US3611934A

US3611934A - Apparatus for setting safety flares

Info

Publication number: US3611934A
Application number: US867459A
Authority: US
Inventors: Roger W Schaefer
Original assignee: KEL LITE INDUSTRIES
Current assignee: KEL LITE INDUSTRIES; KEL-LITE INDUSTRIES Inc
Priority date: 1969-10-20
Filing date: 1969-10-20
Publication date: 1971-10-12
Anticipated expiration: 1988-10-12

Abstract

A convenient carrying box or tray is provided for handling pyrotechnic flares such as are widely employed for safety marking at highway accidents and the like. A serrated jaw on the box serves to grip the cap of a flare so that, with one hand, flares can be rapidly decapped for use. A box handle and a ramp guide a flare into the decapper. A cap holder supports a cap having a striking surface for lighting a flare and spring clips or the like are provided for holding a lighted flare for providing safety to the user and an ignition source for subsequent flares.

Description

United States Patent lnventor Roger W. Schaefer Arcadia, Calif.

Appl. No. 867,459

Filed Oct. 20, 1969 Patented Oct. 12, 1971 Assignee Kel-Lite Industries, Inc.

Covina, Calif.

APPARATUS FOR SETTING SAFETY FLARES 13 Claims, 3 Drawing Figs.

Primary ExaminerRobert F. Stahl Att0meyChristie, Parker & Hale ABSTRACT: A convenient carrying box or tray is provided for handling pyrotechnic flares such as are widely employed for safety marking at highway accidents and the like. A serrated jaw on the box serves to grip the cap of a flare so that, with one hand, flares can be rapidly decapped for use. A box handle and a ramp guide a flare into the decapper. A cap holder supports a cap having a striking surface for lighting a flare and spring clips or the like are provided for holding a lighted flare for providing safety to the user and an ignition source for subsequent flares.

APPARATUS FOR SETTING SAFETY FLARES BACKGROUND Pyrotechnic flares are extensively used for traffic control and warning at the scene of highway accidents. The value of such warning flares is of particular importance on freeways and other modern high speed highways where approaching automobiles need warning of hazardous conditions as far as possible from the condition in order to provide adequate room to stop. It is, therefore, important that flares be provided at a large distance from a freeway accident or the like in as short a time as possible so that oncoming cars are alerted to the hazard quickly and at a substantial distance from the scene. This avoids aggravating the accident condition by other cars colliding and minimizes the possibility of additional injury to persons involved in the first accident.

Pyrotechnic flares are also employed in other situations where rapid deployment of the flares is of interest. Thus, for example, flares are employed as warning devices on the railroads and by fire departments, and flares are sometimes employed by the forest service and other fire departments for lighting backfires in fighting brush and grass fires.

Pyrotechnic flares are cylinders of pyrotechnic material, usually wrapped in paper and waxed to prevent intrusion of water which may be hazardous. A paper cap, usually having a wooden end, is placed over the paper wrapping of the flare at one end. A fabric tape is formed as part of the cap so that as the tape is stripped away to remove the cap, a portion of the paper is removed to expose an end of the cap on which is provided a bonded emery patch substantially the same as is used for striking matches. In order to use the flare, the tape may be pulled to expose the emery striking surface, and then the cardboard cap is twisted off. The emery on the cap is struck against the end of the flare so exposed to ignite the pyrotechnic material of the flare. After one flare is lighted, subsequent flares can be lighted by merely twisting off the cap and touching the end of the new flare to the already lighted flare. In use at an accident scene, lighted flares are laid on the ground in a pattern extending into the stream of traffic away from the accident scene. It is desirable to lay the flares on the ground rather than dropping them since the pyrotechnic material is brittle and a flare may be extinguished if it is dropped. Dropped flares may also roll out of the desired pattern.

