EP0348787B1 - Box suitable for stacking and latching in its stacked position - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to containers suitable for stacking and latching in the stacked position, which containers can be stacked and latched in vertical alignment or in vertically offset positions. Each container (2) has at least one bottom (3) and two side walls (4). The latching is effected via corresponding latching devices which are effective between two side walls (4) located one above the other. Provided on each side edge (8) of the bottoms (3) of the containers (2) is a groove (10) which extends in the direction of the side edges (8) and is open towards the outside. Each side wall (4) has an inwardly angled strip section (12) on its top edge (14) which strip section is displaceable in a sliding manner in the groove (10) of the container (2) above it. The relative position between the groove (10) and the strip section (12) can be fixed by the latching devices (7). <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to stackable containers which can be locked in the stacking position, wherein a plurality of containers can be stacked and locked in vertically aligned positions which are offset from the vertical, each container having at least one base and two side walls and the locking being effective via corresponding side walls lying one above the other Locking devices are carried out.

Containers with these features are generally known and are used, for example, as form trays in drawers or as stackable form trays. In known containers of this type, the disadvantage is that comparatively large openings and at comparatively large distances are used in the upper edge of the side walls in order to be able to lock the containers with one another in relatively offset positions with relatively bulky locking devices. This type of training also requires, in particular to enable access to the locking devices, that relatively large openings must be provided in the rear walls and in the side walls. Due to the comparatively large spacing of the recesses for the locking, only a limited central area can be achieved when used for installation in drawers as form trays, so that the filling of entire drawers is not possible and additional lateral fastenings or the like must be provided. When using such known container stacks as form inserts, the stored goods, in particular papers, can also slip through the relatively large openings.

The closest prior art for this results from DE-U-81 15 348. This publication already describes a stackable container which can be locked in the stacked position, wherein several containers can be stacked and locked in a vertically aligned position and in a position offset with respect to the vertical. wherein each container has at least one bottom and two side walls and the locking takes place via corresponding locking devices which are effective between two superimposed side walls, in which each side wall is provided on the side edges of the bases of the containers with a groove which runs in the direction of the side edges and is open to the outside has an inwardly angled strip section on its upper edge, which is slidable in the groove of the container above it, the locking devices fix the relative position between the groove and the strip section and the locking devices are designed to be form-fitting d.

In the stackable container according to the prior art, however, it is very difficult to adjust the position of the individual containers relative to one another. This is because both locking devices on the sides must always be unlocked at the same time. Since, in the prior art, the locking devices are held in the closed position by spring force, both locking devices on both sides must always be kept open at the same time by hand if the containers are to be moved against one another. This requires some skill. Furthermore, it is necessary to have access to the outer wall of the respective container for unlocking. However, this is not possible if the containers are already installed in a desk drawer.

It is therefore an object of the invention to develop a container according to the prior art so that the displacement of the container to each other is very easy and convenient, and can be carried out even if the container is already installed in a desk drawer, and thus of are no longer accessible from the outside.

According to the invention, this object is achieved by the characterizing features of patent claim 1.

It has proven to be particularly preferred to provide at least 15 and in particular preferably 25 to 65 such recesses per 10 cm length, since here the advantageous tight gradation of the relative positions of the containers to one another is ensured.

In particular, it is advantageous that the locking recesses are designed in the manner of a rack as a toothing with a semicircular base between the teeth, that the locking pins are designed with a round cross-section, and that two locking pins are connected to each other laterally, which in adjacent valleys of the teeth intervention. This embodiment is preferred because a significantly increased strength can be achieved without coarsening the entire construction.

In particular, it is also advantageous that the locking pins are attached to one end of a slide which is slidably mounted in a guide formed in the bottom of the container perpendicular to the side walls, that a slide is provided on each of the side walls in the bottom of the container that the slide has a handle which protrudes into an opening open to the top of the floor, that the guide of the slide is rectangular and box-shaped to facilitate assembly and is open to the underside of the floor that the slide in the Guide is held by two guide ribs that the slide in the unlocked and in the locked position can also be locked by the slide on its end opposite the locking pin has a resilient locking tongue which is arranged with corresponding points on the locking or unlocking position Latches come into engagement. If the above-mentioned opening, as is preferred, is provided in the region of the front edge of the bottom of the container, optimal accessibility of the locking is achieved by simply moving the slider into the unlocking position from the top of the bottom to move the containers against each other Lock again to be pressed outwards into the locking position. The described design of the slider makes it possible to securely store the slider in the box-shaped guide by simply pressing it into the box-shaped guide.

