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DESCRIPTION

The present invention relates to a road safety device, particularly for reducing the risk of vehicles traveling the wrong way on a carriageway.

The danger which occurs when a vehicle of any type travels on a road in the direction opposite to that specified by the Rules of the Road is unquestionable. Moreover, the situation worsens if the wrong-way driving is prolonged in time because the driver fails to promptly take all the possible precautions to avoid aggravating the situation. Examples could include the risk of collision between vehicles if a vehicle takes the wrong way on the motorway exit slip road, and the exponential risk if the driver, failing to quickly realize his/her mistake, should later take the motorway itself in the wrong way.

Safety devices for warning and/or preventing wrong-way driving of motor vehicles on a carriageway have already been suggested.

German patent DE2902850A1 describes a protection system for preventing vehicles from traveling the wrong way on a motorway.

German patent DE7915422U1 describes a road safety device.

German patent DE3606158A1 describes a road block depending on the traveling direction.

Italian patent application ITMI20120236 describes a road safety device for warning a driver driving the wrong way on a road.

French patent FR1543377A describes a bridge which can be crossed by a motor vehicle in one direction only.

European patent EP0092282A1 describes a retractable road barrier.

The known devices for warning a vehicle traveling the wrong way on a carriageway have some drawbacks: they have rather high manufacturing costs, consist of many moving mechanical parts, often subject to wear and/or mechanical faults, and additionally require rather important installation works.

It would be desirable to have a safety device capable of promptly indicating to a driver who is driving a vehicle that the latter is traveling the wrong way on a carriageway, and which does not have the above-mentioned drawbacks.

It is the main object of the present invention to provide a road safety device which makes the driver who is driving a vehicle realize that he/she is traveling in the opposite direction to that required on a carriageway.

It is another important object of the present invention to manufacture a road safety device which has a simple, robust mechanical structure.

It is a not last object of the present invention to manufacture a road safety device which is easy to be installed and very reliable.

It is a further object of the present invention to manufacture a road safety device which is cheap to be produced.

According to the invention, such object is achieved by a road safety device as disclosed in claim 1.

These and other features of the present invention will become further apparent from the following detailed description of a practical embodiment thereof shown by way of non-limitative example in the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of a first embodiment of the road safety device according to the present invention in a raised position;

Figure 2 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of the device in Figure 1 in an operating position;

Figure 3 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of the device in Figures 1-2 in a lowered position;

Figure 4 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of a second embodiment of the road safety device according to the present invention in a raised position; Figure 5 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of the device in Figure 4 in an operating position;

Figure 6 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of the device in Figures 4-5 in a lowered position;

Figure 7 shows a side, section view taken along a vertical plane of a third embodiment of the road safety device according to the present invention in a raised position; and

Figure 8 shows an enlarged, partial sectional detail taken along a vertical plane of the device in Figure 7.

With reference to the above-listed Figures from 1 to 3, it is worth noting that a road safety device 1 for detecting and warning a driver traveling the wrong way on a road 100, according to the present invention, comprises a hollow outer box 2, adapted to be buried, the preferred shape of which can substantially be a parallelepiped. The outer box 2 has a cavity 3 for accommodating an inner box 4, housing in turn a tilting element 10, which will be described in detail below. The outer box 2 has a lower base 22 to be supported on the ground and an upper base 23 which, in use, will substantially be at the road surface level.

The inner box 4 has a base 42 which is spaced apart from, but substantially parallel to the lower base 22 of the outer box 2. The inner box 4 has a pair of walls 44 which are parallel to each other, orthogonal to the base 42, and is open upwards with an upper edge 43 integrally connected to the outer box 2, close to the upper base 23.

The inner box 4 has a through opening 45 on the base 42, in an intermediate position with respect to walls 44, under which a hollow cylindrical element 46 is connected, by means of specific bolts if desired, orthogonal to the base 42, open in correspondence of the opening 45, closed on the opposite side, intended to form a housing and a lower support abutment for a spring 6, resting with the lower end 61 thereof internally and on the bottom of the cylindrical element 46, passing through the opening 45 and extending vertically for an equivalent length, culminating in the upper end 62 thereof.

