WO1992016416A1 - Stackable bottle crate - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a stackable crate (10) with a number of hollow spaces (14), separated by partitions (16), to hold individual bottles in which, to hold the bottles securely, even with the crate tilted through 90 DEG and the insertion apertures at the side, each hollow space (14) has a rigid or elastically widenable or deformable waist (19) by means of which an inserted bottle (12) is held in the region of its shoulders or in the transition region between the body and neck of the bottle.

Description

Stackable box for bottles

Field of use

The invention relates to a stackable crate for bottles according to the preamble of claim 1.

State of the art

Such a crate is used, for example, by the beverage industry for storing and transporting beverage bottles and in the majority of cases is made of plastic or wood. However, the crates currently in use have different external dimensions and constructive designs, depending on the size or content and the number of bottles to be accommodated. This means that crates for different types of beverages or bottle sizes cannot be stacked with one another, which is disadvantageous in particular with regard to economical storage both for the beverage producers and for the companies commissioned with the transport of the crates, since crates of several different types of beverages and / or bottle sizes there is a relatively large storage space requirement.

Corresponding problems occur in private households, ie with the so-called end consumers. Since it is usually not possible in private apartments due to the limited space available to arrange all the boxes of different types of drinks next to one another, these are often placed vertically on top of or on top of one another. However, due to the different box designs, there is a mutual latching of the boxes and thus Adequate stability of the arrangement is not guaranteed, so that the risk of accidents due to overturning boxes is significantly increased. In addition, such a vertical stacking of different boxes brings the night 1 with the fact that in the event that a user wishes to remove a bottle of a type of beverage, the box of which is arranged in the lower region of the stack, the entire stack first clear away and set aside the cleared boxes before he can remove the desired bottle. Then he has to stack the cleared boxes on top of each other again. Such a procedure is very cumbersome and, moreover, very energy-intensive and time-consuming. It would therefore be desirable if the bottles could also be removed and inserted from the crates when the crate was tilted by 90, in which the loading opening of the crate is arranged laterally. However, this is not possible with the other boxes used, since there is a risk that the bottles will fall out of the box in this state.

Task, solution, advantage

It is an object of the present invention to provide a stackable box for bottles of the type mentioned at the outset, which can safely accommodate a large number of different bottle types and in which the bottles are also tilted by 90 in which the loading opening of the box is arranged laterally , are held securely and cannot slip out of the openings.

This object is achieved by the features in the characterizing part of claim 1. A stackable crate for bottles has a large number of cavities into which a single bottle can be inserted. The cavities sn ^* d are separated from one another by separating elements, for example in the form of walls, webs, bulkheads or thorns, the separating elements in a known manner serving to fix the bottles in the lateral position. According to the invention, each cavity has an elastically expandable constriction on the inside wall side. When the bottle is inserted into the cavity, this constriction must be widened, as a result of which, in response to the deformation of the constriction, a holding force is exerted on the bottle, by means of which the bottle is held securely in the cavity. Due to the elastically expandable constriction, the cavity can also be used for different bottle types, since the narrowing of the constriction adjusts to the size of the bottle used. By using a uniform crate for different bottle sizes, good stackability and a high stability of such a stack are guaranteed on the one hand and on the other hand an optimal utilization of the storage space is possible, which enables effective storage and the storage costs can be reduced.

Even when the crates are being transported, the bottles are held securely by the elastically expandable constriction according to the invention, undesirable noise developments due to rattling of the bottles being additionally avoided. When a user carries the box, i.e. in the case of the so-called manual transport, the constriction forms a transport lock, by means of which the bottles are prevented from falling out of the box.

If the boxes are in a state tilted by 90 in which the loading opening of the box is arranged laterally, can be used or stacked, can be arranged by arranging the constriction in the area of the neck of the bottle used and by designing the cavity in such a way that it is wider in the area of the bottom than the bottom of the bottle inserted bottle is achieved that the bottle is automatically inclined due to its own weight, thereby preventing the bottle from falling out.

A stacking of the boxes in the state tilted by 90 with the loading openings arranged on the side permits the formation of a shelf wall according to the modular principle, wherein sufficient stability and stability can be achieved by means of a mutual latching of the boxes.

The elastically expandable narrowing can be achieved in a variety of constructive ways. On the one hand, it is possible to separate the elements, i.e. Walls, webs, bulkheads or thorns can be made elastic by themselves, for example by using a material that is easily deformable, e.g. a plastic, on the other hand the deformability of the separating elements can be achieved by storing them, for example by forming the mandrels as cantilever arms clamped to the bottom of the box, which are easily deformable at their free, non-clamped end.

