WO2011055301A2

WO2011055301A2 - Slider for a climbing protection system

Info

Publication number: WO2011055301A2
Application number: PCT/IB2010/054960
Authority: WO
Inventors: Miroslaw Szlachcikowski; Michael Eichwein
Original assignee: Greifzug Hebezeugbau Gmbh
Priority date: 2009-11-03
Filing date: 2010-11-02
Publication date: 2011-05-12
Also published as: DK2496785T3; ES2543743T3; DE202009013672U1; WO2011055301A3; EP2496785A2; EP2496785B1

Abstract

The invention relates to a slider for a climbing protection system as fall protection for persons on ladders having a C-profiled guide rail. The slider comprises a slider body (14), a detent pawl (11), and a first and second roller pair (15, 21) for guiding the slider (10) in the guide rail. The first roller pair (15) can be twisted relative to the slider body (14). In order to be able to attach the slider in any position to the guide rail and to ease operating both by left-handed and right- handed persons, the second roller pair (21) is mounted on a slider carriage (30) connected to the slider body (14) tiltably about a tilt axis running parallel to the rotation axis of the second roller pair (21), and/or in that the rollers (21A) of the second roller pair (21) are arranged on a shaft (27) mounted floatingly on the slider (10).

Description

Title of Invention: SLIDER FOR A CLIMBING PROTECTION

SYSTEM

[1] The invention relates to a slider for a climbing protection system to protect a person from falls on ladders having C-profiled guide rails, comprising a slider body, which can be moved up and down in a profile interior of the guide rail, comprising a detent pawl, which in the locking state engages in latching devices within the guide rail, and comprising a first roller pair and a second roller pair for guiding the slider in the profile interior of the guide rail, wherein the first roller pair, for fitting of the slider on the guide rail, can be twisted relative to the slider body about an axis running perpendicular to a rotation axis of the rollers of the first roller pair.

[2] A slider of the generic type for a climbing protection system is known from EP 1 671

009 Bl. The slider of the generic type has a front roller pair, which is arranged rigidly on the slider body, and a rear roller pair, which is mounted twistably on the slider body and is arranged between the rigid roller pair and a detent pawl. The detent pawl is configured rigidly on the slider body and a further roller pair interacts with the rigid, front roller pair, the distance between these two roller pairs being somewhat larger than the material thickness of the guide flanges of the C-profile of the guide rail. For fitting of the guide slide on a guide rail, the slider is attached to the guide rail in such a way that the rigid roller pair intrudes into the profile interior and the thereto assigned second rigid roller is situated outside the guide rail, so as then to orientate the two front roller pairs, by 90° rotation of the guide slide, such that the rollers of the front and lower- lying rigid roller pair bear from inside, and the rollers of the further roller pair assigned to the rigid roller pair bear from outside against the guide flanges of the guide rail. In order then to anchor the slider in the guide rail, the pivotable roller pair is twisted through 90°, whereby the slider body, together with the twistable roller pair and the detent pawl, can intrude into the profile interior, so as then to secure the slider body in the profile interior of the guide rail by back-rotation of the movable roller pair. In order to prevent accidental twisting of the roller pair, the pivot for the twistable roller pair is provided with a U-shaped notch, into which a hook- in pawl for a harness worn by a person using the arresting device is inserted and anchored. For this purpose, the hook- in pawl is mounted pivotably on the slider body and is locked in place on the U-shaped segment of the pivot, in order that the proper securement of the slider in the guide rail is indicated also visually via the hook-in pawl of the person. In order to ensure that the slider is not fitted the wrong way round on the guide rail, a gravity- actuated locking device is assigned to the hook-in pawl. [3] From EP 1 559 448 Bl, an arresting device having a pivotable detent pawl is known.

This arresting device operates according to the back-pull principle, and the slider can be moved in the guide rail only when a person, via his harness, exerts a certain traction force upon the slider in order, by the traction, to pivot the detent pawl counter to the restoring force of a compression spring into an unlocking position. Since both roller pairs of this carriage cannot be twisted, the carriage can be introduced into and removed from the guide rail only at positions at which a notch exists as a lead-in and lead-out point.

