Fire escape – ladder – or scaffold – Torso harness – With pole encircling or grasping means
Reexamination Certificate
1999-11-12
2001-06-05
Chin-Shue, Alvin (Department: 3634)
Fire escape, ladder, or scaffold
Torso harness
With pole encircling or grasping means
C182S133000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06241045
ABSTRACT:
The present invention is directed to a fall protection, life-saving feature for workers climbing poles, whether they are of a telephone pole type, a lamp pole type, or any type of pole that a workman needs to climb. In particular, the present invention involves a structure to enable a worker to move in rotation about the pole, as he/she climbs or works, and still maintain a safety feature to prevent any potential or accidental falling off of the pole structure. Particularly, the structure of the present invention provides safety features especially while training new workers to climb and work on such poles, or requalifying previously trained pole climbers.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Structures enabling people to climb various types of poles for different reasons have been known for some time. For example, various arrangements for climbing poles may be seen in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,968,858; 4,527,660; and 5,050,704. These various patents all relate to ways of climbing poles of different types to perform work, each using some sort of safety line for maintaining the person on the pole. All of these prior art type arrangements, however, fail to allow the worker to work around the pole unless he were to dismount the pole and start over again at a different spot.
Further in this vein, an even more difficult arrangement to work around the pole may be seen in U.S. Pat. No. 3,957,135. This more complicated device involves a cage mounted to the pole for carrying a worker up the pole. Again, while a safety line is present, the worker cannot move the cage about the pole as he works or climbs.
Finally, in the patent to Kleveborn, U.S. Pat. No. 4,572,329 a structure is provided for climbing a rail-type pole having a U-shaped runner to which a line is attached. The difficulty with this type of prior art arrangement is the use of stepping shoe plates mounted on runners fitted to the rail to move upwardly, as the worker moves his feet. Also, this prior art type arrangement uses a rail-like member on which the climbing structure is mounted, rather than having a cylindrical-like pole structure like that used throughout the world.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a pole climbing feature in which a worker may move around the pole while climbing, yet be securely fixed in the event of a fall from the pole.
In particular, the present invention relates to use on a cylindrical type pole, which is the norm in almost all such structures worldwide. A novel clamping frame is provided according to the present invention to be mounted at any height on the pole. This clamping frame can be used with any sized cylindrical pole, having a wide range of pole diameters.
Also, the clamping frame of the present invention further includes a rotating arm connected to it which arm can be rotated at least partially about the pole. A holding structure is fixed, according to the present invention, to the end of the rotating arm away from the pole, and a life line structure is fixed and constructed in accordance with the present invention to this holding structure.
According to the present invention, the clamping frame is a structure to enable connection to a pole having a wide range of diameters. It is especially useful with construction type and utility type poles, which may have diameters ranging from about 6 to 10 inches.
The rotating arm of the present invention is preferably attached to the clamping frame by way of a pivoting arrangement used in fixing the rotating arm to the clamping frame. Such a pivoting arrangement allows rotation of the rotating arm about the pole.
In accordance with the present invention, the rotating arm, fixed to the pole through the clamping frame, may rotate about the pole in any desired amount of rotation. Such rotation may be up to at least about 250 degrees. Thus, a worker is able to climb the pole in at least a partially circular manner, instead of just straight up.
Further, the rotating arm is formed of a frame structure sufficient to bear significant forces at the end of the arm by the life line structure acting on the holding structure. It is constructed of a galvanized tubing fixed to steel flat members to absorb such forces. These forces are also absorbed in the pivoting arrangement which is part of the rotating arm fixed to the clamping frame.
The life line structure is fixed to an anchoring structure at the end of the rotating arm by way of a self-locking link member, such as a caribiner. This life line structure of the present invention connects a safety line to a climber on the pole, so that a self-locking device is activated locking the safety line, if the climber falls accidentally from the pole. The climber is quickly held immediately after a short fall of only at most a couple of feet, if not quicker. Moreover, because the life line is fixed at the end of the rotating arm away from the pole, the fall of the worker does not entail falling into or against the pole, causing injury or the receipt of splinters in the case of wooden poles.
A worker is prevented from falling more than a couple of feet during an accidental fall because the safety line is held through the life line structure fixed to the self-locking structure of the present invention. This unique arrangement enables the safety line to be reeled-in slowly, as the climber climbs, or be pulled out slowly, as the climber descends the pole. Upon a fall of the climber from the pole, the resulting yanking pull causes the self-locking mechanism, for example, an inertial device, to lock-up a take-up reel, so that a further pulling out of the safety line is impossible. The climber is prevented from falling more than a couple of feet, and ideally, the present invention may be designed to result in a fall of only a foot or so.
Upon slipping from the pole, the climber falls only about a foot or so, and then his fall is arrested in mid-air without his falling to the ground and receiving serious injuries. Further, since the safety line is stopped and held at a position away from the pole by the rotating arm, then he is prevented from falling against the pole. Serious injuries by way of bruises and cuts from impact on the pole are avoided.
The safety features of the present invention become very important in training workers to climb poles without receiving serious injuries. A problem of fear of falling that may occur to persons being trained to climb poles, or being retrained for such jobs, is significantly reduced by the present invention, thereby reducing possible employee termination.
REFERENCES:
patent: 3647171 (1972-03-01), Rafferty
patent: 5603389 (1997-02-01), Zemon
patent: 6016889 (2000-01-01), Pearcy
Reeve Robert E.
Reeve Steven E.
Casey Sean M.
Chin-Shue Alvin
Miller Paul R.
Reeve Steven E.
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