ZA200907934B - Ladder accessory - Google Patents

Description

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THIS INVENTION relates to a ladder accessory. \ LUI

A problem encountered by a person standing on a ladder for an extended period of time is that by virtue of the relatively small area of contact between a rung of the ladder and a person's foot the person can experience severe discomfort.

It is an object of this invention to provide means which the Inventor believes will at least alleviate this problem.

According to the invention there is provided a ladder accessory which includes: 16 a support platform; and : : mounting formations fixed to the support platform to prevent relative displacement therebetween, the mounting formations being configured to permit the accessory to be dismountably mountable on a ladder with the support. platform upright enabling a user of the ladder to stand on the support platform. oo

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the mounting formations include stile engaging formations and rung engaging formations configured to engage respectively stiles and at least one rung of a said ladder. . The stile engaging formations may be in the form of a pair of laterally spaced lugs which are spaced further from the support platform than the rung engaging formations. The lugs may protrude outwardly from a pair of flanges depending from the platform at laterally spaced apart positions.

The rung engaging formations may be in the form of a pair of hook like formations which depend from the platform at laterally spaced positions, the lateral spacing between the rung engaging formations being less then the lateral spacing between the stile engaging formations.

Each hook like formation may include a retaining finger which is inclined for at least part of its length away from the support platform.towards an associated lug. Each hook like

. formation may have a free end which is spaced from an associated lug so that a rung is receivable therebetween.

The platform may have a plurality of holes extending therethrough.

The ladder accessory may be formed as a unitary moulding of synthetic plastics material.

The invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a ladder accessory in accordance with the invention; and

Figure 2 shows a sectional view of a ladder accessory of Figure 1 in use on a ladder.

In the drawings, reference numeral 10 refers generally to a ladder accessory in accordance with the invention.

The ladder accessory 10 includes a support platform, generally indicated by reference numeral 12, rung engaging formations, generally indicated by reference numeral 14, and stile engaging formations, generally indicated by reference numeral 16.

The rung engaging formations are in the form of a pair of laterally spaced hook like formations 17 connected to and extending away and in particular operatively downwardly from the support platform 12. A pair of parallel flanges 18 depends from the support platform at laterally spaced apart positions. The stile engaging formations 16 are in the form of circular cylindrical lugs 19 protruding outwardly from the flanges 18. Each hook like formation 14 includes a retaining finger 21 which is inclined for part of its length away from the support platform 12 towards an associated lug 16, forming a rung receiving gap 26 between the free end of each hook like formation 14 and the associated flange 18. The width of the gap 26 or in other words the spacing P between the free end of each retaining finger 21 and the adjacent flange 18 is slightly larger than

) the width of a rung 22 of a ladder with which the accessory is intended for use. ~ Typically, the spacing P will be about 40 mm.

The support platform 12 has a plurality of holes 24 extending therethrough.

In use, as can best be seen in Figure 2 of the drawings, in order to mount the accessory on a ladder 30, the accessory is positioned such that a rung 22 of the ladder is received through the gap 26 between the free ends of the retaining fingers 21 and the adjacent flanges 18 into the rung receiving aperture 27. The accessory is positioned 10 such that the rung 22 abuts the hook like formations 14 and the underside of the support platform 12 and the lugs 19 abut against the stiles 20 of the ladder 30. As can be seen in Figure 2 of the drawings, when the ladder 30 is inclined against a vertical support such as a wall, the support platform 12 extends generally horizontally thereby permitting a person to stand on the support platform. It will be appreciated that the centre of gravity of the accessory 10 is positioned to the right of the rung 22, in Figure 2, thereby urging the accessory to rotate in the direction of arrow 38 relative to the rung 22. Such rotation is prevented by the lugs 19, however, it does serve to retain the accessory in the desired position.

If it is desired to remove the accessory from the ladder or to move it relative to the ladder, e.g. to a higher rung, it is simply displaced upwardly until the rung passes between the free ends of the retaining fingers 21 and the adjacent flanges and it can then be mounted in engagement with a desired rung in the manner described above.

