Ice Skate Runner With Recessed Thickness Regions
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional ice skate runners made with minimized metal blades require reinforcement with lighter materials like plastic to achieve strength and stiffness, which limits sharpening options and complicates manufacturing.
Innovation Solution
Designing an entirely metal ice skate runner with regions of reduced thickness recessed inwardly from the side surfaces, allowing for optimized weight reduction without compromising strength and stiffness, and using forging to create varying cross-sectional profiles for enhanced mechanical performance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Weight of moving object
If the runner is made thinner to reduce weight, then the overall weight of the ice skate is reduced, but the strength and stiffness of the runner are compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The runner features varying thickness along its length, with thicker portions providing strength and stiffness where needed (such as near the ice-contacting portion) and thinner portions reducing weight in areas where less structural support is required. This local variation in quality allows optimization of both weight and mechanical properties without requiring reinforcement materials.
2Strength
If plastic reinforcement is added to minimized metal runners, then strength and stiffness are improved, but sharpening compatibility and manufacturing simplicity are lost
Solution Approach 1:
The runner is constructed entirely from metal with no plastic or composite reinforcement materials. This homogeneous metal construction maintains compatibility with traditional sharpening methods while avoiding the manufacturing complexity of multi-material construction. The single-material approach simplifies both manufacturing and maintenance processes.
3Weight of moving object
If the runner thickness is reduced throughout, then weight is reduced, but the runner requires reinforcement that complicates the design
Solution Approach 1:
Rather than uniformly reducing thickness throughout, the design implements localized thickness variations where the runner is thicker in specific regions requiring structural support and thinner in regions where weight reduction is prioritized. This creates an optimized weight-to-strength ratio without requiring complex reinforcement structures.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The solution enables weight reduction in ice skate runners while maintaining strength and stiffness, ensuring compatibility with existing sharpening equipment and simplifying manufacturing, resulting in a more efficient and durable skate blade.
Implementation Method 1
forging the blank in the mold to form the runner and one or more regions of reduced thickness of the runner
Data Source
AI summary
A runner for an ice skate. The runner extends along a longitudinal axis between a front end and an opposed rear end. The runner is entirely metal and has a height extending between an ice-contacting portion for engaging an ice surface and an opposed upper portion. The runner has a datum runner thickness defined between outer and inner side surfaces of the runner. The runner has one or more regions of reduced thickness that are recessed inwardly from one or both of the outer and inner surfaces. The regions have a local thickness being less than the datum runner thickness. An ice skate and method of making a runner for an ice skate are also disclosed.