Patent Application
20200190837
The following is tabulation of some prior art that presently appears relevant:
U.S. Patent Application Publications
Cardboard boxes have been prevalent in the packaging industry since its patent in 1856 and rose to prominence as a shipping material in the 1870s. Corrugated cardboard boxes are light weight compared to wooden boxes, thus being more convenient to handle and print for packaging and protecting commodities.
For packaging heavy items or stacking heavy items, corrugated cardboard boxes may not be suitable and can become deformed due to their inadequate endurance to mechanical stresses. Cardboard has a number of drawbacks, including one time use, costs, strength in humid conditions and large quantities that cause environmental degradation.
Cardboard is used to ship over 90 percent of all products in the US. More than 100 billion cardboard boxes are produced in the US alone every year, weighing approximately 40 million tons. The fastest-growing contributors to the pile of cardboard are e-commerce companies and the number is only expected to grow as online shopping continues to surge.
Cardboard is the single largest component of municipal solid waste around the world. It is estimated that over 24 million tons of cardboard is discarded each year. When paper decomposes, it emits methane gas which is dozens more toxic than CO2.
Each ton of cardboard paper produced consumes 17 trees, 380 gallons of oil, 7000 gallons of water, 4,000 kWh of energy, and 9 cubic yards of landfill space. Pulp and paper are one of the largest industrial polluters to air, water, and land worldwide.
While recycling cardboard boxes can help, it still requires half the time and energy it takes to make a brand new box, which makes recycling cardboard in bulk a time-consuming and inefficient solution to a more severe problem.
The growing focus and pressing challenge towards sustainability by businesses and consumers are not only the environmental benefits but also the cost advantages. One solution to tackle this environmental issue is to utilize reusable packaging products.
Paper generates 50 times more water pollutants and 70 percent more air pollutants during production than plastics. In terms of greenhouse gas emissions and energy, plastic is preferable to paper and cardboard-it takes 90 percent less energy to recycle a pound of plastic than a pound of paper.
As an alternative to cardboard boxes, reusable boxes are easily cleaned, flattened, and reusable. It is an economically feasible tool that has been used for many years. Due to complex channels in the market, returning reusable boxes to the supplier is getting more complicated. They are not interchangeable, particularly when the boxes are made in a plurality of customized dimensions.
Accordingly, it is an objective of this invention to provide modular panels in standard sizes, assembled to standard-size boxes, and disassembled to flatten for easy reverse logistic and storage. Since all the panels are in modular specifications and standard sizes, the panels can be circulated, stored, cleaned, reused and recycled. For all businesses and individual consumers, the most important benefit in adopting the modular interlocking panel boxes is to significantly reduce packaging costs due to its reuse dozens of times.
Another objective of this interlocking mechanism is to design smooth and sleek surfaces all over the panels. After each usage, if they get dirty, panels can be either rinsed and dried by individual consumers easily, or processed by centralized washing and drying.
My mechanism presents the simplest designs using modular panels to build enclosures or expand surfaces. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,863,473 (2014), U.S. Pat. No. 5,979,693 (1999), U.S. Pat. No. 5,743,421 (1998), U.S. Pat. No. 5,429,259 (1995), U.S. Pat. No. 4,470,647 (1984), U.S. Pat. No. 4,050,604 (1977), U.S. Pat. No. 3,597,858 (1971) all introduced panel interconnection methods; some designs are limited to creating a single sized box; some mechanism require thick panels to make it interlocked; some designs need panels in a variety of sizes; while others require additional accessories to hold the box together.
All the methods and panels mentioned above have limitations for wide usage and circulation in society.
The following U.S. Pat. No. 5,888,114 (1999), U.S. Pat. No. 5,466,058 (1995), U.S. Pat. No. 5,123,533 (1992), U.S. Pat. No. 3,203,149 (1965), U.S. Pat. No. 3,184,013 (1965) are becoming more complicated. The tedious work required for assembling these boxes deters consumers' interest in the packaging. The configurations of panels are so uneven or irregular that they're not fit for easy cleaning.
