Hanger for roller skate having shock absorbing characteristics in vertical and horizontal planes

A wheel-supporting hanger for utilization on the frame of a roller skate, this hanger having an upper mounting portion as well as front and back portions. A central cavity is defined in the front portion of the hanger, in which an axle-receiving member is operatively mounted in a cantilever manner. A wheel-supporting axle protrudes outwardly in a cantilever manner from the axle-receiving member, with a screw utilized on the outer end of the axle for retaining a skate wheel in an operative manner on the axle. A structural member is located in an upper part of the cavity, defining a substantially flat undersurface in a relatively closely spaced relationship to the axle-receiving member. The cantileverly mounted axle-receiving member, because of the mounting of the axle therein, is permitted to flex upwardly as well as to move laterally to a controlled extent should the wheel mounted on the axle encounter an obstacle or obstruction. The axle-receiving member, in the instance of lateral movement, moves a commensurate distance with respect to the substantially flat undersurface, with this movement lessening the chance of material stress to the skate as a result of the shock of the skate wheel striking the obstacle. I prefer to utilize an insert of resilient, shock absorbing material between the axle-receiving member and the flat undersurface, with this insert being of selectable hardness so that the degree of permissible vertical travel of the axle can be closely controlled.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to an improved wheel mounting bracket, also known as 
a hanger or truck, for use with a type of in-line or tandem roller skate 
using individually mounted wheels rather than wheels mounted as a group 
between parallel mounting plates, with this new hanger being designed to 
minimize the possibility of damage or stress to the frame of the skate 
should a wheel of the skate encounter an obstacle or obstruction, and to 
absorb vibrations, thus making the operation of this skate smoother and 
more pleasurable for the user. 
Many generations of children and adults alike have enjoyed the pleasures of 
roller skating, and originally, the roller skates they used were of the 
so-called "quad" type, with each skate having a pair of wheels in the 
front, and a pair of wheels in the back. 
For reasons of increased speed and maneuverability, a large number of 
skaters have entirely stopped using quad skates, and have gone over to 
what are called linear skates, involving a design wherein the wheels of 
each skate are disposed along a straight line. Linear or in-line skates 
have at least three wheels, but may utilize four, five or possibly more 
wheels, for as a generality, the larger the number of wheels, the smoother 
the ride. 
Conventional in-line or linear roller skates normally utilize wheels 
positioned to rotate within a common vertical plane, and while operating 
as roller skates, have much of the feel and behavior associated with ice 
skates. Substantially the same bodily movements are required to operate 
both ice skates and in-line roller skates, and such roller skates have 
become increasingly popular with ice skaters as a desirable training tool 
for off season and on-street use. In recent years, in-line roller skates 
have been capturing an increasing share of the recreational skate market 
and in time may parallel jogging as a healthy and pleasurable adult sport. 
In 1966, G. K. Ware in U.S. Pat. No. 3,287,023 disclosed an in-line skate 
with thin, rounded wheels which endeavored to simulate the performance of 
ice skates. The Ware skate utilized a fairly heavy metal frame having 
front and rear frame members with longitudinally extending and overlapping 
sections. Three sections had a multiplicity of horizontally arranged axle 
apertures which permitted positioning of wheel axles in a variety of 
different locations and provided continuous adjustability of the frame to 
accommodate a wide variety of boot sizes. The Ware frame also included the 
positioning of apertures at several elevations at the front and rear of 
the skate so that the forward and rear wheels could be a higher level than 
the two intermediate wheels. The Ware frame and variations of it are still 
in use on many types of currently available in-line roller skates. 
A number of distinct wheel structures have been developed for use with 
tandem skates, conventional roller skates and other roller devices, some 
of which are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 189,783, 2,670,242, 4,054,335 and 
4,114,952. 
