US3372772A - Safety guard - Google Patents

Description

March 12, 1968 SANGER 3,372,772

SAFETY GUARD Filed May 9, 1966 United States Patent 3,372,772 SAFETY GUARD Murray Singer, 307 Hickory St, Massapequa, NY. 11762 Filed May 9,1966, Ser. No. 548,489 1 Claim. (Cl. 182-230) ABSTRACT OF THE DISELOSURE This invention relates to a self-locking guard for a swimming pool ladder wherein the self-locking feature is a spring loaded tongue adapted to engage the underside of a swimming pool ladder step.

This invention relates to a safety guard for swimming pool ladders.

Swimming pool ladders are a hazard to small children inasmuch as they are attracted by them and after climbing them they may fall into the swimming pool.

It is an object of this invention to provide a self locking safety guard for such swimming pool ladders such that a small child is incapable of releasing.

This invention is illustrated by an embodiment thereof shown in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the safety guard shown disposed on a conventional pool ladder for above ground pools having plastic liners,

FIG. 2 is a rear view of the safety guard of FIG. 1 showing the manner of securing the guart to the steps of the ladder,

FIG. 3 is a section view taken on line 3--3 of FIG. 2, and showing the manner of self-locking a leaf spring to the underside of a ladder step,

FIG. 4 is a section view taken on line 44 of FIG. 2 showing the manner of obtaining a bevel edge on the periphery of the safety guard, and

FIG. 5 is a section view of a modified locking spring.

The safety guard device of this invention is essentially a sheet or flat plate having securing means thereon to engage a plurality of spaced-apart ladder steps and having also a spring locking means to engage the underside of a ladder step to prevent removal of the guard except by a deliberate manual operation performed on said spring.

Turning to the drawing, the plate or sheet is generally of a size and rectangular shape as to cover many steps of a pool ladder when disposed thereupon. The sheet 10 may be of galvanized or enameled sheet metal, fiberglass, aluminum or other corrosion resistant material.

The sheet 10 is provided preferably with four adjustable somewhat L-shaped brackets 11 disposed suitably at the respective corners of the rear side of said sheet.

The sheet 10 is also provided with a plurality of linearly disposed apertures 12 to be used in co-action with said brackets 11 to permit selective movement of a bracket 11 in order to suitably engage a ladder step 13.

The brackets 11 are used in spaced-apart pairs, so that each pair of transversely disposed brackets engages respective step 13. Such an arrangement permits the four brackets 11 to engage the ladder 14 at two steps and thus at four widely separated points to prevent rotational movement of the guard on the ladder when the leaf spring 15 is lockingly engaged underneath a ladder step 13. The spring 15 is bolted to sheet 10 by means of bolts 20.

As shown in FIG. 3, the brackets 11 are made from two substantially L-shaped elements, namely a top element 16 and a bottom element 17. The top element 16 is bolted by means, of a pair of bolts 16X within apertures 12 selectively to sheet 10. The horizontal bottom leg 16Y (FIG. 3) of the top element 16 is provided with a plurality of apertures. Similiarly the top horizontal leg 17X of the bottom L-shaped element 17 is provided with a plurality of apertures. The bottom leg 17X is bolted selectively by means of bolts 18 to leg 16Y of the top element 16 so as to accommodate ladder steps 13 of various widths.

In placing a safety guard onto a ladder, the guard is carefully pushed toward the ladder so that the depending leg portions 17Y of the brackets 11 pass over the respective steps 13.

Next the sheet 10 is pushed against the ladder causing the top edge 19 of the spring 15 to be pushed against the rear face of the sheet 10.

The guard is then pushed downwardly causing the top edge 19 of spring 15 to push outwardly after sliding passed the engaging step 13. In this manner the spring 15 locks the guard to a step since mere upward movement of the guard will not free it from the ladder 14.

In order to remove the guard, the spring edge 19 must be deliberately and manually pushed flat against the rear face of the sheet 10 and a simultaneous upward and outward movment of the pulled away guard must be made.

In order to prevent injury where sheet metal is used the peripheral edge of the sheet is provided with a folded over edge 21X. A handle 22 is provided to facilitate the handling of the guard,

As shown in FIG. 5, the locking spring 15 may be modified to permit release from locking engagment from the front side of the guard plate 10. To attain this end the modified spring 15X is provided with an integral angularly disposed portion 15Y which is disposed through a suitable aperture 20X located in plate 10. A knob 21 is secured by conventional means to the end of the portion 15Y that continuously protrudes through aperture 20X. Pulling of the knob 21 in the direction of the arrow (FIG. 5) permits the spring 15X to be disposed parallel to and against the rear surface of plate 10 to permit removal of the guard from the ladder 14.

Various obvious modifications of this invention are possible within the scope thereof.

Thus where tapered pool ladders are used, clearly the sheet 10 may be tapered adjacent its bottom edge to cover the bottom larger ladder steps.

Also brackets other than the type of brackets 11 may be used for example, brackets of a clip-on configuration.

I claim:

1. A safety guard for above ground swimming pool ladders comprising a flat rectangular sheet element adapted to overlay a plurality of ladder steps, a plurality of at least four substanially L-shaped brackets disposed in pairs on said sheet and adjacent each of the corners to gravitationally engage a pair of spaced-apart ladder steps, and 7-shaped leaf spring locking means having a horizontal disposed top handle portion protruding at one end through an aperture in said sheet and having a downwardly directed stem portion at its other end, said leaf spring being secured at the base of said stem portion to the rear side of said sheet element, said spring having its top edge continuously urged away from said sheet element and adapted to be adjacent to the underside of a ladder step.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,069,969 2/1937 Nelson l82121 2,174,891 10/1939 Marau 182-121 2,183,191 12/1939 Heidel 182-l21 2,876,047 3/1959 La Plante 182121 3,225,863 12/1965 Ludlow 182-404 463,868 11/1891 Norman 182209 FOREIGN PATENTS 15,061 12/ 1926 Netherlands.

REINALDO P. MACHADO, Primary Examiner.

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