Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
Title of the Invention: Saddle tree
Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to saddle trees for riding
horses, and specifically to the design of exercise saddle
trees for sport, leisure and thoroughbred horses.
Background of the Invention'
The art of making saddle trees is very old and has
not changed dramatically over the past 100 years. The
majority of the saddle trees in use today were designed at
a time when jockeys, and riders in general, were lighter
in weight -- 40 kg versus 70 kg. However, with the
availability of new types of materials it is now possible
to improve the design of saddle trees to make equitation
more enjoyable for both the rider and the horse.
Saddle trees, a term dating since at least the 15th
century, are essentially the frame of a saddle. The
saddle tree gives a saddle its shape and prevents the
saddle from rolling to the side of a horse.
Exercising sport, leisure and thoroughbred horses
requires a rider to ride the horse in suspension -- a
rider seldom sits down; typically the rider is perched
forward and over the saddle, with his feet supported by
stirrups, which are suspended from the saddle tree. To
maintain balance, a jockey compresses his ankles and lower
inside leg against the saddle. However, since exercising
horses goes on for an hour or more during each session,
riders do have a need to sit and relax at times. Common
saddle trees in widespread use rearward projecting members
are mere stubs projecting rearwardly of the fork, only a
very short distance -- typically 6 to 12 cm, which tend to
prod a horse in its back, in the trapezoid muscles, when a
rider sits in the saddle. One such saddle tree is shown
in U.S. Patent 4,965,988, as discussed hereinafter.
Making an exercise saddle tree is challenging in
several ways. First, the anatomy of the horse must be
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 2 -
considered. Since thoroughbreds are typically slim, their
spines tend to stick out and the skin covering them can
easily be damaged. Also, as a horse turns, its back and
shoulders become asymmetric. The saddle tree needs to be
flexible enough to comfortably fit and to conform to
various horse's backs. Ideally, the wings of a saddle
tree should be able to bend, or articulate, with the
movements of the horse.
Secondly, the anatomy of the rider needs to be
considered. People differ in size and weight. For
example, it is unsafe as well as uncomfortable for a child
to ride with an adult saddle. Modernly, riders exercising
thoroughbred horses have a weight about 70 kg, which has
drastically altered the level of comfort horses have with
the use of prior saddles.
Thirdly, the balance of the saddle tree and the rider
on the horse's back is very important. Balance is
achieved if the net moment (turning force) is zero. If
the balance is shifted to the front of a typical saddle,
the part of the tree fitting over the horse's withers will
damage the skin and muscles of the horse. If the balance
is shifted to the rear, it will be difficult to gallop
safely, as a frisky horse may act unpredictably when
prodded in the trapezoid muscles, rearward of the withers,
by the "wings" found on some saddle trees. Therefore, the
saddle tree has to be designed to provide for optimal
balance during riding.
The early saddle trees were made of beech or
laminated wood and were heavy and rigid in structure.
Rigid saddle trees do not fit well over a horse's back and
often bruise the horse and the rider, particularly during
galloping.
Examples of saddles are disclosed in U.S. Patent No.
36,400 in 1862; U.S. Patent No. 42,583 in 1864; U.S.
Patent No. 542,940 in 1895; U.S. Patent No. 595,567 in
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 3 -
1897; U.S. Patent No. 201,934 in 1878; U.S. Patent No.
308,259, U.S. Patent No. 4,004,492; U.S. Patent No.
5,343,674; International Patent Application No.
W098/19325; International Patent Application W098/06662;
U.S. Patent No. U.S. Patent No. 5,435,116; U.S. Patent No.
5,799,473 issued to Goblet on September 1998 ; U.S. Patent
No. 4,860,524 issued to Demilune et al., on August 29,
1989; and U.S. Patent No. 5,027,589 issued to Glebe et al.
