GB2525617A

GB2525617A - A guard

Info

Publication number: GB2525617A
Application number: GB1407521.2A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Timothy Stratford; Robert Davidson; David S Mccue; Thomas Ustach
Original assignee: MCCUE INTERNAT Inc
Current assignee: MCCUE INTERNAT Inc
Priority date: 2014-04-29
Filing date: 2014-04-29
Publication date: 2015-11-04
Anticipated expiration: 2034-04-29
Also published as: GB2525617B; GB201407521D0

Abstract

A racking guard 10 has in internal surface with first and second pairs of shoulders 22, 24. The racking guard 10 may be attached to a racking pillar (12, fig.4) using one or more horizontal straps (28, fig.1). The shoulders 22, 24 are for the accommodation of racking pillars (12, fig.4) of alternate cross sectional dimensions. The guard 10 may further feature indents (34, fig.1) to accommodate the straps (28, fig.1).

Description

DESCRIPTION

A GUARD

This invention relates to a guard and to a method of installing the guard.

In many industrial units such as warehouses and the like, large open spaces are filled with goods and shelving systems storing goods. Fork-lift trucks and pallets jacks are used to move goods around the warehouse, particularly when goods are received for storage and then removed for onward distribution. The constant movement of heavy equipment presents dangers for people working in the environment and for fixtures within the warehouse, such as vertical pillars. It is desirable to provide protection for such fixtures from collisions and many different types of guards and barriers are used in such industrial units in order to protect fixtures. However, a significant problem with collision protection elements such as guards is that they tend to be sized for a specific fixture and do not have much flexibility in their deployment in relation to fitting to different sized fixtures.

It is therefore an object of the invention to improve upon the known art.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a guard for protecting a vertical pillar, the guard comprising an elongate flexible body with an internal surface for contacting the vertical pillar and an external surface for facing outwards from the vertical pillar, wherein the internal surface has a horizontal cross-section that includes a first pair of shoulders spaced apart a first distance and a second pair of shoulders spaced apart a second distance.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method of installing a guard for protecting a vertical pillar comprises the steps of receiving a guard comprising an elongate flexible body with an internal surface for contacting the vertical pillar and an external surface for facing outwards from the vertical pillar, wherein the internal surface has a horizontal cross-section that includes a first pair of shoulders spaced apart a first distance and a second pair of shoulders spaced apart a second distance, wrapping the guard around the vertical pillar, and fastening the guard in place.

Owing to the invention, it is possible to provide a guard, which can be used on a vertical pillar, that is flexible enough to fit onto various different sizes of pillar. The guard has an elongate flexible body which has an internal profile that has two different pairs of shoulders that are spaced apart by different amounts. The different pairs of shoulders will fit to different sizes of vertical pillar, when the guard is wrapped around the pillar. The pair of shoulders that are more widely spaced apart will fit onto a relatively larger pillar and the pair of shoulders that are more narrowly spaced apart will fit onto a relatively smaller pillar. This provides a more flexible guard that can be more widely used in protecting different sizes of vertical pillar. It is assumed that the pillar is roughly rectangular in cross-section, but this need not be the case.

Preferably, the guard further comprises one or more horizontal straps for fastening around the vertical pillar. In the ideal configuration, the guard comprises two horizontal straps for fastening around the vertical pillar, with a first strap located above a horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (towards the top of the guard) and a second strap located below the horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (towards the bottom of the guard). The provision of the straps provides the guard with an easy method of fixing the guard in position. Once the guard is located on the vertical pillar, then the straps can be used to tighten around the pillar and the guard, holding the guard in place. In the preferred embodiment, the guard is provided with a plurality of horizontal indents in the external surface of the elongate flexible body, each horizontal indent designed to locate a strap.

Advantageously, the horizontal cross-section of the internal surface has reflectional symmetry and the horizontal cross-section of the internal surface is uniform along the length of the elongate flexible body. The internal surface of the body of the guard is so designed to provide the flexibility to fit the guard to different sizes of vertical pillar. In the preferred embodiment of the guard, the internal surface has a horizontal cross-section that is symmetrical and is the same along the whole of the length of the flexible body of the guard. This ensures that the guard is easy to fit to vertical pillars that are within the size range that can be accommodated within the shoulders of the internal profile of the flexible body.

