GRIPPING HANDLE FOR TUBULAR ELEMENTS SUCH AS SKI POLES AND THE L IKE

Abstract: Gripping handle for tubular elements such as ski poles and the like, comprising an anatomically shaped body which has, formed inside it, a longitudinal cavity (13), a transverse wall (15) and a housing (16) provided with an opening (16a) for insertion, in the transverse direction, of a strap (20) fixed to a retaining wedge (30), there being provided at least one longitudinal seat (14) able to interfere with means (33) for locking the wedge (30) so as to prevent the wedge itself from coming out of the housing (16).

Description: Gripping handle for tubular elements such as ski poles and the like DESCRIPTION The present invention relates to a gripping handle for tubular elements such as ski poles and the like. In the art, numerous embodiments of the handles forming the gripping portion of poles used for skiing, trekking and the like are known, said handles being provided with a strap fastened to the handle and forming a loop through which a hand can be inserted and which has an adjustable aperture so as to be adaptable to the different sizes of the users' hands. It is also known that, in order to facilitate this adjusting operation, handles, in which the top part is provided with a housing for a wedge retained by a pin arranged in a direction transverse to the direction of extension of the strap, have been produced. Although performing their function, these handles nevertheless have certain drawbacks due to the complicated structure of the manufacturing moulds required to form the housing of the strap-retaining wedge and the seat for insertion of the wedge-retaining pin; in addition, it is necessary to envisage a processing step consisting in insertion of the wedge- retaining pin in the associated seat. The technical problem which is posed, therefore, is that of providing a gripping handle for ski poles and the like, which envisages means for retaining and adjusting the aperture of the strap loop, which are easy and inexpensive to produce and assemble and allow a reduction in the number of component parts of the assembly. ithin the scope of this problem, a further requirement is to simplify the method of production of said handle so as to speed up and reduce the cost of production itself. These technical problems are solved according to the present invention by a gripping handle for tubular elements such as ski poles and the like, comprising an anatomically shaped body which has, formed inside it, a longitudinal cavity, a transverse wall and a housing provided with an opening for the insertion, in the transverse direction, of a strap fixed to a retaining wedge, there being provided at least one longitudinal seat able to interfere with means for locking the wedge so as to prevent the wedge itself from coming out of the housing. Further details may be obtained from the following description of a non-limiting example of embodiment of the invention, provided with reference to the accompanying plates of drawings in which: - Figure 1 shows a rear view of the handle according to the present invention; - Figure 2 shows a cross-section along the plane indicated by II-II in Fig. 1; Figure 3 shows a cross-section along the plane indicated by III-III in Fig. 2; - Figure 4 shows a cross-section similar to that of Fig. 3 with the strap inserted; Figure 5 shows a cross-section along the plane indicated by V-V in Fig. 4; Figure 6 shows a cross-section along the plane indicated by VI-VI in Fig. 7, showing the tool used for manufacture of the handle according to Fig. 1; and Figure 7 shows a cross-section along the plane indicated by VII-VII in Fig. 6. As shown, the handle according to the invention is formed by a body 10, the front surface 11 and rear surface 12 of which, located opposite each other, are anato ically shaped so as to be adapted to the gripping part of the user's hand. The internal part of the handle has a longitudinal cavity 13 with a substantially circular cross-section and two longitudinal seats 14 arranged in diametrically opposite positions with respect to the said cavity 13. Whereas the seats 14 extend continuously over nearly the whole of the inner axial length of the handle, the cavity 13 is interrupted by a transverse wall 15 arranged in the vicinity of the top end of the handle itself and defining a housing 16. An opening 16a (Figs. 1, 3) is also formed at said top end and on the rear surface 12 of the handle, said opening connecting the housing 16 with the exterior and allowing the insertion of the strap 20, as will be described below. In greater detail (Figs. 4, 5), while a first end 20a of the strap is free, the other end 20b is fixed to a wedge 30 by means of a rivet 21 or the like, inserted in a corresponding through-hole 31 of the wedge itself. Said wedge 30 also has two arms 32 extending longitudinally and elastically hinged on opposite sides of the body of the wedge 30. Each elastic arm 32 also has a tooth 33 able to engage with the respective seat 14 of the handle as will emerge more clearly below. The operating principle of the handle is as follows: - first the end 20a of the strap 20 is fixed to the wedge 30 by means of the rivet 21; - the other end of the strap is then passed around the wedge so as to form the loop and in such a way that the end 20a remains free underneath the loop itself; - the wedge with the wound strap is inserted into the opening 16a so that the elastic arms are symmetrically deformed towards the centre of the wedge; - the whole assembly is pushed inside the housing 16 until the teeth 33 of the two elastic arms 32 are located opposite the seats 14 which allow the said arms to return into their initial position and the teeth 33 to engage inside the respective seat 14 with the consequent stable fastening of the strap to the handle; - in this condition, the aperture of the loop, which is formed by the movable section 20c and the fixed section 20d of the strap, may be adjusted as required, by arranging in a substantially horizontal position and pulling alternately the end 20a or the section 20c of the said strap 20; - during use, however, the strap remains locked in position since the user's hand exerts a force simultaneously on both the sections 20c and 20d of the strap, neutralising any movements. In order to allow easier operation, it is envisaged that the movable section 20c of the strap has a width different from the fixed section 20d thereof; in particular it is envisaged providing the free end 20a of the strap with a greater width so as to prevent it entering back into the housing 16 and/or coming out of the opening 16a in the event of an excessive pulling force being exerted on the section 20c. Where necessary, it is " also much easier to operate the arms 32 of the wedge 30 so as to obtain disengagement of the teeth 33 from the respective seat 14 and cause extraction of the wedge 30 from the housing 16 for example in order to replace the entire strap in the event of breakage or the like. The present invention also relates to a method for the manufacture of the handle described above, which comprises the following steps: - moulding of the handle by means of injection of material into a seat in which the following are arranged: • an axial punch having a form and dimensions such as to form the longitudinal cavity 13 and the seats 14; • a transverse punch having a form and dimensions such as to ensure the formation of the housing 16; extraction of the transverse punch and the longitudinal punch in respective axial and transverse directions for the simultaneous formation of the housing 16, the axial cavity 13 into which the pole will be inserted and the two longitudinal seats 14 with which the wedge 30 is engaged. As can be seen, the formation of the two longitudinal axial seats 14 is performed by means of the same operation which ensures formation of the axial cavity 13, which is in any case necessary, thereby avoiding the use of moulds with several movable parts with a consequent substantial increase in productivity and a simultaneous reduction in the associated costs. In order to implement this method described above it is required, however, to use a special tool illustrated in Figs, β, 7 and consisting of a punch 100 with a U- shaped free end and a circular cross-section with two diametrically opposite projections 101 so that the axial extraction of the punch inside the handle .body allows the axial cavity 13, the two longitudinal seats 14 and the dividing wall 15 to be formed with a single movement . It is therefore obvious how, with the handle according to the invention, the strap may be retained by means of the wedge without the need for the latter to be retained by an additional locking element in the transverse/longitudinal direction, which, in addition to savings in production costs, also results in an improved aesthetic appearance of the handle.

