GB2555756A

GB2555756A - Base for a fence assembly

Info

Publication number: GB2555756A
Application number: GB1800125.5A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Wells Russell; James Wells Anthony
Original assignee: Cld Fencing Systems LLP
Current assignee: Cld Fencing Systems LLP
Priority date: 2016-05-05
Filing date: 2016-05-05
Publication date: 2018-05-09
Anticipated expiration: 2036-05-05
Also published as: GB201800125D0; GB2555756B

Abstract

A fence base comprises a post holder which supports a post or an upright of a fence panel in a substantially vertical position. The fence base is arranged to receive ballast into a volume defining body 5 and has post engaging means 7 which engage the post and may allow for angular adjustment in one or more dimension. A locating formation 8 may be provided adjacent the bottom of the base to engage an end of a fence post. The location formation may have a curved edge portion. The base may have apertures 9 for receiving the forks of a forklift truck, the base may be tapered outwardly from a bottom surface and may be stackable with a like base. The ballast may be water, sand, concrete, aggregate or some combination.

Description

(54) Title of the Invention: Base for a fence assembly

Abstract Title: Ballasted fence base for angular adjustment (57) A fence base comprises a post holder which supports a post or an upright of a fence panel in a substantially vertical position. The fence base is arranged to receive ballast into a volume defining body 5 and has post engaging means 7 which engage the post and may allow for angular adjustment in one or more dimension. A locating formation 8 may be provided adjacent the bottom of the base to engage an end of a fence post. The location formation may have a curved edge portion. The base may have apertures 9 for receiving the forks of a forklift truck, the base may be tapered outwardly from a bottom surface and may be stackable with a like base. The ballast may be water, sand, concrete, aggregate or some combination.

At least one drawing originally filed was informal and the print reproduced here is taken from a later filed formal copy.

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FIG.5

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FIG.13

Base for a fence assembly

The present invention relates to a base for a fence assembly, a fence assembly including the base and a method of constructing a fence assembly.

Temporary fences can be formed from a series of mesh metal panels. The mesh panels are provided with posts at either end of the panel. These posts are inserted into holes on moveable bases which are positioned at either end of each fence panel. The bases then support the fence in a generally upright position. These types of fence are suitable for some temporary applications, however they are easily moved and are therefore not particularly secure. Furthermore, these fences are not particularly suitable for uneven ground because the lie of the ground will determine the orientation of the hole on the base (into which the fence post is inserted). If the ground undulates over the length of the fence, the fence panels may not align properly. This can lead to a lack of security or stability.

For more permanent applications, the posts of a fence panel may be driven into the ground, or set into a block of concrete. However, fences of this construction are not easy to move and are not suitable for applications where the floor on which the fence is situated cannot be damaged.

It is amongst the objects of the invention to provide solutions to these problems.

In a first aspect, the invention provides a base for a fence assembly, comprising a lower surface for supporting the base upon a floor surface and a body which defines a volume into which ballast may be loaded.

Preferably the base also comprises an engaging means, which is engageable with a fence post or fence panel so that, when engaged, the fence post or fence panel is upstanding relative to the floor. The engaging means may be a rigid bracket.

The volume is adapted to accommodate ballast. This allows the base to be transported to a desired location with an empty volume, to avoid the need to also transport ballast material with the base. The volume can then be filled when the base is in the desired location. The volume is adapted to hold ballast within the volume. In some embodiments this may be achieved by providing a volume with a floor and an upstanding sidewall or sidewalls. The volume may be an enclosed volume having a reclosable closure to prevent ballast from leaving the volume once loaded. This is particularly useful for embodiments in which water is to be used as ballast. The volume may be defined by sidewalls of the body and have a completely open upper end. The body of the base may be formed from a moulded plastic or metal material.

The engaging means may be adjustable so that, when a fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means, the angle of the fence post or fence panel with respect to the floor may be adjusted in at least one plane. This enables the base to be situated upon a sloped floor, yet still allow the fence post or fence panel to extend substantially vertically.

The engaging means may be adjustable so that, when a fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means, the angle of the fence post or fence panel with respect to the floor may be adjusted in at least two planes. This provides a further degree of freedom for adjustment of the fence post or fence panel.

The engaging means may be removably engageable with the body. This enables the engaging means to be manufactured separately from the body and allows for easy replacement of the engaging means. It also facilitates easy stacking of the body of the base once the engaging means has been removed.

The volume may be provided with an open mouth through which ballast may be loaded. This is particularly useful for loading a solid ballast into the volume, for example sand or aggregate.