[4] The object of the invention is to provide a slider for a climbing protection system for ladders having a C-profiled guide rail, which slider can be attached in any chosen position to the guide rail, can be easily operated both by left-handed and right-handed persons and disengages quickly and reliably in the event of a fall.

[5] This object is achieved according to the invention by virtue of the fact that the

second roller pair is mounted on a slider carriage connected to the slider body tiltably about a tilt axis running parallel to the rotation axis of the second roller pair, and/or that the rollers of the second roller pair are arranged on a shaft mounted floatingly on the slider. As in the slider of the generic type, the slider is inserted from a starting position in which the slider body stands perpendicular to the actual running direction of the slider; however, the rear roller pair arranged on the tiltable slider carriage is first introduced into the profile interior, so as only afterwards, with the secure engagement of the rear roller pair within the guide rail, to rotate the slider in the running direction. The tilt axis between the slider body, to which the first, twistable roller pair is assigned, and the slider carriage, to which the second roller pair is assigned, can facilitate the initial fitting of the slider on the guide rail, since the additional degree of freedom enables the slider body to be angled off for an insertion of that roller pair which is located on the slider carriage and is first to be inserted on the guide rail. The additional tilt axis between the two roller pairs also has the effect that the slider, particularly in the event of a fall, with the load being taken off the roller pairs, can wedge in the profile interior of the guide rail. As a result of the jamming of the slider within the guide rail, the roller pair located on the slider carriage can be almost fully relieved of the forces generated in the fall. By virtue of the tilt axis between the slider body having the first, front, movable roller pair and the slider body having the second, rear roller pair, the detent pawl is also able to sink considerably lower into the latching cutouts than was the case in the known slides having front and rear roller pairs without tilt axis therebetween.

[6] The floating mounting of the second roller pair, which mounting, where necessary, is alternatively or additionally provided, facilitates the insertion and improves the running characteristics, since the roller pair can adapt to the interior within the C- profile of the guide rail and can compensate for and prevent jams when the slider is unevenly twisted in the direction of use. Also when the slider is moved up and down in the guide rail, the floating mounting of the rear, trailing roller pair improves the overall running characteristics of the slider within the profile of the guide rail. According to a preferred embodiment, the floating mounting is achieved by the fact that the slider carriage is provided close to its rear end with a through bore, and the rollers of the second roller pair are mounted preferably rotatably on a shaft which is accommodated in this through bore in the slider carriage such that it is displaceable transversely to the shaft axis. The slider carriage forms in the usage state the rear end of the slider.

[7] The detent pawl is preferably mounted pivotably on the slider body and is biased in the locking position by means of at least one spring, preferably two springs acting in mutually differing directions. According to an advantageous embodiment, on the slider carriage and on the slider body interacting surfaces, in particular edge surfaces, are provided, with which the tilt angle of the slider carriage can be or is limited relative to the slider body by positive engagement. The edge surfaces can be formed, in particular, by means of the profiling of the rear side of the slider body and the edges of step-like tapers on the slider carriage, with which a tapered bearing arm is created on the slider carriage. The limitation of the tilt angle, in particular in the tensile load direction, i.e. in that direction in which the detent pawl is swivelled out of the locking position by back- pull, is advantageous. The tilt limitation is preferably realized on both sides, in which case it is in particular advantageous if the tilting motion is limited in one direction in such a way that, in one tilt end position, the first rotation axis, the second rotation axis and the tilt axis for the slider carriage lie in one plane, whilst in the second tilt end position, the tilt axis lies displaced, relative to the two rotation axes of the roller pairs, to the rear side of the guide rail, i.e. towards the latching cutouts in the guide rail, in order that, in the locking state, the slider body can additionally jam between the guide flanges and that rear side of the guide rail which has the latching cutouts. A slider which has precisely only two roller pairs in total, both of which in the usage state run in the profile interior of the guide rail, is particularly advantageous.

