in FIG. 4,
the center OD of the disk is positioned at longitudinal adjustment
position A1 shown in FIG. 2. Position A1 is about 6.25 mm to the
left of the binding mounting position P1. If the disk 32 is then
rotated 180 degrees and mounted via the attachment features 2A and
2C, the center OD will be positioned at the longitudinal adjustment
position A2, about 6.25 mm to the right of binding mounting
position P1. If the disk 32 is then rotated 180 degrees and mounted
via the attachment features 2B and 2D, the center OD will be
positioned at the longitudinal adjustment position A3, about 12.5
mm to the right of position A2 and 6.25 mm to the left of binding
mounting position P2. Accordingly, by offsetting the holes 34 in
the disk 32, longitudinal adjustment positions for the disk 32 may
be provided based on the orientation of the disk relative to the
board. Of course, holes 34 in the disk 32 may be arranged in any
suitable way relative to the center of the disk 32.
[0064] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, the disk 32 includes
reference features, including angle indication marks 35, to provide
an indication of the orientation of the binding 3 relative to the
snowboard 1 or the disk 32. In FIG. 4, the angle indication marks
35 are in increments of 30.degree. with the 0.degree., 30.degree.,
60.degree. and 90.degree. marks being labeled. The angle indication
marks 3 5 may be provided at a finer or more coarse scale and/or
may also provide additional angle indication marks, such as one for
the 45.degree. mark. Also, the angle indication marks may be
positioned in any suitable way on the disk 32, e.g., the 0.degree.
marks may be changed to 90.degree. marks and the other marks 35
adjusted accordingly. The disk 32 may also include indicators
showing the tip-to-tail direction, e.g., such as a double-headed
arrow and text indicator extending between the tip-and-tail marks
(e.g., the 0.degree.-0.degree. marks), and/or an indicator showing
the approximate location of the edges 16 of the snowboard 1. These
additional indicators may provide an aid to properly positioning
the disk 32 on a snowboard 1. The angle indication marks 35 may be
formed permanently in the disk 32, such as by molding the marks 35
in the disk 32, or may be applied to the disk 32, e.g., on a
sticker or other label adhered to the disk 32. The invention is not
limited to these specific marking features, as any suitable
indication indicia will do. In addition, the angle indication marks
35 or other indicators on the disk 32 may be omitted from some
embodiments.
[0065] As described above, various aspects of the invention may be
implemented in a variety of different ways. The embodiments
described above incorporate aspects of the invention and generally
include attachment features (for one binding) arranged along a
single row. Such an arrangement of the attachment features is not
required for many aspects of the invention. For example, several
aspects of the invention described above are incorporated into an
alternate embodiment shown in FIG. 5. The FIG. 5 embodiment also
illustrates several other aspects of the invention as described
below.
[0066] One aspect of the invention illustrated in FIG. 5 is a
gliding board, such as a snowboard, having a tip and a tail and a
plurality of attachment features arranged on the board along first
and second longitudinal rows to form a plurality of triangular
patterns. Each triangular pattern is formed by a first attachment
feature on the first or second row, and second and third attachment
features on the other row. Thus, the attachment features may be
arranged in a kind of zig-zag pattern down the two rows to form
adjacent triangular patterns of attachment features.
[0067] According to this aspect of the invention, attachment
features may be arranged along two longitudinal rows like a typical
4.times.4 pattern, but unlike the 4.times.4 pattern, each binding
mounting position may be provided by two or three attachment
features instead of four, thereby reducing the number of attachment
features needed for a given number of binding mounting positions.
In addition, adjacent binding mounting positions may share all but
one attachment feature, reducing the number of attachment features
needed to provide a given number of binding mounting positions, or
increasing the number of binding mounting positions provided by a
given number of attachment features as compared to the 4.times.4 or
3D.RTM. patterns.
[0068] Such an arrangement may also provide a wider range over
which a binding may be mounted to a board for a given number of
attachment features. For example, assuming a same increment of
adjustment between adjacent binding mounting positions, an
attachment feature pattern having six attachment features according
to this illustrative embodiment may provide four binding mounting
positions over a range equal to three times the increment of
adjustment. As another example, assuming a same increment of
adjustment between adjacent binding mounting positions, an
attachment feature pattern having six attachment features may
provide four binding mounting positions over a range equal to four
times the increment of adjustment. In a 4.times.4 pattern having
six attachment features, two binding mounting positions are
provided over a range equal to the increment of adjustment. Thus,
according to this illustrative embodiment, more binding mounting
positions distributed over a wider range of adjustment may be
provided using a same number of attachment features. The same is
true when compared to the 3D.RTM. pattern. For example, a 3D.RTM.
pattern having seven attachment features provides three binding
mounting positions over a range of three times the increment of
adjustment. In contrast, as will be appreciated from the discussion
below concerning this illustrative embodiment of the invention,
five or six binding mounting positions may be provided by seven
attachment features over a range of four or five times the
increment of adjustment, depending on the number of attachment
features providing each binding mounting position.
