US3214043A - Hand truck for handling appliance cartons and the like - Google Patents

Description

Oct. 26, 1965 A. N. DUNCAN 3,214,043

HAND TRUCK FOR HANDLING APPLIANCE CARTONS AND THE LIKE 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 14, 1964 Irw ENTOR ANGELO N. DUNCAN g W W, VJQIGQMW Oct. 26, 1965 A. N. DUNCAN 3,214,043

HAND TRUCK FOR HANDLING APPLIANCE CARTONS AND THE LIKE Filed July 14, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I NVENI'OR ANGELQ N. DUNCAN b w 7%, wwwm A'rws,

United States Patent 3,214,043 HAND TRUCK FOR HANDLING APPLIANCE CARTONS AND THE LIKE Angelo N. Duncan, Bourbounais, Ill., assignor, by mesne assignments, to Geo. D. Roper Corporation, Kaukakee,

11]., a corporation of Delaware Filed July 14, 1964, Ser. No. 382,522 3 Claims. (Cl. 214-374) The present invention relates to hand trucks and more particularly to a hand truck for handling cartons containing a heavy household appliance requiring display or any other weighty merchandise having a shipping carton.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a hand truck which is capable of use in the normal way for wheeled transport of a heavy appliance or the like in a shipping carton and which permits flaps forming the bottom of the carton to be bent back enabling the appliance to engage the floor directly thus permitting the carton to be slipped oif, without damage, for display of the appli ance and retained for later use. In this connection it is an object to provide a novel hand truck construction which is of equal advantage in removing weighty merchandise from a carton and for reinstalling it in the carton. It is a more detailed object to provide a hand truck for the above purpose which aifects only the bottom of the carton and which, when the carton is replaced, gives no visible indication that the carton has been opened. The invention is therefore of particular utility where it is desired to sell, as new, an appliance or other piece of merchandise which has been temporarily removed from the shipping carton either for inspection or for display purposes. It is a further object of the invention to provide a hand truck construction which may be used for ordinary transport and for carton removal and reinstallation, which may be used with heavy merchandise of a bulky nature weighing several hundreds of pounds, but which may nevertheless be easily and safely operated by one man.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a novel hand truck construction which may be manufactured at a cost only slightly exceeding that of a conventional hand truck and which is of simple construction providing a degree of utility which is out of proportion to the cost.

It is yet another object of the invention to provide a hand truck which may be used in the original cartoning of bulky items of merchandise on a production basis, for example as a final step in a production line. Where the volume justifies the use of more expensive cartoning equipment, the present hand truck may still be used for stand-by purposes. The hand truck is moreover useful in recoopering, i.e., package repair or replacement, in warehousing operations.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent upon reading the attached detailed description and upon reference to the drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a hand truck constructed in accordance with the present invention.

FIG. 1a is a view similar to FIG. 1 but with the upper portion of the frame, and the carton, tilted to a reclining position.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the hand truck shown in FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the hand truck shown in FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary side view of the locking mechanism.

FIGS. Sa-Sh are a set of diagrammatic views on a small scale showing a typical sequence used in removing a carton including the securing of the carton to the truck (FIGS. 5a-5b), the rearward tilt of the truck to horizon- 3,214,043 Patented Oct. 26, 1965 tal position (FIG. 5c), the freeing of the bottom and forming of the flaps (FIG. 5d), the re-engagement of the bottom by the blade of the truck (FIG. Se), restoring to vertical position (FIG. 5 and the freeing of the carton (FIGS. Sg-Sh).

While the invention has been described in connection with a preferred embodiment, it will be understood that I do not intend to be limited to the embodiment but intend to cover the various modifications and alternative and equivalent constructions included within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Turning to the drawings, a hand truck 10 constructed in accordance with the present invention has a frame including an upper portion 11 and lower portion 12. The frame is of flat rectangular shape, the upper portion in the present instance having side members 13, 14 terminating in angularly bent handles 15, 16 and joined by rigidly welded-in- place cross members 17, 18. The bottom portion of the frame includes a pair of side members 21, 22 bridged by a cross member 23 and secured at their lower ends by a blade 25 which extends horizontally close to the floor when the frame is in upright position.

