Tree stand having an aluminum mesh platform and associated manufacturing process

Abstract

A tree stand including a frame member having a top portion, an aluminum mesh attached to the top portion of the rectangular frame member, wherein the aluminum mesh has die-cut, diamond-shaped openings. The method of manufacturing a platform for this tree stand includes cutting an aluminum sheet into a predetermined shape, die cutting holes into the aluminum sheet, applying pressure on the die-cut aluminum sheet, positioning the die-cut aluminum sheet over a frame member, and welding the die-cut aluminum sheet to the frame member, thereby constructing a platform for a tree stand.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] This invention relates generally to a tree strand having an aluminum mesh platform, and more particularly, to a tree stand formed of aluminum that is die-cut and then applied with pressure to form a mesh and an associated method of manufacturing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] People who enjoy the outdoors, whether they are hunters, photographers, or naturalists, often require an elevated vantage point. A common mechanism to providing this elevated vantage point is through a tree stand. A tree stand typically has a lower platform for sitting or standing. This platform is attached to one end of a member that extends substantially vertically upward from the platform. The other end of the member has a seat attached thereto. There is typically a spike, or screw-type device, cleat or similar mechanism that is utilized to attach the member to the tree.

[0003] There are a number of problems associated with typical tree stands. Usually, tree stands are constructed out of steel. This makes the tree stand very heavy so that it is difficult to lift-up into the tree. Also, due to this weight, extreme care must be taken to prevent the tree stand from falling out of the tree. Furthermore, the platform is merely a series of steel bars extending between the sides of a rectangular frame. In adverse weather conditions, these shiny steel bars will not provide very much traction for the person who is utilizing the tree stand. Moreover, steel is susceptible to corrosion when exposed to the elements.

[0004] The present invention is directed to overcoming one or more of the problems set forth above.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] In one aspect of this invention, a tree stand having an aluminum mesh platform is disclosed. The tree stand includes a frame member having a top portion, an aluminum mesh attached to the top portion of the rectangular frame member, wherein the aluminum mesh has diamond-shaped openings.

[0006] In another aspect of this invention, a method for constructing a tree stand having an aluminum platform is disclosed. The method includes cutting an aluminum sheet into a predetermined shape, die cutting holes into the aluminum sheet, applying pressure on the die-cut aluminum sheet, positioning the die-cut aluminum sheet over a frame member, and welding the die-cut aluminum sheet to the frame member, thereby constructing a platform for a tree stand.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0007] For a better understanding of the present invention, reference may be made to the accompanying drawings in which:

[0008] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a tree stand of the present invention including a platform, member and seat;

[0009] FIG. 2 is an isolated view of a portion of the platform shown in FIG. 1. and indicated by a portion taken along circle 2-2;

[0010] FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a sheet metal cutting machine;

[0011] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a die-cutting machine; and

[0012] FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a roller machine for applying pressure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] In the following detailed description numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the invention. However, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details.

[0014] Referring now to the drawings, and initially to FIG. 1, which illustrates a tree stand that is denoted generally by reference numeral 10. The tree stand 10 includes a platform that is generally indicated by numeral 12. The platform 12 includes a platform frame 14 that is “U”-shaped and having a series of cross-beams 16, 18, 20, 22, and 24, respectively, that extend between the sides of the U-shaped platform frame 14. Although the number of cross beams can vary, the preferred number is five (5). An expanded mesh screen 30 is welded on top of the sides of the platform frame 14 and to the top of crossbeams 18, 20, 22 and 26. The expanded mesh screen 30 is preferably formed in a series of diamond-shaped openings.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 2, preferably, a weld is preferably made on the bottom of each expanded metal diamond-shaped opening making up the expanded mesh screen 30 on the left side of the U-shaped platform frame 14 as shown by welds 32, 34, 36 and 38, respectively. In a similar manner, a weld is preferably made on the top of each metal diamond forming the expanded mesh screen 30 on the right side of the U-shaped platform frame 14, which is not shown. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 2, a weld is preferably made on the side of each metal diamond forming the expanded mesh screen 30 on the crossbeam 24 as shown by welds 40 and 42, respectively. In a similar manner, a weld is preferably made on the side of each metal diamond forming the expanded mesh screen 30 on the cross-beam 16, which is not shown. There are strategically placed welds attaching the expanded mesh screen 30 to the intermediate crossbeams 20, 22 and 24, preferably at every third diamond, with an illustrative, exemplary weld indicated by numeral 44.

