TEMPORARY BUILDING EDGE SAFETY SCREEN SUPPORT

Abstract

A support for a safety net proximate an edge of a floor of a building under construction; the support comprising a support post extending between an upper bracket and a lower bracket. According to another broad form of the present invention there is provided a method of installing a safety net proximate an exposed edge of a building under construction; the method includes the steps of: driving securing bolts into an underside of an adjacent higher floor and into a safety net supporting floor, securing an upper bracket and a lower bracket respectively to the securing bolts of the higher floor and of the safety net supporting floor, securing an upper end of a safety net support post to the upper bracket and a lower end of the safety net support post to the lower bracket.

Claims

1-45. (canceled)

46. A support for a safety net proximate an edge of a floor of a building under construction, the support comprising: a support post extending between an upper bracket and a lower bracket.

47. The support of claim 46, wherein the upper bracket and the lower bracket are secured respectively to an underside of an adjacent floor above a supporting floor on which the safety net is to be installed and to the supporting floor.

48. The support of claim 46, wherein the respective upper and lower brackets are secured by bolts driven into concrete of the floor above and the supporting floor.

49. The support of claim 46, wherein the support post comprises an upper section and a lower section, wherein the upper and lower sections are sized to allow the upper section to slide telescopically into the lower section.

50. The support of claim 49, wherein the upper section and the lower section comprise lengths of right-angled hollow section (RHS).

51. The support of claim 49, wherein the upper bracket is in the form of a section of angle iron, and wherein a horizontal flange of the bracket is provided with a pair of apertures for receiving securing bolts.

52. The support of claim 49, wherein a vertical flange of the upper bracket is provided with an opening, wherein the opening is shaped so that a bolt passing through an upper end of the upper section of the support post is insertable through a slot part of the opening to then nest in a hook portion of the opening.

53. The support of claim 52, wherein the bolt passing through the upper end of the upper section of the support post is permanently installed by securing nut, and wherein a space is formed between an outer one of the securing nut and a head of the bolt approximately equal to thickness of the vertical flange of the upper bracket allowing for a sliding fit of the bolt into the hook portion.

54. The support of claim 46, wherein the lower bracket comprises a section of angle iron with a horizontal flange provided with apertures for bolting the lower bracket to the supporting floor, wherein a vertical flange of the lower bracket is provided with a pair of apertures to allow a lower end of the telescoping support post to be secured to the lower bracket.

55. The support of claim 52, wherein the upper end of the lower section is provided with a collar, wherein the collar is provided with at least one threaded aperture to receive at least one locking bolt which adapted to be driven through the at least one threaded aperture and a coincident aperture through a right-angled hollow section (RHS) of the lower section.

56. The support of claim 55, wherein the locking bolt is urged against the RHS of the upper section thereby locking the upper and lower sections of the post together to suit separation between the floor above and the supporting floor.

57. The support of claim 55, wherein the locking bolt is provided with a handle so that the upper and lower sections of the support post are secured without a need for tools.

58. The support of claim 49, wherein safety net attachment elements are provided at intervals along the lower section and upper section of the support post.

59. The support of claim 58, wherein the safety net attachment elements are in the form of carabiners welded to the RHS sections of the support post allowing for rapid attachment and removal of the safety net.

60. A method of installing a safety net proximate an exposed edge of a building under construction, the method including steps of: driving securing bolts into an underside of an adjacent higher floor and into a safety net supporting floor; securing an upper bracket and a lower bracket respectively to the securing bolts of the higher floor and of the safety net supporting floor; and securing an upper end of a safety net support post to the upper bracket and a lower end of the safety net support post to the lower bracket.

61. The method of claim 60, wherein the safety net support post comprises an upper section and a lower section, wherein the upper and lower sections are sized to allow the upper section to slide telescopically into the lower section.

62. The method of claim 61, wherein a bolt passing through an upper end of the upper section of the safety net support post engages with a hook portion of an opening in a flange of the upper bracket.

63. The method of claim 61, wherein a lower end of the lower section of the safety net support post is secured to a flange of the lower bracket by bolts passing through apertures in the flange and through the lower end of the lower section.

