AU2012261675A1 - Storage system - Google Patents

Abstract

A storage system 10 comprising: a support structure 11; at least two storage bins 20 supported by the support structure 11; and at least one hopper 16 associated with the storage bins 20 and adapted to facilitate the release of material from the storage system 10; wherein the storage bins 20 are prefabricated and are adapted to be secured to one another. Figure to be used with abstract: Figure 1 r

Description

1 STORAGE SYSTEM FIELD OF THE INVENTION 5 The present invention relates to a storage system, particularly a large scale or bulk storage system, for example for the storage of raw materials or product. More particularly, the invention relates to a storage system including a plurality of prefabricated bins adapted to engage one another in a nested arrangement. 10 BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION The bulk storage of various materials is known. Historically, materials have been stored or held in silos, which may take various forms. For example, 15 silos of generally cylindrical shape made from galvanized steel or other suitable material are known. These may be, for example, flat bottom silos or silos having a hopper provided at a lower end to facilitate the easy release of material from the silo. Such silos may be prefabricated or fabricated on site, generally depending on the size of the silos. 20 Storage systems are also known which include a plurality of elongate bins of square or rectangular cross section adjoining each other in an array. Such systems are generally fabricated on site by riveting or otherwise securing panels of metal together to form the bins. Generally, the metal panels are 25 provided with corrugations to ensure strength and mechanical integrity. However, fabrication is usually labor and cost intensive. Alternative storage systems have been proposed, for example bunker systems where the material to be stored or held is deposited in a large 30 mound on the ground, walled at the edges and covered with a tarp. Such systems are said to provide an effective barrier to moisture and pests, and 2 advantages in terms of set-up costs, portability and versatility in that they can be set-up on any soil type. The present invention advantageously provides an alternative storage 5 system which is cost effective and requires reduced labor effort on site during large scale set-up. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 10 According to an aspect of the invention there is provided a storage system comprising: a support structure; at least two storage bins supported by the support structure; and at least one hopper associated with the storage bins and adapted to 15 facilitate the release of material from the storage system; wherein the storage bins are prefabricated and are adapted to be secured to one another. The provision of prefabricated storage bins which are adapted to be secured 20 to one another advantageously alleviates substantial costs associated with onsite construction of some conventional storage systems, particularly those fabricated from metal panels riveted or otherwise secured to one another. Although the storage system may comprise only two storage bins, the 25 storage system will generally include a plurality of storage bins supported by the support structure in an array. This will be discussed in more detail below. The storage bins are preferably either square or rectangular in cross section to facilitate close positioning of the storage bins relative to one another, 30 particularly in an array. However, other cross sections may also be applicable, for example hexagonal and so on. The nested array may take any form. For example, this may be an array of "x" by "y" storage bins, where 3 both "x" and "y" are dictated by the particular application of the storage system and the volume of storage required. When in an array, the storage bins may all be interconnected (i.e. such that the array is effectively a single unit comprising the array of storage bins). The storage bins may also be 5 paired or grouped together in the array. For example, a 6x2 array may include a group of 4 storage bins secured to one another in a 2x2 array with pairs of storage bins secured to one another (i.e. in 1x2 arrays) disposed at either end of the 2x2 array. 10 In order to ensure strength and mechanical integrity, the storage bins are preferably prefabricated from corrugated metal sheeting. The form of corrugation is not particularly limited, but may be dependent on the dimensions of the storage bins and the material to be held therein. 