Device for controlling a wing or traction sail

Abstract

Device for controlling a traction wing comprising a rigid bar (B) and lines (L) connecting said bar (B) to the traction wing, at least one line (L) being secured at each terminal portion (1) located at each end of the bar (B) and comprising a mechanism for adjusting the position of the line (L) relative to the bar (B) so as to increase or decrease the distance separating the lines (L) at their connection to the bar (B). The control device comprises a manual control member (10) at each terminal portion (1) of the bar (B), capable of moving in a direction parallel to the axis of the bar (B) means for attaching the lines (L) to said bar (B). Abbreviated figure: figure 2

Description

Title of the invention: Device for controlling a traction wing or sail

[0001] The present invention relates to equipment for assisting in the control and command of a kite-type traction wing or sail. More particularly, the invention relates to a device for controlling such a traction wing comprising a rigid bar and lines connecting said bar to the traction wing. Such wings are conventionally and increasingly used in aero-towed board sports, consisting of a user moving on a support, for example a board, while being carried by the wind via a kite of suitable size, which in this case is referred to as a wing, or even a sail. The environment can be water - on the sea or on a lake - or dry land, with or without snow. The usual name - and one which has entered everyday language - for this sport in its nautical version is kite surfing, which combines the word kite, kite in English, with a surfboard.

[0002] More precisely, the user is equipped with a waist belt, generally called a harness in this sport, which is mechanically connected to his kite via a bar allowing him to pilot his wing. The bar is attached via a cord to the front of the harness, and the kitesurfer holds it with at least one hand - often both hands - during the piloting phase, the manipulation of the bar allowing him to adapt his piloting to the characteristics (direction, sense, force, etc.) of the winds blowing during his outing.

[0003] The practice of kitesurfing depends on wind conditions, and in particular on its strength, which may require adapting the equipment to allow navigation in good conditions. Thus, when the wind is light, it is preferable to use a large sail area (this is the surface area of ​​the sail expressed in m2, for example 12 m2, 14m2 etc.) in order to guarantee sufficient force to be pulled by the kite wing. Conversely, when the wind is strong, it is absolutely necessary to choose a smaller wing to avoid an "over-canvassing" phenomenon, that is to say a sail area that is too large, which can quickly become dangerous and, in the event of loss of control, cause serious accidents. Similarly, the dimensions of the sail must be adapted to the user's level: thus, beginners will be given a smaller sail to reduce the consequences of probable piloting errors.

[0004] Also, more generally, for the same sail size, for reasons of maneuverability, the user may want to move from a small bar size to a larger bar. This may therefore result from a question of level, depending on whether the user is still not used to kitesurfing or already an experienced expert, but this can also reflect the type of practice: freestyle, freeride, surfing etc. require different controls which have an impact on the size of the command and control bar.

[0005] Professionals in the sector, that is to say mainly manufacturers and sellers, actually offer grids or tables associating in particular suitable wing sizes with wind ranges, in order to help the kitesurfer in the selection of the dimension of a wing adapted to the wind conditions. These tables sometimes include other parameters of choice or adjustment, also functions of the wind force. Thus, the size of the bar of the traction wing control device is one of them. It is in fact considered important to adjust the size of the bar to the size of the wing, in order to ensure correct piloting during navigation. For example, a bar that is too large will cause "over-piloting" of the wing if it is undersized, and conversely "under-piloting" in the case of an oversized wing.It is easy to understand that manipulations aimed at moving a large bar have a greater impact on the kite sail than control gestures applied to a smaller bar.

[0006] It is just as easy to understand that it is better to fly a large wing in light wind, but that in this case, a large bar is obviously preferable because the larger the wing, the more difficult the wings are to move and show great inertia. Conversely, in strong wind, it is imperative to have a small wing, more "responsive" and which can then be combined with a small bar.

