Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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FIREFIGH~ING TOOL SEl~
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Background of the Invention
The present invention relates to fighting
outdoor fires and particularly to a tool set useful for
` fighting fires in different types of terrain and
~IA vegetation.
~ With increasing movements of U.S. wildfire
.r~' firemen from one geographic region to another the need
for a better firefighting hand tool has evolved.
. There are three major wildfire regions in
~; North America. These regions are the east, west, and
northern wildfire ecosystems. Each region has its own
season, and traditional tools and tactics have evolved
in each region. Most firefighters brought to one of
these regions from another are not already aware of how
''A different these regions are from each other. Coordi-
nators moving firefighting crews from one region to
~- another are themselves often unaware of these
differences.
Wildfire fighters in eastern hardwood areas
generally use a fire rake or council tool. In the
eastern pine and grass areas of the south a fire beater
; similar to a rubber mud flap on the end of a wooden
pole is often the tool of choice.
In the west, the Pulaski, shovel, and MclccJ
are the dominant hand tools, and surface vegetable
I material usually needs to be scraped away to leave a
non-flammable fire break.
In the arctic and subarctic ecosystems of
~ Canada and Alaska, burlap bags used as swatters are the
-~ main tool in tundra. In black spruce taiga ecosystems
long knives are needed to cut down black spruce trees
and trim them into swatters which are the main initial
~; 35 attack tools, and Pulaskis are the rule for mop-up
work. ~owever, spruce branches are not always
~i available, and a great deal of time and energy can be
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last very long in use, anyway. Additionally, the
sharp-edged tool required for cutting such branches can
be dangerous to the firefighter.
Particularly in remote or steep terrain it is
difficult for a firefighter to have to carry several
long-handled tool~, such as different types of axes,
rakes, and hoes , to the scene of a fire. Furthermore,
it is difficult to keep such tools close at hand for
fighting a fire moving through differing types of
vegetation and ground cover.
For wildfire fighters to be ready to do their
work, they need to have all the necessary tools readily
~,~
available when they are transported to a fire in any
type of terrain likely to encountered in the geograph-
ical region where they are to be working. In places
where heavy layers of grass roots and the like are
found, shovels, grub hoes, and scrapers may not be
very useful and fire may have to be beaten down to be
extinguished. In other situations trees and brush need
to be cut to prevent spreading of fire, and a fire-
fighter may need an axe to be effective. However,
cutting small low brush with an axe usually results in
: quick dulling of the axe blade as it encounters dirt
and stones on the ground beneath thin branches.
;~ What i~ needed, then, i~ a universal fire
;j~ tool to arm firefighters so that with this one tool
;~1 they will be prepared to fight wildfires in any fire-
supporting ecosystem and will be more effective, com-
fortable and indeed safer, under a variety of differing
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Another aspec. of many previously available
~^~ firefighting tools for fighting fires in wilderness is
that they are likely to become snagged on vegetation
~ 35 and cause a firefighter to fall, particularly when the
- firefighter is tired and hiking out from the scene of a
,' ~ï fire. Particularly when going down steep inclines
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¦ carrying a shovel, an axe, or a Pulaski a misstep could
result in a fall and serious injury. When a fire-
fighter attempts to break a fall by reaching backward,
carried tool~ may cause cuts, or a fall may result in a
S broken arm, sprained wrist, bruises, or serious
injuries from edged tools being carried, regardless of
guards on the tools.
Wbat is needed, then, is a way for a fire-
fighter to carry the necessary tools for effectively
fighting a wilderness fire, and to carry safely all of
¦ the tools likely to be needed. It should be possible
`! or a fire~ighter to carry the tools necessary to cut
trees, branches, and small brush, to dig, scrape, and
rake the ground and low-growing vegetation to create a
fire line in different types of vegetation and soil, or
to beat down flames effectively in grass and low vege-
tation. It should also be possible for such tools to
be carried conveniently, so that they are not lost or
separated from one another and can be carried away from
the fire site safely through steep, rough, and heavily
vegetated terrain.
