Hand rails

Abstract

A handrail system includes a top rail and one or more support posts. The rail and post/s may be formed from a synthetic material such as a fibre reinforced plastics material. The or each connector has a rail connection part for connection to a rail section at either end thereof and a post connection part for connection to a support post, the connector forming part of the top rail whereby a continuous top rail is provided, in which the connection of the post/s to the connector/s is articulated so that in use the rail slope is adjustable. The system also includes one or more adjustable corner connectors including first and second parts hingedly connected to each other and being attachable to a rail section and a support post or leg.

Claims

1. A handrail system comprising: a top rail comprising a plurality of rail sections formed from a synthetic material; one or more support posts formed from a synthetic material; and one or more connectors each formed from a synthetic material for connection to a respective one of the support posts and a respective pair of the rail sections, each connector comprising: a rail connection part having a cylindrical central section and opposing connector sections being connected to the pair of rail sections at opposing axial ends thereof, the cylindrical central section forming a continuous part of the top rail with the rail sections, the cylindrical central section comprising a socket extending into an outer circumference thereof; and a post connection part for connection to the support post, the post connection part having an articulation leg, a post cap at an end of the articulation leg having a greater width than the articulation leg, and a fixing section extending from the post cap and connected to the support post, the post cap forming a flange extending outward from the fixing section and abutting an end of the support post; and a fastener hingedly connecting the articulation leg within the socket in an articulated configuration so that in use a slope of the top rail is adjustable, wherein a width of the socket defines a post-rail interface that occupies a circumferential area of the cylindrical central section that is less than a diameter of the cylindrical central section, and wherein the articulation leg extends a length away from the cylindrical central section such that the post cap is spaced from the cylindrical central section in a maximum articulated position, in which the articulation leg abuts an axial edge of the socket, to provide a continuous gripping surface of the top rail that can be gripped by a user such that a user does not need to remove their hand to pass over the post-rail interface.

2. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which each rail section of the top rail is formed from a phenolic-based FRP material.

3. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which each support post is formed from a phenolic-based FRP material.

4. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which each connector is formed from a phenolic-based FRP material.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which each connector is substantially T-shaped.

6. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which the post connection part is formed separately from the rail connection part.

7. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which the cylindrical central section has a circular cross-sectional shape.

8. The system as claimed in claim 7, in which a sector of the rail connection part occupied by the post-rail interface is in a range of 40 to 60 degrees.

9. The system as claimed in claim 8, in which a sector of the rail connection part occupied by the post-rail interface is approximately 52 degrees, leaving approximately 308 degrees available for a user to grip across the post-rail interface.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which the rail connection part is flush fitting with the pair of rail sections.

11. The system as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a cross member extending parallel to the top rail and connected to the one or more support posts, in which the top rail is of generally cylindrical shape with a circular cross section, and the cylindrical central section of each of the one or more connectors has a same diameter as the rail sections connected thereto.

12. The system as claimed in claim 1, in which the system comprises one or more adjustable corner connectors including first and second parts hingedly connected to each other and being attachable to one of the rail sections and to one of the support posts or a leg, the first and/or second part comprising a cranked portion.

13. The system as claimed in claim 12, in which each corner connector is formed from a phenolic-based FRP material.

14. The system as claimed in claim 12, in which the first and second parts of each corner connector are substantially the same.

15. The system as claimed in claim 12, in which first and second parts of the one or more adjustable corner connectors have a crank angle in a range of 15 to 30 degrees.

16. A method of forming the system as claimed in claim 12, comprising the step of forming the rail sections and the one or more support posts from the synthetic material, in which the rail sections of the top rail are formed by pultrusion.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising the step of molding the one or more connectors formed from the synthetic material.

18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of molding the one or more adjustable corner connectors including the first and second parts.

19. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the fastener comprises a pin.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The present invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

(2) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a hand rail arrangement formed according to an aspect of the present invention;

(3) FIG. 2 is a side view of the arrangement of FIG. 1;

(4) FIG. 3 is a side view of a post-to-rail connector forming part of the arrangement of FIGS. 1 and 2;

(5) FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a hand rail arrangement formed according to an alternative aspect of the present invention;

(6) FIG. 5 is a side view of the arrangement of FIG. 4;

(7) FIG. 6 is a side view of a post-rail connector forming part of the arrangement of FIGS. 1 and 2 with the connector in an inclined position;

(8) FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the connector of FIG. 6;

(9) FIG. 8 is a side view of the connector of FIGS. 6 and 7 shown in a straight position;

(10) FIG. 9 is a section of the connector of FIG. 8 taken along line A-A;

