Inline skate having impact absorbing members

Abstract

 An inline skate includes: wheels (170); frames (110) for mounting the wheels to lower portions of the inline skate, each frame (110) having at least one partition wall (114) formed at an upper portion thereof to define transverse insert grooves (116) in the form of independent spaces on both sides and having guide grooves (120) formed on the lower side of the insert grooves (116) at an oblique angle; impact absorbing members (160) each being selectively and transversely inserted into insert grooves (116) of the frames (110); and wheel holders (118) to which the wheels are rotatably mounted respectively, each wheel holder (140) having a space between both partition plates (144) in which a wheel (170) is positioned and being elevatably inserted into guide grooves (120) of the frames (110) so that an upper contact portion thereof makes contact with the bottom surface of an impact absorbing member (160).

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Field of the Invention

[0001] The present invention relates to an inline skate having impact absorbing members, and more particularly to an inline skate that, by providing impact absorbing members inserted into insert grooves defined in the form of independent spaces in skate frames and filled with a resilient material such as rubber and urethane, realizes a very simple structure, does not need a large number of installation spaces, and is used semi-permanently due its low possibility of damage that may be caused by foreign substances, enables maximization of shock-absorption forces of the impact absorbing members due to prevention of reduction of resilient forces of the impact absorbing members even after long time use, and enables remarkable reduction of fatigue of a user in spite of improvement of its mobility.

Description of the Related Art

[0002] In general, although not illustrated in detail, an inline skate includes a boot into which a foot of a user is inserted to be fixed thereto, a frame detachably mounted to a lower portion of the boot, and a plurality of wheels rotatably mounted to lower portions of the frame.

[0003] However, a general inline skate has no structure for damping and absorbing an impact force transferred from the ground during its movement. In particularly, when the wheels of the inline skate roll on an obstacle having prominences and depressions, an impact force is applied to an upper portion of the inline skate, in which case a user may require a high balance sense according to change in the outer shape of the obstacle and a beginner may lose his or her balance and fall due to the impact force transferred to the upper portion of the inline skate while moving on the obstacle. This problem is caused by the same kind of principle in which a motor cycle having no shock absorber or spring may lose its balance due to an impact that is large even in the case of a small-sized obstacle when it moves on an unpaved road.

[0004] Accordingly, in order to automatically absorb some of an impact, the wheels are formed of materials such as rubber and urethane, in which case their frictional forces with the ground increase due to the characteristics of the materials, causing disadvantages in speed increase and wear efficiency.

[0005] Therefore, an impact absorbing structure using a hydraulic shock absorber or a spring mechanism may be suggested to lower an impact force transferred from the ground during movement of an inline skate.

[0006] However, in the case of use of a hydraulic shock absorber, upon application of an impact force to a wheel of an inline skate, fluid filled in the hydraulic shock absorber is discharged outside, and upon disappearance of the impact force, the fluid returns into the hydraulic cylinder. In this case, the structure of the inline skate is inevitably complex and fluid storage containers connected to the hydraulic cylinder to temporarily store the fluid and a communication pipe connecting the fluid storage containers is necessarily required, in which case it is almost impossible to effectively apply the entire structure to the frame of the inline skate. In particular, the impact force damping principle of the hydraulic shock absorber is accomplished through movement of the fluid, in which case the response speed to the occurrence time of the impact force is very slow.

[0007] In the case of use of a spring mechanism in an impact absorbing structure of an inline skate, a spring is vertically installed between the upper surface of a wheel support to which a wheel is mounted and the upper wall surface of the interior of a frame. In this case, the thickness of the frame becomes thick due to provision of a space for vertically inserting the spring. Furthermore, as the height of the frame increases by the length of the spring, the center of weight of a user of the inline skate also becomes higher, hampering stable movement of the user.

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present inventor has already suggested a structure for absorbing an impact force caused during inline skating using an air tube. The structure using the air tube almost perfectly prevents increase in the thickness and height of a frame and has an advantage in installing an impact absorbing member as compared with those using a hydraulic shock absorber or a spring by horizontally mounting an impact absorbing member, i.e. an air tube to an inner portion of the frame. However, in spite of the advantages, according to the structure using the air tube, in the case of long use of an inline skate, the surface of the air tube is gradually worn out and minutely cracked, in which case the air in the air tube may be easily discharged outside. Furthermore, when a puncture occurs due to a crack on the surface of the air tube or an external physical environment, the air filled in the air tube may be rapidly discharged outside, hampering the impact absorbing effect of the structure, and at the same time, causing the wheels of the inline skate to severely fluctuate upward and downward, increasing the possibility of an accident during inline skating.

