General-purpose pallet

Abstract

To provide a general-purpose pallet which can be easily and swiftly reassembled into a flat pallet, a pole rack type pallet and a box rack type pallet.SOLUTION: A general-purpose pallet comprises: pole standing passages 18 into which base end parts of poles 16 are inserted for standing the poles 16 at the four corners of a pallet stand 14; pole storage grooves 20 respectively formed in a horizontal direction as communicated passages from upper end parts of the pole standing passages 18 along the respective four sides of the pallet stand 14 and storing the poles 16 in a fallen state; inversion mechanisms 22 provided at the four corners of the pallet stand 14 and supporting the poles 16 at the pallet stand freely invertedly; a shroud storage passage 24 storing four shrouds 19 inside the pallet stand 14; and a detachable mechanism 26 engaging the shrouds 19 between the stood poles 16, respectively detachably.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a general-purpose pallet, and more particularly to a general-purpose pallet that can be used as a flat pallet, a pole rack type pallet, and a box rack type pallet. [Background technology]

[0002] Pallets are used to load and unload various items onto and from trucks and other transportation vehicles when transporting them. They are also used to store various items stacked on pallets in warehouses and other locations.

[0003] Conventional pallets generally use flat pallets formed with a flat, rectangular pallet base (see, for example, Patent Document 1). However, when loading goods whose upper surface is not flat, flat pallets cannot be stacked (for example, two or more layers), making them difficult to transport or store efficiently. For this reason, pole rack pallets (also called post pallets), which have poles (also called posts) erected at the four corners of the pallet base, are used (see, for example, Patent Document 2). Furthermore, flat pallets cannot be used when the objects to be loaded are not uniform in shape, size, etc., because it is difficult to load them without causing the objects to collapse. For this reason, box rack pallets are used, which are formed into a box shape by installing four shrouds around the periphery of the pallet base, and when the shrouds are made of mesh, they are called mesh pallets (for example, Patent Document 3). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-178355 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-14333 [Patent Document 3] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2023-37703 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] However, having three types of pallets - flat pallets, pole rack pallets, and box rack pallets - on hand to transport and store various types of goods not only increases costs, but also poses the problem of having to reserve a large space to store the pallets. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a general-purpose pallet that can be easily and quickly converted into a flat pallet, a pole rack type pallet, or a box rack type pallet depending on the various types of goods to be loaded. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to achieve the object, the general-purpose pallet of the present invention is a general-purpose pallet that can be used as a flat pallet formed of a flat, rectangular pallet base having a floor surface on which goods are loaded and fork claw insertion paths into which the claws of a forklift are inserted, a pole rack type pallet with poles erected at the four corners of the pallet base, and a box rack type pallet formed into a box shape by erecting four shrouds on the periphery of the pallet base, and has pole erection paths formed vertically at the four corners of the pallet base and into which the base ends of the poles are inserted to erect the poles, and The pallet base is characterized by having a pole storage groove formed horizontally as a path connecting from the upper end of the pole erection path along each of the four sides of the pallet base, in which the poles are stored in a tilted state; an inversion mechanism provided at each of the four corners of the pallet base for supporting the poles on the pallet base so that they can be inverted between the pole erection path and the pole storage groove; a shroud storage path with an insertion port formed on the side of the pallet base for storing four shrouds within the pallet base; and an attachment / detachment mechanism for attaching and detaching the four shrouds between the poles erected at each of the four corners of the pallet base. Here, the vertical direction and the horizontal direction refer to the directions when the pallet stand is placed on a flat surface.

[0007] According to the present invention, pole erection paths for erecting poles are formed at the four corners of the pallet base, pole storage grooves for storing poles in a tilted state are formed along each of the four sides of the pallet base, and the poles are supported on the pallet base so that they can be freely inverted between the pole erection paths and the pole storage grooves by inversion mechanisms provided at the four corners of the pallet base. This allows the pallet to be used as a flat pallet when the poles are stored in the pole storage grooves, and as a pole rack pallet when the poles are inserted into the pole erection paths. Furthermore, simply by erecting the poles stored in the pole storage grooves using the inversion mechanism, the base ends of the poles are automatically inserted into the pole erection paths and erected, allowing for quick and easy conversion from a flat pallet to a pole rack pallet. Conversely, conversion from a pole rack pallet to a flat pallet is also quick and easy.