The volume may be between 0.01 and 0.5 m³, preferably between 0.05 and 0.4 m³and preferably between 0.1 m³and 0.3 m³. This provides a base having a manageable weight once loaded with ballast, whilst providing enough weight for the fence to be secure and invulnerable to wind loading.

The body may be provided with a locating feature which is adapted to cooperate with an end of a fence post or fence panel when the fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means. The locating feature may prevent a lower end of the fence post or fence panel from moving when the fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means and cooperating with the locating feature. This provides stability to a fence post or fence panel engaged with the engaging means. More than one locating feature and more than one engaging means may be provided so that more than one fence post or fence panel may be attached to each base. The locating features and/or engaging means may be situated on different sides of the body. The body may have four or more sidewalls.

The locating feature may be a protrusion located adjacent to the lower surface of the base. The protrusion may have a generally square cross section when viewed from above. This is particularly useful when the base is to be used with a fence post which is hollow and has a square internal cross section. The locating feature may also be a recess formed in the body.

The protrusion may have at least one rounded upper edge. Equally, when the locating feature is a recess, the contours of the recess may be rounded. The rounded edge or contours allow the angle of a fence post cooperating with the locating feature to be varied without the fence post gripping the locating feature and thereby hindering its movement.

The volume may be tapered so that the cross sectional area of the volume increases with height above the lower surface. The taper may be continuous or stepped. The taper enables the easy removal of solid ballast when a fence assembly comprising the base is being dismantled.

The body may be provided with at least one recess for accommodating the forks of a forklift truck. This enables easy movement of the base, even when the volume is filled with ballast.

An upper portion of the body may be adapted to cooperate with a lower portion of the body of a second identical base so that more than one base may be stacked, one on top of the other. This enables easy storage of multiple bases and reduces the size of a number of bases. This therefore reduces the cost to transport a number of bases. The body of the base may be provided with hollow sidewalls and/or a taper to facilitate stacking of the bases.

In a second aspect of the invention there is provided a fence assembly comprising a base as described herein and a fence post or fence panel which is engaged with the engaging means of the base.

The fence panel may comprise a mesh. A ballast selected from the group of water, sand, concrete, aggregate, soil and a combination thereof may be present in the volume of the base.

In a third aspect of the invention there is provided a method of constructing a fence assembly comprising the steps of; providing a base as described herein, loading ballast into the volume of the base, and engaging a fence post, or a fence panel, with the engaging means of the base. The steps of the method need not be in the order presented above. For example, the ballast may be loaded after the fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the figures of the drawings in which;

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a moulded tub for use in a base according to the invention.

Figures 2, 3, 4 and 6 show plan, front, side and back views of the tub shown in figure 1.

Figure 5 is a cross sectional view taken along the line AA in figure 3.

Figure 7 is a cross sectional view taken along the line BB in figure 4.

Figure 8 is a cross sectional view of two of the tubs shown in figure 1 stacked on top of one another, taken along a line similar to the line AA in figure 3.

Figure 9 is a detail view of the cut-out (7) shown in figures 1 and 3.

Figure 10 is a cross sectional view of an upper portion of the sidewall (4j shown in figure 5.

Figure 11 shows a bracket for use in the present invention.

Figure 12 shows a plan view of the bracket shown in figure 11.

Figure 13 shows a fence assembly in accordance with the invention.

Figure 1 shows a moulded plastic tub (1). The tub has a bottom surface (2) for resting upon a floor surface. The tub is provided with a flange (3) around its lower edge to provide stability to the tub when resting upon a floor surface. Four sidewalls (4) are upstanding from the flange and define a generally cuboid volume (5) inside the tub. The upper edges (6) of the sidewalls form a square mouth to the volume.

One of the side walls (4j is provided with a cut-out (7), which is shown in more detail in figures 9 and 10. The cut-out is located near to the centre of the upper edge of the sidewall. The cut-out (7) allows for the removable attachment of a bracket (not shown) for holding a fence post (not shown). A bracket suitable for attachment to the tub (1) is shown in figures 11 and 12.

The flange (3) extends around the bottom edges of the sidewalls (4) and extends horizontally from the bottom of three of the sidewalls (4) for a first distance. The flange (3) extends from the bottom of the fourth sidewall (4 j by a distance greater than the first distance. That is, the flange is wider adjacent to the bottom of sidewall (4j than it is adjacent to the sidewalls (4). A protrusion (8) with a square cross section extends upwardly from the flange (3) adjacent to the bottom of the sidewall (4j. The protrusion is situated generally below the cut-out (7). The upper edges of the protrusion are rounded.