[0009] Furthermore, in the structure for absorbing an impact of an inline skate using an air tube that has been suggested by the present inventor, foreign substances may be easily introduced through an aperture between a wheel support and a frame, increasing the possibility of damage in the air tube and the possibility of an accident.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above and/or other problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an inline skate that, by providing impact absorbing members inserted into insert grooves defined in the form of independent spaces in skate frames and filled with a resilient material such as rubber and urethane, realizes a very simple structure, does not need a large number of installation spaces, and is used semi-permanently due its low possibility of damage that may be caused by foreign substances, enables maximization of shock-absorption forces of the impact absorbing members due to prevention of reduction of resilient forces of the impact absorbing members even after long time use, and enables remarkable reduction of fatigue of a user in spite of improvement of its mobility.

[0011] In accordance with the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of an inline skate comprising: a plurality of wheels; a pair of frames for mounting the wheels to lower portions of the inline skate, each frame having at least one partition wall formed at an upper portion thereof to define transverse insert grooves in the form of independent spaces on both sides and having guide grooves formed on the lower side of the insert grooves at an oblique angle respectively; a plurality of impact absorbing members each being selectively and transversely inserted into corresponding insert grooves of the frames; and a plurality of wheel holders to which the wheels are rotatably mounted respectively, each wheel holder having a space between both partition plates thereof in which a corresponding wheel is positioned and being elevatably inserted into corresponding guide grooves of the frames so that an upper contact portion thereof makes contact with the bottom surface of a corresponding impact absorbing member, the interior of each impact absorbing member being filled with one of flexible, resilient materials such as rubber and urethane.

[0012] The present invention, by providing impact absorbing members filled with a resilient material such as rubber and urethane into inner spaces formed by a pair of frames, does not need a large number of installation spaces, and may be used semi-permanently due its low possibility of damage that may be caused by foreign substances, and provides a uniform pressure to bearings and enables reduction of rolling resistances of the bearings, due to prevention of reduction of resilient forces of the impact absorbing members even after long time use, thereby securing mobility and stability even in a bad condition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013] These and/or other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an outer configuration of an inline skate having impact absorbing members according to an embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the inline skate having impact absorbing members according to the embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 3 is a partial side view illustrating an operational state of the inline skate having impact absorbing members according the embodiment of the present invention;

Fig. 4 is a partial side view illustrating an operation state of an inline skate having impact absorbing members according another embodiment to the present invention; and

Figs. 5a and 5b are cross-sectional views illustrating absorbing operations of impact absorbing members embedded in an inline skate according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, an inline skate having impact absorbing members according to preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0015] Fig. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an outer configuration of an inline skate having impact absorbing members according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0016] Referring to Fig. 1, the inline skate having impact absorbing members according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a pair of frames 110 coupled to each other by inserting screws 180 into screw holes 120 formed at corner portions thereof, a plurality of wheel supports 118 having semi-spherical shapes and disposed at lower portions of the frames 110 respectively, a plurality wheels 170 mounted to inner portions of the wheel supports 118, and a boot 200 detachably mounted to the upper surfaces of the frames 110 as well known in the art.

[0017] Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating the inline skate having impact absorbing members according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Referring to Fig. 2, each of the frames 110 has a plurality of rectangular insert grooves 116 for inserting cylindrical impact absorbing members 160 at upper portion thereof, the rectangular insert grooves 116 being horizontally arranged at a predetermined interval, and a plurality of guide grooves 120 for guiding wheel holders 140 upward and downward, the guide grooves 120 being formed on the lower direction of the insert grooves and having an oblique angle. Then, the wheel holders 140 inserted into the guide grooves 120 are moved upward and downward by impact forces transferred from the wheels 170.

