Information
-
Patent Grant
-
6820761
-
Patent Number
6,820,761
-
Date Filed
Thursday, August 10, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, November 23, 200419 years ago
-
Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
- Westerman, Hattori, Daniels & Adrian, LLP
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 220 6
- 220 7
- 220 1
- 220 5
- 206 600
-
International Classifications
-
Abstract
The present invention relates to a folding container having a bottom portion 100 having locking blocks 108, 109, 113 formed thereon and on which the bottom portion of a folded folding container can be fitted, and side walls having recesses 210, 307 formed therein and each having an open underside into which the corresponding locking block of an assembled folding container can be inserted, wherein engagement frame sections 207, 308 are used to mutually engage the side walls and to engage the side walls with the bottom portion. Therefore, folded folding containers can be stably stacked up, and the folding container can be strongly assembled in the form of a box because the engagement frame sections are used to mutually engage the side walls and to engage the side walls with the bottom portion.
Description
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a folding container comprising side walls disposed in a fashion surrounding a bottom portion of the container and which can be folded so as to overlap the bottom portion.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
By way of example, a folding container is conventionally known which comprises long side walls connected via a hinge section to opposed long side portions of a bottom portion of the container formed to have a generally rectangular planar shape and short side walls connected also via a hinge section to opposed short side portions of the bottom portion.
This folding container is configured as follows: to fold the container, the short side walls are folded so as to overlap the bottom portion, and the long side walls are further folded onto the short side walls. Then, to erect the container the folded long side walls are stood up perpendicularly with respect to the bottom portion, and folded short side walls are then stood up perpendicularly with respect to the bottom portion to thereby assemble the box-shaped folder container.
When the folding container is folded, the bottom portion is located at the bottom, the short side walls, which are folded so as to overlap the bottom portion, are located thereof, and the long side walls, which are folded so as to overlap the short side walls, are located thereon. To stack up folding containers folded in this matter, the bottom portion of an upper folded folding container is placed on the long side walls of a lower folded folding container, in addition, the folding container has generally L-shaped fitted shoulder sections, each formed near a corresponding one of the lower corners (located on the bottom portion side) of the long side walls thereof, so that when tile container is folded, the fitted shoulder sections, each having a generally L-shaped planar shape, are each located at a corresponding one of the four corners of the two long side walls. Since the folding container is configured so that in stacking up folded folding containers, the bottom portion of an upper folded folding container is fitted in the shoulder sections located-at the four corners of the two long sidewalls of a lower folded folding container, horizontal movement of the upper folded folding container relative to the lower folded folding container is limited to allow a large number of folded folding containers to be stacked up stably to prevent collapse.
As described above, in the conventional folding container, the fitted shoulder sections are each formed near the corresponding one of the lower corners of the long side walls of the folding container so as to stably stack up folded folding containers. In the assembled folding container, however, the fitted shoulder sections project from the long side walls. Consequently, if two assembled folding containers are arranged in juxtaposition in a manner such that the long side walls of one of the containers abut on the corresponding long side walls of the other, an unwanted gap is created between the folding containers arranged in juxtaposition to increase a storage space for the assembled folding containers, thereby reducing storage efficiency. In addition, the fitted shoulder sections disadvantageously increase the thickness of each long side wall, so that the assembled folding container has a small internal volume compared to its outside dimensions, resulting in a reduced accommodation efficiency.
Additionally, since the long side walls insufficiently engage with the short side walls when the conventional folding container is assembled, the long and short side walls may be mutually disengaged when a load is imposed on these side walls from above, for example, when the assembled folding containers are stacked up.
Further, when a load is imposed on the long and short side walls of the conventional folding container from above, this load is effected on the hinge section coupling the bottom portion to the long and short side walls, whereby the hinge section may be damaged.
Further, since the conventional folding container has a problem with the structure of the hinge section coupling the bottom portion to the long and short side walls, it cannot be assembled easily by hinging the bottom portion to the long and short side walls.
Additionally, card holders disposed on the conventional folding container are manufactured separately from the other components before being attached to the long or short side walls. This attachment requires a large amount of time and labor to increase the price of the folding container.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
It is an object of the present invention to solve the above described problems with the conventional folding container to provide a folding container that can be handled more easily and accommodated more efficiently.
To attain this object, the present invention is a folding container comprising side walls disposed in a fashion surrounding a bottom portion thereof and which can be folded so as to overlap the bottom portion, the side walls each having engagement frame sections formed thereon for mutually engaging the adjacent side walls so that when stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion, the side walls will not fall down inward. In this folding container, first, the bottom portion has locking blocks formed thereon and on which the bottom portion of an assembled folding container can be fitted, the side walls each have recesses formed therein and each having an open underside into which the corresponding engagement block of an assembled folding container can be inserted, and the engagement frame sections are used to mutually engage the side walls and to engage the side walls with the bottom portion. Second, one of the opposed side walls has through-holes into which the corresponding engagement block, which projects upward, can be inserted upon folding. Third, engagement projections formed on the engagement frame sections of each side wall are configured to fit in the corresponding through-hole in each fitting section formed in the bottom portion. Fourth, when the side walls are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion, a bottom surface of each side wall partly comes in surface contact with a top surface of the bottom portion. Fifth, card presser pieces each constituting a card holder are integrated with the side wall via a thin connection section.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING
FIG. 1
is a perspective view showing how a folding container according to the present invention is assembled.
FIG. 2
is a perspective view showing the folding container according to the present invention in an intermediate condition of assembly.
FIG. 3
is a perspective view showing the folding container according to the present invention in a folded condition.
FIG. 4
is a perspective view of a bottom portion of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 5
is an exploded fragmentary perspective view showing the bottom portion and long side walls of the folding container according to the present invention to explain hinging between the bottom portion and the long side walls.
FIG. 6
is an exploded fragmentary perspective view of regions of ends of the bottom portion and long side walls of the folding container according to the invention.
FIG. 7
is a rear perspective view showing how the folding container according to the present invention is folded.
FIG. 8
is a perspective view of the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 9
is a fragmentary perspective view of the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 10
is a vertical sectional view of the long side wall and a short side wall of the folding container according to the present invention before engagement frame sections of the long and short side walls are mutually
FIG. 11
is a perspective view of the short side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 12
is a fragmentary perspective view of the short side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 13
is a vertical sectional view of the long side wall and short side wall of the folding container according to the present invention after the engagement frame sections of the long and short side walls have been mutually
FIG. 14
is a vertical sectional view including the bottom portion and a hinge section of the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 15
is a vertical sectional view including the bottom portion and the hinge section of the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention immediately before the bottom portion and the hinge section are coupled together.
FIG. 16
is an enlarged perspective view showing a card holder before assembly, the card holder being disposed on the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 17
is a vertical sectional view showing the card holder before assembly, the card holder being disposed on the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 18
is a fragmentary vertical sectional view showing the card holder after assembly, the card holder being disposed on the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention.
FIG. 19
is a perspective view of the long side wall of the folding container according to the present invention with the card holders disposed thereon.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
An embodiment of the present invention will be described below, but the present invention is not limited to this embodiment as long as the spirits thereof are maintained.
