WO1998031607A1

WO1998031607A1 - Dual purpose container/building block

Info

Publication number: WO1998031607A1
Application number: PCT/BE1997/000007
Authority: WO
Inventors: Peter Pelicaen
Original assignee: Software & Consulting Services N.V.
Priority date: 1997-01-20
Filing date: 1997-01-20
Publication date: 1998-07-23
Also published as: AU1433397A

Abstract

A container/building block (1) element, which element comprises at least one side wall (3, 4, 5, 6) enclosing a storage space, at least one of said side walls being provided with connecting means, said connecting means comprising a first (8) and a second (9) connecting member, wherein said first connecting member comprises a first protrusion extending perpendicular to said side wall, and said second connecting member comprises a second protrusion with an inner cavity (17) extending perpendicular to said side wall, whereby upon assembling a first and second of said elements, the first protrusion of said first element is engageable into said cavity of said second protrusion of said second element in a direction perpendicular to said side wall.

Description

Dual purpose container/building block.

The present invention relates to a container/building block element, which element comprises at least one side wall enclosing a storage space, at least one of said side walls being provided with connecting means, said connecting means comprising a first and a second connecting member.

The container/building blocks of this invention have a dual purpose. They are suitable for containing food, for example milk products, ice cream, yoghurt, white cheese or pudding. After their content has been consumed, the container/building blocks can be used as a building block element for building three dimensional constructions. In that way a food container and a toy are combined within a single element. Such food containers are known from WO-A-93/08888. WO-A-

93/08888 discloses dual-purpose food container/building block elements comprising an open upper portion, a bottom portion and four side walls. The side walls and bottom portion are provided with connecting means, comprising two types of connecting elements, for connecting two or more containers. Opposite side walls comprise the same connecting elements, adjacent side walls contain different connecting elements. Opposite side walls each contain two rails, which rails extend parallel to each other and to the sides of the side walls. The rails point away from each other. The remaining opposite side walls each comprise two sockets facing each other, which sockets extend parallel to each other and to the sides of the side wall. The upper extremity of the rails and sockets on the side walls terminates against a lip which surrounds the open upper face of the container. The lower accessible extremity of the rails and the open end of the sockets on the side walls are situated near the bottom portion of the container.

The bottom portion comprises two rails and two sockets, whereby the individual rails are provided along opposite sides of the bottom. The sockets are provided along the remaining opposite sides of the bottom. The sockets on the bottom portion are open on both sides. The rails on the bottom portion have two accessible extremities.

Two containers can be assembled with the side walls, the bottom walls or a side and a bottom wall side-to-side.

When assembling two containers with the side walls side-to-side, one of the containers must be turned upside down so that the openings of the sockets and the accessible extremities of the rails face each other. Thereby the accessible extremities of the rails on the side wall of a first container are inserted into the openings of the sockets on a side wall of a second container, and the containers are sled along the rails towards each other. During the sliding movement, the containers are moved parallel to each other and to the side walls, in opposite directions until the displacement is stopped by the lip. When the assembling is completed, a top-bottom connection is obtained whereby the bottom of the first container is situated adjacent to the open upper face of the second container. When assembling two containers with the bottom portions side-to- side, the open upper portions are situated at opposite sides of the assembled containers.

When assembling two containers with a side wall and bottom portion side-to-side, the open upper portions of the containers extend perpendicular to each other.

The container/building block elements described in WO-A-90/08888 however have the disadvantage that the ways in which two building blocks can be assembled are rather limited. It is for example not possible to assemble two building blocks in such a way that their open upper portions are adjacent to each other. Nor is it possible to assemble one container simultaneously to two more assembled containers, so that a staggered construction is obtained.

It is the aim of the present invention to provide a dual purpose container which offers a larger number of assembling possibilities. This is achieved according to the invention in that said first connecting member comprises a first protrusion extending perpendicular to said side wall, and said second connecting member comprises a second protrusion with an inner cavity extending perpendicular to said side wall, whereby upon assembling a first and second of said elements, the first protrusion of said first element is engageable into said inner cavity of said second protrusion of said second element in a direction perpendicular to said side wall.

Due to the fact that the connecting members engage in a direction perpendicular to the wall, rotation with respect to this direction becomes possible thus enabling an engagement in at least two different positions. Thereby, the open upper faces of two assembled containers can take for example either adjacent, perpendicular or opposite positions.

Assembled containers are held together by frictional forces between the protrusion of the first connecting member and the walls of the cavity of the second connecting member. These frictional forces are sufficiently high to allow to make stable three dimensional constructions, even constructions with larger dimensions.

