Pyramid staging

Abstract: A support structure for staging, especially for group photographic purposes, comprises a pair of support members each including a base edge (15,16) and a raked staging-support edge (17,18), the support members being hingeably connected together about their staging-support edges (17,18) for angular movement between a closed position for transportation and storage and an open in use position, and means (22,23,24) for determining the angle between the support members in use. Two such structures may be assembled by mounting one on another with their rear edges adjacent, to increase the height of the staging.

Description: This invention relates to staging, especially but not exclusively of the type suitable for arranging people in tiered rows for group photographic purposes. Various designs of staging are known comprising, in general, support assemblies and decking members, in which the decking members are arranged in use to bridge between pairs of spaced-apart support assemblies in tiered rows, that is, each succeeding higher decking member being arranged rearwardly relative to the lower one. The decking members may, for supporting spectators at sporting events and the like, have seats attached or be intended to be sat upon and the rake angle of the support will be relatively shallow, typically 30° with respect to the horizontal, whereas for photographic purposes the decking members will be generally intended to hold standing people and the rake angle will typically be 45°. An example of such known staging is disclosed in EP-A-291275, in which each support assembly comprises a rearwardly inclined truss member supported by a respective pair of legs arranged in an inverted-V configuration, the truss members carrying a series of support brackets for the decking. The known staging requires that the support assemblies be assembled on site from their component parts and/or from sub-assemblies, usually with the need for alignment of apertured members one with another and their securing together with pins or other attachment means inserted through the apertures. Such assembly operations are, therefore, time-consuming and tedious to perform. According to the present invention, a support structure for a staging assembly comprises a pair of support members each including a base edge and a raked staging-support edge, the support members being hingeably connected together about their staging-support edges for angular movement between a closed position for transportation and storage and an open in use position, and means for determining the extent of the angle between the support members in use. Preferably the support members are triangular. The support members may be fabricated from elongate elements such as rectangular, preferably box-section, metal beams which are preferably rigidly connected together, for example by welding, at their ends, although the elongate elements may optionally be disconnectible or hingeably connected together. Thus, triangular support members preferably each comprise a base beam rigidly connected at one end to a front-facing raked staging-support beam preferably at the lower end or end region thereof and at the other end to a rear-facing strut beam the upper end of which is rigidly connected to the raked staging-support beam, preferably at the upper end or end region thereof. Preferably, the triangle is dimensioned such that in a side elevation in the open position it is isosceles with the base constituting the hypotenuse and the opposite angle being 90°, thereby rendering the rake angle 45°. The angle-determining means may comprise a bar which is fabricated in two halves hingeably connected together at the inner ends thereof at an elbow joint capable of being locked with the halves substantially coaxial, the respective outer ends being hingeably connected to each support member, preferably at or towards the lower ends of the rear-facing sides thereof. In the folded condition, therefore, the elbow joint is broken thus allowing the support members to be folded together about their hinge axis, which is preferably a common axis parallel with the staging-support edges, and in the open condition the elbow joint assumes an operative condition by locking the bar with the halves substantially coaxial to maintain the angular spacing of the support members at a predetermined value. The raked staging-support edges or edge regions of the support members are preferably slanted whereby they lie adjacent and with the supporting surfaces flush with each other when the support members are in the open position. Thus, where the support members are formed from rectangular beams, the staging-support beam is preferably slightly skewed out of plane in relation to the base beam and strut or other beam to which it is attached, and therefore to the plane containing the support member, and the hinge axis is between the rearmost inner-facing edges of the staging-support beam. Thus, in the closed position, the inner-facing sides of the staging-support beams form a V-shaped valley with the hinge axis along the bottom thereof, whereas in the open position the said inner-facing sides are contiguous and their front-facing sides are co-planar. It will be appreciated that, in the open position, the support structure resembles a triangular pyramid, in which the base edges converge to meet at the bottom of the staging-support edges. The structure thus forms a steady, firm support for the decking members, which may comprise individual strip elements for each tier. Preferably, however, the decking members comprise pre-formed stepped elements which may include risers as well as treads and may be formed by pressing a sheet member, thereby giving the assembled staging in use a strong or substantial appearance. Preferably, the decking members are supported indirectly on the staging-support edges of the support members via a stepped bracket member removably attached to the support members by for example cooperating lugs and housings therefor mounted on the respective members. One of the bracket and decking members may have raised formations or spigots formed thereon for engagement in corresponding apertures or recesses formed in the other, for locating the decking member securely on the bracket members. The base edges of the support members may be directly in contact with the ground in use, or one or both ends thereof may be attached to the respective staging-support or rear-facing edges somewhat inwardly from their ends. Furthermore, the structures may include ground-engaging plates which may be height-adjustable for use on uneven ground. In order to increase the height of the staging, one support structure