Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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TITLE OF THE INVENTION:
Baked Goods Carrier
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a baked goods carrier and, in particular, a
baked
goods carrier that can be used in conjunction with automated baked goods
handling
equipment and, in particular, automated bread handling equipment.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1n order to reduce labour costs, bakeries are becoming increasingly automated.
Bakeries are, therefore, switching to bread caxriers that are capable of being
loaded with
automated bread handling equipment. At the same time, in an attempt to reduce
their labour
costs, retail outlets are selling bread directly from the bread carriers they
receive from the
bakeries. The bread in the bread earners is not touched by human hands, until
the customer
of the retail store places the bread into his or her shopping cart.
United States Patent 4,270,678 (Drader 1981) discloses a bread carrier which
is in
wide use across North America. Unfortunately, the handle configuration of the
Drader 1981
patent is not ideally suited for use with automated bakery equipment; as the
handle protrudes
2 0 into the loading space. Bread being loaded by automated bread handling
equipment
sometimes strikes the handle and goes askew.
Adapting the Drader 1981 patent for use with automated bread loading equipment
has
proven to be a challenge. A straight handle that assumes a vertical
orientation was tried.
2 5 When stacked, it did not provide a secure interlock with bread carriers
above and below it in
the stack. A straight handle with upward protruding interlocks was tried.
Problems were
encountered in sliding the carrier trays onto and off of the stack. It worked,
but was inferior
in that aspect of the Drader 1981 patent. Tray efficiency is expressed as a
percentage of
the inside tray area as it relates to the outside tray area. The Drader 1981
has a tray efficiency
3 0 of approximately 95%, which is among the best, if not the best, in the
industry. Some
modifications to make the Drader 1981 bread earner suitable for use with
automated bread
handling equipment had to be rejected as they drastically reduce tray
efficiency.
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SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
What is required is a baked goods carrier that is suited for use with
automated baked
goods loading equipment.
According to the present invention there is provided an improvement in the
Drader
1981 bread carrier. The Drader 1981 bread carrier included a rectangular tray
having a floor
structure with peripheral walls including spaced upstanding side walls and
spaced upstanding
end walls. A pair of bails were pivotally connected to the side walls and
extended along the
oppositely disposed end walls. Each of the bails were movable between an
upright position
and a folded position. Each of the bails included a pair of spaced generally L-
shaped leg
members having upper and lower legs connected by a heel. The lower leg of each
leg
member was pivotally connected to the tray at a point spaced inwardly from the
end wall such
that the heel of the leg member, when the bail was in the upright position,
was nested in a
corner of the tray. When the bails were in the folded position, the heel of
the leg member
protruded above the upper edges of the side and end walls. The bail included a
horizontal
handle member interconnecting the upper legs of the pair of leg members. First
engagement
means were provided in the floor structure of the tray which was adapted to
receive the
upwardly protruding heels of the leg members of a second carrier stacked below
in a folded
2 0 position, whereby the peripheral walls of one carrier rest upon the
peripheral walls of the
other. Locking means were provided for releasably locking the bails in the
upright position.
Second engagement means were provided in the floor structure of the tray,
which were
adapted to engage the bail of a second carrier stacked below in an upright
position to fix the
uppermost carrier relative to the carrier below.
As will hereinafter be further described the improvement includes each upper
leg of
the L-shaped leg members having a primary axis and an upper extremity with a
first bent
portion that extends away from the primary axis and a second bent portion that
extends back
to the primary axis. The horizontal handle member is connected to the second
bent portion. A
3 0 longitudinal axis of the horizontal handle member is maintained by the
second bent portion in
a substantially perpendicular relation to the primary axis of the upper leg.
The horizontal
handle member and the second bent portion are positioned within the peripheral
walls of the
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tray when the bails are in the upright position. The second engagement means
includes
confining channels in the floor structure of the tray beneath the end walls
that are adapted to
prevent relative movement transverse to the axis of the horizontal handle
member of an
underlying carrier and the floor structure of the tray. The second engagement
means further
includes limiting shoulders depending from the floor structure beneath the end
walls that are
adapted to engage the second bent portion to prevent relative movement along
the axis of the
horizontal handle member of an underlying earner and the flaor structure of
the tray.
