US3008761A

US3008761A - Protective device for ski lift chairs

Info

Publication number: US3008761A
Application number: US739515A
Authority: US
Inventors: Mcilvaine Alexander
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1958-06-03
Filing date: 1958-06-03
Publication date: 1961-11-14
Anticipated expiration: 1978-11-14

Description

Nov. 14, 1961 A. MCILVAINE 3,008,761

PROTECTIVE DEVICE FOR SKI LIFT CHAIRS Filed June 3, 1958 2 She ets-Sheet 1 ALEXAN DER Mc lLVAl N E INVENTOR.

' BY A TTORNEY Nov. 14, 1961 A. M ILVAINE 0 PROTECTIVE DEVICE FOR SKI LIFT CHAIRS I 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 3, 1958 ALEXANDER M'c ILVMNE INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,008,761 PROTECTIVE DEVICE FOR SKI LIFI CHAIRS Alexander Mcllvaine, 128 E. 36th St., New York, N.Y. Filed June 3, 1958, 'Ser. No. 739,515 7 Claims. (Cl. 29784) This invention relates to protective means for the chairs employed on ski lifts and is directed particularly to protective enclosures for passengers using such chairs.

The chairs for ski lifts are carried up the side of a mountain or skiing slope by means of cables and often are elevated a considerable distance above the surrounding trees and hills, whereby they are exposed to wintry blasts as well as sleet and snow during winter. As a result, it is often very uncomfortable for passengers to ride the chairs of a ski lift and they may receive severe windburn or frost bite from exposure in the chairs. At the same time, unoccupied chairs often are covered with snow or sleet and become so Wet as to be uncomfortable for use by passengers. Ski lifts also are frequently used in summer to carry passengers up a mountain side or to a look-out area. On such occasions, the passengers may be older persons or children for whom protection and safety are of great importance.

In accordance with the present invention, ski lift chairs are provided with an encl-osure hood, windshield, or other protective means which serves to shield them from exposure and reduce the danger of accidents. The protective means is mounted on the chair in such a manner as to be readily movable so that it will not interfere with the loading or discharge of the passengers. Moreover, the construction provided is such' as to afford clearance forthe skis worn by the passengers in Winter so that it is not necessary for the passengers to remove their skis in order to avail themselves of the advantages of'the pro tective means. 0n the other hand, in fair, mild weather when there is limited wind, the passengers often will not Wish to use the protective means and, therefore, it is preferably mounted for movement into and out of operative position without displacing other elements of the chair or its supp rt.

In the preferred forms of the invention, the protective means are employed on ski lift chairs of the type shown and described in my issued Patent No. 2,662,587 wherein a movable safety gate and-foot rest is provided. The protective-means may then be movable with the pivotally mounted foot rest assembly although it may be pivoted on such assembly for independent tilting movement into and out of operative position without moving the foot rest.

Accordingly, the principal object of the present inventionis to provide ski lift chairswith protecting means for shielding passengers from exposure to the elements.

Another object of the invention is to provide protective means such as an enclosure'which is pivotally mounted on thechair for movement into and out of operative position. a

A further object of the invention is to provide a chair for a ski lift with protective means which may be moved into and out of operative-positions without the necessity of removing the skis in order to use the protective means. m

A specific objectof the invention resides in the provision of protective means for a ski chair which may be carried by a movable safety gate and foot rest assembly.

These and other objects and features of the present invention will appear from the following description thereof wherein reference is made to the figures of the accompanying drawing.

In the drawing:

FlG. l is a side elevation of a ski chair embodying a typical form of protective means embodying the present invention as applied to a ski chair having a movable safety gate and foot rest assembly;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the construction shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation illustrating an alternative form of enclosure embodying the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation illustrating another alternative form of protective means embodying the present invention as applied to a ski chair having a movable foot rest assembly;

FIG. 5 illustrates the construction of FIG. 4 moved to the loading position; and

FIG. 6 is a side elevation of a further alternative embodiment of the invention as applied to a ski chair having a fixed foot rest.

In that form of the invention chosen for purposes of illustration in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the drawings, the ski lift chair is shown generally at 2 and has a movable foot rest assembly 4 of the type covered by my issued Patent No. 2,662,587. The chair is supported by a hanger 6 from the cable 8 of the ski lift and has a frame with an upper portion 10 which extends in an opposite direction from the hanger above the chair. The frame further is provided with side portions 12 which extend downwardly at opposite sides of the chair 14, while the lower portion 16 of the frame extends beneath the chair from one side portion 12 to the other. The chair itself is secured to the side portions 12 of the hanger and as illustrated is designed for use by two passengers, although the invention, of course, may be used with single passeng'er chairs in the same way.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the movable foot rest assembly 4 is provided with means such as an arm which may embody side members 18 and a safety bar in the form of a horizontal rail 20 which is positioned in front of the passengers when the chair is in use. Center members 22 extend downward from safety bar 20 and have a foot rest 24 connected thereto. The side members 18 are pivotally connected at 26 to the chair 14 near the upper portion of the back thereof or at any other suitable point for movement from the active or carrying position shown in full lines in FIG. 1 to the inactive or loading position shown in dotted lines therein. If desired, the foot rest assembly 24 may be provided with a counter weight 28 or with spring means or other elements designed to aid in moving the foot rest assembly relative to the chair from the lowered carrying position to the raised loading position shown.

