Metrology grade light weight tripod
AssigneeBrunson Instrument Company
InventorsMark J. Meuret, Eric L. McKinney
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A tripod and a method of stabilizing a collapsible stand are provided. The tripod includes three legs attached to a base that swing open to a predetermined angle against a positive stop. The legs are locked into place in the open position via a leg spreader that forces (or pre-stresses/pre-loads) the legs outward against the stops. The method includes the steps of pivoting the legs of the collapsible stand to an open pivotal position into engagement with a stop, applying a load upon the legs to force the legs against the stop, and maintaining the load upon the legs while the stand is in use.
Claims20
A tripod comprising:
- a base;
- a plurality of legs connected to said base;
- a first stop feature associated with a first leg of said plurality of legs, said first stop feature being configured to inhibit said first leg from rotating beyond an open pivotal position;
- and
- a leg spreader associated with said first leg, said leg spreader being configured to urge said first leg towards the open pivotal position.
A tripod for supporting an object above a surface, the tripod comprising:
- a base;
- a plurality of legs connected to said base, each leg being configured to extend between the surface and said base when the tripod is being used to support the object above the surface;
- a first stop feature associated with a first leg of said plurality of legs, said first stop feature being configured to inhibit said first leg from rotating beyond an open pivotal position;
- and
- a spreader configured to urge said first leg towards an open pivotal configuration, said spreader further being configured to inhibit said first leg from rotating away from said first stop feature.
A method of stabilizing a stand for supporting an object above a surface, the stand including a plurality of legs connected to a base and at least a first stop feature associated with at least a first leg of the plurality of legs, said method comprising:
- providing the stop feature associated with at least first leg of the plurality of legs,
- applying a load upon the first leg such that the first stop feature provides a reactive load, thereby generating a preload in the first leg;
- and maintaining the load upon the first leg,
- providing a spreader associated with said at least first leg, said spreader being configured to urge said at least first leg toward an open pivotal configuration.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.