[8] The rollers of the first roller pair are preferably mounted on a bearing block held

twistably on the slider body by means of a pivot. The bearing block can then be configured relatively strongly in order to support adequately sized rollers. Although the rollers of the first roller pair can in principle be arranged floatingly on the bearing block, like the rollers of the second roller pair in the, in particular, advantageous embodiment, the slider according to the invention is intended, in particular, for use on asymmetrical guide rails in which the guide flanges of the C-profile have different lengths. In guide rails of asymmetrical C-profile, it is relatively easy to ensure that the slider is inserted into the guide rail only in the correct motional direction, i.e. with the movable roller pair on the front side of the slider, by arranging the rollers of the first roller pair asymmetrically, with fixed and mutually differing distance to the bearing block otherwise positioned on the middle of the slider body. The asymmetrical position of the rollers of the first roller pair relative to the bearing block then determines the installation position on the asymmetrical guide rail, in this embodiment, in particular, the floating mounting of the second roller pair improving the running characteristics and allowing the slider to be inserted into or removed from the guide rail from both possible starting positions. For the asymmetrical arrangement of the rollers of the first roller pair on the bearing block, these rollers can be mounted rotatably on a roller shaft which is configured or anchored on the bearing block in a motionally fixed manner.

[9] Further preferably, the bearing block can be partially provided on the end face with a recess and the slider body has on the end face a projection jutting into the recess, the recess and the projection permitting a twisting of the bearing block only in one direction and blocking it in the opposite direction in order constructively to ensure, particularly in asymmetrical guide rails, that an incorrect insertion is not obtained as a result of the bearing block being incorrectly twisted into the wrong position.

[10] The pivot can, in particular, be provided with a locking device, which permits a

twisting of the bearing block preferably only in the locking position of the detent pawl. For this purpose, it is particularly advantageous if the detent pawl has a pawl shaft provided with a locking tongue which, in order to prevent misuse, interacts positively with the locking device for the pivot of the first roller pair. The locking device can, in particular, have a locking plate connected in a rotationally secure manner to the rotary shaft for the bearing block, and a locking boss biased towards the rotary shaft and bearing against the locking plate, a locking depression for the engagement of the locking boss in the locking position of the pivot or of the bearing block being configured on the periphery of the locking plate. With the locking depression, a twisting of the locking plate and also, therefore, a twisting of the bearing block are prevented until the locking boss is swivelled out of the locking depression counter to the restoring and biasing force, for example of a compression spring. The locking depression can consist, in particular, of a step on the locking plate periphery, which step is adjoined by a curved sliding portion, to enable the pivot or the bearing block for the first roller pair to be twisted with little effort for insertion or removal of the slider into or from the guide rail, whilst the locking boss presses onto the sliding portion on the periphery of the locking plate.

[11] In particular, it is advantageous if the locking boss is arranged between the detent pawl and the first roller pair and/or if the detent pawl is arranged between the roller pairs, since then the locking device, the locking boss and the detent pawl, in particular with its locking tongue, can be arranged in line, and the position of the locking plate at the same time influences a possible position or movement of the detent pawl. A movement of the detent pawl out of its locking position is hence prevented until such time as the front, movable first roller pair is orientated exactly within the guide rail and this orientation is also fixed with the locking device.

[12] Further advantages and embodiments of a slider according to the invention derive from the following description of a preferred illustrative embodiment shown in the drawing, wherein:

[13] Fig. 1 shows selectively a ladder having a climbing protection system, and a person utilizing the ladder and the climbing protection system, in side view;

[14] Fig. 2 shows a slider according to the invention for such a climbing protection

system, in side view;

[15] Fig. 3 shows a sectional view through a slider according to the invention in accordance with Fig. 2, but with straight- standing slider carriage;

[16] Fig. 4 shows a slider according to the invention in usage position on a partially

broken open guide rail of a climbing apparatus, in side view;

[17] Fig. 5 shows a slider according to the invention in starting position prior to insertion on a guide rail of asymmetrical C-profile, in side view;

[18] Fig. 6 shows in perspective view an intermediate step in the insertion of the slider on a guide rail;

[19] Fig. 7 shows in side view a further intermediate step in the insertion of the slider prior to the twisting of the front roller pair;

[20] Fig. 8 shows in perspective detailed view the slider according to the invention on the guide rail when the front roller pair is not yet twisted fully into the usage position;

[21] Fig. 9 shows in perspective view in accordance with Fig. 8 the slider with front roller pair in the usage position; and

[22] Fig. 10 shows in perspective view in accordance with Fig. 8 the slider in the usage position, with unlocked detent pawl.