With the baked goods carrier, as described above, when the leg members are in
an
upright orientation, the horizontal handle members are positioned
perpendicular to the
primary axis of the upper legs. This places them out of the way for automated
bread loading
equipment. When the baked goods earners are placed in a stack, the horizontal
handle
member is confined in a confining channel which underlies the floor structure.
Although beneficial results may be obtained through the use of the baked goods
earner, as described above, a number of alternative interlocks were rejected
as not being
compatible with the Drader 1981 bread carriers. Even more beneficial results
may be
obtained, if the interlock can also be used with the many existing Drader 1981
bread carriers
already owned by bakeries and retailers. The second engagement of the baked
goods carrier
2 0 described above can be made compatible with existing inventories of Drader
1981 bread
earners by including secondary confining channels spaced inwardly on the floor
structure
from and positioned in parallel spaced relation to the confining channels.
Although beneficial results may be obtained through the use of the baked goods
2 5 carrier, as described above, the floor structure of many baked goods
carriers consist of a grid
having a plurality of openings. This grid often provides frictional resistance
to the proper
movement of bread on the floor structure. Even more beneficial results may,
therefore, be
obtained when the grid has a flat smooth surface with a first set of parallel
bars extending
perpendicularly between the side walls and a second set of parallel bars
extending
3 0 perpendicularly between the end walls. The bread is supported by, and
tends to move along,
the parallel bars.
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Although beneficial results may be obtained through the use of the baked goods
earner, as described above, when there is a stack of the Drader 198 i bread
carriers, the
bottom bread carrier in the stack must bear the weight. When under load, the
floor structure
of the bottom bread carrier tends to bow and the L-shaped leg members exert an
outward
force upon the end walls. When a bread earner fails, such failure tends to
occur in the end
walls near the corners. Even more beneficial results may, therefore, be
obtained by placing an
angular brace inside the tray which is connected to both the floor structure
and the end wall.
The angular brace provides additional rigidity to the floor structure to
reduce bowing and
reinforces the end walls.
Although beneficial results may be obtained through the use of the baked goods
carrier, as described above, a low side wall profile is desirable in the
retail environment so
that a customer can easily reach into the baked goods carrier to remove a loaf
of bread. A tray
is used with L-shaped members; terminating in an outwardly directed horizontal
portion
which is journalled through the side wall to pivotally connect the bail to the
tray. It is difficult
to provide a low side wall profile, while still maintaining sufficient side
wall strength to
pivotally mount the bail. Even more beneficial results may, therefore, be
obtained when a
side wall reinforcing strip is provided. It is preferred that the side wall
reinforcing strip be
embedded in the side wall and extend for most of the length of the side wall.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
These and other features of the invention will become more apparent from the
following description in which reference is made to the appended drawings, the
drawings are
for the purpose of illustration only and are not intended to in any way limit
the scope of the
2 5 invention to the particular embodiment or embodiments shown, wherein:
FIGURE 1 is a top perspective view of a baked goods earner constructed in
accordance with the teachings of the present invention, with bails in an
upright position.
FIGURE 2 is a bottom perspective view of the baked goods earner illustrated in
FIGURE 1.
3 0 FIGURE 3 is a side elevation view of the baked goods earner illustrated in
FIGURE
1.
FIGURE 4 is an end elevation view of the baked goods earner illustrated in
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FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 5 is a top plan view of the baked goods carrier illustrated in FIGURE
1.
FIGURE 6 is a side perspective view of the baked goods carrier illustrated in
FIGURE 1, shown in ghost lines with super-imposed side wall reinforcing strip
detail.
5 FIGURE 7 is a detailed tap perspective view of the baked goods carrier
illustrated in
FIGURE 1, with stop and locking detail.
FIGURE 8 is a detailed bottom perspective view of the baked goods carrier
illustrated in FIGURE 1, with bail confining channel detail.
FIGURE 9 is a detailed top perspective view of the baked goods carrier
illustrated in
FIGURE 1, with the bails in a folded position.
FIGURE 10 is a bottom perspective view of an alternative embodiment of baked
goods carrier constructed in accordance with the teachings of the present
invention, with a
planar bottom.
