U.S. patent application number 13/286344 was filed with the patent office on 2012-05-03 for multiple blade sharpening apparatus and method.
Invention is credited to Jason Swist.
Application Number | 20120108151 13/286344 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 45995830 |
Filed Date | 2012-05-03 |
United States Patent
Application |
20120108151 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Swist; Jason |
May 3, 2012 |
Multiple Blade Sharpening Apparatus and Method
Abstract
The competitive and technological evolution of sports with ice
skates such as ice hockey, speed skating, and figure skating as
well as the conditioning and training of these athletes places
increased demands on their equipment. Amongst these are the ability
to vary the blade profile at different points to increase speed,
agility, acceleration, etc according to the sport and the athlete's
personal preferences. In many instances matching left and right
blades is also important. In contrast in amateur sports where users
access retail skate sharpening services speed or service and cost
of service is important. A system and method are taught for
simultaneously profiling both blades of user for increasing speed
and reducing cost in retail environments whilst aligning there
profiles in more professional applications. The method further
allows for profiles to vary in cross-section along the length of
the blade.
Inventors: |
Swist; Jason; (Edmonton,
CA) |
Family ID: |
45995830 |
Appl. No.: |
13/286344 |
Filed: |
November 1, 2011 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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61409142 |
Nov 2, 2010 |
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61409650 |
Nov 3, 2010 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
451/45 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63C 1/32 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
451/45 |
International
Class: |
B24B 1/00 20060101
B24B001/00 |
Claims
1. A method comprising: providing a first grinding wheel having a
first profile demountably attached to a first spindle operably
engaged to a first drive system and forming a predetermined portion
of a first grinding sub-assembly; providing a second grinding wheel
having a second profile demountably attached to a second spindle
operably engaged to a second drive system and forming a
predetermined portion of a second grinding sub-assembly; providing
a first stage comprising a first mount for accepting a first blade
and a second mount for accepting a second blade, the first stage,
first mount and second mount configured to place the first blade in
a predetermined relationship to the first grinding wheel and the
second blade in a predetermined relationship to the second grinding
wheel; operating the first and second drive systems to rotate the
first and second grinding wheels; moving the first stage in
predetermined pattern relative to the first and second grinding
sub-assemblies to simultaneously profile the first and second
blades with the first profile and second profiles respectively.
2. The method according to claim 1 further comprising: a controller
interfaced to the first stage to control the first stage in order
to execute the predetermined pattern.
3. The method according to claim 1 wherein, the predetermined
pattern comprises a first predetermined sequence of motions along
the length of the blade and a second predetermined sequence of
motions across the width of the blade.
4. The method according to claim 1 wherein, each of the first and
second grinding wheels are at least one of a thickness at least
that of the respective blade and with an edge profile the
complementary of the intended respective profile to be applied to
the respective blade and substantially thinner than the thickness
of the respective blade.
5. The method according to claim 1 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner along the length of the respective blades.
6. The method according to claim 1 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner across the width of the respective blades.
7. The method according to claim 5 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner across the width of the respective blades, the predetermined
manner being determined in dependence upon at least one of position
along the length of the respective blade, the sport for which the
blades are intended, and a characteristic of the player for whom
the respective blades are intended.
8. A method comprising: providing a first grinding wheel having a
first profile demountably attached to a first spindle operably
engaged to a first drive system and forming a predetermined portion
of a first grinding sub-assembly; providing a second grinding wheel
having a second profile demountably attached to a second spindle
operably engaged to a second drive system and forming a
predetermined portion of a second grinding sub-assembly; providing
a first stage comprising a first mount for accepting a first blade
and a second mount for accepting a second blade, the first stage,
first mount and second mount configured to place the first blade in
a predetermined relationship to the first grinding wheel and the
second blade in a predetermined relationship to the second grinding
wheel; operating the first and second drive systems to rotate the
first and second grinding wheels; moving the first grinding
sub-assembly in a predetermined pattern relative to the first stage
to apply the first profile to the first blade; and moving the
second grinding sub-assembly in a predetermined pattern relative to
the first stage to apply the second profile to the second
blade.