For transport, the lower portion of the frame is provided with wheels 31, 32 mounted on an axle 33, the axle being supported at its ends by triangular brackets 35, 36 welded or otherwise secured to the side members 21, 22 respectively.

Assuming that the portions 11, 12 of the frame are maintained rigid with one another, it will be apparent that the truck as thus far described may be used in the normal way, with the blade 25 being crowded under a carton following which the frame may be rocked backwardly about the wheels for trundling between one location and another.

In accordance with the present invention the upper and lower portions of the frame are horizontally hinged together with means being provided for embraceably securing the carton to the upper portion of the frame and with the hinge axis being sufficiently high off the floor so that when the truck is rocked to horizontal position followed by downward swinging of the lower portion of the frame, the bottom of the carton is left free of the floor in a jutting out position. This permits the flaps forming the bottom of the carton to be swung out of the Way alongside of the carton so that when the lower portion of the frame is swung back to its normal operating position, and the truck restored to vertical position, the carton may be slipped vertically clear. Hinging in the present instance is obtained by providing collars 37, 38 rigidly welded or otherwise secured to the lower ends of the side members 13, 14 and with the collars being in alinement and telescoped over the top member 23 of the lower portion of the frame.

For the purpose of locking the upper and lower portions of the frame rigidly together for ordinary transport or tilting while allowing the lower portion of the frame to be swung clear of the bottom of the carton, an arm 40 is provided which lies substantially in the plane of the lower portion of the frame but which is offset laterally to clear the side of the carton. In the present instance the arm 40 is secured to an outboard extension 23a of the member 23. For the purpose of coupling the upper end of the arm to the upper portion of the frame, a transversely extending member 41 is provided having an outboard extension 41a which intersects the arm. To se cure the two members together, the arm is equipped with a slidable ferrule 42 having a retaining book 43. Thus, turning to FIG. 4, when the ferrule locking member 42 is in its lowered, gravity biased position, the hook 43 thereon holds the extension 41a of the member 41 captive so that the two portions of the frame are rigidly braced with respect to one another forming a frame which is for practical purposes flat and continuous. However, when the locking ferrule is slipped upwardly into the dotted position shown in FIG. 4, the extension 41a is released thereby enabling the lower portion of the frame to be swung relative to the upper.

The utility of this arrangement will become apparent upon reviewing the diagrammatic views set forth at Sa-Sh inclusive. As shown in FIG. 5a, with the frame rigid the blade 25 is crowded under the carton C. The frame is then rocked forwardly through a small angle (FIG. 5b) to seat flatly against the side of the carton and the carton is embracingly secured to the frame by a belt B. The truck is then rocked rearwardly to the horizontal position as shown in FIG. 50. Following this the lock is released and the lower portion of the frame, carrying the blade, is swung to a position clear of the bottom of the carton, permitting flaps to be formed and bent back along the sides of the carton as shown in FIG. 5d. The lower portion of the frame may be swung upwardly so that the blade is again seated under the merchandise in the carton as shown in FIG. 5e, the lock being re-established. The entire truck and carton are then rocked back into the vertical position as shown in FIG. 5], with the blade in direct contact with the contents and in direct supporting engagement with the appliance. Following this the belt isv released and the carton slipped off vertically as shown in FIGS. 5g and 5h.

Since the hinge axis is substantially spaced from the floor, by a distance h, in FIG. 1a, which is a practical case will be to inches, depending upon the size of the carton for which the truck is designed, substantial side area is provided for the folding back of the flaps. The flaps may be those originally used in the assembly of the carton, but in lieu of breaking the glue joint it is preferred to form a new set of flaps of triangular shape by making a pair of diagonal cuts in the bottom of the carton. If desired, the flaps may be held in out-of-the-way position resting against the side walls of the carton by an encircling loop of string. In any event, the carton, which is substantially unharmed, may be preserved until later required.