[0007] It is therefore in principle necessary to change the bar to adapt it to the kite and the wind conditions. However, a bar is an expensive component of the kite, and it is therefore financially complicated and generally unrealistic for a kitesurfer to have several (at least two, in fact) bars. To address this problem, several solutions have been proposed. They are generally based on the existence of a single bar equipped with means for adjusting the position relative to the bar of the lines that connect it to the kite sail. These lines are, for piloting purposes, fixed near the ends of the bar, that is to say in their two terminal portions, for the reasons indicated above of operational efficiency when handling the sail, whatever the wind conditions.

[0008] While it is possible, with a standard length bar, to modify the positions of the line attachment points, by placing them either very close to the ends or a little closer to the central area of ​​the bar, the technical effect is the same as having two bars of different lengths, each with a single line attachment point(s) at each end.

[0009] In some known systems, the lines are attached to a component mounted in the bar via a fastening system which has a symmetry allowing an inversion of its fixing when it is made to make a half-turn of its axis parallel to the direction of the taut lines. The line is mounted there in such a way that when the fixing is inverted, its position changes in the direction of the axis of the bar. In this case, the methods of adapting the bar to wind conditions require a disassembly involving for example a translation of this component moving it radially away from the bar (the disassembly is in reality only partial, the bar remains crossed by the line), an inversion of its orientation (it is turned 180° while keeping the line oriented in substantially the same way) and a reassembly in the bar by translation in the opposite direction, reassembly made possible by the symmetrical configuration.In this case, the lines are positioned according to two distinct settings: when they are proximal to the free ends of the bar, we are dealing with a "large" bar, and when they are further inside the bar, the user has a "small" bar.

[0010] Alternatively, these are the floats, through which the lines pass towards the bar and which are themselves fixed to said bar, the positions of which can be reversed, also implying a method of fixing to the bar which has symmetry. The gap between the lines, at the outlet at the free end of the floats, can then take two different values, leading to simulating a “large” bar and a “small” bar. Alternatively again, the ends of the lines can be tightened around shafts fixed axially at the periphery of the bar, in the vicinity of its ends, providing a slot between the shaft and the bar so that the end of the lines can be loosened, moved and tightened at another location in the direction of the axis of the shaft, leading to modulating the “size” of the bar, in reality the distance between lines.

[0011] All these configurations require manual disassembly / displacement / reassembly, tightening / displacement / retightening operations, which are more or less easy to implement, knowing in particular that in the presence of salt water and sand, seizures can make the operations difficult, or even really tedious.

[0012] The main purpose of the present invention is therefore to propose an adjustment system solution allowing the user to very simply modify the position of the lines relative to the bar, and above all without effort. Secondarily, the chosen solution is designed to allow the current adjustment to be viewed at any time, including during navigation - that is to say when the sail is in the air - in order to allow this position to be modified at any time. Finally, the proposed configuration protects the adjustment mechanism from water and sand, while providing easy and complete access to said mechanism, making it easier to carry out repairs, cleaning, etc.

[0013] For these purposes, the device for controlling a traction wing of the invention, comprising conventionally a rigid bar and lines connecting said bar to the traction wing, at least one line being secured at each terminal portion located at each end of the bar, and comprising a mechanism for adjusting the position of the line relative to the bar so as to increase or decrease the distance separating the lines at their connection to the bar, is such that it comprises a manual control member at each terminal portion of the bar, capable of moving in a direction parallel to the axis of the bar means for attaching the lines to said bar.

[0014] In essence, no further disassembly, loosening or other restrictive operation is necessary, it is sufficient to manually operate the control members, generally visible from the outside of the bar at its axial ends. The system for adjusting and controlling the wing control is therefore very simple and intuitive, further protecting the mechanism which is placed inside the bar.

