Abstract:
A corner support assembly for attachment to wall scaffold bracket of wall scaffolding. The corner support assembly having an upper mounting adapter, a retaining adapter, a securing rod and a lower mounting adapter. The upper leg of the wall scaffold, the mounting adapter, the wall and the retaining adapter are sandwiched with the securing rod and a rod retaining nut, thereby securing the upper leg of the wall scaffold bracket in place against the wall. The lower mounting adapter and the lower leg of the wall scaffold bracket are forced against the wall providing additional support and stability for the wall scaffold bracket. The stabilizing flanges of the upper and the lower mounting adapters rest against the outside corner of the building and the scaffold bracket is stabilized around the corner. Workers are able to work safely around corners of buildings and they can quickly install the scaffold bracket using common wall scaffolding systems.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
   Not Applicable. 
   STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT: 
   Not Applicable. 
   REFERENCE TO SEQUENCE LISTING, A TABLE, OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM LISTING COMPACT DISC APPENDIX 
   Not Applicable. 
   BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
   1. Field of the Invention 
   This invention relates to wall scaffolding, specifically to methods of mounting and stabilizing scaffold brackets to walls. 
   2. Prior Art 
   Conventional scaffolding is used frequently in modern construction when workers must perform tasks above ground level. The scaffolding acts as a raised work platform from which workers work on structural features that cannot be easily reached while standing directly on the ground. Various types of scaffolding have been developed and used. 
   Scaffolding that extends from the ground, such as those that use pump-jacks or staging are frequently used. However, these systems are time consuming to set up which is not practical for residential construction. This scaffold type is also bulky and expensive because it structurally has to carry a significant amount of it&#39;s own weight. 
   Hanging scaffolding is also used. However, this is not a solution for all construction requirements because it requires free access to the top surface of a wall. This is not always possible. 
   Because of it&#39;s low cost, flexibility and ease of installation, wall scaffolding resembling the basic structure of U.S. Pat. No. 2,332,477 is very popular for construction workers working on the outside of buildings. This type of scaffolding structure can easily be transported, installed and moved by a single worker. Because of this, this type of wall scaffolding is one of the most popular types of scaffolding used on residential construction. 
   As construction methods and residential building designs have evolved, the prior art in this area has several shortcomings. One shortcoming is the incompatibility of modern scaffolding to work with prior art mounting systems. The most popular type of scaffolding includes a scaffold bracket to support planking and this bracket is secured to the wall with a through-hole mounting system. The scaffold bracket and mounting are quickly installed, quickly moved and safer than other mounting systems. U.S. Pat. No. 2,332,477 and U.S. Pat. No. 1,722,018 show several means to secure scaffolding to the walls, however, none of the mounting means are compatible with modern scaffolding systems. Through hole mounting systems are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,122,916 however, there are further improvements that provide more safety when used. 
   Another shortcoming of the prior art is shown when common wall scaffolding is used in modern applications. Modern construction frequently includes ornate framing designs that include corners and overhangs. Wall scaffolding systems are not readily available to support workers as they work around such designs. When working around corners, workers typically mount traditional wall scaffolding as close to the corner as possible, extend the planking beyond the wall bracket and work on the ends of the planking. Frequently, the planking is extended too far beyond the support of the scaffolding and when weight is put on the planking it will raise the opposite end of the planking off the scaffolding creating a very unstable and dangerous work environment. This is particularly true when scaffold planks must be suspended over a short span with corners on each end. A short span of planking provides less plank weight to counter the weight and resulting leverage of someone standing on an unsupported overhang of planking. This scenario of a short span including corners is common in many of today&#39;s home designs. U.S. Pat. No. 4,122,916 and U.S. Pat. No. 1,722,018 show scaffolding systems including mounts for mounting specific types of scaffolding on the corner of exterior walls. These types of scaffolding systems are difficult to set up and move. Additionally, the securing method disclosed is not as safe as and not specifically compatible with today&#39;s popular scaffolding systems. 
   OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES 
   This invention addresses shortcomings in the current state of the art by providing an assembly that allows wall scaffolding to be securely mounted on the outside corners of structures such as homes and buildings. With multiple mounting adapters having a series of angled stabilizing flanges, the wall scaffold bracket is stabilized in the vertical plane around a corner. With this assembly attached to the wall scaffold bracket, workers can work around corners of buildings with the safety of a stable scaffold bracket directly underneath them. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the ability to use existing wall scaffold brackets with little or no modification. This allows traditional scaffold brackets to be used in corner applications with this assembly and when the assembly is removed, the same scaffold bracket can be used for flat wall surfaces. This provides for an economical solution to a common problem. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the ability to securely retain the wall scaffold bracket against the wall with a retaining plate and a securing rod. This through-hole means of securing the corner assembly to the wall is more secure than prior mounting adapters that disclose securing means such as nails. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the use of angled stabilizing flanges on the upper and lower mounting adapters to stabilize the wall scaffold bracket in the vertical plane around the corner of a wall. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the use of the retaining adapter with an angled securing plate that provides a safe means to anchor the wall scaffold bracket to the inside corner of a wall. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the inclusion of rigid support braces on the mounting adapters. With the symmetrical rigid support braces, the wall scaffold bracket is rigidly held in place with less possibility of the scaffold bracket swaying from side to side. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the introduction of protruding ears onto the rod retaining nut that is used to secure the securing rod in the assembly. The protruding ears allow the assembly to be quickly mounted and removed from the corners of a wall. 
   Another feature of the present invention is a design that can be manufactured easily and easily introduced into the market. The adapters of the assembly can be made from a single piece of rigid material such as rigid plastic, cast metal or similar materials. The assembly can also be made using common stock machine components such as plate steel. 
   BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
   The current invention is a corner support assembly that attaches to the end of traditional wall scaffolding and enables it to be securely mounted on an outside corner of a building. The assembly includes an upper mounting adapter, a retaining adapter, a securing rod and a lower mounting adapter. The upper mounting adapter includes a mounting plate with support braces, stabilization flanges and a centrally located through-hole. The retaining adapter includes a retaining plate, a securing plate and a centrally located through-hole. The securing rod is received though the scaffold bracket and the through-holes in the upper mounting and retaining adapter and a hole in the wall. By sandwiching the upper leg of the wall scaffold bracket, the mounting adapter, the wall and the retaining adapter with the securing rod and a rod retaining nut, the upper leg of the wall scaffold bracket is securely retained in place against the wall. The lower mounting adapter is similar to the upper mounting adapter having a mounting plate with support braces and stabilization flanges. The lower mounting adapter further includes a securing nub to secure the lower mounting adapter to the lower leg of the wall scaffold bracket. With the upper leg of the wall scaffold bracket sandwiched against the wall, the lower mounting adapter and the lower leg of the wall bracket are forced against the wall providing additional support and stability for the wall scaffold bracket. 
   When the assembly is installed, the rigid flanges of the upper and the lower mounting adapters rest against the outside corner of the building and the scaffold bracket is stabilized on the corner. With the scaffold bracket mounted in this manner, workers are able to work around corners of buildings with the safety of a stabilized scaffold bracket directly underneath them. Workers are also able to quickly mount and move the scaffolding using common wall scaffolding brackets. 

   
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING 
     The features, advantage and operation of the present invention will become readily apparent and further understood from a reading of the following detailed description with the accompanying drawings, in which like numerals refer to like elements, and in which: 
       FIG. 1  is a top side perspective view of the exploded assembly; 
       FIG. 2  is a side view of the assembly mounted on the corner of a wall; 
       FIG. 3  is a top plan view of the assembly mounted on the corner of a wall; and 
       FIG. 4  is a top side perspective view of the assembly assembled and viewed from the opposite side of that shown in  FIG. 1 . 
   

   DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
   One form of the invention is illustrated and described herein. In general, the corner support assembly comprises an upper mounting adapter as indicated in the figures by the numeral  10 , a retaining adapter as indicated by the numeral  20 , a securing rod as indicated by the numeral  30  and a lower mounting adapter as indicated by the numeral  40 . The invention interoperates with a wall scaffold bracket indicated in the figures by the numeral  60 . 
   A preferred embodiment of the invention is shown in  FIG. 1 . The upper mounting adapter  10  consists of a stabilization plate  13 , a mounting plate  11  and a centrally located through-hole  15 . The mounting plate  11  is typically made from plate steel and angled on both ends at 90° angles to create symmetrical support braces  12 . The back face of the mounting plate  11  is generally flat. The stabilization plate is typically made from plate steel and centrally angled to create a pair of symmetrical stabilizing flanges  14 . When rigidly attached by means such as welding, the upper mounting adapter  10  is a single adapter designed to vertically stabilize wall scaffolding around an outside wall corner. In it&#39;s preferred embodiment, the angle of the bend at the center of the stabilization plate  13  is 90° allowing it to rest flush on the outside of a 90° wall corner.  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 4  show the upper mounting adapter  10  including a centrally located mounting through-hole  15  through the stabilization plate  13  and the mounting plate  11 . 
