FR2706156A1 - Collapsible case - Google Patents

Abstract

The collapsible case according to the invention is of the type of those comprising a lower wall (1), a first pair of opposite vertical walls (14) and a second pair of opposite vertical walls (15). This case is characterised in that the lower wall (1) comprises, on each of two opposite sides, first means (8, 9, 11, 18, 19, 20, 21) of receiving and immobilizing in a separable manner a vertical wall (14) of the first pair, these first means cooperating with second complementary means (17', 22) of the lower part of the said wall (14) of the first pair, and in that each vertical edge of each vertical wall (14) of the said first pair comprises third means (26, 27, 31, 34, 35) for receiving and immobilizing in a separable manner the vertical edge of the adjacent vertical wall (15) belonging to the second pair of walls. Applicable in particular to the handling, transport and/or display of bottles of wine.

Description

DEMOUNTABLE BOX, THE
The present invention relates to a case for handling, transport and'or the exhibition or presentation of a wide variety of products, including wine bottles, this case being easily and quickly removable and reassemblable, which allows in particular its reuse and transport empty, in the disassembled state, in a small volume.

 This box is generally essentially made of wood and its walls are formed by panels of suitably spaced slats, assembled and stiffened.

 This removable box according to the invention, which comprises in a known manner a bottom wall, a first pair of opposite vertical walls and a second pair of opposite vertical walls, is characterized in that the bottom wall has, on each of two sides opposite, first means for receiving and immobilizing separable from a vertical wall of the first pair, these first means cooperating with second complementary means carried by the lower part of said wall of the first pair, and in that each edge vertical of each vertical wall of said first pair comprises third means for receiving and immobilizing separable from the vertical edge of the adjacent vertical wall belonging to the second pair of walls.

 Thus, the box according to the invention, from its disassembled state, can be easily mounted or assembled by fixing in place on the lower wall first the two vertical walls of the first pair, then by putting in place and fixing to these first two vertical walls the vertical walls of the second pair.

 Advantageously, the first and second means of reception and immobilization are of the type with interlocking by vertical displacement of said vertical wall of the first pair downwards, and, more preferably still, the first means comprise at least one housing open towards the top and the second means are constituted by at least one complementary projection directed downwards; this projection belongs, for example, to an upright or battens for stiffening and / or assembling the corresponding vertical wall.

 In a particular embodiment, these first reception and immobilization means comprise, for each reception and immobilization point, a horizontal C-shaped fitting and a horizontal immobilization pin passing successively through the fitting, an element of the wall lower and said projection, these three elements having aligned bores for receiving the spindle; this pin is for example a bolt which cooperates with a nut.

 As for the third means of reception and immobilization, they are advantageously constituted by a slide, for example a metal section fixed to said vertical wall, which defines a vertical channel intended to receive the free vertical edge of the adjacent vertical wall belonging to the second pair of vertical walls. This slide, the vertical wall to which it belongs and said free vertical edge, have for each immobilization point aligned horizontal holes for the reception of a horizontal immobilization pin, for example a bolt cooperating with a nut.

 The four vertical walls each have a panel which comes, for example, to rest by its lower edge on the upper surface of the lower wall.

 Advantageously, the bottom wall is in the form of a pallet to receive under its panel the teeth of a fork conveyor.

The invention will be clearly understood on reading the additional description which follows and with reference to the appended drawings which form part of the description and in which:
- Figure 1 is an exploded perspective view of the pallet-shaped bottom wall of a removable box established according to a preferred embodiment of the invention;
- Figure 2 is an exploded perspective view showing, in the disassembled state, the bottom wall of Figure 1, two adjacent vertical walls, as well as certain means for immobilizing the box according to the invention; and
- Figure 3 is a perspective view of the box of Figures 1 and 2 in the assembled state.

 There is shown in the drawings, and in particular in Figure 1, the bottom wall (1) of a removable box established according to a preferred embodiment of the invention.