It has been the practice when a police unit arrives at an accident scene for the officer to alight from the car and remove a box of flares from the trunk. The ofl'rcer may take a handful of flares and proceed along the highway lighting them, or preferably carries the box to provide a greater supply of flares than can be carried by hand. The officer may first light a flare and lay it on the ground, then decap a second flare, light it from the first and carry it and the box to the point where the second flare is to be laid. It is then necessary to set the box down, pick out another flare, decap it with both hands, light it from the second laid flare and proceed along the highway in the same manner.

A somewhat more efficient way is to light and lay a flare in the same manner for protection of the officer, and then manually decap a number of flares putting them back in the box, then proceed along the desired flare pattern, laying a flare, lighting one of the decapped ones from the laid flare and proceed along the desired flare pattern. With such a technique, tests have shown that the total elapsed time from first access to the flares to laying of the last flare, when 21 flares were laid in a pattern 630 feet long, was 4 minutes 45 seconds. Clearly, on a modern freeway an enormous number of cars may have approached an accident scene in an elapsed time of this sort. Of significant interest is the time required to commence laying flares in the pattern which varies from about 55 to 75 seconds, during which time very little protection is afforded at the accident scene.

Not only is the laying of flares a time consuming process but also it is hazardous in that sparks from flares often burn holes in officers uniform or cause skin burns, and some officers have suffered eye damage during laying flares. Handling flares in the conventional manner also may leave wax on the officers uniform, requiring cleaning. In addition, during the laying of a flare pattern in the present technique, it is necessary for the officer to frequently remove his eyes from the oncoming traffic so that he is personally subjected to hazard.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Thus, in the practice of this invention according to a preferred embodiment, there is provided a safety apparatus for use with pyrotechnic flares comprising a box or the like for carrying a number of flares for quick access plus a decapper on the box for engaging a flare cap so that it can be removed with one hand. The box also provides means for holding a lighted flare for protecting the user and providing an ignition source for lighting subsequent flares. A guide is provided for leading flares into the decapper so that flares can be quickly manually decapped without visually observing the process.

DRAWINGS Objects and many attendant advantages of this invention will be appreciated as the same becomes better understood by reference to the following detailed description when considered in connection with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 illustrates in perspective a flare setting apparatus constructed according to principles of this invention;

FIG. 2 illustrates a second embodiment of flare setting device; and

FIG. 3 illustrates an end view of the device of FIG. 2.

DESCRIPTION FIG. 1 illustrates in perspective a device for setting safety flares according to principles of this invention. As illustrated in this embodiment, there is provided a box or tray having a pair of sides 10 which are typically about 6 inches high. The ends 11 of the box have a portion extending above the sides to support a cylindrical handle 12 extending between the two ends 11. The handle 12 is raised above the top of the sides 10 a sufficient distance that a user can readily reach within the box to withdraw a flare. The length of the box is sufficient to accommodate the usual size flares employed by various police units, and may vary from about 10 to 18 inches to accommodate different standard sizes of flares. Thus, for example, some departments employ flares burning l5 or 20 minutes, and other departments employ flares burning for as long as 30 minutes. The bottom 13 of the box has a plurality of apertures 14 to permit water drainage in case the flare box is used in rainy weather. A box of this nature is conveniently bent and welded from sheet steel or aluminum, preferably the former to withstand the rigorous treatment of police use. Steel tubing is preferably employed for the handle 12 to maintain light weight.

An end 16 of the handle 12 extends through and beyond one end 11 of the box to provide a short extending cylinder on which a flare cap (not shown) can be placed for striking a flare. If desired, longitudinal slits may be provided in the protruding end 16 to aid in installation and retention of a cap on the cylinder.

A decapper 17 is welded on the handle 12 forwardly of the center of the handle. This permits the user to carry the box with his hand over its center and have the decapper 17 forward of his hand. The decapper comprises a U-shaped rigid metal piece such as, for example, 3Il6-thick-inch steel. The open end of the U-shaped decapper is toward a forward end of the box and the bight of the U is adjacent the portion of the handle where the users hand would be.

