Strap protective cover

Abstract

To provide a strap protective cover which has a structure excellent in processing ability and durability, and can properly protect a terminal of a strap.SOLUTION: There is provided a protective cover 10 protecting a terminal of a strap 2, and having a thimble 12 and a sewn cover 14. The thimble comprises: an inner cylinder 16 in which a through-hole 20 is provided; and an outer wall 18 which is arranged at an outer side of a side face of the inner cylinder at an interval. The sewn cover comprises: a coating part 34; and an overlapping part 36 overlapping with the thimble. An insertion hole 40 is provided on the overlapping part. When the thimble and the sewn cover are arranged so as to be overlapped with each other, the protective cover is arranged at a position where the through-hole and the insertion hole are communicated with each other.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a protective cover for protecting the ends of straps in fall prevention equipment worn by workers at height to prevent them from falling. [Background technology]

[0002] In high-altitude work sites, workers are required to wear fall arrest equipment to prevent themselves from falling if they should happen to fall. Workers connect one end of a lanyard to a harness or waist belt worn on their body, and the other end of the lanyard is equipped with a hook, etc., which can be hooked to a lifeline or a solid structure, etc., to prevent falls in the event of a worker losing his / her footing.

[0003] Lanyards include rope-type lanyards and strap-winding lanyards. Of these, strap-winding lanyards are usually connected to the hook by inserting the strap into the connection hole of the hook and folding it back, then overlapping this folded part with the strap body and sewing it together. In this connection, an eye is formed at the end of the strap. A woven belt is passed through the eye to prevent wear caused by contact with the hook. The sewn area is covered with a heat shrink tube to prevent the sewing thread from breaking or fraying due to deterioration from ultraviolet rays or friction with structures.

[0004] Generally, heat shrink tubing thickens and hardens after heat shrinking, so the strap is difficult to bend in the area covered by the heat shrink tubing. On the other hand, in the area not covered by the heat shrink tubing, the strap is subjected to concentrated bending at the boundary with the heat shrink tubing. Such concentrated bending is thought to reduce the strength of the strap. Furthermore, the heat shrink tube that was placed over the sewn area could come off from that area and get inside the winder. Furthermore, the hollow woven belt itself, which is used to prevent wear, is likely to become severely worn if it continues to come into contact with hooks, etc.

[0005] Techniques have been developed that use protective covers instead of the above-mentioned hollow woven belts and heat shrink tubes (see, for example, Patent Documents 1 and 2). In Patent Document 1, a U-shaped outer cover is attached to the hook side of a thimble attached to a connecting hole of a hook and a sewn cover is attached to the strap side of the thimble. Then, the thimble, outer cover, and sewn cover are connected by inserting an engagement claw formed on the sewn cover into a claw insertion hole formed on the outer cover and the thimble and engaging the engagement claw with the thimble.

[0006] In Patent Document 2, a cover tube is attached to a thimble that is attached to a connecting hole of a hook and has a strap wound around it from the strap side. The tip of a locking piece formed on the cover tube is hooked onto the tip of the thimble, thereby connecting the thimble and the cover tube. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0007] [Patent Document 1] JP 2011-72525 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2016-67483 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0008] In the structures of Patent Documents 1 and 2, the strap is wound around the thimble before being sewn, which makes it difficult to process and takes a lot of work. In addition, because the parts connecting the various components are located on the outside of the protective cover, there is a risk that the connection will come off or the connection will be damaged if it hits a structure such as a lifeline or handrail when working at height or moving. In this case, the engagement will be released and the thimble and the sewn cover (cover tube) will separate, exposing the eye and sewn part at the end of the strap.

[0009] An object of the present invention is to provide a protective cover for a strap, which has a structure excellent in workability and durability and can adequately protect the end of a strap. [Means for solving the problem]

[0010] The strap protective cover of the present invention is a protective cover for protecting the end of a strap, and comprises a thimble and a sewn cover, the thimble comprises an inner tube having a through hole therein and an outer wall spaced apart on the outside of the side of the inner tube, the sewn cover comprises a covering portion and an overlapping portion that overlaps with the thimble, the overlapping portion has an insertion hole, and is positioned so that the through hole and the insertion hole communicate with each other when the thimble and the sewn cover are arranged in an overlapping position.