Of the above referenced patents, only U.S. Patent
4,965,988 relates to a saddle tree which is similar to
those commonly in use today. It is adaptable to fit
either an exercise saddle or a racing saddle. It
discloses a saddle tree having rearwardly projecting wings
(rigid and short stubs) which project a short distance
back into the seat portion, as is commonly found in saddle
trees. The seat portion itself is essentially a flap of
flexible material on which the rider is not expected to
sit firmly. To minimize the occurrence of bruising at the
ends of these short wings a thick pad is placed between
the horse's back and the saddle. Extra padding, 3 cm to
5 cm, is required to minimize the prodding of these wings
in the trapezoid muscles.
These wings induce a frisky horse to be somewhat
uncomfortable, especially if the rider sits on the saddle.
With extended use, these wings may cause the horse to
bruise. However, due to increased rider weight, the
thickness of this padding has had to be increased over the
years. The thicker the padding, the greater the friction,
heat and soreness a horse feels across its back.
The thickness of the padding is proportional to the
movement of the padding, because of the moment created.
Moment is the turning force which is equal to force x
distance. To combat pad movement, the girth strap of the
saddle is tightened, causing the horse to feel
uncomfortable around its barrel. Ultimately, the girth
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 4 -
strap is not tightened sufficiently to prevent movement
because of practical reasons. This movement of the pad
against the horse's back causes friction, sweating and
soreness, if the horse exercises excessively. Further,
clamping down of the saddle tree over the horse's withers
causes the horse's freedom of movement to be significantly
restricted, thereby limiting the horse's performance.
Generally, most of the patents cited disclose saddles
having solid trees in the region of the seat or laterally
spaced apart parallel members connected by a spanning
member at the cantle. A cantle, as it relates to saddles,
is the upward projecting rear part of a saddle, which
serves to limit the rearward movement of a rider seated on
a saddle. The present invention does not contemplate
having a cantle. Instead, the present invention
contemplates what is known as an "open saddle tree".
Some patents do describe "open saddle trees", i.e.
those which are not connected at the rear of the saddle
tree, as in U.S. patents No. 201,934 and U.S. Patent
No. 542,940. Their design, as well as their application,
are intended for slow and steady horse riding and
definitely not galloping.
U.S. Patent No. 201,934 describes a saddle tree for
use with "Spanish" or "California" saddles, which are
essentially a huge cushion on the back of a horse held in
place by the fork of the saddle tree, and no protection
for a horse's spinal cord is provided.
U.S. Patent No. 542,940 describes a saddle tree made
of a rigid material for reinforcing the front portion of a
saddle. The wings of the tree are formed of leather to
offer some weight distribution support. These wings are
flexible and are not connected at the rear of the saddle
but are positioned low along the sides of the horse,
offering little protection for a horse's spinal cord.
Also, since leather absorbs moisture, over time it becomes
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 5 -
soft and ineffective with use.
To date, many attempts have been made to create
flexible saddle trees. Most of these trees include two
side wings which are connected at both the front and rear
of the saddles. Examples include U.S. Patents 36,400,
42,583, 3,088,259, 3,911,648, 4,965,988 and 5,383,328.
These designs do not enable optimal balance and therefore
make it difficult to gallop safely. Also, these saddle
trees are likely to damage the skin of a horse's back.
The need for connecting the wings on the back as well
as on the front originates in the materials used to make
those saddle trees. An early attempt at making a flexible
saddle tree is shown in the U.S. Patent No. 36,400 (1862).
To compensate for the lack of strong and flexible
materials, the tree is composed of six separate
components. Though flexible, it is not molded to match
the spinal shape of a horse. Also, it has to have two
points of attachment between the side wings (one on the
front and one on the back) to keep the side bars in place.
These connecting components and the links between the
components may hurt the rider as well as the back of a
horse. In addition, this saddle tree is not balanced
enough to be safe for galloping.
