Splitboard Interface

The present application claims priority benefit under 35 U.S.C. § 119 from U.S. Provisional Application No. 63/567,367, filed Mar. 19, 2024, titled “IMPROVED SPLITBOARD INTERFACE.” The entirety of the above-identified application is hereby incorporated by reference herein and made a part of the present disclosure.

The present disclosure generally relates to split snowboards, also known as splitboards, and includes the disclosure of embodiments of splitboard bindings and interfaces. Splitboards are used for accessing backcountry terrain. Splitboards have a “ride mode” and a “tour mode.” In ride mode, the splitboard is configured with at least two skis held together to form a board similar to a snowboard, with bindings mounted somewhat perpendicular to the edges of the splitboard. In ride mode, a user can ride the splitboard down a mountain or other decline, similar to a snowboard. In tour mode, the at least two skis of the splitboard are separated and configured with bindings that are typically mounted like a cross-country free heel ski binding. In tour mode, a user normally attaches skins to create traction when climbing up a hill. In some instances, additional traction beyond what the skins provide is desirable and, for example, crampons are used. When a user reaches the top of the hill or desired location, the user can change the splitboard from tour mode to ride mode and snowboard down the hill.

Some embodiments provide a splitboard binding have a first interface and a second interface. The first interface can receive a boot. The second interface can attach to a splitboard and couple to the first interface in a ride mode configuration. The second interface can comprise a first receiving mechanism and a second receiving mechanism, which can attach to a first splitboard ski and a second splitboard ski, respectively. The second interface can comprise at least two curved slots configured to set a riding stance angle on the splitboard. The curved slots can be generally concentric to the middle of the second interface and can have different radii.

In some embodiments, the first receiving mechanism can comprise a first curved slot with radius A and a second curved slot with radius B. The second receiving mechanism also can comprise a first curved slot with radius A and a second curved slot with radius B.

In some embodiments, the first receiving mechanism can comprise a toeside receiving component and a first angle plate. The first angle plate can comprise a first curved slot with radius A and a second curved slot with radius B. The second receiving mechanism can comprise a heelside receiving component and a second angle plate. The second angle plate can comprise a first curved slot with radius A and a second curved slot with radius B.

In some embodiments, the first angle plate and the second angle plate are identical parts.

Some embodiments also provide a splitboard binding have a first interface and a second interface. The second interface can comprise a first receiving mechanism and a second receiving mechanism, which can attach to a first splitboard ski and a second splitboard ski, respectively. The first receiving mechanism can comprise a first element with a convex profile. The second receiving mechanism can comprise a second element with a concave profile. The concave profile of the second element can be configured to mate with the convex profile of the first element. When the first receiving mechanism and the second receiving mechanism are engaged, the first element and the second element can be configured to constrain vertical motion between the first receiving mechanism and the second receiving mechanism.

In some embodiments, the second receiving mechanism also can comprise a first element with a convex profile and the first receiving mechanism also can comprise a second element with a concave profile. The concave profile of the second element can be configured to mate with the convex profile of the first element.

Some embodiments also provide a splitboard binding have a first interface and a second interface. The second interface can comprise a first receiving mechanism and a second receiving mechanism, which can attach to a first splitboard ski and a second splitboard ski, respectively. The second interface can comprise a seam connection disk that splits generally at the seam of the splitboard. The seam connection disk can have a first portion configured to attach to the first splitboard ski and a second portion configured to attach to the second splitboard ski. The split of the seam connection disk can be configured to generally align with the seam of the splitboard. The first receiving mechanism can comprise a first receiving component and the second receiving mechanism can comprise a second receiving component. The first portion of the seam connection disk can be configured to be clamped between the first splitboard ski and the first receiving component of the first receiving mechanism. The second portion of the seam connection disk can be configured to be clamped between the second splitboard ski and the second receiving component of the second receiving mechanism.

