U.S. patent application number 12/041459 was filed with the patent office on 2008-08-28 for shipping container, system and packing method, along with reusable packing accessory for use therewith.
This patent application is currently assigned to EGGS OVERNIGHT, INC.. Invention is credited to Kent H. Dickinson.
Application Number | 20080203090 12/041459 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 39714723 |
Filed Date | 2008-08-28 |
United States Patent
Application |
20080203090 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Dickinson; Kent H. |
August 28, 2008 |
SHIPPING CONTAINER, SYSTEM AND PACKING METHOD, ALONG WITH REUSABLE
PACKING ACCESSORY FOR USE THEREWITH
Abstract
A reusable shipping system comprises a closable shipping
container and a packing ensemble disposed in the container's
interior which includes an expandable cushioning assembly and at
least one reusable packing accessory. The expandable cushioning
assembly may be a layered arrangement having at least one foam
layer and an inflatable bladder, while the packing accessory may be
one or more cushioned bags or the like. Methods are also described
for preparing a shipping container having a padded interior and a
layered cushioning assembly. One or more items are inserted into
the shipping container, and its cushioning assembly is thereafter
expanded, for example by inflating a bladder, to compress the
container's padded interior against the item(s).
Inventors: |
Dickinson; Kent H.;
(Covington, GA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
Michael R. Henson & Associates, LLC
5613 DTC Parkway, Suite 240
Greenwood Village
CO
80111
US
|
Assignee: |
EGGS OVERNIGHT, INC.
Stone Mountain
GA
|
Family ID: |
39714723 |
Appl. No.: |
12/041459 |
Filed: |
March 3, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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11665762 |
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PCT/US2005/009400 |
Mar 18, 2005 |
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12041459 |
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60554559 |
Mar 18, 2004 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
220/1.5 ;
206/523 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 81/1275 20130101;
Y02W 30/80 20150501; Y02W 30/807 20150501; B65D 81/052 20130101;
B65D 81/051 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/1.5 ;
206/523 |
International
Class: |
B65D 88/00 20060101
B65D088/00; B65D 81/02 20060101 B65D081/02 |
Claims
1. A reusable shipping system for shipping one or more items,
comprising: a. A shipping container including: i. A shell including
a base and a plurality of sidewalls surrounding said base; and ii.
A lid movably attached to said shell between open and closed
positions; b. A packing ensemble disposed in said shipping
container, said packing ensemble including i. A layered cushioning
assembly disposed above said base; and ii. A least one reusable
packing accessory for positioning on top of said one or more items
when placed in said container, each reusable packing accessory
comprising a sealed bag and a plurality of cushioning elements
contained within said bag.
Description
RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] The present application is a continuation-in-part of U.S.
patent application Ser. No. 11/665,762 which is the U.S. National
Stage Application under 35 U.S.C. 371 of International Application
No. PCT/US2005/009400, which is the non provisional of U.S. Patent
Application Ser. No. 60/554,559 filed Mar. 18, 2004, the
disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference in their
entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] The present invention is broadly directed to containers.
Particularly, the present invention is directed to shipping
containers useful for transporting parcels between senders and
recipients. More specifically, the present invention is directed to
reusable shipping containers suitable for shipping expensive or
fragile item(s) that may comprise separate parts or components.
[0003] There are a wide variety of containers useful for holding,
storing, and shipping goods. Such containers include a large
variety of tote containers, cartons, and boxes, all of which are
known in the art and each having particular features that make the
container suitable for desired applications. Containers are
commonly used, for example, in the shipping industry. Indeed, there
is a fundamental need for containers in commerce-based societies so
that goods may be shipped from merchant to customer.
[0004] Perhaps the most common type of container employed by the
shipping industry is a one-time use only carton constructed, for
example, of paperboard. The item to be shipped is placed within the
interior of the carton that is filled with cushioning materials,
such as styrofoam "peanuts", shredded paper or other paper based
filler, to name a few Thereafter, the carton is sealed with
packaging tape, staples, twine or similar mechanism. Once the
carton reaches its shipping destination, the recipient typically
discards both the container and the cushioning materials.
