FR2811252A1 - Transport container for stamped sheet metal parts comprises carrying structure with access face and parts support rack on which supports are fixed - Google Patents

Abstract

The container comprises a carrying structure (1) having an access face (2). It carries a parts support rack (4,33), which extends parallel to the access face, on which supports (11,27) are fixed. The rack can move relative to the structure between two stable positions, one outside and one inside the structure in a trajectory perpendicular to the access face.

Description

The present invention relates to a container for transporting sheet metal parts

  stamped or more generally of a thin non-planar part, in particular of parts

automotive body shop.

  The handling and transport of stamped sheet metal parts has always presented difficulties, due to the shape and structure of such parts, which very often cannot be stacked, or which cannot land on one of their corners or a of their edges due

of their lack of rigidity.

  Means for packaging such parts have long been known in the form of a rack fitted with supports on which the parts are placed. These supports hold the parts in place on the rack, spacing them regularly. This rack

  is very often mounted on a supporting structure,

  even fixed on a base, thus forming a container which can be transported from the place of manufacture of the parts to the place of assembly for example. This container can be fitted with side panels or tarpaulins, or

be left uncovered.

  The problem often encountered is that the very shape of the parts does not allow the internal volume of the container to be filled effectively, unless the container can be loaded according to two contiguous or non-contiguous access faces. This proves to be very impractical for loading and unloading of the container, since the means (human or automated) implemented for these operations generally have no access

to one side of the container.

  We can of course consider returning the container during loading / unloading operations, but in addition to the time lost in this maneuver, this process requires modifying the existing production lines to equip them with a means of rotating the container, assuming that the space required for the rtt n maneuver is available. This provision therefore appears unsatisfactory. We are therefore often satisfied with containers whose internal volume is only very partially occupied by the parts to be transported, which is not economically satisfactory. Furthermore, if we seek to optimize the filling of the container, we quickly come up against difficult, painful loading / unloading operations.

  for personnel and source of accidents.

  The problem is therefore to find a way to fill the internal volume of the container with the maximum number of parts to be transported, allowing loading or unloading.

  from one side, with easy access to the rooms.

  The present invention aims to solve the problem posed, by providing a container for transporting stamped sheet metal parts, comprising a support structure of substantially parallelepiped shape having an access face, carrying at least one rack of supports for the parts extending parallel at the access face. The rack or racks carry a series of supports allowing the guiding of the parts during their positioning on the racks, as well as their support when they are positioned. Advantageously, at least one of these racks is movable relative to the carrying structure, between two stable positions, one of which is at least partially external and the other internal to said structure, along a trajectory substantially perpendicular to the

access face.

  We can take advantage of the mobility of this rack to, for example, load parts outside the container, so with great freedom of access to each support, then bring it back inside the container. Or, we can maneuver a rack loaded or not to

allow access to a utlier.

  Advantageously, with for example two mobile racks, these are arranged in the carrying structure so that the volumes occupied by their respective loadings in pieces fit into the internal volume of the container when they are brought back in

interior position.

  The number and clever arrangement of racks, depending on the shape of the parts, will be provided to ensure that a maximum number of parts are stored in the internal space of the supporting structure, while allowing the loading and unloading of parts by the access face of the container, for example by adjusting the complementarity of the volumes of the parts carried by each rack, or by ensuring that the parts carried by

  the different racks are staggered.

  According to a particular embodiment, these racks are articulated on the support structure, according to an axis of rotation substantially parallel to the access face. The movement could be more complex, associating rotations with translations. For example, it is possible to envisage racks sliding on rails integral with the carrying structure, or else racks provided at their ends with connecting rods forming a deformable polygon. The rack movement can also

be motorized.

  Provision may be made for one of the racks to be fixed to the carrying structure, if its mobility is not necessary for loading or unloading the

rooms.

  Preferably, the racks intended to be maneuvered loaded are equipped with a device for compensating the forces which are resistant or favorable to the movement thereof between the external positions and

interior.

  This resistant effort is mainly due to the weight of the rack loaded or not with parts, which makes it difficult for an operator to maneuver it. To improve the ergonomics and safety of the workstation, a compensation system is provided, for example in the form of a spring assistance mechanism, capable of compensating for the effect of the

  weight of rack loaded or unloaded.

  In addition, the racks are equipped with a means of damping the movement between the external and internal positions, making it possible on the one hand to control the speed of the rack during maneuver, and on the other hand to avoid a brutal shock when the rack reaches one of the two positions. It can for example be a

gas shock absorber.

  Advantageously, a means for locking the rack in one or both of the stop positions is provided, to secure the loading / unloading operations, or even to immobilize the rack inside the

structure during transport.

  It can be, for example, a stop pin threading into an orifice made in the rack and one in a second made in the support structure, or else a blocking by alignment of two connecting rods, one of which is connected to the supporting structure and the other to the rack. Alternatively, the rack will be provided with an articulated connecting rod having a longitudinal lumen in which a finger integral with the structure slides. The means of compensation, damping and blocking can of course be combined into one or more devices. The racks can be operated independently, to facilitate loading / unloading operations. It is also possible to provide permanent kinematic connections between the racks. Alternatively, these connections are disengageable to allow the

  maneuvering of each rack independently of the others.

  Preferably, the racks are equipped with a means for holding the parts on the supports, intended to secure the operation of said racks between the external and internal positions when they are loaded, or even to immobilize the parts inside the container during transport. This means can take the form of a retractable bolt mounted on each support which disappears when the part is put in place, to then trap the part against the support once it is in position,

thanks to the action of a spring.

