CN217970389U

CN217970389U - Locking device and combined container

Info

Publication number: CN217970389U
Application number: CN202221384294.9U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李跃明; 余华飞
Original assignee: Hangzhou Great Star Industrial Co Ltd
Current assignee: Hangzhou Great Star Industrial Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-05-31
Filing date: 2022-05-31
Publication date: 2022-12-06
Anticipated expiration: 2032-05-31

Abstract

The utility model relates to a locking device and combination formula container, it can be in the same place the locking of the container of intercombination with releasing to realize piling up safely, reduce the potential safety hazard. This locking device includes: a coupler for being disposed on the second container; and a lock mechanism for being operatively arranged to the first container to releasably engage with the coupling member so that the locking means is switched between a locked state and an unlocked state, wherein the lock mechanism is mutually engaged with the coupling member when the lock mechanism is operated to place the locking means in the locked state, for preventing mutual separation between the first container and the second container combined with each other; when the lock mechanism is operated to place the lock-connecting means in the unlocked state, the lock mechanism and the coupling are released from each other for allowing separation between the first container and the second container combined with each other.

Description

Locking device and combined container

Technical Field

The utility model relates to a container piles up technical field, especially relates to a locking device and combination formula container.

Background

The existing tool boxes/cases are often small in size and numerous in number, and are usually stored in a stacked manner layer by layer when being stored, so as to save storage space, but the tool boxes/cases are usually made of plastic materials, and the surfaces of the tool boxes/cases are smooth, so that when the tool boxes are stacked, the bearing surface of the lower tool box/case and the bottom surface of the upper tool box/case easily slide relative to each other to tilt, so that the tool boxes/cases cannot be stacked at a high height, and a large storage space is needed. In addition, during transportation, a plurality of tool boxes/cases need to be stacked for transportation, and if the tool boxes/cases are simply stacked, instability exists, so that the tool boxes/cases are difficult to transport and potential safety hazards exist.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

An advantage of the utility model is that a locking device and combination formula container are provided, it can be in the same place the locking of the container of intercombination with releasing to realize piling up safely, reduce the potential safety hazard.

Another advantage of the present invention is to provide a locking device and a combined container, wherein, in an embodiment of the present invention, the locking device can be freely switched between a locking state and an unlocking state to releasably lock the containers stacked on each other, so that the containers can be easily separated and used while being easily and safely stacked for storage and transportation.

Another advantage of the present invention is to provide a locking device and a combined container, wherein, in an embodiment of the present invention, the locking device can be switched between a locking state and an unlocking state by a simple twisting operation or a pressing operation, which is convenient for operation.

Another advantage of the present invention is to provide a locking device and a combined container, wherein in order to achieve the above advantages or objectives, expensive materials or complex structures are not required. Therefore, the utility model discloses successfully and effectively provide a solution, not only provide a simple locking device and combination formula container, still increased simultaneously the practicality and the reliability of locking device and combination formula container.

In order to realize the above-mentioned at least one advantage or other advantages and objects of the present invention, the present invention provides a locking device for a first container and a second container combined with each other, the locking device includes:

a coupler for being disposed on the second container; and

a locking mechanism for being operatively arranged to the first container to releasably engage with the adapter such that the locking means is switchable between a locked state and an unlocked state, wherein the locking mechanism is mutually engageable with the adapter when the locking mechanism is operated to place the locking means in the locked state for preventing mutual separation between the first container and the second container in combination; when the lock mechanism is operated to place the lock-connecting means in the unlocked state, the lock mechanism and the coupling are released from each other for allowing the first container and the second container combined with each other to be separated from each other.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the lock mechanism comprises a lock housing for being detachably secured to the first container and a lock cylinder movably arranged in the lock housing for movement between a locking position and an unlocking position, wherein the lock cylinder is adapted to engage the adapter when the lock cylinder is moved to the locking position relative to the lock housing; the lock cylinder is adapted to release the adapter when the lock cylinder is moved to the unlocked position relative to the lock housing.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the latch mechanism the lock core for by slidable set up in the slip latch fitting of lock shell, the slip latch fitting is equipped with and is used for the block the locking hole of coupling piece with be used for the release the unblock hole of coupling piece, the locking hole along the slip direction of slip latch fitting communicate in the unblock hole, wherein work as the slip latch fitting is in the lock location with when sliding between the unblock location, the coupling piece is suitable for the slip latch fitting the locking hole with slide between the unblock hole.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the head size of the adapter piece is greater than in the sliding lock the size of the locking hole and less than the size of the unlocking hole.

According to an embodiment of the utility model, the lock mechanism the lock shell has grafting chamber and the slip chamber that communicates with each other, the slide lock spare is inserted slidable the lock shell the slip chamber, the adaptor is suitable for inserting the lock shell the grafting chamber, with slide lock spare releasable block.

According to an embodiment of the utility model, the latch mechanism further includes change over switch, change over switch set up correspondingly in the lock shell with between the slide lock spare, be used for after the slide lock spare is pressed, will the slide lock spare be in the lock position with the switching of sliding between the unblock position.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the change-over switch comprises a reset element and a limit element, the reset element being arranged between the lock housing and the slide latch for applying a force to the slide latch opposite to the pressing direction; the limiting element is arranged between the lock shell and the sliding lock and is used for limiting the sliding lock in a releasable way; wherein when the check element checks the slide lock, the slide lock is held in the locked position by the combined action of the reset element and the check element; and after the limit element and the sliding lock are released from limit, the sliding lock automatically slides from the locking position to the unlocking position under the action of the reset element.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the sliding lock spare further be equipped with be used for by the locking groove that spacing element's one end was colluded, with the unblock guiding groove of the roll-off end intercommunication of locking groove, with the locking guiding groove of the roll-in end intercommunication of locking groove and with the unblock guiding groove with the unblock groove that the locking guiding groove all communicates, the unblock guiding groove is used for the guide spacing element the one end is followed the locking groove slides in the unblock groove, the locking guiding groove is used for the guide spacing element the one end is followed the unblock groove slides in the locking groove.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the locking groove is the V-arrangement groove, just the locking groove is in the tank bottom of roll-off end department is less than the locking groove is in the tank bottom of roll-in end department.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the tank bottom of department on the unblock guiding groove with the roll-off end is adjacent is less than the locking groove is in the tank bottom of roll-off end.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, on the locking guiding groove with the tank bottom of the adjacent department of slip-in end is higher than the locking groove is in the tank bottom of slip-in end.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, on the unblock guiding groove with the tank bottom of the adjacent department in unblock groove is higher than the tank bottom of unblock groove, just on the locking guiding groove with the tank bottom of the adjacent department in unblock groove is not higher than the tank bottom of unblock groove.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the degree of depth of unblock guiding groove certainly unblock groove extremely unblock groove diminishes gradually, just the degree of depth of locking guiding groove certainly unblock groove extremely locking groove diminishes gradually.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, sliding lock spare the locking groove unlocking guiding groove and the locking guiding groove encloses into a heart-shaped passageway jointly.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the limiting element is a hook rod pivotally connected to the lock housing; the reset element is a spring.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the slip latch fitting epirelief is equipped with the stopper, the lock shell be equipped with stopper assorted spacing groove, the spacing groove along the slip direction of slip latch fitting extends, the slip latch fitting the stopper can insert with spacing slip the lock shell the spacing groove.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the lock shell includes first casing and second casing, first casing detachably install in the second casing, with first casing with form between the second casing the sliding chamber, the lock shell the grafting chamber runs through first casing with the second casing.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the lock housing further comprises an elastic pressing piece provided at the first housing, the elastic pressing piece tilting towards the slide lock to bias the limiting element.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the lock cylinder of the lock mechanism is a rotary lock comprising a notch disc rotatably arranged in the lock housing and a knob connected with the notch disc to drive the notch disc to rotate between the locking position and the unlocking position relative to the lock housing by the knob; the adapter is a lock slot seat, wherein when the knob is twisted to drive the notch disc to rotate between the locking position and the unlocking position, the notches of the notch disc correspondingly deviate from or face the lock slots of the lock slot seat respectively.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the lock shell of latch mechanism be equipped with the spout that the locked groove seat matches, and two rotate the latch fitting respectively by symmetrically set up in the left and right sides of spout, in order to follow the block is carried out to the left and right sides of locked groove seat.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the lock shell further is equipped with the card hole, just the rear side of keyway seat be equipped with card hole assorted card post, wherein work as the keyway seat slides in the lock shell during the spout, the keyway seat the card post will insert the lock shell the card hole is in order to follow the block is carried out to the rear side of keyway seat.