[0016] The welding voltage can range between 370 to 395 volts, with a preferred range between 375 to 382 volts, and an optimal value being 380 volts. The preferred power level of the welding power supply is 30 kilowatts. Although a number of shielding gases may suffice, the preferred shielding gas is carbon dioxide. The preferred weld wire is aluminum mangamess that can have a diameter that ranges between 2.35 millimeters and 6 millimeters with the preferred range being between 3 to 4 millimeters. The preferred mode of welding is utilizing hand welds so that stick-out and pulsing is not a relevant issue of concern.

[0017] Referring again to FIG. 1, in the middle of crossbeam 16 are located a first U-shaped channel piece 50 and a second U-shaped channel piece 52 that are attached thereto. This attachment is preferably by a first and second pair of bolts 51 and 53, respectively, however, a wide variety of attachment mechanisms will suffice such as rivets, adhesives, and so forth. There is a first support member 54 and a second support member 56 that are preferably bolted to the first and second U-shaped channel pieces 50 and 52, respectively. The preference for bolting is to allow the support members 54 and 56 to pivot, however, a wide variety of attachment mechanisms will also suffice such as pins, rivets, and so forth.

[0018] The primary means for attaching or holding the tree stand 10 to a tree or other structural device is a belt 84, preferably made of fabric. In the preferred embodiment, the belt 84 is wrapped around the tree or other structural device and fastened to a fastener (not shown) securing the tree stand 10 to the tree or other structural devices. The fastener can be attached to one end of the belt or to the tree stand 10 directly. The fastener can be the type found in automobiles. However, there are numerous belts or fasteners used for securing users or devices known to those skilled in the art that can be substituted.

[0019] Between the first support member 54 and the second support member 56 is a bracket 58 that is either welded or attached thereto between the first and second support members 54 and 56, respectively. As an additional or secondary means for attaching the tree stand 10 to the tree or other structure, there is a notch 60 that hooks over a screw-type device 62, however, any spike, cleat or other mechanism that can firmly and fixedly attach the bracket 58 to a tree or other structure will suffice. The notch 60 and screw-type device 62 preclude the tree stand 10 from sliding or falling downwardly.

[0020] There is a first support cable 64 that has one end portion attached to the first support member 54 with first attachment hardware 66. The first support cable 64 has a second end portion attached to the outside of the U-shaped platform frame 14 by means of second attachment hardware 68. There is a second support cable 70 that has one end portion attached to the second support member 56 with third attachment hardware 72. The second support cable 70 has a second end portion attached to the outside of the U-shaped platform frame 14 with fourth attachment hardware 74 on the opposite side and parallel to the attachment of the first support cable 64 by means of second attachment hardware 68.

[0021] Attached to the top of the first and second support members 54 and 56, respectively, is a cushioned seat 76 that is preferably attached by straps (not shown). The front portion of the cushioned seat 76 is held upright by means of a U-shaped support bracket 78. The U-shaped support bracket 78 is attached to the outside of the first and second support members 54 and 56 by means of fifth and sixth attachment hardware 80 and 82, respectively. The cushioned seat 76 preferably has two creases in it and wraps around the end of the U-shaped support bracket 78 and is attached to itself, preferably, but not necessarily, through sewn stitching.

[0022] The first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth attachment means 66, 68, 72, 74, 80 and 82, respectively, are preferably nuts and bolts, but any of a wide variety of hardware will suffice such as rivets, adhesives, and so forth.