Another U.S. Patent No. 42,583 (1864) describes a
saddle tree made of four self-adjusting pads mounted on
the leather side bars. The side bars are connected at
both the front and the rear of the horse's back. Even
though they are more flexible and better adjusted to the
shape of the horse's back than the saddle tree taught in
U.S. Patent No. 36,400, it still fails to provide for
optimal balance and is believed to bruise horses and their
riders. In addition, leather is used to structure the
weight distribution, but it absorbs moisture when horses
sweat and over time becomes very soft and, therefore,
ineffective over time, with usage. Recently, self
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 6 -
skinning plastics started to be used in the manufacturing
of saddle trees (U. S. Patent Nos. 3,911,648, 4,965,988,
and 5,343,674). The plastics, which are stronger, more
resilient, and less absorbent than leather, provide a much
better material for saddle tree construction. In U.S.
Patent No. 3,911,648, the front portion of the saddle tree
is formed of a rigid material, while the rear portion is
formed from a resiliently compressible self skinning
polyurethane. However, the rear portion comprises a half-
circular strap fitting over the horse's back which may
injure the horse. Also, the balance of this saddle tree
is not optimal for galloping. In U.S. Patent
No. 4,965,988, the saddle tree is formed by injection
molding a thermoplastic material. It is flexible and
resilient but the back part is solid and covers the
horse's spinal cord. This design is likely to bruise the
horse and is not balanced enough for galloping. In U.S.
Patent No. 5,343,674, the saddle tree includes a pair of
laterally spaced apart, flexible synthetic skirts
connected by a spanning member and a seat element. This
design is heavy and covers the horse's entire back. It
too, is not an optimal exercise saddle tree.
Obiects of the Invention:
An object of the present invention is to provide an
apparatus which overcomes disadvantages of the prior art.
It is a related object to provide an improved exercise
saddle tree.
The general object of this invention is to provide an
exercise saddle tree which makes galloping safer and
reduces or eliminates the possibility of bruising a horse.
Another object of this invention is to provide an
exercise saddle tree which provides improved comfort to a
horse while it is exercising or racing.
Another object of this invention is to reduce the
pressure on the withers of a horse wearing a saddle.
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
Another object of this invention is to reduce the
potential of a horse's spine to be impacted or rubbed.
Another object of this invention is to reduce the
potential of the saddle tree's wings from breaking with
normal usage, where undue stressing of the tree at points
where certain extended members are attached to the main
body.
Another object of this invention is to provide an
exercise saddle tree which enables the reduction of
thickness of padding required for placement between a
horse's back and a saddle, to reduce padding movement.
Another object of this invention is to provide an
exercise saddle tree which enables improved weight
distribution over the backs of horses.
A further object of this invention is to provide a
saddle tree, which is strong, light, flexible, resilient,
and does not absorb moisture.
Another object of this invention is to provide a
saddle tree, which can easily be scaled to fit smaller
riders.
Brief Summary of the Invention:
The present invention overcomes some of the problems
described above and provides a greatly improved exercise
saddle tree. This saddle tree tends to provide for
improved balance of weight distribution of the rider on
the horse and enables a horse to be more comfortable when
galloping. It also minimizes the potential of the horse
to bruise during a riding session, as the wings or springs
of the saddle tree provided will not be digging into a
horse's shoulder or back.
Materials of construction may be selected from a wide
range of materials and may comprise any combination of
plastics, elastomers, metals, and composites thereof, and
may be cast, molded, thermoformed or drawn products. The
materials may be reinforced with fibers. Reinforcing
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
g
fibers may comprise any combination of carbon/graphite
fibers, fiberglass, metal fibers, polyethylene fibers,
aramid fibers and boron fibers.
In one embodiment of the invention, the saddle tree
comprises a fork defined by a pair of short, symmetric,
substantially downward projections positioned over the
horse's withers, and a pair of rearward projecting
resilient springs that are shaped to conform to a horse's
curved back, having free distal ends.
The fork may be reinforced by an insert, e.g, a metal
or carbon fiber composite insert. The springs,
preferably, are made of a strong, flexible, resilient, and
light material.
