GB2261454A

GB2261454A - Bollard assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2261454A
Application number: GB9220633A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Declan Harte
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1991-11-09
Filing date: 1992-09-30
Publication date: 1993-05-19
Anticipated expiration: 2012-09-30
Also published as: GB9220633D0; GB2261454B

Abstract

A bollard assembly comprises an upstanding post portion (11) and an anchoring portion (12) comprising a cross-like arrangement of members connected to the upstanding portion at its hub and with the members extending beneath the surface of the road or walkway (15) in which the bollard is located horizontally away from the upstanding portion. In order to limit the pivoting movement of the anchoring arrangement on impact it may be tethered e.g. by means of a cable or chain (17) attached to the free ends of the anchor members (13) to bolts or pins (19) which are sunk at an angle into the ground. <IMAGE>

Description

BOLLARD ARRANGEMENT This invention relates to bollard arrangements particularly such intended as protection for the windows of shops or other premises against so-called ram raids" in which a vehicle (usually stolen) is used as a battering ram to smash a window (or perhaps even breach a fench or wall) to reach the goods in the shop or other premises. In the raid, the vehicle is usually damaged, another vehicle, usually stolen also, being used for the getaway.

The ram raid modus ocrandi is predicated on the need for a large momentum for the vehicle, considered as a projectile, to smash the kind of windows nowadays used in shops carrying goods of interest to thieves, and also on speed. The use of bollards has been proposed to deter ram raids, but unless they are of stout construction they do not offer much protection - a first approach can take out the bollard without disabling the vehicle, which can then make another run at the window - damage to the vehicle is considered immaterial to the raiders.

Bollards of such stout construction as will resist attack by ramming a vehicle are expensive both in terms of their material content and also because they require deep anchorage. Deep anchorage may in many cases be problemmatical on account of subterranean utilities.

The present invention provides a bollard arrangement which overcomes some of these difficulties.

The invention comprises a bollard arrangement adapted to arrest a vehicle driven at speed e.g. at a shop window under so-called "ram raid" conditions, comprising an upstanding bollard portion and an achoring arrangement comprising a cross-like arrangement of members connected to the upstanding portion at its hub and with the members extending beneath the surface of the road or walkway in which the bollard is located horizontally away from the upstanding portion, the integrity of the connection of the bollard portion to the anchoring arrangement and the integrity of the anchoring arrangement per se, and the integrity of the anchorage in the road or walkway being such that the bollard portion and the anchoring arrangement will survive impact from a moving vehicle by virtue of the anchoring arrangement breaking loose from its location to pivot about a horizontal axis on the side of the bollard portion away from the impact side, whereby to more positively impede the vehicle than would the bollard portion without such anchoring arrangement and once so dislodged to constitute an enhanced impediment to further or repeated attempts to drive the or a vehicle at a window.

The anchoring arrangement may be tethered to limit its pivoting movement, and may be tethered at its ends remote from the window by limited-length cable means.

The bollard portion and the anchoring arrangement may be fabricated from steel; the bollard portion may be clad in concrete.

The anchoring arrangement may be buried beneath paving slabs or brickwork, or between an asphat or concrete surface. The surface may be weakened so as to fracture preferentially above the anchoring members te ensure their breaking out from the surface preferentially to the bollard portion breaking or bending away from the anchoring arrangement.

The cross-like arrangement of members may comprise members radiating from the upstanding portion substantially within one half of a circle centred on the upstanding portion whereby the arrangement is adapted for kerbside installation without excavating beyond the kerbside.

The invention in another aspect comprises a bollard arrangement adapted to arrest a vehicle driven at speed at a shop window under so-called "ram raid" conditions, comprising an upstanding bollard portion and an anchoring arrangement, of which the anchoring arrangement comprises a first part which on impact can be uprooted and a second part which restrains the first part to help to bring the vehicle to a halt in a disabling fashion and constitute still a barrier to further progress towards the window of the same or a different vehicle.

The upstanding bollard portion may be deployable between stowed and operative condition, to permit access or to relieve obstruction for example to shoppers during the day.

The upstanding portion may be removable from the anchoring arrangement and may have an axial keyhole for a lifting key.

