METAL FENCE POSTS WITH INSULATING COUPLERS AND ASSOCIATED SYSTEMS AND METHODS
Some embodiments are directed to multi-piece fence posts that include: (a) a first anchor (typically metal) fence post member having opposing first and second end portions, wherein, in position, the first end portion is configured to reside underground; (b) a second (typically metal) fence post member having opposing first and second end portions; and (c) a coupler configured to snugly hold the second end portion of the first anchor metal fence post member and the first end portion of the second metal fence post member to thereby define an elongate fence post.
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This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Patent Serial No. 60/805,244, filed Jun. 20, 2006, the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference as if recited in full herein.
FIELD OF THE INVENTIONThe present invention relates to fences, and may be particularly suitable for multi-purpose fencing systems that can be used to hold a variety of different fencing materials.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTIONPlastic fence posts have been used to hold lateral fencing material such as wire, rope and/or fabric strips. Unfortunately, exposure to sun and/or other environmental elements can unduly deteriorate the plastic fence posts over time.
SUMMARY OF EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTIONEmbodiments of the present invention provide multi-piece metal fence posts with insulating couplers therebetween.
The insulating couplers may define two opposed receiving channels and may have a substantially rigid elastomeric body. The receiving channel may comprise a planar portion to snugly and matably receive a metal fence post having a corresponding planar portion to provide positive orientation upon assembly.
Some embodiments are directed to multi-piece fence posts that include: (a) a first anchor (typically metal) fence post member having opposing first and second end portions, wherein, in position, the first end portion is configured to reside underground; (b) a second metal fence post member having opposing first and second end portions; and (c) an insulating coupler configured to snugly hold the second end portion of the first anchor metal fence post member and the first end portion of the second metal fence post member to thereby define an elongate fence post.
Other embodiments are directed to non-metallic insulating fence post couplers that are sized and configured to hold two metallic rods in spaced apart alignment.
The insulating coupler may include a partition residing between spaced apart first and second receiving channels to prevent the two metallic rods from contacting when assembled.
Still other embodiments are directed to a fencing system that includes: (a) a plurality of metal fence posts, at least some of which comprise first and second metallic fence post rod members held in spaced apart alignment by a non-metallic insulating coupler; (b) a plurality of fencing material couplers mounted on the metal fence posts; and (c) flexible material held by the fencing material couplers so as to extend between the metal fence posts to enclose a target area.
Further features, advantages and details of the present invention will be appreciated by those of ordinary skill in the art from a reading of the figures and the detailed description of the embodiments that follow, such description being merely illustrative of the present invention. These and other objects and/or aspects of the present invention are explained in detail in the specification set forth below.
The present invention now is described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the invention are shown. This invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.
Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. In the figures, the thickness of certain lines, layers, components, elements or features may be exaggerated for clarity. Broken lines illustrate optional features or operations unless specified otherwise.
The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the singular forms “a”, “an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “comprises” and/or “comprising,” when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof. As used herein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. As used herein, phrases such as “between X and Y” and “between about X and Y” should be interpreted to include X and Y. As used herein, phrases such as “between about X and Y” mean “between about X and about Y.” As used herein, phrases such as “from about X to Y” mean “from about X to about Y.”
Unless otherwise defined, all terms (including technical and scientific terms) used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. It will be further understood that terms, such as those defined in commonly used dictionaries, should be interpreted as having a meaning that is consistent with their meaning in the context of the specification and relevant art and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless expressly so defined herein. Well-known functions or constructions may not be described in detail for brevity and/or clarity.
It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “on”, “attached” to, “connected” to, “coupled” with, “contacting”, etc., another element, it can be directly on, attached to, connected to, coupled with or contacting the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In contrast, when an element is referred to as being, for example, “directly on”, “directly attached” to, “directly connected” to, “directly coupled” with or “directly contacting” another element, there are no intervening elements present. It will also be appreciated by those of skill in the art that references to a structure or feature that is disposed “adjacent” another feature may have portions that overlap or underlie the adjacent feature.
Spatially relative terms, such as “under”, “below”, “lower”, “over”, “upper” and the like, may be used herein for ease of description to describe one element or feature's relationship to another element(s) or feature(s) as illustrated in the figures. It will be understood that the spatially relative terms are intended to encompass different orientations of the device in use or operation in addition to the orientation depicted in the figures. For example, if the device in the figures is inverted, elements described as “under” or “beneath” other elements or features would then be oriented “over” the other elements or features. Thus, the exemplary term “under” can encompass both an orientation of over and under. The device may be otherwise oriented (rotated 90 degrees or at other orientations) and the spatially relative descriptors used herein interpreted accordingly. Similarly, the terms “upwardly”, “downwardly”, “vertical”, “horizontal” and the like are used herein for the purpose of explanation only unless specifically indicated otherwise.
It will be understood that, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein to describe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections, these elements, components, regions layers and/or sections should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element, component, region, layer or section from another region, layer or section. Thus, a first element, component, region, layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element, component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachings of the present invention. The sequence of operations (or steps) is not limited to the order presented in the claims or figures unless specifically indicated otherwise.
Turning now to the figures,
As shown in
Referring again to
Referring to
The insulating coupler 20 can be non-metallic or may be metallic with non-metallic portions or coatings sufficient to electrically insulate the two metal fence post members 15, 25 after assembly and provide the desired structural support. In some embodiments, the coupler 20 is a unitary body of substantially rigid non-metallic material. The coupler 20 may be a molded body. Examples of suitable non-metallic materials include elastomers, composites and ceramics and/or combinations thereof, such as for example, polymers, copolymers and derivatives thereof such as nylon, acetal, polyethylene (PE), high-density molecular weight polyethylene (HDMWPE), and TEFLON.
