US1309502A - Flexible knockdown container - Google Patents

Description

J P. WILSON.

FLEXIBLE KNOCKDOWN CONTAINER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 15. I917.

Patented July 8, 1919 2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

THE COLUMBIA PLANOnR/um co., WASHINdTON, D. c.

J P. WILSON.

FLEXIBLE KNOCKDOWN CONTAINER.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 15. 1917.

1,309,502. Patented July 8, 1919.

' Z SHEET$-$HEET 2- nveuf J PEARL WILSON, 0F JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA.

FLEXIBLE KNOCKDOWN CONTAINER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 8, 1919.

'Application filed May 15, 1917. Serial No. 168,794.

To all whom it may concern lle it known that I, J PEARL \VILSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jacksonville, in the county of Duval and State of Florida, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Flexible Knockdown Containers, of which'the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an improvement in flexible knock-down containers, such as a barrel, or like receptacle having a general barrel formation at one or both ends, the fundamental purpose being to provide a receptacle of this general type, which may be shipped in flat form in large quantities, thus occupying a minimum of space, but which is capable of being easily set up in the form of a closed or ventilated receptacle or barrel for shipping dry or perishable goods, as the case may be.

With these objects in view, my present invention comprises a web which is made up of staves of any desired dimensions as to thickness, width, and length, one or both ends of which are kerfed or otherwise slotted, and the edges of which are placed contiguous to each other and banded together by wood, metal, or other flexible means stapled or otherwise secured thereto to admit of flexibility of the web, so that it can be flattened out for convenience in shipping, or bent into form for filling and packmg.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a view of the completed barrel or container;

Fig. 2 is a view of the web or blank;

Fig. 3 shows a modified construction, showing nesting;

Fig. t shows a slightly tapered kerf adapted for a dry barrel;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view showing a chime;

Fig. 6 is a detail; and

Fig. 7 is a view showing a method of securing in the head.

l/Vhile the barrel may be composed of staves made up of sawed material, for economy of construction I prefer to use veneer of from a quarter to say three-eighths inch in thickness, as by this means there is practically no waste material, and the stock is of sufficient thickness to give the required strength.

Each stave 1 is of appreciable width, and for an ordinary standard vegetable barrel,

such as is ordinarily used for shipping potatoes and apples, these staves are preferably twelve inches in width, and five of them (when placed edge to edge) are just enough to make up the standard-size barrel. These are kcrfed at opposite ends to a suitable depth, as shown, whereby to divide the ends into six divisions, and this may be done by a gang of some seven saws placed approximately an inch and tln'ce-fourths apart, thus making a half kerf at the two edges, and five intermediate kerfs. These kerfs are extended in from each end of the barrel about a third the length of the stave, or agreater or less distance as desired, but leaving an uncut or unkerfed' central area 3, forming the center of the barrel of solid material, though flexible.

Binding bands 4, preferably two in numher, which may be of strong wire, are secured to this central portion at suitable distances apart, preferably by staples 5, 5, this being done in a standard stapling-machine, in this way a web constituting as many of these staves as desired, .for instance live, is easily and quickly made up in one of these stapling-machines, leaving the ends of the binding-bands free to be bent together when the web is bent up into the form of a barrel.

In shipping, the web thus formed is packed perfectly flat, and by actual measure ments three thousand can be shipped in an ordinary car, as against three hundred complete barrels, which gives an idea of comparative space.

In setting up the barrel, while it may be done in any convenient manner, I propose to use a form consisting of a cylindrical body portion adapted to come opposite the center of the barrel, and having a member extending outwardly therefrom against which the head (3, of the barrel is placed. This may be placed on the floor, or extended horizontally on some side support, and as a convenient means of drawing the end of the web tight against the head 6 placed in one end, a rope 7 suspended from some point above is wound once around the end of the barrel, and its lower end connected with a treadle which, when depressed, applies the required tension around the end of the web to draw it uniformly together around the head, after which the usual hoop 8, of wood or metal is placed around the end and secured.

After the barrel is filled, the other head may be placed in, in similar manner, if desired, or in any other convenient way.

In a barrel, for perishable fruit, which requires ventilation, the kerfsmay be parallel, but in a tight barrel for dry goods, such as sugar, flour, corn-meal, or the like, the kerfs (as shown in Fig. 4:) are tapered, so that the edges of the kerfs come in close contact throughout their length, thus making a perfectly tight barrel.

It may be desirable also to form a chime to receive the head in a barrel of this character, in which event the stock would be a little thicker, say three-eighths of an inch, instead of a quarter, and the chime 9 is provided (as shown in Fig. 5) to receive the edge of the head. Likewise, if desired, a band 10 may be placed inside the center, (as shown in Fig. 6).

If desired, instead of making a complete barrel, by sawing through the center, as for instance, on line XX of Fig. 1, a tub having a bottom and open top can be provided, which is capable of being nested and shipped in that form.

A barrel of this form is cheap, easy to construct, is light, and can be made of any timber which can be readily cut into veneers. It can be made into webs on any well-known type of stapling machine economically. Such barrels can be shipped in large numbers in fiat form, and they can be easily and quickly set up into barrel form; and when headed and hooped, are strong as any other stave barrel, as they become well braced and reinforced.

In addition to the slight modifications mentioned, others might be introduced, with out departing from the spirit and scope of my invention; hence I do not wish to limit myself to the exact constructions herein set forth, but

I claim a A knock-down barrel made from a web which is composed of a plurality of wide, thin, flexible staves, a portion at least of the edges being approximately at right angles to their main surfaces, one end at least of each stave having a plurality of slots, and hoops rigidly secured to the solid portion of the several staves at a plurality of points throughout their width, whereby to prevent the hoops from slipping with respect to the stave, the staves and hoops so assembled that when in the mat the right angular adjacent edges of the staves come close together or in contact so that when the mat is rolled into barrel -form and the outer ends are secured together in the completed barrel, the several edges of the staves are drawn into tighter contact with each other due to the tendency of the stave edges to yield and the hoops to be subjected to strain without slipping.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature.

J PEARL VWILSON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patent: Washington, D. G.

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