[0011] In the strap protective cover of the present invention, the outer wall is composed of a slit, a curved portion formed at a position away from the slit, and a flat portion located between the curved portion and the slit, and the overlap portion has a shape in which the distance between both side surfaces increases in a direction away from the covering portion, and is preferably formed at approximately the same angle as the inclination angle at which the flat portion is formed when viewed in a planar view from the bottom surface direction of the inner tube. Effect of the Invention

[0012] In the strap protective cover according to the present invention, when the thimble and the sewn cover are arranged on top of each other, the through hole provided in the thimble and the insertion hole provided in the sewn cover are positioned so as to communicate with each other. When connecting the hook and the strap via the connecting ring, the connected through hole and the insertion hole are aligned with the connecting hole of the connecting ring and attached so as to be rotatable around the shaft, so that the connection between the protective cover and the connecting ring and the connection between the thimble and the sewn cover that constitute the protective cover are performed as a single unit. The connection between the thimble and the sewn cover is not by engagement between the respective components but is a strong connection using the shaft, so that even if the connection hits a structure such as a lifeline or handrail during work at height or while moving, the connection part is not likely to break and the respective components are not likely to separate, resulting in a highly durable structure. As a result, the end of the strap can be adequately protected. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an end structure of a strap. [Diagram 2] 2A and 2B are explanatory diagrams showing a state in which the protective cover of this embodiment is attached to a strap, FIG. 2A being a front view and FIG. 2B being a plan view. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a partially transparent view of FIG. [Figure 4] 4A is a plan view of the thimble, FIG. 4B is a front view, and FIG. 4C is a bottom view. [Diagram 5] 5A and 5B are explanatory diagrams of a sewn cover, with FIG. 5A being a plan view and FIG. 5B being a front view. [Figure 6] 11A to 11C are diagrams showing the steps of attaching a protective cover to a strap. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0014] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The strap in this embodiment is exemplified as being used for a strap winding lanyard. In this strap winding lanyard, one end of the strap is attached to a winder. The other end of the strap pulled out from the winder is connected to a hook via a connecting ring. The protective cover of this embodiment is attached to protect the ends of the straps at the connection sites between the hooks and the straps. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing the end structure of a strap. As shown in Fig. 1(A), the end of strap 2 is folded back, and the folded back portion is overlapped with the strap body and sewn. This forms eye portion 4 and sewn portion 6 in the folded back area. Eye portion 4 is adjusted to a size that allows it to be fitted into belt fitting portion 22 of thimble 12.

[0015] Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which the protective cover of this embodiment is attached to a strap, Fig. 2(A) is a front view, Fig. 2(B) is a plan view, and Fig. 3 is a partially see-through view of Fig. 2. As shown in Figures 2(A) and (B), the protective cover 10 of this embodiment includes a thimble 12 and a sewn cover 14. As shown in Figures 3(A) and (B), when attached to a strap 2, the strap 2 passes through the inside of the protective cover 10.

[0016] The thimble 12 is a member that covers the eye portion 4 of the strap 2 . The thimble 12 is preferably made of a hard resin, such as polyoxymethylene resin (POM resin). By using a hard resin such as the above material, higher durability can be obtained compared to conventional hollow woven belts.

[0017] FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram of the thimble 12, where FIG. 4(A) is a plan view, FIG. 4(B) is a front view, and FIG. 4(C) is a bottom view. 4, the thimble 12 includes an inner cylinder 16 and an outer wall 18 provided at a distance from the outer side of the inner cylinder 16. The inner cylinder 16 has a through hole 20 formed therein. A belt insertion portion 22 is formed between the inner tube 16 and the outer wall 18. The belt insertion portion 22 is an area into which the eye portion 4 of the strap 2 is inserted. The heights of the inner tube 16 and the outer wall 18 are each set to an extent that the width of the strap 2 inserted into the belt insertion portion 22 can be accommodated.