100
is a bottom portion having a rectangular planar shape. The bottom portion
100
comprises opposed long side portions
101
each having a long side wall
200
connected thereto via a hinge section, described later, and opposed short side portions
102
each having a short side wall
300
connected thereto also via a hinge section.
As shown in
FIG. 1
, to fold a folding container assembled in the form of a box, the short side walls
300
are first brought down inward of the folding container to overlap the bottom portion
100
, as shown in FIG.
2
. Then, the long side walls
200
are similarly brought down inward of the folding container to overlap the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
, as shown in FIG.
3
. On the contrary, to assemble, as shown in
FIG. 1
, the folding container folded as shown in
FIG. 3
, the long side walls
200
, overlapping the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
, are stood up perpendicularly, and the short side walls
300
are stood up perpendicularly to assemble the folding container in the form of the box.
Next, the bottom portion
100
will be explained chiefly with reference to
FIGS. 4
to
7
.
The bottom portion
100
has a bottom plate
103
having an inverted generally U-shaped double wall section
104
formed at each long side edge thereof, the double wall section
104
constituting the long side portion
101
of the bottom portion
100
. The double wall section
104
comprises an outer wall
104
a
, an inner wall
104
b
, and a horizontal wall
104
c
connecting an upper end of the outer wall
104
a
and an upper end of the inner wall
104
b
together. A rear surface
103
a
of the bottom plate
103
is located below a lower end
104
a
′ of the outer wall
104
a
, and a portion of the bottom plate
103
which is located below the lower end
104
a
′ of the outer wall
104
a
constitutes a bottom fitting section
100
a
, described later. The outer wall
104
a
constituting the double wall section
104
is extended upward to form a laterally elongated end wall
105
all along the long side portion
101
except for both ends thereof.
In addition, plate pieces
106
a
are extended upward generally perpendicularly from the upper end of the inner wall
104
b
constituting the double wall section
104
. Each of the plate pieces
106
a
has a generally semicylindrical hook
106
b
connected thereto and disposed on the end wall
105
side relative to the plate piece
106
a
, so that the plate piece
106
a
and the hook
106
b
constitute an inverted generally J-shaped hinge female section
106
. The hinge female section
106
has almost the same height as the end wall
105
, and an appropriate number of hinge female sections
106
are formed along the long side portion
101
(in this embodiment, four hinge female sections
106
are formed at almost equal intervals). Inside the double wall section
104
, internal reinforcing ribs
107
can be formed at appropriate intervals for connecting the outer wall
104
a
, the inner wall
104
b
, and the horizontal wall
104
c
together.
A long-side locking block
108
having an outer surface
108
a
substantially flush with an outer surface
105
a
of the end wall
105
is formed in each corner formed of the end wall
105
and the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
, the corner being situated between the hinge female section
106
located near each of the opposite ends of the long side portion
101
and the hinge female section
106
located closer to the center of the long side portion than the first hinge female section
106
. The long-side locking block
108
comprises a notch portion
108
d
facing inward and having a projecting portion
108
b
extending upward above the end wall
105
and a placement surface
108
c
located at almost the same height as an upper end of the end wall
105
.
The long side portion
101
has an end locking block
109
formed at each of the opposite ends thereof by extending the outer wall
104
a
and inner wall
104
b
of the double wall section
104
upward, the end locking block
109
being substantially as high as the long side locking block
108
. The end locking block
109
has a placement surface
109
a
having substantially the same height as the placement surface
108
c
of the long-side locking block
108
and a projecting portion
109
b
projecting upward from the placement surface
109
a
. The projecting portion
109
b
comprises a projecting sub-portion
109
b
′ extending along the long side portion
101
and a projecting sub-portion
109
b
″ extending perpendicularly to the projecting sub-portion
109
b
′ in the direction of the short side portion
102
, and is formed to have a generally L-shaped planar shape. The end locking block
109
has an outer surface
109
c
also formed to be substantially flush with the outer surface
105
a
of the end wall
105
,
110
is a reinforcing block formed as appropriate in a corner formed of the end wall
105
and the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
. An upper end of the reinforcing block
110
is aligned with the upper end of the end wall
105
but can be located therebelow as required.
The short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
is formed below the long side portion
101
, and has a vertical wall
111
extending upward generally perpendicularly from the bottom plate
103
along each short side edge thereof. The bottom plate
103
has hinge female sections
106
similar to those described above, formed thereon close to the vertical wall
111
at predetermined intervals (in this embodiment, four hinge female sections
106
are formed at almost equal intervals).
A generally square fitting section
112
with a through-hole
112
a
formed therein is formed by extending upward a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the vertical wall
111
constituting the short side portion
102
. The fitting section
112
is configured to be lower than the end locking block
109
formed at each of the opposite ends of the long side portion
101
and is configured so that a fitting projection formed on the short side wall
300
, described later, is fitted in the through-hole
112
a
. A short-side locking block
113
is formed in each corner formed of the vertical wail
111
of the short side portion
102
and the bottom plate
103
. The short-side locking block
113
is formed to be substantially as high as the long-side locking block
108
and end locking block
109
described above, and has a notch portion
113
b
facing inward and forming a placement surface
113
a
at almost the same height as the placement surface
108
c
of the long-side locking block
108
and the placement surface
109
a
of the end locking block
109
. In addition, an outer surface
113
c
of the short-side locking block
113
is formed to be flush with the outer surface
111
a
of the vertical wall
111
constituting the short side portion
102
and is at least configured so as not to project outward beyond an outer surface
111
a
of the vertical wall
111
.
114
is a catching section formed in a middle portion of the short side portion
102
and having a recess
114
c
formed therein, which is formed of a pair of horizontal frames
114
a
,
114
a
arranged at a predetermined interval and of a rear frame
114
b
, and which is open on the outside so that jaws of an automatic machine such as a robot, an operator's fingers, or the like can be inserted into the catching section. The catching section
114
is formed by cutting the middle portion of the vertical wall
111
by a distance corresponding to the width of the catching section
114
.
115
is a recess formed in the outer wall
104
a
of the double wall section
104
constituting the long side portion
101
of the bottom portion
100
. The recess
115
is configured so that a label, a bar code, a magnetic tape, or the like that stores various information on the folding container and articles accommodated therein such as the destination of the articles, type, and number of the articles is stuck thereto.
116
is a low reinforcing rib formed in the rear surface
103
a
of the bottom plate
103
to run in both vertical and lateral directions as required.
As described later, card holders are disposed on the short side walls
300
or the long side walls
200
, and the recess
115
for printing and label sticking is further formed in the outer wall
104
a
of the double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
, as described above, thereby allowing easy and reliable identification of various information such as the type and destination of the articles accommodated in the folding container.
Further, if the sizes of the folding containers vary, in other words, the sizes of the long side walls
200
or short side walls
300
vary, the positions of the label sticking sections or card holders provided on the long side walls
200
or the short side walls
300
may vary significantly. Despite the different sizes of the folding containers, the positions of the bottom portions
100
, particularly, their height do not vary significantly. Thus, if a read sensor of a reader disposed near a transfer device is used to read a label printed on or stuck to the recess
115
for printing or label sticking formed in the outer wall
104
a
of the double wall section
104
or the bottom portions
100
in the middle of being transferred to the transfer device such as a belt conveyer, it can accurately and reliably read the various information such as the type and destination of the articles accommodated in the folding container because the positions of the recesses
115
for printing and label sticking do not vary significantly despite the different sizes of the folding containers. This configuration can prevent failures in reading arising from the different positions of the label sticking sections and eliminates the need to change the position of the read sensor of the reader depending on the size of the folding container.