   The retaining adapter  20  shown in  FIG. 1  is adapted to provide an anchor to retain the upper mounting adapter  10  against the wall. The retaining adapter  20  consists of a retaining plate  21  and a securing plate  22 . The retaining plate  21  is flat and made of a rigid material such as plate steel. The securing plate  22  is also made of a rigid material such as plate steel and is symmetrically angled about it&#39;s center to create securing flanges  23 . The securing flanges  23  are angled towards the retaining plate  21  so that the securing flanges  23  will rest securely against the inside corner of a wall&#39;s structural members. When the retaining plate  21  and the securing plate  22  are rigidly attached by such means as welding, the retaining adapter  20  is a single adapter.  FIG. 1  and  FIG. 4  show the retaining adapter  20  including a centrally located retaining through-hole  24 , through both the retaining plate  21  and the securing plate  22 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 1 , the securing rod  30  is an elongated rod with a threaded end  32  and an opposing end  31 . The threaded end  32  is received in the mounting through-hole  15  in the upper mounting adapter  10  and the retaining through-hole  24  in the retaining adapter  20 . The opposing end  31  is bent 90° at it&#39;s end and includes a radial retaining pin hole  33  to hold a retaining pin  34 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 1 , the lower mounting adapter  40  is similar to the upper mounting adapter  10 . The lower mounting adapter  40  consists of a stabilization plate  43  and a mounting plate  41 . The mounting plate  41  is typically made from plate steel and angled on both ends at 90° angles to create symmetrical support braces  42 . The back face of the mounting plate  41  is generally flat. The stabilization plate  43  is typically made from plate steel and centrally angled to create a pair of symmetrical stabilizing flanges  44 . When rigidly attached by means such as welding, the lower mounting adapter  40  is a single adapter designed to vertically stabilize wall scaffolding around an outside wall corner. Generally, the angle of the bend at the center of the stabilization plate  43  is 90° to allow it to rest flush on the outside of a 90° wall corner. The lower mounting adapter  40  also includes a securing nub  45  secured to the back of the mounting plate  41  and a nub retaining nut  46 . There are many embodiments that can be used for the securing nub  45 , the preferred embodiment described here uses a threaded rod welded onto the back side of the mounting plate  41 . This nub is of sufficient length to go through the lower mounting hole  65  of the lower leg  64  of the wall scaffold bracket and to receive a threaded nub retaining nut  46 . 
   There are alternative embodiments of the invention. To accommodate different corner angles of walls, the angle of the stabilizing flanges  14  relative to each other and the angle of the securing flanges  23  relative to each other can be varied to ensure the stabilizing flanges  14  and the securing flanges  23  are kept flush with the wall surface. Similarly, for the lower mounting adapter  40 , the angle of the stabilizing flanges  44  about the center of the stabilization plate  43  can be varied. 
   It is also possible to have the dimensions of the securing flanges  23  of the retaining adapter  20 , the stabilizing flanges  14  of the upper mounting adapter  10  and the stabilizing flanges  44  of the lower mounting adapter  40  longer to provide additional stabilization for the wall scaffold bracket. 
   It is also possible to have each of the mounting adapters and the retaining adapter integrally formed from single pieces of material. 
   It is also possible for the adapters and securing rod to be made from other rigid materials such as cast metals and rigid plastics. 
   It is also possible to have different embodiments of the securing nub  45  such as pressure clips or hooks sufficient to retain the lower mounting adapter  40  in the lower mounting hole  65  of the wall scaffold bracket  60 . 
   Operation: 
     FIG. 4  shows the interoperation of the assembly elements in a perspective view. The securing rod  30  is received through the through-holes  24  and  15  in the retaining adapter  20  and the upper mounting adapter  10  respectively. The threaded end  32  of the securing rod  30  receives the rod retaining nut  35 . The rod retaining nut  35  is threaded to be received by the threaded end of the securing rod  30 . The rod retaining nut  35  also includes rigid protruding ears  36  that can be used to tighten and loosen the securing nut onto the securing rod  30 . The opposing end  31  of the securing rod  30  is angled 90° and includes a retaining pin hole  33  that receives a retaining pin  34 . The stabilization plate  13  of the upper mounting adapter  10  and the securing plate  22  of the retaining adapter  20  oppose each other in operation so that the assembly will rest in and around the support members  51  of the wall  50  as shown in  FIG. 3 . 
