JPH1059480A - Folding container for granular body - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent cracks from generating on a hopper cone, and prevent a content from leaking from the discharging port. SOLUTION: A hopper cone 2 is constituted in such a manner that two parts being substantially symmetrical to each other, which are formed by bending a plate member in a manner to include a conical surface having a tilting angle of 30-60 deg. based on the horizontal direction, and two ridge lines being adjacent to the conical surface, are bonded in the conical surfaces which are confronted with each other of the hopper cone 2. Then, a stopper comprises a lever element which has a pivotal point on the outside of a lower shutter frame on the lower surface of a shutter plate 3, and vertically turns based on the lower surface, and when the shutter plate is located at a closed position, a protruberance provided at the leading end of the stopper, is urged upward by a spring provided at the other end of the stopper, and is engaged with the internal rim of the lower shutter frame. Then, by contracting the spring by pressing, the engaged state is released, and the pulling out of the shutter plate 3 becomes possible.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a foldable container used for transporting and storing granular materials.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, containers have been used together with paper bags, plastic bags, carton boxes and the like for transporting and temporarily storing granular materials such as grains and pellets. Of these,
Bags and boxes are generally disposable and present waste management problems. In this regard, since the container is assumed to be used repeatedly, it can be said to be a superior means from the viewpoint of resource saving and waste saving.

[0003] There are various types of containers, such as those in which a small hopper having rigidity is made portable as it is, and those in which a cargo handling function such as a hanger is added to a bag-like container having flexibility and durability. . However, the former type often does not have a folding function, and such a container has the inconvenience of requiring the same transport and storage space after the discharge of the contents as before the discharge. In addition, the latter type often lacks independence, and even when placed on a pallet, the shape of the package is unstable and it is difficult to multi-stack, and a crane may be required in addition to a forklift, which is a general-purpose cargo handling equipment. There are difficulties.

[0004] In order to solve these problems, the predecessor company of the present applicant, which has been manufacturing and selling a wooden plywood-based foldable box container for some time, has proposed an assembling simple container for granular materials (actually) Kosho 58-4698
7). In the assembling type simple container according to this proposal, four side plates of a foldable box container normally assembled on a pallet surface are erected on an underframe (pallet portion) provided with an inverted truncated quadrangular pyramid-shaped hopper cone. Can be described as being assembled.

In the above simple container for granular materials, 4
The space formed by the side plates and the hopper cone connected to it form a single hopper, and the particulate matter is stored in the hopper in bulk and discharged from the outlet at the bottom of the hopper (ie, the bottom of the hopper cone). Is done. The structure in which the four side plates are assembled in a cylindrical shape has a large strength and the shape is stable, so the above simple container can be stably stacked in multiple stages, and after the contents are taken out. Is characterized in that the side plate can be removed and the lid and the lid can be stacked on the underframe to reduce the overall shape to a compact size (1/2 to 1/3 in volume).

[0006]

Several problems have been discovered during the years of use of the above-described simple container for particulates. One of them is that a repeated impact during use may cause cracks at the corners of the hopper cone formed by butt welding of stainless steel plates. Further, in the above simple container, a groove is provided around the discharge port at the bottom of the hopper cone, and a sliding door type opening / closing door in which a shutter plate is inserted into the groove is employed. There has been experienced an accident in which the contents leaked due to natural opening due to vibration or the like.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems of the simple container for granular materials, and has been improved in terms of the generation of cracks in the hopper cone and the leakage of contents from the discharge port. The purpose is to provide a container.

[0008]

The inventors of the present invention have analyzed the cause of the cracks and found that the inclined surface of the hopper cone has an inclined angle that allows the contents to be easily discharged, and that the hopper cone has a portion to be joined. The idea was that る べ き should be in a plane, not a corner, so that the four ridges of the hopper cone should be formed by bending the plate rather than by welding. In addition, regarding the leakage of contents from the discharge port, a stopper having an appropriate structure is provided on the shutter plate, and an idea of the form of realization was obtained, and the present invention was completed.