According to a first preferred embodiment of the invention, the container/building block element of the invention comprises a bottom wall and the connecting means comprise a third connecting member applied on said bottom wall. The third connecting member comprises a third protrusion extending perpendicular to said bottom wall and forming a further inner cavity within said third protrusion on said bottom wall. Upon assembling a first element with a third one, the second protrusion of the first element is engageable into said further cavity of said third protrusion of said third element in a direction perpendicular to said bottom wall.

This allows not only to assemble the container/building block elements of the invention side-to-side, but also side-to-bottom, in at least two rotational positions with respect to each other as described above.

According to a second preferred embodiment of the invention, an inner protrusion is applied in the further inner cavity of the third connecting member, which inner protrusion extends perpendicular to the bottom wall and the first protrusion comprises a perforation dimensioned to receive said inner protrusion of said third connecting member upon assembling two elements.

This type of container/building block elements allows to assemble two elements also with their first side wall and bottom wall side-to-side. Again the two elements may take at least two rotational positions with respect to each other as described above. This allows a further enlarging of the number of assembling possibilities.

According to a third preferred embodiment of the invention, the first and second connecting members are applied on opposite sides of the storage space.

By providing connecting members on two opposite sides of the storage space, it becomes possible to assemble a plurality of container/building blocks in a first direction, adjacent to each other. In case the container/building blocks also comprise third connecting members on the bottom wall, further blocks can be added in a second direction, e.g. a direction perpendicular to the first direction, so that e.g. typical wall constructions can be obtained. Also in this way, it will be immediately clear to a child that it can grasp the container/building block by the remaining free space and assemble two container/building blocks either side-to-side or side-to-bottom.

The connecting members according to the invention can have various shapes. The protrusions can for example be substantially annular, triangular, square, or rectangular shaped or have the shape of a geometric figure with 6, 8 or more edges. The connecting members can either have a similar or a completely different shape. Preferably, the shape of the first, second and third connecting members differ substantially. In that way, the way in which two or more building blocks have to be assembled will be immediately clear to a child, even a very young child. Moreover, by using contact members with different shapes, container/building blocks with a much more pleasant appearance can be obtained.

According to a fourth preferred embodiment of the invention, the first protrusion is substantially triangularly shaped with cut off edges, the second protrusion is substantially annularly shaped and the outer and inner protrusions of the third connecting members are substantially annularly shaped.

By cutting off the edges, the contact area between the first and second contact member can be enlarged and a tighter engagement force can be assured. The first and second side walls and the bottom wall of the container/building blocks according to the invention can each comprise either only one or, which is preferred, a plurality of contact members. The number of contact members on each of said walls can be the same or different, but is preferably the same. According to a fifth preferred embodiment of the invention, said first and second side walls each comprise at least two connecting members, whereby adjacent connecting members are applied at a predetermined distance.

Such a positioning of the contact members allows to make staggered constructions, whereby a third element is assembled to both the adjacent sides of two assembled first and second elements.

According to a sixth preferred embodiment of the invention, the bottom wall also comprises at least two connecting members, whereby adjacent connecting members are applied at a predetermined distance. Such a positioning of the contact members allows to make staggered constructions also via the bottom wall of the container/building block elements.

According to the invention, the side and bottom walls are preferably rectangularly shaped, whereby said first, respectively second, respectively third connecting members are each time applied to said first, respectively second side walls and bottom wall with a multiplicity of four.

According to a seventh preferred embodiment of the invention, the container/building block comprises a rim which is positioned around the side walls, at the position of the upper face, which rim protrudes outwardly from the side walls. Preferably the first and second connecting members have approximately the same height and the rim extends from the side walls over a distance which is approximately half the height of the first and second connecting members.

Upon assembling of two of such container/building block elements, the rims of the two elements fit nicely against each other without undesired slits or gaps.

This rim is mostly used for sealing purposes, for example by aluminum foil, a flexible plastic cover or any other cover, when the container/building block is used as a food container.

According to the present invention, the height of the third connecting member is approximately half the height of the first and second connecting members, in order to save room when several elements are stacked above each other. Preferably, at least two notches are provided in the inner cavity against the second protrusion of said second connecting member. This allows to limit the extent in which the first connecting member engages into the second connecting member upon assembling two container/building block elements with their first and second side walls side-to-side.

This description refers to containers/building blocks. The invention is however not limited to such containers/building blocks, since the contents of the containers prior to their exploitation as building blocks do not make part of the present invention. The invention will be further elucidated in the following figures and description of the figures.

