U.S. patent application number 14/339431 was filed with the patent office on 2016-01-28 for adjustable base for longboard reverse kingpin trucks.
The applicant listed for this patent is Evan Einbender Aamodt. Invention is credited to Evan Einbender Aamodt.
Application Number | 20160023088 14/339431 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 55165919 |
Filed Date | 2016-01-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160023088 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Aamodt; Evan Einbender |
January 28, 2016 |
Adjustable Base for Longboard Reverse Kingpin Trucks
Abstract
This invention discloses an adjustable base for skateboard
trucks where a two-piece design consisting of a mounting bracket
and a slider can be set to any angle within a specific range. The
design uses pairs of concentric, mating arced features of different
radii on the slider and mounting bracket to maintain constant ride
height of the truck assembly when setup with a compatible hanger
that has axles which are coincident with the center of the arced
features. The design uses a flat on the bottom of the slider to
achieve an overall low profile which is desirable to skaters.
Inventors: |
Aamodt; Evan Einbender;
(Glenside, PA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Aamodt; Evan Einbender |
Glenside |
PA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
55165919 |
Appl. No.: |
14/339431 |
Filed: |
July 23, 2014 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
280/11.28 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63C 17/015 20130101;
A63C 17/012 20130101; A63C 17/0093 20130101 |
International
Class: |
A63C 17/01 20060101
A63C017/01 |
Claims
1. An adjustable base for skateboard trucks comprised of a mounting
bracket that attaches directly to the deck and a slider that can be
set at desired angles within the mounting bracket without affecting
ride height or wheelbase of the skateboard. The slider is held in
place within the bracket by means of one or more machine screws
that pass through the bracket. Each machine screw may be
pre-tensioned using a compatible nut.
2. The adjustable base of claim 1 where the slider and mounting
bracket have two or more concentric pairs of mating arced features
with different radii to provide the slider with radial support from
the mounting bracket. The center of the circular arcs coincides
with longitudinal axis of the axles of a compatible hanger so that
the axle position does not change over the range of the adjustable
base.
3. The adjustable base of claim 2 where a flat along the bottom of
the slider is used to reduce the overall height of the assembly
when setup in the mounting bracket.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Not applicable.
STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT
[0002] Not applicable.
THE NAMES OF THE PARTIES TO A JOINT RESEARCH AGREEMENT
[0003] Not applicable.
INCORPORATION-BY-REFERENCE OF MATERIAL SUBMITTED ON A COMPACT DISC
OR AS A TEXT FILE VIA THE OFFICE ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM
(EFS-WEB)
[0004] Not applicable.
STATEMENT REGARDING PRIOR DISCLOSURES BY THE INVENTOR OR A JOINT
INVENTOR
[0005] This is a non-provisional utility patent application
claiming priority of Jul. 26, 2013 when the related provisional
patent application was filed. That provisional patent was
application No. 61/859,087.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0006] Skateboard trucks are components that are responsible for
steering a skateboard as the rider shifts his/her weight away from
the center of the deck and towards one of the sides. Every truck is
made up of a baseplate that mounts to the skateboard deck and a
hanger which houses two axles.
[0007] One wheel is mounted on each axle with two bearings in
between to reduce rolling resistance. Most hangers also have a
pivot and a bushing seat. Two cylindrical urethane bushings are
tightened on a kingpin with the bushing seat between them. The
kingpin is anchored in the base and a nut is tightened to compress
the bushings. The bushings provide resistance against turning.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] The invention is an adjustable base designed to allow the
user to change the angle of the axis of rotation of the hanger. The
angle of the axis of rotation affects the responsiveness of the
truck when the rider leans the board a particular amount. The angle
of the axis of rotation is measured between the horizontal and a
line drawn from the center of the pivot through the center of the
bushing seat. Higher angles result in more turn than lower angles
for the same angle of deck tilt.
[0009] The adjustable base is a two-piece design comprised of a
mounting bracket that fastens directly to the board and a moveable
piece, referred to as the "slider," that can be secured in the
mounting bracket. Sets of concentric, mating arced features on the
bracket and slider allow constant radial engagement between the
pieces. A fastener that goes through both pieces is tightened to
prevent the slider from moving once it has been set to a desirable
position.
[0010] The invention is unique because of the short distance
between the axles and the bottom of the base when setup with a
compatible hanger. This is accomplished by implementing a flat
section in the bottom of the slider and using two or more pairs of
concentric, mating arced features.