Thus, according to the present invention, (1) an inverted truncated quadrangular pyramid-shaped hopper cone, four side plates detachably installed on the outer periphery of the hopper cone, and an upper opening formed by the side plates. An upper cover to cover, a shutter plate sandwiched with an stopper between upper and lower shutter frames provided around an outlet of the hopper cone bottom and closing the outlet, an outer peripheral portion of the hopper cone and the four sheets. And a base frame for connecting and supporting the lower edges of the side plates, wherein the hopper cone has a conical surface having an inclination angle of 30 to 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal, and two conical surfaces adjacent thereto. And two substantially symmetrical portions formed by bending a plate material so as to include the ridge line of the hopper cone are joined in opposing conical surfaces of the hopper cone, and the stopper is provided below the lower surface of the shutter plate. A shutter having a fulcrum outside the shutter frame and rotating vertically with respect to the lower surface,
When the shutter plate is in the closed position, a projection provided at the tip of the stopper is urged upward by a spring provided at the other end of the stopper and locked on the inner periphery of the lower shutter frame, and the spring is Provided is a foldable container for granular material that can be released from a locked state by being compressed to allow the shutter plate to be pulled out.

The foldable container for granular material (1) of the present invention is constructed by assembling four side plates for a foldable box container on an underframe provided with a hopper cone. The space formed by the side plates and the hopper cone connected thereto form a single hopper, and the particulate matter is stored in the hopper in bulk and discharged from the outlet at the bottom of the hopper cone.

The hopper cone is formed in the shape of a truncated quadrangular pyramid with the tip directed downward, and is provided with an inclined surface for sliding the granular material and a discharge port for discharging the granular material. The upper edge of the hopper cone that spreads in a substantially square shape is fixed to the underframe, and is supported at a height that provides a predetermined space between the bottom outlet surface of the hopper cone and the underside of the underframe. A metal fitting is provided on the outer periphery of the upper surface of the underframe for hooking the side plate and stopping without any gap.

The hopper cone is formed by welding a metal plate such as stainless steel. With conventional butt welding along the ridge line of a pyramid, the strength of the pyramid part is weaker than that of the flat part, and cracks that are thought to be caused by repeated impact during use applied to the welded part It was observed. In the present invention, each portion having a shape obtained by vertically dividing a hopper cone into two in a plane passing through two opposing sides is formed in advance by bending or pressing a metal plate, and a flange provided at an end of each of these portions is provided. They are joined along the center line of the opposing conical surfaces and joined by spot welding or the like. Thus, in the hopper cone of the present invention, the corner ridges are formed by bending the plate material, and the joints are limited to two places located on a plane. The welding may be performed by directly abutting the ends without providing a flange.

The inclination angle of the conical surface of the hopper cone is preferably steep in order to slide the granular material. However, the simple container for granular materials described in JP-B-58-46987 has an inclination angle of 10 to 15 degrees with respect to the horizontal. Since this inclination angle is often smaller than the angle of repose peculiar to each granular material, it takes time to discharge the contents, and in order to completely discharge the contents, the hopper cone is often hit with a mallet or the like. Had to give a shock. Such repeated hammering during prolonged use has caused the above-described cracks to occur in the hopper cone welds. Therefore, it is desirable that the inclination angle is at least 30 degrees or more.

On the other hand, it is better that the inclination angle is flat so that the underframe does not become too high. When the inclination angle is steep, the dead space below the hopper cone in the underframe increases, and the height of the underframe increases. Reducing the height of the underframe is also important for increasing the folding effect after discharging the contents of the container. Therefore, it is desirable that the inclination angle does not exceed 60 degrees at the maximum. Therefore, in the present invention, the inclination angle of the conical surface of the hopper cone is set in the range of 30 degrees to 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal, and for example, an angle of about 45 degrees is suitable for the above requirements from the balance between the two surfaces.

