U.S. patent number 3,907,150 [Application Number 05/323,513] was granted by the patent office on 1975-09-23 for rigid container.
This patent grant is currently assigned to Eagle-Picher Industries, Inc.. Invention is credited to Stanley J. Jurasek.
United States Patent |
3,907,150 |
Jurasek |
September 23, 1975 |
Rigid container
Abstract
A material handling container comprising a deck bed having a
plurality of rigid posts extending upwardly therefrom. Wire mesh
walls extend between and are rigidly secured to the posts to define
a rigid, non-foldable wall structure. At least one of the walls may
have a hingedly connected wall section adapted to be releasably
retained in an upright position by latch means.
Inventors: |
Jurasek; Stanley J. (Concord,
MI) |
Assignee: |
Eagle-Picher Industries, Inc.
(Cincinnati, OH)
|
Family
ID: |
23259518 |
Appl.
No.: |
05/323,513 |
Filed: |
January 15, 1973 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
220/485;
292/DIG.30; 292/57 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B65D
19/10 (20130101); B65D 21/0211 (20130101); B65D
7/20 (20130101); B65D 2519/00164 (20130101); B65D
2519/00512 (20130101); B65D 2519/00626 (20130101); B65D
2519/00975 (20130101); B65D 2519/00338 (20130101); Y10T
292/0863 (20150401); B65D 2519/00562 (20130101); B65D
2519/00129 (20130101); B65D 2519/00059 (20130101); B65D
2519/00995 (20130101); B65D 2519/00298 (20130101); B65D
2519/00273 (20130101); B65D 2519/00437 (20130101); Y10S
292/30 (20130101); B65D 2519/00233 (20130101); B65D
2519/00024 (20130101); B65D 2519/00701 (20130101) |
Current International
Class: |
B65D
19/02 (20060101); B65D 21/02 (20060101); B65D
19/10 (20060101); B65D 007/20 (); E05C
005/02 () |
Field of
Search: |
;220/19,97A
;292/57,59,60,62,67,DIG.30 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
Primary Examiner: Summer; Leonard
Assistant Examiner: Moy; Joseph M.
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Woodhams, Blanchard and Flynn
Claims
The embodiments of the invention in which an exclusive property or
privilege is claimed are defined as follows:
1. In a material handling container having a movable wall of wire
mesh configuration comprising horizontal and vertical rods, a latch
structure for releasably securing the wall in an upright position,
comprising:
a keeper device secured to the container comprising a loop portion
projecting transversely of said wall;
a latch device attached to said wall for cooperation with said
keeper device, said latch device comprising means defining a pair
of loop portions adapted to be aligned with the loop portion of
said keeper device when said wall is in an upright position, a
latch member comprising a one-piece member having a pair of
straight sections extending transversely through the loop portions
of said latch device and mounted for pivotal and longitudinal
sliding movement with respect thereto, the adjacent ends of said
straight sections being connected by an intermediate generally
U-shaped handle portion, whereby said latch device can be slid
along said wall by moving said handle portion, and cooperating stop
means on said wall and said latch device for alternatively
positioning said latch device in a position in which one straight
section extends through the loop portion of said keeper device or a
position in which said one straight section is located outside of
the loop portion of said keeper device, said stop means including a
stop member fixedly attached to said latch member for pivotal and
sliding movement therewith, said stop member comprising a pair of
upright legs secured to the inner sides of said straight sections
and disposed on opposite sides of said U-shaped handle portion, and
a horizontal connecting web integral at its ends with said upright
legs and extending across and in front of said U-shaped handle
portion close to the upper end thereof, said legs being adapted to
project between and abut against vertical rods of said wall to
limit longitudinal sliding movement of said latch device in both of
said positions, said legs being movable from between said vertical
rods to permit longitudinal sliding of said latch device.
