AU708740B2 - Goods handling/transfer apparatus - Google Patents

Description

*5 oS* TITLE: GOODS HANDLING/TRANSFER APPARATUS FIELD OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to apparatus for manual handling or transfer of light or medium-weight goods.

A particular example of the invention is embodied in a domestic shopping trolley.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION domestic shopping trolley.

BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION There is perceived to be a need for a goods transfer apparatus which eliminates lifting and alleviates the need for double or multiple handling of goods. (For example, 960430,cmsspe.083JAGER.CAP,1 2 repeated loading or unloading of the carrying container) This need can be satisfied by providing a transportable slide-on, slide-off goods container.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention provides:a foldable goods handling trolley apparatus including:a transport carriage means; a goods container means; and a support for said goods container means mounted on said carriage means and movable between a first, generally ee horizontal, position in which it is adapted to support the said carrier means and a second, tilted, position which 20 enables the said carrier means to be slid thereoff, wherein said support further includes at least one or more slides for engaging a bottom edge of the said goods container.

PREFERRED ASPECTS OF THE INVENTION It is advantageous if the said trolley is lightweight and foldable.

It is most preferred if the trolley can be folded in such a manner that it can be reduced to a compact size and shape which can be lifted by one person.

The goods container means may be rigid or rigid framed and includes a crate, box, carton or the like. The container may be of any shape or size which is compatible with the support means.

990602,cmsspe.083,JAGER.CAP,2 3 It is preferred that the container is a basket which is of strong but light weight construction such as wire mesh. It may be advantageous to provide handles on the basket.

Any apparatus which can support the container means and be moved between the said generally horizontal and tilted positions is suitable for the purpose of the invention.

Suitable support means can be a pivotally mounted planar 10 surface on which the bottom of the goods container means can rest. Alternatively support can be provided by one or *more slides.

The said slides can be mounted to engage the bottom edges of the said container or alternatively the container can be adapted with a rolled tip at the upper edges or with a ledge or ledges on opposite sides to engage the slides.

o o It is most preferred that the support means comprises two right-angular slides, one of said slides engaging the bottom edge of the container and the other slide engaging the bottom edge on the opposite side of the container.

A specific embodiment of a goods handling/transfer apparatus in accordance with the present invention will now be described by way of non-limiting example with the aid of the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is an oblique top elevational view of the invention in the form of a domestic shopping trolley, Figure 2 is the same view as Figure 1 but with 'ghost' outlines of the baskets to show the frame structure of the trolley, 960430,cmsspe.083JAGERCAP3 4 Figure 3 is a side elevational view of the trolley, Figure 4 is a front elevational view of the trolley, Figures 5, 6 and 7 are sequential elevational views of the trolley in operation showing the basket being unlatched (Figure tilting forward on its support rails (Figure 6) and sliding down the rails towards an unloading point (Figure 6).

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of the trolley in use showing the basket being loaded into a motor vehicle, and Figure 9 is a side elevational view of the trolley in its 15 folded position after removal of the upper basket.

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Goods handling apparatus/domestic shopping trolley Front leg and handle unit Legs (rear) Stabilising bar Front stabilising bar Rear stabilising bar Swivel roller castors Stop Basket slides Fixed tilt stops Safety pin Basket Tray (lower basket) Pin/hinge Lug (side of tray) Stop (end of tray) Spindle Assembled transportable frame Basket handle 960430,cmsspe.083jAGER.CAP,4 5 29. Cross bar 31. Basket slide stop DETAILED DESCRIPTION WITH RESPECT TO THE DRAWINGS In the drawings there is shown a domestic shopping trolley 1 which comprises a basket 21 detachably mounted on a transportable frame 27 to make up the complete unit.

10 The basket 21 is generally oblong in shape and advantageously is made out of 3 or 4mm wire mesh with wire spacing at 25mm square to prevent items from falling through. It is to be understood, however, that any container which is compatible with the frame 27 will be suitable for the purpose of the invention.

It may be advantageous to include handles 28 to assist manual handling of the basket.

The frame 27 may be constructed from any suitable material S. but preferably is made from light-weight square or round tubing.

The said frame comprises a front leg and handle unit 2 to which are attached the two rear legs 3.

So that the trolley can be folded into a compact configuration for ease of storage, it is advantageous that the said rear legs 3 are pivotally mounted to the front leg unit 2 by means of a spindle 26 which passes through or into a centre cross-bar 29 and projects from one side of the front leg unit to the other.

A stop 6 is provided on the front leg unit 2 behind the centre cross-bar 29 to limit the backwards unfolding movement of the rear legs to a desired position thus preventing the legs from splaying.

