Horizontal lifeline cables are known to be installed at high levels on structures such as buildings and arranged to provide protection against falling for people working on such structures. Such people generally wear a harness to which one end of a safety line is secured, the other end of the line being slidably secured, by means of an attachment device, to the horizontal lifeline cable.

It is necessary to provide brackets secured to the structure and to which the ends of the cable are connected.

It is also necessary to provide intermediate brackets secured to the structure for supporting the cable at locations intermediate the ends thereof.

It is known to install such brackets on the tops of roofs of buildings. However, in order to install such brackets

to roofs it is necessary to damage the roof in order to secure the bracket to the structure of the building. The damage can be in the form of holes of considerable diameter in the roof structure to pass through brackets to which the ends of the cable are connected or to which intermediate brackets are connected.

In addition, damage can occur to a roof structure when a person working on a building accidentally falls and a dynamic load is applied to the horizontal lifeline cable and this load is transmitted to the one or more brackets secured to the roof and supporting the cable.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a supporting bracket assembly which overcomes or at least ameliorates these problems.

According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a supporting bracket assembly comprising: a base plate for securing to a structure; support means mounted relative to the structure and including stabilising means to stabilise the support means relative to the base plate; holding means for the cable or the like, the holding means being secured to the support means; and strap means securing the support means to the base plate, the strap means being arranged in serpentine manner to as to be

extensible and to absorb energy when a load is applied to the holding means.

According to a second aspect of the present invention there is provided a supporting bracket assembly comprising: a base plate for securing to a structure ; support means mounted relative to the structure and including stabilising means to stabilise the support means relative to the base plate; holding means for a cable or the like, the holding means being secured to the support means; and strap means securing the support means to the base plate, the strap means being arranged in serpentine manner so as to be extensible and to absorb energy when a load is applied to the holding means, wherein the strap means can be oriented to absorb energy applied to the assembly in a predetermined direction.

According to a third aspect of the present invention there is provided a supporting bracket assembly comprising: a base plate for securing to a structure; support means mounted relative to the structure and including sacrificial fastening means securing the support means to the base plate; holding means for a cable or the like, the holding means being secured to the support means; and strap means securing the support means to the base plate, the strap means being arranged in serpentine manner so as to be

extensible and to absorb energy when a load is applied to the holding means.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention there is provided a supporting bracket assembly comprising: a base plate for securing to a structure; support means mounted relative to the structure and including a plurality of securing members formed integrally with the support means and engageable relative to the base plate; holding means for a cable or the like, the holding means being secured to the support means; and energy absorbing means securing the support means to the base plate, the energy absorbing means being extensible so as to absorb energy when a load is applied to the holding means.

Where appropriate, the strap means be rotatable relative to the base plate, for example in order to orient the strap means in a desired position to absorb energy applied to the assembly in a predetermined direction.

Where appropriate, the support means may be mounted on the base plate by way of a sacrificial mounting means.

The sacrificial fastening means may comprise a rivet or like fastener. Alternatively, the sacrificial fastening means may comprise securing members formed integrally with

the support means and engageable relative to the base plate. In particular in such a case the base plate may be formed with a recess in that surface thereof remote from the support means and adapted to accommodate the securing members.

The base plate may be provided with a plurality of apertures to facilitate securing of the base plate to the structure. The apertures may be provided in a peripheral region of the base plate.

The assembly may be provided with seal means for sealing between at least a part of the base plate and a part of the structure. The seal means may comprise a compressible tape.

The support member may be substantially in the form of a hollow cylinder closed at that end thereof remote from the base plate.

The strap means may be secured at one end thereof relative to the base plate by suitable fastening means and may be secured at the other end thereof to the support means and to the holding means by suitable fastening means.

The support means may be mounted relative to the base plate by way of an outwardly extending peripheral lip formed on the support means.

The support means may be mounted on the base plate by way of spacing means secured to the base plate.

The supporting bracket assembly of the present invention minimises or reduces risk of damage to a structure, such as a roof top of a building, to which it is secured, when a dynamic load is applied to a cable or the like secured thereto or supported thereby. The present invention is particularly applicable to the top of built up and composite metal profile roof sheets and allows fixing to the roof with a minimum of penetration of the roof fabric.

Should a dynamic load be applied to the bracket assembly, the assembly minimises the load transferred to the roof sheet and prevents damage to the fabric of the roof or the ingress of water.

For a better understanding of the present invention and to show more clearly how it may be carried into effect reference will now be made, by way of example, to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevational view of one embodiment of a supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention fixed to a roof of a structure; Figure 2 is a top plan view of the supporting bracket assembly shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is an exploded view of the supporting bracket assembly shown in Figures 1 and 2; Figure 4 is an exploded view of another embodiment of a supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention; Figure 5 is a side elevational view of an embodiment of a support member forming part of the supporting bracket assembly of the present invention; Figure 6 is a plan view of a base plate forming part of the supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention and adapted to co-operate with the support member shown in Figure 5 ; Figure 7 is a side elevational view of the base plate shown in Figure 6 ;

Figure 8 is a diagrammatic illustration showing the supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention after it has been deployed; and Figure 9 is a diagrammatic illustration of a further embodiment of a supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention fixed to a roof of a structure.

