Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02354494 2001-08-O1
EACKGROUND Ol~ THE INVENTION
5 1. 1~ field of the Invention.
The present invention relates to saddles for equestrian use.
2. Description of the Prior Art.
A conventional saddle has at its underside panels of a compressible structure
intended to spread the Weight of the rider over the back of the horse.
Conventionally, the
panels consist of an envelope into which a packing of wool or comparable
synthetic
material is inserted by hand. In principle, the packing foz~ned by the wool or
other filling
is intended to conform to the shape of the horse's back and thereby to spread
the load while
minimising pressure points on the 'horse's back. When a saddle is used only on
one horse,
the panels of the saddle will, over a period of time, compress and set to take
an the shape
of the particular horse's back. I-Iowever the extent of possible cozzxpressian
which occurs in
the packing is relatively limited and unless the saddle tree is shaped to the
exact
conformity of the horse, pressure points a~ten arise where too mucli of the
weight of the
rider is transferred to the horse's back in specific areas. This results in
the skin not
receiving sufficient blood flow which reduces the ability of the skin to sweat
and if this
situation continues for a long period of time it can result in hair loss, sore
back, and
possible muscle dannage to the horse. These problems are cornpounded when,
az~d as oFten
happens, the saddle is used on more than ozte l~oxse and whereby the
compression needed
to properly bed the saddle down onto the horse will not arise.
SUMMAI~'Y OP THE INVENT10N
According to the present invention, there is provided a saddle for equestrian
use,
the saddle having panels, each panel carrying a plurality of sealed air bags
at an underside
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thereof, and a lining layer externally of the air bags in relation to the
horse, a separate said
air bag being at least at a forward part and a rearward part of the panel and
each bag in use
serving to apply a relatively even pressure to the back of the horse.
FLU~iher according to the present invention, there is provided a saddle for
equestrian
use, said saddle comprising a tree with elongate tree bars extending along
opposite sides of
the tree and opposed panels each mounted to a respective one of the tree bars
such that
loading from the tree is applied to the panels via the tree bars, each panel
carrying a
plurality of sealed air bags at an underside thereof, and a lining layer
externally o~ the air
bags in relation to the horse, a separate said air bag being at least at the
forward part and a
rearward part of the panel and each air bag in use serving to apply a
relatively even
pressure to the back of the horse consequent on the loading applied to the
panel by the
associated tree bar.
Still Further according to the present invention, there is provided a saddle
for
equestrian use, the saddle having panels, each panel containing a plurality of
sealed air
bags and, eh-ternally of the air bags in relation to the horse, a packing, a
separate said air
bag being at least in a forward part and a rearward part of the panEl and each
bag in use
serving to apply a relatively even pressure to the back of the horse, wherein
each air bag is
substantially flat and substantially filled within its interior with a
resiliently compressible
open cell foam, the bag comprising opposed layers of sheet material sealed
together at
adjacent edges such that air at atmospheric pressure is enclosed within the
bag, and
adjacent side walls of adjacent bags are in abutting engagement to
substantially prevent
discontinuity of pressure application to the back of the horse in the
transition between
adjacent bags.
BRIIJp' DESCRIPTION OF TIDE I7RA,W1NGS
Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example
only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-
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Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-section of a saddle in accordance with a first
embodiment of the invention disclosed in our co-pending Canadian patent
application
2340287 arid showing the saddle panels containing an air bag arrangement and
adjustable
packing externally of the air bags;
Fig. 2 is a cross-section through an individual aiz~ bag;
Fig. 3 is a section showing schematically the configuration of the air bag, an
associated liner, and packing within the panel;
Fig. 4 is an underneath plan view showing an air bag unit consisting of front,
and
rear air bags;
Fig. 5 is an underneath plan view of an air bag unit consisting of front,
intermediate, and rear air bags;
Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a saddle in accordance with the preferred
cmbodimerit of the invention;
Fig. 7 is a view from underneath of the one of the panels of the saddle of
Figure 6
but with an undez~iteath lining removed to show air bags at the underside of
the panel; and
Fig. 8 is a schematic cross-section through one of the panels of the saddle of
Figure
6 in the zone of cozin.ection between adjacent air bags associated with that
panel.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The present invention is in respect of a Western saddle which will be
described
with reference to Figures 6 to 8. This saddle embodies certain of the
inventive principles
disclosed in our co-pending application 2340287 to be described with initial
reference to
Figures 1 to S to facilitate a better understanding of the invention. However
the preferred
embodiment of the invention does also include novel aspects applicable also to
the saddle
of application 2340287.
