Equipment deployment method and apparatus

Abstract: A method and apparatus for deploying assemblies, e.g. of surveillance equipment, characterised in that a motorised carriage (2) is used to position each assembly (4), in turn, on a respective upright pole (6). Assemblies may thus be deployed more cost effectively than by existing methods and apparatus which require a separate motorised carriage to be provided at each site.

Description: The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for deploying assemblies, e.g of lighting or surveillance equipment. It is known to temporarily deploy equipment, e.g. lighting and/or surveillance equipment, at an elevated position on an upright support pole by fixing the equipment to a motorised carriage which is remotely operable to ascend and descend the pole. Releaseable, adjustable means for securing the carriage to the pole allow the apparatus to be readily relocated to any site having a suitable support structure. For example, the carriage may be secured to a structure such as a lamp-post or telegraph pole to allow a localised traffic situation or civil disturbance to be monitored by police. A significant limitation of such an apparatus is its great cost, which is of particular consideration where several carriages are required to position equipment at different locations. EP-A-0,542,168 and FR-A-2,658,180 each disclose a motorised apparatus for climbing an upright pole, and including means for securing the apparatus to the pole at an elevated position. In accordance with the present invention, there is provided an assembly to be raised to, and lowered from, an elevated position on an upright pole, said assembly comprising a platform for supporting equipment, and means for securing the assembly to the pole at an elevated position, characterised in that the assembly is arranged to be raised and lowered by a separable motorised carriage, the securing means being remotely-operable and permitting the assembly to remain in its elevated position on the pole as the motorised carriage is lowered away therefrom. Also in accordance with the present invention, there is provided an apparatus for deploying an assembly at an elevated position on an upright pole, the apparatus comprising an assembly as defined above and a remotely-operable, motorised carriage arranged to be detachably mounted to the upright pole for raising the assembly to, and lowering the assembly from, said elevated position, the motorised carriage being separable from the assembly when the latter is secured to the pole at said elevated position, to allow the motorised carriage to descend and be detached from the pole. Further in accordance with the present invention, there is provided a method for deploying assemblies of equipment at elevated positions on respective upright poles, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a plurality of assemblies of equipment each including remotely-operable securing means for securing that assembly to its pole when raised to its elevated position; (b) providing a remotely-operable, motorised carriage arranged to be detachably mounted to an upright pole; (c) attaching said motorised carriage to an upright pole; (d) remotely operating the motorised carriage to raise a said assembly to its elevated position; (e) operating the securing means of said assembly to secure the assembly to its upright pole; (f) operating the motorised carriage to descend the pole, leaving the assembly secured to the pole at its elevated position; (g) detaching the motorised carriage from the pole; and (h) repeating steps (a) to (g) using the same motorised carriage to raise each of the other said assemblies in turn to elevated positions on their respective poles. Preferably the motorised carriage comprises an electrical motor which is provided with electricity, via a cable, from a supply at ground level. Preferably the securing means of the or each assembly is operated by an electrical actuator which may be powered by a battery carried by the assembly or supplied with power via an electrical connection, formed between the carriage and the assembly when the two parts are in contact with one another. In the former case, the battery preferably provides a counter-balance weight for equipment, e.g. a light and/or surveillance equipment, supported by the assembly on the opposite side of the pole. Preferably the or each electrical actuator comprises a linear actuator, which may comprise a respective solenoid arranged to displace a respective clamping member (normally biassed into contact with the surface of the pole) away from the pole surface, but more preferably comprises a respective screw arranged to drive a respective clamping member towards or away from the surface of the pole. Embodiments of the present invention will now be described by way of examples only and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figures 1 to 5 are a sequence of schematic views illustrating a method for deploying an assembly, e.g. of surveillance equipment, in accordance with the present invention; Figures 6 and 7 are respective front and rear perspective views of a preferred embodiment of carriage in accordance with the present invention; Figure 8 is a front elevation of the carriage of Figures 6 and 7; Figure 9 is a side elevation of the carriage; Figure 10 is a plan view of the carriage; Figure 11 is a side view of a first embodiment of assembly in accordance with the present invention, mounted to an upright pole; Figure 12 is a side view of the assembly of Figure 11 when fixed to the pole; Figure 13 is a side view of a second embodiment of assembly in accordance with the present invention; Figure 14 is a plan view of the assembly of Figure 13, when fixed to a pole; and Figure 15 is a rear elevation of the assembly of Figure 13. Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, an apparatus comprising a motorised carriage 2 and an assembly 4 is shown fitted to an upright pole 6. The assembly 4 comprises a platform 8 to which equipment, e.g. lighting or surveillance equipment may be fitted, and a counterbalance weight 10. To position the assembly 4 at an elevated position on the pole 6, the carriage 2 is first operated to ascend the pole 6, as shown in Figure 2. Once the assembly 4 has been raised to its desired height, the carriage 2 is then operated to descend the pole, as shown in Figure 3, leaving the assembly 4 in place. The carriage may then be removed from the pole and used to deploy further assemblies as required. Various means may be employed for temporarily securing the assembly 4 in place at its elevated position, some of which will be described hereinafter. Figures 4 and 5 show how the carriage 2, when refitted to the pole 6, may be used to retrieve the assembly 4 from its elevated position. In some circumstances it may be desirable for an operator at ground level to remotely control the apparatus to deploy and/or retrieve the assembly. However, more preferably, the apparatus is arranged such that the assembly is deployed and/or retrieved automatically. For this purpose, the carriage is preferably provided with means for determining the height of the carriage above ground level, e.g. an acoustic or optical transceiver directed towards the ground, or for measuring the distance travelled by the carriage along the pole, e.g. means for counting the number of revolution made by a wheel which rotates as the carriage travels along the pole. The same means may be used both to establish the position at which the assembly will be deployed, and the position to which the carriage will return after having deployed or retrieved the assembly. Where retrieval of the assembly is automated, the carriage is preferably provided with a proximity sensor for slowing the carriage as it approaches the assembly. Figures 6 to 10 show a preferred embodiment of carriage, comprising a traction unit 8, arranged to be mounted substantially on one side of a pole, such that the unit 8 is held in place by four pivotally mounted arms 10,12,14,16 which embrace the pole 6 and frictionally engage the surface of the pole 6 through elastomeric rollers 18,20,22,24 provided at their distal ends. The distal ends of each opposed pair of arms, e.g. 10,12, are biassed towards one another and towards the body of the traction unit 8 by respective pairs of springs 26,28 which extend from the rear of the traction unit 8 to points approximately midway between the ends of each arm. The traction unit comprises a first pair of elastomeric wheels 32,34 fixed to an axle 36 which is driven from an electric motor 38 via a reducing gearbox 40 and flexible belt 42. A second axle 44, to which a second pair of wheels 46,48 are fixed, is in turn driven from the first axle 36 via a second flexible belt 50, held in tension by a tensioning wheel 52. The innermost edge of each of the wheels 32,34,46,48 is bevelled to present a tangential drive surface to a cylindrical pole to which the unit may be fitted. However, the two wheels of the upper pair 46,48 and lower pair 32,34 of wheels may instead be arranged to rotate in respective planes extending radially from the surface of a cylindrical pole of a given radius. The carriage is attached to a support pole by prising apart each pair of opposed arms 10,12 and 14,16, in turn, whilst pressing the traction unit 8 towards the pole. When in place upon the pole, a cable (not shown), extending from a ground based control unit (also not shown), supplies electrical power to the motor 38 for rotating the drive wheels 32,24,46,48 to drive the carriage up or down the pole. As mentioned above, various methods may be employed for fixing an assembly in place upon a pole once the assembly has been raised into position by a carriage. For example, the assembly may be mounted to the pole via a plurality of rollers, at least one of which may be remotely or automatically locked in place at an elevated position to prevent it from rotating. Alternatively, the assembly may comprise an inflatable clamp or a belt which tightens around the pole. In the preferred arrangement shown in Figure 11, an assembly 52 is mounted to a pole 54 via two opposed pairs 56,58 of sprung guide-rollers. A linear actuator 60 is remotely operable to drive one 62 of two opposed clamping members 62,64 against the pole 54, as shown in Figure 12, to clamp the assembly 52 to the pole. To minimise the weight of the assembly, the linear actuator 60 is an electrical actuator to which power is supplied