Stacking box and transport and / or storage system comprising at least two stacking boxes
By introducing support elements that can be automatically moved by gravity into the stacking box, the problem that stacking boxes in the prior art needs to rotate 180° is solved, and the stacking box stacking without rotation is realized, which can form interlaced nested stacking box stacks without rotation, simplifying the Operation and save space.
Patent Information
- Application Number
- CN202180018506.3
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Patents(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Priority Date
- 2020-03-03
- Filing Date
- 2021-02-18
- Publication Date
- 2024-12-31
- Estimated Expiration
- 2041-02-18
AI Technical Summary
The existing stacking boxes need to be rotated 180° perpendicular to the bottom when forming the stacking, resulting in difficult and laborious operation, especially in multiple heavy boxes, and automation is expensive and complex.
Design a new stacking box that contains support elements that can automatically move through gravity between a stationary position and a support position, eliminating active intervention from users. The support elements are automatically transferred to the support position when the stacking box is placed, and automatically transferred when inverted. To a stationary position, an interlaced nested stack is achieved without rotating 180°.
This enables stacked and nested stacked box stacks without special user intervention, saving space, reducing operational burden, and reducing the complexity and cost of automated processing.
Smart Images
Figure CN115243980B_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] The present invention is generally in the field of logistics and in particular relates to stacked boxes and to a transport and / or storage system comprising two or more such stacked boxes. Background Art
[0002] In the field of logistics, stacking boxes are usually used to arrange and store items to be transported or stored. Boxes of this type are often, even regularly, arranged to stack boxes of as identical a structure as possible. This can be done in particular without temporarily storing a cover body that closes the receiving opening of the lower box and receives the bottom area of the stacked box, in that a support structure is arranged in the upward opening area of the lower box of the box stack to be constructed, on which the boxes to be stacked can be placed or stored without being placed in the box located below it. In this way, such boxes with items or goods placed therein can be stacked on each other, and the stacked boxes, for example, do not have to stay on the items or goods stored in the box. Such boxes that can be stacked in this way to stack boxes with items therein can also be called stacking boxes.
[0003] In order to save space when storing or transporting such empty stacking boxes in a space-saving manner, it is usually also provided that these stacking boxes can be placed inside each other to form a stack of boxes nested in each other. In this case, the other stacking boxes are placed in the receiving space of the lowest stacking box resting on the parking surface with the bottom, more specifically in the receiving space of the stacking boxes already placed in such a stacking box, and thus form a stack of boxes nested in each other.
[0004] In order to realize a set of stacking boxes of the same type, that is, not only stacks of boxes stacked on each other but also stacks of boxes nested in each other, various modifications have been proposed for stacking boxes, which stack the boxes together as required to form respective storage spaces nested in a way that forms a space-saving stack.
[0005] For example, a way to achieve this is described in patent US 6,047,853. The stacking boxes described in the patent are formed asymmetrically with respect to the design on the two opposite end sides, so that the structure provided by the patent allows nesting and nested stacking in a first direction of the box, and the box allows the stacking boxes to be placed one on top of the other relative to the rotation around the axis perpendicular to the bottom of the box to form a stacking box set in the second position of the stacking box to be set, rotated 180° around the axis perpendicular to the bottom from the first position. In order to assemble these stacking boxes in a nested manner, the corresponding boxes must be aligned in a first rotation position selected relative to the rotation axis extending perpendicular to the floor, and then they can be nested and stacked on each other. If these stacking boxes are stacked on top of each other, especially after they are filled with goods to be transported or stored, they must be rotated 180° relative to the rotation axis perpendicular to the bottom of the box, and then they can be stacked on each other.