Figure 1 and figure 2 show a perspective view of a preferred container/building block element of the invention.

Figure 3 shows a cross section of a container/building block of the invention.

Figure 4 shows a side view of four assembled container/building blocks according to the invention.

Figure 5, 6 and 7 show a bottom view of container/building blocks with a volume of respectively twice, four times the volume of the container of figure 1 and the same volume as the container of figure 1.

For the sake of clarity, the invention will be described by means of the container/building block element of figure 1 , which has approximately the shape of a cube. It should however be clear that the container/building block elements of this invention can have other shapes, for example the shape of a cylinder, have an oval bottom wall, they can be pyramidal, cubic or have the shape of a beam.

The container/building block element 1 of the present invention shown in figure 1 , comprises a bottom wall 2, a first side wall 3, a second side wall 5, respectively third and fourth side walls 4 and 6 and an open upper face 7. The side walls 3-6 can either be perpendicular to the bottom wall 2 or taper outwardly therefrom. The side walls 3-6 enclose a storage space 19.

The container/building block element 1 of figure 1 comprises stacking notches 15, for facilitating the stacking of a plurality of container/building blocks.

Around the side walls 3-5, a rim 13 is positioned at the position of the open upper face 7. The rim is mostly used for sealing purposes. The rim 13 protrudes outwardly from the side walls. On the first and second side wall 3, 5 and the bottom wall 2, connecting means are applied for assembling two or more elements 1. The connecting means comprise a first and second connecting member 8, 9. The connecting members 8, 9 are preferably applied on opposite sides of the storage space 19. On the first side wall 3, at least one first connecting member 8 is applied. The first connecting member 8 comprises a first protrusion extending perpendicular to said first side wall 3. Preferably said first protrusion comprises a perforation 16.

On the second side wall 5 at least one second connecting member 9 is applied, which second connecting member 9 comprises a second protrusion 9 with an inner cavity 17 extending perpendicular to the second side wall 5.

Preferably, at least two notches 14 are provided in the inner cavity 17 against the second protrusion of said second connecting member 9. This allows to limit the extent in which the first connecting member 8 engages into the second connecting member upon assembling two container/building block elements with their first and second side walls side-to-side.

Upon assembling of two container/building block elements 1 with their first 3 and second 5 side walls side-to-side, the first protrusion of the first element 8 engages the inner cavity 17 of the second connecting member 9 on the second element in a direction perpendicular to said walls. Preferably, the first 8 and second 9 connecting member have the same length, whereby upon engagement the first connecting member 8 is merely completely engaged into the inner cavity 17 formed by the second connecting member 9.

The extent to which the rim 13 protrudes outwardly from the side walls 3-6 is approximately equal to half of the length of the first or second contact members 8, 9. Upon a complete engagement of the first connecting member of a first element in the second connecting member of a second element, the rims of the two assembled elements fit nicely against each other without leaving undesired slits or gaps. The bottom wall 2 comprises at least one third connecting member

10, which third connecting member comprises a third protrusion 11 extending perpendicular to said bottom wall and forming a further inner cavity 18 on said bottom wall. In the further inner cavity 18 an inner protrusion 12 is provided. Upon assembling two container/building block elements with their first side wall 3 and bottom wall 2 side-to-side, the inner protrusion 12 of the third connecting member on a first element engages the perforationlδ of the first protrusion of the first connecting member 9 on a second element in a direction perpendicular to said walls. Upon assembling two container/building block elements with their second side wall 5 and bottom wall 2 side-to-side, the second protrusion of the second connecting member 9 of a first element engages the inner cavity 18 of the third connecting member of a second element in a direction perpendicular to said walls. The length of the third protrusion 11 and the inner protrusion 12 of the third connecting member 10 is preferably the same and is preferably half the length of the first and second connecting members 8, 9.

The remaining third and fourth side walls 4, 6 do preferably not contain connecting members. In that way it will be immediately clear to a child that it can grasp the container/building blocks by the remaining free sides while making a construction. Nevertheless, the third and fourth side walls 4, 6 can contain connecting members, to allow a further enlarging of the number of construction possibilities. The first and second side walls 3, 5 and the bottom wall 2 of the container/building blocks according to the invention can each comprise either only one or, which is preferred, a plurality of contact members. The number of contact members on each of said walls can be the same or different, but is preferably the same. The side and bottom walls of the element according to the invention are preferably rectangularly shaped and comprise each at least one, preferably at least two, more preferably a multiplicity of four connecting members. The bottom wall 2 can comprise the same number of connecting members as the side walls 3, 5 or a multiplicity thereof. Adjacent connecting members are preferably applied at a predetermined distance from each other, which allows making staggered constructions.

