U.S. patent application number 12/798419 was filed with the patent office on 2011-09-08 for roof clamp for fall protection safety equipment.
This patent application is currently assigned to Mr. Joseph Tony London, SR.. Invention is credited to Joseph Tony London.
Application Number | 20110214388 12/798419 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 44530118 |
Filed Date | 2011-09-08 |
United States Patent
Application |
20110214388 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
London; Joseph Tony |
September 8, 2011 |
Roof clamp for fall protection safety equipment
Abstract
This is a multi-part clamp assembly used for fall protection
used on standing seam metal roofs. One component of the clamp is a
clamp body measuring 2''.times.21/2''.times.6'' made of extruded
aluminum. This part is designed to allow attachment to multiple
styles of standing seam roofs without having to slide the clamp
body onto the end of a seam. Another component of the clamp
assembly is a series of six (6) 1/2''.times.11/4 concave set screws
horizontally opposed to a series of six (6) 3/8''.times.11/4''
convex set screws with a thread-locking compound designed for
non-removal from the clamp body. These twelve (12) set screws are
torqued at 200 inch pounds and apply pressure and dimple the roof
seam to secure the clamp to the standing seam without puncturing or
tearing the seam metal. The final component is a D-ring secured by
a special non-removable bolt with thread-locking compound screwed
in the clamp body for attaching a safety fall arrest system or
harness. The D-Ring is slotted with a 1''.times.3/4'' hole allowing
for ease of attachment and 360 degree movement.
Inventors: |
London; Joseph Tony;
(Stoneville, NC) |
Assignee: |
London, SR.; Mr. Joseph
Tony
Stoneville
NC
|
Family ID: |
44530118 |
Appl. No.: |
12/798419 |
Filed: |
April 2, 2010 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
|
61339553 |
Mar 6, 2010 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
52/745.21 |
Current CPC
Class: |
E04G 21/32 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
52/745.21 |
International
Class: |
E04G 21/32 20060101
E04G021/32 |
Claims
1. (A method of connecting a safety fall arrest system to a
standing seam roof)
2. (A method that allows attachment of a safety fall arrest system
to a standing seam roof without deforming the roof seam or having
to puncture the roof)
3. (A method of attachment that allows a single clamp design to be
used on several different commonly used profiles of standing roof
seams without having to slide the clamp body onto the end of a
seam.)
4. (A method of attachment that meets government recommended safety
standards for fall protection)
5. (A method that allows permanent attachment of a safety fall
arrest system.)
6. A device used to connect a safety fall arrest system to a
standing seam roof by means of twelve horizontally opposing convex
and concave screws that dimple the roof seam.
7. The device of claim 6 that allows attachment of a safety fall
arrest system to a standing seam roof without having to puncture
the roof
8. The device of claim 6 that utilizes a clamp design to be used on
standing roof seams.
9. The device of claim 6 that meets government required safety
standards, namely, OSHA 1926 Subpart M for fall protection.
10. The device of claim 6 that utilizes an attachment of a safety
fall arrest system that can not be removed without being
destructive to the block and make it non usable.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] This invention relates to roof safety devices for roof
workers, and more specifically to a clamp used to attach a fall
safety device to standing seam roof systems. A standing seam metal
roof is made up of many formed metal panels that are connected
together. These connections, or seams, run the length of the roof
and are spaced evenly along its width providing the building
protection from exterior elements and are also formed in such a way
as to be esthetically appealing. These seams are standardized
within the roofing industry and create a convenient attachment
point for a fall safety protection device. Presently, the brackets
used to attach a safety device to a roof consist of a plate that
needs holes drilled or other fastening methods which deform or
create holes in the roof panel. These holes or other deformations
must be repaired and sealed from leaks causing considerable time
and effort. Moreover, this fixed bracket method does not allow easy
movement over the roof and further limits the work area unless
multiple brackets are installed over the entire work space of the
roof. The safety environment and potential danger of falls related
to both construction and maintenance performed on seamed roof
systems has been widely recognized and has been under government
regulatory scrutiny for protection of workers. Accordingly, there
is a need for a roof safety clamp that can be attached to a
standing seam roof system which can exceed present OSHA standards
for fall protection and does not deform or create holes in the
metal panels.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Accordingly, it would be highly desirable to provide an
improved fall protection system which will allow secure attachment
of safety devices to a standing seam metal roof while providing
ease of movement over the roof by way of multiple tie-off points
that will not deform the roof panels. It would also be desirable to
have a system which will exceed support weights recommended by OSHA
standards that will hold approved personal fall protection
devices.
[0003] This invention provides a clamp assembly for securing a fall
protection safety line to a roof with formed seams. The clamp,
preferably, is used by the residential or commercial construction
industry as an anchor point from which construction or contractor
personnel may attach an approved lifeline that connects to an
approved personal fall arrest device.
