Rollerblade, Inc.

Brennan J Olson

Thomas J Brace

Charles R Frigard

Robert Keith Johnson

Michel D Arney

Jack J Curley, Jr

John F Swigart

A skating vehicle has a frame with a blade or rollers mounted thereon and a boot for mounting a detachable shoe in a locked position thereon. The boot includes a rigid wall which encircles the sole of the shoe cradled within, and a rearward projection in the toe portion which enters a slot in the shoe sole when the shoe is inserted and moved forward, locking the shoe in the boot. A rear semirigid cuff is lined with a padding whose lower edge is proximate with and communicates with the upper edge of the shoe during skating. The cuff is closed with an adjustable latch which comprises the single device required to mount and dismount the shoe. The multi-use shoe includes a semirigid outer heel attached to the sole extremity and a semirigid outer tongue overlying the shoe upper. A strap attachment has one portion attached to the medial side of the upper and communicating with the outer heel to encircle the shoe heel, and a second portion passing from the rear portion of the sole on the medial side over the upper beneath the outer tongue. The free ends of the strap portions are adjustably attached to mount the shoe on the wearer's foot such as with hook and loop attachment material. The cuff collapses downwardly to reduce the skate size for portability.

Skate with detachable shoe

Ventilated boot liner for a roller skate

Disclosed is an improved in-line roller skate that cools and drys a skater's foot, provides increased performance, and increased comfort. The skate of the present invention includes a boot having a plurality of venting apertures selectively located therein so as to achieve an interchange of air between the inside of the boot and the external environment thereby providing a cooling and drying circulation of air with in the boot of the in-line roller skate. A skate according to the present invention further includes a cuff pivoting on a pair of guide rails attached to the boot.

Ventilated boot and in-line roller skate with the same

An in-line roller skate and brake utilizes an improved braking assembly in which the brake pad is retained to the brake housing by an interacting tongue and slot system which causes the pad to be tightly forced into the housing during braking. The upper face of the pad is retained to the housing, and compression of the rubber pad forces a slot on the periphery of the pad tightly into locking engagement with the housing so as to provide a substantially improved retention system for the brake pad during heavy braking operation.

Slotted brake for in-line roller skate

Slotted roller skate

A roller skate and brake utilizes a generally flat rectangular road surface engaging base which pivots about the rear wheel through an arc of approximately twelve degrees to achieve full facial engagement with the road surface to achieve safer, more controlled braking. The brake pad is provided with an internal plate which provides an audible and vibrating wear indicator to alert the skater to replace the brake pad. The pad has an upright, arcuate protuberance and a transverse rib which are mateably received within an arcuate cross section socket and a slot adjacent the socket to closely restrain and confine the brake pad within a brake pad housing when the brake pad is attached to the housing.

Roller skate with pivoting brake

An in-line roller skate utilizes dual position, eccentric axle aperture plugs which are received in the axle apertures of the skate frame to allow mounting of the skate's wheels in either of two distinct orientations. The plugs also solve a serious assembly problem by allowing wheels to be installed in the skate frame without the alignment problems previously encountered between frames, wheels and hard to handle spacing washers.

In-line roller skate with axle aperture plugs for simplified wheel

An in-line roller skate includes a new lightweight frame and brake of synthetic material and embodies structurally interacting components which cooperate to counter and absorb the strain and shock of road bumps and vibration encountered at high speeds by heavy riders and which have in the past required heavy, metal frames. An improved wheel hub solves the problem of overheating bearings and wheel melting encountered by earlier skates and permits prolonged, high speed use of the skates on nonlevel riding surfaces by even heavy skaters under hot road surface conditions.

Growing community of inventors

Minneapolis, MN, United States of America

Brennan J Olson