 This lower wall (1) comprises a horizontal panel (2) which is constituted by the assembly of a plurality of identical slats (3), these slats being regularly spaced and being assembled by crosspieces (4) on which they are fixed. , for example by nailing or screwing, as shown in (5), possibly completed by gluing. For example, there are six slats (3) and three sleepers (4), namely a central, or intermediate, and two extreme side sleepers.

 Advantageously, the bottom wall (1) is in the form of a pallet and, for this purpose, it comprises a plurality of studs or feet (6), for example a stud at each angle, a stud in the middle of each side and a stud at center. The studs (6) are located between the crosspieces (4) and lower slats (7) which are perpendicular to the crosspieces (4) to reinforce the rigidity of the assembly.

The assembly of the studs (6) to the crosspieces (4) and to the slats (7) is carried out in any suitable manner, for example, as before, by nailing or screwing, possibly completed by gluing. For example, as shown in Figure 1, the pads (6) are connected three by three by three slats (7), two lateral (7a) and an intermediate (7b).

 The studs (6) are of two different structures, namely that the six studs (6a) located on the long sides of the panel (2) are intended, as will be seen later, for the reception and immobilization of two walls vertical of the body, and that the three remaining studs (6b), which are connected by the intermediate slat (7), are constituted by simple parallelepipeds.

 All the elements described above, namely the slats (3), the crosspieces (4), the studs (6) and the crosspieces (7) are made of wood.

 Each stud (6a) for receiving and immobilizing a vertical wall of the box extends laterally from the outline of the horizontal panel (2) to present two vertical projecting wings (8) which define between them an open parallelepiped housing (9) up and to the side. As can be seen in FIG. 1, the end wing (8) of each corner stud, or end stud, is slightly set back relative to the side of the rectangular panel (2) not comprising immobilization studs and reception.

 The two lateral lower slats (7a) also project laterally from the outline of the panel (2), and also from the end of the wings (8).

 The parallelepipedic housings (9) have a vertical bottom (10) which is located in the vertical plane containing the extreme transverse edge of a crosspiece (4) and the longitudinal edge of the associated slat (3), for a reason which will be indicated later.

 The housings (9) are machined by milling, prior to their assembly; this is why they are originally open on three sides.

After mounting the studs, the lower opening of each housing (9) is closed by the lower slat (7a), and for their part the upper and lateral ends remain open. The lateral end is then closed by a C-shaped fitting (11) of which the vertical central branch (12) is supported on the extreme vertical faces of the two wings (8) to laterally close the housing (9), and the extreme vertical wings (13) of which cover the external vertical faces of the wings (8). After assembly of the fittings (11), the outer face of the central branch (12) is located at the level of the longitudinal vertical edge of the lower associated assembly slat (7a).

 FIG. 2 shows not only the bottom wall (1) of FIG. 1 which has just been described, but also two vertical walls (14) and (15) which each belong to a pair of identical vertical walls. , and also their assembly means.

 The vertical wall (14) is intended, on the one hand, to be received and to be immobilized on the lower wall (1) and, on the other hand, to receive and, with the second wall (14), to immobilize the two opposite vertical walls (15).

 We will first describe the means for mounting and immobilizing the vertical wall (14) on the bottom wall (1).

 The vertical wall (14) is constituted by the assembly of identical and parallel horizontal slats (16), for example seven slats.

The assembly is carried out, by nailing or screwing, possibly completed by gluing, using three uprights or vertical battens (17), namely two end battens (17a) level with the corresponding vertical edge of the wall (14 ), and an intermediate cleat (17b). The three battens (17a, 17b) have a cross section which corresponds exactly to the cross section, for example square or rectangular, of the housings (9), and these three battens are projecting (17 ') downward relative to the edge lower horizontal of the vertical panel (14 ') constituted by the assembly of the slats (16), of a height hardly less than the distance which separates the upper horizontal surface of the lower wall (1) from the upper surface of the slat assembly (7a). In the upper part, the cleats (17) are level with the upper horizontal edge of the panel (14 ').