[0018] The outer wall 18 has a slit 24 extending vertically along its side surface. The slit 24 is set to a width and height that allows the overlapping straps 2 to pass through. The outer wall 18 is composed of a curved surface portion 26 formed at a position away from the slit 24, and a flat surface portion 28 located between the curved surface portion 26 and the slit 24. The curved surface portion 26 is formed in an arc shape in a plan view seen from the bottom surface direction of the inner tube 16. The curved surface portion 26 is approximately semicircular, and is formed concentrically with the inner tube 16. The thimble 12 has a bottom plate 30 on one bottom surface, and the other bottom surface (upper surface) is opened as an open surface 32. The through hole 20 passes through the bottom plate 30.

[0019] The sewn cover 14 is a member that covers the sewn portion 6 of the strap 2. The sewn cover 14 is preferably made of a material softer than the heat shrink tube after heat shrinking, for example, a resin such as soft polyvinyl chloride or an elastomer. By using a softer material such as the above, the entire area covered by the sewn cover 14 becomes more flexible than a conventional heat shrink tube. This makes it possible to suppress concentrated bending at the boundary with the sewn cover 14 in the area not covered by the sewn cover 14. This improves the reduction in strength of the strap caused by concentrated bending when using a heat shrink tube.

[0020] FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the sewing cover 14, where FIG. 5(A) is a plan view and FIG. 5(B) is a front view. As shown in FIGS. 5(A) and 5(B), the sewn cover 14 includes a covering portion 34 and an overlapping portion 36. As shown in FIG. The covering portion 34 is formed into a flattened rectangular tube, and its interior is set to a width and height that allows the sewn portion 6 of the strap 2 to pass through. The covering portion 34 is also long, and is set to a length that allows it to cover the entire sewn portion 6. One end of the covering portion 34 is opened to allow the strap 2 to pass through, and the other end is integrally provided with an overlapping portion 36, which is in communication with the covering portion 34. The overlapping portion 36 is formed in a shape such that the distance between both side surfaces increases in the direction away from the covering portion 34. Moreover, the side surfaces of the overlapping portion 36 are formed at approximately the same inclination angle as the flat surface portion 28 is formed at in a plan view seen from the bottom surface direction of the inner cylinder 16. The side surfaces of the overlapping portion 36 are formed in a size and shape capable of covering the flat surface portion 28 of the outer wall 18 when overlapped with the thimble 12.

[0021] Further, bottom plates 38 are provided on the overlapping portion 36 on surfaces corresponding to the two bottom surfaces of the thimble 12. The bottom plates 38 are formed in a size and shape capable of covering the bottom plate 30 and the open surface 32 of the thimble 12 when the thimble 12 and the sewing cover 14 are arranged overlapping each other. The two bottom plates 38 are each provided with an insertion hole 40. The insertion hole 40 is formed to have approximately the same diameter as the through hole 20 provided in the thimble 12. The insertion hole 40 is located at a position communicating with the through hole 20 when the thimble 12 and the sewing cover 14 are arranged overlapping each other.

[0022] In this embodiment, the protective cover 10 is attached to the strap 2 and connected to the hook and the strap 2 via the connection ring, for example, by the following procedure. As shown in Fig. 1(B), the eye portion 4 of the strap 2 is flattened, and the strap 2 is inserted from the opening on the covering portion 34 side of the sewn cover 14 as shown in Fig. 6(A). The strap 2 is inserted to the extent that the eye portion 4 protrudes from the opening on the overlapping portion 36 side. Next, as shown in Fig. 6(B), the flattened eye portion 4 is expanded, and the eye portion 4 is fitted into the belt fitting portion 22 from the open surface 32 side of the thimble 12 as shown in Fig. 6(C). In this manner, the thimble 12 is attached to the strap 2.

[0023] 6(D), the sewn cover 14 is slid toward the end of the strap 2. This sliding causes the sewn portion 6 of the strap 2 to be covered by the covering portion 34 of the sewn cover 14. The thimble 12 and the overlapping portion 36 of the sewn cover 14 are overlapped, and the flat portion 28, bottom plate 30, and open surface 32 of the thimble 12 are covered by the overlapping portion 36. This overlapping also causes the through hole 20 of the thimble 12 and the insertion hole 40 of the sewn cover 14 to be positioned so as to communicate with each other. In this manner, the protective cover 10 of this embodiment is attached to the strap 2.

