Patent Application
20180235334
The present specification relates generally to luggage and more specifically relates to softside luggage having spinner wheels.
Travel is a common human activity and luggage is an important feature of travel. Development of new luggage as well as new methods of assembling luggage is quite active as there is a growing demand for more durable lighter luggage as well as a desire to manufacture the luggage with a high degree of consistency for a low cost. Presently, softside articles of luggage have become very popular for their durability and light weight. In addition, more features such as extendible handles and spinner wheels are becoming more popular. This has naturally resulted in an increase in the number of parts that need to be assembled to form an article of luggage.
In accordance with an aspect of the specification, there is provided an article of luggage. The article of luggage includes a bottom tray having wheel wells formed therein. The bottom tray is made from a bottom-tray material. The article of luggage also includes a wall connected to the bottom tray. The wall is made from a wall material that is softer than the bottom-tray material. In addition, the article of luggage includes spinner wheels connected directly to the bottom tray at the wheel wells.
The bottom-tray material may be a hard plastic.
The wall material may be a fabric.
The bottom tray may be a unitary construction.
The bottom tray may be manufactured using an injection molding process.
The bottom tray may include a lip positioned at least along a portion of a perimeter of at least one of the wheel wells. The lip may be offset from an outer wall of the bottom tray defining a gap. The gap may be configured to fit an edge of the wall material.
The lip may be integral with the bottom tray.
The lip may be removable from the bottom tray.
The lip may be configured to protect a corner of the article of luggage.
The wall material may be shaped to have at least one fastening flap extending from a wall portion of the wall material. The fastening flap may be narrower than the wall portion and wrapped at least partially under the bottom tray. The fastening flap may be secured to an underside of the bottom tray.
In accordance with an aspect of the specification, there is provided a method of manufacturing an article of luggage. The method involves forming a bottom-tray material into a bottom tray having wheel wells configured to receive spinner wheels therein. The method further involves connecting wall material to the bottom tray to form a wall of the article of luggage.
Forming the bottom-tray material into the bottom tray may involve using an injection molding process.
The method may further involve wrapping a fastening flap of the wall at least partially under the bottom tray. The fastening flap may extend from a wall portion of the wall and be narrower than the wall portion.
The method may also involve fitting an edge of the wall into a gap formed between an outer wall of the bottom tray and a lip extending from at least a portion of a perimeter of at least one of the wheel wells.
The method may further involve securing the fastening flap to an underside of the bottom tray.
In accordance with an aspect of the specification, there is provided a bottom tray for an article of softside luggage. The bottom tray is made of unitary construction from bottom-tray material and includes wheel wells formed therein. Each of the wheel wells is shaped to receive a spinner wheel.
The bottom tray material may be a hard plastic.
The bottom tray may be manufactured using an injection molding process.
The bottom tray may further include a lip positioned at least along a portion of a perimeter of at least one of the wheel wells. The lip may be offset from an outer wall of the bottom tray defining a gap fitting an edge of a wall. The lip may be integral with the bottom tray.
The lip may be removable from the bottom tray.