U.S. Pat. No. 5,303,940 entitled "Skate Having Angularly Mounted Wheels" 
was issued to Ernest E. Brandner on Apr. 19, 1994, with this skate 
representing a substantial departure from other in-line skates by 
utilizing wheel brackets attached to the undersurface of the mounting 
plate of the skate in such a manner as to cause the wheels of the skate to 
be disposed in a highly advantageous angled relationship. This Brandner 
patent described how the wheel mounting brackets or hangers could be 
mounted on the skate frame with all of the wheels mounted at the same 
angle, or alternatively, with the wheels mounted in an alternating angular 
relationship along the longitudinal axis of the mounting plate of the 
skate. 
By the very nature of in-line skating, it is often conducted over rough, 
irregular, and debris filled surfaces. Therefore, it has become desirable 
to design hangers or wheel mounting brackets providing some shock 
absorbency, not only for the comfort for the skater, but also to lessen 
the likelihood of material stress within the frame of the skate. 
The present invention is concerned with the construction of hangers or 
wheel mounting brackets generally similar to those taught in the 
above-identified Brandner patent, but with these new hangers having highly 
advantageous shock absorbing qualities in vertical and horizontal planes. 
Because of this advantageous construction, these novel hangers not only 
provide more comfort to the skater, but also lessen the likelihood of 
damage to the skate, should a wheel of the skate strike an obstacle or 
obstruction during use. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In accordance with this invention I have provided a wheel supporting hanger 
or wheel mounting bracket intended to be utilized on the frame of a roller 
skate for the support of a skate wheel. This novel hanger is constructed 
of resilient, somewhat flexible material, and it is configured to provide 
bidirectional shock absorbing characteristics, that is, shock absorbing 
characteristics in vertical as well as horizontal planes. 
This novel hanger involves a housing member intended to be mounted on the 
frame of the skate, typically removably mounted, with this housing member 
having a substantially flat upper mounting portion designed to be secured 
to an appropriate portion of the skate frame. The hanger also has front 
and back portions, with means defining a central cavity in the front 
portion of the hanger, in which an axle-receiving member is defined. The 
central cavity may be regarded as being essentially surrounded by a 
generally cup-shaped member. 
This axle-receiving member resides in the cavity in a cantilever manner, 
and an axle protrudes outwardly in a cantilever manner from this 
axle-receiving member. A tapped hole is provided on the centerline of the 
axle, into which a screw of appropriate length is intended to be threaded, 
in order that a skate wheel can be retained in an operative manner on the 
axle. 
In accordance with this invention, an insert-receiving slot is defined in 
the cavity at a location directly above the axle-receiving member. 
Although for lightweight skaters it may be appropriate to permit a rather 
substantial amount of flexure to take place at this slot, typically I 
install an insert of shock absorptive material in the slot. A 
close-fitting relationship exists between the insert of shock absorptive 
material and the axle-receiving member, whereas a structural member in an 
upper part of the cavity defines a substantially flat surface at the top 
of the cavity, with which surface the insert of shock absorptive material 
is in slidable contact. Because of the mounting of the axle in the 
cantileverly mounted axle-receiving member, the axle is permitted to move 
laterally to a controlled extent should the wheel mounted on the axle 
encounter a pebble or other such obstacle, with the insert in this 
instance moving a commensurate lateral distance with respect to the flat 
surface defined at the top of the cavity. This advantageous arrangement is 
responsible for lessening the chance of material damage or fatigue of 
structural components of the skate as a result of the shock of the skate 
wheel striking the obstacle or obstruction. 
In addition, because of the slot utilized above the axle-receiving member, 
the hanger is able to flex in a vertical direction, thus to provide an 
additional shock absorbing characteristic, in an orthogonal relationship 
to the shock absorbing characteristic in a lateral or left-right 
direction. As is obvious, somewhat less hanger flexure can take place at 
the slot location when an insert of shock absorbing material is utilized 
in the slot. 
It is also to be noted that the substantially flat upper cavity member is 
configured to permit a degree of flexing, with this constructional 
characteristic enhancing the axle being able to flex vertically and thus 
provide increased comfort to the skater. 
