The present invention relates to a guide device. In particular, but not exclusively, the invention relates to a guide device for guiding drivers and their vehicles into and out of parking spaces while protecting vehicles from impact.
In public and private car parks, the dimensions of designated parking spaces are calculated such that each parking space is wide enough for the parking of a xe2x80x9cstandardxe2x80x9d vehicle, and allows adequate space between adjacent parked vehicles for the occupants to get out of and into the vehicles with an assumption of relative ease. The width is calculated on the assumption that all drivers park their vehicles nearly centrally within the designated parking space.
Conventional markings on the ground of parking spaces are generally not visible during a parking manoeuvre and as a result, most drivers will seek to park at around the midpoint between the two adjacent vehicles. It is well known that not all drivers are neat parkers, and any inaccuracies in the position of a row of parked vehicles are thereby perpetuated and maintained as vehicles join or depart from the row of parked vehicles concerned. For example, once a driver has located a vacant parking space in a car park, he/she is often faced with the situation that the vehicles in the two adjacent parking spaces have not parked straight and/or in the centre of their respective spaces, thereby reducing the amount of space available to the driver on parking. A number of problems arise, the most obvious being that there will be insufficient room for the occupants to get out of the vehicle. Due to poor parking or mere carelessness, vehicles are often damaged as a result of the opening of doors of adjacent vehicles, or by the manoeuvring of shopping trolleys or prams between the parked vehicles. Vehicles can also be damaged along their flanks by collision while a vehicle exits or enters a car parking space.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,535,974 describes a barrier or guard rail that is designed to be installed between vehicle parking spaces. It includes a cushioned impact absorbing surface that is supported above the ground by a set of equally spaced posts.
It is the aim of the present invention to provide a guide device that mitigates at least some of the above-mentioned problems, inducing greater care on the part of manoeuvring drivers and increasing the safety, convenience and efficiency of vehicle parking.
According to the present invention, there is provided a guide device for guiding drivers and their vehicles accurately into and out of vehicle parking spaces and protecting vehicles from impact, characterised in that said device includes an elongate cantilever arm, a support member connected to the arm towards one end thereof for supporting the arm above the ground and a pivoting mechanism connected to the support member that allows the support member and the arm to pivot about an axis that is, in use, substantially horizontal and in the same vertical plane as the arm.
The present invention encourages drivers to park their vehicles in parking spaces more accurately, so that they are parked near the centre and nearly straight. The guide device is positioned above the ground, within the driver""s line of sight, thereby providing visual and physical guidance to drivers engaged in manoeuvring into or out of a parking space. As vehicles are parked more accurately, there is a potential for smaller vehicle bays to be defined by guide devices, in situations where it is desirable to favour use by smaller vehicles. The increased accuracy of parking manoeuvres into and out of vehicle bays also permits the use of narrower than usual access lanes, while encouraging generally more care on the part of drivers. The device protects the flanks, or front and rear of both the vehicle concerned and its neighbours from impact. The device also protects a vehicle against damage from carelessly opened doors of adjacent vehicles, and makes it difficult for shopping trolleys and prams to be pushed between parked vehicles.
Advantageously, the guide device includes a base structure for attaching the device to the ground.
Advantageously, the pivoting mechanism includes a biassing means for biassing the support member to a substantially upright position Said biassing means maybe arranged to provide bias over a predetermined range of movement between parked vehicles, and no bias if movement exceeds the predetermined range, such that the device will release and lie flat if the predetermined range is exceeded. Preferably, the predetermined range includes displacements up to an angle of approximately 40xc2x0 either side of the vertical corresponding to the effective gap between vehicles, although other ranges may be suitable. The biassing means may include a means for restraining the support member in a substantially upright position after being deflected.
Advantageously, the elongate arm is arranged to be substantially horizontal in use.
Preferably the elongate arm is flexible, relatively smooth and soft. The elongate arm is thus benign and yielding upon impact with any part of a vehicle, pedestrians, or other moving objects.
Advantageously, the elongate arm has a visually prominent end feature preferably made of a brightly coloured plastics material. Preferably, the plastics material is high density polyethelene.
Advantageously, the free end of the elongate arm is deflected downward.
Preferably the base structure includes at least one bracket means and a base member that engages said bracket means and is rotatable relative to it.
Preferably the base member, support member and elongate arm of the guide device comprise a single elongate element including a base portion, a support portion and an arm portion.
Thus this guide device consists of only five components, with only one mechanically moving part. All of the components are extremely robust, require nil maintenance over a long period, and are difficult to vandalise. The device can be assembled on site, and no specialised skills are required for installation.
Advantageously, the elongate element comprises a substantially cylindrical tube. Preferably said tube is substantially Z-shaped or C-shaped.
Advantageously said biassing means engages said base portion Preferably, the biassing means causes resilient deformation of the base portion when the support portion is deflected from a substantially upright position. For example the biassing means may include a means for engaging a circumferential part of the base portion to restrict rotational movement between said engaging means and said circumferential part such that when the support member is deflected, the base portion is deformed laterally. The engaging means may include at least one lug for engaging a corresponding hole in said base portion. Preferably, the engaging means includes two lugs for engaging corresponding holes in the base portion, with said lugs being inclined towards one another.
The said biassing means is preferably located between two bracket means. The biassing means and the bracket means may be incorporated into a single integrated fabrication.
Advantageously said biassing means has a concave bearing surface, which includes a detent means for restraining said support portion in a substantially upright position.
Advantageously said biassing means and said bracket means are durable metal castings or durable and low friction plastics mouldings, and said elongate element may be manufactured from a low friction, high density polymer, in hollow section, preferably polyethylene. The elongate element may be of large radius and is preferably flexible. Advantageously said elongate element is either partially or totally filled with a semi-rigid foam filling.
Advantageously said support portion includes a damping means for damping oscillations of the elongate arm and support member.
The present invention further provides a car park having a plurality of car parking spaces in which vehicles may be parked, and a plurality of guide devices located between adjacent car parking spaces to delimit the boundaries of those spaces and to guide vehicles into and out of the spaces, characterised in that each said guide device includes an elongate cantilever arm, a support member connected to the arm towards one end thereof for supporting the arm above the ground and a pivoting mechanism connected to the support member that allows the support member and the arm to pivot about an axis that is, in use, substantially horizontal and in the same vertical plane as the arm.