[0008] Furthermore, since the pole is supported by an inverted mechanism on the pallet base, the pole will not get lost.

[0009] In addition, a shroud storage passage is formed on the side of the pallet base to store four shrouds inside the pallet base, and an attachment / detachment mechanism is used to attach and detach each of the four shrouds between the four erected poles.This allows a pole rack type pallet to be easily and quickly converted into a box rack type pallet.Conversely, a box rack type pallet can be easily and quickly converted into a pole rack type pallet. Furthermore, since the four shrouds are stored in advance inside the pallet base, rearrangement can be further speeded up and the shrouds will not get lost.

[0010] In one aspect of the present invention, the inversion mechanism preferably comprises: a pole erection path member having a U-shaped cross section that forms a pole erection path and has no side surfaces in the direction in which the pole falls; a pair of inverted L-shaped inversion guide long holes formed opposite opposite sides of the pole erection path member, each consisting of a vertical long hole drilled in the vertical direction for erecting the pole and a short horizontal long hole drilled horizontally in the pole storage groove, continuing from the upper end of the vertical long hole; and a slide rod whose both ends that penetrate horizontally through the base end of the pole are hung between the pair of inversion guide long holes and can slide freely along the inversion guide long holes in conjunction with the inversion of the pole.

[0011] In this way, when the inverting mechanism is constructed by hanging a slide rod that penetrates the pole horizontally between two inverting guide slots, the inverting guide slots are configured with a vertical slot and a short horizontal slot that continues from the upper end of the vertical slot toward the pole storage groove. In this case, if only the vertical slot was used, the bottom of the pole would interfere with the pole installation member when inverting the pole, preventing smooth inverting of the pole. On the other hand, the horizontal elongated hole of the present invention provides an escape route when the bottom of the pole interferes with the pole storage groove member, allowing the pole to be inverted smoothly.

[0012] In one aspect of the present invention, it is preferable that the through hole that penetrates horizontally through the base end of the pole is formed to correspond to the vertical long hole of the inverted guide long hole and is formed as a vertical equipment auxiliary long hole that is shorter than the vertical long hole.

[0013] This allows play in the slide rod when the pole is turned upside down, allowing the pole to turn upside down even more smoothly.

[0014] In one aspect of the present invention, a recess is preferably formed on the underside of the pole, and a protrusion that detachably fits into the recess is preferably formed on the bottom surface of the pole erection path, thereby enabling the pole to be erected firmly and without wobbling when erected in the pole erection path. In one aspect of the present invention, the size relationship between the pole and the pole storage groove is preferably formed so that the pole is flush with the floor surface of the pallet base when stored in the pole storage groove. This allows the entire top surface of the pallet base to be used as a loading space for goods when used as a flat pallet, improving loading efficiency.

