DE3118448A1 - Cuboid bottle crate made of plastic - Google Patents

Abstract

The space above a crate bottom (2) formed by a webbed grid is bounded laterally by side walls (7) in rows and side walls in lines which bound individual compartments of square cross-section for bottles (1) to be inserted in rows and lines. The outer dimensions of the crate are greater in one direction only by about 3.1 mm per bottle than the greatest diameter thereof. In the underframe, the remainder is distributed over lateral partitions. However, the clear width (wd) of the upper crate opening (28) is constricted by inner beads (12), which are mounted on the upper edge of the side walls (7) and reinforce the latter, in such a way that the bottles can only be inserted through said opening in a tightly bundled manner. In this case, the bottles of the outer rows are deflected slightly outwards by the wedge-shaped upper sides (20) of the partitions (9) in rows and are thus introduced into their compartments below the inner beads (12). <IMAGE>

Description

Rectangular plastic bottle crate

The invention relates to a cuboid bottle crate made of plastic, its storage space above a preferably lattice-shaped floor by two pairs of side walls limited and by between the side walls drawn in parallel to these intermediate walls lower height in individual compartments for those in rows along a first dimension and rows is divided along a second dimension to be set bottles, The first dimension is so tight that there is only one in the row levels small excess of dimensions compared to the dimensions of the one to be accommodated in a row Bottles is left, and the top ledges of the in the direction of the rows running row side walls are provided with inwardly protruding reinforcements.

Bottle crates of the type described above are essential for storage and used to transport beer, mainly Euro bottles and Vichy bottles come into use. The bottle crates are stacked on pallets during transport and with these each form a cuboid delivery unit to be implemented as a whole. In any case, the base areas of the bottle crates must be as exactly as possible Adjust the dimensions of the usual pallets, i.e.

the boxes that are joined together should fit the pallet as much as possible precisely cover in order to utilize their area.

So far, industrial pallets have mainly been used to transport beer crates with a base area of 1000 x 1200 mm. The base area was accordingly a bottle crate set at 333 x 400 mm. Three boxes could then be put in each three lines joined together exactly cover the entire available area. As well as with the euro bottle, which is arranged in a 4 x 5 grid as with the Vichy-Plasche, whose grid is 4 x 6, there was enough space in both directions to move the To make side and partition walls of the box sufficiently resistant and to prevent the bottles from touching each other during transport.

Recently, the so-called pool palette has been the main winner steadily gaining importance in the field of retail chains. This pallet has the base dimension 800 x 1200 mm, once adapted to the dimensions of various other products is and, due to the smaller width, a passage through narrower openings enables. However, on this pallet you can use the conventional bottle crates only accommodate 6, i.e. 200 mm of the pallet length remain unused.

There are already beer bottle crates that allow the the usual number of bottles to be attached to the base area of the crate 300 x 400 mm. Included however, the bottles and bottle compartments are not arranged linearly in rows and rows, but adjacent bottles are each individually or in subgroups of each other staggered or arranged "on hatch". In this way, the available Make better use of the floor space so that the box walls are sufficiently rigid and resistant can be designed, and leave the known pallets themselves make better use of it. The necessary arrangement of the compartments and bottles makes it difficult but the automatic loading. In addition, the arrangement of the bottles appears in such boxes are somehow irregular and disorderly. Have such boxes at least so far, despite the better use of space, no practical significance can attain.

According to another proposal made known by DE-GM 7 830 137 the base area of the box is also limited to 300 x 400 mm, and the arrangement the bottles were kept in rows and rows. To do this, the vertical depression to enable the bottles in the individual compartments are on the inside of the upper frame forming the edge bar symmetrically to the median plane of the narrowed Lines each cut out so that the inside of the upper frame or the edge strips in the row side walls runs according to a wavy line and the margins in the line levels experience their greatest weakening during the side and partition walls running in the direction of the rows due to the there at 400 mm length of available oversize remain unwaxed and relatively strong can be trained. However, there are 4 euro beer bottles along the lines over a length of 300 mm with a diameter of 70.5 mm +/- 1.4 mm must be accommodated, results With a maximum glass diameter of 71.9 mm, the glass dimension is linear of a maximum of 287.6 mm. From the external dimension of 300 mm, a total of 12.5 mm remains, which is the game of the bottles in the compartment, the partitions and the side walls. If one sets the diameter clearance with 0.2 mm and the smallest usable thickness of the Partition walls with 2 mm are added, so a total of 2.8 mm remains for each outer wall.

This may still work in the subframe, but at least brings in the area the handle strips do not have the necessary deformation resistance and load-bearing capacity. Therefore this well-known box could not acquire any practical significance either.

