EP0943564B1 - Shipping container - Google Patents

Description

Technical field

The present invention relates to a transport container for the transport of heavy material plates, in particular glass plates.

State of the art

Today, high-quality glass plates are manufactured in large factories as part of complex manufacturing processes. Float glass plates with a thickness of a few millimeters up to several centimeters and a size of up to 3.25 mx 6.1 m are produced, whereby the glass plate can weigh well over 100 kg. Heavy material or glass plates are understood below to mean plates which, due to their weight, cannot be easily transported by hand by one person. The corresponding weight limit is approximately 20 kg. The heavy glass plates are loaded by the manufacturer onto a very resilient frame (also called glass frame) for glass plates for transport to the processor. Since the glass plates are sensitive to weather influences, in particular moisture, rain, snow, etc., the glass plates on the glass frame must then be transported from the manufacturer to the processor in a weatherproof transport container.

For the transport over land a special vehicle is usually. a specially trained towing trailer for semi-trailers is used. The known special vehicles are only suitable for the transport of glass and other plates together with the frame or for the transport of the empty frame. Newer special vehicles, e.g. described in EP-A1-0 677 424 can also be equipped for taking back broken glass from the glass consumer to the glass manufacturer. In any case, these special vehicles can only be used for specialized applications, namely for the transport of glass. As a result, the total number of such special vehicles required is relatively small. Due to the small number of pieces, these special vehicles are expensive to manufacture.

As an alternative to road transport using a special vehicle, the frame together with the glass plates can also be transported in a large container. To accommodate the heavy load from the frame and glass plates, however, a corresponding large container must be extremely solid and therefore heavy. In addition, a special loading device is required to load and unload the rack loaded with glass plates into or out of the large container. There is also one for loading the large container together with the load onto a truck Railway wagons or a ship and vice versa each require a container loading device suitable for large loads.

German Offenlegungsschrift DE-A-23 17 346 (Schwietert) describes a transport device for large glass plates with a support frame holding them essentially in a vertical position and a cover hood assigned to the support frame. The hood is made of glass fiber reinforced plastic and completely encloses the frame together with the glass plates on the sides and upwards. This ensures that the hood provides good weather protection for the glass plates. On the other hand, however, the transportability of the frame together with the glass plates and the hood as a whole is disadvantageously hampered because, when the hood is in place, the transport device can only be moved by means of a forklift, which can reach under a pallet combined with the support frame.

Presentation of the invention

The object of the present invention is to provide a transport container of the type mentioned at the outset, which is relatively light, enables simple loading and unloading of the material plates and is easy to transport as a whole.

The solution to the problem is the subject of the independent claims.

According to the invention, a transport container for the transport of heavy material plates comprises an exchangeable frame for the standing transport of the material plates and a weatherproof hood which can be slipped over the frame, the hood being provided with suspension means which is designed to hang the entire transport container together with the material plates.

The transport container according to the invention thus essentially comprises two parts with clearly different functions. The hood, which is essentially the side walls and forms the roof of the transport container, serves to protect the material plates against the weather and to hang (in particular on a crane) the entire transport container together with the material plates. The frame forming the bottom of the transport container serves to carry the material plates.

The hood has no function for carrying the heavy material plates. The supporting or supporting function is taken over by the frame for the standing transport of the material plates. The hood must therefore only be able to absorb tensile loads for large loads. Therefore, the hood of the transport device according to the invention can be much lighter than previous craneable (i.e. movable by means of a crane) transport container e.g. be designed in the form of large containers that are designed for comparable payloads.

The hood of the transport container according to the invention ensures adequate weather protection for the material plates. In contrast to the transport device according to DE-A-23 17 346, however, the transportability of the transport container according to the invention is not hindered because the transport container as a whole (i.e. the frame together with the glass plates and the hood) can be crane-operated.

The hood of the transport container according to the invention is designed such that it can be put over the frame together with the material plates arranged thereon. This significantly simplifies the loading and unloading processes compared to a known transport container in the form of a large container. In the case of the transport container according to the invention, the loading process is limited to putting the relatively light hood over the frame with the material plates. On the other hand, with the large container, the heavy load consisting of the frame and the material plates must be hoisted into the container. For unloading, the heavy load in turn has to be unloaded from the container in the large container, while in the transport container according to the invention only the light hood has to be removed from the frame.

The frame forming the bottom of the transport container according to the invention can be any conventional frame for material plates. In particular, this frame or glass frame can be made from an L-frame that is customary for glass plates or an A-frame. In the case of an L-frame, the upright support structure is attached to the longitudinal edge of a base plate. Due to their asymmetrical shape, L-frames are usually not craneable when loaded. In the case of an A-frame, the support structure is arranged in the middle of the base plate, so that symmetrical loading of the frame is possible. To make an A-frame cranable, it must be extremely solid and therefore of heavy construction, since its support structure must ensure both the function of supporting the glass plates and the function of hanging the frame together with the glass plates. Empty A-frames can weigh up to 5,000 kg when empty. Therefore, in addition to the heavy, craneable A-frames, lighter A-frames that are not designed to be craned are often used. The invention now creates the possibility of combining glass frames (both non-craneable A-frames and non-craneable L-frames) that are not themselves cranable in combination with a hood to form a transport container according to the invention and thus to make them cranable.

