SE539008C2

SE539008C2 - Harness for garden and/or forest tools and a cord assembly

Info

Publication number: SE539008C2
Application number: SE1550368A
Authority: SE
Inventors: MARTINSSON Pär; Herou Mia; Svennung Johan
Original assignee: Husqvarna Ab
Priority date: 2015-03-26
Filing date: 2015-03-26
Publication date: 2017-03-14
Also published as: SE1550368A1; DE102016105226A1

Description

HARNESS FOR GARDEN AND/OR FOREST TOOLS AND A CORD ASSEMBLY TECHNICAL FIELD This application relates to a harness for garden and/or forest tools and in particular to a harness for garden tools such as trimmers, cutters and saws.

BACKGROUND The basic idea of a carrying system intended for a hand-held working tool is to move the weight from the operator's arms to for example the operator's back. Different kinds of carrying systems intended to suspend a hand-held power tool are known in a variety of models.

One harness for a power tool having far-reaching means is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8418898 and includes a harness for reducing the load on the arms of operator working with a pole saw or pole hedge trimmer. The power tool is suspended in a strap extending from a front portion of the harness, through at least one fairlead provided on the power tool and to a rear portion of the harness. The strap is included in a tool balancer, which includes a spring loaded reel for the strap and is attached to or preferably integrated with a chest plate/buckle in the harness, and which permits locking of the reel.

Another harness is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 20060179806 disclosing a carrying system for an implement and method for cutting trees is disclosed. The application includes a carrying system for an implement, comprising a carrying arm and a receiving device held on the carrying arm for receiving the guide rod of the implement. In a first state, the receiving device is adapted to fix the guide rod in a longitudinal direction thereof. In a second state, the receiving device is displaceable in the longitudinal direction of the guide rod.

The international application published as WO2010140939 discloses a clearing saw and includes a clearing saw comprising a power unit, such as a combustion engine, for driving the clearing saw, a harness to which the power unit is attached, a bar arrangement attached to the harness, a tube with a working tool, such as a prunerhead, with an operating tool attached to the prunerhead, a cord arranged between the bar arrangement and the tube, arranged to move the weight of the working tool to the operators back. The bar arrangement comprises a lower bar, which lower bar s attached to the harness and an upper bar, to which upper bar the cord is attached, and wherein the upper bar and the lower bar are detachably arranged to each other.

The prior art solutions of carrying a hand-held working tool are big, unwieldy and difficult to attach/detach to the body of the operator. They are for example arranged with chest and/or back plates and have booms and leverage arrangements above the head of the operator. These features make the carrying system hard to transport and store as well as being heavy to use and carry around. They are also difficult to put on and to take of for the operator. Furthermore, due to the booms and leverage the carrying systems disclosed in prior art are not suitable to be in terrain where branches and twigs easily can get stuck in the carrying device.

In addition to the drawbacks mentioned above, the prior art solutions also suffer from the fact that the carrying systems need to be mounted above the head of and/or they need to be fastened or secured on the back of the operator. Hence, it is very difficult for the operator to attach and detach the device without assistants.

There is thus a need for an improved harness for hand-held working tools that is ergonomic, effective, flexible and that does not interfere the operator during work. Furthermore, the harness needs to be easy and intuitive to attach and detach to the body giving an improved safety.

SUMMARY The harness according to herein is beneficially used with power tools with a far reach such as tools having a pole or other far-reaching means for carrying the operating tool.

It is accordingly an object to eliminate or alleviate at least some of the problems referred to above, by providing an effective harness that is easy to don and to remove.

One aspect is a harness for a working tool comprising a first shoulder strap, a second shoulder strap, and a support strap having strap attachment means connecting a first side of the harness with a second side of the harness. The harness ischaracterizedin that it further comprises a cord for supporting the weight of a working tool, where one end of said cord is attached to said first shoulder strap and the other end of said cord is attached to or adjacent to said strap attachment means on said support strap, wherein when attaching or releasing said support strap from said second shoulder strap, said cord is simultaneously attached or released from said second shoulder strap to allow easy donning and/or removal of the harness.

Other aspects are defined by the appended patent claims and are further explained in the detailed description section as well as in the drawings.

Contrary to the prior art, the harness according to the teachings herein may be donned and/or removed without anything being pulled over the head of the operator. The operator's safety is thus safe-guarded as the operator may continue to wear a helmet or other protection while donning or taking off the harness, for example for recharging/refueling or simply taking a break while being in the work area.