According to another aspect of the present application, there is further provided a modular container comprising:

a first container;

a second container; and

the locking device of any one of the above, wherein the locking device is correspondingly disposed between the first container and the second container, for releasably locking the second container to the first container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the locking mechanism of the locking device is set in the first container, and the coupling piece of the locking device is correspondingly set in the second container, so that the second container is stacked in when the first container, in the locking device the locking mechanism with the coupling piece is mutually engaged, so as to form the combined container.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the first container comprises a first container body having a first opening; the second container comprises a second container body having a second opening, wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is disposed to the first container body, and the coupling piece of the locking device is correspondingly disposed to the second container body to releasably lock the second container body to the first container body by the locking device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the locking device locks the second container body to the first container body, the second container body cover is disposed at the first opening of the first container body.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first container further comprises a first cover body covered on the first opening; the second container further includes a second cover body that is covered on the second opening, so that the second container body of the second container is stacked on the first cover body of the first container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first container includes a first container body and a first cover body covered on the first container body; the second container comprises a second container body and a second cover body covered on the second container body; wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is mounted on the first cover, and the mating member of the locking device is correspondingly disposed on the second container body, so as to releasably lock the second container body to the first cover via the locking device.

The first container comprises a first cabinet body and a first drawer arranged on the first cabinet body in a drawable manner; the second container comprises a second cabinet body and a second drawer arranged on the second cabinet body in a drawing manner; wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is disposed at the first cabinet, and the coupling member of the locking device is disposed at the second cabinet, so that the first cabinet is releasably locked at the second cabinet by the locking device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the combined container comprises at least one pair of the locking devices, each pair of the locking mechanism and the fitting in the locking device are respectively and correspondingly located at two opposite sides of the first container and the second container.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism in the locking device is arranged at a side of the first container; and the coupling in the locking device is pivotably arranged at the side of the second container.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism in the locking device is arranged at the top of the first container; and the fitting of the locking device is fixedly arranged at the bottom of the second container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the combined container comprises at least one locking device, wherein the locking mechanism and the fitting member of the locking device are respectively and correspondingly located on the same side of the first container and the second container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the modular container further comprises an auxiliary mechanism, the auxiliary mechanism is set up in the first container with between the second container, in order to assist the locking device will the second container is lockable ground fixed in the first container.

According to the utility model discloses an embodiment, the complementary unit is including being set up in the first fixture block of first container with set up in the second draw-in groove of second container, wherein work as the second container is piled up in when the first container, first fixture block card is gone into the second draw-in groove to cooperate the locking device assists fixedly.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the auxiliary mechanism and the locking device are located on different sides of the first container and the second container, respectively.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the locking mechanism in the locking device is arranged at a side or top of the first container; and the fitting piece in the locking device is fixedly arranged at the bottom or the side part of the second container.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the modular container further comprises a third container connected to the second container in a stacked manner.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the locking device is provided between the third container and the second container, so that the third container and the second container are locked together by the locking device.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the combined container further comprises a push-pull mechanism, the push-pull mechanism comprises a roller disposed in the first container and a pull rod disposed in the first container correspondingly.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a modular container according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 2 shows an exploded view of the modular container according to the first embodiment of the invention;

fig. 3 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of the combination container according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which the locking means of the enlarged portion is in a locked state;

fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view of the combination container according to the first embodiment of the present invention, wherein the locking means of the enlarged portion is in an unlocked state;

fig. 5 shows an example of a lock mechanism of the lock-in device in the combined container according to the above first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 shows an exploded schematic view of the lock mechanism according to the above example of the present invention;

fig. 7 shows an exploded schematic view of the lock mechanism according to the above example of the present invention at another viewing angle;

fig. 8 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of a lock mechanism according to the above example of the invention;

fig. 9 shows a schematic bottom view of the lock mechanism according to the above example of the invention;

fig. 10 showsbase:Sub>A schematic cross-sectional view ofbase:Sub>A-base:Sub>A in the lock mechanism as shown in fig. 9 according to the present invention;

fig. 11 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of B-B of the lock mechanism as shown in fig. 9 according to the present invention;

fig. 12 shows a schematic cross-sectional view of C-C in the lock mechanism as shown in fig. 9 according to the present invention;

fig. 13 shows a schematic view of the pressing process of the above example lock mechanism according to the present invention;

fig. 14 shows a modified example of the lock mechanism of the locking means in the composite container according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 15 shows an exploded schematic view of a lock mechanism according to the above-described modified example of the present invention;

fig. 16 shows a schematic view of the twisting process of the lock mechanism according to the above-described modified example of the present invention;

fig. 17 is a perspective view of a modular container according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

figure 18 shows an exploded view of the modular container according to the second embodiment of the invention described above;

figure 19 shows an exploded view of the modular container according to the second embodiment of the invention from another perspective;

fig. 20 shows a modified example of the combined container according to the above-described second embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 21 is an exploded view of the assembled container according to the modified example of the present invention;

fig. 22 shows an exploded view of the modular container according to the above-described modified example of the present invention from another perspective;

fig. 23 is a perspective view of a modular container according to a third embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 24 shows an exploded view of the modular container according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

Description of the main element symbols: 1. a locking device; 10. a lock mechanism; 11. a lock case; 1101. an insertion cavity; 1102. a sliding cavity; 1103. a limiting groove; 1104. a chute; 1105. a clamping hole; 111. a first housing; 112. a second housing; 113. elastic tabletting; 12. a lock cylinder; 121. a sliding lock; 1211. a locking hole; 1212. unlocking the hole; 1213. a locking groove; 12131. sliding out of the end; 12132. a sliding-in end; 1214. unlocking the guide groove; 1215. locking the guide groove; 1216. unlocking the groove; 1217. a spring cavity; 1218. a limiting block; 122. rotating the locking piece; 1221. a notch disc; 12210. a notch; 1222. a knob; 13. a switch; 131. a reset element; 1310. a spring; 132. a spacing element; 1320. a hook rod; 20. a coupling member; 21. a tail portion; 22. a head portion; 23. a connecting arm; 24. a keyway base; 241. locking the groove; 242. clamping the column; 50. an auxiliary mechanism; 51. a first clamping block; 52. a second card slot; 53. a second fixture block; 54. a third card slot; 60. a push-pull mechanism; 61. a roller; 62. a pull rod; 70. a first container; 71. a first container body; 72. a first cover body; 73. a first cabinet; 74. a first drawer; 80. a second container; 81. a second container body; 82. a second cover body; 83. a second cabinet; 84. a second drawer; 90. and a third container.