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Figure 1 is a perspective front view of a guard, Figure 2 is a perspective rear view of the guard, Figure 3 is a horizontal cross-section through the guard, Figure 4 is a perspective front view of the guard in place on a pillar, Figure 5 is a front view of the guard, and Figure 6 is a side view of the guard.

Figure 1 shows a guard 10 suitable for protecting a vertical pillar, the guard 10 comprising an elongate flexible body 14 with an internal surface 16 for contacting the vertical pillar and an external surface 18 for facing outwards from the vertical pillar. The body 14 of the guard 10 is manufactured from a suitable tough but flexible plastics material. The guard 10 is designed to be located at ground level or above, on a vertical pillar, column or girder or the like, in order to protect that vertical element from damage, in the event of a collision. As noted above, the constant movement of goods on fork lift trucks and pallet jacks in an industrial unit tends to lead to regular collisions with stationary fixtures such as pillars and columns.

The guard 10 further comprises one or more horizontal straps 28 for fastening around the vertical pillar. In the preferred embodiment of the guard 10, as shown in this Figure, the guard 10 comprises two horizontal straps 28 for fastening around the vertical pillar 12, with a first strap 28 located above a horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body 14 and a second strap 28 located below the horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body 14. The guard 10 also further comprises a plurality of horizontal indents 34 in the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14, each horizontal indent 34 designed to locate a strap 28. The straps 28 are used to fasten the guard 10 around the vertical pillar.

Figure 2 shows the guard 10 from the rear. The internal surface 16 of the elongate flexible body 14 can be seen in more detail. The internal surface 16 is for contacting the vertical pillar. The horizontal straps 28 can be seen, which will be wrapped round the pillar and the body 14 to secure the guard 10 in position. The straps 28 can be fastened with Velcro, for example. The guard is provided with a plurality of horizontal indents 34 in the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14, each horizontal indent 34 designed to locate a strap 28. This allows the straps 28 to be positioned on the guard 10 in such a manner that they are not proud from the external surface 18.

The guard 10 further comprises a plurality of horizontal ribs 30 located on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14 which are closer to the top of the elongate flexible body 14 than the bottom. The guard 10 also further comprises a plurality of horizontal ribs 32 located on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14 which are closer to the bottom of the elongate flexible body 14 than the top. The upper horizontal ribs 30 and the lower horizontal ribs 32 are symmetrically placed on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14. The ribs 30 and 32 are designed to allow the guard 10 to be easily handled during installation and also to assist in energy dispersion during any subsequent collision.

Figure 3 shows a horizontal cross-section through the guard 10. The internal surface 16 has a horizontal cross-section 20 that includes a first pair of shoulders 22 spaced apart a first distance and a second pair of shoulders 24 spaced apart a second distance. The external surface 18 has a horizontal cross-section 26 that defines a curve. The horizontal cross-section 20 of the internal surface 16 has reflectional symmetry and the horizontal cross-section of the internal surface 16 is uniform along the length of the elongate flexible body 14. The internal cross-section 20 of the flexible elongate body 14 is designed to receive a vertical pillar, with the guard 10 essentially wrapping around the pillar that it is protecting and fastened into place using the straps 28.

The internal profile of the flexible body 14 has two different pairs of shoulders 22 and 24 that are spaced apart by different amounts. The different pairs of shoulders 22 and 24 will fit to different sizes of vertical pillar, when the guard 10 is wrapped around the pillar. The pair of shoulders 22 that are more widely spaced apart will fit onto a relatively larger pillar and the pair of shoulders 24 that are more narrowly spaced apart will fit onto a relatively smaller pillar. This provides a flexible guard 10 that can be more widely used on different sizes of vertical pillar. It is assumed that the pillar is roughly rectangular in cross-section, but this need not be the case as the guard 10 is sufficiently flexible to wrap around other shapes of vertical structure.

Figure 4 shows the guard 10 after having been fitted to a vertical pillar 12. The fitting of the guard 10 to the pillar 12 is a three step process, with a first step comprises receiving the guard 10, the second step comprises wrapping the guard 10 around the vertical pillar 12, and the third step comprises fastening the guard 10 in place. In the preferred embodiment, the guard 10 comprises the two horizontal straps 28, which has used to fasten the guard 10 in place, tightening the guard 10 around the pillar 12. The guard 10 can be positioned at floor level on the vertical pillar 12 or can be placed higher up, as in the example of Figure 4. The guard 10 can be released and moved, if needed.

