A vertically movable cantilevering type gate is disclosed. All that is required is an elongated cylinder mounted vertically and a piston rod slidably mounted therein. The piston rod is mounted for vertical movement in the cylinder and suitable laterally spaced vertically movable guides are provided to maintain the gate in alignment with the gate opening. Preferably a channel shaped cap bar is positoned to overlie a trough into which interconnected link members are adapted to fold. The link members support laterally extending mesh type closure members which close the gate opening when the gate is elevated. The gate is controlled by a water pressure operated system. The valves controlling the flow of pressurized water to actuate the gate are controlled electrically. In one desirable construction when no electric power is applied, the valves direct water under pressure to urge the piston rod upwardly in the cylinder to maintain the gate in the obstructing or closed position. When electric power is applied to reverse the position of the valves the piston rod moves downwardly in the cylinder whereupon the gate structure folds into the trough and the channel shaped cap bar member moves to overlie the trough and maintain the gate in the open position.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
As the land is used more extensively it is subdivided into smaller and 
smaller tracts, necessitating a greater number of gates. In order to 
enable the owners and occupants to maintain a degree of privacy it has 
been customary to provide fences wherein gates are provided at spaced 
points where necessary to permit access to the properties. It was 
apparently thought that in order to have a satisfactory gate it was 
necessary to have a solid construction or at least a metal gate frame 
having wire mesh therein of relatively heavy gauge to prevent animals of 
various types from penetrating the gate. These gates were therefor 
relatively heavy and expensive and were difficult to handle. It was 
difficult to maintain the gate in operable condition and it was difficult 
for children to operate the gates as they must in order to have access to 
their homes. 
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
Recently it has been realized that in many instances it is only necessary 
to provide a barrier which can be economically provided. In the 
development of my improved gate it was realized that it is only necessary 
to have a construction that is both economical to make initially and easy 
to maintain so that it can readily be used by all parties having need 
therefor, including children, and wherein a lightweight gate is adequate 
since it is unnecessary under present conditions to have a solid type 
construction because the forces exerted on the gate are clearly not 
severe. It was thus realized that the most successful type of gate is one 
which is realtively lightweight, easy to operate, economical to 
manufacture and which can be economically maintained over long periods of 
time, and which present a sufficient barrier to prevent animals, such as 
cattle and horses from attempting to go through it. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
In the development of my improved gate I have devised a cantilevering type 
of barrier having a relatively long cylinder mounted vertically and having 
a piston rod slidably mounted therein to elevate and lower a barrier to 
obstruct the gate passageway. The barrier can have transversely and 
vertically extending wire or link meshwork members to position a curtain 
across the opening when in the obstructing position. 
When the gate is in the down or open position the top cap member overlies 
the trough into which the gate meshwork is folded in the gate open 
position, and the cap is flush with the surface of the road. Suitable 
guide members may be spaced out from the actuating cylinder-piston 
combination to function as a guide to maintain the construction in the 
proper location relative to the possageway.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
Referring now to the drawings a trough 10 extends across a passageway 12 
between laterally extending fences 14 and 16 aligned with the trough 10 
and the barrier or gate. An inverted channel shaped cap bar 18 is 
positioned to overlie the trough 10 and to cooperate with the road 
structure of the passageway to provide a relatively smooth surface over 
the barrier or gate when the barrier is in the open or down position. 
The cap bar 18 is movable from the down or gate open position to an 
elevated barrier or gate closed position as illustrated in FIG. 1. The cap 
bar 18 is secured at its approximate mid-section to a vertically movable 
piston rod 20 slidably mounted in a hydraulic cylinder 22 and guided 
therein at the top of the cylinder 22 by a cap bushing 24, and at the 
bottom by a piston 26 secured to the piston rod 20 and slidably mounted 
for vertical movement in the hydraulic cylinder 22. The gate thus formed 
is urged upwardly to the gate closed position by fluid pressure exerted in 
the cylinder 22 between the bottom of the piston 26 and the bottom of the 
cylinder 22. 