Summary of the Invention
.,5 The present invention provides a firefighting
i 25 tool aystem which overcomes the aforementioned short-
comings of the previously available firefighting too}s
and answers the need for a way for an individual fire-
fighter to carry all of the necessary tools safely to a
~; forest fire. The firefighting tool system according to
the present invention utilizes a single elongate handle
of strong, durable material, equipped with a selec-
tively releaseable, latching, quickly operable connec-
; tor for receiving any of four different tool heads
which are all portable safely in a convenient backpack,
so that a firefighter can arrive on the scene of a fire
~-j with the necessary tools for fighting fires in many
different types of flammable vegetation, and in
different types of terrain.
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I More particularly, an important aspect of the
invention i8 the provision of a tool head resembling an
enlarged military entrenching tool, which is releasably
attachable to the elongate handle by the connector to be
a useful mixlng 8poon or as a shovel with a blade of
ample size and a handle of ample length. The shovel
blade is pivotable to a perpendicular position in which
it is useful also as a scraper or a hoe, and preferably
there are notches located at intervals along one
I 10 lateral edge of the shovel blade to act as a rake. The
Z ~ame head in a preferred embodiment includes a foldable
j mixing spoon that is pivotable selectively and can be
~i locked in a position perpendicular to the handle and
¦ opposite the shovel blade.
A further aspect of the present invention is
the provision of a combination tool head useful as an
axe, a brush hook, or a grub hoe. The combination head
is also attachable to the elongate handle by the con-
nector, but when detached from the handle it can be
carried in a pocket of the backpack where it is safely
protected from snagging vegetation and from cutting the
firefighter should he fall. The brush hook blade is
~ provided as a concave sharpened edge located in a pro-
¦ tected position between the bottom of the axe blade and
the handle, 90 that the axe blade is available for
chopping larger branches and tree trunks, while the
~¦ brush hook can be used to cut smaller branches without
the axe blade edge being dulled by encountering the
ground as small branches are cut.
~, 30 Yet another aspect of the invention is the
provision of a fire beater tool head including several
long narrow strips of tough, flat, flexible material,
attached to a handle extension which can be attached
to the elongate handle by the connector. The flexible
strips of material are heavy enough and wide enough
to be swung forcefully to beat down flames and thus
extinguish fires in low-growing vegetation such as
mosses~ lichens, and grasses.
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An additional head attachable to the elongate
handle in accordance with the invention is a straight
metal pipe extension for use as the lower end of a
walking staff to be used in climbing through rough
terrain, as when walking out of mountainous forest
after a fire has been extinguished. Use of this staff
ensures that edged tools are removed from the handle
and are likely to be stowed in the backpack and
unlikely to cause injury.
It is therefore a principal object of the
present invention to provide an improved multipurpose
set of firefighting tools for use in fighting forest
fires and the like in different types of terrain and
vegetation.
i 15 It is a further ob~ect of the present
invention to provide a system of interchangeable tool
heads adapted to fit a single strong handle, to enable
x a person to arrive on the scene of a fire equipped to
fight the fire effectively, regardless of the type of
terrain or vegetation, and to facilitate dropping a set
of tools by parachute in a compact package.
: It is an important feature of the present
invention that it provides a universal handle equipped
with a strong connector including a releasable latch
for relea9ably attaching a selected one of several dif-
ferent firefighting tool heads to the handle for use in
fighting forest fires and the like.
~, Another important feature of the present
invention is the provision of a combination of the
capabilities of a shovel, a scraper, a rake, and apoon in a single tool head which is releasably
attachable to the handle of the present invention.
Yet a further feature of the present inven-
tion is the provision of a multipurpose fire fighting
~'l 35 tool head useful as an axe, a brush hook, or a grub hoe
¦ when attached selectively to an elongate handleO
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The foregoing and other objectives, features
and advantages of the present invention will be more
readily understood upon consideration of the following
detailed description of the invention taken in conjunc-
tion with the accompanying drawings.
Brief Description of the Drawings
FIG. 1 is a pictorial view of an elongate
handle for a firefighting tool incorporating the
.¦ 10 present invention.
FIG. 2 is a sectional view of a portion of
the handle ~hown in FIG. 1, together with a mating
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female portion of a releasable latching connector for
attaching a tool head to the handle shown.in FIG. 1.
. lS FIG. 3 is an end view taken along the line
3-3, showing the female mating portion of the latching
, connector shown in FIG. 2.
FIG. 4 is a view of.a shovel blade head which
: is attachable to the handle shown in FIG. 1 using the
. 20 latching connector shown in FIG. 2.
