Abstract:
A resilient, impact-resistant, one-piece ballast apparatus is useful to provide external weight and stability for portable barricades and signs. The ballast is a solid, compression molded rubber device having a predetermined weight and design features including thickness, shape, perimeter contour and holes that permit the ballast device to be easily handled, quickly and securely affixed to or removed from barricade and sign structures, and stored for transport or between uses. The flat surface of the ballast permits application of identifying indicia of ownership that prevents loss and promotes reuse with resultant savings of economy and resources.

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The present invention relates generally to ballast apparatus for providing stabilizing weight for lightweight structures such as portable barricades and signs and, more particularly, to a solid, one-piece, resilient, impact-resistant compression molded rubber ballast having features including a predetermined shape, perimeter, weight and holes that permit the device to be easily handled, affixed to and removed from barricade and sign structures, and stored for transport or between uses. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     The use of portable, lightweight barricades and signs with reflective stripe markings thereon to control or channel vehicular and pedestrian traffic, or to warn drivers and pedestrians of hazards, or for use at construction work sites or for crowd control, is well known. Such barricades are made of lightweight materials such as plastic that require added weight or ballast to stabilize and maintain the barricades in place against wind and other forces. The most commonly used ballast consists of bags of sand or other particulate material that are placed on the structural members of the barricade to provide weight and prevent inadvertent movement by the wind. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,186 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,444, for lightweight barricades with openings in the support members thereof where ballast in the form of sandbags may be placed to provide stability to the barricade. The disadvantages of using sandbags as ballast for barricades are well known. The use of sandbags is labor intensive in that the bags must be filled with sand and transported to the work site. Unless the bags are prepared by a machine, the weight of the ballast is not easily controlled. The attachment of sandbags to the barricade is a problem in that regulations prevent the placement of any object over the reflective stripes, which must remain visible at all times, whereby little space on the barricade is available for ballast. Sandbags are not easily attached to barricades and, consequently, are usually loosely placed on a structural member of the barricade, whereby the sandbags are easily knocked off or detached from the barricade. If it is desired to securely affix the bags to the barricade, additional labor is required. The bags are not durable and break easily when run over by vehicles or dropped or after several uses, which requires the ballast to be continuously monitored and frequently replenished. The presence of the particulate ballast material on the roadway poses a safety hazard with the use of bags of particulate material. Sandbags must be removed when the barricade is moved to another job site and, consequently, usually are discarded after use. 
     Prior attempts to overcome the disadvantages of using sandbags for ballast involve the design of barricades and signs having built in ballast systems. See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 3,917,232; U.S. Pat. No. 4,104,980; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,511. However, such barricade and sign systems still require the ballast material to be placed and removed before and after each use of the barricade or sign and do not solve the problem of allowing louse particulate ballast material to be scattered on the roadway when a vehicle impacts the barricade. 
     It is therefore desirable to provide an improved ballast apparatus that avoids the problems inherent in the use of bags of particulate material such as sand for ballast. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that replaces sandbags or loose particulate material such as sand as the ballast used in barricades. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a solid, one-piece, highly portable ballast apparatus having a controlled weight. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a durable and reusable ballast device. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that eliminates the need to continuously monitor and frequently replenish ballast material on barricades. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is easily affixed to a barricade or sign and resists dislodgment therefrom. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is convenient to handle and easily stored during transport or for reuse. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is crashworthy and performs in a predictable manner when inadvertently struck by a vehicle or other object. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that, when impacted, does not disintegrate into fragments or other debris that pose a hazard to road users and workers. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus that is designed to have a shape that permits the ballast to fit within interstitial spaces within the structural members of existing barricades. 
     It is another object of the present invention to provide a ballast apparatus having surface features that permit the ballast to be placed within or attached to the structural members of existing barricades. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is an improved ballast apparatus that is useful to provide weight for barricades, signs and other structures requiring ballast for stability against wind and other forces that act on barricades and signs. The improved ballast apparatus is a one-piece, resilient, impact-resistant compression-molded rubber device having design features including a predetermined weight, shape, perimeter and holes that permit the device to be easily handled, quickly and securely affixed to or detached from barricade and sign structures, and stored for transport or between uses. The solid, resilient ballast device is unbreakable so that there is no loss of particulate ballast material or fragmentation into unsafe debris as a result of an inadvertent impact with a vehicle or other object. The weight of the ballast apparatus is easily predetermined and controlled because the apparatus is made in a compression molding process. The features of the improved ballast apparatus provide a reusable ballast that is useful with any existing or future barricade or sign that has an opening in a frame member to receive the ballast device or a frame member to which the ballast device may be attached. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the ballast apparatus of the present invention. 
     FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the reverse side of the ballast apparatus shown in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 3 is front elevation view of the ballast apparatus shown in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 4 is a side elevation view of the ballast apparatus shown in FIG.  1 . 
     FIG. 5 is perspective view of an A-frame type barricade with the ballast apparatus shown in FIG. 1 is positioned in an opening in one of the barricade&#39;s end supports. 
     FIG. 6 is a perspective view of another embodiment of the ballast of the present invention having a rectangular shape. 
     FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the reverse side of the ballast apparatus shown in FIG.  6 . 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a barricade having structural members with a rectangular shaped opening in which the ballast apparatus shown in FIG. 6 is positioned. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to the drawings, there is disclosed a ballast apparatus according to the present invention comprising an A-shaped apparatus designated generally by the numeral  10 . The ballast  10  has a top side  12 , a front side  13 , a right side  14 , a back side  15 , a left side  16 , a right leg  18 , a left leg  20 , and a vertical slot  22  centered between legs  18  and  20 . A plurality of holes  24  are positioned at the corners of and extend through the ballast device  10 . The apparatus has a lip or flange  26  at its outer edge or perimeter that completely encircles the device. 
     It will be appreciated that the ballast apparatus disclosed herein may take different shapes or forms such as, for example, circular or square or rectangular or L-shaped, all of which are within the scope of the invention disclosed and claimed herein. The perimeter shape or contour of the ballast  10  may be dictated by the design features of the barricade with which the ballast will be used. In the A-shaped embodiment of the ballast  10  illustrated in FIG. 1, the dimensions are: weight approximately 9.5 pounds; height approximately 12¾ inches; top width approximately 7¾ inches; bottom width approximately 14¾ inches; and flange  26  approximately ½ inch. 
     The ballast  10  may be formed as a solid, one-piece device by a compression molding process from recycled rubber such as discarded automobile tires, which provide the benefits and features of being ultraviolet light resistant, non-breakable and impact resistant. The rubber construction prevents the generation of sparks and a hazardous situation in the event of a collision with a vehicle. The molding process allows the weight, shape and perimeter contour features of the ballast device to be predetermined and controlled. 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an A-frame type barricade, generally indicated by the reference  50 , of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,762,444. The barricade includes a rail member  52  that is maintained in a generally horizontal position by a pair of support members  54 . The support members  54  comprise leg portions  56  connected by cross brace members  58 . The brace members  58  include vertically extending brackets  60  that are adapted to receive an additional rail (not shown). The support members have generally A-shaped open spaces  62  therein that are framed at the top and on either side by the leg portions  56  and on the bottom by the cross brace member  58 . Prior to the present invention, ballast was added to barricade  50  by placing sandbags on the cross brace members  58  within the A-shaped opening  62 . It will be seen that the ballast device  10  of the present invention has a generally A-shape and is designed to be received in the open spaces  62  in the support members  58 . The dimensions of the ballast device  10  and the open spaces  62  in the support members  54  are such that the ballast device  10  can be pressed into and fit snugly within the open spaces  62  and the flange  26  will prevent the ballast device from being pushed entirely through the open space  62 . Ideally, the thickness of ballast  10  will be approximately one-half the thickness of support members  58  so that two ballast devices  10  may be placed within the openings  62  (not shown) when additional weight is needed to stabilize barricade  50 . When two ballast devices  10  are positioned in opening  62 , bolts or other fastening means (not shown) may be used in connection with holes  24  in ballast devices  10  to secure the ballast devices in openings  62 . It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that, once ballast devices  10  are positioned in openings  62 , the barricade support members  58  may be transported without removing ballast devices therefrom because the ballast devices fit within openings  62  and permit support members  58  to be stacked as if the ballast devices  10  were not present. 
     Referring to FIGS. 6 and 7, another embodiment of the ballast apparatus of the present invention, generally indicated by the reference  110 , has a rectangular shape. The rectangular ballast  110  has a top side  112 , a front side  113 , a right side  114 , a back side  115 , a left side  116 , and a bottom side  118 . A plurality of holes  124  are positioned at the corners of and extend through the ballast device  110 . The ballast apparatus has a lip or flange  126  at its outer edge that completely encircles the ballast device. 
     FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a barricade, generally indicated by the reference  150 , of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,298,186. Barricade  150  has a pair of frame support members  154  with rectangular-shaped open spaces  162  therein that, prior to the present invention, were used for the placement of sandbags to provide ballast and stability to the barricade. The ballast device  110  shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 has a rectangular shape that is designed to fit in the rectangular openings  162  and replace the sandbags that have heretofore been placed in the openings  162  in the barricade frame members  154 . Ballast device  110  has a lip  126  that prevents the ballast device from being pushed entirely through opening  162 . 
     It will be appreciated that the ballast apparatus of the present invention could be constructed in other shapes in addition to the A-shape  10  and rectangular shape  110  to be useful with barricades having different shaped openings in its structural members and still provide the benefits disclosed herein. 
     It will be appreciated that some existing barricades do not have, and some future barricades may not have, structural members with interstitial spaces and openings capable of receiving the ballast device of the present invention, that is, into which the ballast apparatus of the present invention could be placed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,511 discloses a barricade having support members or legs without openings therein. The feature of the holes  24  in the A-shaped ballast  10  shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and the holes  124  in the rectangular ballast  110  shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 permits the use of the ballast apparatus of the present invention with the barricade of U.S. Pat. No. 4,852,511 by using fastening means such as bolts or ties to attach ballast device  10  or ballast device  110  the structural members of the barricade. 
     For a barricade such as that disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,104,980 that do not have any features on the support members for the attachment of the ballast apparatus of the present invention, the ballast device  10  or ballast device  110  can be attached by drilling holes in the legs and connecting the ballast device to the legs by using holes  24  or  124  and fastening means such as bolts or ties. 
     While certain respective embodiments have been shown for the purpose of illustrating the invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention, and all such modifications as would be obvious to one skilled in the art are intended to be included within the scope of the following claims.