US2415598A

US2415598A - Bottle carrier

Info

Publication number: US2415598A
Application number: US548375A
Authority: US
Inventors: David W Mattson
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1944-08-07
Filing date: 1944-08-07
Publication date: 1947-02-11
Anticipated expiration: 1964-02-11

Description

Feb. 11, 1947. D; w. MATTSON BOTTLE CARRIER Filed Aug. 7, 1944 C I Dayna \U. Manson! Patented Feb. 1 1, 1947 UNHTED STATES FATENT QFFWE 6 Claims.

This invention relates to devices for carrying two or more beverage bottles, such as those co taining soft drinks, milk and the like.

My invention probably finds its Widest application to the carrying of the so-called family units of six bottles of soft drinks now sowidely marketed. Many carriers have been devised for this purpose but I am chiefly concerned with the improvement of that type of carrier by which the bottles are supported by their necks, as contrasted to the box-like type having pockets into which the bottles are rested upon their bottoms. To my knowledge the best example of the former type of carrier is that wherein a fiat frame is provided, having three elongated slots adapted at their ends to engage the bottle necks below their top rims. The centers of the slots are widened so that, as the bottles are moved theretoward, the rims will clear and the bottles may be removed or replaced. This frame thus will support six bottles in two spaced rows of three each, and to prevent the bottles of each row from moving inward or toward each other and becoming released while being carried a locking plate is disposed beneath the frame and between the rows. This plate is then provided with a flexible rope handle passing upwardly through the frame so that, when the rope is lifted, the plate will be pulled up between the bottle necks to hold them apart. This device has some disadvantage in use, chiefly the fact that the rope handle will not slip properly to permit the locking plate to descend of its own weight to a position at which the bottles may be removed. Then too, the plate is made wide enough to engage the bottle necks when they are being carried, and thus must be tilted to an edgewise position while the bottles are being removed. The rope or flexible handle has the further disadvantage that it falls between and about the bottle necks when released and is difiicult to take hold of when the bottles are to be carried. All of these operations thus require considerable annoying handling and fumbling about on the part of the user of the carrier.

It is the primary object of my invention to improve carriers of this type by the provision of a handle and locking assembly'of rigid, one piece formation, non-tiltably supporting the locking member, and adapted to operate smoothly and readily so that when the handle is released it will drop of its own weight to move the locking member to bottle releasing position. Another ob.. ject is to provide means of this nature wherein the locking member is substantially narrower than the space between the bottle necks whereby to clear them at all times and do away with the aggravating requirement for tilting the member to clear the bottles. A further object is to provide a handle assembly which when released will fall below the level of the bottle tops so that the bottles may be stacked in the carriers, but with stop means holding the handle in a position whereat it may be readily grasped to pick up the carrier.

These and other more detailed and specific objects will be disclosed in the course of the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which- Fig. 1 is a plan view, with a medial portion of the handle broken away, showing my six bottle carrier in use.

Fig, 2 is an end view of the carrier, with the bottles at rest on a supporting surface.

Fig. 3 is a section along the line 3-3 in Fig. 1 but showing the carrier supported by hand and with lower parts of the bottles omitted.

Fig. 4 is an end view illustrating the operation of the carrier.

Fig. 5 is a plan view of a modified form of carrier adapted for carrying two milk bottles or similar containers.

Referring now more particularly and by reference characters to the drawing A designates generally the frame or body of my carrier and B the handle and locking member.

The body A acts as a supporting member for the bottles, indicated generally at C and in the six bottle carrying version of Figs. 1-4 the body comprises a flat, rectangular plate it] having its end and side margins H and i2 turned downwardly for stiffening purposes. This unit is preferably made of metal and in the stamping operation the plate I0 is punched with three spaced openings designated generally at 3 and each of which extends crosswise of the plate, having narrow end portions or slots M joined by a medial, relatively wider portion I5.

The shape and arrangement of the openings t3 are such that six of the bottles C may be supported from the plate It, the necks C of the bottles being fitted into the narrow rounded ends it of the slots M with the diametrically enlarged rims C" of the bottles supportably engaging the margin of the slots. The six bottles are then positioned in two parallel rows of three bottles each as clearly shown. The wide centers it of the openings l3 are of a size such that they will clear the bottle rims C making it possible readily to remove the bottles by causing them to move inward bringing the rims into alignment with these centers, and reversely of course the bottles may be arranged in the carrier by first inserting their necks and rims upwardly through the centers 15 and then moving the bottles out into the narrow ends of the openings.

The handle and locking member B is of rigid rectangular frame-like construction having a locking portion or bar i7, spaced upright end portions 18 and a handle l9 connecting the upper extremities thereof. These parts may all be formed from one piece of sheet metal suitably bent and connected at its ends 20 by spot welding or other convenient fastening means. The looking bar ll is substantially narrower distance between the bottle necks C and it is disposed beneath of bottles as clearly shown. Its length is such that it nicely fits between the end flanges H of the plate iii and the end portions I8 turn upwardly slida-bly through openings 2! formed in the plate for their reception, thus disposing the handle it above the plate and between the rows of bottles. For convenience in carrying the handle it .is pressed to a concave-convex cross section as clearly shown.

The foregoing arrangement is such that the handle-locking member B when released will fall of its own weight to the position shown in Fig. 2, the locking bar ll dropping well below the'plate It between the rows of bottles 0. The handle i9 then comes to rest below the level of the tops of the bottles so that carriers of bottles may be readily stacked, but is also spaced above the plate so that it may be readily grasped when it is desired to carry the bottles. For this purpose, the end portions id of the members B are each provided with stop means or lugs 22 projecting from opposite edges and adapted to contact the end margins of the openings downward movement of the handle.

