Elevating Tree Stand
A portable, elevating stand is constructed of a platform movably connected to a generally columnar upright support having a height along which movement of the platform is constrained. Connection between the platform and upright support may be through a linkage assembly comprising channels in which are positioned flange portions of the upright support, such flange portions being located along a majority of the height of the upright support. The platform assembly may be driven by a portable electric motor, including the use therefor of an hand-held electric drill, which is carried onto the platform assembly prior to use of the elevating stand. A method of raising and lowering a portable, elevating stand includes carrying onto the platform assembly a portable motor, engaging the motor with a means for raising or lowering the platform assembly, and operating the motor to effect raising or lowering of the platform assembly.
This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/731,184 filed Oct. 28, 2005, the entire disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a lift system for raising or lowering a platform. In particular, the apparatus provides a generally vertical beam against which a generally horizontal platform is constrained and along which the platform can move as the platform is raised or lowered by a winch or other means connected to the platform and having a cable running to near the top of the generally vertical beam.
2. Description of Related Art
Small, elevated, outdoor platforms that may be used for hunting or wildlife viewing are well known, in part because of their ease of construction and largely because of their great utility. Most often such a platform is built onto a tree, which provides the primary support therefor. A substantial disadvantage of such an elevated platform is that access is generally limited, most often being provided only by a ladder. Not uncommonly such ladder access is provided by only a primitive form of a ladder.
For hunters (or others wishing to use an elevated platform) who are not sufficiently agile, strong, steady, sturdy, or are otherwise of limited ability, a climb on a primitive ladder, or any ladder, may be daunting or impossible. For instance, persons with a physical disability or who are elderly may want to utilize such an elevated platform yet be unwilling or unable to climb to it. Even for persons willing and able to climb to an elevated platform, the climb may be dangerous. Injury from slips or falls while climbing a ladder is a well-known hazard. In fact, a professional analyst and commentator on the sport of hunting has suggested that as many as one-fifth of all hunters using ladders to access a stand will be injured.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTIONThe following is a summary of the invention in order to provide a basic understanding of some aspects of the invention. This summary is not intended to identify key/critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. Its sole purpose is to present some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later.
Instead of requiring a person to climb to an elevated platform, embodiments of the invention provide a lift system wherein the platform can be positioned low enough to the ground that a person can directly step or roll (as in the case of a person in a wheeled chair or other vehicle) onto or sit upon it, after which the platform, along with the person, can be raised into an elevated position.
In an embodiment, a portable, elevating stand comprises a generally columnar upright support having a height, the support including at least two flange portions projecting therefrom along at least a majority of the height; a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, the platform assembly being movably connected to the at least two flange portions of the support; and a means for raising and lowing the platform along the height of the column. In an embodiment, the at least two flange portions are comprised by a unitary plate portion mounted flush against a flat side of a tube portion of the generally columnar upright support. In an embodiment the tube portion has a square or rectangular cross section. In a further embodiment, the platform assembly includes at least two channels, each of the channels being sized and shaped to slidably engage at least one of the at least two flange portions; and wherein the channels are slidably engaged with the at least two flange portions, thereby constraining the platform assembly to move generally along the height of the column. In an embodiment, such a channel is constructed through the connection, in a stacked arrangement, of a main support plate, a spacer plate, and a flange keeper plate. In an embodiment, the generally columnar upright support comprises one of an I-beam, an angle iron, two angle irons attached back-to-back to form a shape generally described by a T, or a structure the shape of which is generally described by a double-T. In an embodiment, the stand further comprises a brake mechanism including one of a locking pin or a brake plate.
In an embodiment, the means for raising and lowering is a winch mounted on the platform assembly so as to be raised and lowered along with the platform assembly. In an alternate embodiment, the stand further comprises a hand-held electric drill connected to the winch through a gear set.
In a further alternate embodiment, a portable, elevating stand comprises an upright support having a height; a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, the platform assembly being movably connected to the upright support along the height thereof; a winch mounted on the platform assembly, the winch including a cable that traverses a distance from a drum of the winch to an attachment near a top of the support; and a hand-held electric drill operably engaged with the winch in a manner such that operation of the drill operates the winch and thereby effects at least one of the raising or lowering of the platform assembly along the height of the support. In an embodiment, the upright support comprises at least two flange portions projecting therefrom along at least a majority of the height; and the platform assembly is movably connected to the support only through connection to the at least two flange portions. In an embodiment, the support comprises a tube portion having a square or rectangular cross-section to which is attached flush against a flat side thereof a plate portion comprising the at least two flange portions, the shape of the support being that of a box-T.