Claims: CLAIMS 1) Gripping handle for tubular elements such as ski poles and the like, comprising an anatomically shaped body which has, formed inside it, a longitudinal cavity (13), a transverse wall (15) and a housing (16) provided with an opening (16a) for insertion, in the transverse direction, of a strap (20) fixed to a retaining wedge (30) , characterized in that it comprises ' at least one longitudinal seat (14) able to interfere with means (33) for locking the wedge (30) so as to prevent the wedge itself from coming out of the housing (16) . 2) Handle according to Claim 1, characterized in that said longitudinal seats (14) are two in number. 3) Handle according to Claim 2, characterized in that said longitudinal seats (14) are arranged in diametrically opposite positions with respect to the longitudinal cavity (13) . 4) Handle according to the preceding claims, characterized in that said longitudinal seats (14) extend over the entire internal length of the handle. 5) Handle according to Claim 1, characterized in that said wedge (30) has two arms (32) extending longitudinally and elastically hinged on opposite sides of the body of the wedge (30) . 6) Handle according to Claim 5, characterized in that at least one of the two elastic arms (32) has a tooth (33) able to engage with the respective seat (14) of the handle. 7) Handle according to Claim 1, characterized in that said wedge has a hole for engagement with a rivet (31) for fixing one end (20b) of the strap (20) to the wedge itself. 8) Handle according to Claim 1, characterized in that said strap has a different width for different sections of its length. 9) Handle according to Claim 8, characterized in that said strap has a free ' end (20a) with a greater width than the sliding sections. 10) Method for the production of a handle according to Claim 1, characterized in that it comprises the following steps: - moulding of the handle by means of injection of material into a seat in which the following are arranged: • an axial punch having a form and dimensions such as to ensure the formation of the longitudinal cavity (13) and the at least one longitudinal seat (14) ; • a transverse punch having a form and dimensions such as to ensure the formation of the housing (16); extraction of the transverse punch and the longitudinal punch in respective axial and transverse directions with simultaneous formation of the housing (16) with opening (16a) , the axial cavity (13) into which the pole will be inserted and at least one longitudinal seat (14) for engagement with the wedge (30) . 11) Tool for implementing the method according to Claim 10, characterized in that it consists of a punch (100) with a U-shaped free end and circular cross- section having at least one projection (101) extending outwards in the radial direction. 12) Tool according to Claim 11, characterized in that the length, in the axial direction, of the two arms of the "U" corresponds to the length, in the axial direction, of the seat section (14) inside the housing (16) plus the thickness of the transverse wall (15) . 13) Tool according to Claim 11, characterized in that it has two diametrically opposite projections (101) .

Inventors: COVINI FLAVIO, COVINI, FLAVIO
Applicants: COBER S R L, COVINI FLAVIO, COBER S.R.L., COVINI, FLAVIO
Application year: 2001
Main classification: A63C11
IPC codes: A63C11