GB2110940A - Improvements in or relating to the covering of playing and other surfaces - Google Patents

Abstract

In order to protect a playing area 1 from the effects of rain or snow, a cover 6 made of flexible and waterproof sheeting is drawn over the playing area 1. A substantially leak-proof connection is established between the cover 6 and a drainage channel 2 surrounding the playing area 1 by nipping the edges of the cover 6 between removable gutter members 27 and an inturned flange 35 on one side of the channel 2, the gutter members 27 being snapped into position beneath the flange 35 and a further inturned flange 34 on the opposite side of the channel 2. Warm air is then introduced under pressure between the playing area 1 and the cover 6 so as to inflate the cover 6 and cause it to take up a convex profile above the level of the playing area 1. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in or relating to the covering of playing and other surfaces This invention relates to the covering of playing or othersurfaces to protect them from the weather and more particularly from the effects of rain or snow.

In sports, such as association football, cricket and lawn tennis, many hours of playing time are lost due to the playing surface being rendered unusable by the effects of rain or snow. It has already been proposed to lay a cover of polythene or some other material on the playing surface to protect the surface from rain or snow. However, more especially where the area to be covered is large, as in the case of an association football pitch, considerable problems are encountered with known covers. Concentrations of water or snow may form on the cover which may spill over on to the playing surface when the cover is rolled back from the playing surface. Moreoverthe weight of the total quantity of water or snow which collects on the cover may make it difficult to roll the cover back.Also, in the event of a sudden heavy fall of rain or snow, the playing surface may be rendered unusable by the rain or snow before the cover has been fully drawn over the playing surface.

The invention has for its object to provide a generally improved apparatus and method for protecting a playing or other surface from the effects of rain or snow.

According to the invention the apparatus comprises a cover for the surface made of flexible and waterproof sheeting, a drainage channel for extending along at least one of the sides of the playing surface, and edge connection means associated with the drainage channel for nipping and holding the sheeting along at least said one side of the surface.

A substantially leak-proof connection may thereby .be provided between the cover and the drainage channel, and this allows excess water which may collect on the cover to flow away without damaging the playing surface. It is advantageous if the arrange ment is such that, when the cover is in position above the surface, it is held substantially clear of the surface and is preferably sloped so as to aid the flow of water towards the drainage channel.

In one form of the invention means are provided for supplying warm air to the space between the cover and the surface with the object of inflating the cover when the cover is in position above the playing surface. The warm air will also help to melt any snow and to evaporate any water which has collected on the cover, as well as to evaporate any water which may have fallen on the surface prior to the cover being placed in position.

Preferably the cover comprises a plurality of flexible and waterproof sheets which are each intended to cover a part ofthe playing surface and to overlap the or each adjacent sheet. This enables the cover to be rolled back from the playing surface one sheet at a time, and this makes it possible to remove the cover from the playing surface much more easily and quickly than hitherto.

The method in accordance with the invention comprises drawing a cover made of flexible and waterproof sheeting over the surface, the sheeting being nipped and held along at least one of the sides of the surface by means associated with a drainage channel running along at least said one side of the playing surface, and inflating the cover.

In order that the invention may be more fully understood, an embodiment of the invention will now be described, by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which: Figure lisa view of the cover, partly unrolled, from above; Figure 2 is a section through the drainage channel taken along the line ll-ll in Figure 1; and Figure 3 is a view from above of a removable gutter member.

Referring to Figure 1 a playing area 1 is surrounded on four sides by a drainage channel 2 provided with a number of outlets 4 connected to the existing drainage system (not shown). The playing area 1 is capable of being wholly covered by a cover 6 comprising ten sheets 7 to 16 of polythene which may be unrolled one at a time from one'edge of the playing area so that each sheet overlaps the or each adjacent sheet by slightly less than half its width.

