Pallet container
Patent Information
- Application Number
- IL292154
- Authority / Receiving Office
- IL · IL
- Patent Type
- Patents
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2019-12-05
- Filing Date
- 2020-10-16
- Publication Date
- 2026-08-01
- Estimated Expiration
- 2040-10-16
AI Technical Summary
Handling of pallet containers with manual gripping in the upper area of the tubular lattice frame poses a risk of injury due to exposed screw connections and sharp edges, leading to cuts or lacerations, especially during transport and storage operations.
The crossbars are designed with axial confluence of threaded screws into the ends of the crossbeams, which are equipped with internal threads, and are attached to the tubular lattice frame using screw nuts that are permanently inserted, crimped, or welded, ensuring the screw connections are completely covered, and the crossbeams are curved to act as elastic spring elements, reducing tensile forces and deformation.
This design significantly reduces the risk of injury by covering exposed screw ends and distributing loads, enhancing operational safety during handling and transport by reducing deformation and stress on the pallet container components.
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Abstract
Description
[0001] Pallet containers
[0002] The present invention relates to a pallet container for storing and transporting liquid or flowable goods, comprising a thin-walled rigid inner container made of thermoplastic, a tubular frame made of welded horizontal and vertical tubular bars tightly enclosing the plastic inner container as a support shell, and a base pallet on which the plastic inner container rests and to which the tubular frame is firmly connected, wherein two rod-shaped crossbeams are provided above the plastic inner container, the ends of which are attached by means of threaded screws to two opposing side walls in the upper region of the tubular frame.
[0003] The rod-shaped crossbeams are designed to prevent excessive bulging of the plastic inner container or its top with central screw cap, particularly during transport vibrations and dynamic oscillations. They also serve, among other things, to hold the plastic inner container within the tubular frame on the base pallet in the event of the pallet container accidentally tipping over, preventing it from slipping out of the frame. To allow for easy replacement of the plastic inner container for multiple uses of the pallet container, the crossbeams are detachably attached at both ends to the upper part of the tubular frame, usually with screws.
[0004] Such a pallet container with two parallel crossbeams is known, for example, from publication WO 2012085940 A2. In a pallet container described in publication DE 4425630 A1, four crossbeams are provided, with each pair of diagonally intersecting crossbeams covering one half of the plastic inner container.
[0005] Problem:
[0006] Filled pallet containers, often weighing over 1 ton, are handled using forklifts, for example, when unloading from a truck or storing them in a high-bay warehouse. This is especially true when pallet containers only travel short distances, such as from a warehouse to an unloading station or the point of use of the contents.
[0007] When pallet containers are to be transported, pallet jacks are often used. However, empty pallet containers are frequently handled manually, for example, by being tilted or pulled a short distance. In doing so, the pallet container is always gripped by hand at the top of the tubular frame, and especially at the topmost horizontal tube. Very often, the ends of the crossbeams and their bolted connections are also touched. The ends of the crossbeams are usually flattened, wrapped once around the topmost horizontal tube, and bolted to themselves underneath. The ends of the crossbeams typically have sharp, stamped edges, and the exposed ends of the threaded bolts are frequently overlooked. This can lead to serious cuts or lacerations, even when wearing protective gloves.
[0008] Task :
[0009] Therefore, the object of the present invention is to make the handling of such pallet containers with manual gripping in the upper area of the tubular mesh frame safer and to reduce possible risks of injury.
[0010] Solution :
[0011] The intended reduction of the risk of injury is achieved safely by screwing the crossbeams at their fastening points with their two ends against two opposing tubular bars in the upper area of the tubular lattice frame, and by the threaded screws entering axially into the ends of the crossbeams which are provided with an internal thread.
[0012] This inventive design of the crossbeam fastening with axial insertion of the threaded screws into the ends of the crossbeams ensures that the screw connections of the crossbeams are completely concealed and no free ends of the threaded screws can protrude from the components.
[0013] In this embodiment of the invention, a threaded nut is permanently installed in each end of a cross member with a hollow tube profile, and the cross members are screwed firmly but releasably to an upper horizontal or vertical tube of the tubular frame by means of threaded screws screwed into the end faces. The permanently installed threaded nut can be pressed in, crimped, or welded in place.
[0014] A preferred embodiment of the invention provides that the respective ends of the crossbeams are strongly crimped and an internal thread is directly formed into these crimps, wherein the crossbeams are screwed firmly but releasably to an upper horizontal or vertical tube rod of the tubular lattice frame by means of the threaded screws screwed into the end face.
