Illuminated Safety Rail and Ladder

Abstract

The invention discloses an illuminated safety rail apparatus contained within a watertight, translucent or transparent tubular-shaped housing. The housing may be manufactured from a plastic or polymer material. The shape of the safety rail may vary and be customized to accommodate various sizes and configurations of railings and ladders, such as a commonly used return-to-deck style handrails for pools and spas; safety rails for indoor and outdoor stairwells and walls of any structure; docks and dock ramps; and for travel trailers and motor homes. The housing also contains watertight maintenance access points. The apparatus contains LED or other energy efficient lights that illuminate the safety rail and the surrounding area and has the additional benefit of creating a pleasant aesthetic effect.

Claims

1. An illuminated safety rail, comprising: rat least one hollow tube, being either translucent or transparent material; at least one string of lights running through the inner length of each said rail; said lights connected to a power source that is accessible from and connected to said rail; at least one watertight access port along said rail to allow access to maintain said lights and said power source; means of mounting said rail to a surface; and wherein said illuminated safety rail can be manufactured in forms for use as rails for pools, spas, boat docks, and hand rails.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said lights are comprised of LED lights.

3. The apparatus of claim 1, where said lights are comprised of energy efficient light bulbs.

4. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said power source is at least one battery contained in a housing on apparatus and directly connected to said lights.

5. The apparatus of claim 2, wherein said power source is a wired connection to a line power source.

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein said power source is connected to a device interface, enabling said apparatus to be controlled by a wireless remote device or remote electric panel.

7. The device interface of claim 6, having a data processor and a memory; and computer instructions loaded into said memory in a non-transitory computer-readable medium that when executed are configured to instruct said interface to carry out instructions loaded into the memory to turn said lights on or off; cycle through various colors of said lights; set a timer for turning said lights on or off; or other commands loaded into the memory and capable of being processed by the data processor to generate signals corresponding to the various commands received by the wireless control device.

8. The apparatus of claim 2, whereby said lights illuminate the surrounding surface area and create a fun and aesthetically pleasing ambiance.

9. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hollow tubular rail comprises a pool ladder.

10. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hollow tubular rail comprises a ladder for boat docks.

11. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hollow tubular rail comprises a ladder for trailers and motor homes.

12. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hollow tubular rail comprises a return-to-deck style safety rail for swimming pools, spas, tubs, or jacuzzies.

13. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein said hollow tubular rail comprises a safety hand rail or guard rail.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0012] In the following description, reference will be made to the attached drawings in which:

[0013] FIG. 1 is an isometric view of the illuminated return-to-deck style pool safety rail embodiment as disclosed by the present invention.

[0014] FIG. 2 is a side view of the illuminated return-to-deck style pool safety rail embodiment disclosed in the present invention, showing detail of the reinforcement for securing anchors and the watertight maintenance access point.

[0015] FIG. 3 is an isometric view of the illuminated safety rail embodiment disclosed by the present invention as applied for use in a stairwell, using a hard-wired line power source.

[0016] FIG. 4 is an isometric view of the illuminated safety rail embodiment disclosed by the present invention as applied for use in a stairwell, incorporating a solar panel and 12V battery as a power source.

[0017] FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the illuminated safety rail embodiment disclosed by the present invention as applied for use along a wall. This embodiment is shown incorporating a solar panel and 12 volt battery as a power source but can also be manufactured to use a hard wired, line power as in the stairwell embodiment shown in FIG. 3.

[0018] FIG. 6 shows an isometric view of the illuminated pool ladder embodiment disclosed by the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0019] For purposes of describing the preferred embodiment of the present invention, the terminology used in reference to the numbered components in the drawings is as follows: [0020] 100 return to deck shaped safety rail apparatus [0021] 101 ladder shaped apparatus [0022] 102 safety rail apparatus embodiment for stairwell [0023] 103 safety rail apparatus embodiment for a wall [0024] 104 device interface [0025] 106 remote control [0026] 108 access port/battery access and housing for device interface [0027] 110 base of safety rail leg [0028] 116 seated rail legs [0029] 118 deck anchors for rail [0030] 120 LED lights [0031] 122 top surface of step/rung [0032] 124 step/rung of ladder [0033] 126 wall brackets [0034] 130 line power [0035] 132 solar panel [0036] 134 mounting coupling [0037] 136 12 volt battery

[0038] In each embodiment of the invention, the apparatus provides both the safety features of a traditional hand rail experience, with the added benefit of illumination, and the aesthetically pleasing effect of the lighted elements, be they traditional soft light or a multicolored light experience.