It is thus a primary object of my invention to provide a novel 
wheel-supporting hanger or wheel mounting bracket for a roller skate 
equipped with a cantileverly mounted axle upon which a skate wheel is 
operatively installed, with the hanger possessing bidirectional shock 
absorbing characteristics in that it permits a degree of axle flexure in a 
vertical direction, as well as axle flexure in a horizontal direction 
should the wheel encounter a pebble or other obstruction. 
It is another object of my invention to provide a novel wheel-supporting 
hanger for a roller skate equipped with an axle upon which a skate wheel 
is operatively installed, in which the hanger is configured to permit a 
degree of axle movement in a fore and aft direction, that is, movement 
parallel to the base plate of the skate, thereby lessening the transmittal 
of shock to the base plate, thus to minimize the possibility of damage or 
stress to the skate. 
It is yet another object of my invention to provide a novel 
wheel-supporting hanger for a roller skate equipped with an axle upon 
which a skate wheel is operatively installed, with a slot provided in the 
hanger into which shock absorbing material may be inserted, thus to help 
insulate the foot of the skater from vibration and thereby increase the 
skater's comfort. 
It is yet still another object of my invention to provide a novel 
wheel-supporting hanger for a roller skate equipped with an axle upon 
which a skate wheel is operatively installed, with the axle extending 
outwardly in a cantilever manner from a cavity defined in the hanger, with 
a flexure member defined in an upper part of the cavity being designed to 
permit a degree of flexure of the axle in a vertical direction, thus to 
contribute to the comfort of the skater. 
These and other objects, features and advantages will be more apparent from 
the enclosed drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
With reference to FIG. 1, it will be seen that I have depicted a 
perspective view of my novel wheel supporting hanger or wheel mounting 
bracket 10 intended to be utilized on the frame of a roller skate for the 
support of a skate wheel. Although the hanger could be directly molded to 
the frame of the skate, I typically prefer for the hanger or wheel 
mounting bracket to be removably attached to the frame of the skate, in a 
manner shortly to be described. 
It is to be noted that although my novel hanger 10 is entirely suitable for 
use on a linear skate or in-line skate having wheels disposed at a 
conventional 90.degree. angle, I prefer for this hanger to be utilized on 
the frame of a skate in accordance with the Brandner U.S. Pat. No. 
5,303,940 entitled "Skate Having Angularly Mounted Wheels," wherein the 
wheels are mounted in an angularly disposed relationship to the frame of 
the skate. 
From the above-identified Brandner patent it is to be seen that as one 
option, the hangers may be mounted on the skate frame in an alternating 
array with a first wheel supporting axle directed to the right; the second 
wheel supporting axle directed to the left; the third wheel supporting 
axle directed to the right; and the fourth wheel supporting axle directed 
to the left. 
The hanger 10 in accordance with the instant invention involves a housing 
member 12 constructed of a resilient, somewhat flexible material such as 
polyurethane, although I obviously am not to be limited to this material. 
Inasmuch as the hanger 10 illustrated in FIG. 1 is intended to be 
removably mounted on the frame (not shown) of a skate, I provide a 
substantially flat portion 14 designed to be placed against and secured to 
an appropriate undersurface of the skate frame. The flat portion 14, 
hereinafter to be regarded as the mounting surface, is provided with a 
plurality of tapped holes 16, 18 and 20, with hole 18 in alignment with 
the centerline of the hanger and with the axle 32 cantileverly supported 
in a shock-absorptive manner by the hanger 10. By the use of a plurality 
of screws of suitable length, not shown, the hanger 10 is to be secured to 
the frame of the skate, passing through holes of suitable diameter in the 
skate frame that are spaced in accordance with the spacing of the holes 
16, 18 and 20. 
The hanger 10 has a front surface 24 and a rear surface 26, latter being 
visible in FIG. 2, with each of these surfaces being in contact with the 
mounting surface 14. Defined in the front surface 24 of the hanger 10 is a 
cavity 28 in which an axle-receiving member 30 is mounted, with this 
cavity being visible in FIGS. 1, 3, 6a and 6b. With particular reference 
to FIG. 3 it will be seen that the curved wall 29 may be regarded as 
defining at least a part of a generally cup-shaped outer wall around the 
cavity 28. This generally cup-shaped outer wall can of course flex when 
the skate is in use, thus to add comfort to the skater. 
