GB2122239A

GB2122239A - Traffic markers and barrier systems including them

Info

Publication number: GB2122239A
Application number: GB08314204A
Authority: GB
Inventors: John Edward Barker; Nicholas William Verrall
Original assignee: FIRMACONE Ltd
Current assignee: FIRMACONE Ltd
Priority date: 1982-05-21
Filing date: 1983-05-23
Publication date: 1984-01-11
Also published as: GB8314204D0

Abstract

A traffic cone comprising a base and a standard upstanding therefrom is given improved stability or strength by being moulded from plastics material as an integral article or by modification of the structure or dimensions of the base. The cone can be given further increased stability by the use of a collar on the base and which, like the base, can contain ballast. The cone can be used with boards to construct barrier systems. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Traffic markers and barrier systems including them This invention relates to traffic "cone" markers and to barrier systems containing them, for use in the delineation of carriageways, traffic lanes or other areas of roads or other ground surfaces used by vehicular motor, airplane or other traffic.

The term "traffic cone" as used herein includes not only traffic markers having, or including a portion having, a conical or truncated conical shape but also includes markers having any form of tapering standard, for example markers having a standard of regular or other polygonal cross section.

Traffic cones currently in use on the public highways, for barrier marking, have proved to be unstable under certain conditions, for example in high winds or slipstreams. This has caused motorway engineers to have to "'double up" on the number of cones that they place on the highway, by placing one cone on the top of another.

The present invention now provides traffic cones which avoid, or at least mitigate to a substantial extent, the disadvantages referred to above.

In a first aspect the invention provides a traffic cone comprising a base and a standard upstanding therefrom, in which the base and standard are integral with each other. In a preferred form of the invention the standard is a turbular standard having an upwardly reducing cross-section and the base is a hollow chamber having an upwardly reducing cross-section and comprising a bottom which, in use, contacts the ground and an outer wall extending upwardly from the bottom to join the lower portion of the wall of the standard.

In a second aspect the invention provides a barrier system comprising a plurality of the traffic cone of the invention adjacent ones of which are linked together by a board or other barrier member.

Preferred embodiments of traffic cones and barrier systems of the invention have the following features: 1. The overail design of the cone is normaily in accordance with the requirements of B.S. 873 Pt. 2., with regard to dimensional and material parameters.

2. The cones can be constructed using a low density polyethylene, incorporating an ethyl vinyl acetate (e.v.a. co-polymer) content, enabling them to withstand extremes of climate and yet retain flexibility.

3. They can be made by a rotation moulding process.

4. In highly exposed positions, where possibly the mass of a cone, including ballast, would be insufficient to ensure stability, an additional weight, in the form of a collar, is used.

This collar seats on the base of the cone, being moulded so as to be perfectly compatible with the contours of the base, whilst still complying with the dimensional requirements of B.S. 873 Pt.

2.

5. Filling the cone base with a choice of ballast material, can be achieved through a screw cap sealed hole, usually not exceeding 100 mm diameter.

6. In order to minimise the number of cones that are needed to form a continuous barrier, a system of flexible plastic "chevron" boards can be used. These will be longer at the top edge than they are at the lower edge, in order to marry up with the angle of slope on the side of the cone to which they will be attached. At each end of the barrier board, there will be two hooks of plastic, one on the top and one on the bottom, that engage with the cone. Should the necessity arise for a series of boards to be joined together, each board has holes through it from front to back, approximately 50 mm from each corner. On the back of each board there are four nodules of plastic, one near each corner, that will snap into the holes of another board, thus enabling any number of boards to be joined together.

7. In order to facilitate the use of "chevron" boards or other barrier members, the cone has eight slots or other holes in it, into which the board hooks can locate, two pairs on opposite sides of the cone, the pairs being vertically disposed to each other.

8. In order to ensure that the cone will remain stable when using the plastic barriers of the invention, the extra weighted collar can be used.

Preferred traffic cones of the invention have an outer diameter at least 10% (preferably 15% or more) greater than that of conventional traffic cones. It has been found that this results in much better adhesion of the cone to the ground surface.

There is now described, by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, a traffic cone according to a preferred embodiment of the first aspect of the invention.

In the drawings: Figure 1 is a front elevation of the cone, the portion to the left hand side of the centre line being a cross section on a radius of the cone; Figures 2 and 3 are respectively top and bottom plans of the cone; Figure 4 is a front elevation corresponding to Figure 1 but showing a stabilising collar on the base of the cone; Figure 5 is a top plan af the assembly of Figure 4; Figures 6 and 7 show a second embodiment of the first aspect of the invention, Figure 6 being a front elevation on a diametrical cross section and Figure 7 a top plan; Figure 8 is a front elevation of a barrier member; and Figure 9 is a mid-cross section of the member of Figure 8.

Referring to Figures 1, 2 and 3, the traffic cone of the first embodiment comprises a base 10 and a standard 11 which are integral with each other having been formed from a suitable plastics material by rotational moulding. Suitable plastics materials are, for example, polyethylene and copolymers of ethylene, for instance ethylenevinyl acetate copolymers (the so called "EVA Copolymers"). The hollow standard 11 comprises an upwardly tapering wall 12 the upper end portion of which has been turned to provide an inwardly directed flange 1 3 which serves to strenghten the standard.About the mid portion of the standard there is a distinctive band 1 4 to render the traffic cone more easily visible by road users; in a typical construction this band is white in colour on a red background but can, if desired and if the appropriate traffic regulations permit, be of any other distinctive colour or aspect.