[0039] With reference to the drawings, the preferred embodiment of the invention, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, provides an illuminated return-to-deck shaped safety rail apparatus (100) for a pool or spa. A transparent or translucent housing (104) contains a lighting element comprising a series of connected 12 volt LED's or other energy efficient bulbs (120), connected in either series or parallel, and all running to a power source affixed to the invention. This power source may be a battery terminal (109), such as a 12 volt battery connection (136); a direct line current (130); a solar panel with a 12 volt battery connection (132, 136), or other means known in the art.

[0040] The housing (104) of the apparatus has at least one access port (108) providing means of accessing the LED light elements (120) for maintenance and repairs of the device interface hardware (104) or to replace any LED's (120) as needed. The preferred embodiment of the invention may incorporate a battery pack (109) as its power source, said battery pack being accessible via a watertight access point (108) on the housing (104).

[0041] This return-to-deck embodiment of the invention is affixed to the deck of the pool or spa and can be either permanently installed to the deck or can be made removable as desired. For pre-existing pools and spas, the deck can be fitted with anchors (118) preferably made from aluminum or other rust resistant and durable material as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2. These anchors allow the legs of the apparatus (116) to seat securely on the pool deck. The invention can be further secured with a wedge and bolt (not shown) or other means known in the art that serves to reinforce the base of the rail posts.

[0042] The lighting element of the invention (120), when turned on, illuminates the water and the surrounding surface area. In all embodiments of the invention, various colored lights can be incorporated, and the entire lighting element can be programmed to turn on or off, change color or illuminate in patterned sequence. The apparatus illuminates the thus creates an aesthetically pleasing and fun ambiance in addition to their primary purpose as a safety feature. Control of the lighting safety features of the apparatus (100) is accomplished by using a remote control (106) having NFC, Bluetooth, or other wireless means communication, that can send and receive signals to and from a device interface (104) that is wired into the apparatus (100). The device interface (104) has a data processor and a memory, and computer instructions that enable via wireless remote control functionality to turn the lights (120) on or off; cycle through various colors of lights (120); set a timer for turning the lights on or off; or other commands not explicitly disclosed herein.

[0043] A second preferred embodiment of the invention is an illuminated safety ladder apparatus (101) that can be permanently installed or can be made removable if desired. The safety ladder embodiment (101) can be designed to be incorporated into a pool or spa as shown in FIG. 6, or can be manufactured for use on boat docks, or on travel trailers and motor homes that would normally incorporate a ladder element. Like the return-to-deck style embodiment (100) of FIGS. 1 and 2, the safety ladder embodiment would have at least one access port (108), means of anchoring the legs (110) of the apparatus to a surface, and a device interface means to control the LED lighting elements (120). The ladder embodiment (101) further comprises at least one step or rung (124), each rung having by LEDs or lights (120) by which they may be illuminated, and an upper surface (122) that may have a textured non-slip coating.

[0044] An additional embodiment of the invention is shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, wherein the illuminated safety rail of the present invention is applied for use in a stairwell. FIG. 3 shows this embodiment (102) of the present invention as incorporated into an indoor stairwell using brackets (126) or other means known in the art. In this embodiment, the illuminated safety rail (102) is configured into a banister (104) and is programmed to light up and illuminate a stairwell, providing additional safety feature over the prior art. The safety rail may be powered by direct line current (130), or 110 volt current converted to 12 volt power, or other means known in the art. In the outdoor version shown in FIG. 4, the apparatus can be powered via a solar panel (132) and 12 volt battery (136) means.

[0045] A further additional embodiment of the invention is the illuminated safety handrail (103) shown in FIG. 5. This safety handrail (103) can be powered by 110 volt reduced down to 12 volt power (136), via a solar panel (132) wired to the safety rail (103). The apparatus can be programed via the remote control (106) and device interface to be on a time to turn on at dusk and turn off at dawn, or at other specific time intervals.

[0046] It is to be understood that while a preferred embodiment of the invention is illustrated, it is not to be limited to the specific form or arrangement of parts herein described and shown. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made without departing from the scope of the invention and the invention is not to be considered limited to what is shown and described in the specification and drawings.