U.S. patent number 3,865,388 [Application Number 05/369,350] was granted by the patent office on 1975-02-11 for safety binding for releasably securing a boot to a ski.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Haldemann S.A.. Invention is credited to Gaston Haldemann.
United States Patent |
3,865,388 |
Haldemann |
February 11, 1975 |
SAFETY BINDING FOR RELEASABLY SECURING A BOOT TO A SKI
Abstract
A safety binding for a ski has a vertical post 4 over which a
plate 5 having front and rear boot engaging ridges 32, 33 is
rotatably mounted. The post has a rear transverse groove 15 which
accomodates a spring piston biased half-axle 16. A retention lever
18 is secured to the half-axle and extends forward over the post to
engage and urge downwardly a transverse pin 23 mounted in a recess
29 in the bottom of a boot. The binding is operated by a pivoted
cam lever 38 which withdraws the piston 10 and allows spring 26 in
the center of the post to push the lever 18 upwards about the
half-axle. Quick release in case of accident is facilitated by the
rocking of the boot about the toe or heel whereby pin 23 is forced
up and out from under the lever 18.
Inventors: |
Haldemann; Gaston (Stansstad,
CH) |
Assignee: |
Haldemann S.A. (Pilatusstrasse,
CH)
|
Family
ID: |
4361259 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/369,350 |
Filed: |
June 12, 1973 |
Foreign Application Priority Data
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|
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Jul 7, 1972 [CH] |
|
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10261/72 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
280/613;
123/505 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A63C
9/081 (20130101); A63C 9/086 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
A63C
9/081 (20060101); A63C 9/086 (20060101); A63C
9/08 (20060101); A63c 009/081 () |
Field of
Search: |
;280/11.35E,11.35A,11.35Y,11.35R,11.35D,11.35G,11.35T
;36/2.5AL |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Blix; Trygve M.
Assistant Examiner: Basinger; Sherman D.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Sughrue, Rothwell, Mion, Zinn &
Macpeak
Claims
What is claimed is:
1. A safety binding assembly for releasably securing a boot to a
ski, comprising:
a. a base plate (1) integral with a ski,
b. a vertical axle post (4) upstanding from the base plate and
having a transverse groove (15),
c. a rotating plate (5) pivoted about the axle and having front and
rear catches (32, 33)thereon,
d. a boot (6) having two transverse grooves (30, 31) in its sole
(28) adapted to engage the front and rear catches, and a transverse
pin (23) mounted in a recess (29) in the sole,
e. a transverse axle (16) partially lodged in the transverse groove
of the vertical axle and having a surface (20),
f. a lever (18) integral with the transverse axle for engaging the
transverse pin and urging it toward the rotating plate,
g. a housing (9) integral with the rotating plate,
h. a sliding piston (10) mounted in the housing and having a front
surface (21) bearing against the surface of the transverse axle and
forming an acute angel (.alpha.) therewith, and
i. a spring (12) mounted in the housing for urging the piston
against the transverse axle and the lever against the transverse
pin, the transverse pin and the lever being capable of manual
disengagement from each other to detach the boot from the ski, and
automatic disengagement in the event of an accident.
2. A safety binding assembly according to claim 1, characterized in
that the state of compression of said spring (12) depends on the
position of a cam lever (38) for the attachment and detachment of
the boot forming a cam (37) having two positions, the one for the
attachment of a boot and the other for removal of a boot.
3. A safety binding assembly according to claim 2, characterized in
that the cam (37) acts on a regulating nut (36) disposed on a screw
(35) against which abuts an end of said spring (12).
4. A safety binding assembly according to claim 2, characterized in
that the vertical axle (4) is provided with a central hole (24) in
which are disposed a piston (25) and a spring (26) pushing said
piston against said lever (18) to move it away from the transverse
pin (23) when the cam lever (38) is in position for removal of the
boot.
5. A safety binding assembly according to claim 1, characterized in
that, in the event of a forward or backward fall, the sole pivots
about the front catch or the rear catch (32 and 33 respectively),
the transverse pin (23) raising the lever (18).
6. A safety binding assembly according to claim 1, characterized in
that, in the case of a torsional movement between the boot and the
ski, the transverse axle (16) partially leaves the transverse
groove (15) of the verticle axle (4), pivoting at an intersection
(42) of this groove (15) with a peripheral groove (14) of the
verticle axle (4) and consequently displacing the lever (18) is a
rearward direction.
