US2926924A - Toe fastening means for a skate - Google Patents

Description

March 1, 1960 c, JONES E AL 2,926,924

TOE FASTENING MEANS FOR A SKATE Original Filed July 25, 1956 INVENTOR.

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TOE FASTENING MEANS FOR A SKATE Original application July 25, 1956, Serial No. 600,218,

now Patent No. 2,841,405, dated July 1, 1958. Divided and this application May 2, 1958, Serial No.

1 Claim. (Cl. 280-11.3)

This application is a division of our co-pending application Serial No. 600,218, filed July 25, 1956, now Patent Number 2,841,405, issued July 1, 1958.

' The invention relates to improvements in skates and is more particularly concerned with the novel construction and assembly of the toe portion thereof and the toe strap thereon.

The roller skate disclosed herein, and embodying the features of the present invention is fabricated for the most part from tough nylon plastic or other suitable wear resisting moldable plastic material. The skate consists of a minimum of pants all of which are easily and quickly assembled in such manner that the skate may be adjusted readily through a range of sizes within the physical limits of its construction. More particularly, the skate includes a toe portion and a heel portion, each of which is molded and reinforced to withstand considerable abuse to which such parts are ordinarily subjected. Each portion also, has molded or otherwise formed integral therewith, a journal boss in which is mounted an axle for a pair of wheels. The two skate portions are joined for size adjustment toward and away from each other by a bridging channel bar which is slidably guided in each portion and has means associated with it and with said portions to secure said portions thereto in any selected position of adjustment. Furthermore, the channel bar is preferably of metal and it is so associated with the portions as to coact with the journal bosses to reinforce the structure and thus further strengthen the molded plastic toe and heel portions.

The skate is further characterized by having novel means embodied in the toe portion of the skate to accommodate and mount the toe strap and by the inclusion of a novel toe strap having means therein to co-act with the toe portion to facilitate its ready mounting.

It is therefore one of the objects of the present invention to provide a rugged novelly constructed skate of the character described.

Another object is to provide a skate with a novelly constructed toe portion having an integral journal boss.

Another object is to provide a skate of the character described with means connecting the heel and toe portions for adjustment which means functions to reinforce the said portions and the integral journal bosses.

Another object is to provide novelly constructed journal bosses.

Another object is to provide a novel toe strap and novel means mounting it detachably on the toe portion.

With the foregoing and such other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and particularly pointed out in the appended claim; it being understood that various changes in form, proportion, size and minor details of the structure may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.

For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the invention, there is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, a preferred embodiment thereof, from an inspection of which, when considered in connection with the following description, the invention, its mode of construc tion, assembly and operation and many of its advantages, should be readily understood and appreciated.

Referring to the drawings in which the same characters of reference are employed to indicate corresponding or similar parts throughout the several figures of the draw mgs:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a roller skate embodying the invention. a

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view taken on line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an inverted plan view of the the portion.

Fig. 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary side elevational view ofthe front end to the toe portion, on an enlarged scale.

Fig. 6 is a plan view of the toe strap.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, the roller skate illustrated comprises a toe portion 5 and a heel portion 6 connected for adjustment, as to skate size, by a bridging bar or channel 7. Each of the portions 5 and 6 is fabricated from suitable moldable material such as nylon plastic so as to be very durable and wear resisting while maintaining a sufficient amount of resilience to resist breakage, chipping, etc.

As illustrated, the toe portion -5 is fabricated in one piece and it includes a top wall 8 having a surrounding downwardly extending flange 9 and a pair of longitudinally extending spaced parallel webs 11 on its bottom face. The webs 11 define an inverted longitudinal channel between them that opens onto the rearwardly disposed edge of the toe portion. The toe portion 5 also carries an integral hollow journal boss 12. In order to permitthe entire toe portion to be molded or cast in one piece, the journal boss 12 is made hollow as shown and with its core opening in the top wall 8. The journal boss includes end walls 13 and converging front and back walls 14-15. The front wall 14 extends to and is integral with the top wall 8, thus affording a three wall connection between said boss and said top wall. The end walls 13 are offset inwardly from the connected webs 11 so as to define upwardly facing internal shoulders 16 for a purpose to be explained presently. The journal boss 12 provides a mounting for an axle 17 on which a pair of front wheels 18 is mounted.