64. The method of claim 61, wherein the upper and lower sections of the safety net support post are locked into a desired extension by a locking bolt passing through a collar at an upper end of the lower section, wherein the bolt is urged against a lower end of the upper section of the safety net support post.

65. The method of claim 61, wherein the upper and lower sections of the safety net support post are provided with safety net attachment elements.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0072] Embodiments of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

[0073] FIG. 1 is a side view of safety screen, telescoping support post, installed between a supporting floor and an adjacent higher floor of a building under construction;

[0074] FIGS. 2 and 3 are a first and second side view of an upper securing bracket for the support post of FIG. 1;

[0075] FIG. 4 is a side view of a lower securing bracket for the telescoping support post of FIG. 1.

[0076] FIG. 5 is a detailed view of a locking mechanism for the telescoping support post of FIG. 1.

[0077] FIG. 6 is a general perspective view of a combination of a guard rail system and a materials containment system.

[0078] FIGS. 7 and 8 are perspective vies of a lower end of a section of the guard rail system of FIG. 6.

[0079] FIGS. 9 and 10 are perspective views of brackets and rails attached to vertical posts of the guard rail system.

[0080] FIGS. 11 and 12 are detailed perspective view of the upper ends of the vertical posts of FIGS. 9 and 10.

[0081] FIG. 13 shows perspective views of a lower jaw of a mid rail and top rail clamping bracket.

[0082] FIG. 14 shows perspective views of an upper jaw of mid rail and top rail clamping bracket.

[0083] FIG. 15 shows slotting of underside of rails of the guard rail system.

[0084] FIG. 16 is a general perspective view of the guard rail system with netting and kickboard installed.

[0085] FIG. 17 is a further perspective view of the materials containment system of FIG. 6.

[0086] FIG. 18 shows perspective views of the lower ends of vertical post and post braces of the materials containment system of FIG. 17.

[0087] FIG. 19 shows perspective views of a telescopic arrangement of the vertical posts of FIGS. 17 and 18.

[0088] FIG. 20 shows perspective views of an attachment arrangement between a vertical post and a post brace of the materials containment system.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

First Preferred Embodiment

[0089] The present invention provides supports for a vertical safety net proximate the outer edges of floors of a multistory building under construction; the supports providing for a safety net extending between the adjacent floors of the building and along the length requiring protection.

[0090] Supports 10 for supporting a safety net, one of which is shown in FIG. 1, comprise telescoping posts 12 retained between lower bracket 14 and upper bracket 16; the brackets bolted respectively to the surface of the floor 18 at which the net is to be installed and the underside of the floor 20 above.

[0091] With reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, upper bracket 16 is in the form of a section of angle iron (or other suitable metal), the horizontal flange 22 of which is provided with a pair of apertures 24 for receiving securing bolts (not shown) while the vertical flange 26 is provided with a bolt receiving opening 28. The opening 28 is shaped so that a bolt 30 passing through the upper end of the telescoping post 12 may be inserted through the slot part 32 of the opening 28 to then nest in the hook portion 34. Preferably, the bolt 30 is permanently installed in the upper end of the telescoping support post 12 by securing nuts 36 and 38, leaving a space between outer securing nut 38 and the head 40 of the bolt approximately equal to the thickness of the vertical flange 26 allowing for a sliding fit of the bolt into the hook portion 34.

[0092] Turning now to FIG. 4, the lower bracket 14 also comprises a section of metal angle with the lower horizontal flange 42 provided with apertures 44 for bolting the bracket to a supporting floor. The vertical flange 46 is provided with a pair of apertures 48 to allow a lower end of the telescoping support post 12 to be secured to the bracket.

[0093] As can be seen in FIG. 1 and also in FIG. 5, the telescoping support post 12 is comprised of a lower section 12A and an upper section 12B, of rectangular hollow section (RHS) with the two sections sized so as to allow the upper section 12B to slide into the lower section 12A.

[0094] The upper end of the lower section 12A is provided with a collar 50 with at least one threaded aperture 52 to receive a locking bolt 54 which may be driven through the threaded aperture 52 and a coincident aperture through the RHS of the lower section 12A, to urge against the RHS of the upper section 12B. By this means the upper and lower sections of the posts are locked together to suit the distance between the adjacent floors 18 and 20. Preferably, the locking bolt 54 is provided with a handle 56 so that the two sections of the support post may be secured without the need for tools.