[0069] According to another aspect of the invention, the attachment
features are arranged along first and second rows generally
extending in the tip to tail direction of the board, and are evenly
spaced along the rows. The rows are longitudinally offset so that
no attachment feature in the first row lies on a same lateral line,
which is perpendicular to the longitudinal rows, as an attachment
feature in the second row. This is in contrast to a 4.times.4
pattern in which pairs of inserts are located on a same lateral
line. By longitudinally offsetting the rows of attachment features
in this illustrative embodiment, triangular patterns of inserts may
be used to secure a binding to the board rather than square
patterns in the 4.times.4 pattern. The triangular patterns may be
any non-right triangle, including equilateral, isosceles, etc.
Since triangular patterns of attachment features are used to
provide binding mounting positions, the number of attachment
features needed for a given number of binding mounting positions
may be reduced and/or the number of binding mounting positions
provided by a given number of attachment features may be
increased.
[0070] According to another illustrative embodiment of the
invention, the plurality of attachment features is arranged in a
pattern so that an increment of adjustment between adjacent
mounting positions along the length of the board is less than a
minimum distance between any two of the plurality of attachment
features. Adjacent binding mounting positions in a 4.times.4 or
3D.RTM. pattern are spaced at a distance approximately equal to the
minimum distance between attachment features. For example, it has
been found that if metallic inserts are placed in a snowboard
closer than a minimum distance, the likelihood of one or more
inserts pulling out of the snowboard increases. Thus, in
conventional hole patterns, this minimum pull out distance acts as
a limit below which the minimum adjustment increment cannot be
reduced. Conversely, one embodiment of the invention provides an
increment of adjustment between mounting positions that is less
than the minimum distance between attachment features.
[0071] According to other illustrative embodiments of the
invention, the plurality of attachment features is arranged to form
1) at least one non-right triangular pattern of attachment features
where one leg of the non-right triangle extends substantially
parallel to a tip-to-tail direction on the board, and/or 2) at
least one equilateral triangular pattern of attachment features
where the equilateral triangular pattern has no leg parallel to an
edge-to-edge direction on the board.
[0072] According to another illustrative embodiment of the
invention, the plurality of attachment features is arranged to form
a plurality of adjacent patterns of attachment features where
adjacent patterns have centers that are offset on alternate sides
of a line extending in a tip-to-tail direction on the board, e.g.,
a centerline of the board. By offsetting the centers of adjacent
patterns on alternate sides of a tip-to-tail line, such as the
centerline, the patterns may be more closely spaced, thereby
potentially decreasing the increment of adjustment between binding
mounting positions located along the tip-to-tail line.
[0073] Another illustrative embodiment is directed to a hold down
disk to help ensure that a binding mounted to the board can be
laterally (i.e., toe edge to heel edge) aligned independently of
the attachment feature pattern used, so that a center of a pattern
of openings in the hold down disk made to cooperate with the
attachment feature patterns on the board is displaced from the
center of the disk itself. The pattern of openings may be linear,
triangular or other. Thus, if a binding is mounted to a board at a
first binding mounting position and the binding is moved to an
adjacent mounting position, the disk may be rotated and aligned
with the attachment features at the adjacent binding mounting
position so that the binding is laterally positioned in the same
way as at the first binding mounting position. This feature assists
in making adjusting the longitudinal position of a binding on a
board, e.g., adjusting a rider's stance width, independent from the
lateral adjustment of the binding.
[0074] In the illustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 5, the
attachment features 2 are arranged on the snowboard 1 in two groups
17 and 18, each group for mounting a different binding to the
snowboard 1. A first group 17 includes the attachment features 2A
through 2F, and the second group 18 includes the attachment
features 2G through 2M. Like the FIG. 1 embodiment, the first group
17 may be used to attach a left foot binding to the snowboard 1,
and the second group 18 may be used to attach a right foot binding
to the snowboard 1. The attachment features 2 are arranged in a
pattern so that groups of three adjacent attachment features 2 are
at the vertices of a triangle, where each triangular pattern formed
by three adjacent attachment features 2 provides a binding mounting
position. Thus, each left and right foot binding may, for example,
be mounted via a hold down disk 32 or otherwise to the snowboard 1
at a selected mounting position with holes 34 arranged in a
triangular pattern to cooperate with triangular patterns of
attachment features 2 on the board 1. A width of a rider's stance
on the snowboard 1 may be adjusted, e.g., narrowed or widened, by
adjusting the mounting position of either or both the left and
right foot bindings using different triangular patterns of
attachment features 2 to secure the bindings to the snowboard
1.
[0075] In this illustrative embodiment, the attachment features 2
are arranged along two longitudinal lines 41 and 42. In the
embodiment shown, the longitudinal lines 41 and 42 are parallel to
and equally spaced from a centerline CL. However, it should be
appreciated that the present invention is not limited in this
respect, as the lines 41 and 42 alternatively may be transverse to
the centerline CL, may be non-parallel relative to the centerline
CL, and/or may not be equally spaced from the centerline CL. The
centerline CL is an imaginary line that extends in a longitudinal,
or tip-to-tail, direction of the snowboard 1 and is equally spaced
from the edges of the board.
