Patent Application
20080131197
This invention relates to sealable cases and containers. More particularly, it relates to a corner piece along the closure or valance interface of a case or container having a lid. The invention also applies wherever two objects mate along a valance interface.
Valuable and/or fragile objects often require storage or transportation in protective cases or containers. Typically, cases or containers which accommodate these objects are designed to be sturdy and strong. Although many different styles of containers exist, three primary designs are as follows, wherein the description is with respect to the figures described further below.
The first case style makes use a single base 1 and a single lid 2 is shown in
The second case style, as shown in
In order for containers, such as those described above, to maintain their shape and structural integrity, it is highly desirable that, at the valance 10 (e.g. at a lid-base or base shell-base shell boundary), the rigidity and alignment of the sub-frames carrying mating valance surfaces at the valance interface 10 be properly maintained. Any lateral movement produced at these boundaries will compromise the integrity of the container and potentially endanger the contents within.
Rectangular cases and containers use frame systems to increase rigidity at the valance and prevent unwarranted lateral movement between lid-base and base-base boundaries. The valance frame system typically consists of two continuous, complementary frame subassemblies, disposed around the perimeter of the opposing open faces of each adjacent container segment, cf.
In order for correct alignment to be attained and maintained at a valance interface, each corresponding pair of frame subassemblies should preferably have complementary profiles. That is to say, the valance interface of each pair of frame subassemblies must mate, preferably intimately.
Common complementary subassembly interface profiles may include the following styles:
Tongue and Groove:
Hybrid:
Rectangular cases and containers typically use metallic valance frame systems. The most common choice of metal is aluminum, as complex profiles can be readily extruded from this material in continuous lengths. Plastics may also be used as they are also readily extruded into complex profiles of continuous lengths.
The existing valance frame system used in conjunction with continuous valance frames in a container having tight radius corners often lacks substantial flexural strength and lateral shear resistance because the cross-sectional profile of such frames must be thin and simple enough to facilitate bending of the valance frame sub-section around the radius of the corner. The gap or a butt joint formed between the two ends of the bent frame member is also a point of flexural weakness. Further, eliminating or minimizing the gap distance is difficult to achieve on a consistent, repeatable basis.
When constructing frame assemblies for various uses, it is known in the art to replace a corner of the frame with a unitary corner piece. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,045,104 describes “[a] cabinet structure [having] a plurality of tubular frame members having holes in the interior side walls thereof near the ends of the members, and a plurality or corner members for joining the frame members together . . . . The corner members are fitted in the frame members by pivoting the legs thereof into the ends of the frame members so that the nipples are received into corresponding holes in the side walls of the frame members.”
U.S. Pat. No. 4,095,719 describes a typical sort of casing hardware in which the valance interface consists of a male and female joining edge, the female joining edge being provided with a rubber gasket to yield a stronger seal. There is no teaching, however, of a corner piece in this patent.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,691,970 and 3,815,966 both describe cabinets that use similar corner piece frame structure. Both describe cabinets in which all panel members are joined to an intermediary frame structure.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,784,043 describes a framing rail system for a collapsible structure. However, its corners are hermaphroditic such as those used in geodesic domes. As such the invention cannot be used for a container-type object that requires a means of opening and closing the container easily in order to seal the volume inside the container.
There exist many different references which make use of similar corner pieces in completing a frame assembly, including:
U.S. Pat. No. 5,820,289 patented Oct. 13, 1998 by Schroff GmbH
U.S. Pat. No. 3,272,582 patented Sep. 13, 1966 by E. V. Anderson et al
U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,161 patented Nov. 19, 1991 by R. C. Pinney
U.S. Pat. No. 6,561,603 patented May 13, 2003 by Knuerr-Mechanik fuer die Electronik Aktiengesellschaft
U.S. Pat. No. 5,020,866 patented Jun. 4, 1991 by Gichner Systems Group, Inc.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,917 patented May 1, 2001 by Octanorm-Vertriebs-GmbH fuer Bauelemente
U.S. Pat. No. 5,983,420 patented Nov. 16, 1999 by M. L. Tilley
The above references described frames for containers without focusing on the presence of a valance interface.
Oftentimes, due to the nature of the cargo, it is essential for the container or receptacle used for the transportation or storage of an object or objects to be substantially airtight and/or watertight. The following references offer examples of airtight or watertight containers:
U.S. Pat. No. 3,885,701 patented May 27, 1975 by Environment Container Systems, Inc.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,929,125 patented Aug. 16, 2005 by Foam Technologies, Inc.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,905,857 patented Mar. 6, 1990 by L. M. Her et al
For the most part, these patents address frame systems which run along three axes to provide a complete mechanical frame onto which sidewalls may be installed. Corner pieces in such systems extend outward on three axes (X, Y, and Z) so they may connect with three independent longitudinal frame members. The present invention preferably addresses a 2-axis or planar frame arrangement which serves to provide the base-base and lid-base valances subassemblies.
