AU2012100957A4 - Roofing safety rail - Google Patents

Abstract

A bracket for a roofing safety rail system comprises an elongate plate with a rod at a near end of the plate and a transverse bar at a far end of the plate. 5 The rod and bar are positioned so that the bracket seats by cantilever action on a rafter. The bracket is part of roof safety rail system that includes a post extending generally upwardly from the near end of each bracket with one or more rails extending between adjacent posts, and means for fixing the rails to the posts. The roofing rail safety system is particularly useful for roof tiling as it 10 allows workers to safely approach the outermost row of tiles.

Description

P/00/012 Regulation 3.2 AUSTRALIA Patents Act 1990 ORIGINAL COMPLETE SPECIFICATION INNOVATION PATENT Invention Title: "ROOFING SAFETY RAIL" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me/us: 1 TITLE ROOFING SAFETY RAIL FIELD OF THE INVENTION 5 The invention relates generally to safety rails and guard rails to protect workers who work at elevated locations, such as on a roof. In particular the invention relates to temporary safety rails that can be easily installed or removed. 10 BACKGROUND Occupational health and safety requirements dictate minimum standards for safety of workers, although most employers provide safety devices that exceed the minimum standards. It is well established that safety equipment is essential for workers operating at elevated locations. A fall from an elevated 15 work location has a high chance of resulting in serious injury. Many different types of safety equipment have been developed. A safety harness is a common form of protection against falling when working at an elevated location. A problem with a safety harness is the restriction on movement. Another problem is the need to provide a suitable fixing point to 20 restrain the harness. These difficulties generally mean that a safety harness is not a preferred form of safety equipment when working on a roof, although it is popular for high rise construction. For working on a low-rise roof, such as a house or unit, a safety rail around the perimeter of the roof is the preferred form of safety equipment. 25 Various forms of safety rail systems are known. By way of example, systems are known that bolt onto a facia board, other systems bolt under the eaves and other systems have a complex arrangement of brackets that sit directly on the roof. Many, if not all, of these systems make it difficult to work close to the edge of the roof. Those systems that do allow work close to the edge have a fixing 30 arrangement that damages the external appearance of the building.

2 Apart from it being desirable to provide a roof safety rail system that does not require damage to the external appearance of the building, it is also desirable that the roof safety rail system be quick and easy to install and remove. The known systems that require fixing to the facia or the eaves fail in both 5 regards. They damage the external appearance of the building and require multiple bolts or screws for installation. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In one form, although it need not be the only or indeed the broadest form, 10 the invention resides in a bracket for a roofing safety rail system, the bracket comprising: an elongate plate; a rod at a near end of the plate; and a transverse bar at a far end of the plate; 15 wherein the rod and bar are positioned so that the bracket may seat by cantilever action on a rafter. The plate is suitably a flat plate cut or stamped from sheet metal of approximately 8mm thickness. The plate may also have one or more apertures through which the plate may be affixed to the rafter. The apertures suitably have 20 a diameter of around 20mm to receive screws or bolts. The rod is suitably round and provides a pivot point for the cantilever seating. The round rod may have a diameter of about 20mm. In use, the rod seats on a topside of the rafter. The bar is suitably flat. Flatbar of 8mm thickness and 25mm width is 25 suitable. In use, the bar suitably seats against an underside of the rafter. In another form, the invention resides in a roof safety rail system comprising: two or more elongate brackets each having a rod at a near end and a transverse bar at a far end, each bracket adapted to seat by cantilever action on a rafter; 30 a post extending generally upwardly from the near end of each bracket; one or more rails extending between adjacent posts; and means for fixing the rails to the posts.