Next, the long side wall
2
will be described with reference to
FIGS. 2
,
5
,
6
, and
8
to
10
.
The long side wall
200
has a laterally elongated rectangular plate section
201
and a lower horizontal frame
202
extending outward from a lower end of the plate section
201
. The lower horizontal frame
202
has hinge male sections
203
formed on a bottom surface thereof and corresponding to the hinge female sections
106
formed on the long side portion
101
side of the bottom portion
100
. Each of the hinge male sections
203
comprises a pair of vertical pieces
203
a
suspending from the lower horizontal frame
202
perpendicularly to the plate section
201
and a horizontal pin
203
b
disposed between the pair of vertical pieces
203
a
. The vertical pieces
203
a
each have its lower part formed into a semicircular portion
203
a′.
204
is a lower block formed on a bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
and comprising a pair of vertical pieces
204
a
similar to the above vertical pieces
203
a
and a connection wall
204
b
connecting the vertical pieces
204
a
together. The connection wall
204
b
has its lower end formed into a semicylindrical portion bent in almost the same manner as a semicircular portion
204
a
′ of the vertical piece
204
a
. A lower end of the lower block
204
is aligned with a lower end of a vertical piece
203
c
of the hinge male section
203
, and the semicircular portion
204
a
′ of the vertical piece
204
a
of the lower block
204
and the semicylindrical portion of the connection wall
204
b
have almost the same radius as the semicircular portion
203
a
′ of the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
.
An end-wall-
105
-side end surface
203
a
″ of the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
and an end-wall-
105
-side end surface
204
a
″ of the vertical piece
204
a
of the lower block
204
recede from the lower horizontal frame
202
by a distance substantially equal to the thickness of the end wall
105
. When the bottom portion
100
and the long side walls
200
are hinged using the hinge female sections
106
and hinge male sections
203
described above and the long side walls
200
are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, the end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
slides into a space formed due to the recession from the lower horizontal frame
202
of the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
and the vertical piece
204
a
of the lower block
204
, so that the bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
abuts on an upper end of the end wall
105
(in particular, see
FIG. 14
, described later). Since the bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
is configured to abut on the upper end of the end wall
105
, a load imposed on the long side wall
200
from above is shared by the upper end of the end wall
105
and the bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
which are in mutual abutment, thereby precluding such a load from being effected on the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
. This in turn prevents the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
from being damaged or disengaged.
The plate section
201
has a plurality of vertical ribs
205
and horizontal ribs
206
formed on an outer surface
201
a
thereof as appropriate. When the folding container is assembled and the long side walls
200
are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, an inner surface
201
b
of the plate section
201
is substantially flush with the inner wall
104
b
of the double wall section
104
constituting the long side portion
101
of the bottom portion
100
, an inner surface of the plate piece
106
a
of the hinge female section
106
, and the like. When the folding container is assembled, no projecting portion is formed on a long-side-wall-
200
-side inner surface of the folding container. Additionally, when the folding container is assembled, the vertical ribs
205
and the horizontal ribs
206
do not project outward beyond the outer wall
104
a
of the double wall section
104
constituting the long side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
.
The long side wall
200
has an engagement frame section
207
formed at each of the opposite ends thereof and extending perpendicularly to the plate section
201
toward the inner surface
201
b
, and the engagement frame section
207
has an upper fitting through-hole
207
a
formed in an upper part thereof and two through-holes
207
b
,
207
c
formed in a lower part thereof and between which a horizontal laterally elongated engagement projection
207
d
is provided on an inner surface
207
′ of the engagement frame section
207
. As shown in
FIG. 10
, a cross section of the engagement projection
207
d
is shaped like turned-sideways mushroom formed of a swollen portion
207
d
′ with a tapered tip portion and of a horizontal portion
207
d
″ extending from the swollen portion
207
d
′ toward an outer surface
207
″ of the engagement frame section
207
. Further, a fitting recess
207
e
is formed below the engagement projection
207
d
by partly notching the engagement frame section
207
, and the long side wall
200
, having the fitting recess
207
e
located therein, has a fitting through-hole
207
f
formed therein. In addition, a lower fitting through-hole
207
g
is formed below the fitting recess
207
e
. The upper fitting through-hole
207
a
, through-holes
207
b
,
207
c
, and lower fitting through-hole
207
g
formed in the engagement frame section
207
are formed in substantially parallel with the plate section
201
, in other words, perpendicularly to the inner surface
207
′ and outer surface
207
″ of the engagement frame section
207
. In addition, the engagement frame section
207
has its bottom surface located above the lower horizontal frame
202
. The fitting through-hole
207
f
is configured so that the short-side locking block
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
is inserted into the fitting through-hole
207
f
as shown in
FIG. 3
when the long side walls
200
are folded so as to overlap the folded short side walls
300
while the folding container is being folded.
The long side wall
200
has notch portions
209
at lower opposite ends thereof, which are each formed of a horizontal frame
208
higher than the lower horizontal frame
202
and the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
. The notch portion
209
is configured so that when the long side walls
200
are attached to the bottom portion
100
and stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, the end locking blocks
109
can slide into the corresponding notch portions
209
without interfering with the long side walls
200
. When a load is imposed on the long side wall
200
from above, a bottom surface
208
a
of the horizontal frame
208
formed at each of the lower opposite ends of the long side wall
200
comes in surface contact with the top surface
109
d
of the end locking block
109
formed on the bottom portion
100
to share the load on the long side wall
200
. This configuration prevents the mutually coupled hinge female sections
106
and hinge male sections
203
from being damaged by the load on the long side wall
200
, as described later.
When the folding container is assembled, the upper ends of the short side walls
300
are slightly lower than the upper ends of the long side walls
200
. With this configuration, if a load is imposed on the folding container from above, for example, if a large number of folding containers accommodating articles are stacked up, the long side walls
200
, which can withstand loads well, come in surface contact with the bottom portion
100
to share most of the load, whereas the short side walls
300
, which cannot withstand loads well, do not form such a surface contact and are not be subjected to the load.
Consequently, the load on a hinging section comprising the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
and hinging the bottom portion
100
to the short side walls
300
decreases to prevent damage to the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
hinging the bottom portion
100
to the short side walls
300
.
In addition, the horizontal frame
208
has an impact wall
208
b
suspending from a bottom surface thereof and formed on an extension of the plate section
201
. The impact wall
208
b
has its lower end configured to be substantially flush with a bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
. The impact wall
208
b
is configured so that when the long side wall
200
is stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, a lower end
208
b
′ of the impact wall
208
b
is located close to or in abutment with the placement surface
109
a
of the end locking block
109
of the bottom portion
100
, with the impact wall
208
b
coming in abutment with an inner surface of the projecting portion
109
b
′ of the end locking block
109
, the projecting portion
109
b
′ extending along the long side portion
101
of the end locking block
109
.
