Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE OF THE INVENTION: SNOWSHOE-SKI KIT AND METHOD OF ADJUSTING
THE EFFECTIVE TRACTION COEFFICIENT ON A SNOWSHOE-SKI
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to hybrid snowshoe-skis, and more particularly
to a
snowshoe-ski kit that includes a hybrid snowshoe-ski that has a traction
coefficient, and a pair of
skins each having two surfaces with respective traction coefficients, with the
skins being reversible
and attachable to the snowshoe-ski each on either side such that the snowshoe-
ski can be used alone
or with the skins with either side exposed for providing different selectable
effective traction
coefficients to the snowshoe-ski.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Regular snowshoes are difficult to use as skis because they are inherently
built for
traction on snow and as such they will not slide on snow easily as is expected
from skis. While
climbing is easier with snowshoes, moving along flat ground or downhill is
only about as efficient
as walking uphill.
Skis, on the other hand, have the opposite characteristics: they slide well
which
facilitates some displacements on flat ground and which makes sliding downhill
easier in some
circumstances also such as in man-made ski trails, but provide little traction
such that climbing hills
is more difficult. However, even when moving downhill, such as in off-trail
situations, sliding is
sometimes not desirable especially on steep slopes where a controlled descent
is desired.
It is known to provide skins for skis, for example made of seal skins, with
the
naturally inclined fur of the skin being oriented towards the rear of the ski
such that it will not hinder
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forward sliding movement of the ski bottom surface on the snow, but will
provide traction during
backward movement of the ski along the snow, consequently providing traction
for forward
movement on ground of any inclination, but being mostly useful when climbing;
while not hindering
forward movement and sliding downhill. However such skins are not adapted for
providing traction
for enhanced control during downhill movement, notably. Control during
downhill movement with
skis is usually obtained by means of the longitudinal steel edges that are
provided on each side of
the skis through controlled lateral deportation of the skis.
Hybrid snowshoe-skis are known that allow both skiing and walking as
snowshoes.
However, known hybrid snowshoe-skis either slide too much if they are closer
to skis in their
parameters, or provide too much traction if they are closer to snowshoes in
their parameters.
The problem is ultimately that the terrain type that is being travelled over
will vary,
from uphill to downhill to flat ground, from steep to mild slopes, from one
type of snow to another,
from open ground to clustered forests, and so on. One type of ski, snowshoe or
snowshoe-ski might
be adapted for or advantageously used in one terrain type, but it will
inevitably fall short of being
efficient or pleasant on another terrain type. Even using skins such as seal
skins described above
does not offer the thusly equipped skis with enough versatility to adapt to
the vast diversity of winter
terrain that can be encountered.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a snowshoe-ski kit comprising:
= a hybrid snowshoe-ski comprising a main body defining a front end, a rear
end, a
bottom surface operative for moving over snow and having a snowshoe-ski
traction coefficient, and a top surface opposite the bottom surface, said
hybrid
snowshoe-ski further comprising a binding attached to said main body for
attachment to a person's foot atop the top surface; and
= a first removable and reversible sheet-like skin having opposite first
and second
surfaces each defining respective first and second skin traction coefficients
that
differ from each other and that differ from the snowshoe-ski bottom surface
traction coefficient;
wherein the first skin is removably attachable to the snowshoe-ski main body
with either one of the
first and second surfaces bearing against the bottom surface and the other one
of the first and second
surfaces being exposed, for allowing the snowshoe-ski to be operatively used
either alone or with
the first skin installed with either one of the first and second skin surfaces
exposed.
In one embodiment, the main body comprises a frame and a decking carried by
the
frame, the binding being attached to one or both of the decking and the frame
and the first skin
being removably attachable to one or both of the decking and the frame.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski traction coefficient is lower than the
traction
coefficients of the first skin first and second surfaces for allowing sliding
on snow when the
snowshoe-ski is used without the first skin and for allowing a selectable
enhanced traction when said
snowshoe-ski is equipped with the first skin with either one of its first and
second surfaces being
exposed.
