1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a safety ski binding incorporating a toe and a heel binding and an electronic circuit arrangement, with a computer unit and a memory system as well as a sensor system detecting at least one a set safety release value for the safety binding.
2. The Prior Art
Patent specification EP 0 469 453 A1 discloses a safety ski binding with an electronic device for displaying the set safety release force. A display is provided, which displays the values of settings detected and determined by a sensor and an electronic evaluation device. A power supply in the form of a battery is also provided, so that the electrical components can be supplied with power by activating and deactivating a switch. The sensor, by means of which the set safety release value, is detected is provided in the form of a position sensor, which delivers a characteristic electric sensor signal depending on the position of an adjusting screw for setting the safety release value. It is proposed that a capacitive sensor, an inductive sensor or a plurality of micro-switches should be used for the sensor. Another suggestion is that a potentiometer and an adjustable resistor be used for electronically detecting the respective position of the adjusting screw. The disadvantage of this system is that an analogue signal evaluation of the virtually static or absolute position sensors is necessary, which means that the electronic components have a high sensitivity to interference and a low output range. Although the currently set safety release value can be electronically detected and shown on a display with this system, it is not possible to detect changes in the safety release value.
An electronic display device for indicating the set release force of a safety ski binding is known from patent specification DE 33 43 047 A1. In this case, the spring-biassing action of the releasing mechanism is detected by an electromechanical transformer, which converts the prevailing spring biassing force into electrical information. An electronic circuit converts this information into digital format so that it can be presented on a digital display system. A potentiometer is also proposed, which measures any variation of the adjusting screw relative to the binding housing. Here again, there is no provision for displaying the respective safety setting.
Patent specification AT 404 901 B discloses a ski binding referred to as a coupling mechanism with an electronic display device and a sensor system, by means of which the relative position of the ski binding with respect to the ski or the distance between the toe and heel binding can be detected and displayed. Travel or force measurement transmitters are also proposed, by means of which the releasing force set for the ski binding is measured and transmitted via wires to the evaluation device, thereby enabling the position values to be shown in the form of a digital presentation on the display. In order to make it easier to adapt the safety release value as necessary in the event of changes in the binding distance, the respective binding distances can be detected by sensors and this binding distance incorporated in a recalculation of the requisite safety release value. In particular, an electronic computer unit in the ski binding assists with setting the requisite safety release value, which depends on various different parameters, such as body weight, skiing ability and sole length or binding distance, for example. Furthermore, measurement values or status variables of the ski binding can be detected and monitored by means of various sensor systems. For example, the release and any changes to which it is susceptible during active operation of the coupling mechanism is continuously monitored by measurement transmitters and evaluated in the computer unit if necessary or merely stored in a memory element. The purpose of this measurement detection system is to detect the release values for the release mechanism in the toe binding and heel binding so that the force needed to release the release mechanism can be calculated on the basis of such measurement values and controlled if necessary, i.e., the settings can be optimised if necessary. This specification does not mention the idea of logging manual changes to the settings for the safety release values.
USPTO Backgrounds
USPTO Backgrounds