9. The method according to claim 8 further comprising: a controller
interfaced to the first stage to control the first stage in order
to execute the predetermined pattern.
10. The method according to claim 8 wherein, the predetermined
pattern comprises a first predetermined sequence of motions along
the length of the blade and a second predetermined sequence of
motions across the width of the blade.
11. The method according to claim 8 wherein, each of the first and
second grinding wheels are at least one of a thickness at least
that of the respective blade and with an edge profile the
complementary of the intended respective profile to be applied to
the respective blade and substantially thinner than the thickness
of the respective blade.
12. The method according to claim 8 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner along the length of the respective blades.
13. The method according to claim 8 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner across the width of the respective blades.
14. The method according to claim 12 wherein, the resulting profile
on each of the first and second blades varies in a predetermined
manner across the width of the respective blades, the predetermined
manner being determined in dependence upon at least one of position
along the length of the respective blade, the sport for which the
blades are intended, and a characteristic of the player for whom
the respective blades are intended.
15. A method comprising: providing mounts for a pair of ice skate
blades, each mount being capable of motion in at least two
directions selected from the group comprising lateral, transverse,
vertical, roll, pith and yaw; grinding a first profile
longitudinally along a first predetermined portion of each ice
skate blade primarily for gliding upon an ice surface, the first
profile having an edge at each end of the profile and ground with a
first tool having a width substantially less than that of the
lateral width of the first profile and having a first predetermined
tool profile; and forming a second profile formed longitudinally
along a second predetermined portion of the ice skate blade
primarily for edging into the surface, the second profile having an
edge at each end of the profile and ground with a second tool
having a width substantially less than that of the lateral width of
the second profile and having a second predetermined tool profile;
wherein the first and second profiles share a common edge.
16. The method according to claim 15 wherein; the first profile is
selected from the group comprising circular arc, flat bottom
circular arc and flat bottom vee (V); and the second profile is
selected from the group comprising circular arc, flat bottom
circular arc and flat bottom vee (V) omitting the profile selected
for the first profile.
17. The method according to claim 15 wherein; the resulting
profiles on each of the first and second blades varies in a
predetermined manner across the surface of the respective
blades.
18. The method according to claim 17 wherein, the predetermined
manner is determined in dependence upon at least one of position on
the surface of the respective blade, the sport for which the blades
are intended, and a characteristic of the player for whom the
respective blades are intended.
19. The method according to claim 15 wherein;the resulting profiles
on each of the first and second blades are mirror images of one
another with respect to the longitudinal axis of the ice skate
blades.
20. The method according to claim 15 wherein; each of the mounts
for the pair of skates are controlled independently of one another
in a manner so as to facilitate grinding of the profiles on the
first and second blades with a reduced separation between the
mounts than if the pair of mounts executed the same motions
together.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This patent application claims the benefit of U.S.
Provisional Patent Application US 61/409,650 filed Nov. 3, 2010
entitled "Ice Skate Blade" and U.S. Provisional Patent Application
61/409,650 filed Nov. 2, 2010 entitled "Multiple Blade Sharpening
Apparatus and Method"
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[0002] This invention relates to sharpening blades and more
specifically to sharpening multiple blades simultaneously with
complex profiles.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0003] In winter sports such as ice skating and hockey the blades
of an ice skate are the point of contact for all of the forces
generated in turns, spins, jumps, stops, gathering speed etc. Ice
skates typically have a convex shape along a length of the skate
blade and a concave shape across the width of the blade, defining
two edges along the length of the blade. A skater can use either of
these two edges in executing maneuvers on the ice surface. In order
to maintain a desired blade configuration, a skate sharpening
machine must be employed to re-grind the lower surface of the blade
to create a groove along the length of the blade according to the
desired profile
[0004] As skate blades differ from one pair to another, the
sharpening of the skate blade to a required profile has long been
considered to be part art and part science. Within the prior art
the operator of a skate sharpening machine is required to first
dress a grinding wheel to have the desired contour and then ensure
that during the grinding process the centerline of the contour on a
wheel coincides with the centerline of the blade along its full
length. If this is not done an irregular groove will be created
along the length of the blade, with one edge being higher/lower
than the other.
