GB2412943A

GB2412943A - Gate with hinge arrangement allowing lifting

Info

Publication number: GB2412943A
Application number: GB0407843A
Authority: GB
Inventors: William Thomas Knott
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2004-04-06
Filing date: 2004-04-06
Publication date: 2005-10-12
Anticipated expiration: 2024-04-06
Also published as: GB0407843D0; GB2412943B

Abstract

The invention provides a gate comprising a gate body 2, a gate post 4 and first 6 and second hinges 8 for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post. The first 6 and second 8 hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening. The first hinge 6 comprises a fixed pivot supported adjacent the gate post. The second hinge 8 comprises a first arm extending outwardly from the gate post; a pivot supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing for pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot. In use the distance between the gate body and the gate post varies at the level of the second hinge as the gate body is pivoted about the pivot. The amount that this distance varies may be adjusted by altering the mounting positions of the pivot 42 and bearing. Therefore, a method of altering the rate of change of the axis of rotation is also disclosed. A counterbalancing spring mechanism 52 may also be provided.

Description

The present invention relates to gates and more particularly although not

exclusively to gates such as those used in domestic or farmyard settings.

A typical gate comprises a gate body mounted to a gate post by a pair of hinges so as to be openable or closable by rotation about the hinges. The gate body extends substantially perpendicular to the gate post, i.e. the bottom edge of the gate body normally extends substantially horizontally above ground level. A problem with such gates is that they cannot be opened when installed on a rising incline as the lower edge of the gate will become stuck against the incline when rotating into the open position. This problem can be overcome by providing gates having rising hinges and this is known for example from US 2,708,286A and GB 2,117,040A.

In both of these documents, the gate is mounted to the gate post by upper and lower hinges, which are offset from one another in a horizontal direction to provide an angled axis of rotation for the gate. As is also disclosed, the hinges can be offset from one another in two perpendicular horizontal directions such that the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate relative to the vertical increases as the gate is opened and decreases as it is closed. This allows the base of the gate to be in a substantially horizontal orientation extending parallel to the ground when the gate is shut and to extend at an angle to the horizontal, rising up the slope, when the gate is opened. However, the hinge structures disclosed in the prior art are relatively complex to manufacture and would also wear out quickly under the weight of the gate. Thus, the present invention seeks to provide improved hinges and a gate using such improved hinges.

From a first aspect, the present invention provides a gate comprising a gate body, a gate post and first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening, the first hinge comprising a fixed pivot supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprising: a first arm extending outwardly from the gate post; a pivot supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing for pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, wherein in use the distance between the gate body and the gate post varies at the level of the second hinge as the gate body is pivoted about the pivot.

The arrangement of the first and second arms with a bearing on a pivot provides a hinge which provides a varying angle of the axis of rotation which will be both easy to manufacture and hard wearing thus allowing rising hinges to be more widely used in domestic and farm gates which undergo relatively heavy use.

One advantage of the hinges of the invention is that they are reversible to allow a gate body to be mounted to either the left hand side or the right hand side of a gate post. The hinges are reversible due to the fact that the second arm can be inverted relative to the gate body so as to extend in the opposite direction relative thereto and the first hinge can also be inverted in this manner.

Preferably the first and second arms extend substantially parallel to each other when the gate is in the closed position. This will allow for good positioning of the gate body when in the closed position.

The hinges could be configured such that the gate rises by a fixed amount as it is opened. Ideally however, the amount of rise of the gate should be adjustable depending on the slope on which it is being used. In one preferred embodiment, a plurality of pivot mounting means are provided on the first arm at axially spaced locations, the pivot being moveable between the said pivot mounting means to change the said first distance between the pivot and the gate post. This will allow the amount of rise of the gate to be adjusted by a user if necessary.

Preferably the pivot mounting means comprise apertures formed in the first arm. This provides a simple and inexpensive way of providing variable positioning of the pivot on the first arm.

In an alternative preferred embodiment, a plurality of bearing mounting means are provided on the second arm at axially spaced locations, the bearing being moveable between the said bearing mounting means to change the said second distance between the pivot and the gate body. This again will allow the amount of rise of the gate to be adjusted by a user if necessary.

Preferably the bearing mounting means comprise apertures formed in the second arm. This provides a simple and inexpensive way of providing variable positioning of the bearing on the second arm.

In the most preferred embodiment, both the axially spaced pivot mounting means and the axially spaced bearing mounting means are provided in the respective first and second arms to allow for several possible adjustments to be made to the rise of the gate body.