When the folded long side wall
200
is rotatively moved to a vertical direction of the folding container, the impact wall
208
b
comes in abutment with the inner surface of the projecting portion
109
b
′ of the end locking block
109
formed on the bottom portion
100
, the projecting portion
109
b
′ extending along the long side portion
101
, to hinder the long side wall
200
from rotatively moving beyond its vertical position, thereby preventing damage to the hinge section comprising the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
. In addition, when the long side wall
200
is stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, the lower end
208
b
′ of the impact wall
208
b
is located close to or in abutment with the placement surface
109
a
of the end locking block
109
of the bottom portion
100
, thereby allowing a load imposed on the long side wall
200
from above is shared by the impact wall
208
b
and the end locking block
109
to prevent the hinge section from being subjected to the load and thus being damaged.
210
is a recess having an open underside and formed by swelling the lower horizontal frame
202
upward. The recess
210
is configured so that when the bottom portion
100
is attached to the long side wall
200
, which is then stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, the long side locking blocks
108
formed on the bottom portion
100
can each slide into this recess. In this embodiment, the recess
210
is formed of the pair of vertical pieces
204
a
of the lower block
204
and a top portion
210
a
. An impact wall
210
b
formed on an extension of the plate section
201
is formed above the recess
210
, and has a lower end configured to substantially flush with a bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
. When the long side wall
200
is stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, a lower end of the impact wall
210
b
is located close to or in abutment with the placement surfaces
108
c
of the long-side locking blocks
108
, with the impact wall
210
b
coming in abutment with the projecting portions
108
b
of the long-side locking blocks
108
.
When the folded long side wall
200
is rotatively moved in the vertical direction, the impact wall
210
b
comes in abutment with the projecting portions
108
b
of the long-side locking blocks
108
formed on the bottom portion
100
to hinder the long side wall
200
from rotatively moving beyond its vertical state, thereby preventing damage to the hinge section comprising the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
. In addition, when the long side wall
200
is stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, a lower end of the impact wall
210
b
is located close to or in abutment with the placement surfaces
108
c
of the long-side locking blocks
108
of the bottom portion
100
, thereby allowing a possible load on the long side wall
200
from above is shared by the impact wall
210
b
and the long-side locking blocks
108
to prevent the hinge section from being subjected to the load and thus from being damaged.
A gap is formed between each of the above described end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
and the above described hook
106
b
of each hinge female section
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
and has an interval smaller than the diameter of the horizontal pin
203
b
of each hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
.
Next, the short side wall
300
will be explained with reference to
FIGS. 1 and 10
to
13
.
Like the above described long side wall
200
, the short side wall
300
has a laterally elongated rectangular plate section
301
and a lower horizontal frame
302
extending outward from a lower end of the plate section
301
. The lower horizontal frame
302
has hinge male sections
303
formed on a bottom surface thereof and corresponding to the hinge female sections
106
formed on the short side portion
102
side of the bottom portion
100
. Like the hinge male section
203
formed on the above described long side wall
200
, each hinge male section
303
comprises a pair of vertical pieces
303
a
extending perpendicularly to the plate section
301
and a horizontal pin
303
b
disposed between the pair of vertical pieces
303
a
. The vertical pieces
303
a
each have its lower part formed into a semicircular portion
303
a′.
In addition, the lower horizontal frame
302
has a lower block
304
formed on a bottom surface thereof and which is similar to the lower block
204
formed on the long side wall
200
and which comprises a pair of vertical pieces
304
a
and a connection wall
304
b
connecting the vertical pieces
304
a
together. This embodiment shows an example in which the vertical pieces
304
a
of the lower block
304
and the vertical pieces
303
a
of the hinge male sections
303
are shared between the hinge male section
303
and the lower block
304
disposed adjacent to the hinge male section
303
, as shown in FIG.
11
.
The plate section
301
has an upper horizontal frame
305
formed at an upper end thereof and opposed vertical frames
306
connecting opposite ends of the lower horizontal frame
302
to corresponding opposite ends of the upper horizontal frame
305
. When the folding container is assembled and the short side walls
300
are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, an inner surface
301
a
of the plate section
301
is substantially flush with the inner surface of the plate section
106
a
of each hinge male section
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
. When the folding container is assembled, no projecting portion is formed on a short-side-wall-
300
-side inner surface of the folding container. Additionally, when the folding container is assembled, the lower horizontal frame
302
, the upper horizontal frame
305
, and the vertical frame
306
, and the like do not project outward beyond the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
.
The short side wall
300
has vertically elongated recesses
307
each having an open underside and formed therein by folding the lower horizontal frame
302
upward. The recesses
307
are configured so that when the folding container is assembled and the short side wall
300
is stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion
100
, the short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
can slide into the corresponding recesses
307
without interfering with the short side wall
300
.
An engagement frame section
308
is formed outside each of the vertical frames
306
of the short side wall
300
. A plate section
308
′ of the engagement frame section
308
which is formed as an extension of the plate section
301
has a generally prismatic upper fitting projection
308
a
projecting outward and having a tapered tip and which can be fitted in the upper fitting through-hole
207
a
drilled in the engagement frame section
207
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the long side wall
200
. In addition, a pair of locking pieces
308
b
extend below the upper fitting projection
308
a
in a generally horizontal direction and each have a locking projection
308
b
′ in a manner such that the projections
308
b
′ are mutually opposed. The swollen portion
207
d
′ of each of the engagement projections
207
d
formed on the long side wall
200
is inserted between the pair of locking pieces
308
b
, and tip portions of the locking pieces
308
b
are inserted into the through-holes
207
b
,
207
c
drilled above and below the engagement projection
207
d
. Then, the locking projections
308
b
′ of the locking pieces
308
b
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
are engagingly locked on a rear surface of the swollen portion
207
d
′ of the engagement projection
207
d
formed on the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
.
Furthermore, an intermediate fitting projection
308
c
is formed below the locking piece
308
b
in a fashion extending outward and perpendicularly from the vertical frame
306
and is configured to fit in the fitting recess
207
e
formed in each of the engagement frame sections
207
of the long side wall
200
. In addition, a flat lower engagement projection
308
d
is formed below the intermediate fitting recess
308
c
, and is configured to fit in the lower fitting through-hole
207
g
in each of the engagement frame sections
207
of the long side wall
200
. A box-shaped lower fitting projection
308
e
is formed below the lower engagement projection
308
d
so as to be inserted into a gap D between the lower end of each engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
and the upper end of the fitting section
112
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the corresponding short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
when the folding container is assembled. Furthermore, the engagement frame section
308
has a lower-end engagement projection
308
f formed at a lower end thereof and configured to fit in the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at each of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
,
309
is a hand-held opening formed above the short side wall
300
and into which the operator's fingers can be inserted.
A gap is formed between each of the above described vertical walls
111
of the bottom portion
100
and the above described hook
106
b
of each hinge female section
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
and has an interval smaller than the diameter of the horizontal pin
303
b
of each hinge male section
303
formed on the short side wall
300
.
Next, how to assemble together the bottom portion
100
, long side walls
200
, and short side walls
300
configured as described above will be described.