15 In a particularly preferred embodiment, in order to substantially reduce costs associated with set-up of the storage system, each of the storage bins is a shipping container. It is envisaged that the use of existing shipping containers as storage bins in a storage system will substantially reduce costs associated with set-up of the storage system to a fraction of that associated 20 with conventional systems. Furthermore, the use of existing shipping containers for this purpose has flow on advantages relating to securing the storage bins to one another as will be discussed in more detail below. It should be appreciated that according to this embodiment the shipping containers are disposed on their ends in the array, not on their sides. Also, 25 the doors at least at the lower ends of the shipping containers which are associated with the at least on hopper are removed. That is, the lower ends of the shipping containers are open to the hoppers. If the storage bins are not shipping containers, they may be of any desired 30 dimensions, generally depending on the intended purpose (i.e. type and amount of material to be stored or held). If formed from shipping containers, it is believed that any standard size shipping container, including 8, 10, 20, 4 30 and 40 foot containers, may be appropriate (i.e. external length of the container). The storage bins may be secured to one another by any means, for example 5 riveting, welding or otherwise. However, these forms of securing are not preferred. Preferably, the storage bins are secured to one another by locking mechanisms. More preferably, the locking mechanisms are twist locks. In one embodiment that is particularly preferred, the locking mechanisms are twist locks of the kind used to secure shipping containers. For example, the 10 twist lock may include a body which is secured to a storage bin (e.g. a shipping container) and an associated cone which includes a shaft that inserts into the body. The cone is rotatable and generally elliptical or has its base truncated on either side. As such, when the cone is rotated, for example by a handle associated with the body of the twist lock, it may be 15 moved from a non-locking to a locking orientation. In use, the cone extends into an aperture of a corner of an adjacent storage bin (e.g. shipping container) such that when it is rotated to the locking orientation the storage bins are secured to one another. 20 It is envisaged that in certain embodiments it may be appropriate to provide a single hopper for two or more storage bins. Alternatively, each of the storage bins may be associated with a hopper at a lower end thereof. According to preferred embodiments, material stored in the storage bins may be selectively released from the storage system by opening a respective 25 hopper. The hoppers associated with the storage bins generally include a conical section connected with and extending from the lower end of a respective storage bin or bins. An outlet is provided which operates between an open 30 orientation and closed orientation, the outlet being operable between the open and closed orientations manually, or in an automated fashion.

5 The hoppers are generally mounted on or secured to the support structure. In that regard, in its simplest form the support structure includes a number of spaced upright structural supports associated with beams to form a frame. However, the form of the support structure is not particularly limited and may 5 be dictated by the particular application of the storage system. Material being released from the storage bins through the hoppers may be transferred to a conveyor belt or other mechanism for transporting the material away from the storage system. The hoppers may also provide 10 clearance such that transport vehicles, such as trucks or trains, can be positioned beneath the hoppers to receive material and transport it to desired destinations. The storage bins may be mounted directly on the hopper or hoppers if 15 desired. However, generally a support frame is disposed between the storage bins and the at least one hopper. For example, if the storage system includes a 4x2 array of storage bins, each being associated with a respective hopper, the support frame will generally include a complimentary 4x2 array which frames the walls of each of the storage bins and the opening of the 20 associated hoppers. This will be appreciated from the following detailed description of the invention. The support frame preferably includes locking mechanisms for securing the storage bins thereto. Again, the form of the locking mechanisms is not 25 particularly limited. In certain embodiments, for example, the locking mechanisms of the support frame are twist locks. These may be of the same or similar kind as mentioned above. In a particular embodiment of the invention there is provided a storage 30 system comprising: a support structure; a plurality of hoppers associated with the support structure; 6 a support frame associated with the plurality of hoppers; and a plurality of prefabricated storage bins in an array and mounted on the support frame, the storage bins being associated with said hoppers; wherein the storage bins are secured to one another by locking 5 mechanisms and the support frame includes locking mechanisms for securing the storage bins thereto. As discussed above, the storage bins are preferably shipping containers. Likewise, the locking mechanisms are preferably twist locks, such as those 10 generally used with shipping containers. Other features and embodiments of this embodiment of the invention may be gleaned from the above summary of the invention. 