U.S. patent application number 14/784964 was filed with the patent office on 2016-03-17 for transport container having an identification carrier.
The applicant listed for this patent is PAUL CRAEMER GMBH. Invention is credited to Ralf-Peter Finke, Hubert Schaefer.
Application Number | 20160075479 14/784964 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 48868653 |
Filed Date | 2016-03-17 |
United States Patent
Application |
20160075479 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Finke; Ralf-Peter ; et
al. |
March 17, 2016 |
TRANSPORT CONTAINER HAVING AN IDENTIFICATION CARRIER
Abstract
A transport container having a receptacle for holding an
electronic, wireless identification device in the form of a smart
card. The transport container has a double-walled wall section
formed by an inner wall and an outer all. The receptacle is defined
by guides and ribs and an insertion slot is provided in the outer
wall via which the card is inserted into the receptacle. The
insertion slot is offset to the receptacle, so that the smart card
or elements of the receptacle must be elastically deformable to
insert the card into the receptacle. The ribs and guides ensure
that the card is reliably held in the receptacle. The ribs also
ensure that the card is held at least 1.5 mm away from the inner
and outer walls, thereby preventing buildup of a moisture film on
the smart card, to avoid impairment of the ability to read the
card.
Inventors: |
Finke; Ralf-Peter;
(Gutersloh, DE) ; Schaefer; Hubert;
(Herzebrock-Clarholz, DE) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
PAUL CRAEMER GMBH |
Herzebrock-Clarholz |
|
DE |
|
|
Family ID: |
48868653 |
Appl. No.: |
14/784964 |
Filed: |
April 14, 2014 |
PCT Filed: |
April 14, 2014 |
PCT NO: |
PCT/EP2014/057512 |
371 Date: |
October 30, 2015 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
206/459.5 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D 85/70 20130101;
B65D 25/205 20130101; B65D 21/0209 20130101; B65D 21/045 20130101;
B65D 2203/10 20130101 |
International
Class: |
B65D 25/20 20060101
B65D025/20; B65D 85/00 20060101 B65D085/00; B65D 21/02 20060101
B65D021/02 |
Foreign Application Data
Date |
Code |
Application Number |
Apr 17, 2013 |
DE |
202013101653.5 |
Claims
1-9. (canceled)
10. A transport container for use with an identification carrier
that is constructed as a smart card, the transport container
comprising: a container body having a sidewall that includes a
double-walled section formed by an inner wall and an outer wall; a
receptacle formed by guides and one or more ribs within the
double-walled section for receiving the smart card; an insertion
slot formed in the outer wall and offset in alignment to the
receptacle to create an offset path into the receptacle; and
wherein the the smart card is insertable through the insertion slot
and the offset path into the receptacle; wherein the ribs and
guides hold the smart card loosely captured within the receptacle
and maintain a minimum distance between the smart card and the
inner and outer walls; and wherein the offset path prevents the
smart card from inadvertently slipping out of the receptacle.
11. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the outer wall in
an area near the insertion slot is elastically deformable, so as to
allow the smart card to be insertable through the insertion slot
and the offset path.
12. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the smart card is
elastically deformable, such that the smart card capable of
traveling the offset path into the receptacle.
13. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the double-wall
section forms an upper circumferential collar of the transport
container and wherein the receptacle is provided a distance from
the lower edge of the double-wall section.
14. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the double-walled
section includes a cut-out that provides a means of visually
determining the presence of the smart card in the receptacle.
15. The transport container of claim 14, wherein the double-walled
section has a U-shape cross-section that is open toward the bottom,
with a connector web connecting upper ends of the inner wall and
the outer wall, and wherein the cut-out is provided in the
connector web.
16. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the minimum
distance from the inner and outer walls is 1.5 mm.
17. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the container body
has one color and the smart card has a color that is different from
the one color.
18. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the smart card is
constructed as a flat body having flat surfaces with a length and a
width greater than edge surfaces and is held in the receptacle in a
vertical orientation on one of the edge surfaces.
19. The transport container of claim 10 further including
horizontally oriented stacking surfaces to allow multiple transport
containers to be stacked on top of one another and wherein the
receptacle is provided above the stacking surfaces.
20. The transport container of claim 19, wherein the container is
constructed as a stack nest container.
21. The transport container of claim 19, wherein the container is
constructed as a crate for holding food kept chilled with ice, the
container body having bores in the stacking surfaces and in the
double-wall section for draining water from melting ice.
22. The transport container of claim 10, wherein the container is a
fish crate.
Description
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
[0001] 1. Field of the Invention
[0002] The invention relates to the field of transport containers
and particularly, to such container for food chilled with ice.
