ES2770633T3 - Rotating and expandable luggage - Google Patents

Abstract

A piece of luggage (1000) comprising: a main body (1100); an expandable body (1200) comprising a collapsible portion (1300), the expandable body (1200) being connected to the main body (1100) through the collapsible portion (1300); an expansion and locking device (1700) comprising a ratchet assembly configured to allow free movement of the expandable body (1200) in a compression direction towards the main body (1100) and configured to allow locking of the expandable body (1200 ) in a direction of expansion away from the main body (1100); a cover (1400) pivotally connected to the expandable body (1200); a zipper (1420) having a first half connected to the expandable body (1200) and a second half connected to the cover (1400), where the first half and the second half can be coupled together to close the cover (1400) with relative to the expandable body (1200), so that a substantially closed space is defined by the main body (1100), the expandable body (1200) and the cover (1400); and a first pair of swivel wheels (1620) mounted on the main body (1100) and a second pair of swivel wheels (1640) mounted on the expandable body (1600); wherein the main body (1100) comprises: a pair of lower supports (1150), on which the first pair of swivel wheels (1620) is mounted, respectively; and the expandable body (1200) comprises a pair of lower corner receivers (1240), on which is mounted the second pair of caster wheels (1640), respectively; and where the luggage (1000) is on the first pair of caster wheels (1620) and the second pair of caster wheels (1640), the first pair of caster wheels (1620) and the second pair of caster wheels (1640) are rotary along an axis of rotation (RA) that is substantially parallel to a running surface and along an axis of rotation (SA) that is substantially perpendicular to the running surface, where the first pair of rotating wheels (1620 ) each includes a plate (1624) adapted to conform to the shape of an outer bottom surface of a respective bottom bracket (1150), so that the first pair of caster wheels (1620) can be tightly connected to the bottom brackets ( 1150), respectively, and wherein the second pair of caster wheels (1640) each includes an L-shaped plate (1644) adapted to conform to the shape of a lower outer surface of a respective lower corner receiver (1240), so that the second pair of caster wheels (1640) can be tightly connected to the lower corner receivers (1240), respectively.

Description

DESCRIPTION

Expandable and rotating luggage

COUNTRYSIDE

The present descriptions generally refer to luggage, and more particularly, to luggage that has expandable features to allow a user to selectively increase or decrease the luggage capacity and rotary features to allow the user to rotate the luggage with respect to one or more. Default luggage axes to freely move luggage.

BACKGROUND

The expandable luggage is designed to accommodate the user's need to adjust the luggage capacity. Typically, expandable luggage has sections that can be expanded by unzipping the sections. With the expandable sections unzipped, the user will have additional storage space inside the luggage. However, the zipper opening and closing operation can be cumbersome and the zippers in the sections are prone to breakage due to repetitive zipper opening and closing operations. Furthermore, rolling luggage has been rapidly developed in recent decades. In particular, luggage having rotating or rotating wheels has become popular. However, no luggage has been provided that can expand and rotate while standing still.

The prior art in this technical field is described in patents WO 2013/142984 A1, WO 2013/028974 A2 and US 2013/0140119 A1.

SHORT SUMMARY

As described in this invention, exemplary embodiments of the present invention overcome one or more of the above disadvantages and others known in the art. The present invention relates to a piece of luggage according to claim 1. The luggage includes a main body and an expandable body. The expandable body includes a collapsible portion, through which the expandable body is connected to the main body. The luggage further includes an expansion and locking device comprising a ratchet assembly configured to allow free movement of the expandable body in a compression direction toward the main body and configured to allow locking of the expandable body in an expansion direction away from the main body. main body. A cover is pivotally connected to the expandable body. The luggage also includes a zipper that has a first half connected to the expandable body and a second half connected to the cover. The coupling of the first half and the second half closes the cover relative to the expandable body, so that the main body, the expandable body and the cover define a substantially closed space. The luggage further includes a plurality of caster wheels mounted on at least one of the main body and the expandable body. The luggage rests on the plurality of caster wheels and is rotatable with respect to one or more predetermined axes through the plurality of caster wheels.

