US3021114A - Vertically adjustable fence - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 13, 1962 J. F. ocoNNELL 3,021,114

VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE FENCE Filed Jan. 14. 1959 INV EN TOR (/zaf F 0 Hamam 7j @mM/mz? iinited States Patent 3,021,114 VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLE FENCE llohn F. Oonnell, 5422 Varnum St., Bladensburg, Md. Filed Jan. 14, 1959, Ser. No. 786,752 6 Claims. (Cl. 256-24) This invention relates generally to Vfencing and more particularly to a fence which may be 'temporarily raised or removed to facilitate the cutting of grass or weeds adjacent thereto or the passage of a vehicle between the supporting posts thereof.

Fences of various types are well known in the art and insofar as domestic or non-industrial types are concerned, most are characterized by a number of inherently disadvantageous characteristics. Among these are: an impossibility of erection by a do-it-yourself home owner due to fence constructions requiring installation by two or more mechanics; an unnecessarily high rst cost and subsequent maintenance or replacement costs due to poor engineering of the various elements comprising the fence; and a lack of exibility of utility in that once installed, the conventional domestic fence is intended to be permanent and hence is immovable for purposes of mowing or cleaning the adjacent lawn areas or of occasional passage of a vehicle, etc. from without to within the enclosed area.

Accordingly, the chief object of the present invention is to provide an improved fence construction which obviates the above and other objectionable characteristics of known fence structures.

An important object of the present invention is to provide an improved fence construction wherein any or all of the portions thereof are partially or wholly movable to facilitate the mowing or cleaning'of the ground area immediately adjacent thereto or to permit passage into the area between the supporting posts of the removed portion or portions.

Another important object of the present invention is to provide an improved fence construction comprising conventional supporting posts arranged at spaced intervals, top rails as desired, spans of wire fence extending between the posts, and means for removably connecting the spans to the posts so as to permit the adjustment of or moving of the spans to permit grass cutting, etc., thereunder or free passage between a pair of the posts.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved fence construction which may be readily erected by the average home owner without requiring special tools or the aid of mechanics.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an improved fence construction of the type described which may be readily and economically manufactured, and carried by conventional hardware dealers as regular rather than special stock.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent during the course of the following descriptions.

In the drawings I have shown two embodiments of the invention. In these showings:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the improved fence comprising the present invention showing two wire spans meeting at a corner post; g

FIGURE 2 is an elevational view tosa reduced scale of the fence showing one end of a span raised for access to the ground area thereunder;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary elevational view to an enlarged scale showing the means for removably connecting one end of a wire span to a post;

FIGURE 4 is a top plan view thereof to an enlarged scale partly in sections;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view to an enlarged scale PICC of one of the clips used for fastening the wire spans to the supporting posts and the top rails;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of a modified form of T-bar which enables ready adjustment of the tension of a span;

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of a modified form of the T-bar post connecting means; and

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of a modiiied form of the post-connected collar which supports the top rails and permits their ready detaching therefrom.

Referring to the drawings, numeral 10 indicates each of a plurality of wire panels which are preferably of the chain link type which embodies considerable flexibility as compared to other, welded wire types of fencing. Each of the panels 10 is supported at its ends in a manner to be described upon spaced posts 12 and, where the length of the wire panel is greater than the span of two posts and is equal to the spacing of three or more posts, each panel 10 is fastened to posts 14 intermediate their lengths by means of wire clips 16 to aiford the necessary longitudinal rigidity against lateral displacement of the fence as a whole.

Horizontal rails or pipes 18 are connected to and between adjacent fence posts by means of collars 20 which receive the ends of the rails 18 and are connected to the posts 12 by straps 22 and bolts. The post connecting rails 18 afford longitudinal rigidity to the fence and are equal in length to the adjacent wire span 10. The rails 18 are connected to the posts 14 only by loose fitting rings 19 iixed to the upper surface of post caps 21 (FIG- URES 1 and 2) which are seated on and encircle the upper ends of the posts 14.

As seen in detail in FIGURES 3 and 4, .an elongated -channel 24 extends vertically from a point adjacent to the ground line to just below a rail 18 and includes a coextensive angled web 26 having suitably positioned apertures by which it may be rigid bolted to a post 12 by vertically spaced straps 28. Each wire panel 10 is equal in length to once or twice the length of the spacing of the posts 12 for convenience in handling although the spans can be o-f greater length, and each post 12 which is adjacent to the ends of a panel has a channel 24 xed thereto as described and extending toward another channel.

The flanges 30 of an elongated T-bar 32 comprising a panel connector are adapted to be slidably received within each of the channels 24 and the web 34 of the T-bar is provided with a plurality of apertures 36 spaced in aclcordance with the weave of the wire panel 10. The

ends of each wire panel are readily connected to the webs 34 of the T-bars 32 by untwisting the end wire of each span and rewinding it through the apertures 36 of the T-bars after placing them into position within the channels 24 although the span may be attached to the T-bars before they are so positioned.

