IES20100107A2 - A temporary ground cover - Google Patents

Abstract

A cover (1) is provided for coverign uneven ground and holes and trenches during construction work. It incorporates lighting studs (6) formed from light emitting diodes which emit a flashing light to alert pedestrians to their presence. <Figure 1>

Description

Introduction The present invention relates to a temporary ground cover for pedestrian traffic. Such temporary ground covers include trench covers, temporary ramps, and simple covers for uneven ground which would pose a hazard to pedestrians. These temporary covers are generally substantially of planar construction having a relatively flat upper surface often with a slightly depending peripheral edge portion to facilitate transition from the surface on which it is resting to its upper walking-on surface.

One of the major problems encountered by construction companies and contractors carrying out work on footpaths and other areas where there is pedestrian traffic is the need to ensure that the surface presented to the pedestrian is flat and easy to walk on. This is a particular problem when a hole or trench is cut as there is a need to ensure that passers-by do not fall into it. Additionally, where the work being carried out involves a transition between different heights above ground level there is a clear need to ensure that firstly the pedestrian can walk from one area to another and that secondly there is adequate wheelchair access. A further health and safety consideration is where scaffolding, ladders, and machinery are used around a building in that the path taken by the people entering and leaving the building is usually difficult to walk on and in many cases hard to see. This problem has been highlighted by operators of emergency services such as Fire Brigade's were often it is necessary to evacuate a building which is on fire and thus under adverse conditions .

All of these problems are exacerbated when the contractor is not present. When a contractor is present it is possible to ensure that there are adequate barriers preventing people from falling, for example, into a trench, when open. Indeed, when the trench is closed it is possible for the contractor to place a trench cover over the trench while providing adequate visual warnings of the presence of the trench cover. The same obviously applies to simply providing a secure walkway over uneven ground. Unfortunately, when the contractor leaves the site there can -2IE 1001 07 be considerable problems which are exacerbated at night. Indeed no matter how carefully and securely a trench cover or other cover is placed in position over an open hole in the ground or simply uneven ground the contractor cannot combat claims that the covers were not placed in position or were not adequately illuminated. People often trip and fall on the cover because they do not see them until it is too late. The problem of having adequate signage is exacerbated by the increasing incidents of vandalism. Thus for the contractor to ensure that the site is left secure and safe, particularly when the contractor is not present, has become a major problem. This problem is not helped by the increasing tendency to vandalism and to litigation when somebody is injured. Very often when an accident occurs the contractor will have taken what appear to be adequate precautions to secure a cover in position and to provide adequate signage. This is such a problem that in many instances the contractor spends more time replacing aggregate and fill generally in trenches and holes on leaving a site to have the task on returning of removing the temporary in-fill. Equally, the contractor has to spend an inordinate amount of time tidying up the site and smoothing over uneven ground even where a trench is not cut. In many instances, in addition to being relatively expensive, this is impractical and all that can be done is to securely fasten a cover in position and hope that people will not have an accident.

In addition to ensuring such covers are adequately secured in position it is vital to provide adequate warning of the hazard to pedestrians. Further, it is essential in poor visibility to ensure that pedestrians are adequately advised as to the presence of the covers.

The present invention is directed towards providing an improved temporary ground cover with additional visibility and warning of it’s presence to pedestrians.

Statements of Invention According to the invention there is provided a temporary ground cover of the type comprising a planar body having a substantially flat upper walking surface, characterised in that there is provided a warning light in the form of a lighting stud on the walking surface. -3IE 100107 On the face of it, it appears to be relatively unimportant not to say obvious to use lights on a cover however using lights improves their safely aspects immeasurably. It is not just simply a question of having warning lights and indicia in the general area but actually having the ground cover itself illuminated and even more so adequate warning to a pedestrian that he or she is in the vicinity of an area requiring the use of such a ground cover and the need for additional caution. Indeed it is known to mount separate warning lights on and around trenches and other places where it is hazardous to walk on. However, heretofore nobody has incorporated the lights in the cover which has considerable advantages.

In one embodiment of the invention the warning light is a light emitting diode. The advantage of a light emitting diode is that it gives out a relatively large amount of light for relatively little energy consumption.

In another embodiment of the invention the warning light is powered by a solar cell. Using solar power to provide the lighting ensures that there is no need to provide batteries and further by using solar power the lights are effectively almost indefinitely lasting.

Ideally the light is a flashing light. This ensures that before reaching the particular ground cover the pedestrian is aware of its presence. Ideally the flashing rate equals or exceeds two per second. Obviously, having a flashing light is preferable to a light which is permanently on as it further alerts a pedestrian to the situation. It is generally more noticeable and suggests a warning message.

In one embodiment of the invention the planar body is manufactured from a lightpermeable polycarbonate. The advantage of this is that it ensures that the ground cover is adequately illuminated.

In another embodiment the planar body includes a peripheral ledge for securing to the surface on which the cover is placed. Obviously, when a ground cover is placed in position it will project above the ground and therefore it is advantageous to have a smooth transition between it and the surrounding ground on which a -4IE 1 Ο Ο 1 Ο 7 pedestrian is walking. It also facilitates securing to the surface on which it is placed.

In one embodiment of the invention the cover is in the form of a ramp. This can be 5 particularly important when pedestrians are wheeling articles and more particularly where the pedestrian is not strictly speaking a pedestrian as such but is simply a wheelchair operator.

In summary, a major advantage of the invention is that effectively the whole area 10 which is temporarily paved by the covers according to the invention is now illuminated. Further, the particular construction allows the pedestrian to be aware of the presence of the cover prior to reaching it. This is particularly important for the evacuation of buildings in emergency situations.