These and other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, it should be understood that the drawings are designed for illustrative purposes only and not as a definition of the limits of the invention, for which reference should be made to the appended claims. Furthermore, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale and, unless otherwise indicated, the drawings are intended solely to conceptually illustrate the structures and procedures described in this invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE VARIOUS VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a piece of luggage according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 3 is a front view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 4 is a rear view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 5 is a side view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 6 is a top view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 7 is a bottom view of the exemplary luggage;

Fig. 8 is an alternate perspective view of the exemplary luggage; and

Fig. 9 is an exploded perspective view of a piece of luggage in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY REALIZATIONS

Figs. 1-8 illustrate a piece of luggage 1000 in accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. The luggage 1000 includes a main body 1100, an expandable body 1200, and a collapsible or bendable portion 1300 that couples the main body 1100 to the expandable body 1200. The luggage 1000 further includes an openable cover 1400 pivotally attached to the expandable body. 1200 through, for example, a solid piece of flexible plastic, cloth, or one or more hinges.

Cover 1400 can be closed in a substantially sealed manner by engaging two halves of a rack 1420 provided on the edge of expandable body 1200 and cover 1400, respectively. Once cover 1400 is closed, main body 1100, expandable body 1200, collapsible portion 1300, and cover 1400 collectively define a substantially closed cavity or space for receiving various items.

As shown in Fig. 2, the main body 1100 includes a frame 1120 made of a plurality of fiberglass rods or tubes that can be substantially parallel to each other. The main body 1100 also includes a pair of opposed upper supports 1130, which are connected to the upper end of the frame 1120, respectively. An upper panel 1140 is provided, which extends between and connects to the opposite upper supports 1130. Similarly, the main body 1100 includes a pair of opposed lower supports 1150 and a lower panel 1160. The upper supports 1130 and the supports Lower 1150 make up the corners of luggage 1000, to which wheels can be mounted. The upper supports 1130 and / or the lower supports 1150 may be provided with a receiving mechanism (such as risers with receiving holes) corresponding to the fiberglass rods; The receiving mechanism can be integrally molded with the brackets. Furthermore, the upper supports 1130 and the lower supports 1150 may have different shapes, profiles or materials.

A covering material 1170, such as fabric, is applied to substantially surround the frame, the upper and lower supports, and the upper and lower panels, thereby providing a half-shell shaped receptacle. One or more corner or edge protectors may be provided to the main body 1100 to protect the tubes, fabric, zippers, and the like of luggage. For example, a rear corner guard 1180 may be attached to an outer surface of the covering material 1170, at a rear corner of the main body 1100 to prevent the rear corner from cracking or scratching. The corner guard 1180 may be in the shape of a curved L, or any suitable shape or profile. Additionally, multiple corner or edge protectors can be used to protect different parts of luggage, including corners of luggage, edge of luggage, sides of luggage, top of luggage, and / or bottom of luggage

The luggage 1000 further includes an extendable or retractable handle 1500. The handle 1500 can be extended or retracted to allow the user to pull or push the luggage 1000. The extendable handle 1500 can be provided externally to the main body 1100. The external handle offers certain benefits . For example, the handle can be easily accessed externally for easy maintenance or replacement of the handle; the inner surface of the main body, on which the items (such as clothing) are placed, is generally flat to avoid wrinkles in the items; The external handle does not affect the integrity of the receiving space within the main body, allowing the space to be used more efficiently. Alternatively, the handle 1500 can be an internal handle.

In addition, an upper handle 1520 and a side handle 1530 may also be provided to facilitate lifting of the luggage 1000. Additional handles, hooks, straps and the like may be provided at various positions on the luggage as deemed necessary to lift, carry or handle the luggage. luggage.

The expandable body 1200 may have a wall 1220 that defines the circumference of the frame of the expandable body 1200. The dimensions of the wall 1220 can vary. For example, the wall 1220 may have a height H of 2 inches and a thickness T of 6 mm, as shown in Fig. 2. The expandable body 1200 also includes one or more corner or edge protectors 1230, which may be the same or similar to the main body corner or edge protectors 1100 as described above. The expandable body 1200 further includes a pair of lower corner receivers 1240, which are disposed at opposite lower corners of the expandable body 1200.

The luggage 1000 further includes a plurality of caster wheels 1600 mounted on the main body 1100 and / or the expandable body 1200, respectively. The caster wheels 1600 include a first pair of wheels 1620 mounted on the main body 1100 and a second pair of wheels 1640 mounted on the expandable body 1200. For example, the first pair of wheels 1620 may be larger than the second pair of wheels. 1640 wheels or wheels can be the same size. Exemplary dimensions of the 1600 caster wheels include, but are not limited to, 5 "x 4" x 7 "(12.7 x 10.2 x 17.8 cm) or 10" x 10 "x 10" (25, 4 x 25.4 x 25.4 cm); other suitable dimensions are within the scope of the description. Optionally, at least one of the swivel wheels 1600 may have a mechanism brake so that this swivel wheel can be fixed in one direction while the others can freely rotate in either direction. Optionally, the swivel wheels 1600 comprise a single swivel wheel per corner of the main body, which swivel wheel can freely rotate 360 degrees or two, three or four wheels per corner of the main body and / or expandable body.