[0005] Further with use a dressing of the skate sharpening grinding
wheel itself must be carried out. This is traditionally carried out
using a single point diamond dresser that is pivoted about an axis
generally perpendicular to an axis of rotation of the grinding
wheel. The single point diamond dresser is slowly swung through an
arc that intersects the outer periphery of the grinding wheel,
removing material from the wheel to create and define a grinding
wheel contour. Since the dresser pivots, the contour formed on the
grinding wheel is anything from a convex arcuate surface with a
radius typically in the range of 3/8 inch to 15/8 inch through to a
triangular profile. Once the grinding wheel contour has been
created, it may be used to create a complementary surface on the
skate blade.
[0006] With time the profiling of ice skates has evolved as former
recreational sports such as skating and "shinny" hockey evolved
into Olympic sports with multiple disciplines including long-track
speed skating, short-track speed skating, ice dance, ice etc and
"shinny" hockey on frozen ponds, lakes, and rivers became a
multi-billion dollar sporting franchise globally with individual
players being remunerated in contracts of tens of millions of
dollars. Alongside multiple equipment manufacturers jostle for an
edge in the sports equipment market for the over 1.5 million
registered hockey players globally and tens of millions of skaters
globally who spend anything up to $1,000 on a pair of skates to
keep up with their heroes, given the winning edge, etc.
[0007] As such ice skate blade profiles have evolved into a science
with different profiles of blade between speed skating and ice
dance, defender, goalie, attacker, short speed and long speed.
Additionally atop these differences that science is establishing
from research are the individualities of the various players and
the intuitive, difficult to quantify "feel" of their skates.
[0008] Accordingly it would be desirable to provide an ice skate
blade sharpening machine that allows for sharpening multiple blades
simultaneously allowing accurate alignment of profiles for example
within a single player's pair, across multiple pairs for a user or
simply to reduce time and cost in retail establishments offering
blade sharpening services.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0009] It is an object of the present invention to obviate or
mitigate at least one disadvantage of the prior art.
[0010] In accordance with an embodiment of the invention there is
provided a method comprising: [0011] providing a first grinding
wheel having a first profile demountably attached to a first
spindle operably engaged to a first drive system and forming a
predetermined portion of a first grinding sub-assembly; [0012]
providing a second grinding wheel having a second profile
demountably attached to a second spindle operably engaged to a
second drive system and forming a predetermined portion of a second
grinding sub-assembly; [0013] providing a first stage comprising a
first mount for accepting a first blade and a second mount for
accepting a second blade, the first stage, first mount and second
mount configured to place the first blade in a predetermined
relationship to the first grinding wheel and the second blade in a
predetermined relationship to the second grinding wheel; [0014]
operating the first and second drive systems to rotate the first
and second grinding wheels; [0015] moving the first stage in
predetermined pattern relative to the first and second grinding
sub-assemblies to simultaneously profile the first and second
blades with the first profile and second profiles respectively.
[0016] In accordance with another embodiment of the invention there
is provided a method comprising: [0017] providing a first grinding
wheel having a first profile demountably attached to a first
spindle operably engaged to a first drive system and forming a
predetermined portion of a first grinding sub-assembly; [0018]
providing a second grinding wheel having a second profile
demountably attached to a second spindle operably engaged to a
second drive system and forming a predetermined portion of a second
grinding sub-assembly; [0019] providing a first stage comprising a
first mount for accepting a first blade and a second mount for
accepting a second blade, the first stage, first mount and second
mount configured to place the first blade in a predetermined
relationship to the first grinding wheel and the second blade in a
predetermined relationship to the second grinding wheel; [0020]
operating the first and second drive systems to rotate the first
and second grinding wheels; [0021] moving the first grinding
sub-assembly in a predetermined pattern relative to the first stage
to apply the first profile to the first blade; and [0022] moving
the second grinding sub-assembly in a predetermined pattern
relative to the first stage to apply the second profile to the
second blade.