  Other features and benefits of

  the invention will emerge on reading the description of

  appended figures, illustrating a particular nonlimiting embodiment of the invention, among which - FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of the container according to the invention, - FIG. 2 is a side view of the same container with the racks folded in the internal position, - Figure 3 is a side view of the same container with the racks deployed in the external position, - Figure 4 is a view of a support equipped with a

  means of immobilizing the part.

  Referring to Figure 1, the container is formed of a supporting structure 1 made for example of a welded metal frame, materializing a parallelepiped, one face 2 of which is the access face for loading and unloading of the parts. This face 2 is the face of the container contained in the figured plane P. This structure is fixed on a base 3 and can, through it, be transported. A lower rack 4 is made of a slender part 5 carrying a series of supports 11; this slender part 5 is provided at its two ends of arms 6 and 7 receiving the pivots 8 and 9 which articulate the rack 4 on the carrying structure 1 along the axis 10 defined by the

pivots 8 and 9.

  Similarly, an upper rack 33 is made of a slender part 20 carrying a series of supports 27; this slender part 20 is provided at its two ends of arms 21 and 22 receiving the pivots 29 and 30 which articulate the rack 33 on the support structure 1 along the axis 26 defined by the pivots 29 and 30. This rack is furthermore

  equipped with a handle 28 to facilitate maneuvering.

  The lower rack 4 is provided with a force compensation device consisting of a pair of springs 12, 13 articulated on the rack 4 on the one hand and on

  the supporting structure 1 on the other hand.

  Furthermore, this lower rack 4 is equipped with an immobilization device consisting of a connecting rod 14 comprising a longitudinal slot in which slides a finger 34 linked to the carrying structure 1, and whose maximum stroke in the day of the connecting rod defines the external position of the lower rack 4. The internal position of the lower rack 4 can be defined by the stop of an element of this rack 4 on an obstacle (not shown) secured to the supporting structure 1. It can also be defined by the stop of the finger 34 in the longitudinal lumen of the connecting rod 14, in a position symmetrical to the external position relative to

  a plane containing the axis 10 and the finger 34.

  The upper rack 33 is equipped with a damping device, in this case a gas shock absorber 24,

  installed between the rack 33 and the supporting structure 1.

  In Figure 2, there are racks 4 and 33 in the external position. The lower rack 4 is loaded with stamped sheet metal parts, which are each supported on a support 11, on which is fixed a holding device 31 are sheet metal parts. The external position of this lower rack 4 is defined by the day-to-day cooperation of the connecting rod 14 with a finger of the supporting structure 1. The lower rack 4 is loaded in the position shown in this figure, then is folded back into the lower position. The upper rack 33 is then brought back thanks to the handle 28 from the external position shown in the figure to its internal position in the container. It is in this position that it is loaded with sheet metal parts. The external position of the upper rack 33 is defined by the internal stop in extension of the gas damper 25, while its internal position can be defined by the stop of an element of this rack 33 on a finger 34 integral with the structure carrier 1 The supports 11 and 27 have a morphology adapted to the part to be transported, and consist of a frame, for example formed of metal wire, which can be fixed on the slender portions 5 and 20 of the racks. These supports are equipped with a holding means 31, 32,

  intended to immobilize the parts on these.

  In FIG. 3, the racks 4 and 33 are shown loaded with parts, and brought back to the internal position. We can easily see the optimal occupancy of the container volume by loading the two racks,

  whose respective volumes complement each other.

  Figure 4 is a view of a support 11 on which is adapted a holding means 31, identical to the holding means 32 installed on the support 27. The latter comprises a retractable bolt 35 when the part is placed on the support, pivoting with respect to the latter about an axis 36. The bolt 35 retracts when the part is put in place, then closes to trap the part against the support. The bolt 35 is held in this position thanks to the spiral spring 37. To unload the part, it suffices to operate the bolt in the opposite direction thanks to the handle.

38 with which it is equipped.

Claims (11)

  1. Container for transporting stamped sheet metal parts, comprising a support structure (1) of substantially parallelepiped shape having an access face (2), carrying at least one rack (4, 33) for supporting the parts extending parallel to the access face, on which are fixed supports (11,27) allowing the positioning of the parts on the rack, characterized in that this rack is movable relative to the carrying structure, between two stable positions, of which one is at least partially external and the other internal to said structure, following a substantially trajectory   perpendicular to the access face (2).   2. Container according to claim 1, characterized in that the movable rack (4.33) is articulated on the supporting structure according to an axis of rotation (10.26)   substantially parallel to the access face.   3. Container according to claim 2, characterized in that it comprises two mobile racks (4,33) articulated on the carrying structure along axes of   rotation (10,26) substantially parallel to the access face.   4. Container according to one of claims   previous, characterized in that the mobile rack (4,33) is equipped with a compensation system (12,13) of the forces resistant or favorable to the movement between the   exterior and interior positions.   5. Container according to claim 4, characterized in that the compensation system comprises at least one spring (12,13) linked on the one hand to the supporting structure (1) and on the other hand to the rack (4).   6. Container according to one of claims   previous, characterized in that the mobile rack is equipped with a movement damping system (24,25)   between the exterior and interior positions.   7. Container according to claim 6, characterized in that the damping system is a compensator with gas (24.25).   8. Container according to one of claims   previous, characterized the mobile rack is equipped with a locking system (14) in the exterior and interior positions. 9. Container according to claim 8, characterized the locking system consists of an articulated connecting rod (14) on the rack (4) and comprising a longitudinal slot, in which slides a finger (34)   integral with the supporting structure (1).   10. Container according to one of claims   above, characterized in that the rack (4.33) is equipped with at least one immobilization means (31.32) of the parts on the supports.   11. Container according to claim 10, characterized in that the holding means (31,32) of the parts on the supports comprises a retractable bolt (35) trapping the part to be immobilized against the supports   (11,27), and returned to position by a spring (37).