DE9415866U1 - Two-part folding container - Google Patents

Description

Company Lin Pac Friedrich GmbH, Gildestraße, 48455 Bad Bentheim

"Two-part folding container"

The innovation relates to a foldable container according to the preamble of claim 1.

Such containers are also known as folding boxes and are widely known in practice. They serve as reusable packaging or transport containers, which are used, for example, for transporting goods from the manufacturer, possibly via an intermediate storage facility, to the seller. When returned, such containers, when folded up, only take up a fraction of the volume they take up when unfolded.

The innovation is based on the task of improving a generic container so that it is not only particularly suitable for transporting goods, but also for offering the goods.

This problem underlying the innovation is solved by the embodiment according to the characterizing part of claim 1.

In other words, the innovation proposes to make the container in two parts using two identical parts, so that when one of these two parts is removed, half of the packaging protecting the goods is removed, allowing easy access to the goods and a good presentation of the goods. In this way, it is possible to

Packaging should not only be used for transport purposes, but also as a display stand to offer the goods to the end customer.

The creation of identical parts enables low manufacturing costs and makes handling easier for the user.

Locking means can advantageously be provided which ensure a firm connection between the two identical parts for the time during which the container is closed as a transport container.

Advantageously, the dividing plane of the container can run approximately diagonally through the container, i.e. approximately diagonally through the two end faces of the container, so that after removing one part of the container, the goods remaining in the remaining part of the container are on the one hand still well supported and held, but on the other hand are also clearly visible and can be easily removed.

Where the two end wall sections meet in such a diagonal division of the end walls, they can advantageously be interlocked with one another. In this way, on the one hand, a good hold of the two container parts is supported and, on the other hand, pressure from the outside prevents the side walls, which are designed to be foldable, from being pushed in, so that unauthorized access to a container that is otherwise closed is prevented, which could otherwise be achieved by pushing in the end walls along their dividing edge.

Advantageously, each of the two parts can be made from a single piece of plastic, whereby the folding function of the side walls can be ensured by film hinges. In this way, a particularly cost-effective production of the container is possible.

In such a production, which provides film hinges between the base and the side walls, support strips can be provided between the base and the adjacent side walls, which are also folded over with the help of film hinges during the manufacture of the container immediately after the base part has been produced and are firmly locked to the base or the side walls. This locking mechanism is never released when the container is later used. The actual folding function is carried out via the second film hinge, which is adjacent to the support strip. The support strip enables the side walls to be arranged in a way that supports themselves on the base. This ensures that even when several containers are stacked on top of one another or when the side walls are subjected to other greater stresses, these stresses do not have to be absorbed exclusively by the film hinge, so that the durability of the container is significantly improved.

In practice, the containers are usually stacked in several layers. Therefore, it can be advantageous to provide projections underneath the base, which interact with similar projections on the identically designed lid of a similar container and, when similar containers are stacked on top of one another, create a

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ensure the container column produced in this way is stable. Instead of projections, or in addition to them, recesses can also be provided so that overall a secure interlocking of stacked, filled containers is ensured.

The interlocking can advantageously prevent displacement of adjacent containers both in the transverse and longitudinal directions of the containers in order to enable the container column to be particularly stable.

Furthermore, a plurality of parallel strips can be provided on the underside of the base, which run either in the longitudinal direction or transversely thereto and which are arranged at a distance from one another in such a way that the desired interlocking can be achieved when stacking several containers using the lid of a similar container.

The design of the projections as parallel strips basically enables two containers stacked on top of each other to be moved in the longitudinal direction of these strips. It is therefore advantageous to arrange cross strips that prevent this kind of movement.

Furthermore, projections can be provided which, when the container part is folded up, immovably fix another container part stacked on top of it, also folded up. Such projections can, for example, be connected to the base and engage in recesses which, when the container is folded up, are formed by recesses in the side walls.

protrude upwards and interact with corresponding receiving pockets or contact edges of the container part to be stacked above, which is also folded.

An example of the innovation is explained in more detail below using the drawings.

