Ski binding, particularly for cross-country skiing

The binding comprises a plate having a transverse flap located at a first end thereof, and a bar pivotally connected to a second end thereof. A spring is adapted for adjusting oscillation of the bar relative to the plate, the first end whereof is pivotally connected to a base, attachable to a ski. The transverse flap and the bar are adapted for engaging grip elements provided at the sole of an item of footwear. Shoulders protruding from the base rotatably support a hook which is releasably engagable with teeth, rigidly associated with the bar, for selectively preventing oscillation between the plate and the base. A longitudinal lug is also attachable to a ski and accommodatable in a recess formed in the sole of an item of footwear, to prevent lateral movement of the footwear with respect to the longitudinal axis of the ski.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to a ski binding, particularly for 
cross-country skiing. 
Several types of bindings are currently known for the practice of 
cross-country skiing, which feature the essential characteristic of 
locking to the ski, a tip which projects forward from a specific item of 
footwear worn by the athlete. 
Said tip, which is an extension of the sole, deforms resiliently during the 
stride, allowing to use the alternate-stride method. 
Said known types of bindings are not free from disadvantages, among which 
is the remarkable stress which affects the tip, which is subject to 
breakage in the region of rigid coupling to the binding. 
Another disadvantage resides in the fact that such bindings do not allow a 
good lateral grip of the footwear, that is, they do not allow the athlete 
to place the ski edge-wise on the snow. 
This disadvantage is relevant, since skiers currently tend to adopt a mixed 
method comprising, besides the alternate stride, a new method, known as 
the lateral push stride method. 
Said new method gives a better performance in skiing if it is possible to 
arrange the ski edge-wise or edge-on, imparting thereto a lateral movement 
in an oblique direction with respect to the direction of the skier's path. 
As a partial solution to this problem, bindings are known which are 
composed of a first element adapted to lock the tip of the item of 
footwear, and a second element adapted to lock the heel region thereof. 
The main disadvantage found in such known types is the high overall cost of 
the binding, since it comprises two separate elements. 
Furthermore, the skier is prevented from adopting the alternate-stride 
method of skiing. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
The main aim proposed by the present invention is to eliminate the 
disadvantages described above in known types by devising a ski binding for 
cross-country skiing which allows the skier to adopt either the 
alternate-stride or the lateral push stride method of skiing, with maximum 
results. 
Within the scope of this aim, a further important object is to provide a 
ski binding for cross-country skiing which allows, if the alternate-step 
method is used, to perform an optimum and safe stride without any part of 
the footwear being subjected to resilient deformation. 
Another important object is to provide a ski binding for cross-country 
skiing, which allows a skier, when adopting the lateral push-stride method 
of skiing, to firmly fasten the footwear to the ski. 
Another object is to provide a ski binding which allows a quick and optimum 
fastening and unfastening of the footwear to the ski. 
A further object is to provide a ski binding which associates with the 
above features that of being structurally simple, comprising a small 
number of components, and requiring little maintenance. 
The aim and the objects mentioned above, and others which will become 
apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a ski binding particularly for 
cross-country skiing, characterized in that it comprises a base which can 
be coupled to a ski, a plate pivoted to said base, along an axis which is 
perpendicular with respect to the longitudinal axis of said ski, for an 
oscillation of said plate relatively to said base, engagement means for 
the removable locking of an item of footwear on said plate, means for 
blocking the oscillation of said plate relatively to said base and control 
means for the operation of said blocking means.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
With reference to the above described figures, the binding 1 is composed of 
a plane base 2, advantageously metallic and essentially trapezoidal in 
shape, which can be rigidly coupled to the surface of a cross-country ski 
3. Said base 2 is provided with first and second pairs of lateral 
shoulders 4 and 5, similar in shape and dimensions, symmetrical with 
respect to the longitudinal mid-plane of the base 2. The first pair of 
shoulders 4 project perpendicularly at the rear or first end 6 of the base 
2, while the second pair of shoulders 5, is located proximate to the front 
or second end 7 thereof. 