[0006] This process is simple, since it does not require any further handling of the stacking box, except for the described proper alignment with respect to the rotation about the rotation axis extending perpendicular to the bottom. However, if a person is holding a stacking box that is already filled with goods or articles and must be rotated 180° about the rotation axis extending perpendicular to the bottom of the box before the person can further form a stack of boxes by stacking boxes on the lower box, this alignment is particularly laborious and laborious for the operator. The more boxes there are, the heavier the stacking box is. Automated handling is also expensive, since the operating unit must always be correctly aligned to the direction of rotation before it can be placed to form a stack.
[0007] Another way of proceeding is shown and described, for example, in WO 1998 / 056668 A1, which allows stacks of boxes to form stacks of boxes stacked together and, on the other hand, allows stacks of empty stacking boxes to be nested in one another in a space-saving manner. The stacking box shown has a support element that can be moved between a support position and a rest position, the stacking box allowing another stacking box to be placed on the support element in the support position, the support element allowing another stacking box to be placed in the receiving space of the stacking box below in the rest position to form a nested stack of boxes consisting of empty stacking boxes. According to this type of stacking box design of the invention, it is no longer necessary to rotate the stacking box by 180° around a rotation axis perpendicular to the bottom of the stacking box. However, this requires that the support element, which in the case of known stacking boxes, actively moves from the rest position to the support position, or vice versa, respectively according to the requirements resulting therefrom, that is, if a stack is formed, in particular, by stacking boxes stacked on one another that are filled in the receiving space, the support element moves to the support position, or if a space-saving stack is formed by empty stacking boxes, the support element moves to the rest position. Summary of the invention
[0008] Against this background, the object of the present invention is to provide a stacking box which, by simple handling and without any special intervention by the user, enables stacks to be formed from stacking boxes placed on top of one another and empty stacking boxes to be stored in staggered, nested stacks, thus saving space.
[0009] On the one hand, this object is achieved by a stacking box according to the invention, further advantageous developments being specified for this solution. On the other hand, the solution to this problem is a transport and / or storage system comprising at least two, in particular a plurality of, stacking boxes of the type according to the invention.
[0010] According to the invention, a novel stacking box has a base that is substantially identical to known stacking boxes, a wall extending from the base in a perpendicular direction thereto, in particular circumferentially, and defining a receiving space together with the base, and a receiving opening defined by the edge of the wall opposite the base. The stacking box is also provided with support elements that can be moved back and forth between a rest position and a support position. These support elements are positioned in the support position in such a way that they allow the stacking box and another stacking box of substantially the same structure to be placed one on top of the other to form a stack of stacked boxes. On the other hand, in the rest position, the support elements are positioned in such a way that they enable the stacking box and another stacking box of substantially the same structure to be nested to form a nested stack of boxes.
[0011] The walls and the base can be designed as a whole or in part as a solid structure and uninterrupted, in particular for storing and transporting small objects therein. However, it is also possible to provide the walls and / or the base at least in part with openings, for example to save material for manufacturing the stacking box, to reduce the weight of the stacking box, to make the stacking box easier to clean and / or to ventilate the goods stored in the stacking box, for example food such as fruit or vegetables.
[0012] Up to this point and as mentioned above, the stacking box according to the invention remains the same as described in WO 1998 / 056668 A1. The particularity of the stacking box according to the invention is that, unlike the stacking boxes known from the above-mentioned document, the support element does not have to be actively displaced by a corresponding intervention of the user, but the support element is designed and attached to the stacking box in such a way that when the stacking box is placed on the base with a substantially horizontal orientation of the base on the base and aligned with the receiving opening pointing substantially vertically upwards, the support element is transferred into the supporting position solely by gravity. Furthermore, the support element is designed and attached to the stacking box in such a way that the support element is driven into the rest position solely by gravity when the stacking box is placed on the edge with a substantially horizontal orientation of the receiving opening and pointing substantially vertically upwards with the base.