In addition, by virtue of the relatively small spacing P relative to the width of a rung and the configuration of the retaining fingers, the Applicant has found that, should a user ‘ wish to climb past the accessory 10, he can simply displace it in a direction opposite to the direction of arrow 38 such that it is supported on the rung 22 with the lugs 19 in abutment with the stiles 20 as shown in broken lines in Figure 2 of the drawings. In this position a user can put his foot on the rung 22 between the flanges 18 enabling him to climb past the accessory 10. When it is desired to return the accessory 10 to its operative position shown in solid lines in Figure 2 of the drawings, it is a relative simple matter to manipulate the accessory 10 by hand or using a foot thereby further enhancing the safety of the accessory 10.

Prior art ladder accessories of which the Inventor is aware, involve complicated mechanisms whereby the accessory is clipped into position. Operation of these mechanisms require the use of two hands which naturally can be problematic for a 5 person standing on a ladder since he will no longer be able to hold onto the ladder which could be dangerous. In addition, these mechanisms are relatively expensive to manufacture. Further, these mechanisms are relatively heavy which exacerbates the problem of installing and removing them when standing on a ladder. In addition, when fixed in position, the prior art accessories cannot be moved and in essence form an oo obstruction to a user of the ladder which could be potentially dangerous. ’

In contrast, in view of the fact that the accessory in accordance with the invention can be manufactured as a unitary moulding of synthetic plastics material, the Inventor believes that it will be relatively inexpensive to manufacture and light weight. In addition, by virtue of its configuration it-can be mounted on and dismounted from a ladder easily using one hand thereby enhancing the safe use thereof. In addition, as mentioned above, when climbing a ladder, if it is desired to climb past an installed : accessory 10, it is a relative simple matter to rotate the accessory 10 out of the way using one’s hand or foot facilitating safe usage of the ladder, If it is desired to return the accessory 10 to its operative condition on which a user can stand, this can be achieved relatively easily with a foot or hand thereby avoiding the need for a user to remove both hands from the ladder at any given time.

Claims (10)

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1. A ladder accessory which includes: oe a support platform; and mounting formations fixed to the support platform to prevent relative displacement therebetween, the mounting formations being configured to permit the accessory to be “dismountably mountable on a ladder with the support platform upright thereby enabling a user of the ladder to stand on the support platform.

2. A ladder accessory according to claim 1, in which the mounting formations include ) stile engaging formations and rung engaging formations configured to engage - respectively stiles and at least one rung of a said ladder.

3. A ladder accessory according to claim 2, in which the stile engaging formations are in the form of a pair of laterally spaced lugs which are spaced further from the support platform than the rung engaging formations.

4. A ladder accessory according to claim 3, which includes a pair of flanges depending from the platform at laterally spaced apart positions, the lugs protruding outwardly from the flanges.

5. A ladder accessory according to claim 3 or claim 4, in which the rung engaging formations are in the form of a pair of hook like formations which depend from the platform at laterally spaced positions, the lateral spacing between the rung engaging formations being less than the lateral spacing between the stile engaging formations.

6. A ladder accessory according to claim 5, in which each hook like formation includes a retaining finger which is inclined for at least part of its length away from the support platform towards an associated lug.

7. A ladder accessory according to claim 5 or claim 6, in which each hook like formation has a free end which is spaced from an associated lug so that a rung is receivable therebetween.

8. A ladder accessory according to any one of the preceding claims, in which the platform has a plurality of holes extending therethrough.

9. Aladder accessory as claimed in any one of the preceding claims which is formed as a unitary moulding of synthetic plastics material.

10. A ladder accessory as claimed in claim 1 substantially as described and illustrated herein with reference to the drawings. DATED THIS 11™ BAY OF NOVEMBER 2009 ~ s & ADAMS > & APPLICANTS PATENT ATYORNEYS