Patent Application
20050194211
The present invention relates generally to footholds for use with fall protection devices including, for example, safety harnesses, safety belts and lanyards), to safety harness systems incorporating footholds and to methods of attaching footholds to fall protection devices. The present invention relates particularly to foothold safety devices that can be attached to or retrofitted to safety harnesses and other fall protection devices, to safety harness systems incorporating such foothold safety devices and to methods of attaching such foothold safety devices to safety harnesses.
References set forth herein may facilitate understanding of the present invention or the background of the present invention. Inclusion of a reference herein, however, is not intended to and does not constitute an admission that the reference is available as prior art with respect to the present invention.
Safety harnesses are commonly used as part of a fall protection system for persons subjected to the potential of a fall from a height. In the workplace, full-body safety harnesses are generally used. Such harnesses, which typically include both an upper torso portion (having, for example, shoulder straps) and a lower torso portion (having, for example seat straps and leg straps), can be designed in many alternative manners.
Many currently available full-body safety harnesses are manufactured from relatively inelastic, woven webbing materials such as nylon or polyester. A flexible and elastic harness, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,006,700, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, has been introduced that greatly improves the comfort of the user during normal use of the safety harness. A safety harness with blunted edges for further increasing the comfort of the user is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,739,427, assigned to the assignee of the present invention, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
Although the comfort of safety harnesses during normal use and even during a fall arrest has been greatly improved in the above-described harnesses, problems can still arise in the case that a harness user is suspended in a safety harness for a substantial period of time after a fall. In that regard, orthostatic intolerance/suspension trauma, including unconsciousness and even death, may be experienced by an individual using a fall protection safety harness or belt if the individual remains suspended in the harness or belt for a length of time. Typically, a person suspended in a fall protection system is suspended in an upright static position in which venous pooling can lead to orthostatic intolerance/suspension trauma. Venous pooling and orthostatic intolerance can lead to a serious injury and even death as the brain and other vital organs are deprived of oxygen.
For the above reasons, it is recommended that individual in a safety harness should not work alone, and, in the case of suspension after a fall, the suspended individual should be rescued as soon as possible. It is further recommended, for example, that an individual using a harness be trained to try to move their legs while suspended in the harness and to push against any available footholds in an attempt to prevent venous pooling. However, suitable footholds are generally not available.
It is an object of the present invention to provide footholds that can readily and inexpensively be incorporated into safety harnesses.
In one aspect, the present invention provides a foothold system for attachment to a fall protection device. The foothold system includes a foot seating upon which a user can rest at least one foot and an attachment member in operative connection with the foot seating. The attachment member is adapted to attach to the fall protection device (for example, a safety harness, a safety belt or a lanyard). The distance between the attachment member and a bottom of the foot seating can be adjustable to, for example, accommodate users of different size.
The attachment member can, for example, be adapted to attach to a fall protection safety harness after manufacture of the safety harness is complete. The attachment member can, for example. be a loop attached at an end of the foothold system through which at least a portion of the foothold system (for example, the foot seating) can be passed or doubled back.
In one embodiment, the foot seating is a foot loop operativley attached to the end of an extending strap. At an opposite end of the extending strap, the extending strap is in operative attachment to the attachment member. The length of the extending strap between the attachment member and the foot loop can be adjustable to accommodate users of different size. The length of the strap can, for example, be adjustable via a buckle mechanism. As described above, the attachment member in this embodiment can be a loop through which the foot loop and extending strap can be doubled back and choked off.
At least a portion of the foothold system can, for example, be compacted (for example, folded over itself or otherwise compacted) to reduce the overall size (for example, length and/or width) of the foothold system prior to deployment of the foothold system. The foothold system can include a container, cover or sleeve into which at least a portion of the foothold system (for example, a portion of the extending strap and the foot loop in several embodiments) is compacted. In certain embodiments, the foothold system can further include at least one retaining member or strap to hold the foothold system in close proximity to a strap of a safety harness or other fall protection device prior to deployment of the foothold system.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a safety harness system including: at least one foothold system including at least one foot seating upon which a user can rest at least one foot and an attachment member an attachment member in operative connection with the foot seating. The attachment member is adapted to attach to a safety harness of the safety harness system. The safety harness includes at least one strap portion for extending over a portion of the person's body to retain the person within the safety harness.