The transport container according to the invention is preferably dimensioned such that its external dimensions do not exceed the internationally agreed rail profile. Then the transport container with the frame, the hood and the material plates can be used as a self-sufficient transport unit on the road (e.g. using a customary, universally usable low loader), by rail on the rail, by ship on the water or even in a suitable air transport (in particular an air cargo ship, also called a cargo transport zeppelin). Reloading between the various modes of transport can be carried out using conventional cranes, such as are available at train stations and / or ports for the transport of goods.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, the suspension means are provided with first coupling parts for optionally detachable coupling to corresponding coupling parts, which are attached to a first hanger that can be suspended on a crane. The first coupling parts and the first hanger are designed to couple the entire transport container together with the material plates. As a result, the transport container as a whole can optionally be hung on a crane. The first coupling parts can comprise hooks or bolts and the coupling parts on the first hanger can comprise bolts or hooks, the hooks for hanging are formed on the corresponding assigned bolts. Furthermore, the suspension means can be provided with second coupling parts for optionally detachable coupling to corresponding coupling parts, which are attached to the first or to a second suspension that can be suspended on a crane. To compensate for a shift in the center of gravity of the hood, such as occurs, for example, when a heavy door of the hood is opened, the second coupling parts can be attached to the hood at a position offset from the first coupling parts.

The hood of the transport container according to the invention can be provided with rollers or wheels in order to enable the hood to be easily moved on a flat floor.

The hood preferably comprises a hood frame that can be covered with a tarpaulin and a tarpaulin made of weatherproof material. The hood frame can have a variety of brackets with which the tarpaulin is stretched. To increase the stability of the hood, the hood frame can also be equipped with reinforcing struts and / or tensioning ropes. -Cable be reinforced. This is particularly useful for transporting the transport container on trucks or railroads, where considerable wind forces can act on the transport container due to the high speed of travel.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hood of the transport container has a base frame which has two parallel bars arranged in parallel, which are fixedly connected to one another by means of a cross bar arranged essentially at right angles to them. The longitudinal beams and the transverse beam essentially form a U-shaped arrangement lying flat on the floor, the longitudinal beams forming the two legs and the transverse beam forming the connecting web of the U-shape. The frame also has a connecting bar. The connecting bar can be fastened parallel to the crossbar at the two ends of the longitudinal bar opposite the crossbar. If the connecting bar is fastened in its connecting position to the base frame of the hood, it has a substantially rectangular shape with the two longitudinal bars as lengths and the transverse bar and the connecting bar as widths. The connecting bar can optionally be fastened in its connecting position to the longitudinal bar or by at least one of the longitudinal bars detachable and removable from the connection position. When the connecting bar is removed, the hood can be pushed over the frame in the horizontal longitudinal direction with the U opening facing forward. The two legs are guided on the outside along the longitudinal edges of the frame base plate on which the material plates are carried. Preferably, the connecting beam is pivotable about a vertical pivot axis at one end of one of the longitudinal beams and can be fastened to the other longitudinal beam and can be locked by means of a locking device in order to create a firm connection between the longitudinal beams.

On the base frame of the hood, a support device for the frame can be arranged and dimensioned such that when the hood is lifted, the frame is carried along, the support device being arranged on the base frame in such a way that it does not hinder the sliding in the longitudinal direction of the hood over the frame. The support device can be provided with support blocks arranged displaceably on the base frame, the support blocks optionally being movable into a first position in which they take the frame with them when the hood is lifted, and in a second position in which they do not lift the frame when the hood is lifted take. As a result, the hood can be used when the support blocks are pushed back, e.g. be lifted vertically upwards from the glass frame using a crane without the glass frame being taken along.

The hood can also be used with suspension elements such as fastening eyes, mortise holes or similar. be provided, which are designed to interact with conventional gripping means of a large container loading device in order to enable the lifting and moving of the transport container by means of a large container loading device. A large container loading device is understood to be a device for gripping, lifting and moving large containers, such as a specially trained crane, a suitable forklift, a reach stacker or the like. According to a preferred embodiment of the invention, pockets for the gripping device of a reach stacker are used for this purpose arranged on the base frame of the hood. These so-called reachstacker pockets can be arranged on the hood at the level of a conventional truck chassis, so that the reachstacker has the hood with customary gripping arms (so-called grips designed to grip truck trailers) Around the trailer legs). However, the reachstacker pockets can also be arranged on the base frame of the hood, in which case longer gripping arms are required to grip around the hood.

In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the hood also has means for securing the material plates against tipping over and / or against undesired displacements on the frame. Such shifts can be caused by excessive acceleration forces during the transport of the material plates. These securing devices can include hydraulic supports, mechanical spindles, etc. Include devices to support the material plates on the hood. They can be designed similarly to those securing means that are used to secure glass plates in so-called inloader glass transport vehicles. The securing means to be arranged on the hood can at best be supplemented with further securing means with the aid of which the material plates can be secured to the frame. These frame securing means can e.g. include vertical or horizontal jigs. The securing means preferably enable the material plates to be secured both on the long side and on the end side.