[0015] In one aspect of the present invention, the attachment / detachment mechanism is preferably an engagement means in which a hook is provided on one of the pole and the shroud and a hook hole is provided on the other, and the hook engages with the hook hole. This allows the shroud to be easily and quickly attached and detached between the poles simply by engaging the pole and the shroud with the engagement means. In one embodiment of the present invention, the shroud storage passages for inserting four shrouds are preferably formed in orthogonal directions on the pallet platform, and the pair of shroud storage passages have steps with different bottom heights. This allows shrouds to be inserted smoothly from each shroud storage passage in orthogonal directions without interfering with each other at the center of the orthogonal direction. Furthermore, storing shrouds in orthogonal directions makes it less likely that the balance of the pallet platform will be unbalanced. In this case, the height of the steps should be such that two shrouds can be inserted into one shroud storage passage and two shrouds can be inserted into the other shroud storage passage without interference. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] The general-purpose pallet of the present invention can be easily and quickly converted into a flat pallet, a pole rack type pallet, or a box rack type pallet depending on the type of goods to be loaded. Therefore, there is no need to stock three types of pallets in advance: flat pallets, pole rack pallets, and box rack pallets, which not only reduces costs but also eliminates the need for a large space to store the pallets. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0017] [Figure 1]FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing the entirety of a general-purpose pallet according to an embodiment of the present invention, when used as a flat pallet 10A. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the upper frame, mainly illustrating the structure of the pole storage groove in which the pole is stored. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an intermediate layer frame, mainly illustrating the structure of a shroud storage passage for storing shrouds. [Figure 4] A perspective view of the lower frame, mainly explaining the structure of the fork claw insertion passage where the claws of a forklift are inserted. [Figure 5] An explanatory diagram of the inversion mechanism that turns the pole upside down [Figure 6] An explanatory diagram mainly explaining the structure of the pole and slide bar. [Figure 7] A perspective view of a flat pallet reassembled into a pole rack type pallet by erecting four poles. [Figure 8] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a shroud and hooks provided on the shroud. [Figure 9] A perspective view of a pole rack type pallet reassembled into a box rack type pallet DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] A preferred embodiment of the general-purpose pallet of the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The present invention will be described in terms of the following preferred embodiments. Therefore, the general-purpose palette of the embodiment of the present invention described below is merely an example, and many modifications can be made and other embodiments can be used without departing from the scope of the present invention. Therefore, all modifications within the scope of the present invention are included in the scope of the claims.

[0019] [General Palette Configuration] The general-purpose pallet 10 of the embodiment of the present invention is formed as a general-purpose pallet by combining a flat pallet 10A formed as a flat, rectangular pallet base 14 having a floor plate 30 for loading items (not shown) and fork claw insertion passages 12 into which two claws (not shown) of a forklift (not shown) are inserted, a pole rack type pallet 10B having poles 16 erected at the four corners of the pallet base 14, and a box rack type pallet 10C formed into a box shape with four shrouds 19 erected around the periphery of the pallet base 14. Furthermore, since the general-purpose pallet 10 of the embodiment of the present invention is described using steel as an example of the material, the fastening, connection, and attachment of the components to each other will not be specifically described, but will be performed by welding. Note that any method that allows fastening, connection, and attachment is acceptable, and is not limited to welding; screws, or a combination of welding and screws, etc., may also be used.

[0020] As shown in Figure 1, the general-purpose pallet 10 of an embodiment of the present invention is mainly composed of pole erection paths 18 (see Figure 5) for erecting poles 16 vertically at the four corners of the pallet base 14 when converting a flat pallet 10A into a pole rack type pallet 10B, pole storage grooves 20 for storing the poles 16 in a horizontal position, an inversion mechanism 22 for supporting the poles 16 on the pallet base 14 so that they can be inverted, a shroud storage path 24 for removing and storing shrouds 19 from inside the pallet base 14 when converting the pole rack type pallet 10B into a box rack type pallet 10C, and an attachment / detachment mechanism 26 (see Figures 6 to 9) for attaching and detaching shrouds 19 between the poles 16. Figure 1 is an oblique view showing the entire general-purpose pallet 10 of an embodiment of the present invention, when it is used as a flat pallet 10A, and the four shrouds 19 are inserted into the shroud storage passage 24 as shown by the imaginary line M and stored inside the pallet base 14 when used. In the general-purpose pallet 10 of this embodiment, to make it easier to explain the structure of the pallet base 14 for assembling between flat pallet 10A, pole rack type pallet 10B, and box rack type pallet 10C, the pallet base 14 will be described as having a three-layer structure: an upper frame 14A having pole storage grooves 20 for storing poles 16, a middle frame 14B having shroud storage passages 24 for storing shrouds 19, and a lower frame 14C having fork claw insertion passages 12 for inserting the claws of a forklift. However, the pallet base 14 is not limited to the above three-layer structure, and other structures can be adopted as long as they do not deviate from the scope of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the upper frame 14A, mainly illustrating the structure of the pole storage groove 20 in which the pole 16 is stored. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the middle frame 14B, mainly illustrating the structure of the shroud storage passage 24 in which the shroud 19 is stored. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the lower frame 14C, mainly illustrating the structure of the fork claw insertion passage 12 into which the claws of a forklift are inserted.