Still more preferably the spacing of the plurality of bearing mounting means corresponds to the spacing of the plurality of pivot mounting means. This has the advantage that the placement of the gate body relative to the gate post can be kept the same as the distance of the pivot from the gate post is varied.

Preferably the pivot comprises a pivot rod and the bearing comprises a rod end bearing. The pivot rod can be bent into an L-shape such that one end of the pivot rod can be bolted through an aperture in the first arm while the other end of the pivot rod extends upwardly to receive the rod end bearing thereon and allow the second arm to pivot about a vertical axis.

The provision of means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of a gate is considered to be novel and inventive in its own right and so, from a second aspect, the present invention provides a gate comprising a gate body, a gate post and first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening, and wherein the second hinge comprises means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate in use.

Preferably the first hinge comprises a fixed pivot supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprises: a first arm extending outwardly from the gate post; a pivot supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing for pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, and wherein the means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate in use comprise means for altering the first distance and/or the second distance.

Preferably the means for altering the first distance comprise a plurality of pivot mounting means provided on the first arm at axially spaced locations, the pivot being moveable between the said pivot mounting means.

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Still more preferably the means for altering the second distance comprise a plurality of bearing mounting means provided on the second arm at axially spaced locations, the bearing being moveable between the said bearing mounting means.

As the gate of the invention has offset hinges to allow the gate body to rise as the gate is opened, the weight of the gate will not act directly downwardly through the hinges thereof. Thus, the gate will have an increasing acceleration as it moves towards the closed position. Preferably therefore the gate further comprises an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being fixed to the gate body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the means for extending the spring are mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts against the acceleration of the gate towards the closed position.

Thus, the extensible spring arrangement will be able to counterbalance the increasing acceleration of the gate body. Thus the spring can hold the gate body in any chosen position between the open and closed positions if the correct type and size of spring is chosen.

Alternatively, the spring can be chosen to act against the acceleration of the gate to slow down the closing of the gate but not to hold it in position.

Means for holding the body of a gate open in this way are considered to be novel and inventive in their own right and so from a further aspect the present invention provides a gate comprising: a gate body; a gate post; a hinge for mounting the gate body to the gate post; an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being fixed to the gate body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the - 6 means for extending the spring are mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts in the opening direction of the gate. Although such a gate including a mechanism as described above would typically be most useful where rising hinges were used, the spring mechanism could also be used with a gate having standard hinges to hold the gate open.

Preferably the means for extending the spring comprise a bracket, a first end of said bracket being slidably mounted on the gate body and the second end of the bracket being fixed to the second end of the spring, the bracket being pivotally mounted to the gate post.

Still more preferably the bracket is L-shaped, and is pivotally mounted at the corner of the L to a further bracket extending outwardly from the gate post. This provides a mechanism which is hardwearing and also relatively easy to manufacture and install.

From a still further aspect the present invention provides apparatus for mounting a gate body to a gate post, the apparatus comprising first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening in use, the first hinge comprising a fixed pivot adapted to be supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprising: a first arm adapted to extend outwardly from the gate post; a pivot adapted to be supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, wherein in use the distance between the gate body and the gate post varies at the level of the second hinge as the gate body is pivoted about the pivot. - 7 -

From a yet further aspect the invention provides apparatus for mounting a gate body to a gate post, the apparatus comprising first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening in use, and wherein the second hinge comprises means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate In use.

From a still further aspect the present invention provides apparatus for holding the body of a gate in an open or partially open position, the apparatus comprising: an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being adapted to be fixed to the body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the means for extending the spring are adapted to be mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts in the opening direction of the gate in use.

Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 schematically shows a gate according to the invention; Figure 2 is a perspective view of a first hinge for a gate according to the invention; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a second hinge for a gate according to the invention; Figure 3A shows a part of the hinge of Figure 3 in perspective view; Figure 4 is a perspective view of a spring assembly according to the invention mounted on a gate; - 8 Figures 5A and 5B show the position of the spring assembly of Figure 4 when the gate is in the closed and open positions respectively; and Figure 6 is a plan view of a part of the spring assembly of Figure 4.

A gate using the mechanisms of the invention is shown in Figure 1. As shown, the gate is made up of a body 2 mounted on a gate post 4. The gate post and body are typically made of wood or metal and are of the standard type used in domestic or farming situations.