The front end 71 of a slide 7, having the other rear end 72 pivoted on a pin 8 transversal to said slide 7, and parallel to both the base 42 of the inner box 4 and to the walls 44 thereof, is hinged at the upper end 62 of spring 6. The upper end 62 of spring 6 protrudes from opening 45 of a length which is greater than the distance of pin 8 from base 42, so that slide 7 will be oblique.

Slide 7 consists of a first element 7A integral with the upper end 62 of spring 6 and with pin 8, and of a second element 7B, restrained with a sliding engagement to the first element 7A, integral in turn with said tilting element 10.

The element 10 tilting about pin 8 consists of a hollow convex body having a vertical segment 101 parallel to the wall 44 closest to pin 8 in a raised position in section, joined on top to an oblique upward segment 102 towards the upper end 61 of spring 6, i.e. parallel to slide 7. The oblique upward segment 102 is joined to a downward extending, curvilinear segment 103, joined in turn to a rectilinear, oblique downward segment 104 substantially parallel to the upwards segment 102, joined to a rectilinear segment 105, parallel to base 42, joined on the bottom to the vertical segment 101. When the tilting element 10 is in the raised position, the rectilinear segment 105 is substantially parallel to base 42. The oblique downward segment 104 will have a housing recess 11 for slide 7, the tilting element 10 being integral with the second element 7B thereof.

Close to the curvilinear side 103, in close proximity to the joint with the oblique upward segment 102, as shown in Figures 1-7, the tilting element 10 has an extra thickness which forms a tooth 12, and moreover, an idle roller 13 is fitted, preferably at the joining point between the oblique upward segment 102 and the curvilinear segment 103, having a rotation axis parallel to pin 8, slightly protruding from the curvilinear segment 103. A curvilinear wall 14 extends from the base 42 of the inner box 4, by the side of spring 6, on the side of the curvilinear side 103, with the same curvature as the tooth 12 and as the curvilinear segment 103, having a lower end 141 integrally connected to said base 42, and a free upper end 142, which is close to the lower part of tooth 12 when the tilting element 10 is in the raised position.

The curvilinear wall 14 is also intended to anchor a return spring 15 of the tilting element 10, if it moves in a slidingly engaged manner with respect to the first element 7A of slide 7.

In a second embodiment, shown in Figures 4 - 6, the tilting element 10 about pin 8, similarly to the first embodiment, is constrained in a slidingly engaged manner to a slide 7 shorter in length than that in the first embodiment, but is connected to the upper end 62 of spring 6 by means of a return spring 15.

In a third embodiment (Figures 7 - 8), the rectilinear pin 8 is replaced by a crankshaft 80 describing an upside-down "U" with the two lower ends 81, hinged to the inner box 4 on axis A- A', while the upper horizontal segment 82 is intended to rotationally engage attachment means 83 present on the tilting element 10 (see Figure 8). A contrast spring 85 protruding from wall 44 is accommodated in the vertical wall 44 of the inner box 4, in close proximity to the vertical segment 101 of the tilting element 10, in order to graze the vertical segment 101 when the tilting element 10 is in the raised position.

In practice, the road safety device 1 according to the present invention for detecting and warning a driver traveling the wrong way on a road 100 is installed substantially crosswise to the driving direction on road carriageways in very dangerous points, such as for example the exit and entrance slip roads of motorways and expressways.

The installation of device 1 requires the outer box 2 to be integrated in the road surface so that the upper base 23 forms a substantially continuous surface with the surface of the carriageway. To this end, an excavation will be provided, in which the outer box 2 will be fixed transversally to the carriageway using means of the known type.

The outer box 2 will be buried so that pin 8 is transversal to the carriageway traveling direction, so that a vehicle traveling along road 100 in the correct direction will encounter the tilting element 10 on the part opposite to the curvilinear segment 103.

The inner box 4 will be soundproofed by positioning a layer of soundproofing material of the known type, e.g. rubber or other suitable material as desired, on the bottom of base 42.