7. A safety binding assembly according to claim 1 characterized in
that a sliding zone (7) is disposed between the base plate (1) and
the rotating plate (5).
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a safety binding for releasably
securing a boot to a ski.
2. Prior Art
The standard safety bindings comprise a relatively large number of
parts, more particularly two sets of parts designed to secure the
heel and the front end of the boot. These bindings have to be
mounted on the ski with great care to adapt them exactly to the
boot and the weight of the skier etc., and, in practice, the safety
of the standard bindings leaves much to be desired.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is designed to obviate the above
disadvantages. The safety binding according to the invention is
characterized in that it comprises a base plate integral with the
ski and a vertical axle on which pivots a rotating plate. Arranged
at the front and rear of the rotating plate are two catches engaged
in two transverse grooves in the sole of the boot. This sole is
characterized in that it is provided with a recess in which is
arranged a retaining element pressed towards the rotating plate by
another retaining element governed by the pressure of a spring
mounted on the rotating plate. These elements are capable of being
disengaged from each other at random to detach the boot from the
ski and to release themselves automatically in the event of an
accident.
An embodiment of the binding according to the invention is
represented by way of example in the drawings, in which:
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the binding substantially
along the line I--I of FIG. 2,
FIG. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of the binding substantially
along the line II--II of FIG. 1,
FIGS. 3 and 4 are vertical sectional views corresponding to FIG. 1
but showing the positions of the device in the event of a forward
fall and a backward fall,
FIG. 5 is a horizontal sectional view corresponding to FIG. 2 but
showing the position of the device in the event of a sharp
twist,
FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view of a rear part of the device
showing a lever in position for removal of the boot.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The binding shown comprises a base plate 1 integral with the ski 2
on which it is secured by way of the screws 3, only one of which is
shown. A vertical pivot post 4 is integral with the base plate 1
and acts as a pivot for a rotating plate 5 on which a boot 6 is
secured. The base plate 1 is provided on its upper surface with a
sliding zone 7, for example, a "Teflon" coating, to reduce friction
between the two plates 1 and 5. The upper surface of the rotating
plate 5 is provided with a groove 8 in which is embedded the base
of a housing 9 containing a piston 10 with its shaft 11 enclosed by
a dish-shaped compression spring washer commonly known as a
"Belleville." The housing 9 is integral with the rotating plate 5
to which it is secured by way of screws 13, only one of which is
shown.
The vertical pivot post 4 which acts as a pivot for the rotating
plate 5 and the housing 9, is provided with a peripheral groove 14
and a rear, transverse groove 15 in which is housed a part of a
transverse axle 16, the ends of which are integral with the two
opposite walls 17 of a retention lever 18 having a U-shaped
profile. The transverse axle 16 is provided with a groove 19 in
which the front part of the piston 10 engages. The base 20 of the
groove 19 is flat and forms an acute .alpha. angle with the front
plane 21 of the piston 10. As a result, the force of the spring
tends to cause the axle 16 to pivot with the lever 18 in the
directions of the arrow 22, keeping the lever 18 on a retention
axle 23 integral with the boot 6. The vertical pivot post 4 is
provided with a central hole 24, in which slides a piston 25,
which, under the action of a small spring 26 tends to push back the
lever 18 in the opposite direction to the arrow 22. This is only
possible when the spring 12 is decompressed. The hole 24 is plugged
at the bottom by a threaded stopper 27.
The sole 28 of the boot 6 is provided at the lower part with a
recess 29, in the front part of which a retention axle 23 is
located. The retention lever 18 normally exerts pressure on the
retention axle 23 thereby pressing the sole 28 on the rotating
plate 5. The sole is also provided with two transverse grooves 30
and 31 in which are engaged two transverse catches 32 and 33 having
a partially cylindrical profile. These catches are arranged at the
front end and rear end of the rotating plate 5.
The rear end of the spring 12 which is lodged in the housing 9
abuts against a sliding head 34 of a screw 35 provided with a
regulating screw 36 which the spring 12 pushes against a cam 37
formed by two parallel walls of a lever 38 for the attachment and
removal of the boots. The lever 38 pivots about a transverse axle
39 provided at the lower end of the housing 9. The cam 37 has two
support surfaces 40 and 41. These are arranged at different
distances from the axle 39. In the position for attaching the boot
(FIGS. 1-5), the surface 40, which is a relatively large distance
from the axle 39 is in contact with the screw 36. As a result, the
spring 12 is compressed and keeps the retention lever 18 in its
normal position (FIGS. 1 and 2). It is obvious that the force of
compression depends on the position of the regulating screw 36. In
the position for removing the boot (FIG. 6), the surface 41, which
is a relatively short distance from the axle 39, is in contact with
the screw 36. Consequently, the spring 12 is decompressed and no
longer keeps the retention lever 18 on the retention axle 23 and it
is then possible to readily detach the boot from the rotating plate
5. This is facilitated by the action of the piston 25, which, under
the action of the small spring 26, pushes the retention lever 18
upwards.