[0076] Several aspects of the invention described above are
illustrated in FIG. 5. For example, the number of binding mounting
positions provided by the attachment features in the first group 17
(four positions) is equal to two less than the number of attachment
features (six features). Further, a majority of the attachment
features in the second group 18 is positioned along one row, e.g.,
the line 41. As described in more detail below and in accordance
with other aspects of the invention previously described, the
attachment features are positioned within 19 mm of the centerline
CL and are positioned within a rectangular area having a width of
no more than 38 mm. In accordance with other aspects of the
invention, the disk 32 may also be arranged so that it covers three
attachment features when mounted to the board, and additional
binding mounting positions may be added with the addition of a
single attachment feature 2. Further, non-adjacent binding mounting
positions share at least one attachment feature.
[0077] According to another aspect of the invention, the rows of
attachment features 2 along the lines 41 and 42 may be offset so
that no attachment feature 1 in a first row, e.g., on the line 41,
is positioned on a same lateral line, perpendicular to the rows, as
an attachment feature 2 in the other row, e.g., on the line 42.
This arrangement is in contrast to 4.times.4 and 3D.RTM. patterns
in which at least some inserts on opposite rows are positioned on a
same lateral line perpendicular to the rows. The offset of the rows
of attachment features 2 in this illustrative embodiment results in
the attachment features 2 being positioned at the vertices of at
least one non-right triangle that is formed by an attachment
feature 2 in a first row, e.g., along the line 41, and two adjacent
attachment features 2 in the other row, e.g., along the line 42. As
used herein, a first attachment feature 2 is "adjacent" a second
attachment feature 2 when there is no attachment feature positioned
between the first and second attachment features. For example, a
non-right triangle, such as an isosceles, equilateral or other
non-right triangle, is formed by the attachment feature 2B on the
line 42 and the attachment features 2A and 2C on the line 41.
[0078] According to another aspect of the invention, the non-right
triangle has a leg, or side, that is parallel to the rows of
attachment features 2. For example, a side 2A-2C of the triangle
formed by the attachment features 2A, 2B and 2C may be parallel to
the centerline CL, a side 2B-2D of the triangle formed by the
attachment features 2B, 2C and 2D may be parallel to the centerline
CL, and so on. In the embodiment wherein the rows are parallel to
the centerline CL, each non-right triangle then has a leg that is
parallel to the centerline CL, or the tip-to-tail direction, and
also has no leg parallel to an edge-to-edge direction that extends
approximately perpendicular to the edges 16 of the board 1.
[0079] According to yet another aspect of the invention, the rows
and the attachment features 2 within a row are spaced so that a
plurality of equilateral triangles are created. As a result, at
least one of the attachment features 2 may be arranged so that it
is equally spaced from its four adjacent attachment features 2. For
example, if an equilateral triangle is formed by (i) the attachment
features 2A, 2B and 2C, (ii) by the attachment features 2B, 2C and
2D, and (iii) by the attachment features 2C, 2D and 2E, the
attachment feature 2C is equally spaced from its four adjacent
attachment features 2A, 2B, 2D and 2E.
[0080] According to a further aspect of the invention, the rows may
be offset by one-half the separation distance between attachment
features 2. For example, if the attachment features are separated
by a distance of 40 millimeters along the rows, the row of
attachment features 2 along the line 41 may be offset by 20
millimeters (to the right in FIG. 5) from those along line 42 so
that the attachment feature 2B is longitudinally positioned half
way between the attachment features 2A and 2C.
[0081] In the illustrative embodiment shown in FIG. 1, all adjacent
mounting positions provided by adjacent triangular patterns of
attachment features 2 share two common attachment features 2. For
example, a mounting position provided by the attachment features
2A, 2B and 2C shares two attachment features 2B and 2C with its
adjacent mounting position provided by the features 2B, 2C and 2D.
As a result, only a single attachment feature 2 changes when moving
between two adjacent mounting positions. Thus, the attachment
feature 2 arrangement in this illustrative embodiment allows
another binding mounting position to be added at all points in the
pattern by adding a single attachment feature 2. For example,
another binding mounting position may be added to the first group
17 of attachment features 2 by appropriately adding one more
attachment feature 2 to the row on the line 41 to the right of
attachment feature 2E, or by adding one more to the row on line 42
to the left of feature 2B.
[0082] As described in more detail below, one way of implementing
the embodiment of the present invention that provides an increment
of adjustment between adjacent mounting positions, i.e., a distance
between adjacent binding mounting positions, that is less than the
minimum distance between adjacent attachment features 2 is to
arrange the attachment features 2 so that the centers of adjacent
mounting positions are offset on opposite sides of a tip-to-tail
line extending between the attachment features (e.g., the
centerline CL as shown in FIG. 5). This is advantageous in that it
enables the attachment features 2 to be spaced apart by a
relatively long distance (which, for example, may help preserve the
strength of the snowboard 1 and reduce a need to reinforce the
board near the attachment features 2) while providing binding
mounting positions at a relatively shorter incremental
distance.