[0015] In practice, the adjustment control member may consist of a movable lever on the external face of the terminal portion of the bar between two extreme positions corresponding to two distinct positions of each line relative to the bar. The device further comprises means for holding the lever in its two extreme positions, so as to prevent these positions from being left, in the absence of a command by the user, for example under the effect of gravity. Preferably, this lever may be rotatable. The internal mechanism is then rotatable, actuated by the external lever protruding from the bar, this mechanism allowing the line to easily pass from a first position to a second position along the length of the bar, that is to say along the axis of the bar.

[0016] More specifically, according to the invention, the handle may be integral with a connecting rod whose two end articulations are rotatably mounted, opposite one another with respect to the connecting rod in the direction of the axes of rotation, one in the terminal portion of the bar, and the other with respect to at least one line, the amplitude of the rotation of the connecting rod being limited, for each of its extreme positions, by at least one stop made in the bar. The connecting rod rotates so as to drive the end of the line in a rotary path which causes the line, oriented substantially perpendicular to the bar, to translate laterally and along the axis of the latter. To obtain a maximum amplitude of displacement of the end of the lines along the axis of the bar, the connecting rod, in its two extreme positions, is placed in alignment with the bar.This gives a maximum translational amplitude for the lines relative to the bar since they are attached to the rotating free ends of the connecting rods.

[0017] It should be noted that the two rotary joints are placed on either side of the connecting rod, opposite each other, not only longitudinally but also transversely, that is to say in the direction of the parallel axes of rotation of said joints. This is what the expression means: opposite each other relative to the connecting rod in the direction of the axes of rotation, since they are parallel. There is therefore a spatial shift between the planes in which these two rotations are exerted, respectively relative on the one hand to the frame of the bar, in its terminal portion, and on the other hand to the line(s). It is this shift which allows the line to pass from one side to the other of the center of rotation of the connecting rod relative to the bar.

[0018] According to a possible configuration, the connecting rod comprises: - a first arm having, at one end and on a first proximal face of a wall of the terminal portion of the bar, a rotary connection relative to said wall and, at the opposite end and on the second face, the means for attaching at least one line comprising a journal relative to which the line is free to rotate; and - a gripping part secured to said journal and forming the control lever.

[0019] This first arm is a sort of crank rotating relative to the bar and whose free end receives the line(s) arriving from the sail in the bar, on each side of the bar, the lines being attached to it with a degree of freedom in rotation. It is also at the level of this free end of the arm that the grip can be made of the lever, which has a member for this purpose.

[0020] The gripping part can also be fixed to a second arm corresponding to the first arm, arranged opposite it on the other side of the journal, as will be seen in more detail below. This gripping part can then take the appearance of an elongated part, the apparent movement of which is rotary with an axis collinear with the rotary connection of the connecting rod in the bar, but not directly connected to this connection. Of course, this gripping part is then placed outside the casing or the frame of the bar, the rest of the mechanism - and in particular in this case the second arm - being located inside.

[0021] In practice, the connecting rod may comprise at least one surface intended to cooperate by contact with at least one surface provided in an internal face of at least one wall of the terminal portion, capable of limiting the rotary movement of the connecting rod and constituting the stop. The amplitude of the movement is then mechanically limited so that the connecting rod describes, as mentioned, an angular section such that the line attached to it moves laterally - that is to say substantially perpendicular to its general orientation - by the greatest possible translational amplitude. In practice, two surfaces on two opposite sides of the connecting rod come into contact with the internal face of a wall of the terminal portion of the bar, at each end of the rotary path. The contact parts on this internal face materialize the stops, which allow the tensile forces exerted on the lines by the sail to be taken up.

[0022] It is also possible to provide a mechanism for absorbing lateral forces, for example such as comprising at least two symmetrical lugs projecting laterally from the connecting rod, each capable of being housed in a housing in the wall of the terminal portion, the internal face of which acts as a stop. The lateral character signifies a direction of appearance perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the connecting rod.

[0023] It should be noted that the terminal portion may include a removable cover giving access to the connecting rod secured to the control member. Furthermore, a flat-bottomed recess may be provided to guide a path of movement of the control member in coplanar external faces of the bent portion and the cover. In fact, the control member moves outside the terminal portion of the bar, therefore visible to the user, in said recess which is very slightly pronounced and therefore includes a flat bottom in fact provided to guarantee the flatness of the surface on which the lever moves.