[0005] There are several noteworthy deficiencies associated with
the shipping industry's use of one-time use only cartons. First,
since the cartons are not constructed of a rigid material, such as
corrugated plastic or sheet metal, shippers have been conditioned
to excessively cushion items to protect them during shipping. Such
excessive packaging leads to increased packing costs and an
inefficient use of the parcel carrier's space. Wasted space reduces
the volume of shipping capacity of carriers, be it air transport or
land-based transport, such as trucks. Second, there is a
substantial time investment in packaging that results from the need
to carefully pack and seal the paperboard carton and prepare the
shipping documents for the same. Third, in addition to the problem
of cost, packing waste is one of the leading contributors to
landfill waste today. The detriment to the environment is only
expected to worsen with the continued rise in internet-driven
commerce.
[0006] One possible solution that the shipping industry could
employ to remedy the deficiencies created by the use of cardboard
cartons is to adopt a more highly durable container that is
reusable and makes efficient use of the carrier's available space.
One such container having both of these characteristics and that is
being used for limited shipping needs is commonly referred to as a
tote box.
[0007] Generally, tote boxes are substantially rigid containers
that provide for the safe transportation and storage of goods.
Typically, tote boxes are designed to have tapered sides so that
the tote boxes can be stacked or mounted in a nested relationship
with other tote boxes of the same construction. The ability to
stack multiple tote boxes on top of each other makes efficient use
of space during the transportation and storage of goods. As a
result, many tote boxes are constructed of a rigid material,
usually corrugated plastic or sheet metal, to support the weight of
a plurality of tote boxes. In addition, many tote boxes are further
constructed to include a top rail or rim that is adapted to receive
the bottom of another tote box.
[0008] Unfortunately, the use of conventional tote boxes, with few
exceptions, has not easily translated into a viable use for the
shipping industry, due perhaps to various drawbacks associated with
their construction. For example, tote boxes are typically
constructed as open-top, thin-like containers and therefore usually
lack a closure or lid. In addition, tote boxes are typically
constructed so as to have two (2) handle hold openings to
facilitate lifting and carrying the tote. Depending upon their
construction, the hand hold opening may permit intrusion of dirt,
dust or even water into the interior of the tote box, which may
harm or otherwise destroy the shipping item. Yet another deficiency
inherent in the design of the conventional tote box is its
inability to efficiently adapt for use with items of varying sizes
and dimensions. For example, conventional tote boxes used to
package items with conventional cushioning materials, such as those
identified above, may result in excessive use of cushioning
materials for relatively small items or, perhaps even worse, an
insufficient amount of cushioning materials resulting in empty
space. Empty space within a rigid container would permit the item
to shift therein possibly resulting in damage to the item or its
loss altogether.
[0009] There has long been a need for strong, relatively
inexpensive, reusable shipping containers that provide for the safe
transit of items and that also provide for efficient use of the
carrier's available space. Such a need is somewhat met by use of
conventional tote containers, and only then, for very limited
shipping needs. Accordingly, a need remains for a versatile,
reusable shipping container that overcomes the deficiencies of a
conventional tote box. More particularly, a need remains for a
shipping container that is space efficient, provides an effective
cushioning environment for the item(s) inside, regardless of their
size and dimension, and which is capable of widespread use for a
variety of shipping needs. It is, therefore, desirable to provide a
new and improved shipping container and shipping system which
eliminates shifting of contents during transit, is quicker to pack
versus traditional boxing and taping, avoids the risk of components
contacting one another during shipment, and is recyclable. A
container which is constructed to address one or more, or a
combination, of such needs would be beneficial. Of particular
benefit also would be a shipping container which is suitably
adapted for the packaging and shipment of high value and/or fragile
item(s). Further, a need remains for an alternative type of packing
material which can be used in a reusable shipping container,
wherein the packing material itself is reusable and constructed to
facilitate the filling of void spaces within the shipping container
to provide a more secure packing environment for the shipped
item(s).
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0010] To address the above needs, provided is a reusable shipping
container adapted to receive one or more items for shipment from a
sender to an intended recipient. The reusable shipping container is
capable of withstanding the rigors associated with shipping parcels
in commerce, particularly when the shipping items are fragile or
expensive. Advantageously, the shipping container may be packed
with usable cushioning materials to accommodate the contents of
varying configurations. The ability to manipulate the reusable
cushioning materials to conform, as needed, to the dimensions of
the selected contents permits the size of the shipping container to
be standardized, if the industry so desires. Further, if desired,
customized packing solutions, which are beginning to be used with
some frequency, can be modified as described herein so as to be
used with the reusable cushioning materials to ensure that the
items are packed in a manner to reduce the risk of damage or loss
of the product.
