The purpose of the present invention is to provide a simple and inexpensive solution to the above problems, for example on the basis of a situation in which -there exists a motor road having a guide rail, since such guide rails to a large extent will be mounted just at places where there is a steep roadside incline. Equivalent to guide rails in this connection are also guard stones or supports and the like which are used for protection between the roadway proper and the roadside incline.

In order to satisfy the above requirement there is ac¬ cording to this invention provided a footway which in com¬ bination comprises:

Anchoring means being adapted to at their ends to be fixed to first foundations and to lie with their longitudinal direction along the roadside incline, possibly along the roadway edge, and to be inter¬ connected to large lengths, preferably in engagement with the ground along their whole length, - transverse supporting beams of which one end is adapted to be fixed at the ends of the anchoring beams and carrying a cover in the form of gratings or the like, as well as a railing at the other end , and adjustable supporting legs adapted to be mounted be- tween second foundations in the roadside incline and the outer portion of the supporting beams, said supporting legs having an adjustable length, pre¬ ferably in a telescopic manner, and being at both ends angularly adjustable in two planes,

said railing being designed as a truss structure with sufficient mechanical strength to contribute s stantially in the support of one or more intermedia auxiliary supporting beams without supporting legs between two supporting beams having supporting legs

In addition to satisfying the above ^" requirements- i advantageous manner, this invention also results in a footway design which allows easy mounting and dismountin at the same time as it is easy to transport and store, inter alia for possible use as a provisional pavement, footway or bicycle path during road constructions, re¬ arrangement of roads or for use at roads which shall la be re-constructed in such a way that the pavement, footw or bicycle path at a later time is not required. As regards the adjustable supporting legs it shall pointed out that in roadside inclines there may occur so movement in the ground, possibly also frost heaving, whi makes it highly necessary and advantageous to have the p sibility of adjusting primarily the length, but also the angular position of the supporting legs sooner or later ter the actual construction of the footway.

An additional advantage associated with the inventi consists therein that the footway proposed here may be m factured in a very rational way so that the cost per met length becomes as low as possible whereas the desired qu lity is retained. It shall be mentioned in particular t the expenses associated with the construction of such a footway depends to a large extent upon the number of fou tion points in the roadside incline. By utilizing the tr wor principle in the railing structure the spacing betw the foundation points may be increased, thereby obtaining a corresponding cost reduction.

The invention shall be explained more closely below with reference to the drawings, in which: Figure 1 shows a simplified cross-section of a footway according to the invention, mounted above a roadside incline along a motor road having guide rails, Figure 2 shows the footway of Figure 1 seen from the ou

-> ter side, Figure 2a shows an enlarged detail in Figure 2, Figure 3 shows the supporting structure of the footway seen from above, as arranged in a road turn, _r and . ^' . .

Figure 3a shows an enlarged detail of Figure 3.

The situation being presupposed in Figure 1 comprises a roadway 1 with an adjacent roadside incline 2, where be¬ tween the_ roadway and the incline there is mounted a guide rail 4 of conventional type fixed to wooden posts 3 being inserted into the ground to a sufficient depth.

The main elements of the footway shown is an anchoring beam 6, a supporting beam 5, a supporting leg 7, a cover 8, for example in the form of gratings or the like lying on sup- porting beams 5, and a railing 9 mounted on uprights 15 which can constitute an integral part each with its supporting beam 5. The complete structure is preferably based upon a mo¬ dule system having length sections of for example 3 or 6 meters, i.e. in which the beams 6, the cover element 8 and the railing element 9 have one and the same determined length, for example 3 or 6 meters, as far as usual standard elements are concerned.

At the upper edge of the incline 2 along the roadway 1 and with a spacing of for example 3 meters or preferably 6 meters, there are provided first foundations 19 so that an¬ choring beams 6 may extend between these foundations 19 with fixation by means of bolts or the like. The top of each foundation 19 may suitably comprise a cast-in anchoring pla¬ te having necessary bolts and/or holes for connection with other ^' elements in the structure. The foundations 19 have di¬ mensions and a design directed to sustain both vertical and horizontal forces depending upon loads due to the footway structure itself and the loads resulting from the trafic thereon. A particularly advantageous security feature against failing of this anchoring is present when at the mounting site there is a guide rail 4 with posts 3, since in such case the foundations 19 and the anchoring beams 6 are placed in¬ side the posts 3, as appears from Figure 1.