The flexible material from which the body 14 of the guard 10 is made combined with the internal profile of the body 14 give the guard 10 the flexibility to fit to different sizes and shapes of vertical column. The two different pairs of shoulders 22 and 24, within the internal surface 16, provide for engagement of the guard 10 with different sized vertical pillars and the flexibility of the body 14 means that it is able to be stretched outwards or pressed inwards to closely model the profile of the vertical element to which it is being fixed. Once the guard 10 is in position it will protect the pillar 12 from collision damage, as energy from any collision will be dispersed by the plastics material of the flexible body 14 of the guard 10.

Figures 5 and 6 show respectively a front view and a side view of the guard 10, with the straps 28 removed. The flexible body 14 can be seen, which is symmetrical around the horizontal mid line of the body 14. The plurality of horizontal ribs 30 located on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14 closer to the top of the elongate flexible body 14 than the bottom and the plurality of horizontal ribs 32 located on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14 closer to the bottom of the elongate flexible body 14 than the top can be seen. The upper horizontal ribs 30 and the lower horizontal ribs 32 are symmetrically placed on the external surface 18 of the elongate flexible body 14.

Claims

CLAIMS1. A guard (10) for protecting a vertical pillar (12), the guard (10) comprising an elongate flexible body (14) with an internal surface (16) for contacting the vertical pillar (12) and an external surface (18) for facing outwards from the vertical pillar (12), wherein the internal surface (16) has a horizontal cross-section (20) that includes a first pair of shoulders (22) spaced apart a first distance and a second pair of shoulders (24) spaced apart a second distance.
2. A guard according to claim 1, wherein the external surface (18) has a horizontal cross-section (26) that defines a curve.
3. A guard according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the horizontal cross-section (20) of the internal surface (16) has reflectional symmetry.
4. A guard according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the horizontal cross-section (20) of the internal surface (16) is uniform along the length of the elongate flexible body (14).
5. A guard according to any preceding claim, and further comprising one or more horizontal straps (28) for fastening around the vertical pillar (12).
6. A guard according to claim 5, and comprising two horizontal straps (28) for fastening around the vertical pillar (12), with a first strap (28) located above a horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (14) and a second strap (28) located below the horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (14).
7. A guard according to claim 5 or 6, and further comprising a plurality of horizontal indents (34) in the external surface (18) of the elongate flexible body (14), each horizontal indent (34) designed to locate a strap (28).
8. A guard according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a plurality of horizontal ribs (30) located on the external surface (18) of the elongate flexible body (14) closer to the top of the elongate flexible body (14) than the bottom.
9. A guard according to any preceding claim, and further comprising a plurality of horizontal ribs (32) located on the external surface (18) of the elongate flexible body (14) closer to the bottom of the elongate flexible body (14) than the top.
10. A guard according to claim 8 and 9, wherein the upper horizontal ribs (30) and the lower horizontal ribs (32) are symmetrically placed on the external surface (18) of the elongate flexible body (14).
11. A method of installing a guard (10) for protecting a vertical pillar (12) comprises the steps of: receiving a guard (10) comprising an elongate flexible body (14) with an internal surface (16) for contacting the vertical pillar (12) and an external surface (18) for facing outwards from the vertical pillar (12), wherein the internal surface (16) has a horizontal cross-section (20) that includes a first pair of shoulders (22) spaced apart a first distance and a second pair of shoulders (24) spaced apart a second distance, * wrapping the guard (10) around the vertical pillar (12), and * fastening the guard (10) in place.
12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the guard (10) further comprises one or more horizontal straps (28) for fastening around the vertical pillar (12).
13. A method according to claim 12, wherein the guard (10) comprises two horizontal straps (28) for fastening around the vertical pillar (12), with a first strap (28) located above a horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (14) and a second strap (28) located below the horizontal centre line of the elongate flexible body (14).
14. A method according to claim 11 or 12, wherein the guard (10) further comprises a plurality of horizontal indents (34) in the external surface (18) of the elongate flexible body (14), each horizontal indent (34) designed to locate a strap (28).