[0024] Other aims and advantages of the present invention will appear during the description which follows, relating to embodiments which are given only as indicative and non-limiting examples.

[0025] Thus, in particular, the understanding of this description will be facilitated by referring to the drawings attached in the appendix and in which:

[0026] [Fig. 1] schematically illustrates the accessibility of the manual control lever on the outer face of a kite surf bar, leading to very easy use of the device of the invention.

[0027] [Fig.2] represents an exploded perspective view of a control device diagram of a traction wing according to the invention;

[0028] [Fig.3] shows a possible control lever configuration;

[0029] [Fig.4] represents a schematic explanatory view of the operation of the invention;

[0030] [Fig.5] illustrates the line shifting system specific to the invention; and

[0031] [Fig.6] shows the operation of the lateral force absorption lugs.

[0032] With reference to Figure 1, it is the terminal portion 1 bent at one of the ends of the bar B (of which only a small adjacent part of the bent portion 1 is visible) which is shown, knowing that a symmetrical homologous bent portion exists at the other end of the bar B, not visible in the figure. A control lever 10 occupies an outer face of said bent terminal portion 1, the rotary travel of which covers an angular sector of the order of 180°, said travel taking place in a flat-bottomed recess 11 made in the outer face of the bent terminal portion 1, in particular in a removable cover 12 allowing access to the internal mechanism connected to said lever 10. The latter is easily manipulated by the user, in particular accessible to his hand controlling the bar B, always located at proximity, and without the need for any tedious disassembly operation to change the setting.

[0033] [Fig. 1] shows the external appearance of this part of the bar B, while [Fig. 2] details the components of a possible mechanism of the control and adjustment device according to the invention, as well as the relative arrangement of the different components of the system in this schematic configuration, the objective of which is to make the operation of the system understood rather than to illustrate a definitive configuration of the latter. Thus, the cover 12 being dismantled, it can be seen that the flat surface constituting the bottom of the flat recess 11, as well as the latter, are shared by the cover 12 and the terminal portion 1. The lever 10 is integral with a connecting rod 13, one of the ends of which is articulated to the terminal portion 1 via a stud 14 projecting from an internal face 19 of this terminal portion 1, which constitutes, with an orifice of the connecting rod 13 in which the stud 14 is free to rotate, a first rotary connection of the connecting rod 13 in the terminal portion 1 of the bar B.As will be seen in later examples, the stud 14 can also be secured to the connecting rod 13 and cooperate with an orifice of the terminal portion 1. This is the first end articulation of the connecting rod 13. A journal 15 placed at the other end of the connecting rod 13 provides a second articulation of the connecting rod 13, relative to at least one line L for attaching the bar B to the wing of the kite. The end of the line(s) L present at this location is mounted to rotate freely relative to this journal 15 (see in particular figures 4 and 5), that is to say that the line L is attached there with a degree of freedom in rotation constituting in fact the second rotary connection of the connecting rod 13.

[0034] The gripping part of the handle 10 of this explanatory configuration is fixed to the connecting rod 13 via a shaft 16 substantially collinear with the stud 14, passing through the orifice 18 equipping the flat bottom of the recess 11, so that it rotates along the axis of the first rotary connection, although at a mechanical distance from the latter. The connecting rod 13 is, in this configuration, made up of two homologous arms 17, 17' arranged parallel on either side of the journal 15, consequently providing between them a free space not hindering the movements of the line(s) connected freely in rotation to the journal 15.The first rotary connection, consisting of the stud 14 and the corresponding bore (not visible) in the connecting rod 13, is exerted at one of the faces of the arm 17, the proximal face of the wall 19 of the terminal portion 1, while the second rotary connection at the level of the journal 15 is exerted on the opposite face of said arm 17, distal to the wall 19 of the terminal portion 1: they are therefore offset, which allows the relative displacement of the line with respect to the connecting rod 13 during the rotation of the latter, when it is actuated by the lever 10, in a manner which will be more easily understood with reference to [Fig.5].