The sheets 7,8,9, 10 and 11 1 are shown unrolled from their associated rolls 17, 18, 19,20 and 21 by progressively smaller amounts, and the sheets 12, 13, 14, 15 and 16 are shown unrolled from their associated rolls 22,23,24, 25 and 26 by progressively greater amounts, considering the sheets 7 to 16 from left to right in Figure 1. It will be appreciated from the manner in which the sheets 7 to 16 overlap one another that the associated rolls 17 to 26 must be unrolled starting with the outermost rolls 17 and 26 and progressing inwardly until finally the two innermost rolls 12 and 11 are unrolled in that order.

A section through the drainage channel 2, which is set in the ground so that its upper edges are flush with the playing surface 1, is shown in Figure 2. The drainage channel 2 comprises a plurality of U-section removable gutter members 27 laid end to end and supported by a plurality of gully members 28 also laid end to end. Each gully member 28 is a PVC or similar extrusion approximately four metres long and comprises a channel-shaped portion 29 and a keel portion 30 terminated by a horizontal foot 31.

Each removable gutter member 27 is a PVC or similar extrusion approximately one metre long having semi-circular cut-outs 32 and 33 in both ends (see Figure 3). The removable gutter members 27 are capable of being snapped into position within the gully members 28 beneath inturned flanges 34 and 35 on the channel-shaped portions 29. The joins between adjacent gutter members 27 and the joints between adjacent gully members 28 are staggered in relation to one another. During installation the channel 2 is laid in a trench, being supported by the keel 30 on the foot 31, and the trench is then filled in on either side of the channel 2 with soil, sand or concrete, for example.

The removable gutter members 7 also serve to connect the adjacent edge of the cover 6 to the channel 2. In order to connect an edge of one of the sheets 7 to 16 to the channel 2, the edge of the sheet is laid over the inner edge of the channel 2 so as to project beyond the inturned flange 35 of one or more channel-shaped portions 29, as shown for the sheet 7 in Figure 2, and the edge 36 of a gutter member 27 is hooked under the flange 35 with the edge of the sheet 7 disposed therebetween. The gutter member 27 is then pressed downwardly so as to snap the opposite edge 37 of the member 27 into position below the inturned flange 34 provided on the opposite side of the or each channel-shaped portion 29. This process is then repeated for the other gutter members 27 across the width of the sheet 7.Thus the edge of the sheet 7 is nipped between the gutter members 27 and one or more channel shaped portions 29, and the form of the flange 35 ensures that the sheet 7 does not pull free of the channel 2.

Notches 38 and 39 are provided in the outside edge 37 of each gutter member 27 in order to enable the gutter members 27 to be prised out of the channel shaped portions 29 by inserting levers between the flange 34 and the notches 38 and 39.

The edge of the sheet 7 is thereby firmly held between the inner edge 36 of each gutter member 27 and the inturned flange 35, and a substantially leak-proof connection is provided between the sheet 7 and the drainage channel 2. At least the inner edge of each gutter member 27, and possibly also the undersurface of the inturned flange 35, is preferably covered with a material such as rubber in order to prevent damage to the polythene sheeting.

Water collected on the cover 6 is conducted into the drainage channel 2 and flows from the gutter members 27 into the space within the channel-shaped portions 29 below the gutter members 27 by way of the drainage holes between adjacent gutter members 27 formed by the semi-circular cut-outs 32 and 33. From there the water flows into the drainage outlets such as 40 shown in broken lines in Figure 2.

A number of ducts (not shownl are provided for introducing warm air under pressure between the playing area 1 and the cover 6 with the object of inflating the cover so as to cause it to take up a convex profile above the level of the playing area 1 with the edges of the covers sloping down towards the drainage channel 2 on all four sides. The warm air circulating in the space between the cover and the playing surface will also dry out the playing area and melt snow and1or evaporate water on the cover 6. The degree of overlap of the polythene sheets is such that the sheets tend to stick together so that leakage of air and water between the sheets will be minimised.The cover should be inflated to such an extent that it can be walked on, in order to ensure that it is capable of withstanding the weight of snow andlor water.