FIG. 5 is a sectional side view, taken along
.the line 5-5, of a portion of the shovel blade head
; shown in PIG. 4.
:; ~IG. Sa i~ a view ~i~ilar to that of FIG. 5,
25 showing th~ lng ~poonheld in a ~poon position while the
~1 shovel blade i~ ln a folded po~ition. .
? FIG. 6 is a view similar to that of FIG. 5,
.. ~ showing the shovel blade held in a scraping position
`~, perpendicular to the handle extension portion of the
c 30 shovel blade head shown in FIG. 4.
.~ FIG. 6a i8 a view similar to that of FIG. 6,
~: showing both the~Olsing ~poon and the shovel blade
,~ in storage or non u~e po~ition again~t exten~ion hantle
FIG. 7 i~ a side view of a combination head
which is attachable to the elongate handle shown in
FIG. 1.
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` FIG. 8 is a bottom view of the combination
head shown in FIG. 7.
FIG. 9 is a view of a fire beater head which
is attachable to the elongate handle shown in FIG. 1.
S FIG. 10 is a sectional view of a portion of
the beater head shown in FIG. 9, showing the method of
attachment of beater strips to the beater head.
PIG. 11 is a view of a sheet of material
defining strips used in the fire beater head.
FIG. 12 is a view of an elongate staff
exten~ion head which i5 attachable to the elongate
~:¦ handle ~hown in FIG. 1.
I FIG. 13 is a pictorlal view of a backpack
; including separate pockets designed, respectively, to
carry a shovel blade head, a beater head, a combination
head, and a staff extension head of a firefighting tool
according to the present invention.
~IG. 14 a vie~ of ~lre bru~h attachet to fire beater with two ho~e clamps
Detailed Description of the Invention
Referring now to the drawings which form a
. part of the di w losure, in FIGS. 1 and 2 an elongate
handle 10 includes a main body 11 and a smaller
diameter end portion 12. A male threaded connector
portion 14 defines a cavity in which the smaller
'3 25 diameter end portion 12 is rece1ved. The male threaded
¢onnector portion 14 ig attached permanently to the end
portion 12 by a layer 15 of a suitablé adhesive such as
an epoxy resin and a fastener such as a rivet 16
extending through both the connector portion 14-and the
small diameter end portion 12.
The main body 11 of the elongate handle
preferably is strong and resilient, having, for
-~ example, a fiberglass-reinforced resin core extending
. through its entire length, the core being surrounded by
- 35 a molded plastic material having an appropriate hard-
-~1 ness combined with an appropriate resiliency, to permit
^ ' the handle to be gripped firmly, without sliding and
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without transmission of excessive amXou~n~5O~ vibratlon.
¦A tool handle which can serve as a satisfactory main
body 11 for the handle 10 is manufactured by the IXL
Group of Bernie, Missouri, and is described in greater
detail in United States Patent No. 3,770,033, the dis-
closure of which is incorporated herein by reference.
A preferred length 18 of the handle 10, including the
length of the male threaded connector portion 14 which
forms a portion thereof, is about 35 inches. The
'I10 handle 10 is preferably brightly colored to be highly
1visible and thus unlikely to be lo~t at the site of a
fire.
The male threaded connector portion 14
iincludes a spring-biased plunger 20, located within a
cavity defined in the male threaded connector portion
14 and protruding radially from the male threaded con-
, nector portion 14 under the influence of the compres-
sion spring 22. The plunger 20 serves as a detent to
retain the male threaded connector portion 14 in a
fully mated position with respect to a female threaded
; connector portion 24 by extending outwardly through a
corresponding bore 26 defined in the female connector
portion.
Preferably, the male and female connector
~ 25 portions 14 and 24 define mating coarse helical threads
,1 .such as a modified Acme thread having a pitch ~ of at
least 1~4 inch and preferably approximately 1/2 inch,
and a radial thread depth of about 1/16 inch. The
threaded connector portions 14 and 24 can thus be mated
~ 30 and separated with a relatively small number of turns
-q of the screw threaded portions, yet the length 28 of
the mated portions of the male and female threaded por-
tions 14 and 24 is great enough for the connector to
carry the loads to which it will be subjected during
~ 35 use of the tool of the inventlon.
