AU2007203058A1 - Lawnmower safety catcher guard - Google Patents

Description

I

LAWNMOWER SAFETY CATCHER GUARD Field of the Invention The present invention relates to improvements in devices designed to protect a 00 Suser of lawnmowers from being injured from debris generated by a lawnmower.

N, Background of the Invention C 10 Lawnmowers have the highest injury rate from flying projectiles. When a catcher requires emptying and the lawnmower is still running, this procedure is extremely dangerous because of the risk of flying projectiles. People also use lawnmowers with the rear spring loaded flap or guard wired open to mow without using the catcher. This is also extremely dangerous.

When removing a catcher from the back of a rotary push lawnmower, it is usually necessary to lift the rear flap to release the catcher. In this operation there is a few seconds when the debris and projectiles easily blow up and the user receives a face full of grass, dust and other projectiles. Prior attempts have tried to address and resolve this defect by applying a spring loaded rear flap that closes automatically after the catcher is removed. This spring loaded rear flap is defective in its requirement to suitably protect the operator during this procedure.

This is due in part to the necessity of having to lift the safety flap to release and remove the catcher. When the rear safety flap is lifted, the user is exposed to all the possible dangers thus making the spring loaded rear safety flap inadequate to protect the user. Accordingly, there exists a need to provide an improved lawnmower safety guard to better protect a user.

The reference to any prior art in this specification is not, and should not be taken as an acknowledgement or any form of suggestion that the referenced prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in Australia.

Summary SThe present invention in one preferred aspect provides for a lawnmower safety Sguard for protecting the user of a lawnmower, the guard including a body having C an upper surface, opposed sidewalls, a rear wall and a bottom. The upper surface is angled relative to the rear wall. The bottom includes an open recess.

o00 n The guard further includes a means for attaching the body to the lawnmower.

C In another preferred aspect, the present invention provides a method for protecting a user of a lawnmower having an access opening for use with a C 10 lawnmower catcher, the method including attaching a safety guard to the lawnmower so that the guard overlies the area that would normally be occupied by the lawnmower catcher when the lawnmower catcher is attached to the lawnmower.

Brief Description of the Figures Fig. 1 is a front perspective view of a lawnmower safety guard attached to a lawnmower in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a rear perspective view of the lawnmower safety guard and lawnmower of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation view of the lawnmower safety guard and lawnmower of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is top plan view of the lawnmower safety guard and lawnmower of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a front perspective view of the lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a rear perspective view of the lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 1.

Fig. 7 is side elevation view of the lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 1.

f Fig. 7A is a partial cross sectional rear view the lawnmower safety guard taken

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along lines A--A of Fig. 7.

Fig. 7B is a partial cross sectional bottom view the lawnmower safety guard taken 00 oO n along lines B--B of Fig. 7.

C Fig. 8 is an exploded view of the lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 1.

N 10 Fig. 9 is a front perspective view of a lawnmower safety guard in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 10 is a rear perspective view of the lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 9.

Fig. 11 is a top plan view of a lawnmower safety guard of Fig. 9.

Detailed Description of the Drawings Alternative embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the invention disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the invention being indicated by the claims which follow. Wherever possible, like numbers will refer to like parts.

Figs. 1 to 8 show a preferred embodiment of a lawnmower safety guard 100 for attachment to a lawnmower 10 having a grass catcher 12. In use, guard 100 overlies grass catcher 12 to inhibit debris from reaching a user of the lawnmower whilst the lawnmower is moving or stationary. The guard further inhibits debris from reaching the user when catcher 12 is removed, attached, or omitted from lawnmower 10. The preferred elements of the safety guard and their interrelationship are described below.

Referring to Figs. 1 to 4, safety guard 100 is preferably configured for use with a Swalk-from-behind mower having a rear grass catcher 12. Guard 100 is preferably Sattachable to bars 14, 16 of the handle of mower 10 to support and position guard c 100 over catcher 12.

00 oO As shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 8, guard 100 includes a body 102 having an upper Ssurface 104, opposed sidewalls 106, 108, a rear wall 110 and a bottom 112 with a C recess 114, and a means 116 for attaching body 102 to bars 14, 16 of lawnmower c Upper surface 104 preferably includes an access opening 116 configured to permit the user to engage and disengage catcher 12 from lawnmower 10 without having to disengage guard 100. Access opening 116 preferably includes a securing means 120 configured to secure a closure 122 to upper surface 104. It will be understood that closure 122 may take many forms such as a flap.

Securing means 120 may be configured as one or more snaps, zippers, Velcro T M or other means for securing closure 122 as would be appreciated. Access opening 116 may be omitted if desired. Upper surface 104 further preferably includes a stiffening member 123 along the top edge to provide lateral stability for use with lawnmowers which do not include a cross bar on the handle. Stiffening member 123 may be omitted if desired, for example, where upper surface 104 is formed from a hard, relatively inflexible material.