Referring again to Fig. 1, a three-dimensional coordinate system is defined in this figure. In this coordinate system, the X axis and the Y axis collectively define a rolling surface, on which the rotating wheel 1600 can be rolled to move luggage. The Z axis is perpendicular to the running surface.

The caster wheels 1600 are adapted to rotate individually or collectively along a rotational axis RA that is substantially parallel to the running surface. By rotating the wheels 1600 on the rolling surface with respect to the axis of rotation RA, the luggage 1000 can be rolled or moved along opposite directions A and B on or parallel to the rolling surface. Furthermore, the caster wheels 1600 are adapted to rotate individually or collectively about a rotary axis SA which is substantially perpendicular to the running surfaces and parallel to the Z axis. The rotation of the caster wheels 1600 with respect to the rotary axis SA the orientation of the baggage 1000 changes and also the orientation of the axis of rotation RA. Therefore, the luggage 1000 can move in any direction along the running surface.

As shown in Fig. 2, the first pair of wheels 1620 each includes a first bracket 1622, through which the wheels 1620 can be fixedly mounted to the lower brackets 1150, respectively. In accordance with the invention, the first bracket 1622 includes a plate 1624, which can be shaped to fit the lower outer profile of the bottom bracket 1150, so that the first bracket 1622 can be perfectly fitted and connected to the bottom bracket 1150.

Similarly, the second pair of wheels 1640 each includes a second bracket 1642, through which the wheels 1640 can be fixedly mounted to the lower corner receivers 1240 of the expandable body 1200, respectively. In accordance with the invention, second bracket 1642 includes an L-shaped plate 1644, which can be perfectly fitted and connected to bottom corner receiver 1240. Although not described in detail, wheels 1620 and 1640 may include other structures necessary to implement a rotating wheel.

As shown in Fig. 8, the luggage 1000 further includes an expansion and locking device 1700, which is a ratchet assembly. The expansion and locking device is configured to allow free movement of the expandable body in a compression direction towards the main body, and configured to allow free movement of the expansion body in a compression direction towards the main body of the luggage and configured to allow locking movement of the expansion body in an expansion direction away from the main body of the luggage.

The expansion and locking device is a ratchet assembly having a set of parallel teeth attached to one of the main body of the luggage or to the expansion body; a ratchet configured to engage and disengage from the set of parallel teeth by actuation of a lever, the ratchet is attached to the other main body of the luggage or to the expansion body; and a biasing member configured to maintain the ratchet in an engaged state with the parallel teeth in the absence of an actuation force applied to the lever. In addition, the ratchet assembly includes a clamp assembly having a housing in which the lever is located, the housing having an elongated opening formed in a surface orthogonal to the lever; and a double column of parallel teeth arranged on a sliding member sized for slidable insertion into the elongated opening, the parallel teeth engaging the ratchet within the housing of the clamp assembly.

Therefore, once the user finishes packing the items, the user can compress the expandable body of the luggage to occupy any unused space within the luggage, resulting in well-packed luggage. Subsequently, tightly packed items in luggage can exert pressure against the expandable body; in this case, the expansion and locking device is configured to allow locking of the expandable body with respect to the main body, which prevents the expandable body from moving away from the main body in an outward expanding direction. Therefore, the expandable body is locked in place.

The expandable body lock can be deactivated by operating a release mechanism (such as pressing a bias lever) to selectively allow incremental movements of the expandable body away from the main body in the direction of expansion. Therefore, the user has the option of selectively expanding the luggage capacity to pack more items in the luggage. Once the items have been packed into the luggage, the expandable body compression and locking operation, as described above, can be repeated to compact the luggage.

The provision of the swivel wheels 1600 allows the luggage 1000 to move freely over a surface by the rolling and rolling operation of the wheels. The expansion and locking device 1700 allows the luggage 1000 to be selectively expanded.