15 DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION A more detailed description of the invention will now be provided with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be appreciated that the drawings are provided fro illustration only and should not be construed as 20 limiting on the invention in any way. In the drawings: Figure 1 illustrates a perspective view of a storage system; Figure 2 illustrates a side view of the storage system of Figure 1; Figure 3 illustrates an end view of the storage system of Figure 1; 25 Figure 4 illustrates an exploded perspective view of the storage system of Figure 1; Figures 5A and 5B illustrate perspective views of a twist lock; Figures 6A to 6D illustrate perspective views of the twist lock of Figures 5A and 5B in use; 30 Figure 7A and 7B illustrate views of an alternative twist lock; Figure 7C illustrates an exploded perspective view of the twist lock of Figures 7A and 7B; and 7 Figures 8A to 8C illustrate perspective views of the twist lock of Figures 7A to 7C in use. Referring to Figures 1 to 4, a storage system 10 is illustrated. The storage 5 system 10 includes a support structure 11 which includes a plurality of spaced upright structural supports 12. The upright structural supports 12 are associated with beams 13 to ensure the support structure 11 adequately supports the components of the storage system 10. A support frame 14 provides additional structural integrity to the support structure 11. The 10 support frame 14 is secured to upper ends of the upright structural supports 12 and includes a plurality of openings 15 corresponding to other components of the storage system 10 as discussed below. The support structure 11 will generally be fabricated from steel. 15 A plurality of hoppers 16 are mounted on the support structure 11 in an array. The array of the hoppers corresponds with that of the plurality of openings 15 of the support frame 14. The hoppers 16 are generally conical in shape and include a chute 17 at their upper ends and an outlet 18 at their lower ends generally operable between open and closed orientations. The 20 chutes 17 are of a form that facilitates good flow of the material stored within the storage system 10. As illustrated, the chutes 17 include corrugations, although any design may be equally suitable. Likewise, the cross-sectional shape of the chutes 17 illustrated is square or rectangular. The chutes 17 could equally be circular or ovular in cross-section. 25 The outlets 18 of the hoppers 16 are associated with the chutes 17 thereof. A single outlet 18 may be provided for each of the chutes 17, or it may be equally viable for a single outlet 18 to be provided for a pair of chutes 17 or any number of chutes 17. The outlets 18 may open onto a conveyor system 30 19, for example two collection chain conveyors which feed to the centre of the storage system 10 and onto a single moving chain conveyor that fills waiting trucks or bulka bags. The conveyor system 19 may equally include 8 bolt conveyors or screw conveyors and the invention is not particularly limited in this respect. The outlets 18 may alternatively open directly to transport vehicles located beneath the hoppers 16. The design may be dependent on the material to be stored in the storage system 10, the requirements of the 5 operator or any other variable associated with the particular application of the storage system 10 or the site on which it is situated. The storage system 10 includes a plurality of prefabricated storage bins which, as illustrated, are shipping containers 20. The shipping containers 20 10 are mounted on the support frame 14 and open onto respective hoppers 16. In use, the lower ends 21 of the shipping containers 20 have the doors thereof removed so that they are open ended. The upper ends 22 of the shipping containers 20 may have their doors removed so that they are also open ended, or may retain their doors so that they are closed. Generally, the 15 upper ends 22 of the shipping containers 20 will have their doors removed to facilitate introduction of the material to be stored in the storage system 10. The shipping containers 20 are advantageously formed from corrugated metal and have the requisite structural integrity for storage of many 20 materials. The shipping containers 20 may be of any suitable dimension, including but not necessarily limited