Device and method for trimming the ice in a curling rink

• US 8,745,902 B2
• Filed: 05/23/2012
• Issued: 06/10/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 05/26/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Guspro Inc.
• Original Assignee: Guspro Inc.
• Inventors: Wood, William W., Kortebein, Cynthia J.
• Primary Examiner(s): PEZZUTO, ROBERT ERIC
• Application Number:
  US13/478,895
• Publication Number:
  US 20120297648A1
• Time in Patent Office: 748 Days
• Field of Search: 371/96, 371/97, 37219-221, 372/14, 372/68, 372/70, 172/449, 172/445.1, 172/501, 172/503, 172/684.5, 172/777, 172/448, 294/24
• US Class Current: 37/219
• CPC Class Codes: E01H 4/023 Maintaining surfaces for ice sports, e.g. of skating rinks
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 29/49764 with testing or indicating

Abstract

A device for trimming the high points off of the ice of a curling rink includes an elongated blade mounted to an elongated mounting block, and a plurality of setscrews threaded into threaded openings in the mounting block for adjusting the flatness of the blade, enabling a long blade to be used that is both accurate and relatively inexpensive.

Claims

1. A mounting arrangement for a device for trimming the high points off of ice on an ice rink, comprising:

an elongated blade having a left end and a right end and defining a blade length extending from said left end to said right end;

said elongated blade also having a flat top surface, a flat bottom surface, and a beveled forward edge and defining a first set of vertically-oriented, threaded openings extending through said top surface and located at spaced-apart positions along a first bolt centerline extending in the left-to-right direction;

a mounting block having a flat bottom surface and defining a block length and a second set of vertically-oriented openings which lie along a second bolt centerline and are aligned with the first set of threaded openings in the blade;

a plurality of bolts, each of said bolts extending through one of the openings in said second set of openings and threading into a respective one of the openings in said first set of threaded openings to secure said blade to said block;

a plurality of vertically-oriented first set-screw openings through said block, said first set-screw openings being threaded and being spaced-apart from each other and lying along a first set-screw centerline parallel to the first bolt centerline; and

a plurality of first set screws received in said first set-screw openings, wherein, when the first set screws are threaded downwardly beyond the bottom surface of the mounting block, the first set screws press against the top surface of the blade.

2. A mounting arrangement for a device for trimming the high points off of ice on an ice rink as recited in claim 1, wherein said plurality of vertically-oriented first set-screw openings are spaced apart at short intervals, and the second set of vertically-oriented openings are spaced apart from each other at much larger distances than said short intervals, so there are several times more of said first set screw openings than there are of second vertically-oriented openings.

3. A mounting arrangement for a device for trimming the high points off of ice on an ice rink as recited in claim 2, and further comprising:

a plurality of vertically-oriented second set-screw openings through said block, said second set-screw openings being threaded and being spaced-apart from each other at short intervals and lying along a second set-screw centerline parallel to the second bolt centerline, wherein the first set-screw centerline is forward of the second bolt centerline a first distance, and the second set-screw centerline is rearward of the second bolt centerline a second distance which is equal to the first distance; and

a plurality of second set screws received in said second set-screw openings, wherein, when the second set screws are threaded downwardly beyond the bottom surface of the mounting block, the second set screws press against the top surface of the blade.

4. A mounting arrangement for a device for trimming the high points off of ice on an ice rink as recited in claim 3, wherein the first set-screw centerline lies rearward of said beveled edge.

5. A method for mounting a blade on a device for trimming the high points off of ice on an ice rink, comprising the steps of:

providing an elongated blade having a left end and a right end, and defining a blade length from said left end to said right end, said blade also having a flat top surface, a flat bottom surface, and a beveled forward edge and defining a first set of vertically-oriented, threaded openings extending through said top surface and located at spaced-apart positions along a first elongated bolt centerline;

providing an elongated mounting block having a flat bottom surface and defining a block length;

bolting said block to said blade through a second set of vertically-oriented openings which are aligned with the first set of threaded openings in the blade;

said block defining a plurality of vertically-oriented first set-screw openings through said block, said first set-screw openings being threaded and being spaced-apart from each other and lying along a first set-screw centerline parallel to the first bolt centerline;

threading a plurality of first set screws into said first set-screw openings, wherein, when the first set screws are threaded downwardly beyond the bottom surface of the mounting block, the first set screws press against the top surface of the blade;

placing said blade atop a master straight-edge;

shining a light to detect a gap between the master straight-edge and the blade; and

threading in at least one of said plurality of set crews near the detected gap to press against the top surface of the blade to close the gap.