FIG. 9 is a detailed perspective view showing the luggage 2000 in accordance with another exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure. The luggage 2000 has substantially the same structures or similar configurations as the luggage 1000, except for an expandable body 2200. The description of the same or similar structures of the luggage 2000 is not provided for the sake of conciseness. The expandable body 2200 has a wall 2220 that defines the circumference of the frame of the expandable body 2200. The expandable body 2200 also includes one or more corner or edge protectors 2230, which may be the same or similar to the protector (s). 1230. In this embodiment, the wall 2220 is continuous along the circumference of the frame to enhance the integrity of the expandable body 2200. The luggage 2000 further includes one or more caster wheels 2640 mounted on the expandable body 2200. The size and length The dimensions of the caster wheels 2640 may be the same or similar to the caster wheels 1640 on the luggage 1000. The caster wheels 2640 may each include a second bracket 2642, through which the caster wheels 2640 can be fixedly mounted at the lower corners of the expandable body 2200, respectively. For example, the second bracket 2642 may include an L-shaped plate 2644, which can fit and connect snugly to the lower corners of the expandable body 2200.

As described above in connection with the exemplary luggage 1000 and 2000, the caster wheels can be mounted to the main body and / or the expandable body of the luggage using the recessed bottom brackets 1150 in combination with the shaped bracket 1622, using the receivers. corner brackets 1240 in combination with the L-shaped bracket 1642, or using the rounded bottom corners of the continuous wall 2220 in combination with the L-shaped bracket 2642. The above combinations can be used selectively depending on the circumferences. For example, the main body of luggage may have lower corner receivers for mounting castor wheels that have an L-shaped bracket; and the expandable body of the luggage may have a continuous wall with rounded bottom corners for mounting caster wheels having an L-shaped bracket.

It is intended to be limited only as indicated by the scope of the claims appended to the present invention.

Claims (5)

1. A piece of baggage (1000) comprising: a main body (1100); an expandable body (1200) comprising a collapsible portion (1300), the expandable body (1200) being connected to the main body (1100) through the collapsible portion (1300); an expansion and locking device (1700) comprising a ratchet assembly configured to allow free movement of the expandable body (1200) in a compression direction towards the main body (1100) and configured to allow locking of the expandable body (1200 ) in a direction of expansion away from the main body (1100); a cover (1400) pivotally connected to the expandable body (1200); a zipper (1420) having a first half connected to the expandable body (1200) and a second half connected to the cover (1400), where the first half and the second half can be coupled together to close the cover (1400) with relative to the expandable body (1200), such that a substantially closed space is defined by the main body (1100), the expandable body (1200) and the cover (1400); and a first pair of swivel wheels (1620) mounted on the main body (1100) and a second pair of swivel wheels (1640) mounted on the expandable body (1600); wherein the main body (1100) comprises: a pair of lower supports (1150), on which the first pair of swivel wheels (1620) is mounted, respectively; and The expandable body (1200) comprises a pair of lower corner receivers (1240), on which the second pair of caster wheels (1640) is mounted, respectively; and where the luggage (1000) is on the first pair of caster wheels (1620) and the second pair of caster wheels (1640), the first pair of caster wheels (1620) and the second pair of caster wheels (1640) are rotary along an axis of rotation (RA) that is substantially parallel to a running surface and along an axis of rotation (SA) that is substantially perpendicular to the running surface, wherein the first pair of caster wheels (1620) each includes a plate (1624) adapted to conform to the shape of an outer bottom surface of a respective bottom bracket (1150), such that the first pair of caster wheels (1620) can be tightly connected to the lower supports (1150), respectively, and where the second pair of caster wheels (1640) each includes an L-shaped plate (1644) adapted to conform to the shape of an outer lower surface of a respective lower corner receiver (1240), so that the second pair of caster wheels (1640) can be tightly connected to the lower corner receivers (1240), respectively. The luggage according to claim 1, further comprising an extendable handle (1500). The luggage according to claim 1, further comprising at least one of a side handle (1530) and a top handle (1520). The luggage according to claim 1, further comprising at least one corner or edge protector (1180) mounted on the main body (1100) or the expandable body (1200). The luggage according to claim 1, wherein the ratchet assembly comprises: a set of parallel teeth disposed on a sliding member (406) attached to one of the luggage main body (106) or an expansion body (104); a ratchet (502) configured to engage and disengage from the set of parallel teeth by actuation of a lever, the ratchet being attached to the other of the luggage main body (106) or expansion body (104); and a biasing member (422) configured to maintain the ratchet in an engaged state with the parallel teeth in the absence of an actuation force applied to the lever; a clamp assembly (402) having a housing in which the lever is located, the housing having an elongated opening formed in a surface orthogonal to the lever; elongated opening sized for slidable insertion of slider member (406), the parallel teeth engage the ratchet within the clamp assembly housing (402).