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~¦ - As may be seen in FIGS. 4, 5, Sa, 6 and 6a,
a shovel head 30 attachable to the handle 10 includes
an elongate handle extension 32, preferably of steel
~:~ pipe welded to a female connector port~on 24. The
S handle extension has a length 34 of about 14 inches,
~: between a female threaded connector portion 24 and a
pivot axis 40 extending transversely of the handle
extension 32. A shovel blade 42 is connected pivotably
. to the handle extension 32 by a pair of parallel ears
10 44 extending from a mounting plate 46 fastened to the
shovel blade 42 by fasteners such as rivets 48. The
¦ ears 44 extend parallel with one another on opposite
~ sides of a bar S0, part of the handle extension 32, and
.' a fastenet such as a rivet 52 extends along the pivot
i.3 15 axis 40, through respective bores defined in each of
;~ the ears 44 and the bar S0.
.~ The shovel blade 42 can be rotated with
~, respect to the handle extension 32, except when it is
. held in a particular position by a retainer collar
, 20 54, which is mounted in threaded engagement with an
. exterior thread 56 on the handle extension 32. A heavy
.~ washer 58 is ~lidable along the bar 50 between the
: retainer collar 54 and the ears 44, so that when the
retainer collar 54 urges the washer 58 into contact
with the flat faces 60, 62, or 64 o the ears 44 the
; shovel blade 42 is prevented from pivoting about the
.` pivot axis 40 with respect to the handle extension 32.
i? Thus, the shovel blade can be held in a first, or
Y shovel, position extending in line with and away from
.~ 30 the handle.extension 32 as shown in FIGS. 4 and S, when
:~ the washer 58 is held against the flat surfaces 60 by
.~ the retainer collar 54. In this position of the shovel
blade 42, a pair of lateral edges 66 of the shovel
blade 42 which are parallel with each other and perpen-
35 dicular to a rear edge 68 of the shovel blade 42, are
1 generally ~¦~d with the handle extension 32~ ~pp~o~_
~a tc ly 20---2f as s~ in f I G~ S~
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As shown in FIG. 6, when the retainer collar
' 54 holds the washer S8 in a position in contact with
Jl the flat faces 62 of the ear~ 44, the shovel blade 42
and its lateral edges 66 extend substantially perpen-
dicular to the handle extension 32. With the shovel
blade 42 thus extending laterally, the shovel blade is
useable as a scraper or rake, with teeth separated by
notches 70 defined in at least one of the lateral edges
- 66. In one embodiment of the tool each of the notches
i.
has a depth 72 of about 3/4 inch and a width of about 1
l inch, while the notches are separated from one another
¦ by a notch interval 74 of about 2 inches, and the
j lateral edge 66 and the notches are sharpened to assist
in cutting and scarping vegetation.
j 15 In a preferred embodiment of the invention
`~l the shovel blade 42 has a width 76 of about eight a~d
~ inches, and a length 78 of about 1~ inches. The width
!~ gives a better ability than a rake to move loose leaves
and similar materials.
The shovel blade 42 can be rotated between
the shovel position shown in FIG. 5 and the scraper or
rake pos~tion shown in FIG. 6 when the collar 54 is
~¦ unscrewed along the thread 56 away from the ears 44.
;; Additionally, the shovel blade 42 can be folded
~! 25 further, as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 6, to place
the shovel blade 42 alongside the handle extension 32,
;l with the lateral edges 66 of the blade parallel with
: the handle extension 32, to reduce the overall length
of the shovel blade head 30 for greater convenience in
- 30 carrying it when it is not being used.
~1 A~ ~ay also be seen in FIGS. 4, 5, 5a, 6 and
6a, a mising spoon 61, preferably having a length 59 of
~ about 7-1/2 inche~, is also attached pivotably to the
: handle extension 32 by the rivet 52, which extends
through a pair of ears 63. Themi~ing ~poon 61, including
the ears 63, may be of an appropriately shaped plate of
steel providing a pair of longitudinal stiffening ribs
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65, giving the ~poon 61 sufficient strength for use in
mixing embers and soil to extinguish a fire, particu-
larly around the roots of trees. TheDIixing Apoon 61~
like the shovel blade 42, may be held alongside the
handle extension 32, as shown in FIG. 6, by use of the
collar 54 to hold the washer 58 against flat faces 67.