In order to obtain a defined position of the constriction, this can also be formed by bulges on the inside, which are formed on the walls, webs, bulkheads or thorns, so that no further or additional components are necessary to form the constriction, which increases the design effort of the box is reduced. If a specific holding force acting on the bottle used is to be achieved, it may be advantageous to constrict the constriction by means of spring elements arranged on the inside of the cavity. The spring elements are preferably made of plastic and have the shape of leaf springs, so that the insertion and removal of the bottles is not hindered.

If the separating elements are designed in the form of thorns, it is advantageous to achieve a holding force which is approximately uniformly distributed over the circumference of the bottle, in which case the thorns are equally distributed around the cavity, i.e. to be arranged at the same, mutual angular distance. It has been shown that when four thorns are used, a bottle can be reliably and precisely fixed in its position in the cavity.

Advantageous further developments of the box according to the invention are the subject of further dependent claims.

Brief description of the drawings

Exemplary embodiments of the invention are explained in more detail below with reference to the drawings. Show it

1 shows a section through a cavity of a box, shown only partially, according to a first exemplary embodiment,

2 shows a partial plan view of the box according to FIG. 1,

3 shows the length of a bottle in the box according to FIG. 1 with its arrangement tilted by 90, 4 shows a section through a cavity of a box according to a further embodiment only partially shown,

5 is a plan view of the box of FIG. 4,

6 shows the position of a bottle in the box according to FIG. 4 with its arrangement tilted by 90,

7 shows a further embodiment of the mandrels in a box according to FIG. 1,

8 in side views with the side wall removed, two boxes stackable on top of one another with bottles standing vertically,

9 shows side views of the two boxes according to FIG. 8 nnaacchh ddeemm DDrreehheenn bbzzww .. KKiippppe in the boxes by 90 in a stackable position,

10 and 11 two inserts which can be inserted into a standard box and correspond to the inside dimensions of the box, with a different number of bottle receiving spaces in diagrammatic views and

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a standard box.

Detailed description of the invention and best way to carry out the invention.

1 and 2 a section of a stackable box 10 is shown, which has a plurality of cavities 14, each of which accommodates a single bottle 12, however, only one is shown. On the bottom 18 of the box 10, a plurality of dividing elements projecting vertically upwards in the form of thorns 16 are formed, which delimit the cavity 14. As can be seen from FIG. 2, according to this example there are four around each cavity 14. Mandrels 16 are arranged in a uniformly distributed manner, but the limitation of the cavity 14 can also take place by means of a different number of mandrels. The cross-section of the mandrels 16 is continuously expanded upwards from their clamping point on the bottom 18 of the box 10, so that the mandrels 16 have a conical or club-shaped configuration. In the area of their maximum cross section or an inside bulge 17, the mandrels 16 form a constriction 19 of the cavity 14, the width of which is less than the width of the bottle body.

If a bottle 12 is to be inserted into the cavity 14 delimited by the mandrels 16, the constriction 19 must be widened. This takes place directly by means of the bottle 12, it being advantageous to reduce the cross section of the mandrels 16 according to FIG. 1 above the constriction 19 again, so that a conically widening insertion guide is formed which facilitates the insertion or the Introducing the bottle 12 easier. When the bottle 12 is inserted, it pushes the mandrels 16 outwards to a small extent, whereby these are rotated about their clamping point on the bottom 18 of the box 10. The elasticity of the mandrels 16 is dependent on their geometrical design, in particular their cross-sectional design, and on the properties of the material used. The box 10 and the mandrels 16 should preferably be made of a plastic which enables a precisely fitting manufacture, for example by pressing. However, it is also possible that the bottle 12 during its insertion into the cavity 14, the mandrels 16 on the other forces not ausein¬, but that the mandrel ^'e 16 its position in wesentli chen beibehaltend in the region of the constriction 19 is deformed, thereby also on the bottle 12- acts as a holding or spring force. Such a deformation of the mandrels 16 can be achieved if, for example, they are made hollow from a thin-walled plastic. A similar effect can be achieved if the mandrels 16 are made of a material that is easily deformable in an elastic manner.

Due to the holding or spring force acting on the bottle 12 in the area of the constriction 19 by means of the mandrels 16 and the engagement, at least via friction, between the bottom of the bottle 12 and the bottom of the cavity 14, the bottle 12 can be in the cavity 14 be kept safe. Even when the crates are being transported, the bottles are prevented from falling out of the crate and a noise development due to a rattling of the bottles is largely avoided.

