APPARATUS FOR GRASS SKIING, SUITABLE FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

Abstract

 An apparatus for grass skiing (9) comprises a seat (10) and a frame (12) for supporting the seat (10), and further comprises at least one movable skate (18), connected to the frame (12) by means of a coupling device (14) so that the movable skate (18) can run and/or roll below this coupling device (14), and at least one directional control element (20), connected to the frame (12) and/or the coupling device (14) to direct the apparatus (9) when performing grass skiing, and is characterized in that the movable skate (18) is a track.

Description

Technical field

[0001] The present invention lies within the general field of sports apparatus; in particular, the invention relates to an apparatus for grass skiing suitable for persons with disabilities.

Prior art

[0002] There are many solutions to enable persons with disabilities to practice a large number of sports, even at a very high level.

[0003] For these disciplines, a considerable degree of participation by persons with disabilities has been recorded; for example, skiing on snow has attracted much interest, and increasingly technologically advanced solutions have been developed in this field.

[0004] Conventionally, persons with disabilities can practice Alpine skiing in a substantially traditional manner, or by using dedicated apparatus, in which the athlete is positioned on a seat which is connected by a support structure to a ski or a pair of skis. In the latter case, the seat support frame replaces a ski boot, and is joined to a coupling device fastened to the flat upper surface of the skate. The coupling device is substantially similar in structure to the coupling device fitted to a traditional ski, and serves to fasten a metal plate (fixed to the frame) in place of the skier's footwear.

[0005] However, there are other disciplines which are arousing increasing interest among the sports community, and which are currently unavailable to persons with disabilities, because of the lack of suitable apparatus to enable them to practice the sport.

[0006] For example, a discipline such as grass skiing, which offers great possibilities for enjoyment by persons with disabilities, is currently a sporting discipline which is very difficult for persons with disabilities to access, because of the lack of suitable apparatuses to allow the practice of this sport.

[0007] In fact, the benefits of grass skiing are multiple, and not the least of these benefits is the wide availability of fields and slopes for downhill skiing, and the nearness of these slopes to centres of population (they are generally nearer than the traditional Alpine ski runs, which are located far away from major centres of population, giving rise to all the logistical problems of long-distance travel for persons with disabilities).

[0008] At the present time, grass skiing is practiced using boots whose soles are combined with roller or tracked skates, in place of the traditional Alpine skis.

[0009] However, there are no solutions which combine the ski apparatus for persons with disabilities with roller or tracked skates suitable for grass skiing.

[0010] Understandably, this limitation reduces the possibility of participation in the sporting discipline of grass skiing by persons with disabilities.

Brief description of the invention

[0011] One object of the present invention is to overcome the aforementioned limitations, offering persons with disabilities the possibility of practicing grass skiing, with all the benefits related to the practice of this discipline.

[0012] To achieve this result, the existing Alpine skiing apparatus is coupled to a movable skate (formed by a track or similar devices) in place of the flat skate typical of snow skiing, so that the aforesaid apparatus can also slide on grass slopes.

[0013] In order to make this possible, the traditional coupling device, mechanically equivalent to the coupling mechanism for coupling a ski boot to the skate, is replaced by a box-type section in which the movable skate is free to run and/or roll.

[0014] Additionally, since this solution would not suffice to ensure the controllability of the apparatus during the practice of grass skiing, the apparatus is also associated with a directional control element which helps the athlete to direct the apparatus during the descent.

[0015] As will be more readily apparent from the rest of the description, said directional control element may take the form of a wheel, preferably positioned in front of the movable skate in the direction of travel of the apparatus.

[0016] The aforesaid objects and advantages, and others, are achieved, according to one aspect of the invention, by an apparatus for grass skiing having the characteristics defined in Claim 1. Preferred embodiments of the invention are defined in the dependent claims.

