Fences – Rail – Connection
Reexamination Certificate
1999-07-12
2001-04-24
Kim, Harry C. (Department: 3629)
Fences
Rail
Connection
C256S065080, C256SDIG001, C256SDIG006
Reexamination Certificate
active
06220577
ABSTRACT:
TECHNICAL FIELD
This invention relates to safety devices and more specifically to temporary guard railings used during construction of buildings.
BACKGROUND-DESCRIPTION OF PRIOR ART
In the construction of multiple-story buildings, both commercial and residential, considerable risk is present to craftsmen and others at the building site during the main stages of construction. Specifically, there is considerable risk that workers may accidentally fall from an upper story and sustain a serious injury or even death. These concerns are especially high until exterior walls are installed around elevated floors and until a permanent bannister or railing system is installed on balconies, staircases and the like.
Regulations of the Occupational, Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), require the use of safety protection at locations where a risk is present that persons may fall. To satisfy OSHA regulations, safety protection in the form of temporary guard rails must exceed certain minimum lateral load requirements without experiencing permanent deformation or component failure.
Numerous temporary guard rails have been designed to address these safety concerns. Over time, designs for guard rails have improved structurally. However, some building designs have features which require railings to angled in different directions and/or orientations. Especially for these situations, installation of guard rails has proven cumbersome and requires additional time because of the changes in vertical height and horizontal direction.
Typical of the prior art is U.S. Pat. No. 3,776,521 issued to Weinert. Weinert discloses a portable safety railing for use in a horizontal plane which can be connected lengthwise in series or connected at right angles.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,683,074 issued to Purvis et al., discloses a guard rail system which incorporates a plurality of upright stanchions. Attached to the stanchions are support collars which support side rails and also permit the rails to be rotated 360 degrees about the stanchion. Once the proper angle is obtained, the support collars are fixed in position by use of wing nuts. The wing nuts are also used along with an incline adapter bracket to angle side rails vertically. Finally, Purvis et al., teaches the use of adjusting side rail length by the use of a telescopic means. One concern of this system is that failure of a wing nut can compromise the integrity of the guard rail.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention provides a temporary guard rail assembly designed so that it can be quickly installed for a variety of situations and provide the necessary guard rail function. The safety stanchion post assembly meets OSHA requirements and is adapted for building construction use as a temporary rail system installed when framing of a building is finished and removed as the installation of walls and permanent railings near completion.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to a safety stanchion post assembly which comprises: a) a flat mounting plate fabricated to rest on a support surface or flooring; b) an upright post fixed in a vertical relationship on the mounting plate and having a pair of brackets permanently attached at different distances from the mounting plate; and c) means for attaching the mounting plate upon the support surface.
At least two stanchion post assemblies are used in series to support an upper and a lower rail system. Each rail system comprises a plurality of rails coupled in series to adjacent rails on either end by a coupling which can be described as a flex joint. In this specification, I use flex joint and coupling interchangeably and both have the same meaning. My coupling permits flexibility in allowing each rail to be orientated in a variety of directions respective to an adjacent rail. An adjacent rail is defined as a rail which is capable of being coupled to the rail. Each rail system will be supported by a respective bracket on each stanchion post assembly. Each rail comprises an outer elongated member and an inner elongated member which is capable of telescopically extending away from the outer member resulting in a rail whose length can be varied.
The unique flex joint is coupled on one end to the outer member of one rail and coupled on the other end to the inner member of an adjacent rail.
Preferably, the upright post or stanchion has two brackets permanently fixed to the post at vertical distances of 42 inches and 21.5 inches from the base of the mounting plate. The brackets can be L-shaped or U-shaped. However, U-shaped is more desirable since it can be secured to the side of the upright post more securely because of a greater available weld area. Also, the distal side of either the U or L shape bracket is preferably longer than the outside diameter of the rail to help maintain the rail on the bracket.
The means for permanently affixing the brackets is by welding to the stanchions.
Each bracket has a hole which is on the bracket wall affixed to the stanchion. A pair of holes are made transversely through the sidewall of the post so that the post holes are in line with the bracket hole and the distal side of a respective bracket. A fastener in the form of a set screw threadably engages at least one of the holes and is partially positioned between the post holes. Preferably, the post hole distal from each respective bracket is larger than the head of the set screw or fastener. This is so that as each rail is frictionally engaged by a set screw, the head will have its position within the post or no more than flush with the post. In this way, persons walking close to each post will not have their clothing snag on a protruding screw head. Also, there is less of a chance that passers-by may wish to try unscrewing the set screws when they are out of sight.
When a rail is placed upon a pair of brackets, the fasteners are then used to secure the rail in place. Sufficient torque is used upon the fasteners to ensure the rails remain secure.
The bracket design insures that even if a fastener should fail, the rail system will not be displaced off of its position on each bracket.
The brackets can also be fitted with a removably attached flat plate or pin positioned above the rail to enclose the rail within the bracket thereby preventing the rail from being inadvertently lifted out from supportable engagement with the bracket. However, because of the weight of the rail members, it is believed this enclosure means is not necessary to the overall function of the invention.
The mounting-plate has four holes defined therein along the peripheral corner of the plate and is preferably spaced in relationship to one another. The plate is fastened to the support surface by lag screws that extend through the openings in the mounting plate.
The rails can be made of various lengths and each have a slidable inner member that permits each rail to have an adjustable length. This type of variable length can be used to close gaps in order to meet the OSHA required maximum allowable opening of three inches. Although diameters can vary, my invention utilizes a 1½ inch diameter for the outer rail member and a 1¼ inch diameter for the inner member.
The rails are preferably made of a high strength material such as steel. The rail configuration is tubular and can be in either in the form of a round pipe or the more preferred square pipe configuration. For purposes of this specification I will use the term circumference to define the outer or exterior surface distance for square pipe as it is commonly used for round pipe.
Although rails can be of varying length, for my invention I preferably use three rail lengths: 1) a three foot length which can be extended up to five feet; 2) a five foot length which can be extended up to nine feet; and 3) an eight foot length which can be extended up to fifteen feet.
The inner member of the rail has a temporary attachment means such as a pole clip that allows the inner member to lock in place with the overlying outer rail member. Each outer rail member has an opening to allow for the pole clip to
Chabot Ralph D.
Kim Harry C.
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