The subject of the invention is a fall indicator, intended for use in a chain of protection devices for persons working at height and immediately informing about a fall from the height and the need for the withdrawal of the equipment used in the chain of protection devices.

Persons working at height use personal protection devices against a fall from the height. The basic chain of protection devices includes, in the first place, an anchoring point in a solid structure and then personal devices used by employees to attach themselves by a line clipped to a buckle of body harness they wear. Elements of the chain are linked with connecting eyes that safety lines, safety harness, safety shock absorbers and anchoring points are equipped with. If a fall happens, all elements of the protection chain that have participated in the event should absolutely be exchanged.

In the description of an Australian invention AU2012201721 and in the description of US2013056302 there have been shown devices used in safety harness to indicate the jolt happening at the fall from the height. From the patent description of TW201818998 there is known an electronic circuit that registers a fall and transmits a fall signal to an observation aerial, thus giving the basis for the withdrawal of the equipment from use if a fall (a sudden change of speed of a moving person) has been registered.

Indicators located in the accessories used in the protection chain are unknown.

According to the invention a fall indicator is located in the space of the connecting eye of the accessories in the protection chain, in the form of an internal indicating frame fixed to a circumferential element of the connecting eye with at least two connectors.

The indicating frame is made from material with decreased bending strength compared with the bending strength of the material of the circumferential element of the connecting eye. Between the indicating frame and the internal wall of the circumferential element of the connecting eye there is a slit of the width equal to at least 50% of the thickness of the indicating frame. l It is favourable to use a thimble as a connecting eye, and the internal indicating frame is a thin rod fixed to the internal wall of the thimble gutter with five connectors, in the distance equal to the thickness of the rod of the indicating frame; or a buckle of the anchoring point may be used as a connecting eye, and the internal indicating frame is a thin rod fixed to the wall of the opening of the buckle with three connectors, in the distance equal to one half of the thickness of the rod of the indicating frame.

Usually the rod of the indicating frame has a circular profile.

The fall indicator according to the invention is characterised by a simple construction, and its technical condition is visible to the naked eye, without any need to use any specialist tools or instruments.

The subject of the invention is shown in embodiments in the following figures: Fig. 1 shows a fall indicator used in a wire thimble in the side view; Fig. 2 shows a fall indicator used in a buckle of an anchoring point in a side view; and Fig. 3 shows a fragment of the protection chain with an indicator in a buckle of an anchoring point, damaged by a fall from the height.

As it is shown in Fig. 1, the fall indicator has been used in the thimble 1, an accessory used in the protection chain to protect the line against wearing and excessive crumpling. The thimble 1 is gutter-shaped, bent outside to the shape of a drop; in that gutter there is placed the line 9, which circles the thimble 1 and is clamped with the clamping ring 5. Inside the thimble 1 there is the connecting eye 0, by means of which the lines are connected to the remaining parts of the protection chain. In the light of the connecting eye 0 there is attached, to the gutter of the thimble 1, a fall indicator in the form of the internal indicating frame 2, fixed to the circumferential element of the thimble 1 with five connectors 3. The indicating frame 2 is a thin rod of circular intersection, and between the indicating frame 2 and the gutter of the thimble 1 there is a slit 4 of the width equal to the thickness of the rod of the indicating frame 2.

In the embodiment shown in Fig. 2, the indicating frame 2 is fixed with three connectors 3 to a wall of the opening of the buckle of the anchoring point 1 in the distance equal to one half of the thickness of the rod of the indicating frame 2. As it can be seen, the bending strength of the indicating frame 2 has been decreased compared with the bending strength of the material of the circumferential element of the connecting eye 0. In real life the indicating frame 2 is made from a thin rod of the same material as accessories of the protection chain. The reduced thickness of the rod leads to its fracture under great forces caused by the fall, but under normal use the indicating frame 2 remains unbroken. To facilitate the breaking of the indicating frame 2, between the indicating frame and the circumferential element of the thimble or the buckle 1 there is made a slit 4, wide enough for a break of any section of the indicating frame to be noticed immediately: then all components of the protection chain shall be withdrawn from service and damaged. The buckle of the anchoring point 1 with a broken indicating frame 2 has been shown in Fig. 3, where the buckle of the anchoring point 1 is attached to a load-bearing beam 8 with a screw 7. In the connecting eye 0 of the buckle of the anchoring point 1 there is fixed a snaphook 6, by which employee’s individual protection devices are connected as the final link in the chain of protection devices. During the fall the snaphook 6 breaks the indicating frame 2; only fragments of connections 3 are left in the connecting eye 0; and the broken indicating frame 2 becomes detached.