[0083] The arrangement of attachment features 2 shown in FIG. 5
also provides an overall range of adjustment, i.e., a total
distance over which a binding may be mounted to a snowboard 1, that
is greater than 4.times.4 and 3D.RTM. patterns having a same number
of attachment features. For example, a 4.times.4 pattern that
provides a same number of mounting positions and total range of
adjustment as a pattern shown in FIG. 1 would necessarily require
more attachment features 2, since four attachment features 2 are
used to mount a binding at each mounting position and two
additional attachment features 2 must be added to the pattern for
each new mounting position. Reducing the number of attachment
features 2 in the snowboard 1 may allow for a lower weight board
and/or require less reinforcement of the board near the attachment
features 2 to prevent pull-out or other detachment of the features
2 from the snowboard 1.
[0084] The first group 17 of attachment features 2 in FIG. 5
includes six attachment features 2, whereas the second group 18
includes seven attachment features 2. However, it should be
understood that the first and second groups of attachment features
2 each may include any suitable number of attachment features 2
other than six or seven attachment features 2, e.g., to provide a
different range of adjustment for a binding, as the invention is
not limited to using any particular number of attachment features
2. In addition, the first and second groups 17 and 18 of attachment
features 2 may include a same number of attachment features 2,
e.g., six inserts.
[0085] In the illustrative embodiment of FIG. 5, the attachment
features 2 are arranged along two longitudinal lines 41 and 42.
However, this arrangement is not necessary. For example, a first
group 17 of attachment features 2 may be arranged along a first
pair of approximately parallel lines, and a second group 18 of
attachment features 2 may be arranged along a second pair of
approximately parallel lines. The first and second pairs of
parallel lines may or may not be parallel to each other and/or the
centerline CL. Thus, first and second groups 17 and 18 of
attachment features 2 may be arranged along lines that are at an
angle with respect to each other and/or at an angle with respect to
the centerline CL. Further, the snowboard 1 need not include two
distinct groups 17 and 18 of attachment features 2, but instead may
have a single continuous group of attachment features 2.
[0086] FIG. 6 shows a more detailed geometrical representation of
the first group 17 of attachment features 2 in a specific
illustrative embodiment of FIG. 5. In this illustrative embodiment,
attachment features 2 are positioned at or near each of the points
A-F, which are arranged to form equilateral triangles. Thus, the
points A, B and C form an equilateral triangle such that the
distances of the lines AB, BC and AC are equal to each other.
Similarly, an equilateral triangle is formed by the points B, C and
D, and so on. In one embodiment, the distance between points, e.g.,
the length of lines AB, BC and AC, is 43 millimeters, although
other distances between the points may be used. In this
illustrative embodiment, groups of three adjacent points, such as
points A, B and C, may be used to mount a binding to a snowboard
1.
[0087] Each of the centerpoints of the equilateral triangles, e.g.,
points 01, 02, 03 and 04, is positioned at an equal distance from
the vertices of its corresponding equilateral triangle and is
offset from the centerline CL. In the illustrative embodiment where
the length of each of the sides of each equilateral triangle is 43
millimeters, each of the centerpoints 01, 02, 03 and 04, is
positioned at a distance of approximately 24.82 millimeters from
each vertex of its corresponding triangle. Thus, the distances
between A and 01, B and 01 and C and 01 all equal approximately
24.82 millimeters, and the centerpoint 01 is offset at a distance
of approximately 6.2 millimeters above the centerline CL.
Similarly, the centerpoint 02 of the equilateral triangle formed by
points B, C and D is positioned at an equal distance from its
vertices at points B, C and D, and the centerpoint 02 is positioned
at a distance of approximately 6.2 millimeters below the centerline
CL.
[0088] Each of the triangles, i.e., ABC, BCD, CDE, and DEF, may
provide a binding mounting position P on the centerline CL. That
is, each group of three adjacent attachment features may be used to
mount a binding to the snowboard 1 so that the binding is
positioned with respect to the corresponding mounting position P
along the centerline CL. For example, if a hold down disk 32 is
used to mount a binding to the snowboard 1, openings, holes, or
other attachment elements in the hold down disk 32 may be suitably
arranged so that the hold down disk 32 may be suitably positioned
with respect to the centerline CL, e.g., the center of the disk 32
may be positioned at the centerline CL to center the binding in the
edge-to-edge direction on the snowboard 1. In this illustrative
embodiment, each mounting position P lies on a line that extends
from a vertex of the corresponding triangular pattern to a point
that bisects an opposite leg of the triangular pattern. For
example, the mounting position P1 that corresponds to the
triangular pattern formed by attachment features ABC lies at the
point where a line extending from the attachment feature 2 at point
B to a point Z1 intersects the centerline CL. The point Z1 is
equidistant from the points A and C along the line 41. The mounting
positions P2, P3 and P4 may be similarly positioned with respect to
their corresponding triangular pattern of attachment features 2. In
the embodiment where the points A-F are separated by 43 mm from
adjacent points, the distance B-P1 and Z1-P1 is equal to
approximately 18.6 mm, and the distance between B-Z1 is
approximately 37.2 mm. Thus, the centers of the attachment features
2 at points A-F are positioned within 19 mm of the centerline CL,
and are positioned within a rectangular area having a width (a
dimension measured perpendicular to the centerline CL in this
embodiment) of no more than 38 mm.