[0095] Provided at intervals along the lower section 12A and upper section 12B of the telescoping support post 12, are safety net attachment elements 58. Preferably these may be in the form of carabiners welded to the RHS sections of the support post allowing for rapid attachment and removal of the safety net.

In this embodiment of the invention, at least two or a required number of support posts 10 are installed between the adjacent floors of a building under construction by firstly installing the upper and lower brackets by bolts driven into the concrete of the floors. The bolt 30 at the upper end of the upper section 12B of each telescoping support post 12 is then nested in the hook portion of its upper bracket and the lower section 12A of the support post allowed to slide to the lower bracket where it is secured to the bracket. The two sections 12A and 12B are then locked together by the tightening of the bolt 54. The safety net (not shown) can then be secured to the carabiners 58.

Second Preferred Embodiment

[0096] In a second preferred embodiment of the invention, the upper and lower brackets may be permanently affixed to the respective upper end of the upper section 12B and the lower end of the lower section 12A of the telescoping support post 12. The upper bracket is secured to the underside of the floor above by means of previously installed securing bolts. Similarly, the lower bracket is secured to bolts driven into the floor. In this arrangement the upper and lower sections of the support post are loosely assembled and the post positioned vertically between the upper and lower brackets and the telescoping sections locked together.

Third Preferred Embodiment

[0097] In this further preferred embodiment, support posts are prepared to a length appropriate to the separation between adjacent floors. In this arrangement the support post RHS is of one length somewhat less than the separation between floors.

[0098] As in the embodiments described above, the support post is secured between upper and lower brackets, but in this embodiment the hook portion of the opening in the upper bracket is in the form of a slot with parallel sides. The upper end of the support post is again provided with a permanently installed bolt which is slidingly located in the slot. The lower end of the support post is then secured to the lower bracket.

Fourth Preferred Embodiment

[0099] In this embodiment, the safety screen 200 is combined with an independent modular guard rail system 100 as shown in FIG. 6 in which horizontal guard rails form a balustrade designed primarily to prevent personnel from falling. Features of the system include: [0100] 1. 1.1 metre high safety balustrade. [0101] 2. Primarily designed and engineered for the prevention of human falling from heights safety [0102] 3. Clamp systems on the posts, which secure the horizontal safety rails to the posts. [0103] 4. Rails can be adjusted to suit various span lengths. [0104] 5. Rails can be curved so that they can follow any edge radius profile [0105] 6. Bottom Rail has an integrated rubber strip to help prevent materials from falling over the perimeter edge/void. [0106] 7. A metal mesh screen with solid strip above floor level to assist debris and other items from penetrating the fence and falling over the perimeter edge/void.

[0107] With reference to FIGS. 7 to 10, the guard rail system 100 includes vertical posts 110 of RHS supported by angle brackets 112 secured to the floor at which the guard rails are to be installed. The vertical posts 110 are provided with bolt hole at the levels of, preferably, three guard rails also of RHS; bottom rail 114, mid rail 116 and top rail 118, with the bottom rail 114 secured to the post 110 by a first bottom clamping bracket 120 and the mid and top rails each secured to the post by second rail clamping brackets 122. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, the bottom rails 114 incorporate an integrated rubber flap 124 extending between the bottom rail and the floor on which the guard rail system is installed. It should be noted that each of the clamping brackets provides for clamping of a single or overlapping, side by side sections of rail.

[0108] Because of the integral rubber flap 124 of the bottom rails 114, the first bottom rail clamping bracket 120 is of a different configuration to the second clamping rail clamping bracket 122. As seen in FIGS. 7 and 8, the bottom rail clamping bracket 120 may be formed of a section of RHS of a depth sufficient to allow one or a pair of bottom rails to pass through and a rail clamp tensioning bolt 126 for securing the clamping bracket to the post. Preferably, the integral rubber flap 124 is secured to one face of the bottom rail, and it may be noted from FIGS. 7 and 8 that, in the installation of overlapping bottom rails, the faces of the rail from which the flaps depend are turned to face one another.

