Abstract:
A protective device for the upturned tip of snow skis which is in the form of a cap made from a resiliently flexible, weatherproof material and which provides a cushioning surface to the tip of the ski as protection against injury to skiers who may be hit by runaway skis. The cap is preferably mounted to the ski tip by a weather resistant adhesive so as to be in place at all times. In an alternative embodiment, the cap may be provided with friction producing elements to resist inadvertent removal while allowing its interchangability between multiple skis.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is directed toward a device for mounting on the upturned or shovel tips of snow skis as a means for providing protection to skiers should they come into contact with such ski tips. The invention also provides a level of protection to the skis themselves to prevent the tip surfaces from being marred and serves to dampen vibration of the skis and thus reduce the tendency of the ski tips to chatter. The present invention is also directed to snow skis which are protected by such protective device. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Modern skis have sharp tips at their forward ends which can inflict injuries on skiers when fallen upon or when skiers are hit by runaway skis. 
     Prior devices have been proposed to provide protective means for skis to prevent marring of their surfaces as well as to reduce injuries resulting from collisions. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 3,424,469 to Hooker provides a protective strip of strong, resilient material bonded to the top edge corners of skis to prevent chipping and burring of those edges. This strip provides little or no protection against injury inflicted by the ski tip. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 3,876,216 to Wehr discloses a safety head to be fastened to the front end of a ski and thereby enclose the ski tip. However, the device includes a metal cap which reduces its effectiveness. Furthermore, the bulbous shape of the Wehr device hinders the flow of the ski through snow, particularly deep powder. 
     U.S. Pat. No. 4,083,572 to May, Jr., provides a ski tip attachment in the form of a sleeve which fits over a ski tip and has a means for mounting a light source so as to extend beyond the ski tip. The purpose of this device is to provide illumination in front of a skier, not cushioning for the ski tip. The light fixture itself presents a hazard to skiers in the event they are struck by the ski. 
     None of the devices of the prior art provide a simple protective means for the forward tip of the ski which provides adequate protection against injury while not interfering with the operation of the ski. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention provides a protective device for mounting over the upturned forward tip of a snow ski to form a protective cushion thereon. In this manner, the risk of infliction of injury to skiers by the ski tips is significantly lessened. The device is formed as a cap of resiliently flexible, weatherproof material sized to fit over the ski tip and be retained thereon while the ski is being used by the texture of its inner surfaces or by a suitable cold weather adhesive. The cap has a smooth outer surface with no projections to interfere with a ski&#39;s performance or to present a hazard to skiers. 
     It is therefor an object of this invention to provide a protective cap for ski tips. 
     It is a further object to provide a protective cap for ski tips which prevents damage to both the ski tips and to skiers who might be struck by them. 
     It is a still further object to provide a protective cap for ski tips which does not interfere with the passage of the ski through snow. 
     Still yet another object is to provide snow skis which are protected substantially permanently by the protective cover device of this invention. 
     Other objects and advantages will be evident from the following drawings and descriptions and are deemed to be included herein. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is an oblique view of a ski tip with the device of the invention mounted thereon. 
     FIG. 2 is a longitudinal cross-section of the arrangement of FIG. 1 taken through line 1--1. 
     FIG. 3 is a top view of the device of the invention. 
     FIG. 4 is a bottom view of the device of the invention. 
     FIG. 5 is a side view of the device of the invention. 
     FIG. 6 is a front view of the device of the invention. 
     FIG. 7 is a rear view of the device of the invention. 
     FIG. 8 is an oblique view of the device of the invention illustrating one form of molded in detent means. 
     FIG. 9 is a bottom view of the device of the invention illustrating a textured inner surface. 
     FIG. 10 is a bottom view of the device of the invention illustrating a second form of molded detent means. 