[0019] Meanwhile, the rectangular insert grooves 116 for inserting the impact absorbing members 160 are partitioned by partition walls 114 on both side surfaces thereof, and the impact absorbing members 160 are transversely inserted into the insert grooves respectively. Stepped portions 122 are formed at the circumferences of the guide portions 120 along portions of the guide grooves 120 that are adjacent to second surfaces 132 so as to stably accommodate the wheel holders 140. Coupling bosses 126 and rectangular guide holes 124 are formed at upper and lower inner wall portions of the guide grooves 120 respectively. The coupling bosses 126 are inserted into guide holes formed in partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140 and coupling bosses 146 formed in the partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140 are inserted into the guide holes 124 formed in the guide grooves respectively.

[0020] Accordingly, the wheel holders 140 may be moved upward and downward along the guide grooves 120 formed in the frames 110 respectively, and at the same time, the coupling bosses 140 formed in both partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140 are moved upward and downward along the guide holes 124 formed in the guide grooves 120 and the coupling bosses 126 formed in the guide grooves 120 of the frames 110 may be moved upward and downward along the guide holes 148 formed in the wheel holders 140 respectively.

[0021] The partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140 define spaces 142 therebetween and the wheels 170 are inserted into the spaces 141. The wheels are rotatably mounted to the wheel holders 140 respectively by the medium of the coupling pins 182 inserted into the guide holes 124 formed in the frames 110.

[0022] The impact absorbing members 160 inserted into the insert grooves 116 of the frames 110 are made of a resilient material such as rubber and urethane that can effectively absorb impacts and have excellent restoring forces. The impact absorbing members 160 are not hollow and are filled with the resilient material. Upon upward movements of the wheel holders 140 along the guide grooves 120 of the frames 110 by impact forces transferred from the wheels 170 during inline skating, as upper contact portions of the wheel holders 140 make contact with the bottom of the impact absorbing members 160 respectively and at the same time, the impact absorbing members 160 are deformed in closed spaces of the insert grooves 116 due to the weight of a user of the inline skate 110 and the resilient repulsive forces due to the weight of the user are applied to the lower side of the impact absorbing members 160, such that the impact absorbing members 160 stably ensure mobility and high speed of the inline skate.

[0023] Fig. 3 is a partial side view illustrating an operational state of the inline skate having impact absorbing members according the embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] As illustrated in detail in Fig. 3, in the inline skate 100 having the impact absorbing members 160 according to the embodiment of the present invention, the coupling bosses 146 formed outside the partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140 and the coupling bosses 126 formed at upper portions of the guide grooves 120 are inserted into the guide holes 148 formed in the partition plates 144 of the wheel holders 140. The coupling bosses 126 and 146 are coupled to some portions of the guide holes 124 and 148, in which case as the coupling bosses 126 and 146 move in the guide holes 124 and 148 respectively within a movable distance, the impact absorbing members 160 contact or expand by the moved distance, absorbing impact forces.

[0025] As illustrated in Fig. 3, upon instantaneous application of an impact force to one of the wheels 170 during rolling of the wheel 170 on a protruding ground portion, the wheel holder 140 corresponding to the wheel 170 moves upward in proportion to the magnitude of the transferred impact force and the upper contact portion 150 of the wheel holder 140 presses the bottom of the impact absorbing member 160 corresponding to the wheel holder 140, in which case as the impact absorbing member 160 is deformed to absorb the impact force transferred to the wheel holder 140 and thereby reduce the impact force, the impact force is rarely transferred to an ankle of a user of the inline skate.

[0026] Then, the wheel 170 to which the impact force is applied due to the irregular ground surface is further moved upward as compared with the remaining wheels that firmly make contact with the ground 190, in which case, when only some of the wheels make contact with the irregular ground surface, the wheels 170 corresponding to the irregular portions of the ground, the balance of a user of the inline skate is not disturbed.

[0027] Meanwhile, in the inline skate having impact absorbing members according to the embodiment of the present invention, as impacts are absorbed inside the wheel supports 118 formed at lower portions of the frames 110, the material of the wheels 170 may not be resilient urethane but may be a material having excellent hardness, in which case the speed of the inline skate may increase by properly selecting the material of the wheels 140. Furthermore, as the pressures of the impact absorbing members 160 due to the wheel holders are dispersed, the surface contact forces of the wheels 170 coupled to the wheel holders 140 improves. That is, the inline skate 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention prevent the wheels 170 coupled to the wheel holders 140 from bouncing due to a protruding portion 192 of the ground surface 190.

