FR2741051A1 - Transport frame for load pallets - Google Patents

Abstract

The frame has a base panel (5) and two side panels (6,7) articulated together and of rectangular form. The base panel has two mountings (51) each connected to a mounting (61,71) of a lateral panel by pivots (53,54,63,73). A further cross piece (8,9) is articulated at least one of the lateral panels in an end region of a mounting of the lateral panel which is not articulated to the base panel and can be attached to the other lateral panel. The side members have further cross pieces defining a surround for the base panel.

Description

"Device for storing and transporting pallets. And vehicle loading surface provided with such devices"
The invention relates to the storage and transport of pallets, and more precisely to a device produced in large part by means of metal profiles, adapted to receive several pallets for easy handling in common, as well as a vehicle loading surface provided such devices.

 Currently, pallets are stored by juxtaposing them, for example on the ground, and transporting them by juxtaposing them on the platform of a vehicle, for example road or rail. The transfer of pallets from one location to another, for example from the floor of a store to a loading surface such as the platform of a vehicle, is carried out individually, by means of a conveyor lift fork pallets.

 It results from the impossibility of superimposing several pallets, that the storage and transport of these requires a large surface area, and when these pallets carry relatively light products, of low height, and too fragile to be stackable, the resulting costs are prohibitive.

 The invention aims to remedy these drawbacks, and for this purpose relates to a device for the storage and transport of pallets, characterized in that it comprises a bottom panel and two side panels articulated in triptych and shape general rectangular comprising parallel uprights and crosspieces, the bottom panel comprising two uprights each connected to an upright of a side panel by articulation means, at least one other cross member being articulated to at least one of the side panels in an end region of an upright of this side panel which is not articulated to the bottom panel and adapted to be secured to the other side panel in an end region of an upright of this side panel which is not articulated to the bottom panel, so that this articulated cross member and three respective cross members of the three panels constitute, for a basic pallet, an surrounding frame providing on two parallel sides, a small excess thickness with respect to the height of the frame, in that at least two parallel crosspieces among these four crosspieces have bearing surfaces extending substantially perpendicular to the planes of the panels and adapted to superimpose on areas of the base pallet which are close to the periphery of this base pallet, in that the uprights of the bottom panel are spaced apart by a distance greater than the width of the base pallet and are arranged laterally apart and on the other side thereof when the crosspieces of the bottom panel and the side panels are joined to the corresponding edges of this basic pallet, and in that the panels include support means for product supports such as pallets of identical dimensions to those of the basic pallet or of the shelves intended for the installation of such pallets, succeeding one another in the direction in which the uprights extend.

 Thanks to the fact that the device comprises crosspieces constituting an entourage for a basic pallet, of which certain zones are superimposed in abutment against this pallet, the device and the pallet can be firmly fixed to each other, and it is also possible to form the surrounding so that at least in one direction of the plane of the pallet, for example in the direction of its length, the size of the pallet when associated with the device is approximately the same as 'in the absence of entourage; thus, the loading surface of a vehicle, for example a road vehicle of conventional width, can be fully exploited by having two pallet support devices according to the invention aligned end-to-end in the direction of their length over the width of the loading platform. In addition, thanks to the successive support means in the same direction as the uprights, it is possible to superimpose several pallets of dimensions identical to those of the basic pallet on the height of the device, which brings a significant gain. space, allows the handling of several pallets simultaneously, and thus allows a significant saving of time on transport as on the duration of loading and unloading.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will emerge from the description which follows of an embodiment of the invention given by way of nonlimiting example and represented in the attached drawings in which
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a device according to the invention associated with a basic pallet,
FIG. 2 is a schematic perspective view of one of the shelves intended to be adapted to such a device, with a view to allowing the superposition of several pallets,
FIG. 3 is a schematic top view of a device according to the invention without a basic pallet and in the folded position, and
- Figure 4 is a schematic top view of a device according to the invention in the position of use around a basic pallet.

 The device shown in Figure 1 is intended for the storage and transport of pallets, partially surrounding them and in particular a pallet serving as a base and resting on the ground.

