Anti-Slip Foot Assembly

Abstract

An anti-slip foot assembly for a strut is disclosed. An embodiment of the anti-slip assembly includes a heel pad adapted to resist normal forces applied by the strut, a plurality of independently flexible toes adapted to resist the lateral forces that tend to cause slipping. A foot assembly with retractable cleat system is also disclosed.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . An apparatus comprising:
 an anti-slip foot assembly comprising:
 a top surface comprising a socket adapted to receive an adapter therein; 
 a plurality of flexible toes extending downward from the top surface of the assembly to a bottom surface thereof, each toe comprising:
 an outer face; 
 an inner face; and 
 a bottom, ground-engaging face, 
 wherein each toe is separated from the others such that each toe is independently flexible; and 
 
 a heel-pad extending from within an interior of the assembly to the bottom surface thereof, the heel-pad comprising a bottom, ground-engaging surface; and 
   an adapter connected to the socket of the anti-slip foot assembly, the adapter comprising:
 a top portion adapted to be connected to a bottom end of a strut; 
 a bottom portion adapted be connected to the socket of the foot assembly. 
   
     
     
         2 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the foot assembly socket comprises a stretchable opening. 
     
     
         3 . The apparatus of  claim 2 , wherein the bottom portion of the adapter comprises a mounting peg insertable into the foot assembly socket. 
     
     
         4 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the top portion of the adapter comprises a threaded end for threadably securing the adapter to a bottom, threaded end of a strut. 
     
     
         5 . The apparatus of  claim 3 , wherein the foot assembly socket comprises a tri-lobed stretchable opening. 
     
     
         6 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the top portion of the adapter comprises a threaded end for threadably securing the adapter to a bottom, threaded end of a strut. 
     
     
         7 . The apparatus of  claim 6 , wherein the bottom portion of the adapter comprises a mounting peg insertable into the socket of the anti-slip foot assembly. 
     
     
         8 . The apparatus of  claim 7 , wherein the mounting peg is secured to the socket via a press-fit connection, glue, or by screws. 
     
     
         9 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein each toe is separated from the heel-pad by one or more channels. 
     
     
         10 . The apparatus of  claim 9 , further comprising one or more bridges extending from the heel-pad to the inner surface of one or more of the toes. 
     
     
         11 . The apparatus of  claim 10 , wherein each toe is separated from the other by one or more channels. 
     
     
         12 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein each toe comprises a bottom tread pattern. 
     
     
         13 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein each toe comprises an outer tread pattern. 
     
     
         14 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the number of toes is three. 
     
     
         15 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , wherein the number of toes is four. 
     
     
         16 . The apparatus of  claim 1 , further comprising a strut connected to the adapter. 
     
     
         17 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , wherein the adapter is an integrated component of the strut. 
     
     
         18 . The apparatus of  claim 16 , wherein the heel-pad is aligned to an axis of the socket and strut. 
     
     
         19 . The apparatus of  claim 18 , wherein:
 the socket is centrally located on the top surface of the foot assembly;   the toes radiate around the bottom surface of the foot assembly; and   the heel-pad is located in the center of the toes.