AU2002301572B2

AU2002301572B2 - Improved palletised base for a bulk liquid container

Info

Publication number: AU2002301572B2
Application number: AU2002301572A
Authority: AU
Inventors: Raja Padmanabhan; Nigel Paul Smith
Original assignee: Rees Operations Pty Ltd
Current assignee: Rees Operations Pty Ltd
Priority date: 2001-10-22
Filing date: 2002-10-22
Publication date: 2007-06-07
Anticipated expiration: 2022-10-22

Description

Regulation 3.2

AUSTRALIA

PATENTS ACT 1990 COMPLETE

SPECIFICATION

FOR A STANDARD

PATENT

ORIGINAL

Name of Applicant: Rees Operations Pty Ltd Actual Inventors: Raja Padmanabhan Nigel Paul Smith Address for Service: MADDERNS, 1st Floor, 64 Hindmarsh Square, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia Invention title: IMPROVED PALLETISED BASE FOR A BULK LIQUID

CONTAINER

Details of Associated Provisional Application No: PR 8356 dated 2 2nd October 2001.

The following statement is a full description of this invention, including the best method of performing it known to us.

(PatAU131) This invention relates to an improved collapsible materials handling container of the kind which includes a generally rectangular palletised base, two pairs of opposed interconnected side panels which, when in their erect in-use positions, extend vertically upwards from respective sides of the container base, and a lid or top panel supported on the upper edges of the side panels when the cage is erected so as to close off the top end of the container. In particular, the invention is directed to an improved palletised base of a collapsible container for the freighting and storage of bulk liquid materials.

The applicant is aware of numerous collapsible container designs which are suitable to store and transport bulk liquids (including hazardous or non-hazardous liquids), this being an alternative to heavy steel drums which are both expensive and space consuming when return shipment is made in the empty condition. Generally, such prior art bulk liquid storage containers employ an inner collapsible liquid impermeable bag, liner or bladder which is provided with outlet means such as an outlet cock or spout to enable to the contents of the bag or bladder to be discharged or emptied when required, the outlet means normally extending through an opening formed in the front panel of the container adjacent its lower edge.

Generally, the palletised base comprises a base frame which includes an upper deck frame, a lower deck frame, short length vertical uprights secured to and extending between the upper and lower deck frames, and four angle section stub corner posts which also support the upper and lower deck frames at each of the four corners of the base. Each of the upper and lower deck frames comprise peripheral frame members and intersecting intermediate frame members extending at right angles to one another, all of the frame members being formed of angular or tubular metal. A horizontal tray-like floor, generally of sheet metal, is supported by the upper deck frame the floor normally being permanently attached on top thereof.

The materials handling industry is extremely competitive and one of the prime design factors for manufacturers of collapsible storage containers is the fabrication costs and the need to lessen the cost of manufacture of such units.

Existing palletised bases, particularly those of the type as described hereinabove, are costly to fabricate due to the number of componentry required to form the upper and lower deck frames and the interconnecting uprights therebetween. It would be advantageous if the palletised base construction could be simplified and made less expensive.

An object of the present invention therefore is to provide an improved palletised base for a collapsible bulk liquid storage container which can be constructed in a simple, inexpensive manner and which significantly reduces the number of componentry needed for its fabrication.

Another problem associated with prior art bulk liquid containers is their inability to allow the liquid bag or bladder to completely drain or empty, this being due in part to the requirement for the outlet spout or cock being located through an opening formed in the front panel of the container above the level of the container floor. It would be advantageous therefore if the location of the outlet spout could be located at a level lower than the level of the pallet base floor.

It is another object of the present invention therefore to provide an improved palletised base for a collapsible materials handing container which allows the liquid bag/bladder to be more conveniently located within the base, and in particular, the location and fitment of the outlet means of the bag/bladder, while at the same time enabling the bag/bladder to be more effectively emptied of its contents.