 In general, the devices according to the invention can be suitable for the storage and transport of very diverse pallets, whether in wood, sheet metal, tube, synthetic material, or the like, at the cost of minor differences in view. their adaptation to the desired application.

 The basic pallet is here a pallet known by the name of "Europallet", made of wood, consisting of three plies of wooden slats placed in each tablecloth parallel at a distance from each other, the slats of each tablecloth being arranged orthogonally to slats of the nearest tablecloth, one of the tablecloths, intended to rest on the ground, being separated from the other two by spacers or dices. More specifically, the lower tablecloth intended to rest on the ground comprises three identical slats l 'extending in the direction of the length of the pallet and succeeding each other over its width, on each of which are fixed two or three dice 2, namely two end dice and possibly a central die; three slats 3 orthogonal to those of the lower ply and fixed opposite the dice respectively connect the three dice of the front end, the central dice, and the three dice of the rear end; five slats 4 orthogonal to those of the preceding ply are fixed thereon in the same direction as the slats l of the lower ply. These pallets generally have an overall length of 120 centimeters and an overall width of approximately 80 centimeters.

 The device shown in the figures being intended to be associated with a basic pallet, does not itself have a base, but consists of three perforated panels juxtaposed in triptych and at least one cross member (here two cross members), intended to constitute a sort of cage of generally parallelepiped shape.

 More particularly, the device comprises a bottom panel 5 and two side panels 6, 7 each comprising a generally rectangular frame made up of two rigid parallel uprights 51, 61, 71 and two rigid parallel crosspieces 52, 62, 72. The two uprights 51 of the bottom panel are spaced apart by a distance greater than the width of the base pallet and each is connected to an upright 61, 71 of a side panel 6, 7 by one or more articulation means; for this purpose, the uprights of the bottom panel and that of the side panels to which they must be articulated carry ears 53, 63, 73 extending towards the outside of the frame, to constitute pairs of ears each consisting of a lug 53 of the bottom panel 5 and an lug 63, 73 of a side panel 6, 7 whose respective regions of the free end are superposed one against the other and pierced with a hole opposite in the two ears, in which is placed an articulation axis 54 extending parallel to the uprights of the panels, the articulation axes common to two determined panels being aligned. The ears 53 of the bottom panel extend perpendicular to the plane and more precisely to the uprights and the crosspieces thereof, while those 63, 73 of the side panels extend in the same direction as their crosspieces.

 Opposite the bottom panel 5, the device also comprises independent crosspieces 8, 9 articulated to one or / and the other of the side panels, and more precisely here to an end region of an upright. 61 of side panel which is opposite the upright articulated to the bottom panel 5. On the embodiment shown in the drawings, a lower cross member 8 extends and is articulated to one of the side panels at the level of the lower cross member 62 thereof, and an upper cross member 9 hinged to the same panel 6 extends at the level of the upper cross member 62 thereof; in order to articulate the crosspieces 8, 9, the uprights 61, 71 facing (but slightly offset as will be seen below) of the side panels 6, 7 also include lateral ears 64, 74 extending towards the outside in the same direction as the crosspieces of these panels. While the axes of articulation 65 of the crosspieces 8, 9 with this side panel 6, like those of the panels 5, 6, 7 between them, are not intended to be frequently removed, and can thus be difficult to remove, the crosspieces 8, 9 are articulated to the opposite side panel 7 and more precisely to its upright 71 opposite to that articulated to the bottom panel 5, by means of removable pins 81, 91 secured to the corresponding cross member by a chain or another type of lock. The articulation mode of the two cross members 8, 9 on this second side panel 7 is similar to that of the lower cross member 8 on the first side panel 6, almost the lower cross member 8 is thus articulated removably to the lower end region of the corresponding upright 71 of this second panel 7 and the upper cross member 9 is articulated removably to the upper end region of the same upright 71.

 In this way, when the two independent crosspieces 8, 9 are secured to the two side panels 6, 7, the three panels and these two independent crosspieces can constitute an entourage for the basic pallet, to which they are secured, as will be seen. see below, so that the pallet provided with this surround does not have a substantially larger size than a bare pallet, mainly in the direction of its length, and as well as two pallets each provided with such an entourage can be arranged end to end, in the direction of their length, on the width of a conventional truck not classified "exceptional convoy".

 Furthermore, so that shelves 10 can be hung inside the cage, closed on one of its faces by only one or two crosspieces 8, 9, formed by the device according to the invention, the panels 5, 6, 7 are here produced in the form of wire mesh, the horizontal sections of which are adapted to support the shelves 10 each carrying a pallet loaded with products to be stored or / and transported. As the panels 5, 6, 7 must be able to support the load of several identical pallets with their content, placed on the successive shelves in the direction in which the uprights 51, 61, 71 extend, without deforming, their uprights and their cross members are made of profiled tube, except the lower cross member 52 of the central panel, which must meet other requirements.

 Indeed, we have seen that the invention is intended to allow to have on the width of the platform of a conventional truck, two devices placed end to end in the direction of their length. Also, it is necessary to minimize as much as possible the additional length provided by the device, to pallets of 120 centimeters long.

 To this end, the lower cross member 52 of the central panel 5 is constituted by an angle iron having two perpendicular wings, one of which, adapted to be attached to the edge of the upper plies of the base pallet, is provided with support plates parallel to the other wing intended to be superimposed on one face of the plies, between the dice, or by a profile having a U-shaped cross section whose lower wing is indented to allow passage to the dice, so that parts of the upper plies s of the basic pallet included between the dice can be housed between a wing of the angle iron and the parallel bearing plates or between the branches of the U extending perpendicular to the planes of the panels 5, 6, 7 and thus constituting surfaces support for the device; thus, the presence of the lower cross member 52 only increases the length of the pallet by the thickness of the metal strip constituting a wing of the angle iron or the core of the U-shaped section forming this cross member, which is weak compared to the height of the wing of the angle iron or of the core of the U. The independent lower cross member 8 hinged to a side panel 6 is formed and arranged in the same way. As the upper crossmembers 52, 9 are not subject to the same imperative because there is no need to press a pallet against them, there is no disadvantage that they are tubular. not being critical, the crosspieces 62, 72 of the side panels are juxtaposed with the basic pallet, the uprights 61 of these panels extend laterally around the outline of this basic pallet, and the same is true of the uprights 51 of the central panel 5 which, being spaced apart by a distance greater than the width of the base pallet, are arranged on either side thereof and do not constitute an obstacle to the total insertion into the device, of pallets identical dimensions to those of the basic pallet; however, it is possible to provide that all the uprights and the crosspieces have a U-shaped section. As a result of this arrangement, the length of the device surrounding the base pallet is only a few millimeters greater than that of this pallet, the additional thickness corresponding to the thickness provided by the presence of the two metal strips of the two lower crosspieces 52, 8, and the device is firmly secured to the base pallet by its support surfaces superimposed on either side of zones of the basic palette which are close to the periphery thereof.

 A complementary joining can however be carried out by means of sheets 66, 76 in U or in L fixed against the internal face of the cross-member 62, 72 lower of the side panels 6, 7 and whose wings also come to be superimposed above or / and below slats 4 of the upper layer of the pallet.

 To increase the rigidity of the device, on the side of its irremovable articulation, the upper independent cross-member 9 is not articulated directly to the side panel 6, but by means of a strut 92 parallel to the front upright of this panel, to which is fixed the cross member 9, and which comprises two ears 93 articulated to two ears 64 of the panel 6. On the corresponding front upright 71 of the opposite side panel 7, the ears 74 may be double to form a yoke.

 As we have seen, so that the device only slightly increases the overall dimensions in length of the basic pallet, and so that other pallets of identical dimensions can be inserted therein. basic pallet, the uprights 51 of the bottom panel extend laterally to the pallet, and their ears 53 are perpendicular to the direction of the plane of the panel 5; so that in the folded position, in the absence of a basic pallet, for example for its own storage, the device takes on a geometry as regular as possible (cf. FIG. 3), the ears 53 of the two uprights 51 are of different lengths ; for example, the left upright has longer ears than the right upright. For the same reason, the independent crosspieces 8, 9 also have perpendicular ears 83, 84, 93, 94 which can be of unequal length on both sides , and here shorter on the left than on the right, so that the frames of the two side panels 6, 7 have the same dimensions. However, if a modification of the length of the lugs for securing the independent crosspieces 8, 9 to the side panels has the consequence of causing a lack of parallelism of the panels and of these independent crosspieces when the device is folded, this lack of parallelism can be reduced by those skilled in the art by adopting an appropriate geometry, for example by modifying the length of the articulation ears 74, so as to however preserve identical frames which are arranged inverted.