[0013] The supporting element is therefore moved only by the action of gravity, which depends on the orientation of the stacking box according to the present invention relative to the rotation of the axis of rotation extending around or parallel to the base plane. When the stacking box is placed on the base with the opening upward, it moves to the supporting position in a gravity-driven manner. When the stacking box is inverted, that is, the opening is placed upward, and when the base is vertical with it, it moves to a static position. Different from the known stacking boxes, the stacks that are now staggered and nested are composed of empty boxes, in which the box arranged at the bottom is also placed upside down on the edge of the receiving opening and other stacking boxes are then placed on the base of the stacking box located below it with the receiving opening downward. This is easy to achieve, because in this direction, as mentioned above, due to the displacement caused by the supporting elements through gravity, these supporting elements are located in a static position, that is, do not hinder the stacking boxes from being nested and stacked in a space-saving stack. If the stacking box according to the present invention is used now, in particular, the goods, articles or other objects to be placed in the receiving space there are put in, and it must be rotated 180 ° around the axis of rotation that is located in the base plane or parallel thereto and align upward with its opening. In this case, the supporting elements are again automatically moved into the supporting position in a gravity-driven manner, so that correspondingly oriented stacking boxes according to the invention can be filled or even empty, placed one next to the other and overlap one another in order to form a stack of boxes in which the corresponding upper stacking box is not inserted into the receiving space of the stacking box located below it.
[0014] The user of the stacking box according to the invention no longer has to pay special attention to actively moving the supporting element from the rest position to the supporting position or vice versa depending on the current intended use of the stacking box. This is done solely by gravity, automatically simply by the stacking box with the receiving opening facing upwards or correctly aligned with the receiving opening. The use of the stacking box according to the invention also does not require the stacking box to be rotated 180° around an axis of rotation extending perpendicular to the floor plane to form a stack. The user only has to pay attention that the stacking boxes according to the invention can only be nested with each other and stacked in a space-saving manner in an inverted nesting state, i.e. in a nesting state with the opening facing downwards. This is different from the previously known process of nesting such stacking boxes in a manner with the opening facing upwards.
[0015] In principle, it is irrelevant at which position the support element is located in the stacking box. However, the stacking box according to the invention can be implemented particularly easily if the support element is arranged in the wall edge region of the stacking box so that it can be moved between a support position and a rest position, so that the support element is moved in a protruding manner into the region of the receiving opening in the support position so that another essentially identical stacking box can be put down with its base on the support element in the support position to form a stack of stacked boxes, and the support element releases the region of the receiving opening in the rest position in such a way that another essentially identical stacking box forms a nested stack of stacked boxes with its base first introduced into the receiving opening and can be guided into the receiving space of the stacking box.
[0016] The support element can be designed in a plate-like manner, for example, by being pivotably arranged on the wall of the stacking box in the area of the receiving opening and / or in the area of the base. If it is arranged in the edge area of the wall, the support element can, for example, be arranged to be limited to a position in a corner of a stacking box, in particular with a rectangular plan, but it can also extend along the upper edge of the wall over the entire area of the longitudinal and / or transverse edges of the stacking box.
[0017] The support element can be arranged on the stacking box, for example, by means of an articulated joint, whereby it can be pivoted between a support position and a rest position. Other types of articulated arrangements or movable devices are also conceivable here. What is important is that when the stacking box is "turned over" about a rotation axis extending in the plane of the base or parallel thereto, the support element moves from the rest position to the support position and vice versa in a purely gravity-driven manner.
[0018] In the stacking box according to the invention, the base and the walls can be made of plastic, in particular in one piece, but other materials such as metal or wood are also conceivable. However, plastic has the advantages of low weight, high strength and high stability, which is particularly advantageous in the field of logistics, transport and storage and related processing.