It would therefore be advantageous to provide corner pieces for a valance interface that are distinguished from the prior art by being simple in construction while having substantial strength and rigidity, and being resistant to lateral shearing forces and misalignment. Such a valance interface is suitable for use around the closing edges of lidded containers but also has applications in any situation where a valance interface is formed, e.g. around the perimeter of a doorframe.
The invention in its general form will first be described, and then its implementation in terms of specific embodiments will be detailed with reference to the drawings following hereafter. These embodiments are intended to demonstrate the principle of the invention, and the manner of its implementation. The invention in its broadest and more specific forms will then be further described, and defined, in each of the individual claims which conclude this Specification.
According to one aspect of the invention, a bent corner piece for a valance frame has a shaped valance interface surface that extends continually around the face of the bend and an extending tongue at each of the two ends of the corner piece, each tongue being shaped to interfit and engage, preferably intimately, with a recess formed in the end of an adjacent, preferably extruded, longitudinal frame member carrying an aligned valance along one side. Complementary corner pieces so formed can provide part of a valance interface between the lid and body of a container as examples of two objects being mated, ensuring sealing continuity around corners fitted with such corner pieces as well as along the longitudinal frame members.
Each corner piece is provided with a mating valance surface for presentation to the valance interface to provide an intimate engagement with the mating valance surface of the complementary, opposed corner piece. According to one preferred variant, the corner piece is unitary as may result from casting of the corner piece. The corner piece is bent in the sense that it changes direction along its length. Each corner piece may be bent at 90°, or at some other angles as, for example at two 45° angles that collectively complete the corner to provide a chamfered corner.
Gaskets extending continuously from the interconnected longitudinal frame members may be fitted within one or more of the corner pieces to form part of the valance interface. The gaskets, optionally in the form of rubber strips, are preferably seated in the base of a groove formed in a female recess within corner piece and adjacent longitudinal frame members. Dual gaskets may be fitted into the respective grooves of complementary corner pieces and longitudinal frame members that respectively have grooves as well as ridges which extend into the groove of the opposite corner piece and longitudinal frame members for engagement with such gaskets.
The corner pieces are provided with face surfaces extending away from the valance interface for fastening against the sidewalls of a container. Corner pieces may be formed with two or more cavities beneath the valance surface, such cavities being defined by bridging walls extending from an inside wall of the corner piece to an outside wall of the corner piece, each wall respectively providing an inside and outside face surface for the corner piece, one of which surfaces may lie against a container sidewall. The outside surface of a corner piece may be provided with one or more perforated fastener openings, penetrating the outside wall of the corner piece, for attaching sidewalls of a container to the corner piece.
A corner piece of the invention is intended to form part of a valance frame assembly which in turn, provides the valance interface between two objects being mated. The valance frame assembly generally comprises two valance frame subassemblies, respectively carried on each of the two objects being mated. Each valance frame subassembly will typically include a plurality of longitudinal frame members carrying a valance interface surface along one edge and joined together at their respective ends by corner pieces with valance surfaces that are aligned with the valance surfaces of the longitudinal frame members. The longitudinal frame members preferably are extruded and have ends with recesses formed therein to facilitate coupling with the corner pieces through reception of protruding tongues extending from the respective ends of each corner piece. Each corner piece comprises:
a) an extending tongue at each end of such corner piece, each tongue being shaped to engage, preferably intimately, with a recess formed in the end of an adjacent longitudinal frame member when fitted to the corner piece; and
b) a mating valance surface disposed along a valance interface on the corner piece for an aligned engagement with a valance surface of a complementary corner piece to be fitted to an opposite valance frame subassembly.
A corner piece may have a groove along its shaped mating valance surface which engages with a ridge on a complementary corner piece, and vice versa. Alternately, the mating valance surface of the corner piece may have both a groove and a ridge formed therein with the complementary corner piece similarly having a groove and ridge of complementary shape and location. When such complementary corner pieces inter-fit, the valance interface is formed. In this way, a pair of corner pieces each will have mating valance surfaces each of a shape that will provide an intimate engagement with the mating valance surface of the other corner piece, the ridge(s) of one corner piece engaging the groove(s) on the other corner piece and vice versa.
This interface may comprise one or more grooves and/or one or more ridges which substantially extend along the length of the corner piece and arc aligned with the corresponding grooves and ridges of adjacent longitudinal frame members. In a preferred embodiment, the interface is provided with one ridge and one groove shaped so that two corner pieces having the same profiles will inter-fit with each other in a scaling engagement. However, any combination of ridges and/or grooves may be employed at the valance interface.
Whether a groove is formed in only one or both members of a complementary corner piece there, such groove may include a continuous gasket recess, the continuous recess being shaped so as to accept and retain a gasket with a close embracing fit. With a gasket in place within the gasket recess, a ridge of a complementary corner piece is positioned and dimensioned to engage with the seated gasket to provide a seal between the two corner pieces. Preferably, the recess formed within a groove is positioned at the base of such groove. Where each of a pair of complementary corner pieces is respectively provided with grooves, each may be provided with a gasket recess for gaskets to be fitted therein.