 Indeed, to facilitate the hanging of the shelves 10, and in particular to allow the use of perfectly symmetrical shelves, it is advantageous that the support means of the panels 6, 7 for the shelves 10 are arranged face to face when the two side panels are perpendicular to the bottom panel.However, as the perpendicular ears 53 of the bottom panel 5 are of unequal lengths, if identical side frames were mounted in the same direction, their means of support would be offset as shown in the consultation of Figure 4; on the other hand, by reversing the mounting direction of one of the frames, these support means are opposite; in this case, where the interior of the panels 5, 6, 7 consists of a lattice of metal wires, the wires 67, 77 parallel to the uprights of the side panels 6, 7 are therefore arranged exactly face to face, such that so that the sections of the wires 68, 78 parallel to the crosspieces which they delimit and which are intended to support the shelves 10 are also exactly face to face (naturally at the same level).

 The shelves 10 are here themselves metallic lattices whose wires intersect perpendicularly, and the ends of the transverse wires of these shelves, of length greater than the spacing of the side panels 6, 7 when these are perpendicular to the panel of bottom, therefore protrude from the two most widely spaced longitudinal wires so that they can rest on the horizontal wires 68, 78 of the side panels, and bent downwards, so that the possibilities of lateral movement shelves between the side panels are minimized. Thanks to the fact that the horizontal wires 68, 78 of the side panels form steps of scale, the level of the shelves 10 can be adjusted "step by step". However, of course, the support means 68, 78 can be produced in another form, and for example be produced in the form of cleats mounted sliding on the height of the side panels 6, 7 by means of vertical slides carried by these panels; if the cleats are large enough and numerous, the shelves are even useless, and the pallets can be placed directly on the cleats.

 It is also advantageous that the wires of the bottom panel are as far back as possible towards the rear of the panel, and if possible that the horizontal wires are separated by a distance greater than the height of the pallets so that they do not constitute a extra thickness limiting the embedding of these in the device.

 The implementation of this device is very simple since it suffices to fit the lower cross member 52 of the bottom panel 5 around the upper slats 4 of the base pallet, the vertical uprights 51 of this panel and their perpendicular ears 53 being thus arranged laterally on either side of the pallet, to bring the lower crosspieces 62, 72 of the side panels 6, 7 in abutment against the lateral slats of the pallet, to pivot the independent lower crosspiece 8 to nest it around upper slats 4 of the base pallet and to lock it, to also pivot the upper independent cross-member 9 and to lock it, to set up the shelves 10 at the desired height, and to have the pallets identical to the base pallet loaded with products on the shelves and possibly on the basic pallet itself unless the products have been loaded directly onto this pallet, by means of a cha riot classic forklift; the loaded device can then be placed on a loading platform of a vehicle such as a truck, or stored in store when this loaded device is intended to be placed on a platform of a sufficiently large but nevertheless conventional truck, there is oriented so that its length extends over the half-width of the plate, because the moderate dimensions of the device allow for example to have symmetrically another device aligned with the first on the other half-width. Unloading the vehicle is no more problem; after unloading the device itself and removing the shelves, it can be detached from the base pallet by opening the front face of the device after having pinned at least the bottom cross member 8, by disassembling the device from the pallet, and by folding it as shown in Figure 3.

 Note that thanks to the invention, it is possible, after having superimposed the loaded pallets, which allows a significant saving of space, to remove only one of them, even if it is not the upper pallet ; more handling is simple and the risk of deterioration of the pallets are reduced, in particular by the fact that, during transport, the pallets are isolated from neighboring pallets by the panels 5, 6, 7 of the device.