[0011] Another embodiment of the invention is the way the critical
faces of the slider are protected by the mounting bracket. Other
adjustable bases frequently leave portions of the critical faces on
their sliders exposed when set at low angles; this can easily lead
to damage caused by impacts with foreign objects which would
prevent the base from functioning properly. By fully surrounding
the critical faces on the slider with the mounting bracket, impacts
with foreign objects while skating are less likely to damage the
slider such that it is no longer able to move easily inside of the
mounting bracket.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1 is an isometric view of a complete longboard
skateboard setup with the adjustable bases.
[0013] FIG. 2 is a longboard skateboard with adjustable bases and
hangers in a profile view. One wheel is hidden so that two
referenced dimensions could be easily shown.
[0014] FIG. 3 is a profile view of a longboard with adjustable
bases while it is turning.
[0015] FIG. 4 is a top view of a longboard with adjustable bases
while it is turning.
[0016] FIG. 5 is an exploded view of a complete truck using an
adjustable base. All hardware and components necessary to secure a
hanger to the base are shown.
[0017] FIG. 6 is a section view of an adjustable base with kingpin
inserted.
[0018] FIG. 7a is a profile view of one adjustable base assembly
set at 50 degrees.
[0019] FIG. 7b is an isometric view of one adjustable base assembly
set at 50 degrees.
[0020] FIG. 8a is a profile view of one adjustable base assembly
set at 35 degrees.
[0021] FIG. 8b is an isometric view of one adjustable base assembly
set at 35 degrees.
[0022] FIG. 9 is an isometric view of the slider.
[0023] FIG. 10 is an isometric view of the mounting bracket.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] FIG. 1 depicts a longboard setup with adjustable bases and
reverse kingpin style hangers. Two adjustable bases 4 are mounted
to the deck 1 by way of eight industry standard machine screws 2
using part of the mounting hole pattern 21. The hanger 8 is secured
to the base by way of two viscoelastic bushings 7, one above and
one below the hanger. A kingpin 14 runs through the base, both
bushings and the hanger. Tightening the nut 5 on the kingpin
compresses the bushings and provides additional turning resistance.
The pivot 11 is inserted into a pivot cup 12 which is housed inside
of the slider 13. The slider is secured to the mounting bracket 17
using a machine screw 15 and nut 16 which generates high friction
forces between the pieces when tightened. The rider's weight is
primarily supported by the radially mating arcs on the mounting
bracket and slider.
[0025] Angle a1 in FIG. 2 is the axis of rotation of the hanger and
it corresponds to the ratio of lean a2 to turn a3 in FIG. 3 and
FIG. 4, respectively. At 45 degrees, the ratio of lean-to-turn is
1:1. When a1 is greater than 45 degrees, lean-to-turn is less than
1:1. The opposite is true when a1 is less than 45 degrees:
lean-to-turn becomes greater than 1:1.
[0026] Skaters are able to change angle a1 by positioning the
slider as desired in the mounting bracket and then fastening the
machine screw 15. The nut 16 used in conjunction with the machine
screw has one flat along its perimeter that is coincident with the
horizontal flange on the mounting bracket as shown in FIG. 7a 22.
This prevents the nut from turning as the machine screw is
tightened and loosened, which allows the user to use only one tool
to make adjustments. The machine screw passes through an arced slot
in the slider 19, which acts as a mechanical stop for the maximum
and minimum angles that the base is capable of.
[0027] FIG. 6 is the cross section of the adjustable base assembly
when it is set to an arbitrary angle of 42 degrees. This view shows
another critical pair of mating geometry on the slider and mounting
bracket 20, this time of a different radius. Additionally, this
view also reveals another embodiment of the invention, which is how
the critical faces on the slider are surrounded by the mounting
bracket at all angle settings a1. This design feature helps protect
the dimension-critical faces on the slider 13 from impacts with
foreign objects as the skater rides.
[0028] The slider has only one degree of freedom when properly
seated in the mounting bracket. Concentric pairs of mating geometry
between the slider and mounting bracket contribute to this. These
pairs are referenced in FIG. 6 20 and FIG. 7a 23. The center of
these arcs 18, 25 is designed to be as close as possible to the
center of the axles 9 of a compatible hanger when mounted to the
adjustable base. This allows the ride height d1 of the board to
remain constant or near constant regardless of what angle the
adjustable base is set to, and is also necessary for the separate
pairs of arced geometry on the slider and mounting bracket to
remain in contact for all possible angle settings of the base.
[0029] FIG. 9 and FIG. 10 are isometric views of the slider and
mounting bracket, respectively, and are used to the show features
on the two pieces which may not have been easily visible in the
previous figures.
* * * * *