Mounting Plate for Transport Container Casters
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for mounting fixed, track, and swiveling casters on transport containers are prone to issues such as captive nuts coming loose or being pre-installed at an angle, leading to complex assembly and reduced load capacity.
Innovation Solution
A transport container with a bottom plate featuring evenly distributed holes and a mounting plate with internal and external threads for force-fitted or material-bonded insertion of means of attachment, replacing captive nuts and allowing for single-step installation of casters.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If captive nuts are pre-installed in holes of the bottom plate for mounting casters, then the casters can be affixed using screw connections, but the captive nuts may come loose, turn along with screws, or be pre-installed at an angle
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting plate is pre-assembled with the means of insertion (threaded fasteners) already fixed in position before being installed on the transport container. This preliminary assembly ensures that the threads are correctly positioned and cannot move or become misaligned during the caster mounting process, eliminating the problems of captive nuts coming loose or being installed at angles.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention combines the mounting plate, means of insertion (threaded fasteners), and caster mounting function into a single integrated assembly. The means of insertion are fixed in the mounting holes of the mounting plate, creating a unified structure that eliminates the need for separate captive nuts in the bottom plate, thereby preventing positioning errors and loosening.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple separate components (bottom plate with holes, mounting plate, means of insertion) are used for caster attachment, then flexibility in installation is provided, but the assembly process becomes complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting plate integrates multiple functions into a single component: it provides the mounting surface, contains the pre-fixed means of insertion (threaded fasteners), and serves as the interface for caster attachment. This merging of functions reduces the number of separate components and simplifies the assembly process to a single installation step, while maintaining adaptability through the standardized bottom plate interface.
Solution Approach 2:
The means of insertion are pre-installed and fixed in the mounting plate during manufacturing, creating a pre-assembled unit. This preliminary action transfers the complexity from the installation phase to the manufacturing phase, making the field installation simple and quick while maintaining design flexibility.
3Adaptability or versatility
If conventional mounting methods with separate components are used, then individual parts can be replaced or adjusted, but the load capacity and stability of the caster attachment is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The mounting plate creates a rigid, integrated structure where the means of insertion are firmly fixed in pre-formed holes. This unified construction distributes loads more effectively across the mounting plate and bottom plate interface, enhancing the overall load capacity and stability of the caster attachment compared to loose captive nut arrangements.
Data Source
AI summary
A transport container, featuring a bottom plate with at least two holes for accommodating means of attachment for affixing fixed, track, or swiveling casters, a plate (1) affixed from the inside to the bottom plate for affixing fixed, track, or swiveling casters on the bottom plate of the transport container. The mounting plate (1) features a base plate (2) with a contact surface (1a), which faces the inside of the transport container in its assembled state, for placement onto the transport container. At least two means of insertion (3) are evenly distributed along the perimeter of the base plate (2), which protrude with an insertion area (7) from the contact surface (1a) of the base plate (2) and which each respectively feature an internal thread (5) and/or an external thread for affixing of the fixed, track, and swiveling casters in or on the insertion area (7), wherein the means of insertion (3) are disposed in the holes of the bottom plate.