A splitboard is a snowboard that splits into at least two skis for climbing uphill in a touring configuration. When the splitboard is in the touring configuration, traction skins can be applied to the base of the snowboard to provide traction when climbing uphill. The splitboard bindings are attached to a tour mode interface on the skis allowing the user to use the skis like cross country skis to climb. When the user reaches a location where the user would like to snowboard down a hill, the user removes the traction skins and joins the at least two skis with a joining device to create a snowboard and attaches the splitboard bindings to the ride mode interfaces.

An integral part of achieving optimal performance, such that the splitboard performs like a solid snowboard, is the connection between the splitboard bindings and the ride mode interfaces. It is important that the transition between the tour mode configuration and the ride mode configuration is smooth and can be easily performed in a variety of snow conditions. Clearances between the splitboard binding and the ride mode are important for snow packing and icing not to affect the ease of transition. One challenge with some existing devices is that having large clearances between the splitboard binding and ride mode make for a sloppy connection and having tighter clearances makes for a more challenging transition in snowy or icy conditions. Another challenge with some existing devices is the ability to have the parts of the splitboard work as one solid snowboard and not independent skis.

There is a need for a splitboard binding that can have large clearances for easy transitions and attaches tightly to the ride mode and splitboard to improve the ride of the splitboard. There is also a need for a ride mode interface that allows the skis of a splitboard to work as a solid snowboard by removing seam movements.

Embodiments disclosed herein include improved splitboard interfaces designed to be easier and less expensive to manufacture, lighter and stronger than other designs, easier to use, and provide a better snowboarding experience. In some embodiments, the improved interface is less expensive to manufacture by combining two or three components into one molded composite part. In addition, the design can utilize some of the same parts on the heelside of the assembly and the toe side, which increases production volumes thus lowering costs. In some embodiments, some of the parts can be flipped to be used in different orientations (e.g., left foot forward vs right foot forward) instead of requiring different parts for different orientations or larger parts to accommodate different orientations. Flipping parts for different orientations allows the base parts to have a smaller footprint. In some embodiments, the improved splitboard interface uses a novel concept of concentric arced mounting slots to reduce the size of parts to achieve desired stance angles. Embodiments of the improved splitboard interface also can also have a seam connection disk with a cove and bead for better joining at the seam of the splitboard.

With reference to the drawings,show a splitboard.shows a top view of splitboardin the ride mode configuration with skiandtogether to form a snowboard for riding down a slope. The center of the snowboard where skiandtouch is seam. Splitboardcan have a ride mode interfaceA and ride mode interfaceB, a tour mode interfaceand risers. There are tour mode interfacesand risers; one for the left foot and the other for the right foot of a user. Ride mode interfaceA and ride mode interfaceB can be the same, or ride mode interfaceA can be specific to the front foot of a snowboarder and ride mode interfaceB can be specific to the back foot of a snowboarder. The front foot is generally the foot that leads as a snowboarder rides down the mountain. The splitboard shown inis shown with the left foot as the front foot, which snowboarders refer to as regular footed. A snowboarder with the right foot as the front foot is referred to as goofy footed. As splitboardis shown with the left foot as the front foot, splitboardcan have a toeside edgeand a heelside edge. The toeside edgeis the edge of the snowboard closest to the snowboarder's toes. The heelside edgeis the edge of the snowboard closest to the snowboarder's heels.

shows a top view of the splitboardin the tour mode configuration with skiand skiseparated for touring up a hill. When separated seamhas inside edgeA on skiand inside edgeB on ski. Ride modeA has a receiving mechanismA that can attach to skiand a receiving mechanismA that can attach to ski. Receiving mechanismA can be on the toeside of the splitboard. Receiving mechanismA can be on the heelside of the splitboard. The receiving mechanismA could also be attached to skiand the receiving mechanismA could be attached to skias well. The ski to which receiving mechanismA and receiving mechanismA are attached to is determined by which foot the user chooses to be their front foot, left or right. Ride modeB has a receiving mechanismB that can attach to skiand a receiving mechanismB that can attach to ski. Receiving mechanismB can be on the toeside of the splitboard. Receiving mechanismB can be on the heelside of the splitboard. The receiving mechanismB could also be attached to skiand the receiving mechanismB could be attached to skias well. The ride mode interfaceA and the ride mode interfaceB can be configured to work for either the left foot or right foot.shows a top view of splitboardwith example binding interfaceattached to ride mode interface. Binding interfaceis firmly attached to ride mode.shows a top view of skiwith binding interfaceattached to tour mode.