[0089] As mentioned above, the arrangement of attachment features
at points A-F shown in FIG. 6 may provide a set of mounting
positions P along the length of the snowboard 1 that are separated
by a distance, i.e., an increment of adjustment, that is less than
a minimum distance between the attachment features 2. For example,
in the illustrative embodiment where the attachment features 2 are
separated by a minimum distance of 43 millimeters, adjacent
mounting positions P along the centerline CL are separated by a
distance of approximately 21.5 millimeters. Thus, the attachment
feature arrangement shown in FIG. 6 provides a minimum increment of
adjustment between mounting positions P that is one-half of the
minimum distance between attachment features 2. This feature is
provided, at least in part, by the pattern of the attachment
features 2 creating triangles having centerpoints 01-04 that are
offset from the centerline CL, i.e., the centerpoints of adjacent
mounting positions are offset on alternate sides of the centerline
CL. Thus, for example, even though the centerpoints 01 and 02 are
separated by a distance 01-02 equal to the minimum distance between
attachment features 2, the distance between mounting positions
P1-P2 is equal to a shorter distance, i.e., a longitudinal
component of the line 01-02 that is parallel to the centerline
CL.
[0090] In some cases, it may be desirable to provide a relatively
small increment of adjustment between binding mounting positions P,
because this may provide a rider with the ability to mount a
binding at an ideal, or near ideal, tip-to-tail position on the
snowboard 1. With prior attachment position arrangements, the
increment of adjustment between binding mounting positions P was
limited by a minimum distance between attachment features 2, which
distance was constrained by certain physical characteristics of the
snowboard 1. For example, attachment features 2 have not been fixed
within a snowboard 1 closer than certain distances, e.g., closer
than 25 millimeters, out of a concern that doing so could create a
weakness in the snowboard 1 near the closely spaced attachment
features 2. Thus, by providing an increment of adjustment that is
less than the minimum distance between attachment features, an
attachment feature arrangement in accordance with one embodiment of
the invention can provide relatively small increments of adjustment
between binding mounting positions P while maintaining a relatively
larger distance between attachment features 2 on the snowboard 1.
However, it should be understood that this aspect of the invention
is not limited to the specific attachment feature pattern of FIG.
2, as other attachment feature patterns (e.g., others in which the
centers of binding mounting patterns are offset on alternate sides
of a longitudinal line along the board) can be used to achieve this
result.
[0091] Another aspect of the present invention illustrated by the
attachment feature pattern shown in FIG. 6 is that an additional
binding mounting position P may be added to all positions in the
pattern by adding a single additional attachment feature 2. For
example, by adding an attachment feature at the point G in FIG. 2,
an additional binding mounting position P5 is added. This is not
the case with 4.times.4 and 3D.RTM. patterns. In the case of the
4.times.4 pattern, four inserts are used to mount a binding at a
mounting position, so that two additional inserts must be added to
an existing pattern to provide an additional mounting position. In
the case of the 3D.RTM. pattern, while in some cases an additional
binding mounting position may be added by providing a single
additional insert, this is not true for all positions in the
pattern. That is, in some positions in the pattern, two additional
inserts must be added to provide an additional mounting
position.
[0092] It should also be understood that the aspect of the
invention where only one attachment feature may be added to provide
an additional mounting position is not limited to the specific
pattern shown in FIG. 6, as other attachment feature patterns, such
as that shown in FIG. 1, can be used that achieve this result.
[0093] As discussed above, a binding 3 may be attached to the
snowboard 1 as shown in FIG. 7 using a hold down disk 32 that has
three holes 34 positioned at the vertices of a triangle and
arranged to overlie attachment features 2 in the snowboard 1. As in
FIG. 3 above, the binding 3 is shown as a conventional tray binding
with a toe strap 37 and highback 38, but the present invention is
not limited to a binding 3 including these and/or any other
particular elements, as the binding 3 may be any type of binding,
such as a strap binding, step-in binding, plate binding, or any
other type of device used to attach a rider's foot to a snowboard
1, whether the rider is wearing soft or hard boots, or other
footwear, as the invention is not limited to use with any
particular type of binding 3.
[0094] When mounting the binding 3 to the snowboard 1, three holes
34 in the hold down disk 32 may be aligned with three corresponding
attachment features 2 at a suitable mounting position, and the disk
32 secured to the snowboard 1 at the mounting position, e.g., by
engaging screws with the three attachment features 2. The hold down
disk 32 may engage with an opening formed in the baseplate 33 of
the binding 3, and have any other suitable features to perform any
of the functions described above, such as engage with the opening
in the baseplate 33 to secure the binding 3 to the snowboard 1
and/or prevent rotation of the baseplate 33 relative to the hold
down disk.
