NZ535807A

NZ535807A - A safety attachment for a ladder

Info

Publication number: NZ535807A
Application number: NZ53580704A
Authority: NZ
Inventors: James A Calderwood
Original assignee: James A Calderwood
Priority date: 2003-10-08
Filing date: 2004-10-07
Publication date: 2005-06-24

Abstract

A safety attachment (10) for use in association with a ladder (12) to be supported adjacent a surface, the safety attachment including: a pair of arms whereby each arm includes a generally straight segment (38) attached at a pre-determined height to a corresponding side rail of the ladder, and a second generally straight segment (40) connected to the first segment through a mid-section (42) such that the second segment is disposed in front of the first segment and the angle between the first and second segments is substantially less that 90 degrees, the second segment adapted to rest on the surface to thereby support the ladder at a spaced distance there from, the arms also extending laterally outwardly with respect to the ladder to thereby provide additional lateral support thereto.

Description

<div class="application article clearfix" id="description"> 5358 PATENTS FORM NO. 5 - COMPLETE SPECIFICATION APPLICANT: James A. Calderwood ADDRESS: 73 Oxford Terrace, Port Lincoln, South Australia 5606, Australia Hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particularly described in and by the following statement: intellectual property office op n.z. A * I, ,f i ij 2 4 MAR 2005 A safety attachment for a ladder RECEIVED BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a safety attachment for a ladder and in particular to a safety arrangement for a ladder of the type having spaced apart parallel side rails and a 5 plurality of rungs extending between the side rails. Ladders, and in particular extension ladders are used by workers to not only gain access to a roof and the like but to also conduct maintenance and repair to the upper levels of a building. These ladders are operable by the high end of the ladder being positioned either adjacent the edge of a roof or adjacent the gutter of a roof. 10 There are two times when use of such ladders by a worker is particularly dangerous. The first of these is where the worker is mounting or demounting the ladder from the roof. The second of these is where a worker standing on a ladder reaches out to access an area that they need to work on and when they are leaning sideways on the ladder. In both instances, if the worker does not balance himself or herself properly, or if there is a sudden gust of wind, 15 they could accidentally cause the ladder to slip and fall. If the worker is then caused to fall, this can lead to serious injury. Whilst there are numerous attachments designed to be used with a ladder, none of these assist a worker to maintain their balance when they are getting on or off the roof. Furthermore, none of the currently known attachments can be used to engage both the roof as 20 well as the side wall to provide for greater stability of a ladder. It is an object of the present invention to propose a safety attachment for a ladder that overcomes at least some of the abovementioned problems or that provides a useful alternative to safety attachments currently known. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 25 A safety attachment for use in association with a ladder to be supported adjacent a surface, said safety attachment including: a pair of arms whereby each arm includes a first generally straight segment attached at a predetermined height to a corresponding side rail of said ladder, and a second generally straight segment connected to the first segment through a mid-section such that the second segment is 30 disposed in front of the first segment and the angle between the first and second segments is substantially less than 90 degrees, said second segment adapted to rest on said surface to 3 thereby support the ladder at a spaced apart distance there from, said arms also extending laterally outwardly with respect to the ladder to thereby provide additional lateral support thereto. Preferably said mid-section is curved and said angle between the first and second 5 straight segments is approximately 45 degrees. Preferably said ladder is of the type including a pair of spaced apart longitudinal side rails having a plurality of transversely extending rungs extending therein between. Preferably said second segment includes an outer end which rests on the surface. In preference said second segment includes a portion of friction resistant material 10 adapted to increase the frictional resistance between the second segment and the surface. Preferably said portion of friction resistant material is in the form of a foot mounted at the base of the second segment. Preferably said safety attachment includes a stabilising bar extending transversely between the second segments of each arm. 15 Advantageously the stabilising bar is attached to each arm half-way along each second segment. Preferably said arms are engaged to each other by the use of at least one rod adapted to pass through co-axial apertures in each of said first segments. Preferably said rod is adapted to pass through a rung extending between said side 20 rails. In a further form of the invention there is proposed a ladder adapted to be supported adjacent a surface, said ladder including: two longitudinal, spaced apart and parallel side rails; a plurality of spaced apart rungs which extend transversely between said side rails; and 25 a pair of arms whereby each arm includes a first generally straight segment attached at a predetermined height to a corresponding side rail of said ladder, and a second generally straight segment connected to the first segment through a mid-section such that the second segment is disposed in front of the first segment and the angle between the first and second segments is substantially less than 90 degrees, said second segment adapted to rest on said surface to 30 thereby support the ladder at a spaced apart distance there from, said arms also extending INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY QFf OF NX 2 4 MAR 2005 RECEIVED 4 laterally outwardly with respect to the ladder to thereby provide additional lateral support thereto. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this 5 specification, illustrate several implementations of the invention and, together with the description, serve to explain the advantages and principles of the invention. In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a safety attachment for a ladder embodying the present invention; Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view of the safety attachment of Figure 1; 10 Figure 3 is a rear view of the safety attachment when in use with a ladder providing support through the roof; intellectual property office Of N.Z 2 1 MAR 2005 RECEIVED 5 Figure 4 is a side view of the safety attachment when used on a ladder as in Figure 3; and Figure 5 is a side view of the safety ladder attachment when used to support a ladder against a wall. 5 DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The following detailed description of the invention refers to the accompanying drawings. Although the description includes exemplary embodiments, other embodiments are possible, and changes may be made to the embodiments described without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Wherever possible, the same reference numbers will be 10 used throughout the drawings and the following description to refer to the same and like parts. Referring now to the drawings there is shown a safety attachment 10 adapted to be secured to a ladder 12 of the type that includes a pair of spaced apart parallel side rails 14 and 16 and a plurality of rungs 18 extending between the side rails 14 and 16. Each of the side rails is of a U-shape type channel configuration having a bottom 20 and two sides 22a and 15 22b, the channels oriented to be outwardly open. Typically the side rails and the rungs are manufactured from aluminium which provides strength and is light. However it is to be understood that it may very well be made from other materials. The ladder may be an extendible type ladder, the side rails 14 and 16 adapted to slidingly engage along their length and be locked to, using well known methods, two second 20 spaced apart and parallel side rails 24 and 26. Each of the side rails 24 and 26 is also of a U-shape channel configuration having a base 28 and two sides 30a and 30b, the channel being inwardly open so that the inner surface of side 22a engages the inner surface of side 30a. Rungs 32 extend between the rails 22 and 24. The safety attachment 10 includes two tubular members 34 and 36 that are preferably 25 manufactured from aluminium. However, they can be made from many different materials. Each of the members is secured to the ladder in the same manner and extends outwardly from the ladder. Accordingly only one of the members and the way in which it is secured will be described in detail, it being understood that the description equally well applies to the other member. 30 Tubular member 34 includes a first straight segment 38 and a second straight segment 40 connected by a curved mid-section 42, the resultant angle between the first and second segments being substantially less than a right angle and typically some 45 degrees. The first 6 segment 38 at its outer end includes an angled flattened portion 44 having an aperture 46 through which can pass a wing nut 48 engaging a threaded rod 50 that extends through rung 18a connecting the first tubular member 34 to the second tubular member 36. The length of the first segment is typically the same as the separation between adjacent rungs. 5 Attached to the inside and at the inner end of the first segment 38 adjacent the curved mid-section 42 is a block or support 52 whose purpose is to support the first segment 38 out of the side rail 14 so that the first tubular member 34 extends beyond the footprint of the side rail 14. Accordingly, the support 52 is of a thickness at least equal to the depth of the U-channel side rail and is of a width smaller than the width of the base 20. The support 52 10 includes an aperture 54 enabling a wing nut 56 to engage a threaded bolt 58 passing through rung 18b that is higher than rung 18a used by the wing nut 48. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that when mounted on the ladder the second segment 40 extends downwardly and outwardly from the ladder 12, the width between the second segment of the tubular members 34 and 36 being significantly greater than the width 15 between their first segments. The end of the tubular member 34 includes a foot 60, typically manufactured from a softer material such as rubber, which provides a dampening effect whilst frictionally engaging a surface it is placed upon. For additional stability, extending between the second segments of the two tubular 20 members is a stabilising bar 62, having an aperture 64 co-axially aligning with aperture 66 on a mount or wing 68 on each second segment enabling the stabilising bar to be attached to the second segments by the use of a nut 70 and bolt 72. It will now be apparent to those skilled in the art that the safety attachment is used to provide a support for the ladder to rest on a roof 74 or wall 76, the ladder no longer resting on 25 the gutter 78 as is normal. This not only assists in ensuring that the stability of the ladder is greatly improved for the reasons discussed below but also removes any chance of damaging the gutter. The supports improve the stability of the ladder for several reasons. Firstly, the weight of a person is not only transferred through the ladder to the ground, but is also partly 30 transferred through the safety attachment 12 to the roof. This results in significant force between the feet 60 and the roof 74 or wall 76 that they are in contact with, thereby providing for greater frictional engagement than if the ladder was simply rested on the gutter. 7 Secondly, the safety attachment spreads the support outwardly from the ladder. A person on the ladder that leans from side-to-side no longer risks the ladder slipping because the centre of mass of the person and the ladder combined has shifted beyond the ladder footprint. 5 The present invention also makes it possible to use the safety attachment regardless of the total extension of the ladder. If the ladder is fully extended, the safety attachment need not be used at the top of the ladder but can be used somewhat lower where it can engage, for example, a wall. Further advantages and improvements may very well be made to the present 10 invention without deviating from its scope. Although the invention has been shown and described in what is conceived to be the most practical and preferred embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope and spirit of the invention, which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices and apparatus. 15 In any claims that follow and in the summary of the invention, except where the context requires otherwise due to express language or necessary implication, the word "comprising" is used in the sense of "including", i.e. the features specified may be associated with further features in various embodiments of the invention. Dated this Thursday, October 07, 2004 20 James Calderwood By his Patent Attorneys LESICAR PERRIN 8 </div>