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In one embodiment, the first skin is flexible and can conform to the shape of
the
bottom surface of the decking.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski kit further comprises a second removable
and
reversible sheet-like skin having opposite first and second surfaces each
defining respective first and
second skin traction coefficients that differ from each other and that differ
from the snowshoe-ski
bottom surface traction coefficient, wherein the second skin is removably
attachable to the
snowshoe-ski main body with either one of the first and second surfaces
bearing against the decking
bottom surface and the other one of the first and second surfaces being
exposed, for allowing the
snowshoe-ski to be operatively used either alone, or with one or both the
first and second skins
being installed, with each of the first and second skins that is installed
having one of their respective
first and second skin surfaces exposed.
In one embodiment, said first and second skins are attachable to said snowshoe-
ski in
spaced apart configuration respectively frontwardly and rearwardly of the
binding.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski comprises a keel member on the bottom
surface and the first skin is attachable at least partly to the keel member.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski kit further comprises a first clip that is
releasably attachable to both the first skin and the decking to attach the
first skin to the decking.
In one embodiment, the decking comprises at least one decking opening to
accommodate the first clip that is resiliently engageable within the decking
opening, and the first
skin comprises at least one first skin opening to accommodate the first clip
that is resiliently
engageable within the first clip opening.
In one embodiment, the first clip can be releasably connected to the first
skin
independently of the decking such that the first skin and first clip can be
manipulated as a unit
before the first skin is releasably attached to the snowshoe-ski.
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In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski comprises a keel member on the bottom
surface and the first skin and second skins are attached at least partly to
the keel member.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski kit further comprises first and second
clips that
are releasably attachable to the decking and respectively to the first and
second skins.
In one embodiment, the decking comprises decking openings to accommodate the
first and second clips that are resiliently engageable within the decking
openings, and the first and
second skins comprise respective first and second skin openings to accommodate
the first and
second clips that are resiliently engageable within the first and second clip
openings.
In one embodiment, the first and second clips can be releasably connected
respectively to the first and second skins independently of the decking such
that the first skin and the
first clip can be manipulated as a first unit, and the second skin and the
second clip can be
manipulated as a second unit, before the first and second skins are releasably
attached to the
snowshoe-ski.
In one embodiment, the keel member comprises two spaced apart keel segments
located on the decking bottom surface in spaced-apart configuration
respectively frontwardly and
rearwardly of the binding, with the first and second skins being attachable to
a respective one of the
first and second keel segments.
The present invention also relates to a method of adjusting the effective
traction
coefficient on a snowshoe-ski with a first sheet-like skin, the snowshoe-ski
comprising a main body
defining a front end, a rear end, a bottom surface operative for moving over
snow and having a
snowshoe-ski traction coefficient, and a top surface opposite the bottom
surface, the snowshoe-ski
further comprising a binding attached to the main body for attachment to a
person's foot atop the top
surface, the skin having opposite first and second surfaces each defining
respective first and second
skin traction coefficients that differ from each other and that differ from
the snowshoe-ski bottom
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surface traction coefficient, the first skin being removably attachable to
said snowshoe-ski with
either one of the first and second skin surfaces bearing against the bottom
surface and the other one
of the first and second surfaces being exposed, the method comprising:
= selecting whether to install the first skin on the snowshoe-ski;
= if it is selected not to install the first skin to the snowshoe-ski, the
snowshoe-ski is
operatively used alone, wherein the effective traction coefficient is the
snowshoe-
ski traction coefficient; and
= if it is selected to install the first skin to the snowshoe-ski, the
method further
comprising:
o selecting which of the first and second surfaces of the first skin will
bear
against the bottom surface; and
o removably attaching the first skin to the snowshoe-ski main body with the
selected one of the first and second surface bearing against the bottom
surface and with the other one of the first and second surfaces
consequently being exposed, wherein the effective traction coefficient is
influenced by both that of the exposed one among the first and second
surfaces of the first skin and by the snowshoe-ski traction coefficient.