Broadly according to this invention therefore, an improved palletised base for a collapsible bulk liquid storage container, comprises: a floor having a front edge, a rear edge and opposite sides; stub corner posts, each of angle section, fixed vertically at the four corners of the floor, the corner posts extending above the plane of the floor; and spaced apart transverse base support members, arranged to support the floor on the underside thereof, characterised in that; the floor is formed from a unitary metal sheet having upper horizontal land portions on opposite sides of a centrally located upwardly opening channel or trough which extends rearwardly from the front edge of the floor, and depending side walls extending along the opposite sides of the floor and which are fixed to respective pairs of said corner posts, wherein the transverse support members are each secured at opposite ends thereof to the lower ends of said side walls of the floor and also at an intermediate location to the underside of the channel or trough.

Desirably, the side walls of the floor terminate in inwardly directed flanges to which are welded the transverse base support members.

With this arrangement, the need for an upper deck frame, as well as intermediate uprights between the lower and deck frames, is avoided. The one-piece folded sheet metal floor not only simplifies the structure of the pallet base but is of sufficiently high strength to withstand the significant external forces or loading to which the base is normally subjected during handling and transportation. In addition, the channel or trough formed in the middle section of the floor allows below floor discharge for the liquid bag/bladder and avoids the necessity to have an opening formed in the wall of the front panel of the container. In addition, the channel or trough increases the holding capacity of the container due to extra liquid storage space below the level of the floor.

It will of course be realised however that the palletised base of this invention allows only two-way forklift and pallet truck access rather than the normal fourway forklift access with conventional pallet bases which have a horizontal planar floor.

Another problem associated with known collapsible bulk liquid storage containers is their limited access to the interior of the erected container in order to fit the plastic liquid storage bag/bladder in the base of the container.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an improved collapsible bulk liquid storage container which is designed to allow easy access for fitting the bag/bladder in the base thereof.

According to another embodiment of the present invention, there is provided an improved collapsible bulk liquid storage container comprising: a palletised base as defined hereinabove, a pair of opposite side panels hinged to or with respect to the floor for folding inwardly thereonto, one on top of the other in overlying relationship, a pair of opposed front and rear end panels or gates each detachably mounted with respect to the floor between a respective pair of said stub posts, whereby each of the front and rear gates/panels can be bodily removed from the base and thereby provide full width access to the interior of the container with the pair of opposite side panels in an erected condition, and releasable locking means for releasably securing together adjacent upper corner portions of adjacent said panels/gates when the panels are in their erected inuse positions.

Preferably, each of the front and rear panels has its bottom edge resting directly on top of the upper horizontal edge of a skirting member which is secured to and extends between a pair of adjacent corner posts, with the height of one skirting member above the level of the floor being different to that of the other.

Desirably, each of the front and rear panels has a bottom peripheral frame member which has a downwardly depending flange offset with respect to the plane of the panel, whereby, with the panel supported on top of its associated said skirting member, the depending flange snugly engages against the outer wall surface of the skirting member and inhibits outward tilt of the panel.

Yet another problem with known liquid storage containers is their inability to properly support the bag or bladder (when full) without any wall portions of the bag extruding through small openings or crevices, eg between panel joints, which might otherwise result in pinching of the bag.

With this invention, this problem is addressed by having each of the front and rear panels having outwardly projecting elongate flanges extending along the opposite vertical sides of the panel on the inner face thereof, with said flanges being arranged to abut against respective vertical side frame members of the side panels.

With this arrangement, there are no inwardly opening gaps or crevices created between the joints between sides of adjacent panels when the container is erected.

Desirably, the locking means between the upper corner portions of adjacent panels, comprises interlockable studs/buttons and keyhole openings. Alternatively, sliding latch bolts can be used.

In order to more fully explain the present invention, a preferred embodiment is described hereunder in some further detail with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings wherein: Figure 1 is a perspective view of a bulk liquid storage container (shown in its erected in-use position) made in accordance with the present invention (the top or lid of the container being omitted), Figures 2(a) and bottom and top perspective views of the palletised base only of the collapsible container shown in Figure 1, Figure 3(a) is a front end elevational view of the pallet base shown in Figure 2, Figure 3(b) is an end view showing the profile of the floor only; Figure 4 is a top plan view of the pallet base (with the panel/gates removed), Figures 5(a) and are fragmentary perspective views showing the front panel when attached to its associated skirting member on the pallet base in its erect condition and also with the front panel when it has been lifted slightly upwards and is partly detached from its associated skirting member, respectively, while Figure 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of the releasable locking interconnection between adjacent upper corner portions of adjacent panels.