Brief description of the drawings

[0017] The functional and structural characteristics of some preferred embodiments of an apparatus for grass skiing according to the invention will now be described. Reference is made to the attached drawings, in which:

• Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an apparatus for Alpine skiing suitable for persons with disabilities, according to the prior art;
• Figure 2 is a schematic perspective view of an apparatus for grass skiing suitable for persons with disabilities, according to one embodiment of the present invention;
• Figure 3 is a front perspective view of the apparatus for grass skiing shown in Figure 2;
• Figure 4 is an enlarged schematic view of a detail of the apparatus in Figure 2; and
• Figure 5 is a schematic perspective view of a stabilizing ski pole that can be associated with the apparatus according to the present invention.

Detailed description

[0018] Before the detailed explanation of a plurality of embodiments of the invention is given, it must be made clear that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the configuration of the components presented in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention can be applied in other embodiments and can be used or implemented in different ways in practice. It should also be understood that the phraseology and terminology are used purely for descriptive purposes and are not to be interpreted as limiting.

[0019] With initial reference to Figure 1, an Alpine skiing apparatus for persons with disabilities according to the prior art comprises a seat 10 on which the athlete is positioned. The seat 10 is connected to a traditional skate 16 by means of a support frame 12, joined to a coupling device 14 mounted on the upper face of the skate 16. The coupling device has a pair of opposed snap-fitting mechanisms, which fasten and lock the ends of a longitudinal plate fixed to the support frame 12.

[0020] According to the traditional configuration, the apparatus is directed, in use, by the athlete's weight balancing action, with the aid of stabilizing ski poles fitted with skates (not shown).

[0021] However, this configuration is not appropriate for adoption in the grass skiing discipline, since the traditional Alpine skiing skate 16 is not suitable for the practice of this speciality.

[0022] The frame 12 comprises a plurality of ribs connected to one another so as to support the seat 10. Optionally, the seat 10 and/or the frame 12 may be connected to a frame 11 for accommodating the athlete's legs.

[0023] Figure 2 shows schematically a preferred embodiment of the present invention, in which the traditional skate 16 is replaced by a movable skate 18 in the form of a track, making the apparatus capable of sliding on grass.

[0024] Throughout the present description and the claims, any terms and expressions indicating positions and orientations, such as "longitudinal", "transverse", "vertical" or "horizontal", are to be interpreted with reference to the direction of travel of the apparatus.

[0025] To allow the coupling between the frame 12, which supports the seat 10, and the movable skate 18, the traditional coupling device 14 configured as in the prior art is replaced by a different coupling device, which enables the movable skate 18 to run and/or rotate under it.

[0026] According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the coupling device 14 is a box-type section having, for example, a inverted U-shaped cross section, which at least partially embraces the movable skate; thus the lateral vertical uprights of the section can be connected to a base inside the movable skate, not shown here, creating a passage which allows the upper branch of the movable skate 18 to run through the coupling device 14. The operating system of the movable skate 18 for grass skiing, being borrowed from the known art, is well known to those skilled in the art, and will not be detailed further.

[0027] In the embodiment illustrated here, the apparatus for grass skiing 9 comprises a single movable skate 18; however, it is possible to produce an apparatus for grass skiing having a pair of movable skates 18 according to embodiments which are not illustrated here. In fact, an apparatus for grass skiing according to the present invention may conveniently comprise a pair of movable skates 18 separated transversely, in a similar manner to some types of Alpine skiing apparatus for persons with disabilities which comprise a pair of traditional skates 16, so as to provide greater stability and control of the apparatus 9 during the practice of grass skiing.