The upstanding portion may, however, be hinged so as to be deployable to lie flat, or may telescope into a sunken shaft.

In such deployable arrangements it is clearly desirable that the upstanding portion is lockable in its operative condition.

The upstanding portion may be quite heavy, and the invention also comprises the bollard arrangement in combination with a deploying device which might for example be a specially adapted hoist.

Embodiments of a bollard arrangement according to the invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which : Figure 1 is a plan of the embodiment; Figure 2 is a view on the arrow 1; Figure 3 is a view like Figure 2 after the bollard arrangement has been pivoted to a restrained position by an impact; Figure 4 is a plan of another embodiment; and Figure 5 is a section through a deployable embodiment.

The drawings illustrate a bollard arrangement adapted to arrest a vehicle (taken to be approaching from the left of Figure 2) driven at speed at a shop window (taken to be to the right of Figure 2) under so-called "ram raid" conditions.

The bollard arrangement comprises an upstanding bollard portion 11 and an anchoring arrangement 12 comprising a cross-like arrangement by members 13 connected to the upstanding portion 11 at the hub 14 of the anchoring arrangement 12. The bollard portion 12 and the anchoring members 13 are of steel bar or tube stock held as by welding or by bolts or in any other secure fashion in the hub 14 which comprises a cubic box 14a with welded and braced spigots 14b to receive the portion 11 and members 13.

The bollard arrangement is installed so that the anchoring members 13 extend beneath the surface of the road or walkway 15 horizontally away from the upstanding portion 11.

The road or walkway 15 can have paving slabs as illustrated, or brickwork, or an asphalt or concrete surface. The anchoring members 13 are buried beneath such slabs, brickwork or surface. The integrity of the hub connection of the bollard portion 11 to the anchoring arrangement 12 per se, and the integrity of the anchorage in the road or walkway 15 is arranged to be such that the bollard portion 11 and the anchoring arrangement 12 will survive impact from a moving vehicle by virtue of the anchoring arrangement 12 breaking loose from its location to pivot about a horizontal axis 16 on the side of the bollard portion 11 away from the impact side.

The axis 16 will correspond roughly to a line joining the ends of the anchoring members 13 that are on the window side of the bollard portion 11.

The effect of an impact is seen in Figure 3 the tilted bollard arrangement will now more positively impede the vehicle than would the bollard portion 11 without such anchoring arrangement not least because the anchoring members 13 on the impact side of the bollard portion have now been lifted cut of the ground and at least one and probably both of them will engage the underside of the vehicle and quite possibly elevate the end of the vehicle, tending to drive the anchoring members 13 on the window side into the ground.

Moreover, a certain amount of energy will be absorbed by the disturbance to the road or walkway surface.

It is desirable that if such surface is of concrete or similarly robust material, lines of weakness should be incorporated into its construction should this be necessary to achieve the preferential breaking out rather than bending or breaking of the bollard arrangement.

Against the risk that the bollard arrangement will be tilted on impact beyond an optimum position as illustrated in Figure 3, the anchoring arrangement 12 may be tethered to limit its pivotting movement as by limited length cable or chain means 17 which are attached at the free ends of the impact-side anchoring members 13 (by shackles 18) to bolts or pins 19 which sunk at an angle into the ground to give the maximum resistance to pulling out when the cable or chain means 17 applies a shock loading following the impact.

The upstanding bollard portion 11 may be clad in concrete 21, which may have reinforcing rods 22 incorporated not only to improve resistance to vehicle impact but also to protect against attack by a power saw.

Figure 4 illustrates an embodiment in which the cross-like arrangement of members i3 comprises members 13 radiating from the upstanding portion 11 substantially within one half of a circle centred on the upstanding portion 11 whereby the bollard arrangement is adapted for kerbside installation without excavating the road 41 beyond the kerbside 42.