Referring to Figure 1 of the drawings, there is shown a collapsible container in an erected condition and which comprises a square or rectangular palletised base 11 which is provided at each of its four corners with angle section stub corner posts 12, the base 11 supporting a pair of hingedly mounted folding side panels 13, 14 and a pair of detachably mounted front and rear panels 15, 16. The lid or cover panel which is supported on top of the panels 13, 14, 15 and 16 is not shown.

The base 11 is formed by a one piece folded sheet metal floor 18, which is supported by front and rear bottom transverse battens 20, 22 each of which extends between opposite sides of the floor 18 and secured to its underside, at spaced locations thereacross, by welding. Preferably, the front and rear battens 20, 22 are formed from lengths of flat sheet metal. There may be more than two transverse metal battens used to support the floor 18. For example, an intermediate batten could be employed.

As shown clearly in Figure 3, the folded sheet metal floor 18 has a pair of horizontal land portions 25, 26, a central upwardly opening channel or trough 27 and opposite depending side wall portions 23, 24 which are secured at their ends with respect to the corner posts 12. The side walls of the channel 27 are shown as downwardly tapered, but may be parallel with one another. The front and rear ends of the channel or trough 27 are closed off by means of end plates 29, 30, with the front end plate 29 having an aperture formed therein to allow the spout or outlet cock of the liquid storage bag/bladder (not shown) to be inserted therethrough.

Each side wall 23, 24 terminates at its bottom edge in an horizontally inturned flange or lip 23', 24' respectively. The battens 20, 22 each have their ends secured, e.g.

by welding, to the lips 23', 24' on the underside thereof.

Each batten 20, 22 is also secured, e.g. by welding, at an intermediate location to the underside of channel 27 at or adjacent the front and rear ends thereof.

The folded sheet metal floor 18, while having an extremely simple structure, does have sufficiently high strength to withstand the impact forces normally encountered during the handling and transportation of the container. The channel or trough 27 formed in the middle section of the floor not only permits below base discharge of the contents from the liquid storage bag/bladder housed within the container, but also increases the holding capacity due to extra liquid storage space provided by the channel or trough.

The fixing of the ends of the side walls 23, 24 to the corner posts 12 can be done by welding directly to the inner surfaces of the flanges of the angle posts 12 or to angle gussets 31 (refer Figure 2b) fixed to the inside of the posts 12 so as to form a box section with the flanges of the posts. With the latter, the side walls 23, 24 can be spaced inwardly from their associated flanges of the posts 12.

In this embodiment, each of the side panels 13, 14 is pivotably mounted with respect to the floor by means of a "piano" type hinge which extends along the bottom edge of the panel as shown in Figure 1, the side panel 13 is hingedly mounted on top of an upstanding skirting wall 31, whereas the other side panel 14 is hingedly mounted directly to a horizontal edge portion of the floor 18. By mounting the panels 13, 14 at different heights, they are able to fold inwardly so as to lie horizontally on top of the floor 18, one of top of the other. The skirting wall 31 is preferably formed from channel section sheet metal with the opposite ends thereof being welded to aligned flanges of respective corner posts 12.

Each of the front and rear end panels 15, 16 respectively, is detachably mounted to upstanding skirting walls 34, 35 respectively, which are of different heights whereby the panels 15, 16 can be supported at different heights above the floor. In this embodiment, each of the skirting walls 34, 35 are formed from lengths of channel sheet metal.

Each panel 15, 16 has a bottom perimeter frame member 37 of angle section, with one of its flanges projecting downwardly from the bottom edge of the panel and being offset with respect to the plane of the panel. With the panel 15, 16 resting on top of the upper edge surface of the skirting wall 34, 35, the depending flange is designed to snugly engage against the outer wall surface of the skirting 34, 35 and thereby inhibit any outward tilt of the panel when in an upright condition. This is illustrated in Figures 5(a) and of the drawings.

In order to securely interlock the adjacent upper corner portions of adjacent panels, the vertical side frame members on one panel are provided with keyhole openings 40 (refer Figure 6) adjacent the upper ends thereof, while the vertical side frame members of an adjacent panel are provided with inwardly projecting studs or buttons 41 which cooperate with the keyhole openings 40 in order to effect such interlocking.

