R COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTR^..A r I E Patents Act 1952-1969 COMPLETE SPECIFICATION

(ORIGINAL)

FOR OFFICE USE: Class Int. Class Application Number Lodged Complete Application No.; Specification Lodged Published Priority: 000 0 pelated art: 0 0 0000 0 0 0 9 s f TO BE COMPLETED BY APPLICANT o*tName of Applicant: DYNEK PTY. LTD.

o Address of Applicant: 5 Telopea Drive, Athelstone, State of South Australia, Commonwealth of Australia Actual Inventor: BARRY JAMES CROOK and PATRICIA ANN CROOK 60 S0 0o Address for Service: COLLISON CO., Patent Attorneys, 117 King William Street, Adelaide, South Australia, 5000.

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0 o o :Complete Specification for the invention entitled: "STACKING OF CONTAINERS OR BOXES" The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to me: This docum1ent coil aIE22 -ts -ade ndt a nd is coTtectfor printng 2 This invention relates to the stacking of containers, boxes, crates, single or multiple compartment drawers or the like.

It is known that various techniques and devices are available for the stacking of boxes, crates, containers or the like, but these are all limited to the concept of stacking one article on the other with some means of interengaging the two 1 0 articles, boxes, crates or the like so that the upper one may not move relative to the lower one.

However, as far as the applicants are aware there is no provision whereby boxes, crates, containers or the like may be stacked horizontally and joined to 'tt1 5 adjacent horizontal boxes, containers or crates as well if desired to join them ~vertically.

i t It is an object of this invention to provide a means whereby crates, boxes, containers or the like can be placed in a side by side horizontal and/or vertical position and secured to each other Thus there is provided according to the invention a stacking box or container, RC said box or container being generally parallelepiped in shape, said box or container having at least one slot in one outside wall of the box or container, S 25 said slot opening to one edge of the said wall and being generally dovetailed c"- S in cross section, said box or container having on an outer wall adjacent said above defined wall a key dovetailed in cross section and which key extends to the edge of said adjacent wall, the two edges of said two walls being in the same plane, whereby a number of boxes or containers can be stacked by interengaging said keys and slots with the respective walls of adjacent boxes or containers in virtual contact.

SIn order to more fully describe the invention reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings in which:- FIG. 1 is a view of a pair of walls or containers being united by a key; FIG. 2 is plan view thereof; FIG. 3 is a view of a box or the like; and 3 FIG. 4 is a further embodiment.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, it is to be realised that these show only a portion of the walls of two adjacent containers, boxes or the like being joined together, the view showing the inside of wall 1 of a container to which is being joined wall 2 of a second container, the view showing the outside of the wall 2 of the second container.

Each wall is provided with a slot 3 opening into its top edge 4, each slot being shaped to thus form when abutted to each other, a dovetail shape having inclined edges 5, the width of the slot 6 on the inside face of each too,' wall being greater than the width of the slot 7 on the outside face wall.

*a e A key 8 is provided, this key having a width which is equal to the combined :,4-15 widths of the two walls 1 and 2, opposite edgc-s of the key 8 having Vo q S, shaped re-entrant grooves 9 which correspond to the combined dovetail Sshape of the combined two slots.

Thus it will be seen that the two walls are joined in abutting relationship by the key which is slid into the two slots to thus join the two walls together, the key not protruding into the interior of either container.

t C It is to be noted that in Fig. 1, for clarity purposes, the wall 2 is positioned at a higher elevation than the wall 1.

If the containers or boxes have to be joined together in a horizontal manner only, then the keys would have a length cqual to the depth of each slot.

However, if articles, containers or the like have to be stacked one on top of the other then the keys would be of a greater length, and the bottom of each wall would have a corresponding slot so that the containers can be fitted on top of the one another.

If containers are to be stacked in two horizontal rows, then not only the side wall of each container would have a corresponding slot, but one or both end walls could be so shaped.

The invention is particularly suitable for the joining of small boxes or drawers to contain various materials, such as sutures in the medical field, or for the handyman such as nuts, bolts, screws and nails, and as these boxes are procured they can be joined together in a secure unit either side by side or one on top of the other or both as desired, such a container being shown in Fig. 3, suitable for receiving a drawer, the front open end of the container being open.

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o:L Referring to Fig. 4 of the drawings a further embodiment of the invention is o, ~shown. In this instance the box 10 has slots 11 on two adjacent sides, while ,15 the opposite sides have keys 12 moulded into the outer surfaces of the SV sides. These slots 11 have tapering edges 13 as described in the previous embodiments, and the keys 12 have in cross-section similarly inclined sides 14, so that to assembly the boxes in stacked or side by side relationship, the keys 12 of one box are engaged in the slots 11 of the adjacent box.

i In the stacking of boxes and containers, the boxes or containers may have slots on a pair of opposite walls, on a pair of adjacent walls, on three walls or on all four walls. Thus if all four walls have slots, four containers may be I placed on one level, two side by side, with the other two back to back to the 25 first two.

Hence various combinations are available for stacking or in layers depending on the desired arrangement.

While one form of the invention has been described in some detail it is to be realised that the invention is not to be limited thereto but can include various modifications falling within the spirit and scope of the invention.