Fig. 1 a container in which the two parts in the vertical direction of movement

are separated from each other,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view similar to Fig. ₅ in which the two parts of the container are separated from each other in horizontal movement, Fig. 3 is a container in which the two

individual parts are folded together and stacked on top of each other,

Fig. 4 a plan view of a one-piece component for the production

a part of a container in accordance with the innovation,

Fig. 5 a section through the component along the line V - V in Fig. 4, with a modification,

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of a detail of the component, enlarged compared to Fig. 4 and 5 and

Fig. 7 a perspective view of the

area between the floor and the rear wall, with some parts broken away.

In Fig. 1, 1 generally designates a container.

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net, which is made up of two identical parts 2. Each of the two parts 2 forms a base 3 which acts as a lid for the upper part 2, as well as a longitudinal wall 4 and parts of an end wall 5, with the dividing line running approximately diagonally through the container 1, along which the two parts 2 abut one another.

From Fig. 1 it can also be seen that on each of the end wall parts there is provided both a locking means in the form of a bracket 6 and a receiving element in the form of a projection 7, which interacts with the locking element, namely the bracket 6 of the other part 2, in order to be able to connect the two parts 2 to form a common, closed container.

Not shown are toothing means that can be provided in the contact area of the two end wall parts 5, whereby, for example, a pit or a depression can be formed in one of the two contact edges, to which a projection of the contact edge of the other end wall part 5 can be assigned, so that overall along their contact edge the two parts 5 are toothed together and it is impossible to press in the end wall 5 from the outside.

Furthermore, in addition to the illustrated connecting means&eegr; of the two parts 2, a closure element in the form of a lock, a seal or the like can be provided so that the container 1 can only be opened by authorized persons.

In Fig. 1 it is indicated that the two parts 2 of the

Container 1 can be separated from one another after the brackets 6 have been opened by lifting the upper part 2 vertically upwards. In the remaining lower part 2, the goods are held securely by the remaining end walls 5 which rise diagonally towards the rear. At the same time, however, they are also easily recognizable for customers and can be easily removed, so that the lower part 2 can be used not only as part of a packaging and transport container, but also as a display from which the goods can be sold.

In Fig. 2, in a perspective view similar to Fig. 1, it is shown that the goods can be easily and in an orderly manner removed from the container 1 by, for example, pushing a slider 8 down along the rear wall of the container, i.e. along the longitudinal wall 4 of the lower part 2, to the bottom. The upper part 2 can then be pushed forwards with the help of the slider 8, together with all the goods, or, if the slider 8 is held in place, the lower part 2 can be pulled backwards. In both cases, the entire goods are separated from the lower part 2 of the container in their original arrangement in the container 1. Finally, the upper part 2 can be removed in a simple manner like a hood, so that all the goods are removed from the container 1 without each individual object having to be removed from the container individually if there are a large number of individual objects.

In Fig. 3, the container 1 is shown in a folded state, whereby for this purpose both

individual parts 2 can be folded together and stacked on top of each other. In this state, the container takes up about a quarter of the original container height, so that a total space saving of about 75 % can be achieved for the return transport of the empty container.

In particular, it can be seen from Fig. 3 that projections 9 are provided on the container base, each of which is provided in the corner of the base 3 and extends upwards in a column-like manner relative to the base. Each projection 9 forms a narrow nose 10 at its upper end.

At two opposite corners of the base 3, angled webs 11 are provided, which rest against the lugs 10 of the lower part 2, whereby the angular design of the angled webs 11 prevents displacement of the two parts 2 in any direction.

From Fig. 3 it is also clear that in order to fold a part 2 together, first the two end wall parts 5 are each folded inwards onto the inner surface of the base 3 and that the longitudinal wall 4 is then folded over and placed on the two end wall parts 5.

Fig. 4 shows the overall view of the component which forms one of the two parts 2. The illustration in Fig. 4 is divided along a dot-dash line 12, where the right-hand part shows the view from the outside of the later container walls and the left half shows the view of the inner surfaces of these container walls.

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From Fig. 4 it can be seen that the end walls 5 are first connected to a support strip 15 via film hinges 14 and this in turn is connected to the floor 3 via a film hinge 16.

Similarly, the longitudinal wall 4 is not directly connected, but via a film hinge 17 to a support strip 18 and this in turn by means of a film hinge 19 to the floor 3.