The long side wall
200
is lowered to forcibly insert the horizontal pins
203
b
of the hinge male sections
203
formed on the long side wall
200
into the gap formed between the corresponding end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
and the hooks
106
b
of the hinge female sections
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
. Then, the plate pieces
106
a
of the hinge female sections
106
of the bottom portion
100
are slantly moved inward to create a gap between the end wall,
105
of the bottom portion
100
and the hooks
106
b
of the hinge female sections
106
through which the horizontal pins
203
b
of the hinge male sections
203
of the long side wall
200
pass. The horizontal pins
203
b
are pushed downward to below the corresponding hooks
106
b
of the hinge female sections
106
of the bottom portion
100
. Then, the plate pieces
106
a
of the hinge female sections
106
of the bottom portion
100
return to their original positions due to their elastic force to cause the horizontal pins
203
b
of the hinge male sections
203
of the long side wall
200
to fit in the recesses
106
b
′ of the hooks
106
b
of the hinge female sections
106
of the bottom portion
100
. Thus, the hinge female sections
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
and the hinge male sections
203
formed on the long side wall
200
hinge the bottom portion
100
to the long side wall
200
. Likewise, the hinge female sections
106
formed on the short-side-portion-
102
side of the bottom portion
100
and the hinge male sections
303
formed on the short side wall
300
are coupled together to connect the bottom portion
100
and the short side wall
200
together.
When the folding container folded as shown in
FIG. 3
is assembled as shown in
FIG. 1
, the long side walls
200
, overlapping the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
, are stood up perpendicularly and the short side walls
300
are then stood up perpendicularly to assemble the folding container in the form of a box. The long side walls
200
and the short side walls
300
are configured so that each engagement frame section
207
formed on the long side wall
200
and the corresponding engagement frame section
308
formed on the short side wall
300
are mutually engaged to preclude the short side walls
300
of the assembled folding container from falling down inward easily.
As described above, when the short side wall
300
is rotatively moved in the vertical direction relative to the long side wall
200
stood up perpendicularly, the lower-end engagement projection
308
f
formed on each engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is first fitted in the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Then, the lower-end fitting projection
308
e
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is inserted between the gap D formed between the lower end of each engagement frame section
207
on the long side wall
200
side and the upper end of the fitting section
112
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. In addition, the lower engagement projection
308
d
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the lower fitting through-hole
207
g
in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. Further, the intermediate fitting projection
308
c
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the fitting recess
207
e
of the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. Furthermore, the locking projections
308
b
′ of the pair of locking pieces
308
b
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
are engagingly locked on the rear surface of the swollen portion
207
d
′ of the engagement projection
207
d
formed on the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. Finally, the upper fitting projection
308
a
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the upper fitting through-hole
207
a
in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
, so that the engagement frame section
207
formed in the long side wall
200
and the corresponding engagement frame section
308
formed in the short side wall
300
are mutually engaged reliably.
As described above, when the short side wall
300
is rotatively moved in the vertical direction relative to the long side wall
200
stood up perpendicularly, the lower-end engagement projection
308
f
formed on each engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is first fitted in the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Then, the flat lower engagement projection
308
d
of the engagement frame section
308
on the short side wall
300
side is fitted in the lower fitting through-hole
207
g
in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. Consequently, the lateral (a direction in which the short side wall
300
moves in the vertical direction relative to the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
) movement of the short side wall
300
relative to the long side wall
200
is regulated to prevent the position of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
from moving relative to the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
, thereby enabling smooth and reliable engagement between the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
and the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
.
Furthermore, the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
has the generally prismatic upper fitting projection
308
a
having the tapered tip and configured so that in a final stage of the engagement between the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
and the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
, the upper fitting projection
308
a
is fitted in the upper fitting through-hole
207
a
formed in the engagement frame section
207
on the long side wall
200
in a manner such that an outer peripheral surface of the upper fitting projection
308
a
is located close to an inner peripheral surface of the upper fitting through-hole
207
a
. Accordingly, the vertical movement of the short side wall
300
relative to the long side wall
200
and the movement of the short side wall
300
away from the long side wall
200
are regulated to preclude the long side walls
200
and the short side walls
300
from being wobbly in the assembled folding container. As a result, assembled folding containers, when piled up, are prevented from tottering and can be stably stacked up.
As described above, the lower-end engagement projection
308
f
of each engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at a corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
, thereby allowing the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
to be coupled more strongly to regulate the movement of the short side walls
300
relative to the bottom portion
100
. This configuration can prevent substantial movement of the short side wall
300
relative to the bottom portion
100
, which may cause damage to the hinge female sections
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
or to the hinge male sections
303
formed on the short side wall
300
, the hinge female and male sections constituting the hinging coupling the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
together. In addition, the lower-end engagement projection
308
f
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
and the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at the corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
provide a kind of positioning function to enable smooth and reliable coupling between the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
.
Additionally, the lower-end engagement projection
308
f
of the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the through-hole
112
a
in the fitting section
112
formed at the corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
, thereby allowing the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
to be coupled more strongly, and the long side walls
200
and the short side walls
300
are also firmly coupled together by means of a plurality of fitting means and engagement means, that is, the fitting of the lower engagement projection
308
d
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
, in the lower fitting through-hole
207
g
drilled in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
, the fitting of the intermediate fitting projection
308
c
formed on the engagement frame section
309
of the short side wall
300
, in the fitting recess
207
e
formed in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
, the engagingly locking of the locking projections
308
b
′ of the pair of locking pieces
308
b
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
, on the swollen portion
207
d
′ of the engagement projection
207
d
formed on the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
, and the fitting of the upper fitting projection
308
a
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
, in the upper fitting through-hole
207
a
drilled in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. As a result, the long side walls
200
and the short side walls
300
are unlikely to be mutually disengaged to improve the strength of the assembled folding container. Additionally, when a large number of assembled folding containers are piled up, the long side walls
200
and the short side walls
300
are prevented from moving to enable stable pile-up, that is, stack-up.
Furthermore, when the folding container is assembled, the lower fitting projection
308
e
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is inserted, in a sandwich fashion, into the gap D between the lower end of each engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
and the upper end of the fitting section
112
formed at the corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Consequently, even if a load is imposed on the short side wall
300
of the assembled folding w container from above, it is shared by the lower fitting projection
308
e
of the short side wall
300
, which is placed at the upper end of the fitting section
112
formed at the corresponding one of the opposite ends of the short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Therefore, the hinging coupling the bottom portion
100
and the short side walls
300
together is not subjected to the load, thereby preventing damage to the hinge female sections
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
and to the hinge male sections
303
formed on the short side wall
300
.