In one embodiment, the traction coefficients of the first and second surfaces
of the
first skin are higher than the snowshoe ski traction coefficient.
In one embodiment, during the step of selecting whether to install the first
skin on the
snowshoe-ski, the method further comprising selecting whether to install on
the snowshoe-ski a
second removable and reversible sheet-like skin having opposite first and
second surfaces each
defining respective first and second skin traction coefficients that differ
from each other and that
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differ from the snowshoe-ski bottom surface traction coefficient, and if is
selected to install the
second skin to the snowshoe-ski, the method further comprising:
= during the step of selecting which of the first and second surfaces of
the first skin
bears against the bottom surface, selecting which of the first and second
surfaces
of the second skin bears against the bottom surface; and
= during the step of removably attaching the first skin to the snowshoe-ski
main
body, removably attaching the second skin to the snowshoe-ski main body with
its selected one among the first and second surfaces bearing against the
bottom
surface and with its other one of the first and second surfaces consequently
being
exposed, wherein the effective traction coefficient is additionally influenced
by
that of the exposed one among the first and second surfaces of the second
skin.
In one embodiment, during the steps of removably attaching the first skin to
the
snowshoe-ski main body and of removably attaching the second skin to the
snowshoe-ski main
body, said first and second skins are attached in spaced apart configuration
respectively frontwardly
and rearwardly of the binding.
In one embodiment, the snowshoe-ski comprises a keel member having two keel
segments on the bottom surface, and wherein during the steps of removably
attaching the first skin
to the snowshoe-ski main body and of removably attaching the second skin to
the snowshoe-ski
main body, the first skin is attached to said snowshoe-ski partly to one keel
segment and is further
releasably secured to the snowshoe-ski main body with a first attachment clip,
and the second skin is
attached to said snowshoe-ski partly to the other keel segment and is further
releasably secured to
the snowshoe-ski main body with a second attachment clip.
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DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
In the annexed drawings:
Figures 1 and 2 are respectively top and bottom perspective views of the
snowshoe-
ski kit of the present invention with the snowshoe-ski equipped with front and
rear skins;
Figure 3 is an exploded bottom perspective view of the snowshoe-ski kit of
Figures 1-
2;
Figures 4a and 4b are enlarged perspective views respectively of the first and
second
surfaces of the front skin, with the first clip installed thereon;
Figures 5a and 5b are enlarged perspective views respectively of the first and
second
surfaces of the rear skin, with the second clip installed thereon; and
Figures 6a, 6b, 6c, 6d and 6e are enlarged partial perspective views of a rear
portion
of the snowshoe-ski kit of Figures 1-2, sequentially showing the installation
of the rear skin to the
snowshoe-ski with its first surface exposed.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS
Figures 1-3 show a snowshoe-ski kit 18 comprising a hybrid snowshoe-ski 20 and
front and rear skins 22, 24. Front and rear skins 22, 24 can be installed on
snowshoe-ski 20 or not,
and if no skin 22, 24 is installed on snowshoe-ski 20, the latter can be used
alone, as detailed
hereinafter. The kit 20, 22, 24 can be sold with the skins 22, 24 installed to
or separate from the
snowshoe-ski 20.
Snowshoe-ski 20 comprises a main body 26 defining a front end 28, a rear end
30, a
bottom surface 32 operative for moving over snow and having a snowshoe-ski
traction coefficient,
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and a top surface 34 opposite the bottom surface 32. Main body 26 more
particularly comprises a U-
shaped frame 36 and a decking 38 carried by the frame by means of loops 40
that are formed
integrally with decking 38 and that project sidewardly therefrom to be engaged
by the tubular frame
36, and by means of tongues 42, 44, 46 that are riveted to frame 36 near the
snowshoe-ski's front
end 28. Loops 40 not only have the purpose of attaching decking 38 to frame
36, but also provide
some traction to the snowshoe-ski 20 against backward movement while
minimizing impediment to
frontward sliding, due to them being inclined from the top and front towards
the bottom and rear.