Preferably the hood additionally comprises suspension means for hanging the hood alone, i.e. without frame. These hood suspension means need not be as massive as the above-mentioned suspension means for hanging the entire transport container together with the load, because the weight of the empty hood can be of the order of approximately 1000 kg, while the weight of the entire transport container including the load in can be on the order of approximately 25,000 kg. The further hood suspension means can e.g. Include eyelets or hooks to allow lifting of the relatively light hood with a common crane suspension device. Neither a special crane hanger nor a particularly strong crane is required to lift the hood alone.

According to a further preferred embodiment of the invention, the hood is provided with at least one transparent window in order to enable a visual inspection of the material plates.

A hanger for a transport container according to the invention is provided with a hanging device for hanging the hanger on a crane, the hanger being provided with coupling parts for optionally detachable coupling to corresponding coupling parts which are attached to the hood of the transport container. The suspension device can be used to compensate for a shift in the center of gravity of the hood, e.g. occurs when opening a heavy hood door, be off-center attached to the hanger.

In the case of an arrangement with a transport container according to the invention and a hanger for the transport container, the suspension means of the container provided with the coupling parts are arranged in an upper region on the longitudinal sides of the hood of the container and the hanger is yoke-shaped, the hanger comprising a supporting beam, on the two of which Longitudinal downward extending struts are attached, which are provided at their lower ends with coupling parts. The length of the support beam is dimensioned in accordance with the width of the hood in such a way that the coupling parts on the hood can be coupled to the coupling parts on the hanger.

The following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present invention, in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, serve only as an example for a better understanding of the invention and is not to be interpreted as a limitation of the scope of the present invention as defined in the patent claims. Further advantageous embodiments and combinations of features which are still within the scope of the present invention can be readily recognized by the person skilled in the art from the following description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and the entirety of the patent claims.

Brief description of the drawings

Fig. 1

einen Transportbehälter gemäss einer ersten bevorzugten Ausführungsform der Erfindung in vereinfachter Darstellung von der Seite;

Fig. 2

den Transportbehälter aus Fig. 1 in einer vereinfachten Stirnansicht;

Fig. 3

den Basisrahmen der Haube des Transportbehälters aus Fig. 1 in einer Ansicht von unten;

Fig. 4

eine seitliche Detailansicht einer Rolle für den Transportbehälter aus Fig. 1;

Fig. 5

eine seitliche Detailansicht von innen nach aussen auf einen Haken an der Haube des Transportbehälters aus Fig. 1;

Fig. 6

eine teilweise geschnittene Detailansicht auf eine Auflagervorrichtung des Transportbehälters aus Fig. 1 in einer Ansicht von vorne;

Fig. 7

einen Transportbehälter gemäss einer zweiten bevorzugten Ausführungsform der Erfindung in vereinfachter Darstellung von der Seite;

Fig. 8

eine teilweise geschnittene Detailansicht auf eine Auflagervorrichtung des Transportbehälters aus Fig. 7 in einer Ansicht von vorne;

Fig. 9

ein erstes Krangehänge für den Transportbehälter aus Fig. 7 in einer Seitenansicht;

Fig. 10

das Krangehänge aus Fig. 8 in einer Ansicht von vorne;

Fig. 11

ein zweites Krangehänge für den Transportbehälter aus Fig. 7 in einer Ansicht von vorne.

The drawings illustrate transport containers in accordance with preferred embodiments of the present invention. It shows:

Fig. 1

a transport container according to a first preferred embodiment of the invention in a simplified representation from the side;

Fig. 2

the transport container of Figure 1 in a simplified front view.

Fig. 3

the base frame of the hood of the transport container of Figure 1 in a view from below.

Fig. 4

a detailed side view of a roller for the transport container of FIG. 1;

Fig. 5

a detailed side view from the inside out on a hook on the hood of the transport container of Fig. 1;

Fig. 6

a partially sectioned detailed view of a support device of the transport container of Figure 1 in a view from the front.

Fig. 7

a transport container according to a second preferred embodiment of the invention in a simplified representation from the side;

Fig. 8

a partially sectioned detail view of a support device of the transport container of Figure 7 in a view from the front.

Fig. 9

a first crane hangers for the transport container of Figure 7 in a side view.

Fig. 10

the crane suspension from Figure 8 in a view from the front.

Fig. 11

a second crane hangers for the transport container of FIG. 7 in a view from the front.

In principle, the same parts are provided with the same reference symbols in the figures.

Ways of Carrying Out the Invention

In the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 6, the transport container comprises a frame 70 (also referred to as a glass frame) for the standing transport of glass plates 76, 77 and a weatherproof hood 10 which can be put over the frame 70.

The frame 70 together with the glass plates 76, 77 can best be seen in the illustration in FIG. 2. In FIG. 2, the outline of a railroad car is indicated in broken lines in order to show the arrangement of the transport container according to the invention in a railroad car.

