EP1803487A1

EP1803487A1 - Safety harness

Info

Publication number: EP1803487A1
Application number: EP05113028A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Jonas Cedås
Original assignee: Cresto Safety AB
Current assignee: Cresto Safety AB
Priority date: 2005-12-28
Filing date: 2005-12-28
Publication date: 2007-07-04
Anticipated expiration: 2025-12-28
Also published as: ATE435055T1; DE602005015239D1; EP1803487B1

Abstract

A safety device (1), such as a safety harness, adapted to be worn by a person (2) when working at height comprises a connecting device (3) to be connected to a securing means (13, 18) at an attachment point (8) in the connecting device (3). Said attachment point (8) is arranged to be movable from a lower position relative to the user's (2) body to an upper position to be caused to move from said lower position to said upper position under the action of the load arising in the event of said person (2) falling.

Description

Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a safety device, such as a safety harness, adapted to be worn by a person when working at height, comprising a connecting device to be connected to a securing means at an attachment point in the connecting device.

Background Art

In activities at height, for instance with a person working at height, there is a risk of the person falling and getting hurt. To solve this problem different safety devices are available today, which are attached to, for instance, a rope. For instance, when working on a roof, a person can wear a fall harness which is attached to a rope which is in turn attached to a fixed point, such as the chimney.
For the safety device to satisfy the current requirements and protect a falling person, it is important for the attachment point between the rope and, for instance, the fall harness to have a correct height relative to the person wearing the harness. The attachment point should be positioned vertically at the user's chest for the fall harness to function in a desirable manner. In the event of falling with such a fall harness, the user will be straightened out and thus be hanging vertically. If the attachment point between the rope and the fall harness is instead positioned further down, for instance at the user's waist, the user will not be straightened out, which if the worst comes to the worst may result in the user breaking his back.
Thus safety devices, such as fall harnesses, are currently available, where the attachment point between the rope and the harness is positioned at the chest of the user. However, such prior-art safety devices suffer from various drawbacks. One drawback is that since the attachment point is positioned at the user's chest, the rope connected to the safety device may get into an unsuitable position for the user, for instance in front of his face where the rope interferes with his work. On the one hand the rope can be awkward and thus obstruct the view and, on the other, it can interfere with certain tasks.
Moreover, when working on, for instance, steep roofs or slippery roofs, it is desirable for the user to have a substantially stretched rope so that he or she can thus use the rope as support and to prevent slipping or falling. It is also a drawback for the user to work with a stretched rope and a high attachment point in the cases when it is difficult for the user to bend down and when the body is obliquely bent forward.
Moreover it may be essential for the user to have a certain freedom of movement when he or she wears, for instance, a fall harness to be able to perform his/her task in a desirable way. A problem that may be experienced by the user with prior-art safety devices is that they can often be firmly tightened on the user, which he sometimes experiences to limit his movements. For instance, the user may then slightly loosen one or more straps of the fall harness to ensure slightly more freedom of movement and be able to move in the desired positions when working. However, this results in the safety device not being sufficiently tightened on the user for optimal function if he should fall. This means that the user may also experience a "fall" in the harness, that is the user will be subjected to a load which may be painful for him.
It is thus desirable to provide an improved safety device.