[0003] 2. Discussion of the Prior Art
[0004] The electronic wireless identification carriers have
advantages over adhesive labels, because they enable machine
identification of the transport container. If the transport
container serves as a fish crate, for example, to hold freshly
caught fish and ice, the identification carrier serves to identify
the specific fish crate, which has probably already been sold
online while the fishing vessel is still at sea. The ability to
readily and accurately read off the information on these
identification carriers is therefore of significant importance in
the subsequent handling and transport of the fish crate.
[0005] Particularly when used as a fish crate, attaching the
identification carrier entails considerable requirements: On the
one hand, a certain minimum distance to water has to be maintained,
because otherwise, depending on the radio frequency band that is
used with the identification carrier, the readability of the
identification carrier may be significantly diminished. The
proximity to fish, with its high water content, as well as to the
ice that is used to keep the fish fresh, presents a problem with
regard to the readability of the identification carrier.
[0006] Particularly in the food industry, such as, for example,
with the aforementioned fish crates, it is important that the
transport container be able to cleaned easily and to hygienic
standards. Attaching the identification carrier has to allow for
such cleaning.
[0007] Equipping the transport container with an identification
carrier is not desired in all cases and for each customer. It is,
therefore, advantageous to construct the transport container so
that the identification carrier may or may not be incorporated at
the factory. It is advantageous if the transport container can be
retrofitted with an identification carrier at the customer's
location, for example, for a customer who already has transport
containers without the tags, but who desires to change over to some
identification system, using the same containers.
BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0008] It is an object of the invention to improve a conventional
transport container such, that it allows in the most cost-effective
manner a selective embodiment of the transport container with or
without an identification carrier. It is a further object, that the
electronic wireless identification carrier be easily readable, even
if the transport container is filled with water or the goods in the
container have a high water content. Further goals are that it be
possible to exchange the identification carriers or retrofit the
containers with identification carriers at a later date, and that
the transport container be able to be cleaned without difficulty
and to high hygiene standards.
[0009] The invention proposes in other words a bundle of measures:
The first measure is that the identification carrier, which is
normally referred to as an RFID tag or transponder, have an
electronic circuit in the form of a chip and an antenna. According
to the invention, the identification carrier is encapsulated in a
casing that is molded around all sides. Such devices are typically
referred to as Smart Cards or Hard Tags, regardless of their
dimensions. Such cards or tags are known either in a credit-card
size format or as an elongate stick. The identification carrier
according to the invention is frequently referred to hereinafter as
a "smart card." This embodiment ensures excellent protection
against moisture for the identification carrier, because the
identification circuitry is enclosed on all sides and, thus,
protected against water.
[0010] The second measure is a double-wall section. This
double-wall section of the transport container does not serve to
create a hermetically sealed hollow chamber, for the purpose of
holding the identification carrier. Such hollow chambers have the
disadvantage that, if the container wall becomes deformed, the
hermetically sealed envelope of the hollow chamber may open up, for
example, along welded seams. This allows water to seep into the
hollow chamber, which can have a negative impact on the readability
of the card. Furthermore, such undesirable and unforeseen cracks
can have a negative effect hygienically on the transport container,
because such hollow chambers, which are now accessible to bacteria
and other contaminants, cannot be adequately cleaned. For this
reason, the transport container according to the invention has ribs
in the double-wall section, between the inner wall and the outer
wall, such that these ribs serve as a kind of spacer, because they
are arranged such, that they define the boundaries of a receptacle
that serves to hold the smart card.
[0011] A third measure is to provide an insertion slot in the outer
wall of the double-wall section through which the smart card is
insertable into the aforementioned receptacle. The insertion slot
is, however, offset to the receptacle. This is based on the
consideration that the smart card be elastically deformable and be
able to be brought into the receptacle from the insertion slot by
elastically deforming, i.e., flexing, the card. Should the smart
card not be sufficiently deformable, then it is suggested, that
instead of the card, to make the outer wall which has the insertion
slot appropriately deformable, so that in any case the smart card
may be inserted into the receptacle, despite the offset between the
insertion slot and the receptacle.
[0012] When the smart card has been inserted into the receptacle,
the offset between the receptacle and the insertion slot ensures
that the smart card is securely captured in the receptacle and
cannot get to the insertion slot or pass through the slot without
an external force being applied to it. In other words, the smart
card cannot inadvertently escape the transport container.