The base of the cone comprises an outer wall 1 5 the upper portion of which merges into the lower end portion of the wall of the standard, an inner wall 1 6 and a bottom 1 7 extending between the lower portions of the outer and inner walls. As shown in Figures 1 and 3, the lower surface of bottom 1 7 has formed therein a series of serrations which serve to increase the frictional forces between the bottom 1 7 and the road surface. However, other means can be used to increase this frictional force, for example an array of "pimples" or other other projections, and these projections can be disposed over the whole of the bottom 1 7 or only over part of it, for example, over a radially outer portion thereof.It will be seen from Figure 1 that the outer and inner walls 1 5, 16, and the bottom together have a trough-like cross section which, at least in the construction shown in Figure 1, is an annular trough. Such troughs conveniently take a form in which they can be used to hold a suitable ballast material, for example water or other liquid ballast or sand or other solid ballast.

The base 10 is of a generally conical shape but the base bottom, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, has an outer periphery which is in the shape of a regular octagon. Each of the sides of the octagon translates into the conical surface of the base by means of a facet 21. These facets each make an angle with the bottom 1 7 such that when the cone is lying on its side (for example, as a result of having been blown over on level ground) the ground surface contacts the narrow end of standard 12 and the whole of the width of facet 21 extending from the periphery of bottom 1 9 to the upper line 22.

As can be seen from Figure 1, the upper edge portion of inner wall 1 6 is disposed adjacent to and parallel to the lower end portion of standard wall 12. If desired edge portion 23 can be sealed, either directly or indirectly, with standard wall portion 24.

Figures 4 and 5 show the traffic cone of Figures 1 to 3 but having disposed over the outer wall 1 5 a stabilising collar 30. As can be seen from Figure 4 the cross section of the collar can be regarded as being comprised of an inner wall extending from A to B and having a shape corresponding to the shape of the adjacent lower portion of standard wall 12 and base outer wall 15. The second portion of the collar can be regarded as extending from B to A and comprising and upwardly extending portion BC, a horizontally extending portion DA and an intermediate sloping portion CD. The portion BC is of circular cross section whereas the portion CD is a flat portion corresponding to one of the facets of Figure 1.

The collar serves, in effect, to increase the weight of base 10 and thereby to increase the stability of the cone. If desired, collar 30 can hold a ballast material which can be the same or different from any ballast held by base 10.

Figures 6 and 7, relating to the second of the said embodiments of the invention, comprise a base 110 and a hollow upwardly extending standard 111. The base comprises outer and inner walls 11 5, 11 6 and bottom 117 which correspond to the walls 1 5, 1 6 and bottom 17 of the cone of Figure 1.

The upper end portion of the standard 111 has formed therein a shoulder 140, and the upper extremity 141 of the standard is of a reduced thickness to facilitate attachment thereto of an elongated barrier member, for example one similar to that disclosed in United Kingdom Patent Application 82 32741.

Figures 8 and 9 disclose a barrier member suitable for use with one form of the traffic cone of this invention. The barrier member comprises two trapezoidal parallel members 50, 51 each having first and second parallel sides 52, 53, of different lengths and two ends 54, 55 inclined at like angles to sides 52, 53.

Sides 52, 53 each terminate in hooks 56. The barriers of Figures 8 and 9 can be used, for example, between two of the cones of Figures 1 to 3 (or Figures 6 and 7) where the latter are provided with slots or other suitable engagement means releasably to engage the hooks 56 of the barrier member. The angle made by ends 54, 55 of the barrier with sides 52, 53 corresponds to the cone angle of the traffic cone so that ends 54, 55 can lie substantially parallel (and preferably adjacent) to the tapering wall of standard 11. A suitable plastics material for the cone and/or stabilising collar is one sold by Du Pont under code number 8107 and described as "virgin pigmented polyethylene based on an equivalent strength in linear medium density polyethylene".

Claims

1. A traffic one comprising a base and a standard upstanding therefrom, in which the base and standard are integral with each other.

2. A traffic cone according to Claim 1, in which the standard is a tubular standard having an upwardly reducing cross-section and the base is a hollow chamber having an upwardly reducing cross-section and comprising a bottom which, in use, contacts the ground and an outer wall extending upwardly from the bottom to join the lower portion of the wall of the standard.

3. A traffic cone according to Claim 1 or 2, in which the base has a reinforcing inner wall extending upwardly from the bottom, and the outer and inner walls and the bottom together constitute a trough.

4. A traffic cone according to Claim 3, in which the trough is adapted to hold water or other ballast material.

5. A traffic cone according to Claim 2, 3 or 4, in which the upper edge of the inner wail is disposed substantially parallel to the wall of the standard.

6. A traffic cone according to Claim 5, in which said upper edge is in sealing relationship with the wall of the standard.

7. A traffic cone according to any of Claims 2 to 6, in which the outer wall has a generally conical shape, the bottom has an octagonal or other polygonal shape, and the lower portion of the outer wall comprises a plurality of facets each translating from a respective side of the polygon to the conical outer wall.

8. A traffic cone according to Claim 1, substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

9. A traffic cone substantially as shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawings.

10. A traffic cone substantially as described herein and substantially as shown in Figures 4 and 5 of the accompanying drawings.

11. A traffic cone substantially as described herein and substantially as shown in Figures 6 and 7 of the accompanying drawings.

12. A barrier system comprising a plurality of the traffic cone as claimed in Claim 1 adjacent ones of which are linked together by a board or other barrier member.

13. A barrier system according to Claim 12, substantially as described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 4. A barrier system comprising a plurality of traffic cones adjacent ones of which are linked together by a board as shown in Figures 8 and 9.