[0021] (Upper frame) As shown in Fig. 2, the upper frame 14A constituting the pallet platform 14 has four pole storage groove members 28 that form pole storage grooves 20 that store poles 16, arranged in a rectangular cylindrical shape to the size of the loading surface for loading items on the pallet platform 14. The four pole storage groove members 28 are then connected by a cross-shaped connecting plate 29, and a floor plate 30 is laid and fixed on top of them as shown by arrow S (see Fig. 1). However, as shown in Fig. 2, the floor plate 30 has a shape that leaves unobstructed pole storage groove portions 20A corresponding to the four pole storage grooves 20 and first slit portions 32A corresponding to the four first slits 32 required when attaching the inverting mechanism 22. Furthermore, the height of the pole storage groove member 28 is formed so that it is the same as one side of the regular quadrilateral of the pole 16, which is a regular square prism, when the pole 16 is laid horizontally and stored in the pole storage groove 20. This makes the surface of the floor board 30 flush with the surface of the pole 16 when stored in the pole storage groove 20, so when the general-purpose pallet 10 of this embodiment is used as a flat pallet 10A, the entire top surface of the pallet base 14 can be widely used as loading surface space.

[0022] Furthermore, an inverted L-shaped notch 34 is formed in each of the four pole storage groove members 28, which is necessary for the inversion mechanism 22 to be attached and function. The necessity of the notch 34 will be explained when the inversion mechanism 22 is explained. It is also possible to omit the connecting plate 29 if there is no problem in terms of strength by simply connecting the four pole storage groove members 28 with the floor plate 30. Also, although the four pole storage grooves 20 are formed counterclockwise when viewed from the tilting direction of the pole 16, they may also be formed clockwise.

[0023] (Intermediate layer frame) As shown in FIG. 3 , the middle layer frame 14B constituting the pallet platform 14 has the same loading surface size as the upper layer frame 14A and is box-shaped with a lattice framework. That is, the middle layer frame 14B has four frame-shaped side panels 36 that form the four sides of a rectangle. An upper lattice panel 38 is connected to the top surface of the frame-shaped side panels 36, and a lower lattice panel 40 is connected to the bottom surface of the frame-shaped side panels 36, forming a box shape. In this embodiment, the upper lattice panel 38 and the lower lattice panel 40 are illustrated as being formed into a lattice shape by two horizontal panels 38A, 40A and two vertical panels 38B, 40B, but this is not limiting. Furthermore, the frame-shaped side panels 36 are provided with two vertical panels 36A that connect the horizontal panels 38A, 40A of the upper lattice panel 38 and the lower lattice panel 40 to each other and to each other. The spacing between the two vertical panels 36A is sufficient to accommodate the shroud 19. As a result, a shroud storage passage 24 for storing shroud plates 19 is formed in the intermediate layer frame 14B. The shroud storage passage 24 formed in the vertical direction in Fig. 3 will be referred to as shroud storage passage 24A, and the shroud storage passage 24 formed in the horizontal direction will be referred to as shroud storage passage 24B. The shroud storage passage 24 can also be configured so that four shrouds 19 can be stacked and stored in either the shroud storage passage 24A or the shroud storage passage 24B. However, as in this embodiment, the shroud storage passage 24 into which the four shrouds 19 are inserted is preferably formed in a direction perpendicular to the intermediate layer frame 14B, and the two shroud storage passages 24A, 24B formed have steps with different bottom heights. In Figure 3, a step-forming member 42 is provided to form a step in the shroud storage passage 24A.