If desired, the foot rest assembly 4 or the counter weight 28 thereof also may be formed with a laterally projecting operating member 30 which cooperates with

stationary elements

32 and 34 suitably located near the top and bottom of the ski lift to engage the operating members and automatically move the foot rest assembly to the raised loading position and to the lowered carrying position as the chairs are carried past the stationary elements by the cable 8.

As shown in FIG. 1, the protecting means may be of such size as to substantially enclose the chair 12 and the passengers seated on the chair. Constructions of this type afford the maximum possible protection for the passengers and yet the protective means may be formed of transparent material which will not obstruct the view. The protective means may be secured to the side members 18 of the foot rest assembly so as to move with the assembly into and out of passenger protecting position. For this purpose, the hood or protecting means 36 preferably is removably attached to the side members 18 by clips 38 or otherwise so as to permit its ready removal when desired. Although the protective means 36 may be formed of a single piece of transparent plastic material, the preferred construction shown in .FIG. 1 includes :a

lower bodyportion 40 with a removable transparent dome 42 through which the passengers may see the surrounding territory. Moreover, for use during summertime when the passengers do not wear skis and may be children or older persons, a supplemental closure 44 may be secured to the side members 18 and tothe lower edge 46 of the body 40 as shown in FIG. 1. This closure will prevent children or articles from slipping through the space between the protective means and the chair and, if desired, may be formed of opaque material to overcome the fears which some persons may experience when at a high elevation. On the other hand, the supplemental closure 44 will normally be removed during the winter season in order to afford a clearance between the lower edge 46 of the protective means and the foot rest 24 to allow the passengers skis to project forwardly and rearwardly beneath the protective means and the chair. The protective means then can be used without requiring the passengers to remove their skis in order to enjoy the advantages of the protection afforded by the enclosure.

In the alternative construction of FIG. 3, the protecting means is shown ashaving a lower body 48 formed of metal, plastic or other material which may be opaque and'has a transparent panel or section 50 which is movable with respect to the body 48 to open and close the top area in front of the passengers during mild or pleasant weather. As-shown, the section 50 is pivotally mounted at 520m the sides of the body 48 and is tiltable from the full line to the dotted line position of FIG. 3.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the protective means of the present invention is in the form of a relatively smaller hood or cap 54 mounted on the side members 18 of the movable foot rest assembly. In this construction, the protective means serves primarily as a windshield for protecting the passengers head or face. The cap 54 has supporting brackets 56 secured to the side members 18 of the foot rest assembly and extending upward and forward from the side members at opposite sides of the chair. The protective means is mounted at 58 on the brackets 56 so as to be tiltable into and out of an operative position infrOnt of the wearers face as shown in FIG. 4. However; when the passengers find they do not need or wish to use the windshield, the protective means may be raised and tilted rearwardly by means of a handle 60 so it will assume the dotted line position of FIG. 4. Stop means 62 carried by the windshield or protective means project outward at the end thereof into position to engage the bracket 56 to hold the windshield in the operative full line position of FIG. 4, whereas a pin or other stop means 64 may be mounted on the side member 18 of the foot rest assembly to hold the windshield in its open or inactive position as shown in dotted lines in FIG. 4 and in full lines in FIG. 5

The windshield or protective means is preferably formed of transparent material such as clear synthetic plastic, glass, laminated cellophane or the like, so that it will afford the least possible obstruction to the view of the, passengers. The handle 60 also may be made of plastic and the whole assembly should be sufiiciently light in weight and easily movable to enable the passengers to raise and lower the windshield at will.

In using any of the constructions shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, the loading position of the foot rest assembly is the raised position in dotted lines in FIG. 1 and in full lines in FIG. 5. When in this position, the center members 221 of the footrest assembly engage the upper portion of the frame for the chair. The protective means is then tilted rearwardly with the upper portion of the foot rest assembly so as to be located at the b ack of the chair 14. Passengers. then may enter or leave the chair without difficulty. As shown in FIG. 1, the foot rest assembly'may be moved to this position automatically by stationary element 32 if desired, or it may be raised by an attendant or otherwise. Furthermore, the location of the pivot means about which the protective means is tilted may be such that upon raising the foot rest assembly to its loading position, the protective means will move automatically under the action of gravity to its opened or inoperative position as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5. Thereafter, the foot rest assembly is subsequently lowered and the protective means may be arranged to closeor move to. its operative'position by gravityv whereby the chair will be protected from the weather even when not occupied.

