The present application relates generally to cargo systems and more particularly to a cargo transportation system including a sandwich panel and a channel.
It has long been desired in the box trailer industry to have walls and floors made of lightweight and strong panels which are strongly joined together. Most conventional trailer walls and floors, however, require a foam filling, which is heavy and prevents recycling, thereby increasing trailer weight which wastes fuel and/or lessens cargo carrying capacity. Furthermore, traditional tracks, posts and joints are heavy, complicated and labor intensive to install. Many also protrude within the cargo space and are prone to snagging by cargo when inserted in the trailer. Exemplary conventional attempts at such a construction are disclosed in the following U.S. patents and patent publication: U.S. Pat. No. 7,100,971 entitled “Cargo Body with Recessed Posts” which issued to Pines on Sep. 5, 2006; U.S. Pat. No. 8,016,152 entitled “Container Sidewall Connector” which issued to Roush et al. on Sep. 13, 2011; and 2013/0224419 entitled “Composite Panel and Joint Construction” which published to Lee et al. on Aug. 29, 2013. All of these are incorporated by reference herein.
It is noteworthy, however, that these conventional approaches still suffer the same snagging concerns and the panel-to-panel attachments are expensive to manufacture. Furthermore, most traditional devices require additional add-on attachment brackets which span between the adjacent panels; but these configurations typically require juggling of many loose parts, such as rivets, while attempting to align and hold the panels in position, along with undesired extra part handling and weight. The localized attachment points also undesirably concentrate the forces during use thereby creating premature panel fractures at the localized points. Moreover, prior panel-to-panel seams and rivet holes sometimes allow water entry such as in rainy weather which can harm the cargo transported in the container.
The prior riveting attachment of logistics tracks directly to side wall panels undesirably requires piercing of the panels and does not allow track locational adjustment. The end use customers or dealerships, however, often need to subsequently move the logistics tracks which requires aftermarket hole piercing for new rivets and either empty leaking, unused holes or caulking of the now unused holes, which is time consuming and unsightly.
Commonly owned U.S. Patent Publication No. 2017/0327310, entitled “Cargo Container Apparatus Including a Sandwich Structure and a Track,” discloses a C-shaped track mounted within a depression of a sandwich structure. This application is incorporated by reference herein. While it is a significant improvement in the industry, there is room for additional improvements.
In accordance with the present invention, a cargo transportation system includes a sandwich panel and a channel. In another aspect, a cargo-securing or logistics track, or tie-down slat, is attached to a continuously slotted channel which is secured within a sandwich panel of a cargo container, which employs at least one core sheet including alternating peaks and valleys therein in addition to attached interior and exterior face sheets. A further aspect employs a threaded fastener having an enlarged head, which is slidable within the slot which has an undercut or generally T-cross sectional shape. Yet another aspect of a cargo transportation system includes an interior face sheet flange of a sandwich panel, overlapping a flush mounted lateral segment of a slotted channel. A method of making a cargo transportation system, including a sandwich panel and a channel, is also provided.
The present cargo transportation system is advantageous over prior constructions. For example, the present cargo transportation system allows for fast and easy logistics track-to-side wall or floor panel adjustment with slidably adjustable fasteners, and without rivets or hole piercing, especially in an aftermarket situation. Thus, water leaks are avoided. Furthermore, the present system is advantageously lightweight, extremely strong and has a thin interior-to-exterior cross-section. The present apparatus provides an essentially flush mounted track thereby making it easier to load and unload cargo in the trailer or container without snags while enhancing the aesthetic appearance. Furthermore, fasteners can be slid to infinite positions along the panel-attached channel, rather than in discreet spaced apart holes, in some embodiments, thereby making container assembly easier and stronger while allowing the sandwich and channel system to be manufactured and pre-assembled in an initial manufacturing site different than a final container assembly site and well before the container, trailer or vehicle is shipped to a dealer or end-use customer. Additional advantages and features of the present invention can be ascertained from the following description and appended claims, as well as in the accompanying drawings.
Sandwich panels 23 can be observed in greater detail in
Face sheets 31 and 35 are preferably metallic, such as low carbon steel, and core sheet 33 is preferably metallic such as aluminum. But any or all of these sheets may alternately be aluminum, low carbon steel, stainless steel or other metallic materials. Alternately, the face sheets can be composite materials to allow for larger widths than are typically available in metal sheets. The metal grain structure is also different in the roll/feeding direction L of core sheet 33 than in the cross-roll/cross-feeding direction W. The core is preferably formed by embossing rollers as is disclosed in commonly owned U.S. Patent Publication No. 2017/0036415 entitled “Sandwich Structure Including Grooved Outer Sheet,” U.S. Patent Publication No. 2015/0165724 entitled “Sandwich Structure,” and U.S. Patent Publication No. 2015/0044494 entitled “Optional Sandwich Core Structures and Forming Tools for the Mass Production of Sandwich Structures,” all of which are incorporated by reference herein.
The placement of ridges 43 and depressed areas 45 between the alternating peaks and valleys of core sheet 33 give the core sheet asymmetrical properties or characteristics after and during forming. For example, a length shrinkage factor fs, which is the initial core sheet length versus the formed end sheet length, is at least 1.08, and more preferably at least 1.10 in the roll direction L, as compared to a shrinkage factor fs of approximately 1.0 in the cross-roll/cross-feeding direction W. Furthermore, an out-of-plane shear stiffness of core sheet 33 is at least 1.3 times greater, and more preferably at least 1.4 times greater in the cross-roll/cross-feeding direction W, as compared to the roll/feeding direction L:
[L]−GWT/GLT≥1.3
Additionally, an out-of-plane shear strength of core sheet 33 is at least 1.05 times greater, and more preferably at least 1.1 times greater in the cross-roll/cross-feeding direction W, as compared to the roll/feeding direction L:
[L]−τWT/τLT≥1.05
In other words, the formed core sheet 33 can be torqued or flexed about an axis parallel to direction W considerably easily than in the perpendicular direction about an axis parallel to direction L due to the ridge and depression orientation and positioning. It should be appreciated that the core sheet thickness will vary after it is embossed. This asymmetrical core formation is very different than the symmetry desired in various prior constructions.
