GB2433541A

GB2433541A - Ladder stabilising device

Info

Publication number: GB2433541A
Application number: GB0525831A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Robert Cooper
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2005-12-20
Filing date: 2005-12-20
Publication date: 2007-06-27
Also published as: GB0525831D0

Abstract

A ladder stabilising device 16 comprises a securing arrangement 18 for securing the device 16 to a support member 12 of a ladder 10 and a surface engaging arrangement 20 which is arranged to frictionally engage a support surface to prevent slippage of the support member 12 relative to the support surface, the surface engaging arrangement 20 presenting a greater contact surface area for engagement with the support surface than the contact surface area of the support member 12.

Description

Ladder Stabilisjnp Devices The present invention relates to ladder

stabilising devices.

In order to support a conventional ladder consisting of two parallel support members connected by rungs for climbing up and down the ladder, the lower and upper ends of each of the support members are placed in contact with a respective lower and upper support surface, usually the ground surface in the case of the lower ends and a wall or other substantially vertical surface in the case of the upper ends.

Even when conventional ladders are used correctly, there is a risk that slippage may occur, during use, between the lower end of one or both of the support members and the lower support surface and/or the upper end of one or both of the support members and the upper support surface. As such slippage can lead to the person using the ladder being injured, it would be desirable to reduce the likelihood of such slippage occurring.

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ladder stabilising device comprising a securing arrangement for securing the device to a support member of a ladder, and a surface engaging arrangement arranged to frictionally engage a support surface to prevent slippage of the support member relative to the support surface, the surface engaging arrangement presenting a greater contact surface area for engagement with the support surface than the contact surface area of the support member.

The surface engaging arrangement may include a surface engaging plate which may include a grip member for engaging the support surface. The surface engaging plate may define a generally planar surface on which the grip member may be provided. The generally planar surface may be substantially circular and the grip member may be substantially circular. The grip member may comprise a rubber material.

The grip member may present a generally planar contact surface for frictionally engaging the support surface, and may define a plurality of ribs for frictionally engaging the support surface. The ribs may be of generally V-shaped configuration.

The surface engaging arrangement may be pivotally mounted on the securing arrangement, desirably so that the grip member is in planar contact with the support surface irrespective of the angle defined between the support member of the ladder and the support surface. The pivotal mounting may be provided between the surface engaging plate and the securing arrangement.

The pivotal mounting may be provided in a substantially central region of the surface engaging plate.

The securing arrangement may include a securing member for location on a support member of a ladder, and the pivotal mounting may be provided between the surface engaging plate and the securing member.

The securing member may include front and rear walls and opposing side walls which may together define an elongate substantially rectangular portion for location on a support member of a ladder. The securing member may include an opening defined in the rear wall and extending part way along the opposing side walls towards the front wall.

The securing arrangement may include a clamping arrangement for clamping the securing member on a support member of a ladder. The clamping arrangement may be arranged to clamp the support member of a ladder against the front wall of the securing member. The clamping arrangement may include a clamping member which may be generally U-shaped. The clamping member may extend through the opening so that a lower member thereof extends between the opposing side walls and so that parallel side members thereof extend around the exterior of the securing member parallel to the side walls thereof. Distal ends of the parallel side members may project beyond the front wall of the securing member and the side members may include threaded formations which may extend at least part way therealong, desirably away from the distal ends.

The parallel arms of the clamping member may extend through a clamping plate which may be arranged to abut the front wall of the securing member. The clamping arrangement may include threaded fasteners, such as wing nuts, which are co-operable with the threaded formations on the parallel side members. The threaded fasteners may abut an opposite surface of the clamping plate to the front wall such that rotation of the threaded fasteners causes movement of the lower member of the U-shaped member along the opening between the front and rear walls of the securing member.

The securing member may include an end wall which may abut an end of a support member of a ladder when the securing member is located on a support member, and the securing arrangement may include spacing means locatable between the end wall and the end of a support member.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a ladder assembly including a ladder having two parallel support members with rungs extending therebetween, the ladder assembly including a ladder stabilising device according to the first aspect of the present invention located on at least one of the parallel support members.

An embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-Fig. I is a diagrammatic perspective view of an upper end of a ladder including two ladder stabilising devices according to the present invention; Fig. 2 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a lower end of a ladder including two ladder stabilising devices according to the present invention; Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic perspective view of a ladder stabilising device in different positions; Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view of a grip member of the ladder stabilising device; and Fig. 5 is a partially cut-away view of the ladder stabilising device in use on a lower end of a ladder.