Within the opening of the U-shaped decapper, a few large serrations or teeth 18 are provided along each side for gripping a flare cap. The distance between the ends of the teeth 18 in the decapper is somewhat larger than the diameter of a standard flare. The bight end 19 of the U-shaped opening in the decapper has a circular are having a radius slightly larger than the radius of a standard flare and smaller than the radius of the wooden plug in a flare cap, for example, about a inch radius. Since the opening of the U-shaped decapper is slightly above the top of the handle 12, a short guide ramp 21 is provided at the inlet for guiding a flare into the decapper. In use, the forward part of the handle and the ramp cooperate to guide the flare.

In the forward end 11 of the box an alternate decapping hole 22 may be provided. Teeth or serrations 23 are provided on opposite portions of the hole 22. This alternate decapper is operated by sticking the cap end of a flare through the hole 22 and tilting or skewing the flare upwardly relative to the end of the box. As the flare is withdrawn from the hole, the teeth 23 engage the edge of the flare cap or the wooden plug of the flare cap so as to retain it and permit the flare to be withdrawn from the cap. The removed cap then falls into the box, if not immediately, when the next flare is inserted. The open edged decapper 17 on the handle is preferred since it is more easily operated than the alternate decapper comprising a hole in the end of the box. Other alternate decappers can be provided if desired, such as an elongated hole having an enlarged opening at one end for inserting a flare and serrations adjacent the other end for engaging the flare cap. A circular hole with teeth all around the edge may be used. Likewise, if desired, serrations on a hole may be bent inwardly to provide a tapered aperture in which to insert a flare and teeth pointed toward the flare cap when it is withdrawn to assure engagement. A tapered slot can be employed for a decapper, however, the body of the flare rather than the cap may be inadvertently engage. The alternate decapper may be provided on the side of the box if desired and if done so, two or four decapping holes are preferred to accommodate rightor left-handed operation and allow picking up the box from either side.

A pair of spring clips 24 are bolted or welded on the forward end 11 of the box so that a lighted flare 26 can be gripped and carried with the box to provide protection for the user and a source of ignition for subsequent flares. Tests have shown that a flare in the clips 24 can burn clear down to the end without damage to the clips or the box, and without igniting other flares carried in the box.

In order to use the flare-setting apparatus, it is carried by one hand in the center of the handle with the decapper 17 forwardly of the hand. A flare is withdrawn from the box with the other hand and the side of the flare laid on the top of the handle l2 forwardly of the opening in the decapper. The flare is then drawn along the length of the handle so as to ride up the ramp 21 and into the open part of the U-shaped decapper. The flare is then drawn laterally across the handle so as to bring the cap of the flare into engagement with the curved end 19 of the decapper opening. The cap is caught by the curved end 19 or the .teeth 18 and stopped so that the flare is withdrawn from the cap. Lifting of the free end of the flare and twisting may enhance engagement of the cap with the teeth for sure removal.

The cap is then placed on the end 16 of the handle protruding from the forward end of the box so that the striking surface on the cap is presented at the end. Normally this step is not required since a cap is already present on the protruding end from a previous use. It is preferred to leave a cap on the protruding end to gain the few seconds of time saved thereby. The flare from which a cap has just been removed is then struck on the emery on the end of the cap on the protruding portion 16, and the flare so lighted is placed in the spring clips 24 so that a lighted flare may be carried at all times when the box is in use. The next flare is lighted by slapping the flare onto the handle, sliding back into the decapper, pulling off the cap and touching against the already lighted flare 26, all of which can be done while the officer is walking along the desired flare pattern. As each subsequent flare is lighted, it can he laid onto the ground and the operation rapidly repeated so that the officer does not stop, but only hesitates to lay each flare on the ground. Further, the officer need not remove his eyes from oncoming traffic except momentarily when touching a decapped flare to the lighted flare.