Normally, the anchoring beams 6 are intended to be in

OMPI

engagement with the ground mainly along their whole length, but in places where this involves difficulties, the ancho¬ ring beam may be a beam of -steel or concrete having suffi¬ cient strength and rigidity to be able to transfer vertica -,5 _. .forces to. the,above first foundations. The arrangement shown makes it possible to lay the anchoring beams 6 for t footway not only at rectilinear road portions, but also in road turns, since the anchoring beams 6 may apparently be laid with, small angular deviations in relation to each oth 10 The design of the other elements in the footway is also ma so as to make possible adjustments for curves or turns of the road, and this will appear from the following descripti

The supporting beams 5 constitute the structurally load bearing elements in the footway proper and must have 15 dimensions suitable for sustaining the assumed load. As mentioned, it is an advantageous embodiment to let each sup porting beam 5 continue in L-shape to form an upright 15 fo the mounting of the railing 9. The railing elements 9 serv as supporting elements for longitudinal sections of the foo 20 way between foundation-based supporting beams 5. This shal be explained more closely below.

The supporting legs 7 are essential members in the structure, and as shown in Figures 1 and 2, the supporting leg 7 is mounted between a foundation 12 in the roadside in 25 cline 2 and a point at the outer portion of the supporting beam 5. As shown more in detail in Figure 1, the supportin leg 7 comprises two parts 7a and 7b being telescopically displaceable with respect to each other, and making possibl a step-wise height adjustment of the supporting leg 7 for 30 adaption to the terrain at the place concerned. As shown, the height adjustment takes place by means of holes 17a in the parts 7a and 7b, whereby screws 17b are inserted in sui able cooperating holes when the desired height or length of the supporting leg 7 has been determined. It may be a part 5 cular advantage to arrange the holes 17a in the two parts 7 and 7b in such a manner that they form a vernier arrangemen This will make possible a height adjustment in small steps, for example steps of 1 cm.

In addition to the height adjustment described, the s

JϊlE OMPI

porting leg 7 involves the possibility of angular adjust¬ ment, in the first place in the plane of the drawing of ^' Figure 1, and in the second place in the plane of the dra¬ wing of Figure 2, thereby that mounting means at both ends of the supporting leg 7 comprises a pivot or deflection point, respectively. This is important for the mounting in practice, for example in slopes where the supporting leg should stand in a vertical transverse plane.

As will appear in particular from Figure 2 , the rai- ling 9 may consist of netting or the like 29 having rigid members at the top and bottom as well as trussing members 39. A specific possibility of saving expenses for both the structural elements and the mounting work, consists therein that an auxiliary supporting beam 5 ¹ may be arranged between two supporting beams 5 which in the manner described are pro¬ vided with supporting legs 7. The auxiliary supporting beam 5' has no such supporting leg and is to be carried by means of the structural strength in the railing element 9 which preferably has the form of a truss structure. The other end of each auxiliary beam 5' is supported by the anchoring beam 6 which does not need any foundation 19 at this point since the auxiliary beam 5' is only subjected to vertical forces. With this design the spacing between the main supporting beams 5 with associated supporting legs 7 and foundations 19 and 12, may be increased from for example 3 meters to 6 meters or more, so that the building and mounting work will be re¬ duced. The auxiliary supporting beams 5' carry the cover ele¬ ments 8 at suitable spacings or intervals depending upon in¬ ter alia the load carrying capability offered by the truss structure of the railing elements 9.