[0028] Because of the intrinsic difficulty of controlling the apparatus during the practice of this sporting discipline, a directional control element 20 is connected to the frame 12 and/or to the coupling device 14 so that the apparatus 9 can be directed more efficiently, assisting the manoeuvring performed by the athlete. In the embodiment shown here, the directional control element 20 is a wheel that can be orientated about a vertical axis x, and in this example it is connected to the coupling device 14 by a rigid bar 22. Preferably, the directional control element 20 is placed in front of the movable skate 18 in the direction of travel of the apparatus. However, other configurations, not illustrated here, are possible, because of the ease of applying a plurality of directional control elements to the apparatus for grass skiing 9, for example by placing a corresponding directional control element 20 in front of each of a pair of movable skates. Alternatively, the directional control element 20 may be located behind the movable skate 18, according to an embodiment which is not shown.

[0029] Optionally, a shock-absorbing device 24 (in the form of a shock absorber coupled to a spring, for example) may be interposed between the seat 10 and the skate 18, to absorb any roughness of the slope down which the apparatus 9 is made to descend. This shock-absorbing device 24 may be located vertically (as in the example illustrated here) or horizontally, according to an embodiment which is not illustrated.

[0030] It is also convenient to associate the apparatus for grass skiing 9 with a pair of stabilizing ski poles 26, an example of which is shown in Figure 5, which interact with the apparatus 9 to improve its manoeuvrability. Each ski pole comprises a special handle 28 for persons with disabilities at one end, and a rounded body 30 at the opposite end, enabling the stabilizing ski pole 26 to run along the slope. The rounded body 30 has a curved surface in the area of ground contact, and may or may not be rotatable. Thus the rounded body 30 replaces the traditional flat skate provided for stabilizing ski poles used in Alpine skiing by persons with disabilities.

[0031] In the example illustrated here, the rounded body 30 is a wheel rotatable about a horizontal axis, although other solutions would be feasible, for example that of using a ball (rotatable or fixed) in place of the aforesaid wheel (according to an embodiment not shown here).

[0032] Optionally, the stabilizing ski pole 26 may also be provided with a shock absorber, according to an embodiment not shown here.

[0033] The advantage which is achieved is that of having an apparatus allowing persons with disabilities to access and practice the speciality of grass skiing, profiting from the benefits that this practice provides to its participants, in particular the widespread availability of slopes suitable for the performance of this sport, and more generally their nearness to major centres of population, allowing persons with disabilities to travel more easily. With the solution proposed here, the apparatus for grass skiing 9 is found to be stable, controllable and safe, and therefore particularly suitable for the performance of this sporting discipline, which is becoming increasingly popular.

[0034] A description has been given of various aspects and embodiments of an apparatus for grass skiing suitable for persons with disabilities according to the invention. It is to be understood that each embodiment may be combined with any other embodiment. Furthermore, the invention is not limited to the embodiments described, but may be modified within the scope defined by the attached claims.

Claims

1. Apparatus for grass skiing (9), comprising a seat (10) and a frame (12) for supporting the seat (10), and further comprising at least one movable skate (18), connected to said frame (12) by means of a respective coupling device (14) so that said movable skate (18) can slide and/or roll below that coupling device (14), and at least one directional control element (20), connected to the frame (12) and/or the coupling device (14) to direct the apparatus (9) when performing the grass skiing;
characterized in that the at least one movable skate (18) is a track.

2. Apparatus according to Claim 1, wherein the coupling device (14) is a box-type section which embraces at least part of the movable skate (18).

3. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the directional control element (20) is a wheel pivotable about a vertical axis (x).

4. Apparatus according to Claim 3, wherein the directional control element (20) is placed in front of the movable skate (18).

5. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, in which a shock absorbing device (24) is interposed between the movable skate (18) and the seat (10).

6. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein stabilizing ski poles (26) interact with the grass skiing apparatus (9), said stabilizing ski poles (26) each comprising a handle (28) at one end and a rounded body (30) at the opposite end, said rounded body (30) having a curved external periphery along the area where ground contact occurs.

7. Apparatus according to Claim 6, wherein the rounded body (30) is a rolling body.

8. Apparatus according to Claim 7, wherein the rounded body (30) is a wheel rotatable about a horizontal axis.

Drawing