The present invention is further described in detail with reference to the drawings and the detailed description.

Detailed Description

The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be described clearly and completely with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by a person skilled in the art without creative work belong to the protection scope of the present invention.

It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being "disposed" or "mounted" to another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may also be present. When a component is referred to as being "disposed on" another component, it can be directly on the other component or intervening components may also be present. When an element is referred to as being "secured to" another element, it can be directly secured to the other element or intervening elements may also be present.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs. The terminology used herein in the description of the invention is for the purpose of describing particular embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used herein, the term "or/and" includes any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

Considering that the existing containers such as tool boxes and boxes cannot be stacked at a high height due to instability in simple stacking when being stored, a large storage space is needed; in the transportation process, because of no reliable connecting structure, the transportation is difficult, and potential safety hazards also exist. In order to solve the problem, the utility model provides a locking device and combination formula container, it can be in the same place the container that piles up each other with the locking of releasing to realize piling up safely, reduce the potential safety hazard.

Specifically, referring to fig. 1 to 13, a first embodiment of the present invention provides a combined container, which may include a locking device 1 and a first container 70 and a second container 80 combined with each other, wherein the locking device 1 is adapted to be correspondingly disposed between the first container 70 and the second container 80, so as to releasably lock the second container 80 to the first container 70, which helps to reduce the potential safety hazard of container stacking, and is convenient for storage and transportation.

More specifically, as shown in fig. 2, 3 and 4, the locking device 1 may include a lock mechanism 10 and an adapter 20 for being disposed on the second container 80. The locking mechanism 10 is adapted to be operatively disposed on the first container 70 to releasably engage with the adapter 20 to switch the locking device 1 between the locked state and the unlocked state. When the locking mechanism 10 is operated to bring the locking device 1 into the locking state, the locking mechanism 10 and the coupling member 20 are engaged with each other for preventing the first container 70 and the second container 80 stacked on each other from being separated from each other, so that the first container 70 and the second container 80 can be safely stacked together for storage and transportation; when the lock mechanism 10 is operated to put the locking device 1 in the unlocked state, the lock mechanism 10 and the coupling 20 are released from each other for allowing the first container 70 and the second container 80 stacked on each other to be separated from each other, so that the first container 70 and the second container 80 can be unstacked to use the first container 70 and the second container 80 separately.

Notably, the first and

second containers

70, 80 of the present application may be, but are not limited to being, implemented as a tool box or tool box for holding tools or work materials; of course, in other examples of the present application, the first container 70 and the second container 80 may also be implemented as other types of boxes or boxes; alternatively, the first container 70 and the second container 80 may be implemented as other types of containers such as a bucket or a cabinet, which will not be described in detail herein.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 2, the lock mechanism 10 of the locking device 1 of the present application is removably mounted to the first container 70 to facilitate servicing or replacement of the lock mechanism 10 as needed, as well as to facilitate individual manufacture or vending of the lock mechanism 10.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 3 and 4, the lock mechanism 10 of the present application may include a lock housing 11 detachably fixed to the first container 70 and a lock cylinder 12 movably disposed on the lock housing 11, the lock cylinder 12 being configured to move between a locking position and an unlocking position, wherein when the lock cylinder 12 is moved to the locking position relative to the lock housing 11, the lock cylinder 12 is configured to engage with the adapter 20 to place the locking device 1 in the locking state; when the lock cylinder 12 is moved relative to the lock housing 11 to be located at the unlocking position, the lock cylinder 12 is used to release the coupling member 20, so that the locking device 1 is in the unlocking state.

More specifically, as shown in fig. 2 and 4, the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 may be, but is not limited to, snapped into the first container 70 to ensure that the lock mechanism 10 is securely mounted to the first container 70 while also easily removing the lock mechanism 10 from the first container 70 for servicing or renewing the lock mechanism 10. It will be appreciated that the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 of the present application may also be removably mounted to the first container 70 by screwing or the like; of course, in other examples of the application, the lock mechanism 10 may also be non-detachably disposed on the first container 70, that is, the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 and the first container 70 may be non-detachably fixed together by riveting, welding, or integral molding.

Illustratively, in one example of the present application, as shown in fig. 5, 6 and 7, the lock cylinder 12 of the lock mechanism 10 may be embodied as a sliding lock 121, the sliding lock 121 being slidably disposed in the lock housing 11; the sliding lock 121 is provided with a locking hole 1211 for engaging the adapter 20 and an unlocking hole 1212 for releasing the adapter 20, and the locking hole 1211 is communicated with the unlocking hole 1212 along the sliding direction of the sliding lock 121. Thus, when the slide lock 121 is slid to the locked position, the locking hole 1211 of the slide lock 121 corresponds to the adapter 20, so that the adapter 20 can be snapped into the locking hole 1211 of the slide lock 121, thereby achieving a locking engagement between the adapter 20 and the lock mechanism 10, so that the locking device 1 is in the locked state; when the sliding lock 121 is slid to the unlocking position, the unlocking hole 1212 of the sliding lock 121 corresponds to the coupler 20, so that the coupler 20 can slide into the unlocking hole 1212 from the locking hole 1211, thereby unlocking between the coupler 20 and the lock mechanism 10, so that the locking device 1 is in the unlocking state.

In other words, the locking hole 1211 and the unlocking hole 1212 of the sliding lock 121 of the present application together form a slide way on the sliding lock 121 for the adapter 20 to slide; that is, the adapter 20 is adapted to slide between the locking hole 1211 and the unlocking hole 1212 when the sliding lock 121 slides relative to the lock housing 11, wherein the adapter 20 is engaged with the locking hole 1211 of the sliding lock 121 when the adapter 20 slides from the unlocking hole 1212 into the locking hole 1211; when the adapter 20 slides from the locking hole 1211 into the unlocking hole 1212, the adapter 20 can be disengaged from the unlocking hole 1212, so as to achieve unlocking separation between the adapter 20 and the lock mechanism 10.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 3 and 4, the size of the head of the adapter 20 is larger than the size of the locking hole 1211 in the sliding lock 121 and smaller than the size of the unlocking hole 1212, so that the head of the adapter 20 can freely enter and exit the unlocking hole 1212 and the head of the adapter 20 can be locked in the locking hole 1211.

For example, the adapter 20 has a tail portion 21 provided to the second container 80 and a size larger than the tail portion 21; meanwhile, the size of the locking hole 1211 in the slide lock 121 is smaller than the size of the head 22 of the coupling 20 and larger than the size of the tail 21 of the coupling 20; the dimension of the unlocking hole 1212 is larger than the dimension of the head 22 of the adapter 20, so as to ensure that the head 22 of the adapter 20 can freely enter and exit the unlocking hole 1212, and the head 22 of the adapter 20 can be locked in the locking hole 1211.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 6 and 7, the lock case 11 of the lock mechanism 10 has a plug cavity 1101 and a slide cavity 1102 communicating with each other, and the slide lock 121 of the key cylinder 12 is slidably inserted into the slide cavity 1102 of the lock case 11; the adapter 20 is adapted to be inserted into the plug cavity 1101 of the lock housing 11 to releasably engage with the slide lock 121. In other words, when the sliding lock 121 is slid forward to align the unlocking hole 1212 with the plugging cavity 1101 of the lock housing 11, the adapter 20 is unlocked and released by the unlocking hole 1212 of the sliding lock 121 to freely enter and exit the plugging cavity 1101 of the lock housing 11, so that the locking device 1 is in an unlocked state; when the slide lock 121 is slid reversely so that the locking hole 1211 is aligned with the inserting cavity 1101 of the lock case 11, the adapter 20 is locked and engaged by the locking hole 1211 of the slide lock 121 to be retained in the inserting cavity 1101 of the lock case 11, so that the locking device 1 is in a locked state.