When the cover is not in use, the rolls 17 to 26 are stored alongside the drainage channel 2 extending along one side of the playing area 1 with one edge of each of the sheets 7 to 16 connected to the channel 2 as described above with reference to Figure 2. In the event of rainfall or a snowstorm the cover 6 may be rapidly drawn over the playing area 1 by unrolling the sheets 7 to 16 in the order indicated with reference to Figure 1.When all the sheets are unrolled the other three sides of the cover 6 may also be connected to the channel 2 as already described. Warm air may then be supplied to the space beneath the cover 6. Similarly the cover may be rapidly drawn back from the playing area 1 when it is no longer required, the sheets 7 to 16 being rolled up again in the reverse order to that in which theywere unrolled. The sheets may be rolled up relatively easily since each sheet holds only a proportion of the total quantity of water which has collected on the cover 6, and the water which has collected on the sheets will be received in the channel 2.

When the drainage channel 2 is not is use, the gutter members 27 may be inverted in the channel 2 so as to prevent a person stepping into the channel 2.

Such a cover may be used not only to protect playing surfaces for games, such as association football, rugby football, cricket, lawn tennis and bowls, but also to cover other surfaces, such as certain parts of airfields or racecourses, which are desirably protected from the effects of the weather.

Claims (16)

1. Apparatus for protecting a playing or other surface from the effects of rain or snow, the apparatus comprising a cover for the surface made of flexible and waterproof sheeting, and a drainage channel for extending along at least one of the sides of the playing surface, the drainage channel including edge connection means for nipping and holding the sheeting along at least said one side of the surface.

2. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a substantially leak-proof connection is provided between to cover and the drainage channel.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the arrangement is such that, when the cover is in position above the surface, it is held substantially clear of the surface.

4. Apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the arrangement is such that, when the cover is in position above the surface, it is sloped so as to aid the flow of water towards the drainage channel.

5. Apparatus according to claim 3 or4, wherein means are provided for supplying warm air to the space between the cover and the surface with the object of inflating the cover when the cover is in position above the playing surface.

6. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the cover comprises a plurality of flexible and waterproof sheets which are each intended to cover a part of the playing surface and to overlap the or each adjacent sheet.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, wherein each sheet is provided on a respective roll.

8. Apparatus according to any preceding claim, wherein the drainage channel comprises one or more gully members and one or more gutter members engageable within the gully member(s) and constituting said edge connection means.

9. Apparatus according to claim 8, wherein the or each gully member comprises a channel-shaped portion and a keel portion for anchoring the member in the ground

10. Apparatus according to claim 8 or 9, wherein the or each gutter member is provided with holes or cut-outs for enabling the passage of water into a space within the or each gully member below the gutter member

11. Apparatus according to claim 8,9 or 10, wherein the or each gutter member is engageable with the gully member(s) by being snapped into position under inturned flanges on opposite sides of the gully member(s), the edge of the sheeting being connected to the channel by being nipped between the gutter member(s) and the flange(s) on one side of the gully member(s).

12. Apparatus according to claim 11,wherein one edge of the or each gutter member is provided with one or more notches into which a lever may be inserted to enable the gutter member to be prised out of the gully member(s).

13. Apparatus according to any one of claims 8 to 12, wherein the or each gutter member may be inverted in the gully member(s) so as to prevent a person stepping in the channel.

14. A method of protecting a playing or other surface from the effects of rain or snow, the method comprising drawing a cover made of flexible and waterproof sheeting over the surface, the sheeting being nipped and held along at least one of the sides of the surface by means associated with a drainage channel running along at least said one side of the playing surface, and inflating the cover.

15. Apparatus for protecting a playing or other surface from the effects of rain or snow, the apparatus being substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

16. A method of protecting a playing or other surface from the effects of rain or snow, the method being substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.