Figs. I and 2 show respectively the upper and lower ends of a conventional ladder 10 consisting of two spaced parallel support members 12 having a plurality of rungs 14 extending therebetween to enable a person to climb up or down the ladder 10 in use.

In order to support the ladder 10 for use, as is well understood the lower ends of the support members 12 are placed in contact with a lower support surface, such as the surface of the ground 13, and the upper ends of the support members 12 are placed in contact with an upper support surface, such as a substantially vertical wall 15 or the like.

In order to improve the grip between the upper and lower ends of each of the support members 12 and thereby reduce the likelihood of slippage occurring between the ends of the support members 12 and the respective support surface, the present invention provides a ladder stabilising device 16 which engages the support surface(s) against which the ladder 10 is supported. Depending on the circumstances, two ladder stabilising devices 16 may be employed, one on each of the upper or lower ends of the support members 12 but more preferably, and in order to provide the maximum grip between the support members 12 and the support surfaces, four such devices 16 are desirably employed, one on the upper and lower ends of each of the support members 12.

The ladder stabilising device 16 according to the invention includes a securing arrangement 18 for securing the device 16 to an end of one of the support members 12 of the ladder 10, and a surface engaging arrangement which is arranged to frictionally engage the respective support surface to prevent slippage of the support member 12 relative to the support surface. In order to maximise the amount of grip, the surface engaging arrangement 20 presents a greater contact surface area for engagement with the support surface than the contact surface area that is otherwise provided by the end of the respective support member 12 of the ladder 10.

The securing arrangement 18 includes a securing member 22 having front and rear walls 24, 26 and opposing side walls 28a, 28b which together define an elongate substantially rectangular portion 30 locatable on an end of one of the support members 12 of the ladder 10. In order to securely clamp the securing member 22 on an end of one of the parallel members 12 of the ladder 10, the securing arrangement 18 includes a clamping arrangement generally designated by the reference number 32 which is arranged to clamp the support member 12 in use against the front wall 24 of the securing member 22.

The clamping arrangement 32 includes a generally U-shaped clamping member 34, the U-shaped clamping member 34 including a lower member 34a and side members 34b which extend orthogonally from the ends of the lower member 34a and in a direction parallel to each other. As can be seen more clearly in Fig. 3, the lower member 34a extends through an opening in the securing member 22, the opening being defined in the rear wall 26 and extending part way along the opposing side walls 28a, 28b of the securing member 22 in a direction from the rear wall 26 towards the front wall 24. The side members 34b of the U-shaped clamping member 34 extend in use around the exterior of the securing member 22, parallel to the opposing side walls 28a, 28b, and the distal ends 36 of the side members 34b project beyond the front wall 24 of the securing member 22. The side members 34b include threaded formations 35 which extend along at least part of their length away from the distal ends 36.

The securing arrangement 18 includes a clamping plate 38 having apertures through which the side members 34b of the U-shaped clamping member 34 pass. One side of the clamping plate 38 abuts the front wall 24 of the securing member 22 whilst the opposite side of the clamping plate 38 is arranged to abut threaded wing nuts 40 which are locatable on the side members 34b of the U-shaped clamping member 34 for co-operation with the threaded formations 35 on the side members 34b.

As will be readily appreciated from Fig. 3, rotation of the wing nuts 40 in the clockwise direction will cause the U-shaped clamping member 34 to move along the opening defined in the securing member 22 in a direction towards the front wall 24 due to the fact that the wing nuts 40 are in abutment with one side the clamping plate 38, the other side of which is in abutment with the front wall 24 of the securing member 22, as explained above. As the U-shaped clamping member 34 moves towards the front wall 24, the lower member 34a of the clamping member 34 engages the support member 12 of the ladder 10, and continued rotation of the wing nuts 40 in a clockwise direction securely clamps the support member 12 between the lower member 34a of the U-shaped clamping member 34 and the front wall 24 of the securing member 22. The ladder stabilising device 16 can be easily removed from the support member 12 by loosening the wing nuts 40 to thereby release the clamping arrangement 32.

The use of a clamping arrangement 32 in which the U-shaped clamping member 34 can move along the opening is advantageous as it allows the ladder stabilising device 16 to be securely clamped onto support members 12 which have varying dimensions, between the front and rear walls 24, 26 of the securing member 22.

The surface engaging arrangement 20 includes a surfacing engaging plate 42 having a generally planar surface 44 on which a grip member 46 is provided. In embodiments of the invention, the surface engaging plate 42 and the grip member 46 are generally circular. The grip member 46 presents a generally planar contact surface 48 for contacting the respective support surface, be this a lower support surface such as the surface of the ground 13 or an upper support surface such as a substantially vertical wall 15 or the like.