It should be noted that the forward sliding and the reverse sliding mentioned in the present application only refer to sliding in opposite directions, for example, when the forward sliding corresponds to sliding to the left, the reverse sliding corresponds to sliding to the right, and the description thereof is omitted. Further, since the sliding lock 121 in the lock mechanism 10 needs to be slid in both directions during unlocking and locking, it is required for the user to push and pull the sliding lock 121, respectively.

To simplify the operation of the user, as shown in fig. 6 to 8, the lock mechanism 10 of the present application may further include a switch 13, and the switch 13 is disposed between the lock case 11 and the slide lock 121, respectively, for slidably switching the slide lock 121 between the locking position and the unlocking position after the slide lock 121 is pressed. In other words, when the slide locker 121 in the unlocking position is pressed, the changeover switch 13 is used to change over the slide locker 121 from the unlocking position to the locking position so that the locking device 1 is maintained in the locking state; when the sliding lock 121 in the locking position is pressed, the switch 13 is used to switch the sliding lock 121 from the locking position to the locking position, so that the locking device 1 is maintained in the unlocked state. Thus, the user can slide the sliding lock 121 bi-directionally to toggle between the locked position and the unlocked position by simply continuously pressing the sliding lock 121; that is, the user can switch the latch device 1 back and forth between the locked state and the unlocked state only by a simple pressing operation without applying both pushing and pulling operations to the slide lock 121 to switch the state of the latch device 1.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 9-12, the diverter switch 13 of the lock mechanism 10 can include a reset element 131 and a limit element 132. The reset element 131 is disposed between the lock housing 11 and the slide lock 121 for applying a force to the slide lock 121 in a direction opposite to the pressing direction, such that the slide lock 121 has a tendency to slide out of the slide cavity 1102 of the lock housing 11 under the action of the reset element 131. The position limiting element 132 is disposed between the lock case 11 and the slide lock 121 for releasably limiting the slide lock 121, wherein when the position limiting element 132 limits the slide lock 121, the slide lock 121 is stably maintained at the locking position by the combined action of the reset element 131 and the position limiting element 132, so that the locking device 1 is stably maintained at the locking state; when the position-limiting element 132 and the sliding lock 121 are released from the position limitation, the sliding lock 121 automatically slides from the locking position to the unlocking position under the action of the reset element 131, so that the locking device 1 is stably maintained in the unlocking state.

It should be noted that one end of the check member 132 releasably hooks the slide lock 121, and the other end of the check member 132 hooks the lock housing 11. Thus, when the slide lock 121 is in the unlocked position, the slide lock 121 partially extends out of the slide cavity 1102 of the lock housing 11, facilitating the pressing of the slide lock 121; at this time, when the sliding lock 121 is pressed to make the sliding lock 121 in the locking position, the sliding lock 121 will be partially retracted into the sliding cavity 1102, and the position limiting element 132 will hook the sliding lock 121; at this time, after the sliding lock 121 is pressed again, the hooking between the limiting element 132 and the sliding lock 121 is released, so that the sliding lock 121 slides from the locking position to the unlocking position under the action of the reset element 131; such repeated pressing can effect switching of the sliding lock 121 between the locked position and the unlocked position; and can be held stably in the locked position or the unlocked position after switching until pressed again. It is understood that in other examples of the present application, the other end of the limiting element 132 may be connected to the lock housing 11 by a hinge or a pivot, so long as it is ensured that one end of the limiting element 132 releasably hooks the sliding lock 121, which will not be described in detail herein.

More specifically, as shown in fig. 7 and 8, the slide lock 121 in the lock mechanism 10 may be further provided with a locking groove 1213, an unlocking guide groove 1214 communicating with the slide-out end 12131 of the locking groove 1213, a locking guide groove 1215 communicating with the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213, and an unlocking groove 1216 communicating with both the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking guide groove 1215, wherein the locking groove 1213 is to be caught by one end of the stopper element 132 to hold the slide lock 121 at the locking position; the unlocking slot 1216 is for receiving an end of the stop element 132 to place the slide lock 121 in the unlocked position; the unlocking guide groove 1214 for guiding one end of the check member 132 to slide from the locking groove 1213 into the unlocking groove 1216 so that the slide lock 121 moves from the locking position to the unlocking position; the locking guide groove 1215 serves to guide the one end of the check member 132 to slide from the unlocking groove 1216 into the locking groove 1213, so that the slide lock 121 is moved from the unlocking position to the locking position.

In other words, as shown in fig. 13, when one end of the stopper element 132 hooks the locking groove 1213, the sliding lock 121 is stably held at the locking position, so that the locker 1 is stably in the locking state. At this time, if the slide lock 121 is pressed, one end of the stopper element 132 slides into the unlock guide groove 1214 from the lock groove 1213, so that the one end of the stopper element 132 is disengaged from the lock groove 1213; and after releasing the slide lock 121, one end of the stopper element 132 will slide into the unlocking groove 1216 under the guidance of the unlocking guide groove 1214, so that the slide lock 121 can automatically slide to the unlocking position by the restoring element 131. Thereafter, by pressing and releasing the slide lock 121 again, the one end of the check member 132 is slid into the locking groove 1213 from the unlocking groove 1216 under the guidance of the locking guide groove 1215, so that the one end of the check member 132 is completely hooked with the locking groove 1213, that is, the slide lock 121 can be stably held at the locking position by the reset member 131.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 8 and 11, the locking groove 1213 in the sliding lock 121 is implemented as a V-shaped groove, and the groove bottom of the locking groove 1213 at the slide-out end 12131 is lower than the groove bottom of the locking groove 1213 at the slide-in end 12132 to form a blocking step at the boundary between the slide-out end 12131 and the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213 to block the stopper element 132 from sliding toward the slide-in end 12132. Thus, when the slide lock 121 in the locked position is pressed, the stopper element 132 slides toward the slide-out end 12131 to slide into the unlocking guide groove 1214, thereby preventing the problem of the stopper element 132 failing to unlock due to sliding toward the slide-in end 12132.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 11, a groove bottom of the unlocking guide groove 1214 of the slide-out lock 121 adjacent to the slide-out end 12131 is lower than a groove bottom of the locking groove 1213 at the slide-out end 12131 to form a blocking step at an interface between the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking groove 1213 to block the check member 132 from sliding from the unlocking guide groove 1214 into the slide-out end 12131 of the locking groove 1213, so as to ensure smooth unlocking of the check member 132 from the locking groove 1213.