[23] Fig. 1 shows in side view a portion of a ladder 1 fastened, for example, to a tower or a wall as a climbing apparatus for a person 2 climbing up or down the ladder 1. The ladder 1, consisting, for instance of metal, has in the middle, between rungs 3, a guide rail 4 of, in this case, preferably asymmetrical profile cross-section, as will be explained in greater detail further below, a slider for safeguarding the person 2 against a fall, denoted in its entirety by the reference symbol 10, being able to be moved back and forth in the profile interior (5, Fig. 5) of the guide rail 4. The person 2 is wearing a belt system 2A, which is hooked onto a snap hook 6, which, in the shown illustrative embodiment, interacts via a band-type fall damper 7 with a detent pawl 11 on the slider 10. Via the belt system 2A, the person 2, when climbing up or down the ladder 1, can exert a back-pull on the snap hook 6 and, to this extent, on the detent pawl 11 of the slider 10, by which back-pull, as is known to the person skilled in the art, the detent pawl 11 mounted in a spring-loaded manner on the slider 10 can be pivoted in order that the detent pawl is released from latching cutouts (8, Fig. 6) in the rear side of the guide rail 4 and allows movement of the slider also in the downward direction. If the person 2 exerts no back-pull on the detent pawl 11, as shown in Fig. 1, the detent pawl 11 engages correspondingly in the latching cutout (8, Fig. 6) in order to protect the person 2 from falling with the slider 10 running in the guide rail 4. The detent pawl 11 on the slider 10 is configured such that it always engages in the latching cutouts on the guide rail 4 as long as no back-pull is applied away from the guide rail 4 to the slider 10. Since this basic working principle of slides for climbing protection systems is known to the person skilled in the art, no further description is given of this working principle.

[24] Figs. 2 to 4 show the slider 10 according to the invention according to an, in

particular, preferred embodiment, the band-type fall damper 7 and the snap hook 6 for hooking onto the belt system being partially omitted, since they normally form no constituent part of the slider 10 and could be replaced by other identically working or similarly working climbing protection elements of choice. In addition to the detent pawl 11, to which a fastening link 12, provided with two eyes, for the hinged connection of band-type fall damper and snap hook is fastened, in this case by means of a releasable locking pin 13, the slider 10 has as basic elements a slider body 14, an, in the usage position of the slider 10 during upward climbing, upper or front first roller pair 15, fastened, as will be explained in greater detail below, twistably to the slider body 14, and a rear, second roller pair 21. The slider body 14 is here formed by a box- shaped cast part or welded part and has a protruding front part 16 having a rotary receiving fixture 17 for a pivot 18, which in the shown illustrative embodiment is integrally provided with a bearing block 19 for the reception of a roller shaft 20 for the front roller pair 15. In so far as a locking device 60 for the bearing block 19 or the pivot 18 is released, the bearing block 19, as will be described in greater detail further below, can be manually twisted, by turning the large-area rotary knob 40 through 90° from the position shown in Fig. 2, in which the rotation axis of the rollers 15A of the front roller pair 15 lies transversely to the normal running direction of the slider 10 in the guide rail 4 and the rollers 15A aid the free running of the slider 10 in the guide rail 4, into a twist position, in which the rotation axis of the rollers 15A is orientated parallel to the motional direction of the slider 10 and, to this extent, in the longitudinal direction of the slider body 14. Only in this orientation of the rollers 15A or rotation axis of the front, first roller pair 15 can the slider 10 having the front roller pair 15A be inserted into the profile interior 5 of the guide rail 4 or removed therefrom.

[25] The detent pawl 11 is suspended from the slider body 14 pivotably about a pivot pin 22, for which purpose the pivot pin 22 reaches through through bores on a middle part 23 of the slider body 14. The detent pawl 11 itself sits within an upwardly and downwardly open interior 14A, which is surrounded in a cage-like manner by the slider body 14, the detent pawl 11, as the sectional view in Fig. 3 clearly shows, being biased relative to the pivot pin 22 with a first compression spring 24 and also with a second compression spring 25 such that the pawl boss 11 A of the detent pawl 11 normally projects downwards over the bottom side of the slider body 14, unless, via the link 12, the snap hook and the belt system, a tensile force is applied to the detent pawl 11 counter to the restoring force of the two compression springs 24, 25. The two compression springs 24 and 25 here both act in the same rotational direction in relation to the pivot pin 22, though with effective directions which mutually differ by just a few degrees.