The frame 70 is an A-frame in which the support structure is arranged in the middle of a base plate 72, 73, so that a symmetrical loading of the frame 70 is possible. The base plate 72, 73 of the frame 70 is stepped at its longitudinal edges in such a way that an upper part 72 of the base plate is somewhat wider than the lowermost base part 73 of the base plate, so that the upper part 72 on both longitudinal edges of the frame base plate has one along the longitudinal edges protruding projection 74, 75 forms. This projection 74, 75 interacts with the support 32, 33 described further below when the transport container is raised by means of a crane.

The rack 70 is typically approximately 7 m long and approximately 3 m high. The frame 70 is designed to be very resilient and, together with the glass plates 76, 77, can weigh approximately 25 tons.

The hood 10 comprises a base frame 20, a hood frame arranged on the base frame and a tarpaulin made of weatherproof material, which is stretched over the hood frame. The hood 10 together with the suspension means described further below weighs approximately one ton in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 to 6.

In Figure 1, the hood components are shown in solid lines, while the components of the frame 70 are shown in broken lines. For reasons of clarity, the tarpaulin of the hood 10 is not shown in FIGS. 1 to 6.

The cover 10 and thus the transport container can be closed all around by means of the tarpaulin. The hood 10 is dimensioned such that it completely surrounds the frame 70 together with the glass plates 76, 77. The tarpaulin can be detached at least on one end face of the hood 10, which lies above the connecting beam 25 described below. After loosening, it can be folded back like a tarpaulin of a truck roof. As a result, the end face of the hood 10 can be completely opened above the connecting bar 25, in a manner similar to the rear wall of a truck roof.

The hood frame has a plurality of brackets 41.1, ..., 41.5, 42.1, ..., 42.6 with which the tarpaulin is stretched. In the side view of FIG. 1 five essentially vertically arranged bows 42.1, ..., 42.5 and five essentially horizontally arranged bows 41.1, ..., 41.5 can be seen. The bow 41.1, ..., 41.5, 42.1, ..., 42.6 are made of aluminum in the embodiment of the invention shown in the figures. To increase the stability of the hood 10, the hood frame is additionally reinforced with tensioning ropes 43, 44.

The base frame 20 of the hood 10 can best be seen in the bottom view of FIG. 3. The base frame 20 comprises two longitudinal beams 22, 23 arranged in parallel. The longitudinal beams 22, 23 are fixedly connected to one another at one longitudinal end by means of a transverse beam 24 arranged essentially at right angles to them. The longitudinal beams 22, 23 can be connected to the transverse beam 24 by welding, screwing, riveting or in another suitable manner. The longitudinal beams 22, 23 and the crossbar 24 essentially form a U-shaped arrangement lying flat on the floor, the longitudinal beams 22, 23 forming the two legs and the crossbar 24 forming the connecting web of the U-shape.

At the longitudinal end of a longitudinal beam 23 opposite the transverse beam 24, a connecting beam 25 is arranged on the longitudinal beam 23 so as to be pivotable about a vertical pivot axis 28. The connecting bar 25 can be pivoted between a position substantially parallel to the cross bar 24 and a position substantially parallel to the longitudinal bar 23 (according to the double arrows shown in FIG. 3). In the position parallel to the transverse beam 24, the connecting beam 25 touches the other longitudinal beam 22 and forms a connection between the two longitudinal ends of the longitudinal beams 22, 23 opposite the transverse beam 24. Fastening or locking means 27 are arranged at the end of the connecting beam 25 opposite the swivel joint 28, in order to form a releasable fastening or locking device with matching fastening or locking means 26 on the end of the longitudinal beam 22 opposite the crossbar 24 without pivot joint 28. The fastening device can comprise vertical feedthroughs 27, 26 in the corresponding connecting ends of the connecting bar 25 and longitudinal beam 22 and also a fastening bolt which fits into the feedthroughs 26, 27.

If the connecting bar 25 is arranged parallel to the transverse bar 24 and is connected to the longitudinal bar 22 without swivel joint 28 by means of the fastening device 26, 27, the base frame 20 has essentially a rectangular, closed shape.

When the connecting beam 25 is pivoted outward parallel to the longitudinal beam 23 or even further, the end face of the base frame 20 opposite the cross beam 24 is completely open. In this state - if at the same time the front tarpaulin wall of the hood 10 lying above the connecting beam 25 is open - the hood 10 can be slid horizontally along the hood 10 with the open end face first over the frame 70. In order to slide the hood 10 over the frame 70, the two longitudinal beams 22, 23 of the base frame 20 guided along the outside along the longitudinal edges of the frame base plate 72, 73 on which the material plates 76, 77 are carried.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the figures, the beams 22, 23, 24, 25 of the base frame 20 are made of steel and they have a transverse H-profile, as can be seen in FIG. 6. FIG. 6 also shows a support device 32, 33 for the frame 70, which is fixedly arranged on the base frame 20 of the hood 10. The support device 32, 33 comprises support blocks 32, 33 fastened to the inner sides of the longitudinal beams 22, 23, which are dimensioned such that they are carried out on the frame base plate when the cover 10 is slipped on in the horizontal direction under the above-mentioned projections 74, 75. When lifting the hood 10 in the vertical direction upwards, the support blocks 32, 33 are pushed upwards against the projections 74, 75 so that they take them with them, as a result of which the frame 70 is taken along by the hood 10.