Actual tests with such a safety flare-setting apparatus show that about 2 minutes and 15 seconds are required to merely pick up the flare box and walk 630 feet without laying any flares. Only about 2 minutes and 30 seconds are required to light and lay 2i flares in the 630 feet when using the flaresetting apparatus hereinabove described. Only an additional 15 seconds is required to lay the full flare pattern. In the previous technique of manually decapping and laying flares which require two hands, an elapsed time of about 4 minutes 45 seconds was required to lay 21 flares in a 630 foot distance. Thus, it is seen that with the improved flare-setting device, the total time for laying flares is substantially cut in half and, what may be more significant, the first flares laid in the pattern are in place almost immediately as compared with an elapsed time of from 55 seconds to 1 minute [5 seconds by the old technique.

FIGS. 2 and 3 illustrate an alternative embodiment of a flare-setting apparatus constructed according to principles of this invention. As provided in this embodiment, a cylindrical handle 31 has four metal strips 32 descending therefrom and connected at their lower ends to a tubular base 33. A plurality of spring clips 34 (only a pair of which are illustrated) are provided along the vertical strips 32 with pairs of clips along each side of the apparatus, each holding a flare 36. Thus, a substantial number of flares are racked along each side of the flaresetting apparatus.

A U-shaped decapper 37 substantially the same as the decapper 17 hereinabove described is welded onto the handle 31. An end 38 of the handle extends beyond the strips 32 at one end for providing a cap support in substantially the same manner as the cap support 16 hereinabove described. The tubular base 33 has a portion 39 extending a substantial distance forwardly of the strips 32 so that a lighted flare (not shown) can be inserted into the end for carrying to light subsequent flares as hereinabove described. The extending portion 39 is beyond the racked flares 36 so that the lighted flare does not ignite other flares prematurely. A plug (not shown) is provided in the tubular end 39 to prevent the lighted flare from going clear in, or if desired the protruding end 39 may be bent upwardly for retaining the lighted flare and for preventing the flare from going into the tubing an excess distance.

The flare holder illustrated in FIGS. 2 and 3 is used in substantially the same manner as the apparatus hereinabove described and illustrated in FIG. 1 except that the flares are taken from the sides of the rack rather than being lifted out of the box.

Although only two examples of apparatus according to principles of this invention have been set forth herein, many modifications and variations will be apparent to one skilled in the art. Thus, for example, instead of employing a sheet metal box as in FIG. 1, an open frame for carrying the original cardboard packing box for flares may be employed with a suitable handle, decapper, cap holder and flare holder on the frame. Such a frame can be made adjustable to accommodate different size flare boxes. Similarly, instead of carrying the flares horizontally as in FIG. 1, a vertically extending box may be employed, if desired. Clearly, other locations of the decapper, flare holder and cap holder may be employed, if desired.

What is claimed is:

l. A safety device for use with pyrotechnic flares having a protective cap comprising:

support means for carrying a plurality of flares in position for ready access;

decapper means on the support means for engaging a flare cap for removal; and

means for holding a lighted flare on the support means.

2. A safety device as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

means for holding a removed flare cap in position on the support means for lighting a flare.

3. A safety device as defined in claim 1 further comprising:

guide means for guiding a manually held flare into the decapper means.

4. A safety device as defined in claim 3 wherein the decapper means comprises a rigid member having an open edged aperture having at least a portion wider than the body of a flare and narrower than the cap of the flare for engaging a cap for removal from the flare.

5. A safety device as defined in claim 1 wherein the decapper means comprises a rigid member having a serrated aperture.

6. A safety device as defined in claim 5 wherein the rigid member of the decapper is open on one edge to admit a flare body into the serrated aperture; and

further comprising guide means adjacent the opening for guiding a manually held flare into the open edge of the aperture.

7. A safety device as defined in claim 6 wherein the support means comprises a box having an open top and a handle extending over the open top of the box;

the rigid member forming the decapper means is mounted on the handle with the open edge facing along the handle so that the handle cooperates with the decapper to form at least a portion of the guide means.