The axle-receiving member 30 is located in the cavity 28, extending in a 
cantilever manner outwardly from what may be regarded as the rear surface 
26 of the hanger. Molded in the centrally disposed axle-receiving member 
30 is the axle 32 of steel that protrudes outwardly in a cantilever 
manner, as revealed in FIGS. 1, 2 and 4. The axle 32 is preferably a split 
axle created along the lines of the axle described in the international 
patent application of Ernest E. Brandner, International Publication No. WO 
96/36531, which was published Nov. 21, 1996. This Brandner patent 
application teaches that the axle of that application is configured to 
hold a skate wheel in the operative position by virtue of the end of the 
axle being split so as to be expandable. In accordance with the teaching 
of that Brandner application, a tapped hole is formed in the end of the 
axle, with the tapped hole located along the centerline of the axle. A 
tightening screw is utilized for expanding the diameter of the axle when 
the skate wheel is in place, such that the wheel will be securely held in 
an operative manner on the axle. 
With continued reference to FIG. 1 of the instant invention, it will be 
noted that the steel axle 32 contains one or more slits or slots 33 
extending from the outward end of the axle in the direction of an integral 
shoulder 36. The shoulder 36 is formed on the inner portion of the part of 
the axle upon which the skate wheel is to reside. Disposed on the 
centerline of the axle 32 is a tapped hole 34 into which a screw of 
appropriate length is intended to be threaded, in order to cause the outer 
end of the axle to expand, and thus cause a skate wheel to be retained in 
an operative manner on the axle 32. 
From FIGS. 1, 2 and 4 it will be seen that the aforementioned integral 
shoulder 36 bears directly against the centrally disposed axle-receiving 
member 30. Inasmuch as the axle-receiving member 30 extends in the cavity 
28 in an essentially unsupported manner outwardly from the rear surface 
26, I may provide a supporting web 40 on the undersurface of the 
axle-receiving member 30, as is clearly visible in FIGS. 1 and 3. I have 
found that the provision of the web 40 helps prevent distortion from 
occurring during the molding of the hanger. Also, while providing some 
stability to the axle-receiving member 30, it is to be noted that web 40 
does not inhibit left-right movement or flexure of the member 30 in the 
manner described hereinafter with regard to FIGS. 6a and 6b. 
Important to this invention is the fact that a slot 46 is defined in the 
cavity 28, disposed directly above the axle-receiving member 30, with the 
slot 46 being visible in FIG. 1, as well as being visible in FIGS. 2 
through 4. It is in the slot 46 that I may utilize means in the form of 
resilient, shock-absorptive material in order to advantageously provide 
shock absorbing characteristics in vertical and horizontal planes for my 
novel hanger. 
It is to be noted that my novel hanger may be utilized without any shock 
absorbing means installed in the slot, such as when the skater is of light 
weight. However, in a large number of instances I prefer to utilize shock 
absorbing means in the slot, with this means taking the form of an insert 
50 of suitable material, typically of plastic. This insert is to be 
installed in the general manner indicated in FIG. 1, in order to bring 
about some of the highly desirable shock-absorptive characteristics of my 
novel hanger. Although visible in FIGS. 1 and 2, the insert 50 is best 
seen in FIG. 5, and this component will be discussed at greater length 
hereinafter. 
It is to be understood, however, that for lightweight skaters it is 
possible to omit the use of the insert 50, thus to permit a rather 
substantial amount of flexure to take place at the slot location, with 
this flexure to take place as a consequence of constructing the hanger out 
of resilient, somewhat flexible material. 
From FIG. 2 it will be seen that the axle 32 is provided with an interior 
supporting portion 38 involving two, three or more convolutions 39, which 
serve to hold the axle firmly in the axle-receiving central member 30 of 
the hanger. I typically knurl or notch the peripheries of the convolutions 
39 of the interior portion 38 in order that the axle 32 will not tend, 
during use, to rotate with respect to the hanger. The axle-receiving 
member 30 of the hanger 10 is typically molded around the interior portion 
of the axle 32 during an injection molding procedure. 