The groove of a corner piece is intended to be aligned with the groove formed in an adjacent longitudinal frame member. The recess in the end or core of such adjacent frame member, particularly if the frame member is fabricated by extrusion, may be shaped to provide room for the groove to be present in the frame member. A deep groove in the frame member may intrude into the hollow core of the longitudinal frame members, reducing the shape and size of the recess at its ends. In such case the tongue at each end of the corner piece may be shaped with a cross-sectional shape other than in the form of a rectangle. Such tongues may be provided with a tongue groove formed along the lengths of such tongue to engage with a frame member recess that is shaped to accommodate the presence of a frame member groove.
A corner piece preferably is formed with a plurality of cavities underlying the valance surface of the corner piece wherein such cavities are defined by a one or more bridging walls extending from an insidewall of the corner piece to an outside wall of the corner piece. Each cavity may then be provided with one or more perforated fastener openings penetrating the outside wall of the corner piece for attaching sidewalls of a container to the corner piece. These perforated fastener openings provide for a robust attachment of the external sidewall of the container to the corner pieces. Such a firm attachment is highly desirable in order to maintain the alignment of the corner pieces.
A plurality of corner pieces made in accordance with this invention may be used in a container having a lid and body that inter-fit along a valance interface. Two valance frame subassemblies each carrying complementary mating valance surfaces may be respectively provided on the lid and body to define the valance interface. Each valance frame subassembly can be constructed from a plurality of longitudinal frame members at the respective ends of which a corner piece is fitted. The longitudinal frame members are preferably formed with ends having recesses formed therein to receive the tongues of each corner piece.
Side panels forming walls for the container may then overlie the longitudinal frame members as well as the corner pieces, being fastened to these components. Fasteners may extend through such sidewall panels and the perforated fastener openings in the corner pieces for attaching sidewalls of a container to the corner pieces. In order to form a highly rigid container it is most preferable that the side panels be fixed to the longitudinal frame members, preferably along their entire length. These components can be attached to each other through use of screws, rivets, or, preferably, through appropriate adhesives, welding or brazing. Such attachment is highly desirable in order to maintain the alignment of the longitudinal frame members and corner pieces.
In addition to a valance frame subassembly's complementary ridge and groove arrangement, each subassembly should preferably possess a supplementary, shoulder profile which comes into contact with the adjacent edge of a container side wall panel. This assists in ensuring that the valance frame subassembly is fixed in a consistent position along the edge of the wall panel of the base or lid segment of the case to which it is attached. This shoulder profile may be in the shape of a protruding rectangular shoulder formed on the longitudinal frame members and on the corner pieces. This profile on each corner piece functions by overlying the attached edge of the adjacent sidewall panel in order to improve the alignment of the subassembly.
Where the longitudinal frame members are extruded, it is convenient to form such a shoulder profile on both sides of the longitudinal frame member. This saves having two different extrusion dies. When the longitudinal frame members have a shoulder profile on both sides, it is desirable for the corner pieces to have a shoulder profile on both sides. Thus an interior shoulder profile on the corner piece may be present in order to line-up with an interior shoulder profile on the adjacent longitudinal frame member.
The foregoing summarizes the principal features of the invention and some of its optional aspects. The invention may be further understood by the description of the preferred embodiments, in conjunction with the drawings, which now follow.
According to another prior art configuration, at the boundary between the container and lid, a first valance frame 5 and a second valance frame 6 are provided, as seen in
In order to reduce misalignment and instability between case segments, interfitting ridge 12 and grooves 13 as shown in
A hybrid variant is depicted in
Further to a valance's ridge 12 and groove 13 arrangement, the outwardly facing mating surfaces of each valance frame 10, 11 may be provided with a supplementary shoulder 14 which comes into contact with the leading edge of its respective container segment, e.g. a wall panel, thus allowing the valance frame 10, 11 to be stabilized in its relationship to the adjacent edge of the container wall panel. Typically this shoulder 14 is in the shape of a protruding rectangular shoulder; however, other configurations may be employed.
Wall panel edges are positioned to terminate beneath the shoulder 14, overlying the side surfaces of the longitudinal frame members 7A and corner pieces 20, 21, as seen in
The corner pieces 20, 21, described in
Underlying the valance carrying surfaces of the corner pieces 20, 21 are cavities 23 as shown in
As seen in
The bent region 27 of the corner pieces 20,21 depicted within
The corner pieces 20,21 may be incorporated into complementary valance frames 5,6, as shown in
In
The foregoing has constituted a description of specific embodiments showing how the invention may be applied and put into use. These embodiments are only exemplary. The invention in its broadest, and more specific aspects, is further described and defined in the claims which now follow.
These claims, and the language used therein, are to be understood in terms of the variants of the invention which have been described. They are not to be restricted to such variants, but are to be read as covering the full scope of the invention as is implicit within the invention and the disclosure that has been provided herein.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2,569,136 | Nov 2006 | CA | national |
This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/867,643 with a filing date of Nov. 29, 2006.
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60867643 | Nov 2006 | US |