A binding 48 is attached to main body 26, and more particularly to decking 38
by
means of a flexible live hinge 50, for attachment to a person's foot atop the
top surface 34. It is
understood that binding 48 could be attached to one or both of the decking 38
and the frame 36.
Snowshoe-ski 20 also comprises a keel member 52 on the bottom surface 32 of
main
body 26. More particularly keel member 52 comprises two aligned keel segments
54, 56 riveted to
decking 38 in spaced-apart configuration respectively frontwardly and
rearwardly of the binding 48.
Keel member 52 is used to limit lateral shifting of the snowshoe-ski 20,
especially when sliding at
higher speed.
It is understood that other snowshoe-ski configurations could be envisioned,
including but without being limited to ones where the frame is not U-shaped
but rather forms a
closed loop, where the decking has a different configuration, where the shape
and relative size of the
frame and decking differ, there the binding is different or is attached
differently to the main body,
where the keel member differs, and so on.
As further shown in Figures 4a and 4b, front skin 22 is removable, reversible
and
sheet-like and has opposite first and second surfaces 58, 60 each defining
respective first and second
skin traction coefficients that differ from each other and that differ from
the snowshoe-ski bottom
surface traction coefficient. More particularly the first and second surfaces
58, 60 have respective
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corrugations, ribs, grooves, patterns in relief, bosses, holes, apexes, bumps,
ridges, or any other
design or intrinsic material parameters that allow for a desired traction
coefficient to be obtained.
This traction coefficient can be quantifiable or not, in that a certain skin
surface or material that
promises or proves to provide certain traction characteristics does not need
to have a specific
5 number associated to its traction to allow one to differentiate it from
the traction coefficient of a
different type of surface. Front skin 22 also defines an elongated central
slot 61.
The front skin 22 is removably attachable to the snowshoe-ski main body 26,
and
more particularly to decking 38, with either one of the first and second
surfaces 58, 60 bearing
against the bottom surface 34 and the other one of the first and second
surfaces 58, 60 being
10 exposed, for allowing the snowshoe-ski 20 to be operatively used either
alone or with the front skin
22 installed with either one of the front and rear skin surfaces 58, 60
exposed, as will be detailed
hereinafter. Front skin 22 is flexible and can conform to the shape of the
bottom surface 34 of the
decking 38: it can be seen that although decking 38 curves upwards towards the
snowshoe-ski front
end 28, and although it further undulates near the positions of tongues 40,
front skin 22 snugly
conforms to this curving and undulating shape of decking 38 due to its
flexibility.
As further shown in Figures 5a and 5b, rear skin 24 is also removable,
reversible and
sheet-like and also has opposite first and second surfaces 62, 64 each
defining respective first and
second skin traction coefficients that differ from each other and that differ
from the snowshoe-ski
bottom surface traction coefficient. The respective traction coefficients of
the first and second
surfaces 62, 64 of rear skin 24 can respectively be identical, similar or
different from the traction
coefficients of the first and second surfaces 56, 58 of front skin 22. Like
with the front skin 22, rear
skin 24 is removably attachable to the snowshoe-ski main body 26 with either
one of the first and
second surfaces 62, 64 bearing against the decking bottom surface 32 and the
other one of the first
and second surfaces 62, 64 being exposed, for ultimately allowing the snowshoe-
ski to be
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operatively used either alone, or with one or both the front and rear skins
22, 24 installed, with each
of the front and rear skins 22, 24 that is installed having one of its
respective front and rear skin
surfaces 56, 58 and 62, 64 exposed, as detailed hereinafter. Rear skin 24 also
defines an elongated
central slot 66.