is a top view of an example binding interface. Binding interfaceis configured to receive a snowboard boot. Binding interfaceis shown without toe straps and ankle straps for ease of viewing. Toe straps hold the toe of a user's boot in the splitboard binding. Ankle straps hold the ankle of a user's boot in the splitboard binding. Not all splitboard bindings use straps. Splitboard bindings can use wire bales to hold a boot to the splitboard binding as well. Binding interfacecan have a base with a toe side portion and a heel side portion. The toe side portion can comprise a toe stay. The heel side portion can comprise a heel stay. Toe stayand heel staycan be separate components as shown inor they can be opposing sides of the same component. Toe stayand heel staycan be machined from metal, formed from metal, molded from plastic, molded from fiber-reinforced plastic or made by many other manufacturing processes. Heel staycan be made from multiple components. Toe staycan be made from multiple components.

Binding interfacecan further comprise a heelcupwith a left sideand a right side. Left sidecan be the medial or lateral side of the binding depending on which foot the binding is used for. Right sidecan be the medial or lateral side of the binding depending on which foot the binding is used for. For ease of understanding, we will assume the binding described in this description herein will be for the right foot of a user when we refer to the medial and lateral directions.

Heel staycan have locking pinas shown in. Locking pincan slide in and out of heel stay. Toe staycan have catch pinsas shown in. Locking pinsoppose catch pins. In some embodiments, locking pinscan also be a part of the toe stayand the catch pinscan be a part of heel stay. In some embodiments, catch pinscan be any element or mating surface to engage the ride mode. Toe staycan have tour pivot pinwith sleevesfor attaching to tour mode. Binding interfacecan have a highback. In some embodiments, locking pinscan be replaced with one or more of a multitude of similar locking elements such as a cam, an eccentric lobe, a wedge, a keyed pin, or any element that can move to complete engagement and complete disengagement of the ride mode.

shows a top view of example binding interface, which can have leverto drive lock pin. In, leveris opened causing lock pinsto retract into heel stay.

shows a side view of example binding interfacewith leverin the closed position and lock pinextending out of heel stay.

shows a side view of example binding interfacewith leverin the open position and lock pinretracted into heel stay.

shows an isometric view of example binding interfacewith leverin the closed position and lock pinextending out of heel stay.

Receiving mechanismA and receiving mechanismB can be designed to receive the toe side portion of binding interface. In some embodiments receiving mechanismA and receiving mechanismB can be designed to engage with the toe stayof binding interface. Receiving mechanismA and receiving mechanismB can be designed to receive the heel side portion of binding interface. In some embodiments, receiving mechanismA and receiving mechanismB can be designed to engage with the heel stayof binding interface.

shows an isometric view of ride mode interfaceA in a front foot, regular foot (left foot forward) configuration. Ride mode interfaceA can comprise receiving mechanismA which can be mounted on skion the toe side of splitboard. Ride mode interfaceA can further comprise receiving mechanismA which can be mounted on skion the heel side of splitboard. Receiving mechanismA can comprise adjustment plate, angle plate, receiving componentwhich can be configured to attach to the toe side of binding, and halfB of seam connection disk. Receiving mechanismA can be attached to skiwith fasteners. Receiving mechanismA can comprise adjustment plate, angle plate, receiving componentwhich can be configured to attach to the heel side of binding, and halfA of seam connection disk. Receiving mechanismA can be attached to skiwith fasteners. Embodiments of angle plateare further shown in, and described below in connection with,and. Angle platecan be configured to give higher ride mode angles such as, for example, angles between 9 degrees and 30 degrees. In such embodiments, the angles are limited to a 21-degree difference to keep the size of the parts smaller than if there were a larger angle range.