3 Suitably the connection between the bracket and the post is with an angle iron, suitably a right angle iron. The bracket is suitably welded to one arm of the angle and the post is welded to the other arm of the angle. The fixing between the post and the rail is suitably by a half moon bracket. s In a still further form the invention resides in a method of installing a roof safety rail system including the steps of: mounting two or more brackets to rafters, each bracket having an upstanding post, a rod at a near end and a transverse bar at a far end, mounting being by positioning the transverse bar under the rafter and positioning the rod above the 10 rafter so the bracket seats by cantilever action; and fixing one or more rails to the upstanding posts. For maintenance of an existing roof the method further includes the step of a removing an outer course of roof covering. 15 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS To assist in understanding the invention and to enable a person skilled in the art to put the invention into practical effect, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described by way of example only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: 20 FIG 1 is a sketch of a side view of one embodiment of a bracket and post for a roofing safety rail system; FIG 2 is a sketch of the bracket and post of FIG 1 in use; and FIG 3 is a sketch of the bracket and post of FIG 1 in situ on a roof. 25 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention reside primarily in roofing safety rail. Accordingly, the elements have been illustrated in concise schematic form in the drawings, showing only those specific details that are necessary for understanding the embodiments of the present invention, but so as not to 4 obscure the disclosure with excessive detail that will be readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art having the benefit of the present description. In this specification, adjectives such as first and second, left and right, and the like may be used solely to distinguish one element or action from another s element or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order. Words such as "comprises" or "includes" are intended to define a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed, including elements that are 10 inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Referring to FIG 1 there is shown a safety rail post generally indicated as 10. The safety rail post 10 consists of a bracket 11 and a generally upright post 12 joined by an angle iron 13. The bracket 11 consists of a flat plate 14 cut or stamped from 8mm steel 15 plate. Although this thickness of plate is preferred for strength it is likely that other materials would also be acceptable. The bracket has a 20mm diameter round bar 15 at a near end and a 25 mm by 8mm flatbar 16 at the far end. As seen more clearly in FIG 2, the bracket seats on a rafter 20 by cantilever action with the round bar 15 seating on a top surface of the rafter 20 and the flatbar 16 20 seating on the underside of the rafter 20. While it is possible that the bracket can seat securely merely by cantilever action, for safety it is required to fix the plate 14 to the rafter 20. Fixing may be with a screw 21 (shown in FIG 2) through apertures 17 in the plate 14. The angle iron 13 is suitably 150mm x 90mm x 16mm but other 25 dimensions would also be suitable. The bracket 11 is welded to one arm of the angle and the post 12 is welded to the other. The post 12 is suitably 30mm x 30mm x 3mm RHS. Other forms of attachment between the post and the bracket will also be suitable. For instance, in some cases it may be appropriate for the posts to be removably attached to the bracket by a bolt. 30 The post 12 is adapted to receive one or more rails 30. In a preferred embodiment shown in the figures there are three rails. The rails 30 are held to 5 the posts 12 by a bracket, such as the half moon bracket shown in FIG 1. An alternate bracket is shown in FIG 3. In FIG 3, roofing safety rails are shown installed on a typical residential tile roof. For existing rooves the method of installation involves removing a tile 5 from the first course of tiles to expose a rafter. The bracket is then positioned on the rafter to seat with cantilever action so that the post 12 is upright. A screw is then driven through the aperture 17 into the rafter 20 to hold the plate 14 in place. Multiple brackets are distributed around the roof perimeter at appropriate spacings for receiving the rails 30. The rails 30 are then attached to the posts 12 10 to form the safety rails around the roof perimeter. Removal is the reversal of the installation process with the last step to replace the removed tiles. Although the invention has been described by reference to use with a tile roof, the invention is not limited to this application. It can also be used on a slate 15 roof and could be used on a tin roof. The above description of various embodiments of the present invention is provided for purposes of description to one of ordinary skill in the related art. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to a single disclosed embodiment. As mentioned above, numerous alternatives and variations to the 20 present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art of the above teaching. Accordingly, while some alternative embodiments have been discussed specifically, other embodiments will be apparent or relatively easily developed by those of ordinary skill in the art. Accordingly, this invention is intended to embrace all alternatives, modifications and variations of the present 25 invention that have been discussed herein, and other embodiments that fall within the spirit and scope of the above described invention.

Claims (5)

1. A bracket for a roofing safety rail system, the bracket comprising: an elongate plate; 5 a rod at a near end of the plate; and a transverse bar at a far end of the plate; wherein the rod and bar are positioned so that the bracket may seat by cantilever action on a rafter.

2. The bracket of claim 1 further comprising one or more apertures through 10 which the plate is affixed to the rafter.

3. The bracket of claim 1 wherein the rod provides a pivot point on a topside of the rafter and the bar seats against an underside of the rafter.

4. A roof safety rail system comprising: two or more elongate brackets each having a rod at a near end and a transverse 15 bar at a far end, each bracket adapted to seat by cantilever action on a rafter; a post extending generally upwardly from the near end of each bracket; one or more rails extending between adjacent posts; and means for fixing the rails to the posts.

5. A method of installing a roof safety rail system including the steps of: 20 mounting two or more brackets to rafters, each bracket having an upstanding post, a rod at a near end and a transverse bar at a far end, mounting being by positioning the transverse bar under the rafter and positioning the rod above the rafter so the bracket seats by cantilever action; and fixing one or more rails to the upstanding posts. 25