Patent Publication Number: US-9428958-B1

Title: Ladder tray

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a ladder-mounted tray for holding tools and materials needed for work while on the ladder. In the prior art, it is known to provide a ladder with a separate detachable tray that is mounted on the ladder in any one of a variety of ways. Some such devices rely upon the openings within the ladder&#39;s rungs to support the tray. Others rely upon the brackets or fasteners on the rungs or ladder head to support a tray. Still others rely upon the side rails of the ladder or combinations of the side rails, rungs and openings through rungs for support purposes. Generally, a user climbs to the upper end of the ladder to perform work. On a standard ladder there is nothing at the upper end of a ladder for carrying tools. 
     Many attempts have been made to provide some form of ladder tray for attachment to the upper end of the ladder for holding tools and materials. In particular, ladders may be ten or twenty feet long and relatively heavy. It is necessary for the user to position the ladder and climbed to the top to attach the ladder tray. Prior art devices require the user climbed to the top of the ladder and use fasteners or tools to attach a ladder tray. Further, the ladder tray may shield portions of the ladder, preventing full functionality to the user. 
     Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a ladder tray which may be attached to the top of the ladder without tools, while providing an interlocking fit to prevent the ladder tray from tipping. Further, it is desirable to provide a ladder tray which provides access to all of the rungs on the ladder including the top shelf on top of the ladder head. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a ladder tray for use on a ladder. The ladder may have two front legs and two back legs. The front legs and back legs pivotally attached to each other at a ladder head. When deployed in a usable configuration the ladder head allows the front legs having climbing rungs thereon to pivot about the ladder head with respect to the back legs to form an a—frame shaped stand alone step ladder for a user. Generally, climbing rungs are disposed on the front legs. The present invention, in a first embodiment comprises a removable ladder tray on the ladder having a base with a ladder opening formed therein. The ladder opening is generally rectangular and disposed adjacent the back of the tray. The ladder opening has two spaced apart side edges and two spaced apart ladder leg sides. The edges of the smaller sides may bear against the outside of the respective ladder legs. The ladder tray comprises a base having a top defining an open containment area with a surrounding raised edge to prevent items from falling off the tray. The ladder is inserted into the ladder opening having the ladder head above the tray and the climbing rungs below the tray. The ladder opening surroundingly fits around the ladder adjacent to and just below the ladder head thereby allowing full use and access to the all the climbing rungs and the top step located on top of the ladder head. A ladder box surrounds the ladder opening on the tray having obliquely angled front and back walls to fit flush against the ladder legs. The ladder box acts as a collar to engage the ladder and provide support for the ladder tray. The raised edge may surround the containment area and the ladder box. 
     The ladder box comprises interconnected walls surrounding the ladder opening. The ladder box has a top and a bottom, the bottom is of similar size and shape as the ladder opening, the top is of similar shape as the bottom but may be smaller to snugly fit over the A-shaped step ladder. The ladder box may have two spaced apart vertical walls on the side edges of the ladder opening adapted to bear against the respective sides of ladder. The ladder box further has an obliquely angled support wall and an obliquely angled back wall. The support wall may comprise a bottom on the base and a top adapted to engage and bear against the back legs, the back wall may be art of the raised edge and is adapted to bear against the front legs below the ladder head. The back wall on the periphery edge provides a low profile on the front legs to minimize interference with the user standing on the rungs. The ladder head extends through the ladder box to provide access to the user. 
     Work items such as tools, paint, glue, etc. may be placed on the base causing the tray to pivot slightly about the connection point to the ladder. This pivoting motion may cause the top of the back wall to move upward towards the ladder head thereby engaging and bearing against the ladder head to hold the ladder tray in place. The sleeve like fitting of the ladder box around the ladder legs supports the tray in a generally horizontal position. 
     The foregoing is a description of a preferred embodiment of the invention which is given here by way of example only. The invention is not to be taken as limited to any of the specific features as described, but comprehends all such variations thereof as come within the scope of the appended claims. 
    