Rear skin 24 is flexible and can conform to the shape of the bottom surface 34
of the
decking 38 like front skin 22, however in the embodiment shown in the drawings
rear skin 24 is
installed on a flat portion of decking 38.
Front and rear skins 22, 24 are attachable to snowshoe-ski 20 in spaced apart
configuration respectively frontwardly and rearwardly of the binding 48, in a
manner that will now
be described. Reference is further made to Figures 6a-6e where the
installation of read skin 24 is
sequentially shown. Front and rear skins 22, 24 are attachable by engaging
front keel segment 54
within front skin slot 61 and rear keel segment 56 within rear skin slot 66
and by tilting and/or
bending the flexible front and rear skins 22, 24 and then sliding the front
and rear skins rearwardly
such that the front and rear keel segments 54, 56 will extend over the
frontward edge of the front
and rear skins 22, 24. Then front and rear skins 22, 24 are tilted or bent
against the main body
bottom surface 34 and releasably attached to snowshoe-ski 20 with clips 68,
70.
More particularly, snowshoe-ski kit 18 comprises first and second clips 68, 70
that
are releasably attachable to decking 38 and respectively to the front and rear
skins 22, 24. More
particularly, decking 38 comprises decking openings in the form of holes 72
and slots 74 to
accommodate first and second clips 76, 78 that are resiliently engageable
within the decking
openings 72, 74. The front and rear skins 22, 24 also comprise respective
front and rear skin
openings in the form of holes 80 and slots 82 to accommodate the first and
second clips 76, 78 that
are also resiliently engageable within the front and rear skin openings 80,
82. Each clip 76, 78, for
example clip 78 shown in Figures 3, 5a, and 5b, is generally U-shaped and has
two legs 84, 86 with
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hooked front extremities 88, 90 that are engageable in holes 72 and 80 and a
bended M-shaped web
portion 92 that can engage with two apexes 94, 96 the slots 74 and 82. The
legs 84, 86 of the U-
shaped clips 76, 78 will resiliently deform when web portion 92 is forced down
to push apexes 94,
96 into slots 74, 82 to allow a resilient snap-fit engagement of clips 76, 78
with skins 22, 24 on the
one hand, and with decking 38 on the other hand.
Furthermore, first and second clips 76, 78 can be releasably connected
respectively to
the front and rear skins 22, 24 independently of the decking 38 in a first
step, such that the front skin
22 and the first clip 76 can be manipulated as a first unit, and the rear skin
24 and the second clip 78
can be manipulated as a second unit, before the front and rear skins 22, 24
are releasably attached to
the snowshoe-ski 20 with clips 76, 78. This allows a much easier carrying,
storage and, most
importantly, installation of skins 22, 24 to decking 38 as the manipulation of
each skin/clip unit 22,
76 and 24, 78 can easily be done manually even with a pair of winter gloves or
mittens, without use
of any tool whatsoever.
In use, the present invention relates to a method of adjusting the effective
traction
coefficient on snowshoe-ski 20 with a first sheet-like skin that can be either
one of front and rear
skins 22, 24. The method comprises first selecting whether to install the
first skin 22 or 24 on the
snowshoe-ski 20. If it is selected not to install the first skin 22 or 24 on
the snowshoe-ski 20, the
snowshoe-ski 20 can and will be operatively used alone, that is to say that
the snowshoe ski main
body's bottom surface 34 is operative for use in sliding on snow without any
skin attached thereto.
The effective traction coefficient is then, of course, the snowshoe-ski
traction coefficient itself.