Two openings (9) are provided in the tub where the sidewall (4 j meets the flange (3). These openings lead to slots which extend parallel to each other to the opposite side of the tub where they form two corresponding openings. The openings (9) are spaced apart so as to receive the prongs of a forklift truck. The cross sectional profile of the slots is shown in figures 2, 5, 7 and 8.

Figure 2 shows a plan view of the tub (1) shown in figure 1. The flange (3), the sidewalls (4) and upper edges (6) of the sidewalls can be seen clearly. The upper edges of the sidewalls are rounded. The square cross section of the volume (5) can also be seen clearly. The interior of the volume is defined by the inner faces (10) of the side walls (4, 4j. The inner faces of the sidewalls (4, 4j taper inwardly at a constant angle so that the cross sectional area of the base (11) of the volume is smaller than the cross sectional area of the volume near to the upper edges (6) of the sidewalls.

The openings (9) described in figure 1 are shown on the flange (3), as are the openings (9j on the opposite side of the tub. The openings (9, 9 j mean that the tub may be picked up by a forklift truck from either side of the tub. The base of the volume (5) is not completely flat. The slots for accommodating the forklift prongs are covered by raised portions (12) of the base of the volume and extend across the base of the volume between the openings (9, 9 j. The middle portion of the base (11) is therefore closer to the bottom surface (2) of the tub than the two raised portions (12). The corners where the sidewalls meet are rounded.

Figure 3 shows a front view of the sidewall (4j, the openings (9) and the cut-out (7). Figure 4 shows a side view of the tub. The rounded protrusion (8) and the openings (9, 9j are shown.

Figure 5 shows a cross sectional view of the tub. The sidewalls (4, 4 j are hollow.

That is, the sidewalls (4, 4j and the corresponding inner faces (10) of the volume (5) are formed on separate walls of the tub. The inner faces (10) of the volume (5) form an angle of 94° with the bottom surface (2) of the tub. The sidewalls (4, 4j form an angle of 93° with the flange (3). A raised portion (12) of the base (11) of the volume is shown. The protrusion (8) is hollow.

Figure 6 shows a back view of the tub (1). The bottom surface (2) and the openings (9’) for receiving the forklift prongs are shown. Figure 7 is a cross sectional view taken on the line BB in figure 4. The slots which are connected to the openings (9) are shown, along with the lower portion (11) of the base of the volume (5) and the raised portions (12) of the base.

Figure 8 shows the first tub (1) stacked with a second, identical tub (13). The upper edges (6) and upper portions of the sidewalls (4, 4j are adapted to fit into the space between the sidewalls (4”, 4”) and the inner faces (10’) of the second tub (13).

Figures 9 and 10 show front and cross sectional views of the cut-out (7) shown in figures 1,2, 3, 5 and 7. The cut-out (7) is formed in the sidewall (4 j and provides access to the space between the sidewall (4j and the inner face (10) of the volume (5).

Figures 11 and 12 show a bracket (20) which is intended to be attached to the tub (1). The bracket comprises a key member (21) which is a rigid elongate piece of metal with a U shaped cross section. The key member is attached by a mounting block (23) to a plate (22) so that the key member (21) cannot be rotated relative to the plate (22). The plate (22) is attached to a first U shaped portion (24) with an adjustable nut and bolt (25). The first U shaped portion (24) is connected to a second U shaped portion (26) by a second adjustable nut and bolt (27). The bolt (27) passes through parallel slots (28) on the arms of the first U shaped portion (24) and through corresponding holes (29) on the arms of the second U shaped portion (26).

In order to connect the bracket (20) to the tub (1), the key member (21) is inserted into the longitudinal cut-out (7) on the sidewall (4j of the tub (1). The bracket (20) is then rotated through 90° in order to lock the bracket into the cut-out (7). That is, once the longitudinal axis of the key member (21) is perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the cut-out (7) the bracket cannot be removed from the tub (1) simply using a pulling motion; a twisting motion is required to remove the bracket.

Once the bracket (20) is connected to the tub (1), a fence post (not shown) may be inserted through the space (30) between the second U shaped portion (26) and bolt (27). Preferably the fence post is a hollow tube with a square cross section. A lower end of the fence post is fed downwardly through the space (30) until it fits over the protrusion (8) on the tub (1). The plate (22) is provided with upper (31) and lower (32) flanges which face generally towards the key member (21). The flanges (31,32) abut the inside face of the sidewall (4 j when the bracket is connected with the tub. They thereby brace the bracket against the sidewall (4 j and aid the even distribution of the weight of a fence post/fence panel which is supported by the bracket (20).