[0024] By forming a step in the two shroud storage passages 24A, 24B, shrouds 19 can be inserted orthogonally from each shroud storage passage 24 without interference problems such as the shrouds 19 interfering with each other at the center of the orthogonal axis, allowing for smooth insertion. Storing the shrouds 19 orthogonally in this way makes it less likely that the balance of the pallet table 14 will become unbalanced. Therefore, the height of the step is set to a level that prevents interference when two shrouds 19 are inserted into one shroud storage passage 24A and two shrouds are inserted into the other shroud storage passage 24B. In addition, four second slits 44 are formed in the four side panels 36 of the middle layer frame 14B in locations required for attaching the inversion mechanism 22, and the second slits 44 are also formed so as to be continuous with the first slits 32 of the upper layer frame 14A. When the pole 16 is stored in the pole storage groove 20, the lattice-shaped upper plate 38 serves as the bottom plate of the pole storage groove 20, and the pole 16 stored in the pole storage groove 20 is maintained in a horizontal position.

[0025] (Lower frame) As shown in Figure 4, the lower frame 14C that constitutes the pallet platform 14 is formed with the same loading surface size as the upper frame 14A and the middle frame 14B. The lower frame 14C has two opposing thick square bars 46 connected by three upper plates 48 and three lower plates 50, and two reinforcing plates 52 parallel to the two square bars 46 are interposed between the three upper plates 48 and the three lower plates 50. Fork claw insertion passages 12, into which the claws of a forklift are inserted, are formed between the square bars 46 and the reinforcing plates 52. In addition, four third slits 54 are formed at the four corners of the upper surface plate of the lower frame 14C, which are necessary when attaching the inversion mechanism 22, and are formed so as to be continuous with the first slit 32 and second slit 44 of the upper frame 14A. The pallet base 14 is formed by stacking and connecting the upper frame 14A, the middle frame 14B, and the lower frame 14C having the above-described structure.

[0026] (Inverted mechanism) Next, the inverting mechanism 22 for inverting the pole 16 between the pole erecting path 18 and the pole storage groove 20 will be described with reference to FIGS. Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram mainly explaining the inversion mechanism 22, and Fig. 6 is an explanatory diagram mainly explaining the structure of the poles 16 and slide rods 60. Fig. 7 is a perspective view of the flat pallet 10A rearranged into a pole rack type pallet 10B by erecting four poles 16. Note that the detailed structure of the pallet base 14 is omitted in Fig. 5.

[0027] As shown in Figures 5 to 7, the inversion mechanism 22 is mainly composed of a pole erection path member 56 that forms the pole erection path 18, a pair of inverted L-shaped inversion guide elongated holes 58 formed in the pole erection path member 56, and a slide rod 60 that can slide freely along the pair of inversion guide elongated holes 58. As shown in Figure 5, the pole erection road member 56 is formed in a U-shaped cross section with no side surfaces in the direction in which the pole 16 falls. As shown by arrow N, it is attached and fixed to the four corners of the pallet base 14. In this attachment, one of the opposing sides of the U-shaped pole erection road member 56 is attached to the four corners of the pallet base 14 by being inserted into the first slit 32 (see Figure 2) of the upper frame 14A, the second slit 44 (see Figure 3) of the middle frame 14B, and the third slit 54 (see Figure 3) of the lower frame 14C. The pair of inverted guide slots 58 are formed facing each other on opposite side surfaces of the pole installation path member 56, and are composed of a vertical slot 58A drilled in the direction of inserting (installing) the pole 16 and a short horizontal slot 58B continuing from the upper end of the vertical slot 58A and extending in the direction (horizontal direction) of the pole storage groove 20. As a result, the inverted guide slot 58 is formed in an inverted L shape.

[0028] 5 and 6, the slide bar 60 passes horizontally through the base end of the pole 16, and both ends thereof are hung between a pair of inverted guide slots 58 formed on opposing sides of the pole installation path member 56. This allows the slide bar 60 to be supported so that it can slide freely along the inverted guide slots 58. Disk-shaped portions 60A are formed on both ends of the slide bar 60, which support the slide bar 60 so that it does not come off the two inverted guide slots 58. In the inverting mechanism 22 configured as described above, in order to lay the pole 16 horizontally to store it in the pole storage groove member 28, the upper end portion of the vertical slot 58A of the inverted guide slot 58 needs to be formed to a position partway through the pole storage groove member 28. Therefore, the inverted L-shaped notch 34 formed in the pole storage groove member 28 described in Fig. 2 is formed so as to overlap the upper end portion of the inverted guide slot 58. This prevents the pole storage groove member 28 from interfering with the sliding of the slide bar 60.

