AU2007202167B2

AU2007202167B2 - Multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment

Info

Publication number: AU2007202167B2
Application number: AU2007202167A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Lino Toffoletti
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 2006-07-27
Filing date: 2007-05-14
Publication date: 2008-11-20
Anticipated expiration: 2027-05-14
Also published as: AU2007202167A1

Description

Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

Patents Act 1990 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION STANDARD PATENT

APPLICANT:

NUMBER:

FILING DATE: INVENTION TITLE:

ATTACHMENT

LINO TOFFOLETTI 2007202167 14/05/2007 MULTI PURPOSE GUTTER SAVER LADDER The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: -2- 00 O MULTI PURPOSE GUTTER SAVER LADDER ATTACHMENT Field of the Invention o Z This invention relates to a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment and in particular to stabiliser with brackets that can be used on different sized ladders.

Whilst the invention may be applied to multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachments for any purpose, for convenience sake it shall be described herein terms of multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachments that include ladder attachment means.

rBackground to the Invention (Ni Ladders are used by many professional and hobby builders to reach places that are too high and as a result inaccessible from the ground. When used incorrectly ladders can be a hazard to the users by way of the ladder slipping resulting in a person on the ladder falling from a height.

To overcome this some ladders have integrated attachments that can offer stability when using a ladder. These can sit against a wall to offset the ladder from the wall, and also hooking the attachment into the gutter for extra stability. These types of ladders can be bulky to store due to the attachment, even when the attachment can be folded down. They also are restricted to one type of ladder, meaning if you have more than one ladder and you wish to have the stabilising feature included, you are required to purchase two special ladders that have difficulties with storage. The attachments that use the gutter as extra support have other problems in that if misuse does occur, a fall may be prevented, but the guttering may be damaged in preventing the fall.

There are some attachments that can be placed on a ladder to offer extra stability.

These attachments often hook into the gutter and are generally designed for one ladder side rail size only. Further, if the ladder does slip, like the multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachments described above, there may be damage sustained to the guttering of the building.

Other attachments are designed to be connected to the rungs of a ladder. This can affect the usability of the ladder in that these rungs would include a hindrance to use when the attachment is included.

00 Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to overcome or substantially ameliorate the disadvantages of the prior art.

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Z Summary of the Invention In accordance with the invention there is provided a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment that can be used to support and stabilise a ladder when being used and can be easily attached to different sized ladder side rails.

IND

S 10 The present invention provides a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment (Ni including; a frame; and an at least one attachment means including at least one clamping mechanism at one end including two spaced elements for clamping around the ladder and at least one releasable fastening means at a distal end of the attachment means wherein the frame is attached to the attachment means by the at least one releasable fastening means such that releasing the releasable fastening means allows movement of the frame between an in use position and a storage position.

The at least one releasable fastening means is a pair of releasable fastening means wherein the first releasable fastening means provides a pivot point for the frame and the second releasable fastening means can be used to lock the frame in the in use position.

The pair of releasable fastening means extend through individual apertures on the at least one attachment means and frame.

The frame includes at least one slotted aperture allowing adjustment of the frame to maintain a substantially horizontal position of the frame when at least one of the pair of releasable fastening means are released.

The at least one attachment means is a pair of plates forming the open a distal end for connecting to the frame and the open proximal end for connecting to the ladder.

The clamping mechanism is created between the pair of plates when the plates are clamped together by at least one clamping means.

-4- 0 The clamping mechanism includes a bolt and corresponding nut to press the two

O

spaced elements for clamping around the ladder closer together.

(Ni O The clamping mechanism is a folded plate substantial in the form of a including a Z 5 pair of spaced clamping arms for clamping around the ladder.

The clamping mechanism is created between the pair of spaced clamping arms when the plates are clamped together by at least one clamping means.

(Ni S 10 The clamping mechanism includes a bolt and corresponding nut to press the two (Ni spaced clamping arms for clamping around the ladder closer together.

The at least one pair of plates are separated by a spacing bar wherein each end of the pair of plates forms the open distal end for connecting to the frame and the open proximal end for connecting to the ladder.

The at least one pair of plates includes a first plate that is constant in thickness and a second plate that includes two portions wherein a first portion is thicker than a second portion whereby alternating between plates provides different sized open proximal end.

The second plate includes an uninterrupted, flush face that is common to both portions and a second face that includes a step that defines where the thicker first portion and thinner second portion meet.

Each plate of a pair of plates can be relatively repositioned to form the two open ends with different size for fitting different size ladders.

The relatively repositioning of the pair of plates can alter the width of the open proximal ends between 20 millimetres or 25 millimetres.