Other features and advantages of the disclosed embodiments will appear from the following detailed disclosure, from the attached dependent claims as well as from the drawings. Generally, all terms used in the claims are to be interpreted according to their ordinary meaning in the technical field, unless explicitly defined otherwise herein. All references to "a/an/the [element, device, component, means, step, etc]" are to be interpreted openly as referring to at least one instance of the element, device, component, means, step, etc., unless explicitly stated otherwise. The steps of any method disclosed herein do not have to be performed in the exact order disclosed, unless explicitly stated.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS The invention will be described in further detail under reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a schematic view of an operator wearing a harness which is supporting a working tool according to one embodiment of the teachings herein; Figure 2 is a schematic view of a harness according to one embodiment of the teachings herein; Figure 3 is a schematic view of an attachment between a cord and a working tool according to one embodiment of the teachings herein; Figure 4 is a schematic view of a cord assembly according to one embodiment of the teachings herein; and Figure 5 is a schematic view of a harness according to one embodiment of the teachings herein.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION The disclosed embodiments will now be described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which certain embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided by way of example so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout.

Fig. 1 shows an operator 1 wearing a harness 10 which is supporting a working tool 20. The operator is wearing a helmet 30 in order to avoid injuries occurring using the working tool 20 in a work environment. The working tool 20 may be a clearing saw for use in gardens and forests, but the tool may also be a trimmer, a chain saw for tree care, a hedge cutter, a leaf blower or any other garden or forest tool. The working tool 20 as shown in Fig. 1 is a battery driven tool, but could also be power driven by a combustion engine or any other power source. The working tool 20 thus comprise a power unit 22 which in one embodiment is an electric motor and in one embodiment a combustion engine. The power unit 22 is connected, directly or indirectly, to a trigger handle 23 on the working tool 20. The working tool 20 further comprises a far-reaching means such as a tube or pole 24 with an operating tool (not shown) arranged at one end. This enables the operator to reach further away when operating the working tool. The trigger handle 23 is located somewhere on the tube 24, preferably at or close to an opposite end to the operating tool. The operating tool may be the blade of a saw, if the wheel tool is a saw. The tube 24 is further arranged with a loop handle 26, that the operator can hold the working tool 20. The trigger handle 23 and the loop handle 26 may be the same handle.

InFig.1,the operator 1 is wearing the harness 10, in which the working tool 20 is suspended, in order to reduce the load on the arms when operating the working tool 20.

The harness 10 comprises two shoulder straps, a first shoulder strap 101 and a second shoulder strap 102, one for each shoulder of the operator 1. The shoulder straps 101, 102 are in a spaced-apart relationship in order for an operator 1 to comfortably wear the straps 101, 102 around his shoulders. Preferably, the two shoulder straps 101, 102 are adjustable to fit the body of the operator 1.

Further, the harness 10 has at least one generally horizontal support strap 103, 104 connecting a first side of the harness with a second side of the harness.Inone embodiment, the support strap 103 is arranged to connect the first 101 shoulder strap with the second shoulder strap 102 for stabilizing the harness.Inone embodiment the strap 104 may be used to distribute the load on the body of the operator 1.

The support strap 103 is attached to the second shoulder strap 102 by strap attachment means 113. The strap attachment means 113 are located on the front side of the harness for easy adjustment. Preferably, the strap attachment means are buckles 113. However, the strap attachment means 113 may also be clasps, hooks or any other device used for fastening two loose ends, with one end attached to it and the other held by a catch in a secure but adjustable manner.

As seen in Fig.l, the harness 10 comprises a cord110which supports the working tool 20. The cord110is preferably elastic or partially elastic to allow for easy maneuvering of the work tool 20 in a balanced manner. The cord 110 may be made of an elastic material, such as cotton, nylon, polyester or polypropylene or comprise elastic portions made of such an elastic material. The cord 110 may be braided, knitted or woven. The cord110may also be arranged with springs at either or both ends to provide for an elasticity of the cord110.

Inone embodiment, the cord110is adjustable in length, so that the cord length can be adjusted easily in order to fit operators 1 different length.

The cord 110 has two ends 110a, 110b which are attached by cord attachment means 111, 112 to the harness 10. The cord 110 is thus attached to both sides of the body of the operator 1 during use for an even load distribution. Both ends of the cord 110a, 110b are attached on the front side of the harness for easy adjustment and access. In the event of an emergency it is crucial to be able to remove the working tool 20 from the body of the operator 1 as fast as possible. Having both ends of the cord 110a, 110b attached on the front side of the harness 10 allows for an easy access by the operator 1. The operator 1 is able to remove the harness 10, and thus the accompanying working tool 20, by herself without any need of assistance. As will be shown, the operator 1 may even remove the work tool 20 and harness 10 by simply detaching one attachment means 113 and then gravity can remove the harness 10 by pulling it down and off the operator 1.

