Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02358573 2001-10-10
f
This invention relates to knock-down containers and more particularly to knock-
down
containers composed of material which is strong enough for shipping breakable
or fragile
articles but which, while reusable, is cheap enough to discard should the
circumstances not
warrant its re-usage.
Articles such as furniture, televisions, V.C.R.'s and the like are
conventionally
shipped in cardboard containers. The containers are destroyed when the
articles are unpacked
and the cardboard is discarded or recycled for reuse in another form.
I have invented a knock-down container that can be dismantled after use and
returned
in compact form to its owner for reuse. The container is composed of material
which is
relatively strong but cheap such as low grade plywood so that the initial cost
of the container
is relatively low. In view of its cost, the container can be discarded after
use should it not be
feasible to reuse the container.
Briefly the knock-down container of the invention comprises: a plurality of
panels
each having oppositely facing interior and exterior walls and a margin
terminating at an edge.
Each margin has an elongated groove formed therein. A number of elongated
couplings
interconnects adj acent panels. Each coupling has at least one central wall
and a pair of spaced
apart inner and outer walls extending outwardly from opposite sides of the
central wall. The
central wall is disposed between the edges of adjacent panels. Each pair of
inner and outer
walls define an elongated recess for receipt of one edge and the adj acent
margin of one of the
adjacent panels. The coupling further has a barb at an end of one of the outer
wall and the
inner wall. The barb extends into the groove of whichever panel is adjacent
thereto to
removably interconnect the adjacent panels and the coupling.
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CA 02358573 2001-10-10
The knock-down container of the invention is described with reference to the
accompanying drawings in which:
Figure 1 is a perspective view of the container in the absence of its top
panel;
Figure 2 is an elevation of one panel of the container in conjunction with
couplings
for interconnecting adjacent panels;
Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Figure 2, in enlarged scale;
Figure 4 is a section of a second embodiment of the coupling of the invention,
shown
closed in conjunction with portions of panels;
Figure 5 is a section of the coupling of Figure 4 shown open;
Figure 6 is a section of a third embodiment of the coupling of the invention
in
conjunction with portions of panels; and
Figure 7 is a section of a fourth embodiment of the coupling.
Like reference characters refer to like parts throughout the description of
the
drawings.
With reference to Figure l, the knock-down container, generally 10, comprises
a
bottom panel 12, front and back panels 14, 16 and side panels 18, 20. The
container also
includes a top panel which is not illustrated in the Figure.
There is a coupling 24 at each corner of the container. The couplings serve to
removably interconnect the panels at the corners of the container.
The panels are all of the same construction and only one will be described in
detail,
that one being front panel 14. With reference to Figure 2, front panel 14 has
a central area
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30 and a margin 32 adjacent to each of its four edges 34. An elongated groove
36 is formed
in each margin. The groove extends parallel to and spaced apart from the edge
which delimits
the margin. Thus, for example, groove 36a is parallel to and spaced apart from
edge 34a
which delimits the margin 32a in which the groove is formed.
The couplings illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 are all of the same construction
and only
one is described. The one described is coupling 24a identified in Figure 1.
That coupling is
illustrated in detail in Figure 3 and with reference to that Figure, coupling
24a has a central
wall 40 which extends from corner 41 of the coupling and terminates at a pair
of inner walls
44, 48. A pair of outer walls 42, 46 extend outwardly from corner 41 and are
disposed on
opposite sides of the central wall.
Inner and outer walls 42, 44 on one side of the central wall are disposed at
right
angles to inner and outer walls 46, 48 on the opposite side of the central
wall. Thus the angle
between outer walls 42 and 46, indicated 50, is 90 degrees. The angle between
the central
wall and the inner and outer walls of each pair on each side of the central
wall indicated 52
is 45 degrees.
Inner and outer walls 44, 42 define a recess 54 for receipt of the margin and
edge of
panel 18 while outer and inner walls 46, 48 define a like recess for panel 14.
A barb or hook 60 is formed at the distal end of outer wall 42. The barb
extends
inwardly into recess 54 while a like barb 62 is formed at the same place on
outer wall 46. The
latter barb extends into the other recess and is removably received in groove
36b of panel 14
while the former barb is received in the groove formed in the margin of panel
18 located
within recess 54. Each barb has a bevelled outer face 60a and a relatively
flat inner face 60b.
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Both faces extend outwardly from the outer wall and intersect at an edge 60c.
The container of the invention may be dismantled from the position illustrated
in
Figure 1 by prying the barbs of each coupling out of the grooves in which they
are received.
The panels may then be removed from the recesses of the couplings.
Reassembly of the container involves reinserting the panels into the recesses
of the
couplings. Preferably the couplings are composed of resiliently deformable
material such as
flexible polymeric material so that as the panels are inserted into the
recesses, the panels
contact the barbs and cause the walls to which they are attached to deform
resiliently outward
to allow the panels to be inserted fully into the recesses. When the barbs
reach the grooves
in the panels, the side walls snap inward to their undeformed state and the
barbs enter the
grooves and lock the couplings to the panels. The bevelled and flat faces
60a,b of the barb
cooperate to ensure that the panels are easy to insert into the recesses but
once in cannot be
removed unless they are pried. A screw driver is suitable for this purpose.
With reference to Figure 4, the coupling is generally U-shaped and is composed
of
parallel outer walls 72 and a web 74 which extends between those walls.
A pair of central and inner walls 76, 78 is spaced apart from the outer walls.
The
recesses 80, 82 between each inner and outer wall receives the margins and
edges of a pair
of panels. A barb 84 is attached to each outer wall and extends inwardly
therefrom. Each
barb is removably received in the groove formed in the two panels.
The web is substantially rigid except for a central area 86 which is flexible
so that the
coupling can be folded about the central area from a closed position
illustrated in Figure 4
to an open position as illustrated in Figure 5. In the open position, the less
flexible portions
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of the web contact each other and the two outer walls are in alignment. When
so aligned, the
inner and outer faces of panels 90, 92 will be co-planar.
The coupling illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 serve to interconnect two panels
which
make up one wall of the container. The coupling illustrated in Figure 6 also
does so. With
reference to Figure 6, the outer walls 94, 95 of the coupling are integral
with each other and
a barb 96 is formed at each end to interconnect the coupling with two side by
side panels.
Between the central walls 97 and inner walls 98 is a pair of spaced
intermediate walls
100,102 which define a recess 104 for a panel 106. Panel 106 can be used as a
shelf or spacer
within the container.
One of the intermediate walls has a barb 110 to secure the shelf or spacer to
the
coupling.
With reference to Figure 7, the coupling is the same as that illustrated in
Figure 6
except that the coupling lacks intermediate walls. The coupling of Figure 7 is
an economical
device for interconnecting two panels of the same wall.
It will be understood of course that modifications can be made in the
structure of the
container illustrated and described herein without departing from the scope
and purview of
the invention as defined in the appended claims.
