Fences – Highway guard
Reexamination Certificate
1995-01-18
2001-04-24
Kim, Harry C. (Department: 3629)
Fences
Highway guard
C404S006000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06220575
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION
This invention relates to an anchor assembly for an end terminal of a highway guardrail system having a guardrail mounted on posts with the end terminal assembly designed to meet applicable federal and state standards including but not limited to crash worthiness requirements.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Along most highways there are hazards which present substantial danger to drivers and passengers of vehicles if the vehicles leave the highway. To prevent accidents from a vehicle leaving the highway, guardrails are often provided along the side of the highway. Experience has shown that guardrails should be installed such that the end of the guardrail facing the flow of oncoming traffic does not present another hazard more dangerous than the original hazard requiring installation of the guardrail. Early guardrails often had no protection at the end facing the oncoming traffic. Sometimes impacting vehicles became impaled on such guardrail ends causing extensive damage to the vehicle and severe injury to the driver and/or passengers. In some reported cases, the guardrail penetrated directly into the passenger compartment of the vehicle fatally injuring the driver and passengers.
Various guardrail designs and end terminal assemblies have been developed to minimize the consequences resulting from impact between a vehicle and the end of a guardrail. These designs include tapering the end of the guardrail into the ground to eliminate potential contact with the end of the guardrail. Other types of end terminal assemblies include breakaway cable terminals (BCT), vehicle attenuating terminals (VAT), the Sentre end treatment, and breakaway end terminals (BET).
It is desirable for an end terminal assembly to be usable at any end of a guardrail as a means of both attenuating a head on impact as well as providing an effective anchor for an impact along the side of the guardrail downstream from the end terminal assembly. Examples of such end terminal assemblies are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,928,928 entitled Guardrail Extruder Terminal, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,078,366 entitled Guardrail Extruder Terminal. Both patents are incorporated by reference for all purposes within this application.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
In accordance with the present invention, disadvantages and problems associated with previous anchor assemblies for end terminals used to minimize damage to a vehicle caused by colliding with the end of a highway guardrail have been substantially reduced or eliminated. The present invention provides an anchor assembly having a cable anchor assembly and a universal offset strut which substantially reduce manufacturing costs for the associated end terminal assembly while at the same time allowing the end terminal assembly to effectively anchor the guardrail during a downstream rail face impact and to function satisfactorily during a head on impact with the end of the guardrail without excessive damage to the vehicle.
An end terminal assembly is provided for one end of a guardrail facing oncoming traffic to substantially enhance the safety of a vehicle impacting at or near the end of the guardrail. An end terminal assembly incorporating the present invention may be used with a guardrail mounted on a plurality of breakaway posts made from wood or other suitable types of material. A first post is provided adjacent to the end of the guardrail and a second post is provided spaced longitudinally from the first post and laterally offset from the guardrail. A universal strut is disposed between the first post and the second post with first and second yokes oriented relative to an elongated member to allow securing the universal strut with the first post and the second post when the lateral offset is either to the right or to the left of the guardrail.
An end terminal assembly incorporating an anchor assembly of the present invention may include a kinetic energy absorbing assembly such as an extruder terminal that dissipates impact energy by squeezing a W-beam guardrail into a relatively flat plate and bending the flattened guardrail in an arc directed away from the impacting vehicle. Other types of kinetic energy absorbing assemblies may be satisfactorily used with an end terminal assembly having the anchor assembly of the present invention. Alternatively, an anchor assembly incorporating the teachings of the present invention may be satisfactorily used with an end terminal assembly which does not include a kinetic energy absorbing assembly.
An anchor assembly of the present invention preferably includes a cable anchor assembly having a cable and a cable anchor bracket which provide desired tension support for the guardrail during a side impact or downstream guardrail face impact between a vehicle and the guardrail. The cable anchor bracket includes a plurality of tabs or partial cutouts which extend at an acute angle from the exterior of the cable anchor bracket. Each tab is inserted into a corresponding aperture in the guardrail at a location downstream from the first post on which the guardrail is mounted. One end of the cable is secured to the first post and the other end secured to the cable anchor bracket. The tabs have a tapered or angled configuration such that upon engagement of the cable anchor bracket by the kinetic energy absorbing assembly or other components of the end terminal assembly during a head on impact by a vehicle, the cable anchor bracket releases from the apertures in the guardrail and thus avoids preventing the end terminal assembly from safely functioning during the head on impact.
Technical advantages of the present invention include providing an end terminal assembly for a highway guardrail that is less expensive to manufacture than prior designs and easier to install. A major portion of the cable anchor bracket can be fabricated from a single piece of sheet metal using conventional metal bending and stamping techniques in accordance with the teachings of the present invention. A universal strut incorporating the teachings of the present invention may be used with an end terminal assembly having a second post with either a right or left lateral offset relative to a first post.
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Easton Steven D.
Lindsay Wilson J.
Woodard Dennis B.
Baker & Botts L.L.P.
Kim Harry C.
TRN Business Trust
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