 The structure of the device also allows the attachment of very diverse accessories, for example support bars such as hanging bars, vertical partitions to partition the device into several parts, peripheral protective linings in synthetic material in particular, etc.

 Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown, and other forms can be provided without departing from its scope, and for example creating devices with solid panels provided with means appropriate support for product supports, or devices fitted with possibly retractable casters.

Claims (11)

 1 - Device for the storage and transport of pallets, characterized in that it comprises a bottom panel (5) and two side panels (6, 7) articulated in triptych and of generally rectangular shape comprising parallel uprights and sleepers, the bottom panel comprising two uprights (51) each connected to an upright (61, 71) of a side panel by articulation means (53, 54, 63, 73), at least one other sleeper (8 , 9) being articulated to at least one of the side panels in an end region of an upright (61) of this side panel (6) which is not articulated to the bottom panel and adapted to be secured to the other side panel (7) in an end region of a post (71) of this side panel which is not articulated to the bottom panel, so that this articulated cross member and three cross members (52, 62 , 72) respective of the three panels (5, 6, 7) constitute for a basic pallet a surrounding frame app orting on two parallel sides a small excess thickness with respect to the height of the frame, in that at least two crosspieces (8, 52) parallel among these four crosspieces (8, 52, 62, 72) have surfaces of 'support extending substantially perpendicular to the planes of the panels (5, 6, 7) and adapted to be superimposed on areas of the base pallet which are close to the periphery of this base pallet, in that the uprights (51) of the bottom panel (5) are spaced a distance greater than the width of the base pallet and are arranged laterally on either side of it when the crosspieces (52, 62, 72) of the bottom panel and side panels are attached to the corresponding edges of this basic pallet, and in that the panels include support means (68, 78) for product supports such as pallets of dimensions identical to those of the basic pallet or shelves (10) intended for the installation of such pallets s, succeeding each other in the direction in which the uprights extend (51, 61, 71).  2 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the bottom panel (5) has a lower crosspiece (52) comprising a metal strip adapted to be juxtaposed at the corresponding end of the base pallet, so that the presence of the lower cross member only adds a small excess thickness to the length of this pallet.  3 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that at least one cross member (8) articulated to at least one of the side panels in an end region of that of the uprights (61) of this side panel (6) which is not articulated to the bottom panel (5), has a metal strip adapted to be juxtaposed at the corresponding end of the base pallet, so that the presence of the crosspiece (8) only adds 'a small excess thickness to the length of this pallet.  4 - Device according to at least one of claims 2 and 3, characterized in that the crosspiece (52, 8) comprising a metal strip has bearing surfaces extending perpendicular to the planes of the panels, adapted to overlap to the basic palette.  5 - Device according to claim 3, characterized in that the crosspiece (52, 8) comprising a metal strip consists of a profile having a U or L cross section having support plates parallel to one of his wings.  6 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that its two side panels (6, 7) each have means (63, 73) for articulation to the bottom panel (5), extending in the same direction as crosspieces (62, 72) of the side panel, and its bottom panel has means (53) of articulation carried by its uprights (51) and extending in direction perpendicular to its plane, so that when the side panels (6, 7) are arranged at right angles to the bottom panel (5) on either side of the base pallet, the uprights (51) of the side panels and those (61, 71) of the bottom panel extend on either side of the pallet.  7 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the articulation means (53, 63, 73) connecting the bottom panel (5) and the side panels (6, 7) extend, when the side panels are arranged at right angles to the bottom panel, in the same direction as the crosspieces (62, 72) of the side panels over different distances for the two side panels (6, 7).  8 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the support means for product supports are sections of son (68, 78) extending parallel to the sleepers (62, 72) of the side panels (6, 7) .  9 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that the support means for product supports are cleats whose level is adjustable, adapted to support pallets placed directly on them.  10 - Device according to claim 1, characterized in that it comprises rollers.  11 - Loading surface comprising a rectangular platform such as a vehicle platform, loaded with at least two devices according to claim 1, characterized in that these two devices are arranged aligned end to end in the direction of their length , across the width of the plate.