On the longitudinal beams 22, 23 of the base frame 20 of the hood 10 rollers 51, 52 are further arranged, which allow easy displacement of the hood 10 on a flat floor. The rollers 51, 52 are made of steel. This enables the hood 10 to be moved by hand on a hard floor, such as is typically found in warehouses or glass production facilities.

Furthermore, the hood 10 is provided with hanging means for hanging the entire transport container together with the material plates 76, 77. The suspension means comprise a hook 61, 62 on each of the two long sides of the hood 10. The hooks 61, 62 serve as coupling parts for coupling to corresponding coupling parts 93, 94 which are attached to the hanger 90 described below. The hooks 61, 62 are arranged on the side of the longitudinal side walls in the upper region of the hood 10 and in the longitudinal center thereof. The hooks 61, 62 are each connected to the longitudinal beams 22, 23 of the base frame 20 by means of two tie rods 63, 64, 65, 66 made of steel, the tie rods 63, 64, 65, 66 extending diagonally from the hooks 61, 62 Extend down towards the long sides of the hood 10.

The hooks 61, 62 are designed to cooperate with a hanger 90 that can be attached to a crane or a similar lifting device. The hanger is 90 yoke-shaped and consists of a support beam 95, the length of which corresponds approximately to the width of the hood 10. At the two longitudinal ends of the support beam 95, a tension strut 91, 92 are attached, which extend downward from the support beam 95 and on the inside of which a pin-like projection 93, 94 (also referred to as a bolt) is arranged. The two bolts 93, 94 serve as coupling parts 93, 94 for coupling to the two hooks 61, 62 described above. For fastening the hood 10 to the hanger 90 and thus to the crane, the peg-like projections 93, 94 can be inserted into the hooks 61, 62 to then lift the transport container using the crane.

For transporting the glass plates 76, 77, e.g. from a manufacturer to a processor, the following steps are carried out, among other things.

First, the frame 70 is loaded in the usual way with the glass plates 76, 77 and the glass plates 76, 77 are secured to the frame 70. The hood 10 is then pushed on the rollers 51, 52 in the longitudinal direction behind the frame 70 such that the end face of the hood 10 with the tarpaulin opening and the pivotable connecting bar 25 is arranged opposite an end face of the frame 70. Now the tarpaulin on the front side of the hood 10 opposite the frame 70 is opened and the connecting bar 25 is pivoted out, so that the front side of the hood 10 directed against the frame 70 is completely open.

In a next step, the hood 10 is moved on the rollers 51, 52 in the horizontal direction along the hood 10 with the open end face first. As a result, the hood 10 is placed over the frame 70. When moving, the two longitudinal beams 22, 23 of the base frame 20 are guided outside along the longitudinal edges of the frame base plate 72, 73, wherein at the same time the support blocks 32, 33 arranged on the hood 10 are carried out under the projections 74, 75 on the frame base plate 72, 73 become.

As soon as the hood 10 has been pushed completely over the frame 70, the connecting bar 25 is pivoted in and fastened or locked on the longitudinal bar 22 opposite the swivel joint 28. After that, the tarpaulin of the hood 10 becomes complete closed. The transport container together with the hood 10, the frame 70 and the glass plates 76, 77 now forms a completely self-sufficient transport package.

Now the hanger 90 is guided over the hood 10 with a crane and lowered until the two peg-like projections 93, 94 on the hanger 90 can be hooked into the hooks 61, 62 on the hood 10. After hooking the hanger 90 and thus the hood 10 is raised. As a result, the support blocks 32, 33 together with the hood 10 are moved upward, abut the projections 74, 75 on the frame base plate 72 and thereby take the frame 70 together with the glass plates 76, 77 with them.

The transport container is now loaded onto the desired means of transport and taken to the processor. There, the analog steps are essentially carried out in reverse order during unloading.

The transport container shown in FIG. 7 is similar to the transport container shown in FIG. 1 and comprises a frame or glass frame identical to the frame 70 shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 for the standing transport of glass plates and a weatherproof hood 110 which can be put over the glass frame ,

The glass frame in turn comprises a base plate 172, 173, on which a support structure for supporting the glass plates loaded on the glass frame is arranged in the middle. The base plate 172, 173 of the glass frame is stepped at its longitudinal edges in such a way that an upper part 172 of the base plate is somewhat wider than the lowermost base part 173 of the base plate, so that the upper part 172 protrudes along the longitudinal edges on both longitudinal edges of the frame base plate Protrusion 175 forms. This projection 175 interacts with the support 133 described further below when the transport container is raised by means of a crane.