[0095] FIG. 8 shows one illustrative embodiment of a hold down disk
32 in accordance with aspects of the invention. This hold down disk
32 is specially adapted for use with the attachment feature
patterns discussed above in connection with FIGS. 5 and 6 and has
three through holes 34 to receive fasteners (e.g., screws) to
attach to the attachment feature 2. In this illustrative
embodiment, each hole 34 has scalloped portions to provide five
different adjustment positions, e.g., so that the hold down disk 32
and corresponding binding 3 may be adjusted in position in an
edge-to-edge direction on the snowboard 1. That is, in this
embodiment, each hole 34 provides for five different adjustment
positions (e.g., spaced at 5 millimeter increments) at which a
screw may pass through the hole 34 and secure the disk 32 to the
snowboard 1. Of course, the aspects of the invention directed to a
new hold down disk 32 are not limited to one using holes 34 with
five scalloped adjustment positions, as each hole 34 may provide
only a single adjustment position, may be replaced by multiple
spaced holes each providing a single adjustment position, may be
formed as an oblong hole not having any discrete adjustment
positions, or may include different numbers of adjustment
positions.
[0096] The adjustment positions for the holes 34 in the FIG. 4
embodiment form five equally sized triangles, including a central
triangle 36 and four other triangles formed by corresponding
scalloped portions of the holes 34. The central triangle 36
provides a central adjustment position by which the center OD of
the disk 32 may be positioned nearest a reference line, such as the
centerline CL on the snowboard 1. Thus, for example, when the disk
32 is mounted to the snowboard 1 using the central triangle 36, the
disk 32 may be positioned nearer the centerline CL (e.g., at the
centerline) as compared to other triangles provided by the holes
34. In this embodiment, one central triangle 36 is provided, but
the holes 34 may provide two or more central triangles 36, e.g.,
two adjustment positions that position the disk 32 at an equal
distance from the centerline CL. Also, in the embodiment shown, the
triangles, including the central triangle 36, are equilateral
triangles, but the invention is not so limited. Rather, the
triangles may be any type of triangle suitably arranged to
cooperate with an attachment feature pattern on a snowboard 1.
[0097] One aspect of the invention illustrated in the embodiment of
FIG. 8 is that the hold down disk 32 has at least three openings
(e.g., the holes 34), that form a triangle, e.g., the triangle 36,
and are arranged so that no leg of the triangle is perpendicular to
a tip-to-tail axis of the disk 32. This type of arrangement may
cooperate with a pattern in which the attachment features are
arranged in a triangle with no leg perpendicular to the tip-to-tail
axis of the board. The tip-to-tail axis of the disk 32 is, in this
illustrative embodiment, indicated by the tip-tail marking on the
disk 32, and is arranged to lie in the tip-to-tail direction of the
snowboard 1 when the disk 32 is mounted to the attachment feature
pattern in the snowboard 1. It should be appreciated that the
present invention is not limited to a disk 32 that includes
markings for the tip-to-tail axis, as the same information may be
otherwise indicated, e.g., by edge-edge markings on the disk 32, or
the disk can be devoid of any such markings at all.
[0098] Another aspect of the invention illustrated in the FIG. 8
embodiment is that the disk 32 has at least three openings 34 that
form a triangle, e.g., the central triangle 36, and are arranged in
the disk 32 so that a line between two openings and extending
parallel to the tip-to-tail axis is as long as any other leg of the
triangle. This is true, for example, of a leg of the triangle 36
that extends between the points B and D in FIG. 8. This type of
arrangement may cooperate with an attachment feature pattern in the
snowboard in which the attachment features form at least one
triangle with a leg parallel to the tip-to-tail axis that is as
long as any other leg of the triangle.
[0099] Another aspect of the present invention illustrated by the
embodiment of FIG. 8 is that the hold down disk 32 has at least
three openings 34 that form at least one central triangle 36 having
a center (at 02 in this embodiment since the vertices of the
central triangle 36 are shown aligned with the attachment feature
pattern BCD from FIG. 6) that is offset from the center OD of the
hold down disk 32. That is, although several triangular patterns
may be formed by the openings 34 for different adjustment
positions, at least one central triangle, (e.g., the triangle 36),
has a center (a point equidistant from the vertices of the triangle
36) that is spaced from the center OD of the disk 32. A hold down
disk incorporating this aspect of the invention may be used to
cooperate with a pattern of attachment features in a snowboard 1 in
which the centers of adjacent binding mounting positions are offset
on alternate sides of a tip-to-tail line, such as a centerline, on
the snowboard 1 by the same amount that the center of the center
triangle is offset from the center OD of the disk. Offsetting the
center of the central triangle 36 from the center OD of the disk 32
in this manner allows the disk 32 to be uniformly positioned in the
edge-to-edge direction independently of the longitudinal position
of the disk 32 on the snowboard 1, i.e., regardless of which
mounting position is used on the snowboard 1.