[0023] Other aspects and features of the present invention will
become apparent to those ordinarily skilled in the art upon review
of the following description of specific embodiments of the
invention in conjunction with the accompanying figures.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described,
by way of example only, with reference to the attached Figures,
wherein:
[0025] FIG. 1 depicts ice skate sharpening systems according to the
prior art;
[0026] FIG. 2 depicts ice skate holders for providing contouring of
the skate according to the prior art;
[0027] FIG. 3 depicts ice skate blade profiles typically employed
within sports and recreational environments and how these vary for
different aspects of the same sport for professionals and serious
amateurs;
[0028] FIG. 4 depicts variants of ice skate blades for ice dance
with a schematic of a typical alignment error in skate sharpening
systems;
[0029] FIG. 5 depicts ice skates and the sections now considered
for a skate with varying profile for each according to the users
sport;
[0030] FIG. 6 depicts a skate sharpening system according to an
embodiment of the invention;
[0031] FIG. 7 depicts a skate sharpening system according to an
embodiment of the invention;
[0032] FIG. 8 depicts a prior art approach to dressing a disc and
grinding a blade together with an alternative approach according to
an embodiment of the invention; and
[0033] FIG. 9 depicts a side elevation view of a skate sharpening
system according to an embodiment of the invention for sharpening
both blades simultaneously.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0034] Reference may be made below to specific elements, numbered
in accordance with the attached figures. The discussion below
should be taken to be exemplary in nature, and not as limiting of
the scope of the present invention. The scope of the present
invention is defined in the claims, and should not be considered as
limited by the implementation details described below, which as one
skilled in the art will appreciate, can be modified by replacing
elements with equivalent functional elements.
[0035] FIG. 1 depicts ice skate sharpening systems according to the
prior art such as the Blackstone H-01 Liberty Double Head Machine
110 that provides one cross-grinding head for coarse profiling and
one finishing head for fine profiling, the Blackstone K-01 Stealth
Triple Head Machine 120 with one cross-grinding head and two
finishing heads and the BladeMaster BR2006VSV 130 designed to
accommodate 2 operators simultaneously with angled 3-station
machine featuring cross grind, two variable speed finishing
stations and a granite tabletop for improved accuracy and
durability. Such machines retail for $10,000-$30,000 whilst there
are also portable versions for teams/users to take with them which
retail for between $1,000 and $5,000 typically.
[0036] Each of the ice skate sharpening systems above in FIG. 1
requires that the skate be mounted into an ice skate holder such as
those depicted in FIG. 2. Depicted are typical examples including
the BladeMaster SH-5000 210, BladeMaster SH-2000 220, Wissota Elite
3-Dial 230, and SSM Produkt SSM-2 240. The basic idea being that
the blade and/or skate are mounted in the ice skate holder and then
positioned with respect to the cross-grind or finishing wheels on
the ice skate sharpening machines with the correct vertical
position and then laterally moved with respect to the wheel so that
the profile is added to the blade.
[0037] FIG. 3 depicts ice skate blade profiles, circular arc 310
(CA), flat bottom circular arc (FBC) 320, and flat bottom "V" 320
(FBV), typically employed within sports and recreational
environments and how these vary for different aspects of the same
sport for professionals and serious amateurs. Considering initially
CA 310 then this represents the traditional profile of a skate.
This is because the traditional method of shaping the grinding
wheel that is used to sharpen the skate blade is to swing a single
point diamond tool in an arc about the centerline of the grinding
wheel. The variables in this CA 310 profile are the width of the
skate blade (w), the radius of the circular arc (r), the included
angle at the edge of the blade (.phi.) and h.sub.max the maximum
depth of the groove.
[0038] The geometry shown in CA 310 is with the circular arc
centered with the blade, considered to be the best, arrangement and
is known as "edges even condition". The interrelation between the
variables can be determined from Equations (1) and (2) below:
h.sub.max=r(1-cos(.alpha. sin(w/2r))) (1)
.phi.=90-.alpha. sin(w/2r) (2)
[0039] There are two other variables that can be changed in the
above equations; namely, the width of the skate blade, w, and the
radius of the groove, r. The width of the blade, w, is dependent
upon the type of skating being done, with the typical hockey blade
being 0.110 inches (2.8 mm) wide. The typical radius, r, used by
hockey players varies from 0.250 (6.35 mm), such as shown by
profile 340B for sharper turns but making gaining speed harder, to
2.00 (50.8 mm) inches, such as shown profile 340A making turns
difficult. A common radius being 0.50 (6.35 mm) inches. Typical
values of groove radius, r, when applied to hockey skates, 0.110
inches (2.8 mm) wide, will give the values of maximum depth,
h.sub.max, and the edge angle as shown below in Table 1.
TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Typical Circular Arc Blade Parameters for
Hockey Radius, r (in) Depth, h (in) Edge Angle, .phi. (deg) 0.250
0.00613 77.29.degree. 0.500 0.00303 83.68.degree. 0.750 0.00202
85.79.degree. 1.000 0.00151 86.85.degree. 1.250 0.00121
87.48.degree. 1.500 0.00101 87.90.degree. 1.750 0.00086
88.12.degree. 2.000 0.00076 88.42.degree.
[0040] It is worth noting that the range of edge angles, .phi., and
depths, h, is very limited. It is common knowledge in the ice
skating world that a smaller radius provides better turning ability
along with a slower glide speed, while a larger radius provides
superior glide speeds along with poorer turning ability.
[0041] Now considering the FBC 320 then the cross-section through
an ice skate blade is shown where a flat bottom has been added to
the traditional circular arc profile, leaving the two interior
circular arc profiles. In this case, the edge angle, .phi., will
remain the same as those calculated for circular arc profiles of
various radii, r, as shown in Table 1 above but the depth of the
flat, h, will be adjustable to any value less than the maximum
depth, h.sub.max, under the blade as calculated for the circular
arc. The depth of the flat, h is the distance between a line
joining the two blade edges, and the flat bottom of the skate
blade. The width of the flat bottom, d, is given by Equation (3)
below.
d=2[r.sup.2-(r-h.sub.max+h).sup.2].sup.1/2 (3)
[0042] The advantage of this profile over the traditional circular
arc profile is that the edge angle, .phi., can be maintained while
the depth, h, of the profile is reduced from, h.sub.max, leading to
a potentially faster skate with less drag. A nomenclature for FBC
profiles used by some manufacturers is FBC-XXX-YY where XXX is the
radius, r, of the arc in thousandths of an inch and YY is the depth
of the flat, h, in thousandths of an inch.
[0043] Now referring to FBV 330 then this groove profile on an ice
skate blade is an attempt to overcome the primary shortcoming of
the traditional circular arc profile; the fact that the edge angle,
.phi., and the maximum depth of the groove, h.sub.max, are linked.
This is a major constraint of the CA 310 profile. This profile is
named flat bottom `v` (FBV) as the two lower internal profile lines
would intersect in a V if there were projected, and the bottom of
the ice skate blade forms a flat bottom for the V shape resulting
from that projection. There are a few geometric properties that
define the shape of the FBV 330 ice skate blade profile; the blade
width, w, the width of the flat bottom, d, and the depth of the
flat bottom, h. The height under the blade, h, is the distance
between a line joining the two blade edges and the flat bottom. The
edge angle, .phi., at the blade edge, in the case of a symmetrical
(central to the blade width) location of the blade bottom is given
by Equation (4).
.phi.=.alpha. tan(w-d)/2h (4)
[0044] As can be seen from this formula; once a blade width, w, is
known, a value of blade bottom width, d, can be chosen in
conjunction with the depth of the flat, h, to obtain a wide range
of edge angle, .phi., values. A similar nomenclature as that for
FBC 320 is used by some manufacturers, FBV-XXX-YY. The ability to
vary the blade profile being shown by profiles 350A through 350D
whereby moving from first profile 350A to second profile 350B are
variations for constant bottom width, d, but varying depth of flat,
h, giving better turns. Moving from first profile 350A to third
profile 350C is decreasing bottom width, d, for constant depth of
flat, h, giving more speed. Moving diagonally from first profile
350A to fourth profile 350D is decreasing bottom width, d, and
increasing depth of flat, h, trying to balance speed and
turning.