The connecting members 8, 9, 10 preferably have a different shape. This allows to make container/building blocks with a much more pleasant appearance. In that way also, the way in which the elements should be combined will be immediately clear to a child.

The first side connecting members 8 have preferably an approximately triangular shape with cut off edges. The second, connecting members 9 are preferably approximately annular. The third connecting members 10 preferably comprise a third annular protrusion 11 , with an inner annular protrusion 12. By cutting off the edges of the first protrusion 8, a larger contact surface area, and consequently a tighter engagement is provided upon engagement of a first protrusion 8 into the cavity of and against a second protrusion 9. By providing connecting members with a symmetric shape, two elements can be assembled in different orientations with respect to each other.

In case the container/building block elements of the present invention have the shape of a pyramid, the bottom wall 2 can be triangular, rectangular or square. In case the bottom wall 2 is triangular, the container/building block comprises three side walls, whereby preferably two side walls are provided with connecting members.

The container/building block elements of the present invention can have different sizes, so that they can contain different amounts of food.

These different sizes can be obtained by varying either the height, width or depth of the elements. In order allow an assembling of the containers with their open upper faces in different directions, preferably the arithmetic ration between the height and width is kept. In that way for example, containers/building blocks which can contain twice or four times the volume of the single container, or even more, can be obtained. Container/building blocks with a volume of twice the volume of a single container/building block can have the same height as the single containers, but a width that equals the width of two assembled single containers, and a depth that equals the deep of the single containers. They can also have the double height of a single container, and the width and the depth of a single container.

The containers/building blocks with a volume of four times the volume of a single container can have the same height and depth as the single containers, but a width that equals the width of four adjacently assembled single containers. They can also have the same height as a single container, but a depth and with of twice the depth and width of a single container.

By providing building blocks with different sizes and shapes, the number of possible combinations and construction possibilities can be further enlarged. It becomes possible to make larger constructions, or to use less building blocks for obtaining similar constructions.

The container/building block of figure 1 and 2, of which a bottom view is shown in figure 7, is a single container. The side and/or bottom walls can for example comprise 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 9, 12 contact members. Most preferably, the first and second side wall and bottom wall comprise an integral multiplicity of four connecting members.

The container/building block of which a bottom view is shown in figure 5, has a volume of twice the volume of the single container of figure 7. The container/building block shown in figure 5 has the same height and depth as the single container, but a double width. It is also possible to have a container with either a double height or depth as the single container, and to adjust the remaining sizes accordingly. Figure 6 shows a bottom view of a container/building block with a volume of four times the volume of a single container. Such a container preferably has the same height as the single container but a depth and width which is twice the depth and width of the single container. It is also possible to have a container with either the same depth or width as the single container. In that case, the remaining sizes have to be adapted accordingly. As can be seen from figure 4, upon engagement of two container/building block elements with their first 3 and second 5 side walls side-to-side, the elements can take different rotational positions with respect to each other Thereby, the open upper faces 7 can be either adjacent, opposite or perpendicular to each other. Upon engagement of two container/building block elements with either their first side wall 3 and bottom wall 2, or their second side wall 5 and bottom wall 2 side-to-side, the elements can again take the different rotational positions with respect to each other. According to the invention, it is possible to assemble the first side wall of a first container/building block element to a second side wall of a second container/building block element. In that case further elements can be assembled to the remaining free bottom walls of both elements and to the remaining free second side wall of the first element and the first side wall of the second element. Thereby also, the elements can take various rotational positions with respect to each other.

According to the invention, it is also possible to assemble the first side wall of a first container/building block element to the bottom wall of a second container/building block element. In that case further elements can be assembled to the remaining free second side wall and bottom wall of the first element and to the remaining free first and second side walls of the second element. Thereby also, the elements can take various rotational positions with respect to each other.

Further according to the invention, it is possible to assemble the second side wall of a first container/building block element to the bottom wall of a second container/building block element. In that case further elements can be assembled to the remaining free first side wall and bottom wall of the first element and to the remaining free first and second side walls of the second element. Thereby, the elements can take various rotational positions with respect to each other.

Furthermore, the first side wall 3 of a first container/building block can be assembled to the second side walls 5 of two further container/building blocks. In case container/building block elements of a single volume are used, two first contact members 8 of the first element engage two second contact members 9 on the second side wall 5 of a second and two third contact members 9 on the second side wall 5 of a third element.