The hood 110 of the transport device shown in FIG. 7 comprises a base frame which is functionally identical except for the supports for taking the glass frame with the base frame 20 of the hood 10 shown in FIG. 1, as well as a hood frame arranged on the base frame and a tarpaulin 146 made of weatherproof Material, which is stretched over the hood frame. The hood 110, together with the suspension means described further below, weighs approximately 2,000 kg in the embodiment of the invention shown in FIG. 7 and is designed to carry a glass frame loaded with glass plates with a maximum weight of approximately 38,000 kg, so that the in Fig. 7 shown transport device can have a maximum total weight of about 40,000 kg.

The tarpaulin 146 of the hood 110 shown in Fig. 7 is provided with a plurality of transparent viewing windows 148 for the visual inspection of the cargo covered by the hood 110, i.e. of the glass plates. FIG. 7 shows a viewing window 148 which is arranged approximately in the middle of a longitudinal wall of the hood 110. Further viewing windows are arranged in the two end faces and in the other longitudinal wall of the hood 110. The viewing windows are made of a weatherproof, transparent plastic material. In FIG. 7, the components of the hood frame covered by the transparent window 148 are shown in solid lines, while the components covered by the opaque tarpaulin 146 are shown in broken lines.

Analogous to the hood frame shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the hood frame shown in FIG. 7 again has a plurality of horizontal bars 141.1,..., 141.5 and vertical bars 142.1,..., 142.6.

The base frame of the hood 110 shown in FIG. 7 is similar to the base frame 20 of the hood 10 shown in FIG. 1 except for the supports 133, 134, 135 for taking the glass frame and for the larger overall weight of the hood 110. It comprises two longitudinal bars 123 arranged in parallel, which are fixedly connected to one another at one longitudinal end by means of a transverse bar 124 arranged essentially at right angles to them.

At the longitudinal end of the one longitudinal beam 123 opposite the transverse beam 124, a connecting beam 125 is arranged on the longitudinal beam 123 so as to be pivotable about a vertical pivot axis, the connecting beam 125 being pivotable between a position substantially parallel to the transverse beam 124 and a position substantially parallel to the longitudinal beam 123.

In the hood 110 shown in FIG. 7, the end face of the hood 110 is designed as a door hinged to the hood 110 above the pivotable connecting bar. The pivotable hood door comprises the connecting bar 125 of the base frame, the front parts of the hood frame and the part of the hood tarpaulin arranged on the front side. The hood door as a whole is arranged to be pivotable about the vertical pivot axis on the rest of the hood, and the tarpaulin on the door can be separated from the rest of the hood tarpaulin along the door edges, except along the pivot axis.

In the position parallel to the crossbar 124, the connecting beam 125 of the hood door can be connected to the other longitudinal beam 122, so that the base frame 20 has a substantially rectangular, closed shape. When the hood door is pivoted outwards parallel to the longitudinal beam 123, the end face of the hood opposite the cross beam 124 is completely open. In this state, it is possible to slide the hood 110 horizontally along the hood 110 with the open end face first over the glass frame.

The support device of the hood 110 according to the second embodiment of the invention shown in the detailed illustration of FIG. 8 (which corresponds to the detailed illustration of FIG. 6) differs from the corresponding support device of the hood 10 according to the first embodiment of the invention. The support device shown in FIG. 8 comprises a support block 133 which can be displaced therethrough substantially horizontally and transversely to the longitudinal direction of the longitudinal beam 123. For this purpose, the web wall of the H-shaped longitudinal bar 123, which is arranged centrally in the longitudinal bar 123, is provided with a passage corresponding to the cross section of the support block 133. In the area of this passage, guide plates 136, 137 are attached to the side edges of the longitudinal beam 123 parallel to the web wall, each of which has a passage for the support block 133 aligned with the passage in the web wall. The support block 133 is guided through these three passages and can be moved transversely through the longitudinal bar 123 in the direction of the double arrow shown in FIG. 8. If all of the support blocks 133, 134, 135 on the base frame are pushed inwards with respect to the hood 110 (as in the illustration in FIG. 8), then when the hood 110 is lifted upwards in the vertical direction, the support blocks 133, 134, 135 follow pushed against the corresponding projections 175 of the glass frame so that they take it with them. However, if the support blocks 133, 134, 135 on the base frame are pushed outwards with respect to the hood 110, the hood 110 can be lifted vertically upwards and removed from the glass frame without the glass frame being carried along by the hood.

Rollers 151, 152 are in turn arranged on the longitudinal beams 123 of the base frame of the hood 110 shown in FIG. 7, which enable the hood 110 to be easily moved on a flat floor 153.

Furthermore, the hood 110 shown in FIG. 7 is provided with hanging means for hanging the transport container. The suspension means comprise a plate-shaped suspension part 161 on both longitudinal sides of the hood 110. The two suspension parts 161 are arranged on the side of the longitudinal side walls in the upper region of the hood 110 and essentially in the longitudinal center thereof. The suspension parts are each connected to the longitudinal beams 123 of the base frame by means of two tie rods 163, 164. The tie rods 163, 164 are fastened to a lower region of the plate-shaped suspension parts 161 and extend from them in the diagonal direction down along the long sides of the hood 110 to fastening parts attached to the longitudinal beams 123.

