GB2444261A - Attachment device for safety equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

An attachment device to attach a piece of safety equipment to a tool or other piece of machinery. The attachment device comprises a releasable retention portion 4a/b 24 for attachment to the safety equipment and an engagable portion 10 12/22 for attachment to the tool or machinery. The first portion may be a clip 24 or comprise a pocket 4a/b for holding the safety equipment. Two specific embodiments are disclosed for the retention of a pair of goggles in a case and a clip for attaching a pair of gloves to a tool.

Description

A TOOL SAFElY ACCESSORY The technical field of this invention relates

to safety accessories and protective wear for use with tools and power tools.

It is common for users of tools or power tools either to ignore or to forget the importance of using safety accessories, such as gloves, glasses, goggles, footwear or other or similar protective clothing or protective outerwear when using the tool.

There are several reasons for this neglect. It is believed two main reasons for such neglect are firstly the belief that the user knows very well how to safely operate the tool in question and, hence, protective wear or a safety accessory or item is simply superfluous. Or, secondly, they do not readily have to hand a suitable safety accessory or protective device when they wish to use the tool.

For example, if the user wishes to prune branches from a tree using a chainsaw, then both gloves and safety goggles (at a minimum) are recommended.

However, unless the gloves and goggles are readily to hand, it is all too tempting-and hospital accident admission figures appear to bear this out-to simply use the chainsaw without the goggles or the gloves.

This situation is exacerbated by the fact that, at point-of-sale of the tool, the safety accessory or protective item is not usually part of the purchase and so separate purchase thereof may be necessary. This inertia is not frequently overcome by the tool purchaser.

It is, therefore, believe that a means by which a tool safety accessory or : ,*. 25 protective item can be readily stored with or on the tool itself will provide a real boon *...

to the tool user and encourage a safer use of the tool. Furthermore, as the safety S...

accessory or protective item can be semi-permanently (or even permanently) * * . attached to the tool, the propensity for the user to operate the tool without the safety device or protective item itself is greatly reduced. Such a proposal has not hitherto been known. S.. * . * SS 55 * . I * I

Furthermore the possibility then exists of being able to provide a single sale item to a prospective purchaser which comprises the tool they require in combination with at least one relevant safety device or protective item. For example, a saw could be sold with a pair of safety glasses or goggles combined therewith into a single purchase item.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, therefore, there is provided a tool accessory comprising: a first portion for the releasable retention of a safety device, which safety device is to be used with a tool during operation thereof; a second portion secured to the first portion of the tool safety accessory and which second portion is engageable with a tool thereby to secure the tool safety accessory to the tool. By providing not only a means for retaining a safety accessory or a protective item thereon, in or within, but also with a way of securing the retention means to the tool with which the safety accessory or protective item is to be used, then a user is provided with the means for using the tools safely every time the tools is used, as there is means for keeping the tools with its relevant safety accessory or protective item. The tool and the safety accessory or protective item need not ever be separated when not being used.

Preferably the second portion is releasably engageable with the tool. This permits temporary removal of the first portion from the tool, or even permits replacing of the tool accessory on another pert of the tool itself when, for example, the tool is being stored between uses.

The first portion may comprise a clip member for the attachment of a safety device thereto. Alternatively the first portion comprises a pocket for the retention of a : *. safety device therein. These provide alternative forms of safety device or protective S...

* . ,* item storage or securing to the tool. S...

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided, in combination: a tool and a tool safety accessory comprising; a first portion for the releasable retention of a safety device, which safety device is to be used with a tool during operation thereof; *5 S. * * S

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a second portion secured to the first portion of the tool safety accessory and which second portion is engageable with a tool thereby to secure the tool safety accessory to the tool.

The tool may be a power tool or a hand tool.

The present invention will now be described, by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which: Figures la-id show, respectively a plan view from above, a side view, an open perspective view from the front and a rear perspective view of a safety device for use with a tool; Figures 2a-2d show, respectively a front perspective view, a side view, a plan view from above and a side view with gloves attached, of an alternative safety device to that of Figure 1, again for use with a tool Figure 3 shows a schematic view of a tool and a safety accessory device; Figure 4 shows a schematic view of another tool and a safety accessory device; Figure 5 shows a schematic view of another tool and a safety accessory device, and; Figure 6 shows a schematic view of another tool and a safety accessory device.