 The cleats (17) are fixed on the outside face of the panel (14 ') so that, when the lower part (17') of the cleats, projecting downwards, is fitted by a downward movement in the corresponding housing (9 ), the panel (14 ') is supported by its lower edge, that is to say that of the lowest slat (16a), against the upper face of the end slat (3a) of the lower horizontal panel (2); this is the reason why, as indicated above, the bottom (10) of the housing (9) is level with the transverse edge of the crosspieces (4) and the longitudinal edge of the end strip (3a).

 Because the housings (9) are laterally closed by the fittings (11), the vertical wall (14), when it is put in place, can only move vertically. To immobilize the vertical wall (14) in this direction with respect to the bottom wall (1), immobilization means are provided at each mounting point. These immobilization means are constituted by a horizontal pin which passes through the assembly constituted each time by the two wings (13) of the fitting (11), the stud (6a) and the projection (17 '). For example, this pin consists of a horizontal bolt (18) which cooperates with a nut (19) and which passes through the orifice (20) of each wing (13) of the fitting (11), the bore (21) of each wing (8) of the corresponding stud (6), and a bore (22) of the projection (17 '). When the fitting (11) and the vertical wall (14) are in place, the orifices and bores (20, 21 and 22) are of course aligned.

 For the establishment and fixing of the vertical wall (14) on the lower wall (1), the lower wall (1) is placed in a horizontal position on the ground, then the vertical wall (14) is put in place. making the three projections (17 ') penetrate into the housings (9), which is done either vertically or laterally, or even by combining these two movements, depending on whether the fittings (11) are in place or not.

 When the vertical wall (14) has been put in place, as well as the fittings (11), the three pins (18) are threaded and immobilized by the nuts (19).

 Of course, the lower wall (1) and the vertical wall (14) are each symmetrical with respect to a vertical median plane passing through the middle of the central stud (6b) and the median plane of the intermediate cleat (17b) so that a vertical wall (14) can be mounted on either of the two sides of the lower wall (1) carrying the studs (6a) for receiving and immobilizing a vertical wall.

 As indicated above, each vertical wall (14) is intended to receive and immobilize the other two vertical walls (15).

 As shown in Figures 2 and 3, each vertical wall (15) is, like the previous ones, constituted by the assembly of slats (23), for example seven slats, which are parallel and spaced. As shown in (24), the vertical wall (15) is mounted by nailing or screwing, possibly completed by gluing, on two oblique slats (25) which provide a free marginal zone along each vertical edge of the wall vertical (15), for a reason which will be indicated later. The oblique slats (25) are located on the outer face of the wall (15) when we consider the latter in place (Figure 3). At the top and bottom, the slats (25) are located at the upper edge and the lower edge of the panel (15 ') formed by the only slats (23). The panel (15 ') generally has the same height as the panel (14') but, in particular in the case where the box also serves as a display, for example in the case of the exhibition of wine bottles for the purpose of sale, the panel (15 ') could have a lower height, for example half, than that of the panel (14'), a removable additional panel can then be provided above the panel (15 ') to close the opening thus created during transport.

 To receive the associated free edge of the adjacent vertical wall (15), each vertical wall (14) comprises on its vertical edge, receiving and immobilizing means separable from the free vertical edge of this vertical wall (15).

In the preferred embodiment shown, these means comprise on each side, a vertical slide (26) which defines, with the body of the wall (14), a vertical channel (27) for receiving the free vertical edge of the wall ( 15). The slide (26) is for example constituted by a metal profile in
L, one branch (28) of which is screwed flat at (29) onto the outer face of the associated cleat (17a) and the other branch (30) of which is located at a distance from the vertical edge of the wall (14) and said cleat associated (17a) to define the vertical channel (27) whose width corresponds substantially to the thickness of the slats (23).