Claims

<div class="application article clearfix printTableText" id="claims"> CLAIMS

1. A safety attachment for use in association with a ladder to be supported adjacent a surface, said safety attachment including: a pair of arms whereby each arm includes a first generally straight segment attached 5 at a pre-determined height to a corresponding side rail of said ladder, and a second generally straight segment connected to the first segment through a mid-section such that the second segment is disposed in front of the first segment and the angle between the first and second segments is substantially less than 90 degrees, said second segment adapted to rest on said surface to thereby support the ladder at a 10 spaced apart distance there from, said arms also extending laterally outwardly with respect to the ladder to thereby provide additional lateral support thereto.

2. A safety attachment according to claim 1 wherein said mid-section is curved and said angle between the first and second straight segments is approximately 45 degrees.

3. A safety attachment according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein said ladder is of 15 the type including a pair of spaced apart longitudinal side rails having a plurality of transversely extending rungs extending therein between.

4. A safety attachment according to claim 3 wherein said second segment includes an outer end which rests on the surface.

5. A safety attachment according to any one of the above claims wherein said second 20 segment includes a portion of friction resistant material adapted to increase the frictional resistance between the second segment and the surface.

6. A safety attachment according to any one of the above claims wherein said portion of friction resistant material is in the form of a foot mounted at the base of the second segment. 25

7. A safety attachment according to any one of the above claims wherein said safety attachment includes a stabilising bar extending transversely between the second segments of each arm.

8. A safety attachment according to any one of the above claims wherein the stabilising bar is attached to each arm half-way along each second segment. intellectual property office OF N.Z 2 4 MAR 2005 RECEIVED 9

9. A safety attachment according to any one of the above claims wherein said arms are engaged to each other by the use of at least one rod adapted to pass through co-axial apertures in each of said first segments.

10. A safety attachment according to claim 9 wherein said rod is adapted to pass through 5 a rung extending between said side rails.

11. A ladder adapted to be supported adjacent a surface, said ladder including: two longitudinal, spaced apart and parallel side rails; a plurality of spaced apart rungs which extend transversely between said side rails; and 10 a pair of arms whereby each arm includes a first generally straight segment attached at a pre-determined height to a corresponding side rail of said ladder, and a second generally straight segment connected to the first segment through a mid-section such that the second segment is disposed in front of the first segment and the angle between the first and second segments is substantially less than 90 degrees, said 15 second segment adapted to rest on said surface to thereby support the ladder at a spaced apart distance there from, said arms also extending laterally outwardly with respect to the ladder to thereby provide additional lateral support thereto. END OF CLAIMS intellectual property office CF N.Z 2 h MAR 2005 RECEIVED </div>