U.S. patent application number 12/229268 was filed with the patent office on 2009-02-26 for storage container.
Invention is credited to Jean-Marc Dubois.
Application Number | 20090050639 12/229268 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 38831114 |
Filed Date | 2009-02-26 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090050639 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Dubois; Jean-Marc |
February 26, 2009 |
Storage container
Abstract
A storage container, particularly made of plastic, for storing
goods, particularly in high-shelf warehouses, consists of a
container bottom and side walls that rise from this container
bottom. Openings that pass through the container bottom are
provided in the bottom. The openings are disposed in depressions,
the upper edges of which form the standing surface plane for the
goods to be stored.
Inventors: |
Dubois; Jean-Marc;
(Bremgarten, CH) |
Correspondence
Address: |
COLLARD & ROE, P.C.
1077 NORTHERN BOULEVARD
ROSLYN
NY
11576
US
|
Family ID: |
38831114 |
Appl. No.: |
12/229268 |
Filed: |
August 21, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/638 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 2501/24929
20130101; B65D 1/22 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
220/638 |
International
Class: |
B65D 25/24 20060101
B65D025/24 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Aug 21, 2007 |
DE |
20 2007 011 701.9 |
Claims
1. A storage container, comprising: a container bottom; and side
walls that rise from said container bottom, wherein the container
bottom has openings that pass through the container bottom, wherein
the openings are disposed in depressions in the container bottom,
and wherein the upper edges of said depressions form a standing
surface plane for goods to be stored.
2. The storage container according to claim 1, wherein the
depressions are grooves formed into the container bottom.
3. The storage container according to claim 2, wherein the grooves
form at least one rectangle, the sides of which run parallel to
sides of the bottom.
4. The storage container according to claim 3, wherein the
rectangles formed by the grooves have corners that lie on diagonals
of the bottom.
5. The storage container according to claim 6, wherein the openings
are disposed at the corners of the rectangles.
6. The storage container according to claim 5, wherein additional
openings are disposed on both longitudinal and crosswise sides of
the rectangles.
7. The storage container according to claim 2, wherein the grooves
have a rectangular or U profile, and the openings are provided at a
bottom of the profile.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] Applicant claims priority under 35 U.S.C. 119 of German
Application No. 20 2007 011 701.9 filed Aug. 21, 2007.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of the Invention
[0003] The invention relates to a plastic storage container, for
storing goods, particularly in high-shelf warehouses, consisting of
a container bottom and side walls that rise from the container
bottom.
[0004] 2. The Prior Art
[0005] Such storage containers are intended for interim storage of
goods that are packaged in boxes, for example, in high-shelf
warehouses, for a specific period of time. Such high-shelf
warehouses are automated for loading and unloading, placement into
storage and removal from storage, i.e. equipped with robot arms
that can be moved between the stacks of containers. The utilization
of space in such warehouses is optimized in such a manner that
little room remains between stacks of containers.
[0006] For this reason, these high-shelf warehouses are equipped
with sophisticated sprinkler systems that allow extinguishing water
to rain down onto the source of the fire from above if a fire
occurs, since intervention from the inside by the fire department
is generally not possible.
[0007] However, in this connection, the problem occurs that the
plastic containers in the uppermost layer in the warehouse, which
are generally open towards the top, at first take up the
extinguishing water that exits from the sprinkler heads, until they
are filled. Only when the uppermost layer of containers runs over
does extinguishing water also get into the lower layers, so that in
the meantime, the fire is able to spread unhindered.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide a
storage container in which a backup of extinguishing water does not
occur.
[0009] The invention accomplishes this task via openings that pass
through the container bottom, which openings are disposed in
depressions, the upper edges of which form the standing surface
plane for the goods to be stored.
[0010] In this way, the extinguishing water that gets into the
containers from above, by way of the sprinkler system, can flow
down between the underside of the stored goods and the container
bottom, into the depressions, and from there into the openings.
[0011] The depressions can be delimited by crosspieces in the
bottom on which the goods stand.
[0012] In a preferred embodiment, the depressions are grooves
formed into the container bottom, in which the openings that pass
through the bottom are provided.
[0013] This has the advantage, for one thing, that a larger
standing surface exists than in the case of the embodiment with
crosspieces, but that nevertheless, the water penetrating in from
above gets into the openings and from them into the open.
[0014] In another embodiment, the grooves form at least one
rectangle, whose sides run parallel to the sides of the bottom.
Such a geometry has the advantage that existing injection-molding
tools can be modified in an uncomplicated manner, in order to form
the grooves.
[0015] Multiple rectangles formed by the grooves can be provided,
whose corners lie on the diagonals of the bottom.
[0016] Thus, the water that has penetrated is uniformly distributed
over the entire bottom surface, and can flow away by way of the
openings which are disposed the corner points of the rectangles and
also in the longitudinal and crosswise sides of the rectangles.
[0017] In one embodiment, the grooves have a rectangular profile or
U profile in cross-section, and the openings are provided in the
profile bottom. Thus, the grooves are molded-in parts having an
uncomplicated configuration, and it is guaranteed, because the
openings are provided in the profile bottom, that goods standing on
the container bottom cannot close off the openings.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0018] Other objects and features of the present invention will
become apparent from the following detailed description considered
in connection with the accompanying drawings. It is to be
understood, however, that the drawings are designed as an
illustration only and not as a definition of the limits of the
invention.
[0019] In the drawings, wherein similar reference characters denote
similar elements throughout the several views:
[0020] FIG. 1 shows a storage container according to one embodiment
of the invention in a perspective representation, seen from
above;
[0021] FIG. 2 shows a container bottom in detail, seen from
above;
[0022] FIG. 3 shows a container bottom seen from below; and
[0023] FIG. 4 shows a container bottom in detail, seen from
below.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0024] Referring now in detail to the drawings, the figures show a
storage container made of plastic, and provided, in general, with
the reference symbol 1. It consists of a container bottom 2 and
side walls 3 and 4 that rise up from bottom 2, at a right angle in
this case. The longitudinal side walls are designated with 3, and
the crosswise side walls are designated with 4.
[0025] Grooves 5 are formed into the container bottom; their
approximately U-shaped cross-section is evident from FIG. 2.
Grooves 5 form rectangles that are closed in themselves, and in the
present case, four rectangles are provided, the corner points 6 of
which lie on the diagonals of the container bottom.
[0026] At the corner points 6 of the rectangles, openings 7 that
pass through the bottom are provided in grooves 5. Furthermore,
such openings are also provided in grooves 5 that run parallel to
side walls 3 and 4.
[0027] In FIG. 3, container bottom 2 is shown seen from below.
There are standing feet 8 in the corner regions of bottom 2. Ribs
serve to reinforce bottom 2. It can be seen through ribs 9 that
grooves 5 are formed into thickened regions 10 of the bottom in the
form of crosspieces, as is clearly evident from FIG. 4.
[0028] The goods to be stored stand in containers 1 securely
positioned on the surfaces that exist between grooves 5. Water that
penetrates in from above can flow down and off between the stored
goods and the container bottom, by way of grooves 5 and openings
7.
[0029] Accordingly, while only a few embodiments of the present
invention have been shown and described, it is obvious that many
changes and modifications may be made thereunto without departing
from the spirit and scope of the invention.
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