The present invention relates generally to burial and cremation containers.
The embalming process and natural decomposition of human remains results in the generation of viscous fluids. When these fluids are generated in while the human remains are in a burial or cremation container (e.g. casket), the fluids naturally migrate to the lower portions of the casket. This migration may result in a number of problems. Caskets are constructed from a plurality of materials, including wood, metal, and paper materials, as well as combinations of the foregoing. Thus, the caustic nature of the fluids can lead to corrosion of casket materials. Moreover, caskets are subject to leakage.
The problems associated with leakage can be broadly discussed as either short term or long term problems. In the short term, the casket will be subjected to movement, as the casket may be moved between the viewing environment and/or memorial service location and its final resting place, whether that be interred in the ground, cremated, or placed into a mausoleum or crypt. Thus, resolution of the leakage problem must address the fact that the casket will be subjected to movement, such as starts and stops and being tilted. In the short term, however, there is a lesser amount of fluids in the casket. In the long term, the casket is much less likely to be subjected to movement. However, more fluid will be present over the long term.
A variety of means have been developed to reduce the potential of leakage. U.S. Pat. No. Re. 34,846 discloses one such approach. This patent discloses a seamless, one-piece drip tray for a casket with a plurality of discrete isolated compartments for the retention of fluids. Another approach is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,615,464 wherein a one-piece drip tray designed to be retrofitted into caskets previously fabricated without a drip tray. The drip trays disclosed in these patents are very useful in reducing the potential problems associated with leakage. However, the one-piece design of the drip trays does present various difficulties associated with the fabrication and installation of the drip trays into caskets.
Typically, drip trays are fabricated from a thermoplastic material such as high density polyethylene. The material is generally vacuum formed in an in-line vacuum forming machine. In-line vacuum forming machines are available in a number of sizes. Obviously, as the size of the final product increases, the size of the machine needed to fabricate the product necessarily increases. By way of example, a typical casket is 82 inches long and 27 inches wide, so a one-piece construction drip tray would need to be almost that size. Accordingly, a manufacturer would be required to have an in-line vacuum forming machine with a capacity of at least those dimensions. For a variety of reasons, obtaining and maintaining such a machine capable of fabricating one-piece drip trays for caskets can be uneconomical.
Installation of a one-piece drip tray presents additional problems. Proper installation of the drip tray without damage to the drip tray is critical in minimizing the potential for leakage. Although the drip trays are light-weight, their large dimensions make them unwieldy. For example, a large casket sized drip tray can be difficult to manipulate in the close confines of a casket. Moreover, the drip trays are designed to be structurally sound once installed. However, they can be relatively fragile while being handled, being subject to bending.
There is a need, therefore, for a casket leak containment system that may be fabricated on smaller in-line vacuum machines. It would be beneficial if the leak containment system could be more easily installed into a casket than traditional drip trays. It would be further beneficial if the leak containment system were of a robust design, reducing the potential for damage to the leak containment system during installation. It is desired that the above advantages be realized in a leak containment system that is light-weight, durable, inexpensive to manufacture, and capable of preventing leakage both in short term and long term applications.
The present invention fulfills the above needs, as well as others, by providing a leak containment system constructed from multiple modules. The modules may be individually formed and installed. When installed, the modules overlap along at least one edge to provide proper leak protection between the modules. The modular design of the drip tray allows for a smaller in-line vacuum machine to be used to produce the individual modules. In the event a module is damaged, there will be less waste than in a one-piece drip tray. Moreover, the reduced size of each module results in greater structural integrity while moving the modules as well as increased ease of installation. However, it will be appreciated that variants of the invention may provide the advantage of ease of manipulation even it provides none of the advantages associated with using a smaller vacuum forming machine. Moreover, variants of the invention may provide some of the advantages associated with using a smaller vacuum forming machine without any advantages associated with ease of manipulation into a casket.
In some embodiments, the modules of the modular drip tray are identical in design. The use of identical modules in a modular drip tray provides a further advantage of reduced tooling and logistical costs.
The above described features and advantages, as well as others, will become more readily apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art by reference to the following detailed description and accompanying drawings.
For the purposes of promoting an understanding of the principles of the invention, reference will now be made to the embodiments illustrated in the drawings and described in the following written description. It is understood that no limitation to the scope of the invention is thereby intended. It is further understood that the present invention includes any alterations and modifications to the illustrated embodiments and includes further applications of the principles of the invention as would normally occur to one skilled in the art to which this invention pertains.