     FIG. 2  shows a side view of the assembly attached to the wall scaffold bracket  60  and mounted on the support members  51 . The upper mounting adapter  10  attaches to the upper leg  61  of the wall scaffold bracket  60  by using the threaded securing rod  30  secured through the upper mounting hole  63  and the securing rod hole  62  of the wall scaffold bracket  60 . The securing rod  30  is held in the securing rod hole  62  by a removable retaining pin  34 . The retaining pin  34  is inserted into the retaining pin hole  33  after the opposing end  31  is inserted into the upper mounting hole  63  and the securing rod hole  62  of the upper leg  61  of the wall scaffold bracket  60 . The threaded end  32  of the securing rod  30  is received through several elements to include the upper mounting adapter  10 , the wall  50 , and the retaining adapter  20 . The securing rod  30  is secured by the use of the rod retaining nut  35 . The rod retaining nut  35  is tightened onto the securing rod  30  by twisting the protruding ears  36 .  FIG. 4  shows the operation of the securing rod  30  through the upper mounting adapter through-hole  15  and the retaining adapter through-hole  24  and into the rod retaining nut  35 . 
   Also shown in  FIG. 2 , the lower mounting adapter  40  is secured to the lower leg  64  of the wall scaffold bracket  60  by inserting the securing nub  45  into the lower mounting hole  65  and securing it in place with a nub retaining nut  46 . The lower mounting hole  65  must be of sufficient size to accept the securing nub  45 . 
   As shown in  FIG. 3  from a top view of an installed corner support assembly, the result of the operation of the assembly is the securing rod  30  and the rod retaining nut  35  sandwiching the wall scaffold bracket  60 , the upper mounting adapter  10 , the vertical wall support members  51  and the retaining adapter  20  whereby the wall scaffold bracket  60  is rigidly held against the wall  50  and stabilized. The securing rod  30  stabilizes the scaffold bracket against the wall  50  and prevents the scaffold bracket  60  from moving in the horizontal plane. The stabilizing flanges  14  of the upper mounting adapter  10  and the stabilizing flanges  44  of the lower mounting adapter  40  stabilize the scaffold bracket in the vertical plane. 
   The result of the operation of this assembly allows a common wall scaffold bracket  60  to be used to let workers work around corners of buildings with the safety of a stable scaffold bracket  60  directly underneath them. 
   Another feature of this invention is the use of through-hole mounting that provides a secure mount for the wall scaffold bracket  60 . The design permits the securing rod  30  to be received through the upper mounting adapter through-hole  15  in the upper mounting adapter  10 , the wall  50  and the retaining adapter retaining through-hole  24  in the retaining adapter  20  with all of these elements being secured in place with the rod retaining nut  35 . 
   Another feature of this invention is the interoperability of the assembly with common wall scaffold bracket  60 . The securing rod  30  design and through-hole mounting design that interoperates with the upper mounting hole  63  and the securing rod hole  62  already present in common wall scaffold brackets. The lower mounting adapter  40  design interoperates with the lower mounting hole  65  of the lower leg  64  of the wall scaffold bracket  60 . 
   Another feature of this invention is the use of angled stabilizing flanges  14  on the upper mounting adapter  10  and angled stabilizing flanges  44  on the lower mounting adapter  40  that stabilize the wall scaffold bracket  60  in the vertical plane around the corner of a wall  50 . 
   Another feature of this invention is the use of the retaining adapter  20 . The combination of the through-hole mounting of the adapter  20 , the shape of the securing plate  22  and the use of the rod retaining nut  35  with rigid protruding ears  36  provides a safe and secure mounting against the inside support members  51  of a wall  50 . 
   Another feature of this invention is the use of the support braces  12  in the upper mounting adapter  10  and the support braces  42  in the lower mounting adapter  40 . The support braces  12  and  42  ensure that the stabilizing flanges  14  and  44  respectively are kept rigid. 
   Another feature of the present invention is the introduction of protruding ears  36  onto the rod retaining nut  35  that allows the assembly to be quickly installed and uninstalled onto the corner of a wall  50 . 
   Another feature of the present invention is the design that can be manufactured easily. The upper mounting adapter  10 , the lower mounting adapter  40  and the retaining adapter  20  of the assembly can be made from a single piece of rigid material such as rigid plastic, cast metal or similar materials. The stabilization plate  13 , the mounting plate  11 , the retaining plate  21 , the securing plate  22  and the securing rod  30  can also be made from common stock metal components. 
   Although the description above contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustration of some of the presently preferred embodiments of this invention. The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof and, accordingly, the scope of the invention should be made to the appended claims, rather than the foregoing specification.