2. A material handling container as claimed in claim 1, wherein
said means defining the pair of loop portions is an inverted
U-shaped rod having a pair of vertical legs fixedly secured to the
horizontal rods of said wall on the inner side thereof, said
vertical legs having reversely bent, forwardly projecting portions
adjacent to their upper ends defining said loop portions, and a
horizontal connecting bar extending between the upper ends of said
legs and being disposed in front of and being secured to the
vertical rods.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a material handling container and, more
particularly, to a rigid material handling container having wire
mesh sides and bottom.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Material handling containers are available in a wide variety of
types and constructions. A popular type of material handling
container is a collapsible wire mesh container comprising hingedly
connected front, rear and side walls mounted on a base and
constructed and arranged so that the container can be folded more
or less flat for storage and shipment. Such containers have limited
load-carrying capacities and lack the ruggedness and durability
required for certain applications. Also, it is known to make rigid
containers of various materials, such as wood, but such containers
lack the desired features of low weight, ready visibility of the
contents of the container and ease of access to the contents. The
rigid containers are not stackable with collapsible wire mesh
containers of the same base dimensions.
Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a rigid
material handling container having improved ruggedness and
durability, high load-carrying capacity, ready visibility of the
contents, ease of access to the contents and which is stackable
with either similar rigid material handling containers or
collapsible wire mesh containers, of the same base dimensions.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a rigid
material handling container having a relatively low weight but
which is capable of holding heavy loads, so as to provide a lower
tare to net load factor than is provided by prior rigid material
handling containers.
It is a further object of this invention to provide an improved
reversible latch structure for the gate of a material handling
container so that the same latch can be used for either the
left-hand corner or the right-hand corner of the gate.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
According to the invention there is provided a material handling
container comprising a deck bed made of structural members joined
at their ends to form a peripheral frame. Legs extend downwardly
from the deck bed for contact with a supporting surface or for
stacking on another container of the same base dimensions. Rigid
posts extend upwardly from the deck bed and their lower ends are
fixedly attached to the deck bed. Wire mesh walls are rigidly
attached to the posts and to the deck bed to provide an
open-topped, rigid, non-foldable enclosure extending upwardly from
the deck bed.
In a preferred embodiment of the invention, at least one wall of
the container has one hingedly mounted section comprising a gate
which can be lowered to provide more convenient access to the
contents of the container. Latch means are provided to releasably
hold the gate in an upright position.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred material handling
container according to the invention.
FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the material handling container,
taken from a different aspect than FIG. 1.
FIG. 3 is a sectional view substantially as taken along line
III--III of FIG. 2 and showing the stacking relationship of two
containers.
FIG. 4 is an enlarged front view of a fragment of FIG. 1 and
showing the latch means.
FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken along the line V--V of FIG. 4.
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the material handling container 10
embodying the invention comprises a rectangular deck bed 11 having
legs 12 secured thereto adjacent the corners thereof and also
having a deck mat 13 secured thereto. Four upright posts 14 are
secured, as by welding, to the deck bed at the corners thereof and
said posts extend upwardly therefrom. Side walls 15, rear wall 16
and front wall 17 are secured to the posts 14 as by welding. The
front wall 17 is comprised of a rigid immovable lower portion 19
and an upper portion 20 which is hingedly connected to the upper
edge of said lower portion so that it can be moved outwardly and
downwardly for more convenient access to the interior of the
container.
Referring to FIG. 1, the deck bed 11 preferably is of the same
construction as the deck bed illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3 442
231, although it will be apparent that deck beds of a variety of
different constructions can be used. Specifically, the deck bed 11
is formed of upwardly facing U-shaped channel sections and
comprises side members 21 and end members 22 extending between the
ends of the side members 21. Intermediate end members 23 extend
between the side members 21 and in parallel spaced relation to the
end members 22. Intermediate side members 24 extend between the
intermediate members 23 in spaced parallel relation to the side
members 21. Finally, inner members 25 extend between the
intermediate side members 24 in spaced parallel relation to the end
members 22 and intermediate members 23. The members are secured to
one another by welding. Pocket defining structures are provided at
the corners of the peripheral frame and comprise channel sections
26 which are welded between the intermediate and end member 23, 22
at the corners to define the leg receiving pockets P which are
square and receive a portion of the leg 12 as presently to be
described.