[0109] Turning now to FIGS. 11 to 14, the second clamping brackets 122 for the mid and top rails are in two sections comprising a lower jaw 128 shown in FIG. 13 and an upper jaw 130 shown in FIG. 14. Again preferably, each of the jaws is formed of a section of RHS, cut and slotted to suit the applications. The lower jaw 128 is provided with a clamp tensioning bolt access aperture 132 and on either of its longer faces with single and double rail adjustment slots 134. Rail locating pins 136 or projections are provided along the upper edges of the lower jaw.

[0110] The upper jaw 130, again formed preferably of a section of RHS, is provided with a recess 138 with rail locking pressure points 140 allowing for one or two side by side mid or top rails, and with single and double rail adjustment slots 142. One end of the upper jaw 130 is provided with an extension 144 and in that extension a rail clamp tensioning bolt aperture 146.

[0111] In use it lower jaws of the second mid and top clamping brackets are first slid over the vertical post at the mid and top rail positions and secured to the post by a bolts 148 passing through the post and the appropriate adjustment slots 134 depending on whether a single or pair of rails are to be supported as best seen in FIGS. 11 and 12. A rail clamp tensioning bolt 150 is then inserted through the tensioning bolt access aperture 132 and hole provided in the post, leaving sufficient clearance between the head of the bolt 150 and the end of the jaw 128 for the thickness of the extension 144 of the upper jaw 130.

[0112] One or two overlapping rails are then laid onto the lower jaw 128 and the upper jaw 130 slid onto the post to nest the rail or rails between the upper surfaces of the lower jaw and the recess 138 of the upper jaw. The rail clamp tensioning bolt 150 is then tightened to securely clamp the rail or rails to the side of the post. The upper jaw 130 is further secured to the post by a bolt 152 passing through the single and double rail adjustment slots 142 and a transverse hole in the post as best seen in FIG. 11.

[0113] As shown in FIG. 15, the underside of the rails is provided with slots adapted for engagement with the pins or projections provided on the contact surfaces of lower and upper jaws.

[0114] FIG. 16 shows how the guard rail system 100 may be provided with safety mesh panels 160 hooked over the top rail. Preferably the mesh is provided along its lower edge with an integrated kick board 162.

Fifth Preferred Embodiment

[0115] Turning now to FIGS. 17 to 20 in a further form of a safety screen acting as a materials containment system 200, a number of vertical posts 210 are secured proximate the edge of a floor of a building under construction to support netting 212. In this arrangement, the posts 210 are free standing, that is, in the sense that they are independent of the above described guard rail system 100, and are not attached at their upper ends to the underside of the floor above.

[0116] The vertical posts 210 of the material containment system 200 comprise an assembly of securing brackets and an angled post brace 216. With reference firstly to FIG. 18, the lower end of each vertical post 210 is bolted to the vertical flange of an angle bracket 214, the horizontal flange of which is provided with apertures for bolting the bracket 214 to the floor Similarly, the lower end of each angled brace 216 is bolted to the vertical flange of a lower angle bracket 218 with the horizontal flange provided with apertures for securing that bracket 218 to the floor.

[0117] As shown in FIG. 20, the upper end of the angled post brace 216 is bolted to a vertical flange of an upper angle bracket 220 which extends to overlap the vertical post 210 in use and is secured to the post by a clamping plate 222 with bolts passing through the vertical flange of the upper angle bracket and the clamping plate.

[0118] The vertical posts 210 of the materials containment system 200 as shown in FIG. 19, comprise of a lower post 210A and extendable upper post 210B in sliding engagement with the lower post, with the upper post 210B lockable at a desired extension by a tensioning bolt system 224, similar to that described for the first embodiment above. Here again preferably, the bolt head is provided with a handle to allow the locking of the upper post without the need for tools.

[0119] Again, with reference to FIG. 19, at least the upper end of the upper extendable post 210B is provided with netting connection points 226 which, for example could take the form of carabiners. Similarly, as shown in FIG. 18 the lower post 210A is also provided with one or more attachment points 228.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

[0120] The safety screen and guard rail support elements of the invention provide a rapid means for installing either a safety screen or a guard rail system or a combination of guard rails and a vertical safety screen proximate an exposed edge of a building. The telescoping arrangement of at least the first and second embodiments provide for adjustability where there may be changes in the separation between the adjacent floors as well as making the elements adjustable for use in different buildings.