Another existing major mechanism for reusable boxes is the collapsible. U.S. Pat. No. 6,648,159 (2003), U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,989 (1996), U.S. Pat. No. 4,793,507 (1988), U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,231 (1985), U.S. Pat. No. 3,249,284 (1966) are devices that require all major pieces to connect before folding up. The configurations are predetermined before connecting the pieces into an enclosure, therefore limiting the applications to unitary product transportations. Their blueprints are not as simple and compact as my designs, and the interchangeability in reusing boxes mentioned above is obviously restricted.
None of the methods or devices mentioned above could help consumers use simple modular panels, such as my mechanism, to assemble and dissemble reusable boxes in various dimensions. Additionally, none of the existing methods are suitable for mass production under industrial standards, acceptable for circulation and reuse as an alternative to cardboard boxes in society, or able to mitigate environmental concerns in scale.
Based on the previous shortcomings of assembling and dissembling enclosures or boxes from panels, components, and collapsible devices, my mechanism discloses an innovative and far more efficient and practical alternative. These types of panels and another object of this invention provide novel sets of versatility for building boxes in standardized sizes and dimensions. Furthermore, my interlocking mechanism can extend to a variety of enclosure applications such as furniture, assembly of hollow toys, partitions, disaster relief housings, etc.
Cardboard boxes are used extensively throughout the package industry; ninety percent of all products are packed using cardboard boxes. Producing cardboard boxes requires enormous amounts of natural resources such as trees, fresh water, and energy. Even though a great percentage of cardboard boxes are recycled, it still takes half the amount of all the resources compared to producing new cardboard. The process of producing cardboard and decomposition in landfills emits harmful pollutants to air, water, and soil. Finding an alternative to cardboard boxes is crucial to becoming more eco-friendly and preserve our habitat.
Predecessors have made many attempts to replace or substitute the hundreds of billions of cardboard boxes produced each year. However, the existing replacements are limited to several business fields, none of which have been successful in establishing their design nationwide. Their products are not versatile and cannot be interchangeable, widely circulated, or reused.
Generally speaking, the ideal alternative to cardboard boxes should be easily assembled and disassembled flat. Consumers should be able to create a box at their own discretion without difficulty. Reusable boxes should be mass produced and packaging equipment friendly.
A primary example of my interlocking mechanism is using one type of panel to build boxes of multiple sizes. Rectangular panels comprise of a sheet rolled groove along each edge. The groove's opening span is smaller than the paralleled inner spans in the main sections of the groove in a cross-sectional view. All the sheet rolled grooves attached along the panel edges have the same or similar configurations. Regarding assembly, two grooves from separate panels can be pressed and inserted into one another. Preferably the sheet rolled grooves are made of resilient materials. The extensions from the groove root increase in flexibility toward the opening end of the grooves, which are sufficiently pliable both laterally outward and inward to permit forcible, but removable insertion into the socket of the outer one. Once interlocked, the inner groove is gripped by the outer groove by the smaller opening span and the resilience of the groove materials.
Another example of the invention is as described above, except converting one interlocking groove as the insert and the inner groove into a solid rod attached along the panel.
The peripheral of the rod at the cross section view can be different or match the groove's inner contour as long as interlock or grip is held firmly by the groove and later removal is easier for separation. Living hinges between the grooves and edges of panels, allow grooves on both panels to interlock by each turning 45 degrees and complete a 90 degree dihedral connection for the box. Right angle interlocked connections among six panels at all 12 corner lines complete a rectangle box construction.
Another assembly type is to allow more flat panels with edge grooves to interlock and connect further in two dimensions, which will result in a larger panel assembly in a variety of bigger shapes and sizes.
