EP0501087B1 - Stackable container - Google Patents

Abstract

A stackable container made of plastic for transporting dangerous liquids has a cuboid shape with rounded corners and edges, in which container the limbs (5, 6) of the U-shaped stacking surface (4) run downwards towards the front wall (15) of the container and up to the thus formed upper corners (11, 12) of the side edges (13, 14) of the front wall (15) of the container in the outwardly sloping flat curves (16, 17) up to below the level of the attachment (18) of the filling and pouring nozzle (3) arranged near to said front wall (15) of the container and are then drawn upwards to said attachment (18) and run into said attachment (18). <IMAGE>

Description

The invention relates to a stacking container made of plastic, particularly suitable for the transport of dangerous liquids, which has a cubic shape with rounded corners and edges and is produced by the blowing process, on the top surface of which a handle in the vertical plane of the molded part and near the front wall of the container a and pouring spouts are formed, around which a U-shaped stacking surface arched out of the top floor with a flat support surface for another similar container is arranged, which has legs parallel to the molding plane and a stacking shoulder opposite the pouring and pouring spout.

Such containers must comply with the legal provisions for the transport of dangerous liquids (GGVE Railway, Dangerous Goods Regulations GGVS and GGVSee Lakes for Germany, which apply internationally). The test methods specified there place very high demands on the strength, especially after long-term chemical attack by dangerous liquids, e.g. Peroxides for which the containers are to be approved. The term "container for the transport of dangerous liquids" chosen at the outset is therefore to be understood as meaning those which can meet these test conditions.

Furthermore, it will become a necessary feature of such containers in the future that they can be completely emptied, since only those containers can be accepted at the disposal points which are certain that no residues of the contents liquids remain in them.

The formation of rounded corners and edges, as described in EP-A-0 235 384 (Frohn), give the advantage of great mechanical stability in contrast to rectangular edges, as shown in EP-A-0 266 851 (Wiva) . These promote corrosion cracks in the event of chemical attack by dangerous goods. However, both containers have the disadvantage that stacking caps are required for them.

In the aforementioned containers and those as described in DE-U-8700445 (E + E Plastic GmbH & Co.KG) and in DE-A-3224038 (Mauser Werke GmbH), in which the legs of the U-shaped contact surface the top of the container is shortened to the area of the pouring spout and is pulled down to its neck, the front, spout-side container wall cuts the horizontal section plane through the container at the level of the neck of the pouring neck. Even with a slight, practically unavoidable tilting to the side, a residual liquid in the lower-inclined container shoulder can no longer be emptied.

In order to avoid these disadvantages, it was an object of the invention to develop a container which meets the test requirements for the transport of dangerous liquids even under the most extreme conditions and which is also completely emptied completely, even when the side tilting is unavoidable when pouring.

This object is achieved according to the invention with the measures specified in the claims.

Embodiments of the invention are described below with reference to the drawings.

• Fig. A einen herkömmlichen Behälter in Draufsicht auf seinen Oberboden;
• Fig. B den gleichen Behälter in Seitenansicht in Ausgußlage;
• Fig. C den gleichen Behälter in Ausgußlage von vorne gesehen;
• Fig. 1 einen erfindungsgemäßen Behälter in perspektivischer Darstellung;
• Fig. 2 eine Vorderansicht des gleichen Behälters;
• Fig. 3 eine Draufsicht auf den Oberboden des gleichen Behälters;
• Fig. 4 eine andere Ausführungsform eines erfindungsgemäßen Behälters in Draufsicht auf seinen Oberboden;
• Fig. 5 eine weitere Ausführung eines erfindungsgemäßen Behälters in Draufsicht auf seinen Oberboden.

Show it

• A shows a conventional container in plan view of its top shelf;
• B shows the same container in side view in pouring position;
• Fig. C seen the same container in the pouring position from the front;
• Figure 1 shows a container according to the invention in a perspective view.
• Figure 2 is a front view of the same container.
• Figure 3 is a plan view of the top of the same container.
• Figure 4 shows another embodiment of a container according to the invention in plan view of its top floor.
• Fig. 5 shows another embodiment of a container according to the invention in plan view of its top floor.

The container shown in FIGS. A, B and C shows, up to the front wall a of the container, legs b of the stack surface c which is arched out continuously at the same height. When this container is poured out, the liquid in the space formed by the ends of the legs b remains, which cannot flow out even when tilted sideways, as is indicated by the dashed lines at d in FIGS.

The container according to the invention shown in perspective in FIG. 1 has a cubic shape with strongly rounded corners and edges, which give it great stability. It is produced in a known manner in the blowing process, the vertical mold parting line marked by the broken line 1 cutting the container in the direction of the handle 2 and through the axis of the pouring and pouring spout 3. The stacking surface 4 is formed by the two legs 5 and 6 and the stacking shoulder 7 located opposite the pouring spout 3, which are arched out of the top 8 of the container.