Referring to Fig. 4, in embodiments of the invention, the grip member 46 defines a plurality of ribs 50 such that the planar contact surface 48 is of a generally ribbed configuration. In the illustrated embodiment, the ribs 50 present a generally V-shaped configuration for contacting the support surface.

The V-shaped configuration of the ribs 50 maximises the friction between the support surface and the grip member 46 and hence the force needed to cause slippage of the grip member 46 relative to the support surface in both the horizontal and vertical directions, as illustrated by the arrows in Fig. 4. This ensures that there is maximum grip between the grip member 46 and the support surface in both the horizontal and vertical directions.

It will be readily understood that the angles defined between the support members 12 of a ladder 10 and the upper and lower support surfaces against which the ladder 10 is supported will vary according to the position of the ladder 10 in use. In order to ensure that the planar contact surface 48 of the grip member 46 remains in planar contact with the respective support surface to maximise the contact area between the two surfaces and hence to maximise the grip between the grip member 46 and the support surface, the clamping plate 38 on which the grip member 46 is provided is pivotally mounted on the securing member 22 of the securing arrangement 18. A hinge arrangement 52 extends between the securing member 22 and the surface engaging plate 42 to provide the required pivotal mounting.

The hinge arrangement 52 includes two hinge plates 60a, 60b. The hinge plate 60a defines an end wall 58 of the securing member 22 and is arranged so that the pivot point of the hinge 61 is located at the distal end of the rear wall 26 of the securing member 22 to maximise the degree of rotation that is possible. The hinge plate 60b is mounted on the surface engaging plate 42 so that the pivot point of the hinge in a substantially central region thereof. This is advantageous as it provides for an even transfer of force from the support member 12 of the ladder through the grip member 46 and onto the support surface.

In order to use the ladder stabilising device 16, the securing member 22 is located on an end of one of the support members 12. The wing nuts 40 are then rotated in a clockwise direction to move the U-shaped clamping member 34 so that it moves along the opening, as described above, to clamp the support member 12 between the lower member 34a thereof and the front wall 24 of the securing member 22.

When ladder stabilising devices 16 have been clamped to the ends of the desired support members 12, the ladder 10 is positioned for use against upper and lower support surfaces by ensuring that the grip members 46 of each of the surface engaging plates 42 are in planar contact with the respective support surface, be this the ground surface 13 or the surface of a wall 15.

If the position of the ladder 10 needs to be moved to ensure that it is optimally supported against the respective support surfaces such that the angles defined between the support members 12 and the respective support surfaces will vary, the securing member 22 of each ladder stabilising device 16 will pivot relative to the surface engaging plate 42, thereby ensuring that each grip member 46 remains in substantially planar contact with its respective support surface.

Fig. 3 illustrates the securing member 22 of a ladder stabilising device 16 in use on an upper end of a support member 12 of a ladder 10 at two different pivotal positions. As will be understood, in the position shown in phantom lines, the angle defined between the support member 12 and the upper support surface is smaller such that the ladder 10 is presented at a steeper angle relative to the upper support surface.

It will be understood that there may be circumstances where the lower support surface on which a ladder 10 is to be mounted may not be a flat surface. The lower surface may for example be an undulating surface or it may be a sloping ground surface. Conventionally supported ladders cannot be safely used in such circumstances since if the lower ends of each of the support members 12 are safely in contact with the ground surface, the ladder will not be in a generally vertical upright position, and will not therefore be adequately supported.

Referring to Fig. 5, in embodiments of the present invention the securing arrangement 18 includes spacing means 54, preferably in the form of spacing blocks 56, which are locatable inside the securing member 22 between the end waIl 58 and the end of a support member 12 of the ladder 10. By utilising one or more of such spacing blocks 56, the effective length of one, and possibly both, of the support members 12 at the bottom end of a ladder 10 can be adjusted. Consequently, the ladder stabilising device 16 according to the present invention provides the additional advantage that it enables ladders to be safely used in circumstances where there is an uneven lower support surface.

There is thus provided a ladder stabilising device 16 which offers improved ladder safety by increasing the grip between the support members 12 of a ladder 10 and the respective support surface, and thereby reduces the likelihood of slippage between the support members 12 and the respective support surface.

In embodiments of the invention in which the grip member 46 has a diameter of approximately 155mm, the ladder stabilising device 16 provides an increase in grip in the order of 300% when used on the end of a conventional support member 12 which would otherwise present a contact surface area measuring approximately 26mm x 30mm. Thus, the use of ladder stabilising devices 16 on the upper and lower ends of each of the support members 12 provides a significant increase in grip in the order of 1200%.