For reinstallation of the carton, the above described procedure is simply reversed. That is, the hand truck blade is crowded under the appliance, the carton with the flaps turned back is again slipped over the appliance following which the carton is strapped to the upper portion of the frame. The truck, with the carton attached, is rocked backwardly into reclining position, the lock is released, and the lower portion of the frame is swung downwardly enabling the flaps to be restored to closed position where they may be secured in place by a criss cross of a wide adhesive tape, preferably paper tape gummed, or with other adhesive, and of the type having longitudinal reinforcing threads for strength. Alternatively, the triangular-cut flaps may be glued to inner packing. After locking of the lower portion of the frame, the carton and enclosed appliance are rocked back to vertical position following which the carton may be trundled back into the warehouse or to the shipping dock.

Since the carton remains in new condition and since the sides and top contain no evidence that the carton has been opened, the appliance may be sold as new in spite of the temporary usage for display purposes. This is of particular advantage in discount store operations or the like where it is desired to display only the most recent models of the merchandise, where a typical unit is on display for only a short time and where costs do not permit the making of any substantial discount for floor samples.

While the invention has been described in connection with removing a carton from a large appliance such as a range, refrigerator, dryer, washing machine or the like for display purposes, this constitutes only one of the possible uses of the truck. The truck may be employed for cartoning of heavy pieces of equipment from an assembly line, serving its purpose efiiciently with only a minimum investment in equipment and manpower. Where production is sufficiently high as to warrant more expensive cartoning equipment, trucks of the present design may still be employed for stand-by purposes in the event of breakdown of the production cartoning equipment.

I claim as my invention:

it. A hand truck for handling large cartons containing an appliance requiring display or other piece of weighty merchandise comprising, in combination, a fiat frame having a lower portion and an upper portion, a pair of wheels journaled along the lateral edges of the lower portion to provide rolling support, the wheels being on a common axis spaced rearwardly from the frame, a pair of laterally spaced handles at the upper end of the frame, a horizontal blade at the lower end of the frame projecting forwardly along the floor when the frame is in an upright position for forcing under the edge of a carton resting on the floor, means embracing the carton for temporarily securing the carton to the upper portion of the frame, a releasable lock for locking the two portions of the frame rigidly together for wheeled transport of the carton, the portions of the frame being horizontally hinged together about a hinge axis which is sufficiently high off the floor so that when the frame and the carton secured thereto are rocked backwardly into a horizontal position followed by release of the lock and downward swinging of the lower portion of the frame, the bottom of the carton is left free of the floor in a jutting out position so that flaps forming the bottom of the carton may be swung out of the way alongside the sides of the carton and so that when the lock is reengaged the bottom of the merchandise may be engaged with the floor directly permitting the carton to be slipped vertically clear and enabling the carton to be reinstalled upon reversing the procedure.

2. In a hand truck for handling large cartons containing an appliance requiring display or other piece of weighty merchandise without damage to the carton comprising, in combination, a flat frame having a lower portion and an upper portion, a pair of wheels journaled along the lateral edges of the lower portion to provide rolling support, the wheels being journaled on a common axis spaced rearwardly from the frame, a pair of laterally spaced handles at the upper end of the frame, a horizontal blade at the lower end of the frame projecting forw ardly along the floor when the frame is in upright position for forcing under the edge of a carton resting on the floor, means embracing the carton for temporarily securing the carton to the upper portion of the frame, an arm on the lower portion of the frame and arranged generally in the plane thereof but laterally spaced therefrom, releasable means for locking the upper end of the arm to the upper portion of the frame for wheeled transport of the carton, the portions of the frame being horizontally hinged together about a hinge axis which is sufficiently high off the floor so that when the frame and the carton secured thereto are rocked backwardly into a horizontal position, followed by release of the lock and downward swinging of the lower portion of the frame, the bottom of the carton is left free of the floor in a jutting out position so that flaps forming the bottom of the carton may be swung out of the way alongside the sides of the carton and so that when the lock is reengaged the bottom of the merchandise may be engaged with the floor directly permitting the carton to be slipped vertically clear and enabling the carton to be reinstalled upon reversing the procedure.

