GB1575688A - Tray for crockery or other articles - Google Patents

Abstract

In crockery racks, the problem arises of adapting the rack height to the multiple design shapes and sizes of crockery. In order to be able to produce an appropriate rack height, the corner regions of the rack (1) and of a frame (7) which can be placed on top are fitted with sleeve-type or plug-type corner parts (8, 9). Plug-type or sleeve-type adaptor pieces (10) are fitted onto or inserted into the corner parts as spacers between the rack (1) and the frame which can be placed on top and thus for the variable design of the height of the crockery rack. Depending on the required height of the crockery rack, shorter or longer adaptor pieces (10) can thus be used. <IMAGE>

Description

(54) TRAY FOR CROCKERY OR OTHER ARTICLES (71) We, THEODORE FRIES & CO., an Australian Company, of 6832 Sulz-Rothis, Vorarlberg, Austria, do hereby declare the invention, for which we pray that a patent may be granted to us, and the method by which it is to be performed, to be particu larly described in and by the following statement: The invention relates to a tray for crockery or other articles, particularly but not exclusively, for use in washing-up machines.

Such trays commonly have a base of openwork construction, side walls which preferably extend around the whole periphery of the tray, and a subdividing grid for retaining the articles in the tray.

A major problem in the design of such trays has been the provision of means by which they may be readily and efficiently adapted to accommodate different shapes and sizes of articles of crockery. It is known to provide, for this purpose a supplementary frame which can be attached to the basic tray hereinafter referred to as the base frame, and in one known arrangement, there are provided a number of such supplementary frames arranged to fit together by means of complementary engagement of projections or recesses provided at the corners of the frames.

In order to increase the height of the tray one or more of the supplementary frames must be attached to the base frame and con,sequently it may not be possible to achieve accurate adjustment to the required dimensions. To increase accuracy of adjustment, in practice supplementary frames of various different shapes would have to be made, but this would require a greater number of manufacturing tools and therefore increase the cost of the tray.

According to the invention there is provided a tray for crockery or other articles comprising: a base frame having a base of open-work construction and peripheral sidewalls; a supplementary frame attachable to the base frame; a subdividing grid supported on the side walls df the base frame or on the supplementary frame; and plug-like or.

sleeve-like separate and non-interconnected.

intermediate spacer members; wherein the base frame and supplementary frame are provided at corner zones thereof with corner members shaped for complementary engagement with said intermediate spacer members for attaching the supplementary and base frames in mutually spaced relationship..

This construction enables the height of the tray to be adapted by cutting the intermediate members, which can take the form, for instance, of tubes or solid sectional members, to the required length, whereafter the base frame and the supplementary frame can be joined together. The tray can there fore be adapted without the necessity to provide supplementary frames of different shapes and heights or trays of different heights.

Some embodiments of the invention will now be described by way of example, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an inclined view of a base frame for a tray for crockery or other articles according to the invention Figure 2 shows a tray according to the invention, comprising a base frame a supplementary frame and a subdividing grid placed thereon, certain members having been.

removed to make the drawing clearer; Figure 3 is an inclined view of å supplementary frame; Figure 4 is an inclined view of a portion of a subdividing grid; Figure 5 is a side elevation of a base frame, showing a subdividing grid inserted; Figure 6 is a side elevation of a tray with a supplementary frame placed on a base frame subdividing grids being provided both in the base frame and in the supplementary frame, and Figure 7 shows a similar embodiment to that illustrated in Figure 6, though with a greater separation between the supplement-.

ary frame and the base frame, to make the assembled tray correspondingly higher.

Referring to Figure 1, there is shown a tray consisting of a base frame 1 for holding crockery or other articles, and particularly for insertion in a washing-up machine.

The base frame 1 is preferably made in one piece from plastics and has as its base an entraining spider 2 provided for special en gagement,.for instance, when the base frame is conveyed by conveyor belts. Disposed on the entraining spider 2 is a grid-like insert 3 which forms the bottom of the base frame and the base on which the crockery to be introduced will be supported. The base frame 1 has side walls 4 preferably extending around its whole periphery, strips 5 being provided which extend on the outside of at least two opposite side walls 4 parallel with the tray bottom and project beyond the outermost boundary of the side walls 4.

Reinforcing ribs 6 tapering toward the side walls 4 are provided on the top side of the strips 5. Conveniently the strips are disposed substantially in the central zone related to the height of the base frame, so that the strips 5 further reinforce the base frame, while at the same time enabling the base frame to be accommodated in commercially available storage cupboards.

The tray can be adapted to the particular height required by means of a supplementary frame 7 which can be placed on the base frame. There is no need for a number of different sized trays, therefore, merely one tray being used as the base frame, on which the supplementary frame 7 is placed at a suitable spacing. To this end the corner zones of the base frame 1 and supplementary frame 7 have sleeve-like corner members 8, 9 for disposing plug-like intermediate members 10 between the base frame 1 and the supplementary frame 7.

Webs or a closed end can be disposed in the corner members 8, 9 to enable the exact height to be adjusted when these cornermembers are sleeve-like, it is in any case convenient for the top section of the sleevelike corner of the supplementary frame to take the form of a closed end, via which the intermediate members 10 can be vertically borne. This reliable bearing in the vertical direction enables the trays to be stacked one above the other as required, since the corner zones can readily take the resulting load. So that the assembled tray can also be handled by way of the supplementary frame 7 after assembly, the intermediate members 10 can be connected to the sleevelike corner members 8, 9 by, for instance, rivets, glueing or the like.

Of course, plug-like corner members can alternatively be provided in the corner zones of the base frame 1 and supplementary frame 7, in which case they are used for securely locating sleeve-like intermediate members between the base frame and the supplementary frame.