[0011] From the description to follow it will be appreciated that
the present invention is also directed to a shipping container
ensemble for use in the shipping industry, as well as an
improvement to a shipping container which incorporates one or more
packing accessories. Also described is a method for preparing a
container for shipment.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] FIG. 1a is a perspective view of a first exemplary
embodiment of a reusable packing accessory for use with a shipping
container;
[0013] FIG. 1b is a perspective view of a second exemplary
embodiment of a packing accessory;
[0014] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an exemplary embodiment of a
shipping container in an unpacked, or pre-shipment, state, and
showing some of its packing material in cross-section;
[0015] FIGS. 3a-f collectively illustrate a representative sequence
for packing a plurality of shipping items into the container of
FIG. 2 in preparation for shipment, wherein the lid is not shown in
FIGS. 3a-d; and
[0016] FIG. 4 is a partial diagrammatic front view, in elevation
and partial cross section, of the shipping container in a
semi-prepared state; and
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS
[0017] With initial reference, then, to FIGS. 1a and 1b, two
exemplary embodiments of packing accessories are illustrated. A
first exemplary embodiment of a packing accessory 10 is introduced
in FIG. 1a and is form of a reusable cushioning bag or pillow. To
this end, packing accessory 10 includes a sealed bag 12 which
contains cushioning material in the form of a plurality of packing
styrofoam "peanuts" as commonly available in the industry.
Oftentimes, these peanuts are distributed loosely within a shipping
container to surround the contents, and disposed of when the
container is opened by the recipient. Because they are loosely
dispersed throughout the container, typically a cardboard box, they
often become lodged in crevices or spilled as the contents within
the box shift or are removed by the recipient. This can be somewhat
frustrating to clean up. By containing the styrofoam peanuts within
a sealed bag as shown in FIG. 1a, these drawbacks are eliminated.
At the same time, however, a packing accessory is provided which
can be reused, yet which still has the advantages of providing a
cushioning effect. Packing accessory 10 has a generally square
configuration and its bag 12 is preferably formed by two layers
16,18 of plastic (e.g. 3 mil each) which are heat sealed along
their surrounding peripheral edge margins. Layers 16 and 18 could
be either clear plastic or opaque. A polypropylene plastic material
could also be employed.
[0018] A second exemplary embodiment of a packing accessory 20 is
shown in FIG. 1b. Here, packing accessory 20 includes cushioning
material/elements in the form of scrap foam that is cut to size in
lieu of styrofoam peanuts. Of course, the ordinarily skilled
artisan will appreciate that these cushioning pillows can assume a
variety of sizes and configurations depending on the packing needs
of a shipper and that insert material other than styrofoam peanuts
and foam pieces could be used to provide the desired cushioning
effect. Representative substitutes could include, for example,
shredded paper, suitable sealed gel substances and the like.
[0019] With reference to FIG. 2, a shipping container 30 according
to an exemplary embodiment is shown. Shipping container 30 has a
shell construction similar to that described in commonly owned U.S.
Patent Application Ser. No. 60/554,559, filed Mar. 18, 2004, with
particular reference to FIG. 11 thereof. The disclosure of this
earlier, pending application is incorporated by reference in its
entirety. Accordingly, the particular construction of shipping
container 30 need not be described in great detail as the
ordinarily skilled artisan would appreciate that it could vary
without departing from the inventive concepts herein.
[0020] With the above in mind and with continued reference to FIG.
2, shipping container 30 has some notable differences in its
construction vis-a-vis the shipping container described in my
earlier application. For example, while they each have foam inserts
in confronting relationship to the side walls, it may be seen that
shipping container 30 according to the present invention has its
interior surrounded by foam inserts, such that there is a
respective foam insert 32(1)-32(4) is secured to each side wall
34(1)-34(4), respectively. As such, the interior 36 of the
container is surrounded by inserts. To this end, foam inserts
32(1)-32(4) can assume in a variety of types, such as polyethylene
foam or polyurethane foam, to name a few. Side walls 34(1)-34(4),
preferably, are each a multi-layered construction of pressure fit
or glued corrugated plastic pieces, each preferably 6 mil thickness
to form a composite sidewall thickness of 12 mil.