At one end 8a a plate 8 is idly pivoted between the shoulders 5. The plate 
8 has an essentially trapezoidal shape and rests on the base 2, its other 
end 9 being adjacent to the shoulders 4. 
From said plate 8, at the first end 8a thereof pivoted to the base 2, 
projects a transverse flap 10 which is curved with a concavity facing the 
pair of shoulders 4. 
From the second end 9 of the plate 8 project, a third pair of identical 
shoulders 11. Between the shoulders 11 a metal bar 12, having a 
substantially oval cross section, is pivoted idly at a pivot axis, 
arranged eccentrically with respect to the mid-longitudinal axis of said 
bar. 
In the regions adjacent to the lateral ends of the surface of said bar 
facing the flap 10 are formed two milled seats 13, each having a surface 
14 which is inclined with respect to the plane of the plate 8. 
A through hole 15 is formed in the bar 12 above a longitudinal mid-plane of 
the plate 8 and below the axis of pivotal connection to the shoulders 11. 
The through hole 15 is inclined with respect to the transverse axis of 
said bar towards the flap 10. 
As illustrated in FIG. 9, the stem of a screw 16 is inserted in said hole 
15, the head of said screw interacting with the rear surface of the bar 
12. 
The stem of the screw thus projects towards the flap 10, and is threaded in 
the region not interacting with the bar 12, its terminal end is blocked in 
a fixed position and a locking ring 17 is associated therewith. 
Said ring is accommodated between two flaps 18 which project from the inner 
lateral walls of a box-like housing 19 for said stem. 
The housing is rigidly connected to the plate 8 and projects therefrom for 
a height no greater than that of the bar 12 and the flap 10. Said housing 
is shorter than the longitudinal extension of the plate 8 and its ends are 
open and do not interact with the bar 12 or with the flap 10. 
Inside the housing 19, which has a cross section in the shape of an 
isosceles trapezium, a nut 20 is provided which is threaded to engage the 
stem of the screw 16, its lateral surface interacting with the walls of 
said housing 19. 
Such an arrangement allows, by rotating the screw, to obtain only an axial 
motion of the nut which is prevented from rotating. 
Located coaxially with respect to the stem of the screw 16, is a 
cylindrical helical compression spring 21, the ends of which interact with 
the surface of the bar 12 facing towards the housing 19 and with a surface 
of the nut 20. 
A tooth 22 projects from the rear surface of the bar 12, at each of the 
seats 13, the tooth has a plane surface which interacts with the 
corresponding facing surface of a locking means composed of a hook 23 
having an essentially L-shaped cross section. 
Each of said hooks is freely and transversely pivoted between a shoulder 4 
and a flap 24, projecting perpendicularly with respect to the base 2. 
Of course both hooks 23 have the same pivot axis. The surface of the hook 
interacting with the tooth 22 is arranged on a plane which is intermediate 
and parallel with respect to the planes, intersecting, respectively, the 
upper pivot axis of the bar 12 and the lower pivot axis of said hook 23. 
Such an arrangement allows the coupling and the uncoupling between the bar 
and the hook, upon the hook being rotated in one direction or the other. 
This rotation is imparted to the hook by means of a pair of rods 25 
arranged symmetrically with respect to the longitudinal middle axis of the 
base 2 on which they rest. 
In fact each rod is associated at one end with the end of the corresponding 
hook 23 adjacent to the base 2, while the other end projects beyond the 
shoulders 5. 
The body of the rods is instead accommodated in complementarily shaped 
seats provided in the bar 12 and in the plate 8. 
The axial motion of each rod is imposed by means of a connecting rod 26, 
arranged obliquely with respect to the plane of the base 2 and pivoted, at 
one end, to the matching end of the rod 25 and at the other end to a 
mid-point of a lever 27. 
The lever 27 is in turn pivoted at one end between two flaps 28 which 
project perpendicularly from the base 2. 
FIGS. 3 and 6 illustrate the condition in which the hook 23 blocks the 
tooth 22: said condition is kept stable by interposing a cylindrical 
helical compression spring 29 between the facing surfaces of the lever 27 
of the base 2, its ends being arranged coaxially with respect to two 
cylindrical tabs 30 and 31. 