The fork may also be strengthened by the addition of
fibres in a composite material, e.g. glass fibres or
carbon fibres in resin. The saddle tree may be a unitary
structure and have fibres throughout the material but with
a higher concentration of fibres in the fork than in the
springs. The orientation of the fibres may be adjusted to
provide stiffness or springiness, as desired.
The present invention provides a saddle tree for
positioning upon a back of a horse in the vicinity of its
withers, comprising an arched body portion, two fork
members which project downwardly and forwardly from the
body section, and two rearwardly projecting spring members
attached to the body portion and which have free ends
distal to the body portion, and which are shaped to
conform to the horse's back, to straddle a spine of the
horse and be in close proximity to the spine when placed
on the horse's back; said body portion, fork members and
spring members being substantially symmetrical about a
vertical plane which passes through the body section,
between the fork members and between the spring members;
wherein the rearwardly projecting spring members are
sufficiently flexible to flex in a direction substantially
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
_ g _
parallel to the vertical plane and to resist torsional and
lateral distortions.
In one embodiment, the arched body portion is shaped
to provide a gap between the arched body portion and the
horse's withers sufficient to allow movement of the
withers under the body portion.
In a further embodiment, the body portion, fork and
spring members are integrated into a unitary structure.
In yet another embodiment, the saddle tree has a
smooth surface.
In another embodiment, the body portion and fork have
an inner surface and an outer surface, and a stiff
reinforcement means is attached to the inner surface of
the fork.
In a further embodiment, the fork and spring member
on one side of the plane are connected by a web of
material and the fork and spring member on the opposing
side of the plane are connected by a web.
Because the material used for the springs are
torsionally stiff, resilient and durable, they do not have
to be connected at the rear of the saddle. Because the
material used is flexible in the direction perpendicular
to the thinner surface, the springs may easily bend
vertically, or articulate, with the movement of a given
horse. Also, flexible springs are easily fitted to
conform to the shape of a given horse's back. Because of
the extended length of the springs, compared to the wings
of previous saddle trees, the saddle tree is balanced and
is designed for riding in suspension or traditional
equitation. Since there is no substantial weight pressure
at any particular contact point, even if the rider leans
or sits back, the saddle tree enables a given horse to
comfortably gallop, strut, jump, or exercise; and the
padding thickness may be reduced, as compared to that
needed for previous saddle trees. Because the springs
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 10 -
extend closely to and substantially parallel to the
horse's spine, they protect the horse's spine during a
riding or exercise session from any potential rubbing or
impact. Because the saddle tree design provides for
optimal balance of the rider on the horse, it is safe for
the rider to exercise the horse. Therefore, the saddle
tree allows for safe galloping and tends not to damage the
horse's back or the rider.
In addition, the forks of the saddle tree can be
adjusted easily to fit a variety of horses, by means of
the reinforcement insert placed on the underside of the
fork.
Brief Description of the Drawincts
An embodiment of the invention will now be described
by way of example with reference to the drawings, in
which:
FIG. 1 is a profile diagram of a horse identifying
its various body parts.
FIG. 2 is a profile diagram of a typical prior art
exercise saddle.
FIG. 3 is a perspective general view of a saddle tree
illustrating certain features of one embodiment of the
invention.
FIG. 4 is a top view of the saddle tree shown in FIG.
3.
FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the saddle tree shown in
FIG. 3.
FIG. 6 is a perspective general view of the saddle
tree in FIG. 3, illustrating substantially even thickness
of the saddle tree's spring members.
FIG.7 is a perspective view of a reinforcement insert
suitable for use with the saddle tree shown in FIG.3.
FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the saddle tree shown in
FIG. 3, showing measurements of the spring members, in a
preferred embodiment.
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 11 -
FIG. 9 is a perspective view of another embodiment of
the invention.
Detailed Description of the Invention
FIG. 1 is a profile diagram of a horse identifying
its various body parts i.e. forehead 1, forelock 2, poll
3, mane 4, withers 5, back 6, flank 7, loin 8, haunch 9,
croup 10, point of hip 11, tail 12, hock 13, cannon 14,
gaskin 15, thigh 16, stifle 17, barrel 18, chestnut 19,
fetlock 20, pastern 21, hoof 22, coronet 23, knee 24,
forearm 25, chest 26, shoulder 27, neck 28, throatlatch
29, and cheek 30.