[0024] Next, the strap 2 with the protective cover 10 attached thereto and the hook are connected via a connecting ring. An example of the connecting ring is a U-shaped ring. The U-shaped ring has connecting holes formed at both ends. When connecting the hook and the strap 2 through a U-shaped ring, the U-shaped ring is passed through the connecting hole of the hook, and the through hole 20 and the insertion hole 40 of the protective cover 10 are aligned with the connection holes at both ends of the U-shaped ring. Then, a rivet is inserted into the connected hole in this aligned arrangement and protrudes from the other hole, and its end is crimped. This connects the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 with the shaft. Also, the protective cover 10 of this embodiment and the U-shaped ring are connected to each other so as to be freely rotatable by the shaft. Furthermore, the hook and the strap are connected with each other through the U-shaped ring.

[0025] In this embodiment, the protective cover 10 can be removed from the strap 2 and the hook, the U-shaped ring, and the strap 2 can be separated, for example, by the following procedure. First, the rivet shaft is removed to remove the U-shaped ring connecting the hook and the strap 2. This separates the hook, the U-shaped ring, and the strap 2. In addition, by removing the shaft, the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 that constitute the protective cover 10 of this embodiment can be separated. 6(C), the sewn cover 14 is slid toward the center of the strap 2. This releases the overlapping arrangement of the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14, and the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 are separated. This sliding exposes the belt insertion portion 22 of the thimble 12 to the outside.

[0026] Next, as shown in Fig. 6(B), the eye portion 4 at the end of the strap 2 is removed from the exposed belt insertion portion 22 to separate the strap 2 from the thimble 12. Finally, as shown in Fig. 6(A), the eye portion 4 of the strap 2 is flattened, and the sewn cover 14 is slid toward the end side of the strap 2 to remove the sewn cover 14 from the strap 2. In the event that the protective cover 10 of this embodiment becomes deteriorated or damaged, or that the hook or U-shaped ring needs to be replaced, it can be easily removed by following the above procedure. Replacement parts can be attached to the strap 2 by following the above removal procedure in reverse.

[0027] <Effects of this embodiment> According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. In this embodiment, the protective cover 10 is positioned such that when the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 are arranged overlapping each other, the through hole 20 provided in the thimble 12 and the insertion hole 40 provided in the sewn cover 14 communicate with each other. When connecting the hook and strap 2 via the connecting ring, the connected through hole 20 and insertion hole 40 are aligned with the connecting hole of the connecting ring and attached rotatably on an axis, so that the connection between the protective cover 10 and the connecting ring and the connection between the thimble 12 and sewn cover 14 constituting the protective cover 10 are integrally performed. The connection between the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 is not by engagement between the respective members but is a strong connection using an axis, so that even if the connection hits a structure such as a life rope or handrail when working at height or moving, the connection part is not likely to break and the respective members are not likely to separate, resulting in a highly durable structure.

[0028] The eye portion 4 of the strap 2 is fitted into the belt fitting portion 22 of the thimble 12, thereby attaching the thimble 12 to the end of the strap 2. The thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 are then arranged to overlap. In the above configuration, the outside of the eye portion 4 is covered by the outer wall 18 and bottom plate 30 of the thimble 12 and the overlapping portion 36 of the sewn cover 14 superimposed on the thimble 12. In this way, no part of the outside of the eye portion 4 is exposed to the outside, so there is no contact with hooks, connecting rings, structures, etc., resulting in a structure that is less susceptible to damage. Additionally, an inner cylinder 16 of the thimble 12 is disposed inside the eye portion 4. This provides a structure in which the inside of the eye portion 4 is not in contact with moving parts such as the shaft, and therefore does not suffer from wear associated with movement.

[0029] A sewn cover 14 is attached to the end of the strap 2. The thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 are arranged to overlap by sliding the sewn cover 14 towards the end of the strap 2. In the above configuration, the sewn part 6 of the strap 2 is covered with the covering part 34 of the sewn cover 14. As such, there is no part of the sewn part 6 that is exposed to the outside, so there is no contact with structures, etc., and the sewn part 6 has a structure that is less susceptible to breakage or fraying of the sewing thread. From the above, the protective cover 2 of this embodiment reliably prevents wear of the eye portion 4 that constitutes the folded-over area at the end of the strap, and breakage or fraying of the sewing thread at the sewn portion 6, thereby providing adequate protection for the end of the strap 2.

