US2925139A - Window washer's platform - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 16, 1969 J, G, SALAS 2,925,139

WINDOW WASHER'S PLATFORM -Filed March 17, 1958 /NVENTOR JOSEPH G. SALAS /ff @u ATTORNEY United States Patent WINDOW WASHERS PLATFORM Joseph G. Salas, St. Louis, Mo.

Application March 17, 1958, Serial No. 721,889

' 1 claim. (cl. 18a-62) This invention relates to building cleaning maintenance, and more particularly to a platform that is portable so as to be easily transported from place to place as needed, for removable mounting at the windows of a building `so as to afford the workman a safe and convenient support for washing the exteriors of windows or doing other work requiring access to the outer surfaces of the building adjacent the windows.

The invention has among its general objects the provision of such a platform that is relatively simple and sturdy in its construction, low in cost, sufficiently lightweight to be easily portable by the average maintenance man, and which will be otherwise satisfactory and etlicient for use wherever deemed applicable.

One object of my invention is to so construct such a platform that it may be transported with collapsed parts that may be set up into operative position at the point of installation of the platform, for insertion through the window frame and withdrawal therefrom as needed.

Another object of the invention is to so construct such a device that may be placed supported on the window sill, and rigidly clamped thereat into bearing against the vertical outer face of the sill and also against the inner faces of the upright sides of the window frame, the device clamped against the uprights at an elevation above the clamping engagement against the said outer face of the sill.

A further object of my invention is to so construct a device of the kind described, with means that are vertically adjustable into bearing engagement with the top face of the sill at the outermost edge of the latter, to thereby more securely lock the platform in operative position and minimize any tendency for vertical pivotal movement of the device about an axis at its innermost end.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a plurality of individual sections to form the floor of said platform, said oor sections being comparatively light in weight and removably interlocking with the platform `against relative displacement.

Many other objects and advantages of the construction herein shown and described will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains, and which will be more clearly evident from the disclosures herein given.

To this end, my invention consists in the novel construction, arrangement and combination of parts herein set forth and the uses mentioned, all as will be more clearly pointed out in the claim hereunto appended.

In the drawings, wherein like reference characters represent like or corresponding parts throughout the views,

Figure 1 is a vertical section taken through the device;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the same, with parts of the liooring broken away;

Figure 3 is a cross-sectional detail taken substantially along the line 3-3 of Fig. 1; and

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing details of the .offset member and the diagonal brace.

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Referring more particularly to the drawings, wherein YI have illustrated a preferred embodiment of `my invention, there is shown a window frame in dotted lines in Fig. l, having the usual laterally spaced-apart parallel vertical side elements 1 and a lowermost or sill element 2 bridging thereacross, the top face 3 of the sill being provided with a step-down outer edge portion 4, the vertical exterior face of the sill being indicated generally at 5.

This window washers platform is intended to be removably inserted through said frame so as to project outwardly therefrom and upon which the washer operative may stand While exterorly of the room while performing work on the window exterior.

The device has a base or carrying member of a suitably sturdy material, such as of steel or the like, of a substantially rectangular outline, that includes a pair of spaced-apart parallel side beams 6 6 preferably of angleiron cross-sectional shape having an upstanding or vertical leg portion and a horizontal leg portion, 7 and 8 respectively, one leg portion being at right angles to the cooperating leg portion. A pair of spaced-apart beams 9 and 10 respectively, bridge across the inner and outer ends of said side beams to complete the rectangular outline of the base member. i

The innermost end beam 9 is intended to project a slight distance into the room through the window of which the platform is to be inserted, somewhat as indicated in Fig. l, and is provided with upwardly extending arms 11-11 that have loops 12-12 at their upper ends, so that said loops are thereby located at a predetermined distance above the sill-supported end beam.

A telescopically longitudinally-extensible tubular member consisting of a central pipe preferably made of upper and lower sections rigidly secured together as a unit 13, as by the welding or the like, With both ends of said sections being open and unobstructed, and a pairof end sections 14--14 each slidably engageable with one of the central pipe sections so as to adjustably vary the overall length of the tubular member to accommodate different widths of window openings, is carried in said loops.

While being transported, the end pipe sections are shifted together to have a minimum overall length and to tit approximately within the confines of the width of the base member, and when the device is supported on the sill of the window to be washed, and whereby the major portion of the device projects outwardly through the window frame, the end pipe sections 14-14 are then extended in opposite directions to overlap the vertical sides of the window frame, said end pipe sections will then bear against the inner faces 15-15 of said frame uprights, engaging the latter at an elevation that is an appreciable amount above the sill and limiting outward. movement of the device.

A cross-piece 16 bridges across said pair of spacedapart side beams and is movably adjustable lengthwise of the latter, said cross-piece having end strips 17-17 carried rigidly thereby in slidable engagement with the under face of the horizontal legs of the side beams, said cross-piece alsohaving lingers 18-18 at its ends `to slidably ride on the upper faces of the horizontal legs of said side beams. Thus, the cross-piece has portions straddling each of said horizontal leg portions of the side beams, to thereby limit vertical play between said beams and cross-piece.