In a further aspect, the present invention provides a method of incorporating a foothold system into a fall protection device, including the step: attaching the foothold system to the fall protection device after manufacture of the fall protection device is complete. As described above, the foothold system can include: a foot seating upon which a user can rest at least one foot and an attachment member in operative connection with the foot seating. The attachment member is adapted to attach the foothold system to the fall protection device. The fall protection device can, for example, be a safety harness which includes at least one strap portion for extending over a portion of the person's body to retain the person within the safety harness. The attachment member can, for example, be an attachment loop, and the step of attaching the foothold system to the strap of the safety harness can include the step of passing at least a portion of the foothold system (for example, at least a portion of a foot loop and an extending strap in several embodiments) through the attachment loop.
In another aspect, the present invention provides a fall protection system including a fall protection device used to suspend a user in the case of a fall; and at least one foothold system. the foothold system includes: a foot seating upon which a user can rest at least one foot and an attachment member in operative connection with the foot seating. The attachment member is adapted to attach the foothold system to the fall protection device.
In still a further aspect, the present invention provides a method of facilitating leg movement of a person suspended in a fall protection harness, including: deploying a foothold system attached to the fall protection harness from a compacted state to an uncompacted state after a fall; and placing at least one foot of the person into a foot seating of the foothold system after deployment of the foothold system. The method can further include the step of attaching the foothold system to the fall protection harness before the fall. As described above, in one embodiment, the foothold system is attached to the safety harness using an attachment member comprising a loop attached at an end of the foothold system through which at least a portion of the foothold system can be passed or doubled back and subsequently choked off or tightened.
In still another aspect, the present invention provides a fall protection system including a fall protection device used to suspend a user in the case of a fall and at least one foothold system. The foothold system includes a foot seating into which a user can insert a foot and an attachment member in operative connection with the foot seating, The attachment member is adapted to attach to the fall protection device. The foothold system is adapted to be compacted to reduce the overall size thereof.
In general, the present invention provides a safety device or system that allows an individual (who may be suspended in or by, for example, a safety harness, belt and/or lanyard after a fall) to, for example, relieve pressure on portions of the body. Furthermore, the present invention provides foothold safety devices that enable muscle contraction in the lower extremities. Such muscle contractions are an important factor in maintaining blood pumping/circulation and reducing the risk of venous pooling. The ability to relieve pressure and contract the muscles of the lower extremities while suspended is critical in providing comfort and in reducing venous pooling that typically occurs in the legs as a result of the force of gravity and a lack of movement. The foothold systems of the present invention thereby reduce the risk of orthostatic intolerance/suspension trauma. The foothold systems of the present invention can be designed to be adaptable to, for example, any safety harness, safety belt or lanyard already in use, and are easily affixed to any such fall protection device by, for example, looping it through or around a portion thereof. The foothold systems of the present invention can also be incorporated into a new safety harness or other fall protection device as part of the manufacturing process. The foothold systems of the present invention can also be small, compact, and designed to fit snugly against, for example, the webbing of a harness. The compact or small size and snug fit of the foothold systems of the present invention reduce or eliminate the risk that the foothold systems will interfere with a users work activities. The foothold systems of the present invention can, for example, be located in the lower front portion of a safety harness where the foothold system is visible and readily accessible by a person suspended in the harness after a fall. The foothold systems can be easily deployed either manually or automatically by, for example, applying force to a portion of the foothold system which releases the foothold system for deployment.
Representative embodiments of the foothold systems of the present invention are discussed herein as attached to a full body safety harness. One skilled in the art appreciates, however, that the foothold systems of the present invention are readily incorporated into or attached to other fall protection devices such as safety belts and lanyards.
A first end of each of shoulder straps 20 and 30 extends down over the back of the user to form first and second generally longitudinal back straps 22 and 32, respectively. Longitudinal back straps 22 and 32 of shoulder straps 20 and 30 cross through and connect to a typical D-ring 54 as known in the art. D-ring 54 includes a harness connection portion 52 and an anchor portion 54. Harness connection portion 52 enables fastening of D-ring 54 to safety harness 10 via longitudinal back straps 22 and 32. Anchor portion 54 is adapted to be connected to a nylon rope, a chain, webbing, a self retracting lifeline or other connector which is be used to anchor the person wearing safety harness 10.
In the embodiment of
A second end of each of shoulder straps 20 and 30 extends downward over the front of the user to from generally longitudinal first and second front straps 24 and 34, respectively. A first chest strap portion 42 is preferably attached to front strap 24 and a second chest strap portion 44 is attached to front strap 34. Each of first and second chest straps 42 and 44 have cooperating fastening members 46 and 48 on the ends thereof to enable attachment of first and second chest straps 42 and 44 to form chest strap 40. As known in the art, first and second chest straps 42 and 44, respectively, are preferably attached via an adjustable mating or quick connect buckle mechanism, including, for example, cooperating fastening members 46 and 48.