FIGURE 11 is a perspective view of stacked baked goods carriers constructed in
accordance with the teachings of the present invention, with bails in an
upright position.
FIGURE 12 is a side elevation view of the stacked baked goods carriers
illustrated in
FIGURE 11.
FIGURE 13 is an end elevation view of the stacked baked goods carriers
illustrated
in FIGURE 11.
2 0 FIGURE 14 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of the stacked
baked goods
carriers illustrated in FIGURE 1.
FIGURE 15 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of an alternative
embodiment of stacked baked goods carriers having secondary confining channels
to make
them compatible for use with Drader 1981 bread carriers.
2 5 FIGURE 16 is a side elevation view of the stacked baked goods carriers
illustrated in
FIGURE 1, with bails in a folded position.
FIGURE 17 is a detailed side elevation view, in section, of the stacked baked
goods
earners illustrated in FIGURE 16.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF T)EIE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
The preferred embodiment, a baked goods earner generally identified by
reference
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numeral 10, will now be described with reference to FIGURES 1 through 17.
Baked goods carrier 10 is designed to be used with other baked goods carriers
in a
stack, as is illustrated in FIGURES 11 through 17. Where stacks of baked goods
carriers are
illustrated, identical components will be identified by the same reference
numerals. However,
in order to avoid confi~sion, the baked goods carrier which interacts with
baked goods carrier
will be identified as baked goods carrier 10' and the interacting components
of baked
goods carrier 10' will also be distinguished with a ""' designation.
10 Structure and Relationship of Parts:
Baked goods carrier 10 is a modified version of the Drader 1981 patent and, as
such,
has a number of similar aspects. Referring to FIGURE 1, baked goods carrier 10
includes a
rectangular tray 12, preferably made from polymer plastic, having a floor
structure i4 with
peripheral walls, generally indicated by reference numeral 16. Peripheral
walls 16 include
spaced upstanding side walls 18 and spaced upstanding end walls 20.
A pair of bails 22, preferably made of metal, are pivotally connected to side
walls 18
and extend along the oppositely disposed end walls 20. Each of bails 22 being
movable
between an upright position illustrated in FIGURES 1 through 8 and a folded
position
2 0 illustrated in FIGURE 9. Each of bails 22 include a pair of spaced
generally L-shaped leg
members 24. Referring to FIGURE 7, L-shaped leg members 24 have upper legs 26
and
lower legs 28 connected by a heel 30. Lower leg 28 of each leg member 24 is
pivotally
connected to tray at a point spaced inwardly from end wall 20. The preferred
way of doing
this is to have lower leg 28 terminate in an outwardly directed horizontal
portion 29 which is
2 5 journalled in an aperture 31. Referring to FIGURE 6, aperture 31 extends
through side wall
18. With horizontal portion 29 positioned in aperture 31, bail 22 is pivotally
connected to tray
12. Referring to FIGURE 7, a limiting member 33 is provided to prevent
horizontal portion
29 from being withdrawn from aperture 31 by accident. When bail 22 is in the
upright
position heel 30 of leg member 24 is nested in a corner 32 of tray 12. Corner
32 is,
3 0 preferably, has a radiused curvature which conforms to the curvature of
heel 30 and provides
additional support. Referring to FIGURE 9, when bail 22 is in the folded
position, heel 30
protrudes above upper edges 34 of side walls 18 and end walls 20. Referring to
FIGURE 7,
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bail 22 further includes a horizontal handle member 36 interconnecting upper
legs 26 of pair
of leg members 24. Referring to FIGURE 17, openings 38 in floor structure 14
of tray 12
serve as first engagement means. Openings 38 are adapted to receive upwardly
protruding
heels 30' of leg members 24' of a second carrier 10' stacked below in a folded
position. In
this stacked configuration peripheral walls 16 of carrier 10 rest upon
peripheral walls 16'of
the carrier 10'. Referring to FIGURE 7, stops 40 projecting outwardly from
side walls 18
adjacent to each of end walls 20, serve as locking means for releasably
locking bails 22 in the
upright position. Each of stops 40 is in the form of an inclined plane with a
drop off.