shows an exploded view of ride mode interfaceA. Receiving mechanismA can have fastenerpass through adjustment platewhich can be positioned above angle platewhich can be positioned above receiving componentwhich can be positioned above halfB of seam connection disk. All these components stack together and can clamp to skiwith fasteners. Receiving mechanismA can have fastenerpass through adjustment platewhich can be positioned above angle platewhich can be positioned above receiving componentwhich can be positioned above halfA of seam connection disk. Angle platescan nest into clamping surfaceand clamping surfaceof their respective sides. All these components stack together and can clamp to skiwith fasteners.

shows an isometric view of ride mode interfaceB in a back foot, regular foot (right foot) configuration. Ride mode interfaceB can comprise receiving mechanismB which can differ from ride mode interfaceA by using angle plateinstead of angle plate. All of the other components of receiving mechanismB and receiving mechanismA can be the same and are numbered accordingly. Ride mode interfaceB can further comprise receiving mechanismB which can differ from ride mode interfaceA by using angle plateinstead of angle plate. All of the other components of receiving mechanismB and receiving mechanismA can be the same and are numbered accordingly. Embodiments of angle plateare further shown in, and described in connection with,. Angle platecan be configured to give lower ride mode angles such as, for example, angles between −12 degrees and 12 degrees. In such embodiments, the angles are limited to a 24-degree difference to keep the size of the parts smaller than if there were a larger angle range.

shows an exploded view of ride mode interfaceB. Receiving mechanismB can have fastenerpass through adjustment platewhich can be positioned above angle platewhich can be positioned above receiving componentwhich can be positioned above halfB of seam connection disk. Angle platescan nest into clamping surfaceand clamping surfaceof their respective sides. All these components stack together and can clamp to skiwith fasteners. Receiving mechanismB can have fastenerpass through adjustment platewhich can be positioned above angle platewhich can be positioned above receiving componentwhich can be positioned above halfA of seam connection disk. All these components stack together and can clamp to skiwith fasteners.

Now reference is made to.is a top view of seam connection disk.is a top view of seam connection diskwith halfA and halfB separated.is an isometric view of halfA of seam connection disk.is an isometric view of seam connection diskseparated and translated along seamof a splitboard.is an isometric view seam connection disktranslated along seamof a splitboard.is an isometric view of seam connection diskfully joined.

In some embodiments, seam connection diskcan have center point AA to which the curves and arcs of ride modecan be concentric. Seam connection diskcan be comprised of halfA and halfB. HalfA andB can be identical parts or they can be different. In the illustrated embodiments of seam connection disk, halfA and halfB are identical. HalfA and halfB of seam connection diskcan have teethfor constraining the angle of ride mode, angle markers, rim stop, raised bosswhich can extend above teethand rim stop. Raised bosscan generally be semi-circular and concentric to center point AA such that receiving componentand receiving componentcan rotate around raised bossto adjust angle. Raised bosscan further comprise a shear taband a shear tab receiving feature. Shear tabcan extend outward from raised bossand is designed to engage shear tab receiving featureof the opposing half of seam connection diskto prevent vertical seam movement between skiand ski. Teethcan be designed to allow incremental angle adjustment. In some embodiments, the teeth allow for 3-degree increments of adjustment. Seam connection diskcan be designed to split into halfA and halfB along center split portion, which can be designed to generally align with seamof a splitboard. HalfA of seam connection diskcan have seam alignment arrowto help align to seamof splitboard. HalfA of seam connection diskcan further comprise beadaligned on one side of halfA and covealigned on the other side of halfA. In the illustrated embodiments, halfB of seam connection diskis identical to halfA and can have seam alignment arrowto help align to seamof splitboard. HalfB of seam connection diskcan further comprise beadaligned on one side of halfB and covealigned on the other side of halfB. In some embodiments, coveand beadcan be positioned along center split portion. Covecan be longer than beadcreating gap BB between beadsof halfA and halfB of seam connection disk. The gap BB can allow seam connection disksA andB to translate in a direction along seamto allow certain types of splitboard joining devices to fully disengage.