to the dimensions that conventionally apply to shipping containers (i.e. 8, 10, 20, 30 and 40 foot). In their conventional form, the shipping containers 20 include corner castings 25 on their corners 23. Therefore, the shipping containers 20 may be secured to one another with relative ease to form an array. As depicted, the array of shipping containers 20 is a 6 by 2 array. However, the array may take any form and the invention is not limited to the particular array depicted. Generally, apertures in the corner castings are adapted to receive a portion 30 of a locking mechanism, such as a twist lock which is described in more detail below. Likewise, corners 24 and intersections 25 on the mounting frame 14 may also be provided with locking mechanisms, such as twist 9 locks, which engage apertures in the corner castings of the shipping containers 20. A number of twist locks and other locking mechanisms are available for 5 securing shipping containers to the deck of a ship and to one another. Some examples are discussed below, but it should be understood that the invention is not limited to those embodiments illustrated and other mechanisms may be equally suitable. 10 Referring to Figures 5A and 5B, a twist lock 50 includes a body 51 provided with an aperture 52 through which a handle 53 extends. In this embodiment, the handle 53 is moveable from left to right corresponding to unlocked and locked orientations as discussed below. Thus, the twist lock 50 is a right hand locking twist lock. A left hand locking twist lock may be equally suitable. 15 A cone 54 is disposed on one side of the body 51 and includes a thread or shaft (not shown) that extends into the body 51 and engages the handle 53. The cone 54 is configured such that it is complimentary with and extends through apertures in corner castings of the shipping containers 20. The body 20 51 includes a ridge 55 which in use is received by the apertures in the corner castings of the shipping containers 20. An abutment surface 56 substantially surrounds the ridge 55 and, in use, abuts the surfaces of the corner castings of the shipping containers 20 immediately surrounding the apertures. This will be appreciated with reference to the discussion of Figures 6A to 6D 25 below. According to the embodiment of Figures 5A and 5B, an anchor 57 is provided on an opposing side of the body 51. The anchor 57 includes a lip 58 that extends parallel to an underside of the body 51 and which, in use, 30 engages a surface to which the twist lock 50 is to be secured and anchors it in place.

10 Figure 5A illustrates the twist lock 50 in an unlocked orientation. In this orientation, the cone 54 is aligned with the ridge 55 of the twist lock 50 facilitating insertion of the cone 54 and ridge 55 into an aperture in a corner casting of a shipping container 20. In the locked orientation, as illustrated in 5 Figure 5B, the cone 54 lies transverse to the ridge 55 such that its ends project past the sides of the ridge 55. This facilitates engagement of the cone 54 with the corner casting of the shipping container 20. Referring to Figures 6A to 6C, corners 23 of the shipping containers 20 10 include corner castings 60 as depicted. These include apertures 61 adapted to receive the anchor 57 or cone 54 of the twist lock 50. The abutment surface 56 abuts the corner casting 60 on surfaces surrounding the aperture 61. An abutment surface (not shown) surrounding the anchor 57 also abuts a surface of a corner casting 60. 15 Similar castings may be located at the corners 24 and/or intersections 25 on the support frame 14. Alternatively, the corners 24 and/or intersections 25 of the support frame 14 may include integral twist locks substantially corresponding to the body 51, ridge 55 and cone 54 of the twist lock 50 20 depicted in figures 5A-5B and 6A-6D. In either case, the cone is engaged with a corner casting 60 of a shipping container 20 located on the support frame 14. Generally, the anchor 57 is secured to a corner casting 60 by aligning the 25 anchor 57 with the aperture 61 and rotating the twist lock such that the anchor 57 no longer aligns with the aperture (as shown in Figures 6B to 6C). It will be appreciated from these figures that the longitudinal axis of the anchor 57 is offset with that of the ridge 55 and cone 54 (best illustrated in Figure 6A). As such when the anchor 57 is aligned with the aperture 61 of 30 the corner casting 60, the ridge 55 and cone 54 are offset to the aperture 61 (see Figure 6B). As the twist lock 50 is rotated, the lip 58 engages an inner underside of the corner casting 60 surrounding the aperture 61 and locks the 11 twist lock 50 in place while also aligning the ridge 55 and cone 54 with the aperture 61 (see Figure 6C). When the twist locks 50 are locked in place, or if the twist locks are provided 5 as integral fixtures on the support frame 14, a shipping container 20 can be located on respective twist locks 50 such that the ridges 55 and cones 54 of the twist locks 50 are inserted into apertures 61 on corner castings 60 located on each corner 23 of the shipping container 20 (see Figure 6C). Once in place, the handles 53 of the twist locks 50 can be moved to locked 10 orientations thereby rotating the cones 54 of the twist locks 50 within the corner castings 60. The cones 54 then engage the corner castings 60 securing them in place on the twist locks 50. Turning to Figures 7A to 7C, an alternative form of twist lock 70 is depicted. 