[0029] (Action of the inverted mechanism) Next, the function of the slide rod 60 and the inversion guide slot 58 when the pole 16 is inverted by the inversion mechanism 22 configured as described above will be described. <In the case of erecting a pole> 5, when the pole 16, indicated by the imaginary line (two-dot chain line), is stored in the pole storage groove 20, the slide rod 60 is located at the end of the horizontal slot 58B of the inverted guide slot 58. In this state, if the tip of the pole 16 is grasped and rotated in the direction from P to Q of the arrow R, the bottom of the pole 16 and the pole installation member 56 interfere with each other, and the force of this interference causes the slide rod 60 to automatically slide to the top end of the vertical slot 58A of the inverted guide slot 58 (from the Z position to the Y position of the arrow). Next, the pole 16 is moved downward (in the direction from Y to X of the arrow T) to insert the base end of the pole 16 into the pole installation path 18. In conjunction with the downward movement of the pole 16, the slide rod 60 is guided by the vertical elongated hole 58A of the inverted guide elongated hole 58, and slides downward through the vertical elongated hole 58A together with the pole 16. Then, the slide rod 60 abuts against the lower end of the vertical elongated hole 58A, and the pole 16 is installed in the pole installation path 18. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the flat pallet 10A (the state shown in FIG. 1) can be easily and quickly reassembled into the pole rack type pallet 10B.

[0030] <When pole is stored> As shown in Fig. 5, when the pole 16 is installed in the pole installation path 18, the slide rod 60 is located at the lower end of the vertical slot 58A of the inverted guide slot 58. In this state, the pole 16 is moved upward (from the X direction to the Y direction of the arrow T) to pull the base end of the pole 16 out of the pole installation path 18. As a result, in conjunction with the upward movement of the pole 16, the slide rod 60 is guided by the vertical slot 58A of the inverted guide slot 58 and slides upward in the vertical slot 58A together with the pole 16. The slide rod 60 then comes into contact with the upper end of the inverted guide slot 58. Next, the pole 16 is rotated in the direction from Q to P of the arrow R and tilted down until it abuts against the lattice-shaped upper plate 38 of the middle layer frame 14B. As a result, the pole 16 is stored in the pole storage groove 20 in a horizontal position. In this case, when the pole 16 is tilted horizontally, just as when the pole 16 is erected, the bottom of the pole 16 and the pole erection path member 56 interfere with each other, and the force of this interference causes the slide rod 60 to automatically move slightly horizontally, guided by the horizontal elongated hole 58B of the inverted guide elongated hole 58. This horizontal movement prevents the bottom of the pole 16 from interfering with the pole erection path member 56, making it difficult to tilt the pole 16. In this way, the horizontal elongated hole 58B of the elongated hole 58 for inverting guide serves as an escape route to prevent interference between the bottom of the pole 16 and the pole erection path member 56 during the inverting operation of the pole 16, allowing the pole 16 to be inverted smoothly.

[0031] 6, it is more preferable that the through-hole penetrating the base end of the pole 16 in the horizontal direction be formed to correspond to the vertical slot 58A of the inversion guide slot 58 and be formed as an auxiliary elongated vertical slot 16A that is shorter than the inversion guide slot 58. This creates play (degree of freedom) between the pole 16 and the slide rod 60, making it even easier to avoid the above-mentioned interference. In the inverted operation of the pole 16 described above, the pole erection path member 56 has a U-shaped cross section and one side is open, but the pole 16 erected in the pole erection path 18 is supported by the pole erection path member 56 due to the relationship between the slide rod 60 and the long hole 58 for the inverted guide, and will not fall over to the open side. However, it is more preferable to form a recess 16B on the bottom surface of the pole 16 and form a protrusion 16C on the bottom surface of the pole erection path 18 that detachably fits into the recess 16B, as shown in Fig. 6. In this embodiment, the location of the protrusion 16C formed on the bottom surface of the pole erection path 18 is designed so that the upper surface of the lower frame 14C becomes the bottom surface of the pole erection path 18, as shown in Fig. 4, and the protrusions 16C are formed on the upper surfaces of the four corners of the lower frame 14C. However, this is not limited to this, and for example, insertion holes (not shown) into which the pole 16 is further inserted can be formed in the four corners of the lower frame 14C, and the protrusions 16C can be formed at the bottom of the insertion holes.