shows an isometric view of seam connection diskwith halfA and halfB translated along seamminimizing the size of gap BB until beadof halfA and beadof halfB touch.

shows a section view of seam connection diskshowing the interaction of coveand beadwhen engaged.shows a section view of seam connection diskshowing the interaction of coveand beadwhen they are separated. Covecan be any concave surface designed to engage bead. Beadcan be any convex surface designed to engage cove. In the embodiment shown in, coveis a rounded concave surface that can engage beadwhich can be a rounded convex surface. In some embodiments, the coveand beadengage in such a way that they constrain movement vertically up from the seamand vertically down from the seam, thus constraining and virtually eliminating seam shearing of splitboard skiand splitboard ski.

shows an alternate embodiment of coveand bead. In, coveA is shown as a sharp angular concave surface and beadA is shown as a sharp angular convex surface.shows another alternate embodiment of coveand bead, showing coveB as a groove and beadB as a tongue.

Coveis not limited to the shapes shown in. Beadis not limited to the shapes shown in.

show isometric views of receiving component. Receiving componentcan be designed to engage the toe side portion of binding interface. In some embodiments, receiving componentcan comprise a main surface, a base surface, and a clamping surfacerecessed below main surfaceand above base surface. Clamping surfacecan further comprise an angle adjustment openingwith outside arcand inside arc. Outside arcand inside arccan be concentric to center point AA shown in. Angle adjustment openingcan allow for many binding stance angles. Typical bindings stance angles range from +30° to −30°. In some embodiments, angle adjustment opening can allow up to 50°. Receiving componentcan further comprise attachment surfaceswhich can extend above main surface. In some embodiments, the attachment surfacescan be hooks with chamfered lead-ins designed to engage the toe stayof the binding interface.

shows a bottom isometric view of receiving componentflipped over. In some embodiments, receiving componentcan further comprise an angular adjustment surface, which can be positioned between base surfaceand main surfacewith curved surfaceextending from angular surfaceto base. Curved surfacecan be concentric to outside arcand inside arc. Angular adjustment surfacecan have teeth. In this embodiment, teethcan extend from angular adjustment surfacetoward base surface. In other embodiments, teethcan be recessed into angular adjustment surface. Teethcan further extend radially from center AA shown in. In this embodiment, teethare triangular in shape and can be designed to engage teethof halfB of connection disk. In other embodiments, the teeth can be any shape that can create a grip surface to hold the angular position of receiving component.

show receiving component.shows an isometric view of receiving component.is an isometric view of the bottom of receiving component.is an exploded isometric view of receiving component.

Receiving componentcan be designed to engage the heel side portion of binding interface. Receiving componentcan have a base surface, a main surface, and a clamping surfacethat can be recessed below main surfaceand above base surface. Clamping surfacecan further comprise an angle adjustment openingwith outside arcand inside arc. Outside arcand inside arccan be concentric to center point AA shown in. Angle adjustment openingcan allow for many binding stance angles. Typical bindings stance angles range from +30° to −30°. In some embodiments, angle adjustment opening can allow up to 50°. In some embodiments, receiving componentcan have heel attachment portion.

In the embodiments shown in, receiving componenthas two heel attachment portionswhich can be on opposite sides of receiving component. Heel attachment portioncan be designed to engage heel stayof binding interface. Heel attachment portioncan further be designed to engage lock pinsof heel stayof binding interface. In some embodiments, heel attachment portioncan also include heel attachment plate, which can be made of stainless steel, steel, aluminum, titanium, carbon fiber, plastic, fiber reinforced plastic or any type of durable material. Heel attachment platecan be designed to have a high strength component with a thin cross-section. In addition, heel attachment platecan further be designed to not wear down quickly due to cyclic loading of the lock pins engaging and disengaging, and vibrating and/or moving during normal use cases of snowboarding. Heel attachment platescan be held in place to receiving componentwith t-nutand fastener. T-nutand fastenercan be replaced with any fastener such as a rivet, hex-bolt, machine screw and nut plate, etc. In the embodiments shown in, the head of fastenerholds heel attachment platevertically. Fastenerthreads into t-nutpreventing vertical movement of heel attachment plate.