In the preferred embodiment shown, the gate body comprises first and second longitudinally spaced vertically extending end posts 3 and a number of vertically spaced horizontal members 5 connecting the first and second end posts. Struts or diagonal cross members 7 then extend across the horizontal members to strengthen the structure of the gate body. The gate body 2 is mounted to the gate post 4 using hinges according to the invention. The upper hinge 6 is shown in greater detail in Figure 2. The lower hinge 8 is shown in greater detail in Figure 3. The hinges 6, 8 are configured so as to cause the angle A from the vertical of the axis of rotation of the gate to increase as the gate is opened.

In the upper hinge 6, as shown in Figure 2, a first bracket 10 is bolted to the gate post 4. The first bracket 10 comprises a flat plate 12 adapted to rest against a side surface 11 of the gate post when bolted thereto and a flange portion 14 extending perpendicularly outwardly from one end of the flat plate so as to extend outwardly from the gate post in use.

When assembled on the gate post 4, the first bracket 10 is immovably fixed to it such that the flange portion 14 extends outwardly from the lower part of the flat plate 12.

In the preferred embodiment of the invention, the flange portion 14 is adapted to form a fixed bracket in 9 - a spring assembly for controlling motion of the gate as will be described in further detail below. Thus the flange portion 14 extends in a first direction along the width w of the flat plate 12 and then rearwardly thereof before bending through a right angle to extend outwardly in a second direction by a distance approximately equal to its length in the first direction. The flange portion 14 therefore forms a fixed bracket which is effectively L shaped.

A rod 16 is fixedly attached to the flange portion 14 to extend upwardly therefrom at the end adjacent the front edge of the gate post 4. The gate body 2 pivots around that rod 16 in use by the mechanism which will now be described. A second bracket 18 is fixed to the gate body. The second bracket 18 is substantially L shaped and is adapted to fit around one end of the gate body such that a first leg 19 of the bracket 18 is fixed to the uppermost horizontal member 5 in the gate body and extends along one side of the vertical member of the gate body adjacent the horizontal member. The bracket is then adapted to extend around a corner on the vertical member such that the second leg 21 of the bracket 18 which extends at right angles to the first leg extends along a face of the vertical member from that corner to extend beyond the opposite edge thereof.

A rod 20 extends outwardly from the far end of the second leg of bracket 18 and has a rod end bearing 22 attached thereto. The rod end bearing 22 is adapted to fit pivotably onto the rod 16 to form a hinge mounting for the upper part of the gate.

The lower hinge 8 Will now be described with reference to Figure 3. As shown, the lower hinge comprises a first bracket 24 mounted to the gate post 4 and a second bracket 2 6 mounted to the gate body 2. The first bracket 24 comprises a flat plate 28 adapted to be bolted to a side face of the gate post 4 and a further flat plate 30 welded to the plate 28, its length - 10 extending perpendicularly outwardly from the centre of the flat plate 28, and its width extending vertically.

Reinforcing webs 32 welded to the flat plate 28 are provided on either side of the further flat plate 30 to support it. A number of longitudinally spaced apertures 34 are provided along the length of the further flat plate 30. In the preferred embodiment as shown, five such apertures are provided and are evenly spaced.

The second bracket 26 mounted to the gate body 2 comprises first and second U shaped members 36 which extend around the vertical member 3 at the end of the gate body and are bolted thereto. The first and second U shaped members 36 are vertically spaced from one another and support a flat plate member 38 there between. The flat plate member 38 is adapted to extend beyond the edge of the vertical member of the gate body and has a number of longitudinally spaced apertures 40 provided in it. The positions of the apertures 34 in the further flat plate 30 are chosen to correspond to the positions of the apertures 40 of the flat plate member 38 for reasons which will be described below.

An L shaped welded pivot bar 42 is provided, one end of which is fixed within one of the apertures 34 in the further flat plate 30 by nuts 43. The pivot bar 42 therefore extends outwardly from the further flat plate towards the gate body 2 before turning to extend vertically upwardly parallel to the gate body. A rod end bearing 44 which is attached to a fixing (not shown) passing through the corresponding aperture 40 in the flat plate member 38 and fixed thereto by nuts 45 fits over the pivot bar 42 in order to be pivotable about the bar such that the gate body 2 can be pivoted about the bar 42.

As the further flat plate 30 extends outwardly from the gate post 4, the longitudinally spaced apertures 34 provided therein are spaced by increasing amounts from the gate post 4. Thus, the distance of the pivot point - 11 of the lower gate hinge from the gate post can be varied depending on which apertures 34, 40 the pivot bar 42 is mounted to. It will be appreciated that by mounting the pivot bar 42 in an aperture 34 located further away from the gate post, the gate will be caused to lift by a greater amount when in the open position.