The~lsing ~poon 61 may also be held in an outwardly
directed pick position, extending away from the handle
extension 32 as shown in FIG. 5a, by holding the washer
58 against flat faces 69 of the ears 63. Both the
~hovel blade 42 and the ~ixing ~poon 61 can be held in
~ alongside hantle extension 32 a~ shown in FIG 6a. This can be placed
:1 in the ~hovel guard pouch while in thi~ configuration, as shown in
FIG 13 for compact storage and safe travel over difficult terrain
A combination head 80, shown in FIGS. 7 and
8, has a bottom 82 to which a female connector portion
.,
~a 24 is attached fixedly, as by welding. The combination
. head 80, like the shovel head 30 can be attached remov-
ably to the elongate handle 10 by means of the female
connector portion 24.
The combination head 80 includes an axe blade
portion 84 having a sharpened edge 86 which extends in
the same plane with and generally parallel with the
female connector portion 24. The edge 86 is directed
'- away from the female connector portion 24, and is best
i3 used for chopping larger materials such as tree limbs
`l and large rots. Extending in the opposite direction
~¦ from the axe blade portion 84 is a grub hoe blade por-
tion 88. The grub hoe blade 88 lies generally in a
plane perpendicular to the length of the female connec-
tor section 24 and has a sharpened edge 90 which lies
in the same place and extends generally perpendicular
` to the length of the female connector 24 and the handle
~i~ 35 10. As may be seen in FIG. 8, the grub hoe blade por-
tion 88 has a width 92, which, in a preferred embodi-
ment of the invention, is approximately 3 inches. The
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grub hoe is best used for trenching, grubbing rocks and
dirt away from roots, and clearing tough ground cover
down to mineral soil.
Lying substantially in the same plane as the
S edge 86 of the axe blade portion 84, and located on the
bottom 82 of the axe head portion 84, is a sharpened
brush hook edge 94 in the shape of a concave curve.
The brush hook edge 94 is exposed downwardly along the
handle lO when the combination head 80 is attached to
the handle lO w$th the threaded connector portions 14
and 24 mated. As a result, branches and brush can be
cut by being hooked with the sharpened brush hook edge
94 and then pulling the handle lO during use of the
: combination head 80. Thus, the combination head 80 can
lS be used as an axe, making use of its sharpened edge 86,
or as a grub hoe, making use of its grub hoe blade 88,
and additionally may be used as a brush hook by using
the brush hook edge 94 to cut small branches and thus
~, avoid the dulling of the sharpened edge 86 of the axe
blade 84 which ordinarily would result from cutting
into small branches and sticks lying on the ground with
sharpened edge 86 of the axe blade.
A fire beater head 98 shown in FIG. 9
; includes a female connector portion 24 and a handle
extension portion lO0 which together have a length 102
of about li inches, in a preferred embodiment of the
~- invention. A ~ cJ diameter terminal portion l2a of
handle extension lO0 (FIG. lO) 1 serves as a safety stop or lock
~:~ feature. A plurallty of strap-like narrow elongate flat sheet strips
. 30
-~ 108 of flexible material are fa~tenet to the terminal portion of the
handle extension 100 by a clamp 110. For example, af~er flexible
~3 material is rolled onto end of handle extenYion, a hose clamp 110encircles flexible material behind flared terminal 128, and ls
tightened to form fire beater head 98, Fig. 9 and 10
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¦ Preferably, as shown in FIG. 11, the strips
108 are formed by parallel cuts 112 defined in a sheet
114 of fabric-reinforced synthetic rubber, such as a
two-ply fabric-reinforced neoprene material. Such
S material is durable enough to be used for several hours
work of beating out fires in grassroots, moss, lichens,
tundra vegetation, or other vegetation which i5 too
tough to be scraped awway efficiently in fighting wild-
fire. Preferably, the cuts 112 extend to an imaginary
line 115 defining a marginal portion 116 about ~ inches
wide. Each of the strips 108 has a length 118 which is
preferably about ZL inches, leaving the marginal por-
tion 116 to be wrapped around the reduced diameter
~, portion 128 of the terminal portion of the handle
extension 100. While the strips 108 would be func-
tional with a length as short as 12 inches, a greater
length performs better and allows for some gradual loss
of length during use. Greater length allows the strips
to wrap about and conform better to the shape of
burning material to exclude air and extinguish the
fire. It has been found that the beater head performs
well when each of the strips 108 has a width 120 of
about ~ inch and a thickness 122 of about 1~8 inch.