[0035] The cover 12 includes a partially cylindrical plug 20 provided for be inserted into a conduit 21 of equivalent shape made at the end of the bar B, in the terminal portion 1 of the latter. A screw fixing of the cover 12 to the terminal portion 1 of the bar B can be provided, via at least one passage orifice opening into a reserve 22 made in the cover 12, this reserve 22 being provided to receive a screw head.

[0036] There must be an offset between the two planes of relative displacements caused by the rotations: in this case, the rotation of the connecting rod 13 relative to the wall 19 causes a relative displacement in particular at the level of the separation plane between the connecting rod 13 and the wall 19, whereas the rotation between the line L and the connecting rod 13 implies a relative displacement of these elements on the other side of the connecting rod 13, that is to say in an opposite plane, in the direction of the parallel axes of rotation. The two planes are offset by approximately the thickness of the arm 17 of the connecting rod 13, and there is therefore no possible interference between the stud 14 and the line L when the latter moves in the direction of the axis of the bar B.

[0037] [Fig. 3] shows another configuration of the handle 10, with a gripping part which is in one piece with the arm 17' of the connecting rod 13, and whose operation is identical to that of [Fig. 2]. The line L, shown free to rotate on the journal 15, moves in such a way that it is always opposite a slot 30 for the passage of the line L made in the part forming the terminal portion (1) of the bar B, whatever the position of the handle 10. It is the variable position of the line L relative to this slot 30 which actually gives the dimensioning of the spacing of the lines L on the bar B. This variable positioning of the line appears in particular in figures 4 and 5, which show three discrete positions of the line L.

[0038] [Fig. 4] shows schematically the operation of the device of the invention, in a configuration which is not exactly the same as that of [Fig. 2] but which obeys the same principles. It should also be noted that the configurations of the figures constitute only examples illustrating the operation of the invention and capable of numerous variations. Only a part of the bent terminal portion 1 is shown in this [Fig. 4], so that the functional parts are visible. The numerical references 14 and 15, which apply until now to a stud and a journal, can in reality be generalized to rotary connections respectively of the connecting rod 13 with respect to the terminal portion 1 and with respect to the line L. A particularity of [Fig. 4] is to show the line L connected to the connecting rod 13, which is not shown in [Fig.2], and which clearly shows the cooperation - with changes in relative positions - between the end of the line L and the bar B, via a mechanism comprising in this case this connecting rod 13. The components which perform the same function in the figures bear the same reference, even if their configuration . is a little different.

[0039] The end of the line L, at its rotary connection 15 with the connecting rod 13, follows a path T in a semicircle, the rest of said line L, the general orientation of which practically does not change, at the same time performing a translation in the slot 30. The movement of the line L in the slot 30, depending on the position of the connecting rod 13 controlled by the lever 10 and consequently by the user who has access to it, allows the management of the distance between the lines L coming from the two end zones or terminal portions of the bar B held by said user.

[0040] Even more illustratively due to the perspective representations, [Fig. 5] clearly shows the offset of the planes of rotations which take place on two opposite faces of the arm 17 of the connecting rod 13. It is this offset which allows - even in the configuration of the connecting rod 13 with two arms 17, 17' which preserve a free space between them - a free displacement of the line L, without there being any blocking by the rotation means. The three discrete positions of the latter, already mentioned, are shown in Figures 4 and 5, namely the two end positions and a central position. The two end positions, which correspond to the two ends of the semi-circular path T, mark the diametrical dimension of the possible lateral travel of the line L in the slot 30. The line is thus displaced by a few cm, which is not negligible in terms of command and control of the kite wing.This is even more true if we add the lateral displacements of the two lines L, on each side of bar B, displacements which are each time in the opposite direction to each other.