Summary of the Invention

The object of the invention is to at least partially eliminate the above drawbacks. According to a first aspect of the invention, this object is achieved by a safety device, such as a safety harness, adapted to be worn by a person when working at height, comprising a connecting device to be connected to a securing means at an attachment point in the connecting device. Said attachment point is arranged to be movable from a lower position relative to the user's body to an upper position to be caused to move from said lower position to said upper position under the action of the load arising in the event of said user falling. By providing a safety device as described above, a user-friendly device is obtained, which at the same time is reliable. By said attachment point being arranged to be movable from a lower to an upper position relative to the user's body, the attachment point between the rope and the safety device can be positioned further down, for instance at the waist of the user, while at the same time the attachment point moves to the desired upper position, that is the chest position, if the user falls. In this way, the movability of the user is increased, that is the rope does not obstruct the user when he moves and, for instance, works at height. Moreover it will be easier for the user to bend down when he has a stretched rope. At the same time the safety requirements placed on the device are satisfied and the user will have the desired position in the event of a fall.
In one embodiment of the invention, said connecting device is positioned on the part of the safety device which is located on the front of the user. By providing a safety device as described above, it will be possible for the user to have the rope under control and, for example, see that is does not get stuck but runs freely. It will thus also be easier for the user to fix the rope to the safety device or disconnect himself.
In one embodiment of the invention, said connecting device comprises at least one belt loop which is movable through a sliding eye and which on one side of the sliding eye is connected to a shoulder portion of the safety device and, on the other side of the sliding eye, is connected to said securing means, the sliding eye being at the same time connected to a lower portion of the safety device. By providing a connecting device as described above, a safety device is obtained, which gives the user great freedom of movement and at the same time satisfies the safety requirements in the event of a fall. By said belt loop running through a sliding eye and being connected to a shoulder portion of the safety device on one side of the sliding eye and connected to said securing means on the other side and the sliding eye at the same time being connected to a lower portion of the safety device, tightening of the safety device in the event of a fall is obtained. By the safety device being firmly tightened on the user in the event of a fall, the force arising in the fall will be smoothly taken up by the user. This reduces the risk that the user should be exposed to a "fall" in the safety device while at the same time the user can have the safety device less firmly tightened when working and thus have more freedom of movement when working.
In one embodiment of the invention, said connecting device comprises two movable belt loops and two sliding eyes. By providing a safety device as described above, a symmetric safety device is ensured, which can be worn by the user in a comfortable manner.
In another embodiment of the invention, said safety device comprises an upper portion and a lower portion relative to the user, wherein the upper portion of the safety device has a belt part which extends from above and which comprises said belt loop running through the sliding eye, and the lower portion has a belt part which extends from below.
In one embodiment of the invention, said safety device consists of a fall harness, wherein said belt part extending from above comprises at least one belt extending over the shoulder portions of the user, and said belt part extending from below comprises at least one belt extending around the user's thighs, one end portion of the belt part extending from above forming said belt loop and its other end portion being connected to said belt part extending from below on the back of the user.

Brief Description of the Drawings

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings which by way of example illustrate currently preferred embodiments of the present invention.

Fig. 1a is a perspective view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is fastened to a person and is not subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 1b is a perspective view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is fastened to a person who has fallen and the safety device is subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 2b is a cut sectional side view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is not subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 2b is a cut sectional side view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 3a is a perspective view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is fastened to a person and the safety device is not subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 3b is a perspective view of a safety device according to the present invention when the safety device is fastened to a person who has fallen and the safety device is subjected to a fall load.
Fig. 4 illustrates a safety device according to Fig. 3b.