The invention is based on the bottle crate defined at the outset and pursues the task of designing this bottle crate so that even then Sufficient dimensional stability and load-bearing capacity is achieved when in a row such extreme constrictions occur, as they occur in one on the base 300 x 400 mm for bottle crates intended for Euro bottles.

To solve this problem, according to the invention, the clear width is between the reinforced upper edge strips of the row side walls in the row levels smaller measured as the sum of the dimensions of the bottle diameter and the partition walls in one line.

While in the lower box the most even distribution possible the given base area is aimed at, the insertion opening is through to the inside protruding parts of the edge strips in the line levels narrowed so that at least the outer bottles cannot be lowered vertically into their storage compartments. It However, it has been shown that the whole group of bottles is suitable for a box without can be inserted through the remaining upper opening when the bottles are held directly against one another, as is the case with the packing process anyway is preferred. With the usual packers, which the bottle neck with suction forces capture, there is also such a limited pendulum setting that the bottles can easily spread apart when they are lowered and themselves find their way into the individual storage compartments. This way the sidebar can too immediately in the line levels sufficiently wide and rigid be trained.

This does not exclude the possibility of the marginal ridges outside the critical Line center planes, preferably in the connecting area of the line partitions thickened, possibly

the strips in turn provided with a wave-shaped inner surface. As a rule, however, it is also possible to make this inner surface flat with a smooth surface design. If deemed permissible, however, handle openings can be used be dispensed with in the weakened side walls. Possibly.

they can be trained accordingly narrow and their edges strong stiffen. This is easily possible from the side, since the thickness of the support bar is there can at least double.

Assuming that the skirting board comes from the outer surface of the If the box only protrudes 6 mm inwards, only 288 mm remain. That would only be 0.4 mm more than 4 large size bottles packed together. This greatest measure occurs in practice of 71.9 mm, however, only as a longer axis of an ellipse, so that when Bottle pack can largely be based on the mean bottle diameter. Included Usually there is still a play of 4 to 6 mm, which is always sufficient for implementation provided that the box and packing tools are centered sufficiently.

To facilitate this centering, the upper inner edge of the Reinforced edge strip at least in the area of the line planes with a lead-in bevel be provided.

According to a further proposal of the invention, the edge of the row Side walls adjoining partition walls as a stiffening web to well above the Central part of the compartment pulled up. Where the handle recess on the clear width is limited between two partition walls, the stiffening webs can also can be used directly as edge reinforcement, so that in the handle recess forces occurring from the side edge of the recess over the two recess stiffening bars introduced into the partition walls leading through to the opposite side wall will. If you at least make these two partitions stronger and more rigid through this middle structure can be a significant part of the entire caste burden be included.

The middle part of the row partition walls should be thinned out and be reinforced towards the intersection and connection points of adjacent wall parts. Appropriately, the thinned row partition walls have a vertical one weakened median, which is down to a minimum wall thickness of approx. 1.2 mm is thinned, and its thickness is from the median to the junction with adjacent walls at least doubled.

A further reduction in the stress in the median results by the fact that this up just above the box floor within a web-like Part of the partition is brought down.

When doing the top of the partitions to the center of the storage compartment is excepted wedge-shaped, the bottles can only be used during the insertion process the top of the thickened parts of the partition walls come into contact, whereby the median only takes on a lateral guiding function.

In the case of a bottle crate with stiffening cavities formed on its side edges, the angular cross-section with inside curvature to adapt to the bottle shape have, the cavity cross-section expediently has one in the row side wall longer leg extended into it and a shorter leg, which in the Row side wall at a distance of one row Median plane of the adjacent compartment ends. The corner strips then form with the side walls and the floor structure, which is usually upright ribbed, creates a load-bearing structural unit that only slight stiffening by the remaining walls is required.

The drawing shows the invention for example.

1 shows a view from above of one according to the invention Bottle crate, Fig. 2 is a partial section through this crate along the line II-II, 2a shows a partial section according to IIa-IIa in FIG. 1, and FIG. 4 shows an enlarged Representation of corner IV, each from sig. 1.

In the drawing is a plastic crate according to the invention for Euro beer bottles 1 on a scale of 1: 2 in Figures 1 to 3 and on a scale of 2: 1 in the detail view Fig. 4 shown. The narrow line length a has a dimension of 300 mm, the longer one Row length b of 400 mm.

