Patent Application
20050100248
1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a sack, more particularly to a sack that is convenient to transport.
2. Description of the Related Art
Referring to
Referring to
Since the pallets 2 are required to facilitate transport of the conventional sacks 1 when the latter are filled, additional costs for the pallets 2 are incurred. It is estimated that at least 20 to 30 pallets 2 are needed in each container 40. When the container 40 reaches its intended destination, the sacks 1 with the respective pallets 2 are unloaded through the use of the forklift truck such that the pallets 2 are not returned along with the container 40 for repeated use, thereby further increasing the transport costs.
It should be noted that since the pallets 2 are generally made of wood materials, which are ideal for breeding germs, some developed countries prohibit the use of wood pallets 2, unless the wood materials are disinfected first. This process is not only troublesome but further increases the transport costs as well.
Another method of moving the conventional sacks 1 into the container 40 is by engaging the fork 31 of the forklift truck with the loop members 12 of the sacks 1. However, when the filled sacks 1 are to be piled on a top layer, a substantial moving space in the container 40 has to be prepared beforehand such that the height of each filled sack 1 has to be controlled in order to maintain an appropriate distance between the uppermost layer of the sacks 1 and an inner top surface of the container 40. This method diminishes the loading quantity of the conventional sacks 1 in the container 40 so that the transport costs are similarly increased.
Therefore, the object of the present invention is to provide a sack that is convenient to transport, that can increase loading quantity in a container, and that can effectively minimize transport costs.
According to the present invention, an easy-to-transport sack comprises a sack body and a fork-inserting unit. The sack body defines a storing space therein, and has a bottom wall that confines a bottom side of the storing space and that has two opposite sides. The fork-inserting unit is made of a fabric material, is disposed outwardly of the storing space, is secured to the bottom wall of the sack body, and is formed with a pair of elongated parallel fork passages that extend between the opposite sides of the bottom wall and that are adapted to receive prongs of a fork of a forklift truck.
Other features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent in the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, of which:
Before the present invention is described in greater detail, it should be noted that like elements are denoted by the same reference numerals throughout the disclosure.
Referring to FIGS. 4 to 7, the first preferred embodiment of a sack 100 according to the present invention is shown to comprise a sack body 5 and a fork-inserting unit 9.
The sack body 5 has a bottom wall 51, a peripheral wall 52 extending upwardly from a periphery of the bottom wall 51, a top wall 54 connected to a top periphery of the peripheral wall 52, and a plurality of loop members 6 secured to the top wall 54 in a conventional manner. The bottom wall 51, the peripheral wall 52 and the top wall 54 cooperate to define a storing space 53 for receiving filling materials. The bottom wall 51 includes two opposite sides 511, 512 (see
After the filling materials (not shown) are poured into the storing space 53 through the inlet port 541, the inlet port 541 is tied and closed by the rope 8 so as to prevent the materials from spilling out of the storing space 53.
It should be noted that the sacks currently available in the market have different designs and shapes so as to suit different purposes and filling materials. For example, when the sack is to be filled with small particles, the sack used is one with the inlet port 541 to prevent the materials from spilling off during transport. When the filling materials are large particles, the sack with no top wall 54 is chosen since it is more stable to transport the large particles. Another design of the sack has an outlet port provided on the bottom wall 51 of the sack. The outlet port is closed prior to filling the materials into the sack, and is opened for discharging the materials from the sack.
In this embodiment, a basic design of the sack is illustrated. In practice, the sack is not limited to the disclosed preferred embodiment.
