This application is the national stage (Rule 371) of international application No. PCT/CN2020/075273 filed 14 Feb. 2020.
This application claims the priority of the Chinese application No. 201910147351.8, filed on Feb. 27, 2019, entitled “FOLDABLE CONTAINER”, which is enclosed herewith by reference in its entirety.
This invention relates to a foldable container, in particular to a thin-walled foldable container with a self-restoring hinge.
Foldable containers, especially plastic foldable containers, are increasingly used in modern warehousing, logistics, packaging, retail display and other industries because of their recyclable, moisture-resistant, and long-life characteristics, and are gradually replacing wooden and paper containers.
Furthermore, the collapsible feature reduces the recycling and storage space required when the container is empty and saves a lots of related costs. Therefore, the development, manufacture and use of foldable containers can not only save costs for related industries, but are also of great significance to energy conservation and environmental protection.
Take the plastic foldable container as an example, the container generally includes a base and two pair of opposite side plates, and optionally some side plates may also have a small door that can be opened. The lower end of the side plate is rotatably connected to the base through hinge structure. In the initial conventional design, the hinges are fixed hinges, the heights thereof are raised according to the folding sequence of respective side plates, so that the two pairs of side plates can be parallel to each other when folded. However, the disadvantage thereof is that the operator needs to fold or unfold the side plates strictly in accordance with the predetermined sequence, and the shape of each side plate is different, which makes it inconvenient to use and manufacture.
An improved fixed hinge structure is that the heights of the hinges of the two opposite side plates are the same, and the first side plate is folded and inclined downward by a certain angle relative to the base, the second side plate is laid on the first side plate when folded and is parallel to the base surface of the base. The effect thereof is that two side plates are not required to be folded in predetermined sequence, however the side plates cannot be parallel to each other when folded. This solution solves the problems of inconvenience in operation and manufacturing, but the height of the container when folded is not optimal.
This inventor has proposed a novel hinge structure of a foldable container which is disclosed in Chinese patent No. CN201510229497.9. In this patent, a principle similar to a cam mechanism is employed to make the matching surface on the base and the curved contour on the side plate to matched with each other so that the hinge shaft can move up and down vertically during rotation when the side plates are folding or unfolding, and then the side plates can be stacked parallel to each other on the base.
However, the hinge structure of the above-mentioned foldable container has certain limitations, for example, since this structure depends on the matching of the curved contour of the extending portion of the side plates and the mating surface on the groove of the base, which requires that the thickness of the hinge structure thickness is not less than 33 mm, otherwise the component force produced by this structure will cause the side plate to be easily stuck when unfolding. With the continuous improvement of the modern process and material, the foldable container is developing toward lightness and thinness. Therefore, there is a need in this art for a hinge suitable for thin-walled foldable containers.
The object of the present invention provides a thin-walled foldable container with a simple structure that can make the container's opposite foldable side plates to be laid flat when folded.
To achieve the above object, the invention provides a foldable container which includes a base, two pairs of side plates which are hinged to edges of the base respectively and is foldable relative to the base and connecting rod. The lower edges of at least one pair of the two pairs of side plates are provided with extending portions, the corresponding edges of the base are provided with protruding portions extending perpendicular to the base, wherein the protruding portions are provided with pockets opening toward the inside of the foldable container and the upper end of the protruding portion. One end of the connecting rod is pivotally connected to the bottom end of the pocket, and the other end is rotatably connected to the upper end of the extending portion and is slidable in a height direction of the extending portion.
In one embodiment, each of the extending portions is provided with a longitudinal slot passing through the thickness thereof and opening toward the bottom end thereof, and the other end of the connecting rod is slidably and rotatably connected to the upper end of the longitudinal slot.
In one embodiment, the foldable container is provided with a plurality of the extending portions spaced apart from each other, a plurality of the pocket spaced apart from each other, and a corresponding number of connecting rods.
Further, the lower edge of at least one of the two pairs of side plates is provided with second extending portion, the protruding portion is provided with second pocket opening toward the inside of the foldable container and the upper end of the protruding portion, wherein the second extending portion is slidably and rotatably connected to the second pocket.
Furthermore, the second extending portion is provided with second longitudinal slot passing through the thickness thereof and opening toward the bottom end thereof, wherein a hinge pin is provided on each of both sides of the bottom end thereof; the second pocket is provided with two elongated opening grooves which are formed on both sides thereof by longitudinally extending rib with a “T” shape in cross section, wherein the hinge pins are respectively received in the two elongated opening grooves.
In one embodiment, the extending portion is provided with a longitudinal slot passing through the thickness thereof and opening toward the bottom end thereof, and the pocket is provided with a corresponding pair of longitudinal ribs;
the width between the opposite surfaces of the pair of longitudinal ribs is less than or equal to the width of the longitudinal slot;
the lower ends of the longitudinal ribs are hinged with one end of the connecting rod and the upper end of the longitudinal slot is slidably and rotatably connected to the other end of the connecting rod.
Preferably, the lower ends of the pair of longitudinal ribs is provided with hinge holes respectively, and one end of the connecting rod is provided with a hinge pin extending from both sides thereof.
Preferably, the longitudinal slot is provided with elongated grooves on both sides at the upper end thereof, and the other end of the connecting rod is provided with hinge pins extending from both sides thereof.
Preferably, the longitudinal groove is provided with hinge pins on both sides at the upper end thereof, and the other end of the connecting rod is provided with elongated grooves on both sides.
Preferably, the lower ends of the pair of longitudinal ribs are provided with hinge holes, the longitudinal slot are provided with elongated grooves on both sides at the upper end thereof respectively, and both ends of the connecting rod are provided with hinge pins extending from both sides thereof.