First and second front straps 24 and 34 extend further downward and preferably include adjustment members 26 and 36 (for example, adjustable buckles) as known in the art for adjustment of the fit of safety harness 10 on the upper torso of the user. Extending still further downward as illustrated in
Attached to and extending from seat portion 70 are a first and a second leg strap 80 and 90, respectively. Each of first and second leg straps 80 and 90 pass around the upper leg of the user to be attached to the distal end of first and second longitudinal back straps 22 and 32, respectively. The distal ends of each of first and second leg straps 80 and 90 and the distal ends of each of longitudinal back straps 22 and 32 thus preferably comprise cooperating fastening members (82 and 92 and 28 and 38, respectively) such as adjusting buckle members as known in the art.
In the embodiment of
The bottom portion of safety harness 10 can, for example, be fabricated via a first length of material (for example, inelastic webbing material as described above) which begins at first end 94 on leg strap 90. The material travels downward through fastening member 92 and then travels upward toward seat portion 70, thereby forming leg strap 90. Upon reaching seat portion 70, the material travels along the path identified by the lower portion of strap 34a, and is sewn to the back side thereof. The material is stitched to the back side of strap 34a to form a loop 34b. Similarly, a second length of material (for example, inelastic webbing material as described above) begins at first end 84 on leg strap 80. The material travels downward through fastening member 82 and then travels upward toward seat portion 70, thereby forming leg strap 80. Upon reaching seat portion 70, the material travels along the path identified by the lower portion of strap 24a, and is sewn to the back side thereof. The material is stitched to the back side of strap 24a to form a loop 34b. As illustrated in
In
As illustrated, for example, in
Foot loop 110 can be place in operative connection with or attached to (for example, as a separate component or by being formed integrally with) an extending length of generally inelastic strapping material 120 (for example, nylon) that can be adjustable in length (to accommodate different leg lengths of individual users) via, for example, a buckle system 130 as known in the art. Unlike the strapping material of safety harness 10 (which must have an ultimate tensile load sufficiently high to withstand the forces in a fall arrest—typically at least 5000 pounds in the United States), the components and material of foothold system 100 of the present invention do not experience the large forces of a fall. The components and materials for the foothold systems of the present invention need only support the weight of a user of safety harness 10 after a fall has been arrested. For example, an ultimate tensile load in the range of approximately 300 to 600 pounds can be sufficient for such materials. Examples of a suitable materials for use in the foothold systems of the present invention are relatively thin nylon or polyester webbing materials. In one embodiment, 1 inch wide, relatively thin webbing material was used. As clear to one skilled in the art, many materials are suitable for use in the present invention.
Foothold system 100 is preferably attachable to existing safety harnesses via an attachment member 140, which in the embodiment of
Prior to attachment to safety harness 10 and after attachment to safety harness 10, but prior to deployment after a fall, foothold system 100 is preferably compact and does not dangle away from safety harness 10. In the embodiment of
In addition to the manual deployment of foothold system 100 discussed above, foothold system 100 can deploy automatically in the case of a fall. In that regard, for example, a portion of the force of the fall can be transferred to the foot loop end of extending strap 120 or to sleeve 160 to extend, remove or unfold extending strap 120 and foot loop 110 from sleeve 160. This result can, for example, be accomplished by attaching an actuator (for example, an actuating line 167) to the foot loop end of foothold system 100 or to sleeve 160 as illustrated in
As illustrated in
As illustrated in
Prior to deployment after a fall, foothold system 100′ is preferably compact and does not dangle away from a safety harness such as safety harness 10 (see,
In the representative embodiments of the present invention, a foothold system of the present invention is attached to each lateral side of a safety harness. However, a single foothold system can be attached to a safety harness (or other fall protection device) and suffice to reduce the likelihood or to prevent suspension trauma. For example, the user can alternate the foot positioned within the foot loop of the foothold system. The user can alternatively place both feet in a single foot loop or stirrup (in, for example, either a crossed or uncrossed configuration). Further, the user can place one foot in a foot loop of a foothold system of the present invention and place the other foot on top of that foot in extending and bending the user's legs during suspension.
The foregoing description and accompanying drawings set forth preferred embodiments of the invention at the present time. Various modifications, additions and alternative designs will, of course, become apparent to those skilled in the art in light of the foregoing teachings without departing from the scope of the invention. The scope of the invention is indicated by the following claims rather than by the foregoing description. All changes and variations that fall within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope.
The present application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/550,424, filed Mar. 5, 2004, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60550424 | Mar 2004 | US |