[0013] The function of the mentioned ribs as spacers prevents a
moisture film from building up between the identification carrier
and the adjacent outer wall or the inner wall of the double-wall
section, as this moisture film could have a negative effect on
reading the identification carrier. It is also advantageous, as far
as complete and hygienic cleaning is concerned, that the ribs
according to the invention create a space of at least 1.5 mm
between the smart card and the next adjacent section of the inner
wall and the outer wall. This space allows water to be sprayed into
the receptacle to clean the receptacle and the smart card.
Furthermore, this space also ensures that the smart card, which
held in the receptacle, is optimally protected against external
impacts, such as can occur during transport.
[0014] A fourth measure is to hold the smart card in the
receptacle, such that it is also removable. The flexibility or
deformability of the smart card or the wall section that has the
insertion slot also ensures that the smart card can be removed
again from the transport container by overcoming the corresponding
deformation forces of the smart card. Should the smart card become
damaged and the identification carrier no longer be readable, the
identification carrier can be easily replaced, so that the
transport container remains just as usable as before. Also, it is
possible that the transport container initially be delivered
without an identification carrier, and be fitted with an
identification carrier at a later date, without difficulty, simply
by pushing the identification carrier through the insertion slot
into the receptacle. This retrofit can be done at the production
facility for the transport container, so that the manufacturer
delivers transport containers that are already equipped with
identification carriers. On the other hand, it is also possible to
fit transport containers with the identification carriers later at
the customer's place, even if the transport containers have been in
use already for several months or years.
[0015] The-double-wall section is advantageously provided on a
place on the transport container that is frequently reinforced
anyway, namely, by providing an upper collar that encircles the
transport container. The receptacle is thereby advantageously
slightly raised, i.e., provided some distance from the lower edge
of the double-wall section, so that the identification carrier is
optimally mechanically protected. Thus, even then, when such a
collar is mechanically grabbed from below with the help of a
hook-like tool, in order to lift the transport container or pull it
across a floor, the receptacle is protected from the grabbing or
pulling forces. Due to the distance from the lower edge of the
collar, the smart card is placed outside of the area where such
tools would grab.
[0016] Advantageously, speedy optical inspection is possible, to
ascertain whether an identification carrier, i.e., a smart card, is
provided in the transport container or not. For this purpose, a
cut-out is provided in the double-wall section, so that it is
possible to see the smart card. This cut-out forms a viewing window
that is provided in the double-wall section.
[0017] If the double-wall section, as mentioned above, is
constructed in the form of the upper circumferential collar of the
transport container, the viewing window just mentioned may be
placed advantageously in a connector web of the wall geometry of
this double-wall section, the web connecting the inner wall with
the outer wall. This can be the upper closing surface of this
essentially U-shaped wall section that is open toward the bottom,
so that the presence of the smart card can be immediately
ascertained by a look from above onto the transport container.
[0018] The recognition of the smart card within the transport
container can be particularly simplified by giving the smart card a
color that is distinguishable from the color of the material of the
transport container. In this way, recognition of the presence of
the smart card with optical means is possible, and not just by
machine, but through a simple visual inspection by each person who
uses or handles the transport container.
[0019] Advantageously, the smart card may be embodied as a flat
body, whereby the width and length are each greater that its
thickness, so that the card is defined as having a flat surface and
an edge surface. The smart card is located in the receptacle such,
that the flat surface is vertically oriented. This allows the
embodiment and arrangement of an antenna of the identification
inside of the smart card that is optimally readable in the reading
direction, which is oriented normal to the surface. This
orientation accommodates many of already existing electronic
reading devices for RFIdentification carriers or transponders, so
that the transport container according to the invention may be
readily implemented in an already existing infrastructure.
[0020] Advantageously, stacking surfaces may be provided in a known
manner in the transport container. Such stacking surfaces are
typically located within the area that is enclosed by the outer
wall of the transport container, so that the transport container
may be placed from above into a second transport container of the
same type and rest on the stacking surfaces of the lower transport
container, which, for example, are provided approximately 3 cm
below the upper edge of the transport container. In such an
embodiment, the receptacle for the smart card is advantageously
provided above the stacking surfaces, because a well-protected
double-wall area has been created here on the transport container,
so that the smart card is well protected against mechanical damage.
Here, too, the distance is greatest to the contents of the
transport container, so that the negative effects when reading off
of the identification carrier are avoided for the most part.
[0021] Advantageously, the transport container is constructed as a
stack nest container. This embodiment of containers, which is
actually known in the field, means that in a first orientation, the
mating geometries of the two containers stacked one on top of the
other overlay or match each other to a great extent, whereby the
upper container can sink far down into the lower container. This
so-called nesting serves to reduce the volume required to transport
the containers when a plurality of empty transport containers need
to be handled. If one turns the upper container 180 degrees about
its vertical axis, then the degree of overlay into the lower
container is reduced, so that, for example, two filled containers
may be stacked one on top of the other, without a cover being
needed for the lower container, which would form a surface for the
upper container and hold the upper container with very little or no
nesting on top of the lower container. Rather, the upper container
is placed on the stacking surfaces that were mentioned above and
that are provided on the lower container, allowing the upper
container to sink to a lesser degree down into the lower container,
so that the lower container may contain the normal volume of the
goods.