Preferably, the lower ends of the pair of longitudinal ribs are provided with hinge holes, and the upper end of the longitudinal slot is provided with hinge pins on both sides at the upper end thereof respectively; and
one end of the connecting rod is provided with hinge pins extending from both sides, and the other end is provided with elongated grooves on both sides.
Preferably, the connecting rod comprises two pairs of elastic arms extending toward two ends thereof respectively, and the hinge pins are respectively provided on the outer sides of two pairs of elastic arms.
Preferably,
the connecting rod comprises two pairs of elastic arms extending toward two ends thereof respectively,
the hinge pins at the one end of the connecting rod is provided on the outer sides of the pair of elastic arms respectively, and the elongated grooves at the other end of the connecting rod are provided in the outer sides of the other pair of elastic arms respectively.
Preferably, the extending portion is provided with a cut-out portion on at least one of two sides at the upper end thereof, and the pocket is provided with a shoulder on at least one of two sides at upper thereof, wherein the shoulder is receivable in the cut-out portion.
Further, the shape of the cut-out portion is complementary to that of the shoulder portion.
Preferably, the length of the extending portion in the direction perpendicular to the base is equal to the depth of the pocket in the same direction.
Preferably, the thickness of the extending portion is smaller than the thickness of the side plate.
The foldable container of this invention can conveniently and quickly lay the opposite side plates on the base flatly through a simple and reliable hinge structure, and it can be made into a thin-walled foldable container.
The preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings, so that the purposes, features and the advantages of the invention can be more clearly understood. It should be understood that the embodiments shown in the accompanying drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention, but illustrate the essential spirit of the technical solution of the present invention.
In the following description, for purposes of illustrating the various disclosed embodiments, some specific details are set forth to provide a thorough understanding of the various disclosed embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that embodiments may be practiced without one or more of these specific details. In other instances, well-known devices, structures, and techniques associated with the present application may not be shown or described in detail to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the description of the embodiments.
Unless otherwise desired by context, throughout the description and claims, the terms “comprising” and variations thereof, such as “including” and “having”, are to be construed as non-exclusive, i.e., to be construed as “including, but not limited to”
Throughout the specification “an embodiment” or “one embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in combination with the embodiment is involved in at least one embodiment. Therefore, the presence of “In one embodiment” or “in one embodiment” at various locations throughout the description need not all refer to the same embodiment. Additionally, particular features, structures, or features may be combined in any manner in one or more embodiments.
As used in the specification and appended claims, the singular forms “a” and “the” include plural references unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The term “or” be usually used in its meaning including “and/or” unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.
In the following description, for clarity of illustration of the structure and mode of operation of the present invention, various directional terms will be used to describe the present invention, but words such as “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “outer”, “inner”, “outward”, “inward”, “upper”, “lower”, and the like, should be understood as convenient terms and should not be construed as limiting terms.
Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In particular referring to
In order to lie the side plates snugly one above another on the base 1, at least one pair of side plates of the foldable container 100 in this invention are pivotally connected to the edge of the base 1 by a rotatable self-restoring hinge structure. In the illustrated embodiment, the side plate 2 is connected to the base 1 through this hinge structure. However, it can be understood that the side plate 4 can also adopt this hinge structure.
In the above-mentioned rotary self-restoring hinge structure, it is preferably that the thickness of the protruding portion 13 is approximately the same as that of the side plate 2, which can be set below 30 mm and the connection strength of the container can still be guaranteed. It is conceivable that in some special practice, setting the thickness of the connecting rod 5 to be the same as that of the side plate 2 can further reduce the requirement on the thickness of the side plate 2. The longitudinal length of the extending portion 21 is preferably equal to or slightly smaller than the longitudinal depth of the pocket 11. Further, the thickness of the extending portion 21 is preferably smaller than the thickness of the side plate 2, and more preferably equal to or slightly smaller than the dimension of the pocket 11 in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the extending portion 21 can be accommodated in the pocket 11 and a substantially flat container inner wall is formed when the side plate 2 is erected.
Referring to
Furthermore, still referring to
In the above embodiment, the longitudinal slot 211 is provided in the middle of the extending portion 21, and a pair of the longitudinal ribs 111 is provided in the middle of the pocket 11, and they are connected to each other by the connecting rod 5. However, it should be understood that the extending portion 21 may not be provided with the longitudinal slot 211, and the pocket 11 may not be provided with a pair of ribs 111. Alternatively, the elongated grooves 212 are provided on both sides of the extending portion 21, the hinge holes 112 are provided on both sides of the pocket 11, and two gaps for accommodating two connecting rods 5 is formed between the two sides of the extending part 21 and the two sides of the pocket part 11 respectively. In this case, the connecting rod is only provided with one hinge pin at each of the upper end and the lower end thereof.
The preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, but it should be understood that, if necessary, aspects of the embodiments can be modified to adopt aspects, features, and concepts of various patents, applications, and publications to provide additional embodiments.
Considering the detailed description above, these and other variations can be made to the embodiments. Generally, in the claims, the terms used should not be construed as limiting the specific embodiments disclosed in the description and claims, but should be construed to include all possible embodiments together with all equivalents to which these claims entitled.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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201910147351.8 | Feb 2019 | CN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/CN2020/075273 | 2/14/2020 | WO |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
WO2020/173312 | 9/3/2020 | WO | A |
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The extended European search report issued in European Application No. 20763368.6, dated Nov. 10, 2022, 8 pages provided. |
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Number | Date | Country | |
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20220041328 A1 | Feb 2022 | US |