The containers according to the invention particularly preferably form parts of a form tray which can be used free-standing or in organizational drawers, that the containers are provided with a closed rear wall with a straight upper edge, and that longitudinal ribs are provided on the lower edge of the bottom of the container, which ribs are provided on the upper edge rest on the rear wall of the container arranged underneath, and that the side walls of the container are formed with a smooth, continuous upper edge and closed. This combination ensures that papers cannot slip between the individual containers. In the known constructions, it was necessary to provide some clearance between the rear wall and the bottom of the container and additional openings, which is avoided by the special construction of the container according to the invention in combination with the longitudinal ribs, the closed walls being possible because all the operating elements for locking from above and from the front edge of the bottom of the container are accessible and there are no laterally protruding parts.

In the application as a form storage, it is further preferred to provide an end plate for the uppermost of the containers of a stack and to provide the end plate on the underside with longitudinal ribs resting on the upper edge of the rear wall of the container.

The end plate preferably has grooves on its side edges which receive the strip sections, the grooves being provided with resilient latching means engaging in the toothing. As a result, the end plate is securely anchored to the uppermost container and is nevertheless displaceable and at the same time the papers accommodated in this container are also secured.

Since the special construction of the container according to the invention allows the angular position of the container relative to the drawer to be adjusted continuously, entire drawers can be filled with virtually no play without additional anchoring in the drawer.

In an advantageous development of the embodiment as a form deposit, additional foot parts are provided for the inclined position of the lowest container, a stack which can be snapped into the grooves of the container and longitudinally adjustable therein, and all components are made of plastic. In this way, the inclined position of the container stack can be continuously secured in the case of installation in organizational drawers.

• Fig. 1 eine teilweise geschnittene perspektivische Ansicht schräg von unten eines Stapels von Behältern,
• Fig. 2 eine seitliche Schnittansicht von drei gestapelten Behältern längs der Linie 11-11 von Figur 3,
• Fig. 3 eine Schnittansicht der Behälter gemäß Fig. 2 längs der Linie III-III,
• Fig. 4 eine Ansicht der Anschlußplatte von unten und
• Fig. 5 eine Schnittansicht des Randbereichs eines der Behälter mit einem Fußteil.

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to an embodiment illustrated by way of example in the drawings. It shows:

• 1 is a partially sectioned perspective view obliquely from below of a stack of containers,
• 2 is a side sectional view of three stacked containers along the line 11-11 of Figure 3,
• 3 is a sectional view of the container of FIG. 2 along the line III-III,
• Fig. 4 is a view of the connection plate from below and
• Fig. 5 is a sectional view of the edge region of one of the containers with a foot part.

1 to 3, FIG. 1 shows a stack 1 of four containers 2 in a partially sectioned view obliquely from below. In Fig. 1, only the left and front part of the container 2 is shown as a cutout, the right half of the container being mirror-symmetrical to this.

As can be seen from FIG. 1, the containers 2 are both vertically aligned one above the other and offset and stackable so as to be stackable and lockable.

Each container 2, which is preferably made of plastic, has a bottom 3 and side walls 4. As can be seen from FIG. 3, the side walls 4 are connected to one another by a rear wall 6.

In the stack position chosen in each case, the containers 2 are connected to one another by means of locking devices, generally designated 7, between two superimposed side walls 4.

For stacking, the selection of the relative position to each other and the subsequent locking in the area of the outer side edges 8 of the bottoms 3 of the container 2, a groove 10 running parallel to the side edge 8 is formed on the bottom 3 of the container, which according to is open to the outside.

The side walls 4 are provided on their upper edges 14 with an inwardly angled strip section 12 which, in the preferred embodiment, again runs parallel to the floor 3.

In the case of stacked containers 2, the strip section 12 is received in the groove 10 of the container 2 lying above it and can be slid therein. The respective relative position of the containers 2 relative to one another can then be fixed by the locking device 7 by fixing the relative position of the strip section 12 to the groove 10.

The locking device 7 can either be designed as a non-positive device or, as suggested in the exemplary embodiment, can be designed to be positive.

For the form-fitting locking, latching recesses 15 are provided on the strip sections 12 in close succession at regular intervals. In the front region of the side edges 8 of the bottoms 3 of the container 2, movable locking pins 16 are provided perpendicularly in the horizontal direction to the grooves 10 between a locking position and an unlocking position, which engage in the locking position in the groove 10 and in one or more of the locking recesses 15 in a form-fitting manner protrude.

The locking recesses 15 are arranged on the side opposite the bottom 3 of the container 2, which in the preferred embodiment runs parallel to the bottom 3.

In order to ensure an almost infinitely variable adjustment of the relative positions of the containers 2 of a stack 1 to one another, at least 15, but preferably 25 to 65 locking recesses 15 per 10 cm length of the strip sections 12 should be provided.