(11) FIG. 10 is a schematic cross-section of a connector formed according to the present invention;

(12) FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a hand rail arrangement including a connector formed according to an aspect of the present invention;

(13) FIG. 12 is a side view of the arrangement of FIG. 11;

(14) FIG. 13A is a side view of the connector of FIGS. 11 and 12 shown in a first position;

(15) FIG. 13B is a side elevation of the connector of FIG. 13A shown in a second position;

(16) FIG. 14 is a an underside perspective view of the connector of FIGS. 13A and 13B;

(17) FIG. 15 is a section of the connection of FIG. 13A taken along line A-A;

(18) FIG. 16 is a perspective view of a rail connection part of the connector of FIGS. 13 to 15;

(19) FIG. 17 is an alternative perspective view of the part of FIG. 16;

(20) FIG. 18 is an end elevation of the part of FIG. 16;

(21) FIG. 19 is a side elevation of the part of FIG. 16;

(22) FIG. 20 is a plan view of the part of FIG. 16;

(23) FIG. 21 is an underplan view of the part of FIG. 16;

(24) FIG. 22 is perspective view of a post connection part of the connector of FIGS. 13 to 15;

(25) FIG. 23 is a plan view of the part of FIG. 22;

(26) FIG. 24 is an underplan view of the part of FIG. 22;

(27) FIG. 25 is a front elevation of the part of FIG. 22; and

(28) FIG. 26 is a side elevation of the part of FIG. 22.

(29) FIG. 27 is a perspective view of a hand rail arrangement formed with a connector according to an alternative aspect of the present invention;

(30) FIG. 28 is a side view of the arrangement of FIG. 27;

(31) FIG. 29 is a side view of the connector;

(32) FIG. 30 shows top, bottom, front, rear and perspective views of the connector formed according to the present invention;

(33) FIG. 31 is a perspective view of one part of the connector of FIGS. 29 and 30;

(34) FIG. 32 is a plan view of the connector part of FIG. 31;

(35) FIG. 33 is a plan view of the connector part of FIG. 31;

(36) FIG. 34 is a side view of the connector part of FIG. 31; and

(37) FIG. 35 is an end view of the connector part of FIG. 31.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(38) Referring first to FIGS. 1 and 2 there is shown a hand rail system generally indicated 10. The system 10 comprises a rectilinear top rail 15 and a plurality (in this case three are shown) of depending support posts 20. At one end of the rail 15 a support leg 25 is connected orthogonally by an articulating connector 30. A cross member 35 extends parallel to the top rail 15 from the leg 25 through the posts 20; in some embodiments the cross member 25 may comprise a plurality of sections extending between adjacent posts and between the leg 25 and the adjacent post 20.

(39) The top rail 15 is of generally cylindrical shape with a circular cross section and is formed from an FRP material. The rail 15 is made up of a number of rail sections 40 which are joined by connectors 45 which also receive the post 20 as described in more detail below. Each post 20 is received on the underside of the connector 45 and the connectors 45 are the same diameter as the sections 40. This means that the connector 45 provides a surface which can itself be gripped by a user and the interface between the connector 45 and the adjacent rail sections 40 is such that a user does not need to remove their hand to pass over the intersections. Accordingly, the rail 15 presents a substantially continuous gripping surface along its length.

(40) Referring now to FIG. 3 the post-to-rail connector 45 is shown in more detail.

(41) The connector 45 is generally T-shape and comprises a rail connector section and a post connector section. The rail connector section comprises a central body 50 having at either end a cylindrical dowel portion 55. The dowel portions 55 are dimensioned to fit tightly within the ends of rail sections 40 and each dowel 55 is provided with ribs 60 on their outer surfaces to centralise the fit to ensure a consistent adhesive line thickness.

(42) The central section 50 includes a socket 65 having a generally rectangular cross section.

(43) The socket 65 receives a post connector 70 which comprises an articulation leg 75 received in the socket 65 which extends to a post cap 80 from which depends a fixing section 85. The fixing section 85 has a generally square cross section and is provided on its external surface with a plurality of longitudinal ribs 90. The section 85 is received in the top of a post 20 and pushed in until the cap 80 abuts against the end of the post 20.

(44) The rail sections 40 are pushed onto the dowels 55 until they abut against the central section 50. The central section 50 has the same cross section and diameter as the rail sections 40 so that there is a flush fit at the intersections.

(45) The central section 50 is provided with a pin hole 95 and the leg 75 is also provided with a pin hole 100. The holes 95, 100 are aligned and a hinge pin 105 is passed through to join the leg 75 to the body 50 in a hinging joint. This means that the joint between the body 50 and the legs 75 is articulated so that in use the angle between posts and the hand rail can be varied to accommodate different situations.