The fork-inserting unit 9 is made of a fabric material, is secured to the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5 by stitching, and is formed with a pair of elongated parallel fork passages 93 that extend between the opposite sides 511, 512 of the bottom wall 51 and that are adapted to receive prongs of a fork 41 of a forklift truck 4 (see
In this embodiment, each of the second sheets 91 has a length longer than that of the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5. Each of the second sheets 91 is secured to the bottom wall 51, and has an intermediate portion 911 sewn to the bottom wall 51, and two fixed ends 912 that extend respectively from two opposite ends of the intermediate portion 911, that are folded upwardly relative to the bottom wall 51, and that are sewn respectively to the vertical wall portions 521 of the peripheral wall 52 of the sack body 5, as best shown in
Each of the first sheets 92, in this embodiment, has a length longer than that of the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5, and has an intermediate portion 921 with two longitudinal sides 9211 sewn to the intermediate portion 911 of a corresponding one of the second sheets 91 so as to define therebetween one of the fork passages 93 for extension of a respective prong of the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4 therethrough, and two free ends 922 that extend outwardly and respectively from two opposite ends of the intermediate portion 921 and that extend out of the opposite sides 521, 522 of the bottom wall 51 so as to facilitate insertion of the prongs of the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4 into the fork passages 93, as best illustrated in
A detailed description of the transporting method for the sack 100 will now be described with further reference to
When filling and packing of the sacks 100 are completed, each sack 100 is transported into the container 40 by inserting directly and respectively the prongs of the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4 into the fork passages 93 in the respective sack 100, after which the forklift truck 4 is operated to raise the fork 41 so as to lift and transport the sack 100 into the container 40.
It should be noted that prior to lifting of the sack 100 by the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4, due to cooperation of the fixed ends 912 of the second sheets 91, which extend upwardly relative to the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5, and the free ends 922 of the first sheets 92, which extend freely out of the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5, to form openings of the fork passages 93, the prongs of the fork 41 can be guided into the fork passages 93. Furthermore, the fixed ends 912 of the second sheets 91 are sewn to the peripheral wall 52 of the sack body 5 so as to reinforce the peripheral wall 52 and protect the same from being punctured by the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4. On the other hand, the free ends 922 of the first sheets 92 are designed in such a way that they sag due to gravity to enlarge the openings of the fork passages 93 so that the prongs of the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4 can be inserted easily into the fork passages 93.
When transporting of the filled sacks 100 is desired, the operator of the forklift truck 4 operates downward or upward movement of the fork 41 until a suitable position is reached. Then, the operator drives forward movement of the truck 4 to insert the prongs of the fork 41 into the fork passages 93 of a respective sack 100, after which the fork 41 is operated to raise the sack 100. When the truck 4 reaches the container 40, and the fork 41 is adjusted to a suitable height, the truck 4 is moved rearward so as to withdraw the fork 41 from the fork passages 93 in the sack 100. The sack 100, through its own weight, stabilizes itself in the container 40. Repeating the aforementioned steps would result in stacking of a plurality of the sacks 100 in the container 40, as best illustrated in
Therefore, the sack 100 of the present invention not only can be easily transported into the container 40, but also dispenses with the need for pallets 2, which are required when transporting the aforementioned conventional sack 1. Furthermore, the fork 41 of the forklift truck 4 is not required to engage the loop members 6 on the sack body 5 when transporting the sack 100 into the container 40 so that there is no need to maintain a space between an uppermost layer of the sacks 100 of the present invention and the inner top face of the container 40.
Referring to
From the aforementioned description of the preferred embodiments of the sack 100 of the present invention, it is apparent that due to the presence of the fork-inserting unit 9 on the bottom wall 51 of the sack body 5, the pallets 2 are dispensed herewith, thereby reducing transport costs. Furthermore, through the use of the forklift truck 4, the sacks 100 of the present invention can be conveniently transported into the container 40. Moreover, the loading quantity in the container 40 is increased because there is no need to maintain a space between an uppermost layer of the sacks 100 and the inner top face of the container 40.
While the present invention has been described in connection with what is considered the most practical and preferred embodiments, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments but is intended to cover various arrangements included within the spirit and scope of the broadest interpretation so as to encompass all such modifications and equivalent arrangements.