[0015] For these design variants, the procedure is that two adjacent ends of the crossbeams are screwed to the front face of the upper end of two adjacent vertical tubular bars in the flattened area just below the uppermost horizontally circumferential tubular bar.
[0016] The two ends of the crossbeams are screwed onto the completely flattened section of the vertical tubes. To create a flat contact point for the ends of the crossbeams, the flattened sections of the vertical tubes are extended to accommodate the screwed-on crossbeams, making them longer than the flattened sections of the other vertical tubes.
[0017] In a particular embodiment of the invention, the crossbeams are designed as elastic spring elements, wherein they are not linear but arc-shaped between their two attachment points and have one or more arc-shaped sections.
[0018] In a preferred embodiment, the crossbeams screwed onto the completely flattened area of the vertical tube rods each have a comparatively large arc bent in the florizonal plane, wherein the arc-shaped crossbeams lie flat on the top of the plastic inner container and the large arcs of the two crossbeams are oriented away from each other.
[0019] In a modified embodiment, the crossbeams are not linear between their two attachment points, but rather each has a small downward-curved arc at both ends and are screwed to the uppermost, circumferential horizontal tube from below at their ends. The crossbeams, designed as elastic spring elements, can be formed as rod-shaped hollow tubes with a rectangular, square, oval, or round profile, with the length of the end-screwed crossbeams between their two attachment points being greater than the direct distance between the two attachment points of the crossbeams.
[0020] Due to the practical design of the two crossbeams with their curved shape as a connection between the two opposing long side walls of the tubular frame, the tensile forces occurring in the upper area of the tubular frame are considerably mitigated by the crossbeams, which are designed as elastic spring elements, and the loads on the fastening points or screw connections of the crossbeams are noticeably reduced.
[0021] During vibration testing, the curved crossbeam acts like an elastic spring. During vibration, the top of the inner container oscillates up and down. These oscillations cause the conventional straight crossbeams to bend elastically upwards and downwards at their upper and lower endpoints, directly resulting in a reduction of the distance between the mounting points. This reduction causes the tubular frame to be pulled significantly inwards in the upper section with each stroke. In contrast, the new "spring-like" design, which also yields longitudinally, results in significantly reduced deformation at the upper edge of the tubular frame, thus reducing the stress on the pallet container's components.
[0022] The invention is explained and described in more detail below with reference to exemplary embodiments schematically illustrated in the drawings. The drawings show:
[0023] Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a pallet container according to the invention.
[0024] Figure 2 shows an enlarged partial view of the upper area of the pallet container according to the invention as shown in Figure 1.
[0025] Figure 3 shows a top view of a crossbeam designed as a spring element,
[0026] Figure 4 shows a side view of another embodiment of a crossbeam,
[0027] Figure 5 shows an enlarged partial view of the right end area of a crossbeam with an inserted screw nut.
[0028] Figure 6 shows an enlarged partial view of the left end area of the crossbeam according to Figure 4, Figure 7 shows an enlarged partial view showing the connection of a crossbeam to the upper area of a tubular lattice frame,
[0029] Figure 8 shows an enlarged partial cross-sectional view with an end face
[0030] Screwing a crossbeam to the upper area of the tubular lattice frame,
[0031] Figure 9 shows another enlarged partial side view of an end-face screw connection of a cross member,
[0032] Figure 10 shows an enlarged partial cross-sectional view with the end-face screw connection of the cross member, similar to Fig. 9 and Fig. 10.
[0033] Figure 11 shows a partial perspective view of the end-face screw connection of the cross member, similar to Fig. 9.
[0034] Figure 1 shows a pallet container 10 according to the invention (also referred to as an “IBC” = Intermediate Bulk Container) for storing and transporting liquid or free-flowing materials. The pallet container 10 comprises a thin-walled, rigid plastic inner container 12 made of thermoplastic material, e.g., HDPE, a tubular frame 14 consisting of welded horizontal and vertical tubular bars 18, 20, which tightly encloses the plastic inner container 12 as a support shell, and a base pallet 16 on which the plastic inner container 12 rests and to which the tubular frame 14 is rigidly connected. Above the plastic inner container 12, two rod-shaped crossbeams 22 are provided, the ends of which are attached to two opposing side walls of the upper tubular frame 14. The two crossbeams 22 are designed in an arcuate shape as elastic spring elements 24.A special design feature of the crossbeams 22 is that they are screwed firmly but releasably at their end faces at their fastening points 26, 28 against two opposing tubular bars 18, 20 in the upper area of the tubular lattice frame 14 and the threaded screws 48 enter axially into the ends of the crossbeams 22, 42 which are provided with an internal thread 44, 46.