Referring to FIGURE 1, the release mechanism for releasing the locking means
is a cross
piece 42 positioned between upper legs 26 of bail 22. Referring to FIGURE 7,
cross piece 42
is grasped and pulled upwardly toward horizontal handle member 36 to draw legs
24
inwardly and out of engagement with stops.
Referring to FIGURE 7, one improvement to baked goods carrier 10 is an angular
brace 21 positioned inside tray 12 and connected to both floor structure 14
and end wall 20.
Angular brace 21 provides additional rigidity to floor structure 14 to reduce
bowing and
serves to reinforce end wall 20.
Referring to FIGURE 12, another improvement to baked goods carrier 10 lies in
the
2 0 second engagement means. This engagement permit floor structure 14 of tray
12 to engage
bail 22' of a second carrier 10' stacked below, when bail 22' is in an upright
position. This
second engagement means fixes uppermost Garner 10 relative to carrier 10'
below. Referring
to FIGURE 14, each upper leg 26 of L-shaped leg members 24 has a primary axis
44 and an
upper extremity 46. Upper extremity 46 has a first bent portion 48 that
extends away from
2 5 primary axis 44 and a second bent portion 50 that extends back to primary
axis 44.
Horizontal handle member 36 is connected to second bent portion 50. Referring
to FIGURE
13, a longitudinal axis 52 of horizontal handle member 36 is maintained by
second bent
portion SO in a substantially perpendicular relation to primary axis 44 of
upper leg 26.
Referring to FIGURE 12, horizontal handle member 36 and second bent portion 50
are being
3 0 positioned within peripheral walls 16 of tray 12 when bails 22 are in the
upright position.
Referring to FIGURE 8, confining channels 54 are provided in floor structure
14 of tray 12
beneath end walls 20. Referring to FIGURE 12, confining channels 54 are
adapted to prevent
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relative movement transverse to axis 52' of horizontal handle member 36' of
baked goods
carrier 10' and the floor structure 14 of baked goods carrier 10. It prevents
movement as
indicated by arrows 56. Referring to FIGURES 12 and 13, limiting shoulders 58
depend from
floor structure 14 beneath end walls 20 and are adapted to engage second bent
portion 50 to
prevent relative movement along axis 52' of horizontal handle member 36' of
baked goods
carrier 10' and floor structure 14 of tray 12. Referring to FIGURE 15, in
order to engage
with Drader 1981 baked goods earners, secondary confining channels 60 may,
optionally, be
positioned in parallel spaced relation to confining channels 54. In the
embodiment illustrated
in FIGURE 2, confining channels are created by a floor structure which has
depending
topographical features. Refernng to FIGURE 10, there is illustrated how the
same confining
channels can be created in an embodiment that has a planar bottom.
Referring to FIGURE 5, another improvement to baked goods carrier 10 consists
of a
floor structure 14 which includes a grid, generally indicated by reference
numeral 62, having
a plurality of rectangular openings 64. Grid 62 has a flat smooth surface with
a first set of
parallel bars 66 extending perpendicularly between side walls 18 and a second
set of parallel
bars 68 extending perpendicularly between end walls 20. Bread is supported by
parallel bars
66 and 68. When movement occurs, bread tends to move in ane of the directions
indicated by
parallel bars 66 and 68, depending upon the direction from which force is
applied.
Referring to FIGURE 6, another improvement to baked goods carrier 10 is a side
wall reinforcing strip 70 which enhances the weight bearing ability of side
wall 18. Side wall
reinforcing strip 70 is embedded in side wall 18 and extends for most of the
length of side
2 5 wall 18. Aperture 31 extends through side wall reinforcing strip 70. 'This
means that side wall
reinforcing strip 70 provides support for outwardly directed horizontal
portion 29 of L-shaped
leg member 24 which is journalled in aperture 31.
Operation:
3 0 The operation of baked goods carrier 10 will now be described with
reference to
FIGURES 1 through 17. A bakery will select a version of baked goods earner 10
which
meets its needs. For example, for some types of conveyors used by the
automated baking
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9
goods handling equipment, a version of baked goods earner 10 having a planar
bottom, such
as is illustrated in FIGURE lU, is preferable as the bottom must rest on the
conveyor. For
bakeries that have a large inventory of the Drader 1981 trays still in use, a
version of baked
goods carrier 10 having a secondary confining channel 60, is preferable to
enable baked
goods carrier 10 to engage both other baked goods carriers 10 and the Drader
1981 bread
carriers. When not in use, baked goods carriers 10 are stacked as shown in
FIGURE 16.