Referring firstly to Figures la-Id it can be seen that the safety accessory in this example comprises a first portion, here a case 2 for the retention of safety spectades, glasses or goggles. However, it must be remembered that this is only an example of one type of first portion of a safety accessory shown for example only and many other types are within the scope of the present invention. For example the S..

safety accessory or protective device held within the case could be a pair of gloves, boots, protective clothing or any other item which is designed to offer some form of safety or protection to a tool user.

* The case 2 shown in Figures la-id comprises two cover members 4a and 4b hinged together at hinges 6a and 6b. This hinging permits pivotal movement between the top cover member 4a and the lower cover member 4b. This is itself achieved by a user of the case 2 firstly unlocking the cover member's lock 8. The lock 8 is provided between the two cover members 4a and 4b to be able to lock them in engagement with each other, thereby to ensure that, on closing of the top cover member 4a so that it abuts the lower cover member 4b, it is impossible for the two cover members 4a, 4b to become accidentally separated (that is, opened about their hinges 6a, 6b).

There is required a positive action by the user to unlock the lock 8 of the case 2 in order to permit subsequent pivoting of the top cover member 4a relative to the bottom cover member 4b.

Formed on those surfaces of the two cover members 4a and 4b which join each other via the hinges 6a and 6b is a second portion of the safety accessory, in this example, two snap-fit clips 10. The purpose of the clips 10 is to permit the case 2 to be engageable with a tool, as will be described below in greater detail. By permitting the case 2 to be secured to a tool, a user of the tool is then able to store with the tool the correct safety device or protective item designed for use with that particular tool. For example, a pair of safety goggles may be kept in the case 2 which can the itself be secured to a chainsaw (not shown) via the clips 10 either at he point of purchase of the chainsaw, or else by the user themselves at their own home following the purchase of the chainsaw. This provides a significant safety benefit to the user of the tool, as they no longer need to either make a separate purchase of safety goggles, or else they no longer need to use the tool dangerously with no correct safety goggles, as could be the case previously without the ability to secure the goggles to the tool.

In this example, the clips 10 are formed from flexible plastics material which is of sufficient strength to be able to securely attach to, for example, a power cord of a : ** tool, yet be sufficiently flexible to permit the snap-fit coupling thereof to the cord by the user. Advantageously the clips 10 can be detached from the power cord and re-used. It is believed that a person skilled in the art will have no trouble identifying plastics suitable to be used as the clips 10 and so no further elaboration as to their chemical make-up will be given herein.

The safety device or protective item illustrated in Figure ic is that of a pair of safety glasses 9.

Referring now to Figures 2a-2d there is shown an alternative tool safety accessory to that of Figures la-id. It can be seen that this alternative safety accessory comprises, as with the safety accessory shown in Figures ia-id, a first portion, here a spring-biased clip (shown generally as 11) comprising first 12 and second 14 arms held in a pivoting relationship to one another via spring 16. The spring 16 provides the biasing force to bias the arms 12, 14 toward each other such that their rest state is to be closed, as per Figure 2b.

The clip 11 further comprises a second portion, here a leaf spring-biased retainer, shown generally as 18 at Figure 2c. The retainer 18 is composed of two, relatively long, flanking arms 20, 22 and a central, relatively shorter arm, 24. It will be understood that the view of Figure 2a does not show the arms 20 or 22 only because the biased arm 12 is overlying them. If the arm 12 were raised (that is, pivoted about the spring 16) out of contact with the arm 14 (as per the view of Figure 2c), then the arms 20, 22 would be visible.

The arms 20 and 22 of the retainer 18 extend in a direction broadly parallel to the extent of the arm 24. This is achieved by the central arm 24 itself being a leaf spring, thereby being urged into its straightened position as most easily seen from Figure 2b. However, as the arm 24 is a leaf spring, it is able to resiliently deform in order to retain a safety device or protective item between itself and the other arms 20, 22. This is shown at Figure 2d, where a tool, here pair of gloves 26, is held by engagement between the deformed arm 24 and the pair of arms 20, 22. In order to assist with retention of the gloves 26, each of the arms 20 and 22 carries at its distal end from the spring 16 a respective pad 28, 30 (in Figure2a, the pads 28 and 30 are on the obverse side, but are labelled to illustrate where they are located). Each pad *...

28, 30 carries a serrated surface in order to provide enhanced grip. A corresponding serrated pad 32 is formed on the facing surface of the arm 24.

