Collapsible shipping container with removable four-piece rail unit

Abstract

A collapsible container comprises a plastic base having four side edges, and four corners. Four plastic walls are pivotably mounted to respective side edges of the base to be swingable between erected and folded positions. A rail assembly is removably mounted to an underside of the base, the rail assembly comprising four separate plastic rail elements extending along respective side edges of the base. The four rail elements consist of a pair of first parallel rail elements and a pair of second parallel rail elements oriented perpendicular to the first rail elements. Each of the first and second rail elements extends from one of the corners to another of the corners, and is mounted by a connecting structure enabling each rail element to be separately replaced relative to the base.

Description

CROSS-RELATED REFERENCE[0001]The present invention claims priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60 / 960,814, filed Oct. 15, 2007.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]The present invention relates to collapsible plastic shipping containers.[0003]Collapsible plastic shipping containers, also known as knock-down bulk containers, typically comprise a rectangular base or floor to which are fastened four walls, i.e., two side walls and two end walls. If the container is not square, the side walls will be longer than the end walls. The walls are separately pivotable about respective horizontal axes at their lower edges so as to be swingable between a vertical erected position and a horizontal folded position. Once in their erected position, the walls are joined in suitable fashion so as to be fixed in an upright state for shipping purposes. When the walls are folded, the container can be more conveniently handled and stored. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,591,065 disclosing a conventi...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0009]a rail assembly removably mounted to an underside of the base, the rail assembly comprising four separate plastic rail elements extending along respective side edges of the base, the four rail elements consisting of a pair of first parallel rail elements and a pair of second parallel rail elements oriented perpendicular to the first rail elements, each of the first and second rail elements extending from one of the corners to another of the corners, and being mounted by a connecting structure enabling each rail element to be separately replaced relative to the base.

Problems solved by technology

It will be appreciated that collapsible shipping containers of that type may be subjected to relatively rough handling and thus are susceptible to damage, especially at the bottom region thereof.

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