A plurality of boxes 10 of the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 can not only be stacked one above the other, but it is also possible to stack the boxes in a state tilted by 90 °, the boxes being stabilized by means of a mutual catch. In this way, the construction of a shelf wall can be achieved according to the modular principle, the cavities being accessible from the side and thus allowing the bottles to be loaded and removed easily and quickly.

When the boxes are in a state tilted by 90 in which the loading opening of the box is arranged laterally , used or stacked, care must be taken to ensure that the bottles do not fall out of the cavity. For this purpose, as shown in FIG. 1, the cavity 14 has a larger width in the region of its base, ie in its lower region according to FIG. 1, than the bottle 12 used, and the constriction is in the region of the neck inserted bottle 12 arranged. It is thereby achieved that the bottle 12 rotates or cant due to its own weight around the area of the constriction acting as a pivot point and, with its lower corner according to FIG. 3, comes into contact with the wall of the cavity. Because of the inclined position of the bottle 12 shown in FIG. 3, the bottle 12 is reliably prevented from falling out of the cavity 14. When the box 10 is tilted or rotated by 90 into the position shown in FIGS. 3 and 6, the bottle or the bottles automatically assume the position shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 due to gravity.

In the embodiment shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the separating elements of mandrels 16 are formed. However, it is possible in a similar manner that bulkheads form the separating elements, the widening of the constriction in the aforementioned manner likewise being able to take place either by regionally elastic deformation of the material of the bulkheads or by deflecting the bulkheads as a whole. Another embodiment is shown in FIGS. 4 to 6.

According to FIG. 4, the box 10 is provided with a grid of perpendicular bulkheads 22 arranged orthogonally to one another, so that cavities 14 for receiving a bottle 12 are formed. A spring element 20 is arranged on each inner wall of the cavity 14, by means of which sen an elastically expandable constriction 19 is formed. The spring element 20 is preferably made of plastic and has the shape of a leaf spring. 4, the spring elements 20 of a cavity 14 are formed by a one-piece, cup-shaped insert, but it is also possible to design each spring element as a separate component. Due to the cup-shaped insert, the cavity 14 has the shape already explained in connection with FIG. 1 with the narrowing in the area of the neck of the bottle 12 and a widening of the area of the bottom of the cavity 14 relative to the bottom of the bottle 12.

The function of this embodiment corresponds essentially to that of the embodiment explained with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, so that it will not be discussed again here. In this second exemplary embodiment too, it is achieved that the bottle 12 rotates due to its own weight around the area of the constriction acting as a pivot point and is reliably prevented from falling out of the cavity 14 due to this inclined position shown in FIG.

Only a few exemplary embodiments of the invention have been explained above. However, it is obvious to the person skilled in the art that numerous modifications can be carried out without departing from the scope and the basic idea of the invention. For example, in a modification of the exemplary embodiment shown in FIGS. 4 to 6, it is also possible to achieve the constriction 19 by designing the cross section of the bulkheads, for example by conically forming them as in the exemplary embodiment according to FIGS. 1 to 3. Furthermore, the shape of the cross section of the mandrels of the first guide is not limited to the round cross section shown in FIG. 2, but it is also possible to form the mandrel with an angular or square cross section, as shown in FIG. 7.

8 shows two stackable boxes 10, 10 ', each of which is designed according to FIG. 4, in the normal position in which the bottles are standing vertically. In the attached state, molded-on spikes, pins or otherwise formed locking cams 50 engage in the upper edge region next to the side walls of the box, so that in the attached state the two boxes 10, 10 'are connected to one another in an immovable manner. This makes it possible to stack a large number of boxes on top of one another. All boxes then represent a solid and stable unit in themselves. In the position shown in FIG. 8, the boxes are preferably transported.