The entire component shown in Fig. 4 can be manufactured in a plastic injection molding device in a single shot, so that a very inexpensive production of the individual parts 2 and thus of the entire container 1 is possible. During production, each of the support strips 15 and 18 is first firmly connected to the base 3 when the component shown in Fig. 4 is still hand-warm. This can be done by gluing or, depending on the type of plastic selected, by locking, whereby the locking elements can be designed in such a way that they allow locking through the plastic, which is still particularly flexible when hand-warm, but later represent a fixed connection that can no longer be removed without causing damage.

The support strips 15 and 18 serve to pull the side walls, namely the end walls 5 and the longitudinal wall 4, inwards relative to the outer contour of the base 3 and to hinge them to the base 3 in such a way that even under load the best possible force absorption is possible and the force does not have to be absorbed exclusively via the film hinges, so that in this way the service life of the

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container is considerably extended.

In Fig. 4 it can be seen that interacting locking means 20 are provided on the edges of the longitudinal wall and the end wall portions 5, so that these three side walls can be firmly connected to one another when they are folded up vertically to the floor 3.

From Fig. 4, a schematically indicated area 21 can also be seen in which elevations and depressions are formed on the underside of the base 3 or the top side of a lid, which enable a plurality of containers 1 stacked on top of one another to be fixed.

Furthermore, it can be seen from Fig. 4 that recesses are provided in the corner areas of the longitudinal wall 4, which create a free space for the projections 9 when the part 2 is folded together. The end wall parts 5 also create free spaces for these projections 9 by being designed so short that they only extend between two such projections 9.

In Fig. 5, a section through the component of Fig. 4 along the line V - V of Fig. 4 is shown, where the scale of the illustration in Fig. does not correspond to the scale of the illustration in Fig. 4. In addition, in contrast to Fig. 4, it is shown that the base 3 and the film hinge 19 extend directly to the support strip 18, while in Fig. 4 an additional strip is provided between the support strip 18 and the film hinge 19, which will be referred to later on the basis of

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Fig. 7 is discussed in more detail.

In Fig. 5, a projection 9 with its nose 10 is shown at the bottom. The section then runs through the support strip 15 and then through the base 3 through the area 21 to the edge area of the base 3, to which the film hinge 19, then the support strip 18, then the film hinge 17 and then the longitudinal wall 4 are connected.

Fig. 5 shows the entire component in the state immediately after production, whereby the component is changed into a ready-to-use part 2 by folding the support strip 18 anti-clockwise to the base 3 and securing it there using appropriate tools (not shown). Depending on the type of plastic, this can be a locking, gluing or similar.

Together with the support strip 18, the longitudinal wall 4 is pivoted anti-clockwise so that the longitudinal wall 4, as shown in Fig. 5, rests on the support strip 18 via a wide lower edge and this in turn rests on the floor 3. A load on the longitudinal wall 4 directed from above is therefore not absorbed by the film hinge 17, so that the film hinge 17 is subjected to a correspondingly low load and has a correspondingly long service life.

In Fig. 6, a section of the produced component is shown in perspective before the individual support strips 15 and 18 are folded over, i.e. a perspective view of a partial

range of the element already described in Fig. 4.

The area 21 can be seen, which extends over a large part of the floor 3, whereby it can be seen in particular that a large number of parallel strips 22 are arranged within the area 21. Each strip has a triangular cross-section, so that between two adjacent strips 22 there are grooves with a triangular cross-section.

The strips 22 do not fill the entire area 21. Rather, projections are formed in two diagonally opposite corners of the area 21, which run as cross strips 23 at right angles to the strips 22. In the two remaining, diagonally opposite corners of the area 21, recesses are provided into which the strips 22 do not extend.

In Fig. 6, the outside of the base 3 is shown, i.e. the underside of the base 3 or the top of a lid formed by the same component. Two similar containers 1 can therefore be stacked on top of each other, whereby they can be stacked securely thanks to the design of the strips 22 and cross strips 23.

Compared to the position shown in Fig. 6, the support strip 15 is pivoted under the illustrated floor 3, i.e. pivoted towards the inner surface of the floor 3 and secured there by locking, gluing or similar means.