Similarly, as shown in fig. 11, the groove bottom of the locking guide groove 1215 in the slide-in lock 121 adjacent to the slide-in end 12132 is higher than the groove bottom of the locking groove 1213 at the slide-in end 12132 to form a blocking step at the boundary between the locking groove 1213 and the locking guide groove 1215 to block the check member 132 from sliding into the locking guide groove 1215 from the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213, so as to ensure smooth locking of the check member 132 and the locking groove 1213.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 10 and 12, the groove bottom of the unlocking guide groove 1214 of the slide lock 121 adjacent to the unlocking groove 1216 is higher than the groove bottom of the unlocking groove 1216, and the groove bottom of the locking guide groove 1215 of the slide lock 121 adjacent to the unlocking groove 1216 is flush with the groove bottom of the unlocking groove 1216, so that a blocking step is formed at the interface between the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the unlocking groove 1216 and the locking guide groove 1215 to block the stopper element 132 from sliding from the unlocking groove 1216 into the unlocking guide groove 1214, so as to ensure that the stopper element 132 can directionally slide from the unlocking groove 1216 into the locking guide groove 1215.

More preferably, as shown in fig. 10 and 12, the unlock guide groove 1214 and the lock guide groove 1215 of the present application are implemented as gradually depth-changing grooves, wherein the depth of the unlock guide groove 1214 is gradually reduced from the lock groove 1213 to the unlock groove 1216, and the depth of the lock guide groove 1215 is gradually reduced from the unlock groove 1216 to the lock groove 1213, so as to ensure that the stopper element 132 smoothly slides from the lock groove 1213 into the unlock groove 1216 under the guidance of the unlock guide groove 1214 and smoothly slides from the unlock groove 1216 into the lock groove 1213 under the guidance of the lock guide groove 1215, so that the slide lock 121 can smoothly slide between the lock position and the unlock position, thereby ensuring that the lock device 1 smoothly switches between the lock state and the unlock state.

It is noted that the slide-out end 12131 and the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213 on the slide lock 121 of the present application have the same depth, respectively, and the depth of the slide-out end 12131 of the locking groove 1213 is greater than the depth of the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213, so as to ensure that the stopper element 132 slides into the locking groove 1213 from the slide-in end 12132 and slides out of the locking groove 1213 from the slide-out end 12131. Of course, in other examples of the present application, the slide-out end 12131 and the slide-in end 12132 in the locking groove 1213 may also be implemented as gradually depth-varied grooves, respectively, in which the depth of the slide-out end 12131 of the locking groove 1213 becomes gradually greater toward the unlocking guide groove 1214, and the depth of the slide-in end 12132 of the locking groove 1213 becomes gradually greater toward the locking guide groove 1215, so as to further guide the stopper element 132 to slide into the locking groove 1213 from the slide-in end 12132 and slide out of the locking groove 1213 from the slide-out end 12131.

In particular, as shown in fig. 8 and 13, the locking groove 1213, the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking guide groove 1215 of the present application collectively define a heart-shaped channel, so that the stopper element 132 can slide smoothly within the locking groove 1213, the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking guide groove 1215, helping to ensure that the lock device 1 is smoothly switched between the locked state and the unlocked state.

According to the above-described example of the present application, as shown in fig. 6 and 7, the limit element 132 in the switch 13 of the lock mechanism 10 may be, but is not limited to being, implemented as a hook rod 1320 pivoted to the lock case 11, the head of the hook rod 1320 being adapted to hook the locking groove 1213 of the slide lock 121 and to slide within the unlocking groove 1216, the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking guide groove 1215. It will be appreciated that the end of the hook rod 1320 of the present application also has a hook structure for hooking the pivot hole of the lock housing 11 to pivot the hook rod 1320 and the lock housing 11, ensuring that the hook rod 1320 releasably hooks the locking groove 1213 of the sliding lock 121.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 6 and 7, the reset element 131 in the switch 13 of the lock mechanism 10 can be, but is not limited to, implemented as a spring 1310, wherein one end of the spring 1310 is fixed to the lock case 11, and the other end of the spring 1310 is fixed to the slide lock 121 to apply an elastic force to the slide lock 121, so that the slide lock 121 can have a tendency to slide from the locking position to the unlocking position under the action of the spring 1310. It is understood that the spring 1310 of the present application may be implemented as a tension spring, so that the spring 1310 is stretched to accumulate elastic potential energy when the slide lock 121 is pressed; alternatively, the spring 1310 may be implemented as a compression spring, so that the spring 1310 is compressed to accumulate elastic potential energy when the slide lock 121 is pressed. Of course, in other examples of the present application, the reset element 131 may also be implemented as a rubber band or a magnetic element, etc., as long as it can apply the required acting force to the sliding lock 121, which will not be described in detail herein.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 6, 7 and 10, the sliding lock 121 is further provided with a spring cavity 1217 for accommodating the spring 1310, so that the spring 1310 is deformed in the spring cavity 1217, not only to facilitate the assembly of the spring 1310, but also to effectively protect the spring 1310 from external factors. It can be understood that the sliding lock 121 and the lock housing 11 are provided with a position-limiting post matching with the spring 1310, so that both ends of the spring 1310 are respectively sleeved on the corresponding position-limiting posts, thereby simplifying the assembly of the locking device 1.

More preferably, as shown in fig. 7 and 10, the spring cavity 1217 and the unlocking groove 1216 are symmetrically disposed at opposite sides of the sliding lock 121, respectively, and both the spring cavity 1217 and the unlocking groove 1216 extend along the sliding direction of the sliding lock 121, ensuring that the sliding lock 121 can smoothly slide to the unlocking position by the spring 1310.

According to the above example of the application, as shown in fig. 7 and 8, the sliding lock 121 of the lock mechanism 10 is provided with a stopper 1218, the lock housing 11 is provided with a stopper groove 1103 matched with the stopper 1218, the stopper groove 1103 extends along the sliding direction of the sliding lock 121, and the stopper 1218 of the sliding lock 121 is inserted into the stopper groove 1103 of the lock housing 11 in a stopper-slidable manner, so as to prevent the sliding lock 121 from slipping out of the sliding cavity 1102 of the lock housing 11, and to ensure that the sliding lock 121 can be stably held at the unlocking position.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 6 and 7, the lock case 11 of the lock mechanism 10 may include a first case 111 and a second case 112, wherein the first case 111 is detachably mounted to the second case 112 to form the sliding chamber 1102 between the first case 111 and the second case 112, so that the switch 13 is covered in the sliding chamber 1102, preventing the switch 13 from being interfered by the external environment, and ensuring the normal operation of the switch 13. At the same time, the plug cavity 1101 of the lock housing 11 extends through the first housing 111 and the second housing 112, so that the adapter 20 can be inserted into the plug cavity 1101 and releasably engage with the slide lock 121.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 7 and 10, the lock case 11 may further include an elastic pressing piece 113 disposed at the first housing 111, the elastic pressing piece 113 tilting toward the slide lock 121 to bias the stopper element 132, so as to ensure that the stopper element 132 can stably hook the locking groove 1213 and stably slide along the unlocking groove 1216, the unlocking guide groove 1214 and the locking guide groove 1215.

More preferably, as shown in fig. 10, the elastic pressing piece 113 of the lock housing 11 correspondingly biases the head of the hook rod 1320, so that the head of the hook rod 1320 abuts against the locking groove 1213, the unlocking guide 1214, the locking guide 1215 and the bottom of the unlocking groove 1216, thereby ensuring that the head of the hook rod 1320 can effectively hook the locking groove 1213 or unhook from the locking groove 1213, so that the locking device 1 can be switched between the locking state and the unlocking state efficiently, and avoiding the failure of switching state.