The box floor 2 is designed in a known manner as a lattice structure with rings 4 arranged in the middle of the compartments 3, which run through parallel to the sides a, b extending webs 5 connected and to the side and partition walls are connected. The bottom 2 forms with the shorter line side walls 6 (line length a) and the longer row side walls 7 (row length b) the surrounding supporting structure, the row partitions 8 and 8 running parallel to these side walls Row partition walls 9 is stiffened.

With a maximum bottle diameter of 71.9 (70.5 + 1.4) the row length b is sufficiently oversized, which is an almost arbitrarily strong dimension the row side walls 6, the row partitions 8 and also the width wb the Storage compartments 3 in the longitudinal direction of the box.

It is completely different in the transverse direction. The row side walls 7 and the row partitions 9 are storage compartments in the central plane 11 of each row been kept extremely tight. This also applies to the width wa of the storage compartments.

As best seen in Figure 4, the row partitions have partitions 8 has an essentially constant thickness c of approximately 2.4 to 2.6 mm. About with The row partition walls 9 also extend from the intersection 10 of the same thickness cl the end. They taper towards the middle of the individual partition wall elements to c2 = 1.5 up to 1.7 mm, i.e. from the relatively strong row partition walls 8 are also correspondingly strong intermediate wall parts 91, which, however, are replaced by a very thin one Central strips 92 are connected. This median is through laterally molded, groove-shaped recesses 93 thinned and only has a thickness of approximately 1.0 to 1.2 mm. It serves on the one hand for the flexible connection of the two wall parts 91 and for separation of the bottles placed in the individual compartments. Its width is approx. 12 to 16 mm and is dimensioned so that also taking into account the guide play the bottles with their surface line each exclusively on the central strip 92 for System come, but not on wall part 91.

Limited transverse deformation is also possible in the central reservation 92, so that bottles of different thicknesses balance each other out in adjacent storage compartments can. Since the Width wb easily larger by up to 0.8 mm can be measured as the maximum bottle diameter, can in principle the In any case, the width on the shelf corresponds exactly to the maximum bottle diameter. This also makes it possible to reduce the median strip to the bottom of the box by up to 0.4 mm to thicken. The ntlr as the larger of the two diameters of one ellipse transversely deformed bottle occurring maximum diameter can vary when adjusting align and adjust something towards the diagonal of the compartment.

For every. the row side walls 7 can therefore already be in the subframe provide a minimum total thickness dl of 4.1 mm. Since the wall thickness s of the side walls approx.

2 mm, there remains a flange overhang f of 2.1 mm. However, the minimum thickness only needs to be provided in each row center plane 11 to become.

Between the individual lines, the otherwise annoying Enlarge parts of the row side wall 7 to approximately the maximum thickness of 8 mm.

As can best be seen from Fig. 2a, are at the top of the Row side wall 7 two inner beads 12 provided, each in two outwards Ribs 13 run out and are carried out over the entire length of the support strip 14, which delimits a narrow central handle opening 15 at the top (FIGS. 2 and 3). the Inner beads 12 result in a total width of d = 6 mm and form an inner shoulder i = 1.9 mm from the inner surface of the subframe. The resulting reinforcement In any case, the handle opening 15 on the side is sufficient in the upper frame. Immediately above This grip opening can, however, be thickened in the wall part and on the between the two inner beads formed space 24 (Fig. 2a) extend, as shown in Fig.2 is shown.

The sides of the handle opening 15 are the ends of the partition walls 8 as Stiffening webs 16 pulled up to the upper bead 12 and also to the outside carried out as the webs 17, 17a can be seen. The edge of the handle recess 15 and the adjacent parts of the support strip 14, which is designed there as a grip web are therefore strongly stiffened outside of the middle planes 11 by ribs and webs, so that only with the immediately adjacent row partitions 8 a middle one Structural unit is created, which in conjunction with the box bottom 2 the whole Can transfer the weight of the filled box.

Now, however, not only the row side walls 6 are correspondingly wide and strongly formed, but also with the weaker row side walls 7 connected by a tubular corner part with an angular cavity 18, its inner rounding 181 is adapted to the curvature of the unprotected bottle and its longer leg 182 is substantially further into the wide row side wall 6 protrudes as the shorter leg 183 into the thinned row side wall 7th

The end parts of the intermediate walls 8, 9 are all on the side walls 6.7 at full height and therefore also connected to the bottom 2, the strong ones Crossing pieces 10, however, are high above the ground without any direct connection 2 is provided, and a connection to this floor is only made in the central area of each cell by downwardly protruding and narrowing tongues 19 achieved. In these tongues is now just as on the end-side parts of the row partition walls 9 the thin central strip 92 is formed, which is brought close to the ground is. In the lower part, the game does not necessarily have to be adhered to, there you can the bottles jam a bit.

