FR2854853A1 - Lift seat on aerial cable way has additional safety device in form of raised projection that fits between person's legs - Google Patents

Abstract

The lift seat, comprising a supporting arch (11) designed to be attached to a cable, and a safety frame (12) with a horizontal bar (13) that pivots between raised and lowered positions. Each passenger's position on the seat is fitted with an additional safety device in the form of a raised projection (15) that goes between the person's legs to prevent them sliding forward and slipping under the bar. Each projection can be fixed permanently to the seat or, in a variant, be mounted on a spring-loaded rocking arm beneath the seat so that it rises through a hole when a person takes his/her place on the seat.

Description

Fall protection device for chairlift seats

  TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION The invention relates to a seat for a mechanical lift installation, in particular a chairlift, comprising a support arch intended to be fixed to a carrying cable-tractor, and a railing pivotally mounted on the hoop between a lowered position and a raised position, said railing having a horizontal bar 15 being placed in the lowered position above and in front of the seating surface of the seat.

  State of the art Document FR-A-2801553 relates to a device for protecting passengers on a seat of a chairlift, comprising a series of protective sticks fixed to the transverse bar of the body rail. Each protective stick protrudes downward to be placed between the legs of the user when the railing is tilted to the lowered position. The function of the protective stock is to prevent a passenger from sliding out of the seat, below the crossbar. In the case of protective sticks fixedly attached to the crossbar, however, there remains a risk of trapping a leg of a user who is not seated properly in his place, for example during a cross position or straddling two places. 30 This jamming is all the more pronounced the greater the rocking force of the railing. On the other hand, the safety of people on the seat is no longer ensured if the railing has inadvertently remained in the raised position.

  OBJECT OF THE INVENTION The object of the invention consists in making a chairlift seat equipped with a fall protection device making it possible to improve the safety of passengers regardless of their size.

  The device according to the invention is characterized in that each seat position is equipped with a central stud located at the front of the middle zone, so as to constitute a safety stop projecting from the seat surface between the user's 10 legs. Additional studs are arranged on the lateral edges of each place on either side of the central stud.

  The device prevents sliding forward when the railing is in the lowered position. The presence of the studs also makes it possible to maintain minimum security when the railing inadvertently remains in the raised position after departure.

  According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the studs are mounted fixed on the seat surface so as to remain permanently projecting from the front of the seat. The studs have a decreasing shape towards the curved front part of the seat, and extend over a height of a few centimeters.

  According to a variant of the invention, the central stud can be mounted at the end of a rocker capable of moving between an inactive withdrawal position, and an active safety position, respectively when the seat is unoccupied or busy.

Brief description of the drawings

  Other advantages and characteristics will emerge more clearly from the description which follows of an embodiment of the invention given by way of nonlimiting example, and represented in the appended drawings, in which: - Figure 1 is a view schematic in elevation of a chair lift type chairlift, equipped with the fall prevention device according to the invention; - Figure 1A is a side view of Figure 1; Figure 2 shows a perspective view of a seat, with the fixed studs serving as a front stop between the legs of a person; - Figure 3 is an alternative embodiment of Figure 2, with a central stud

retractable.

  Description of a preferred embodiment.

  With reference to FIGS. 1 and 1A, each seat 10 of a chairlift installation is conventionally fixed to a carrier-tractor cable by means of a support arch 11 in the form of a frame. A safety railing 12 is pivotally mounted on the roll bar 1 1 between a lowered position and a raised position, and 15 is composed of a horizontal bar 13 to which is attached a support device 14 serving as a rest. foot or ski rest.

  After the passengers have boarded a seat, the railing 12 is folded from the raised position to the lowered position, so as to prevent accidental forward fall of the passengers during the journey. In this position, the bar 13 is placed above and at the front of the seat plane, approximately at the level of the ventral part of the passengers. Between the bar 13 of the arch 12, and the front part of the seat surface of the seats 10, there nevertheless remains an interval which is generally between 30cm and 45cm.

  According to the invention, each place of a seat 10 is equipped with a central stud 15 projecting from the seat surface 16, and located in the median zone at the front of the seat 10. A pair of additional studs 15 is provided on the side edges of each place. The studs 15 extend over a height of a few centimeters, and are shaped according to rounded protuberances arranged between the legs of the users seated in their seats. The studs 15 preferably have a decreasing shape 17 towards the curved front part 18 of the seat 10.

  The presence of the studs 15 prevents any sliding forward when seated on the seat 10. The studs 15 serve as safety stops preventing sliding forward under the railing of the bar 13. The presence of the studs 15 on the seat surface of the seat also provides minimum security, when the guardrail inadvertently remains in the raised position after departure.

  In FIG. 2, the studs 15 are fixedly mounted on the seat surface 16 so as to remain permanently projecting from the front of the seat. The pads 15 can be glued to the seat, or fixed by assembly means (not shown). 10 In FIG. 3, it is also possible to make the central stud 15 mobile by mounting it on a rocker 19, which is associated with a return spring 20 urging the central stud 15 towards an inactive withdrawal position (illustrated in dotted lines) ).

  This position is obtained when the seat is unoccupied, the stud 15 then being inserted into an orifice 21 of the seat 10 so as to no longer protrude from the seating surface 16. The return of the central stud 15 to the position active safety is automatic as soon as the user sits down by pivoting the rocker 19 around the axis 22 against the return force of the spring 20. In this example, the spring 20 is a compression spring acting on one end 20 of the rocker 19, but it is clear that any other elastic means can be used for returning to the inactive position.

Claims (7)

claims   1. Seat of a mechanical lift installation, in particular a chairlift, comprising: - a support arch (11) intended to be fixed to a carrier-tractor cable, - a railing (12) pivotally mounted on the arch (11) between a lowered position 10 and a raised position, said railing being provided with a horizontal bar (13) being placed in the lowered position above and in front of the seating surface (16 ) of the seat (10), - and of fall protection means following a sliding forward, characterized in that each place of a seat (10) is equipped with a central pin (15) 15 located at the front of the middle zone, so as to constitute a safety stop projecting from the seat surface (16) between the legs of the user.   2. Seat according to claim 1, characterized in that the central stud (15) is associated with a pair of additional studs (15) arranged on the lateral edges.   3. Seat according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the studs (15) are fixedly mounted on the seat surface so as to remain permanently projecting from the front of the seat.   4. Seat according to 1 or 2, characterized in that each stud (15) has a decreasing shape towards the front part (18) of the curved seat (10).   5. Seat according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that each pad 30 (15) extends over a height of a few centimeters.   6. Seat according to claim 1, characterized in that the central stud (15) is mounted at the end of a rocker (19) capable of moving between an inactive withdrawal position, and an active safety position, respectively when the seat (16) is unoccupied or occupied.   7. Seat according to claim 6, characterized in that the rocker (19) is associated with a spring (20) urging the central stud (15) to the inactive withdrawal position, the return of the stud (15) to the position active protruding being automatic as soon as the user sits on the seat surface (16) following the tilting of the rocker (19) around an axis (22) against the return force of the spring ( 20).