[0041] [Fig. 6] shows another possible feature of the connecting rod 13, namely the existence of lugs (23, 24) for absorbing lateral forces. This figure further shows that the ends of the semi-circular path T are in practice defined by stops, already mentioned, in the form of contact surfaces provided in an internal face of at least one wall of the terminal portion 1. The connecting rod 13 comes into abutment against these walls located - transversely - on either side of the slot 30. In practice, in one of the configurations shown previously, it is the arms 17, 17' which come into contact with said walls, allowing a absorption of the traction forces due to the natural tension of the line L caused by the traction of the kite, in a direction consequently parallel to the lines.These walls can therefore also be provided with recesses sized to accommodate the lugs 23, 24 so as to manage - by cooperation with each other - the forces in a direction rather perpendicular to the orientation of the lines L. The lugs 23, 24 are carried by the arms 17, 17', in said configuration shown previously. They are generally carried by the connecting rod 13, whatever its configuration.

[0042] The examples illustrated in these figures are obviously not exhaustive of the invention, which includes differences in geometry, dimensions, etc. in particular the lever 10, the connecting rod 13, the operating mode of the rotary connections, etc.

Claims

Claims

1. Device for controlling a traction wing comprising a rigid bar (B) and lines (L) connecting said bar (B) to the traction wing, at least one line (L) being secured at each terminal portion (1) located at each end of the bar (B) and comprising a mechanism for adjusting the position of the line (L) relative to the bar (B) so as to increase or decrease the distance separating the lines (L) at their connection to the bar (B), characterized in that it comprises a manual control member (10) at each terminal portion (1) of the bar (B), capable of moving in a direction parallel to the axis of the bar (B) means for attaching the lines (L) to said bar (B).

2. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the control member (10) for the adjustment consists of a lever (10) movable on the external face of the terminal portion (1) of the bar (B) between two extreme positions corresponding to two distinct positions of each line (L) relative to the bar (B).

3. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that it comprises means for holding the lever (10) in its two extreme positions.

4. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the lever (10) is rotary.

5. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the lever (10) is integral with a connecting rod (13) whose two end articulations are rotatably mounted, opposite one another with respect to the connecting rod (13) in the direction of the axes of rotation, one in the terminal portion of the bar (B), and the other with respect to at least one line (L), the amplitude of the rotation of the connecting rod (13) being limited, for each of its extreme positions, by at least one stop made in the bar (B).

6. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the connecting rod (13) comprises: - a first arm (17) having, at one end and on a first proximal face of a wall (19) of the terminal portion (1) of the bar (B), a rotary connection (14) relative to said wall (19) and, at the opposite end and on the second face the means for attaching at least one line (L) comprising a journal (15) relative to which the line (L) is free to rotate; and - a gripping part (10) secured to said journal (15) and forming the control lever (10).

7. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that the gripping part (10) is fixed to a second arm (17') homologous to the first arm (17), arranged opposite the latter on the other side of the journal (15).

8. Device for controlling a traction wing according to one of claims 5 to 7, characterized in that the connecting rod (13) comprises at least one surface provided to cooperate by contact with at least one surface provided in an internal face of at least one wall of the terminal portion (1), capable of limiting the rotary movement of the connecting rod (13) and constituting the stop.

9. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that at least two symmetrical lugs (23, 24) protrude laterally from the connecting rod (13), each capable of being housed in a housing in the wall of the terminal portion (1) whose internal face acts as a stop.

10. Device for controlling a traction wing according to one of claims 5 to 9, characterized in that the terminal portion (1) comprises a removable cover (12) giving access to the connecting rod (13) secured to the control member (10).

11. Device for controlling a traction wing according to the preceding claim, characterized in that a flat-bottomed recess (11) is provided to guide a path of movement of the control member (10) in coplanar external faces of the terminal portion (1) and the cover (12).

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