Reference will now be made, by way of example only, to the accompanying drawings in which:
As used herein, any usage of terms that suggest an absolute orientation (e.g. “top”, “bottom”, “front”, “back”, etc.) are for illustrative convenience and refer to the orientation shown in a particular figure. However, such terms are not to be construed in a limiting sense as it is contemplated that various components will, in practice, be utilized in orientations that are the same as, or different than those described or shown.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, the article of luggage 10 includes a bottom tray 12 having a plurality of wheel wells 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, and 14-4 formed therein (generically, these wheel wells are referred to herein as “wheel well 14” and collectively they are referred to as “wheel wells 14”). The article of luggage 10 further includes a wall 16 connected to the bottom tray 12. The term “wall” applies to the front, back, top, and left and right sides of the article of luggage 10, individually or as a whole. In the present embodiment, the wall 16 is connected using a plurality of interlock pieces 42-1, 42-2, 42-3, and 42-4 (generically, these interlock pieces are referred to herein as “interlock piece 42” and collectively they are referred to as “interlock piece 42”) at each of the wheel wells 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, and 14-4, respectively, and at the fastening points 40-1 and 40-2 such as screw holes in the bottom tray 12 (generically, these fastening points are referred to herein as “fastening point 40” and collectively they are referred to as “fastening points 40”) as described in greater detail below and shown in
Referring to
In the present embodiment, the bottom tray 12 includes a plurality of lips 24-1, 24-2, 24-3, and 24-4 (generically, these lips are referred to herein as “lip 24” and collectively they are referred to as “lips 24”) positioned along a portion of a perimeter of the wheel wells 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, and 14-4, respectively. Each of the lips 24-1, 24-2, 24-3, and 24-4 is offset from an outer wall 26 of the bottom tray 12 to define a gap 28-1, 28-2, 28-3, and 28-4 (generically, these gaps are referred to herein as “gap 28” and collectively they are referred to as “gaps 28”), respectively, configured to receive an edge of the wall material that forms the wall 16 as discussed in greater detail below. It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art having the benefit of this description that the outer wall 26 of the bottom tray 12 is generally covered by the wall 16, while each of the lips 24 is exposed. Accordingly, the lips 24 can be configured to cover and/or secure the edges of the wall 16 as well as configured to provide protection for a corner of the article of luggage 10 from bumps and scratches that the corners of the article of luggage 10 may be subjected to during use. In the present embodiment, the lips 24 are an integral part of the unitary construction of the bottom tray 12. However, variations can include using a different material for the lips 24 such as rubber, different plastics, and other scratch resistant materials to provide even greater protection. Additionally, it is to be appreciated than the lips 24 can also be removable (see
The bottom tray 12 further includes a mount point 20-1, 20-2, 20-3, and 20-4 (generically, these mount points are referred to herein as “mount point 20” and collectively they are referred to as “mount points 20”) in each wheel well 14-1, 14-2, 14-3, and 14-4, respectively. The mount points are each configured to receive the spinner wheels 18 for mounting. It is to be appreciated with the benefit of this description that the mount points 20 along with the manner by which the spinner wheels 18 are mounted are not particularly limited and can be varied. In the present embodiment, the mount points 20 include a hollow cylindrical neck. However, other embodiment can include other mounting mechanisms such as a clips, magnetic connectors or quick connectors.
In the present embodiment, each of the wheel wells 14 is shaped to at least partially accommodate the respective spinner wheel 18. In the present embodiment, each of the wheel wells 14 defines a concave cavity configured to directly receive the respective spinner wheel 18. It is to be appreciated with the benefit of this description that the depth of the wheel well 14 is not particularly limited and that the wheel well 14 is not necessarily concave in other embodiments. In fact, some embodiments can include a convex wheel well such that the wheels extend further from the wall 16. For example, when the wheel well 14 includes a deep cavity, the wheels 18 are generally further recessed resulting in the external dimensions of the article of luggage 10 being smaller which can be advantageous in some circumstances, such as for satisfying airline luggage size requirements. However, the deeper recess would reduce the interior space of the article of luggage 10 and create irregular features, such as a bump, on the interior walls of the article of luggage 10 making it more difficult to utilize the interior space when loading non-deformable objects. Conversely, having a shallow cavity for the wheel well 14 would allow for the article of luggage 10 to be positioned further above a surface such that the wall 16 would be less likely to touch the surface to reduce the chance that the wall 16 would be damaged or soiled from contact with the surface. In addition, the shallower wheel well 14 would provide interior walls which are flatter and which may facilitate loading of the article of luggage 10.
The wheel wells 14 are formed in the bottom tray 12 and are monolithically formed with the bottom tray 12. In particular, the wheel wells 14 of the present embodiment are not separate components fastened to the bottom tray 12. It is to be understood by a person of skill in the art that the monolithically formed wheel wells reduce tolerances on the assembly of the article of luggage 10 as well as simplifies the manufacturing process by having fewer pieces to put together at the final assembly step. Referring to
Referring back to
Referring to
The interlock piece 42 is not particularly limited and variations of the present embodiment are contemplated. In particular, the interlock piece 42 can be modified or omitted in some embodiments. For example, in the present embodiment, the interlock piece 42 is a right-angled bracket. However, other embodiments can vary the interlock piece 42 to be one or more elastomer clips configured to retain the wall 16. In further embodiments, the interlock piece 42 can be omitted completely. In such embodiments without the interlock piece, the wall 16 can be held in the gap 28 using a friction fit, adhesives, hook-and-pile fasteners (e.g., Velcro) or other retention mechanisms capable of securing the wall 16 to the bottom tray. In addition or alternatively, the wall 16 can be held in the gap 28 by one or more fastening flaps 30 being pulled and secured tightly, and in such embodiments the interlock pieces 42 or other additional retention mechanism can be omitted.