As shown in Figs. 5 and 7, upper surface 104 is preferably at an acute angle relative to rear wall 110. This configuration permits guard 100 to easily conform to the angle of the handle of many brands of lawnmowers. When so angled, sidewalls 106, 108 each form a triangular shape.

Referring to Figs. 6 and 8, rear wall 110 preferably includes a closure 124 that is formed by left and right flaps or doors 126, 128, respectively, and a securing means 130. References to "left" and "right" are for illustrative convenience only as would be appreciated by a person skilled in the art. In use, the user may use Ssecuring means 130 to open or close flaps 126, 128 and allow easy engagement or disengagement of catcher 12 with lawnmower

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C Bottom 112 is preferably generally open to form recess 114. As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, recess 114 is preferably sized and configured to conform to the outline of 00oO n the top of catcher 12 to better inhibit debris from reaching the user. Recess 114 q preferably occupies a majority of the bottom of guard 100. More preferably, C recess 114 forms the entire bottom of guard 100 and is bounded by upper surface 104, opposed sidewalls 106, 108 and rear wall 110. It will be appreciated that C 10 guard 100 may be configured to envelope catcher 12 so that guard 100 may have a continuous bottom without a recess, or a recess which may be closed if desired.

With reference to Fig. 8, attachment means 116 of guard 100 preferably includes a plurality of straps 132 adapted to secure body 100 to bars 14, 16 of the handle of lawnmower 10. Straps 132 preferably include VelcroTM and are designed for easy engagement and disengagement of guard 100 with lawnmower 10 as shown in Fig. 7A. Preferably, straps 132 are dimensioned to fit through slots 134 in upper surface 104 as shown in Fig. 7B. It will be appreciated that attachment means 116 may take other forms as desired. For example only, attachment means 116 may be formed as one or more hooks, spring lock pins, snaps, zippers, clips or clamps, or a combination of any of these. As an example, if the lawnmower has a cross bar connecting bars 14, 16, then the top edge of upper surface 104 may include an elongated trough or hook configured to overlie the cross bar and provide an easy way to attach the guard to the lawnmower. Straps and/or further hooks may be added along the side edges of the upper surface to enhance lateral stability.

The body of guard 100 is preferably formed from a plastic material, which may be a hard plastic such as Perspex or a soft flexible plastic, or a combination of the two. For example only, body 102 may have a hard top only or hard top and soft sides and rear wall, or body 102 may have a hard top and soft sides, or body 102 may have a soft top or soft top and sides. Body 102 may be formed of other materials as desired. For example only, body 102 may be formed from a cloth Smaterial. Preferably body 102 is made from a material that is transparent to Spermit the user to more easily engage and disengage the catcher from the C lawnmower.

oO 00 n Body 102 is preferably shaped as a wedge as shown in Figs. 5 and 6. It will be Sappreciated that body 102 may be formed in other shapes as desired. For c example, the body may be configured as a square or rectangle or any other shape suitable for inhibiting the passage of debris from the lawnmower to the C 10 user.

Preferred dimensions are set forth below, although it will be appreciated that the dimensions may be varied as suitable for the intended application. Upper surface 104 preferably has a length of approximately 700 mm and a width of approximately 450 mm. Slots 134 are preferably located approximately 40 mm from the side edges of upper surface 104. Access opening 118 is preferably approximately 200 mm by 200 mm in size and preferably located approximately 125 mm from the side edges of upper surface 104 and approximately 150 mm from the bottom edge of upper surface 104. Closure or flap 122 is preferably approximately 260 mm by 260 mm in size with about a 30 mm width strap of VelcroTM along much of the border of the closure.

Rear wall 110 is preferably approximately 350 mm high and 510 mm wide. Left and right doors 126, 128 each preferably measure approximately 285 mm in width and have a Velcro T M strap area of about 30 mm in width along the edges adjoining the doors with sidewalls 106, 108 and upper surface 104, which permits the doors to be detachable from body 102 if desired (see the embodiment of Figs.

9 to 11, described below). Bottom 112 is preferably approximately 650 mm long and 510 mm wide. It will be appreciated that these dimensions are representative only and may be varied as appropriate.

Having described the preferred components of the guard, a preferred method of Suse will now be described with reference to Figs. 1 and 4. To attach guard 100 to Slawnmower 10, guard 100 is preferably positioned above catcher 12 and attached C to bars 14, 16 of lawnmower 10 using attachment means 116. When disengaging catcher 12 from lawnmower 10, the user opens closure or flap 122, reaches in 00 n and grabs an upper handle (where present) on the catcher and disengages q catcher 12 from lawnmower. Catcher 12 is moved from lawnmower 10 rearwardly C through the back of guard 100 by opening doors 126, 128, and/or downwardly through recess 114 in bottom 112 of guard 100. To engage catcher 12 to C 10 lawnmower 10, the steps are essentially repeated in reverse order. It will be appreciated that the steps described above may be performed in a different order, varied, or omitted entirely without departing from the scope of the present invention.