Referring to FIG. 1, each leg 12 is made of two pieces welded
together and comprising a flat strip 27 that includes a vertical
wall 28, a horizontal bearing surface 29 and an end 30 that is bent
upwardly to define a recess R which engages the walls of the
adjacent lower container when like containers are stacked. The
other member 31 of the leg is U-shaped and includes spaced walls 32
that have their vertical edges welded to the vertical wall 28. The
uppermost portions 33 of the walls 32 cooperate with the upper end
of the wall 28 to define a square projection which is received in a
pocket P (FIG. 3). The walls 32 and connecting wall 34 have their
upper ends cut away to form a shoulder 35 that is adapted to abut
one of the peripheral frame members of the deck bed. As shown in
FIG. 3, the leg can be inserted in the pocket so that shoulder 35
engages an end member 22 and the recess R extends parallel to the
end member 21. Alternatively, the leg can be inserted so that the
shoulder 35 engages a side member 21 and the recess R extends
parallel to the side member. In this fashion, the container can be
adapted to an arrangement wherein the recesses engage either the
side or end walls depending upon the manner in which the containers
are to be stacked.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the deck mat 13 is of meshlike
construction and comprises a lower series of slats or rods 36 which
extend in parallel relation to the end members 22 and a second
series of slats or rods 37 that extend in parallel relationship to
the side members 21. The slats 36, 37 are welded to one another
where they cross and they are also welded to the upper edges of the
members 21 and 22 with which they are in engagement. The slats 36
also can be welded to the upper edges of the members 24.
Each of the posts 14 is an elongated upright angle member having
two flanges 41 and 42 extending at right angles to each other. As
shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the lower ends 41A and 42A of the posts 14
extend into the junctures of the members 21 and 22 at the corners
of the deck mat with the lower ends of flanges 41 and 42 being in
snug contact with the inner surfaces of the outer walls of said
members. The posts 14 are secured to the outer walls of the members
21 and 22 by welds W. Thus the flanges 41 and 42 are inset within
the members 21 and 22 in order to strengthen the assembly and
protect same from damage during handling.
The two side walls 15 and rear wall 16 are of wire mesh
construction. The vertical rods or slats 43 thereof are welded at
their lower ends to the inner surfaces of outer walls of the
members 21 and 22. The horizontal rods or slats 44 thereof are
welded at their ends to the inner surfaces of the flanges 41 and 42
whereby said side walls 15 and end wall 16 are rigidly connected to
the posts 14 and the deck bed 11. Horizontal reinforcing rods 46
are secured to the outer sides of the walls 15 and 16 at vertically
spaced locations, the uppermost reinforcing rod in each wall being
located at the upper end thereof. The rods 43, 44 and 46 are welded
to each other where they cross.
The upper ends of the flanges 41 and 42 are bent inwardly into
horizontally extending position overlying the horizontal rods 44
and reinforcing rod 46 at the corners of the container.
In the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the
drawings, the front wall has a gate so that access to the contents
of the container can be facilitated. However, in its broader
aspects the invention contemplates containers in which the front
wall is a rigid wall, the same as the rear wall 16. Also, gates can
be provided in the side and/or rear walls in the same manner as the
gate is provided in the front wall, as is described below, if more
convenient access to the contents of the container is desired from
the sides and/or rear of the container.
Referring again to the preferred embodiment of the invention, the
lower portion 19 of the front wall is constructed and attached to
the posts 14 and deck bed 11 in the same fashion as the side walls
15 and rear wall 16. The same reference numbers are applied to
corresponding parts.
