Balancing skateboard
OwnerSteven Dickinson Potterinventor
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A skateboard for use on pavement, ice or snow using a single narrow-footprint wheel, ice-blade or ski-runner attached to each foot, thus requiring the rider to dynamically balance the board. The skateboard is capable of self-propulsion at considerable speed on the flat or uphill by using an undulating motion. It can also lean up to 30 degrees and has a steering circle of only two feet. The board's construction comprises a front footboard, a rear footboard, and a strut which connects the two footboards and resists bending and extension. Each footboard includes a footpad, an attachment (i.e. a wheel, blade or ski), and a pivot joint connecting to the strut. The axis of this joint is aligned perpendicular to the footpad which allows the rider to steer each footboard independently by torsionally rotating the lower leg.
Claims10
A skateboard capable of undulating self-propulsion, comprising
- a front footboard and a rear footboard, each of the footboards comprising a footpad,
- an elongated strut connecting the two footboards, the strut being rigid in bending but allowing torsional rotation, thus allowing the footboards to be tilted independently,
- a single wheel mounted to each footpad via a wheel-mounting bracket integral with or attached to said footpad, wherein said wheel is the principal support for said footboard with respect to the ground;
- and
- a pivot joint connecting each footpad to said strut, each pivot joint having a pivot axis substantially perpendicular to the top surface of the footpad and substantially in-line with said single wheel.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.