The saddle shown in Figures 1 to 5 is, save for the filling within the panels,
substantially of known construction using leather, synthetic materials or a
combination of
leather and synthetic materials and these conventional aspects will not be
further described
as they will be well understood by persons skilled in the art. Each of the
panels 2 defines
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an envelope which receives an arrangement of air bags 4 and, above the air
bags 4 either
along the entire length of the panel 2 or at selected positions, packing 6
preferably iz~ the
form of a wool stuffing. The air bags 4 arc arranged sequentially in a fore-
aft direction
within the panel 2. There may be just two such air bags forming front and rear
air bags
collectively extending the length of the panel 2 or there may be three or
possibly more
such air bags consisting of a front, a rear, and one or more intermediate air
bags
collectively extending the length of the panel 2. The respective air bags 4
are sealed az~d
as a result air will not flow between the bags. rt is to be noted that if only
a single air bag
were to be used extending the length of the panel substantial air movement
would occur
from the front to the back of the panel when the air bag is under pressure
during use and
this could result in the foz~mation of pressure points. Although with the
arrangement now
described air movement will occur within each individual bag when under load,
the extent
of air movement is inherently restricted by the length of the bag.
1 S With reference to Figure 2, each air bag 4 is formed by upper and lower
sheets 8,
10 0~' impervious material such as f''hC sealed together around the periphery
12 with each
bag having a filling 14 consisting of a layer of an open cell resiliently
compressible foarzz.
The air bags 4 are not inflated with air at above atmospheric pressure but,
rather, contain
air at atmospheric pressure which is sealed within the bag during manufacture,
with the
open cell foam filling 14 occupying substantially the entirety of the interior
of the bag.
The resulting air bag is substantially flat and of substantially Even
thickness throughout.
The two or more air bags 4 are f tted into the panel 2 and then the wool or
other
appropriate packing 6 is placed above the air bags where required.
Advantageously, the
two or more bags 4 are formed into an air bag unit by attaching a layer 16 of
flexible lining
material to the upper surface of the air bags 4, for example by glueing. The
lining 16 will
prevent the air bags 4 from being punctured while the wool or other packing 6
is being
inserted and also serves to consolidate the two or more bags 4 into a single
unit to facilitate
assembly. The lining 16 may consist of a felt or a suitable plastics material
such as P'VC.
Figure 4 shows an air bag unit consisting of front and rear air bags 4a, 4b
and Figure 5
shows an air bag unit consisting of front, intermediate, and rear air bags 4a,
4c, 4b. The
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packing 6 will rtornnally be added in the part of the panel 2 which guides the
knee of the
rider, and at the rear of the panel 2 where extra depth is required. Very
little packing is
likely to be required in the middle part of the panel 2 although it can be
added if required.
The effect of the air bag arrangement is that, in use, air will move within
each
separate bag and an even pressure will be applied over the entire surface of
each air bag at
the front or back of the saddle thereby eliminating individual pressure points
on the back of
the horse, in contrast to conventional saddles where significant pressure
variation on the
horse's back cant arise within a relatively small area. The application of
tlxe even pressure
over the surface of the bag is expected to substantially remove possibility
for muscle
damage and it is expected that this will result in a txtuch freer and more
comfortable
movement of the horse in use.
It will be understood that although a number of different plastics materials
will
have substantial impermeability to passage of air and will form suitable
rrtaterials for the
air bags, absolute irrtperzrteability might not always be achieved with the
result that minor
amounts of air might displace through the bag wall when the bag is under heavy
loading
during prolonged use resulting in minor deflation which does not, however,
adversely
affect the performance of the bag, but under normal usage this should not
occur. However
should minor deflation occur under the circumstances discussed above, when the
saddle is
removed from the horse and the air bag is no longer under load, it has been
determined that
the expansion of the open cell foam filling within the bag from its previously
compressed
state does, over a period of time (such as several weeks), cause air to be
drawn back into
the interior of the bag to establish pressure equilibrium across the wall of
the bag.