[0032] In this embodiment, the recesses 16B and protrusions 16C have a triangular mountain-like shape in vertical cross section, but the shape is not limited to this and may be any shape that allows the poles 16 to be reliably erected without wobbling and that is also detachable. As a result, when the poles 16 are erected in the pole erection path 18, the recesses 16B on the bottom surface of the poles 16 fit into the protrusions 16C, allowing the poles 16 to be erected firmly. Therefore, the poles 16 do not wobble even when the pole rack type pallets 10B are stacked two or three levels high. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 6, a quadrangular pyramidal protrusion 16D is formed at the tip of the pole 16, and as shown in Fig. 4, quadrangular pyramidal recesses 16E (see Fig. 4) corresponding to the protrusions 16D are formed on the underside of the four corners of the lower frame 14C. This ensures that the upper pallet stand 14 will not come off the pole 16 even when the pole rack type pallets 10B are stacked two or three levels high, allowing for reliable stacking.

[0033] (detachable mechanism) Next, the attachment / detachment mechanism 26 for detachably attaching the shroud 19 between the poles 16 will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, the detachable mechanism 26 is configured such that a hook 26A is provided on one of the pole 16 and the shroud 19 and a hook hole 26B is provided on the other, and an engaging means is used in which the hook 26A and the hook hole 26B are detachably engaged with each other. In this embodiment, the hook hole 26B is formed in the pole 16 and the hook 26A is formed in the shroud 19, but it is also possible to form the hook 26A on the pole 16 and the hook hole 26B on the shroud 19.

[0034] However, the attachment / detachment mechanism 26 is not limited to an engagement means such as the hooks 26A and the hook holes 26B, and any means may be used as long as it can easily and quickly attach and detach the four shrouds 19 between the four erected poles 16. For example, the hooks 26A and the hook holes 26B can be attached and detached using magnets, or by one-touch joints used in piping, etc.

[0035] Figures 5 and 6 explain the hook holes 26B of the engagement means used as the attachment / detachment mechanism 26 in this embodiment, and Figure 8 explains the shroud 19 and the hooks 26A provided on the shroud 19. Also, Figure 9 is a perspective view of the pole rack type pallet 10B rearranged into the box rack type pallet 10C. Note that the shroud 19 in this embodiment is explained as an example of a fence-shaped shroud with multiple vertical bars 19B (seven in this embodiment) arranged at equal intervals on a rectangular frame 19A. However, it is not limited to this fence shape, and any shape can be used as long as it can form an enclosure around the periphery of the pallet base 14, such as a mesh shape or a lattice shape. As shown in Fig. 5, when the pole 16 is erected, a pair of hook holes 26B are formed at the upper and lower positions of the pole protruding portion of the pole 16 that protrudes upward from the pole erection path 18. Also, as shown in Fig. 8, a pair of hooks 26A corresponding to the pair of hook holes 26B are formed at the upper and lower positions of both left and right ends of the shroud 19.

[0036] In the attachment / detachment mechanism 26 configured as described above, as shown in Figure 9, four shrouds 19 are placed between four poles 16, and a pair of hooks 26A formed on both the left and right ends of the shroud 19 are hooked (engaged) into hook holes 26B formed in the poles 16. With just this action, the pole rack type pallet 10B can be easily and quickly converted into a box rack type pallet 10C. The general-purpose pallet 10 of the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to being made of iron; materials such as hard plastic and wood are also within the scope of the invention as long as they meet the required strength. While the pole 16 has been described as being a long, square prism, other materials such as a cylindrical rod can also be used. While the above description describes a method in which each component is manufactured separately and then fixed, connected, and attached by welding, components that can be molded as a single unit may also be molded as a single unit. [Explanation of symbols]