Description of Preferred Embodiments

Figs 1a-b illustrate a safety device 1 according to the present invention when the safety device 1 is fastened to a person 2. In Fig. 1a, the user 2 is in a working position, that is he has not fallen and, thus, the safety device 1 is not subjected to a fall load. In Fig. 1b, the user has fallen and the safety device 1 is subjected to a fall load.
The safety device 1 comprises a connecting device 3, a shoulder portion 4 and a lower portion 5. In this preferred embodiment, the safety device 1 comprises two connecting devices 3. The connecting device 3 consists of a belt loop 6, a sliding eye 7 and an attachment point 8. The belt loop 6 runs through the sliding eye 7 and extends vertically in the standing posture of the user, preferably from the chest position of the user towards the ground, for instance to the waist position of the user. The upper end 9 of the belt loop 6 relative to the user 2 in the working position (Fig. 1a) is connected to the shoulder portion 4 at a connecting point 10, and the lower end 11 of the belt loop relative to the user 2 in the working position has the attachment point 8. A rope 18 is attached to the attachment point 8 by means of a hook 13. The hook 13 and the rope 18 exemplify a securing means according to the embodiment shown in Figs 1a-1b. The sliding eye 7 is connected to a lower portion 5 of the safety device 1. A belt 22 extends substantially parallel to the belt loop 6 from the attachment point 8 to the connecting point 10. In the embodiment illustrated, the lower portion 5 consists of two belt parts 12 extending from below. Across the user extends a connecting belt 20 from one belt part 12 to the other belt part 12. The function of the safety device 1 will be described in more detail below with reference to Figs 2a-2b and 3a-3b.
Figs 2a-2b illustrate a part of the safety device 1 according to the present invention when the safety device 1 is not subjected to a fall load (Fig. 2a) and, respectively, when the safety device 1 is subjected to a fall load (Fig. 2b). The Figures show the connecting device 3, which at its upper end, seen vertically in Fig. 2a, is connected to the shoulder portion 4 at the connecting point 10. The connecting device 3 consists of the belt loop 6 which runs from the connecting point 10 through the sliding eye 7 to the attachment point 8. In Fig. 2a the belt loop 6 runs vertically along a path. The sliding eye 7 is connected to a belt part 12. In Fig. 2b, the safety device is subjected to a fall load and the attachment point 8 has moved from the lower position (Fig. 2a) to the upper position, which is shown in the Figure by arrow A. The belt loop 6 has run through the sliding eye 7 and the sliding eye 7 has moved vertically upwards seen in the upright position of the user 2 to the lower attachment 14 of the connecting point 10. Owing to the movement of the sliding eye 7, the belt part 12 has thus obtained an extension in the vertical plane upwards seen in the upright position of the user 2.
Figs 3a-3b illustrate a safety device 1 according to the present invention when the safety device 1 is fastened to a person 2.
In Fig. 3a, the person 2 is in a working position, that is he has not fallen and the safety device 1 is not subjected to a fall load. The upper portion of the safety device 1 consists of two belt parts 15 extending from above, which in this preferred embodiment comprises two belts 23 which each extend over a shoulder of the user 2 on the front of the user 2 to the connecting point 10 and on the user's back along his back through a guide 19 to the connecting point 16 (see Fig. 4). In this preferred embodiment, the lower portion 5 of the safety device 1 consists of two belts 12. Each belt 12 extends from the sliding eye 7 obliquely downwards seen in the upright position of the user, towards the user's back through a guide 17 and surrounds the user's 2 thigh portion just below the user's seat. The guide 17 ensures that the belt 12 is held in the correct position relative to the user. The belt 12 runs from the thigh portion of the user obliquely upwards on the front of the user 2 and backwards on the user 2 towards the back of the user 2 and continues upwards on the user's back to the connecting point 16 (see Fig. 4). In the Figure the belt 12 is relatively loosely tightened, which ensures an increased freedom of movability for the user 2. The attachment point 8 is positioned close to the stomach portion of the user and the rope 18 is fastened to the attachment point 8. Adjusting means 21 are mounted on the belt 12 so that the user can adjust the length of the belt 12.
In Fig. 3b, the user has fallen and the safety device 1 is thus subjected to a fall load. As described above, for instance in Fig. 2b, the attachment point 8 has moved from the lower position (Fig. 3a) to the upper position. Moreover the end of the belt 12 which is connected to the sliding eye 7 has moved vertically upwards seen in the upright position of the user. In this way, tightening of the belt 12 around the thigh portion of the user 2 and along the front of the user 2 is ensured. This means that the user 2 is safely and firmly fastened to the safety device 1.
Fig. 4 shows the case when the user 2 has fallen according to Fig. 3b. The Figure also shows the back of the safety device 1 with the connecting point 16 and the guide 19.
It will easily be appreciated that many modifications of the preferred embodiment described above are conceivable within the scope of the invention. In the preferred embodiment the safety device consists of a fall harness, but the safety device may also be integrated, for instance, in trousers, a vest or the like. Furthermore the attachment point can be designed in a different manner, for instance a D ring can be attached to the attachment point which in turn is secured by the securing means.

Claims

A safety device (1), such as a safety harness, adapted to be worn by a person (2) when working at height, comprising a connecting device (3) to be connected to a securing means (13, 18) at an attachment point (8) in the connecting device (3),
characterised in that
said attachment point (8) is arranged to be movable from a lower position relative to the user's (2) body to an upper position to be caused to move from said lower position to said upper position under the action of the load arising in the event of said user (2) falling.
A safety device (1) as claimed in claim 1, wherein said connecting device (3) is positioned on the part of the safety device (1) which is located on the front of the user (2).
A safety device (1) as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein said connecting device (3) comprises at least one belt loop (6) which is movable through a sliding eye (7) and which on one side of the sliding eye (7) is connected to a shoulder portion (4) of the safety device (1) and, on the other side of the sliding eye (7), is connected to said securing means (13, 18), the sliding eye (7) being at the same time connected to a lower portion (5) of the safety device (1).
A safety device (1) as claimed in claim 3, wherein said connecting device (3) comprises two movable belt loops (6) and two sliding eyes (7).
A safety device (1) as claimed in claim 3 or 4, which comprises an upper portion and a lower portion (5) relative to the user (2), wherein the upper portion of the safety device (1) has a belt part (15) which extends from above and which comprises said belt loop (6) running through the sliding eye (7) and the lower portion (5) has a belt part (12) which extends from below.
A safety device (1) as claimed in claim 5, which consists of a fall harness, wherein said belt part (15) extending from above comprises at least one belt (23) extending over the shoulder portions of the user, and said belt part (12) extending from below comprises at least one belt extending around the user's thighs, one end portion of the belt part (15) extending from above forming said belt loop (6) and its other end portion being connected to said belt part (12) extending from below on the back of the user (2).