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(11) | EP 0 834 627 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Safety apparatus |
| (57) The safety apparatus for carrying out work on roofs of buildings has a plurality
of safety units (1) distributed over the roof (2, 3) in such a way that the its entire
surface is made accessible, coupled to the roof and equipped with means for anchoring
(8, 9, 11, 12) for attaching one of the ends of a safety cable (6) whose other end
may be attached to the operator (P); the safety units (1) are interconnected by means
of connection (4) for joining one safety unit (1) with the preceding and/or following
safety unit (1), at least one of said safety units (1) being situated by a preferential
access route (7, S) to the roof (3). |
[0001] The invention concerns a safety apparatus for carrying out work on the roofs of buildings, that is, a set of safety elements to prevent operators who are working at a considerable height off the ground from falling, for example, when putting up the roofs of residential, or industrial buildings in general, when installing, or repairing, television aerials, telephone or electrical cables, when working on walls, or painting, and any other such operation.
[0002] Prior art comprises extendible ladders mounted on lorries, with, at their free end, a basket for carrying in it at least one operator and some equipment required for carrying out a particular type of job.
[0003] Alternatively, scaffolding is put up, possibly having working platforms that may be elevated, equipped with safety railings to enable work to be carried out at different heights on the wall and up to the roof of the building.
[0004] With these ladders and scaffolds, however, it is not possible to carry out work on areas of the roof that are distant from its edge, that is, they do not permit access to the innermost parts of the roof, and as a result, operators are poorly protected, or completely unprotected, when they are required to work in these areas; this represents a source of serious personal danger, as well as being an onerous responsibility for the commissioning agent.
[0005] From the foregoing emerges the need to resolve the technical problem of inventing an apparatus to prevent personnel operating at heights from falling, both towards the inside and towards the outside of buildings, that allows maximum freedom of movement as well as a high degree of safety.
[0006] The invention resolves said technical problem by adopting a safety apparatus having at least one safety unit comprising means for fixing one of the ends of a safety cable having an other end which may be securely attached to the operator.
[0008] The various safety units are preferably distributed over the roof in such a way that the entire surface is made accessible and, furthermore, they are interconnected with each other with lengths of cable stretching from one unit to the next and/or previous one.
[0009] This affords the operator maximum safety, in that it allows movement on the roof with the continuous protection of the safety cable.
[0010] In a particularly advantageous version, at least one of said safety units is located at a preferred access route to the roof, for example, in proximity to a skylight, a gutter, or other suitable structural element.
[0011] This enables the safety of the operator to be ensured as he is also secured to the apparatus during the critical access phases when climbing up to and down from the roof.
[0012] In a further aspect of the invention, there is provided a safety unit comprising a base structure that may be anchored to the upper surface of the roof and post means having a lower end which may be anchored to said base and an upper end coupled to means for supporting the end of a safety cable having its other end attached to the operator.
[0013] This ensures maximum safety when working at heights, particularly as regards preventing falls inside the building, which are very frequent with industrial building that do not have load-bearing roofs.
[0014] In a particularly advantageous version said means of support is rotationally coupled to the end of the post means.
[0015] This allows the safety cable to be positioned in function of the position of the operator with respect to the safety unit: all this to allow the greatest freedom of movement for the operator.
[0016] In a further advantageous version, said means of support consists of a revolving sleeve rotationally coupled to the upper end of said post, from which protrude an upper shelf whose free end is angled slightly downwards and has means for hooking on to a body of a safety cable reel, and a lower shelf having a fork-shaped free end angled slightly upwards to stabilise the position of said reel body.
[0018] In a further advantageous version, said base structure comprises an anchoring plate for fixing it to the surface of the roof by means of anchoring devices, said plate being coupled to the lower end of said post by means of a joint that may be locked in predetermined angular positions.
[0019] This enables the safety unit also to be positioned on inclined portions of roof, even with variable inclination along the branches of the safety apparatus according to the invention.
[0020] In a particularly advantageous version, said joint consists of a vertical plate projecting from said anchoring plate in a median zone of it, having a pin for hinging the lower end of said post and a set of holes distributed along at least one row having a curved path for the insertion, in one of the holes, of a locking bolt.
[0022] An embodiment of the invention is illustrated, purely by way of example, in the six tables of drawings attached in which:
Figure 1 is a schematic plan view of the roof of a building equipped with safety apparatus as described, showing the operating range of an operator;
Figure 2 is a schematic side view of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a schematic view from the left of Figure 2;
Figure 4 is an elevation of a safety unit forming part of the safety apparatus;
Figure 5 is a detailed view, enlarged and interrupted, of the upper end of the safety unit in Figure 4;
Figure 6 is the view from the right of Figure 4, without the safety cable reel;
Figure 7 is section VII-VII of Figure 6;
Figure 8 a detailed view, enlarged and interrupted, of the base of the safety unit as described, moreover in an inclined configuration.