[0100] For example, in one embodiment, the center of the central
triangle 36 is offset from the center OD of the disk 32 by an
amount equal to the offset of the centerpoint 02 of the triangle
BCD in FIG. 6. As a result, when the openings 34 in the disk 32
that form the central triangle 36 are secured to the attachment
features 2 at the points B, C and D, the center of the central
triangle 36 overlies the centerpoint 02 of the triangle BCD and the
center OD of the disk 32 is positioned at the centerline CL on the
snowboard 1. Of course, any adjustment positions of the holes 34
may be used, and may correspond with any triangular pattern of
attachment features 2 on the snowboard 1 in FIGS. 1 and 2 to
customize the position of the binding 3. In the embodiment shown in
FIG. 4, the adjustment positions on either side of the central
adjustment position are equally spaced from the central adjustment
position (e.g., the upper mounting position 34-1 is the same
distance from the central position (at BCD) as the lowermost
position 34-5). As a result, the disk 32 may be used to adjust the
binding 3 from one mounting position P (see FIG. 2) to another
adjacent mounting position P without altering the edge-to-edge
position of the binding 3. Thus, the longitudinal position of the
binding 3 may be adjusted independently of the edge-to-edge
position by using the same corresponding adjustment positions of
the holes 34 at the two mounting positions. For example, if the
binding 3 is mounted to the snowboard 1 at the mounting position P2
using the adjustment position closest the toe edge (the uppermost
adjustment position 34-1 of the holes 34 as shown in FIG. 4), the
disk 32 may be removed, rotated 180 degrees and secured to the
attachment features 2 at the points C, D and E using the adjustment
position closest to the toe edge of the now rotated disk 32 (i.e.,
the adjustment position formerly closest to the heel edge as shown
in FIG. 5). This feature can be useful when a rider would like to
adjust stance width on a snowboard 1 without making any adjustment
in the edge-to-edge position of a binding 3. Thus, the rider need
only remember the adjustment position used at a first mounting
position, e.g., the top adjustment position of the holes 34, move
the disk 32 to the new mounting position and reattach the disk 32
and binding 3 using the same corresponding adjustment position,
e.g., the top adjustment position, regardless of whether the disk
32 is rotated to mount the binding 3 at the new position.
[0101] Thus, offsetting the centerpoint of the central adjustment
position of the holes 34 from the center OD of the disk 32 and
spacing adjustment positions uniformly from the central adjustment
position, e.g., at 5 millimeter increments, may provide advantages
over other hole 34 arrangements. If the central adjustment position
for the holes 34 were positioned so that the center OD of the disk
32 was at the centerpoint 02 of the triangular pattern BCD in FIG.
2, this arrangement might not allow a binding 3 to be positioned on
the snowboard 1 in a predictable way, especially when the disk 32
is turned 180 degrees so that the binding may be adjusted from one
mounting position P to another adjacent mounting position P. For
example, if the centerpoint (at 02) of the central adjustment
position for the holes 34 is positioned at the center OD of the
disk 32, when the disk 32 is rotated and engaged at the adjacent
triangular pattern CDE, the center OD of the disk 32 would be
positioned at the centerpoint 03, which would result in the binding
3 being offset in an edge-to-edge direction by an amount equaling
the offset of the centerpoints 02, 03 from the centerline CL. If
the holes 34 have slots or otherwise provide multiple adjustment
positions, this offset may be compensated for by using different
adjustment positions of the holes 34 for the different mounting
positions P. However, this may not be ideal since an adjustment in
a rider's stance width on the snowboard 1 would require
compensation in the edge-to-edge direction as well as the
tip-to-tail direction. Instead, an adjustment in stance width
should preferably be only dependent on which adjustment position of
the holes 34 is used to mount the bindings 3. That is, for example,
if a binding 3 is moved from one mounting position to another
mounting position, the edge-to-edge position of the binding 3
preferably should not change if the same, corresponding adjustment
position for the holes 34 is used at both mounting positions.
[0102] While offsetting the centerpoint of the central adjustment
position for the holes 34 from the center of the disk is
advantageous in an embodiment where the centerpoint of the binding
mounting position is offset from a centerline of the snowboard, use
of such offsetting and other features of the FIG. 8 embodiment are
not required with other aspects of the invention described above.
In addition, it is not necessary to employ holes 34 that provide a
central adjustment position on the disk that locates the center OD
of the disk 32 at a tip-to-tail line on the board, such as the
centerline CL. In addition, the adjustment positions may be equally
spaced from a central adjustment position as in the illustrative
embodiment of FIG. 8, or unequally spaced from each other and/or
from the central adjustment position. Further, in this embodiment,
the holes 34 are extended in a direction transverse to the
tip-to-tail direction to allow the disk 32 to be positioned in a
lateral toe-to-heel edge direction on the snowboard 1. However, the
holes 34 may be arranged in other directions, e.g., to provide
adjustment of the disk 32 in a longitudinal direction along the
snowboard 1, or as discussed above only a single position can be
provided at each vertex.
[0103] In the embodiment shown in FIG. 8, the disk 32 includes
reference features, including angle indication marks 35, to provide
an indication of the orientation of the binding 3 relative to the
snowboard 1 or the disk 32. In FIG. 4, the angle indication marks
35 are in increments of 15.degree. with the 0.degree., 30.degree.
and 60.degree. marks being labeled. The angle indication marks 35
may be provided at a finer or more coarse scale and/or may also
provide additional angle indication marks, such as one for the
45.degree. mark. Also, the angle indication marks may be positioned
in any suitable way on the disk 32, e.g., the 0.degree. marks may
be changed to 90.degree. marks and the other marks 35 adjusted
accordingly. The disk 32 may also include indicators showing the
tip-to-tail direction, e.g., such as a double-headed arrow and text
indicator extending between the tip-and-tail marks (e.g., the
0.degree.-0.degree. marks), and/or an indicator showing the
approximate location of the edges 16 of the snowboard 1. These
additional indicators may provide an aid to properly positioning
the disk 32 on a snowboard 1. The angle indication marks 35 may be
formed permanently in the disk 32, such as by molding the marks 35
in the disk 32, or may be applied to the disk 32, e.g., on a
sticker or other label adhered to the disk 32. The invention is not
limited to these specific marking features, as any suitable
indication indicia will do. In addition, the angle indication marks
35 or other indicators on the disk 32 may be omitted from some
embodiments.
