GB2125373A

GB2125373A - Plastics container for transparency frames

Info

Publication number: GB2125373A
Application number: GB08314310A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Arnold Neuhold
Original assignee: Geimuplast Peter Mundt KG
Current assignee: Geimuplast Peter Mundt KG
Priority date: 1982-08-13
Filing date: 1983-05-24
Publication date: 1984-03-07
Also published as: GB8314310D0; FR2531679A3; FR2531679B3; DE3230205A1

Abstract

A plastics container for transparency frames comprises a box- shaped base component 1 and a lid component 2, the lid 2 being hinged to the base component 1 and having a wall portion 9 forming a longitudinal wall of the base component 1 when in the closed position, and which raises the frames when opened. Raised portions 16 on the bottom of the base component 1 may support the bottom frame after its insertion, or alternatively the wall portion 9 of the lid 2 may be provided with flat supporting webs extending normal to the wall portion 9, for supporting a stack of frames. The container can be filled automatically with transparency frames, particularly on framing machines. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Plastics container for transparency frames This invention relates to a container for transparency frames.

Known containers of this type are provided with a lid which is pushed over the top of the container.

Consequently insertion of the transparency frames involves removing the lid by hand and replacing it on the box-shaped base component, again by hand, when the process of placing frames into the box or removing frames therefrom is complete. In such containers the frames are preferably stored in three juxtaposed stacks which are kept apart by partitions.

The invention aims to improve a container of the type in question, by enabling it to be filled automatically with transparency frames, particularly on framing machines.

According to the present invention there is provided a plastics container for transparency frames, comprising a box-shaped base component and a lid, said lid being hinged to the base component and having a longitudinal wall portion which when the lid is in a closed position forms a longitudinal wall of the base component, said frames when provided in the container lying horizontally or substantially horizontally within the base component when the lid is closed and being moved by the lid to an upwardly inclined position or vertical position when the lid is open.

For the purpose of inserting in the container stacks of frames in a framing machine it is sufficient to raise the hinged lid to the width of a slot. The transparency frames are stacked successively in the various compartments of the container through the slot formed by the raised lid.

If, further according to the invention, at least the lid is made of transparent plastics material, the following further important advantage can be obtained with the container. In a laboratory every film is given a number. The first picture on the film is stacked into the container according to the invention at the bottom and the last picture at the top. The capacity of the various compartments of the container is chosen in this way. The number of the film always appears on the last picture. If the lid is transparent, the number of the film can be seen through the container, so that framed transparencies belonging to a given film can be placed even in the correct delivery bag intended for the particular customer, without any problems.

The container is fed to the framing machine from a magazine, in such a way that the above mentioned insertion slot appears. When the given number of transparency frames have been stacked in the container, the lid is closed automatically by the machine.

Two embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment with an open lid, in which state the individual transparency frames can be taken out, Figure 2 is a cross section through the embodiment of Figure 1, Figure 3 is a view similar to that of Figure 1 of a further embodiment of the invention, and Figure 4 is a cross section through the embodiment of Figure 3.

In both embodiments the plastics container comprises a box shaped base component 1 and a hinged lid 2, which is mounted on the two short side walls 4, 5 of the base component 1 by means of hinge pins 3. In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 and 2, the lid 2 is provided with end walls 6 each having a slot 7 engaged with a respective hinge pin 3 in this extension. When the lid 2 is open the slot 7 becomes substantially vertical, with the hinge pin 3 abutting its upper end. When the lid 2 is closed the slot 7 keeps substantially horizontal with the hinge pin 3 abutting its rear end, as can be seen from the alternative representation in Figure 2.

The box shaped base component 1 is bounded at the front by its own longitudinal side wall 8 and at the back by a strip 9 of the lid 2 forming a longitudinal wall. The container is divided by two intermediate walls 1 0, 11 into three compartments, into each of which a stack 12, 13, 1 4 of transparency frames is inserted.

Protruberances are arranged on the inside of the bottom 1 5 of the base component 1, one in the region of each stack of frames 12, 13, 14. A protruberance 16 can be seen in Figure 2. The bottom frame in each stack rests on the protruberances, so that a gap is formed between it and the bottom of the base component.

When the lid 2 is opened, the strip 9 forming a longitudinal wall of the base component consequently engages below the bottom transparency frame in the stacks and raised them whilst the lid 2 is being further opened, so that the stacks assume the position shown in Figure 2.

With the stacks in this state the user can conveniently take the individual transparency frames out of the container.

With this embodiment there is of course no guarantee that a transparency frame may not sometimes project backwards in the stack. When this mishap occurs, the lid 2 cannot be closed until the projecting frame has been moved right back into the stack by hand.

However, this disadvantage is avoided in the embodiment shown in Figures 3 and 4. In this embodiment the container is constructed differently, in that the lid 2 is moulded with four integral partitions 17, 18, 19, 20 extending perpendicularly to it, so that there are again three compartments for the stacks of transparency frames. The partitions 17, 18, 19, 20 have supporting webs 21, 22, 23, 24 moulded onto them integrally at their lower edges. The two central supporting webs 22 and 23 each extend into two adjacent compartments for the stacks of frames. In this embodiment too, the frames can successively be inserted from above and adjacent one another in the three different compartments of the container, when the lid 2 has been raised to form a stacking slot.Another feature of this embodiment is that the lid 2 has pairs of spacing ribs 25, 26; 27, 28; 29, 30 on the inside in the region of each stack of frames. The ribs enable a user taking a frame preferably from the bottom of the stack to reinsert it in the stack between the uppermost frame and the inside of the lid 2, as indicated in Figure 4 by the arrows in opposite directions and the frames pulled different distances out of the stack.

It will be seen from Figure 4 that the lower edge of the strip 9 of the hinged lid 2 utilises the elasticity of the material to bend the bottom 1 5 out of its normal position, when the lid 2 is moved between the open and the closed portions. This partial moving out and tensioning of the bottom 1 5 is possible because the bottom 1 5 of the base component 1 contains recesses or slots (not shown) at both sides, preferably covering approximately half the depth of the bottom, in the region of the hinge pins 3 for the lid 2. Owing to these recesses or slots a resistance has to be overcome when the lid 2 is opened or closed, and a force is accumulated, which helps to give the lid a defined final closed and/or open position, since it acts as a retaining force in these positions.

Preferably at least the lid 2 is formed of a transparent plastics material.

Claims

1. A plastics container for transparency frames, comprising a box-shaped base component and a lid, said lid being hinged to the base component and having a longitudinal wall portion which when the lid is in a closed position forms a longitudinal wall of the base component, said frames when provided in the container lying horizontally or substantially horizontally within the base component when the lid is closed and being moved by the lid to an upwardly inclined position or vertical position when the lid is open.

2. A plastics container for transparency frames as claimed in claim 1 , in which raised portions are provided on the bottom of the base component in the region of a stack of frames, with the bottom frame resting on those portions after its insertion.

3. A plastics container for transparency frames as claimed in claim 1, in which the longitudinal wall portion of the lid is provided with flat supporting webs extending normal to the wall portion on which the stack of frames rest.

4. A container for transparency frames as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the bottom of the base component is provided with slots or recesses at both ends, preferably extending over approximately half the depth of the bottom, in the region of the hinge for the lid.

5. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the lid is mounted on hinge pins provided on the base component, by means of slots in which the pins are received.

6. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, in which at least the lid is made of a transparent plastics material.

7. A container as claimed in any preceding claim, in which the lid has spacing ribs on the inside.

8. A plastics container for transparency frames, substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in Figures 1 and 2 or Figures 3 and 4 of the accompanying drawings.