With reference to FIG. 3, it will be noted that protuberances 42 and 44 are 
formed in a spaced-apart relationship upon upper portions of the 
axle-receiving central member 30, with these protuberances serving in part 
to define the aforementioned insert-receiving slot 46. 
Spaced above these protuberances 42 and 44 is a flat surface 60 which will 
be noted in FIG. 3 to have substantial width in the left-right direction. 
The flat surface 60 is located on a laterally extending structural member 
62 that may be regarded as defining an upper portion of the cavity 28, and 
because of its location, I may hereinafter refer to the surface 60 as an 
undersurface. In a central location above the structural member 62 is a 
supporting web 64, which is in direct contact with a surrounding portion 
of the housing 12. Because the structural member 62 is supported only at 
its edges, and by the web 64 in its central portion, the structural member 
62 may undertake a desirable amount of flexure when the skate is in use. 
It is to be noted that when no preformed insert is being utilized in the 
slot 46 during use of the skate, the protuberances 42 and 44 may come into 
contact with the undersurface 60 at unsupported locations of the member 
62, with this of course meaning that significant flexure of the member 62 
can take place in such instances. 
Referring back to FIG. 2, it will be noted that the flat surface 60 bears a 
slightly tapered relationship to the upper surface of the axle-receiving 
central member 30, with this making it possible to define a type of 
wedge-shaped configuration. It is at least partly because of this 
relationship that the preformed insert 50 may be effectively maintained in 
the slot 46 that exists between the upper surface of the central member 30 
and the flat undersurface 60 of the structural member 62. 
With reference now to FIG. 4, it will be seen that at this location I 
depict, in a somewhat exaggerated manner for reasons of clarity, a 
controlled amount of vertical movement .THETA. of the outer end of the 
axle 32, which movement is about flexure point 48 located at the rear of 
the hanger 10. It was earlier seen that cavity 28 defined at least in part 
by the cup-shaped member 29 extends almost entirely around the 
axle-receiving central member 30, with the result that flexure point 48 
may be regarded as being in somewhat the configuration of an inverted "U". 
As is obvious, this flexure of the axle contributes substantially to the 
comfort of the skater. 
Turning to FIG. 5 it will be noted that the underside of the preformed 
insert 50 has long edges 52 and 54, which are of substantially constant 
thickness and which extend for the length of the insert 50. In contrast 
with this, the upper surface 56 of the insert 50 is flat, except for a 
protrusion 58 at the end of the upper surface, located on the centerline 
of 50, which protrusion is to be described shortly. 
With reference to FIG. 3 in the context of FIG. 5, it is important to note 
that the long edge 52 of the insert 50 is to come into contact with 
protuberance 42, and the long edge 54 of the insert is to come into 
contact with the protuberance 44 at such time as the insert 50 is to be 
installed in the slot 46. Because of this construction, the insert 50 may 
be regarded as having a firm relationship with the axle-receiving central 
member 30 of the hanger, with little if any relative motion being present 
at this location when the skate is in use. 
A particularly important aspect of this invention involves the fact that 
the upper surface 56 of the insert 50 as well as the undersurface 60 of 
the structural member 62 are both flat, although it is to be noted that in 
some instances, the undersurface 60 could possess a desirable amount of 
curvature. Because of this relative flatness, a desirable amount of 
relative motion of the axle 32 in a lateral or left-right direction is 
permitted in the event of a shock. Such a shock may occur at such time as 
a skate equipped with my novel hanger has been placed in use, and the axle 
32 has encountered an event, such as the wheel installed on the axle 
coming into sudden contact with a pebble or some other obstruction. This 
will be discussed hereinafter with regard to FIGS. 6a and 6b. 
Because of the relative motion that is advantageously possible between the 
upper surface 56 of the insert 50 and the flat undersurface 60, the 
axle-receiving central member 30 can, during use of the skate, move to 
some extent in a rearward direction with respect to the laterally 
extending structural member 62 of the housing member, thus avoiding a 
substantial portion of shock being transmitted to the frame of the skate. 