[0019] The supporting element can be made of metal in particular, so as to provide it with sufficient stability to bear the load when the stacking boxes filled with articles are stacked one on top of another. However, other materials are also possible, such as plastics, such as reinforced, particularly fiber-reinforced plastics. The stacking box according to the present invention is constructed to be mirror-symmetrical in particular about the first and second center planes extending perpendicularly to the base and perpendicular to each other. Alternatively, it is also advantageous to select a point-symmetrical structure of a cross-section extending parallel to the base plane, wherein the center of symmetry of each point symmetry forms the center point of the cross-sectional profile. It is precisely in the case of the stacking box according to the present invention that there is no need to provide asymmetry here, which is as required according to US 6,047,853 when the stacking boxes are stacked in a specifically oriented manner by rotating around a rotation axis extending perpendicular to the base plane.
[0020] Advantageously, one or more supports may be formed on the wall and / or the base to support the support element in the support position. These supports may have a support surface extending substantially parallel to the base, but may also have a support surface extending obliquely. Importantly, they provide reliable support for the support element and provide a stop when the gravity-driven movement of the support element enters the support position. Such supports may be used to deduce the weight of a stacking box according to the present invention, which is arranged below the stack of boxes by the support element and further reaches the bottom or subsoil downwards. Such a support may, for example, be a columnar projection formed in the wall of the stacking box and the support element is located in the support position and supported on its end face by it.
[0021] In order to enable stacking boxes of the type according to the invention to be stacked one on top of another in a reliably centered and, in particular, non-displacement manner, a centering structure formed on the supporting element can advantageously be provided and a corresponding structure can be formed in the stack outside the supporting element, wherein the centering structure interacts with a corresponding structure in a stacking box of the same basic structure in the stacked state in order to center the stacked stacking boxes relative to the stacking boxes located underneath them and also to fix them in a plane of the stacking boxes parallel to the base.
[0022] In order to be able to move the support element solely by gravity, for example, an arrangement can be chosen in which the pivot point of the rotational or pivoting movement is offset to the projection of the center of gravity of the corresponding support element on the plane of the base of the stacking box, or is arranged on a plane stretched by the edges that define the receiving opening. Separately arranged counterweight elements for the movement of the center of gravity can be provided, etc. A support element with a crank shape can also be provided, which can then be driven only by gravity in the manner according to the invention to move between the support position and the rest position due to this shape. A person skilled in the art will be able to easily shape the support element and / or its attachments so that the effect according to the invention is achieved within the framework of the structural design, and corresponding solutions are known.
[0023] Two, in particular more, stacking boxes as described above can be included in an advantageous transport and / or storage system according to the invention. The stacking boxes included in the system can be stacked in a pile with their opening facing upwards (filled or empty), with the support element in the supporting position, or they can be placed one inside the other to save space, if they are placed on a base with their receiving opening facing downwards, with one stacking box placed at the bottom, and stacked like a hat with the other stacking box placed on top. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0024] Further features and advantages of the present invention are apparent from the following description of exemplary embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[0025] Figure 1 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a stacking box according to the invention in an upright position suitable for stacking a plurality of stacking boxes according to the invention;
[0026] Figure 2 The support element is shown in an enlarged detailed view in a support position;
[0027] Figure 3 Schematically illustrates the process of stacking two stacking boxes constructed according to the present invention into a box stack;
[0028] Figure 4 Schematically shows a box stack formed by two stacking boxes according to the invention stacked on top of each other;
[0029] Figure 5 Schematically illustrates a nested box stack formed by two inverted nested stacking boxes according to the present invention;
[0030] Figure 6 The support element is shown in an enlarged detailed view in a rest position;
[0031] Figure 7 A schematic plan view schematically showing a stacking box according to the invention with the receiving opening aligned upwards for stacking; and
[0032] Figure 8 is a schematic illustration of a stacking box according to the invention, wherein the stacking boxes are oriented with their openings downwards for stacking one another in a staggered nesting manner.