It is also possible to engage part of the contact members 9 on the second side wall 5 of a first element into the contact members 10 on the bottom wall 2 of a second element, and to engage the remaining free contact members 9 of the first element into contact members 10 on the bottom wall 2 of a third element.

It is further possible to engage part of the third connecting members on the bottom wall 2 of a first element with their inner protrusions 12 into the first connecting members 8 of a second element and to let the second connecting members 9 of a third element engage the remaining free third connecting members of the first element.

Finally, an element of a single volume as shown in figure 7, can be assembled with either its first or second side wall or bottom wall to four further elements that are assembled for example in a square.

In case container/building blocks with different sizes are used, two single containers can for example be assembled to one or two or more assembled container/building blocks with a double volume. Numerous other variations are possible. The containers/building blocks of the present invention are preferably made of plastic, by the process of injection moulding. In that way a large amount of containers/building blocks can be produced at low costs.

Suitable plastics according to the invention are for example polypropylene, polyethylene, polyvinylchloride, ABS, polyethylene therephtalate. The containers/building blocks can have any desired colour. Since the containers/building blocks according to the invention are intended to be used as a toy, after their content has been consumed, it is important that they be attractive to children and have for example different and pleasant colours.

The container/building blocks according to the invention can also comprise further construction means. Examples of such further construction means plates with a flat upper surface, whereby connecting members are applied to the bottom. This allows to obtain constructions with a flat surface. The container/building blocks of the invention can also be made of a material that is transparent to light. In that way constructions containing window-like elements can be obtained.

List of references.

1. container/building block

2. bottom wall

3. side wall

4. side wall

5. side wall

6. side wall

7. upper surface

8. first connecting member

9. second connecting member

10 third connecting member

11. outer protrusion

12. inner protrusion

13. rim

14. notches

15. stacking notches

16. perforation

17. inner cavity

18. further cavity

19. storage space

Claims

CLAIMS.

1. A container/building block element, which element comprises at least one side wall enclosing a storage space, at least one of said side walls being provided with connecting means, said connecting means comprising a first and a second connecting member, characterised in that said first connecting member comprises a first protrusion extending perpendicular to said side wall, and said second connecting member comprises a second protrusion with an inner cavity extending perpendicular to said side wall, whereby upon assembling a first and a second of said elements, the first protrusion of said first element is engageable into said cavity of said second protrusion of said second element in a direction perpendicular to said side wall.

2. Container/building block element according to claim 1 , characterised in that said element comprises a bottom wall and the connecting means comprise a third connecting member applied on said bottom wall, which third connecting member comprises a third protrusion extending perpendicular to said bottom wall and forming a further inner cavity on said bottom wall, whereby upon assembling said first element with a third one, the second protrusion of said first element is engageable into said further cavity of said third protrusion of said third element in a direction perpendicular to said bottom wall.

3. Container/building block element according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that in said further inner cavity of the third connecting member, an inner protrusion is applied extending perpendicular to said bottom wall, and said first protrusion comprises a perforation dimensioned to receive said inner protrusion of said third connecting member upon assembling of two elements.

4. Container/building block according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterised in that said first and second connecting members are applied on opposite sides of said storage space.

5. Container/building block according to any one of claims 3-4, characterised in that said first protrusion is substantially triangularly shaped with cut off edges, said second protrusion is substantially annularly shaped and said third and inner protrusions are substantially annularly shaped.

6. Container/building block according to any one of claims 2-5, characterised in that said first and second side walls each comprise at least two connecting members, whereby adjacent connecting members are applied at a predetermined distance.

7. Container/building block according to any one of claims 2-6, characterised in that said bottom wall comprises at least two connecting members, whereby adjacent connecting members are applied at a predetermined distance.

8. Container/building block according to any one of claims 2-7, characterised in that said side and bottom walls are rectangularly shaped, and said first, respectively second, respectively third connecting members are each time applied to said first, respectively second side walls and bottom wall with a multiplicity of four.

9. Container/building block according to any one of claims 1-8, characterised in that the first and second connecting members have a length and the container comprises a rim, which rim surrounds the at least one side wall along the open upper wall and extends therefrom over a distance which is approximately equal to half of the length of the first and second connecting members.

10. Container/building block according to any one of claims 2-8, characterised in that the third connecting members have a length which is approximately half the height of said first and second connecting members.

11. Container/building block according to any one of claims 2-7, characterised in that in said inner cavity against said second protrusion of said second connecting member at least two notches are provided.