[0023] Referring now to FIG. 3, the first step in the process of creating the expanded mesh screen 30 is to cut either a portion of an aluminum roll or large piece of aluminum as designated by numeral 88 into select pieces that would cover the platform 12 of the tree stand 10. The aluminum roll or large piece 88 is supported by a table 90 and is directed into a metal cutter that is generally indicated by numeral 92. There is an upper blade 94 and a lower blade 96 and a device for moving the upper blade 94 with respect to the lower blade 96 to shear-off the aluminum 88 into pieces of aluminum platform material 98. A rotating counter balance 99 facilitates this up and down movement of the upper blade 94 and lower blade 96. A typical sheet metal cutting device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,069,583, that issued Jan. 24, 1978, which is incorporated herein by reference. The preferred thickness of the aluminum platform material 98 is six (6) millimeters, which provides a sharp contrast to three and one-half (3.5) millimeters for steel.

[0024] Referring now to FIG. 4, the piece of aluminum platform material 98 is placed on a table 102 and then fed into a die-cutting machine that is generally indicated by numeral 104. The die-cutting machine 104 includes a moveable pressure bar 106 that reciprocates up and down over a base frame 105. The dies 108, 110 and 112, respectfully are removably attached by bolts 114, 116 and 118, respectfully. The dies 108, 110, and 112 create diamond-shaped or rhombus-shaped holes, having six (6) borders in the aluminum platform material creating angled slits or openings, which are not exactly vertical, in the aluminum platform material 98 when the dies 108, 110 and 112 strike the aluminum platform material and strike the punch support 120. The maximum speed is cutting 125 times to create 62.5 lines of holes in about 1.43 meters since two hole punches are required to create one full hole line. The perforated aluminum platform material leaving the die-cutting machine 104 is generally indicated by numeral 122. Examples of die-cutting equipment include U.S. Pat. No. 3,977,281, issued Aug. 31, 1976; U.S. Pat. No. 4,069,583, issued Jan. 24, 1978; U.S. Pat. No. 5,487,634, issued Jan. 30, 1996; and U.S. Pat. No. 3,937,113, issued Feb. 10, 1976, all of which are hereby expressly incorporated by reference.

[0025] Referring now to FIG. 5, a pressure roller mechanism is generally indicted by numeral 123. Pressure is applied to the perforated aluminum platform material 122 by a first pressure roller 124 that is adjacent to a second pressure roller 126. The first pressure roller 124 has a first end portion 132 and a second end portion 136 and the second pressure roller 126 has a first end portion 134 and a second end portion 138. The first end portion 132 of the first pressure roller 124 and the first end portion 134 of the second pressure roller 126 are held together in relation to each other by a first support mechanism 128. The second end portion 136 of the first pressure roller 124 and the second end portion 138 of the second pressure roller 126 are held together in relation to each other by a second support mechanism 130. The first support mechanism 128 is held in position by a first support column 140 and a second support column 142 and the second support mechanism 130 is held in position by a third support column 144 and a fourth support column 146. There is a first connecting support bracket 148 that connects the first support column 140 to the third support column 144 and a second connecting bracket 150 that connects the second support column 142 to the fourth support column 146. Pressure is adjustably applied to the first end portion 132 of the first pressure roller 124 and the first end portion 134 of the second pressure roller 126 through a first rotatable fly wheel 152 that moves a first linear screw 154 up and down to apply pressure through the first support mechanism 128. Moreover, pressure is adjustably applied to the second end portion 136 of the first pressure roller 124 and the second end portion 138 of the second pressure roller 126 through a second rotatable fly wheel 156 that moves a second linear screw 158 up and down to apply pressure through the second support mechanism 130. There is at least One Hundred (100) metric tons applied per square meter by the first pressure roller 124 and the second pressure roller 126, with the preferred pressure being One Hundred and Eighty (180) metric tons per square meter. The preferred rate of rotation for both the first pressure roller 124 and the second pressure roller 126 is 1.65 meters per second. The thickness of the perforated aluminum platform material 122 is preferably, but not necessarily, reduced from about six millimeters to about 4 millimeters or a reduction of at least twenty-five percent (25%) and preferably one-third of the thickness from the perforated aluminum platform material 122 as transformed into the final aluminum platform 160 in preparation for welding, as previously discussed. The final aluminum platform is supported by a support table 162.