(46) Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5 there is shown a hand rail system generally indicated 10 formed according to an alternative aspect. The system 10 comprises a rectilinear top rail 15 and a plurality (in this case three are shown) of depending support posts 20. At one end of the rail 15 a support leg 25 is connected orthogonally by an articulating connector 30. A cross member 35 extends parallel to the top rail 15 from the leg 25 through the posts 20; in some embodiments the cross member 25 may comprise a plurality of sections extending between adjacent posts and between the leg 25 and the adjacent post 20.

(47) The top rail 15 is of generally cylindrical shape with a circular cross section. The rail 15 is made up of a number of rail sections 40 which are joined by connectors 45 which include a post adapter 70 so that they also receive the post 20 as described in more detail below. Each post 20 is received on the underside of the connector 45. The connectors 45 are the same diameter as the sections 40 and the interface region (a) between the post and the rail (described in more detail below) means that the connector 45 provides a surface which can itself be gripped by a user and the interface between the connector 45 and the adjacent rail sections 40 is such that a user does not need to remove their hand to pass over the intersections. Accordingly, the rail 15 presents a substantially continuous gripping surface along its length.

(48) Referring now to FIGS. 6 to 9 the post-to-rail joint region is shown in more detail.

(49) The connector 45 is generally T-shape and comprises a rail connector section 46 and a post connector section 70. The rail connector section 46 comprises a central body 50 having at either end a cylindrical dowel portion 55. The dowel portions 55 are dimensioned to fit tightly within the ends of rail sections 40 and each dowel 55 is provided with ribs 60 on their outer surfaces to centralise the fit to ensure a consistent adhesive line thickness.

(50) The central section 50 includes a socket 65 having a generally rectangular cross section.

(51) The socket 65 receives a post connector 70 which comprises an articulation leg 75 received in the socket 65 which extends to a post cap 80 from which depends a fixing section 85. The fixing section 85 has a generally square cross section and is provided on its external surface with a plurality of longitudinal ribs 90. The section 85 is received in the top of a post 20 and pushed in until the cap 80 abuts against the end of the post 20.

(52) The rail sections 40 are pushed onto the dowels 55 until they abut against the central section 50. The central section 50 has the same cross section and diameter as the rail sections 40 so that there is a flush fit at the intersections.

(53) The central section 50 is provided with a pin hole 95 and the leg 75 is also provided with a pin hole 100. The holes 95, 100 are aligned and a hinge pin 105 is passed through to join the leg 75 to the body 50 in a hinging joint. This means that the joint between the body 50 and the legs 75 is articulated so that in use the angle between posts and the hand rail can be varied (see FIGS. 3 and 5, for example) to accommodate different situations.

(54) As shown best in FIG. 9, the circumferential length of the body 50 occupied by the leg 75 is less than half the diameter of the body. This means that a user can still grip around the body across the post-rail interface. In other words, the circumference of the rail (provided by the body) at the post-rail interface is sufficient for a user to grip around so that the rail can provide uninterrupted grip across the interface.

(55) In other embodiments (not shown) the post may be fixed directly to the rail or form an integral part thereof and/or there may be no hinging joint. However, the relationship between extent to which the post occupies the rail is still restricted so that grip can be maintained at the interface.

(56) Referring now to FIG. 10 there is a shown a rail connector section 146 and a post 125 connected thereto.

(57) The section 146 is generally cylindrical and the sector occupied by the post 125 is 52 degrees, leaving 308 degrees available for a user to grip across the post-rail connection region.

(58) Referring now to FIGS. 11 and 12 there is shown a hand rail assembly generally indicated 10 formed according to an alternative aspect. The assembly 10 comprises a rectilinear top rail 15 and a plurality (in this case three are shown) of depending support posts 20. At one end of the rail 15 a support leg 25 is connected orthogonally by an articulating connector 30. A cross member 35 extends parallel to the top rail 15 from the leg 25 through the posts 20; in some embodiments the cross member 25 may comprise a plurality of sections extending between adjacent posts and between the leg 25 and the adjacent post 20.

(59) The top rail 15 is of generally cylindrical shape with a circular cross section. The rail 15 is made up of a number of rail sections 40 which are joined by connectors 45 which also receive the post 20 as described in more detail below. Each post 20 is received on the underside of the connector 45 and the connectors 45 are the same diameter as the sections 40. This means that the connector 45 provides a surface which can itself be gripped by a user and the interface between the connector 45 and the adjacent rail sections 40 is such that a user does not need to remove their hand to pass over the intersections. Accordingly, the rail 15 presents a substantially continuous gripping surface along its length.