[0045] Now referring to FIG. 4 there are depicted variants of ice
skate blades for ice dance. As shown there is a parabolic blade 410
whose design tapers to the mid-section of the blade, translating
into less steel and a lighter blade overall. Such a parabolic blade
410 being favoured by ice dancers for increasing stability for
improved footwork and edge jumps. Also shown is standard parallel
blade 420 for comparison. Referring to schematic 430 there is shown
a common misalignment issue for skate sharpening wherein the axis
of the skate blade 422 is misaligned to the axis of the grinding
wheel 424 by an offset 426. Accordingly in the example shown for a
curved grinding wheel as used within ice dance the resulting offset
results in a different profile being formed on each edge of the
blade so that the blades effectiveness will vary according to the
edge the skater either uses for a turn or landing. Such differences
can result in falls which during competitions will lead to the
difference between gold and not finishing in the medals for example
which is further amplified if the event is the Olympics and that
represents the skater's only chance to win gold.
[0046] As can be seen in schematic 430 this offset 426 is even more
critical as one moves from a freestyle blade of typical width
0.15'' (3.8 mm) to the narrower 0.11'' (2.8 mm) blade of an ice
dance skate. Accordingly it would be evident how alignment of the
blade is important not only within a single skate for desired edges
but also within the pair. In some instances such as short-track
speed skating where the skater is essentially permanently on one
edge there may be introduced a deliberate offset 426 but again the
control of this is important to achieve the desired edge for the
skater.
[0047] Referring to FIG. 5 there are depicted hockey skate 501 and
figure skate 520 showing the differences in design not only of the
boot but the blade fitting to the boot and the construction of the
blade. Historically a blade was a blade but now sharpening may
consider the blade as having four zones, toe 512, front 514, middle
516 and heel 518 which are potentially profiled differently one
zone from another but also vary in profile between say a
defenseman, an attacker, and a goalie for ice hockey. Balancing the
designs of these zones results in improved balance, sharper turns,
quicker turns, increased acceleration, reduced fatigue, increased
power in strides and improved gliding, injury reduction, increased
agility, increased lateral movement, increased speed, increased
stability, and controlled leg extensions.
[0048] Considering the zones then the toe 512 generally is used for
starts, acceleration, and final toe snap and may represent 1 second
of a stride that this zone is in contact with the ice. The front
514 is primarily used for acceleration and ankle dekes and
typically represents 1-3 second of stride movement. The middle 516
is used most for gliding, stopping, forward strides of several
seconds, and provides balance and pivot point in motion. Finally
the heel 518 is used in stop-turns, extension and backward pushes
for backward skating as well as crossovers, direction changes and
balance. Typically the toe 512 and heel 514 represent 20% of the
blade length, the middle 516 60%, and the heel 518 20%.
[0049] Now referring to FIG. 6 there is depicted a skate sharpening
system 600 according to an embodiment of the invention. A skate
comprising skate body 610A and blade 610B is mounted to a holder
640 which is itself mounted to first stage 690 and therein to the
base 630 of the skate sharpening system 600. The second portion of
the skate sharpening system 600 being a grinding wheel 650 that is
mounted to a frame 685 which includes a drive mechanism, not shown
for clarity, for the grinding wheel 650 which may be for example
direct drive or differentially driven according to the degree of
control/complexity of the skate sharpening system 600. This frame
685 is mounted to a second stage 680 and therein to the base 630 of
the skate sharpening system 600. The frame 685 including adjustment
screw 660 which is driven by drive 670. Adjustment screw 670 and
corresponding drive 670 may be provided for example for multiple
axes of the system including lateral, translational, vertical, yaw,
pitch and roll.
[0050] According to one embodiment of the invention drive 670 may
be manually adjusted, second stage 680 rigidly mounting the frame
685 to the base 630 and first stage 690 be manually controlled.
According to another embodiment of the invention the first stage
690, second stage 680 and drive 670 may all be controlled through a
central microprocessor to automate the process of grinding a
desired profile thereby improving the reproducibility of the
profile applied to the blade 610B. It would be evident to one
skilled in the art that the programme may be varied allowing an
operator to simply key in an identity of a skater for example to
retrieve their custom profile and reapply this to the skates.