[0022] As previously mentioned, a particularly advantageous
application for the transport container embodied according to the
invention is to serve as a fish crate. Fish crates have several
characteristics that are adapted specifically to their purpose,
such as, for example, a floor that has raised sections on which the
fish are placed and are kept as dry as possible, as well as several
lower sections opposite the raised sections, which are, for
example, constructed as channels, for receiving liquid, such as
water from melted ice.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0023] An embodiment of a transport container is described below in
greater detail, with reference to the purely schematic
drawings.
[0024] FIG. 1 is a perspective view from diagonally above onto the
transport container.
[0025] FIG. 2 is an enlarged view relative to the view of FIG. 1, a
perspective view onto the area holding the identification
carrier.
[0026] FIG. 3 is a top plan view onto the area shown in FIG. 2.
[0027] FIG. 4 is a perspective view onto the area of FIG. 2, from a
different viewing angle.
[0028] FIG. 5 is a view showing the inside of the transport
container.
[0029] FIG. 6 is a perspective view from below onto the transport
container.
[0030] FIG. 7 illustrates two transport containers of the same
type, stacked one into the other.
[0031] FIG. 8 illustrates two transport containers of the same
type, nested together.
[0032] FIG. 9 is a perspective view from below onto the area shown
in FIG. 2.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0033] A transport container 1, which is embodied as a fish crate,
is shown in the drawings. The transport container 1 has a
double-wall section 2 that is constructed as an upper
circumferential collar on the transport container 1. The wall
section 2 is closed at the top by a horizontally oriented connector
web 3, which connects an inner wall 4 and an outer wall 5 of the
double-wall section 2 with each other. A plurality of drain holes 6
are provided in the connector web 3, through which rinse water can
flow when the transport container 1, placed upside down, is rinsed
with water. When being cleaned in this manner, the water also flows
into the double-wall section 2. The inner wall 4 extends beyond the
double-wall section 2 downward and forms the side walls of the
transport container 1 and also forms as a single integral component
the floor of the transport container 1.
[0034] The double-wall section 2 has an insertion slot 7, through
which a smart card 8 is inserted into the double-wall section 2. As
can be seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, the insertion slot 7 is arranged
offset to the receptacle 9 that is created between the inner wall 4
and the outer wall 5 of the double-wall section 2. As can also be
seen in FIG. 2, the smart card 8 is embodied as a flat stick, which
is horizontally oriented over its entire length, but, due to its
flat construction, is oriented with its flat surface on edge in the
receptacle 9.
[0035] A stacking surface 10 is provided inside the transport
container 1 and a drain channel 11 that leads to the outside is
provided in the stacking surface 10. The outside opening of this
drain channel 11 can be seen in FIGS. 1 and 2.
[0036] FIG. 3 shows that the drain holes 5 are not only provided in
the connector web 3, but also in the stacking surface 10 and still
lower down, namely, in the container floor. This container floor
has raised support surfaces 12, as well as channels 14 adjacent to
the support surfaces 12. Liquid, such as, for example, melted water
from the refrigerating ice, is able to drain off via the drain
holes 6 and is then carried out of the transport container 1, so
that the fish that is in the transport container 1 is stored as dry
as possible.
[0037] In a purely schematic manner, FIG. 3 shows very clearly that
the receptacle 9 can be bounded by guides 15, so that the smart
card, when initially inserted into the insertion slot 7, is
automatically guided by the guides and deformed, until the smart
card 8 has been completely inserted into the receptacle 9. There
the smart card 8 is held without tension, i.e., loosely, so that it
is not continuously up against any surface of the transport
container 1 and under tension. Rather, these guides 15 ensure that
the smart card 8 is held loosely in the receptacle 9, so that the
smart card 8 may be rinsed on all sides with water when the
transport container 1 is being cleaned.
[0038] FIGS. 3 and 4 show that a large-surface cut-out is provided
in the connector web 3. This surface serves not only as a drain
hole 6, but, more particularly, creates a viewing window 16 through
which the smart card 8 remains visible for viewing from above in
the direction of the transport container 1. In the same manner, a
person can determine that an identification carrier is missing with
just a quick look, for example, when, namely, no smart card 8 is
visible in the viewing window 16.