[0030] In this embodiment, the strap is not directly connected to the hook, so it is possible to attach the protective cover 10 of this embodiment after forming the eye portion 4 at the end of the strap 2. Therefore, sewing the end of the strap 2 and attaching the protective cover 10 can be performed as separate work steps, which provides excellent workability. Unlike the conventional method, the protective cover is not attached during the process of connecting the hook and the strap before sewing the end of the strap, so the hook does not get in the way and workability is good. In addition, in conventional protective covers, the thimble was attached to the strap by wrapping the strap around the outer circumference of the thimble, but this structure made it difficult to attach to a strap 2 that already had an eye portion 4 at its end. On the other hand, in the protective cover 2 of this embodiment, the thimble 12 is formed with a belt insertion portion 22 into which the eye portion 4 of the strap 2 is inserted, and the other bottom surface (top surface) is opened as an open surface 32. In this structure, the strap 2 having the eye portion 4 at its end can be inserted from the open surface 32 into the belt insertion portion 22, and the thimble 12 can be attached to the strap 2 which already has the eye portion 4 at its end.

[0031] Furthermore, in the protective cover 10 of this embodiment, the overlapping portion 36 of the sewn cover 14 is formed in a shape such that the distance between both side surfaces increases in the direction away from the covering portion 34. Also, in a plan view seen from the bottom surface direction of the inner tube 16, it is formed at approximately the same inclination angle as the flat surface portion 28 is formed at. By forming the side surface of the overlapping portion 36 in this shape, when the thimble 12 and the sewn cover 14 are overlapped, the thimble 12 is positioned at a fixed position, making it difficult for the through hole 20 and the insertion hole 40 to become misaligned.

[0032] <Modification> The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and modifications and improvements within the scope of the present invention that can achieve the object of the present invention are included in the present invention. In the above embodiment, the hook and strap 2 are connected in the following order: the end of the strap 2 is bent to form the eye 4 and the sewn part 6 at the end, the sewn cover 14 is inserted from the end of the strap 2, and the eye 4 is fitted into the belt fitting part 22 of the thimble 12. However, the order is not limited to this. For example, the order may be: the sewn cover 14 is inserted from the end of the strap 2, the end of the strap 2 is bent to form the eye 4 and the sewn part 6 at the end, and the eye 4 is fitted into the belt fitting part 22 of the thimble 12.

[0033] In the above embodiment, a U-shaped ring is used as a connecting ring to connect the hook and the strap 2, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, a rotating shackle may be used instead of the U-shaped ring. [Explanation of symbols]

[0034] 2 Straps 4 Eye Department 6 Sewing section 10 Protective cover 12 Thimble 14 Sewn cover 16 Inner cylinder 18 Exterior Wall 20 Through hole 22 Belt insertion part 24 Slit 26 Curved section 28 Plane section 30 Bottom plate 32 Open surface 34 Covering part 36 Polymerization section 38 Bottom plate 40 Insertion hole

Claims

1. A protective cover for protecting the end of the strap, A thimble and a sewn cover are provided. The thimble includes an inner cylinder having a through hole therein and an outer wall provided on the outer side of the inner cylinder with a space therebetween, The sewn cover includes a covering portion and an overlapping portion that overlaps the thimble, and the overlapping portion is provided with an insertion hole, The thimble and the sewing cover are arranged at a position where the through hole and the insertion hole communicate with each other when the thimble and the sewing cover are arranged to overlap each other. A protective cover for a strap.

2. The outer wall is composed of a slit, a curved surface portion formed at a position away from the slit, and a flat surface portion located between the curved surface portion and the slit, The overlapping portion has a shape in which the distance between both side surfaces increases in a direction away from the covering portion, and is formed at approximately the same angle as the inclination angle at which the flat portion is formed in a plan view seen from the bottom surface direction of the inner cylinder. A protective cover for a strap according to claim 1.

Images