[0051] It would also be evident to one of skill in the art that in
both manual and automatic approaches that a measurement and
indication of pressure between the blade 610B and grinding wheel
650 may be made/displayed allowing increased control of the
grinding process. Optionally if a conductive grinding wheel 650 is
employed then an electrical contact may be made to both the
grinding wheel 650 and blade 610B such that initial contact of the
blade 610B to the grinding wheel 650 can be detected or monitored
to detect errors in position as contact is lost for example.
[0052] Now referring to FIG. 7 there is depicted a skate sharpening
system 700 according to an embodiment of the invention wherein a
pair of sharpening sub-systems, for example skate sharpening system
600 of FIG. 6 are assembled to a base, not shown for clarity. As
such a skate mount 700A engages first and second grinders 700B and
700C. Each of the first and second grinders consists of a grinding
wheel 730 that is driven through a belt system 745 from a motor,
not shown for clarity, which provides the rotational power for the
grinding wheel 730. This drive and wheel sub-assembly is mounted to
a body 720 that is in turn mounted to a stage 710.
[0053] The skate mount 700A provides for mounting of left skate
750A and right skate 750B with corresponding left blade 740A and
right blade 740B with each being clamped via a levered mechanism
engaged via first and second handles 760A and 760b respectively.
Skate mount 700A further comprising skate stage 770. As with skate
sharpening system 600 in FIG. 6 each stage 710 and skate stage 770
may be fixed or adjustable relative to the base and may be manually
or mechanically positioned. It would therefore be evident to one
skilled in the art that the profile applied from first grinder 700B
to left blade 740A may be the same or different to that applied by
second grinder 700C to right blade 740B.
[0054] Referring to FIG. 8 there is shown a first schematic 810 of
a prior art approach to dressing a grinding disc and profiling a
skate blade. A template 810 is initially provided that has a
profile formed with a hard surface, e.g. CVD diamond that has in
the middle a FBV profile. This template 810 is used to dress a
grinding wheel 820 by grinding the grinding wheel 820 against the
template 810. Once dressed the grinding wheel 820 can then be used
to grind the FBV profile onto a blade 830. Accordingly in order to
adjust a blade profile either the grinding wheel 820 should be
replaced, and dressed with another template 810, or the same
grinding wheel 820 redressed with the new template 810. As such
changing the profile for each user and as such each sequential pair
of skates is a time consuming process. Also adjusting the profile
between the different parts of the blade 830, such as toe 512,
front 514, middle 516, and heel 518 as shown in FIG. 5, would be
extremely difficult even though it is beneficial for professional
skaters and amateurs in competitions etc.
[0055] An alternative approach is presented in second and third
schematics 850A and 850B respectively wherein rather than a large
grinding disc a small thin grinding element is employed.
Accordingly as depicted in second schematic 850A the profiling is
achieved through a combination of moving the grinding element 840
both along the length of the blade 830 and across the width. As
such the small thin grinding element 840 in conjunction with
automated stages such as presented supra in respect of skate
sharpening system 700 in FIG. 7 and shake sharpening system 900 in
FIG. 9 provides for an operator of the system to program a new
blade profile into the system and have it executed automatically.
Hence, when a new pair of skates are loaded all the operator has to
do is execute a new program or if the skates are for the same users
as the previous pair repeat the currently loaded program. It would
be evident to one of skill in the art that such a combination of
thin grinding element 840 and automated skate sharpening systems
700 and 900 allows for a flexibility in profiling skate blades that
cannot be achieved with the existing systems of the prior art.
[0056] Third schematic 850B depicts a FCA/FBV combination blade 890
along with first through third blades 860 to 880 respectively.
