SKI FASTENING

Abstract: The invention concerns a ski fastening for fixing a skiing shoe (1) on a ski, said fastening com­ prising a body part (2) to be fixed on the ski and a catch member (3) pivotally attached to the body part and with the aid of which, by mediation of an eye-like hook member (4) on the skiing shoe the shoe becomes fixerd to the body part (2). The surface of the body part (2) abutting on the shoe tip forms a wedge-like surface (6) substantially conforming to the tip (5) of the shoe and tapering in the direction forward. In the narrowest part of the surface (6), the front part (7), has been provided for the hook member (4) an aper­ ture (8). Furthermore, the catch member (3) comprises a locking claw (9) of curved shape for locking the hook member (4) that has been pushed through the aper­ ture (8) and, along with it the tip (5) of the skiing shoe (1), to be substantially immovable relative to the body part (2).

Description: The present invention concerns a ski fastening of the kind defined in the preamble to Claim 1. As the "skating" or "Siitonen" Style is gainig more and more ground in modern cross-country skiing, the requirements imposed on the fastenings of the ski have also changed and increased. Such ski fastenings are known at present, for instance through the Patents: FR 7835488, FR 7907071, DE 33 20 559 and DE 33 42 158, which are screwed or otherwise fixed on the ski. The body part comprises a catch-like locking member, and on the tip of the skiing shoe belongs an eye, a tongue or another equivalent elongation which is secured to the body part with the aid of the locking member. The shoe is hereby elastically secured to the body part and to the ski in the manner implied by conventional cross-country skiing. In addition there may be provided, between the skiing shoe and the ski, a separate inter­ mediate plate, or the body part may continue over the entire extension of the skiing shoe, in which case there is a groove in the sole of the skiing shoe and a corresponding ridge on the intermediate plate or body extension, these tending to keep the skiing shoe in correct position, laterally, on the ski. It is however a drawback of fastenings of prior art that when a person is skiing using the "skating" mode the fastenings yield excessively both vertically and transversally with the result that the shoe is not properly held upon the ski and, instead, twists in the different phases of ski skating in a manner interfering with the performance. The control and steering of skating-style skiing is hereby impeded and the keeping of rhythm, important in said skiing style, is embarrassed because the skiing person has to pay attention to proper orientation of the shoe in relation to the ski, which actually should be auto­ matically constant throughout the skiing process. A further drawback of tip fastening constructions of prios art is the great width of their design, as a consequence of which, when a person is using the skating style and the skis are in tilted position, the fasten­ ings give rise to extra friction and thus reduce the speed. The object of the invention is to eliminate the drawbacks mentioned. Especia¦ly, the object of the invention is to provide a ski fastening the design of which makes feasible a narrow, and aerodynamic, tip fastening construction which fastens the skiing shoe firmly upon the ski, affording good steerability for the skating style. Reference is made to the Claim section re­ garding the features characterizing the invention. The ski fastening of the invention comprises a body part of which the rear face lying against the tip of the skiing shoe is wedge-like so that, at least as viewed from the side, the surface is conical, its upper surface, the supporting face, being rearward inclined and upward oblique and its lower surface, the supporting part, being reaward inclined and down­ ward oblique, and these surfaces being fitted to conform accurately to the shape of the shoe tip. At the point where said surfaces meet is provided an aperture for a hook member on the tip of the shoe. A catch member, pivotally mounted in the frame part, comprises a wedge-­ like locking claw which can be inserted in the eye of the hook member pushed into said aperture, whereby the locking claw will pull and urge the shoe tip tight against the rear face of the body part. On the inside surface of the locking claw with curved shape are furt­ hermore provided: a locking shoulder, locking studs or equivalent behind which the eye of the hook member, when snapping in, locks the catch member so that it may not come open of itself. In an advantageous embodiment of the invention, the supporting part of the rear face and the bottom surface comprise a substantially letter A-shape long­ itudinal ridge, and the tip of the shoe has a corres­ ponding groove so that they have been disposed to mate closely. Hereby, when the shoe tip is urged hard and tight against the rear face of the body part, said ridge will efficiently prevent any lateral movements of the skiing shoe relative to the body part. In an embodiment of the invention, the locking claw of the catch member is also wedge-shaped in the lateral direction, whereby it causes the eye of the hook member to be urged tight against the body part of the fastening also in the lateral direction, thus affording additional support of the skiing shoe. The advantage of the invention over ski fasten­ ings of prior art is the firm and stationary fixing of the tip of the skiing shoe to the body part of the fastening. Therefore, even kicks in an oblique direction relative to the surface of the ski cause no slipping of the shoe off the ski, and when the ski is lifted forwards it is all the time in the skiing person's tight control, and correctly oriented. Thus the person need not pay any extra, distracting attention to the position of the skis, as they are all the time strictly pointed in the direction in which the shoe points. More­ over, the ski fastening of the invention has the advan­ tage of a narrow and aerodynamic design and therefore the fastening will not touch the snow surface and reduce the speed when the ski is tilted. In the following, the invention is described in detail, referring to the attached drawing, wherein: Fig. 1 presents a ski fastening according to the invention, Fig. 2 presents a catch member according to the invention, and Fig. 3 shows a section of the catch member depicted in Fig. 2. In Fig. 1 is depicted a ski fastening according to the invention, comprising a body part 2, advantage­ ously consisting of one component, and a catch member 3 pivotally attached to the body part. The body part features a wedge-like surface 6, the rear face, which has been arranged to conform of its shape to the shape of the shoe tip 5. It is thus understood that the wedge-­ like surface 6 comprises an upward and rearward in­ clined, oblique supporting surface 10 and a downward and rearward inclined, oblique supporting part 11, these constituting, as viewed from one side, a conical surface, this surface having an aperture 8 in the very forward part 7 of the surface, for the hook member 4 on the tip of the skiing shoe. Hereby, when the tip of the skiing shoe is placed against said conical sur­ face, the hook member will be pushed through the aper­ ture 8 into the body part 2. Furthermore, the rear face of the body part 2 features an elongated, letter A-shaped ridge 14 bound­ ed by the supporting part 13 and the bottom surface 14, this ridge being arranged to mate with the groove in the lower part of the shoe tip 5. The catch member 3 is turnably pivoted, with a pivot 23, to the body part 2. The catch member com­ prises a locking claw 9 with curved shape, which can when the catch member 3 is turned be pushed into the eye formed by the hook member 4 that has been pushed in through the aperture 8, to lock the hook member, and along therewith the tip 5 of the skiing shoe, hard against the body part 2. The locking claw 9 is wedge-­ like of its design so that its root part 16 is thicker than its point 17, whereby when it becomes wedged in the eye formed by the hook member 4 it will pull and tighten the hook member, as the eye is urged against the inner surface 19 of the locking claw 9 with curved shape. The root 20 of the inner surface 19 features a locking shoulder 21, which is a groove-like recess in which the eye of the hook member 4 becomes locked so that it cannot inadvertently slide back along the inner surface 19 and thus undo the fastening. The catch member 3 furthermore comprises a handle 24, by the aid of which the catch member can be moved with ease between the locked and open posi­ tions. The catch member 3 likewise comprises a support­ ing shoulder 25 which when the catch member 3 is in its open position stops it against the body part 2 so that the catch member cannot become wedged in the body part. In Figs. 2 and 3 is depicted an advantageous design of the catch member 3 according to the invention. The locking claw 9 with curved shape of the catch member 3 comprises tongues 22, attaching on its margins to its tip 17 and extending inward towards the root 16, running substantially along the inner surface 19, and which are free at the other end. This leaves a recess above the free ends of said tongues, at the root 20 of the inside surface 19, into which the eye of the hook member 4 can be caused to enter and in which it becomes locked so that the ends of the tongues hold the eye in place and the tongues will only be forced inwards and cause release of the eye from the hold of the locking claw when the handle 24 is turned with considerable force. The invention has been described in the fore­ going with reference to certain advantageous embodiments of the invention. These are however in no way restric­ tive on the invention, of which the different embodi­ ments may vary within the scope of the inventive idea delimited by the claims.