Once device 1 has been positioned and appropriately anchored to road 100, the presence of the safety device 1 will be nearly imperceptible for all vehicles traveling along the carriageway in the correct direction (Figures 3, 6) and thus passing thereon, because the tilting element 10, protruding from the carriageway, i.e. in a raised position, will be lowered, i.e. will take a lowered position under the bias of the weight of the vehicle thereon, by turning about pin 8 or crankshaft 80, resting on the base 42 of the inner box 4 with its downward rectilinear segment 104, so that the upward rectilinear side 102 is substantially on the same plane as the upper base 23 and perfectly joined to the surface of the carriageway. In this position (referred to as lowered position), spring 6 will be compressed by the tilting element 10, so that device 1 will be substantially irrelevant and will be hardly perceived by the vehicle driver traveling on the road 100 accommodating device 1 in the correct direction.

The tilting element 10, rejected by spring 6, will return to the raised position, e.g. protruding from the carriageway, once the vehicle has passed the stretch of carriageway in which device 1 is installed.

Otherwise, if a vehicle of any type should exceptionally travel on the carriageway in the direction opposite to the conventional direction (Figures 1, 2, 4, 5, 7), i.e. the wrong way, the front tires of the vehicle would come into contact first with the idle roller 13 and immediately afterwards with the curvilinear segment 103 of the tilting element 10, which in the raised position will form an actual step, which will cause a shock unquestionably perceivable by the vehicle driver. The jump caused by the vehicle encountering the tilting element 10, and in particular the curved segment 103 thereof, will be more or less violent according to how steep and high the latter is.

As a direct consequence of the impact of the tire against the tilting element 10, tooth 12 will overlap the curved wall 14, thus preventing the tilting element from lowering. In this situation, in which tooth 12 is engaged with the curved wall 14, the tilting element 10 will be referred to as in the operating position.

In the first embodiment (Figures 1 - 3), tooth 12 engages the curved wall 14 because the tilting element 10, due to the thrust received from the tire, slides on slide 7 just enough to cause, on one hand, tooth 12 to engage the curved wall 14, and on the other hand to cause the vertical segment 101 to rest on the wall 44 of the facing inner box 4. Due to the return effect of spring 15, tooth 12 will be automatically released from the curved wall 14 when the tire has passed device 1.

In the second embodiment (Figures 4 - 6), tooth 12 engages the curved wall 14 because the thrust imparted by the tire to the tilting element 10, causes spring 6 to bend in the traveling direction of the vehicle and causes it to slide on slide 7 just enough to cause, on one hand, tooth 12 to engage the curved wall 14, and on the other hand to cause the vertical segment 101 to rest on the wall 44 of the facing inner box 4. Due to the return effect of spring 15, tooth 12 will be automatically released from the curved wall 14 when the tire has passed device 1.

In the third embodiment (Figures 7 and 8), tooth 12 engages the curved wall 14 because the thrust that the tilting element receives from the tire causes it to rotate the crankshaft 80 hinged to axis A-A' by means of the attachment means 83, so that the upper horizontal segment 82 goes from position 1A to position 2A (Figure 8). In this situation, on one hand tooth 12 will engage the curved wall 14 and on the other hand the vertical segment 101 will rest on the wall 44 of the facing inner box 4, thus compressing the contrast spring 85. By virtue of the effect of the contrast spring 85, once the tire has passed device 1, tooth 12 will be automatically released from the curved wall 14 and crankshaft 80 will return to the previous position.

Considering that the first jump caused by the impact of the front tires of the vehicle with device 1 will have already alerted the vehicle driver, with the second impact of the rear tires the driver will have no doubt on the fact that something unconventional has happened.

The road safety device 1 according to the present invention for detecting and warning a driver traveling the wrong way on a road 100 has the object of providing an exceptionally effective, robust, reliable device, which is cost-effective to be installed and maintained, in order to drastically reduce the accidents which arise from situations in which vehicle drivers, unaware of the danger to which they are exposing themselves and others, travel the wrong way on a carriageway, by impressing a strong shock to a vehicle which passes over device 1 in the non-conventional direction, so that the driver will be promptly alerted and be thus able to take all the countermeasures needed to minimize the consequent risks.

In practice, the materials used as well as the sizes could be various, according to needs.