(60) Referring now to FIGS. 13 to 26 the post-to-rail joint connector 45 is shown in more detail.

(61) The connector 45 is generally T-shape and comprises a generally cylindrical rail connector part 46 and an elongate post connector part 70.

(62) The rail connector part 46 comprises a central body 50 having at either end a cylindrical dowel portion 55, 56. The dowel portions 55, 56 are dimensioned to fit tightly within the ends of rail sections 40 and each dowel 55, 56 is provided with circumferential ribs 60 on their outer surfaces to centralise the fit to ensure a consistent adhesive line thickness.

(63) The central section 50 includes a socket 65 having a generally rectangular cross section. The socket 65 is offset from the centre of the section 50 towards the dowel 55.

(64) The socket 65 receives the post connector part 70.

(65) The post connector part 70 comprises an articulation leg 75 received in the socket 65 and having a semi-circular end 76 with a fixing hole 77. The leg 75 extends to a post cap 80 from which depends a fixing section 85. The fixing section 85 has a generally square cross section and is provided on its external surface with a plurality of longitudinal ribs 90. The section 85 is received in the top of a post 20 and pushed in until the cap 80 abuts against the end of the post 20 in a flush fit.

(66) In use the rail sections 40 are pushed onto the dowels 55, 56 until they abut against the central section 50. The central section 50 has the same cross section and diameter as the rail sections 40 so that there is a flush fit at the intersections.

(67) The central section 50 is provided with a pin hole 95 and the leg 75 is also provided with a pin hole 77. The holes 95, 77 are aligned and a hinge pin 105 is passed through to join the leg 75 to the body 50 in a hinging joint.

(68) This means that the joint between the body 50 and the leg 75 is articulated so that in use the angle between posts (via post connectors) and the hand rail can be varied as illustrated by FIGS. 13A and 13B to accommodate different situations.

(69) Referring now to FIGS. 27 and 28 there is shown a hand rail system generally indicated 10 formed according to an alternative aspect. The system 10 comprises a rectilinear top rail 15 and a plurality (in this case three are shown) of depending support posts 20. At one end of the rail 15 a support leg 25 is connected orthogonally by an articulating connector 30. A cross member 35 extends parallel to the top rail 15 from the leg 25 through the posts 20; in some embodiments the cross member 25 may comprise a plurality of sections extending between adjacent posts and between the leg 25 and the adjacent post 20.

(70) The top rail 15 is of generally cylindrical shape with a circular cross section. The rail 15 is made up of a number of rail sections 40 which are joined by connectors 45 which also receive the post 20 as described in more detail below. Each post 20 is received on the underside of the connector 45 and the connectors 45 are the same diameter as the sections 40. This means that the connector 45 provides a surface which can itself be gripped by a user and the interface between the connector 45 and the adjacent rail sections 40 is such that a user does not need to remove their hand to pass over the intersections. Accordingly, the rail 15 presents a substantially continuous gripping surface along its length.

(71) Referring now to FIGS. 29 and 30 the connector 30 is an articulated joint allowing the connection of adjacent rail sections and/or to connect rail to an end leg.

(72) In this embodiment the connector 30 comprises two identical parts 50, 55 fitted together in a mirror-image arrangement.

(73) As shown in more detail in FIGS. 31 to 35 each part 50, 55 (only part 50 is shown FIGS. 31 to 35) comprises an articulation section 51, 56 hingedly connected to each other by a hinge pin 60. Each part also comprises a dowel section 52, 57 dimensioned to be received in the end of a rail section or end post. The articulation sections 51, 56 are joined to the dowel sections 52, 57 by cranked sections 53, 58. The cranked sections 53, 58 effectively reduce the angle which can be created between the dowel sections 52, 57 thus “tightening” the joint angle. The connector is therefore particularly suited for tight spaces, such as stairwells, where tight turns between adjacent rail sections are required.

(74) Each dowel section 52, 57 has a plurality of external longitudinal ribs or splines 54, 59 which help with fastening the parts onwardly to other hand rail components.

(75) As shown best in FIGS. 31 to 33, the articulation section 51 of the part 50 comprises two legs 51a, 51b and a claw 51c which together define a major and minor recess 51d, 51e. Because the part 55 is the same shape, when the two parts are brought together the legs of each part interdigitate into the legs and recesses of the other part. In this embodiment the crank angle provided by the sections 53, 58 is approximately 22.5° and allows the creation of a joint between adjacent rail sections of approximately 45°.

(76) The connector could, of course, be used in conjunction with any hand rail system and is not restricted to the particular class or configuration of hand rail systems specifically described herein.