US20110048882A1

US20110048882A1 - Detachable luggage

Info

Publication number: US20110048882A1
Application number: US12/552,877
Authority: US
Inventors: Hsi-Wu Chiang
Original assignee: C&C Luggage Manufacturing Co Ltd
Current assignee: C&C Luggage Manufacturing Co Ltd
Priority date: 2009-09-02
Filing date: 2009-09-02
Publication date: 2011-03-03

Abstract

A detachable luggage includes a top shell having a face wall and a peripheral wall extending from the face wall, a bottom shell having a base wall and a peripheral wall extending from the base wall, and a zip fastener, which has an upper zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of the top shell, a bottom zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of the bottom shell, two retainer boxes respectively affixed to two distal ends of the bottom zipper tape, two insertion pins respectively affixed to two distal ends of the upper zipper tape for insertion into one of the retainer boxes, and two slides slidably coupled between the upper zipper tape and the bottom zipper tape for joining the upper zipper tape and the bottom zipper tape. When the zip fastener is unfastened, the top shell is detached from the bottom shell.

Description

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to luggage and more particularly, to a detachable luggage that reduces storage space and allows replacement of its shell.
2. Description of the Related Art
A regular luggage generally is composed of a top shell, a bottom shell, and a zip fastener. The top and bottom shells are hinged together by hinge means so that the top and bottom shells can be closed together and opened from each other. The zip fastener is provided between the top and bottom shells for opening/closing the luggage. The bottom shell is usually equipped with rollers and a retractable handle so that the user can carry the luggage on the floor smoothly with less effort.
A luggage enables a user to carry things conveniently. However, the luggage requires much storage space when it is not used and it is inconvenient to store a luggage in the limited house space. Further, after a long use, the shell of the luggage may be damaged or too dirty to use. When this problem occurs, the user may directly throw away the luggage, thus increasing the amount of garbage and environmental burden. Besides, the luggage usually has a fixed size, so a user cannot change the capacity of the luggage to fit different application requirements.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention has been accomplished under the circumstances in view. It is the primary of the present invention to provide a detachable luggage, which greatly reduces space storage when it is not used.
It is secondary objective of the present invention to provide a detachable luggage, whose shell is replaceable when it is damaged, thus reducing the amount of garbage and environmental burden.
It is another objective of the present invention to provide a detachable luggage, whose shell can be replaced by those of different sizes for the user's convenience.
To achieve the foregoing objectives of the present invention, the detachable luggage comprises a top shell, a bottom shell, and a zip fastener. The top shell has a face wall and a peripheral wall extending from the border of the face wall. The bottom shell has a base wall and a peripheral wall extending from the border of the base wall. The zip fastener comprises an upper zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of the top shell, a bottom zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of the bottom shell, two retainer boxes, each of which is affixed to one of two distal ends of the bottom zipper tape, two insertion pins, each of which is affixed to one of two distal ends of the upper zipper tape and is inserted into one of the retainer boxes, and two slides slidably coupled between the upper zipper tape and the bottom zipper tape for joining the upper and bottom zipper tapes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the detachable luggage in accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view of the detachable luggage in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the detachable luggage in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention, showing that the detachable luggage is opened.

FIG. 4 is a side view of the detachable luggage in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention, showing that the top shell is separated from the bottom shell.

FIG. 5 is a side view of the detachable luggage in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention, showing that the top shell is detached from the bottom shell and set inside the bottom shell.