Industrial Applicability

[0026] The present invention is advantageously applicable in creating a platform for a tree stand that provides reduces cost, corrosion and provides greater traction.

[0027] The present invention provides a platform 12 for a tree stand 10 formed of low cost and corrosion-resistant aluminum that is first cut into aluminum pieces 98 and then die-cut to form diamond shaped openings to create mesh of perforated aluminum platform material 122. Pressure rollers 124 and 126 flatten the perforated aluminum platform material 122 into a final aluminum platform 160 that is then welded onto a U-shaped platform frame 14 having cross-beams 16, 18, 20, 22 and 24.

[0028] Other aspects, objects and advantages of the present invention can be obtained from a study of the drawings, the disclosure and the appended claims.

Claims

1. A tree stand comprising:

a frame member having a top portion; and

an aluminum mesh attached to said top portion of said rectangular frame member, wherein said aluminum mesh has die-cut, diamond-shaped openings.

2. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, wherein said aluminum mesh was reduced in thickness after exposure to pressure.

3. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, wherein said aluminum mesh is attached to said top portion of said rectangular frame through welding.

4. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, further including a plurality of cross members attached to said frame member.

5. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, further including at least one support member, having a first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion of said at least one support member is pivotally attached to said frame member.

6. The tree stand as set forth in claim 5, wherein said second portion of said at least one support member is attached to a seat.

7. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, further including a first support member, having a first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion of said first support member is pivotally attached to said frame member and a second support member, having a first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion of said second support member is pivotally attached to said frame member.

8. The tree stand as set forth in claim 1, further including a first support member, having a first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion of said first support member is pivotally attached to said frame member by a first U-shaped channel piece and a second support member, having a first portion and a second portion, wherein said first portion of said second support member is pivotally attached to said frame member by a second U-shaped channel piece.

9. The tree stand as set forth in claim 7, wherein said second portion of said first support member is attached to a seat and said second portion of said second support member is attached to said seat.

10. The tree stand as set forth in claim 7, wherein a first support cable is attached to said second portion of said first support member and is attached to said frame member and a second support cable is attached to said second portion of said second support member and is attached to said frame member.

11. The tree stand as set forth in claim 7, further including a bracket attached between said first support member and said second support member to provide attachment to another structure.

12. A method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand comprising:

cutting an aluminum sheet into a predetermined shape;

die cutting holes into said aluminum sheet;

applying pressure to said die-cut aluminum sheet;

positioning said die-cut aluminum sheet over a frame member; and

welding said die-cut aluminum sheet to said frame member, thereby constructing a platform for a tree stand.

13. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said step of applying pressure utilizes a plurality of rollers that apply pressure to said die-cut aluminum sheet.

14. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said predetermined shape of said cut aluminum sheet is rectangular.

15. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said die-cut holes are in the form of slits.

16. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said die-cut holes are rhombus-shaped after said step of applying pressure on said die-cut aluminum sheet.

17. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said die-cut holes are diamond-shaped after said step of applying pressure on said die-cut aluminum sheet.

18. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said step of applying pressure on said die-cut aluminum sheet reduces a thickness of said die-cut aluminum sheet by at least twenty-five percent.

19. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said step of applying pressure on said die-cut aluminum sheet reduces a thickness of said die-cut aluminum sheet by at least one-third.

20. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said step of welding said die-cut aluminum sheet to said frame member utilizes carbon dioxide as a shielding gas.

21. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 13, wherein said step of applying pressure utilizing a plurality of rollers that apply pressure to said die-cut aluminum sheet involves an application of at least 100 metric tons of pressure per square meter.

22. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 13, wherein said step of applying pressure utilizing a plurality of rollers that apply pressure to said die-cut aluminum sheet involves an application of at least 180 metric tons of pressure per square meter.

23. The method for manufacturing a platform for a tree stand as set forth in claim 12, wherein said step of welding said die-cut aluminum sheet to said frame member utilizes aluminum mangamess as a welding wire.