Binding baseplate for a gliding board
AssigneeThe Burton Corporation
InventorsJames Laughlin, Ryan Coulter
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A baseplate for binding a foot to a board, particularly suitable for application as a snowboard binding baseplate, maybe tuned to provide a certain level and/or balance of one or more performance properties including, but not limited to power transmission, responsiveness, feel, and comfort. The binding baseplate may include localized regions of varying stiffness to provide a specific performance property. Consequently, the binding baseplate may include a specific stiffness characteristic at a location where the boot engagement members are mounted, providing a desired response of the binding baseplate to forces that may be generated by the rider during turns, landing jumps, and otherwise during riding.
Claims39
A snowboard binding for mounting a boot to a snowboard, the snowboard binding comprising:
- a baseplate assembly having a baseplate portion configured for attachment to the snowboard, a toe end, a heel end, a lateral sidewall, and a medial sidewall, the baseplate assembly constructed and arranged to support the snowboard boot;
- and
- at least one boot engagement member adapted to hold at least a portion of the boot to the baseplate assembly;
- wherein at least one of the medial and the lateral sidewalls has a flexing portion, wherein the flexing portion has at least one mounting location for mounting the at least one boot engagement member, wherein the flexing portion flexes in relation to the baseplate portion, in response to forces generated by a rider on the boot engagement member, and wherein the flex of the flexing portion is selectively adjustable by a rider.
A snowboard binding for mounting a boot to a snowboard, the snowboard binding comprising:
- a baseplate having a toe end and a heel end, the baseplate being constructed and arranged to support the snowboard boot;
- a boot engagement member adapted to hold at least a portion of the boot to the baseplate;
- a mount mounting the boot engagement member to the baseplate, the mount being supported by the baseplate proximate the toe end and the heel end of the baseplate, a portion of the mount flexing in relation to a portion of the baseplate in response to rider induced forces acting on the boot engagement member;
- and
- a system supported by the binding for selectively adjusting the flexing of the portion of the mount to rider induced forces acting on the boot engagement member.
A snowboard binding for mounting a boot to a snowboard, the snowboard binding comprising:
- a baseplate including a toe end, a heel end, a lateral sidewall, and a medial sidewall, the baseplate being constructed and arranged to receive the snowboard boot;
- at least one boot engagement member adapted to hold at least a portion of the boot to the baseplate;
- a boot engagement member mount coupling the boot engagement member to the baseplate, the mount being fixed to the baseplate at a fixation location proximate to the toe end and at a fixation location proximate to the heel end, the mount having a flexing portion between the toe end and the heel end fixation locations subject to flexing in relation to a portion of the baseplate in response to forces acting on the boot engagement member and imposed on the flexing portion;
- and
- at least one stiffener insert with which a rider may insert into the binding between the toe end and the heel end fixation locations to allow the rider to adjust the flexing of the flexing portion of the mount in response to rider induced forces acting on the boot engagement member and imposed on the flexing portion subject to flexing.
A method for reversibly adjusting the flexibility of a snowboard binding, comprising the acts of:
- providing a binding having a baseplate, a mount supported by the baseplate, and a boot engagement member attached to the mount, the mount having a deflection portion capable of deflecting with respect to the baseplate in response to rider induced forces imposed on the boot engagement member and the deflection portion, the deflection portion having a characteristic which is selectively adjustable, the characteristic being an amount of deflection of the deflection portion;
- adjusting the amount of deflection of the deflection portion from a first amount to a second amount;
- and
- adjusting the amount of deflection of the deflection portion from the second amount to the first amount.
A snowboard binding for mounting a boot to a snowboard, the snowboard binding comprising:
- a baseplate assembly having a planar portion configured for attachment to the snowboard, a toe end, a heel end, a lateral sidewall, and a medial sidewall, the lateral and medial sidewalls extending upwardly from the planar portion, the baseplate assembly constructed and arranged to support the snowboard boot;
- and
- at least one boot engagement member adapted to hold at least a portion of the boot to the baseplate;
- wherein at least one of the medial and lateral sidewalls having an upper portion attached to a lower portion at longitudinally spaced attachment points, the upper portion including a flexing portion extending between the attachment points, the baseplate assembly having at least one mounting location along each of the lateral and medial sidewalls for mounting the at least one boot engagement member, at least one of the mounting locations is on the flexing portion of the at least one of the medial and lateral sidewalls, the flexing portion flexing in relation to the lower portion of the respective sidewall in response to forces generated by a rider on the at least one boot engagement member, and wherein a flexibility of the flexing portion is selectively adjustable by the rider.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.