One of the advantages of groove interlocking is that both grooves will stay interlocked due to the flexibility and tension. If an independent, similar sized rod is inserted into the interlocked groove, it results in a reinforced and overall more durable structure. Another reinforcing method is simply adding an independent groove onto or into the existing interlocked grooves. In the case of trihedral corners on a box, a universal right angled rod protruding along three dihedral corner lines, can be pressed into the trihedral interlocked groove corners, simultaneously locking into the three directional grooves and reinforcing the box corners.
My interlocking mechanism not only uses panels to build enclosures, but also applies to other variations aside from boxes. Assembly toys, for example, can use the interlocking and reinforcing method to create buildings, vehicles and castles, toy figures, etc. Additionally, my method can be applied to furniture because of its flat surface and dihedral corner compositions. The wood joinery can be replaced with my interlocking methods, as well as extending reinforcing rods downwards as supporting legs to the floor. Other applications that can use my mechanism include crates, containers, makeshift houses, partitions, tents, show booths, rescue shelters, interior decorations, flat surface expansions, and many others. One major example of the present box invention is to assemble and disassemble a reusable box using a combination of the interlocking devices with living hinges connecting box panels, which means all the panels for a box are jointed into a large composite panel by living hinges. Folding up panels along living hinges on the composite panel reduces the number of interlocking at box corners, simplifying the assembly process to a level that was never seen before.
This novel method of combining present interlocks and living hinges for box assembly generates an additional benefit-vertical interlocked rod and groove connecting adjacent vertical panels form a strong supporting post to bear the load above. Assuming the four corners are all equipped with the same interlocked posts, the entire box can bear heavy duty stack loads which are a common necessity for boxed commodity storage and transportations.
One more practical design derived from the above innovation are vertical posts, interlocking the mechanical ways from each portion attached along either vertical panel edge, that connect adjacent vertical panels. This will serve the purpose of bearing loads stacked on the reusable box.
In the drawings, closely related figures have the same number but different alphabetic suffixes.
One embodiment of the interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Another embodiment is illustrated in
Another embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Another embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Another embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Another embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
An additional embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
A ramification of the above embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Another ramification of the above embodiment of my modular panel interlocking mechanism is illustrated in
Accordingly, the reader will see that the panel interlocking mechanism for building enclosures is simple, convenient, and practical. Replacing cardboard boxes with reusable boxes based on this present invention can cut down pollution and preserve enormous amounts of precious natural resources. It also becomes more economical for consumers and businesses while generating new product lines.
Although the description above contains many specificities, these should not be construed as limiting the scope of the embodiments, but as merely providing illustrations of several embodiments. For instance, the reinforcing rod can be modified to include a cover to smooth out the outer surface of the enclosure. The mechanism allows panels to connect into flat or curved surfaces instead of enclosures at all sides. The sheet rolled grooves are not limited to be identical to each other in configurations for interlocking. The cross-sectional peripherals of rods are not limited to matching the groove contours but can be in a variety of shapes as long as it's being gripped by the grooves to interlock. Likewise, interlocked posts that connect the box's side panels on living hinges are not limited to the portions and interlocking designs as described above but can be in any mechanical means to allow portions attached to panels interlock to posts that support loads above them. Other additions on panels can include cushions, double panels, corrugated panels, multiple layers, construction materials, etc. Building permanent structures is within reach by using my mechanism and further fastening the grooves together by bolts, glue or one of the many other fastening devices. Modular panels can also be in a variety of geometric shapes such as triangular, circular, circular sector, convex, or many other shapes. They can also be a combination of panels connected by creases or hinges for folding up and building an enclosure by interlocking at key structural points under my mechanism.
The grooves attached to panel edges can also come in various forms or shapes other than continuous. Some possibilities include sectionals along the panel edges, so long as the interlocking mechanism on panels has similar configurations to those mentioned above. Therefore, the scope of the embodiments should be determined by the appended claims and their legal equivalents, rather than by the examples given.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US18/36902 | 6/11/2018 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 15619431 | Jun 2017 | US |
| Child | 16620618 | US |