Receiving componentcan further comprise an angular adjustment surface. Angular adjustment surfacecan be positioned between base surfaceand main surface, with curved surfaceextending from angular surfaceto base. Curved surfacecan be concentric to outside arcand inside arc. Angular adjustment surfacecan have teeth. In this embodiment, teethcan extend from angular adjustment surfacetoward base surface. In other embodiments, teethcan be recessed into angular adjustment surface. Teethcan further extend radially from center AA shown in. In this embodiment, teethare triangular in shape and can be designed to engage teethof halfA of connection disk. In other embodiments, the teeth can be any shape that can create a grip surface to hold the angular position of receiving component.

show detailed views of embodiments of adjustment plate.is an isometric top view of adjustment plate. Adjustment platecan comprise a top surfaceand mounting holes,,and. In some embodiments, mounting holes,,, andcan be chamfered to fit a flathead screw and keep the head of the screw flush to top surface. Mounting holesandcan be spaced to match the ride mode mounting hole spacing of a splitboard which is typically one inch apart. Mounting holesandcan be considered the neutral mounting position. Mounting holesandcan be biased to one side of mounting holesandfor micro adjustment, typically between 0.1875 and 0.5 inches. Mounting holesandcan have the same relative spacing as mounting holesand. Mounting holesandcan be considered the biased mounting position.is a bottom isometric view of adjustment plate. Adjustment platecan further have bottom surface, positioning bossand positioning boss. Positioning bossand positioning bosscan extend outward from bottom surface.is a top view of adjustment plate. Adjustment platecan have orientation arrow.

focus on embodiments of angle plate.shows a top view of angle platein a regular foot (left foot forward) configuration to allow for positive angle for the left foot as the front foot. All other parts of ride modeA are removed. In some embodiments, angles can range from 0 degrees to 50 degrees. In the embodiment shown, the angle plateallows for angles between 10 degrees and 30 degrees. Angle platecan have a regular foot side, center compression tab, arced slot, arced slot, goofy foot side, edgeand edge. Arced slotand arced slotcan be concentric to center AA. Arced slotcan be cordial to circular path Dwhich can be concentric to center AA. Arced slotcan be cordial to circular path Dwhich can be concentric to center AA. Circular path Dcan be larger in diameter than circular path D. Arced slotcan be biased toward edge. Arced slotcan be biased toward edge. In some embodiments, arced slotand arced slotcan overlap some amount. In the regular foot configuration as shown in, regular foot sideof angle plateis facing upward.is a top view of ride mode interfaceA in a regular foot configuration with angle platesin the regular foot configuration as shown in.

shows a top view of angle platein a goofy foot (right foot forward) configuration to allow for positive angle for the right foot as the front foot. All other parts of ride modeA are removed. In some embodiments, angles can range from 0 degrees to 50 degrees. In the embodiment shown, the angle plateallows for angles between 10 degrees and 30 degrees. In the goofy foot configuration as shown in, goofy foot sideof angle plateis facing upward.is a top view of ride mode interfaceA in the goofy foot configuration with angle platesin the goofy foot configuration as shown in.

focus on the interfacing of adjustment plateand angle plateand the multiple configurations of adjustment platerelative to the skisand. Only adjustment plate, angle plate, and portions of skisandare shown for ease of viewing. The rest of ride modeA is not shown. Adjustment platesA andB can be identical parts and in thesethe toe side adjustment plate is denoted asA and the heel side adjustment plate is denoted asB. Skican have ride mode insertsA,A,A, andA which are shown for reference. Skican have more or less inserts depending on the manufacturer of the splitboard. Skican have ride mode insertsB,B,B, andB which are shown for reference. Skican have more or less inserts depending on the manufacturer of the splitboard. Industry standard ride mode insert spacing is generally around 1 inch tip to tail between inserts. Circular path Dcan pass through ride mode insertsA andA of skiand ride mode insertsB andB of ski. Circular path Dcan have a smaller diameter than circular D. Circular path Dcan pass through ride mode insertA of skiand ride mode insertB of skiwhich are positioned between insertsA andA andB andB. Using insertsA andA on skiand insertsB andB on skiwith concentric offset arced slotand arced slotallows for minimizing the footprint of ride modeA.

