Patent ID: 11857816
Assignee: DOWN SAFELY LLC
Field: Other consumer goods (Other fields)
Classification: CPC A  G  H  B | IPC A  B  G  H

Claim 19:
20. A safety interlock system comprising:
a safety harness comprising:
a plurality of buckles to secure the harness to a user; and
a safety attachment ring;

a harness interlock circuit disposed on or in the vest, the harness circuit comprising:
a light-sensor ring comprising a plurality of light emitters and a plurality of light sensors, the light sensors configured to receive light emitted by the light emitters;
a harness controller electrically coupled to an output of the light-sensor ring; and
a harness antenna electrically coupled to the harness controller;

a fall-arrest belt clip configured to be releasably attached to the safety attachment ring, the fall-arrest belt clip attached to a fall-arrest tether; and
an equipment safety interlock circuit comprising:
an equipment controller;
an equipment safety antenna electrically coupled to the equipment controller;
a relay controller electrically coupled to an output of the equipment controller, the relay controller configured to generate a safety signal in response to an output signal from the equipment controller; and
a safety interlock relay having a default open state and a closed state, the safety interlock relay configured to transition from the default open state to the closed state only in response to the output signal,
wherein:
when the fall-arrest belt clip is detached from the safety attachment ring, each light sensor receives the light emitted by at least one of the light emitters to place the light-sensor ring in a first state,
when the fall-arrest belt clip is attached to the safety attachment ring, the fall-arrest belt clip blocks at least one of the light sensors from receiving the light from the at least one of the light emitters to place the light-sensor ring in a second state,
the harness controller is configured to broadcast a second state signal, via the harness antenna, when the light-sensor ring is in the second state, and
the equipment controller is configured to produce the output signal only in response to receiving the second state signal via the equipment safety antenna.