Detailed Description of the Invention The invention will be more clearly understood by the following description of some embodiments thereof, given by way of example, only with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Fig, 1 is a perspective view of a temporary ground cover according to the invention; Fig. 2 is a part diagrammatic plan view of the cover; Fig. 3 is a plan view of the cover; Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the cover; Fig. 5 is an underneath plan view of the cover of Fig. 1; Fig. 6 is a sectional view of the cover; Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a light stud incorporated in the cover «10 010 7 -5according to the invention; Fig. 8 is a perspective view of an alternative construction of cover according to the invention, Fig. 9 is a part diagrammatic plan view of Fig. 8; Fig. 10 is a plan view of the cover of Fig. 8; Fig. 11 is an underneath plan view of the cover of Fig. 8; Figs. 12 and 13 are sectional views of the cover of Fig. 8; Fig. 14 is a plan view of a ramp-forming cover according to the invention; Fig. 15 is an end elevational view of the cover of Fig. 14; Fig. 16 is an underneath plan view of the cover of Fig. 14; Fig. 17 is a sectional view of the cover of Fig. 14 in the direction of the arrows XVII-XVII in Fig. 16; Fig. 18 is a plan view of another ramp-forming cover; Fig. 19 is an underneath plan view of the cover of Fig. 18; Fig. 20 is a side elevational view of the cover of Fig. 18; Fig. 21 is a plan view of another cover; Fig. 22 is an underneath plan view of the cover of Fig. 21; and Fig. 23 is an end elevational view of the cover of Fig. 21. -6IE 100107 Referring to the drawings and initially to Figs. 1 to 7 thereof, there is illustrated a temporary ground cover according to the invention indicated generally by the reference numeral 1. The cover 1 has a substantially flat upper walking surface 2 which tapers around its periphery to form a fixing ledge 3 in a substantially planar body 5. A plurality of spaced-apart fixing holes 4 are provided in the body 5. Warning lights (see Fig. 7) in the form of lighting studs, indicated generally by the reference numeral 6, incorporating a solar cell and light source namely a light emitting diode LED 7 are mounted in the walking surface 2. The studs 6 are mounted spaced-apart on the body 5 adjacent the peripheral ledge 3.

Referring now in particular to Fig. 2 the trench cover 1 is a solid body incorporating a plurality of indicia 8 on the upper walking surface 2 containing messages from the contractor. As show in Fig. 5 the lower surface of the cover 1 incorporates a plurality of stiffening ribs 9.

The body construction is preferably a super light-permeability polycarbonate and the solar cell in one embodiment can be a mono-crystalline Silicone 2V/50mA incorporating a 2V/33F super capacitor. The light source is ideally a super bright LED yellow light. It has been found that it can operate for 5 to 7 days working in overcast weather after a full charge producing a flashing light at a rate of at least two times per second and is generally visible from 800 m.

Referring now to Fig. 2 there is illustrated by the circles identified by the reference letter B the portions of the cover clearly illuminated by the lighting studs 6, In use, it will be appreciated that the flashing light will be visible from a much greater distance than simply the illuminated portion of the cover. However, it is important for the pedestrian to have the actual walking surface 2 being walked upon suitably illuminated. Simiiarly, the walking surface 2 will be provided with upstanding stalls, ribs, protrusions, pyramid anti-slip grip pattern and the like to provide a non-slip surface and to facifitate walking particularly in the event of debris falling thereon.

Referring now to Figs. 8 to 13 there is illustrated alternative construction of cover indicated generally by the reference numeral 10 in which parts similar to those described with reference to the previous drawings are identified by the same IE 1 Ο Ο 1 Ο 7 -7reference numerals. Essentially this is just a smaller construction of the cover illustrated in the previous drawings. it will be appreciated that the covers 1 and 10 can be used simply to cover uneven ground or open holes and trenches.

Referring now to Figs. 14 to 17 inclusive there is illustrated an alternative construction of cover in the form of a ramp, indicated generally by the reference numeral 20 in which parts similar to those described with reference to previous drawings are identified by the same reference numerals. Referring specifically to Fig. 16 the underneath of the ramp 20 incorporates ground engaging resilient strips 21. This cover 20 allows the transition from one ievel to another level such as for example when a ramp is used adjacent to steps. This can be used for example as a substitute for a ramp which due to some construction work is no longer available for use or just provide a suitable ramp for a wheelchair to allow access from one level to another level on the site. In this case the body 5 has a cranked flange 22 at one end.

Referring now to Figs. 18 to 20 another ramp type cover 30 is shown. Parts similar to those described previously are assigned the same reference numerals. This is largely similar to the cover shown in Fig. 14.

Referring now to Figs. 21 to 23 another cover 40 is shown. Parts similar to those described previously are assigned the same reference numerals.

In this specification the terms comprising and including and any grammatical variations thereof are used interchangeably in this specification and are to be accorded the widest possible interpretation.

The invention is not limited to the embodiments described herein which may be varied in both construction and detail within the scope of the appended claims.

Claims (5)

1. A temporary ground cover of the type comprising a planar body having a substantially flat upper walking surface characterised in that there is provided 5 a warning light the form of a lighting stud on the walking surface and in which the lighting stud provides a flashing light

2. A cover as claimed in claim 1 in which the warning light is a light emitting diode.

3. A cover as claimed in claim 2 in which the warning light is powered by a solar cell.

4. A cover as claimed in claim 2 or 3 in which the flashing rate equals or 15 exceeds two per second.

5. A cover substantially as described herein with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.