1996-12-30
1998-04-21
Swiatek, Robert P.
Farriery
Shoes
Cushioned
168 23, A01L 104
Patent
active
057408661
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention concerns a horseshoe having holes for horseshoe nails extending therethrough and including a resilient material in which are embedded washers through which the horseshoe nails are intended to extend when the horseshoe is fastened to a horse's hoof.
Each time a moving horse puts down a hoof, the hoof is somewhat expanded due to the pressure exerted on the hoof. When a horse is shod, such expansion is prevented by the hoof being firmly fixed to the shoe. This is an unnatural condition for the horse which may cause pain and restricts the movements of the horse. A majority of horses act at their best when they are unshod. This possibility, however, is strongly restricted.
The object of the present invention, thus, is to provide a horseshoe allowing natural expansion of a horse's hoof when it is loaded. At the same time the horseshoe shall be firmly attached to the hoof.
DESCRIPTION OF THE BACKGROUND ART
GB-A-207,425 discloses a rubber horseshoe molded to the ordinary horseshoe shape and secured to a horse's hoof by nails passed through metal washers embedded in the rubber.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,333,532 discloses a flexible horseshoe of resilient material contoured to fit a hoof as it exists in its natural unshod state. The horseshoe has holes for horseshoe nails molded therein, and the holes are provided with washer-like metal sleeves.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
Based on this background art, the object stated above is achieved in a horseshoe having holes for horseshoe nails extending therethrough and including a resilient material in which are embedded washers through which the nails are extendable when the horseshoe is fastened to a hoof of a horse, the horseshoe comprising a portion of the horseshoe being adapted to bear on the hoof being a plate of a relatively hard material against which the resilient material is attached; the washers abut the plate and are horizontally movable relative thereto; and the holes in the plate having a larger cross section than the nails, such that the nails are movable horizontally together with the washers during loading of the horseshoe characterizing clause of appended claim 1. Embodiments of the invention are stated in the depending claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described, reference being made to the accompanying drawings which are given by way of illustration only, and thus are not limitative of the present invention, and wherein:
FIG. 1 is a plan view of a horseshoe,
FIG. 2 is a section at an enlarged scale along line II--II of FIG. 1 showing a first embodiment of the horseshoe,
FIG. 3 is a section corresponding to FIG. 2 but showing a second embodiment of the horseshoe, and
FIG. 4 is a plan view at an enlarged scale of the encircled area IV of FIG. 1.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
The horseshoe 1 shown in FIG. 1 has the general shape of an ordinary horseshoe. It may have any other suitable shape, such as annular. Holes 2 for horseshoe nails extend through the body of the horseshoe. The holes 2 are preferably rectangular.
According to the present invention, the body of the horseshoe consists of a plate 3, constituting the portion of the horseshoe bearing on the horse's hoof, and a resilient material 4 adhering to the plate 3. The plate 3 is of a relatively hard material such as a metal or a synthetic material.
Further according to the present invention, washers 5 are embedded in the resilient material 4 such that their upper surfaces are substantially flush with the upper surface of the resilient layer and, consequently, abut the lower surface of the plate 3. The washers, thus, adhere to the resilient material, but are free to move relative to the plate 3. It is evident, that such movement involves an elastic compression and expansion, respectively, of the resilient materal around the washers.
Horseshoe nails 6 having conventional conical or wedge-like heads 6' extend through the washers 5 and the holes 2 into a non-shown hoof, and
REFERENCES:
patent: 1953281 (1934-04-01), Veran
patent: 2043358 (1936-06-01), Swanstrom
patent: 2103718 (1937-12-01), Goodwin
patent: 4333532 (1982-06-01), Mennick
patent: 5343957 (1994-09-01), Chapman
Bergstrom Sten
Grennard Ulrik
Cabato AB
Swiatek Robert P.
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