[26] The second, rear roller pair 21 is not statically mounted on the slider body 14, but is movable relative to the slider body, since it is mounted on a slider carriage 30 which can tilt so as to be tiltably movable to a limited extent relative to the slider body 14 about a tilt axis produced by means of a tilt pin 31, as a comparison of Figs. 2 and 3, with the different end positions for the slider carriage 30, clearly shows. In the tilt position of the slider carriage 30 according to Fig. 3, a roller shaft 20 for the front roller pair 15, the tilt pin 31 for the slider carriage 30 and a shaft 27 for the rollers 21 A of the second roller pair 21 lie in alignment in one plane, the tilt position shown in Fig. 3 being limited in a positive-locking manner by stops or interacting edge surfaces on the slider carriage 30 and on the slider body 14. The slider body 14 forms on its rear part 26 a fork end, to which the tilt pin 31 for the slider carriage 30 is fastened; the slider carriage 30 intrudes with a front, tapered bearing arm into the fork space on the rear part 26. The back edge of the rear part 26 of the slider body 14 runs partially with a portion 29' perpendicular to the bottom side of the slider body 14 and partially with a further portion 29" obliquely at that angle which, in the shown illustrative embodiment, limits the maximum tilt angle of the slider carriage 30 of here around 25°. Marginal edges 33 on the slider carriage 30 respectively interact with the portions 29', 29" of the back edge of the rear part 26 of the slider body 14, via which marginal edges the slider carriage 30 tapers to a bearing journal via which the slider carriage 30 is tiltably connected by means of the tilt pin 31 to the fork eye of the slider body 14. In the shown illustrative embodiment, the second roller pair 21 is mounted floatingly on the slider carriage 30; for this purpose, the second roller pair 21 has a shaft 27, which is accommodated with motional play in an associated through bore 32 in the slider carriage 30, whilst the two rollers 21 A of the second roller pair 21 are mounted rotatably on the ends of the shaft 27. As a result of the floating mounting of the second roller pair 21, this roller pair 21 can shift transversely to the running direction of the slider 10.

[27] Fig. 4 shows the slider 10 in the usage position, in which a person (not shown here), via a back-pull, i.e. a pulling movement away from the guide rail 4, pivots the detent pawl 11 in such a way about the pivot pin 22 that the pawl boss of the detent pawl 11 is released from the latching cutouts 8 in the rear side 4C of the guide rail 4, whereupon, at the same time, both the front, first roller pair 15 and the rear, second roller pair 21 bear against the guide flanges 4A, 4B of the guide rail 4, which are situated opposite the latching cutouts 8, so as to be able to move up and down along the ladder together with the slider 4. Where the person slips off the ladder and exerts a pull downward onto the detent pawl 11 (not shown), the detent pawl 11 enters into engagement with the latching cutouts 8 in the rear side 4C of the guide rail already after a short fall height. In such a fall, the tilting joint, produced with the tilt axis of the tilt pin 31, between the rotation axis of the second, rear roller pair 21 and the front roller pair 15 causes the slider body 14 to come to bear, on the one hand, with the rollers 15A of the front roller pair 15 against the guide flanges 4B, 4C of the guide rail 4 and, on the other hand, with the back edge of the slider body 14 and/or the bottom side of the slider carriage 30 against the opposite rear side 4C within the guide rail 4 and to be jammed there without the rear roller pair 21 being put under load. In a fall, the slider body 14 and the slider carriage 30 hence essentially assume the pivot position as shown in Fig. 2 for the slider 10 (though outside the guide rail).