FIG. 6 is a right side view of a detachable luggage in accordance with a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a left side view of the detachable luggage in accordance with the second embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, a detachable luggage 10 in accordance with the first embodiment of the present invention is composed of a top shell 20, a bottom shell 30, and a zip fastener 40.
The top shell 20 has a face wall 22, a peripheral wall 24 extending from the border of the face wall 22, and a foot member 26 located at the peripheral wall 24.
The bottom shell 30 has a base wall 32, a peripheral wall 34 extending from the border of the base wall 32, two carrying handles 36 located at the peripheral wall 34, two rollers 38 pivotally mounted to the peripheral wall 34 at one side, and a retractable handle 39 affixed to an opposite side of the peripheral wall 34 relative to the rollers 38.
The zip fastener 40 includes an upper zipper tape 41, a bottom zipper tape 42, two retainer boxes 43, two insertion pins 44, two slides 45, and two finger taps 46. The upper zipper tape 41 is affixed to the border of the peripheral wall 24 of the top shell 20, having two distal ends 411 disposed in proximity to each other and a plurality of teeth 412 arranged along its external edge. The bottom zipper tape 42 is affixed to the border of the peripheral wall 34 of the bottom shell 30, having two distal ends 421 disposed in proximity to each other and a plurality of teeth 422 arranged along its external edge for engagement with the teeth 412.
The two retainer boxes 43 are respectively affixed to the two distal ends 421 of the bottom zipper tape 42. The two insertion pins 44 are respectively affixed to the two distal ends 411 of the upper zipper tape 41 for insertion into the retainer boxes 43 respectively. Alternatively, the retainer boxes 43 can be respectively affixed to the two distal ends 411 of the upper zipper tape 41, and the insertion pins 44 can be respectively affixed to the two distal ends 421 of the bottom zipper tape 42 for insertion into the retainer boxes 43.
The two slides 45 are slidably coupled between the upper zipper tape 41 and the bottom zipper tape 42 to join the upper zipper tape 41 and the bottom zipper tape 42 together. When one of the slides 45 is moved along one direction, the teeth 412 of the upper zipper tape 41 and the teeth 422 of the bottom zipper tape 42 are interlocked. On the contrary, when one of the slides 45 is moved along the other direction, the teeth 412 and 422 are separated from each other.
The two finger taps 46 are respectively affixed to the two distal ends 411 of the upper zipper tape 41 to facilitate the user's inserting the insertion pin 44 into the corresponding retainer box 43. The finger taps 46 are not absolutely requisite but optional elements in the present invention.
The use of the detachable luggage 10 is same as that of a regular luggage. When the slides 45 are moved in reverse directions to the positions shown in FIG. 3 respectively, the top shell 20 can be opened from the bottom shell 30 so that the user can store things in the detachable luggage 10 or take things out of the detachable luggage 10. When the slides 45 are moved to the two distal ends 411 of the upper zipper tape 41 or the two distal ends 421 of the bottom zipper tape 42 respectively, the insertion pins 44 can then be detached from the retainer boxes 43, for enabling the top shell 20 to be separated from the bottom shell 30, as shown in FIG. 4.
After separation of the top shell 20 from the bottom shell 30, the top shell 20 can be put into the bottom shell 30 to reduce storage space of the detachable luggage 10. Further, if the top shell 20 is damaged or too dirty to use, the user can purchase a new top shell 20 to substitute for the damaged top shell without throwing away the whole luggage, thereby saving a lot of costs and reducing the garbage amount and environmental burden. Besides, another of the top shell 20 having a different size can be connected with the bottom shell 30 to constitute a luggage having a different capacity for convenience in use and requirements in different applications.
Based on the spirit of the present invention, the structure of the detachable luggage may be modified. For example, there can be two of the zip fasteners instead of one single zip fastener. According to a second embodiment of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, a detachable luggage 50 includes a top shell 52, a bottom shell 54, and two zip fasteners 56. Each of the zip fasteners 56 includes an upper zipper tape 58 installed in the top shell 52, a bottom zipper tape 60 installed in the bottom shell 54, a retainer box 62 located on a first end 601 of the bottom zipper tape 60, an insertion pin 64 located on a first end 581 of the upper zipper tape 58 and coupled to the retainer box 62, a slide 66 slidably coupled between the upper zipper tape 58 and the bottom zipper tape 60 for joining the upper zipper tape 58 and the bottom zipper tape 60 together, two end pieces 68 respectively affixed to a second end 582 of the upper zipper tape 58 and a second end 602 of the bottom zipper tape 60, and a finger tap 70 located on the first end 581 of the upper zipper tape 58 and adjacent to the insertion pin 64. The upper zipper tapes 58 of the two zip fasteners 56 have the respective first ends 581 abutting against each other and the respective second ends 582 abutting against each other, i.e. the two zip fasteners 56 are arranged into a loop. When the two zip fasteners 56 are fastened up, the detachable luggage 50 is closed. On the contrary, when the two zip fasteners 56 are unfastened and the two insertion pins 64 are detached from the two retainer boxes 62, the top shell 52 can be separated from the bottom shell 54.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described in detail for purposes of illustration, various modifications and enhancements may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is not to be limited except as by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A detachable luggage, comprising:

a top shell having a face wall and a peripheral wall extending from a border of said face wall;

a bottom shell having a base wall and a peripheral wall extending from a border of said base wall; and

a zip fastener having an upper zipper tape affixed to said peripheral wall of said top shell, a bottom zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of said bottom shell, two retainer boxes, each of which is affixed to one of two distal ends of said bottom zipper tape, two insertion pins, each of which is affixed to one of two distal ends of said upper zipper tape and is inserted into one of said retainer boxes, and two slides slidably coupled between said upper zipper tape and said bottom zipper tape for joining said upper zipper tape and said bottom zipper tape.

2. The detachable luggage as claimed in claim 1, wherein said zip fastener further comprises two finger taps, each of which is affixed to one of the two distal ends of said upper zipper tape and located adjacent to one of said insertion pins.

3. A detachable luggage, comprising:

two zip fasteners, each of which has an upper zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of said top shell, a bottom zipper tape affixed to the peripheral wall of said bottom shell, a retainer box affixed to a first end of said bottom zipper tape, an insertion pin affixed to a first end of said upper zipper tape and coupled to said retainer box, a slide slidably coupled between said upper zipper tape and said bottom zipper tape for joining said upper zipper tape and said bottom zipper tape, and two end pieces respectively affixed to a second end of said upper zipper tape and a second end of said bottom zipper tape.

4. The detachable luggage as claimed in claim 3, the first ends of the upper zipper tapes of said two zip fasteners abut against each other; the second ends of the upper zipper tapes of said two zip fasteners abut against each other.

5. The detachable luggage as claimed in claim 3, wherein each of said zip fasteners further comprises a finger tap affixed to the first end of the upper zipper tape thereof and located adjacent to the insertion pin.