As the strap 103, 104 connects one side (such as an operator's left side) with another or opposite side (such as an operator's right side) and as one of the cord's ends is attached to the strap 103, 104 and the other to the side of the harness to which the strap 103, 104 is attached to - i.e. not the side where the strap attachment means engage - the cord will only be attached to one side of the harness as the strap attachment means 113, 114 are opened.

In one embodiment as shown in Fig. 2 the harness 10 has two support straps 103, 104. A first support strap 103 to stabilize the harness 10 and which is preferably arranged in a position corresponding to an upper middle of the chest of the operator 1. And an additional support strap 104 to distribute the load of the power source 27 and the work tool 20 to the operator's hips and which is preferably arranged in a position corresponding top the operator's hips.

In one embodiment and as shown in Fig. 2, the additional strap 104 comprises a first portion attached to the first shoulder strap 101 and a second portion attached to the second shoulder strap 102. Alternatively, the second strap is attached to the power source 27 or a back plate (not shown) of the harness 10. How to arrange straps, such as the first and second support straps 103 and 104 is well-known in the art and will not be discussed in further detail herein.

All straps 101, 102, 103, 104 of the harness may be constructed by webbing. More preferably the straps are woven from a synthetic fiber material, such as Nylon. The straps 101, 102, 103, 104 may also be may be made of an elastic material or comprise elastic portions made of such an elastic material.

Returning to the cord, the second end of the cord 110b is attached by attachment means 112 adjacent to or to the strap attachment means located on the support strap 103. The cord attachment means 112 for attaching the second end of the cord 110b is arranged to be attached adjacent to or directly to the strap attachment means 113. In Fig. 2 the cord attachment means 112 is a hook, clasp or carabiner which attaches to a D-ring arranged on or adjacent to the strap attachment means 113.

The attachment is as such that when releasing the strap attachment 113 of the first support strap 103, the cord attachment 112 is simultaneously released thus causing the cord 110 to be easily removed from the harness 10. This attachment thus allows for easy removal and/or donning of the harness 10. When releasing the strap attachment 113, the weight of the harness 10 will help pulling down the harness 10 to the ground by gravity thus making the harness 10 easier to remove from the body.

The cord attachment means 112 comprises two parts 112a, 112b, where the first part 112a is attached adjacent or on the second shoulder strap 102 of the harness 10 and the second part 112b is attached to the second end of the cord 110b. The cord attachment means 112 may be a loop, clasp, ring, buckle, snap hook, or any other fastener device. In one embodiment the cord attachment means 112 comprises a D-ring 112a and a clasp 112b which are connectable to each other.

In one embodiment, the second end of the cord 110b is attached to the attachment means 113 located on the support strap 103. Here the attachment means 113 servers both as an attachment means for the horizontal strap 103 and for attaching the cord (i.e. the attachment means 112 is included in 113). The attachment is as such that when releasing the attachment 113 of the support strap 103, the cord 110 is simultaneously released. This attachment thus allows for allow easy removal and/or donning of the harness 10.

In one embodiment, the second end of the cord 110b may be attached to either the first support strap 103 as described above or to the additional support strap 104.

As shown in Fig. 2, the first end of the cord 110a is attached by cord attachment means 111 on the opposite side of the operator's 1 chest on the first shoulder strap 101. The cord attachment means 111 comprises two parts 111a, 11 lb, where the first part 11 la is attached to the first shoulder strap 101 of the harness 10 and the second part 11 lb is attached to the first end of the cord 110a. The cord attachment means 111 may be a loop, clasp, ring, buckle, knot, hook, carabiner or any other fastener device.

In one embodiment, the cord attachment means 111 comprises a D-ring 111a and a clasp 111b which are connectable to each other.

In one embodiment, the cord 110 is arranged to support the weight of the working tool 20 by resting the working tool 20 on the loop created by the cord 110. As the cord 110 is at least partially elastic, the cord 110 may adapt to the weight, position and also movement of the work tool 20 to better distribute the load of the work tool 20 to the harness 10, providing for a balanced handling of the work tool 20.

In one embodiment, the working tool 20 may simple be arranged in the harness by inserting the working tool into the loop or wrapping the cord 110 around the work tool 20 before attaching the cord 110 to either of the shoulder straps 101 and 102.