The suspension parts 161 are each provided with a strong and correspondingly thick first bolt 167.1, 167.2 and with a weaker and thinner second bolt 168.1, 168.2, which are attached in an upper region of the plate-shaped suspension parts 161 and are essentially horizontally outward from the Hood away, stretch. The bolts 167.1, 167.2, 168.1, 168.2 serve as coupling parts 167.1, 167.2, 168.1, 168.2 for coupling to corresponding coupling parts 181, 182, 191, 192 which are attached to the hangers 180, 190 described below.

The first pair of bolts 167.1, 167.2 is designed to cooperate with a first crane suspension 180 to hang the hood 110 together with a glass frame fully loaded with glass plates. The second pair of bolts 168.1, 168.2 is designed to interact solely with a crane suspension 180 for hanging the hood 110. The two crane hangings 180, 190 shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 are on attachable to a crane or a similar lifting device and serve to hang the hood 110 on this crane or this lifting device. For the sake of clarity, only the pair of bolts interacting with the respective crane suspension are shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 of the hood 110, while the rest of the hood 110 is omitted.

The first crane suspension 180 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 is designed to hang the entire transport container together with the material plates, i.e. The hood 110 shown in FIG. 7 together with a glass frame fully loaded with glass plates can be suspended from the first crane hanging. The first crane suspension 180 is therefore designed for maximum loads of approximately 40,000 kg and is correspondingly solid and heavy. It is also referred to below as a heavy crane suspension 180.

The heavy crane suspension 180 consists of a support beam 185 with an H-profile cross section, the length of which approximately corresponds to the width of the hood 110. A plate-shaped hook 181, 182 is attached to each of the two longitudinal ends of the support beam 185. The two hooks 181, 182 serve as coupling parts 181, 182 for coupling to the bolts 167.1, 167.2 described above. The two hooks 181, 182 extend downward from the support beam 185 and are dimensioned such that they can each be hooked onto the hood 110 on one of the thick bolts 167.1, 167.2 of the first pair of bolts.

The second crane suspension 190 shown in FIG. 11 is designed to hang the hood 110 shown in FIG. 7 alone, ie without a glass frame, and is therefore designed for maximum loads of approximately 2,000 kg. The first crane suspension 190, also referred to below as the light crane suspension 190, is constructed correspondingly lighter than the heavy crane suspension, but is otherwise similar to the latter. The light crane suspension 190 consists of a support beam 195 with an H-profile cross section, the length of which approximately corresponds to the width of the hood 110. A plate-shaped hook 191, 192 is attached to each of the two longitudinal ends of the support beam 195. The two hooks 191, 192 serve as coupling parts 191, 192 for coupling to the bolts 168.1, 168.2 described above. The two hooks 191, 192 extend from the support beam 195 downwards and are dimensioned such that they can each be hooked onto one of the thin bolts 168.1, 168.2 of the second pair of bolts on the hood 110.

The second pair of bolts 168.1, 168.2 is arranged on the hood 110 and the light crane suspension 190 is designed such that the hood 110 is in the open state, i.e. with a hood door pivoted outwards parallel to the longitudinal beam 123 on the hood 110, hanging in equilibrium on the light crane suspension 190, since the hood 110 alone is preferably moved away from or over the glass frame by means of a crane by means of a crane. In the open state, the center of gravity of the hood 110 is shifted on the one hand in the longitudinal direction from the hood center to the connecting beam 125 and on the other hand in the transverse direction from the hood center to the longitudinal beam 123, to which the connecting beam 125 is articulated. To compensate for the shift in the center of gravity as a result of the hood door being pivoted outward in the longitudinal direction of the hood, the second pair of bolts 168.1, 168.2 is attached to the suspension parts 161 somewhat offset from the center of the hood in the direction of the connecting bar 125. To compensate for the shift in the center of gravity in the transverse direction of the hood, the suspension device 196 is attached to the light crane suspension 190, which is used to hang the light crane suspension on a crane hook (not shown), offset from the longitudinal center of the support beam 195 on the support beam 195 of the light crane suspension 190.

In contrast to this, when the hood 110 is hung on a crane together with a glass frame by means of the heavy crane suspension 180, the hood 110 is hung in the closed state. In the closed state, the center of gravity of the hood 110 is located approximately above the center of the area of the base area of the hood 110. So that the hood 110 hangs in equilibrium on the heavy crane suspension 180, the first pair of bolts 167.1, 167.2 is in the area of the hood center on the suspension parts 161 attached, and the suspension device 186 on the heavy crane hanger 180, which serves to hang the heavy crane hanger 180 on a crane hook (not shown), is attached to the support beam 185 in the region of the longitudinal center of the support beam 185 of the heavy crane suspension 180.

In a further preferred embodiment of the invention, not shown in the drawings, the hooks of the light and heavy crane hangers are designed in such a way and the bolts on the suspension parts are shielded with access pockets in such a way that the hooks of the heavy crane hangers only on the thick bolts and the hooks the light crane hanger can only be attached to the thin bolts. This avoids the risk of hooking a crane sling on the wrong pair of bolts.

