GB2359788A - Wheelbarrow - Google Patents

Description

2359788 1 WHEELBARROWS

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to wheelbarrows.

BACKGROUND

Wheelbarrows are often used by gardeners and builders for moving materials or waste from one place to another and are very useful for moving heavy loads such as soil or hard core. The design of wheelbarrows has basically changed little for many years. They generally comprise a shallow container of metal or plastic with a single wheel mounted centrally at the front and a pair of lifting handles extending to the rear. By gripping the handles and lifting the rear of the wheelbarrow clear of the ground it can be propelled forwards and steered as required.

The container is usually provided with an inclined front part to facilitate tipping loads from the wheelbarrow by manually lifting the rear, pivoting the barrow on the single front wheel, until the container is almost vertical, whereupon the contents will slide out of the container onto the ground or into a skip, for example. However, in moving the wheelbarrow to this position the 2 orientation of the handles changes from near-horizontal to near-vertical, which means that the grip must be changed at some point during the tipping operation. During this change of grip the wheelbarrow can easily go out of control and fall. Whilst this can be no more than an inconvenience, there is a more serious risk of injury to the user.

The present invention seeks to provide a new and inventive form of wheelbarrow.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention proposes a wheelbarrow having a pair of lifting handles which are arranged to pivot about respective generally horizontal axes which extend transverse to the normal direction of forward movement of the wheelbarrow.

The handles are preferably mounted alongside a pair of rearwardlyextending shafts of the wheelbarrow, preferably on the outside of the shafts.

The handles are preferably pivoted part-way along the available gripping length, and may be mounted on pivot arms which are secured to the shafts by means of clamps.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The following description and the accompanying drawings referred to therein

3 are included by way of non-limiting example in order to illustrate how the invention may be put into practice. In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a plan view of a wheelbarrow in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a general view of one of the pivoted handles with which the wheelbarrow is provided; and Figure 3 is a transverse section through the handle of Fig. 2 and the shaft to which it is secured.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The wheelbarrow 1 shown in Fig. 1 includes a shallow container 2 having an upwardly and forwardly sloping front part 3. A single wheel 4 is mounted centrally at the front end of the container, supported by a U- shaped steel tube 5. The tube extends beneath the container 2 and towards the rear of the container the two limbs of the tube are formed into a pair of downwardlyextending U-shaped supports (not shown) before extending rearwardly to provide a pair of generally parallel and substantially horizontal shafts 9 and 10. In a conventional wheelbarrow these shafts would serve as handles by which the wheelbarrow is lifted and manoeuvred, but in the present example this function is provided by a pair of handles 11 and 12 which are mounted alongside the shafts 9 and 10 on opposite outer sides of the shafts.

Fig.s 2 and 3 show one of the handles 10 in more detail. The handles are 4 each secured to the shafts by clamps14 formed by a pair of hemicylindrical sections 15 and 16 held rigid about the shafts by bolts 17 inserted through pairs of projections 18 on their longitudinal edges. A pivot arm 19 projects horizontally and perpendicularly outwards from one of the clamp sections 16 to support the handle 12. The handle is pivotally mounted on the outer end of the arm 19 part way along the length of the handle, to rotate about the axis of the arm 19 as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2. The pivotal mounting may be achieved in any convenient manner. For example, in Fig. 3 the arm 19 is shown to project through the handle 12 which is rotatably located between a spring clip 20 and the head of a bolt 21 which is screwed into the end of the arm.

By gripping the handles 11 and 12 it is possible to lift the wheelbarrow and manoeuvre it as normal. However, since the angle of the handles can change as the barrow is lifted the grip is very comfortable, particularly when it becomes necessary to change the angle of the wheelbarrow such as when pushing the wheelbarrow up a slope. Furthermore, when tipping material out of the barrow it is no longer necessary to release the grip on the handles since they can remain in a generally horizontal position throughout the tipping operation.

Claims (7)

1. It will be appreciated that the features disclosed herein may be present

   in any feasible combination. Whilst the above description lays emphasis on those areas which, in combination, are believed to be new, protection is claimed for any inventive combination of the features disclosed herein.

   CLAIMS 1. A wheelbarrow having a pair of lifting handles which are arranged to pivot about respective generally horizontal axes which extend transverse to the normal direction of forward movement of the wheelbarrow.
2. 2. A wheelbarrow according to Claim 1, in which the handles are mounted alongside a pair of rearwardly-extending shafts.
3. 3. A wheelbarrow according to Claim 2, in which the handles are mounted on the outside of the shafts.
4. 4. A wheelbarrow according to Claim 2 or 3, in which the handles are spaced from the shafts by pivot arms.
5. 5. A wheelbarrow according to Claim 2, 3 or 4, in which the handles are secured to the shafts by clamps.
6. 6. A wheelbarrow according to any preceding claim, in which the handles are pivoted part-way along their available gripping length.
7. 7. drawings.

   A wheelbarrow substantially as described with reference to the