In principle, however, the reverse version can also be selected be that the connection with the ground in the area of the crossing pieces 10 takes place and at least the central parts of the partitions 9 are not firmly attached to the floor are. This, in turn, allows a limited amount of compensation from one storage compartment znt other. It goes without saying that then a slightly different bottom ribbing than after the illustration in Fig. 1 would have to be used.

The top 20 of the partition walls 8 and 9 is guided in a zigzag shape or towards the center of each cell wall in a wedge shape downwards. on This prevents the bottles from being inserted into their compartments come into contact with the weakened median 92. You can only access the Upper side of the still relatively strong wall parts 91 strike so that the central strip 92 only take on management tasks and during storage and transport Separate the bottles that are close together.

The cell side walls 6 are reinforced with ribs 21 that are still relatively wide and can therefore, as best seen in FIG. 3, be single-walled. Your handle recess 22 extends over the width of two storage compartments, but Here, too, it is expedient to close the recess edge by pulling up end parts 23 of the corresponding partition walls 9 to stiffen.

Because of ler inner bulges 12, which each follow i like a parapet protruding inside, it is not possible to vertically place the bottles in the two outer rows to be inserted into their compartments, since there they only have a side play of a few tenths of a mm to have. The bottles are therefore bundled with adjacent surface lines in the intended Row and row arrangement of one 20 suction heads having "packer" detects that they are within the upper, through the inner beads 12 narrowed box opening 28 can be lowered with a few mm play until they with the wedge-shaped inclined upper sides 20 of the intermediate walls 8 and 9 in contact come. This creates the circular bottle bottoms that are rounded at their edge 25 of the outer bottles 1a slightly spread outwards and into the associated storage compartments initiated. They slide into the compartments at an angle, but the The inclination is so small that it can be picked up by the side play, especially since while the upper edge of the row partition walls 9 is still somewhat inwardly shaped can be before the bottle below the inner bead 12 in the vertical position got. The clear width wd of the narrowed box opening 28 is in the exemplary embodiment 288 mm and is therefore 0.4 mm larger than the sum of the 4 largest bottle diameters. The bottles must therefore be very precisely aligned with the crate during the insertion process will. To facilitate centering during the insertion process, the upper The edge of the support strip can be provided with an insertion bevel 26.

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Claims (8)

Claims 1. Cuboid bottle crate made of plastic, whose '-5 (ellraum above a preferably lattice-shaped floor (2) by two pairs of side walls (6,7) and drawn in between the side walls parallel to them Partitions (8, 9) of lower height in individual storage compartments (3) for the rows along a first dimension and rows along a second dimension (b) Bottles (1) is subdivided, the first dimension (a) being so tight that that in the line levels (11) only a small excess of dimensions compared to the dimensions the bottles (1) to be accommodated in a row remain, and the upper Edge strips of the row side walls (7) running in the direction of the rows with after internally protruding reinforcements are provided, characterized in that the clear Width (wd) between the reinforced upper edge strips (14) of the row side walls (7) in the line levels (11) is smaller than the sum of the dimensions of bottle diameter and partitions (9) of a row. 2. Bottle crate according to claim 1, characterized in that the upper inner edge of the reinforced edge strip (14) at least in the area of the line planes (11) is provided with an insertion bevel (26). 3. Bottle crate according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that that the edge of the row partition walls adjoining the row side walls (7) (8) pulled up as a stiffening web (16) far above the central part of the compartment is. 4. Bottle crate according to claim 1, 2 or 3, characterized in that that the row partition walls (9) are thinned in their middle part and and connection points of adjacent wall parts (8,6) are reinforced. 5. bottle kasias according to claim 4, characterized in that the thinned row partition walls (9) a vertical weak central strip (92), which is thinned to a minimum edge thickness (c3) of approx. 1-1.2 mm is, and their thickness from the central strip to the junction (10) with neighboring Walls (8) is doubled. 6. Bottle crate according to claim 5, characterized in that the Central strips (92) are brought down to just above the box floor (2). 7. Bottle crate according to one of claims 1 or 4 to 6, characterized characterized in that the top (20) of the partition walls (8,9) to the center of the storage compartment is excepted wedge-shaped. 8. Bottle crate according to one of claims 1 to 7, with at his Side edges molded stiffening cavities, the angular cross-section with inside curvature to adapt to the bottle shape, characterized in that that the cavity cross-section (18) extended into the row side wall (6) longer leg (182) and a shorter leg (183) in the row side wall (7) ends at a distance from a central plane (11) of the adjacent storage compartment (3).