It will be noted (FIGURE 4) that when in operative position, each of the panels 10 is mounted just outwardly of the top rails 18 so that the thus offset panels may be raised upwardly in the channels 24 without interference after the fence holding clips 16 are disconnected from the rails and, where present, from the intermediate posts 14.

Where it is desired to adjust the tension of a wire panel 10, a modified form of a T-bar 40 (FIGURE 6) may be used. This differs from the T-bar 32 in that the web 34 comprises two parts connected at vertically spaced points by adjustable screw means 42, the tension of a span 10 being greater when the parts of the web 34 are closest together. This adjustment is also important when the posts 12 are not strictly vertical and parallel as either the upper or lower screw means may be solely adjusted to remove slack in the wire span as otherwise the upper or lower straps 28 must be tightened or loosened.

Further, to enable the ready removal of any of the spans as a whole between their supporting posts 12, a modiiied form of channel 44 may be used (FIGURE 7) with spaced headed tongues 45 vreplacing the angled webs 26 and being detachably receivable in vertically spaced bayonet slots 46 formed directly in the posts 12. Instead of the perforations 36, the web 34 may have open slots 48 to receive the wire 'and the lip portions 49' bent over to retain the wires therein.

Similarly, the top rails 18 may be .made readily-detachable by the use of the supporting collar 50 (FIGURE 8) which is a cut-away tubular section slightly more than semi-circular in cross-section and opening upwardly as at 52. In use, the ends of the rails 18 are merely snapped into or out of the collars `50 as desired. -It will be noted .that at corner posts, as indicated in dotted lines in FIG- URE 4, a second pair of straps 28 is secured by apertures 29 to another of the angled flanges 26, oppositely disposed so as to form the necessary 90 angle-support for the adjacent corner panels 10. It will be noted that the webs 10 are thus substantially tangential to the outer side of the posts 12.

It will now be readily apparent, that the fence comprising the present invention may be readily erected by the home owner without ditliculty by tirst placing the posts 12 and 14 at spaced intervals usually 8 or 10 feet, along the property line, etc. The rails 18 are next positioned in the collars 20 and fastened to the posts. After the installation of the channels 24 on the proper posts, 'the T-bars 32 are connected to the ends of'each of the panels 10 and each unit as a whole is then operatively positioned by sliding the T-bars of a panel into a pair o'f the channels `Z4 fixed to the respective posts or the T-bars may be positioned first in the channels and the Webs 10 attached thereto therein.

The fence as thus constructed .is istrong,perm'anent, and economical in 'c'ostwhile 'beingfl'exible as to utility. When it is desired to mow the gra'ss, etc., adjacent 'to the bottom of the fence, it is only 'necessary to raise one end 'of a panel (FIGURE 2) which is possible due to the inherent ilexibility of the chain-'link'fencing The raised end will maintain its adjusted position and the other end of the panel may then be raised and so on Valong the fence until mowing is completed. Thus, the 'ends of any or all panels may be adjusted upwardly simultaneously or individually (solid, dotted lines, FIGURE 2) as desired, the T-bars sliding in the channels under tension of the wire panel so that any adjusted position is maintained until the panel or the raised end thereof is moved back downwardly into normal position (FIGURE l).

Where access through the fence is desired, any given i panel V10 may be temporarily but completely removed from the channels 24 or alternately (FIGURE 7), the channels removed from the bayonet slots 44 of the posts 12. The top rail 18 is of course removed so that free access into and out of the fenced area may then be had until the panel and rail are ultimately replaced.

It is to be understood that the forms of my invention herewith shown Yand described are to be taken as preferred examples of the same and that various changes in the shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resorted to without departure from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

I claim:

l. In a Yfence construction having spaced supporting posts and wire panels supported fthereon at least one of which panels is vertically adjustable, the improvement comprising rails interconnecting the lupper ends of adjacent posts to afford longitudinal rigidity to the fence,

`and post-mounted means having a slidable connection with the adjacent ends of the panel supporting the adjustable panel in offset spaced relation to its rail to enable the adjusting movement of the panel.

2. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein said support means comprises a member extending angularly from a pair of spaced posts and toward 'the adjacent end of the panel, and a connector fixed to each end of the panel and connected with each of said members.

3. The combination recited in claim 2 wherein said connectors include spaced holes and said panel is of woven chain link wire, the ends of the wires of said panel being twisted through said holes for connection with the connectors.

4. The combination recited in claim 3 wherein the weave of the woven panel is so disposed that the bias tension maintains the panel in any position of adjustment.

5. The combination recited -in claim 2 wherein said vposts Yinclude bayonet slots and said angular-ly extending vmembers include integral -headed tongues Yreceivable in said slots whereby said panel :and said members are detachable from said posts.

6. The combination recited in claim 1 wherein each end of atleast one of said rails includes a detachable coupling between said ends and the adjacent posts to enable the ready removal of said rail from the upper ends of said posts.

References `Cited in the Vtile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,849,410 Selquist Mar. 15, 1932 2,052,774 Kundert -..2-.. Sept. 1, 1936 2,895,716 Veltri 1-.. a July 2l, V1959 2,195,072 Bauer Mar. 26, 1940

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