Modular Roof Bracket with Integrated Safety Anchor Points
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional roofs are difficult and dangerous to install, maintain, or repair, especially in inclement weather, due to elevated heights that pose significant fall and injury risks to installers and maintenance personnel, necessitating stringent regulatory compliance and costly resources.
Innovation Solution
A roof attachment system featuring an adjustable and modular support bracket assembly that provides a secure anchor point for safety harnesses during installation, maintenance, or repair, including an anchor element with coupling members and truss attachment assemblies that can be manually adjusted to match roof pitch.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If conventional roofs are installed and maintained at elevated heights, then the building structure is completed and maintained, but fall and injury risks to installers and maintenance personnel increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The support bracket assembly is installed on the roof structure before roofing materials are laid, creating secure anchor points in advance. This allows installers to attach safety harnesses before beginning work at elevated heights, preventing falls rather than responding to them after they occur.
Solution Approach 2:
The support bracket assembly acts as an intermediary between the roof structure and the installer's safety harness. It provides a secure connection point that transfers the installer's weight to the roof structure, eliminating the direct fall hazard to the ground.
2Reliability
If stringent safety codes and regulations are complied with during roof installation, then fall protection is improved, but design and installation resources and costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The support bracket assembly serves multiple functions: it provides structural support for roofing materials, creates secure anchor points for safety harnesses, and ensures compliance with OSHA regulations. This multi-functionality eliminates the need for separate safety equipment and reduces overall system complexity.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent combines the structural support function and the safety anchor function into a single integrated bracket assembly. This merging eliminates the need for separate structural supports and separate safety anchor points, reducing both design complexity and installation resources.
3Reliability
If support brackets are permanently attached to the roof structure, then secure anchor points are provided for safety harnesses, but the roof structure complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The support bracket assembly is divided into separate components that can be installed independently: the bracket itself, the fastening mechanism, and the anchor point. This segmentation allows for simpler installation and reduces the perceived complexity of the overall roof structure.
Data Source
AI summary
Various embodiments of a modular support bracket system including a universal anchor element configured couple with a pair of support structures are described. The anchor element includes a connecting member that extends between first and second coupling members. Each of the first and second coupling members include an opening configured to provide first and second anchor points that an installer can couple a safety line to during the installation, maintenance, or repair. The support structure includes a first truss attachment segment having a base and a support member extending in a substantially perpendicular direction from one end of the base. The first truss attachment segment configured to be secured to the anchor element and a first surface of a first frame member of the roof. A ridge cap can be installed over the bracket system such that the first and second coupling members extend outward from the ridge cap.