     FIG. 11 is a longitudinal cross-section of the arrangement of FIG. 1 taken through line 1--1 illustrating the embodiment of FIG. 10 secured to a ski with adhesive. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Looking at FIG. 1, it is seen that the protective device 1 fits over the upturned tip of a ski 2. This is further illustrated in FIG. 2 which is a longitudinal cross-section of a ski tip with the device in place. From the figures it is clear that the device 1 is in the form of a sleeve or cap having a substantially triangular shape in which one end 3 is open for insertion of the ski tip 2. The opposing apex 4 is closed and has a substantially greater thickness than the rest of the cap to provide a cushion for the generally hard and rigid end 5 of the ski tip 2. Apex 4 and the side wall 8 are generally rounded or arcuate in shape so that in case of contact with another skier the impact forces will be less severe than with a pointed tip or than with the uncovered rigid end 5 of the ski. 
     The cap 1 is made from a resiliently flexible, weather proof material such as natural or synthetic rubber, polyurethane, or the like having a smooth outer surface. The material from which the cap 1 is formed must retain its flexibility and resiliency even when exposed to cold temperatures and snow and ice. A preferred material is polyurethane having a durometer hardness of from 60 to 70A on the Shore hardness scale. Such a material provides sufficient rigidity while retaining the necessary resiliency to provide a level of deflective and cushioning force when struck. In addition, materials having these characteristics also tend to absorb vibration and thus provide a dampening effect during use of the skis. This feature is particularly desirable in that the protective cover device also functions as a vibration absorber. 
     As skis travel over snow and ice, they tend to vibrate as a result of the changing conditions and surface texture of the snow. These vibrations begin under the point where the skier&#39;s boot is fixed to the ski and run forward and rearward along the length of the ski. Since the tail, or rear end of the ski, is in relatively constant contact with the snow and most of a skier&#39;s weight is directed toward the rear end of the ski, any vibration at that point is dampened and passed out to the snow. In contrast, however, the tip of the ski is relatively unweighted and is free to flex and vibrate. This vibration can be particularly severe when passing over rough or icy snow surfaces resulting in a phenomenon known as &#34;chatter&#34;. The cap 1 of the invention, being of a resilient material, tends to absorb some of the vibration generated in the body of the ski and thus lessens the degree of such &#34;chatter&#34;. 
     As noted previously, and as shown in the drawing figures, the cap 1 has a substantially triangular design to correspond to the tip of a ski and a length which is preferably no more than 1/2 the length of the shovel portion of the ski. The structure of the cap 1 comprises an upper wall 6 and a lower wall 7 which are parallel to each other and separated by a distance corresponding to the thickness of a ski. These walls may be slightly closer together than the normal thickness of a ski would allow thus providing a stretch fit of the cap 1 over the end of the ski 2. Upper walls 6 and 7 are separated by side wall 8 which extends around two adjoining sides of the device and across apex 4 to form the cap structure with the third side opposite apex 4 left open. Side wall 8 provides most of the cushioning effect of the device and, as such, is formed with a thickness greater than that of the upper and lower walls 6 and 7, as shown in FIG. 7. Preferably, the thickness of side wall 8 is even greater in the area of apex 4, as shown in FIG. 2, for maximum cushioning at the tip of the ski, but in any case side wall 8 should be at least twice as thick as upper and lower walls 6 and 7 which are from 1/16th to 1/4th inch in thickness. 
