Claims
- 1. A highway guardrail terminal for extending along a roadway, the terminal having an upstream portion and a downstream portion and comprising:
- a thrie-beam rail having three peaks and two valleys;
- a slotted section in the rail, the slotted section having a slot longitudinally disposed in the rail and of a size sufficient to reduce the ability of the rail to resist buckling in response to a longitudinal loading from an end of the rail, said slot having an upstream end and a downstream end; and
- a reinforced portion of the rail proximate the downstream end of the slot, a portion Of the slot extending beyond the reinforced portion toward the upstream portion of the terminal.
- 2. The highway guardrail terminal of claim 1 wherein the reinforced portion of the rail comprises a slot guard attached to the rail proximate the downstream end of the slot.
- 3. The highway guardrail terminal of claim 1 further comprising a cable release mechanism comprising:
- a generally vertical support member supporting said thrie-beam rail, the support member having an aperture therethrough;
- a cable having an end which is disposed through the aperture of the support member;
- a fastener proximate said end of the cable which prevents withdrawal of said end of the cable from disposal through the aperture; and
- a release plate disposed between the fastener and the support member, the release plate having a cable resting notch and a cutout section to permit a cable resting within the cable resting notch to be removed from the plate.
- 4. The highway guardrail terminal of claim 3 wherein the cutout section comprises a V-shaped slot.
- 5. A highway guardrail terminal for extending along a roadway, the terminal having an upstream portion and a downstream portion and comprising:
- a rail member;
- at least one support member supporting the rail member, the support member having an aperture disposed therethrough;
- a cable extending between a point along the rail and a lower portion of the support member, the cable having an end which is disposed through the aperture, the cable further being attached to the rail;
- a fastener proximate said end which prevents withdrawal of said end of the cable from disposal through the aperture; and
- a release plate disposed between the fastener and the support member, the release plate having a cable resting notch and a cut out section to permit a cable resting within the cable resting notch to be removed from the plate.
- 6. A highway guardrail terminal for extending along a roadway, the terminal having an upstream portion and a downstream portion and comprising:
- a thrie-beam rail having three peaks and two valleys;
- a slotted section in the rail, the slotted section having a slot longitudinally disposed in the rail and of a size sufficient to reduce the ability of the rail to resist buckling in response to a longitudinal loading from an end of the rail, said slot having an upstream end and a downstream end;
- a reinforced portion within the rail proximate the downstream end of the slot, the reinforced portion comprising a slot guard attached to the rail proximate the downstream end of the slot;
- a cable release mechanism comprising a generally vertical frangible support post supporting the thrie-beam rail, the support member having an aperture therethrough;
- a cable having an end which is disposed to the aperture of the support member;
- a fastener proximate the end of the cable which prevents withdrawal of the end of the cable from disposal through aperture and a release plate disposed between the fastener and the support member, the release plate having a cable resting notch and a V-shaped slot cutout section to permit a cable resting within the cable resting notch to be removed from the plate.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
This is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 08/078,020 filed on Jun. 15, 1993, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,298.
This application is a continuation-in-part of Ser. No. 08/078,020 filed Jun. 15, 1993.
US Referenced Citations (7)
Foreign Referenced Citations (3)
Number |
Date |
Country |
379424 |
Jul 1990 |
EPX |
1179236 |
Oct 1964 |
DEX |
1337271 |
Nov 1973 |
GBX |
Non-Patent Literature Citations (1)
Entry |
Sicking, Dean L. et al., "Development of New Guardrail End Treatments," Research Report 404-1F, Texas Transportation Institute, Oct. 1988. |
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
78020 |
Jun 1993 |
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