    
     
       DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1 . is a top perspective view of a ladder tray showing a first embodiment; 
         FIG. 2 . is a top plan view of the first embodiment as shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 3 . is a bottom plan view of the first embodiment as shown in  FIG. 1 ; 
         FIG. 4 . is a left-side elevation view of the first embodiment as shown in  FIG. 1 , the right-side elevation view being a mirror image thereof; 
         FIG. 5 . is a section view of the first embodiment taken at approximately 5-5 of  FIG. 2 , 
         FIG. 6 . is a top perspective view of the first embodiment as shown in  FIG. 1  separated from the ladder; 
         FIG. 7 . is a side elevation view of the first embodiment in section mounted on the ladder, 
     
    
    
     SPECIFICATION OF THE INVENTION 
     Referring to  FIG. 1 , the removable ladder tray  10  may comprise a front wall  12 , brace  14  and a first side wall  16  and second side wall  18 . Front wall  12  is generally perpendicular to base  20 . Brace  14  is obliquely attached to base  20  and spaced from front wall  12 . First sidewall  16  and second sidewall  18  are generally parallel to each other and spaced apart. Base  20  has a peripheral edge  21  surrounding a working surface  22  of the removable ladder tray  10 . First sidewall  16  extends between front wall  12  and brace  14 . Second sidewall  18  extends between front wall  12  and brace  14 . Together, front wall  12 , brace  14  and first and second sidewalls  16 ,  18  are attached to the periphery of base  20  and each other to form a continuous wall  23  surrounding the base top  22 . 
     Continuing to refer to  FIG. 1 , a ladder opening  24  is formed by removing material to create a hole in base  20  adjacent back edge  25  of base  20 . A ladder box  26  may be attached to the base top  22  forming a tapered surrounding around the ladder opening  24 . The ladder box  26  comprises two box sidewalls  28 ,  30  attached to and extending upward from and generally perpendicular to base top  22 , a support wall  32  obliquely connected to the base top  22  and the two box sidewalls  28 ,  30 . The two box sidewalls  28 ,  30  may be attached to and extend from support wall  32  to attach to brace  14  to give ladder box  26  a generally tapering shape surrounding and extending above ladder opening  24 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 2 , the ladder box  26  further comprises a top opening  34  concentric with and smaller than ladder opening  24 . Brace  14  further comprises an outside  38 , a top  42  and a bottom  44 . Brace top  42  may be disposed closer to the support wall  32  than bottom  44  thereby leaning brace  14  over ladder opening  24 . Brace  14  may be obliquely attached to base top  22  and ladder box sidewalls  28 ,  30  which are joined by support wall  32  to surround ladder opening  24 . First sidewall  16  and second sidewall  18  may further comprise an inside surface  46 ,  48 , respectively, disposed in a generally perpendicular orientation to base top  22 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 3 , the base  20  further comprises a bottom  46 . The ladder opening  24  extends through the shelf  20  opening to the bottom  46 . The ladder opening  24  has a leading edge  27  and a rung edge  29 . The support wall  32  is attached to the base  20  adjacent the leading edge  27 . Ladder opening rung edge  29  may open onto back edge  25  and be closed by brace  14 . The support wall  32  and brace  14  are obliquely attached to the shelf  20  to form a ladder box top opening  34  smaller than the ladder opening  24 . Front wall  12  may further be connected to the first sidewall  16  by first corner piece  50 . Front wall  12  may be connected to second sidewall  18  by second corner piece  52 . It should be understood, base  20  may be round, triangular or a different shape having surrounding wall  23  and ladder opening  24  disposed adjacent to back edge  25 . Brace bottom  44  may be attached to back edge  25 . In the preferred embodiment, and brace  14  is straight to fit flush against ladder ( 52 ,  FIG. 7 ). Ladder box top opening  34  may have a size smaller than ladder opening  24  formed by brace  14  and support wall obliquely disposed on base  20 . First sidewall  16  and second sidewall  18  may each be attached to base  20  each having a front end  116 ,  118 , respectively, adjacent front wall  12  and a back end  216 ,  218 , respectively, on brace  14 . 