Although embodiments of the invention have been described in the preceding paragraphs with reference to various examples, it should be appreciated that various modifications to the examples given may be made without departing from the scope of the present invention. For example, the surface engaging plate 42 and/or the grip member 46 may be of a shape other than generally circular. The ribs 50 of the grip member 46 may be of a different configuration. A clamping arrangement other than the clamping arrangement 32 may be used to clamp the securing member 22 to a support member 12 of a ladder.

Whilst endeavouring in the foregoing specification to draw attention to those features of the invention believed to be of particular importance it should be understood that the Applicant claims protection in respect of any patentable feature or combination of features hereinbefore referred to and/or shown in the drawings whether or not particular emphasis has been placed thereon.

Claims

Claims 1. A ladder stabilising device comprising a securing arrangement

for securing the device to a support member of a ladder, and a surface engaging arrangement arranged to frictionally engage a support surface to prevent slippage of the support member relative to the support surface, the surface engaging arrangement presenting a greater contact surface area for engagement with the support surface than the contact surface area of the support member.

2. A device according to claim 1, wherein the surface engaging arrangement includes a surface engaging plate including a grip member for engaging the support surface.

3. A device according to claim 2, wherein the surface engaging plate defines a generally planar surface on which the grip member is provided.

4. A device according to claim 3, wherein the generally planar surface is substantially circular and the grip member is substantially circular.

5. A device according to any of claims 2 to 4, wherein the grip member presents a generally planar contact surface for frictionally engaging the support surface.

6. A device according to any of claims 2 to 5, wherein the grip member defines a plurality of ribs for frictionally engaging the support surface.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein the ribs are of generally V-shaped configuration.

8. A device according to any of claims 2 to 7, wherein the surface engaging arrangement is pivotally mounted on the securing arrangement so that the grip member is in planar contact with the support surface irrespective of the angle defined between the support member of the ladder and the support surface.

9. A device according to claim 8, wherein the pivotal mounting is provided between the surface engaging plate and the securing arrangement.

10. A device according to claim 9, wherein the pivotal mounting is provided in a substantially central region of the surface engaging plate.

11. A device according to claim 9 or claim 10, wherein the securing arrangement includes a securing member for location on a support member of a ladder, and the pivotal mounting is provided between the surface engaging plate and the securing member.

12. A device according to claim 11, wherein the securing member includes front and rear walls and opposing side walls which together define an elongate substantially rectangular portion for location on a support member of a ladder.

13. A device according to claim 12, wherein the securing member includes an opening defined in the rear wall and extending part way along the opposing side walls towards the front wall.

14. A device according to any of claims 11 to 13, wherein the securing arrangement includes a clamping arrangement for clamping the securing member on a support member of a ladder.

15. A device according to claim 14 when dependent on claim 12 or claim 13, wherein the clamping arrangement is arranged to clamp the support member of a ladder against the front wall of the securing member.

16. A device according to claim 14 or claim 15, wherein the clamping arrangement includes a clamping member which is generally U-shaped.

17. A device according to claim 16, wherein the clamping member extends through the opening so that a lower member thereof extends between the opposing side walls and so that parallel side members thereof extend around the exterior of the securing member parallel to the side walls thereof.

18. A device according to claim 17, wherein distal ends of the parallel side 1 5 members project beyond the front wall of the securing member and the side members include threaded formations which extend at least part way therealong, away from the distal ends.

19. A device according to claim 17 or claim 18, wherein the parallel side members of the clamping member extend through a clamping plate which is arranged to abut the front wall of the securing member.

20. A device according to claim 18 or claim 19, wherein the clamping arrangement includes threaded fasteners which are co-operable with the threaded formations on the parallel side members.

21. A device according to claim 20 when dependent on claim 19, wherein the threaded fasteners abut an opposite surface of the clamping plate to the front wall such that rotation of the threaded fasteners causes movement of the lower member of the U-shaped clamping member along the opening between the front and rear walls of the securing member.

22. A device according to any of claims 11 to 21, wherein the securing member includes an end wall which may abut an end of a support member of a ladder when the securing member is located on a support member, and the securing arrangement includes spacing means locatable between the end wall and the end of a support member.

23. A ladder stabilising device substantially as hereinbefore described and/or as shown in the accompanying drawings.

24. A ladder assembly including a ladder having two parallel support members with rungs extending therebetween, the ladder assembly including a ladder stabilising device according to any of the preceding claims located on at least one of the parallel support members.

25. A ladder assembly substantially as hereinbefore described and/or as shown in the accompanying drawings.

26. Any novel subject matter or combination including novel subject matter disclosed herein, whether or not within the scope of or relating to the same invention as any of the preceding claims.