An embodiment is a method of raising and lowering a portable, elevating stand comprising providing a portable, elevating stand that comprises a generally columnar upright support having a height; a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, the platform assembly being movably to the support; and a means for raising or lowing the platform along the height of the column; carrying a portable, electric motor and power source onto the platform; engaging the motor with the means for raising and lowering; and operating the motor engaged with the means for raising and lowering to effect raising or lowering of the platform. In an embodiment of such method the portable, electric motor is comprised by a hand-held drill, and the power source is a battery or fuel cell. In an alternate embodiment, the means for raising and lowering is a winch.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
As shown in
Configured as shown in
Alternate embodiments of the portable, elevating tree stand include further convenience features on the platform assembly 22, such as a gun or shooting rail, a safety railing for preventing a user from falling off the platform assembly 22, or a sound deadening structure constructed about the winch 25.
In a preferred embodiment, the platform assembly 22 is slidably engaged with the upright support 27 via a linkage assembly 72, a particular embodiment of which is shown in perspective view in
In an embodiment, the winch 25 is a manually operated winch driven by a hand crank. In an alternate embodiment, the winch 25 is a motor driven winch. In an embodiment, a motor driven winch may be alternately manually driven, as, for instance, in the event of a motor failure. A motor driven winch will generally be driven by an electric motor powered by a battery as discussed above. In an alternate embodiment, the manual drive engagement socket of a winch 25 is driven by a portable electric motor carried onto the platform assembly 22 at the time of use. In a particular embodiment, the portable electric motor is comprised by a hand-held electric drill. In an embodiment, such a portable motor, whether or not embodied in a drill, is powered by a rechargeable battery, while in alternate embodiments, alternate power sources, such as a fuel cell, are used to power the portable motor. In an embodiment using a drill to drive the winch 25, the drill produces at least 400 inch-pounds of torque, and is connected to the winch 25 via a gear set that includes a worm gear to provide a 20:1 ratio between revolutions of the drill drive and the winch drive.
This preferred box-T design (
Whereas the upright support 27 depicted in
In the preferred embodiment shown in
A further component of the lift system depicted in
In an embodiment shown in
Alternate embodiments of the brake assembly are depicted in FIGS. 5B-C. An alternate embodiment of the brake plate embodiment just discussed is depicted in
The brake embodiment of
A further alternate embodiment of the brake is shown in
As shown in
In an embodiment, the upright support 27 is held in a generally vertical orientation by attaching the upright support 27 to a tree. In an embodiment, attachment to a tree is facilitated by stabilizers 33, which are rigidly attached to the upright support 27 and project in a generally horizontal direction that is generally opposite to the direction of projection of the bar 31 at the top of the upright support 27. In various embodiments, the stabilizers 33 have a shape generally defined by a V, including having an opening between two generally opposing surfaces or edges, which surfaces or edges define an angle. When the upright support is attached to a tree, the stabilizers 33 are mounted against the tree with the tree positioned in the opening between the opposing surfaces or edges, which contact the tree. In alternate embodiments, the stabilizers 33 have a generally curved configuration, generally like that of a U, wherein the surfaces or edges 35 are generally defined by arcs that fit about a portion of a tree's circumference, for instance. The commonality among embodiments of the stabilizers is projections which can be attached to an upright object, such as a tree, to provide enhanced stability to the upright support 27 when the upright support 27 is to be maintained in a upright position for use in supporting the generally vertical movement of a platform assembly 22.
Various methods of securely attaching a stabilizer 33 to the upright support 27 may be used, including welding. Additionally, various methods of connecting a stabilizer 33 to a vertical support, such as a tree, may also be used, including, for example, a rope, cable, chain, or strap connecting generally from one opposing surface or edge to the other opposing surface or edge of the same stabilizer 33 around a tree. In the preferred embodiment shown in
In alternate embodiments, the upright support 27 is held in a generally vertical orientation by other methods as are well known in the art, such as connection to other vertical structures, or as a free-standing upright support supported by outriggers or a base. Such embodiments are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,265, which is wholly incorporated herein by reference.