Further, because the apertures 40 in the flat plate member 38 of the second bracket are longitudinally spaced, the pivot bar 42 can be equivalently spaced from lo the vertical member of the gate body such that, when the gate is closed, flat plate member 38 extends substantially parallel to the flat plate 30 and the gate body is located relatively close to the gate post at the level of the lower hinge. Thus, when closed, the gate body will extend outwardly from the gate post substantially horizontally with the vertical members of the gate post extending substantially vertically. As the gate is opened however, the flat plate member 38 pivots about the pivot bar 42 through an angle of 9o .

Thus, when the gate is opened, the flat plate member 38 will extend substantially perpendicular to the flat plate 30 such that the spacing between the gate body and the gate post at the level of the lower hinge will be significantly greater.

As seen in Figure 3, and shown in further detail in Figure 3A, an additional mechanism for holding the vertically extending part of pivot bar 42 in the vertical orientation is provided on gate post 4. This additional mechanism comprises a plate 33 which is bolted to the gate post having a hollow tube 35 extending outwardly from it at right angles to the gate post. A locking nut 37 is welded to the free end of the hollow tube and an eye bolt 39 having a threaded body and an eye 41 formed at one end thereof is received in the locking nut such that the eye is held at an adjustable distance from the gate post 4. In use, the eye 41 is placed over the pivot bar 42 and the bolt 39 - 12 is then adjusted in locking nut 37 to securely hold the pivot bar 42 in a substantially vertical orientation parallel to the gate post.

As the pivot point of the upper hinge is fixed, it will be appreciated that the arrangement of the lower hinge causes the angle A of the rotational axis of the gate relative to the gate post to gradually increase as the gate is opened, thus causing the free end of the gate to rise increasingly during opening.

In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the upper and lower hinges are mounted such that the gate body 2 extends to the left hand side of the gate post 4. One advantage of the hinge structures of the invention is that the hinges can however also be used to mount a gate body 2 to the right hand side of a gate post 4. To do this, only the second bracket 18 of the upper hinge and the second bracket 26 of the lower hinge need to be inverted, no other parts requiring to be moved.

Because the hinges are offset to provide variable rise of the gate as described above, gravity will not act in line with the hinges of the gate and so will act on the gate itself. Thus, the apparent weight of the gate will increase as the gate approaches the closed position and so the gate will have a tendency to swing shut with increasing acceleration. To overcome this problem, a counterbalancing spring mechanism is provided on the gate.

As described above, the flange portion 14 of the upper hinge forms a first fixed L shaped bracket, the first arm of the bracket extending rearwardly from the gate post and the second arm extending outwardly thereof. A second L shaped bracket 46 is pivotably mounted at the corner of its L to the free end of the fixed bracket 14. The mounting is provided by a rod end bearing 47 on a pivot rod 49. The second L shaped bracket has a first limb 48 which extends from the corner of the L to the gate body. An end of the first - 13 limb 48 is adapted to slide along the length of the gate body in a track 50 mounted to the uppermost horizontal member of the gate body. The mechanism by which this is achieved is shown in further detail in Figure 6. As shown, a rod end bearing 54 is provided at the free end of the first limb 48. A pivot bar 56 extends through rod end bearing 54 so as to extend at right angles to limb 48 and such that limb 48 is pivotable about the pivot bar 56. A carriage 60 having first and second wheels 57, 58 for sliding in the track 50 is mounted to the end of pivot bar 56 adjacent the gate body 2 such that the carriage 60 and pivot bar 56 are slidable backwards and forwards in a direction substantially perpendicular to the pivot bar 56. A thread 62 is provided on pivot bar 56 such that the position of rod end bearing 54 on the pivot bar 56 can be adjusted by moving first and second locking nuts 64, 65 positioned on either side of the rod end bearing 54 on the pivot bar 56.

The other end of the L shaped bracket located on the second limb 51 which extends at right angles to the first limb has the first end of a helical spring 52 mounted to it. The other end of the spring 52 is mounted to the uppermost horizontal member of the gate at a point far removed from the gate post (for example, the point could be half way along the length of the gate body). Thus in use, as the gate is moved from the open position to the closed position, the pivotable bracket 46 is rotated by the action of the gate. Thus, the spring 52 will be extended as the bracket 46 is rotated, causing the tensile force exerted by the spring to increase as the gate is closed. Thus by matching the spring to the size and weight of the gate and its height when opened, it is possible to counterbalance the increasing acceleration of the gate.

The relative positions of the gate post, gate, and spring mechanism when the gate is closed and open are - 14 shown in Figures 5A and 5B respectively. As can be seen, the length L of the spring 52 is significantly greater when the gate is closed than when the gate is open. In one preferred embodiment, the length L of the spring is 1664mm when the gate is closed and 1271mm when the gate is open.