It can be seen that the invention includes a clamping means and attachment means to a ladder spacer to provide a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment that can be clamped to a ladder railing so not to damage, require fixed attachment or alter how a person would climb the ladder. The attachment means mounts to the frame in such a way so as to allow the frame be adjustable in position so as it can be readily 0 changed from an in use position and a storage position. Also, the ladder attachment with adjustability to fit the railings of different standard ladders.

(Ni 0 The open distal end of the at least one pair of plates can be used to fit railings of Z 5 standard ladders by swapping the second plate of one pair of plates with another second plate from the second pair of attachment means.

The at least one attachment means are mounted on the ladder by at least one fastening means wherein the at least one fastening means passes through apertures on the at least one pair of attachment means.

O The frame includes a removable tray that can be used as storage for items used by a person on the ladder.

The safety bar includes a strip made from a non slip material that engages a surface.

Brief Description of the Drawings In order that the invention can be more readily understood an embodiment will be described by way of illustration only with reference to the drawings wherein: Figure 1 is a side view of the attachment means; Figure 2 is a top view of the attachment means showing the two plates, one with constant thickness and a second with two portions, one thinner than the other Figure 3 is diagrammatic view of a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment attached to both a ladder and a frame with the frame in an in use position; Figure 4 is a diagrammatic view of a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment attached to both a ladder and a frame with the frame in a storage position; Figure 5 is a diagrammatic view of a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment attached to both a ladder and a frame when in use against a vertical surface such as a wall; Figure 6 is an isometric view of the frame showing the strip of non slip material; Figure 7 is a plan view of an alternative attachment means in the corm of a section; and Figure 8 is a top view of an alternative attachment means in the corm of a "C" section.

-6- 00

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Description of a Preferred Embodiment of the Invention 0 Z 5 In this preferred embodiment, the invention provides stabiliser that can be used with Nladders to prevent ladders from toppling during use.

0 The present invention provides a multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment including a frame, 1, and an at least one attachment means, 2, with two spaced elements in the form of a pair of plates. Generally there will be two sets of plate pairs.

The at least one attachment means includes one clamping mechanism at one end Owhich is the proximal end for clamping around the ladder, 3, and at least one ri releasable fastening means at a distal end of the attachment means allowing the frame to be attached to the attachment means by at least one clamping mechanism as shown in Figure 2. The clamping mechanism includes by at least one bolt and corresponding nut to press the two spaced elements for clamping around the ladder closer together The frame is also attached to the attachment means by a pair of releasable fastening means such that releasing the releasable fastening means allows movement of the frame from an in use position to a storage position and back again. The pair of releasable fastening means pass through individual apertures, 4, on the at least one attachment means and frame. At least one of the apertures on the frame is slotted, 5 allowing adjustment of the frame to maintain a substantially horizontal position of the frame when at least one of the pair of releasable fastening means are released when at least one of the pair of releasable fastening means are released as shown in Figure 4.

Figure 6 shows the frame which includes a pair of legs, 6, with a distal end, 7, and proximal end, 8, a support bar, 9, between the legs, and a safety bar, 10, attached at the distal end of the legs. Each proximal end of the frame legs is where the plate pairs are attached. The safety bar includes a strip, 11, made from non slip material for engaging with a vertical surface, 12 when in use to prevent the ladder from toppling, as seen in Figure The at least one pair of plates are separated by a spacing bar, 13, such that the pair of plates forms the open distal end for connecting to the frame and the open proximal end for connecting to the ladder, 14 and 15. The open distal end of the plates is used to fit the frame, and the open proximal end of the plates is used to fit around the 0 ladder railing. To clamp the attachment means to the ladder railing, a plurality of fastening means pass through ha plurality of clamping apertures, 16.

O The pair of adjustable plates is separable and adjustable and are shown in Figures 1 Z 5 and 2. The adjustability of these plate pairs allows the open proximal ends that fit around the ladder railing to be changed in size to fit different sized ladders. The first plate, 17, in the pair has a constant thickness, while the second plate, 18, in the pair of plates includes a thinner portion, 19, and a thicker portion, 20, as shown in Figure 6. The second plate includes one uninterrupted, flush face that is common to both S 10 portions and a second face that includes a step, 21 that defines where the thicker first portion and thinner second portion meet. Ladder railing sizes are common and the open proximal end sizes are adjustable to match these standards. The two standards that the open proximal ends can be adjusted between are 20 millimetres and 25 millimetres.

