US20120138403A1

US20120138403A1 - Light-weighted luggage

Info

Publication number: US20120138403A1
Application number: US12/962,637
Authority: US
Inventors: Joy Tong
Original assignee: GROUP III INTERNATIONAL Inc; GROUP III INTERNATIONAL Ltd
Current assignee: GROUP III INTERNATIONAL Inc
Priority date: 2010-12-07
Filing date: 2010-12-07
Publication date: 2012-06-07
Also published as: CA2760430A1

Abstract

A light-weighted luggage includes a flexible fabric outer bag having a front panel, a back panel, a top panel, a bottom panel, two opposing side panels, a first reinforced carrying handle located on the top panel and a second reinforced carrying handle located on one side panel, a hard plastic bottom frame plate attached to the inner surface of the bottom panel of the outer bag, a hard plastic back frame plate attached to the inner surface of the back panel of the outer bag and connected to the bottom frame plate and having a plurality of openings, wheel assemblies provided at the bottom side of the bottom panel of the outer bag, and a handle assembly joined to the back panel of the outer bag. Thus, the light-weighted luggage has the characteristics of simple structural design, high structural strength, light weight and low manufacturing cost.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

(a) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to luggage and more particularly, to a light-weighted luggage that lowers the manufacturing cost.
(b) Description of the Prior Art
Many soft and hard luggages are commercially available. A soft luggage is made of waterproof fabric sheet material by stitching, generally comprising a soft luggage body with a soft cover flap or zip fastener. A hard luggage generally comprises a plastic body shell and a plastic cover shell respectively made of a plastic material by injection molding and then hinged together. Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a frame structure 20 may be mounted inside a soft luggage body 10 to give support. The frame structure 20 includes a hard bottom plate 201 attached to the inner surface of the soft bottom wall of the soft luggage body 10, a hard back panel 202 attached to the inner surface of the soft back wall of the soft luggage body 10, four hard side plates 203 respectively internally attached to the two opposite soft sidewalls of the soft luggage body 10 at the top and bottom sides, and a substantially π-shaped iron frame bar 204 extending around the top side and two opposite lateral sides of the frame structure 20 and affixed with the two distal ends thereof to the hard bottom plate 201. This design of frame structure 20 give sufficient support to the soft luggage body 10, however it is complicated and expensive to manufacture. Further, the arrangement of the hard bottom plate 201, hard back panel 202, hard side plates 203 and π-shaped iron frame bar 204 greatly increase the weight of the luggage, causing inconvenience of use.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been accomplished under the circumstances in view. It is one object of the present invention to provide a light-weighted luggage, which has the characteristics of high structural strength and light weight, and is inexpensive to manufacture.
To achieve this and other objects of the present invention, a light-weighted luggage comprises a flexible fabric outer bag having a front panel, a back panel, a top panel, a bottom panel, two opposing side panels, a first reinforced carrying handle located on the top panel and a second reinforced carrying handle located on one side panel, a hard plastic bottom frame plate attached to the inner surface of the bottom panel of the outer bag, a hard plastic back frame plate attached to the inner surface of the back panel of the outer bag and connected to the bottom frame plate and having a plurality of openings, wheel assemblies provided at the bottom side of the bottom panel of the outer bag, and a handle assembly joined to the back panel of the outer bag for allowing the user to pull the light-weighted luggage on the floor.
Further, the back frame plate has a top side thereof curving forwards and terminating into a top rim that is attached to a part of the inner surface of the top panel of the outer bag.
Further, the first reinforced carrying handle comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip having two distal ends respectively affixed to the top panel of the outer bag, and two reinforcing members respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of the handle strip. Each reinforcing member of the first reinforced carrying handle comprises a flexible plastic tube and a metal wire rod surrounded by said flexible plastic tube.
Further, the second reinforced carrying handle comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip having two distal ends respectively affixed to the top panel of the outer bag, and two reinforcing members respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of the handle strip. Each reinforcing member of the second reinforced carrying handle comprises a flexible plastic tube and a metal wire rod surrounded by said flexible plastic tube.
Further, as an alternate form of the present invention, the first carrying handle comprises two fabric straps stitched to the top panel of the outer bag, and a grip connected between the two fabric straps. Each fabric strap of the first carrying handle can be made having two distal ends thereof respectively stitched to the top panel of the outer bag and a free middle part thereof connected to one of the two distal ends of the grip. Alternatively, each fabric strap of the first carrying handle can be made having one end thereof stitched to the top panel of the outer bag and an opposite end thereof connected to one of the two distal ends of the grip.
Further, as an alternate form of the present invention, the second carrying handle can be made comprising two fabric straps stitched to the top panel of the outer bag and a grip connected between the two fabric straps. Each fabric strap of the second carrying handle can be made having two distal ends thereof respectively stitched to the associating side panel of the outer bag and a free middle part thereof connected to one of the two distal ends of the grip. Alternatively, each fabric strap of the second carrying handle can be made having one end thereof stitched to the associating side panel of the outer bag and an opposite end thereof connected to one of the two distal ends of the grip.
Further, the handle assembly comprises a bottom locating frame affixed to the bottom frame plate, a top constraint frame affixed to the top rim of the back frame plate, a retractable handlebar having its one end, namely, the fixed end affixed to the bottom locating frame and its other end, namely, the free end extending through the top constraint frame to the outside of the outer bag, and a grip fastened to the free end of the retractable handlebar.
Subject to the above statement, the bottom frame plate and the back frame plate respectively support the bottom panel and back panel of the outer bag in shape. Therefore, either the light-weighted luggage is put in horizontal and set in vertical, it give sufficient support to protect the storage items in the outer bag. Further, the first reinforced carrying handle at the top panel of the outer bag and the second reinforced carrying handle at one side panel of the outer bag reinforce the structural strength of the light-weighted luggage, and enable the user to carry the light-weighted luggage conveniently by hand. In conclusion, the invention provides a light-weighted luggage, which has the characteristics of simple structural design, high structural strength, light weight and low manufacturing cost.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view, illustrating the internal frame structure of a conventional soft-shell luggage.