[0021] Left and right handles 36(1) and 36(2), respectively, are
provided to facilitate lifting and transport, and container
includes a hinged lid 38 having egg crate polyurethane foam 39
adhered thereto. Associated with lid 38 is a closure mechanism
designed to be a flush mounted closure utilizing left and right 1/4
turn bolts 31(1) &31(2) and associated left and right keepers
33(1) & 33(2), as available from Southco Inc. of Condordville,
Pa. It is preferred to have a recessed design as shown to eliminate
snag hazards. This design is a preferred replacement to the buckles
& strap design described in co-pending application Ser. No.
60/554,559 because the buckle/strap is a surface mounted
arrangement and both items can become catch hazards when the
container travels through the sort equipment in the parcel
hubs.
[0022] To best appreciate how shipping container 30 can be suitably
packed with one or more items for shipment, reference is now made
to FIGS. 2, 3a-3f and 4. For representative purposes only, the
example items which are shipped include a projector, a conferencing
phone and a power strip. Since these items are relatively
expensive, have varying sizes and shapes and are fragile, they will
provide a good illustration for how the construct of the shipping
container can be suitably employed to provide a safe shipping
environment. With initial reference to FIG. 2, then, it may also be
seen that shipping container 30 has a layered bottom construction,
generally 40. Layered bottom construction 40 is a cushioning
assembly with, along with one or more of the packing accessories,
forms a packing ensemble to provide an adjustable cushioning
environment for items. More particularly, layered bottom
construction 40 includes a lowermost inflatable bladder of
rectangular shape which is preferably secured in facing
relationship to the bottom side wall 34(5) of container 30. Bladder
42 is similar to that described in my earlier application Ser. No.
60/554,559 and has an inflation valve (not shown) which is fixedly
positioned to communicate with an inflation tube 44 via an intake
port 43 formed through side wall 34(4). Disposed above and in
facing relationship to bladder 42 is a layer of 4 mil corrugated
plastic 50. Above this is a layer 52 of egg crate polyurethane foam
(FIGS. 2 and 4).
[0023] As shown in FIG. 3f, a hand pump 46 is employed to inject
air into the bladder via inflation tube 44. A protective grommet
device 45 is mounted to the sidewall 34(4) to register the
inflation tube 44 with the bladder's inflation valve. Hand pump 46
and its associated inflation tube 44 are available under the part
name "Faster Blaster II" from NOA International Inc., Of course,
other inflation means could be provided, such as through the use of
a squeeze bulb or the like.
[0024] In order to prepare container 30 for shipment, initially the
protector 60 may be placed within shipping container 30 so that it
rests on upper layer 52, as shown in FIG. 3a. One or more of the
pillow-shaped packing accessories, such as packing accessory 20
discussed above in FIG. 1a, can then be placed over projector 60
(FIG. 3b). Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 3c, the remaining items,
namely conferencing phone 62 and power strip 64, may be placed on
top of pillows 20(1) and 20(2) (FIG. 3c). Additional pillows 20(3)
and 20(4) may be placed above these items 62, 64 as shown in FIG.
3d. Of course, any suitable number of pillows of various shapes and
sizes could be employed to help fill in the voids. It can be
appreciated then that the bladder and the packing accessories
provided for the ability to cushion the contents with cushioning
accessories of different types and/or configurations, thereby
providing a shipping ensemble for the container 30. At this point,
the lid 38 is closed as shown in FIG. 3e, and air can be pumped
into the container interior via hand pump 46 as shown in FIG. 3f.
By inflating the bladder, the shipping items are elevated into a
snug compressed state within the interior of the container. Thus,
the layered bottom rises to snug up compress the shipping items
into a compacted state between the different types of cushioning
materials. Also, upon inflation of the bladder, the packing
accessories are compressed against the interior of the lid relative
to the lid's egg crate foam layer 38. Void areas are filled by the
pillows and the air system, resulting in a safe shipping
environment for the contents which effectively eliminates shifting
of the components during transit. At this point, container 30 is in
a prepared or packed state in preparation for shipment to a
recipient.
[0025] Accordingly, the present invention has been described with
some degree of particularity directed to the exemplary embodiments
thereof. It should be appreciated, though, that the present
invention is defined by the following claims construed in light of
the prior art so that modifications or changes may be made to the
exemplary embodiments of the present invention without departing
from the inventive concepts contained herein.
* * * * *