The bottom outlet of the hopper cone is closed by a shutter plate sandwiched between upper and lower shutter frames provided around the outlet. In a stationary hopper, this type of shutter plate is usually locked by frictional force, but in a container equipped with such a shutter, the shutter plate opens naturally due to vibration during transportation, and leakage of contents occurs. Experienced. Therefore, in the present invention, a stopper is provided on the shutter plate, and the shutter plate is prevented from opening unless the stopper is released.

The stopper is provided on the lower surface of the shutter plate and comprises a lever which rotates vertically with respect to the lower surface of the shutter plate. The fulcrum of the stopper is located outside the lower shutter frame on the lower surface of the shutter plate, and when the shutter plate is in the closed position, the leading end of the stopper extends over the lower shutter frame and into the frame. A spring is provided at the other end of the stopper, and constantly biases the tip of the stopper upward. In this state, the protrusion provided at the tip of the stopper is locked to the inner periphery of the lower shutter frame, and the shutter plate is prevented from moving unless the spring is compressed to release the locked state. To open and close the shutter plate, the shutter plate may be pulled out or pushed in while the spring is compressed.

[0017]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The following (2) can be cited as a preferred embodiment of the present invention. That is, (2) the inner surface of the side plate is covered with a thin plate of the same material as the hopper cone, one of which is provided with a transparent viewing window.
A collapsible container for particulate matter as described.

Depending on the granular material contained in the container,
It is conceivable that foreign matter is strictly restricted or that the granular material itself has leachability. In order to cope with these cases, it is preferable that the inner surface of the side plate in contact with the granular material is formed of stainless steel or the like rather than wood plywood. Embodiment (2) aims to achieve the object by attaching a thin stainless steel plate or the like to the inner surface of a side plate made of wood plywood. It is desirable that one of the four side plates is provided with a transparent viewing window so that the contents can be checked.

[0019]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing the configuration of a foldable container for particulate matter (reference numeral 100) according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating an example of a method for forming a hopper cone.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 1 is an underframe, 11 is a fork receiver, 12 is a fork guide, 13 is a lower stopper, 2 is a hopper cone, 21 is a bottom outlet, 3 is a shutter plate, 4 is a side plate, 41 is a viewing window, 42 is a side plate stopper, 5 is an upper cover, and 51 is a corner fitting of the upper cover.

The collapsible container 100 for particulate matter has four
The side plates 4 are assembled on an underframe 1 provided with a hopper cone 2. The space formed by the side plate 4 and the hopper cone 2 connected thereto form one hopper,
Granules are stored in the hopper and discharged from the bottom outlet 21 of the hopper cone.

The underframe 1 is provided with a fork receiver 11, and by inserting a fork of a forklift into the lower surface of the fork receiver 11, the underframe 1 can be lifted and transported. At this time, the fork guide 12 protects the end structure of the shutter 3 from contacting the tip of the fork. A thin stainless steel plate is affixed to the inner surface of the side plate 4, and one of the four side plates 4 is provided with a transparent viewing window 41 so that the contents can be checked. Stoppers 42 are provided on both sides of the upper edge of the front and rear two side plates 4.
The four side plates 4 can be fixed to each other by tilting the stopper 42 and embracing the left and right side plates 4. Corner fittings 51 are provided at the upper corners of the upper lid 5 to prevent misalignment between the containers 100 when the containers 100 filled with the contents are stacked one on top of the other and multi-stacked.

As shown in FIG. 2, for example, the hopper cone 2 is formed by bending or pressing a stainless steel plate at each of two portions vertically divided by a plane passing through the center of two opposite sides of the hopper cone. The flanges provided at the ends of the respective portions are joined at the center portions of the opposing conical surfaces and are joined by spot welding or the like. In the case of this embodiment, the inclination angle of the hopper cone 2 is about 45 degrees with respect to the horizontal.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing the structure of the shutter plate and the stopper. 3, reference numeral 31 denotes a handle of the shutter plate 3, 311 denotes a spring, 32 denotes an upper shutter frame, 33 denotes a lower shutter frame, 34 denotes a stopper, 34
Reference numeral 1 denotes a fulcrum provided on the lower surface of the shutter plate 3 to support the stopper 34, and reference numeral 342 denotes a projection provided at the tip of the stopper 34.