     Referring to  FIGS. 4 and 5 , ladder box  24  may comprise a box bottom  33  on base  20  and a box top opening  34  spaced from the base  20 . Brace  14  may be larger than front wall  12  extending further above base bottom  46 . Support wall  32  is attached to base  20  at an oblique angle A to top  22 . The support wall  32  further comprises a support top  34  and a support bottom  36 . Support wall  32  is obliquely attached to base  20  having support top  34  disposed closer to brace  14  than support bottom  36  thereby leaning support wall  32  toward brace  14  and over ladder opening  24 . Support wall  32  may extend to a similar height as first and second sidewalls  16 ,  18 . First and the second ladder box sidewalls  28 ,  30  may have a trapezoidal shape along top edge to extend from base top  22  and connect support wall  32  and brace  14 . As seen in  FIG. 5 , top edge  41  of first box sidewall  28  may be disposed at an acute angle to top  22  connecting support wall top  34  to brace top  42 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 6 , the ladder tray  10  may be formed of metal or plastic. The ladder tray  10  may be formed of a single integrated molded material such as plastic molding or may be assembled by means such as welding or adhesives used to connect the base  20  to the surrounding edge  23  and the ladder box  26 . The front wall  12 , brace  14  and sidewalls  16 ,  18  may be attached to base  20  in an I-beam type configuration to provide more support, further additional beams (not shown) may be extended from the brace  14  to the front wall  12  for additional support. In addition, ladder box sidewalls  28 ,  30  may be extended between brace  14  and front wall  12 . Ladder  52  comprises a pair of front legs  56  and one or more back legs  58 . Front legs  56  may be joined by one or more climbing rungs  62  disposed between front legs  56 . Front legs  56  may be fixedly attached to the ladder head  60 . Ladder head  60  may be disposed at above rungs  62 . Back legs  58  may be pivotally attached to ladder head  60  to allow the legs  56 ,  58  to pivot from a closed position (not shown) to an A-shaped, stand alone ladder  52 . The ladder box  26  may surround ladder opening  24  having the obliquely disposed sides  70 ,  32  adapted to press fit securely on ladder  52  below ladder head  50  and above rungs  62 . The ladder head  60  may further comprises a top step  64  and a front lip  66 . Front lip  66  is attached to top step  64  and extends downwardly to bottom edge  68  spaced between top step  64  and rungs  62 . 
     Referring to  FIG. 7 , the ladder tray  10  may be removably attached to the ladder  52  by inserting ladder  52  in ladder opening  24  having ladder head  60  above base  20  and rungs  62  below base  20 . In the preferred embodiment, front lip  66  is adjacent to and above brace top  42 . Ladder surface  70  of brace  14  bears against front legs  56 . Likewise, support wall  32  bears against support legs  58 . Work material  72  on ladder tray  10  may cause the cantilever ladder tray  10  to pivot about the ladder box  26  on ladder  52  causing a canting of the ladder tray  10  with the front wall  12  dropping down and the brace  14  raising up causing the ladder tray  10  to shift from a normal, generally horizontal position, this canting may cause the brace top  42  to engage and bear against front lip bottom edge  68  thereby securing ladder tray  10  to ladder  52  without tools, clamps or fasteners. 
     Continuing to refer to  FIG. 7 , the brace  14  bears against the front legs  56  below the ladder head  50  and above the rungs  62 . The oblique angle C between brace  14  and support wall  32  may be configured to closely match the angular relationship between front legs  56  and back legs  58  to allow the ladder surface  70  to be flush against front legs  56  and support wall to be flush against back legs  58  whereby the ladder box  26  is press-fitted over the top of the ladder  52 . Ladder tray  10  attaches to ladder  52  without tools or fasteners. Ladder tray  10  is removed from the ladder  52  without tools. Ladder  52  may not have a head  50 . Front legs  56  may be pivotally connected to back legs  58  above rungs  62 . Ladder tray  10  is adapted by the oblique mounting of support wall  32  and brace  14  to bear against front legs  56  and back legs  58  to bind by friction holding ladder tray  10  to ladder  52 . To remove ladder tray  10  from ladder  52  the back legs  58  are pivoted to a position adjacent front legs  56  to reduce the binding between ladder legs  56 ,  58  and ladder box  26 . 
     Although the description above contains many specifications, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the invention but as merely providing illustrations of some of the embodiments of this invention. Thus, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents rather than by the examples given. Further, the present invention has been shown and described with reference to the foregoing exemplary embodiments. It is to be understood, however, that other forms, details, and embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention which is defined in the following claims.