 To immobilize the wall (15) in the channel (27), the branch (30) has horizontal holes (31), the marginal zone of the wall (15) has corresponding horizontal holes (32) and the cleats ends (17a) have corresponding horizontal orifices (33), these various orifices being aligned, when the wall (15) is in place, so that a pin (34) with a threaded rod which cooperates with a nut (35) can be threaded ).

 When the two vertical walls (14) are in place and immobilized, the two other vertical walls (15) are put in place by sliding them down in the vertical channels (27), until the edge or edge lower of the panel (15 ') comes into abutment against the upper face of the lower horizontal panel (2), then the pins (34) are put in place, which pass through the holes (31, 32 and 33), and the nuts (35), which completes the mounting of a wall (15); we proceed in the same way for the other wall (15).

 Of course, each wall (15) is also symmetrical with respect to a median vertical plane in order to be able to be placed on one or the other of the two corresponding sides of the lower wall (1).

 There is shown in Figure (3) the body in the assembled state, assuming, for example, that the four walls (14 and 15) have the same height.

This box has great rigidity, because the vertical walls (14) are firmly held at their lower part on the lower wall (1) and that the other two vertical walls (15), not only are firmly held by the two walls (14), but constitute stiffeners for the latter.

 Of course, the invention is not limited to the embodiment which has been described; on the contrary, we could conceive of various variants without departing from its framework.

Claims (10)

 1) demountable body, comprising a bottom wall (1), a first pair of opposite vertical walls (14) and a second pair of opposite vertical walls (15), characterized in that the bottom wall (1) comprises, on each of two opposite sides, first means (8, 9,11,18,19,20,21) for receiving and immobilizing separable from a vertical wall (14) of the first pair, these first means cooperating with second means complementary (17 ', 22) of the lower part of said wall (14) of the first pair, and in that each vertical edge of each vertical wall (14) of said first pair comprises third means (26,27,31 , 34, 35) receiving and immobilizing separable from the vertical edge of the adjacent vertical wall (15) belonging to the second pair of walls.  2) demountable box according to claim 1, characterized in that said first and second means are of the interlocking type by vertical displacement of said vertical wall (14) of the first pair downwards.  3) demountable box according to claim 2, characterized in that said first means comprise at least one housing (9) open at the top and said second means are constituted by at least one projection (17 ') complementary directed downwards.  4) demountable box according to claim 3, characterized in that said projection (17 ') belongs to an amount or cleat (17) of stiffening and / or assembly of said vertical wall (14).  5) demountable box according to one of claims 3 and 4, characterized in that said first means comprise, for each immobilization point, a fitting (11) in the form of a horizontal C and a horizontal pin (18) immobilization successively passing through the fitting, an element (6a, 8) of the lower wall (1) and said projection (17 '), these three elements having aligned bores (20,21,22) for receiving the spindle (18).  6) demountable box according to claim 5, characterized in that the pin (18) is a threaded rod bolt cooperating with a nut (19).  7) demountable box according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the third means are constituted by a slide (26), for example a metal profile fixed to said vertical wall (14), which defines a vertical channel ( 27) intended to receive the free vertical edge of said adjacent vertical wall (15) belonging to the second pair of vertical walls (15).  8) demountable box according to claim 7, characterized in that said slide (26), the vertical wall (14) to which it belongs and said free vertical edge of the adjacent wall (15) comprise, for each point of immobilaiton, horizontal holes (31,33,32) aligned for the reception of a horizontal pin (34) immobilization, in particular a bolt with threaded rod cooperating with a nut (35).  9) demountable box according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the four vertical walls (14,15) each include a panel (14 ', 15') which comes to rest by its lower edge on the upper horizontal surface (2) of the lower wall (1).  10) demountable box according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the lower wall (1) is in the form of a pallet to be able to receive, under its upper panel (2) the teeth of a fork conveyor.