As shown in FIG. 3, the bottom outlet 21 of the hopper cone 2 has a shutter plate 3 sandwiched between upper and lower shutter frames 32 and 33 provided around the outlet 21.
Is closed by. A stopper 34 is attached to the shutter plate 3, and the shutter plate 3 does not open unless the stopper 34 is released.

The stopper 34 is composed of a lever that rotates vertically with respect to the lower surface of the shutter plate 3. The fulcrum 3 of the stopper 34
Reference numeral 41 denotes a lower shutter frame 33 on the lower surface of the shutter plate 3.
When the shutter plate 3 is in the closed position, the tip end of the stopper 34 extends beyond the lower shutter frame 33 into the frame. A spring 311 is provided at the other end of the stopper 34 and constantly biases the tip of the stopper 34 upward. In this state, the projection 342 provided at the tip of the stopper 34 is locked on the inner periphery of the lower shutter frame 33, and the movement of the shutter plate 3 is prevented unless the spring 311 is pressed and contracted to release the locked state.

In order to open and close the bottom discharge port 21 of the hopper cone 2, the shutter plate 3 may be pulled out or pushed in while holding the handle 31 while pulling up the proximal end of the stopper 34 and compressing the spring 311. Both the pushing and pulling-out operations can be performed by one action with one hand.

[0028]

In the foldable container for granular material of the present invention, since the inclination angle of the hopper cone is larger than before, the dischargeability is improved, and the hopper cone is hit with a mallet when the contents are discharged. Is almost eliminated, and the chance of impact is reduced. In addition, the structure of the hopper cone has been changed to a two-part structure in which the ridge portion is formed by bending a plate material, so that sufficient durability against impact is given and cracks are effectively prevented from occurring.

Further, in the container of the present invention, a stopper is provided on the shutter plate, and the shutter plate is prevented from opening unless the stopper is released. Therefore, the shutter plate naturally opens due to vibration during transportation and the contents leak. Accidents such as accidents are prevented. In addition, the operation of putting the stopper in the locked state and releasing the stopper can be performed simultaneously with the pushing and pulling out of the shutter plate by one action with one hand, so that the operation is simple.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view showing a configuration of a foldable container for granular material according to the present embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view illustrating an example of a method for forming a hopper cone.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing a structure of a shutter plate and a stopper.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Underframe 11 ... Fork holder 12 ...
Fork guide 13 ... Lower stopper 2 ... Hopper cone 21 ... Bottom discharge port 3 ... Shutter plate 31 ... Handle 32 ...
Upper shutter frame 33 ... Lower shutter frame 34 ... Stopper 311 ... Spring 341 ... Support point 342
... Projection 4 ... Side plate 41 ... Viewing window 42 ...
Side plate stopper 5… Top cover 51… Corner fitting

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An inverted truncated quadrangular pyramid-shaped hopper cone, four side plates detachably mounted on an outer peripheral portion of the hopper cone, an upper lid for covering an upper opening formed by the side plate, and the hopper A shutter plate sandwiched between an upper shutter frame and a lower shutter frame provided around a cone bottom discharge port with a stopper to close the discharge port, an outer peripheral portion of the hopper cone and lower edges of the four side plates; And an underframe for supporting them, wherein the hopper cone includes a conical surface having an inclination angle of 30 to 60 degrees with respect to the horizontal and two ridge lines adjacent thereto. Two substantially symmetrical portions formed by bending a plate material are joined in opposing conical surfaces of the hopper cone, and the stopper has a fulcrum outside a lower shutter frame on a lower surface of the shutter plate. I When the shutter plate is in the closed position, a projection provided at the tip of the stopper is urged upward by a spring provided at the other end of the stopper, so that the lower shutter is A foldable container for granular material, which is locked to an inner periphery of a frame, and is released by pressing and contracting the spring so that the shutter plate can be pulled out.