It should be noted that, as shown in fig. 6 and 9, the elastic pressing plate 113 of the present application can be integrally formed with the first housing 111 to reduce the manufacturing cost of the lock housing 11. Of course, in other examples of the present application, the elastic pressing piece 113 may also be separated from the first housing 111, for example, the elastic pressing piece 113 may be implemented as a metal piece fixed to the first housing 111, and the description thereof is omitted here.

According to the above-described first embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the lock mechanism 10 in the locking device 1 of the present application is adapted to be located at the top or side of the first container 70, and the coupler 20 is adapted to be located at the bottom or side of the second container 80, wherein the second container 80 is securely stacked on the first container 70 when the coupler 20 is snapped to the lock mechanism 10.

For example, as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the first container 70 of the combined container may include a first container body 71 having a first opening and a first cover 72 covered on the first container body 71; accordingly, the second container 80 may include a second container body 81 having a second opening and a second cover 82 covering the second container body 81. The lock mechanism 10 of the locking device 1 is mounted on the top wall of the first cover 72, and the adapter 20 is correspondingly fixed on the bottom wall of the second container body 81, wherein when the second container 80 is stacked on the first container 70, the lock mechanism 10 of the locking device 1 can engage with the adapter 20 from the top-bottom direction to achieve stable locking between the first container 70 and the second container 80 for storage and transportation. It is understood that the adapter 20 of the present application can be integrally formed with the second container body 81, and can also be fixed to the second container body 81 by screwing or riveting.

Alternatively, in the above-mentioned first embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 2 and 4, the combined container may include two of the locking devices 1, and the two locking devices 1 are symmetrically disposed between the first container 70 and the second container 80, so that the first container 70 and the second container 80 stacked on each other are reliably locked together by the two locking devices 1. In other words, the two locking devices 1 are oppositely disposed at opposite sides of the first container 70 and the second container 80, so that the two locking devices 1 are switched between the locking state and the unlocking state by oppositely pressing the sliding locks 121 of the locking mechanisms 10 of the two locking devices 1.

It is to be noted that in the above example of the present application, the lock device 1 is the lock cylinder 12 that slidingly operates the lock mechanism 10 to effect switching between the unlocked state and the locked state, but this is merely an example. It is understood that in other examples of the present application, the locking device 1 may also adopt operations such as rotation to switch between the unlocking state and the locking state.

Fig. 14 to 16 show an example of a modification of the lock device 1 according to the first embodiment of the present application, in which the lock cylinder 12 of the lock mechanism 10 is implemented as a rotary lock 122, the rotary lock 122 including a notch disc 1221 rotatably provided to the lock housing 11 and a knob 1222 connected to the notch disc 1221 to drive the notch disc 1221 to rotate between a locked position and an unlocked position with respect to the lock housing 11 by means of the knob 1222; accordingly, the adapter 20 is embodied as a lock recess 24. Thus, when the knob 1222 of the rotary lock 122 is twisted to rotate the notch disc 1221 to the locking position, the notch 12210 of the notch disc 1221 is away from the lock slot 241 of the lock slot seat 24, and the notch disc 1221 is partially snapped into the lock slot 241 of the lock slot seat 24, so as to achieve the locking engagement between the lock mechanism 10 and the adapter 20, so that the locking device 1 is in the locking state; when the knob 1222 of the rotary lock 122 is twisted to drive the notch disc 1221 to rotate to the unlocking position, the notch 12210 of the notch disc 1221 faces the locking slot 241 of the locking slot seat 24, so that the notch disc 1221 and the locking slot seat 24 are disengaged, and the locking between the lock mechanism 10 and the adapter 20 is released, so that the locking device 1 is in the unlocking state.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 14 and 15, each of the lock mechanisms 10 may include two of the rotary locks 122 arranged at intervals, and the lock recess seat 24 is adapted to be placed between the two rotary locks 122 such that the two lock recesses 241 of the lock recess seat 24 correspond to the two rotary locks 122 one by one, respectively. Thus, the two rotating locking pieces 122 can be engaged with the locking slot 24 from two opposite sides of the locking slot 24, so as to realize stable locking of the locking device 1. It will be appreciated that the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 of the present application is adapted to be removably mounted to the top of the first container 70; accordingly, the locking socket 24 of the adapter 20 is adapted to be correspondingly disposed at the bottom of the second container 80 to securely lock the first container 70 and the second container 80 by the locking device 1.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 15, the lock case 11 of the lock mechanism 10 is provided with sliding grooves 1104 matched with the lock grooves 24, and the two rotary locks 122 are symmetrically disposed at the left and right sides of the sliding grooves 1104 to be engaged from the left and right sides of the lock grooves 24.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 15, the lock case 11 of the lock mechanism 10 is further provided with a locking hole 1105, and the rear side of the lock slot seat 24 is provided with a locking post 242 protruding to match with the locking hole 1105, when the lock slot seat 24 slides into the sliding slot 1104 of the lock case 11, the locking post 242 of the lock slot seat 24 will be inserted into the locking hole 1105 of the lock case 11 to lock the lock case 11 from the rear side of the lock slot seat 24; thereby further enhancing the locking stability of the locking device 1 in cooperation with the engagement between the rotary locking piece 122 and the locking socket 24.

More preferably, as shown in fig. 16, the notch 12210 of the notch disc 1221 in the lock mechanism 10 is implemented as a flat notch, so that when the notch 12210 of the notch disc 1221 faces the lock slot 241 of the lock slot seat 24, no substantial portion of the notch disc 1221 is inserted into the lock slot 241 of the lock slot seat 24, thereby ensuring complete disengagement between the lock mechanism 10 and the adapter 20; when the notch disc 1221 is rotated 180 ° to make the notch 12210 of the notch disc 1221 depart from the locking slot 241 of the locking slot seat 24, the solid part of the notch disc 1221 can be inserted into the locking slot 241 of the locking slot seat 24 as much as possible, so as to ensure the reliable engagement between the locking mechanism 10 and the adapter 20.

It should be noted that in other embodiments of the present application, the number of the locking devices 1 in the combined container is not limited to two, and may be implemented as one or more; furthermore, the locking device 1 may be disposed at any position between the first container 70 and the second container 80 as long as the first container 70 and the second container 80 can be releasably locked. It is understood that the modular container of the present application is not limited to two containers either, i.e., the modular container of the present application may comprise three or more containers, and it is within the scope of the present application that there is one locking device 1 releasably locking together two adjacent containers; at this time, other two adjacent containers can be locked by the other locking device 1, or can be connected by the existing connection mode; or two adjacent containers are matched with other connecting modes together through the locking device 1 to realize safe stacking.

Exemplary, fig. 17 to 19 show a modular container according to a second embodiment of the present application. The modular container according to the second embodiment of the present application differs from the above-described first embodiment of the present application in that: the two locking devices 1 are arranged on the same side of the first container 70 and the second container 80 in the same direction, so that the two locking devices 1 are switched between the locking state and the unlocking state by pressing the sliding locks 121 in the lock mechanisms 10 of the two locking devices 1 in the same direction.

Optionally, in order to improve the stacking stability between the first container 70 and the second container 80, the second container body 81 of the second container 80 of the present application is adapted to be partially embedded in the first cover 72 of the first container 70 to limit the relative position between the first container 70 and the second container 80 from the front-back and left-right directions. Meanwhile, the locking device 1 of the present application limits the relative position between the first container 70 and the second container 80 from the top to the bottom.

According to the above example of the present application, the combined container may further include an auxiliary mechanism 50, the auxiliary mechanism 50 is disposed between the first container 70 and the second container 80 to assist the locking device 1 to lockably fix the second container 80 to the first container 70, which helps ensure a firm stacking therebetween.