In summary, it can be stated that the invention creates a transport container which is relatively light, enables simple loading and unloading of heavy material plates and is easy to transport as a whole.

Claims (12)

1. Transport container for transporting heavy sheets of material (76, 77), the said container comprising an interchangeable framework (70) for transporting the sheets of material (76, 77) in the upright condition and a weatherproof hood (10; 110) which can be inverted over the said framework (70), characterised in that the said hood (10; 110) is provided with suspension means (61, 62; 161) which are constructed for suspending the entire transport container, together with the sheets of material (76, 77).
2. Transport container according to claim 1, characterised in that the suspension means (61, 62; 161) are provided with first coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2) for selectively detachable coupling-up with corresponding coupling parts (93, 94, 181, 182) which are attached to a first suspension system (90, 180) which can be suspended from a crane, the said first coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2) and the said first suspension system (90; 180) being constructed for coupling-up the entire transport container, together with the sheets of material (76, 77).
3. Transport container according to claim 2, characterised in that the first coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2) comprise hooks (61, 62) or studs (167.1, 167.2) and the coupling parts on the first suspension system (90; 180) comprise studs (93, 94) or hooks (181, 182) respectively, the said hooks (61, 62; 181, 182) being constructed for hitching onto the corresponding studs (93, 94; 167.1, 167.2).
4. Transport container according to claim 2 or 3, characterised in that the suspension means (61, 62; 161) are provided with second coupling parts (168.1, 168.2) for selectively detachable coupling-up with corresponding coupling parts (191, 192) which are attached to a second suspension system (190) which can be suspended from a crane, the said second coupling parts (168.1, 168.2) being attached, for the purpose of compensating for a displacement of the centre of gravity of the hood (110), to a point on the hood (110) disposed in a manner offset from the first coupling parts.
5. Transport container according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterised in that the hood (10; 110) is provided with rollers (51, 52; 151, 152) in order to permit easy displacement of the hood (10; 110) on a level floor (153).
6. Transport container according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterised in that the hood (10; 110) comprises a hood framework which can be covered with a tarpaulin, and a tarpaulin made of weatherproof material.
7. Transport container according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterised in that the hood (10; 110) has a base frame (20) with two longitudinal beams (22, 23; 123) disposed in a parallel manner, a transverse beam (24; 124) which is disposed at right angles to the said longitudinal beams (22, 23; 123) and fixedly attached to one end of each of them, and also a connecting beam (25; 125) which can selectively be fixedly attached to the other two ends of the longitudinal beams (22, 23; 123) in a connecting position parallel to the transverse beam (24; 124), or can be detached from at least one longitudinal beam (22) and removed from the connecting position in order to permit, when the said connecting beam (25; 125) has been removed, the pushing of the hood (10; 110) over the framework (70) in the horizonal longitudinal direction.
8. Transport container according to claim 7, characterised in that a supporting device (32, 33; 133, 134, 135) for the framework (70) is disposed on the base frame (20) and is dimensioned in such a way that, when the hood (10; 110) is lifted, the said framework (70) is entrained.
9. Transport container according to claim 8, characterised in that the supporting device is provided with supporting blocks (133, 134, 135) displaceably disposed on the base frame, the said supporting blocks (133, 134, 135) being capable of being selectively displaced into a first position in which they entrain the framework when the hood (110) is lifted, and into a second position in which they do not entrain the framework when the hood (110) is lifted.
10. Transport container according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterised in that the hood (10; 110) is provided with carrying means which are constructed for the purpose of interacting with ordinary gripping means belonging to a bulk container loading device, in order to permit the lifting of the transport container by means of the said bulk container loading device.
11. Transport container according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterised in that the hood (110) is provided with at least one transparent window. (148) in order to permit visual checking of the sheets of material (76, 77).
12. Arrangement having a transport container according to one of claims 2 to 11 and a suspension system (90; 180, 190) for the said transport container, which suspension system has a suspension device (186, 196) for suspending the said suspension system (90; 180, 190) from a crane and is provided with coupling parts (93, 94; 181, 182, 191, 192) for selectively detachable coupling-up with corresponding coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2, 168.1, 168.2) which are attached to the hood (10; 110) of the transport container, the suspension means (61, 62; 161) provided with the coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2, 168.1, 168.2) on the hood (10; 110) being disposed in an upper region on the longitudinal sides of the said hood (10, 110) of the transport container, and the suspension system (90; 180, 190) being of yoke-shaped construction with a carrying beam (95, 185, 195) to whose two longitudinal ends there are attached tie bars (91, 92) which extend downwards and which are provided, at their lower ends, with the coupling parts (93, 94; 181, 182, 191, 192) on the suspension system (90; 180, 190), the length of the said carrying beam (95, 185, 195) being dimensioned, in a manner corresponding to the breadth of the hood (10, 110), in such a way that the coupling parts (61, 62; 167.1, 167.2, 168.1, 168.2) on the hood (10; 110) can be coupled to the coupling parts (93, 94; 181, 182, 191, 192) on the suspension system (90; 180, 190).