In one embodiment, as shown in Fig. 3 the working tool 20 may be attached to the cord 110 of the harness 10 by using a carabineer 120. The carabineer 120 is attached to a reel eyelet 122 arranged on the tube of the working tool 20. The reel eyelet 122 is arranged such that it runs freely on the working tool 20. It is easy to detach and undetached the working tool 20 from the carabineer 120.

In another embodiment, the carabineer arranged on the cord 110 is attachable to an attachment on the working tool 20.

It should be noted that the carabineer is only an example of a fastening means and others can also work, such as a clasp, a hook, a tie in arrangement to mention a few examples.

Preferably, the harness 10 is of a backpack or back plate style so that a power source 27, such as a battery, an engine, a fuel tank or other power source, or even a combustion engine can be carried. The power source 27 may be the same as the power unit 22, or be connected to the power unit 22. The power source 27 is attached to the harness 10 in such a way, that the power source 27 is arranged to be carried on the back of the operator 1. Each of the shoulder straps 101, 102 are attached at an upper end and at a lower end on the back side of the harness 10.

Inone embodiment, the power source 27 is a battery connected to the power unit 22, being an electric motor.

Inone embodiment, the power source 27 is a fuel tank connected to the power unit 22, being a combustion engine.

Inone embodiment, the power source 27 is an electric motor with a battery or a combustion engine with a fuel tank connected to the power unit 22, being a power transfer arrangement.

Inone embodiment as shown in Fig. 4, a cord assembly 200 is shown. The cord assembly comprises a cord 210 which is attachable to an existing harness. The cord 210 consists of two ends 210a, 210b, each having a cord attachment means 211, 212 which can be attached to an existing harness. Preferably, the cord attachment means 211, 212 may be clasps, hooks, carabineers or knots or other protrusions.

The cord attachment means 211,212 may be attached to a harness by a harness attachment means 215 arranged on the harness. Preferably, the harness attachment means 215 is an attachment that is connectable to the cord attachment means 211, 212. The harness attachment means 215 may be a D-ring, but it could also be other features on the harness such as a ring, loop or even a strap or other means suitable for attaching the cord attachment means 211,212. One alternative embodiment is disclosed in detail below with reference to figure 5.

The two ends 210a, 210b of the cord may also or alternatively be attached to the cord attachment means 211, 212 by a knot, gluing or sowing.

The cord 210 is attachable to a harness to support the weight of a working tool. The attachment is as such so that when attaching or releasing the cord 210 from the harness, the cord 210 is simultaneously attached or released from the harness to allow easy donning and/or removal of the harness.

The cord 210 is preferably elastic or partially elastic to allow for easy maneuvering of the work tool in a balanced manner.

Inone embodiment, shown in Fig. 5, the cord 310 is adjustable in length, so that the cord length can be adjusted easily in order to fit operators of different length. The length of the cord 310 is adjustable by the cord attachment means 311, 312. In this embodiment the cord attachment means comprises a plurality of knots or other protrusions 311, 112 arranged on the cord 310. The different knots 311,312 may thus be used to adjust the length by attaching the appropriate knot 311, 312 to the harness attachment means 315. This allows for easy adjustment to different working tools, as well as being easy to attach and detach. As should be understood by the person skilled in the art, any number of knots may be used for allowing length adjustment.

In one embodiment, the cord attachment means may comprises a plurality of protrusions, knots, hooks or other means that can engage in the harness attachment means 315. Preferably, the cord attachment means comprise a smooth protrusion or knot that does not get caught in other parts of the harness or in branches or the like.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 5, the harness attachment means 315 is an attachment means that allows for inserting a knot or any other protrusion-formed end of the cord 310. The harness attachment means 315 may be of a cone-shaped or hour-glass shaped form, having a first portion that is large enough to fit the cord attachment means 311,312 and a second portion that is small enough to lock the cord attachment means 311,312 into place. The cord attachment means, e.g. a knot, is inserted into the first larger portion of the harness attachment means 315. In order to secure the knot in a locked position, the knot is put into the second smaller portion which locks the knot into the harness attachment means 315.

In the example of figure 5, the cord attachment means 311, 312 is shaped as a D-ring (the first larger portion) having an open protrusion at one end (the second smaller portion). In figure 5 the protrusion is open to the inside of the D-ring and is of a substantially triangular shape. However, other shapes such as rectangular, square, round, oval are also possible. A substantially triangular shape (with a rounded or straight base) has the benefit that it has a neck that is narrower than the base of the protrusion which serves to further lock the cord into place in the second smaller portion and prevent it from slipping up in to the first larger portion.