The barrier or gate is defined as being the area between the cap bar 18 and 
the trough 10 when the barrier or gate is in the elevated position. The 
barrier or gate is aligned with the laterally extending fences 14 and 16, 
and the barrier is maintained in alignment with the trough 10 in the 
roadway 12 between the fences 14 and 16 by spaced guides having cylinders 
28 and 30 vertically mounted in alignment with the central hydraulic 
cylinder 22. Laterally spaced guides 32 and 34 secured to the underside of 
the cap bar 18 are slidably mounted in the guide cylinders 28 and 30 to 
maintain the gate in proper alignment with the trough 10. 
The central piston rod 20 and the laterally spaced guides 32 and 34 are 
secured to the underside of the inverted channel shaped cap bar 18 so as 
not to embody an obstruction in the top of the cap bar 18 over which 
vehicles would drive when the barrier is in the open or down position as 
illustrated in FIG. 2. 
The underside of the cap bar 18 is provided with a series of hooks or 
eyelets 36 to receive vertically spaced connectors 38 which are operably 
connected to horizontal members or links 40 to provide a fold up type 
barrier or closure for the area beneath the cap bar 18 and the surface of 
the roadway 12 between the fences 14 and 16 when the barrier is in the 
closing position. 
The horizontal and vertical link members fold into the trough 10 to permit 
the top of the cap bar 18 to overlie the trough 10 so that the top of the 
cap bar 18 aligns horizontally with the roadway 12. 
While many types of gate actuators are available, and are readily operable 
to actuate the vertically movable barrier or gate, I have devised a water 
pressure and electrically actuated barrier or gate actuator operated by 
water under sufficient pressure, considering the diameter of the cylinder 
22 and the piston 26 to exert sufficient pressure in the cylinder to 
elevate and hold the cap bar 18, and the vertical and horizontal links 40 
connected by the links 38 when the barrier or gate is in the obstructing 
or elevated position. 
The water inlet pipe 42 which admits water under pressure has a branch 
connection at 44 which connect the pipe 42 with two pressure pipe 46 and 
48. The pressure pipe 46 connects with the cylinder 22 above the piston 
26, and the pressure pipe 48 connects with the cylinder 22 beneath the 
piston 26. A vent pipe 50 connects with the pressure pipe 46 which 
connects with the cylinder above the piston 26 and it is a waste or 
discharge line. Another waste or discharge conduit 52 connects with the 
pipe 48. 
Two electrically actuated normally closed valves 54 and 56 are interposed 
in the pressure line 46 and in the vent line 52. Two other electrically 
actuated normally open valves 58 and 60 are interposed in the vent line 50 
and in the pressure line 48. 
Thus when the device is at rest water under pressure enters through pipe 42 
and being shut off in the pipe 46 it flows through the pressure pipe 48, 
through the normally open valve 60 to the cylinder 22 beneath the piston 
26 to elevate the piston in the cylinder to elevate and close the barrier 
or gate by lifting the cap bar 18 to position the barrier or gate across 
the roadway 12 in the elevated position between the fences 14 and 16. 
When it is desired to lower the barrier or gate to the gate open or 
unobstructing position the control switch 62 on the end of the fence 16 is 
actuated to reverse the position of the four valves. This opens the valves 
54 and 56 and closes the valves 58 and 60. The pressure pipe 46 controlled 
by the valve 54 is then shifted to exert pressure in the cylinder 22 above 
the piston 26 and to open the vent pipe 52 is opened by the reversal of 
the position of the valve 56 to permit water to flow out of the cylinder 
beneath the piston 26. The pressurized water above the piston 26 drives 
the piston rod 20 downwardly in the cylinder 22 to lower the barrier or 
gate to the unobstructing gate open position. The vented water flows 
through the trough 10 from the pipes 64 and 66 to wash out any leaves or 
other debree that may have collected therein. 
In instances where it is desired that a relatively few parties can operate 
the barrier to lower it to the unobstructing position the controls can be 
operated by conventional garage door opener devices. 
In instances where it is desired that the barrier can be actuated by 
readily operable controls, a switch 62 positioned for example on one of 
the fences 14 or 16 can be operable to actuate the barrier. This has the 
advantage that children or visitors can readily actuate the barrier.