It is to be re-emphasized that the article of luggage 10 described above is a non-limiting representation only. For example, although the present embodiment shown in
As another example of a variation, it is to be appreciated that although the wall 16 generally defines a conventional suitcase, it is to be appreciated that that bottom tray 12 can be used in other types of luggage such as a backpack, or a dufflebag having a hard bottom.
Referring now to
In other embodiments, various manufacturing techniques, such as pressure forming and 3D printing can be used for plastics. In further embodiments, such as ones where the bottom tray material is a metal, a stamping process can be used.
Block 520 comprises connecting the wall material to the bottom tray 12 to form the wall 16 of the article of luggage 10. It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art with the benefit of this description that the wall 16 can be cut and finished according to a design pattern prior to being connected to the bottom tray. For example, the wall 16 can include several pieces sewn together or bound using other means such as adhesives, hook-and-pile fasteners, or similar. In addition, the preparation of the wall material can also include finishing seams and adding fabric binding and piping.
It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art with the benefit of this description that in some embodiments, the method 500 can be completed by separate parties. For example, a plastics manufacturer can be used to form the bottom tray 12 and a separate assembler can be used to connect the wall material to the bottom tray 12.
It is to be appreciated that in the present embodiment, the wheel wells are not covered by the wall 16. Accordingly, the wheel wells 14 expose the bottom tray 12 as an external surface within the wheel wells 14. It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art that this provides advantages in to the manufacturing of the article of luggage. In particular, since the wall 16 does not overlap the wheel well 14, the attachment of the wall and the spinner wheels 18 are completely independent. Therefore, the spinner wheels 18 can be directly attached to the bottom tray 12 equally easily at any time either before or after attaching the wall 16 providing greater flexibility in the manufacturing process of the article of luggage. Increased accuracy in spinner wheel 18 positioning and orientation is also an advantage of the unitary bottom tray 12. More accurately positioned spinner wheels 18 can help the user better control the article of luggage 10 when in motion.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, the plate 54a further includes an optional handle 56a. It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art with the benefit of this description that that the handle 56a is not particularly limited and can be varied. The handle 56a is generally configured to provide a user of the article of luggage 10a with a convenient way to lift the article of luggage 10a. Accordingly, the handle 56a can be modified to any design that increases user comfort, such as including ergonomic hand grips or reduces the costs of manufacturing using a simple design. In the present embodiment, the handle 56a can be a separate component attached to the plate 54a. However, in other embodiments, the handle 56a can be formed with the plate 54a as a single unitary component.
Referring to
In the present embodiment, the article of luggage 10b further includes an optional handle 56b. It is to be appreciated by a person of skill in the art with the benefit of this description that that the handle 56b is not particularly limited and can be varied. In the present embodiment, the handle 56b is generally configured to provide a user of the article of luggage 10b with a convenient way to lift the article of luggage 10b and is connected directly to the bottom tray 12b through the fastening flaps 30b. Accordingly, the handle 56b can be modified to any design that increases user comfort, such as including ergonomic hand grips or reduces the costs of manufacturing using a simple design. In the present embodiment, the handle 56b is a separate component attached to the bottom tray 12b. However, in other embodiments, the handle 56b can be connected to and/or formed with the brackets 54b or the bottom tray 12b. In other embodiments, the handle 56b is formed by the top-most fastening flap, which can have an opening cut therein or which can be shaped to provide an opening. In still other embodiments, the handle is omitted.
Referring to
This application claims priority of U.S. Patent Application No. 62/059,002 filed Oct. 2, 2014, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US15/30484 | 5/13/2015 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62059002 | Oct 2014 | US |