FIG. 2 is an elevational assembly view of a light-weighted luggage in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of the first embodiment of the present invention, illustrating the internal structure of the light-weighted luggage.

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of a reinforced carrying handle for light-weighted luggage in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional elevation, in an enlarged scale, of a part of the reinforced carrying handle shown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 6 is an elevational assembly view of a light-weighted luggage in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an elevational assembly view of a light-weighted luggage in accordance with a third embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, a light-weighted luggage in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention is shown comprising an outer bag 1, a bottom frame plate 2, a back frame plate 3, at least one wheel assembly 4 and a handle assembly 5.
The outer bag 1 is a soft bag made of a flexible sheet material in a rectangular shape, or any other configuration substantially similar to rectangular shape. The outer bag 1 comprises a front panel 11, a back panel 12, a top panel 13, a bottom panel 14, two opposing side panels 15, a first reinforced carrying handle 16 located on the top panel 13 and a second reinforced carrying handle 17 located on one side panel 15.
The bottom frame plate 2 is a hard plastic sheet member having a substantially U-shaped configuration and attached to the inner surface of the bottom panel 14 of the outer bag 1 in such a manner that the two opposing curved sides of the bottom frame plate 2 respectively extended to the bottom side of the front panel 11 of the outer bag 1 and the bottom side of the back panel 12 of the outer bag 1.
The back frame plate 3 is a hard plastic sheet member attached to the inner surface of the back panel 12 of the outer bag 1 and connected to the bottom frame plate 2, having a plurality of openings 31 that enables the back frame plate 3 to provide a sufficient structural strength while allowing a reduction in weight. According to this embodiment, the openings 31 are elongated openings respectively located on the middle and two opposite lateral sides of the back frame plate 3. The back frame plate 3 has its top side curving forwards and terminating into a top rim 32 that is attached to a part of the inner surface of the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1.
Each wheel assembly 4 comprises a wheel holder 41 and a wheel 42 pivotally mounted in the bottom side of the wheel holder 41. The wheel holder 41 can be a regular wheel holder or a universal wheel holder. According to this embodiment, four wheel assemblies 4 are mounted in the bottom side of the bottom panel 14 of the outer bag 1 and affixed to the bottom frame plate 2 to facilitate movement of the light-weighted luggage on the floor.
The handle assembly 5 is joined to the back panel 12 of the outer bag 1 for allowing the user to pull the light-weighted luggage on the floor. Preferably, as shown in FIG. 3, the handle assembly 5 comprises a bottom locating frame 51 affixed to the bottom frame plate 2, a top constraint frame 52 affixed to the top rim 32 of the back frame plate 3, a retractable handlebar 53 having its one end, namely, the fixed end affixed to the bottom locating frame 51 and its other end, namely, the free end extending through the top constraint frame 52 to the outside of the outer bag 1, and a grip 54 fastened to the free end of the retractable handlebar 53.
Referring to FIG. 2, FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the first reinforced carrying handle 16 comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip 161 that has its two distal ends respectively affixed to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 for distributing the upward lifting force evenly through the top panel 13, and two reinforcing members 162 respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of the handle strip 161 to reinforce the structural strength of the first reinforced carrying handle 16. Each reinforcing member 162 comprises a flexible plastic tube 1621 and a metal wire rod 1622 surrounded by the flexible plastic tube 1621. Thus, the first reinforced carrying handle 16 provides a high tensile strength and reinforces the structural strength of the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1. The second reinforced carrying handle 17 comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip 171 that has its two distal ends respectively affixed to one side panel 15 of the outer bag 1, and two reinforcing members 172 respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of the handle strip 171 to reinforce the structural strength of the second reinforced carrying handle 17. Each reinforcing member 172 comprises a flexible plastic tube 1721 and a metal wire rod 1722 surrounded by the flexible plastic tube 1721. Thus, the second reinforced carrying handle 17 provides a high tensile strength and reinforces the structural strength of the associating side panel 15 of the outer bag 1.
Referring to FIG. 6 and FIG. 7, the first reinforced carrying handle 16 can be alternatively made comprising two fabric straps 163 stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 and a grip 164 connected between the fabric straps 163. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, each fabric strap 163 of the first reinforced carrying handle 16 has its two distal ends respectively stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 adjacent to one side panel 15, and the grip 164 of the first reinforced carrying handle 16 is connected between the middle part of each of the two fabric straps 163 of the first reinforced carrying handle 16. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, each fabric strap 163 has its one end stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 adjacent to one side panel 15 and its other end connected to one end of the grip 164 of the second reinforced carrying handle 17. Further, the second reinforced carrying handle 17 can be alternatively made comprising two fabric straps 173 stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 and a grip 174 connected between the fabric straps 173. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 6, each fabric strap 173 of the second reinforced carrying handle 17 has its two distal ends respectively stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 adjacent to one side panel 15, and the grip 174 of the second reinforced carrying handle 17 is connected between the middle part of each of the two fabric straps 173. According to the embodiment shown in FIG. 7, each fabric strap 173 of the second reinforced carrying handle 17 has its one end stitched to the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 adjacent to one side panel 15 and its other end connected to one end of the grip 174.
According to the aforesaid arrangement of the present invention, the bottom frame plate 2 and the back frame plate 3 respectively support the bottom panel 14 and back panel 12 of the outer bag 1 in shape. Therefore, either the light-weighted luggage is put in horizontal and set in vertical, it give sufficient support to protect the storage items in the outer bag 1. Further, the first reinforced carrying handle 16 at the top panel 13 of the outer bag 1 and the second reinforced carrying handle 17 at one side panel 15 of the outer bag 1 reinforce the structural strength of the light-weighted luggage, and enable the user to carry the light-weighted luggage conveniently by hand. In conclusion, the invention provides a light-weighted luggage, which has the characteristics of simple structural design, high structural strength, light weight and low manufacturing cost.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A light-weighted luggage, comprising:

an outer bag made of a flexible sheet material, said outer bag comprising a front panel, a back panel, a top panel, a bottom panel, two opposing side panels, a first reinforced carrying handle located on said top panel and a second reinforced carrying handle located on one said side panel;

a bottom frame plate made of a hard plastic sheet member and attached to an inner surface of said bottom panel of said outer bag;

a back frame plate made of a hard plastic sheet member and attached to an inner surface of the back panel of said outer bag and connected to said bottom frame plate, said back frame having a plurality of openings;

at least one wheel assembly provided at a bottom side of said bottom panel of said outer bag; and

a handle assembly joined to said back panel of said outer bag for allowing the user to pull the light-weighted luggage on the floor.

2. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said back frame plate has a top side thereof curving forwards and terminating into a top rim that is attached to a part of an inner surface of said top panel of said outer bag.

3. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first reinforced carrying handle comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip having two distal ends respectively affixed to said top panel of said outer bag, and two reinforcing members respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of said handle strip.

4. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 3, wherein each said reinforcing member comprises a flexible plastic tube and a metal wire rod surrounded by said flexible plastic tube.

5. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second reinforced carrying handle comprises a narrow, elongated handle strip having two distal ends thereof respectively affixed to one said side panel of said outer bag, and two reinforcing members respectively wrapped about two opposite long sides of the handle strip.

6. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 5, wherein each said reinforcing member comprises a flexible plastic tube and a metal wire rod surrounded by said flexible plastic tube.

7. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said first carrying handle comprises two fabric straps stitched to said top panel of said outer bag, and a grip connected between said two fabric straps.

8. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 7, wherein each said fabric strap of said first carrying handle has two distal ends respectively stitched to said top panel of said outer bag and a free middle part connected to one of two distal ends of said grip.

9. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 7, wherein each said fabric strap of said first carrying handle has one end thereof stitched to said top panel of said outer bag and an opposite end thereof connected to one of two distal ends of said grip.

10. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said second carrying handle comprises two fabric straps stitched to said top panel of said outer bag, and a grip connected between said two fabric straps.

11. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 10, wherein each said fabric strap of said second carrying handle has two distal ends respectively stitched to the associating side panel of said outer bag and a free middle part connected to one of two distal ends of said grip.

12. The light-weighted luggage as claimed in claim 10, wherein each said fabric strap of said second carrying handle has one end thereof stitched to said top panel of said outer bag and an opposite end thereof connected to one of two distal ends of said grip.