With additional reference to
As shown in
Each of the modules 26 and 28 is preferably vacuum-formed as a single integrated unit with a thickness suitable for supporting its own form even when an amount of fluid is collected within the basins 34 and 42. It is also preferable to ensure that the thickness is maintained thin enough to avoid excess stiffness since some flexibility is helpful when positioning the modules within a casket. Of course, the two piece construction of modular drip tray assembly 12 has reduced flexibility requirements than that of the larger prior art single piece design. In any event, one suitable embodiment of the invention has a wall thickness of between 0.004 inches and 0.02 inches, preferably about 0.040 inches and is formed from polyethylene. Of course, the necessary thickness of the walls will depend upon a variety of design choices that affect the capability of a formed object to maintain its shape when liquid is being held. Such design choices include, but are not limited to, the presence or absence of a rim, of ribs, and the inclination of the wall portion.
Assembly of the modular drip tray assembly 12 into the casket 10 is performed after the spring support structure 22 has been positioned within casket 10. As shown in
Next, the module 28 is inserted in a similar manner. However, concavity 46 is aligned closer to the end of the casket 10 away from the module 26. Thus, the bed screw 16 or 18 that is not within the concavity 48 will be located within the concavity 46. When the module 28 is inserted and the rim 36 is adjacent to the end of the casket 10 opposite to the end at which the module 26 was installed, the bottom 30 of the module 28 will be lying upon the spring support structure 22 and the rim 36 of the module 28 and the rim 44 of the module 26 will overlap.
The mattress 24 may then be installed, with the weight of the mattress 24 helping to maintain the modular drip tray assembly 12 in place. The modular drip tray assembly 12 is further maintained in position because the rims 44 and 36 abut the ends and sides of the casket, and motion of the modules 26 and 28 toward each other is limited by the rim 44 of the module 26 abutting the wall portion 32 of the module 28 as shown in
If desired, the wall portion 32 adjacent the rim 44 may be formed to be completely vertical or even to slant away from the rim 44 to provide additional positional stability. Specifically, because the wall portion 32 is slanted upwardly toward the module 26, it may, under certain circumstances, slide up the rim 44, creating a gap between the rim 36 and the end of the casket. By changing the orientation of the rim 36 and the wall portion 32, the opportunity for such sliding movement can be reduced.
In one embodiment, a retaining member is used to prevent sliding movement between modules. A modular drip tray assembly 11, shown in
It is noted that, preferably, the modules 26 and 28 are identical in design. Use of identical modules provides a number of benefits. For example, with identical modules there is no need to order, stock or match two different modules to form a modular tray assembly. Moreover, if one module is damaged, there is no additional waste of a second unmatched module. In addition, only one tooling need be developed for the entire assembly 12.
Referring now to
The concavity 48 at one end of the module 26 allows the module 26 to be placed on the bottom 60 of the casket 50 while extending from the end wall 52 at a point just below the flange 68 to a point above the center support bracket 62. Similarly, the concavity 46 of the module 28 allows the module 28 to be placed on the bottom 60 of the casket 50 while extending from the end wall 54 at a point just below the flange 70 to a point above center support bracket 62. This ensures that a maximum area of the bottom 60 is protected from any fluids, and that most, if not all, fluids will impinge upon the modular drip tray assembly 12.
As shown in
The positioning of the rims 36 and 44 beneath the flanges 68 and 70, respectively, also maintains the modular drip tray assembly 12 in position even if the casket 50 is jolted. This is because the periphery of the casket 50 at the flanges 68 and 70 is less than the periphery of the casket 50 below the flanges 68 and 70. Thus, flanges 68 and 70 form a restraint limiting upward movement of the modular drip tray assembly 12. Of course, restraint may be fashioned in a number of alternative ways. By way of example, but not of limitation, the modular drip tray assembly 12 may also be restrained by a plurality of protuberances located about the periphery of the end walls 52 and 54 and/or the side walls 56 and 58 in the event that a flange is not provided or if it is desired to maintain the modular drip tray assembly 12 in place at a height lower than flanges 68 and 70.