Figure 5 illustrates an arrangement in which the upstanding bollard portion 11 is deployable between stowed and operative (illustrated) condition by being removable from the anchoring arrangement 12. The upstanding portion has an axial keyhole 51 for a lifting key 52 which extends from near the top of the upstanding portion 11 down into the anchoring arrangement 12 where it terminates in a cross-member 53. Midway along the lifting key 52 is a flange 54 which underlies a shoulder 55 in the keyhole 51 and at the top of the key 52 is a cross-member 56. The lower cross-member 53 can be turned, by turning the upper cross-member 56, between a locking position (dashed line) and a release position (full line) beneath a slot 57 in the hub 14. The upstanding bollard portion 11 can, in the release position of the key 52, be lifted by a hoist 58 engaging the upper cross-member 56.

Other deployable arrangements include arrangements in which the upstanding portion 11 is hinged to the hub 14 and arrangements in which it is lowerable telescopically into a sunken shaft.

In each case, of course, the member 11 should be securely lockable in its operative condition. In Figure 5 is shown a lockable cap 59 which secures access to the lifting key 52.

A line of the bollard arrangements may be reinforced by chain or cable connecting them underground whereby lifting of the anchoring arrangement by impact on one of the bollard arrangements is resisted by the others.

Claims

1. A bollard arrangement adapted to arrest a vehicle driven at speed e.g. at a shop window under so-called "ram raid" conditions, comprising an upstanding bollard portion and an achoring arrangement comprising a cross-like arrangement of members connected to the upstanding portion at its hub and with the members extending beneath the surface of the road or walkway in which the bollard is located horizontally away from the upstanding portion, the integrity of the connection of the bollard portion to the anchoring arrangement and the integrity of the anchoring arrangement per se, and the integrity of the anchorage in the road or walkway being such that the bollard portion and the anchoring arrangement will survive impact from a moving vehicle by virtue of the anchoring arrangement breaking loose from its location to pivot about a horizontal axis on the side of the bollard portion away from the impact side, whereby to more positively impede the vehicle than would the bollard portion without such anchoring arrangement and once so dislodged to constitute an enhanced impediment to further or repeated attempts to drive the or a vehicle at a window.

2. An arrangement according to claim 1, in which the anchoring arrangement is tethered to limit its pivoting movement.

3. An arrangement according to claim 2, in which the anchoring arrangement is tethered at its ends remote from the window by limited-length cable or chain means.

4. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 3, in which the bollard portion and the anchoring arrangement are fabricated from steel.

5. An arrangement according to claim 5, in which the bollard portion is clad in concrete.

6. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 5, in which the anchoring arrangement is buried beneath paving slabs or brickwork.

7. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 6, in which the anchoring arrangement is buried beneath an asphalt surface.

8. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 6, in which the anchoring arrangement is buried beneath a concrete surface.

9. An arrangement according to any one of claims 6 to 8, in which the surface beneath which the anchoring arrangement is buried is weakened so as to fracture preferentially above the anchoring members to ensure their breaking out from the surface preferentially to the bollard portion breaking or bending away from the anchoring arrangement.

10. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 9, in which the cross-like arrangement of members comprises members radiating from the upstanding portion substantially within one half of a circle centred on the upstanding portion whereby the bollard arrangement is adapted for kerbside installation without excavating beyond the kerbside.

11. A bollard arrangement adapted to arrest a vehicle driven at speed at a shop window under so-called "ram raid" conditions, comprising an upstanding bollard portion and an anchoring arrangement, of which the anchoring arrangement comprises a first part which on impact can be uprooted and a second part which restrains the first part to help to bring the vehicle to a halt in a disabling fashion and constitute still a barrier to further progress towards the window of the same or a different vehicle.

12. An arrangement according to any one of claims 1 to 11, in which the upstanding bollard portion is deployable between stowed and operative condition.

13. An arrangement according to claim 12, in which the upstanding portion is removable from the anchoring arrangement.

14. An arrangement according to claim 13, in which the upstanding portion has an axial keyhole for a lifting key.

15. An arrangement according to claim 12, in which the upstanding portion is hinged so as to be deployable to lie flat.

16. An arrangement according to claim 12, in which the upstanding portion telescopes into a sunken shaft.

17. An arrangement according to any one of claims 12 to 16, in which the upstanding portion is lockable in its operative condition.

18. An arrangement according to any one of claims 12 to 17, in combination with a deploying device.

19. An arrangement according to claim 18, in which the deploying device comprises a hoist.