8. A safety device as defined in claim 7 further comprising an extending cylinder on the box for holding a removed flare cap in position for lighting a flare, and wherein the means for holding a lighted flare comprises a spring clip on the box for engaging the body of a flare.

9. A safety device as defined in claim 6 wherein the support means comprises:

a handle;

a rack depending from the handle; and

means for holding a plurality of flares on the rack;

the rigid member forming the decapper means being mounted on the handle with the open edge aligned along the handle so that the handle cooperates with the open edge of the aperture for forming at least a portion of the guide means;

the means for holding a lighted flare comprises a tubular member in which a flare body can be inserted; and further comprising an extending cylinder for holding a flare cap in position for lighting a flare.

10. An apparatus for setting safety flares comprising:

a carrying structure for carrying a plurality of pyrotechnic safety flares;

a handle on the carrying structure for manual carrying; and

a rigid U-shaped member secured along one leg on the handle so that a portion of the handle extends beyond the open end of the U for guiding a manually held flare into the open part of the U; the U-shaped rigid member having decapper means within the open portion of the U for freely passing a flare and for engaging a flare cap.

11. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 further comprising means on the carrying structure for holding a removed flare cap in position for lighting a flare; and

means for holding a lighted flare on the carrying structure.

12. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 further comprising a cylindrical extension of the handle beyond the carrying structure for holding a removed flare cap in position for lighting a flare; and

a spring clip on an end of the carrying structure for holding a lighted flare.

13. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 wherein the decapper means comprises:

a plurality of serrations in the opening for engaging a flare cap: and

a portion of the opening having a width greater than the diameter of a flare and less than the diameter of a flare cap.

Claims

1. A safety device for use with pyrotechnic flares having a protective cap comprising: support means for carrying a plurality of flares in position for ready access; decapper means on the support means for engaging a flare cap for removal; and means for holding a lighted flare on the support means.

2. A safety device as defined in claim 1 further comprising: means for holding a removed flare cap in position on the support means for lighting a flare.

3. A safety device as defined in claim 1 further comprising: guide means for guiding a manually held flare into the decapper means.

6. A safety device as defined in claim 5 wherein the rigid member of the decapper is open on one edge to admit a flare body into the serrated aperture; and further comprising guide means adjacent the opening for guiding a manually held flare into the open edge of the aperture.

7. A safety device as defined in claim 6 wherein the support means comprises a box having an open top and a handle extending over the open top of the box; the rigid member forming the decapper means is mounted on the handle with the open edge facing along the handle so that the handle cooperates with the decapper to form at least a portion of the guide means.

9. A safety device as defined in claim 6 wherein the support means comprises: a handle; a rack depending from the handle; and means for holding a plurality of flares on the rack; the rigid member forming the decapper means being mounted on the handle with the open edge aligned along the handle so that the handle cooperates with the open edge of the aperture for forming at least a portion of the guide means; the means for holding a lighted flare comprises a tubular member in which a flare body can be inserted; and further comprising an extending cylinder for holding a flare cap in position for lighting a flare.

10. An apparatus for setting safety flares comprising: a carrying structure for carrying a plurality of pyrotechnic saFety flares; a handle on the carrying structure for manual carrying; and a rigid U-shaped member secured along one leg on the handle so that a portion of the handle extends beyond the open end of the U for guiding a manually held flare into the open part of the U; the U-shaped rigid member having decapper means within the open portion of the U for freely passing a flare and for engaging a flare cap.

11. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 further comprising means on the carrying structure for holding a removed flare cap in position for lighting a flare; and means for holding a lighted flare on the carrying structure.

12. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 further comprising a cylindrical extension of the handle beyond the carrying structure for holding a removed flare cap in position for lighting a flare; and a spring clip on an end of the carrying structure for holding a lighted flare.

13. An apparatus for setting safety flares as defined in claim 10 wherein the decapper means comprises: a plurality of serrations in the opening for engaging a flare cap: and a portion of the opening having a width greater than the diameter of a flare and less than the diameter of a flare cap.