A downwardly depending offset element 19 is rigidly carried by each end of the cross-piece to form a right angle with one of the end strips 17-117, said offset elements being adapted to be adjustably clamped to bearingly engage the vertical exterior face 20 of the building, as seen in Fig. l. A strut or brace 21 may interconnect each element 17 to its adjoining element 19 for rigidity.

One or more bolts, there being two shown in this instance at 22-22, have their innermost ends .rotatably journalled in said innermost end beams to project rearwardly or outwardly, the other ends of said bolts being threadedly vengageable'with `said cross-piece for slidably adjusting the latter :forwardly or rearwardly as required, and cranks `23 may be 'carried at'the .journalled ends of said bolts for-rotatably .operating the latter.

Obviously, after the `platform has been set up through the Window frame and while resting on Vthe top ofthe sill and projecting outwardly through the window opening, and with Ythe tubular member bearing against the innermost faces of the `window rframe uprights, the crosspiece may be drawn toward-the Vexterior upright "face vof l thesill by properly rotating the bolts to `thereby clamp the platform tightly between thewndow frame andthe vertical outer face of the Vsll,'with the points of application of said clamping force being `at a higher point at said uprights `than at the sill face.

In the constructionof buildings, the outermost `edge of the sill is nearly always lower than the inner edge thereof, mainlyfor drainage, and again the vertical outer face of the sill is somewhat uneven, and for these reasons, and also to `take into consideration the weight of the washer on the platform, there may be a tendency for the platform to tilt about its innermost end as an axis. To prevent such tilting I have added an extra means that cooperates with said offsets 19-19 and which may bear downwardly against the top faces of the outer portion of the sill adjacent the areas that are vclamped vby said oifsets, as indicated.

A slide 24 is mounted slidably adjustable on each of said off-sets, each vslide having a horizontal 'for lower 'foot portion 25 `to Vseat on the top face of the sill.

Suitable means are provided for locking each slide Vin vertically adjusted position on the offset, as by providing a series of vertically spaced-apart apertures 26 in the voifset and providing the slide with one yor more apertures 27 to register in sequence with the apertures 26. A pin- 28 maybe handily carried by a cord or chain 29, from each end of the cross-piece, for removable insertion through the registered apertures `of the cooperating slides and offsets. Obviously, as the off-sets and slides bear simultaneously against the top and the vertical exterior faces of the sill, stability is achieved to prevent tendency fof the platform to pivotallyswing about a horizontal axis after the platform has been clamped vinto its operative position.

A guard member may be mounted unitary with the base member, and made foldable or collapsible into operative and Vinoperativepositions, said guard including a U-shaped element having a pair of spaced-apart legs 30-30 interconnected at their upper ends by a cross element 31, the lower ends of said legs being pivotally connected to the side beams at 32 so that said U-shaped elernent may be swung downwardly or upwardly about its axis, as indicated more clearly in Fig. 1, vto thereby form Vthe back rest portion of the guard.

A pair of side arms 331-33 have their rear ends pivotally connected to said cross element 31, the other ends of said pair of side arms being pivotally connected to the 1vupper ends of'a pair of posts 34-34, whereby when said cross element is in elevated position as indicated in full lines in Fig. Land the posts upright, the arms 33-33 form side rails for the guard enclosure. The guard member may be collapsed to lie along the base member, somewhat as indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 1, so that the rear element, side arms and posts may be of an overall length to be within the contines of the base member. In `order to removably anchor the lower ends of the guard posts in operative position, sockets 35 may be carriedon the side beams and into which the free ends of the posts may be removably inserted.

A floor to support the workman is intended to be detachably mounted on said base of the device, the same made preferably in several sections to be more readily manageable during transportation from place to place, one of said floor sections 36 being of generally rectangular shape in plan view, so that its side edges may be supported on the horizontal legs of the pair of side beams while the outermost edge of said oorsec'tion vmay be supported along the horizontal legs ofthe outermost of the Yend beams.

One or more additional floor sections 37 may -be arranged inwardly adjacent said end section, and of substantially the same length as the latter so as to be snugly supported on lthe horizontal leg portions of the pair of side beams.

I claim:

A window washers platform adapted to be removably inserted through a window frame to rest on the sill thereof, comprising a substantially rectangular rigid frame includinga pair `of spaced-apart side beams and a pair of spaced-apart end beams, the innermost end beam being adapted to be positioned adjacent the inside edge Yofthe sill so that the major portion of the frame projects outwardly through the window frame; 'spaced apart-ears, the said Years extending upwardly from said innermost vend beam; a tube carried by said ears; a member telescoping into leach end of said tube for engaging the inner side of the window frame above said sill; a cross-piece bridging the sides of ysaid frame intermediate the ends thereof, the said cross-piece being slidably mounted on the sides of said frame and carrying at each end thereof downwardly projecting clamps adapted to engage the Youter side of said sill; an elongated `rod screw-threaded at one end thereof and provided with a crank handle at its other-end, the said rod being journalled in .the front rportion of said frame and screw-threadedlyfengagingsaid cross-piece for laterally adjusting the same; a slide mem berslidably engaging each of said clampsjand adjustable thereon to engage ythe top outermost side of said sill, land means for locking-each of Vsaid slidemembers nto lockingpositions.

References Cited in the tile 0f this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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