[0028] In addition, as the inline skate 100 according to the embodiment of the present invention distributes resistances applied to the wheels 170 using the impact absorbing members 160, the load resistances of the wheel holders 140 applied periodically according to a situation of a road are uniformly distributed, ensuring a high speed.

[0029] As an alternative embodiment of the present invention, as illustrated in Fig. 4, insert grooves 116 into which impact absorbing members 116 are arranged at 90 degrees with respect to movement directions of wheel holders 140 are formed not horizontally but at an oblique angle respectively. In this case, the contact areas between upper contact portions 150 of the wheel holders 140 and the impact absorbing members 160 are maximized so as to ensure stable contact therebetween, thereby improving an impact absorbing effect and high speed mobility.

[0030] Meanwhile, as illustrated in Fig. 5a and 5b, as the impact absorbing members 160 of the inline skate of the embodiment of the present invention remain transversely inserted into the insert grooves 116 in the form of independent spaces formed by the inner side walls of the frames 110 and the partition walls 114, upon firm contact between the wheel holders 140 and the bottom surfaces of the impact absorbing members 160 due to upward movements of the wheel holders 140 during inline skating, the upper contact portions 150 of the wheel holders 140 further press the bottom surfaces of the impact absorbing members 160 due to the weight of a user to deform the impact absorbing members 160 in the closed spaces defined by the insert grooves 116 and apply the resilient repulsive forces due to the weight of the inline skate 100 to the lower side, ensuring stable and high speed mobility of the inline skate using impact absorbing and dispersing operations of the impact absorbing members 160.

[0031] Furthermore, safe movement of the inline skate may be ensured even in a bad ground condition such as an unpaved road. That is, the impact absorbing members 160 are not tube-shaped but are filled with a material, they have excellent resilient forces and do not require a large number of separate spaces. Further, even when foreign substances are introduced into inserted portions of the impact absorbing members 160 through the guide holes 124 of the wheel supports 118 exposed to the outside of the frames, as the impact absorbing members 160 are rarely punctured or damaged, the inline skate 110 may be semi-permanently used. Furthermore, the impact absorbing members 160 are formed of a resilient material, such that their resilient forces and restoring forces are rarely reduced even after long use as compared with a spring or an air tube.

[0032] Accordingly, the inline skates having impact absorbing members according to the embodiments of the present invention may be variously used for a general purpose, a hockey game, an athlete, enabling enhancement of its mobility and reduction of the possibility of a safety accident.

[0033] In addition, the impact absorbing members 160 used in the inline skates according to the embodiments of the present invention preferably have a basically short cylindrical shape, but are not limited thereto. That is, the shape of the impact absorbing members 160 may include a circle, an ellipse, a trapezoid, and a half-moon, and the impact absorbing members 160 may be formed of two different materials having different resilient forces for inner and outer portions thereof respectively or may be coated with another material, in which case the resiliency of the impact absorbing members 160 increases, deformation of the shapes thereof is prevented even after long use, and the resiliency thereof is continuously maintained for a long time.

[0034] Although inline skates according the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims

1. An inline skate comprising:

a plurality of wheels(170);

a pair of frames (110) for mounting the wheels to lower portions of the inline skate, each frame (110) having at least one partition wall (114) formed at an upper portion thereof to define transverse insert grooves (116) in the form of independent spaces on both sides and having guide grooves (120) formed on the lower side of the insert grooves (116) at an oblique angle;

a plurality of impact absorbing members (160) each being selectively and transversely inserted into corresponding insert grooves (116) of the frames (110); and

a plurality of wheel holders (118) to which the wheels are rotatably mounted respectively, each wheel holder (118) having a space between both partition plates (144) thereof in which a corresponding wheel (170) is positioned and being elevatably inserted into corresponding guide grooves (120) of the frames (110) so that an upper contact portion thereof makes contact with the bottom surface of a corresponding impact absorbing member (160), the interior of each impact absorbing member (160) being filled with one of flexible, resilient materials such as rubber and urethane.

2. The inline skate as set forth in claim 1, wherein the insert grooves (116) into which the impact absorbing members (160) are inserted are arranged at 90 degrees with respect to movement directions of the wheel holders (118) respectively.

Drawing