With the opposite side panels 13, 14 swung upwardly to their erect conditions, it is a relatively simple procedure to individually locate each of the front and rear end panels 15, 16 on top of their skirtings 34, 35 and interlock their upper corners with respective upper corner portions of the other panels 13, 14.

As also shown in Figure 6, the full height support provided along both vertical side of the detachable panels 15, 16, ie by means of vertical flanges 43 abutting against respective vertical side frame members of adjacent side panels, the bursting strength of these gates is significantly increased and furthermore avoids the likelihood of a portion of the liquid storage bag/bladder extruding through a gap or crevice between the joints of the panels.

A brief consideration of the above described embodiment will indicate that the invention provides a simple, inexpensive palletised base for a bulk liquid collapsible storage container and one which facilitates the fitment of the liquid bag/bladder therein. It is also designed to allow the liquid bag/bladder to be more effectively emptied or drained of its contents by providing a lower level discharge point.

Claims

1. An improved palletised base for a collapsible bulk liquid storage container, comprising: a floor having a front edge, a rear edge and opposite sides; stub corner posts, each of angle section, fixed vertically at the four corners of the floor, the corner posts extending above the plane of the floor; and spaced apart transverse base support members, arranged to support the floor on the underside thereof, characterised in that; the floor is formed from a unitary metal sheet having upper horizontal land portions on opposite sides of a centrally located upwardly opening channel or trough which extends rearwardly from the front edge of the floor, and depending side walls extending along the opposite sides of the floor and which are fixed to respective pairs of said corner posts, wherein the transverse support members are each secured at opposite ends thereof to the lower ends of said side walls of the floor and also at an intermediate location to the underside of the channel or trough.

2. A palletised base according to claim 1 wherein each of the side walls of the floor terminates in an horizontally inwardly directed flange to which are secured, e.g. by welding, respective ends of said transverse support members.

3. A palletised base according to claim 1 or 2 wherein the channel or trough extends between the front and rear edges of the floor.

4. A palletised base according to any one of claims 1 to 3 wherein the support members include front and rear elongate battens of sheet metal, said battens supporting the bottom wall of the channel or trough at or adjacent its front and rear ends.

A palletised base according to any one of the preceding claims wherein the front and rear ends of said channel or trough are closed off by means of end plates secured thereto, said front end plate having an aperture formed therein to permit the spout or outlet cock of a liquid storage bag/bladder to be located therethrough.

6. A collapsible bulk liquid storage container comprising: a palletised base according to any one of claims 1 to a pair of opposite side panels hinged to or with respect to the floor for folding inwardly thereonto, one on top of the other in an overlying relationship, a pair of opposed front and rear end panels each detachably mounted with respect to the floor between a respective pair of the said corner posts, wherein each of the front and rear gates/panels can be bodily removed from the palletised base and thereby provide full width access to the interior of the container with the pair of opposite side panels in an erected condition, and releasable locking means for releasably securing together adjacent upper corner portions of adjacent said panels when the panels are in their erected in-use positions.

7. A collapsible bulk liquid storage container according to claim 6 wherein each of the front and rear panels has its bottom edge resting directly on top of the upper horizontal edge of a skirting member which is secured to and extends between a pair of adjacent stud corner posts, with the height of one skirting member above the level of the floor being different to that of the other.

8. A collapsible bulk liquid storage container according to claim 7 wherein each of the front and rear panels has a bottom frame member which has a downwardly depending flange off-set with respect to the plane of the panel, whereby, with the panel supported on top of its associated said skirting member, the depending flange snugly engages against the outer wall surface of the skirting member so as to inhibit outward tilt of the panel.

9. A collapsible bulk liquid storage container according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein each of the front and rear panels has outwardly projecting elongate flanges extending along opposite vertical sides of the panel on the inner face thereof, said flanges, when the container is erected, being arranged to abut against respective vertical side frame members of the side panels.

A collapsible bulk liquid storage container according to claim 8 wherein said locking means comprises interlockable studs/buttons and respective key hole openings.

11. A palletised base or a collapsible bulk liquid storage container substantially ashereinbefore described with reference to and as illustrated in the accompanying drawings. DATED this 22nd day of October, 2002. REES OPERATIONS PTY LTD By their Patent Attorneys MADDERNS