User:Gtorrisi
Selected US Patent
Back Pack Having a Releasable Climbing Harness
- Patent #: 4318502
- Date Issued: March 9, 1982
This invention is a combination of a backpack, the kind often used for hiking, with a climbing harness. Many hiking style backpacks include a waist strap to help distribute the load more comfortably. The waist strap on this backpack includes leg loops and is easily detachable from the rest of the pack so that it may be used as a climbing harness. As pointed out in the documentation, this would prove particularly useful for military and rescue operations where it may be vital to carry equipment and might be necessary to use a harness to navigate difficult terrain and/or utilize a rope from a helicopter. The harness portion is connected to the main backpack by placing a loop on the harness through a buckle on the pack, and a pin through this loop to prevent it from slipping out. The leg loops are fixed to the waist strap on one end and have a buckle system on the other so that they may be stored in pouches on the waist strap to keep them out of the way, or attached without having to remove the waist strap/backpack. This invention would cut down on weight/space as it would not be necessary to have a separate climbing harness. I enjoy climbing and have been backpacking as well so this seemed like an interesting patent to me. I found this on Patentstorm and used Google Patents to read the full patent complete with pictures.
homework - prior printed publication.
