Flanged Dunnage Rail Assembly for Damage-Free Container Mounting
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional dunnage support assemblies for transportation and storage containers require different frame configurations and modifications to fit various container designs, leading to wear and damage at fixation points, and are time-consuming to reassemble due to damage or container changes.
Innovation Solution
A dunnage support assembly with flanges and elongated securement members that attach to the top edges of container sides, allowing for secure and adaptable installation without through-holes, and enabling sliding support rails for dunnage pouches.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Strength
If conventional dunnage support assemblies are secured to container side walls via through-holes and fasteners, then the assembly is firmly fixed to the container, but the through-holes become worn and damaged over time, rendering the pallet box unusable
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts the harmful through-holes from the container wall structure by using flanges that rest on the outer surface of the container walls. The support assembly is secured using fasteners that attach to the flanges without penetrating the container walls, thereby eliminating the source of wall damage while maintaining secure fixation.
Solution Approach 2:
The flanges serve as intermediary elements between the support assembly and the container walls. These flanges provide attachment points for fasteners while distributing mechanical stresses away from the container wall material, preventing wear and damage to the walls over time.
2Reliability
If the dunnage support assembly is designed to fit specific container rib configurations, then it secures properly to that container type, but different container designs require different support frame configurations and modifications
Solution Approach 1:
The support assembly is designed with flanges that can be positioned at various locations along the container walls and secured using fasteners attached to external container features such as ribs or protrusions. This universal design allows the same support assembly configuration to be adapted to different container types without requiring custom-designed frames for each container variant.
Solution Approach 2:
The assembly incorporates adjustable elements including movable flanges and reconfigurable support members that can be repositioned along the container walls. This dynamic adaptability allows the same basic assembly design to accommodate varying container dimensions, rib configurations, and wall thicknesses across different container types.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the dunnage frame assembly must be disassembled and remounted when transferring to a different container, then the assembly can be reused, but the process is time-consuming and requires cargo removal and repacking
Solution Approach 1:
The support assembly is divided into modular components including separate flanges, support members, and fastening elements that can be independently adjusted and reconfigured. This segmentation allows rapid repositioning and remounting of individual components when transferring between containers, eliminating the need to disassemble the entire assembly and significantly reducing reconfiguration time.
4Strength
If fasteners extend through the support strips and corner frame components to secure the assembly, then the assembly is firmly attached to the container, but the weight of the assembly and cargo is concentrated at the through-hole locations, causing wear and damage
Solution Approach 1:
The invention removes the harmful through-holes from the container wall structure by using flanges that rest on the outer surface of the container walls. The support assembly is secured using fasteners that attach to the flanges without penetrating the container walls, thereby eliminating the source of wall damage while maintaining secure fixation.
Solution Approach 2:
The flanges are pre-positioned on the container walls at optimal locations that distribute mechanical stresses across larger areas and leverage existing container structural features such as ribs and protrusions. This preliminary positioning of attachment points prevents concentration of loads at vulnerable through-hole locations before cargo is even loaded.
Data Source
AI summary
A dunnage support assembly for a transportation or storage container may include pair of panels each defining a flange at a top end thereof, the panels being configured to be received within a transportation or storage container with the flanges of the panels supported on and by respective, opposite side walls of the container, and means for coupling the flanges to the respective side walls. One or more transverse support rails are secured to the each panel and are configured to support a plurality of dunnage pouches therebetween and slidable relative thereto. In some embodiments the panels may be provided in the form of at least two panel strips each defining a respective flange at a top end thereof.