     Although the primary purpose of the device of this invention is to provide a protective cushion on the tips of skis, the cap 1 also serves to protect the tip surfaces from damage and toward that end the edges 9 and 10 of the upper and lower walls 6 and 7 opposite apex 4 may be formed straight across from one side of cap 1 to the other thereby providing the maximum surface area. The ends of side wall 8 are straight. However, it is preferred that the upper and lower walls 6 and 7 be provided with longitudinally tapered cutouts 11 and 12 positioned centrally along the respective edges 9 and 10 of the walls 6 and 7. It is believed that, because these cutouts 11 and 12 taper from a wide base adjacent and substantially equal to the open end 3 of the cap toward a narrower width at their forward ends, they help to channel snow to the edges of the ski thus lessening any resistance which might be engendered by the protective cap 1 when in place on a ski. Preferably, the tapers of the cutouts 11 and 12 follow the shape and contour of the edges of the cap 1 which converge at apex 4 while their bases flare outward to the rear edges 9 and 10. It is believed that this outward flare helps to prevent the build-up of snow along the rear edges 9 and 10 of the device by directing the snow rearward and outward to the sides and edges of the ski. In the case of upper wall 6, cutout 11 should extend forward from rearmost edge 9 of upper wall 6 toward apex 4 no more than 1/2 the length of the device. Alternatively, cutout 12 in lower wall 7 preferably extends a distance of from 1/2 to 3/4 the length of the device from the rearmost edge 10 of wall 7 forward toward apex 4. Thus the cutout 12 of lower wall 7 is deeper than the cutout 11 of upper wall 6. Furthermore, to provide a smooth transition between the cap 1 and the top and bottom surfaces of the ski 2, it is preferred that the rearward edges 9 and 10 of the cap 1 and the ends of side wall 8 be skived so as to taper toward the ski surfaces as shown in FIG. 2. 
     Mounting of the device on a ski tip is achieved by sliding the cap 1 onto the ski tip 2 by means of the open end 3. The cap is preferably held in place by a suitable adhesive 13, shown in FIG. 2, applied to the ski surfaces or to the inside surfaces of the upper wall 6, the lower wall 7 and the side wall 8. The adhesive should be weather resistant, especially waterproof, and not affected by cold temperatures. Suitable adhesives may be selected from among the ranks of epoxies, contact cements, polyester resin bonding agents and the like and preferably have some flexibility and shock absorbency even at cold temperatures. 
     In an alternative embodiment, the cap 1 may be temporarily placed on a ski so as to be removable and interchangeable between a plurality of skis. The tight fit alluded to earlier is especially preferable in this case as is the inclusion on the inner surfaces of the upper and lower walls 6 and 7 of a friction producing means which cooperates with the surfaces of the ski to resist the inadvertent or unintentional removal of the cap 1. Such friction producing means may be a rough texture or molded detents on the inner surfaces of the upper and lower walls 6 and 7 and on the inner surface of side wall 8 which will be compressed between the ski surfaces and inner surfaces of the walls. Preferred forms of such texture and detents are shown in FIGS. 8, 9 and 10. The rough texture may take any form and is molded into the inner surfaces at the time of molding of the cap 1. Particularly preferable is a texture which provides a suction surface such as a plurality of small dimples 14 formed in the inner surfaces which function in a manner similar to suction cups. In the case of molded in detents, these may take the form of substantially pyramidal shapes 15 as shown in FIG. 10 which will provide a gripping action relative to the surfaces of the skis, or laterally extending and forwardly projecting ridges 16 as shown in FIG. 8. Other shapes, such as cones, truncated cones and pyramids, rounded bumps and the like may also be used. By forming ridges 16 so that they are angled toward the apex 4, they will allow the cap 1 to be easily slid rearward onto a ski but will resist any forward motion or tendency for the cap 1 to be inadvertently pulled off. Of course, it is recognized that a cap having the textured inner surfaces may be used with an adhesive as shown in FIG. 11 to permanently mount the cap 1 to the ski 2. It is believed that the texture or molded in detents of the inner surfaces of the cap 1 may assist in the vibration dampening feature of the device by increasing the overall resiliency of the cap structure. 
     The device of this invention is preferably manufactured by molding means wherein the cap 1 is molded as a single unit from the appropriate material. Such material may be available and the cap 1 produced in any color desired or it may be made from transparent material. 
     The foregoing sets forth the preferred form of the protective device of the invention. It will be obvious to those of skill in the art that further modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention which is limited only by the appended claims.