[0023] A safety apparatus comprises a plurality of safety units 1 uniformly distributed over the surface 2 of the roof 3, that is, in such a way that an operator P is able to reach every zone of the surface 2 to carry out the required operations on it, whilst remaining permanently attached to said safety apparatus: to this end, the safety units 1 may be distributed in line every 10 - 20 m along the apex of an inclined roof 3. The safety units 1 are interconnected by lengths of cable 4 by means of fixed means of tightening 13a, or adjustable 13, in such a way that, when an operator finishes operating in a zone Z that lies within the operating range L and has to therefore move in order to hook the reel 5 of the safety cable 6 at another safety unit 2, the operator may remain anchored to the cable 4 by means of a relative spring catch and a short safety rope not shown, thereby maintaining the condition of maximum safety for the operator even when moving between the unit 2 and the next unit.
[0024] The safety apparatus has preferential positions for climbing up and/or down, that may consist of skylights 7 of branches S (Figures 2, 3) of the apparatus that extend to an area of the edge of the roof in proximity to the eaves, or gutters.
[0025] As shown in Figure 4, each safety unit 1 may comprise a post 10, advantageously consisting of a tubular element, having a base 15 provided with a plate 16 anchored to the upper surface 2 of the roof 3; the upper end of the post 10 supports in a pivotable manner a sleeve 9, which is kept in a predetermined axial position by means of a safety ring 27, acting also as a means for anchoring the means 13, 13a for tightening the cable 4 and by a transverse upper bolt 26.
[0026] Projecting from the external surface of the sleeve 9 there are an upper shelf 8, having a free end folded downwards to couple with a spring catch 7a on the rear of the body of the reel 5 for the safety cable 6, and a lower shelf 11 having a fork-shaped end 12 pointing upwards, around a front portion of the lower part of the body 5 of said reel, allowing the safety cable to run freely and stabilising the position of said reel.
[0027] The base structure 15 comprises a base plate 16, anchored to the surface 2 by means of means for anchoring comprising a counter plate 17 fixed to a load bearing beam 14 of the roof by means of tie bolts 18, and a vertical plate 19 projecting from the median area of said base plate and strengthened by ribs 23.
[0028] The lower end 20 of the post 15 is formed by a pair of elements having U-shaped sections positioned opposite each other and associated with a plate of the lower end of said post. There is a lower through hole in the vertical plate 19, coupled with a lower threaded pin 21 acting as a hinge for the end 20 of the post 15; there are also two formations of through holes 24, 25 in said vertical plate 19, extending in two identical curved distributions around the hinge 21 and destined to engage with a removable means of connection 22, for example, a bolt, for setting and locking the angular position of the post 10 with respect to the surface 2.
[0029] It is to be noted that the safety units 1 making up the safety apparatus may be lowered, when operators are not required to go onto roof, by simply removing the bolt 22 and rotating the posts 10 around their respective hinges 21: this, in order not to alter the architectural harmony of the building.
1. Safety apparatus for carrying out work on the roofs of buildings characterised in
that, it comprises at least one safety unit (1) coupled to the roof and having fixing
means (8, 9, 11, 12) for attaching one end of a safety cable (6) whose other end may
be attached to the operator (P).
2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1, characterised in that there are provided a plurality
of said safety units distributed over the roof (2, 3), so as to make the whole of
its surface accessible.
3. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that said safety units (1) are interconnected
by means of connection (4) for joining one safety unit (1) with the preceding and/or
following safety unit (1).
4. Apparatus as claimed in claim 2, characterised in that at least one of said safety
units (1) is positioned at a preferred access route (7, S) to the roof (3).
5. Safety unit for carrying out work on the roofs of buildings characterised in that,
it has a base structure (15) that may be anchored to the upper surface (2) of the
roof (3), and a post (10, 20) whose lower end (20) may be anchored to said base (15)
and whose upper end may be coupled to means for anchoring (8, 9, 11) the end of a
safety cable (6) having the other end attached to the operator (P).
6. Safety unit as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said means for anchoring
(8, 9, 11) are rotationally coupled to the upper end of the post (10).
7. Safety unit as claimed in claim 5, or 6, characterised in that said means for anchoring
comprises a rotatable sleeve (9) pivotally coupled to the upper end of said post (15).
8. Safety unit as claimed in claim 7, characterised in that projecting from said sleeve
(9) there are an upper shelf (8), whose free end is slightly inclined downwards, and
equipped with means for hooking onto a body of a reel (5) for the safety cable (6),
and a lower shelf (11), whose free end is fork-shaped and slightly inclined upwards
to stabilise the position of said reel body (5).
9. Safety unit as claimed in claim 5, characterised in that said base (15) comprises
a plate (16) for anchoring it to the surface of the roof (3) by means of means for
anchoring (18) coupled to the lower end of said post by means of joint means (19,
20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25) that may be locked in predetermined angular positions.
10. Safety unit as claimed in claim 9, characterised in that said joint means comprises
a vertical plate (19), protruding from said base plate at a median zone of it, having
a pin (21) for hinging the lower end (20) of said post (10) and having at least one
formation of holes (24, 25) distributed along a curved line, for the insertion, into
one of the holes, of a removable connecting element (22) for setting and locking in
position.
11. Safety unit as claimed in claim 9, characterised in that the lower end of said post
(10) is formed by a pair of U-shaped elements positioned opposite each other, their
top side being connected to a plate (20a) projecting from the lower section of the
tubular body of said post.