[0104] In another aspect of the invention, attachment feature
arrangements may provide for a smaller reinforced area on the board
where attachment features are positioned. FIG. 9 illustrates an
embodiment in accordance with an aspect of the invention employed
in a snowboard 1 having the attachment feature pattern shown in
FIG. 1. In this illustrative embodiment, the snowboard 1 includes a
reinforcement or high-strength strip 11 that runs longitudinally
along the snowboard 1. The attachment features 2 may be fixed in
the snowboard 1 within or near the reinforcement strip 11. The
snowboard 1 may also include lower strength or filler strips 14 and
15 that may have a lower strength than the reinforcement strip 11,
as these filler strips are not used to anchor the attachment
features 2 to the snowboard 1. Thus, the filler strips 14 and 15
may be made of lighter and/or less expensive material. The strips
11, 14 and 15 may be formed as part of a core of the snowboard 1,
e.g., the reinforcement strip 11 may include hardwood strips
attached to lighter weight and lower strength filler strips 14 and
15, which may be made of balsa wood. The strips 11, 14 and 15 may
be attached together and fashioned to form the core of the
snowboard 1 around which other portions of the snowboard 1, such as
the base, side edges and top surface, are formed in any suitable
manner.
[0105] The reinforcement strip 11 may also be incorporated into the
snowboard 1 in other ways. For example, the reinforcement strip 11
may include higher strength fiber or resin materials to reinforce
areas around the attachment features 2. In addition, the
reinforcing strip 11 need not extend along the entire length of the
snowboard 1. Instead, the reinforcing strip 11 may be formed only
locally around each attachment feature 2 or each group of
attachment features 2.
[0106] The aspect of the invention described above in connection
with FIG. 9 is not limited to the attachment feature 2 arrangement
shown in FIG. 1. Instead, reinforcement strips may be provided in
the snowboard 1 for attachment features 2 arranged in any desired
pattern, such as those shown in FIG. 4, in a typical 4.times.4
pattern, in a typical 3D.RTM. pattern or any other. Thus, the
reinforcement strip 11 may be arranged to have different properties
and be positioned within the snowboard 1 depending on the
attachment feature pattern used.
[0107] FIG. 10 illustrates an embodiment of the invention wherein
the pattern of FIG. 5 is employed in a snowboard 1 having variable
strength at different positions of the snowboard 1. In this
illustrative embodiment, the snowboard 1 includes a pair of
reinforcement or high-strength strips 11 and 12 that run
longitudinally along the snowboard 1. Attachment features 2 may be
fixed in the snowboard 1 within or near the reinforcement strips 11
and 12. The snowboard 1 may also include lower strength or filler
strips 13, 14 and 15 that may have a lower strength than the
reinforcement strips 11 and 12, as these filler strips are not used
to anchor the attachment features 2 to the snowboard 1. The strips
11-15 may be formed as part of a core of the snowboard 1, e.g., the
reinforcement strips 11 and 12 may include hardwood strips attached
to lighter weight and lower strength filler strips 13-15, which may
be made of balsa wood. The strips 11-15 may be attached together
and fashioned to form the core of the snowboard 1.
[0108] Several aspects of the invention discussed above relate to
an attachment feature pattern for mounting a binding to a snowboard
1. These aspects of the invention are not limited in how the
attachment features 2 are used to mount a binding 3 to the
snowboard 1. For example, FIG. 11 shows an illustrative embodiment
of a hold down disk 32 having a mounting plate 322. In this
embodiment, the mounting plate 322 is attached to a snowboard 1,
such as by using screws (not shown) that extend through holes 325
in the plate 322 and engage with attachment features 2 in the
snowboard 1. A disk 321 may be attached to the mounting plate 322
by a screw 323 that engages with a threaded hole 324 in the
mounting plate 322. Engaging the screw 323 with the threaded hole
324 may cause the disk 321 to engage with the mounting plate 322 so
that the disk 321 may not freely rotate relative to the plate 322.
The mounting plate 322 may also be provided with holes 325 that are
oblong or otherwise provide a plurality of adjustment positions on
the snowboard 1 in much the same manner as the holes 34 in the disk
32 of FIGS. 4 or 8.
[0109] It should also be understood that the aspects of the present
invention discussed above are not limited to use with snowboards
and snowboarding equipment, as the various aspects of the invention
may be used with any gliding board or other recreational device,
such as skis, snowshoes, wakeboards, and so on.
[0110] While the invention has been described in conjunction with
specific embodiments thereof, many alternatives, modifications, and
variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
Accordingly, embodiments of the invention as set forth herein are
intended to be illustrative, not limiting. Various changes may be
made without departing from the spirit and scope of the
invention.
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