For use in the household, in the restaurant or the like. the boxes 10, 10 'with their bottles are tilted or rotated by 90, so that the boxes 10, 10 * then assume the position shown in FIG. 9 and can be stacked one above the other in this position. In order to obtain a fixed stack of several boxes, each box 10, 10 'is additionally provided with latching cams 51, 51' on the side walls of the boxes in addition to the latching cams 50 on the box bottom, the latching cams 51 on the top in each case lying side walls to the locking cams 51 'of the bottom side walls of the boxes 10, 10' are offset from one another in such a way that the locking cams 51 'of the lower side wall of the box 10 are and next to the locking cams 51 the upper side wall of the box 10 'come to rest so that two or more boxes stacked on top of each other form a solid, immovable and stable stack in which the bottles can be removed from the side with ease. In this way, with several boxes, quasi-shelf-like receptacles for bottles are created which, for example, instead of bottle cabinets for wine cellars and the like can be used.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, standard boxes or containers 100 (FIG. 12) consisting of four side walls 101, 102, 103, 104 and a base part 105 and open at the top can be provided with inserts 60 and 70, each insert being formed with individual cavities a number of intersecting partitions. Each cavity 14 formed in this way is designed in accordance with the cavity of a crate shown in FIG. 1, so that when a crate 100 provided with an insert 60 or 70 is tilted or rotated 90 by 90, all the bottles arranged in the cavities are filled in 3 and 6 take the position shown. So that the inserts 60 or 70 cannot slip out of the box 100, the inserts, which consist of wood, plastic or other suitable materials, are locked in the box 100. 10 shows an insert with fifteen cavities for fifteen bottles and FIG. 11 shows an insert with twenty-five cavities for twenty-five bottles, the number and size of the cavities for the bottles depending on the size and internal dimensions of the box 100 and also according to the Size of the bottles to be accommodated. The inserts 60 and 70 can also be made of cardboard, paper mache or the like. exist, the constriction 19 forming inside - bulges 17 consist of the material of the inserts 60 and 70 and are molded or molded during their manufacture. The box 100 itself forms the stabilizing outer shell for the insert 60, 70, whereby the supporting element can be the box itself. The inserts 60, 70 can be removed from the box and are therefore interchangeable, so that the inserts 60, 70 with a different number of cavities can be interchanged and exchanged for one another, the outer dimensions of the inserts 60, 70 being held in this way that the inserts can be used in the boxes. The use of such inserts 60, 70 results in the following advantage: with the same outer, quasi-standardized - and therefore better stackable boxes - dimensions, it is still possible to accommodate different bottles and use the space efficiently.

The constriction 19 of each cavity 14 need not be formed elastically aufwei bar. The constriction 19 can also be designed such that a bottle can be inserted into the cavity without changing the side walls forming the constriction. Characterized in that the body Flaschen¬ the receiving cavity portion 14a (Figure 3) is greater than ^• the constriction 19, the bottle will always occupy automatically as a result of the displaced weight of the position ge in FIGS. 3 and 6 showed, with the shoulder of the bottle is supported on the lower side wall forming the constriction at A and thus assumes an inclined position, due to which the bottle cannot automatically slide out of the box when the box is in accordance with FIGS. 3 and 6.

Claims

Claims 1. Stackable box for bottles with a plurality of cavities each receiving a single bottle, which are separated from one another by separating elements, characterized in that each cavity (14) has a rigid or elastically expandable or deformable constriction (19) on the inner wall. with which an inserted bottle (12) is held in the area of its shoulder or in the transition area of the bottle body to the bottle neck. 2. Box according to claim 1, characterized in that the separating elements of bulkheads or webs (22) are Gebi Idet. 3. Box according to claim 1, characterized in that the separating elements are formed by thorns (16) which project from the bottom of the box (10). 4. Box according to claim 3, characterized in that the mandrels (16) conical or club-shaped s nd. 5. Box according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the constriction (19) by inside bulges (17) of the elastically deformable mandrels (16) or bulkheads (22) is formed. 6. Box according to one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that the constriction (19) is formed by inside the spring duck (20). 7. Box according to claim 6, characterized in that the spring elements (20) are leaf springs. 8. Box according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the spring elements (20) consist of plastic. 9. Box according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized ge indicates that the constriction (19) in the region of the neck of an inserted bottle (12) is assigned. 10. Box according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized ge indicates that the cavity (14) in the region of its bottom is wider than the bottom of the bottle (12) used. 11. Box according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized. ge indicates that the separating elements (16; 22) consist of plastic. 12. Box according to one of claims 3 to 11, characterized in that three or four mandrels (16) are arranged around each cavity (14). 13. Box according to claim 12, characterized in that the mandrels (16) around the cavity (14) are equally distributed. 14. Box according to one of claims 3 to 13, characterized ge indicates that the mandrels (16) are formed with a round cross section. 15. Box according to one of claims 3 to 13, characterized ge indicates that the mandrels (16) are formed with e -ne angular or square cross-section. 16. Box according to one of claims 1 to £ 15, thereby indicates that the box (100) consists of two components, the actual box consisting of four side walls and a bottom part, open at the top as a stabilizing outer shell and a removable and exchangeable insert (60; 70) with a number of through Partitions formed cavities (14), the inserts (60, 70) having a different number of cavities (14).