US2468231A - Box spacing means - Google Patents

Description

April 26, 1949. E, PRATl 2,468,231

BOX SPACING MEANS FiledI Jan. 26, 1946 n A C-// Lf/ n INVENTOR. ENQ/C0 DADAT/ BY M @o Patented Apr. 26, 1949 2,463,231 y Box sPAclNo. MEANS Enrico Prati, Asti, Calif., assignor to Ida Prati, Asti, Josephine Prati Polandi, San Francisco, and Edward Prati, Asti, Calif.

` Application January 26, 1946, Serial No. 643,589

1 Claim.

The present invention relates to fruit boxes or the like and particularly to cleats on such boxes secured to and arranged thereon in a manner that w1ll greatly facilitate the proper stacking or loading of boxes, especially when it is desired that free circulation of air between boxes be permitted.

In loading fruit boxes and the like in railroad cars, it is desirable that the load bebraced against shifting While the car is in transit and also par-A ticularly where the merchandise in the boxes is of a perishable nature to space the boxes so as to provide for free circulation of air between them. In refrigerator cars, for example, where ice bunkers are disposed at the ends of the cars, the boxes areusually loaded in straight rows lengthwise of the cars with suiiicient space between them to permit free circulation of cool air to prevent spoilage of the contents of the boxes. This is usually accomplished by nailing strips of wood across the boxes so that they are maintained in properly spaced relation. This method of spacing the boxes is, however, quite costly and undesirable in that it consumes a good deal of time and material which is lost each time the car the box is lifted andwhich is secured to the box in a manner and position which insures Ventilating space between stacks of boxes. Still further and more specific objects and advantages of the invention are made apparent in the following specification wherein reference is made to the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

Fig. 1 is an isometric view of a box having cleats secured thereto in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is'a view in side elevation of two boxes like that shown in Fig. 1 and illustrating the cooperative relationship of the cleats;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a view of two box ends, before they are assembled with the other parts which form a box, illustrating the manner in which the cleats may be applied thereto.

In Fig. l of the drawings, a conventional box n isillustrated as having two long sides I0 and two shorter sides or ends Il, all of which are assembled together with a bottom in conventional manner and in some cases the boxes are provided with cleat members I2 secured to the upper edges of the end members Il.

According to the present invention, each of the ends il of the box is provided with a cleat, such cleats being herein designated by the reference characters a and b. The cleats are secured to the ends of the boxes by nailing which is the conventional means of securing together all of the other box parts and are made oi elongated pieces of wood substantially square in cross section. Each of the cleats is disposed at a diagonal with relation to the square of the box end and, as illustrated in Fig. 1, the cleat a is inclined in one direction while the cleat b is inclined in the opposite direction. The cleats are so arranged that they serve as convenient handles by means of which the boxes may be lifted so that in picking up the boxes and depositing them on a stack, it is unnecessary for the fingers to be placed beneath the bottom edges of the boxes and therefore handling of the boxes is considerably easier and safer than it is when no cleats are provided.

A more important function of the cleats a and b, however, is illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings where two boxes, such as shown in Fig. 1, are shown disposed in end to end relationship with the cleats a and b at their adjacent opposed ends in contact with each other and maintain- .ing the boxes spaced from each other at a sufficient distance to admit a draft of air to pass between the boxes. Obviously, if a great num ber of boxes are stacked in tiers as in the load- `ing of a refrigerator car or truck or even when the boxes are stacked in awarehouse or in the field, they are automatically spaced from each other because of the existence of the cleats a and b on their ends. Furthermore, the diagonal position and arrangement of the cleats a and b are such that regardless of the number of boxes stacked or whether they are turned end for end. there is contact between the cleats because of the fact that the cleats are diagonally arranged and oppositely inclined on opposite ends of the box. When any two ends of any two boxes are placed together, the cleats assume the crossed relationship illustrated in Fig. 3 which shows the centrally disposed cleats a and b in Fig. 2 in dotted lines. In this position, the cleats contact each other at points substantially centrally of the box ends and, while the boxes are maintained spaced from each other a distance which is equal analisi to the distance of two cleats. there is only one very small area of contact between the cleats and the remainder oi' the space between the boxes is maintained unobstructed for the free passage of air. This diagonal arrangement oi' the cleats on the ends of the boxes has the further advantage that should the fboxes be ot slightly diilerent height or for any reason unevenly stacked, the cleats will always contact each other and there is no opportunity for the cleats to overlap or ride one on top of each other as would be the case with horizontally disposed cleats in the event the boxes were not carefully stacked or in the event that the truck or car on which they were carried was subjected to severe vibration as might be occasioned by a rough roadbed.

Another advantage of the diagonal cleat ar.

rangement herein disclosed is thatA the cleats may be quickly and conveniently applied by nailing them to the box ends before the box ends are made up into boxes, and -this operation is -facilitated by the fact that all of the cleats may be applied with their inclination in the same direction as may be understood from an examination of Fig. 4 of the drawings. In this gure. two of the box ends il are shown as they would appear before being made up in a box with the cleats a and b applied thereto. As is apparent from Fig. 4, the cleats a and b assume the same direction of inclination and all oi' the box ends may be provided with cleats without reference to which end of the box the particular box end in hand is eventually to occupy. 'Ihis is true because of the fact that while the cleats a and b shown in Fig. 4 are similarly inclined. a reversal of either of the box ends shown which brings it into position to form the opposite end of a box with a cleat on the outer side, also reverses the direction of inclination ofthe cleat. Consequently, cleats a and b shown in Fig. 4, though similarly inclined, are always oppositely inclined when the box ends are made up into a box as -iilusf trated in Fig. 1.` This same reversal of the di- -rection of inclination of the cleat automatically insures that no box can ever be llvlacecl against another box in end to end relationship in such a manner that the cleats will not assume the delost upon being removed. The present disclosure is oi boxes having cleats arranged at their shorter sides or ends but it is, of course, to be understood that the same type of cleats could be arranged on the longer side of Ithe box, if desired.

I claim:

A rectangular box having lbox spacing means secured to its opposite ends, said means comprising only one cleat secured diagonally to each end and extending substantially over the center of the box end, said cleats being oppositely inclined with rela-tion to each other and projecting outwardly from the surfaces of the box ends.

ENRICO PRATI.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the ille of this patent:

UNITED STATES ATENTS Number Name Date 488,997 Glidewell et al. Jan. 3, 1893 916,360 McFarland et al. Mar. 23, 1909 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 103,096 Great Britain Jan. 1l, 191'? 322,817 Great Britain Dec. 16, 1929 371,587 Italy May 1939

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