A staff extension 124, shown in FIG. 12,
includes a female connector portion 24, and preferably
¦ has an overall leng~th 126 of about lg inches, including
the length of the female connector portion 24, so that
when the staff extension 124 is mated with the elongate
handle 10 a staff of approximately 4 feet in overall -
^-~ 30 length is created. The staff extension 124, beyond the
female connector portion 24, is preferably of light-
weight, high strength metal pipe, such as chrome-
molybdenum steel pipe which is very strong for its
weight and able to withstand the r-igors of use as the
working end of a staff to support a firefighter's
weight as he leans on the staff to maintain or regain
balance lost by slipping during work on steep terrain.
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E~referably, a plug 12a c105 9 the bottom en~i of the
staff extension 124. The staff created by attachment
of the staff extension member 124 to the handle 10 may
be used by a per30n walking down a steep hill, for
example, by holding it extending rearwardly behind him.
The person can lean back on the staff to gain its sup-
port and thus avoid a fall, or to obtain the benefit of
additional drag to avoid going downhill too fast. It
is also useful to locate deep holes and as a support,
when crossing rivers.
As an alternative embodiment of the staff
extension member 124, a portion of its side surfaces
ne~r its bottom end can be provided with indentations
and surface roughening so as to provide a satisfactory
seat for the sheet 114, defining strips 108 of the fire
beater head 98, to be attached to the staff extension
member 124. The sheet 114 can then be attached to the
staff extension 124 by a clamp similar to the clamp 110.
Referring next to FIG. 13, a backpack 130
~r 20 includes a pocket 132 for holding the shovel blade head
30. Additionally provided are a pocket 134 for holding
the combination head 80, a pocket 136 for holding the
fire beater head 98, and a pocket 138 for holding the
staff extension head 124 on the outside of the main
storage compartment 140 of the backpack. Storage is
thus provided in the backpack 130 for all of the
interchangeable heads attachable to the handle 10, so
that a firefighter has available each of the different
`1 types of firefighting tool heads provided by the
present invention, with each of the heads held in a
safe position out of the way of being caught during
movement through a brush-covered or otherwise heavily
vegetated region on foot. Clothing carried in the main
storage compartment 140 will act as padding to protect
the user from being bruised by falling back onto the
backpack while the tool heads are being carried. All
of the tool heads are carried to and frorn a fire in
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to a parachute landing site for use by smokejumpers
after they are on the ground. As a result, regardless
of the type of terrain or of the vegetation which has
S become fuel for a fire, the firefighter equipped with
the interchangeable tool heads and the handle 10
according to the invention is equipped to fight the
fire. ~inally, pocket 141 carries a stantard fire shelter.
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Referring next to Fig. 14 shows wire brush 150 attached to
1 to fire beater attachment by two clamps 110. One of the main
problem~ with arctic taiga fire is that after the flames are beat
out, sparks often survive, hidten and smoldering deep in the moss.
rhese often survive till the next day. On exten~ive perimeters
only a few lnitlal attack fire fighters wlll have trouble holding
the fire when those ~moltering hot spots want to turn a8ain into
open flame.
We have fount, simply dragging the wire brush along the edge of
the black line (where the burnet moss and unburnet mosses meet),
;r, ' that the wlre brush will tear open those hiting pockets of smoldering
., 2a heat ant expose them to cooling. Areas left unbrushed will often
e~upt back into open flame~when humidities drop and wints rlse.
This 18 a ma~or change in tactics for taiga fires. It is
usually not necessary for tuntra or temperate grasslants. Tuntra on
try ritgetop~ will neet black line tragged however. Tuntra ln low
~ ~ S lants usually toes not need this unless unusually trought stricken.
.~ I The terms and expressions which have been
employed in the foregoing specification are used
therein as terms of description and not of limitation,
~ and there is no intention, in the use of such terms and
t . :',' 3D expressions, of excluding equivalents of the features
shown and described or portions thereof, it being
recognized that the scope of the invention is defined
and limited only by the claims which follow.
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