The heel portion 6 also is fabricated of the same material and in a manner similar to the toe portion. It includes a top wall 19 having an upstanding heel stop 21 formed of two material thicknesses 21a--21b, with a space 22 therebetween which opens into a slot 23 on each end. Also formed integral with the top wall 19 are a pair of laterally spaced depending parallel webs 24, similar to webs 11, defining an inverted longitudinal channel between them that opens onto the forward edge of the heel portion. A hollow journal boss 25 is formed integral with the heel portion 6 and, as shown, this boss depends from the bottom face of the top wall 19.

The end walls 26 of the hollow journal boss 25 are integral with the spaced webs 24 and the front and back walls 27 and 28 of said boss terminate substantially in the plane of the bottom edges of the webs 24 so as to leave, between the upper edges of said walls 27 and 28 and the bottom surface of the top wall 19, aligned openings 29 in register with the inverted longitudinal channel between the webs 24. The end walls 26 are spaced inwardly slightly from each related web 24 so as to provide a pair of upwardly facing shoulders 30 for a purpose to be made apparent presently. The journal boss 25 provides a mounting for an axle 31 mounting a pair of back wheels 32.

sated meanness, the heel portion and the toe portion are connected together for longitudinal adjustment toward and away from each other by a bridging channel bar 7. The channel bar 7 is fabricated from sheet metal stock and it is of a width to fit snugiy into the longitudinal channels between the pairs of webs 11-24 on the respective portions and 6. The side flanges of the channel bar erect a depth to fit snugly between the bottom surfaceof the top walls *8 and 19 and therelat'ed-shoulders 16 -30 so as to thereby absorb some of the stress imposed upon the journal bosses 1'2 and 25 and the webs 11 and 24 to which they are connected.

Each portion 5 and 6 of the skate preferably has a substantially square recess 33 in its top wall with a central aperture therein to receive the square head and threaded shank of a bolt that project-s through 'a slot 35 in the related end of the channel bar 7. A washer 35 and wing nut 37 inounted on the shank of each bolt alfo'rds means for secu'r'ing the'skateportions 5 and=6 and. channel bar 7 adjusted relative to each other.

,The skate is adapted to be held removably on the -shoe of the wearer by means of an ankle strap 38 and a toe strap 39. The ankle-strap 38is threaded through the slots '23 "in the ends of the double walled heel stop 21. The toestrap 39-is specially formed to be engaged detachably, in a novel manner, with the toe portion 5 in front of the journal boss 12 thereon. This strap is best shown in Fig. :6, wherein it will-be observed that it includes a relatively wideintermediateportion or area 41 and narrow endportions 42, oneof which carriesa buckle 43 and the other of which is suitably perforated to co-act with the buckle. The wide -in-termediate area 41 of the strap is disposed "beneath the toeportion and is cut away, as at 44, to accoinmodate the journal boss 12. It is also formed with laterally opposed notches 45 that are so spaced as to -regi'sterwith cut-back recesses 46cm the side edges of laterally aligned-notches 47-forrned-in the side portion of the'dependingfiange9 ofthe toep'ortio-n (Fig. 5). This "arrangement 'issuch that the toe strap 39 may be'easily '4 and quickly snapped into and out "of engagemenrwith the notches 45 and, when engaged, is held against displacement and loss.

It is believed that the invention, its mode of construction and assembly, and many ofjits advantages should be readily understood from the foregoing without further description and it should also be manifest that while a preferred embodiment of the invention has been shown and described for illustrative purposes, the structural details are nevertheless capable of variation within the purview of the invention as defined in the appended claim.

What is claimed and desired to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is: g

In a skate, a toe portion having depending side edge flanges and a wheel carrying boss centrally locatedthereon and depending therefrom, said flanges having transversely aligned notches therein opening onto their lower edges, said notches having recessed side edges, and a strap'ineluding a wide intermediate portion arranged beneath said toe portion adjacent to saidboss and threaded through the notches, said intermediate portion having a recessed iedge partially embracing the boss, and notches on opposed edges of said intermediate portion engaged with the recessed side edges of the notches to prevent strap displacement.

References Cited .in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 184,398 Jones et a1. Feb. 10, .1959

38,591 Luce May 19,1863 1,017,551 Johnson Feb. :13, 1912 1,749,139 Joslin 4, 1930 2,190,316 Harris Feb. 13, 1941) 2,841,405 Jones et a1 July .1 11958 OTHER REFERENCES Popular Mechanics, November 1949, page 150.

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