The edge of the end wall portion 5 can, as shown

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Fig. 6 can be seen, run obliquely and thus have a particularly large support surface with the support surface in order to enable a particularly stable load bearing and thus a particularly great protection of the film hinge 14.

In Fig. 7, the area between the floor 3 and the rear wall 4 is shown, as it appears from Fig. 4, but no end wall parts 5 are shown.

It can be seen from Fig. 7 that an intermediate strip 24 is provided between the base 3 and the adjacent film hinge 19 on the one hand and the support strip 18 on the other hand, which is connected to the support strip 18 via an intermediate hinge 25, which is also designed as a film hinge. Fig. 7 shows the individual components of the container in the state immediately after production, i.e. not yet in the ready-to-use state of the container.

In order to achieve such a ready-to-use state, the intermediate strip 24 is first folded in the direction of the arrow onto the base 3 and then the support strip 18 is also pivoted about the intermediate hinge 25 in such a way that it lies flat against the intermediate strip 24. The intermediate strip 24 therefore serves as a spacer between the support strip 18 and the base 3.

The intermediate strip 24 can be particularly advantageous if a locking mechanism is provided between the base 3 and the support strip 18. For this purpose, the intermediate strip 24 can have recesses,

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which are not shown in Fig. 7 and through which the locking elements can extend. The arrangement of the spacers, which the intermediate strip 24 represents, results in a larger pivot radius of the support strip 18 to the floor 1, so that the locking between the floor and the support strip 18 is made easier and a more stable locking is made possible by a corresponding design of the locking elements.

Claims (12)

10 1. Foldable, reusable container with a base and a lid, two longitudinal walls and two end walls, the side walls being pivotable relative to the base, characterized in that the container (1) consists of two identical parts (2), one part (2) as the lower part forming the base (3), a longitudinal wall (4) and half of the two end walls (5) and the other part (2) as the upper part forming the lid, the other longitudinal wall and the second half of the end walls. 15 2. Container according to claim 1, characterized in that each part (2) has both at least one locking means (bracket 6) and at least one receiving element (projection 7) for the locking means (bracket 6) of the corresponding other part (2). 3. Container according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that each of the two parts (2) forms a portion of each of the two end walls (5), the end walls (5) being divided approximately diagonally. 4. Container according to claim 3, characterized in characterized in that the two parts, which together form an end wall (5), are interlocked with one another. 5. Container according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that each the two parts (2) are made of one piece from plastic, with the side walls being connected to the base (3) or to the lid via film hinges. 25 6. Container according to claim 5, characterized in that support strips (15, 18) are provided between the base (3) and the adjoining side walls, which support strips are connected to the base (3) and to the side walls by means of a film hinge (14, 16, 17, 19), locking means being provided between each support strip (15, 18) and the base (3). 7. Container according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by elevations and/or depressions on the underside of the base (3) for interlocking when stacking two similar containers (1) between the lid of the lower container (1) and complementary projections and/or depressions of the base (3) of the upper container (1).
10 8. Container according to claim 7, characterized in that the projections and/or recesses for interlocking are arranged both in the longitudinal and transverse directions of the two containers. 9. Container according to claim 8, characterized in that on the underside of the base (3) several parallel strips (22) are formed, the distance between which which allow the accommodation of similar strips (22) of another container (1) and which run in the longitudinal or transverse direction of the floor. 10. Container according to claim 9, characterized in that transverse strips (23) are arranged at an angle to the strips (22), which are arranged next to the strips (22) or in (22) are arranged and to which areas left free by the strips (22) are assigned for receiving similar cross strips on the lid of a lower container (1). · ··· · ·· · · * · •
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·*· *· _ 4 - 11. Container according to one of the preceding claims, characterized by projections (9), angle webs (11) which, when the container part (2) is folded together, immovably fix a similar and also folded container part (2) stacked thereon. 12. Container according to claim 6, characterized in that an intermediate strip (24) is provided between the support element (18) and the base (3), which intermediate strip (24) connects to the base (3) via a film hinge (19) and connects to the support strip (18) via an intermediate hinge (25) also designed as a film hinge.