[0035] The crossbeams 22, 42 are not straight or linear between their two attachment points 26, 28, but rather curved, exhibiting a comparatively large arc 34. The length of the crossbeams 22 between their two attachment points 26, 28 is, in a completely unusual manner, greater than the direct distance between the two attachment points 26, 28 at the ends of the crossbeams 22.
[0036] To achieve optimal elasticity and spring action of the crossbeams 22, 42, the length of the crossbeams is designed to be between 1% and 5% greater than the direct distance (corresponding to a chord of a circle) between their two attachment points, corresponding to the arc line between the two attachment points. This ensures that the size of the arc and the curved shape of the crossbeams function as an elastic spring element.
[0037] For standard pallet containers with a filling volume of 600, 1000, or 1200 liters, which have the same width and length dimensions, the distance between the two mounting points 26, 28 is approximately 960 mm, and the effective length of the crossbeams 22 is approximately 993 mm. For these same standard pallet containers, the arc-shaped crossbeams 22 should have a large arc radius between 300 mm and 700 mm, preferably 500 mm.
[0038] The above-described constructive embodiment of the invention is shown in greater detail in Figure 2. It becomes clear that the arcuately curved crossbeams 22 – in the installed state – lie flat in the horizontal plane on the top surface 38 of the plastic inner container 12, with the large arcs 34 of the two crossbeams 22 pointing away from each other.
[0039] The arcuate crossbeams 22 are each guided by a retaining eyelet 40 formed from the top surface 38 of the plastic inner container 12, with the retaining eyelets 40 overlapping in the center of the installed arcuate crossbeams 22. During handling and, in particular, during the transport of pallet containers according to the invention and the loads that occur therein, the arcuate crossbeams, with their curved shape, can elastically yield in the vertical direction when the top surface bulges upwards and downwards – e.g., also during an internal pressure or drop test – and adapt to the bulge; they “follow,” so to speak, the shape of the top surface.
[0040] The two ends of the crossbeams 22 are screwed to the upper ends of two adjacent vertical tubular bars 20 in the flattened area just below the uppermost horizontally circumferential tubular bar by means of the threaded screws 48 at the fastening points 26, 28. The fastening points 26, 28 of the curved, arc-shaped crossbeams 22 are shifted further towards the center of the upper area of the tubular frame compared to conventional straight crossbeams, precisely where the greatest bulges and tensile loads occur and need to be absorbed. In this advantageous manner, the fastening points 26, 28 of the two crossbeams 22 are located at the upper ends of two directly adjacent vertical tubular bars 20. Such a central connection would not be possible with conventional linear crossbeams.
[0041] Figure 3 shows a top view of an arc-shaped crossbeam 22 designed as a spring element with a large arc radius of approximately 500 mm. In a preferred embodiment, the crossbeams 22, 42 have a round tubular profile with a diameter between 14 mm and 22 mm, preferably 16 mm, and a wall thickness between 0.7 mm and 1.2 mm, preferably 0.8 mm.
[0042] According to another design, the crossbeams 22, 42 can also have a square tube profile with a side length between 14 mm and 20 mm, preferably 16 mm, and a wall thickness between 0.7 mm and 1.2 mm, preferably 0.8 mm.
[0043] Figure 4 shows a side view of another embodiment of a crossbeam 42 with two arches. In their end regions, each arch—when viewed in its installed state—has a downwardly curved small arch 36 with a comparatively small radius and upwardly pointing ends. As can be seen in detail in Figure 8, each arch is screwed to the uppermost circumferential horizontal tube 18 from below at its end face. An enlarged partial view of one end of the crossbeam 42 with two downwardly curved small arches 36 with a small radius is shown in Figure 6. A screw nut 30 with an internal thread 44 (e.g., M8 or M10) is permanently and securely inserted into each of the open ends of the hollow tube profile of the crossbeam 42 with two arches 36. The permanently inserted screw nut 30 can be simply pressed in, crimped, or welded in place.
[0044] The enlarged illustration in Figure 5 shows the right end of a crossbeam 22 (with a large arc) with an inserted screw nut 30, which can also be permanently pressed in, crushed or welded in place.
[0045] Figure 7 shows a fastening method in which a threaded screw 48 is screwed into the end face of the hollow tube profile of the crossbeam 22. The crossbeam 22 is fixed to the upper flattened ends of two opposing vertical tubes 20 just below the uppermost horizontal tube 18 by means of the threaded screws 48, which are screwed in horizontally from the outside at the end face.