Through many tests I have established that the sliding motion made 
possible, in accordance with this novel design, between the flat upper 
surface of the insert 50 and the underside of the structural member 62 may 
in many instances lessen the possibility of damage, shock or stress to the 
skate frame. 
With further reference to FIG. 5 it will be noted that upon a rear location 
on the upper flat surface 56 of the insert 50 is the aforementioned 
protrusion 58, which is utilized as a locking member serving to prevent 
dislocation of the insert 50 during use of the skate. With reference to 
FIG. 2, it is to be noted that the protrusion 58 is designed to coincide 
with the location of the lowermost portion of the rear mounting hole 18, 
and thus serves to lock the insert 50 in its operative position. I have 
found that a protrusion 58, being located at the innermost portion of the 
insert 50, does not interfere in any consequential manner with the sliding 
type relative motion of the insert 50 with the undersurface 60, but as is 
obvious, the lowermost portion of the hole 18 could be widened in a 
lateral direction should this for any reason become necessary. 
I am not to be limited to any one substance or compound in the creation of 
the insert 50 of resilient, shock absorptive material, but typically I 
construct this member of polyurethane. Other options may include the 
creation of the insert 50 from polyethylene, polypropylene or relatively 
dense rubber. It has already been pointed out that under certain 
circumstances my novel hanger, because of its unique structural design, 
may be utilized without a preformed insert. 
Turning now to FIGS. 6a and 6b, it will be noted in FIG. 6a that I have 
illustrated, in a somewhat exaggerated manner, how if the lower right edge 
of the wheel supported on the axle 32 strikes a pebble or the like, the 
axle is permitted to deflect laterally to the left in this instance, for a 
distance D. This lateral deflection of the axle is made possible by the 
fact that the axle-receiving member 30 of the hanger is supported in a 
substantially cantilever fashion from the rear portion 26 of the hanger, 
with the flat upper surface 56 of the insert 50 being, as previously 
explained, in a sliding relationship with the undersurface 60, located of 
course on the underside of the structural member 62. Because of this 
sliding relationship, the axle 32 is not inhibited from moving laterally 
in the manner indicated by letter D in FIG. 6a, upon the skate wheel 
striking an obstruction. 
Somewhat similarly, in FIG. 6b I have shown the left lower surface of the 
wheel striking a pebble, with this causing the axle to move laterally, in 
this instance to the right to an extent D. As before, the flat surface 56 
of the insert 50 can advantageously move in a sliding manner with respect 
to the relatively flat undersurface 60 of the structural member 62. 
As will be apparent to those skilled in this art, the situation depicted in 
FIG. 6b may come about when the skater is skating rearwardly, or it may 
come about because the hanger depicted in FIG. 6b is mounted on the skate 
frame such that its axle is pointing in substantially the opposite 
direction from the axle shown on the hanger depicted in FIG. 6a. 
It should now be seen that my invention permits the creation of a novel 
hanger or wheel mounting bracket for a skate, which hanger has highly 
advantageous bidirectional shock absorbing characteristics serving to help 
protect the skate frame from stress as well as contributing markedly to 
the comfort of the skater. 
Despite the fact that I have specifically referred to vertical motion and 
horizontal motion of the cantileverly supported axle, it is to be 
understood that the construction of my novel hanger is such as to permit 
motion of the axle to the left and upward, to the right and upward, as 
well as other combinational movements. 
Although I have described the insert 50 as being locked in place by the 
protrusion 58 aligning with the rear mounting hole 18, by inserting a long 
thin item down the hole 18 after the hanger has been removed from the 
skate, the protrusion 58 can be released from its locking relationship so 
that the insert can be entirely removed. It is within the spirit of my 
invention to standardize the size of the inserts, so that a selected 
insert of the desired degree of hardness or firmness can be utilized in a 
given instance, so that the permissible vertical travel of the axle can be 
closely controlled. For example, the weight of the skater may well 
determine the character of the insert.