[0033] List of reference numerals:
[0034] 1 stacking box
[0035] 2 Base
[0036] 3 walls
[0037] 4. Accepting space
[0038] 5 Edge
[0039] 6 Acceptance of openings
[0040] 7 Support elements
[0041] 8 Hinge joints
[0042] 9 columns
[0043] 10 Support DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0044] In the drawings, possible design variants of a stacking box according to the invention and a transport and / or storage system formed by at least two such stacking boxes are shown schematically. The drawings are highly schematic representations and serve only to illustrate the principle and essential elements according to the invention. They are by no means to be understood as complete construction sketches nor are they true to scale.
[0045] Figure 1 The stacking box 1 according to the invention is shown in a first position. The stacking box 1 has a base 2 on which the stacking box 1 is placed. Figure 1 The position shown is, for example, on the ground. Starting from the base 2 and pointing upwards in this first position is a wall 3 which extends here around the outside of the box, wherein the base 2 and the wall 3 enclose a receiving space 4. In principle, however, it is also possible to provide a further part of the wall 3 which delimits the receiving space 4 and which is separate from the peripheral wall, for example in the form of a column wall or the like which rises from the ground in the inner part. The wall 3 ends in an edge 5 which surrounds the receiving opening 6. In the region of the edge 5 a supporting element 7 is arranged on the wall 3, slightly offset below the upper edge of the edge 5, which is here articulated to the wall 3 of the stacking box 1 via a hinge joint 8. In the case of Figure 1 In the position of the stacking box 1 shown, the supporting elements 7 are driven only by gravity and are thus forced into Figure 1 As will be described below, the support element 7 can also be moved into a rest position by pivoting about the hinge joint 8 .
[0046] Figure 2 The support element 7 is shown to better illustrate the Figure 1 The stacking box 1 is shown in an enlarged cross-sectional view in the supporting position. It can also be seen here that the supporting element 7 is on the supporting surface 10 (see Figure 6 ) A supporting position on the column 9 of the wall 3 of the stacking box 1 is formed on the top and supported by the column 9.
[0047] Figure 3 and 4 It is shown that two substantially identical stacking boxes 1 according to the invention can be Figure 1 The support elements are placed one on top of the other in the position shown and correspondingly with the support elements driven into the support position by gravity. Figure 3is shown with arrows indicating stacking motion, Figure 4 Thus, two or more stacking boxes 1 according to the invention can be stacked one on top of the other, with the objects to be stored or transported being arranged and stored in the receiving spaces 4 of the stacking boxes 1 .
[0048] Figure 5 The "empty box stack" is shown, which consists of stacking boxes 1 according to the invention rotated 180° about a rotation axis extending in the plane of the base 2 or parallel thereto, i.e. placed upside down, wherein the stacking boxes 1 are nested one inside the other. Here, the stacking boxes 1 according to the invention are stacked in the shape of a hat, wherein the wall 3 and the base 2 of the lower stacking box 1 intervene in the receiving space 4 of the stacking box 1 located above it.
[0049] This makes it possible that the stacking box according to the invention is placed in a Figure 5 As shown in Figure 1 In the position shown in FIG. 1 , which is rotated 180° about the rotation axis, i.e. in the inverted position, the support element 7 is driven only by gravity and thus automatically moves from Figures 1 to 4 The support position shown moves to Figure 5 and 6 Driven by gravity, the support element 7 is folded down from the support 10 on the column 9 about the hinge joint 8, which was previously resting in the support position, so that the support element is no longer an obstacle for the base 2 of the stacking box 1 located below to slide into the receiving space 4 of the stacking box 1 located above, and the stacking boxes 1 can be nested and stacked on each other in the inverted position.
[0050] Will Figure 7 and 8 Comparison with the schematic diagram shown in the figure again clearly shows how the support element 7 can be moved driven only by gravity. Figure 7 The stacking box 1 is shown in a top view, the stacking box 1 being aligned vertically upwards with the receiving opening, i.e. Figure 1 The support element 7 is pivoted to the support position so that another stacking box 1 can be placed on top of it with its base 2 inverted. Figure 8 A view of an inverted stacking box 1 is shown from below (again driven only by gravity, with the support elements 7 in the position shown in FIG. Figure 8 ), so that the rotated stacking box 1 can be placed onto the stacking box 1 located underneath, which is also placed upside down, to form a nested and thus space-saving stack of empty stacking boxes 1.