960430,cmsspe.083JAGER.CAP.5 6 A stabilising bar 4a is provided between the front legs and is inflexibly mounted at or near the base of the legs. A similar stabilising bar 4b is provided between the rear legs.

At the foot of each leg is a roller castor A brake mechanism may be added to the rear castors if desired.

es There are two right-angular basket slides 7 which support the basket 21. One slide is mounted at each end of the centre cross-bar 29 between the end of the said bar and the inner edge of the front leg unit 2.

The centre cross-bar 29 is able to pivot about the spindle 26 so that the basket slides tilt up and down. The stop 6 described earlier also serves as a stop to the tilting movement of the basket slides. In addition, each right angular basket slide contains a stop 31 at the rear end to prevent the basket from sliding off backwards.

On each side of the handle bar is a fixed tilt stop 8 to *555ag prevent the basket (once pulled backwards into place) from tilting forward. It is advantageous for at least one of the tilt stops to contain a safety pin 9 which prevents the basket from sliding forward.

If desired, an additional lower basket or tray 22 may be included. This structure has the advantage of providing added rigidity to the frame and increased carrying capacity.

The tray is provided with pins 23 which engage the front leg unit 2 in holes just above the front stabiliser bar 4a.

This arrangement allows the tray to hinge about/around the 960430csspe.083JAGER.CAP,6 7 said pins.

Under the trailing edge of the tray are two stops 25 which abut/engage the rear face of the back stabiliser bar 4b.

These stops serve to provide additional means to prevent the back legs from splaying in addition to the means provided by stops 6).

10 The load of the tray is borne on the upper surfaces of stabiliser bars 4a and 4b.

The apparatus is constructed in such a fashion that the base of the basket is at a height above the rear sill of most vans, station wagons, four wheel drive vehicles or the like. It has been found that a height of about 710mm is suitable for many purposes.

In operation the trolley is loaded with goods and wheeled to a position adjacent to a vehicle or offloading point similar to that shown in Figure 8 so that the basket slides overlap the end of the loading platform of the vehicle.

The safety pin 9 on the tilt stop is released which allows .the basket to be pushed forward until it disengages from the tilt stops. Once disengaged, the basket will tilt forward on its guide angles until it touches the loading platform of the vehicle and can then be safely pushed off and slid into the vehicle.

For reloading the basket onto the trolley at the vehicle's destination, the process is reversed.

With the basket 21 removed the tray 22 is lifted and the back legs of the trolley can then be folded inwards. The lug 24 on the side of the tray 22 engages with the back legs so that the tray will not fall. The trolley is then in a compact configuration (Figure 9) which can be easily 960430,ansspe.083JAGER.CAP,7 8 loaded into the vehicle.

The claims, illustrations, photographs and drawings, if any, form part of the disclosure of this specification as does the description, claims, illustrations, photographs and drawings of any associated provisional or parent specification or of any priority document, if any, all of which are imported hereinto as part of the record hereof.

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10 Finally it is to be understood that various alterations, modifications and/or additions may be incorporated into the various constructions and arrangements or parts without departing from the spirit and ambit of the invention.

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960430,cmsspe.083JAGER.CAP.8 9 THE CLAIMS DEFINING THE INVENTION ARE AS FOLLOWS:i. A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus including:a transport carriage means; a goods container means; and a support for said goods container means mounted on said carriage means and movable between a first, generally horizontal, position in which it is adapted to support the said carrier means and a second, tilted, position which enables the said carrier means to be slid thereoff, wherein said support further :includes at least one or more slides for engaging a bottom edge of the said goods container.

2. A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus as claimed 20 in claim i, wherein the goods container means comprises a crate, box, carton, basket or the like.

ooee 3. A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the goods 25 container means comprises a basket.

A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the said support for said goods container means is substantially planar.

A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus as claimed in Claim 1, wherein the said goods handling trolley apparatus comprises two right-angular slides in which one of the said slides engages the bottom edge of the said goods container means and the other slide engages the opposite side of the said goods container means.

990602,cmssp.083,JAGER.CAP,9

Claims (1)

1. 6. A foldable goods handling trolley apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to any one of the accompanying drawings. Dated this 2 nd day of June, 1999. SANDERCOCK COWIE PATENT ATTORNEYS FOR HEINZ JAGER oo.. i B 990602,cmsspe.083,JAGER.CAP, I 11 ABSTRACT The present invention provides a goods handling or transfer apparatus 1 for light or medium-weight goods comprising a transport or carriage means 27; a goods container means 21; and a support 7 for said container means mounted on said carriage means and movable between a first, generally horizontal, position in which it is adapted to support the said container means and a second, tilted, position which 1 0 enables the said carrier means to be slid thereof. A particular example of the invention is embodied in a •domestic shopping trolley. p 96430xcmsspN.083JAGERCAP,1I