FIG. 2 is a profile diagram of a common prior art
exercise saddle 32 that preferably could be fitted with a
saddle tree of the present invention. The girth strap 34
is a strap that wraps around a horse's barrel to secure
the saddle on a horse. A rider with his feet inside the
stirrups 36 typically would ride in suspension with his
ankles or calves pressed against the side flaps 38 to
maintain balance.
The materials of construction for the saddle tree
include a wide range of materials. For example, they may
comprise any combination of plastics, elastomers, metals,
and composites thereof, preferably reinforced with fibers.
The saddle tree may be cast, molded, thermoformed or
drawn. Reinforcing fibers may comprise any combination of
carbon/graphite fibers, fiberglass, metal fibers,
polyethylene fibers, aramid fibers, and boron fibers.
According to one aspect of the present invention, a saddle
tree 41, as shown in FIG. 3, is formed of a material
having a rigid neck 50 and a fork portion which comprises
downwardly depending fork members 42, 44, and resiliently
flexible spring portions 46, 48. Spring members 46, 48,
may flex vertically, but are torsionally and laterally
rigid, to provide a exercise saddle tree suitable for
sport, leisure and thoroughbred horses, closely fitted to
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 12 -
the shape of the horse's back 6.
Arched body portion 40 is preferably shaped so that
there is a gap between the inner surface 50 of body
portion 40 and the horse's withers, when the saddle is
placed on the horse's back. The size of the gap is
sufficient to allow the horse's neck to move relatively
freely beneath the arched body portion. Typically, the
distance between the horse's withers, when the horse is at
rest, and the inner surface of body portion 40 is from
about 4 cm to about 8 cm.
In one embodiment of the present invention shown in
FIG. 3, a standard adult size exercise saddle tree is
provided. The saddle tree, for positioning upon a horse
in the vicinity of its withers 5, comprises a smooth
surfaced tree 41 having a body 40 portion and four
projecting members. The rearward projecting spring
members 46, 48 are shaped to conform with said horse's
back.
Each pair of members are substantially symmetric to
each other through their midpoint, opposite a vertical
plane. Two of the members form a fork 42, 50, 44, which
project downward and slightly forward, and are
substantially rigid; and the remaining two members form a
pair of springs 46, 48, which project to the rear of the
horse. The spring members 46 and 48 are apart from one
another, straddling the spine of the horse. Spring
members 46 and 48 are relatively close to the spine so
that they may flex upwardly.
The fork may be reinforced by a reinforcement insert
53, as shown in FIG. 7. The reinforcement insert may be
made of a metal, such as steel, or of a non-metallic
material, such as a carbon fiber composite. To reduce the
pressure on the withers of a horse wearing a saddle, the
fork is angled and sized to prevent the body 40 of the
saddle tree from clamping down on the withers of the
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 13 -
horse, by leaving sufficient clearance between the body
and the withers and ensuring that the stiffness of the
fork may be sufficient to prevent the fork from yielding
under the weight of the rider, especially while the horse
gallops.
The spring members 46 and 48 may be made of a
composite fiberglass, resin, polymer, or other material
having the required flexing properties, such as aluminum
or spring steel. The length of the spring members may
range from 25 cm to 40 cm long. The length of the spring
members in the preferred embodiment, as shown in FIGURES 4
and 5, are 34 cm long, as illustrated in FIG 8. The
length of a spring member is measured from the midpoint of
the U-notch 45, at the juncture of the spring members 46,
48 and the body portion 40, to the rear most tips 60 and
62 of the spring members. As will be seen in Figure 6,
particularly in relations to spring member 48, the spring
members are preferably of substantially even thickness
along their length and breadth.