[0004] The foregoing and additional advantages and characterizing
features of the present invention will become clearly apparent upon
reading the detailed description together with the included
drawings herein.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0005] FIG. 1 is an elevation view of a fall protection clamp
according to the present invention as it would appear in use;
[0006] FIG. 2 Is a plan view of the fall protection clamp;
[0007] FIG. 3 Is an isometric view of the fall protection clamp
attached to a raised seam;
[0008] FIG. 4 Is an exploded isometric view of a clamp
assembly;
[0009] FIG. 5 Is a plan view of a raised seam roof;
[0010] FIG. 6A Is an elevation view a standing seam metal roof;
[0011] FIG. 6B Is a elevation view of the clamp installed on a
raised seam;
[0012] FIG. 7 Is an plan view of the clamp installed on a raised
seam;
[0013] FIG. 8 Is an elevation view of the clamp installed on a
raised seam;
[0014] FIG. 9 Is an plan view of the clamp connector D-ring and
bolt;
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATED EMBODIMENT
[0015] Referencing to FIG. 1, there is shown a fall protection
clamp assembly 200 according to the present invention for securing
a safety fall protection line 401 to a seam roof 302 and the raised
seam 301 present in this roof construction method. The safety fall
protection system line 401 coming from the fall protection clamp
assembly 200, in turn, is secured to an approved fall protection
device 400 such as an approved safety belt, harness or the like as
worn by roof workers. The seam roof 302 is made up of formed panels
connected together in such a way to secure them to a building and
also prevent outside weather elements from entering. These
connections, or seams, run the length of the roof and are spaced
along its width. The clamp assembly 200 is comprised of a single
piece main body 201 made with a unique profile as illustrated in
FIG. 2 and may be formed by machine milling or extrusion and is
made of aluminum. The profile slot is longitudinal and has an
opening 208 along its bottom. This slot is large enough to easily
fit over the raised roof seam 301. The profile slot 207 allows
multiple profiles of roof seams to fit within the main body piece
201. The opening 208 along the bottom of the main body 201 allows
the clamp assembly 200 to be installed along the length of the
raised seam 301.
[0016] Along the inside of the main body piece 201, the
horizontally opposed set screws 205 (concave) and 206 (convex) are
made from stainless steel and have surfaces that mate to each other
causing a dimple affect in the raised seam 301. The set screws 205
(concave) and 206 (convex) cause pressure on the panel vertical
leg. The set screws 205 (concave) compress against 206 (convex)
positioned along the length of one side and opposite side as
illustrated in FIG. 4. The set screws 205 apply pressure to the set
screws 206 and transpose through the raised roof seam 301. Along
the length of the main body 201 the pressure imparted to the set
screws 205, 206 presses against the raised seam 301 forcing a
portion of the raised seam 303 and 304 to also press into the
concave recess 205 which is part of the main body 201 profile. The
pressure exerted is spread along the length of the raised seam 303
and 304.
[0017] FIGS. 5 & 6A illustrates a common profile of a raised
seam roof system. The panels 302 are placed longitudinally on the
roof and have a profile with vertical sides 303 and 304 and a seam
top 301. The panels 302 are formed to allow locking together along
the seam 301 and provide a roof system made up of individual
panels. These interlocking panels 302 are arranged along the length
as denoted in FIG. 6A as letter "B". The panels 302 are also
arranged along the width of the roof as denoted in FIG. 6A as
letter "A". FIG. 7 illustrates the clamp assembly 200 installed
properly along the raised seam 301. The set screws 205 impart force
to the set screws 206. The screws 205, 206 use longitudinal length
of 303, 304 as shown in FIG. 5 and as hidden lines in FIG. 6A.
[0018] FIG. 9 shows a bolt with thread-locking material that has
slots for a special wrench that can tight the bolt but not loosen.
The attachment D-ring 202 is made from stainless steel material and
is mounted to the top of the main body 201 by way of threads and
non-removable attachment shoulder bolt 204 through an oblong hole
211 with non-removable slots 210. The attachment D-ring 202 has an
oblong hole 211 which allows the attachment ring 202 to move up and
down and back and forth along the length of the shoulder bolt 204
and also rotate around the center hole 360 degrees. The D-ring 202
is allowed to slide up for ease of attachment and rotation around
the attachment bolt 203 to a fall protection harness 401. The
attachment D-ring 202 can also slide down along the shoulder bolt
204 and into the recess 209 as shown in FIG. 7 along the length of
the main body 201 to prevent movement by high winds when not in
use. The attachment ring 202 has one "D" shaped cut-out 212 for
ease of attachment of any commercially available fall protection
device 401 which further attaches to the fall protection harness
assembly 400 worn by the roof worker as shown in FIG. 1.
[0019] The foregoing description of the present invention has been
presented for purposes of illustration and description.
Furthermore, the description is not intended to limit the invention
to the form disclosed herein.
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