Abstract:
An adjusting device for determining the thrust force of a ski binding capable of movement along the longitudinal axis of a ski, which thrust force is adapted to urge the heel binding into engagement with the heel of the ski boot. The adjusting device includes a rail having a slide slidably mounted thereon. Both the rail and the slide have support surfaces for engaging, respectively, the toe and the heel of a ski boot. A scale having indicia thereon is provided on the rail and the position of the slide relative to the rail is indicated by an indicator juxtaposed the indicia on the scale. The ski binding is then adjusted to a corresponding scale notation on the ski to thereby set the ski binding at the desired position and, consequently, the thrust force at the desired level.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The invention relates to an adjusting device for ski bindings for determining the thrust force which must be applied by the heel holder onto the ski boot which is to be clamped between a toe binding and the heel binding, in particular for so-called rental ski bindings. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The correct adjustment of thrust forces which act onto the ski boot which is to be clamped in the binding is generally associated with repeated efforts. This is particularly complicated in the case of so-called rental ski bindings, because here adjustments to different ski boot sizes are necessarily frequent, in individual cases are even daily repeated. 
     Adjusting devices have not presently become known. Only so-called installation teachings for determining the arrangement of ski bindings on the upper surface of skis have become known. These known devices have support surfaces for receiving a ski boot, at the length of which the arrangement of the ski bindings is to take place, wherein said support surfaces are movable relative to one another and wherein an indicating device is also provided, by means of which the relative position of the installation teaching with respect to the ski can be determined. Such devices are described for example in Canadian Pat. No. 733 258 and in French OS No. 2 240 751. Devices for so-called thrust teachings are described for example in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,857,186 and 3,987,553. 
     The invention has now the purpose of providing an adjusting device of the above-mentioned type, which does away with both a repeated effort to achieve the correct adjustment and also determines in every case a correct thrust force which corresponds with the ski boot to be adjusted. 
     The set purpose is inventively attained by providing a rail with a slide, wherein for receiving the ski boot both the rail and also the slide each have a support surface thereon, and by providing on the rail at least a first row of markings, and an indicator on the slide, the slide being movable selectively into a first indicating position, and by providing parallel with respect to the longitudinal extent of the heel holder, preferably on the upper surface of the ski a second row of markings and a mark on a carriage of the heel holder, through which the latter can be adjusted in longitudinal direction of the ski and can be moved into a second indicating position, wherein for a correctly adjusted thrust force, the values of the first and second indicating positions (in the two rows of markings) correspond. 
     The inventive construction assures a simple, time and work saving adjustment to different length ski boots, wherein at the same time the necessary thrust force, with which the ski boot is to be held between the two ski binding parts, is also determined. For this, only the values of the two indicating positions (in the two rows of markings) must correspond with one another. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     Further characteristics, advantages and details of the inventive adjusting device are described in more detail with reference to the drawings, which illustrate one exemplary embodiment. 
     FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate associated views of a first part of the inventive adjusting device, wherein FIG. 1 is a side view and FIG. 2 is a top view; and 
     FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a heel holder with a second part of the inventive adjusting device. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     A rail 1 of uniform thickness and having a rectangular shape has at one end an upright support surface 2. The support surface 2 also has a uniform thickness and approximately the same width as the rail 1 and is bent upwardly to form a right angle to the plane of the rail 1. As can be seen from FIGS. 1 and 2, the support surface has a guide plate 2a on each side which is bent at an approximately 45° angle from the support surface 2 in direction toward the other end of the rail 1. The upper edge of the support surface 2 is located at an approximate height equal to the upper surface of a common ski boot sole. The upper edges of the two guide plates 2a terminate flush with the upper edge of the support surface 2 and the surfaces thereon extend in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the rail 1. The overall height of the two guide plates 2a corresponds approximately to three-fourths of the overall height of the support surface 2, so that between the upper surface of the rail 1 and the underside edge of the two guide plates 2a there remains a free space 2b which will be discussed further below. 
     A slide 4 is supported for longitudinal movement on the rail 1. The end of the rail 1 which is remote from the support surface 2 is squared off and has a fillister-head screw 3 thereat. The fillister-head screw 3 is arranged in such a manner on the central longitudinal axis of the rail 1 that its head is provided on the upper surface 1a of the rail 1 and located close to the end of the rail 1 with which it is associated. The fillister-head screw 3 extends through the rail 1 and is deformed at its end remote from the head and on the underside of the rail 1 to prevent removal thereof from the rail. As a result, the fillister-head screw 3 forms at the same time a stop for the slide 4, so that the slide 4 which is movable along the rail 1 is also secured against removal from the rail. 
     The slide 4 has a rectangular base of uniform thickness, wherein the two elongated sides of the slide 4 are constructed as U-shaped bent sections 4a which grip around the side edges of the rail 1 and thus secure same against a lifting off from the rail 1. The U-shaped bent sections 4a are furthermore designed so that they only loosely enclose the rail 1 for facilitating a satisfactory longitudinal movement along the rail. 