Preferably, as shown in fig. 18 and 19, the auxiliary mechanism 50 may include a first latch 51 disposed on the first cover 72 and a second latch 52 correspondingly disposed on the second container body 81, wherein when the second container 80 is stacked on the first container 70, the first latch 51 is latched into the second latch 52 to further limit the relative position between the first container 70 and the second container 80 from the up-down direction. It will be appreciated that the adapter 20 and the second latch slot 52 of the present application are located on opposite sides of the second container body 81; the lock mechanism 10 and the first latch 51 of the present application are respectively and correspondingly located on two opposite sides of the first cover 72, so that the locking connection of the locking device 1 and the locking connection between the first latch 51 and the second latch 52 cooperate to realize the fixed stacking between the first container 70 and the second container 80.

It should be noted that in other examples of the present application, the auxiliary mechanism 50 can be implemented as various snaps or latches as long as the containers can be securely stacked together in cooperation with the locking device 1, and the detailed description thereof is omitted.

According to the second embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 17 and 18, the combined container may further include a third container 90, the third container 90 is stacked on the second container 80, and the locking device 1 is disposed between the third container 90 and the second container 80, so as to lock the second container 80 and the third container 90 together by the locking device 1.

Alternatively, the lock mechanism 10 of the locking device 1 is mounted on the sidewall of the second cover 82 of the second container 80, and the adapter 20 of the locking device 1 is correspondingly disposed on the sidewall of the third container 90, so that the lock mechanism 10 can engage the adapter 20 from the side (such as the left-right direction or the front-back direction) to achieve the locking between the second container 80 and the third container 90.

Preferably, the adapter 20 is pivotally connected to the sidewall of the third container 90, so that after the third container 90 is stacked on the second container 80, the adapter 20 pivots relative to the third container 90 to insert the corresponding lock mechanism 10 from the side of the second container 80 for engagement.

Specifically, as shown in fig. 17 and 19, the adapter 20 further includes a connecting arm 23, one end of the connecting arm 23 is pivotally connected to the side wall of the third container 90, and the other end of the connecting arm 23 is fixedly connected to the tail portion 21, so that the head portion 22 of the adapter 20 protrudes from the connecting arm 23, so as to ensure that the head portion 22 of the adapter 20 can be inserted into the plugging cavity 1101 of the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 to be locked by the key cylinder 12 of the lock mechanism 10.

Preferably, the sidewall of the third container 90 is further provided with a groove adapted to the connecting arm 23, so that after the adapter 20 is released from the locking mechanism 10, the connecting arm 23 of the adapter 20 is adapted to be received in the groove of the third container 90 to prevent the connecting arm 23 from protruding downward from the third container 90 to affect the placement and use of the third container 90.

It is noted that the third container 90 of the present application can be embodied as a container without a lid, and can also be embodied as a container with a lid; similarly, the first container 70 and the second container 80 of the present application can also be implemented as containers without a cover, in which case the lock mechanism 10 in the locking device 1 is respectively mounted to the side walls of the first container body 71 and the second container body 81, so that when the second container body 81 and the third container 90 are respectively stacked in locking connection with the corresponding first container body 71 and the second container body 81 by the locking device 1, the second container body 81 and the third container 90 can respectively serve as covers of the first container 70 and the second container 80 to close the openings of the first container body 71 and the second container body 81, thereby simplifying the structure of the combined container and reducing the cost.

In addition, in the second embodiment of the present application, the second container 80 and the third container 90 may be, but not limited to, locked by two locking devices 1, wherein two locking devices 1 are respectively disposed at the left and right sides or the front and rear sides of the second container 80 and the third container 90, respectively, to safely stack the second container 80 and the third container 90 together. Of course, in other examples of the present application, only one locking device 1 may be disposed between the second container 80 and the third container 90, and the locking device may cooperate with the auxiliary mechanism 50 to achieve a safe stacking therebetween.

Fig. 20 to 22 show a modified example of the combined container according to the second embodiment of the present application, in which the auxiliary mechanism 50 further includes a second latch 53 provided to the second cover 82 and a third latch groove 54 provided to the third container 90 and engaged with the second latch 53, wherein the second latch 53 of the second container 80 is latched to the third latch groove 54 of the third container 90 when the third container 90 is stacked on the second container 80. At this time, only one locking device 1 is required to be used between the second container 80 and the third container 90 to achieve safe stacking.

Alternatively, as shown in fig. 21 and 22, the connecting arm 23 of the adapter 20 of the locking device 1 is adapted to be fixed to the sidewall of the third container 90, and when stacking the third container 90 on the second container 80, the third container 90 needs to be pushed laterally to the second container 80, so that the head 22 of the adapter 20 is inserted into the insertion cavity 1101 of the locking mechanism 10 to achieve locking while the second latch 53 is latched into the third slot 54.

It should be noted that, in the second embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 17 and 18, the combined container may further include a push-pull mechanism 60, the push-pull mechanism 60 includes a roller 61 disposed on the first container 70 and a pull rod 62 correspondingly disposed on the first container 70, so that the combined container is implemented as a pull rod container, such as a pull rod box, etc., for convenient carrying.

Furthermore, although the above embodiments of the present application illustrate the features and advantages of the present application in terms of a stacking box, this is by way of example only; it will be appreciated that in other examples of the present application, the modular container may also be embodied as a stacked drawer cabinet or the like.

Fig. 23 to 24 show, by way of example, a modular container according to a third embodiment of the present application. The combined container according to the third embodiment of the present application is different from the above-described first embodiment of the present application in that: the first container 70 may include a first cabinet 73 and a first drawer 74 drawably disposed at the first cabinet 73; the second container 80 may include a second cabinet 83 and a second drawer 84 drawably disposed at the second cabinet 83. Thus, two locking devices 1 are symmetrically disposed between the first container 70 and the second container 80 to switch the two locking devices 1 between the locked state and the unlocked state by reversely pressing the sliding locks 121 in the lock mechanisms 10 of the two locking devices 1.

Preferably, the lock housing 11 of the lock mechanism 10 of the locking device 1 is integrally formed with the first cabinet 73, and the coupling member 20 of the locking device 1 is integrally formed with the second cabinet 83, so as to reduce the assembly difficulty of the locking device 1 and improve the locking stability between the first container 70 and the second container 80.

More preferably, a plurality of the lock mechanisms 10 are respectively disposed at the top of the first cabinet 73 and the second cabinet 83; accordingly, a plurality of the connectors 20 are respectively disposed at the bottom of the first cabinet 73 and the second cabinet 83. Thus, the second container 80 can be lockably stacked above the first container 70, or can be lockably stacked below the first container 70; in addition, a plurality of the first containers 70 or a plurality of the second containers 80 may be stacked in sequence.

It should be noted that, in this third embodiment of the present application, although each container shown in the drawings is illustrated as including two drawers, it is only an example; in other examples of the present application, each container may also include one or more drawers, which are not described in detail herein.

The technical features of the above embodiments can be arbitrarily combined, and for the sake of simplicity of description, all possible combinations of the technical features in the above embodiments are not described, however, as long as there is no contradiction between the combinations of the technical features, the combinations should be considered as the scope of description in the present specification.

