GB2492598A

GB2492598A - An attachment for a walking stick

Info

Publication number: GB2492598A
Application number: GB201111731A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Ron Storey
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2011-07-08
Filing date: 2011-07-08
Publication date: 2013-01-09
Also published as: GB201111731D0

Abstract

A walking stick or crutch attachment comprises an aluminium or stainless steel sheet shaped to give greater ground surface area contact, which is particularly useful when walking on shingle or sand. The attachment is temporarily attached to a conventional walking stick or crutch by means of a spring clip (E, fig.3). The upper surface of the attachment may be coated with a rubber-based non-slip material J against which the ferrule of the stick rests. A rubber-based, water resistant and durable material also covers the underside of the attachment, and provides a tread. The attachment does not add significant height to the walking stick and it is shaped to enable it to "roll" as the user walks along, The use of flexible metal, like aluminium, and rubber-based materials, means it absorbs much of the shock when walking on uneven or hard surfaces.

Description

Title -Stedifoot; a walking stick or crutch attachment providing all-terrain support

Background and Purpose

* The concept originates from a walk along a shingle beach, Loe Bar that proceeded around a lake near Porthleven, Cornwall. The nature of the uneven, wet and moving surfaces made me realise that a person who relied on a traditional walking stick for support may have difficulty and not be able to navigate this walk and enjoy it.

* The attachment is fitted temporarily to the base end of a walking stick or similar. Its purpose is to provide a broader and more substantial base, able to spread the user's weight across a wider surface area and stopping the bottom of the stick sinking into sand, mud etc or between pebbles or stones.

* It is light, made of sheet aluminium or stainless steel, laser cut and folded to create a "foot" with "sole" and "ankle", which is attached to the stick by a spring clip fixed on the vertical face of the "foot".

* The original design was granted a Certificate on 1 5th March 2011, Registration number 4018460. A number of prototypes and their evaluation have moved the design to its present state as shown in place on a walking stick in Figure 5 on sheet 3 of the diagrams. All the diagrams have been drawn actual size from a number of angles to show key elements of the design.

Key features * The attachment (shown in Figure 5 with walking stick in place) is formed around a single piece of aluminium sheet cut to the correct size and shaped (Figure 5 point A) * The "sole" of the attachment is shaped (underside shown in Figure 1) to provide over 64 sq. cms of surface area potentially in contact with the ground. It is also curved (shown in profile in Figure 2) to allow a smooth roll when in contact with the ground and its front edge inclined by 1.5 cms (Figure 2 point B) to minimise the possibility of catching on uneven surfaces.

* The bend in the foot (Figure 2 point C) overcomes aluminium (Figure 2 point A) metal stress issues found in prototypes of the original design * The second bend (Figure 2 point D) positions the aluminium structure vertically to allow fixing of the holding spring clip (Figure 4 point E) currently using two rivets (Figure 4 point F) * Figure 3 shows the attachment from above with the spring clip (Figure 3 point E) in place to hold the walking stick vertically over the balance point of the "horizontal" sole (Figure 3 point 3); the clip also has two rubber pads to aid the spring grip of the walking stick (Figure 3 point H) * The clip spring, currently available in small and medium sizes, allows the attachment to be used with all common-sized walking sticks and crutches. The intention is to design a single bespoke spring capable of fitting all sizes of walking stick with enhanced grip * The walking stick is held in place partly by the spring clip but mostly through the user pressing the stick ferule onto a coarse, resilient, non-slip water resistant material which is adhered to the upper surface of the "sole" (Figure 2 point J).

* The tread of the sole" is a non-slip material -initial prototypes used recycled cross-country bike tyres cut to shape (as shown in Figures 2, 5, and 7 point K in each). Due to inconsistency of supply and quality this has had to be replaced but the principle stands of a rubber-based sole. The latest versions use a rubber-surfaced, water-resistant, highly durable and non-slip Griptop ramp matting (Figure 6 point L and Figure 8 point L)