These blades providing different grinding profiles which may be
employed along with thin profile blade 840 alone or in combination
with a skate sharpening system such as described supra in respect
of skate sharpening systems 600, 700 and 900 in FIGS. 6, 7 and 9
respectively. It would be apparent to one skilled in the art that
first and second stages 620 and 665 may be controlled through the
use of a microprocessor to execute the complex sequence of
movements required to control the blade in order to provide the
profiles for ice skate blades according to embodiments of the
invention. As such a skate sharpening system according to an
embodiment of the invention allows for an operator of the system to
program a new blade profile into the system and have it executed
automatically. Hence, when a new pair of skates are loaded all the
operator has to do is execute a new program or if the skates are
for the same users as the previous pair repeat the currently loaded
program. It would be evident to one of skill in the art that such a
combination of thin grinding elements and automated skate
sharpening system allows for a flexibility in profiling skate
blades that cannot be achieved with the existing systems of the
prior art.
[0057] Now referring to FIG. 9 there is depicted a skate sharpening
system 900 according to an embodiment of the invention wherein a
pair of sharpening sub-systems, for example skate sharpening system
600 of FIG. 6 are assembled to a base, not shown for clarity. As
such a skate mount 900A engages first and second grinders 900B and
900C. Each of the first and second grinders consists of a grinding
wheel 930 that is driven through a belt system 945 from a motor,
not shown for clarity, which provides the rotational power for the
grinding wheel 930. This drive and wheel sub-assembly is mounted to
a body 920 that is in turn mounted to a stage 910.
[0058] The skate mount 900A provides for mounting of left skate
950A and right skate 950B with corresponding left blade 940A and
right blade 940B with each being clamped via a levered mechanism
engaged via first and second handles 960A and 960B respectively.
Skate mount 900A further comprising skate stage 970. As with skate
sharpening system 600 in FIG. 6 each stage 910 and skate stage 970
may be fixed or adjustable relative to the base and may be manually
or mechanically positioned. It would therefore be evident to one
skilled in the art that the profile applied from first grinder 900B
to left blade 940A may be the same or different to that applied by
second grinder 900C to right blade 940B.
[0059] It would be evident to one skilled in the art that whilst
the simplest design is the stacking of a pair of skate sharpening
systems 600 to form skate sharpening system 900 that under
appropriate computer control the relative motions of first and
second grinders 900B and 900C may be controlled such that they
operate without requiring a minimum complete clear separation
between them such that the vertical height of the skate sharpening
system 900 may be reduced. Accordingly skate sharpening system 900
can provide complex blade profiles to each of the left and right
skates of a user with accurate cross-referencing of the profile of
one blade to the other.
[0060] It would be evident to one skilled in the art that the ice
skate blade may be formed from a variety of materials according to
the cost, strength, weight, rigidity, and performance tradeoffs
that the skate manufacturer is working within. Such blades may for
example be formed from carbon steel, high strength low alloy steel,
low alloy steel, stainless steel, as well as metals such as
titanium. Alternatively blades may be formed from a variety of
composite materials which are engineered materials that comprise
two or more components including for example polymer composites
that combine reinforcing fibers such as carbon fiber, glass fiber,
basalt fibers, or other reinforcing fibers with a thermosetting or
thermoplastic polymer resin such as epoxy, nylon, polyester,
polypropylene, or other resins wherein the reinforcing fibers
provide stiffness and strength in the direction of the fiber
length, and the resin provides shape and toughness and transfers
load between and among the fibers. Optionally, the blades may be
formed from one or more ceramic materials including for example
oxides such as alumina, beryllia, ceria, and zirconia; non-oxides
such as carbides, borides, nitrides, and silicides; as well as
ceramic composite materials including for example particulate
reinforced, fiber reinforced, and combinations of oxides and
non-oxides.
[0061] It would be evident to one skilled in the art that the
discussions supra in respect of FIGS. 6 through 9 of a multiple
blade sharpening system have been described with the system
vertically mounting one skate and sharpening mechanism above the
other. It would be evident to one skilled in the art that the
system may alternatively be rotated such that the skates are
disposed laterally with respect to one another in a side-to-side or
front-to-back configuration with respect to the user of the
system.
[0062] The above-described embodiments of the present invention are
intended to be examples only. Alterations, modifications and
variations may be effected to the particular embodiments by those
of skill in the art without departing from the scope of the
invention, which is defined solely by the claims appended
hereto.
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