After the passengers have taken their seats in the chair, the foot rest assembly is tilted about its pivotal support,

automatically or otherwise, so as to lower the foot restbar 24 into position for them toplace their feet on the scribed above are designed particularly for use on chairs.

for ski lifts wherein there is a movable foot rest assembly, the construction is equally applicable to chairs having a stationary foot rest or no foot rest at all. Thus, as shown in FIG. 6, the foot rest 70 and safety bar 72 are held in fixed positions with respect tothe chair 74, whereas the protective means or hood 76 is carried by side members 78 pivotally mounted at 80 behind the chair. The side members 78.may be extended rearwardly as shown at 82 and be provided with a counter weight 84. Stop means 86 on the side members are positioned to engage the rear of the chair when the protective means is raised to the full line position of FIG. 6 whereby the enclosure will remain raised when passengers are entering or leaving the chair. However, the enclosure or hood may be lowered into its protecting position asshown in dotted lines by simply pulling down on the front edgethereof; The lower edge of the enclosure may then rest against the wearers chest as shown or, if desired, a second stop member 88 may be carried by the side members 78 and may be positioned to engage the front face of the back of the chair 74 nearthe upper edge of the back of the chair.

Each of the forms of the invention shown is of advantage in protecting the empty chairs from snow and rain which render them uncomfortable, if not unusable, by passengers. high winds are encountered, the rounded or streamlined contour of the enclosure may serve to reduce the wind resistance and limit swinging of the empty chairs and strains on the cable of the ski lift.

It will be apparent from the foregoingdescription and the various modifications thereof illustrated that the protective means may be of any desired size, shape and construction andmay be mounted for movement relative to the chair and foot rest 'in any suitable manner preferred. In view thereof, it should be understood that the particular embodiments of the invention which have been shown in the drawings and described above have been chosen for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. In combination with a chair for a ski lift having a movable foot rest assembly connected to the chair, including a foot'rest, protective means carried by said foot rest assembly and presenting a lower edge spaced from the foot rest, said protective means including an enclosure embodying a transparent portion movable with the foot rest assembly and with respect to said chair into and out of a position to locate said transparent portion in front of a passenger seated in the chair, said foot rest assembly having a counteracting means connected thereto and serving to aid in the movement of the enclosure toan inactive position.

Moreover, the

Moreover, in those locations wherein.

2. In combination with a ski chair, a foot rest pivotally mounted for movement with respect to said chair from a raised position above the chair forwardly and downwardly to a lowered position below the chair and protective means including a transparent windshield pivotally mounted for movement with respect to the foot rest and movable with the foot rest from a raised inactive position to a lowered position in which it is located in front of a person seated on the chair, the lower edge of said protective means when in said lowered position being spaced from the foot rest a distance sufficient to permit skis to project forward beneath the protective means and above the foot rest.

3. An aerial ski lift including a chair having a seat and a back rest, an arm pivotally connected to a member fixed relative to the chair and said arm extending downward below the seat but movable forward and upward above the seat, a foot rest carried by said arm, transparent protective means carried by said arm and movable therewith, and means extending from said arm for moving it about its pivot to raise the foot rest and protective means forward and upward above the seat whereby clearance below the seat is increased and users may have free access to the seat while wearing skis.

4. An aerial ski lift including a chair having a seat and a back rest, an arm pivotally connected to the chair adjacent the back rest and extending forward and downward below the seat but movable forward and upward above the seat, a foot rest carried by said arm, transparent protective means carried by said arm and movable therewith, and means extending from said arm for moving it about its pivot to raise the foot rest and protective means forward and upward above the seat whereby clearance below the seat is increased and users may have free access to the seat while wearing skis.

5. In combination with a chair for a ski lift having a movable foot rest assembly connected to the chair and including a foot rest, protective means carried by said foot rest assembly and presenting a lower edge spaced from the foot rest, said protective means embodying an enclosure movable with the foot rest assembly and with respect to said chair, said enclosure including a transparent portion pivotally mounted on the foot rest assembly for movement with respect to both said assembly and said chair into and out of a position in front of a passenger seated in the chair.

6. In combination with a chair for a ski lift having a movable foot rest assembly pivotally mounted adjacent the back of the chair for movement to and from loading and operative positions, said foot rest assembly including a foot rest, protective means carried by said foot rest assembly and presenting a lower edge spaced from the foot rest, said protective means embodying a transparent portion in the form of a windshield carried by the foot rest assembly and movable therewith, the windshield being movable with respect to the foot rest assembly into and out of an active position in front of a passenger seated in the chair. 1

7. In combination with a chair for a ski lift having a movable foot rest assembly connected to the chair and movable from a raised position to a loading position, said foot rest assembly including a foot rest, protective means carried by the foot rest assembly and presenting a lower edge spaced from the foot rest, said protective means including a transparent portion in the form of a windshield pivotally movable into and out of an active position in front of a passenger seated in the chair, the pivot about which said windshield is movable being spaced from the pivot about which the foot rest assembly is moved to its loading position, the windshield being movable by gravity from its active position to an inactive position when its pivot is raised by movement of the foot rest assembly to said loading position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,662,587 McIlvaine Dec. 15, 1953 2,733,027 Gero Jan. 31, 1956 2,806,666 Brown Sept. 17, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 486,156 Germany Nov. 9, 1929 179,554 Austria Sept. 10, 1954 183,445 Austria Oct. 10, 1955