The compressive strength of the present sandwich panel 23 is maximized where the outer sheets are bonded to the core sheet, across the cross-sectional thickness (as viewed in
where tc is the initial sheet thickness of the core layer, C denotes the core layer height and fs is the shrinkage factor in the length direction L. Thus, the asymmetrical nature of the periodic array of peak and valley cells or dimples, as connected in one direction by raised ridges and separated in the other by steep depressed areas, advantageously provides for different directional forming and final product properties and characteristics. It is preferred that the open space between the sheets, including versions with multiple core sheets, not define a honeycomb pattern, since such a pattern exhibits differing performance and manufacturing characteristics. Adhesive is the sole fastener between the lands 37 of core sheet 33 and the adjacent inner surfaces of sheets 31 and 35 in the presently preferred construction, although brazing may be alternately employed.
Reference should now be made to
Channel 41 is preferably extruded from aluminum 6061 T6 material, but may alternately be steel or a reinforced polymeric or composite material. Channel 41 and its slot 43 continuously extend at least a majority, and preferably the entire distance between opposite peripheral edges of the associated sandwich panel made from face sheets 31 and 35. A flange 61 of each interior face sheet 31 extends beyond an internal peripheral edge 63 of core sheet 33. Moreover, an open intermediate portion 65 of exterior face sheet 35 projects past peripheral edge 63 of core sheet 33. A second core sheet 33 is also positioned upon the same exterior face sheet 35 with a mirrored image interior face sheet 31 secured thereupon but with a gap 67 between parallel distal edges 69 facing each other from flanges 61.
When channel 41 is inserted within the sandwich panel, as shown in
As can be observed in
As can be seen in
This type of track 91 includes oppositely tapering wings 101 extending from a main structure 103 including a continuously elongated pathway 105 therealong. Shoring beams, supplemental decks, divider boards, straps and cargo nets may be removeably attached within the pathway 105 of track 91 via locking lugs, hooks or bolt heads. Track 91 can be vertically mounted to the vertically elongated channel 41 when the panel is a container side wall, or track 91 may be horizontally mounted between multiple channels 41.
This track configuration employs multiple central apertures 121 of a generally I-true view shape, with bent over central tabs 123 to receive cargo strap hooks, lugs or the like. Track 113 is preferably horizontally mounted to extend in a fore-and-aft manner along sidewall panels or floor panels of the cargo carrier. Moreover, this configuration of spacer 115 preferable general has an I-true view shape as can be observed in
An alternate spacer 131 is illustrated in
Yet another embodiment of a spacer 141 is shown in
It is alternately envisioned that a lock nut, leaf spring or other biasing member may be located between the nut and an adjacent surface of the slot. This would serve to temporarily maintain a desired location of a nut fastener when a track is being attached thereto. This biasing member may also be adapted to deter rotation of the nut within the slot. Furthermore, it is envisioned that a custom designed nut fastener, such as one stamped from sheet steel, has a rectangular or other shape with opposed flats, employed within the slot to deter rotation while allowing linear sliding adjustment.
The manufacturing process will now be discussed. The channel is preferably extruded from metallic material. Thereafter, it is cut to the desired lengths. Masking tape is then applied on top of the slot such that adhesive is then roll coated onto the exterior surface of the channel. Alternately, a mask can be avoided if adhesive beads, swirls or the like are applied by robotically moving a nozzle relative to a stationary channel or moving the channel past a fixed nozzle. Next, the exterior flat surface of the channel is placed against an epoxy coated inside surface of the exterior face sheet, optionally using a locating jig. Multiple channels are so attached to each exterior face sheet.
Adhesive coats the exterior facing lands of the previously embossed core sheet and/or inner surface of the exterior face sheet, which are then compressed together between the channels. The channels are elongated generally parallel to each other in this condition and alternate between pairs of the core layers in a slightly laterally spaced apart manner. The interior face sheets are then adhered on top of the cores and segments of the channels without rivets or screw fasteners.
A peripheral flange 201 (see
The present apparatus is ideally suited for a modularized wall, roof or floor construction in the container since channels 24 can optionally be preassembled to sandwich panels 23 which allows for preassembled strength versus weight optimized tailoring and fast final assembly with minimal extra parts. The present apparatus can also be used in combination with one or more of the features of commonly owned PCT Patent Publication No. WO 2015/148707, entitled “Container Apparatus Including Sandwich Structure,” and incorporated by reference herein. Moreover, it is expected that the assembled screw fastener, nut, channel and panel pull-out force (perpendicular to the interior face sheet plane) will be at least 800 pounds per fastener (e.g., using a standard flanged nut ¼″-20 thread).
While various embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed, it should also be appreciated that other variations may be employed. For example, other dimensions and shapes may be provided for the core sheet and channels, however, many of the manufacturing advantages and property strengths will not be achieved. It is alternately envisioned that the core may be foam with or without an intermediate metallic sheet, although some of the preferred advantages may not be realized, such as recyclability. It should also be appreciated that any of the preceding embodiments and features thereof can be mixed and matched with any of the others depending upon the final product and processing characteristics desired. Variations are not to be regarded as a departure from the present disclosure, and all such modifications are intended to be included within the scope and spirit of the present invention.
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