With reference to FIGS. 3-5, the operation of the device in the
event of an accident will now be described. In FIGS. 3-5, the
vertical axis is shown as a main axle, the piston 25 and the spring
26 having no particular role as far as safety is concerned.
When a forward fall occurs, the sole 28 begins to pivot about the
front catch 32 until its forward end touches the ski 2, as shown by
the continuous lines in FIG. 3. The retention lever 18 was raised
when the spring 12 was compressed and it will be noticed that the
angle .alpha. has grown larger. As soon as the front end of the
sole 28 touches the ski, the sole then continues to pivot on the
ski, as shown at 28' by the line of dots and dashes, so that the
boot is then completely detached from the securing device. The fact
that the boot pivots from 28 to 28' on the end of the sole has no
particular role in the securing operation. In fact, due to the play
between the parts, the force on the axle 23 is lower in this
position.
FIG. 4 shows what happens in the case of a backward fall. The sole
28 first pivots on the rear catch 33 and then on its rear edge
which, at the level of the recess 29 enters into contact with the
housing 9 as shown at 28', until the sole is completely detached
from the rotating plate 5. In the position of the sole 28
represented in continuous lines, the skier may possibly still
return to a normal position after beginning to fall. It will be
noted that the movement of the boot is fairly appreciable and
consequently the effort on the part of the leg of the skier
relatively small.
When a violent frontal impact on the ski occurs -- which in any
event will be followed by a forward fall-- the sole 28 can slide
forwards on the plate 25 by passing over the two catches 32 and 33,
thereby disengaging very rapidly the retention axle 23 from the
retention lever 18 without necessitating any pivoting.
FIG. 5 illustrates the case of a strong torsional force acting
between the ski and the boot 6. The rotating plate 5 and the
housing 9 pivot about the vertical axle 4 so that the transverse
axle 16 tends to leave the transverse groove 15 of the vertical
axle 4, pivoting at the intersection 42 of this groove 15 with the
peripheral grove 14. As a result, the retention lever 18 is pushed
backwards disengaging the retention axle 23 against the force of
the spring 12, which tends to prevent the return movement of the
piston 10. In the position shown in FIG. 3, the retention axle 23
is not yet completely disengaged but it is obvious that if the
plate 5 rotates a little further, or if the torsional movement is
followed -- as it generally is -- by a forward or backward fall,
the retention lever 18 will completely release the retention axle
23.
The binding arrangement described is extremely simple and
efficient. It has less parts than the normal binding devices
comprising a number of different parts which have to be separately
rendered integral with the ski.
In particular, it should be noted that to regulate the detachment
of the boot in case of a forward fall, a backward fall or a
torsional movement, only one regulating operation is required, that
of regulating the spring 12 by means of the screw 36.
To carry out the regulating operation, taking into account as usual
a vertical force V (FIG.1) acting on the rear part of the boot 6
and a horizontal force H (FIG. 5) acting on the front part of the
boot and being capable of detaching the boot, the parts of the
present binding device are dimensioned so that the ratio H:V is
between 1:3 and 1:4. In view of the fact that the base plate 1 is
very short and more particularly is shorter than the sole 28, the
operation of the binding device is practically completely
independent of the bending and torsional movements of the ski 2. It
is no longer necessary to carry out delicate regulating operations
to adapt the binding device to the boot-- these regulating
operations often being carried out without due attention. The
binding device can be mounted on the ski by the ski manufacturer.
The sliding zone 7 prevents uncontrollable sliding friction which
renders illusory the regulation of the torsional force of
disengagement in the case of the known devices. It should also be
noted that the housing 9 which contains lubricating oil, is
practically seal-tight so that the axles 4 and 16, the piston 10
and the spring 12 are always in perfect operating condition. The
catches 32 and 33 may possibly be arranged on the rotating plate 5
in such a manner as to be displaceable on this plate in a
regulatable manner in the longitudinal direction.
* * * * *