[28] With reference to Figs. 5 to 10, the insertion or removal of the slider 10 according to the invention into or from a guide rail 4 of a climbing apparatus (not shown further), such as, for example, a climbing ladder, is now specifically explained. As stated further above, the guide rail 4 has essentially a C-profile, albeit an asymmetric C- profile having a first guide flange 4A which is shorter than the second guide flange 4B, for which reason also the longitudinal slot 4D lies eccentrically between these. The guide flanges 4A, 4B, the rear side 4C and the side flanges of the guide rail 4 delimit a profile interior 5 into which the slider 10 can be inserted, or from which the slider can be removed, at any chosen location. Fig. 5 shows the situation directly prior to the initial introduction of the slider 10 into the profile interior 5 of the guide rail 4. The insertion is firstly realized with the rollers 21 A of the second roller pair 21, which are mounted preferably floating on the slider carriage 30. For the insertion of the second roller pair 21, the entire sliderlO, as Figs. 5 and 6 clearly show, is orientated such that the slider body 14 and the slider carriage 30 stand substantially perpendicular to the guide rail 4 or, in the case of a vertically running ladder, horizontally. As soon as the second roller pair 21 intrudes into the profile interior 5 of the guide rail 4, the slider 10, as indicated with the arrow F in Fig. 6, is here twisted anti-clockwise, based on the shown original position, in order that the slider carriage 30 and the slider body 14 position themselves parallel to the slot 4D in the guide rail 4, whereupon, at the same time, the two rollers of the second roller pair 21 back- grip the guide flanges 4A, 4B, whereby at least the rear end of the slider 10 is securely anchored to the guide rail 4. Since, despite the asymmetrical profile cross section of the guide rail 4 with asymmetrical C-profile, the second roller pair 21 is mounted floatingly on the slider carriage 30, the insertion of the slider 10 can be realized also from a direction rotated through 180°, by a rotation of the slider 10 counter to the arrow direction F, i.e. clockwise, through 90°. The operator normally knows that the slider 10 must be rotated in such a way that, in the usage position, the other, first roller pair 15 must form the topmost roller pair in order for the detent pawl 11 to be able to intrude with its pawl boss 11 A into the latching cutouts 8 and prevent a fall. In order nevertheless to prevent an incorrect insertion also by constructive means, in the shown and preferred illustrative embodiment the rollers 15A of the first roller pair 15, as is also clearly visible in Fig. 5, are arranged, in accordance with the asymmetry predefined by the guide rail 4, asymmetrically on the bearing block 19, or the roller shaft 20 projects beyond the bearing block 19 with different distance, the rollers 15A being rotatably mounted on this roller shaft 20 fixedly anchored to the bearing block 19. As a result of this firmly predefined asymmetrical arrangement of the two rollers 15A of the front roller pair 15, an incorrect insertion is prevented, since, in the event of an incorrect insertion, i.e. when the front roller pair 15 lies deeper in the guide rail 4 than the rear roller pair 21, it would not be possible to twist the twistable bearing block 19 having the front, first roller pair 15 within the guide rail 4 through 90° into the usage position.

[29] Fig. 7 shows the slider 10 in the inserted state on the guide rail 4 before the front roller pair 15 having the asymmetrically arranged rollers 15A is twisted into the usage position. The slider body 14 and the slider carriage 30 lie parallel to and within the guide slot of the guide rail 4. From the position shown in Fig. 7, the bearing block 19 can be twisted by means of the control knob 40 only in one direction, since a faulty operation is prevented by an anti-twist protection. This anti-twist protection is realized by means of a marginal recess 41, extending over an arc of around 90°, on the bearing block 19, as well as a projection 16A on the front side of the front part 16 of the slider body 14. The projection 16A intrudes into the marginal recess 41 and permits a pivoting of the bearing block 19 only in one direction through 90°.