The above embodiments only represent several embodiments of the present invention, and the description thereof is specific and detailed, but not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that, for those skilled in the art, without departing from the spirit of the present invention, several variations and modifications can be made, which are within the scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

1. A locking device for a first container and a second container combined with each other, the locking device comprising:

a coupler for being disposed on the second container; and

2. The lock-receiving device of claim 1, wherein the lock mechanism includes a housing configured to be removably secured to the first container and a plug movably disposed in the housing, the plug configured to move between a locked position and an unlocked position, wherein the plug is configured to engage the adapter when the plug is moved to the locked position relative to the housing; the lock cylinder is adapted to release the adapter when the lock cylinder is moved to the unlocked position relative to the lock housing.

3. The lock-connecting device according to claim 2, wherein the lock cylinder of the lock mechanism is a slide lock slidably disposed in the lock case, the slide lock being provided with a lock hole for engaging the coupler and an unlock hole for releasing the coupler, the lock hole communicating with the unlock hole along a sliding direction of the slide lock, wherein the coupler is adapted to slide between the lock hole and the unlock hole of the slide lock when the slide lock slides between the lock position and the unlock position; the head size of the adapter is larger than the size of the locking hole in the sliding lock and smaller than the size of the unlocking hole.

4. The lock-receiving device of claim 3 wherein the lock housing of the lock mechanism has a plug-in cavity and a slide cavity in communication with each other, the slide lock being slidably insertable into the slide cavity of the lock housing, the adapter being adapted for insertion into the plug-in cavity of the lock housing to releasably engage the slide lock; the lock mechanism further comprises a change-over switch which is correspondingly arranged between the lock shell and the sliding lock piece, and the sliding lock piece is pressed and then is in the locking position and the unlocking position to perform sliding switching.

5. The latching device according to claim 4, wherein the switch comprises a reset element and a limit element, the reset element being arranged between the lock housing and the sliding lock for exerting a force on the sliding lock opposite to the pressing direction; the limiting element is arranged between the lock shell and the sliding lock piece and is used for limiting the sliding lock piece in a releasable way; wherein when the stop element stops the slide lock, the slide lock is held in the locked position by the combined action of the reset element and the stop element; and after the limiting element and the sliding lock release the limiting, the sliding lock automatically slides from the locking position to the unlocking position under the action of the reset element.

6. The lock-connection device according to claim 5, wherein the slide lock is further provided with a locking groove for being hooked by one end of the stopper element, an unlocking guide groove communicating with a slide-out end of the locking groove, a locking guide groove communicating with a slide-in end of the locking groove, and an unlocking groove communicating with both the unlocking guide groove and the locking guide groove, the unlocking guide groove for guiding the one end of the stopper element to slide from the locking groove into the unlocking groove, the locking guide groove for guiding the one end of the stopper element to slide from the unlocking groove into the locking groove.

7. The lock-receiving device of claim 6, wherein the locking groove is a V-shaped groove and the groove bottom of the locking groove at the slide-out end is lower than the groove bottom of the locking groove at the slide-in end; the groove bottom of the unlocking guide groove adjacent to the sliding-out end is lower than the groove bottom of the locking groove at the sliding-out end; the groove bottom of the locking guide groove adjacent to the sliding end is higher than the groove bottom of the locking groove at the sliding end; the groove bottom of the unlocking guide groove adjacent to the unlocking groove is higher than that of the unlocking groove, and the groove bottom of the locking guide groove adjacent to the unlocking groove is not higher than that of the unlocking groove; the degree of depth of unblock guiding groove certainly lock the groove extremely unblock groove diminishes gradually, just the degree of depth of locking guiding groove certainly unblock groove extremely lock the groove diminishes gradually.

8. The lock-receiving device of claim 7, wherein the locking slot, the unlocking guide slot, and the locking guide slot of the slide lock together define a heart-shaped channel; the limiting element is a hook head rod pivoted to the lock shell; the reset element is a spring.

9. The locking device according to any one of claims 5 to 8, wherein the sliding lock is provided with a stopper, the lock housing is provided with a stopper groove matching with the stopper, the stopper groove extends along a sliding direction of the sliding lock, and the stopper of the sliding lock is inserted into the stopper groove of the lock housing in a position-limiting and slidable manner.

10. The lock connection of claim 9 wherein the lock housing includes a first housing and a second housing, the first housing being removably mounted to the second housing to form the sliding cavity therebetween, the plug cavity of the lock housing extending through the first and second housings; the lock case further includes an elastic pressing piece provided to the first housing, the elastic pressing piece being tilted toward the slide lock to bias the position restricting member.

11. The lock-receiving device of claim 2, wherein the lock cylinder of the lock mechanism is a rotary lock including a notched disc rotatably disposed in the lock housing and a knob connected to the notched disc to drive rotation of the notched disc relative to the lock housing between the locked position and the unlocked position via the knob; the connecting piece is a lock slot seat, wherein when the knob is twisted to drive the notch disc to rotate between the locking position and the unlocking position, the notches of the notch disc correspondingly deviate from or face the lock slots of the lock slot seat respectively.

12. The locking device according to claim 11, wherein the lock case of the lock mechanism is provided with a slide groove matching with the lock groove seat, and the two rotary locking pieces are symmetrically provided at left and right sides of the slide groove, respectively, to be engaged from left and right sides of the lock groove seat; the lock shell is further provided with a clamping hole, the rear side of the lock slot seat is provided with a clamping column matched with the clamping hole, and when the lock slot seat slides into the sliding groove of the lock shell, the clamping column of the lock slot seat is inserted into the clamping hole of the lock shell so as to clamp the rear side of the lock slot seat.

13. Modular container, characterized in that it comprises:

a first container;

a second container; and

the locking arrangement of any one of claims 1 to 12, correspondingly disposed between the first and second containers for releasably locking the second container to the first container.

14. The modular container of claim 13 wherein the locking mechanism of the locking device is disposed on the first container and the adapter of the locking device is correspondingly disposed on the second container such that when the second container is stacked on the first container, the locking mechanism and the adapter of the locking device engage with each other to form the modular container.

15. The modular container of claim 13 wherein the first container comprises a first container body having a first opening; the second container comprises a second container body having a second opening, wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is disposed to the first container body, and the coupling piece of the locking device is correspondingly disposed to the second container body to releasably lock the second container body to the first container body by the locking device.

16. The modular container of claim 13 wherein the first container comprises a first container body and a first cover adapted to be secured to the first container body; the second container comprises a second container body and a second cover body which is covered on the second container body; wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is mounted on the first cover, and the coupling member of the locking device is correspondingly disposed on the second container body, so as to releasably lock the second container body to the first cover through the locking device.

17. The modular container of claim 13 wherein the first container comprises a first cabinet and a first drawer retractably disposed in the first cabinet; the second container comprises a second cabinet body and a second drawer arranged on the second cabinet body in a drawing mode; wherein the lock mechanism of the locking device is arranged in the first cabinet body, and the adapting piece of the locking device is arranged in the second cabinet body, so that the first cabinet body is releasably locked in the second cabinet body through the locking device.

18. A modular container according to any of claims 13 to 17, comprising at least one pair of said locking means, the locking mechanism and the adapter of each pair being located respectively on opposite sides or on the same side of the first and second containers.

19. The modular container of any of claims 13-17 further comprising a third container connected to the second container in a stacked arrangement; the locking device is arranged between the third container and the second container, so that the third container and the second container are locked together through the locking device.

20. The modular container of any of claims 13 to 17 further comprising a push-pull mechanism comprising a roller disposed on the first container and a pull rod correspondingly disposed on the first container.