     The slide 4 has at its end which faces the fillister-head screw 3 a support surface 5, which forms approximately a right angle with the plane of the rectangular base of the slide 4. The support surface 5 has, similar to the support surface 2 of the rail 1, a guide plate 5a on each side thereof, which guide plate is bent also at an approximate 45° angle in a direction toward the support surface 2. The guide plates 5a and the support surface 5 are designed correspondingly high that their upper edges are in horizontal alignment with the upper edges of the support surface 2 and the two guide plates 2a. 
     The largest inside dimension of the adjusting device between the support surfaces 2 and 5 is determined when the slide 4 engages the fillister-head screw 3. The smallest inside dimension is determined when the left edge of the slide 4 engages the support surface 2. The space 2b provided below the two guide plates 2a assures a full utilization of the entire available adjusting range by permitting the left edge of the slide 4 to engage the support surface 2. 
     The slide 4 has an indicator 6 at its left end which faces the support surface 2 and is arranged substantially parallel with respect to the upper surface 1a of the rail 1 and extending laterally outwardly perpendicularly with respect to the longitudinal axis of the rail. Furthermore the rail 1 has on its underside an indicating bar 7. The indicating bar 7 is an L-shaped flange having arms 7c and 7d thereon. The arm 7c is sufficiently wide along the length thereof that three rows of side-by-side markings 7a can be and are provided thereon along the length thereof in a direction parallel with respect to the longitudinal axis of the rail 1. The other arm 7d is connected to the underside of the rail 1 inside of the adjacent lateral edge of the rail and is short in relationship to the arm 7c. The length of the shorter arm 7d is just long enough that the slide 4 and its U-shaped bent sections 4a slide along the rail without hindrance in the region of the indicating bar 7. The short arm 7d of the indicating bar 7 is thereby connected to the rail 1 such that the upper side of the arm 7c of the indicating bar 7 with the rows of markings 7a thereon is positioned substantially parallel with the upper surface 1a of the rail. One end of the indicia or markings on the arm 7c of the indicating bar 7 is in alignment with the inside of the support surface 2a, the other end is determined by the indicator 6, when the slide 4 engages the fillister-head screw 3. The individual rows of markings 7a on the indicating bar 7 are arranged such that the row of markings which is the closest to the rail is intended for use with children&#39;s rental ski bindings and the two other rows of markings are intended for use with adult rental ski bindings. 
     The counterpart for the rows 7a of markings is, as shown in FIG. 3, a row 7b of markings secured to a ski 11 in the region of a conventional heel holder 8. The heel holder 8 is adjustably movable in longitudinal direction of the ski 11 by means of a carriage 9 along a guide rail 12 secured to the ski, through which the entire heel holder 8 is secured on the upper surface of the ski 11. A sample heel binding adjustment arrangement is shown and described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,989,274 and 4,022,493 and reference thereto is to be incorporated herein. The carriage 9 of the heel holder 8 has a mark 10 thereon. Consequently, the mark 10 can be selectively adjusted corresponding to the markings in the rows 7a. 
     To adjust the thrust force of a ski binding, in particular of a rental ski binding, one proceeds now in the following manner. The slide 4 is moved to the right away from the support surface 2 until it engages the fillister-head screw 3 to create the largest inside dimension between the two support surfaces 2 and 5. Then the ski boot is positioned on the rail 1 and on the slide 4 so that the toe of the ski boot sole engages the support surface 2. Subsequently the slide 4 is moved to the left in direction of the support surface 2 until the support surface 5 engages the heel of the ski boot sole. The determined value is now read on the indicating bar 7 below the indicator 6 on the corresponding row of markings 7a. Then the mark 10 on the carriage 9 of the heel holder 8 is adjusted to the value in the row of markings 7b (compare FIG. 3) which corresponds with the read value in the row of markings 7a. In other words: For a correctly adjusted thrust force, namely, a spring force which urges the heel binding toward the toe binding and particularly into engagement with the heel of the ski boot, the values of the two indicating positions on the two rows of markings 7a, 7b correspond. As a result, quick and easy adjustment of a ski binding is achieved, in particular of a rental ski binding. Aside from the savings in time, a correct thrust adjustment for the heel holder and thus in connection with a not-illustrated front jaw, a satisfactory function of the entire safety ski binding is achieved. 
     The invention is not limited to the illustrated exemplary embodiment. Further modifications can be carried out without departing from the scope of the invention. It would for example be possible to design or arrange the indicating bar 7 differently, or to design the guideway of the slide 4 differently. For example, the slide 4 can be loaded inventively by a compression spring (not illustrated) secured at one of its ends to the fillister-head screw 3 and at its other end to the outside (right side) of the support surface 5 as shown schematically in FIGS. 1 and 2. In this manner, the slide 4 will be urged toward the support surface 2 to automatically set the ski boot to the measured value. 
     No special requirements are to be made as to the design of the locking and releasing mechanism between the carriage and the guide rail 12 in order to realize the invention. It will be readily understood that if an adjustment with fine graduations is preferred, since in this manner a more exact adjustment of the necessary thrust force is possible, it is inventively preferable for the individual locking positions of the carriage 9 relative to the guide rail 12 to correspond at least with the individual markings. 
     Although a particular preferred embodiment of the invention has been disclosed in detail for illustrative purposes, it will be recognized that variations or modifications of the disclosed apparatus, including the rearrangement of parts, lie within the scope of the present invention.