The coupler 20 can be configured to slidably receive and releasably securely hold the fence post members 15, 20 (and/or 201, 202,
In other embodiments, adhesive may be used to hold the coupler 20 and the respective fence post member 15, 20 (or 201, 202) in snug/tight abutment.
As noted above, the fence post members 15, 25 can be generally or substantially tubular with a non-circular shaped configuration, with a width that may be between about 0.1-1 inch, typically between about 0.2-0.5 inches, and at least one of the fence post members (e.g., member 25) is typically a solid metallic rod. In some embodiments, the fence member 15, 25 can be include a solid rod with a thickness of between about 0.25 inches measured across the planar portions (
Alternatively, circular tubular configuration posts may also be used. The fence member 15, 25 (i.e., rod) may be coated with a paint or other suitable material. Where non-metallic components are used, those components may be coated with or formed from an ultra-violet radiation-resistant material to allow for longer exposure to sun without undue deterioration.
In some embodiments, the fence posts 10 can be configured to hold fencing material 75 that may be flexible material. The term “flexible” means non-rigid (i.e., unlike boards). The fencing material 75 may comprise a substantially planar or other fabric, a tubular (drawn) relatively thin wire (smooth or barbed), rope, wire or rope, shielded wire, and the like. A fence post 10, 100 may also hold combinations of the different fencing materials.
In some embodiments, non-metallic, typically resilient, end caps 30 (
In some embodiments, the fence system 10s can be used to provide an electric charge along the fencing material, e.g., an electric fence system.
The foregoing is illustrative of the present invention and is not to be construed as limiting thereof. Although a few exemplary embodiments of this invention have been described, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that many modifications are possible in the exemplary embodiments without materially departing from the novel teachings and advantages of this invention. Accordingly, all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope of this invention as defined in the claims. The invention is defined by the following claims, with equivalents of the claims to be included therein.
Claims
1. A multi-piece fence post comprising:
- a first anchor fence post member having opposing first and second end portions, wherein, in position in the ground, the first end portion is configured to reside underground;
- a second fence post member having opposing first and second end portions; and
- a insulating coupler configured to snugly hold the second end portion of the first anchor metal fence post member and the first end portion of the second metal fence post member to thereby define an elongate fence post.
2. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first and second fence post members are metal, and wherein the insulating coupler that has spaced apart first and second receiving channels, each of the channels configured to snugly slidably receive and releasably hold a respective one of the first and second fence post members.
3. A fence post according to claim 2, wherein the insulating coupler comprises a partition residing between the first and second receiving channels to prevent proximately held ends of the first and second fence members from contacting when assembled.
4. A fence post according to claim 2, wherein the insulating coupler comprises a closed partition residing between the first and second receiving channels to prevent the proximately held portions of the first and second fence members from contacting when assembled.
5. A fence post according to claim 1, wherein the first and second fence post members comprise metal rods.
6. A fence post according to claim 5, wherein the metal rods have a cross-sectional profile with opposing first and second substantially planar portions connected by first and second opposing substantially arcuate portions, and wherein the insulating coupler is configured with at least one substantially corresponding receiving channel shape configured to matably and snugly receive target end portions of the first and second fence post members.
7. A fence post according to claim 6, wherein the metal rods have a diameter that is between about 0.3 to about 0.5 inches, measured from a centerline extending across the metal rod to the arcuate portions.
8. A fence post according to claim 2, wherein one of the first and second channels is longer than the other.
9. A fence post according to claim 8, wherein the longer channel is between about 10-30% longer than the other channel.
10. A fence post according to claim 2, wherein the insulating coupler is non-metallic.
11. A fence post according to claim 1, further comprising at least one non-metallic fencing material coupler configured to slidably mount to the second fence post member to releasably hold fencing material.
12. A fence post according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of non-metallic fencing material couplers configured to releasably hold flexible, substantially planar fencing material.
13. A fence post according to claim 1, further comprising a plurality of non-metallic fencing material couplers configured to releasably hold a strip of wire.
14. A fence post according to claim 11, wherein the non-metallic fencing material couplers are configured to hold the fencing material in a substantially horizontal orientation.
15. A non-metallic insulating fence post coupler sized and configured to hold two metallic rods in spaced apart alignment.
16. A coupler according to claim 15, wherein the insulating coupler comprises a partition residing between spaced apart first and second receiving channels to prevent the two metallic rods from contacting when assembled.
17. A coupler according to claim 16, wherein the insulating coupler comprises a closed partition residing between the first and second receiving channels to prevent proximately held ends of the two rods from contacting when assembled.
18. A coupler according to claim 15, wherein the receiving channels have a cross-sectional profile with opposing first and second substantially planar portions connected by first and second opposing substantially arcuate portions.
19. A fence post according to claim 16, wherein one of the first and second channels is between about 10-30% longer than the other channel.
20. A fencing system comprising:
- a plurality of metal fence posts, at least some of which comprise first and second metallic fence post rod members held in spaced apart alignment by a non-metallic insulating coupler;
- a plurality of fencing material couplers mounted on the metal fence posts; and
- flexible material held by the fencing material couplers so as to extend between the metal fence posts to enclose a target area.
Type: Application
Filed: Jun 5, 2007
Publication Date: Jan 3, 2008
Applicant:
Inventor: James William Coley (Raleigh, NC)
Application Number: 11/758,096
International Classification: E04H 17/20 (20060101); E04H 17/14 (20060101);