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In order to retain the clip 11 on a tool the user pivots the arms 12 away from the arms 14 and then places whichever part of the tool the clip is desired to be retained e to between the arms 12 and 14. The arms 14 are then released and the spring 16 *SS* tension then urges the arms 12, 14 toward each other and the clip is thus held onto the tool. To aid retention, recesses 34, 36 are provided in the respective arms 12 and so that, for example, the clip 11 may be retained on a power cord, or the like, of the toot.

In order to release the clip 11 from the tool to which it has been attached, the user simply pivots the arms 12 away from the arms 14 and removes the clip 11. It is within the scope of the present invention, however, for the clip 11 to be permanently retained to the tool. This is achieved by simply allowing the arms 12 to be locked in their closed (i.e. as shown in Figures 2b or 2d) position once the clip has been secured to the tool. Although it is preferable for utility that the clip 11 (and, also, the case 2 of Figures la-id) is releasably secured to the tool, this is not essential.

It will be understood that, in contrast with the case 2 of Figures la-id, the clip 11 of Figures 2a-2d retains the safety device or protective item thereto in a different manner. The case 2 is arranged to encapsulate within a pocket (formed from the bottom cover member 4b) the enclosed safety device, whereas the clip 11 is arranged to clip the safety device (gloves in this example) thereto. In either case, the purpose is to retain the safety device or protective item on, to or within the safety accessory until it is needed by a user.

Referring now also to Figures 3-6, there are shown several different tools with and to which the safety devices of Figures 1 and 2 can be engaged (either permanently or removably).

Figure 3 shows a power tool, here a router 38. The router 38 has a mains power cable 40 for supplying electricity to power the motor (not shown) thereof, in : e* known manner. It is to the power cable 40 that the case 2 of Figure 2 is engaged. It is within the scope of the present invention for the case 2 to be engaged to the router S... . . 38 at the point of manufacture. As it is usual for a power tool such as router 38 to be *.... 30 packaged into a box for sate, then the case 2 could be an integral part of the tool purchase by a user when they buy the router 38 in a shop, for example. This possibility provides the advantage of the user not only purchasing the power tool they need fora specific job, but acquiring, at the same time, a dedicated safety accessory, or protective item (such as goggles, or gloves). This means that the user the n does not need to make a separate purchase of the safety accessory or protective device.

Furthermore, the invention provides for the safety accessory or protective device being engaged (either permanently or releasably) from the router 38 when purchased. This means that the user then always has the correct safety device or protective item for use with the router readily to hand each time the router 38 is to be used.

Figure 4 shows another power tool, here circular saw 42. In this example, the clip 11 is secured to the bail arm 44 of the saw 42. Like the example of Figure 3, therefore, the user may purchase the gloves 26 at the same time with the saw 42.

The clip 11 may be left engaged to the saw 42 when the saw 42 is not being used.

The user then always has a pair of protective gloves attached to and useable with the saw 42 when needed.

Figures 5, 8 and 7 show yet alternative examples of power tools, respectively a hedge trimmer 46, a powered saw 50 and string trimmer 54. As with the examples of Figures 3 and 4 there are shown examples of how the case 2, clip 11 or both may be engaged to the relevant power tool.

It will be appreciated by these skilled in the art that whilst power tools have been illustrated in the examples shown, the invention is of equal application to other types of tool, such as hand tools.

Furthermore, it will be understood that whilst one aspect of the present invention related to the safety accessory, per Se, an further aspect the present invention related to the combination of the safety accessory and a tool. This * .. combination provides significant advantages, as set out above. S... * S *0S.

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Claims (9)

1. A tool safety accessory comprising: a first portion for the releasable retention of a safety device, which safety device is to be used with a tool during operation thereof; a second portion secured to the first portion of the tool safety accessory and which second portion is engageable with a tool thereby to secure the tool safety accessory to the tool.

2. A tool safety accessory according to claim 1 wherein the second portion is releasably engageable with the tool.

3. A tool safety accessory according to claim br claim 2 wherein the first portion comprises a clip member for the attachment of a safety device thereto.

4. A tool safety accessory according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the first portion comprises a pocket for the retention of a safety device therein.

5. A tool safety accessory according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the first portion and the second portion are integrally formed on or of the safety accessory.

6. A tool safety accessory according to claim 3 wherein the clip member is resiliently deformable in order to be able to retain the safety device thereto.

7. In combination: a tool and a tool safety accessory according to any one of the * ** preceding claims. * * * **SS * *

8. A tool safety device substantially as herein before described and with * : * reference to the accompanying drawings. *

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9. In combination: a tool and a tool safety accessory substantially as herein * before described and with reference to the accompanying drawings. *I.. ** ** * * I * S