EP2088247A2

EP2088247A2 - A safety device for motorcyclists, particularly for application to wayside safety barriers

Info

Publication number: EP2088247A2
Application number: EP09001587A
Authority: EP
Inventors: Mauro MARCEGAGLIA BUILTECH SRL Monteleone
Original assignee: Marcegaglia Buildtech Srl
Current assignee: Marcegaglia Buildtech Srl
Priority date: 2008-02-05
Filing date: 2009-02-05
Publication date: 2009-08-12
Also published as: EP2088247A3; ITMI20080178A1

Abstract

A safety device for motorcyclists, specifically designed for application to wayside safety barriers, is characterized in that it comprises a substantially omega-shape contoured element, directly attached to the safety barrier supporting poles and bearing thereon at least at two bearing points, a top bearing point and a bottom bearing point, said bearing points corresponding to the bases of the omega-shape contoured element.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a safety device for motorcyclists, which has been particularly designed for wayside safety barriers.
More specifically, the inventive device has been specifically designed to provide an improved guardrail or safety barrier arrangement, in particular a corrugated cross-section steel safety barrier, arranged along road edges or sides, and preferably at road curves, or on highway middle lines, to prevent motor vehicles from exiting the road way.
As is known, the diffusion and use of traffic lane wayside safety barriers, including a plurality of barrier supporting poles and bands, either of a two or a three way type, has greatly reduced dead accidents due to can and truck impacts, but, on the other hand, has increased dead accidents to motorcyclists.
In fact, in an accident event, a motorcyclist tend to slip along the road and impact against the wayside safety barriers, and, more specifically, against their supporting poles and bands.
Thus, the above mentioned prior barriers have actually greatly increased motorcyclist dead accidents, since if they would be absent, a falling motorcyclist could freely slip outside the road way.
A prior solution for overcoming the above problem provides to use a U-shape safety barrier band attached to the barrier poles by specifically designed attaching brackets and bolts.
While the above system provides a suitable protection, it involves a requirement of disassembling the protective band of already installed safety barriers, to install the desired additional protective elements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, the aim of the present invention is to provide such a safety barrier device adapted to prevent, or at least greatly reduce, possible damages to a motorcyclist impacting against a wayside safety barrier.
Within the scope of the above mentioned aim, a main object of the invention is to provide such a safety device which can be easily and quickly applied to existing road safety barriers in general.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a safety device, which, in a case of a high impact speed, allows the impact load to be evenly distributed, while preventing a motorcyclist from intruding under the protective element.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a safety device which can be easily made and which, moreover, is very competitive from a mere economic standpoint.
According to one aspect of the present invention, the above mentioned aim and objects, as well as yet other objects, which will become more apparent hereinafter, are achieved by a safety device for motorcyclists, to be specifically applied to wayside safety barriers, characterized in that said safety device comprises a substantially omega-shape contoured element, directly attached to the safety barrier supporting poles and bearing thereon at least at two bearing points, a top bearing point and a bottom bearing point, said bearing points corresponding to the base portions of said omega-shape contoured element.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Further characteristics and advantages of the safety device according to the present invention will become more apparent hereinafter from the following detailed disclosure of a preferred, though not exclusive, embodiment thereof, which is illustrated, by way of an indicative, but not limitative example, in the accompanying drawings, where:

Figure 1 is a partial perspective view of a portion of a wayside safety barrier to which a safety device according to the present invention has been applied;
Figure 2 is a side elevation view of the wayside safety barrier shown in figure 1, with the inventive safety device applied thereto; and
Figure 3 is a further side elevation view of the wayside safety barrier schematically showing an installation made of the inventive safety device thereon.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

With reference to the number references of the above mentioned figures, a preferred embodiment of the safety device 1 according to the present invention comprises an omega-shape contoured element 2 directly fixed to a supporting pole 3 of the barrier by one, or preferably two, stainless steel strip elements 4.
More specifically, the wayside or road safety barrier, which has been generally indicated by the reference number 100, comprises a plurality of said safety barrier supporting poles 3, suitably anchored to the ground 5, and supporting, through supporting elements 7, at least a corrugated band 6.
Thus, the omega-shape contoured element 2 is associated with each supporting pole 3 by a double bearing arrangement, corresponding to the base portions 8 of the omega contoured element, differently from a conventional type of anchoring system which usually comprises a simple bracket arrangement.
As is further shown, the omega-shape contoured protective element occupies a comparatively large part of the space included between the barrier corrugated band to which said omega-shape contoured element is applied, and the barrier supporting ground.
The above disclosed and shown bearing arrangement, allows the impacting load to be evenly distributed, in particular in a case of a comparatively high impact speed accident, thereby preventing the impacting motorcyclist from intruding under the protecting element.
In this connection it should be pointed out that the omega-shape cross-section of the contoured element 2 is a preferred cross-section, since it provides two anchoring points for affixing the safety barrier to the supporting pole, and, moreover, has very high deforming and resilient characteristics.
However, if desired, substantially similar contoured protective elements could also be used without departing from the scope of the invention.
It has been found that the invention fully achieves the intended aim and objects.
In fact, the invention provides a safety device for motorcyclists, adapted to either fully prevent or greatly reduce possible damages deriving from an impact of a motorcyclist against a guardrail or safety barrier.
In practicing the invention, the used materials, as well as the contingent size and shapes, can be any, depending on requirements.

Claims

A safety device for motorcyclists, to be applied to wayside corrugated band safety barriers supported by safety barrier supporting poles and the like, characterized in that said safety device comprises a substantially omega-shape contoured element, directly attached to said barrier supporting poles and bearing thereon at at least two bearing points, a top bearing point and a bottom bearing point, said bearing points corresponding to the base portions of said omega-shape contoured element.
A motorcyclist safety device, according to claim 1, characterized in that the omega-shape contoured element is connected to each safety barrier supporting pole by a stainless steel connecting strip element.
A motorcyclist safety device, according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said omega-shape contoured element occupies a comparatively large part of a space included between a corrugated band of said corrugated band safety barrier said safety device is applied to and a ground supporting said safety barrier.
A motorcyclist safety device, according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said omega-shape contoured element coupling said safety barrier to said safety barrier supporting poles, is adapted to allow an impact load to be evenly distributed, while preventing, in a case of a great impact speed accident, a motorcyclist from intruding under the protective omega-shape contoured element.
A motorcyclist safety device, according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said safety device comprises one or more of the disclosed and/or illustrated features.