For this purpose, as illustrated, the locking recesses 15 are designed in the manner of a rack as toothing 17, the valleys or the bottom 18 between two teeth 19 being semicircular. This semicircular shape makes it possible to form the locking pins 16 with a round cross section for reasons of mechanical strength.

As shown, the locking pins 16 are designed in such a way that two adjacent locking pins 16 are laterally connected to one another at their contact line and engage in adjacent valleys 18 of the toothing 17 in the locking position. As a result, the required mechanical strength of the locking pin is increased without a greater overall height being required. Consequently, the overall construction of the lock can be made so delicate that it can easily be accommodated in the wall thickness of the bottom 3 of the container.

To lock and unlock the containers 2 with one another, the locking pins 16 are fastened to the end of a slide 20 which is mounted in a guide 21 formed in the base 3 of the container. The guide 21 allows the slide 20 with the locking pin 16 to be displaced substantially perpendicular to the side walls 4 of the container 2. It is advantageous that on each of the side walls 4, i.e. On both sides of the container 2, a slide 20 of this type with a locking pin 16 is provided in the base 3.

The slide 20 is provided with an upwardly projecting handle 22. The guide 21 has an opening 24 on its top, which opens into the top 23 of the bottom 3 of the container 2. In this opening 24, the handle 22 of the slide 20 protrudes, the surface of the handle 22 being flush with the top 23 of the bottom 3.

Since the slides 20 are arranged in the region of the front edge of the base 3, they are easily accessible, so that the containers 2 can be locked to one another in any stack position without difficulty.

In order to facilitate the assembly of the slide 20 with the locking pin 16, the guide 21 of the slide 20, as can be seen in particular from FIGS. 1 and 3, is rectangular and box-shaped and is open to the underside 25 of the bottom 3 of the container 2. On both sides of the box-shaped guide 21, guide ribs 26 are provided on the side walls, which prevent the slides 20 from falling out downwards. The assembly of the slide 20 on the underside of the base 3 can therefore be carried out simply by simply pushing it into the guides 21 from below, overcoming the resistance formed by the guide ribs 26, and snapping in behind the guide ribs 26.

In order to facilitate the handling of the individual containers 2, it is preferred to design the slides 20 so that they can be locked in the unlocked and in the locked position. For this purpose, a slide 20 has at its free end opposite the locking pin 16 a resilient locking tongue 27 which is provided on its side facing the bottom 3 of the container 2 with two projecting locking ribs 5. On the surface opposite the locking ribs 5 in the guide 21, two locking knobs 28, 29 are provided, which in the unlocking position or in the locking position pass between the two locking ribs 5, so that the position of the slide 20 is fixed in both positions and an unintentional Adjustment is not possible.

As can be seen from the drawings, in the preferred exemplary embodiment, the containers 2 form part of a form tray 30 which, owing to the infinitely variable adjustability and secure locking, can be used either free-standing or in organizational drawers.

In the embodiment as a form storage 30, the containers 2 have the above-mentioned closed rear wall 6, which forms a straight upper edge 31 without interruptions.

In order to prevent 2 papers from slipping between the upper edge 31 and the base 3 of the container arranged above it, 3 longitudinal ribs are provided on the underside of the base, which lie on the upper edge 31 of the rear wall 6 of the container 2 arranged below it.

Since the locking recesses 15 required for the locking are arranged on the inside of the container 2 on the bottom 3 thereof, and the locking devices 7 are completely absorbed by the bottom, the side walls 4 of the container 2 are also designed with a smooth, continuous upper edge 14 and closed.

A closure plate is provided for the uppermost container 2 of a stack 1 forming a form deposit 30, as is partially illustrated in a bottom view in FIG. 4.

As shown, the end plate 33 has on its underside 34 longitudinal ribs 35 which also rest on the upper edge 31 of the rear wall 6 of the uppermost container. The end plate 33 is provided on its side edges 36 with grooves 38 which receive the strip sections 12 of the uppermost container 2. In order to enable a displaced relative position of the end plate 33 with respect to the uppermost container 2, the grooves 38 are provided with resilient latching means, generally designated 40, which engage in the toothing 17. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the latching means 40 are designed as a spring tongue 39, which is provided on its side facing the toothing 17 with a corresponding counter toothing 37, which, however, to facilitate the displacement of the end plate 33 relative to the container 2, somewhat is rounded.

In Fig. 5 a base part 41 is still sketched, by means of which the selected inclined position of the bottom container 2 of a form tray 30 can be fixed. The foot part 41 can be clipped into the lateral grooves 10 of each container 2 and moved in the longitudinal direction thereof. For this purpose, each foot part 41 has at its upper end a claw 42 engaging in the groove 10 and two abutments 43 located opposite one another at a corresponding distance (only one such abutment 43 is shown in FIG. 5).