may be removably mounted on another to form an assembly with their rear edges adjacent, whereby the second structure is effectively semi-inverted with respect to the first and their respective staging-support edges are in alignment, the staging-support edge of the second structure forming an upward and rearward extension of that of the first. The support structures may be connected together by means of cooperating lugs and housings mounted on the respective contiguous edges or edge beams. In such an arrangement, where the support structures are formed from elongate elements, the base beams of the second structure become in effect support props for the uppermost end of the staging-support beams. The erection of staging on site using support structures according to the invention and decking members is extremely simple and quick, requiring only that the triangular support members be opened to the in use position at the desired locations and the angle-determining means be placed in the operative condition. Decking members are then placed in position to span between respective adjacent pairs of support structures. Three or more support structures may of course be arranged so that the staging forms a shallow V or an arc, in plan view. Balustrading may if desired be attached via suitable brackets or other means. The invention also includes staging comprising two or more staging support structures or assemblies (as hereinbefore defined) in the open or in use condition, and decking members spanning between adjacent pairs of said support structures. Embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which Figure 1 is a perspective view of a support structure shown partially open; Figure 2 is a perspective view of staging including two spaced-apart support structures as shown in Figure 1 spanned by decking; Figure 3 is a perspective view of am assembly of two support structures as shown in Figure 1, in the process of being assembled together to provide an increased staging height; and Figure 4 is an exploded side elevation of the assembly of Figure 3 including staging-support stepped bracket members, the two support structures being shown in the "in use" assembled orientation. Referring firstly to Figure 1, the staging support structure consists essentially of a pair of triangular fabricated frames 11 and 12 hinged together by hinges 13, 14. The frames are built up from aluminium box-section beams welded together to provide base members 15, 16, raked front members 17, 18 and raked rear members 19, 20. The angle between members 17 and 19 and 18 and 20 in each respective frame is approximately 90°; the angle between the base members and the raked members is approximately 45°. The front members 17, 18 are slightly skewed out of the plane of the respective frame so that, with the hinge axis extending essentially coincidentally with the inner rear edges of the front members, the members define a V-shaped channel 21 when the frames are in the closed or (as illustrated) partially-open position. In the fully-open position and when viewed as a side elevation, the triangle appears to be isosceles with angles of 90°, 45° and 45°. The support edges of the members 17, 18 are therefore slanted in relation to a normal to the plane of the respective frame. A brace bar consisting of two half-bars 22, 23 hinged together by a lockable elbow joint 24 is hingeably connected to brackets attached to the frames at 25, 26 respectively. All hinge axes of the brace bar are orthogonal to the plane containing the two rear members 19 and 20. Upwardly-protruding tongues 27, 28 are provided attached to the outer sides of rear member 20; slotted housings 29, 30 are provided at the corresponding positions on the outer sides of rear member 19. Similar slotted housings 31, 32 are provided on the outer sides of each front member 17 and 18; only those on member 18 are visible in Figure 1. The purpose of the tongues and housings will be apparent from the description which follows. Referring to Figure 2, erected staging is shown consisting of two support structures as described with reference to Figure 1 in the open position, with the base members 15, 16 in contact with the ground. The two halves 22 and 23 of the brace bar are locked co-axially. The inner sides of the front members 17, 18 are in this position contiguous so that the two members 17 and 18 together constitute a substantially square-section composite raked support beam for decking. the slanted edges of the members 18, 19 lying flush with each other. An intermediate decking-support member 33 consisting of a flat strip with four downwardly-depending tongues 34-37 is carried by the composite support beam with respective tongues 34-37 engaged in respective slotted housings 31, 32 on each member 17, 18. Attached to the upper side of the strip is a stepped array of brackets 38. Pre-formed stepped decking 39 is supported by the brackets 38 and retained thereon by spigots 40 carried by the brackets which engage in corresponding holes formed in the decking. As illustrated, five tiers of decking are provided. Figures 3 and 4 illustrate a support assembly of two support structures to increase the number of tiers, in this instance from five to ten. In these figures, a lower structure is shown at 41 and a further structure at 42, the further structure being identical with the lower. The structure 42 is shown in the process of being assembled to structure 41, both structures having initially been locked in the open position with the valley 21 between the front members, visible in Figure 1, closed. Structure 42 is initially placed in reversed orientation behind structure 41 with the respective members 15, 16 of each structure being on the ground surface. In Figure 3, the initial position of the member 15 and 16 of structure 42 is indicated by dashed lines. Structure 42 is then raised so that it pivots about the base of its members 19, 20, these being braced against the base of the corresponding members of structure 41. The structure 42 is illustrated in an intermediate position as it is moved in the direction of the arrows, the ends of the front members 17, 18 following the line represented by the chain-dotted curve. In Figure 4, each structure has an intermediate decking-support member 33 attached thereto, as described with reference to Figure 2. Brackets 43 are welded to the steps, for attachment of balustrading. The structures are shown as an exploded view of their assembled condition with their respective members 19, 20 in contiguous relationship and tongues 27, 28 engaged in sockets 29, 30. The base members 15, 16 of structure 42 have become prop members for the upper end of the raked front member.