via an electrical connection (not shown), formed between the assembly 52 and the carriage used for its deployment. The clamping member 62 is driven by a screw (not shown) such that axial movement of the member in inhibited when power to the linear actuator 60 is disconnected. Figures 13 to 15 show a second preferred embodiment of assembly, comprising a skate 66, arranged to be mounted substantially on one side of a pole 68, such that skate is held in place by four pivotally mounted arms 70,72,74,76 which embrace the pole and frictionally engage the surface of the pole through elastomeric rollers 78,80,82,84 provided at their distal ends. The distal ends of each opposed pair of arms, e.g. 70,72, are biassed towards one another and towards the body of the skate 66 by respective pairs of springs 86,88 which extend from the rear of the skate to points approximately midway between the ends of each arm. The skate 66 comprises a first pair of elastomeric wheels 90,92 mounted on an axle 94 and a second pair of wheels 96,98 mounted on an axle 100. The innermost edge of each of the wheels 90,92,96,98 is bevelled to present a tangential surface to the cylindrical surface of the pole 68. However, the two wheels of the upper pair 96,98 and lower pair 90,92 of wheels may instead be arranged to rotate in respective planes extending radially from the surface of the pole 68. A bracket 102 extends forwards from either side of the skate 66 and supports a platform 104 to which various devices are mounted. The assembly is attached to the pole 68 by first attaching the skate 66 to the pole by prising apart each pair of apposed arms 70,72 and 74,76, in turn, whilst pressing the skate towards the pole. The bracket 102 is then attached to either side of the skate 66, by slotting a respective pair of tapered portions 103 of the bracket into correspondingly shaped sockets 105 of the skate. Alternatively, one side of the bracket 102 may be pivotally joined to the skate 66 to allow the bracket to be swung to one side to attach the skate to the pole 68. A surveillance camera 106 is fitted to a bracket 108 at one end of the platform 104, for rotation of the camera about a vertical axis A and a horizontal axis B. An electrically powered linear actuator 110 is also mounted to the platform 104 for displacing a clamping member 112, under remote or automatic control, to clamp the pole 68 between the clamping member and the rollers 90,92,96,98 on the opposite side of the assembly. The linear actuator 110 and the camera 106 are powered by respective batteries secured within a housing 114 fitted to the skate 66, the batteries acting as a counter-balance for the devices supported by the platform 114. The apparatus thus described provide a cost efficient means for deploying equipment such as lighting and/or surveillance equipment.

Claims: An assembly (4) to be raised to, and lowered from, an elevated position on an upright pole (6), said assembly (4) comprising a platform (8) for supporting equipment, and means (60,62,64) for securing the assembly to the pole (6) at an elevated position, characterised in that the assembly (4) is arranged to be raised and lowered by a separable motorised carriage (2), the securing means (60,62,64) being remotely-operable and permitting the assembly (4) to remain in its elevated position on the pole (6) as the motorised carriage (2) is lowered away therefrom. An apparatus for deploying an assembly (4) at an elevated position on an upright pole (6), the apparatus comprising an assembly (4) as claimed in claim1, and a remotely-operable, motorised carriage (2) arranged to be detachably mounted to the upright pole (6) for raising the assembly (4) to, and lowering the assembly (4) from, said elevated position, the motorised carriage (2) being separable from the assembly (4) when the latter is secured to the pole (6) at said elevated position, to allow the motorised carriage (2) to descend and be detached from the pole (6). A method for deploying assemblies of equipment at elevated positions on respective upright poles, the method comprising the steps of: (a) providing a plurality of assemblies (4) of equipment each including remotely-operable securing means (60,62,64) for securing that assembly to its pole when raised to its elevated position; (b) providing a remotely-operable, motorised carriage (2) arranged to be detachably mounted to an upright pole (6); (c) attaching said motorised carriage (2) to an upright pole (6); (d) remotely operating the motorised carriage (2) to raise a said assembly (4) to its elevated position; (e) operating the securing means (60,62,64) of said assembly to secure the assembly to its upright pole; (f) operating the motorised carriage (2) to descend the pole, leaving the assembly (4) secured to the pole at its elevated position; (g) detaching the motorised carriage (2) from the pole; and (h) repeating steps (a) to (g) using the same motorised carriage (2) to raise each of the other said assemblies in turn to elevated positions on their respective poles.

Inventors: DARNEY IAN CHARLES, SPITTLE JEFFREY ROY, DARNEY, IAN CHARLES, SPITTLE, JEFFREY ROY
Applicants: TECSEC EUROP LTD, TECSEC EUROPE LIMITED
Application year: 2000
Main classification: B66F3
IPC codes: B66F3