US1606198A - Ladder attachment - Google Patents

Description

Nov. 9 1926.

H. T. WERK LADDER ATTACHMENT- Filed Nov. 23, 1925 Patented Nev. 9, 1926.

HENRY T. WEEK, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

LADDER ATTACHMENT.

Application filed November 23, 1925. Serial No. 70,927.

The primary object of this invention has been to provide certain simple and very desirable improvements in the construction of ladders such as used by builders,'painters and others, for the customary purposes of such devices.

The invention is especially adapted for use in conjunction with large ladders or extension ladders which are rather heavy and difficult for one man to manipulate to place in position on a building wall, or on the roof of a house. In fact, usually two men are required to place an extension ladder of any considerable length. In using the ladders one of the difliculties in positioning the same on a wall or roof is a tendency of the upper end of the ladder to engage with projections, with shingles, with tiles, or the like, preventing the easy sliding of the ladder into its proper place for use.

My invention contemplates the application to the upper end of a ladder or rollers which will permit it to move readily to a desired position .by' the action of said rollers forming roller bearings in an obvious manner. In carrying out my invention, however, I mount the rollers on the ladder in a peculiar way, namely in a yielding manner, so that when the ladder has reached its desired position of use, the application thereto of weight or pressure, incident to a person climbing up the same, or on it, will render the rollers inoperative to perform their ordinary rolling function. Under these. conditions, when the ladder is actually being used, and the rollers or wheels at the upper end are of no advantageous service, they become inactive automatically by the application of weight or pressure on the ladder, as regards their rolling function.

I furthermore utilize rollers or wheels,

' such as mentioned above, of a peculiar form,

the same being rubber tired preferably, in

order that their peripheries may have a tendency to adhere to the surface on which the ladder is mounted, or with which its upper end is engaged, under which conditions, the rollers act with a tendency to prevent lateral or side slipping movements of the ladder at its upper end which end is usually resting against the supporting wall when the ladder is inclined, the said antiskidding function being present, however, when the ladder is laid flat upon a roof or in similar positions.

The advantages of the use of my invention will appear readily upon study of the description which follows, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the top of the upper end of a ladder showing the invention applied thereto.

Figure 2 is an enlarged view of one of the upper ends of the ladder looking toward the outer side and showing particularly the spring plate and supporting yoke.

Figure 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of the portion of the ladder having the invention attached thereto.

Figure l is a bottom plan view of the attachment feature and Figure 5 is a perspective view of the lower reinforcing plate forming a bearing member for the roller shaft.

Describing my invention specifically, A in the drawings denotes the upper end portion of a side bar of any ordinary construction of ladder. At 1 is shown the roller or wheel which is carried by said ladder near its upper endand mounted on the side bar. Of course, both side bars of the ladder at their upper ends will be equipped with rollers 1, one for each, and as the mountings of these rollers on the ladder sides or bars are identical, one alone need be described. It will be seen that the roller 1 is of a diameter enabling its peripheral portion to project from a slot 2 in the ladder side A. While not absolutely necessary of course, I preferably have on the periphery of the roller or wheel 1, a rubber tire 3. The said roller 1 may be of any desirable construction this being immaterial to the invention and it is resiliently or yieldingly mounted on the ladder by means of a yoke 4 of somewhat U-form,

the sides of the yoke having openings or bearings receiving the shaft 5 on which the roller 1 is journaled. The shaft 5 operates in a transverse slot'6 which extends crosswise of the side bar of the ladder as, distinguished from the slot 2 which is longitudinal of said side bar. The yoke V4 is support ed at its cross-piece or top by being pivoted or otherwise secured to a spring plate 7, the upper end of which is attached to the upper end of the ladder by suitable fastenings, and the lower end of which is slidably received beneath a holding plate 8 which is attached to the top of the ladder side bar carrying said roller 1. The holding plate 8 prevents the displacement of the. lower end of the plate 7 from connection with the ladder side bar but permits sliding of said portion of the plate 7 when pressure upward on the roller 1 is suflicient to bend or spring the plate 7 into curvature as shown by dotted lines in the drawings.

On the under side of the ladder side bar carrying the roller 1, is provided a reinforcing plate 9 suitably fastened firmly in place by screws or similar fastenings 10 and formed with a slot through which the wheel or roller 1 moves and operates. The portions of the plate 9 at opposite sides of its roller slot are bent to form bearing members 11 that extend into the transverse slot 6 of the side bar A and provide metal bearing surfaces for the shaft 5 on which the roller 1 is mounted. These metal bearings, provided by the members 11, are desirable to prevent undue wear between the shaft or axis 5 and the walls of the slot 6, as the shaft 5 moves up and down incident to the practical operation of my device. At its upper end, the plate 9 will be bent upwards and attached to the upper extremity of the part A by the same fastenings which secure the upper end of the spring plate 7 rigidly to the ladder.

In actual use the operation of my simple attachmentfor ladders will be quite apparent from the foregoing. Owing to the provision of the rollers 1, a very large extension ladder can be handled by one man very frequently as it is pushed up, a wall or up a roof, there being no tendency for the upper end of the ladder to engage projections because the rollers 1 will readily ride over the same. "When, however, the person using the ladder starts to climb the same, to climb it, his weight upon the ladder and On the rollers 1 at its upper end, will cause these rollers to enter the slots 2 and discontinue, practically speaking, their rolling function. As the rollers have rubber tired peripheries, the adhesion of the tires which form contacting means between the upper end of the ladder and the wall or surface engaged, together with the actual engaging contact of the side bars A themselves, will prevent any tendency for lateral slippage of the ladder in a manner which will be quite clear. I

My device is very simply made, can be constructed in manufacturing it, of sheet metal stampings very largely and will meet with a real need in the art of ladder construction as a means for preventing accidents of some kinds and also as a means to facilitate the general handling of the ladder in placing it in position.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. A ladder having the side bars thereof provided with transverse slots and longitudinal slots, rollers mounted in the longitudinal slots, roller shafts mounted in the transverse slots and yieldingmeans cooperating with the shafts normally pressing them bodily outwards in the transverse slots to thereby hold the peripheries of the rollers operatively projected from the longitudinal slots. I

2. A ladder having the side bars thereof provided with transverse slots and longitudinal slots, rollers mounted in the longitudinal slots, roller shafts mounted in the trans verse slots and yielding means cooperating with the shafts, comprising spring plates movably mounted on the side bars and having means connecting with'the roller shafts to properly support the rollers normally so that they project from the longitudinal slots.

3. A ladder provided with roller slots in its upper end portions, rollers mounted in said slots, and means yieldingly supporting the rollers in said slots, consisting of spring plates secured to the side bars of the ladder, and members carried by said plates supporting the rollers'in operative positions on the ladder. v

4. In combination, a ladder provided with roller slots in its upper end portions, rollers longitudinally arranged in said slots, spring plates secured to the upper sides of the ladder at its upper end and yieldable toward and from said sides, yokes carried by said plates, and roller shafts on which the rollers are journaled mounted in said yokes.

5. In combination, a ladder provided with roller slots in its upper end portions, rollers longitudinally arranged in said slots, spring plates secured to the upper sides of the ladder at its upper end and yield'able toward and from said sides, yokes carried by said plates, and roller shafts on which the rollers are vjournaled mounted in said yolres, and reinforcing plates applied to the under sides of the ladder and provided with bearing members for receiving said roller shafts.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

. HENRY '1. WEEK.

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