The upper portion or gate portion 20 of the front wall also is of
wire mesh construction and is comprised of horizontal rods or slats
51 and vertical rods or slats 52 which are welded to each other
where they cross. The width of the upper portion is less than the
spacing between the adjacent edges of the two posts 14 at the front
corners of the container so that said upper portion can be swung
outwardly and downwardly. A wire helical coil 53 encircles the
uppermost horizontal rod on the lower portion 19 and the lowermost
horizontal rod on the upper portion 20, so that said coil defines a
hinge between said upper and lower portions of said front wall.
A pair of lock structures 56 are provided to releasably retain the
upper portion 20 of the front wall in upright position. The lock
structures each comprise a keeper 57 secured to the adjacent front
post 14 and a latch 58 attached to the adjacent upper corner of the
upper portion 20. The keeper 57 is comprised of a U-shaped rod 59
secured to the post 14 and extending horizontally and parallel to
the post. The innermost portion 59A of the rod 59 functions as a
stop for limiting inward pivoting movement of the upper portion 20.
The keeper 57 also includes a frontwardly projecting loop portion
61 which cooperates with the latch 58 as hereinafter further
described.
The latch 58 is comprised of a one-piece rod 62 having a pair of
vertical legs 63 which are welded to the horizontal rods 51 that it
contacts on the inner sides thereof. Reversely bent, forwardly
projecting loop portions 64 are provided at the upper ends of the
legs 63. The reversely bent portions 64 are in horizontal alignment
with the loop portion 61 when the wall portion is in upright
position. The upper ends of the legs 63 are connected by a
horizontal portion 66, which extends in front of the vertical rods
52 and is welded thereto. The latch 58 also includes a latch member
67 comprising a one-piece rod having straight horizontal end
sections 68A and 68B which extend through the reversely bent
portions 64 and an intermediate reversely bent handle portion 69. A
generally U-shaped stop element 71 includes a pair of upright legs
72 secured to the sections 68A and 68B adjacent the inner ends
thereof. The connecting web 73 of the element projects forwardly in
front of the legs of the reversely bent handle portion 69 and is
welded thereto. The parts of the latch 58 are arranged so that by
pivoting the handle portion 69 upwardly to a substantially
horizontal position, the latch 67 can be moved leftwardly and
rightwardly into and out of positions in which the end section 68A
extends through the loop 61. The latch 67 will automatically return
to its vertical position, by gravity, when the lifting force is
removed. In its lower vertical position, accidental disengagement
of the end section from the loop 61 is prevented by the leg 72A
abutting against the vertical rod 52A. Similarly when the latch is
disengaged from the loop 61, accidental engagement thereof is
prevented by the leg 72B abutting against the vertical rod 52B.
The latches 58 are symmetrical and reversible, that is, the same
latch can be used for both the right and left hand corners of the
upper portion 20 of the front wall.
Thus, the latch 58 can be moved from the position shown in solid
lines in FIG. 4, in which the movable wall portion or gate 20 is
retained in its upright position, to the position thereof shown in
broken lines, in which said wall portion or gate is free to swing
downwardly. The latch 58 will be releasably retained in either of
said positions, but it can be manually moved between said positions
when desired. It will be understood that sufficient clearances are
provided to enable the legs 72A and 72B to clear the rods 52A and
52B when such movement is desired. Particularly the loops 64 are
sufficiently large, relative to the diameters of rod sections 68A
and 68B, to enable the latch member 67 to be pulled forwardly so
that the free ends of the legs 72A and 72B will clear the rods 52A
and 52B when the latch member 67 is in a horizontal position.
The container according to the present invention can be stacked
with like containers or foldable containers of the same base
dimensions as illustrated in FIG. 3. It will be apparent that a
variety of leg constructions of different designs can be used in
place of legs 12. The container construction is lightweight, but is
strong and durable. The contents of the container are visible and
readily accessible, even when containers are stacked. Dirt and
debris cannot be trapped in the container.
A preferred embodiment of the invention has been illustrated and
described, but it will be understood that the invention comprehends
modifications thereof within the scope of the appended claims.
* * * * *