[0046] Another fastening option, involving end-face screwing of the crossbeam 42 with two small bends 36, is shown in enlarged detail in Figure 8. Here, the two ends of the crossbeams 42 are strongly crimped radially, with a corresponding internal thread 46 formed directly into the crimps 32. The crossbeams 42 with the smaller bends 36 at their ends are fixed end-face from below against the uppermost horizontal pipe 18 by means of a threaded screw 48 inserted vertically from above. Advantageously, the uppermost horizontal pipe 18 is slightly countersunk at the top of the borehole, and the threaded screw 48 is designed as a flat-head, countersunk, or pan-head screw so that it does not protrude upwards.The crimps 32 with correspondingly formed internal thread 46 can of course also be implemented on the crossbeam 22 (with only one large arc), as will be explained below.
[0047] The horizontal or vertical tubular bars 18, 20 of the tubular lattice frame 14 are provided with a corresponding bore for the threaded screws 48 for screwing the threaded screws 48 into the ends of the crossbeams 22, 42.
[0048] The end-face screw connections of the crossbeams have the great advantage that the screw tips of the threaded screws are completely embedded in the hollow tube profile of the crossbeams 22, 42 and are concealed, so that no injuries can occur when handling pallet containers according to the invention, as was often the case with previously common open screw connections with protruding screw tips.
[0049] Conventional straight crossbeams are difficult to screw directly into place along their central axis at their ends. When the screws are tightened, the crossbeam rotates and would need to be fixed in place for installation. This need for fixation is advantageously eliminated by the curved shape of the crossbeams according to the invention.
[0050] In the preferred embodiment of the crossbeams 22, 42 according to the invention, the two ends of the crossbeams 22, 42 are strongly squeezed in the radial direction, with a corresponding internal thread, e.g. M8, being formed directly into the indentations 32.
[0051] Figure 9 shows an enlarged side view of the bolted connection of a crossbeam 22 with a crimp 32. The crossbeam 22 is bolted to a vertical tube 20 of the tubular frame at its end face, just below the uppermost circumferential horizontal tube 18. The vertical tube 20 is flattened in the area of the fastening point and has a through-hole for the threaded screw 48, which is screwed axially into the internally threaded crimp 32.To ensure good, full-surface contact between the crossbeams 22 and the corresponding vertical tubes 20, the flattened section of these vertical tubes 20 is longer than that of the adjacent vertical tubes (without crossbeams). The free length of the fully flattened section 50 of the vertical tubes 20 below the uppermost horizontally circumferential tube 18 should be between 18 mm and 45 mm, preferably 32 mm. In a specific embodiment, the total length of the fully flattened section 50 is approximately 48 mm, ± 2 mm, with the center of the through-hole for the threaded screw 48 being approximately 38 mm, ± 2 mm, from the upper edge of the flattened section 50.
[0052] Figure 10 shows another sectional view of the crossbeam screw connection from Fig. 9. The threaded screw 48 is provided here with an integrated, larger-diameter washer to increase the contact area with the flattened section 50 of the vertical tube 20. Below the flattened section 50, a transition area extends to the square base profile of the hollow tube 20 (with a cross-sectional profile of 16 x 16 mm). Due to the downward extension of the flattened section 50, the transition area is also shifted downwards by a corresponding amount compared to the adjacent vertical tubes.
[0053] Finally, Figure 11 shows a partial perspective view of the top of the plastic inner container 12 with a centrally located screw cap. Here, the extended, flattened section 50 of the vertical tube 20 with the attached cross member 22 is clearly visible. In this preferred embodiment, the cross members 22, (42) have a round or oval tube profile with a diameter between 14 mm and 22 mm, preferably 16 mm, and a wall thickness between 0.7 mm and 1.2 mm, preferably 0.8 mm. With this type of screw connection, the threaded screws, which are axially screwed into the end faces of the cross members, disappear completely into the hollow tube profile of the cross members.
[0054] In all variants shown, the two ends of the crossbeams 22, 42 are screwed firmly but releasably to the front of the uppermost horizontal tube bar 18 or to four vertical tube bars 20 of the tubular grid frame for the purpose of replacing the plastic inner container 12.
[0055] The various arched versions of the crossbeams 22, 42 as spring elements allow for different fastening designs with horizontal or vertical screwing of the two ends of the crossbeams 22, 42 to the upper tubular lattice frame 14.
[0056] The described designs of the crossbeams and the fastening options can be easily combined and exchanged within the scope of the present invention.
