US-20260124477-A1 - HARNESS AND METHOD

US20260124477A1US 20260124477 A1US20260124477 A1US 20260124477A1US-20260124477-A1

Abstract

A harness includes a belt loop, a leg loop, and a belay connection structure that includes at least one ring-like element; at least one tubular element, wherein one of the belt loop and the leg loop together with a circumferential section of the at least one ring-like element extend through the at least one tubular element, and wherein the at least one tubular element extends along a length that equals more than half of a circumferential length of the at least one ring-like element; and a belay connection element connecting the belt loop and the leg loop with each other and extending through the at least one ring-like element.

Inventors

Gianluca BRIOSCHI
Rebecca DAL CANTO

Assignees

SKYLOTEC GMBH

Dates

Publication Date: 20260507
Application Date: 20251027
Priority Date: 20241030

Claims (18)

1 . A harness comprising a belt loop, a leg loop, and a belay connection structure including: at least one ring-like element; at least one tubular element, wherein one of the belt loop and the leg loop together with a circumferential section of the at least one ring-like element extend through the at least one tubular element, and wherein the at least one tubular element extends along a length that equals more than half of a circumferential length of the at least one ring-like element; and a belay connection element connecting the belt loop and the leg loop with each other and extending through the at least one ring-like element.
2 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein: the at least one ring-like element comprises a first ring-like element extending through a first tubular element of the at least one tubular element, and the at least one ring-like element comprises a second ring-like element extending through a second tubular element of the at least one tubular element.
3 . The harness according to claim 2 , wherein at least one of the belt loop or the leg loop comprises a flat webbing.
4 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the belt loop or the leg loop is configured to be adjustable in length.
5 . The harness according to claim 4 , wherein at least one of the at least one ring-like element or the belay connection element is configured to be opened and closed.
6 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the at least one ring-like element or the belay connection element is configured to be adjustable in circumferential length.
7 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein the belay connection element comprises at least one of a textile material or a metal material.
8 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one ring-like element comprises a width which is smaller than a width of the respectively adjacent belt loop or leg loop.
9 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein: the at least one ring-like element comprises a flat webbing, and the at least one tubular element is flexible.
10 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one tubular element forms a tunnel along the length and comprises a textile material with a closure section extending along the length, the closure section closing the at least one tubular element on a side.
11 . The harness according to claim 10 , wherein the closure section is at least one of configured to be opened and closed for inserting or removing the at least one ring-like element and configured for adjusting the tunnel in diameter.
12 . A method for adjusting a harness according to claim 1 , the harness worn by a user, the belt loop surrounding a belt region of the user and the leg loop surrounding two legs of the user, the belay connection structure connecting the belt loop and the leg loop, the method comprising: moving the at least one tubular element along an extension of the belt loop or leg loop and thereby changing a location of a belay connection area relative to the user in a transversal direction of the user, wherein one or both of the belt loop and the leg loop is slack.
13 . A method for securing a position of the belay connection structure of a harness according to claim 1 along a transversal direction of a user, the harness worn by the user, the belt loop surrounding a belt region of the user and the leg loop surrounding two legs of the user, the belay connection structure connecting the belt loop and the leg loop, the method comprising: tightening at least one of the belt loop or the leg loop in the transversal direction of the user and around the user and thereby tightening the at least one ring-like element in the at least one tubular element and fixing the at least one tubular element on the belt loop or leg loop in the transversal direction.
14 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the belt loop or the leg loop includes a free loop end with a thickened structure.
15 . The harness according to claim 14 , wherein at least one of the at least one ring-like element or the belay connection element is configured to be opened and closed.
16 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein the belay connection element comprises a textile material, wherein at least one of at least two layers of the textile material or a flat webbing are sewn together along a circumferential direction.
17 . The harness according to claim 1 , wherein the belay connection element comprises a carabiner.
18 . The harness according to claim 10 , wherein the closure section is arranged only on one longitudinal side of the at least one tubular element and includes a seam, a magnet arrangement or a velcro arrangement.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS The present application is based upon and claims the right of priority to EP Patent Application No. 24209936.4, filed on Oct. 30, 2024, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety for all purposes. FIELD OF INVENTION The invention relates to harness comprising a belt loop, a leg loop, and a belay connection element connecting the belt loop and the leg loop with each other. The invention further relates to a method. BACKGROUND A part of safety equipment is designated as a harness, which is worn on a body of a person during climbing, ski touring, mountaineering, via ferrata, tree maintenance, or during work with a risk of falling, and through which a connection is established between the person to be secured and, for example, a safety device to prevent falls or a tie in point. The harness is typically made from several loops, which are placed around the middle of the body as belt loop respectively hip belt and around legs of the person as leg belts. The loops are brought together at a tie in point, often provided as belay connection element, to which a safety rope or a carabiner may be connected as a safety device against falling. The belt loop, the leg loop, and an optionally present chest strap may be adjustable to the bodily dimensions of the person to be secured, so that on the one hand forces occurring between the person and the harness are safely transmitted and, on the other hand, it may be prevented that the person to be secured unintentionally slips out of the harness. Harnesses for climbing in the recreation sector and for industrial safety are basically comparable in structure; however, said harnesses must satisfy different standards. While standard EN 12277 is relevant, for example, in the sporting sector, standard EN 361 applies for harnesses for industrial safety and standard EN 358 applies for tethers. So-called ‘two buckles waistbelt harnesses’ grant to the user great adjustability range and a more symmetrical harness, which results in a more comfortable fit, which is e.g. due to mirrored gear loops and padding. A downside is an increased cost and weight of the harness; at the same time, it has more components subject to possible failures and therefore require more supervision during use. In addition, it is required to adjust two webbings and two buckles at the same length, which typically is an impractical task in the field. So-called ‘one buckle waistbelt harnesses’ might be lighter, less expensive, safer, and easier to adjust than the two buckle waistbelt harnesses. However, downsides typically include reduced size range, and reduced comfort if the user is not perfectly at the middle of the size range. This is problematic and affects even the same user, when he/she wears the harness all year long, so with thin clothes during summer and with additional layers during winter season. Last but not least, it is a great disadvantage in case of ‘one-size fit all’ harnesses commonly used in gyms, rope courses, and Via Ferrata. In the past, harnesses manufacturers tried to solve such problems creating one buckle waistbelt harnesses with sliding paddings that could move over the load bearing sling of the waistbelt. Such solution greatly reduced existing disadvantages but was creating new issues, related to the movement of the paddings during use, e.g. the load bearing structure was static while the user was rolling inside. As the paddings were free to move, other main negative topics were reduced durability, cheap feeling of transmitted to the user, and out of fashion look. SUMMARY OF SOME EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the invention to provide a harness and respective methods involving a harness with enhanced durability, enhanced quality and looks, enhanced adaptability to weather and user comfort, lower cost to produce and enhanced safety. Particularly, it is an object to avoid disadvantages of known harnesses and methods. The invention is defined by the features of the independent claims. Preferred embodiments are described by the features of the dependent claims. Particularly, the object is solved by a harness comprising a belt loop, a leg loop, and a belay connection structure. The belay connection structure includes at least one ring-like element, at least one tubular element, and a belay connection element. One of the belt loop and the leg loop may extend together with a circumferential section of the at least one ring-like element through the at least one tubular element. The at least one tubular element may extend along a length that equals more than half of a circumferential length of the at least one ring-like element. The belay connection element may connect or may be configured to connect the belt loop and the leg loop with each other. The belay connection element may extend through the at least one ring-like element. In other words, particularly, a harness is suggested that includes two loops