3. A hand truck for handling large cartons containing an appliance requiring display or other piece of weighty merchandise comprising, in combination, a flat frame having a lower portion and an upper portion, a pair of wheels journaled along the lateral edges of the lower portion to provide rolling support, the Wheels being on a common axis spaced rearwardly from the frame, a pair of laterally spaced handles projecting rearwardly from the upper end of the frame, a horizontal blade at the lower end of the frame projecting forwardly along the floor when the frame is in an upright position for forcing under the edge of a carton resting on the floor, means embracing the carton for temporarily securing the carton to the upper portion of the frame, a releasable lock for locking the two portions of the frame rigidly together for Wheeled transport of the carton, the portions of the frame being horizontally hinged together about a hinge axis Which is sufiiciently high off the floor so that when the frame and the carton secured thereto are rocked back- Wardly into a horizontal position, followed by release of the lock and downward swinging of the lower portion of the frame, the bottom of the carton is left free of the floor in a jutting out position so that flaps forming the bottom of the carton may be swung out of the way along side the sides of the carton and so that when the lock is reengaged the bottom of the merchandise may be engaged with the floor directly permitting the carton to be slipped vertically clear and enabling the carton to be reinstalled upon reversing the procedure.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,102,648 9/63 Hughes 214-375 HUGO O. SCHULZ, Primary Examiner.

Claims (1)

1. 2. IN A HAND TRUCK FOR HANDLING LARGE CARTONS CONTAINING AN APPLIANCE REQUIRING DISPLAY OR OTHER PIECE OF WEIGHTY MERCHANDISE WITHOUT DAMAGE TO THE CARTON COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, A FLAT FRAME HAVING A LOWER PORTION AND AN UPPER PORTION, A PAIR OF WHEELS JOURNALED ALONG THE LATERAL EDGES OF THE LOWER PORTION TO PROVIDE ROLLING SUPPORT, THE WHEELS BEING JOURNALLED ON A COMMON AXIS SPACED REARWARDLY FROM THE FRAME, A PAIR OF LATERALLY SPACED HANDLES AT THE UPPER END OF THE FRAME, A HORIZONTAL BLADE AT THE LOWER END OF THE FRAME PROJECTING FORWARDLY ALONG THE FLOOR WHEN THE FRAME IS IN UPRIGHT POSITION FOR FORCING UNDER THE EDGE OF A CARTON RESTING ON THE FLOOR, MEANS EMBRACING THE CARTON FOR TEMPORARILY SECURING THE CARTON TO THE UPPER PORTION OF THE FRAME, AN ARM ON THE LOWER PORTION OF THE FRAME AND ARRANGED GENERALLY IN THE PLANE THEREOF BUT LATERALLY SPACED THEREFROM, RELEASABLE MEANS FOR LOCKING THE UPPER END OF THE ARM TO THE UPPER PORTION OF THE FRAME FOR WHEELED TRANSPORT OF THE CARTON, THE PORTIONS OF THE FRAME BEING HORIZONTALLY HINGED TOGETHER ABOUT A HINGE AXIS WHICH IS SUFFICIENTLY HIGH OFF THE FLOOR SO THAT WHEN THE FRAME AND THE CARTON SECURED THERETO ARE ROCKED BACKWARDLY INTO A HORIZONTAL POSITION, FOLLOWED BY RELEASE OF THE LOCK AND DOWNWARD SWINGING OF THE LOWER PORTION OF THE FRAME, THE BOTTOM OF THE CARTON IS LEFT FREE OF THE FLOOR IN A JUTTING OUT POSITION SO THAT FLAPS FORMING THE BOTTOM OF THE CARTON MAY BE SWUNG OUT OF THE WAY ALONGSIDE THE SIDES OF THE CARTON AND SO THAT WHEN THE LOCK IS REENGAGED THE BOTTOM OF THE MERCHANDISE MAY BE ENGAGED WITH THE FLOOR DIRECTLY PERMITTING THE CARTON TO BE SLIPPED VERTICALLY CLEAR AND ENABLING THE CARTON TO BE REINSTALLED UPON REVERSING THE PROCEDURE.

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