This application claims priority to Australian Provisional Patent Application No. 2007906882, filed on Dec. 17, 2007, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety for all purposes.
The present invention relates to a bulk container and relates particularly but not exclusively to a foldable bulk container.
Bulk containers, such as crates for carrying beverage bottles and bins, often have fixed walls with ribs as reinforcing means. It is commonplace for bulk containers having movable or collapsible walls to have the same kind of ribs and even vertical hollow columns as reinforcing means.
While bulk containers with collapsible walls have the advantage of facilitating easy storage, ribs used for reinforcement or strength can be a problem when the container is stored with the walls folded down in that they often create indents or recesses, which provide areas of entrapment where dirt such as leaves and other debris are collected. This typically leads to blockage of drainage holes that may have been provided for draining rain or water, with the further problem that water collects in the indents or recesses, as well as the debris. This problem is of particular concern during and after rainy days when the bulk containers are exposed in the open.
A shortcoming of the bulk containers with collapsible walls described above is that the water and debris almost invariably fall upon the person who erects the collapsible walls or who has to lift the bulk containers for transportation purposes.
According to the present invention there is provided a foldable bulk container including a base and a plurality of walls surrounding the base in use, the walls being adapted to fold down over the base, wherein at least one of the walls includes reinforcing means in the form of a first elongate hollow which, in use, is substantially parallel to the base.
The foldable bulk container of the invention is preferably made similar to that in Australian Patent No. 771773, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference, except for the elongate hollow and any consequential changes.
Preferably, each wall is pivotally connected to the base to facilitate folding down thereof over the base. More preferably, each wall in use is adapted to engage of the other walls. Even more preferably, each wall has at least one elongate hollow which is adapted to correspond to the elongate hollow of one or more of the other walls so as to maximise rigidity of the bulk container.
The base preferably includes at least two feet. These are preferably located underneath opposing lower edges of the base, but may be located elsewhere. The base may include a third foot located intermediate the two feet.
There are preferably four walls in the container of the invention in a square or rectangular configuration, but it is within the scope of this invention to provide fewer or more walls. More than one of the walls may include one or more of the elongate hollows. The elongate hollow may be mechanically formed by a precision machined horizontally sliding core so as to achieve precise and geometric wall thickness.
The hollow is preferably configured and arranged so that the wall has an outer surface which is substantially flat or planar, to minimise indents and recesses, although it may be desirable to provide a handle recess. The wall may have an inner surface which is also substantially smooth. It is preferred that the hollow is located in close proximity to an upper edge of the wall so as to maximise its effect of reinforcement. However, it is within the scope of the invention that the hollow is located between the wall top and the bottom.
Preferably the hollow is parallel to an axis about which the wall pivots for the purpose of collapsing and erection.
The wall may have more than one of the hollows, and may include other hollows provided at various locations in the wall. Other hollows may be disposed at an angle to the base, for example, at right angles. It is preferred that the hollows parallel to the base cut across those disposed an angle to the base.
The wall may include a door pivotally hinged thereto or therein, the elongate hollow forming part of, or being connected to, the door. The hollow may be provided along an upper perimeter of the door.
If the wall includes a recessed handle area, it is preferred that the recessed area has one or more holes for draining water.
In order to achieve a better understanding of the nature of the present invention, a preferred embodiment of a foldable bulk container according to the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:
As shown in
The foldable bulk container 10 of the present invention is made similar to that in Australian Patent No. 771773. The contents of AU771773 are incorporated herein by reference, except for first elongate hollows which will be described below. The structural details of the foldable bulk container 10 are omitted, since these can be found in AU771773.
Each wall 14 & 16 is pivotally connected to the base 12 to facilitate folding down thereof over the base 12. Each wall 14 and 16 in use is adapted to engage two adjacent walls 16 and 14 (respectively) by way of engagement means such as the tabs and receptacles as disclosed in AU771773. Each of the walls 14 and 16 has second elongate hollows (not visible) which are vertical in use and which are adapted to correspond to the second elongate hollow of adjacent walls so as to maximise rigidity of the bulk container 10.
Referring to
Turning to
Referring now to
Referring to
As can be seen in
Referring now to
As best shown in
It should be noted that the elongate hollows may be provided at various locations in the walls 14 & 16. It is however preferred that the hollows are located in close proximity to the edges of the walls 14 &16 where a relatively high strength is required to bear the load of one or more containers in a stack. That way, the effect of reinforcement offered by the first elongate hollows is maximised.
The first horizontal elongate hollows such as 18, 20, 28 are substantially parallel to an axis about which the walls 14 &16 pivot for the purpose of collapsing and erection.
In operation, the container 10 is designed to fold down to as low a height as possible and to provide a substantially planar upper surface when folded, so that another folded container may be placed on top. The walls 16 are designed to be folded down first, between the erect walls 14, which are then folded on top of the walls 16.
The first elongate hollows of the present invention may be created by a hydraulically operated moving core which may be activated by a machine tool before a finished wall is taken out of a mould.
Now that a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been described in some detail, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the bulk container may have at least the following advantages over the admitted prior art:
1) the likelihood of water or rain being splashed upon the user in the process of erection of the walls may be minimised;
2) numerous drainage holes may no longer be required;
3) the container may have a superior resistance to outward or inward bulging;
4) minimal raw material is required for the manufacturing of the container;
5) thermal insulation of the container may be augmented (as much as 38% of the wall may be provided with a 36 mm thick air gap);
6) significant ventilation slots may be included in the container given that part of the container still has only a single layer of material; and
7) provision of a significant additional capacity considering that the vast majority of the wall other than the portion occupied by the hollows is still externalised.
Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the invention described herein is susceptible to numerous variations and/or modifications other than those specifically described. For example, the first elongate hollows of the present invention may form part of, or being connected to, the walls 14 &16 and door 42. The walls 14 & 16 may include other hollows provided at various locations or disposed at different angles to the base 12. It is contemplated that as a general rule, the hollows parallel to the base 12 are designed to cut across those disposed at an angle to the base 12. This basically means that if and when any hollows parallel to the base 12 and those disposed at an angle to the base 12 cross paths, the latter would be cut short so as to allow the hollows parallel to the base 12 to run continuously. Finally, the elongate hollow may be mechanically formed by a precision machined horizontally sliding core so as to achieve precise and geometric wall thickness. The moving core is designed to cut across the top of any vertical cores.
It is to be understood that any acknowledgment of prior art in this specification is not an admission that this prior art forms part of the common general knowledge in the relevant art.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
2007906882 | Dec 2007 | AU | national |