An item of footwear 32 is removably associable with the binding 1, and is 
provided with a lug 34, below the sole 33 at the region of the tip. 
The lug 34 has a central region 40 which is shaped complementarily with 
respect to the box-like housing 19, and is provided with grip means which 
are constituted by a transverse tab 35 shaped complementarily with respect 
to the curved portion of the flap 10 facing towards the rear end 6 of the 
binding, and by a pair of lateral tabs 36 shaped complementarily with 
respect to the seats 13 provided on the bar 12. 
Along the mid-longitudinal axis of the sole, in the regions of the heel and 
the middle portion of the sole, a seat 37 is provided which expediently 
has a triangular cross section. The seat is adapted to accommodate a 
complementarily shaped longitudinal lug 38 rigidly coupled with and 
projecting from the ski 3. 
To engage the item of footwear 32 with the binding 1, the skier first 
places the tab 35 in abutment witn the flap 10, then simply exerts 
pressure on the sole towards the ski. 
The tabs 36 are thus positioned in the seats 13, in which they are blocked. 
The coupling is possible because the bar 12 can rotate freely about its own 
axis, due to the angled arrangement of the hole 15. 
By rotating the screw 16, it is possible to adjust the pressure required to 
obtain safety release in case the skier is subject to a fall. 
In order to limit the clockwise rotation of the bar 12, as an effect of the 
action of the spring 21, as shown in FIG. 6, an arrestor tooth 39, rigidly 
coupled to the base 2, is provided rearwardly thereto. 
In order to unfasten the footwear from the binding 1, the skier simply has 
to raise his/her heel, with a sharp movement, so that the tabs 36, by 
pushing on the surface 14, cause the rotation, in an anticlockwise 
direction with reference to FIG. 6, of the bar 12, overcoming the force of 
the spring 21; this rotation is also facilitated by the tooth 22 which 
abuts with the hook 23. 
Considering now the condition illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 6, therein the 
plate 8 is associated with the base 2, the hook 23 locking the tooth 22 of 
the bar 12. 
In this manner, the skier can perform the stride according to the lateral 
push stride method, the footwear being practically adherent to the ski. If 
instead he wishes to perform the stride according to the alternate-step 
method, it will be sufficient to push the lever 27 to impose an axial 
sliding of the rods 25 and therefore the rotation of the hook 23 until it 
disengages from the tooth 22. 
In this manner the plate 8 can rotate around the axis of pivoting at the 
shoulders 5, as illustrated in FIG. 5. 
If the skier wishes to return to the use of the previous method, it will be 
sufficient to exert a simple pressure on the sole towards the ski, so as 
to make the hook 23 interact again with the tooth 22. 
It has thus been observed that the invention achieves the aims and the 
objects proposed, a binding for cross-country skiing, having been provided 
which allows the skier to adopt with the best results both the 
alternate-stride method and the lateral push stride method. 
Furthermore FIG. 10 illustrates a device adapted to allow the plate 8 not 
to be locked by the hook 23 each time the skier rests the sole on the ski. 
It entails that the free end of the lever 127 interacts with a first flap 
140 of a head 141, the stem of which is pivoted between a fourth pair of 
lateral shoulders 142 mounted on the base 102. 
The head is held in position by a spring 143 interposed between the lower 
surface of its second flap 144 and the facing surface of the base 102. 
Once the lever 127 is engaged with the head, the uncoupling of the plate 
from the base 102 is achieved, while, in the opposite case, the skier can 
achieve the automatic plate-base coupling by resting the heel on the ski. 
FIGS. 11 to 14 illustrate another aspect of the invention, provided with a 
lateral binding system, wherein the elements which are in common with the 
device as described above are indicated with the numbers of the previous 
figures increased by 200. 
The lateral binding system comprises two hooks 301 arranged along the 
lateral edges of the plate 208 and acting on the sides of the front end of 
the footwear 232 to lock the footwear to the plate 208. The plate 208 can 
be locked to the base 202 or can be uncoupled to allow the oscillation 
thereof with respect to said base in a manner which is fully similar to 
what has been described above. 