[30] Starting from the position shown in Fig. 7, in which the bearing block 19 lies with the front roller pair 15 already in the profile interior of the guide rail 4, though the rotation axis of the rollers 15A points in the motional direction and the rollers are hence unable to roll, the bearing block 19 must now also be rotated in order to prevent the slider 10 within the guide rail 4 from falling out, whereby, in the slider 10 according to the invention, an undesirable back-rotation is constructively prevented. The secure locking of the correct position of the slider 10 is achieved by means of a locking device 60, the structure of which is now described with reference to Fig. 3 and Figs. 8 to 10. Fig. 8 shows the bearing block 19 having the front roller pair 15 shortly prior to the attainment of the usage position, in which the rotation axis of the rollers 15A of the front roller pair 15 lies parallel to the rotation axis of the rear roller pair and each of the two rollers 15A respectively back-grips one of the two guide flanges 4A, 4B of the guide rail 4. As Figs. 3 and 8 clearly show, a further locking plate 61 is connected in a rotationally secure manner to the pivot 18, the bearing block 19 and the rotary knob 40, for example via a square portion on the pivot 18. This locking plate 61 has a peripheral edge 62 having a portion 63, running in a curved or rounded shape, and having a step 64 running perpendicular thereto, which step delimits a locking depression 65, in this case on one side. The periphery 62 of the locking plate 61 is borne against by a locking boss 66, which, as Fig. 3 clearly shows, is biased by means of a further spring 67 towards the pivot 18 and is pivotably mounted with a pin 68 in this case on the front part 16 of the slider body 14 roughly midway between the bore 17 and the pivot pin 22 for the pawl 11. The locking boss 66 presses permanently with the bias of the spring 66 against the periphery of the locking plate 61, and Fig. 8 shows a position shortly before the locking boss 66 can intrude into the locking depression 65, since the step 64 has not yet fully passed the locking boss 66. Fig. 9 shows the moment when the bearing block 19 has assumed its usage position, i.e. that position in which the rotation axis of the front roller pair 15 lies parallel to that of the rear roller pair. Fig. 9 shows that in this position the locking plate 61, which is connected in a rotationally secure manner to the bearing block 19 via the pivot (18, Fig. 3), is orientated such that the locking boss 66 intrudes into the locking depression 65. In this position, the locking boss 66 and the step 64 of the locking depression prevent the bearing block 19, by positive engagement, from being back-rotated by turning of the rotary knob 40. Because, for example, the slider 10 is to be removed from the guide rail 4, for back- rotation of the bearing block 19 the locking boss 66 must first be manually pushed back, counter to the spring force of the restoring spring (67, Fig. 3) that biases it, since only then can the locking plate 61 pass the locking boss 65.

[31] In the slider 10, the rotary knob 40 is also constructively prevented from being

operated while a person is using the slider 10 on a guide rail. For a twisting of the bearing block 19, it is in fact absolutely necessary that the detent pawl 11 intrudes with the pawl boss 11 A into a window 8 in the guide rail 4. This is shown by a comparison of Figs. 9 and 10. In Fig. 10, due to a back-pull exerted by the operator, the detent pawl 11 momentarily does not intrude into one of the latching cutouts 8 on the guide rail 4. Secured by the slider and the guide rail 4, the person can therefore comfortably climb up or down with the use of the slider 10. The detent pawl 11 has however, additionally on its pawl shaft, a further locking tongue 70, which extends in the direction of the rotary shaft or the locking boss 66 and which, whenever a back-pull is exerted on the detent pawl 11 and the detent pawl is pivoted into an unlocking position, bears against the rear side of the locking boss 66, preferably directly in positive engagement. In this position, the locking tongue 70, as Fig. 10 shows, prevents the locking boss 66 from being manually or otherwise moved. A movement of the locking boss 66 requires that the locking tongue 70 on the pawl shaft of the detent pawl 11 first clears the necessary motional path. Due to the mutually coordinated positioning of the locking tongue 70 on the detent pawl 11, the locking boss 66 and the shaping of the locking plate 61, a twisting of the front bearing block 19 via the rotary knob 40, or even unintentionally, hence can only take place when the detent pawl 11, with the locking tongue 70, first clears the necessary motional path for the locking boss 66. This is only the case, however, when the detent pawl 11 is pivoted in its locking position in which it intrudes into one of the windows 8 on the guide rail 4. Faulty operations and an unintentional release of the slider 10 from the guide rail 4 are therefore not possible.