In this context, larger is meant to mean larger than the know or protrusion and smaller is meant to mean smaller than the knot or protrusion. The smaller or second portion is also to be considered to be smaller than the larger or first portion.

Although the adjustment feature of the harness attachment means 315 is provided at both harness attachment means 315 in Fig. 5, it should be understood that it using one adjustable harness attachment means 315 while the other harness attachment means 315 is a fixed attachment means is also possible.

In one embodiment the cord is attached to an existing backpack, thus utilizing the backpack as a harness.

In one embodiment, the harness may be sold separately from the cord as well as separately from the working tool.

In one embodiment, the cord may be sold separately from the harness as well as separately from the working tool.

In one embodiment, the work tool may comprise a harness, or the work tool may comprise both a harness and a cord.

The invention has mainly been described above with reference to a few embodiments. However, as is readily appreciated by a person skilled in the art, other embodiments than the ones disclosed above are equally possible within the scope of the invention, as defined by the appended patent claims.

Claims

1. A harness (10) for a working tool (20) comprising a first shoulder strap (101), a second shoulder strap (102), and a support strap (103, 104) having strap attachment means (113) connecting a first side of the harness with a second side of the harness, wherein the harness (10) is characterized in that the harness (10) further comprises a cord (110) for supporting the weight of the working tool, where one end of said cord (110) is attached to said first shoulder strap (101) and the other end of said cord (110) is attached to or adjacent to said strap attachment means (113) on said support strap (103), wherein when attaching or releasing said support strap (103) from said second shoulder strap (102), said cord (110) is simultaneously attached or released from said second shoulder strap (102) to allow easy donning and/or removal of the harness (10).

2. The harness according to claim 1, wherein the cord (110) is at least partially elastic.

3. The harness according to any of claims 1-2, wherein the cord (110) is adjustable in length to fit operators (1) of different heights.

4. The harness according to any of claims 1-3, wherein the support strap (103) is for stabilizing the harness (10), wherein said support strap (103) is arranged to connect said first shoulder strap (101) with said second shoulder strap (102).

5. The harness according to any of claims 1-3, wherein the support strap (104) is for distributing the load of the working tool (20).

6. The harness according to any of claims 1-5, wherein the strap attachment means (113) are arranged on a front side of the harness (10) for easy access.

7. The harness according to any of claims 1-6, wherein the strap attachment means (113) is a buckle arrangement.

8. The harness according to claim 7, wherein the cord (110) is attached to a first part of the buckle arrangement being attached to the support strap, and which first part is for engaging a second part of said buckle arrangement, said second means being attached to the second side of the harness.

9. The harness according to any of claims 1-4 and 6-8, further comprising an additional support strap (104), wherein the additional support strap (104) is a waist strap arranged to put the load of the harness to the operator's (1) hips.

10. The harness according to any of claims 1-9, wherein a power source (27) is attached to the harness (10) in such a way, that the power source (27) is arranged to be carried on the back of the operator (1).

11. The harness according to claim 10, wherein the power source (27) is a battery.

12. The harness according to any of claims 1-11, where one end of the cord (110) is attached to one side of the front side of the body of the operator (1) and the other end to the other side of the front side of the body of the operator (1) during use for an even load distribution.

13. The harness according to any of claims 1-12, wherein the working tool (20) is a trimmer, hedge cutter, leaf blower or any other garden and/or forest tool.

14. The harness according to any of claims 1-13, wherein the working tool (20) comprises far-reaching means for carrying an operating tool, wherein said cord will be arranged at the far-reaching means to support the load of the working tool (20).

15. A cord assembly (200) for supporting the weight of a working tool, wherein the cord assembly comprises a cord (210) comprising a first (210a) and a second end (210b), wherein each end (210a, 210b) has a cord attachment means (211, 212, 311, 312) attachable to a harness, wherein when attaching or releasing the harness, said cord (210) is simultaneously attached or released together with said harness or backpack to allow easy donning and/or removal of said harness.

16. The cord assembly according to claim 15, wherein the cord (210) is at least partially elastic.

17. The cord assembly according to claim 15 or 16, wherein at least one of the cord attachment means (211, 212, 311, 312) is a clasp, hook, carabiner, knot or other protrusion.

18. The cord assembly according to any of claims 15-17, wherein the cord (210) is adjustable in length to fit operators of different heights.

19. A work tool comprising a harness according to any of claims 1-14.