[0037] 10...general-purpose pallet, 10A...flat pallet, 10B...pole rack type pallet, 10C...box rack type pallet, 12...fork claw insertion path, 14...pallet base, 14A...upper layer frame, 14B...middle layer frame, 14C...lower layer frame, 16...pole, 16A...standing auxiliary elongated hole, 16B...recess, 16C...convex portion, 16D...protrusion, 16E...recess, 18...pole erection path, 19...enclosure, 19A...frame frame, 19B...vertical rod, 20...pole storage groove, 22...inverting mechanism, 24...enclosure storage path, 26...attachment / detachment mechanism, 26A...hook, 26B...hook hole , 28...pole storage groove member, 29...connecting plate, 30...floor plate, 32...first slit, 34...notch, 36...side plate, 38...lattice-shaped upper plate, 38A...horizontal plate, 38B...vertical plate, 40...lattice-shaped lower plate, 40A...horizontal plate, 40B...vertical plate, 42...step forming member, 44...second slit, 46...square bar, 48...upper surface plate, 50...lower surface plate, 52...reinforcing plate, 54...third slit, 56...pole erection path member, 58...inverted guide elongated hole, 58A...vertical elongated hole, 58B...horizontal elongated hole, 60...slide bar, 60A...disk-shaped portion, M...arrow, S...arrow, T...arrow, R...arrow, N...arrow

Claims

1. A general-purpose pallet that can be used in a variety of ways: a flat pallet formed of a flat, rectangular pallet base having a floor surface on which goods are loaded and fork claw insertion paths into which the claws of a forklift are inserted; a pole rack type pallet having poles erected at the four corners of the pallet base; and a box rack type pallet formed into a box shape by erecting four shrouds around the periphery of the pallet base, a pole erection passage formed vertically at each of four corners of the pallet base, into which a base end of the pole is inserted in order to erect the pole; pole storage grooves formed horizontally as paths communicating from the upper end of the pole erection path along each of the four sides of the pallet base, in which the poles are stored in a fallen state; an inverting mechanism provided at each of the four corners of the pallet base, for supporting the pole on the pallet base in an invertible manner between the pole erection path and the pole storage groove; a shroud storage passage having an insertion opening formed on a side surface of the pallet base for storing the four shrouds within the pallet base; a detachment mechanism for attaching and detaching each of the four shrouds between the poles erected at the four corners of the pallet base.

2. The inverting mechanism includes: A pole erection path member that forms the pole erection path and has a U-shaped cross section and does not have a side surface in the direction in which the pole falls; a pair of inverted L-shaped elongated holes for inverted guides, each formed on a side surface of the pole installation path member facing each other and consisting of a vertical elongated hole drilled in the vertical direction for erecting the pole and a short horizontal elongated hole drilled continuously from the upper end of the vertical elongated hole in the horizontal direction of the pole storage groove; A general-purpose pallet as described in claim 1, comprising a slide rod whose both ends horizontally penetrate the base end of the pole and are hung between the pair of inverted guide long holes, and which can slide freely along the inverted guide long holes in conjunction with the inversion of the pole.

3. A general-purpose pallet as described in claim 2, wherein the through hole that penetrates horizontally through the base end of the pole is formed to correspond to the vertical long hole of the inverted guide long hole and is formed as an upright auxiliary long hole that is shorter than the vertical long hole.

4. A general-purpose pallet as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein a recess is formed on the underside of the pole and a convex portion is formed on the bottom surface of the pole installation path that can be freely attached and detached to fit into the recess.

5. A general-purpose pallet as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the size relationship between the pole and the pole storage groove is formed so that the pole is flush with the floor surface of the pallet base when stored in the pole storage groove.

6. The attachment / detachment mechanism includes:

4. A general-purpose pallet according to claim 1, wherein hooks are provided on one of the poles and the shroud, and hook holes are provided on the other, and the hooks and the hook holes are engaging means for engaging with each other.

7. A general-purpose pallet as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the shroud storage passages for inserting the four shrouds are formed in perpendicular directions to the pallet base, and the pair of shroud storage passages formed have steps with different bottom heights of the storage passages.

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