GB2212478A

GB2212478A - Platform based container

Info

Publication number: GB2212478A
Application number: GB8727315A
Authority: GB
Inventors: Martin Clive-Smith
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1987-11-20
Filing date: 1987-11-20
Publication date: 1989-07-26
Also published as: GB8727315D0

Abstract

A platform based shipping container or flatrack with hinged corner posts 6 has at various locations on its base and extremities special fittings 9 which are located to interface with known handling machines and vehicles. Deflection of the interfaces 9 from their ideal position due to the weight of cargo borne by the container is counteracted by means which move the posts 6 in response to such deflection to ensure interfacing with the handling machines and vehicles. <IMAGE>

Description

Title: BASE FOR A PLTFOH EASED WNTAINEH

In the field of shipping containers there is a type of special container called a flatrack which comprises a horizontal rectangular platform base with vertical corner posts at each corner. The corner posts can sometimes be hingedly attached to the base. They can either be locked in the vertical position or the corner posts can be unlocked and folded down to the base for economical storage arid transport of empty containers.

Typically, at the top of each erect corner post there is a handling aperture to which special rigid lifting frames hung from cranes and the like can link, It is important for the handling apertures to be held accurately by the container structure in a geometrical relationship one to another to enable rigid handling devices to link to them.

However the problem arises that when heavy cargo is placed on the base, the base deflects downwards and the erect corner posts which are attached at the ends of the base rotate inwards. The corner post rotation causes the distance between the top corner handling apertures to shorten which in turn can make pick up by lifting frames difficult or even impossible.

The conventional solution to maintaining the top handling apertures in place is to ensure that the rigidity of the platform base is sufficient to minimise defiection between the unladen and laden conditions such that corner post rotation and the resultant handling aperture movement is knept within tolerable limits. However to make such a base rigid means either making it deeper, thereby taking up valuable cargo space, or building in extra rigid material such as steel plate, thereby limiting the payload.

The present invention provides a cargo carrier comprising a base having attached to it posts the attachment being variable such that deflection of the posts due to the weight of cargo being placed on the base can be minimised.

H prefered embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the following drawings in which: Figure 1 shows a perspective view of a collapsible fiatrack container.

Figure 2 there can be seen a detailed perspective view of the lower corner arrangement with the post erect.

Figure 3 shows the same as Figure 2 with the post folded to the base.

Figure 4 there can be seen a detailed side elevation of the lower corner arrangement with the post erect and partly cut away to show the inner mechanism.

Figure 5 shows the same as figure 4 but with the post released from the locking mechanism..

Figure bk shows the side elevation of a fiatrack with lifting frame suspended above.

Figure 62 shows the same elevation as figure 6 bt witn a cargo placed onto the flatrack.

Figure 7 shows the same as figure 4 but with the post partly displaced within the locking mechanism..

Figure 8A shows an alternative means to displace the corner post, the post here being erect.

Figure 8B shows the same arrangement as figure 8B with the post displaced.

In figure 1 there is seen a typical collapsible flatrack comprising a base 1 with floor 2, end rails 3 and side rails 4, and a wall 8 at each end with posts 6, top rail 7 and bottom rail 12. Rt each corner of the flatrack is a box 9, 10 which has in it apertures 5 formed to accept known hooks and twistlocks. The walls b are locked in the erect position shown by a mechanism 11 which when released allows the walls B to fold down onto the base 1 about arrows H'. Typically the materials of construction of the flatrack are a high strength welded steel with a floor 2 of timber.

In figure 2 the post 6 is erect. There is as part of the post 6 back plate 1.3 with an aperture 19 through which projects a nose 20,20'.

In figure 3 the nose can be seen to be part of a bloc 21 which is welded to box 1 so as to form part of the rigid assembly of base 1.

Also fixed to the bloc 21 are an upper block 22 and lower block 23.

The plate 1.3 has on either side as part of the rigid assembly of the post 6 to hinge plates 24,25 through which passes a pin 26. When the post 6 is folded as shown, the plate 13 is substantially horizontal so that known handling devices such as twistlocks and hooks can enter aperture 19 and lift the container.

In figure 4 hinge plate 24 has been cut away to reveal the inner workings of the mechanism 11. The profile of the hinge plate 4 is shown by dotted line 24'. Through block 21 is formed a slot 27 and by looking through the slot 27 one can see the hinge plate 25 which has a hole 28 formed in it through which the pin 26 passes. Although the hinge plate 24 has been removed for clarity there has been left shown a hinge block 29 which is welded rigidly to the inside face of plate 24.The hinge block 29 is seen in contact with upper block 22 and lower block t > . The upper and lower blocs 22, 2-2e are inclined to the horizontal to match the orientation of hinge block 29 and have curved surfaces 48. Excerpt for small clearances between hinge block 25 and upper and lower blocks n the hinge bloc 29 can in this position move neither up nor down and by virtue of its connection to the hinge plate ?4 and wail 8 prevents vertical movement of the wali B.