In the preferred embodiment, the spring members are
spaced apart by about 4 cm. In the preferred embodiment,
the inside edges of the spring members are straight and
are substantially parallel. However, in use the spring
members tend to diverge from each other slightly over
their length. One reason may be that the spring members
may flex torsionally, or laterally to some extent, and
additional clearance from the spine may sometimes be
necessary when they spring back. At the trailing edges of
distal ends 60 and 62 of spring members 46 and 48
respectively, the distance between the spring members
widens to approximately 11 cm, as in shown in FIG. 8.
The width of the spring members may vary
substantially in various embodiments and such variations
will be apparent to those skilled in the art.
The width of each of the spring members varies, in
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 14 -
the preferred embodiment, from approximately 5 cm at its
narrowest point, e.g. at the juncture with body portion
40, where there is minimal contact with the horse's back,
to approximately 7.5 cm at its widest point, where there
is maximum contact with the horse's back, which is
approximately at the three quarters length point of the
spring members.
In another embodiment of the present invention, the
fork members of the saddle tree are merged with or are
connectively attached to the spring members, as shown in
FIG. 9. Therefore, the width of the spring members may
vary accordingly. For example, the spring and fork
members on each side may be webbed together with web
portion 54, for added torsional strength.
In another embodiment of the present invention, a
saddle tree is provided for positioning upon a horse in
the vicinity of its withers. Now preferably the saddle
tree is fixedly placed within a saddle. However, to those
skilled in the art, additional embodiments within the
scope of the invention will be apparent, such as placing
the saddle tree simply atop some padding and fastening the
saddle tree to a girth means or fixedly attaching the
saddle tree to a saddle tree cover having a girth means to
prevent roll.
The saddle tree may comprise, a tree means having a
body portion and four projecting members shaped to conform
with said withers and said horse's back; said tree means
being made of a composition which permits said members to
be formed in a symmetrical configuration; wherein two
of said members form a fork, which projects downward and
slightly forward, and are substantially rigid; and the
remaining two said members form a pair of springs, which
project horizontally to the rear of the horse and slightly
downward, substantially parallel to the horse's spine.
Ideally, the saddle tree described is substantially
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 15 -
symmetric across a vertical plane through its midpoint.
In an improved embodiment of the saddle tree
invention, the body portion, fork and wings are
integrated into a unitary structure. For example, the
saddle tree may be a thermoformed composite; or cast or
drawn from a single piece of aluminum or steel.
Preferably, the saddle tree is smooth surfaced, to
minimize the amount of padding required. Moreover, a
saddle tree made of an energy absorbing material would
also reduce the amount of padding required. As described
earlier, the thinner the padding, the less friction,
heating and sweating there will be created by the shifting
forces, which are proportional to the thickness of the
padding.
The spring members are resiliently flexible, and may
flex vertically, but yet are substantially torsionally and
laterally rigid, to provide an exercise saddle tree useful
for sport, leisure and thoroughbred horses, closely fitted
to the shape of the horse. They may aid in energy
absorption, thereby further reducing the amount of padding
required.
The body portion and fork of the saddle tree have an
inner surface and an outer surface. A stiff reinforcement
means may be fixedly attached to the inner surface of the
fork, where a recessed groove having an edge 52 is
provided. The groove may be a channel in the fork and
body portion, which conforms to the shape of the insert.
Alternatively, the groove may be a step, being open at the
front of the saddle tree and having a lip at edge 52. For
example, on the fork's underside, a stiff reinforcement
insert adds to the stiffness of the fork, and tends to
maintain sufficient clearance to prevent the fork from
yielding under the weight of the rider, especially while
the horse gallops.
The insert may be attached to the saddle tree in a
CA 02255428 1998-12-11
- 16 -
number of ways. For example, it may be attached
mechanically, e.g. with bolts, rivets or the like, or may
be attached with adhesives. Other means of attaching the
insert will be apparent to hose skilled in the art of
attachment.
In addition, in a further embodiment, the stiff
reinforcement means enables the saddle tree's fork to
adapt to horses of various builds or sizes.
