DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0029] In said drawings it can be seen that the safety device for work on horizontal surfaces 17 in construction works comprises:

[0030] fastening means of an operator, represented as 31 , to a fixed element of the construction, such as a column 21 ,

[0031] anchorage means which link the device 1 to the column 21 ;

[0032] joining means of said fastening means to said anchorage means.

[0033] The device 1 of the invention constitutes protective equipment intended for preventing accidental falls from high up in construction works, especially applicable to the case of formwork 23 preparation for horizontal surfaces 17 of slabs, level beams, etc.

[0034] The device 1 of the invention, as well as preventing falls, enables the operators to enjoy the benefit of a relatively extensive field of action, having great freedom of movement, represented with the reference 24 .

[0035] The said fastening means includes a safety harness or belt and a snap link for the operator 31 who, for the purposes of clarity and because they are already well known, have not been represented in the drawings.

[0036] As a novel feature and characteristic of the invention, the anchorage means are made up of an anchorage element, adapted for being inserted in a mass of concrete 3 or mortar in a fluid state and remaining integral to the same after setting or hardening.

[0037] Equally novel is the constitution of the joining means, which are formed by a stanchion 4 moveably coupled at its lower part to said anchorage element 2 , and joined at its upper part to the upper end 6 of a rope 5 .

[0038] The rope 5 is linked at its lower end 7 to the operator 31 through said fastening means, and may turn with respect to the vertical axis 8 of the stanchion 4 .

[0039] In FIG. 1 a variation of the anchorage element 2 is represented wherein the latter is made up of a solid block 13 and is inserted into the mass of concrete 3 in a fluid state when poured into a formwork for columns. The block 13 has an upper rod 14 which projects from the mass of concrete 3 and which is adapted for receiving, with the possibility of rotation on a vertical axis 8 , a lower hollow tubular portion 15 of the stanchion 4 .

[0040] In FIG. 2 another variation of the anchorage element 2 is represented, which in this case adopts the shape of a hollow sleeve 9 with an inverted frustoconical shape that receives in its interior the lower end 10 of the stanchion 4 , with the possibility of pivoting on its vertical axis 8 . The sleeve 9 is inserted into the upper end of the concrete 3 resting on the concrete mass 3 , for example through a perimeter rim 12 .

[0041] In FIGS. 7 to 11 other alternative variations of the anchorage means 2 are shown, provided for when the section of the column 21 does not permit the utilisation of the solid block 13 with the rod 14 or sleeve 9 . In this case, they comprise at least several strap hinges 26 intended for being anchored in the concrete mass 3 , either directly ( FIG. 11 ) or through a flat plate 27 (FIGS. 7 to 10 ) which is inserted horizontally into the concrete mass 3 and remains fixed to the latter after setting, in such a way that the strap hinge or hinges 26 remain vertical. These cases are designed for anchoring a stanchion 4 , fitted with a lower hollow tubular portion 15 , in a way similar to the anchorage 2 of FIG. 1 .

[0042] In FIG. 12 yet another variation of the anchorage means 2 is represented, which in this case comprise a perimeter metal hoop 29 which is fixed around the column 21 and which is fitted with a sleeve 30 for the anchorage of the stanchion 4 .

[0043] In FIGS. 3 and 13 an embodiment example of the stanchion 4 is shown in which the latter adopts the shape of pole 25 , preferably having a certain amount of flexibility.

[0044] As a result, once the concrete 3 has set, the operator remains firmly fastened to column 21 , although with the possibility of moving freely above the formwork 23 , within an essentially circular field of action 24 , centred on the post 4 .

[0045] The application of the protective device 1 of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 13 . FIG. 6 represents a plan view of a slab at construction phase by means of a formwork 23 , from which multiple columns project. Some columns 21 incorporate the device 1 of the invention, their respective fields of action 24 having been represented. The operator 31 can move over the horizontal surface 17 in complete safety and comfort just by fastening and releasing the fastening means (harness and/or snap link) which link it to the stanchion 4 .

[0046] In FIGS. 4, 5 , 14 and 15 embodiments of the safety device 1 of the present invention have been represented in which the joining means comprise an upper turning member 16 , joined by means of an articulation 33 to the stanchion 4 with the possibility of turning on the vertical axis 8 of the latter.

[0047] In the case of the FIGS. 4, 14 and 15 , said upper turning member 16 comprises a turning arm 18 at whose free end 19 the upper end 6 of the rope 5 is fixed.

[0048] In the case of FIG. 5 , it is a beam 34 with a bracket 35 , along which a sliding carriage 36 slides horizontally and receives the coupling of the upper end 6 of the rope 5 . In this case, to the field of action 24 of the operator 31 around the stanchion 4 can be added the possibility of horizontal movement determined by the route of the sliding carriage 36 .

[0049] Preferably, in all cases, the rope 5 comprises energy absorbing means, adapted for preventing the operator 31 from suffering an impact from a jerk on the rope 5 in the case of an accidental fall. These energy absorbing means can be any disclosed type, for example a spring located between the lower end 7 of the rope 5 and the harness or snap link (not shown) attached to the operator 31 .

[0050] Similarly in a preferred form, whatever the form of embodiment of the anchorage, fastening and joining means of the safety device 1 of the present invention, it comprises at its upper part, near the upper end 11 of the stanchion 4 , a fastening 20 for a hoisting hook by means of a crane hook 32 or analogous device, essentially arranged on the centre of mass of the device 1 ( FIGS. 3, 4 and 5 )

[0051] In FIG. 13 an embodiment example of the device is shown in which several stanchions 4 are linked by a cable 28 to which the rope 5 is coupled with the possibility of sliding in order to provide a greater field of action to the operator 31 .

[0052] Illustrated in FIGS. 14 and 15 are both cases in which the upper turning member 16 comprises, as well as the said turning arm 18 , an opposite arm 39 with a ballast 37 , 38 that counteracts the weight of the operator 31 who is temporarily fastened to the device. In the case of FIG. 14 , the ballast is a fixed ballast 37 . In FIG. 15 it is a mobile ballast 38 , integral to the rope 5 and which turns around an end pulley 40 integral to the opposite arm 39 so that, when a temporarily tied operator 31 tends to fall to one side, pulling the rope 5 , the latter turns on the pulley 40 , making the ballast 38 move away from the end of the rope 5 to which the operator 31 is tied, thus compensating the effect of his fall.

[0053] The nature of the present invention having been sufficiently described, as well as how to put it into practice, it is herein pointed out that the technical equivalents of the different elements can be subject to variations in detail, the main points being summarised in the following claims.