To adjust the pair of plates a person would by swap the second plate of one pair of plates with another second plate from the second pair of attachment means. The plates can be relatively repositioned to form the two open proximal end with different size for fitting different size ladders In an alternative embodiment, the clamping mechanism can be a folded plate, 22, in the form of a plate with spaced clamping arms for clamping around the ladder and is a single piece as shown in Figures 7 and 8. This plate includes a pair of clamping apertures, 23, and a pair of fastening apertures 24. The clamping apertures are engaged by a clamping means similar to the pair of plates, and the fastening apertures are engaged by a fastening means that is similar to the pair of plates as well. This attachment also allows the frame a contains a slotted aperture allowing adjustment of the frame to maintain a substantially horizontal a substantially horizontal position when one of the releasable fastening means is released as one of the apertures for the fastening means aligns with the slotted aperture, 5, on the frame. Further, this attachment means can also allow movement of the frame from an in use position to a storage position and back again by releasing at least one of the releasable fastening means. This form of attachment means is simpler to manufacture, but will be restricted to fitting one size ladder railing only. The plate is shown in use in Figure 9 with a ladder, 3, and attached to the frame, 1, with the frame's safety bar abutting against a guttering facing board, -8- O While we have described herein a particular embodiment of a multi purpose gutter 0 saver ladder attachment, it is further envisaged that other embodiments of the invention could exhibit any number and combination of any one of the features o previously described. However, it is to be understood that any variations and S 5 modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope thereof.

IND

Claims

1. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment including; a frame; and O an at least one attachment means including at least one clamping mechanism Z 5 at one end including two spaced elements for clamping around the ladder and at least one releasable fastening means at a distal end of the attachment means wherein the frame is attached to the attachment means by the at least one releasable fastening means such that releasing the releasable fastening means allows IND movement of the frame between an in use position and a storage position.

2. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 1 wherein the at least one releasable fastening means is a pair of releasable fastening means wherein the first releasable fastening means provides a pivot point for the frame and the second releasable fastening means can be used to lock the frame in the in use position.

3. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 1 or claim 2 wherein the pair of releasable fastening means extend through individual apertures on the at least one attachment means and frame.

4. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to any preceding claim wherein the frame includes at least one slotted aperture allowing adjustment of the frame to maintain a substantially horizontal position of the frame when at least one of the pair of releasable fastening means are released.

A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to any proceeding claim wherein the at least one attachment means is a pair of plates forming an open distal end for connecting to the frame and an open proximal end for connecting to the ladder.

6. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 5 wherein the clamping mechanism is created between the pair of plates when the plates are clamped together by at least one clamping means.

7. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the clamping mechanism includes a bolt and 0 corresponding nut to press the two spaced elements for clamping around the O ladder closer together.

8. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 1 to claim 4 0 Z 5 wherein the clamping mechanism is a folded plate substantial in the form of a "C" including a pair of spaced clamping arms for clamping around the ladder.

9. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 8 wherein the clamping mechanism is created between the pair of spaced clamping arms when the plates are clamped together by at least one clamping means.

A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 9 wherein the clamping mechanism includes a bolt and corresponding nut to press the two spaced clamping arms for clamping around the ladder closer together.

11. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claims 5 to claim 7 wherein the at least one pair of plates are separated by a spacing bar wherein each end of the pair of plates forms the open distal end for connecting to the frame and the open proximal end for connecting to the ladder.

12. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claims 5 to claim 7 wherein the at least one pair of plates includes a first plate that is constant in thickness and a second plate that includes two portions wherein a first portion is thicker than a second portion whereby alternating between plates provides different sized open proximal end.

13. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claims 12 wherein the second plate includes an uninterrupted, flush face that is common to both portions and a second face that includes a step that defines where the thicker first portion and thinner second portion meet.

14. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claims 5, 6, 7, 11, 12 or 13 wherein each plate of a pair of plates can be relatively repositioned to form the two open ends with different size for fitting different size ladders. -11- oO

15. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claim 14 wherein the relatively repositioning of the pair of plates can alter the width of the open proximal ends between 20 millimetres or 25 millimetres. Z 5

16. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to claims 5, 6, 7, 11, 12, 13, 14 or 15 wherein the open distal end of the at least one pair of plates can be used to fit railings of standard ladders by swapping the second plate of one pair of plates with another second plate from the second pair of attachment means.

17. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the at least one attachment means are mounted on the ladder by at least one fastening means wherein the at least one fastening means passes through apertures on the at least one pair of attachment means.

18. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according any one of the preceding claims wherein the frame includes a removable tray that can be used as storage for items used by a person on the ladder.

19. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the safety bar includes a strip made from a non slip material that engages a surface. A multi purpose gutter saver ladder attachment substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the figures.