[32] For the person skilled in the art, numerous modifications which shall fall within the scope of the appended claims emerge from the preceding description. The slider can be used not only on asymmetrical, but also on symmetrical guide rails. The band- type fall damper could also be relinquished. It is particularly advantageous if the slider is used on an asymmetrical rail with floating mounting of the rear roller axis, which in turn is arranged on a tiltable slider carriage. The individual embodiments can also, however, advantageously be used independently of one another. The shown locking device forms an, in particular, advantageous embodiment, whilst other locking mechanisms for preventing an incorrect twisting of the twistable bearing block for the front roller pair would also be possible. In place of rollers which are mounted on fixed shafts, the mountings of the rollers could also be realized via axle journals or within the bearing block 19.

Claims

1. Slider for a climbing protection system to protect a person from falls on ladders having a C-profiled guide rail, comprising a slider body

(14) , comprising a detent pawl (11), and comprising a first roller pair

(15) and a second roller pair (21) for guiding the slider (10) in the profile interior of the guide rail, wherein the first roller pair (15), for fitting of the slider (10) on the guide rail, can be twisted relative to the slider body (14) about an axis running perpendicular to a rotation axis of the rollers (15A) of the first roller pair (15), characterized in that the second roller pair (21) is mounted on a slider carriage (30) connected to the slider body (14) tiltably about a tilt axis running parallel to the rotation axis of the second roller pair (21), and/or in that the rollers (21 A) of the second roller pair (21) are arranged on a shaft (27) mounted floatingly on the slider (10).

2. Slider according to Claim 1, characterized in that the rollers (21 A) of the second roller pair (21) are mounted rotatably on the shaft (27), and in that the shaft (27) is accommodated in a bore (32) in the slider carriage (30) such that it is displaceable transversely to the shaft axis.

3. Slider according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the detent pawl (11) is mounted on the slider body (14) pivotably about a pivot axis and is biased in the locking position by means of at least one spring, preferably by means of two springs (24, 25) having differing working directions.

4. Slider according to one of Claims 1 to 3, characterized in that on the slider carriage (30) and on the slider body (14) edge surfaces (33; 29', 29") are provided, with which the tilt angle of the slider carriage (30) can be or is limited relative to the slider body (14) by positive engagement.

5. Slider according to one of Claims 1 to 4, characterized in that only two roller pairs (15; 21), both of which in the usage state run in the profile interior of the guide rail, are provided.

6. Slider according to one of Claims 1 to 5, characterized in that the rollers (15A) of the first roller pair (15) are mounted on a bearing block (19) fastened in a twistable manner to the slider body (14) by means of a pivot (18).

7. Slider according to Claim 6, characterized in that the rollers (15A) of the first roller pair (15) are arranged asymmetrically on the bearing block (19).

8. Slider according to Claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the rollers (15A) of the first roller pair (15) are rotatably mounted on a roller shaft (20) fixedly connected to the bearing block (19).

9. Slider according to one of Claims 6 to 8, characterized in that the bearing block (19) is partially provided on the end face with a recess (41) and the slider body (14) is provided on the end face with a projection (16A) jutting into the recess (41), the recess (41) and the projection (16A) permitting a twisting of the bearing block (19) out of the usage position only in one direction.

10. Slider according to one of Claims 6 to 9, characterized in that the pivot (18) is provided with a locking device (60), which permits a twisting of the bearing block (19) preferably only in the locking position of the detent pawl (11).

11. Slider according to Claim 10, characterized in that the detent pawl (11) has a pawl shaft provided with a locking tongue (70) which, in order to prevent misuse, interacts positively with the locking device (60) for the bearing block (19).

12. Slider according to Claim 10 or 11, characterized in that the locking device (60) has a locking plate (61) connected in a rotationally secure manner to the pivot (18), and a locking boss (66) biased towards the rotary shaft (18) and bearing against the locking plate (61), a locking depression (65) for the engagement of the locking boss (66) in the usage position of the bearing block (19) being configured on the periphery of the locking plate (61).

13. Slider according to Claim 12, characterized in that the locking depression (65) consists of a step (64) adjoined by a curved sliding portion (63) on the periphery (62) of the locking plate (61).

14. Slider according to one of Claims 12 or 13, characterized in that the locking boss (66) is arranged between the detent pawl (11) and the first roller pair (15).

15. Slider according to one of Claims 1 to 14, characterized in that the detent pawl (11) is arranged between the roller pairs (15; 21).