[0039] FIG. 5 shows a view into the inside of the transport
container 1, with the support surface 12, which rises up
increasingly higher from the center of the container to the end
face of the transport container 1 against the channel 14 that is
provided around it.
[0040] FIG. 6 shows a view from below onto the transport container
1. One can see that the double-wall section 2 is open toward the
bottom, so that a cleaning solution or rinse water may be sprayed
into the double-wall section 2 from below, and then drain off
through the drain holes 6. This open-bottom construction of the
double-wall section 2 makes it possible to grab the smart card 8,
either manually or by machine, and to deform the smart card 8 and
push the card out through the insertion slot 7 and out of the
double-wall section 2. In this way, a defective identification
carrier may be replaced, for example, when writable identification
carriers are to be used, which are then, for example, written with
information that is intended for a specific customer.
[0041] FIG. 6 further shows that so-called columns 17 are provided
on the two opposite end faces of the transport container 1. These
columns 17 are arranged offset to each other, such, that the two
columns on the one end face are spaced a different distance apart
than the two columns 17 on the opposite end face of the transport
container 1. In this way, the transport container 1 is constructed
as a so-called stack nest container, as is illustrated with
reference to FIGS. 7 and 8: By placing two transport container 1 of
the same type on top of each other, whereby the two transport
containers 1 are oriented in opposite directions, the two transport
container 1 are stacked together as shown in FIG. 7. The offset in
orientation means that the columns 17 of the lower transport
container 1 have a different spacing from each other than the
columns 17 at the end face of the upper transport container 1,
which are provided above the end face of the lower transport
container 1. The columns 17 of the upper transport container 1 rest
therefore on the stacking surfaces 10 of the lower transport
container 1.
[0042] If the upper transport container 1, in contrast to the
stacking arrangement shown in FIG. 7, is rotated 180 degrees about
its vertical axis, then the columns 17 at the same end face in this
container arrangement are above columns that have the same spacing.
In this way, the transport containers 1 and their columns 17 fit
against each other, such, that a particularly high degree of
congruity in the geometry of the mating surfaces of the two
transport containers 1 is achieved, such that the double-wall
section 2 of the upper transport container 1 sets against the
double-wall section 2 of the lower transport container 1. This
nested arrangement of the two transport containers 1 enable the
most space-saving transportation of the largest possible number of
empty transport containers 1.
[0043] FIG. 9 is a perspective view from below of the double-wall
section 2: The receptacle 9 is bounded by several guides 15 on
three sides, namely, on both the long sides and on the end face
that faces away from the insertion slot 7, and is open at the end
toward the insertion slot 7. The open end is offset to the
insertion slot 7, creating a short offset path behind the insertion
slot 7. This offset path prevents the smart card 8 from
inadvertently moving out of the receptacle 9 and through the
insertion slot 7. In other words, in order to be removed from the
transport container 1, the smart card 8 has to be flexed, i.e.,
deformed. The guides 15 extend only over a small portion of the
height of the smart card 8.
[0044] The guide 15 shown in the upper right corner in FIG. 9
curves away from the smart card 8 toward the outer wall 5 and
thereby creates a space that initially allows the smart card 8 to
be inserted from the insertion slot 7 into the receptacle 9. Later,
too, if it is necessary to remove the smart card 8 from the
transport container 1, the curved end of this guide 15 provides the
space to bend the smart card 8 and move it toward the insertion
slot 7.
[0045] Several of a plurality of ribs 18 that extend across the
space between the inner wall 4 and the outer wall 5 are also
provided in the double-wall section 2. The guides 15 also have
ribs, which, however, extend only over a small portion of the
height of the smart card 8. For that reason, the larger ribs 18
have slots, which also form boundaries on the receptacle 9 and
through which the smart card 8 extends. The ribs 18 serve a dual
function: they provide a lower boundary of the receptacle 9 and
ensure that the smart card 8 cannot fall out of the receptacle 9
toward the bottom, and they ensure that the card maintains a
sufficient distance to the inner wall 4 and the outer wall 5. This
distance of at least 1.5 mm prevents the build-up of a moisture
film between the smart card 8 and the adjacent inner wall 4 or the
outer wall 5, as such a moisture film would negatively influence a
radio transmission to the smart card 8.
[0046] Deviating from the embodiment shown, a fewer number of the
guides 15 shown in FIG. 9 may be provided. The number and the
length of the shown guides 15 does, however, advantageously ensure
that the smart card 8 is reliably guided through the slots in the
ribs 18 and does not hit with its end face against the ribs 18,
when the card is inserted into or removed from the transport
container 1.
* * * * *