This construction enables the height of the tray to be adapted in each case to that of the crockery to be accommodated. Exact adaptation is possible without the use of many tools or members.

The side walls 4 of the base frame 1 and supplementary frame 7 are constructed in cross-section in the form of horizontal Usections with outwardly pointing arms, this construction making the tray very rigid.

The upper boundary of the side walls 4 of the base frame 1 and supplementary frame 7 is formed with recesses 11, depressions, bores or the like, into which a subdividing grid 12 can be latched. Since the side walls 4 take the form of horizontal Usections, the recesses 11 can advantageously be disposed in the upper edge elements 13 of the side walls 4 or of a lateral sectional member 14 of the frame 7.

The subdividing grid 12 consists of a number of webs 15-extending parallel with one another and intersecting one another and formed at the places of intersection with slots disposed perpendicularly to the longitudinal extension of the webs and open at the top or bottom. As a result the subdividing grids can be assembled in the form required-i.e. leaving a larger or smaller amount of space between the webs 15. For. all these variants, in which the webs 15 are of different distances from one another, recesses 11 are provided for locating the webs.

The webs 15 extend in one piece over the whole width and length of the tray. Of course, a variant is conceivable in which the webs are made up of individual members.

The webs 15 forming the subdividing grid 12 have at their free ends straps 16 which lie at an inclination to the plane of the webs and bear against the upper edge elements 13 of the side walls 4 of the base frame 1 or the supplementary frame 7. Disposed on the underside of the straps 16 are pins 171 which engage in the recesses 11 of the base frame 1 and the supplementary frame 7.

To enable the webs 15 forming the subdividing grid 12 to be located on the base frame 1 and frame 7, the pins 171 provided on the straps 16 have barbed-hook-like attachments 181 (Figure 4). The attachments 181 engage behind the underside of the upper edge element of the U-shaped side walls 4 of the base frame 1 and the frame 7.

Between their places of intersection each of the webs 15 has at least one continuation 17 lying in the same plane as the webs 15 and extending toward the base frame 1.

In one embodiment illustrated in Figure 2 only one subdividing grid is provided which bears against the top side of the frame 7. In that case the continuations 17 extend from the underside of the webs, which are latched.in the frames 7, to adjacent the bottom of the base frame 1.

However, a more convenient method can be seen in Figures 6 and 7. In this embodiment subdividing grids which are identical or have extensions of different length can be inserted in both the base frame and the supplementary frame 7. If only the height of the base frame is required, of course, no supplementary frame 7 is provided, in which case the subdividing grid is merely inserted in the base frame and anchored to the top side of the side walls (of Figure 5).

The corner zones of the base frame 1 and frame 7 are somewhat higher than the side walls 4 and lateral sections 14, webs 18 projecting on the upper side and recesses 19 in the underside being provided. This construction is used for stacking various combinations of base frames, supplementary frames and trays one above the other, in centred relation to one another.

WHAT WE CLAIM IS:- 1. A tray for crockery or other articles comprising: a base frame having a base of open-work construction and peripheral sidewalls; a supplementary frame attachable to the base frame; a subdividing grid supported on the side walls of the base frame or on the supplementary frame; and plug-like or sleeve-like separate and non-interconnected intermediate spacer members; wherein the base frame and supplementary frame are provided at corner zones thereof with corner members shaped for complementary engagement with said intermediate spacer members for attaching the supplementary and base frames in mutually spaced relationship.

2. A tray according to claim 1, wherein the corner members are of sleevslike construction and are provided with means, such as webs or closed ends to provide stops for abutting the intermediate members.

3. A tray according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the side walls of the base and supplementary frames disposed between the corner members are, in cross-section, in the form of horizontal U-sections with outwardly pointing arms, recesses, depressions, bores or the like being provided in the upper edge elements forming the upper arms of the U-sections, into which a subdividing grid can be latched.

4. A tray for crockery or other articles substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

**WARNING** end of DESC field may overlap start of CLMS **.

Claims (4)

**WARNING** start of CLMS field may overlap end of DESC **. However, a more convenient method can be seen in Figures 6 and 7. In this embodiment subdividing grids which are identical or have extensions of different length can be inserted in both the base frame and the supplementary frame 7. If only the height of the base frame is required, of course, no supplementary frame 7 is provided, in which case the subdividing grid is merely inserted in the base frame and anchored to the top side of the side walls (of Figure 5). The corner zones of the base frame 1 and frame 7 are somewhat higher than the side walls 4 and lateral sections 14, webs 18 projecting on the upper side and recesses 19 in the underside being provided. This construction is used for stacking various combinations of base frames, supplementary frames and trays one above the other, in centred relation to one another. WHAT WE CLAIM IS:-

1. A tray for crockery or other articles comprising: a base frame having a base of open-work construction and peripheral sidewalls; a supplementary frame attachable to the base frame; a subdividing grid supported on the side walls of the base frame or on the supplementary frame; and plug-like or sleeve-like separate and non-interconnected intermediate spacer members; wherein the base frame and supplementary frame are provided at corner zones thereof with corner members shaped for complementary engagement with said intermediate spacer members for attaching the supplementary and base frames in mutually spaced relationship.

2. A tray according to claim 1, wherein the corner members are of sleevslike construction and are provided with means, such as webs or closed ends to provide stops for abutting the intermediate members.

3. A tray according to claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the side walls of the base and supplementary frames disposed between the corner members are, in cross-section, in the form of horizontal U-sections with outwardly pointing arms, recesses, depressions, bores or the like being provided in the upper edge elements forming the upper arms of the U-sections, into which a subdividing grid can be latched.

4. A tray for crockery or other articles substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to, and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings.