The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Mar. 28, 1995
Filed:
Oct. 08, 1993
Patrick J O'Donnell, Philadelphia, PA (US);
Steven C Preston, Bedford, MA (US);
Other;
Abstract
In-line roller skates whose wheels make it possible for a skater to stop without the need for a braking pad or other special expedients for this purpose. Each skate includes a boot to accommodate the skater's foot and a frame secured to the underside of the boot supporting a series of in-line wheels having a composite structure. Each composite wheel includes a center section formed of hard material, such as high-density polyethylene, having a low coefficient of friction, the center section being flanked by side sections formed of relatively soft material, such as cast polyurethane, having a high coefficient of friction. In order to stop or reduce speed, the skater turns the in-line skates away from the direction of travel as he would when braking ice skates. This maneuver causes a portion both of the hard and a soft section of the composite wheels, now angled with respect to the direction of travel, to frictionally engage the ground to effect a braking action.