Safety barrier for a railway track

Abstract

A guardrail assembly ( 100 ) for a railway track has a bracket clip ( 102 ) which is connected to a side of an upright post ( 48 ) furthest from the railway track and is adapted to support a guard rail ( 1 12 ). The bracket clip ( 102 ) has flexible jaws ( 104, 106 ) for snap-on engagement and snap-off disengagement of the rail ( 1 12 ). The assembly ( 100 ) also has spacing means ( 15 ) in the form of telescopically engaging spacer portions ( 123, 124 ) connected together by a spring clip ( 120 ). The spring clip ( 120 ) has a protruding head ( 126 ) that is adapted to pass through overlapping apertures formed in the telescopically engaging spacer portions. There is also a bracket clamp ( 130 ) which is connected to an end of the spacing means ( 15 ) and is adapted to slidably engage the upright post ( 48 ).

1 . A guardrail assembly for a railway track, comprising:
 (a) a plurality of post forming means, each post forming means including an upright post means, and   (b) one or more rail means supported by the upright post means, each post forming means further including:
 (i) locking means slidably insertable under a rail of the track, 
 (ii) clamping means adapted to engage against a first side portion of the rail and to be moved between a first position where the locking means is slidably removable from under the rail, and a second position, where the locking means locks the clamping means to the rail, and 
 (iii) spacing means connected between the clamping means and the upright post means for locating the upright post means sufficiently remote of the rail to prevent a rail worker encroaching dangerously close to the rail, 
   
       wherein one or more bracket clip is connected to a side of the upright post means furthest from the railway track and is adapted to support the rail means, the bracket clip comprising flexible jaws for snap-on engagement and snap-off disengagement of the rail means, and wherein the spacing means comprises telescopically engaging spacer portions connected together by a spring clip having a protruding head that is adapted to pass through overlapping apertures formed in the telescopically engaging spacer portions, and wherein a bracket clamp is connected to an end of the spacing means and is adapted to slidably engage the upright post means, the bracket clamp comprising a pivotal lock that, when in a first position, forces a pair of free ends of the bracket clamp toward each other for locking the position of the upright post means relative to the spacing means, and, when in a second position, releases that force and allows relative movement between the upright post means and the spacing means. 
     
     
         2 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 1  wherein the bracket clip comprises a body, the body defining a first pair of jaws for supporting a first rail means and a second pair of jaws for supporting a second rail means. 
     
     
         3 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 2  wherein one jaw of the first pair and one jaw of the second pair are defined on opposite sides of a common central portion of the body. 
     
     
         4 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 1  wherein the spring clip comprises a resilient strip of semi-rigid material having a first end secured to an outside surface of an outer telescopically engaging spacer portion and having the protruding head proximal to an opposite second end. 
     
     
         5 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 4  wherein the spring clip includes an upturn in the resilient strip at the second end to allow pivotal lifting of the spring clip about the first end, whereby the protruding head can exit the overlapping apertures and allow relative movement between the telescopically engaging spacer portions of the spacer means. 
     
     
         6 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 1  wherein the bracket clamp comprises a substantially square socket for receiving therethrough the upright post means. 
     
     
         7 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 6  wherein the pivotal lock is pivotally connected to the pair of free ends of the bracket clamp, and includes a U-shaped portion which, when the pivotal lock is in the first position, sandwiches around the pair of free ends. 
     
     
         8 . The guardrail assembly of  claim 7  wherein the U-shaped portion has opposed inner surfaces which define therebetween a tapering space into which the pair of free ends is forced.