In addition, the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
has the pair of locking pieces
308
b
each extending substantially in the horizontal direction and having the locking projection
308
b
′ at its tip, and the pair of locking pieces
308
b
engagingly lock the rear surface of the swollen portion
207
d
′ of the engagement projection
207
d
formed on the engagement frame section
207
on the long side wall
200
side. Accordingly, even if the long side wall
200
or the short side wall
300
wobbles in the vertical direction, since one of the locking pieces
308
b
is locked on the engagement projection
207
d
, the locking pieces
308
b
and the engagement projection
207
d
are not mutually unlocked. Additionally, even if the long side wall
200
or the short side wall
300
moves in the horizontal direction, the locking pieces
308
b
are not disengaged from the engagement projection
207
d
because they are laterally elongated so as to extend in the horizontal direction, resulting in a firm engagement between the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
and the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
. Furthermore, the intermediate fitting projection
308
c
formed on the engagement frame section
308
of the short side wall
300
is fitted in the fitting recess
207
e
formed in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
. This configuration restrains wobbling and relative movement between the long side wall
200
and the short side wall
300
, thereby more reliably preventing disengagement between the locking pieces
308
b
and the engagement projection
207
d.
As described above, when the folding container is assembled, each long-side locking block
108
formed on the bottom portion
100
slides into the corresponding recess
210
having the open underside and formed in the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
, and each short-side locking block
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
slides into the corresponding vertically elongated recess
307
formed in the short side wall
300
. In this manner, when the folding container is assembled, the long-side locking blocks
108
and short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
do not abut on the long side wall
200
and the short side wall
300
, respectively. In addition, when the folding container is assembled, each end locking block
109
formed on the bottom portion
100
can slide into the notch
209
without interfering with the long side wall
200
, the notch
209
being located at the corresponding one of the lower opposite ends of the long side wall
200
and formed of the horizontal frame
208
higher than the lower horizontal frame
202
and the vertical piece
203
a
of the corresponding hinge male section
203
.
As described above, the outer surface
108
a
of each long-side locking block
108
, the outer surface
113
c
of each short-side locking block
113
, and the outer surface
109
c
of each end locking block
109
, which are all formed on the bottom portion
100
, are configured so as not to project outward beyond the corresponding long side portion
101
and short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Additionally, the long side wall
200
and the short side wall
300
are configured so as not to project outward beyond the corresponding long side portion
101
and short side portion
102
of the bottom portion
100
. Furthermore, the outer surfaces of the bottom portion
100
, long side walls
200
, and short side walls
300
are configured to be substantially mutually flush. Consequently, even when two assembled folding containers are arranged in juxtaposition in a manner such that the long side wall
200
or short side wall
300
of one of the folding containers are brought in abutment with the corresponding long side wall
200
or short side wall
300
of the other, substantially no gap is formed between the adjacent folding containers, thereby allowing the assembled folding containers to be stored more efficiently. In addition, since no fitting shoulder section is formed as in the conventional folding containers, the folding container according to the present invention, when assembled, has a large internal volume compared to its outside dimensions, and thus has an improved accommodation efficiency.
If the folding container assembled as shown in
FIG. 1
is folded as shown in
FIG. 3
, the short side walls
300
are rotatively moved toward the bottom portion
100
to disengage the engagement frame sections
207
of the long side walls
200
from the engagement frame sections
308
of the short side walls
300
to place the short side walls
300
on the bottom portion
100
. Then, the long side walls
200
are brought down and placed on the folded short side walls
300
, and in this case, since the short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
have slid into the corresponding fitting recesses
207
e
formed in the engagement frame section
207
of the long side wall
200
and then into the corresponding fitting through-holes
207
f
drilled in the long side wall
200
, the short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
do not obstruct the folding of the long side walls
200
. In this manner, the folding container is folded. Then, the long-side locking blocks
108
, end locking blocks
109
, and short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
project upward above the long side walls
200
of the folded folding container.
In addition, since the short-side locking blocks
113
are each configured to be inserted into the corresponding fitting through-hole
207
f
drilled in the long side wall
200
, even if an external or internal force is applied to the short-side locking block
113
, the fitting through-hole
207
f
serves to prevent the short-side locking block
113
from being shifted or damaged, thereby enabling folded folding containers to be stably stacked up. In this manner, the folding container is folded. Preferably, a trumpet-shaped inclined surface
207
e
′ is formed at a tip portion of the fitting recess
207
e
so that the short side locking block
113
, when inserted into the fitting through-hole
207
, does not abut on portions of the engagement frame section
207
above and below the fitting recess
207
e
. Additionally, the inclined surface
207
e
′ works as a guide surface when the short-side locking block
113
is inserted into the fitting through-hole
207
f.
When folding containers folded as shown in
FIG. 3
are stacked up, the bottom fitting section
100
a
formed of the inner wall
104
b
and the like of the bottom section
100
of the upper folding container is fitted on the notches
108
d
in the long-side locking blocks
108
, the notches
113
b
in the short-side locking blocks
113
, and the projecting portions
109
b
of the end locking blocks
109
, which are all formed on the bottom portion
100
of the lower folding container, and the bottom fitting section
100
a
is placed on the placement surfaces
108
c
of the long-side locking blocks
108
, the placement surfaces
113
a
of the short-side locking blocks
113
, and the placement surfaces
109
a
of the end locking blocks
109
. Consequently, the upper folding container is prevented from moving in the horizontal direction by means of the long-side locking blocks
108
, short-side locking blocks
113
, and end locking blocks
109
of the lower folding container, thereby enabling a large number of folded folding containers to be stably stacked up.
The arrangement, number, and the like of the long-side locking blocks
108
, end locking blocks
109
, and short-side locking blocks
113
formed on the bottom portion
100
in the above described embodiment are not limited to those in this embodiment.
In addition, if the bottom portion
100
has the long-side locking blocks
108
and the short-side locking blocks
113
formed thereon and when the folded folding containers are stacked up, the bottom fitting section
110
a
of the bottom portion
100
of the upper folding container is fitted on the notches
108
d
in the long-side locking blocks
108
and the notches
113
b
in the short-side locking blocks
113
, which are all formed on the bottom portion
100
of the lower folding container, thereby hindering the upper folding container from moving in the horizontal direction. Accordingly, the end locking blocks
109
can be omitted.
Furthermore, since the end locking blocks
109
each have the projecting portion
109
b
having a generally L-shaped planar shape and comprising the projecting sub-portion
109
b
′ extending along the long side portion
101
and the projecting sub-portion
109
b
″ extending perpendicularly to the long side portion
101
, folded folding containers can also be stably stacked up by using only the end locking blocks
109
without forming the long-side locking blocks
108
or the short-side locking blocks
113
.
Next, the hinge male sections
203
formed on each long side wall
200
and the hinge female sections
106
formed on each long side portion
101
of the bottom portion
100
, which are all shown as examples of components constituting the hinging, will be described in detail with reference to
FIGS. 14 and 15
.
This embodiment substantially eliminates the gap as conventionally formed between the lower end of the vertical piece
203
a
of each hinge male section
203
disposed on the long side wall
200
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the corresponding double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
.
Thus, when the folding container is assembled, a radius r
1
located in a corner A formed of an inner surface
105
b
of each end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
and of the horizontal wall
104
c
of each double wall
104
of the bottom portion
100
, the radius covering almost a quarter of the vertical piece
203
a
of each hinge male section
203
disposed on the long side wall
200
, a distance d
1
between a central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
and the inner surface
105
b
of the end wall
105
, and a distance d
2
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
are almost equal, and a distance d
3
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the inner surface
201
b
of each plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
and a distance d
2
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
are almost equal. To achieve this configuration, the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
is offset, by a predetermined amount d
4
, from a thickness-wise center line L
1
of the long side wall
200
toward the inner surface
201
b
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall.