The nose 20,20' can be seen to be in contact with the bride 30 of the aperure 15. The back plate 1 can also be seen resting on the box 18 so that the plate 1 cannot move substantially upwards or down so that neither can the wall B.

Should a horizontally acting force dennoted by arrow D in figure 1 act on the box 9, a moment of force is caused about the mechanism 11.

The moment is resisted by bridge 30 acting on nose 20 and hinge block 29 acting on lower block . Since the nose 28 and bloc 23 form part of the base 1, the moment is resisted without the wall 8 folding over towards the base 1.

If the force denoted by arrow B should be reversed so as to pull on the wall 8, the moment would be resisted by the lower part of plate 17 acting on the box 10 and the hinge bloc 29 acting on the upper bloc 22. Any horizontal movement of the hinge plates 24,75 which would tend to draw the hinge block 29 out of engagement with the blocs 22,23 is prevented by link 31 seen in figure 4.The link 31 has a hole in it through which the pin 26 passes so that the pin 26 joins lini 71 to hinge plates 24,25. t the other end of link 31 is a hole 3 to which is attached to a handle 34 which is attached pivotally by a pin 35 to a rod 8 which is fixed at one end to the side rail 4. The link 31 is attached by a pin 36 to the handle 34.

Rotation of the handle 34 is prevented in one direction by a stop 39 attached to the side rail 4. Any pull on the link 1 to the right of the figure by virtue of the alignment of the pins 35,36 causes to handle A to rest more firmly on the stop 39 thereby preventing unlocking of the wall 8.

In figure 5, the handle 34 has been rotated as indicated by arrow C about its pivot pin 35 and this movement translated through link 31 to pin 26 and thus pushing the hinge block 29 and bridge 30 out of connection with the blocks 22,23 and nose m,28' respectively. The curved surf aces 48 of the blocks " 22,23,29 9 ensure smooth movement. The pin 2s can be seen to have moved along slot 27. The post 6 wall 8 can now be folded down to the base 1 rotating about pin 26 as seen in figure 3.

In figure 6A there is seen the side elevation of a flatrack 17 as shown in figure 1. There is no cargo resting on the base 1 and the boxes 10 are resting on the ground 15 with the base 1 clear of other support. The posts 6 are erect. The distance between the apertures 5 is denoted by ietter D. y rigid lifting frame 16 can be seen hanging from wires 18 frm an unseen crane above the flatrack 17. There are twistlocks 37 projecting from the frame 16 about to enter the apertures 5 in the top of the boxes 9. The distance between the twistlocks -D7 iS substantially the same dimension 0 so that entry into the apertures 5 is straight forward.

In figure 6B, a heavy cargo 14 has been placed on the base 1 and it can be seen that the base 1 has deflected downwards from the unladen base position 1' shown in dotted line. The posts 6 being attached to the base 1 have simultaneously rotated inwards from position 6 towards each other reducing the distance D to D'. The twistlocks no longer line up simpiy with the apertures 5 and the frame 16 cannot engage for lifting with the flatrack 17 unless the posts 6 are returned to position 6 with distance D between apertures 5.

Figure 7 shows a detail similar to figure 4 excerpt that pin 26 has been displaced by a distance indicated by arrows E thereby displacing the hinge block 9, hinge plates 24,25, and post 6. The hinge block 29 and bridge 30 are still engaged with blocks 22,23 and nose 20,20'. However in moving, the block 29 has also been displaced vertically by virtue of its movement along the sloping surface of blocks 22,23.

The small vertical displacement of hinge block 29 causes rotation of the post 6 about the bridge 30 thus moving the post 6 towards the position 6' in figure 7tri.

The means to displace pin 26 can be seen in figure 7. There is a rod 38 supported by brackets 40 50 that the rod 38 can slide freely through the brackets 40. In figure 6 the rod B can be seen fixed at one end to the base 1 by plate 41.

In figure 68 the rod 8 has been defiected by the deflecting base 1.

The side rail 4 is typically an 'I' section steel beam with neutral axis denoted by dotted line 42. When such a rail 4 is put into bending as in figure 68 the top flange 4t is compressed and the bottom flange 44 is tensioned. The rod 38 is mounted near to the top flange 43 but is free to slide in brackets 40 and is therefore not compressed by the bending action of the rail 4. The effect of compression in the top flange 4 is to shorten its length relative to the rod 38.The free end of the rod 3.8 is joined to handle 34 by pin 35. The handle 4 is joined to link 1 by pin 36 and the link 3.1 is joined to pin 26. The blocks 22,23 are rigidly attached to the base 1. Thus displacement of the rod 38 relative to the rail 4 and base 1 causes the pin 26 to be displaced which in turn causes the post 6 to rotate outwards. The greater the weight of the cargo 14, the more the deflection of the base 1 and the resulting compensating rotation of the post 6.