When the carrier is picked up by the handle 18 the locking bar ii is obviously pulled up against the underside of the plate id as seen in Fig. 3, supporting the plate and bottles thereon, and in such position the bar traverses the wide centers 150i the openings [3 effectively preventing the bottles from moving into said centers under any conditions and becoming disengaged from the carrier. 1

Referring now to Fig. i it wil1 be apparent that the bottles may be readily removed from, or placed in the carrier one row of three at a time by placing the hands at opposite ends of the carrier and tilting the carrier so that the row of bottles being removed, rested on a suitable support, will remain upright and bring their necks toward the centers of the plate it. In this position by lifting the carrier this row of bottles will slip through the centers 45 of the openings is, or by lowering the carrier it may be arranged over these necks and then leveled to cause them to be engaged by the narrow ends 14' of the openings. Meanwhile the other row of bottles will be held in place as clearly evident by the bar i1 preventing them from slipping toward the center of plate it. The rigid interconnection of all parts or the handle and locking member 33 obviously contributes greatly to the ease with which the bottles may be picked up, or discharged, three at a time in this manner and it will be observed that the narrowness of the bar ll allows it to descend well beneath the plate ii) without contacting the necks of the bottles except in the case of the row being supported as the other is picked up or discharged as in Fig.

than the the plate I!) between the rows 2i and limit the six bottle carrier previously cated by corresponding reference numerals,

4. On the other hand it is found that the narrow locking bar is fully eiiective to prevent disengagement of the bottles while they are being carried. In no case does the locking bar 11 tilt with respect to the handle.

The carrier shown in Fig. 5 is similar in all essential respects to that previously described and comprises a body A and handle B, and with an opening it adapted to receive and carry two bottles such as milk bottles and the like. Other parts of the carrier identical with those in the described are indiand it will, of course, be understood that other combinations and sizes are possible for carrying bottles of any size and number desired.

It is understood that suitable modifications may be made in the structure as disclosed, provided such modifications come within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Having now therefore fully illustrated and described my invention, what I claim to be new and desire to protect by Letters Patent is:

1. A device for carrying at least two bottles by their necks, comprising a supporting member having an opening with narrow ends adapted to supportably engage the bottle necks and a medial widened portion into which the bottles may be moved to remove them from or replace them in the carrier, and a locking and carrying means comprising a member disposed between the bottle necks below said supporting member, said looking member being narrower than the space between the necks of the bottles but adapted when positioned against the underside of said supporting member to prevent movement of the bottle necks into registry with the widened medial portion of the opening, and a handle connected to said locking member.

2. A device for carrying at least two bottles by their necks, comprising a supporting member having an opening with narrow ends adapted to supportably engage the bottle necks and a medial widened portion into which the bottles may be moved to remove them from or replace them in the carrier, and a locking and carrying means comprising a locking member having an oper ating handle, said locking member being disposed beneath the supporting member between the bottles and being much narrower than the distance between the bottle necks whereby it may drop down between the bottles while still clearing the same to provide clearance for removal of the bottles from the opening.

3. A device for carrying at least two bottles by their necks, comprising a supportin member having an opening with narrow ends adapted to supportably engage the bottle necks and a medial widened portion into which the bottles may be moved to remove them from or replace them in the carrier, and a locking and carrying means comprising a rectangular rigid member having a locking portion disposed beneath the supporting member between the bottle necks and adapted to move upwardly beneath said supporting member into position for preventing entry of the bottle .necks into the widened portion of the opening.

relation, a locking member disposedbelow the body member between the bottle necks and being substantially narrower than the distance between the said necks, end members turned upwardly from the ends of the locking member and said body member having openings to slidably receive said end members, a handle joining the upper ends of the end members, said locking member being adapted to supportably engage the underside of the body member when the handle is lifted and in such position to prevent the bottle necks from entry into the center portion of the said opening, and said locking member, end members and handle all being rigidly connected and formed of one piece of material.

5. A bottle carrier, comprising a body member having at least one elongated opening having relatively narrow end portions adapted to receive the necks of a pair of bottles introduced through the center of the opening and to support the bottles by their rims with their necks in spaced relation, a locking member disposed below the body member between the bottle necks and being narrower than the space between said necks, end members turned upwardly from the ends of the locking member and said body member having openings to slidably receive said end members, a handle joining the upper ends of the end members, said locking member being adapted to supportably engage the underside of the body member when the handle is lifted and in such position to prevent the bottle necks from entry into the center portion of the said opening, said handle member when released being adapted to descend below the level Of the tops of the bottles, and stop means operative for limiting the 6 downward movement of the handle and holding it when released in upwardly spaced relation to the body member.

6.. The combination in a bottle carrier comprising a body member having openings adapted at their ends to supportably engage the bottles by their rims and adapted at their centers to clear said rims upon inward movement of the bottles, of a handle and locking assembly comprising a bar located beneath the body member and movable up and down with respect thereto and in an upper position adapted to prevent such inward movement of the bottles, a handle rigidly connected to said bar and non-tiltably supporting the bar for up and down movements as the handle is lifted or released, and said bar being substantially narrower than the space between the bottle necks and adapted to clear the necks when lowered.

' DAVID W. MATTSON.

REFERENCES GETED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name 2,356,656 Datz Aug. 22, 1944 138,130 Goodin June 20, 1944 2,339,598 Burge et a1 Jan. 18, 1944 2,348,187 Beskin May 9, 1944 2,320,440 Kruea et a1 June 1, 1943 1,777,102 Mooney Sept, 30, 1930