US2551846A - Guard for highway line marks - Google Patents

Description

M y 1951 H. L. MARTIN 2,551,846

GUARD FOR HIGHWAY LINE MARKS Filed Aug. 4, 1949 Z'mventor HARRY L. M14 RTIN Patented May 8, 1951 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GUARD FOR HIGHWAY LINE MARKS Harry L. Martin, Somerset, Pa.

Application August 4, 1949, Serial N 0. 108,573

1 Claim.

This invention relates to guards designed and intended to be temporarily positioned at spaced intervals across a freshly painted line mark, separating highway trafiic lanes, for the obvious purpose of diverting the traffic from the painted line mark until the latter is set and dry and will not be ruined or obliterated by contact by motor vehicle wheels.

Important objects and advantages of the invention are to provide a line mark guard of the character described, which is sufficiently formidable and menacing in appearance to discourage the average motorist from driving his vehicle across same, which is constructed of soft flexible rubber and therefore cannot be damaged by contact with motor vehicles, which will immediately resume its normal shape regardless of any distortion imposed thereon by contact with a vehicle, which embodies novel means for minimizing the liability of shifting from its properly located guarding position when struck by a passing vehicle, and which may be positioned and adjusted on a freshly painted line mark, or removed from the latter, without disturbing or smearing the line mark and without smearing the guard itself with paint.

Further objects of the invention are to pro vide a device of the class stated, which is simple in its construction and arrangement, durable and efiicient in its use, compact, light in weight, conveniently manipulated, and comparatively economical in its manufacture.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides in the novel construction, combination, and arrangement of parts herein specifically described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, but it is to be understood that changes in the form, proportions and details of construction may be resorted to that come within the scope of the claim hereunto appended.

In the drawing wherein like numerals of reference designate corresponding parts throughout the several views:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of a line mark guard constructed in accordance with the invention.

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken on line 2-2, Figure 1.

Figure 3 is a top plan view of the device.

Figures 4 and. 5 are side elevational views of modified forms of guards.

Referring in detail to the drawing the improved line mark guard is an integral unitary structure which may be constructed of any suitable material, preferably molded from soft flexible rubber.

The guard comprises an oblong, rectangularlyshaped, flat base I, the top of which preferably tapers toward the side and end edges thereof to lessen the weight and augment the flexibility of the structure.

A generally fiat upright member 2 is disposed vertically edgewise along the longitudinal center of the base i and has its ends spaced a considerable distance and. equi-distant from respective ends of the base. The upper portion of the upright member is bifurcated by a deep, substantially V-shaped recess 3 to form a pair of similar,

vertically projecting ears, respectively indicated at 4 and 5, which are tapered to reduce and sharpen the free upper ends 6 thereof.

The base I and the upright member 2, including the ears 1 and 5, are reenforced and stabilized by two pairs of side ribs, respectively indicated at l and 8, and by a pair of end ribs, respectively indicated at 8 and ID. The pair of side ribs 1 are disposed at one side of the upright member 2 and extend from the upper ends 6, of respective ears 4 and 5, to and laterally along the top of the base to the side edge of the latter. The pair of side ribs 8 are similarly disposed and arranged at the other side of the upright member.

The pair of end ribs 9 and II! are disposed at respective ends of the upright member 2 and extend from the upper ends 6, of respective ears 4 and 5, to and along the longitudinal center of the base I to respective end edges of the latter.

The bottom side of the base I is provided with a plurality of depending supporting studs 1 i having pointed free ends. The supporting studs are arranged in two spaced, transversely aligned rows, with the supporting studs of each of the rows being approximately under respective ends of the upright member 2.

The base I is provided with a plurality of large ventilating holes [2, which are arranged in two longitudinally extending rows disposed at respective sides of the upright member 2. The ventilating holes allow the passage of air and sunlight therethrough to thereby expedite the drying of the paint on the line mark area that is disposed directly beneath the guard.

In practice, a plurality of the improved guards are placed, at properly spaced intervals, to extend in the longitudinal direction transversely across the freshly painted line mark. It will here be noted that, under ordinary conditions and care, only the pointed tip of the supporting studs I I will come in actual contact with the wet paint on the trafiic line mark. As the base is spaced from the roadway by the supporting studs, the improved guard may be shifted, adjusted, and readjusted on a wet line mark without liability of smearing the latter or besmearing the guard structure. Further, due to the elevated position of the base I, the device is readily adaptable for engagement by a suitable gathering mechanism employed for collecting the guards after the trafiic line mark has properly set and dried.

The improved guard is colored or painted to render same readily discernible to a passing motorist, and preferably to give the device an appearance simulating metal or some other indurate material.

The improved guard is calculated to deceive the casual observer into assuming that damage or other untoward conditions may result by contact with the device, and thereby discourage carclessness and protect the freshly painted trafiic line mark until the latter is dry.

If a vehicle is driven across the improved guard, the latter, due to its flexibility and inherent resiliency, will simply be distorted and flatly compressed only while the vehicle wheel is travelling over same, after which the device will at once resume its normal shape without any damage thereto.

Due to the disclosed construction of the guard, the liability of the device being tossed away from its placed position on the line mark is reduced to a minimum, even if struck a glancing blow by contact with the vehicle wheel, as the device will simply collapse totally or in part when any considerable weight is imposed thereon.

The modified form of guard, shown in Figure 4, difiers from the guard above-described, only in that a ball [3 is carried at the upper end of each of the ears 4 and 5, and a centrally disposed ball I4 is provided on the top of each end of the base. The balls l3 and I4 serve to facilitate the manipulation of the device when placing and collecting the latter.

The modification, illustrated in Figure 5, comprises a base I5 provided with a centrally disposed upright member IS in the form of a hollow cone topped by a ball H. The base is provided with reenforcing ribs 18 and with supporting studs I9.

The present invention provides a most durable and eificient device of its kind, which may be cheaply manufactured, and conveniently and successfully employed for the purpose and in the manner herein set forth.

What I claim is:

A highway line mark guard molded in an in tegral unit of rubber, comprising an oblong rectangularly-shaped base, a longitudinally extending flat upright member disposed on the longitudinal center of said base and having the ends thereof spaced a considerable distance from respective ends of said base, the upper portion of said member being recessed to form a pair of spaced vertically projecting ears, reenforcing elements joined with said member and with said base for stabilizing said member and said base, and a plurality of supporting studs depending from the bottom of said base for supporting the latter in spaced relation to the surface of the hi hway- HARRY L. MARTIN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,208,080 Overdorff July 16, 1940 2,333,273 Scanlon Nov. 2, 1943

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