The legs 5 and 6 end at about 3/4 of the total width of the container side walls 9 and 10 and then fall into the upper corners 11 and 12 of the rounded side edges 13 and 14 of the slightly bulging container front wall 15 to inclined surfaces 16 and 17 below the height of the neck 18 of the pouring and pouring spout 3, in order to then be pulled up to this neck 18. The inner edges 19, 20 of these surfaces 16 and 17 run flatter at the height of the upper floor 8, the outer edges 21 and 22 reach a depth of approximately twice the distance between the upper floor 8 and the stacking surface 4 at the corners 11 and 12 .

This configuration of the surfaces 16 and 17 ensures that the inner spaces of the legs 5 and 6 formed by them lie when the container is poured out over the neck 18 of the pouring and pouring spout 3 and fall into the pouring position after this without an obstacle to the liquid content. The container can therefore be completely emptied in a reliable manner, even if it is laterally tilted by a larger angle, which must be expected during normal emptying.

The surfaces 16, 17 can run flat from the stacking surface 4 to the height of the upper floor 8 or, as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, in a plane 23, 24 approximated to the vertical. This can, as shown in FIG. 5, up to The pouring and pouring spout should be pulled forward or after the container side wall 9 or 10, so that the front edges of these levels 23, 24 are at 25, 26.

As shown in FIG. 1, the pouring and pouring spout can be advanced over the front wall 15 with a bulge 27 that runs slightly downward. As a result, the neck 18 of the pouring and pouring spout 3 is lowered in the pouring position of the container, and at the same time the legs 5 and 6 of the stacking surface 4 can be further advanced accordingly, in order to provide a better support for the container stacked on them.

The container can have 4 indentations e.g. in the form of larger grooves running transversely to the legs, into which corresponding bulges on the underside of a similar container engage when it is stacked. This prevents the restful container from tipping over by slipping in the direction of the pouring and pouring spout 3 over the bevelled ends of the legs 5, 6. In order to avoid such a tipping, the pouring and pouring spout can be extended so that the surface of its closure cap 28 lies in the screwed state in the plane of the stacking surface 4.

List of reference symbols

• 1 mold parting plane
• 2 handle
• 3 pouring and pouring spouts
• 4 stacking area
• 5, 6 legs
• 7 stacking shoulder
• 8 top shelf
• 9, 10 container side walls
• 11, 12 corners to 13, 14
• 13, 14 side edges of 15
• 15 container front wall
• 16, 17 area
• 18 Approach of 3
• 19, 20 inner edges of 16, 17
• 21, 22 outer edges of 16, 17
• 23, 24 vertical planes
• 25, 26 leading edges of 23, 24
• 27 bulge for 3
• 28 sealing cap

Claims (7)

1. Stackable plastic container, particularly suitable for handling dangerous liquids, which has a cubic shape with rounded corners and edges and which is produced by an inflating process, with a handle (2) being formed on the upper plate (8) of the container in the vertical plane (1) of the moulding and with a filling and pouring nozzle (3) being integrally formed in the vicinity of the front wall (15) of the container, said filling and pouring nozzle being surrounded by a U-shaped stacking surface (4) which is cambered out from said upper pate (8) and which presents a plane bearing surface for another container of the same kind, wherein said surface is provided with legs (5, 6) parallel to said plane (1) of the moulding, as well as with a stacking shower (7) opposite to said filling and pouring nozzle (3),
characterized in that the ends of said legs (5, 6) of said stacking surface (4) pass over into surfaces (16, 17) which are inclined outwardly and towards said front wall (15) of the container up to the level of the extension (18) of said filling and pouring nozzle (3), progressively towards the upper corners (11, 12) so formed of lateral edges (13, 14) of said front wall (15) of the container, and rise again from said corners (11, 12) into the transition zone between said front wall (15) and pass into said extension (18) of said fulling pouring nozzle (3), in a way such that the space enclosed by this surface (16, 17) is located in the area of a pouring position of the container above said extension (18) of said filling and pouring nozzle (3).

2. Container according to Claim 1,
characterized in that said surfaces (16, 17) extend from the ends of said legs (5, 6) up to the level of said upper plate (8) in a substantially plane manner.

3. Container according to Claims 1, 2,
characterized in that said surfaces (16, 17) extend from the end of said legs (5, 6) up to the level of said upper plate (8) in planes (23, 24) approximated to the vertical.

4. Container according to Claim 3,
characterized in that said planes (23, 24) extend toward said filling and pouring nozzle (3) at an acute angle relative to said vertical (1) plane (1) of the moulding.

5. Container according to Claim 3,
characterized in that said planes (23, 24) extend toward the respective front wall (9, 10) of the container at an acute angle relative to said vertical plane of the moulding.

6. Container according to Claim 1,
characterized in that said filling and pouring nozzle (3) is drawn forwardly at a slight camber (27) of said front wall (15) of the container, and that said legs (5, 6) of said stacking surface (4) are appropriately extended.

7. Container according to Claim 1,
characterized in that the surface of the cover (28) of said filling and pouring nozzle (3), in closed condition, is located in the same plane as said stacking surface (4).

Images