Claims: 1. A ski fastening for fixing a skiing shoe (1) on a ski, said fastening comprising a body part (2) to be fixed on the ski and a catch member (3) pivo­ tally attached to the body part and with the aid of which, by mediation of an eye-like hook member (4) on the skiing shoe, the shoe becomes fixed to the body part (2), the portion of the body part (2) abutting on the shoe tip forming a surface (6) substantially conforming to the shoe tip, character­ ized in that the front part (7) of the surface (6) comprises for the hook member (4) an aperture (8), and that the catch member (3) comprises a locking claw (9) of curved shape pushable into the eye of the hook member (4) that has been pushed through the aperture (8), for locking the shoe tip against the respective surface (6) of the body part. 2. Ski fastening according to claim 1, characterized in that the surface (6) com­ prises above the aperture (8) an upwardly and rearwardly oblique supporting surface (10) and below the aperture (8) a downwardly and rearwardly oblique supporting part (11). 3. Ski fastenting according to claim 1 or 2, charactarized in that the surface (6) comprises substantially vertical marginal surfaces which taper down and approach each other in the direc­ tion forward in conformity with the tip (5) of the skiing shoe. 4. Ski fastening according to any one of claims 1 - 3, characterized in that the body part (2) consists of a piece having a width substanti­ ally at most equal to the width of the ski. 5. Ski fastening according to any one of claims 1 - 3, characrerized in that the bottom surface (13) of the body part (2) lying against the skiing shoe (1) comprises a vertical, substantially letter A-shaped longitudinal ridge (14) and the tip (5) of the skiing shoe (1) features a corresponding groove (15), the groove (15) being fitted to the ridge (14) to prevent lateral movements of the skiing shoe relative to the body part (2). 6. Ski fastening according to any one of claims 1 - 5, characterized in that the locking claw (9) tapers, as to its thickness, from root (16) to tip (17) in wedge fashion, whereby when entering the eye formed by the hook member (14) the locking claw will pull the skiing shoe (1) thight against the body part. 7. Ski fastening acoording to claim 6, characterized in that the locking claw (9) tapers, as to its width, from root (16) to tip (17), whereby when entering the eye formed by the hook member (4) the locking claw will clamp the hook member tight to the body part (2) in lateral direction. 8. Ski fastening according to any one of claims 1 - 7, characterized in that on the inner surface (19) of the locking claw (9), preferably at its root (20), is provided a locking shoulder for lock­ ing the hook member (4). 9. Ski fastening according to claim 8, characterized in that the locking shoulder (21) consists of a spring-like tongue (22) behind which the hook member (4) can be locked.

Inventors: JARVINEN, JUKKA, Järvinen, Jukka
Applicants: JARVINEN, JUKKA
Application year: 1986
Main classification: A63C9
IPC codes: A63C9