In an embodiment, the entire lift system is able to be sufficiently disassembled that the assembly components can be stored and transported in a storage compartment of a vehicle, such as the trunk of a standard passenger automobile, the bed of a pick-up truck, or the cargo area of a sport-utility vehicle. In an embodiment, this transportability is effected in part by the fact that the upright support 27 is constructed of at least two pieces. In a preferred embodiment, the upright support 27 is about sixteen feet in total height and is constructed of three pieces, one of which is about six feet in length and two of which are about five feet in length. The joints at which any two of the components of the upright support 27 fit together are constructed by any reasonable method known in the art that maintains the stability of the upright support 27 and the general continuity of the slide plate 79. The stability of the joint may be enhanced by the stability provided by the stabilizers 33, when the stabilizers 33 are used as described above and as shown in the figures. In an additional embodiment, a joint support 34 is included at the joint, as is shown to be located internal to the tube 77 in
While the invention has been disclosed in conjunction with a description of certain embodiments, including those that are currently believed to be the preferred embodiments, the detailed description is intended to be illustrative and should not be understood to limit the scope of the present disclosure. As would be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, embodiments other than those described in detail herein are encompassed by the present invention. Modifications and variations of the described embodiments may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
Claims
1. A portable, elevating stand comprising:
- a generally columnar upright support having a height, said support including at least two flange portions projecting therefrom along at least a majority of said height;
- a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, said platform assembly being movably connected to said at least two flange portions of said support; and
- a means for raising and lowing said platform along said height of said column.
2. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 wherein said at least two flange portions are comprised by a unitary plate portion mounted flush against a flat side of a tube portion of said generally columnar upright support.
3. The portable, elevating stand of claim 2 wherein said platform assembly includes at least two channels, each of said channels being sized and shaped to slidably engage at least one of said at least two flange portions; and wherein said channels are slidably engaged with said at least two flange portions, thereby constraining said platform assembly to move generally along said height of said column.
4. The portable, elevating stand of claim 3 wherein said channel is constructed through the connection, in a stacked arrangement, of a main support plate, a spacer plate, and a flange keeper plate.
5. The portable, elevating stand of claim 2 wherein said tube portion has a square or rectangular cross section.
6. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 wherein said generally columnar upright support comprises one of an I-beam, an angle iron, two angle irons attached back-to-back to form a shape generally described by a T, or a structure the shape of which is generally described by a double-T.
7. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 wherein said means for raising and lowering is a winch mounted on said platform assembly so as to be raised and lowered along with said platform assembly.
8. The portable, elevating stand of claim 7 further comprising a hand-held electric drill connected to said winch through a gear set.
9. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 further comprising a brake mechanism including one of a locking pin or a brake plate.
10. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 further comprising a brake mechanism including one of a wedge or a cam.
11. The portable, elevating stand of claim 1 wherein said upright support is comprised of at least two components of generally similar structure that are joined at a joint.
12. A portable, elevating stand comprising:
- an upright support having a height;
- a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, said platform assembly being movably connected to said upright support along said height thereof;
- a winch mounted on said platform assembly, said winch including a cable that traverses a distance from a drum of said winch to an attachment near a top of said support; and
- a hand-held electric drill operably engaged with said winch in a manner such that operation of said drill operates said winch and thereby effects at least one of the raising or lowering of said platform assembly along said height of said support.
13. The portable, elevating stand of claim 12 wherein said upright support comprises at least two flange portions projecting therefrom along at least a majority of said height; and wherein said platform assembly is movably connected to said support only through connection to said at least two flange portions.
14. The portable, elevating stand of claim 13 wherein said support comprises a tube portion having a square or rectangular cross-section to which is attached flush against a flat side thereof a plate portion comprising said at least two flange portions, the shape of said support being that of a box-T.
15. A method of raising and lowering a portable, elevating stand comprising:
- providing a portable, elevating stand comprising a generally columnar upright support having a height; a platform assembly on which a user may stand or sit, said platform assembly being movably connected to said support; and a means for raising or lowing said platform along said height of said column;
- carrying a portable, electric motor and power source onto said platform;
- engaging said motor with said means for raising and lowering; and
- operating said motor engaged with said means for raising and lowering to effect raising or lowering of said platform.
16. The method of claim 15 wherein said portable, electric motor is comprised by a hand-held drill, and wherein said power source is a battery or fuel cell.
17. The method of claim 15 wherein said means for raising and lowering is a winch.
Type: Application
Filed: Oct 27, 2006
Publication Date: May 3, 2007
Inventor: Terrance Oertwig (West Plains, MO)
Application Number: 11/553,763
International Classification: E04G 3/28 (20060101);