[0057] Conclusion: By screwing the crossbeams 22, 42 together at the front face according to the invention with completely covered threaded screws - which virtually disappear into the ends of the crossbeams - the upper area of the tubular frame 14 of a pallet container 10 can be made safer with regard to the risk of injury in a comparatively simple way and operational safety when handling filled pallet containers can be significantly increased.
[0058] Reference numbers list Pallet container Plastic inner container Tubular grid frame Base pallet Horizontal tubular bars (14) Vertical tubular bars (14) Crossbeam Spring element (22) Mounting point (22) Opposite mounting point (22) Screw nut (22) Squeeze (22) Large arc (22) Small arc (22) Top plate (12) Retaining eye (38) Crossbeam 2 arcs Internal thread (30) Internal thread (32) Threaded screw (30, 32) Extended flattened area (20)
Claims
Patent claims 1.) Pallet container (10) for storing and transporting liquid or flowable contents, comprising a thin-walled rigid plastic inner container (12) made of thermoplastic material, a tubular frame (14) made of welded horizontal and vertical tubular bars (18, 20) tightly enclosing the plastic inner container (12) as a support shell, and a base pallet (16) on which the plastic inner container (12) rests and to which the tubular frame (14) is firmly connected, wherein two rod-shaped crossbeams (22) are provided above the plastic inner container (12), which are attached at their two ends by means of threaded screws (48) to two opposing side walls in the upper region of the tubular frame (14), characterized in that the crossbeams (22, 42) are connected at their attachment points (26,28) are screwed at their ends against two opposing tubular bars (18, 20) in the upper area of the tubular lattice frame (14) and the threaded screws (48) enter axially into the ends (52) of the crossbeams (22, 42). 2.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, characterized in that a screw nut (30) with internal thread (44) is permanently inserted into each of the two ends of the crossbeams (22, 42) with hollow tube profile, and the crossbeams (22, 42) are screwed firmly but releasably onto an upper horizontal or vertical tube rod (18, 20) of the tubular frame (14) by means of the threaded screws (48) screwed into the end face. 3.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1 , characterized in that the two ends of the crossbeams (22, 42) are strongly crimped and an internal thread (46) is directly formed into these crimps (32), wherein the crossbeams (22, 42) are screwed firmly but releasably to an upper horizontal or vertical tube (18, 20) of the tubular frame (14) by means of the threaded screws (48) screwed into the end face. 4.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that the two ends of the crossbeams (22, 42) are screwed to two opposing vertical tubes (20) just below the uppermost horizontally circumferential tube bar (18). 5.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, 2, 3 or 4, characterized in that the two ends of the crossbeams (22, 42) are screwed onto the completely flattened area of the vertical tube bars (20). 6.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5, characterized in that the flattened areas (50) of the vertical tube bars (20) with the bolted crossbeams (22, 42) are flattened to a greater extent than the flattened areas of the remaining vertical tube bars (20). 7.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 or 6, characterized in that the free length of the completely flattened area (50) of the vertical tube bars (20) below the uppermost horizontally circumferential tube bar (18) is between 18 mm and 45 mm, preferably 32 mm. 8.) Pallet container (10) according to claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 or 7, characterized in that the two end-screwed crossbeams (22, 42) between their two fastening points (26, 28) are not linear but are designed as elastic spring elements (24) in an arc-shaped form and have one or more arc-shaped sections. 9.) Pallet container (10) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the length of the two end-screwed crossbeams (22, 42) between their The distance between the two fixing points (26, 28) is between 1% and 5%, preferably 3%, larger than the direct distance between the two fixing points (26, 28). 10.) Pallet container (10) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the crossbeams (22) screwed onto the completely flattened area of the vertical tube rods (20) each have a comparatively large arc (34) bent in the horizontal plane, wherein the arc-shaped crossbeams (22) lie flat on the top surface (38) of the plastic inner container (12) and the large arcs (34) of the two crossbeams (22) are oriented away from each other. 11.) Pallet container (10) according to one of the preceding claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the crossbeams between their two fastening points (26, 28) are not linear, but are provided at their two ends with a small downwardly shaped arc (36), and are screwed to the front face from below against the uppermost circumferential horizontal tube bar (18). 12.) Pallet container (10) according to any one of the preceding claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the crossbeams (22, 42) have a round or oval tube profile with a diameter between 14 mm and 22 mm, preferably 16 mm, and a wall thickness between 0.7 mm and 1.2 mm, preferably 0.8 mm.