Improved Safety Shoe or Guard for Ladders.
Year: 1892

page_text: Date of Application, 20th Aug. 1892
Complete Specification Left, 19th May, 1893-Accepted, 24th June, 1893
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION.
Improved Safety Shoe or Guard for Ladders.
I LEONARD WILKINSON SUTCLIFFE of No 5 Market Street, Manchester in
the County of Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
to be as follows:-
My said invention relates to devices to be applied to ladders in order to minimise
the risk of slipping and also to act as guards or protectors to prevent injury to the
walls partitions or other parts of a building against which a ladder may be resting
when in use. The said devices consist of attachments or shoes which may be
pivoted either at one or both ends of a ladder. The bottom of the ladder rests on
the lower shoes which are shaped so as to provide an extended surface in contact
with the ground. At the top of the ladder similar shoes or guards bear against
the wall or other place against which the ladder is reared. The said devices are
faced with indiarubber or other similar substance and they may be corrugated or
otherwise shaped so as to increase their hold. I preferably form them with a metal
core around which the indiarubber or other non-slipping material may be moulded
stretched or otherwise attached.
Suitable means are provided as for instance a hinge joint and pivot for ready
attachment to or detachment from the ladder.
Dated this 19th day of August 1892.
EDWARD TURNER WHITELOW,
70, Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicant.
COMPLETE SPECIFICATION.
Improved Safety Shoe or Guard for Ladders.
I LEONARD WILKINSON SUTCLIFFE of No. 5 Market Street, Manchester in
the County of Lancaster, Engineer, do hereby declare the nature of this invention
and in what manner the same is to be performed to be particularly described and
ascertained in and by the following statement:-
My said invention relates to devices to be applied to ladders, step ladders,
trestles, shear legs or the like in order to minimise the risk of slipping or canting
over when used at the lower end and also to act as guards or protectors to prevent
injury to the walls partitions or other places against which the upper part of the
ladder may rest when in use. The said devices consist of attachments working on
a hinge, bolts or pivots mounted in suitable fixings attached to the ladder.
In order that my said invention may be more clearly understood I will describe
the same with reference to the accompanying drawings.
Figs. 1 & 2 are respectively side and front elevations of my invention as applied
to one of the feet a of an ordinary ladder. is a metal bracket secured by one or
more bolts or screws to the foot a. For better security a rib ¹ formed in the
bracket takes into a notch in the foot of the ladder. An open slot & engages
with the lower rung a¹ of the ladder.
By means of a tongue in the bracket b and a pin, bolt or pivot 6º the metal
shoe c is hinged to the bracket in such a manner that whatever may be the
inclination of the ladder the shoe adapts itself automatically to the surface of the
ground.
The sole c¹ of the shoe is provided with a covering or block of indiarubber,
leather or other material having a similar property of preventing slipping.

page_text: The surface of the said covering may be corrugated or otherwise shaped so as to
increase the hold.
In some cases I may use spikes for the same purpose.
The shoe and its covering may be constructed in various ways as for example by
moulding or stretching the covering over a metal core or by fitting a block of
indiarubber tightly in the flanged shoe as shown in the drawing.
Fig. 3 illustrates the devices when in use as applied to both ends of the ladder in
which case the upper device forms the guard or protector herein before set forth
and at the same time by its extended surface and non slipping property it provides
a safer support and protection against canting when the centre of gravity is
displaced by the person using the ladder reaching sideways than is the case when
the bare end of the ladder rests against the wall. The brackets carrying the
upper devices may be so constructed as to slide on the sides of the ladder for use
in cases where the ladder reaches beyond the top of the supporting wall as shown
in Fig. 4 and in plan in Fig. 5. A clamping screw d enables the bracket to be
secured at any place in the length of the ladder.
It is of course to be understood that this device whether used as a shoe or a
guard is intended to be used in pairs i.e. one for each side of the ladder.
Having now particularly described and ascertained the nature of my said inven-
tion, and in what manner the same is to be performed, I declare that what I
claim is-
1. A jointed device for attachment to ladders substantially as described and
shown.
2. The combination of a bracket for attachment to a ladder a hinge bolt or pivot
and a shoe or guard substantially as and for the purpose described and shown in
the accompanying drawings.
Dated this 18th day of May 1893.
EDWARD TURNER WHITELOW,
70, Deansgate, Manchester, Agent for the Applicant.