Claims: A support structure for a staging assembly, the structure comprising a pair of support members (11, 12) each including a base edge (15, 16) and a raked staging-support edge (17, 18) characterised in that the support members (11, 12) are hingeably connected together about their staging-support edges (17, 18) for angular movement between a closed position for transportation and storage and an open in use position, and means (22, 23) for determining the angle between the support members (11, 12) in use. A support structure according to Claim 1, in which each support member (11, 12) is triangular. A support structure according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, in which the support members (11, 12) are fabricated from elongate elements rigidly connected together at their ends. A support structure according to Claim 3 as dependent on Claim 2, in which each support member (11, 12) comprises a base beam (15, 16) rigidly connected at one end to a front-facing raked staging-support beam (17, 18) and at the other end to a rear-facing strut beam (19, 20) the upper end of which is rigidly connected to the raked staging-support beam (17, 18). A support structure according to any of Claims 2 to 4, in which the triangle is isosceles when viewed as a side elevation with the support members (11, 12) in the open position. A support structure according to any preceding claim, in which the angle-determining means (22, 23) comprises a bar fabricated in two halves hingeably connected together at the inner ends thereof and at the outer ends thereof to respective support members (11, 12) the two halves being lockable substantially coaxially in the open condition of the support structure. A support structure according to any preceding claim, in which the raked staging-support edges (17, 18) of the support members (11, 12) are slanted whereby they lie adjacent and with the supporting surfaces flush with each other when the support members (11, 12) are in the open condition. A support assembly for staging, the assembly comprising a pair of support structures (11, 12) according to any of Claims 1 to 7 mounted one on another with their rear edges (19, 20) adjacent their respective staging-support edges (17, 18) being in alignment. A support structure according to any of Claim 1 to 7 or a support assembly according to Claim 8, further including a stepped bracket member (38) removably attached to the staging support edges (17, 18) of the support members (11, 12). A support structure or assembly according to Claim 9, in which the stepped bracket member (38) includes raised formations or spigots (40), or apertures or recesses, for engagement in use with corresponding raised formations, spigots, apertures or recesses formed in decking members (39) spanning between adjacent pairs of support structures or assemblies. Staging comprising two or more staging support structures or assemblies according to any preceding claim, in the open or in use condition and laterally spaced apart on the ground or other supporting surface, and decking members (39) spanning betweeen adjacent pairs of said support structures or support assemblies. Staging according to Claim 11, in which the decking members (39) comprise pre-formed stepped elements including risers as well as treads. Staging according to Claim 12, in which the decking members (39) are formed from a sheet member by pressing. Staging according to any of Claims 11 to 13 as dependent on Claim 9 or Claim 10, in which the decking members (39) are located on the stepped bracket members (38) by means of raised formations or spigots (40) formed on either one of the bracket (38) and decking (39) members which engage in corresponding apertures or recesses formed in the other of the bracket (38) and decking (39) members. A decking member (39) for use with a support structure or assembly according to Claim 10, the decking comprising pre-formed stepped elements including risers and treads and further including either raised formations or spigots, or apertures or recesses, for engagement in use with the raised formations, spigots, apertures or recesses formed in the stepped bracket member of the support structure or assembly. A decking member according to Claim 15, formed from a sheet member by pressing.

Inventors: FOOKS ANTHOYNE JOHNSTON, TEMPEST TERENCE, FOOKS, ANTHOYNE JOHNSTON, TEMPEST, TERENCE
Applicants: TEMPEST LIMITED H, H TEMPEST LIMITED
Application year: 1992
Main classification: E04H3
IPC codes: E04H3, E06C1