It will be appreciated that the embodiments described above are preferred embodiments only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims. - 15 Clams

Claims

1. A gate comprising a gate body, a gate post and first and second hinges

for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening, the first hinge comprising a fixed pivot supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprising: a first arm extending outwardly from the gate posts a pivot supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arms a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot) and a bearing for pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, wherein in use the distance between the gate body and the gate post varies at the level of the second hinge as the gate body is pivoted about the pivot.

2. A gate as claimed in claim 1, wherein the first and second arms extend substantially parallel to eachother when the gate is in the closed position.

3. A gate as claimed in claim 2, wherein a plurality of pivot mounting means are provided on the first arm at axially spaced locations, the pivot being moveable between the said pivot mounting means to change the said first distance between the pivot and the gate post.

4. A gate as claimed in claim 3, wherein the pivot mounting means comprise apertures formed in the first arm.

5. A gate as claimed in any preceding claim wherein a plurality of bearing mounting means are provided on the second arm at axially spaced locations, the bearing - 16 being moveable between the said bearing mounting means to change the said second distance between the pivot and the gate body.

6. A gate as claimed in claim 5, wherein the bearing mounting means comprise apertures formed in the second arm.

7. A gate as claimed in any preceding claim, wherein the pivot comprises a pivot rod and the bearing comprises a rod end bearing.

8. A gate as claimed in claim 5, 6 or 7, when dependent on claim 3, wherein the spacing of the plurality of bearing mounting means corresponds to the spacing of the plurality of pivot mounting means.

9. A gate comprising a gate body, a gate post and first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening, and wherein the second hinge comprises means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate in use.

10. A gate as claimed in claim 9, wherein the first hinge comprises a fixed pivot supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprises: a first arm extending outwardly from the gate post; a pivot supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing for pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, and wherein the means for altering the rate of change of the - 17 angle of the axis of rotation of the gate in use comprise means for altering the first distance and/or the second distance.

11. A gate as claimed in claim 10, wherein the means for altering the first distance comprise a plurality of pivot mounting means provided on the first arm at axially spaced locations, the pivot being moveable between the said pivot mounting means.

12. A gate as claimed in claim 10 or 11, wherein the means for altering the second distance comprise a plurality of bearing mounting means provided on the second arm at axially spaced locations, the bearing being moveable between the said bearing mounting means.

13. A gate as claimed in any preceding claim, further comprising an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being fixed to the gate body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the means for extending the spring are mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts against the acceleration of the gate towards the closed position.

14. A gate comprising: a gate body; a gate post; a hinge for mounting the gate body to the gate post; an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being fixed to the gate body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the means for extending the spring are mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts in the opening direction of the gate. - 18

15. A gate as claimed in claim 13 or 14, wherein the means for extending the spring comprise a bracket, a first end of said bracket being slidably mounted on the gate body and the second end of the bracket being fixed to the second end of the spring, the bracket being pivotably mounted to the gate post.

16. A gate as claimed in claim 15, wherein the bracket is L-shaped, and is pivotably mounted at the corner of the L to a further bracket extending outwardly from the gate post.

17. Apparatus for mounting a gate body to a gate post, the apparatus comprising first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening in use, the first hinge comprising a fixed pivot adapted to be supported adjacent the gate post, and the second hinge comprising: a first arm adapted to extend outwardly from the gate post; a pivot adapted to be supported at a first distance from the gate post on the first arm; a second arm for supporting the gate body at a second distance from the pivot; and a bearing pivotably mounting the second arm on the pivot, wherein in use the distance between the gate body and the gate post varies at the level of the second hinge as the gate body is pivoted about the pivot.

18. Apparatus for mounting a gate body to a gate post, the apparatus comprising first and second hinges for mounting the gate body to the gate post at longitudinally spaced locations on the gate post, wherein the first and second hinges are adapted to move - 19 the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate away from a substantially vertical orientation held when the gate is closed as the gate is opening in use, and wherein the second hinge comprises means for altering the rate of change of the angle of the axis of rotation of the gate in use.

19. Apparatus for holding the body of a gate in an open or partially open position, the apparatus comprising: an extensible spring, a first end of said spring being adapted to be fixed to the body at a point removed from the gate post; and means attached to the second end of the spring for extending the spring as the gate body rotates towards the closed position in use, wherein the means for extending the spring are adapted to be mounted to the gate post such that the force of the spring acts in the opening direction of the gate in use.