As can be seen from Figures 1 and 2 a supporting bracket assembly 1 is fixed to a roof 3 of a structure. The supporting bracket assembly comprises a base plate 5 which is provided with a plurality of apertures 7 around the periphery thereof to facilitate securing of the base plate to the roof. The apertures 7 are arranged to allow ready securement to a range of different roof configurations.

Rivets 9 are inserted through a selected number of the apertures 7 and are secured to the roof 3. The rivets 9 have very high shear and tension load capability and are well known in the art and may be, for example, rivets known under the trade designation FAC 10-4. A seal 11 is positioned between the underside of the base plate 5 and the surface of the roof 3. The seal may be in the form of a compressible tape which resists degradation when exposed to UV radiation and, when compressed, prevents the ingress of water through the rivet holes.

As will be explained in more detail hereinafter, mounted on the base plate 1 is a support member 13 to which is fastened a cable attachment eye 15. As shown, the support member 13 is generally in the form of a hollow cylinder with that end adjacent to the cable attachment eye 15 (that is, the end remote from the base plate) being closed.

Figure 3 shows the supporting bracket assembly in exploded form. Within the support member 13 there is provided an energy absorbing strap 17 which is folded back on itself in serpentine or concertina form such that straightening of the strap absorbs energy. The strap 17 is secured to the base plate 5 by way of a bolt 19, washer 21 and nut 23 and is secured to the eye 15 through an aperture (not shown) provided in the closed end of the support member 13 by way of a stud 25 welded to the upper end of the strap 17, washer 27 and nut 29. In this way the strap 17 can be oriented about the bolt 19 to any desired position to absorb energy applied to the assembly in a predetermined direction.

As can be seen from Figure 4, the supporting bracket assembly need not be a cable attachment eye, but could alternatively be an intermediate bracket assembly 31, corner bracket (not shown) or other component (not shown).

The support member 13 is located on the base plate 5 and stabilised relative thereto in a number of alternative ways. As shown in Figures 1 to 4, the support member may be formed with an outwardly extending peripheral lip 33 which bears against and is supported by the base plate 5.

The lip 33 serves to locate and stabilise the support member 13 during installation of the assembly and pretensioning of a cable (not shown). The lip 33 further serves to prevent early deployment of the energy absorbing strap 17 in the event of the application of a dynamic load to the cable.

It has been found that once the assembly has been installed and the cable pretensioned, static and dynamic loads of up to 5 kN can be applied to the cable without the support member 13 tilting and the strap 17 deploying.

If desired, the support member 13 may be located on the base plate 5 by means of a plurality of rivets 35 or other sacrificial fastening means which deforms, shears or tears out when a substantial dynamic load is applied to the assembly. The rivets 35 or other fastening means may be employed in addition to or as an alternative to the outwardly extending lip 33.

As a further alternative, shown in Figures 5 and 6, the support member 13 is provided at its lower periphery with a plurality of securing members 37 which extend downwardly and circumferentially. The securing members are inserted into corresponding slots 39 and the support member 13 is rotated in a clockwise direction to secure the support member to the base plate (it should be noted, however, the securing members may alternatively be constructed to secure the support member to the base plate by means of anti- clockwise rotation). As shown in Figures 6 and 7, the central region 41 of the base plate may be raised to accommodate the securing members within a recess formed beneath the raised region 41 (that is, on that side of the base plate remote from the support member). Such an arrangement is particularly convenient if the crown of a roof may otherwise interfere with the securing members.

In the event of a fall occurring, a dynamic load is applied laterally to the bracket assembly causing the support member to become destabilised and to tilt, with one or more of the lip, sacrificial fastenings and securing members absorbing a portion of the energy. As the support member tilts, load is applied to the bracket assembly and to the structure in shear and the energy absorbing strap 17 is stretched, thus absorbing much of the dynamic load and leaving the structure undamaged. Figure 8 shows an

embodiment of a supporting bracket assembly of the present invention after it has absorbed a dynamic load sufficient to tilt the support member and stretch the strap. The amount of energy absorption can readily be varied by modifying the length, width and/or thickness of the strap.

Such a supporting bracket assembly should only ever be used to absorb a single dynamic load. In the assembly according to the present invention it is clear the assembly has been used and should be replaced by the fact that the support member is no longer seated on the base plate as shown in Figure 8.

Figure 9 shows a further embodiment of a supporting bracket assembly according to the present invention fixed to a roof 3 of a structure with the right-hand side of the figure showing the assembly after the application of a dynamic load. The bracket assembly is designed for use with a roof comprising metal roof decking 3 provided with a layer of insulation 43 and covered with a protective single ply membrane 45. The support member 13 containing the strap 17 is mounted at the upper end of a spacing means in the form of a post 47 which is secured to the base plate 5 as by welding and which is provided with slots 39 to receive securing members 37 or with other means to locate and stabilise the support member 13 as described hereinabove.

In this case a dynamic load applied to the assembly causes the support member 13 to tilt and separate from the post 47, while the post itself remains fixed to the base plate 5.

Although the supporting bracket assembly of the present invention has been described with reference to fixing to a roof of a structure, it should be noted the assembly can be fixed to other parts of a structure. The support member is able to prevent early deployment of the energy-absorbing strap, while the strap itself absorbs energy when an applied dynamic load destabilises the support member.

Further, although the supporting bracket assembly of the present invention has been described in relation to a horizontal lifeline cable, the assembly can alternatively be used as a single point anchorage, in which case a user would attach directly to an attachment eye 15 by way of a lanyard or the like.