200
, that is, in the direction in which the long side wall
200
is rotated.
In short, the distance d
1
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
and the inner surface
105
b
of the end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
, the distance d
2
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
, and the distance d
3
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the inner surface
201
b
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
are all almost equal to the radius r
1
of the generally semicircular portion
203
a
′ in the lower part of the vertical piece
203
a
constituting the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
. This configuration substantially eliminates the gap between the lower end of the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
to prevent foreign matter from entering this gap while enabling the long side wall
200
to be brought down to its substantially horizontal position in folding the folding container.
With this configuration, when the folding container is assembled as shown in
FIG. 1
, substantially no gap is formed between the lower end of the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
to prevent foreign matter such as articles accommodated in the folding container or dust from entering this gap.
In addition, the distance d
3
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the inner surface
201
b
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
is almost equal to the distance d
2
between the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
and the top surface of the horizontal wall
104
c
of the double wall section
104
of the bottom portion
100
, so that when the folding container is folded as shown in
FIG. 2
, the long side walls
200
can be brought down to their substantially horizontal positions and are thus prevented from inclining upward relative to the central point c
1
of the horizontal pin
203
b
, thereby enabling the folding container to be folded thin.
In addition, the hook
106
b
of each hinge female section
106
has an inclined surface
106
c
formed on an upper outer peripheral surface thereof and inclining upward from the corresponding end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
toward the plate piece
106
a
of the hinge female section
106
. To hinge the bottom portion
100
to the long side wall
200
, the inclined surface
106
c
has such a width that when the long side wall
200
is lowered, the horizontal pin
203
b
of each hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
is placed on the inclined surface
106
c
as shown in FIG.
15
.
To hinge the bottom portion
100
to the long side wall
200
, the long side wall
200
is first lowered so that the horizontal pin
230
b
of each hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
comes in abutment with the inclined surface
106
c
of the hook
106
b
of the corresponding hinge female section
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
, as shown in FIG.
15
. Subsequently, when the long side wall
200
is further lowered, the horizontal pin
203
b
moves along the inclined surface
106
c
of the hook
106
b
toward the end wall
105
. After the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
has come in abutment with the end wall
105
and when the long side wall
200
is further lowered, the hinge female section
106
slantly moves to the right in
FIG. 15
against its own elastic force to form a gap between the end wall
105
and the tip of the hook
106
b
through which the horizontal pin
203
b
can pass. Once the horizontal pin
203
b
has moved downward below the tip of the hook
106
b
of the hinge female section
106
after passing through the above gap, the hinge female section
106
returns to its original position due to its elastic force, and the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
is fitted in the recess
106
b
′ of the hook
116
b
of the hinge female section
106
, thereby hinging the bottom portion
100
to the long side wall
200
via the hinge section comprising the hinge female sections
106
and the hinge male sections
203
.
As described above, the hook
106
b
of each hinge female section
106
has the inclined surface
106
c
formed on the upper outer peripheral surface thereof and inclining downward to the corresponding end wall
105
of the bottom portion
100
so that when the long side wall
200
is lowered, the horizontal pin
203
b
of the corresponding hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
is placed on the inclined surface
106
c
, whereby the horizontal pin
203
b
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the long side wall
200
is prevented from moving toward the plate piece
106
a
of the hinge female section
106
formed on the bottom portion
100
. Consequently, the horizontal pin of the hinge male section is not fitted in the recess in the hook of the hinge female section as in the prior art, thereby preventing failures to hinge the bottom portion to the long side wall.
Next, a card holder
400
molded integrally with the log side wall
200
will be explained by way of example with reference to
FIGS. 8 and 16
to
19
. The card holder
400
is constructed by juxtaposing two or more card holder members
400
a
each formed of a card presser piece
401
and the like, described below. One of the card holder members
400
a
constituting the card holder
400
will be described below.
The card presser piece
401
constituting the card holder member
400
a
is connected to a thin connection section
402
connected to a lower end of a connection wall
204
b
formed between the vertical piece
203
a
of the hinge male section
203
formed on the bottom surface of the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
and the vertical piece
204
a
of the lower block
204
. The card presser piece
401
is formed into an elongated band.
When the card holder member
400
a
is molded integrally with the long side wall
200
, the card presser piece
401
suspends generally downward perpendicularly from the lower end of the long side wall
200
via the thin connection section
402
, as shown in
FIGS. 16 and 19
. The card presser piece
401
has a first fitting hole
403
drilled near the thin connection section
402
and a second fitting hole
404
drilled further from the thin connection section
402
than the first fitting hole
403
. In addition, an engagement projection
405
is formed between the first fitting hole
403
and the second fitting hole
404
in the card presser piece
401
so as to extend away from the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
.
211
is a pair of regulation blocks disposed on the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
so as to have an internal width w
2
slightly larger than the width w
1
of the card presser piece
401
. The regulation block
211
has a depth x
1
formed to be almost the same as the depth x
2
of the lower horizontal frame
202
of the long side wall
200
. Additionally, the regulation blocks
211
are connected together by a connection block
212
integrated with the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
.
The connection block
212
has a locking piece
213
formed in a substantially central portion in its upper part so as to extend in the horizontal direction away from the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
, and the locking piece
213
has a locking projection
213
a
formed on a bottom surface thereof at its tip so as to extend downward. A guide block
214
is formed below the locking piece
213
and extends in the same direction as the locking piece
213
substantially parallel therewith.
215
is a through-hole formed between the locking piece
213
and the guide block
214
by means of a molding member for molding the card holder member
400
a
integrally with the long side wall
200
.
As described above, when the card holder member
400
a
is molded integrally with the long side wall
200
, the card presser piece
401
suspends generally downward perpendicularly from the lower end of the long side wall
200
via the thin connection section
402
. When, however, the card presser piece
401
is then rotatively moved toward the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
in a fashion folding the thin connection section
402
, the guide block
214
formed on the long side wall
200
is first fitted in the first fitting hole
403
formed in the card presser piece
401
. When the card presser piece
401
is continuously rotatively moved toward the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
, the engagement projection
405
formed on the card presser piece
401
is pushed into the gap between the guide block
214
and the locking piece
213
formed on the long side wall
200
, and is then passed therethrough while elastically deforming the locking piece
213
upward to extend the gap between the guide block
214
and the locking piece
213
.
After the engagement projection
405
formed on the card presser piece
401
has passed through the gap between the guide block
214
and the locking piece
213
formed on the long side wall
200
, the locking piece
213
is rotatively moved downward due to its own elasticity and its locking projection
213
a
is engagingly locked on an upper corner
405
a
at a tip of the engagement projection
405
, so that the card presser piece
401
is engaged with and held in the locking piece
213
formed on the long side wall
200
.