The lower end 44 of the foot part 41 is preferably semicircular in order to form a secure support in any inclined position.

All individual parts of the construction described above are preferably produced from a suitable plastic.

It is obvious that the construction / described, apart from the embodiment as a form storage, a large number of uses of such containers 2 is possible. For example, containers of this type can be used as free shelves or as wall shelves, only the lowest container being firmly mounted and the remaining containers being connected to one another only by locking. Likewise, containers 2 can be attached to the wall by an inclined guide, the individual containers remaining individually removable. A further possible application is, for example, in tools or sample cases or as a free tower on desks, a base having to be provided which is either attached to the desk by suction cups or the like or which, due to its weight, enables inclined positions. Such containers can be used as form containers, disk containers or for records, sample collections or the like. design.

All of the features and advantages of the invention, including constructive details and spatial arrangements, resulting from the description, the claims and drawings can be essential to the invention both individually and in any combination.

Claims (7)

1. Stackable containers (2) capable of being locked when stacked, several containers (2) being stackable and lockable in vertical alignment or in a staggered relation with respect to the vertical, each container (2) having at least one base (3) and two side walls (4) and the locking system with appropriate locking devices (7) acting on two vertically adjacent side walls, wherein on the side edges (8) of the bases (3) of the containers (2) an outwardly open groove (10) is provided running parallel with the side edges (8), each side wall (4) features an inwardly squared-off strip (12) on its top edge (14) which can be displaced by being slid in the groove (10) of the superimposed container (2), and that the locking devices (7) fix the relative position between the groove (10) and the strip (12), and the locking devices (7) feature a positive engagement, characterised in that notches (15) are arranged along the strips (12), that locking pins (16), which are displacable at right-angles to the grooves (10) between their locked and unlocked positions, are provided in the vicinity of the side edges (8), said locking pins in their locked position extending into the groove (10) and forming a positive engagement with one or more notches (15), and that the notches (15) are provided on the side of the strip (12) opposite on the base (3) of the container (2).

2. Containers as claimed in Claim 1, characterised in that at least 15 notches (15), preferably 25 to 65 notches (15) are provided at regular intervals per 10 cm of length.

3. Containers as claimed in one of the Claims 1 or 2, characterised in that the notches (15) are designed as toothing (17) with semicircular recesses (18) between the teeth (19), that the locking pins (16) are round in cross-section, and that two laterally joined locking pins (16) are provided which engage in adjacent recesses (18) of the toothing (17).

4. Containers as claimed in one of the Claims 1 to 3, characterised in that the locking pins are attached to one end of a sliding element (20) carried in a guide (21) in the base (3) of the container (2), said sliding element being displaceable at right-angles to the side walls (4), that a sliding element (20) is provided at every side wall (4) in the base (3) of the container (2), that the sliding element (20) features a handle (22) which protrudes into an opening (24) on the topside (23) of the base (3), that the guide (21) of the sliding element (20) is square-sided and box-shaped and open on the underside (25) of the base (3) and that the sliding element (20) is retained in the guide (21) by two guide ribs (26), and that the sliding element (20) is engageable in its locked and unlocked positions, in a way, that the sliding element (20) features a resilient catch tongue (27) at the end opposite to that of the locking pins (16), said catch tongue engaging with catch studs (28, 29) arranged at positions corresponding to the locked and unlocked positions.

5. Containers as claimed in one of the above Claims, characterised in that the containers (2) are components of a form tray system (30), that the containers (2) are provided with a continuous rear wall (6) with a rectilinear top edge (31) and that on the underside (25) of the base (3) of the container (2) longitudinal ribs (22) are provided which rest on the top edge (31) of the rear wall (6) of the superimposed container (2), and that the side walls (4) of the containers (2) are continuous with a rectilinear, smooth, continuous top edge (14).

6. Containers as claimed in Claim 5, characterised in that a lid (33) is provided for the container (2) on top of the stack (1), that the underside (34) of the lid (33) is provided with longitudinal ribs (35) resting on the topside (31) of the rear wall (6) of the container (2), that the side edges (36) of the lid (33) are provided with grooves (38) for receiving the strips (12) and that the grooves (38) are provided with resilient catch devices (40) to engage with the toothing (17).

7. Containers as claimed in one of the Claims 5 or 6, characterised in that foot elements (41) are provided to tilt the bottom container (2) of a stack (1), said foot elements engaging with the grooves (10) of the container and being longitudinally adjustable in said grooves (10), and that all of the components are made of plastic material.

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