[0051] It should be particularly clear at this point that the stacking box design shown in the figures and the configuration of its components are highly schematic and are shown as one possible example. Therefore, support elements are shown here, which are arranged only in the four corner areas of the rectangular outline of the stacking box. It is also conceivable that a strip-like arrangement extends, for example, along the narrow end edge or along the longitudinal edge or even around the entire edge. There are no restrictions for the person skilled in the art here, as long as the support element moves between the rest position and the support position, driven only by gravity by turning the stacking box 1 upside down or vertically, and in the support position, the support element supports another stacking box 1 with articles arranged therein and can safely bear the load.
Claims
1. A stacking box (1), comprising: Base (2); A wall (3) extending transversely and circumferentially in one direction from the base (2) and defining a receiving space (4) of the stacking box (1) together with the base (2); as well as a receiving opening (6) defined by an edge (5) of the wall (3) opposite to the base (2), A support element (7) is attached to the stacking box (1) and is movable back and forth between a rest position and a support position. wherein the support elements (7) are positioned in the support position such that they enable the storage area of the stacking box (1) and another stacking box (1) having the same structure to be placed on top of each other to form a stack of stacking boxes, wherein the support elements (7) are positioned in the rest position such that they enable a stacking box (1) and another identical stacking box (1) to be placed inside one another to form a nested stacking box, characterized in that The support element (7) is constructed and attached to the stacking box (1) so that when the stacking box is placed on the base with the base (2) in a horizontal direction of the base (2) and the receiving opening (6) is vertically upward, the support element (7) moves to the supporting position only in a gravity-driven manner, so that when the stacking box (1) is placed on the base on the edge (5) with the receiving opening (6) in a horizontal direction and the base (2) is vertically upward, the support element (7) moves to the static position only in a gravity-driven manner, Characterized in that the support element (7) is arranged in the region of an edge (5) of a wall (3) of the stacker (1) so as to be movable between the support position and the rest position, so that: The support element (7) in the support position protrudes into the region of the receiving opening (6), so that another identical stacking box (1) can be placed with its base (2) on the support element (7) in the rest position to form a stack of stacking boxes. And the supporting element (7) in the static position releases the area of the receiving opening (6) in such a way that a further structurally identical stacking box forms a nested stack of boxes, the base of the further structurally identical stacking box being first introduced into the receiving opening (6) and guided into the receiving space (4) of the stacking box (1).
2. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: A plate-shaped supporting element (7) is arranged to be pivotable at a wall (3) of the stacker (1) in the region of the receiving opening and / or in the region of the base (2).
3. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The support element (7) is arranged at the stacker (1) so as to be pivotable between the support position and the rest position via a hinge joint (8).
4. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The base (2) and the wall (3) are made of plastic.
5. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The support element (7) is formed from metal.
6. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The stacking box is configured to be mirror-symmetrical with respect to a first and a second center plane, which center planes are in each case orthogonal to the base (2) and perpendicular to each other.
7. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: The stacking box is formed by selecting a point-symmetric structure of a cross section extending parallel to a plane of the base, wherein the center of symmetry of each point-symmetry forms the center point of the cross-sectional profile.
8. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: Support members (9, 10) formed at the wall (3) and / or at the base (2) are used to support the support element (7) at the support position.
9. The stacking box (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that: A centering structure formed on the support element (7) and a corresponding structure formed on the stacking box (1) outside the support element (7), wherein the centering structure of the stacking boxes (1) of the same structure and the corresponding structure cooperate in the supported state to center the stacked stacking boxes (1) relative to the stacking boxes (1) located therebelow.
10. A transport and / or storage system comprising at least two stacking boxes (1) according to one of the preceding claims.