However it is envisaged that if air loss through the bag wall durins use does
present a
problem, laminates can be used which will totally eliminate air loss although
these
laminates can be relatively expeztsive and will therefore lead to increased
costs.
Figures 6 to $ show an embodiment of a Western saddle incorporating the
invention. The saddle comprises a tree 20 of conventional construction which
provides a
front swell 22 and horn 24 aztd a rear cantle 26. Elongate bars 28 which form
part of the
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tree and which are known as tree bars extend along both sides of the tree 20
and rest on the
back of the horse via saddle panels 30. Each tree bar 28 is attached to tk~e
top of the
associated panel 30, for example by fitting the front and rear end portions of
the bar into
front and rear pocket 32a, 32b on the upper surface of the panel 30. Each
panel 30
typically consists of a layer of a firm or hard leather or a suitable
synthetic material having
on its underside a lining 34 (see Figure 8) of sheepskin or a synthetic fleece
and which lies
against the horse.
In accordance with the invention, two or more air bags 4 as previously
described
are incorporated between the lining 34 and the underside of the panel 30. As
shown, there
are front and rear air bags 4a, 4b, although, in alternative arrangements
there may be front,
intermediate, and rear air bags as described with reference to Figure 5. As
previously
described, the two or more air bags associated with each panel 30 may be
formed into a
single unit. The zone of the underside of the panel 30 to which the air bags 4
are mounted
substantially corresponds to the zone of the upper surface of the panel 30
engaged by the
tree bar 28.
The two or more air bags, or the air bag unit, may be fixed in position by
being
glued to the underside of the panel 30. Alternatively, or in addition, the
lining 34 may be
stitched to the panel 30 slightly outside of the periphery of the air bags or
air bag unit to
form a pocket within which the air bags or air bag unit is enclosed; such
stitching may be
via an intermediate layer of sheet material such as plastic, light leather, or
felt, between the
lining 34 and the outer surface of the air bags.
In a conventional Western saddle, the loading applied by the tree bars to the
panels
is distributed over the back of the horse by the use of vary thick
saddlecloths laid over the
horse's back before application of the saddle. The use of the air bags in
accordance with
the invention obviates the need to use saddlecloths of this type.
Although the adjacent air bags associated with each panel may be configured as
described with reference to Figures 2, 4, and 5, it has been determined that
it is particularly
CA 02354494 2001-08-O1
advantageous for the upper and lower sheets 8, 10 forming each bag to be
sealed in a
sealing zone lying substantially in the plane of one of the two sheets rather
than lying
intermediate the planes of the two sheets as shown in Figure 2. Accordingly,
and as shown
in Figure 8) the seals of the adjacent air bags 4a, 4b associated. with each
panel are
arranged so that the seal 12a of one air bag (as shown, the bag 4a) is
arranged in the plane
of the upper sheet 8 of that bag and the seal I2b of the adjacent air bag (as
shown, the bag
4b) is in the plane of the lower sheet 10 of that bag. With this
configuration, the side edges
Sa, Sb of the main bodies of the two adjacent air bags can be mounted izt
close proximity
with the seal 12a of the first air bag forming an upper flap which extends
over and is
adhered to the upper surface of the second air bag and the seal 12b of the
second air bag
extends beneath and is adhered to the lower surface of the first air bag. With
this
configuration, the adjacent side edges Sa, Sb of the bodies of the two air
bags will tightly
abut izt the manner shown in figure 8 to provide a very even and "seamless"
loading
transition between the two air bags. In a minor modification to further
improve the
abutting joint between the adjacent side edges of adjacent bags, the foam
layer adjacent the
joint is formed with a chamfer or skive, with the two chamfers being
oppositely directed so
that one faces upwardly and the other downwardly to ensure tight abutrnenx of
the adjacent
sides of the two bags along an inclined plane thus forming, effectively, a
skive joint
between the two bags, with the skive joint being enclosed from above and below
by upper
and lower flaps formed from the abutting layers of the two sheets forming each
bag in the
zone of the seal between the two s>~eets. The seal itself may be at the
extreme outer edge
of those flaps. The modified structure just described further improves the
"seamless" feel
of the transition between adjacent bags.
The seamless transition structure between adjacent air bags as just described
can
also be incorporated to advantage in the embodiment of the saddle described
with
reference to Figures 1 to 5.
The embodiment has been described by way of example only and modifications are
possible within the scope of the invention.