The main features of an embodiment of the footway ac¬ cording to the invention arranged in a road turn is shown in Figure 3 as seen from above. Longitudinal anchoring beams 6 extend between foundations 19 and at these foundation points there are, moreover, mounted transverse supporting beams 5 the outer part of which consists of the upright 15 described. An intermediary foundation 19' has an associated- supporting beam 5a with an upright 15a. Between the upright 15 and the upright 15a there are provided truss-like railing

elements 9 as described above. All the supporting beams 5 and the supporting beam 5a have supporting legs (not shown as explained above. The intermediate auxiliary supporting beams 5' are carried by the railing elements 9 at their ou ter end and engage the anchoring beams 6 at their inner en These auxiliary supporting beams 5' do not have supporting legs. In order to make possible a simplification of the foundation point 19 ' so that there will not exist any hori zontal forces of significance therein, Figure 3 includes diagonal braces 28 which transfer such horizontal forces t the foundations 19 at each side of the foundation point 19'

In order to make possible a certain degree of angula deviation between the longitudinal elements in the struc¬ ture and thereby adaption to turns in the road, the longi- tudinal elements such as the anchoring beam 6 and the rai¬ ling element 9 may have slit-shaped holes which extend in the longitudinal direction of these elements, so that inte connection by means of bolts enables a certain shortening and lengthening, respectively, of the total length of the structure at the inner elements and the outer elements, re spectively, at the road turn. The above slit-shaped holes are shown in the enlarged details of Figures 2a and 3a, whereby mounting plates 25 on the upright 15 of Figure 2a are provided with slit-shaped holes 25a for the fixation of ^' the railing elements 9 by means of bolts or screws as indi¬ cated. In a similar manner the enlarged detail of Figure 3a shows that the anchoring beams 6 have slit-shaped holes for fixing at the foundation point 19. As also shown in Fi gure 3a there will in a turn made possible inter alia by th slit-shaped holes, be formed a gap 8a between the ends of the cover elements 8. The length of the slit-shaped holes the anchoring beams 6 and at the mounting points on the up¬ rights 15, respectively, must be determined according to th width of the supporting beam 5 so that there will always re main a sufficient surface of engagement for supporting the cover elements 9. The gap 8a formed, may possibly be fille with a suitable sealing compound or the like.

It appears from the above that the anchoring beams 6 in Figure 3 are pushed together into a shorter total length fmΪE OMPI

than what is found at normal rectilinear portions of the footway, whereas the railing elements 9 in Figure 3 are pulled apart into a larger length by means of the slit- shaped holes. In order to obtain a still expanded turning . possibility,, ,i.e. a. smaller.radius, of curvature,...there may.. ... be manufactured in addition to the normal standard elements, i.e. elements having exactly the modular length, elements having a somewhat smaller or a somewhat larger length than the standard elements, for use in cases where the adjustment possibilities with the oblong or slit-shaped holes are not sufficient.

The cover elements 9 may be in the form of common gra¬ tings or they may possibly consist of wooden plates. In both cases it is practical to sub-divide the footway into two width sections so that the gratings will have dimensions being more easily handled and, besides, involving the advan¬ tage that gaps v/hich may occur in road turns, will be less pronounced. Moreover, and depending upon the design of the cover elements, it will be possible to cut these at the con- struction site according to what is necessary in road turns or at other particular places.

The above possibilities for adaption at road turns may also make possible angular deviations in the vertical plane, for example at the beginning of slopes etc. By making the ^" railing 9 somewhat shorter at the top than at the bottom and by making the slits 25a for the mounting bolts at the top somewhat longer than at the bottom (see Figure 2a) , there will be obtained a sufficient adjustment to vertical curvatures, even with a complete utilization of the length difference between the anchoring beam 6 and the railing ele¬ ment 9.

In a practical modular system a system based upon the invention and having a module of 6 meters, may for example be adapted to road turns having a minimum radius of 150 meters and in the case of a 3 meter module, a minimum of 25 meters. By utilizing elements deviating from the standard length adjustment may be made to turn radii of as small as 50 meters for a 6 meter module and 12,5 meters for a 3 meter module. Special elements may of course be used if still more reduc-

tion of these radii is desired.

The elements involved in the structure can preferabl be made of hot-galvanized steel intended to be assembled by screwing without having to use any special tools. The weight of the separate elements or components may easily be kept within reasonable limits for carrying out the moun ting work with simple means, to a large extent purely manually.

Even though the prefabricated footway described here is illustrated in connection with an existing roadway 1 having a guide rail 3,4, the utilization of this new footw is not restricted to such a situation. There may also be cases in which the nature of the terrain is such that this footway can be used with advantage without any relationshi with an existing road arrangement, and for example for broadening bridges where. originally there is no separate footway.

OMPI