If it is selected to install the first skin 22 or 24 to the snowshoe-ski, the
method
further comprises selecting which of the first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62
or 64 of the first skin
will bear against the main body's bottom surface 34; and then removably
attaching as detailed
above the first skin 22 or 24 to the snowshoe-ski main body with the selected
one of the first and
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second surface 58, 60, 62 or 64 bearing against the bottom surface 34 and with
the other one of the
first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 consequently being exposed. The
effective traction
coefficient is then influenced by both that of the exposed one among the first
and second first skin
first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 and by the snowshoe-ski traction
coefficient itself, since
the selected skin 22 or 24 does not cover the entire snowshoe-ski bottom
surface 34.
According to the method of the invention, during the step of selecting whether
to
install the first skin on the snowshoe-ski, one can further select whether to
install on the snowshoe-
ski 20 a second skin 22 or 24. In other words, either one, or both, skins 22,
24 can be installed on
snowshoe-ski 20. If it is selected to install the second skin to the snowshoe-
ski, the method further
comprises, during the step of selecting which of the first and second surfaces
58, 60, 62 or 64 of the
first 22 or 24 skin bears against the bottom surface, also selecting which of
the first and second
surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 of the second skin 22 or 24 bears against the bottom
surface; and during
the step of removably attaching the first skin 22 or 24 to the snowshoe-ski
main body 26, removably
attaching the second skin 22 or 24 to the snowshoe-ski main body 26 with its
selected one among
is the first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 bearing against the
bottom surface 34 and with the
other of the first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 of the second skin 22
or 24 consequently
being exposed. The effective traction coefficient is then additionally
influenced by that of the
exposed one among the first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 of the second
skin 22 or 24.
As can be seen in the drawings, during the steps of removably attaching the
first skin
22 or 24 to the snowshoe-ski main body 26 and of removably attaching the
second skin 22 or 24 to
the snowshoe-ski main body 26, the first and second skins 22, 24 are attached
in spaced apart
configuration respectively frontwardly and rearwardly of the binding 48.
Concerning the snowshoe-ski traction coefficient, it is determined by that of
the main
body's lower surface 34 that is itself influenced by the lower surface of the
decking 38, including
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loops 40, and of the frame 36. According to a preferred embodiment, the
snowshoe-ski traction
coefficient is lower than the traction coefficients of the first and second
skin first and second
surfaces 58, 60, 62, 64. This allows sliding on snow when the snowshoe-ski is
used without the first
and second skins 22, 24 and further allows a selectable enhanced traction when
snowshoe-ski 20 is
equipped with a single first skin 22 or 24, or with both the first and second
skins 22 and 24; each
with either one of their first and second surfaces 58, 60, 62 or 64 being
exposed. This offers a wide
variety of different effective traction coefficients, depending on whether
snowshoe-ski 20 is used
alone, with front skin 22 alone, with rear skin 24 alone, with both the front
and rear skins 22, 24, and
then in each of these combinations, whether each skin 22, 24 is used with its
first or second surface
58, 60, 62 or 64 exposed. The snowshoe-ski kit 18 consequently allows snowshoe-
ski 20 to become
efficiently usable over a wide variety of snowy terrain.
According to the invention, snowshoe-ski kit 18 is advantageous because skins
22, 24
are small, light-weight and flexible, which makes them easy to carry in a
small backpack or even in
large coat pockets. With the clips 76, 78 being attachable to the skins 22, 24
to form skin/clip units
22, 76 and 24, 78 that can be manipulated as such, it becomes easy to install
or remove the skins 22,
24 while the user is outside in cold temperatures, without removing his gloves
or mittens. Indeed,
the snap-fit resilient installation and removal of clips 76, 78 from decking
38 does not require
simultaneous installation and removal of clips 76, 78 from skins 22, 24.
One particular use of snowshoe-ski kit 18 is for winter trekking on rolling
hill terrain,
with no or few steep slopes. In such terrain, the configuration of snowshoe-
ski 20 with a low traction
coefficient allows sliding over snow on flat ground and mild downhill slopes.
On uphill slopes or
steeper downhill slopes, skins 22, 24 can be installed with a selected surface
58, 60, 62, 64 exposed
depending on the type of terrain and snow composition.
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