Installation of the modular drip tray assembly 12 into the casket is easily accomplished. As shown in
When the module 26 nears the bottom 60 of the casket 50, the module 26 is moved toward the bed screw 64 such that the bed screw 64 is positioned within the concavity 48. At about the same time, the lowermost portion of the rim 44 is positioned underneath the flange 68 and against the end wall 52. The module 26 is then pushed in the downward direction until it becomes level. The module 26 will flex slightly to allow the rim 44 to slide past and below the flange 69 along the side walls 56 and 58. After the rim 44 has cleared the flange 68, the module 26 will return to its original shape, and will be positioned on the bottom 60 of the casket 50. If the module 26 is not abutting the end wall 52, the module 26 is moved toward the end wall 52 such that the rim 44 abuts the end wall 52 beneath the flange 68.
In a similar fashion, the module 28 is installed. Specifically, the concavity 46 is aligned with the bed screw 66 with the wall portion 32 extending upwardly, away from the bottom 60 of the casket 50. The module 28 is then pushed downward and toward the bed screw 66. To ease insertion, the module is given a slight angle from side to side while inserting it into the casket. The angle is useful since the module 28 is wider than the portion of the casket 50 above the flange 70. The module 28 may also be oriented such that the end of the module 28 including concavity 46 is lower than the other end of the module 28 that will overlap the module 26.
When the module 28 nears the bottom 60 of the casket 50, the module 28 is moved toward the bed screw 66 such that the bed screw 66 is positioned within the concavity 46. At about the same time, the lowermost portion of the rim 36 is positioned underneath the flange 70 and against the end wall 54. The module 28 is then pushed in the downward direction until it becomes level. The module 28 will flex slightly to allow the rim 36 to slide past and below the flange 70 along the side walls 56 and 58. After the rim 36 has cleared the flange 70, the module 28 will return to its original shape, and will be positioned on the bottom 60 of the casket 50. If the module 28 is not abutting the end wall 54, the module 28 is moved toward the end wall 54 such that the rim 36 abuts the end wall 54 beneath the flange 70. At this point, rim 36 will overlap rim 44 as shown in
Referring now to
Installation of embodiments having additional modules, wherein all of the modules have a wall portion of generally the same height is preferably accomplished by first inserting the end modules, and then inserting the central module(s). Installation is thus similar to the two module installations described above, except that the rims of the end modules will not overlap each other, and the additional module is inserted. Upon insertion of the final module, all adjacent rims will be overlapping. For installation of embodiments having additional modules, wherein the modules have wall portions of different heights, it is generally preferred to install the modules with shorter wall portion heights first.
The invention described above may be practiced in a number of alternative ways. By way of example, but not of limitation, the adjacent rims of two modules need not be flat. Referring to
Another example is shown in
Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that adjacent modules may be engaged in a number of alternative ways. The engagement may be at one or more points of engagement, or with a single engaging member that extends along the entire sides of adjacent modules. These alternatives and others are within the scope of the present invention.
In another embodiment of the present invention, adjacent modules may, but need not overlap. Referring to
Referring to
It will be appreciated that the above embodiments are merely exemplary, and that those of ordinary skill in the art may readily devise their own implementations and adaptations that incorporate the principles of the present invention and fall within the spirit and scope thereof. By way of example, but not of limitation, the clips shown in
Moreover, many detailed features have been disclosed herein that provide additional advantages beyond those of the present invention, or indeed enhance the present invention. It will be appreciated that many of the advantages of the present invention may be obtained without such detailed features. Accordingly, the claims defined below are not intended to incorporate portions or details of the disclosed embodiments that are not expressly recited in the claims. The principles of the present invention have widespread applications, and may be incorporated into any number of modular drip tray assembly designs by those of ordinary skill in the art. In addition, it will be appreciated that while embodiments described herein employ two modules, other embodiments may employ three or more modules.
Number | Name | Date | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
3488818 | Orr | Jan 1970 | A |
3964140 | Gauchard | Jun 1976 | A |
4949439 | Semon | Aug 1990 | A |
4951367 | Wolfe | Aug 1990 | A |
5092020 | MaGuire | Mar 1992 | A |
RE33971 | Wolfe | Jun 1992 | E |
RE34846 | McGuire | Feb 1995 | E |
5444900 | Shawhan et al. | Aug 1995 | A |
5615464 | Rojdev | Apr 1997 | A |
6434804 | Cornet et al. | Aug 2002 | B1 |
6877195 | Guillot | Apr 2005 | B2 |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20060005364 A1 | Jan 2006 | US |