The lateral hooks 301 are preferably in the shape of an inverted U, and 
each one is provided, in the upper region facing the footwear, with a 
longitudinal tab 302 adapted to engage with a seat 303 provided on the 
lateral edge of the front region of the footwear 232. 
The hooks 301 are pivoted, along a mid-longitudinal axis thereof, to two 
flaps 304 arranged symmetrically with respect to the lateral edges of the 
plate 202. The elastic elements 306 act on the two lower flaps 305 of each 
hook, their tension being adjusted by the adjustment assembly 307. With 
reference to FIG. 12, it can be seen that, since the pivoting axis of the 
hooks 301 is in an intermediate position between the lower flaps 305 and 
the longitudinal tabs 302, the tabs 302 press on the portion 308 of the 
sole 233, blocking the footwear 232. 
The fastening adjustment system, of a known kind, is composed of the 
adjustment assembly 307 which acts on the elastic elements 306, which 
preferably are cylindrical helical springs, an end thereof being engaged 
with the flaps 305 by means of cylindrical tabs 309, and the opposite end 
being accommodated in suitable seats provided in the assembly 307. 
The adjustment assembly 307 comprises two small blocks 310, substantially 
wedge-shaped, with the bases 311 facing towards the lower flaps 305 of the 
hooks 301 and provided with cylindrical seats 312 to accommodate the ends 
of the springs 306. Between the two small blocks 310, two wedge-like 
elements 313 are interposed, with their inclined faces in sliding contact 
with the inclined faces of the small blocks 310, so that by bringing 
together the wedge-like elements 313 the small blocks 310 approach the 
respective hooks 301, increasing the load of the springs 306. Conversely, 
by mutually moving apart the wedge-like elements 313 the small blocks 310 
are allowed to mutually approach, increasing the distance between said 
small blocks and the respective hooks, and reducing the load of the 
springs 306. 
The mutual motion of the wedge-like elements 313 is achieved by means of 
the adjustment screw 314, provided with counterposed threads 314a and 314b 
and inserted in threaded holes provided in the wedge-like elements 313 in 
a direction which is parallel to the longitudinal axis of the plate 208. 
By rotating the screw 314 in one direction, the mutual approach of the 
wedge-like elements 313 is achieved; conversely, by rotating the screw 314 
in the opposite direction the mutual moving apart of said elements is 
achieved. The adjustment assembly 307 is expediently supported by a 
box-like housing for containment and protection, not illustrated herein 
for the sake of simplicity, similar in concept to the box-like housing 19 
previously illustrated. 
The operation of the lateral binding system is very simple, since it is 
sufficient to press the tip of the footwear 232 on the hooks 301 to cause 
rotation of the hooks about their axis of pivoting, since their upper 
surface is angled, thus allowing the insertion of the portion 308 of the 
footwear between said hooks. The binding is then adjusted, according to 
the weight of the skier and to his/her preferences, simply by rotating the 
screw 314 in one direction or the other. To unfasten the footwear, the 
plate 208 has to be locked on the base 202 and then the skier's heel 
sharply raised, the angled lower surfaces of the longitudinal tabs 302 and 
of the seats 303 facilitate the rotation of the hooks 301 against the 
action of the springs 306. 
The lateral binding system allows a greater control of the ski, 
particularly in controlling the edge during the skid stride, also because 
of the fact that in this kind of binding the sole is coplanar to the 
fastening region. 
A binding device has thus been provided which allows both to firmly fasten 
the footwear to the ski, and to allow it to perform an oscillating motion 
without the sole of the footwear being subject to any elastic deformation. 
The particular guides provided below the sole of the footwear together with 
the lug 34 projecting from the ski allow an optimum control of the lateral 
thrust if the lateral push stride method of skiing is adopted. 
It is stressed that the binding to which the present invention relates 
allows the achievement of optimum aesthetical characteristics. In fact, 
the footwear advantageously almost completely hides the binding from view. 
Naturally, the invention thus conceived is susceptible to numerous 
modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the 
same inventive concept. 
The materials and the dimensions of the individual components may also be 
any according to the specific requirements.