When guard 100 is positioned to overlie catcher 12, the bottom edges of upper surface 104, opposed sidewalls 106, 108 and rear wall 110 will preferably be in contact and a portion of the sidewalls and rear wall will preferably overlap a portion of the catcher. The guard may have a gap between the bottom edges and the catcher if desired.

Guard 100 may be constructed from a single piece of material or from a plurality of panels. For example, guard 100 may be constructed from a single piece of plastic having appropriately sized tabs which may be secured along the edges to connect the sidewalls and rear walls together with each other and with the upper surface. Recesses may be formed in the material sized for the diameter of bars 14, 16 of the handle of the lawnmower. Alternatively, guard 100 may be formed from a plurality of panels that are attachable to one another by means such as Velcro T M (described below).

Referring now to Figs. 9 to 11, a lawnmower safety guard 200 is shown in accordance with another preferred embodiment of the present invention. Guard 200 is similar to guard 100 except that opposed sidewalls 206, 208 and rear wall 7 210 are each detachably attached to one another by strips 236 of VelcroTM. The Suse of detachable panels has the advantage of permitting the guard to conform to Sthe shape and size of a catcher of variety of brands. It will be appreciated that C other attachment means may be utilised without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the panels may be detachably attached by way 00oO of one or more snaps, zippers and magnets if desired.

C The foregoing description is by way of example only, and may be varied considerably without departing from the scope of the present invention. For C 10 example only, the guard may include an attachment means or sealing means along the bottom edges of the guard that is configured to interact with a receiving area on the catcher. The edges may include VelcroTM strips configured to interlock with strips on the catcher. The guard may be configured to envelop the catcher if desired and have a bottom that is continuous or openable. The guard may be configured for use with other types of lawnmowers, for example only, side bag lawnmowers and/or riding lawnmowers.

The features described with respect to one embodiment may be applied to other embodiments, or combined with or interchanged with the features other embodiments, as appropriate, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The present invention in a preferred form provides the advantages of enhanced safety, versatility and acts to keep the caught grass clippings dry during adverse weather. The present invention is particularly beneficial to those who suffer from allergies or asthma as the outflow of air particles from the grass catcher or lawnmower grass outlet is significantly reduced in the direction of the user.

It will of course be realised that the above has been given only by way of illustrative example of the invention and that all such modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons skilled in the art are deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of the invention as herein set forth.

Claims (22)

1. 3. The guard of either claim 1 or 2, wherein said recess occupies the entire bottom.
2. 4. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said upper surface extends from said rear wall to the bottom.
3. 5. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein each of said sidewalls are shaped as a triangle.
4. 6. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said recess is generally oriented along a horizontal plane.
5. 7. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said attachment means includes at least one hook.
6. 8. The guard of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein said attachment means includes at least one strap.
7. 9. The guard of claim 8, wherein said strap includes Velcro T M The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein at least one of said walls and said upper surface is transparent.
8. 11. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said guard is formed from a flexible material.
9. 12. The guard of claim 11, wherein said material is a soft flexible plastic.
10. 13. The guard of any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein at least one of said walls and said upper surface is formed from a relatively inflexible material.
11. 14. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said upper surface includes an access opening. The guard of any one of claims 1 to 13, wherein said rear wall includes an access opening.
12. 16. The guard of either claim 14 or 15, further including a means for closing C said access opening.
13. 17. The guard of claim 16, wherein said closing means is a flap. oO 00 18. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said guard has a q length along the bottom in the range of 500 to 900 mm.
14. 19. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein said guard has a width in the range of 350 to 550 mm. C 10 20. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the angle between said upper surface and said rear wall is in the range of approximately 30 to degrees.
15. 21. The guard of any one of the preceding claims, wherein the bottom has a length greater than the height of said rear wall.
16. 22. A method for protecting a user of a lawnmower having an access opening for use with a lawnmower catcher, the method including: attaching a safety guard to the lawnmower so that the guard overlies the area that would normally be occupied by the lawnmower catcher when the lawnmower catcher is attached to the lawnmower.
17. 23. The method of claim 22, further including engaging the lawnmower catcher to the lawnmower.
18. 24. The method of either claim 22 or 23, further including disengaging the lawnmower catcher while the guard is attached to the lawnmower. The method of any one of claims 22 to 24, further including withdrawing the lawnmower catcher through the bottom of the guard while the guard is attached to the lawnmower.
19. 26. The method of any one of claims 22 to 24, further including withdrawing the lawnmower catcher through the rear of the guard while the guard is attached to the lawnmower.
20. 27. The method of any one of claims 22 to 26, wherein the step of attaching includes engaging a plurality of straps to a handle frame of the lawnmower.
21. 28. A lawnmower safety guard for protecting the user of a lawnmower, Ssubstantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the drawings.
22. 29. A method for protecting a user of a lawnmower having an access opening N for use with a lawnmower catcher, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the drawings. 00 oO mq 0'