Additionally, the card presser piece
401
is formed of a base
401
a
located on the thin connection section
402
side and having the first fitting hole
403
, the second fitting hole
404
, and the engagement projection
405
formed therein; an intermediate portion
401
b
connected to the base
401
a
and inclined outward; and a card guide section
401
c formed by bending a tip of the intermediate portion
401
b
outward. Once the upper corner
405
a
at the tip of the engagement projection
405
formed on the card presser piece
401
has been engagingly locked in the locking projection
213
a
of the locking piece
213
formed on the long side wall
200
to assemble the card holder member
400
a
, a bent portion
401
d
located at the boundary line between the intermediate portion
401
b
of the card presser piece
401
and the card guide section
401
c
comes in abutment with the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long sidewall
200
. Additionally, a wedge-shaped space
406
is formed between an inner surface
401
c
′ of the card guide section
401
c
located above the bent portion
401
d
and the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
in a manner such that the interval between the inner surface
401
c
′ of the card guide section
401
c
and the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
decreases linearly with height.
By assembling two or more card holder members
400
a
as described above, the card holder
400
is formed. To allow the card holder
400
formed in this manner to hold a card
407
, a lower side
407
a
of the card
407
is inserted into the above described wedge-shaped space
406
and the card
407
is then pushed downward. The card
407
moves the bent portion
401
d
of the card presser piece
401
, with which the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
is in abutment, away from the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
, to form a gap between the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
and the bent portion
401
d
of the card presser piece
401
through which the card
407
can pass. Thus, the card
407
is further pushed downward until it has passed through the gap, followed by the abutment of its lower side
407
a
on the top surface of the regulation block
211
or connection block
212
. In this manner, the card
407
is held by two or more card holder members
400
a
. The card
407
held by the two or more card holder members
400
a
is brought into pressure contact with the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
by means of the bent portion
401
d
of the card presser piece
401
, thereby hindering the card
407
from being moved or disengaged from the container card holder
400
easily.
The above described card holder member
400
a
is molded integrally with the long side wall
200
, but if the long side wall
200
is molded of an opaque resin, the card holder member
400
a
is also molded of a similar opaque resin, thereby causing the card
407
held in the card holder member
400
a
to be partly concealed by the card holder member
400
a
. This, to solve such a problem, the card presser piece
401
constituting the card holder member
400
a
is formed into an elongated band.
In addition, by injecting a transparent or translucent resin into a molding space for molding the card presser piece
401
of the card holder member
400
a
, while injecting an appropriate colored resin into a molding space for molding the long side wall
200
, the transparent or translucent card holder member
400
a
and the colored long side wall
200
can be integrally molded.
According to the present invention, as described above, the card presser piece
401
constituting the card holder member
400
a
is molded integrally with the long side wall
200
via the thin connection section
402
, so that the card holder can be easily assembled simply by rotatively moving the card presser piece
401
toward the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
in a fashion folding the thin connection section
402
.
Additionally, since the card presser piece
401
constituting the card holder member
400
a
is formed into an elongated band, only a small part of the card
407
is concealed by the card presser piece
401
, thereby allowing easy reading of the destination, name, type, quantity, and the like of articles described or stored in the card
407
.
Since the card
407
held in the two or more card holder members
400
a
is brought into pressure contact with the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
by means of the bent portion
401
d
of the card presser piece
401
, the card
407
is prevented from being moved or disengaged from the card holder
400
easily.
The assembled card presser piece
401
is located between the piece of regulation blocks
211
formed on the long side wall
200
, so that even if an external force is applied to the card presser piece
401
to move it along the outer surface
201
a
of the plate section
201
of the long side wall
200
, the regulation blocks
211
restrains this movement to prevent the thin connection section
402
, which is relatively fragile, from being damaged, while preventing the card
407
held in the card holder members
400
a
from being disengaged when the card presser piece
401
is moved.
In addition, each long side wall
200
has a notch
216
formed therein by notching the inside of the upper end thereof, and each short side wall
300
has a notch
310
formed therein by notching the inside of the upper end thereof. These notches
216
,
310
are configured so that when assembled folding containers are stacked up, the bottom fitting section
100
a
of the bottom portion
100
of the upper folding container is fitted in these notches.
The bottom portion
100
, long side walls
200
, and short side walls
300
constituting the above described folding container are each molded of a synthetic resin by means of injection molding or the like and then hinged together as described above to assemble the folding container.
Due to the above described configuration, the present invention has the following effects.
The bottom portion of the folding container has formed thereon the locking blocks on which the bottom portion of another folded folding container can be fitted, and the side walls of the folding container has the recesses formed therein and each having the open underside into which the corresponding locking block of the assembled folding container can be inserted, thereby enabling folded folding containers to be stably stacked up. In addition, the engagement an frame sections are used to mutually engage the side walls and to engage the side walls with the bottom portion, thereby allowing the folding container to be firmly assembled in the form of a box.
Since one of the opposed side walls has the through-holes drilled therein and into which the corresponding locking blocks, which project upward, can be inserted upon folding, the locking blocks do not obstruct folding of the folding container.
The engagement projections formed on the engagement frame section of each of the side walls are fitted in the corresponding through-holes formed in the bottom portion. Accordingly, when the folding container is assembled in the form of a box, the bottom portion and the side walls can be coupled together more strongly to regulate the movement of the side walls relative to the bottom portion, thereby preventing substantial movement of the side walls relative to the bottom portion, which may damage the hinge section coupling the bottom portion and the side walls together.
When the side walls are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion, the bottom surfaces of the side walls and the top surface of the bottom portion partly come in surface contact with one another. As a result, a load imposed on the side wall can be shared by this surface contact section to prevent the load on the side wall from damaging the hinge section.
Since the card presser pieces each constituting the card holder are integrated with the side wall via the thin connection section, the card holder can be easily assembled simply by rotatively moving the card presser piece toward the side wall in a fashion folding the thin connection section.
Claims
- 1. A folding container comprising side walls disposed in a fashion surrounding a bottom portion of the folding container and which can be folded so as to overlap the bottom portion, the side walls each having engagement frame sections formed thereon for engaging the adjacent side walls so that, when stood up perpendicularly with respect to the bottom portion, the side walls will not fall down inward, the bottom portion has locking blocks formed thereon on which the bottom portion of a stacked folded folding container can be fitted, the side walls each have recesses formed therein and each having an open underside into which a cooperating locking block of an assembled folding container can be received, and the engagement frame sections being operative to mutually engage the side walls where the walls are stood up and to engage the side walls with respect to the bottom portion when the side walls are folded, wherein engagement projections formed on the engagement frame sections of each side wall are configured to fit in corresponding through-holes in a cooperating fitting section formed in the bottom portion when each side wall is stood up perpendicularly with respect to the bottom portions, andwherein one of the side walls has through-holes into which the corresponding locking blocks, which project upward, can be inserted upon folding.
- 2. A folding container according to claim 1, characterized in that when the side walls are stood up perpendicularly to the bottom portion, a bottom surface of each side wall partly comes in surface contact with a top surface of the bottom portion.
- 3. A folding container according to claim 1, characterized in that card presser pieces each constituting a card holder are integrated with the side wall via a thin connection section.
Priority Claims (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
Kind |
11-317865 |
Nov 1999 |
JP |
|
US Referenced Citations (11)
Foreign Referenced Citations (1)
Number |
Date |
Country |
04-44948 |
Feb 1992 |
JP |