Referring to FIGURE 17, heel 30' on L-shaped leg 24'of lowermost baked goods
carrier 10'
extends through an opening 38 in floor structure 14 of uppermost baked goods
carrier 10 to
provide stability to the stack. When baked goods earners 10 are to be used to
hold baking
goods, such as bread, bails 22 are moved into the upright orientation
illustrated in FIGURE
1. Referring to FIGURE 7, upper legs 26 of L-shaped legs members 24 of bails
22 ride up the
inclined plane slope of stop 40 until they reach the drop off which locks
upper legs 26 in the
upright position. Baked goods carrier is then handled by the automated baked
goods handling
equipment (not shown). Referring to FIGURE 14, the configuration of upper
extremity 46 of
bail 22, with first bent portion 48 extending away from primary axis 44 and a
second bent
portion 50 extending back to primary axis 44, keeps horizontal handle member
36 within the
confines of tray 12, while providing unfettered access from above as
illustrated in FIGURE
5. Second bent portion 50 also plays a role when baked goods carriers 10 are
positioned in a
stack, as will hereinafter be further described. Second bent portion 50 is
also maintained
2 0 within the confines of tray 12. Refernng to FIGURE 5, baked goods, such as
bread, are
supported by parallel bars 66 and 68 of floor structure 14. The baked goods
move in response
to forces exerted by the automated baked goods handling equipment. When
movement
occurs, the baked goods tend to move in one of the directions indicated by
parallel bars 66
and 68, depending upon the direction from which force is applied. This
provides greater
2 5 control in an automated loading environment. The loaded baked goods
carriers 10 are then
stacked in the fashion illustrated in FIGURES 11 through 13. Referring to
FIGURE 12, in
order to stack baked goods earners 10, horizontal handle member 36' of
lowermost baked
goods carrier 10' is inserted into confining channel 54 of uppermost baked
goods carrier 10.
This prevents or at least severely limits the movement depicted by arrows 56.
At the same
3 0 time second bent portion 50 engages limiting shoulders 58. This prevents
movement along
axis 52 of horizontal handle member 36, as best illustrated in :FIGURE 13.
Referring to
FIGURE 6, bails 22 are pivotally mounted to tray 12 outwardly directed
horizontal portion
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29 of L-shaped leg member 24 which is journalled in aperture 31. When weight
is applied
through bails 22, side wall reinforcing strip 70 provides support for side
wall 18. L-shaped
leg members 24 tend to exert an outward force upon end walls 20. This force
also tends to
bow floor structure 14. Referring to FIGURE 7, this force is resisted by
angular brace 21.
5 Referring to FIGURE 12, side wall 18 has a low profile which enables baked
goods in tray
12 to be easily accessed by a retail customer. Referring to FIGURE 7, when
baked goods
carrier 10 is empty, a force is exerted upwardly on cross-member 42 to pull L-
shaped leg
members 24 inward to clear stop 40. This enables bails 22 to be returned to a
folded position,
so that baked goods carrier 10 can be stacked, as illustrated in FIGURE 1G.
Baked goods carrier 10 had its origins as a bread carrier and is now used to
handle a
variety of baked goods, including but not limited to bread. This title,
however, is not intended
to be unduly limiting. Customers have used the Drader 1981 bread carriers with
meats and
other goods. There is little doubt that when baked goods carrier 10 becomes
commercially
available, that customers will use baked goods carrier 10 with meats and a
variety of other
goods too numerous to mention.
In this patent document, the word "comprising" is used in its non-limiting
sense to
mean that items following the word are included, but items not specifically
mentioned are not
2 0 excluded. A reference to an element by the indefinite article "a" does not
exclude the
possibility that more than one of the element is present, unless the context
clearly requires that
there be one and only one of the elements.
It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that modifications may be made
to the
2 5 illustrated embodiment without departing from the spirit and scope of the
invention as
hereinafter defined in the Claims.
