Structural post assembly for thermoplastic railing system

Abstract

These and other objects of the present invention are accomplished by a structural post assembly for a thermoplastic railing system in which a tubular metal support column is secured to the substrate upon which thermoplastic railing system is mounted by means of a base plate, the support column being internally threaded at its upper end, a slidably rotatable base rail connector of one piece construction having a segmented cylindrical core defining an aperture is slidably receivable over the support column and positioned at the lower end proximate the base plate thereof, and an adjustable upper rail connector generally cubic in shape positioned proximate the upper end of the metal support column, the adjustable upper rail connector and base connector adjustable for the slidable receipt of a thermoplastic sheath, the thermoplastic sheath being locked in position by a threaded fastener through the adjustable upper rail connector and into the internally threaded aperture of the support column thereby fixing the vertical support member for the thermoplastic railing system in the correct horizontal and vertical orientation for geometrical symmetry of the railing system.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS [0001] Applicant claims the benefit of provisional application Ser. No. 60 / 613,046, filed Sep. 27, 2004.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION [0002] 1. Field of the Invention [0003] The present invention relates to thermo plastic rail systems, and more particularly, to a support post assembly for thermoplastic rail systems in which the vertical support posts are square in cross section. [0004] 2. Description of the Prior Art [0005] Railing systems serve the purpose of guard rails, hand rails, grab rails, and in many instances serve as area dividers. Railings have long been used for a variety of applications such as stairways, balconies, patios and decks, industrial buildings, playgrounds and schools, as well as many other wide variety of uses. These uses are both indoors and outdoors. [0006] Building codes require the use of high strength material, such as iron, steel, aluminum wrap or the like to provide sufficient rigidity and strength to insure adequate safety and secu...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014] Another object of the present invention is to provide for a novel structural post assembly for a thermoplastic rail system which eliminates the need for a continuous, fixed solid vertical support post underlying the thermoplastic sheathing of the rail system.

Problems solved by technology

One particular problem encountered with respect to thermoplastic support railings occurs when it is desired that the support railing be square or rectangular in cross section thereby mimicking a typical wooden railing which one might find on their back yard deck or patio.

However, such thermoplastic railing systems must still rely upon the underlying wooden railing structure for the necessary strength and rigidity.

The necessity of maintaining the underlying four by four vertical posts makes the installation of a thermoplastic rail system both expensive and time consuming in that each individual vertical post must be individually sheathed and can present difficulties in alignment and the ultimate geometric symmetry of the railing system.

The sheathing difficulties and geometric symmetry arise because not every four by four vertical support post is exactly dimensioned and since the thermoplastic sheathing is prefabricated, its inner dimensions, which must conform to the outer dimensions of the vertical support posts are often incorrect as a result of the tolerances in fabrication, thus requiring remedial work at the installation site in order to effectuate a proper installation and geometric symmetry.

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