If the tub is situated on a sloping floor the fence post will not initially extend vertically upwards. A user can then loosen the bolts (27, 25) and adjust the two U shaped portions (24, 26) until the fence post stands vertically. The bolts (27, 25) may then be tightened to firmly hold the fence post vertically. The second U shaped portion (26) may be adjusted by moving the nut and bolt (27) along the slots (28). This ensures that the fence post may be tilted towards and away from the tub (1). Once the nut (25) has been loosened, the first U shaped portion (24) may be rotated about an axis defined by the bolt (25). This allows the fence post to be leaned side to side with respect to the tub (1). The bracket arrangement therefore provides two degrees of freedom for adjusting the fence post. The two degrees of freedom are shown schematically in figure 13. Figure 13 shows a fence assembly comprising a tub (1), a bracket (20) and a fence post (40). The bracket and tub are shown schematically, but are identical to the tub and bracket in the other figures. A fence panel (not shown) may be attached to the fence post (40). The two degrees of freedom (C and D) over which the bracket may be adjusted are shown.

In use the tub (1) is placed upon the ground in a desired location with the bracket (20) fitted into (and secured in) the cut-out (7). A series of tubs with brackets are placed in a row where the fence is to be constructed. The volume (5) of each tub is then at least partially filled with a ballast material. The ballast may be any suitable solid or liquid, for example sand, rubble, aggregate, soil or water. A fence post or a fence panel is then fitted to the bracket of each tub. The bracket on each tub can then be independently adjusted (depending on the slope of the floor on which that specific tub is placed) to ensure that the fence post or fence panel engaged with each bracket adopts the desired orientation.

When a user wants to remove or move the fence, they can simply disconnect the fence post or fence panel from the bracket (20) and tip the ballast material out of the volume (5). The brackets can be removed from the tubs and the tubs can then be stacked and transported with the brackets.

The independent adjustability of the bracket on each tub avoids the non-alignment (and resulting security and stability) problems associated with the prior art, whilst also providing a fencing system which can be easily moved and transported.

Claims

1. A base for a fence assembly, comprising:

a lower surface for supporting the base upon a floor surface, a body which defines a volume into which ballast may be loaded, and an engaging means, which is engageable with a fence post or fence panel so that, when engaged, the fence post or fence panel is upstanding relative to the floor.

2. A base according to claim 1 wherein the engaging means is adjustable so that, when a fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means, the angle of the fence post or fence panel with respect to the floor may be adjusted in at least one plane.

3. A base according to claim 2 wherein the engaging means is adjustable so that, when a fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means, the angle of the fence post or fence panel with respect to the floor may be adjusted in at least two planes.

4. A base according to any preceding claim wherein the engaging means is removably engageable with the body.

5. A base according to claim 1 wherein the volume is provided with an open mouth through which ballast may be loaded.

6. A base according to any preceding claim wherein the volume is between 0.01 and 0.5 m3 and preferably between 0.1 m3and 0.3 m3.

7. A base according to any preceding claim wherein the body is provided with a locating feature which is adapted to cooperate with an end of a fence post or fence panel when the fence post or fence panel is engaged with the engaging means.

8. A base according to claim 7 wherein the locating feature is a protrusion located adjacent to the lower surface of the base.

9. A base according to claim 8 wherein the protrusion has at least one rounded upper edge.

10. A base according to any preceding claim wherein the volume is tapered so that the cross sectional area of the volume increases with height above the lower surface.

11. A base according to any preceding claim, wherein the body is provided with at least one recess for accommodating the forks of a forklift truck.

12. A base according to any preceding claim wherein an upper portion of the body is adapted to cooperate with a lower portion of the body of a second identical base so that more than one base may be stacked, one on top of the other.

13. A fence assembly comprising a base according to any of claims 1 to 12, and a fence post or fence panel which is engaged with the engaging means of the base.

14. A fence assembly according to claim 13 wherein the fence panel comprises a mesh.

15. A fence assembly according to either of claims 13 or 14 wherein a ballast selected from the group of water, sand, concrete, aggregate and a combination thereof is present in the volume of the base.

16. A method of constructing a fence assembly comprising the steps of:

providing a base according to any of claims 1 to 12, loading ballast into the volume of the base, and engaging a fence post, or a fence panel, with the engaging means of the base.

17. A base or fence assembly as described herein, with reference to figures 1 -13.

18. A method of constructing a fence assembly as described herein with reference to figures 1-13.

Intellectual

Property

Office

Application No: GB1800125.5 Examiner: Eleanor Wade