It is envisaged that the rod 38 might be additionally used for lashing cargo to the base 1. It is envisaged that displacement of the pin 26 might be acheived by other means.

In figure 7 a turnbuckle 45 might be introduced into the link 31 such that by rotation of the turnbuckle 45, the length of the link 31 can be increased or shortened thereby causing the post 6 to rotate. In use the weight ot cargo 14 would be determined and the necessary rotation of the post 6 to maintain dimension D be calculated and set by rotation of the turnbuckle 45. It is envisaged that stop 39 be reieasable such that further rotation of handle 4 to position 34' would cause rotation of the post 6. The length and location of the rod 38 would be selected to suit displacement needs.

In lieu of displacing the hinge bloc 29, in another arrangement, the blocks 22,23 might be arranged for sliding movement to the base 1 and attached to movement means such as the rod 38. Displacement of te rod 38 and hence blocs 22, 2 would thereby cause the post 6 to rotate.

More cumbersome but effective methods of altering the position of post 6 are envisaged. 9 movable spacer 20' might be placed between the nose 20 and bridge 30. When required to rotate the post 6, the spacer 20' would be removed and placed under the bridge 30 between the bridge 30 and box 10. Similarly other spacers might be arranged between blocks 22,27-' and hinge bloc 29 to displace the post 6. There are several different types of ilatracs all with distinct systems for attaching their posts to their bases.Where pins similar to pin 26 are used as part of the attachment of the post 6 to the base 1 the pin 26 might comprise a pin 26 with eccentric cam 46 such that by rotation of the pin 26 and cam 46 the post 6 might be displaced. Figure 8 and 88 illustrate a typical example.

Where a wedge Or cone is used to engage the post to base, partial withdraws of the wedge could be used to displace the post. Where clamping twistlocks are used to attach the post to the base, spacers of fixed or variable thickness might be placed tzetweer, the base surface and post surface which are to be clamped together thereby' causing post rotation. Flatracks which use diagonal stays to support the post might have the stay position adjustable or the length of the stay adjustable to vary the post position. Screw jacks, hydraulic jacks, levers, and other such systems for obtaining mechanical advantage might be used to displace the post. The displacement might be in one or two stages only rather than continously variable provided that the handling apertures 5 remain within tolerable limits for lifting frames 16 and the like. The rod 38 might be substituted by wires. The rod 38 might be releasably attached to another part of the post 6 or hinge plates 24,25 to cause the displacement.

Claims

\1 1. h container with handling interfaces which deflect as cargo is added to or removed from the container there being displacement means to re-position said handling interfaces substantially to their former position.

2. A container as in claim in which the handling interfaces comprise the outermost faces of hollow rectangular boxes mounted on posts at or near the extremities of the container.

3. fi container as in claim 1 and 2 in which the handling interfaces comprise apertures formed in the outermost faces of hollow rectangular boxes.

4. h container according to claims 1,2 and 3 in which the container comprises a substantially horizontal rectanguIar base with posts connected to the base by lockable hinges the displacement means acting on the locking element of the hinges to displace or rotate the posts and thereby re-position handling interfaces mounted on the posts.

5. fi container as in claim 4 in which the locking element is a bridge attached to the post held between wedges which are themselves supported by the base displacement means comprising the displacement of said wedges 6. h container as in claim 4 in which the locking element is a cam shaft the shaft being pin mounted for rotation within the post and the cam being mounted for rotation within the base the displacement means being provided by rotation of the shaft causing rotation of the post.

7. g container as in claim 5 and 6 in which the displacement means is activated by a rod anchored at one end to the container and at the other end mounted for free sliding action in the direction of its longitudinal axis such that as the structure of the container deflects there is differential movement between the free end of the rod and the container the differential movement being tranmitted to the displacement means.

8. A container as in claim 4 in which the displacement means comprises a pin passing through holes in the post and through a slot in the base such that movement of the pin along the slot displaces the post.

9. Q container as in claim 8 in which the slot is horizontally aliqned and the locking eiements of the hinge comprise curved blocks mounted on the base into which hinge blocks forming part of the hinge structure are engaged such that movement of the pin causes the hinge blocks to slid within the curved blocks thereby rotating the post.

10. A container as in claim 1 in which the handlinq interfaces comprise pads mounted under the base of the container.

11. A container as in claim 18 in which the pad is pivotall-y mounted on the cam of a cam shaft, the shaft being mounted for rotation to the base such that rotation of the shaft causes the cam to displace the pad.

1, Q container as in claim ii in which the rotation of the shaft is via a flexible resiliently biassed joint placed between the shaft and an operating lever.

1 w container as in ciaims 5,6 8 and 9 in which the displacement means is activated by a rod fixed at one end to the displacement means and at the other end pivotally attached to a lever, the lever being pivotally attached to the base.

14. n container as in claims 5,6 8 and 9 in which the displacement means is activated by a rod fixed at one end to the displacement means and at the other end fixed to the base, there being a turn buckle mounted within the body of the rod.