shows toe side adjustment plateA in the neutral mounting position with mounting holesaligned with ride mode insertB and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertB of ski. Heel side adjustment plateB is also in the neutral position with mounting holealigned ride mode insertA and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertA of ski. Heel side adjustment plateB is biased one insert down from toe side adjustment plateA to allow for higher ride mode angles with shorter arc lengths for arced slotsand. The orientation arrowsof adjustment platesA andB point in the same direction, which in this embodiment is forward.

shows adjustment platesA andB in the biased mounting position biased forward with mounting holesaligned with ride mode insertB and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertB of ski. Heel side adjustment plateB is also in the biased position with mounting holealigned ride mode insertA and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertA of ski. Orientation arrowsof adjustment platesare still pointing in the same direction, forward.

shows adjustment platesA andB flipped around with their orientation arrowspointing backward. Adjustment platesA andB in the biased mounting position bias backward with mounting holesaligned with ride mode insertB and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertB of ski. Heel side adjustment plateB is also in the biased position with mounting holealigned with ride mode insertA and mounting holealigned with ride mode insertA of ski.

shows a bottom view of the interfacing of adjustment plateand angle plate. Positioning bossof adjustment platefits into arced slotof angle plate. Position bossof adjustment platefits into arced slotof angle plate.

are top views of ride modeA showing the angular adjustment about center point AA along path BB.shows ride modeA in maximum angle position, which in this embodiment can be 30°.shows ride modeA in a minimum angle position, which in this embodiment can be 10°. In some embodiments, the user can set their stance angle at any position between the maximum angle and minimum angle that is allowed by teethof seam connection disk halvesA andB. The mating teethof receiving componentintermesh with teethof disk halvesA andB. Fasteners, which can be flathead screws in some embodiments, can clamp adjustment plateto angle plate, with angle plateclamping to receiving componentand with receiving componentclamping to disk halfA and ski. Fastenerscan also clamp adjustment plateto angle plate, with angle plateclamping to receiving componentand with receiving componentclamping to disk halfB and ski.

are top views of ride mode interfaceA showing the toe side to heel side adjustment of ride mode interfaceA. Angle platecan fit into clamping surfaceof receiving component. Clamping surfacecan be wider than angle plateallowing receiving componentto move along path C-C. Angle platecan fit into clamping surfaceof receiving component. Clamping surfacecan be wider than angle plateallowing receiving componentto move along path C-C. In the embodiment shown in, ride mode interfaceA is biased towards the toe side edgeof splitboard. Receiving componentis shifted under angle platealong path C-C towards the toe side edge. Receiving componentis shifted under angle platealong path C-C towards the toe side edge. In the embodiment shown in, ride mode interfaceA is biased towards the heel side edgeof splitboard. Receiving componentis shifted under angle platealong path C-C towards the heel side edge. Receiving componentis shifted under angle platealong path C-C towards the heel side edge. In some embodiments, the adjustment amount along path C-C can be approximately half an inch. Adjusting the position of the ride mode interfaceA allows a snowboarder to center his or her foot between the toe side edgeand heel side edgefor proper balance and pressure distribution. The toe side to heel side adjustment of ride modeB can be the same as shown here in.

focus on angle plate.show a top view of angle platein a regular foot (left foot forward) configuration to allow for positive or negative angle for the right foot as the back foot. In some embodiments, angles can range from 30 degrees to −30 degrees. Angle platecan have a negative angle (duck foot) side, center compression tab, arced slot, positive angle (posi) side, edgeand edge. Arced slotcan be concentric to center AA. Arced slotcan be cordial to circular path Dwhich can be concentric to center AA. Inonly the angle platesare shown; all other parts of ride modeB are removed. Negative angle (duck foot) sideis facing upward. In the embodiment shown in, the angle plateallows for angles between 0 degrees and −12 degrees.