15 In this embodiment, the upper portion of the twist lock 70 is virtually the same as that illustrated in Figures 5A and 5B, including a body 71 provided with an aperture 72. A handle 73 is located in the aperture 72 and moveable from right to left corresponding to unlocked and locked orientations. As such, this embodiment illustrates a left handed twist lock. A cone 74a engages the 20 handle 73 such that movement of the handle 73 between the locked and unlocked orientations results in like movement of the cone 74a. As seen in Figure 7C, the handle 73 may also be integral with a shaft 79 associated with or joined to the cone 74a, and also a second cone 74b as discussed in more detail below. 25 In Figure 7A, the cone 74a is in an unlocked orientation in which it is aligned with an associated ridge 75a. The second cone 74b is slightly out of alignment with an associated ridge 75b. This will be discussed in more detail below with reference to Figures 8A to 8C. 30 In Figure 7B, the cone 74a is in a locked orientation, as is the second cone 74b. This is evident as both cones 74a and 74b are orientated transverse to 12 their respective ridges 75a and 75b which are integral with the body 71. This is also evident as the handle 73 on this left handed twist lock 70 is rotated to the left side of the aperture 72. As depicted in Figure 7C, the body 71 and ridges 75a and 75b may be formed from two body halves 71a and 71b that 5 are secured together by appropriate means, such as bolts 76 and nuts 77 as illustrated. In the embodiment illustrated, a spring 78a and bumper block 78b are also provided. Resilience or loading may, however, be achieved by any suitable means. 10 The alignment of the second cone 74b is offset compared with that of the cone 74a, as best seen in Figure 7C. This difference in alignment is similar to that provided by the cone 54 and anchor 57 of the twist lock 50 shown in Figures 5A and 5B. It also serves the same purpose. In that regard, turning to Figures 8A to 8C, in use the handle 73 is moved slightly to the left of the 15 aperture 72 such that the second cone 74a aligns with the ridge 75b such that both the ridge 75b and cone 74b may be inserted into the aperture 61 of the corner casting 60 (see Figure 8A). In this orientation, the cone 74a is slightly out of alignment with the ridge 75a. 20 Once the ridge 75b and cone 74b are inserted into the aperture 61, the handle 73 may be moved to the far right of the aperture 72 thereby displacing the second cone 74b out of alignment with the aperture 61. The degree of misalignment of the second cone 74b with the aperture 61 corresponds with the degree of misalignment of the cone 74a with the 25 aperture 61 as illustrated in Figure 8A. This facilitates locking of the twist lock 70 onto the corner casting 60. The cone 74a, on the other hand, comes into alignment with the ridge 75a in readiness for a corner casting 60 of an adjacent shipping container 20 to be engaged. Once the cone 54a and ridge 55a are inserted into the aperture 61 of a corner casting 60, the handle 73 is 30 moved from the right to left of the aperture 72. This causes both cones 74a and 74b to rotate within their respective corner castings 60 such that both 13 cones 74a and 74b engage inner surfaces of the corner castings 60 locking the shipping containers 20 together. Regarding the assembly of the storage system 10, a shipping container 20 5 has one sealed end and one end with two doors, and all containers are configured with ISO blocks at each corner for fixing to floors and each other via universal twist-locks. For assembly of the storage system 10, firstly the two doors and hinges of the shipping container 20 are removed and the corner castings 60 modified as needed so that they can be connected via 10 twist-lock or welded/bolted mounting plates to the bin support structure 11. Access to fill the shipping containers 20 is via inlets cut into the sealed end of the shipping containers 20. For multiple container configurations, the shipping containers 20 are connected via twist-locks connections to the main support structure 11 and also connected to each other via twist-locks 15 connections. As also noted above, connection may be via welding or bolting. It is envisaged that the storage system may be suitable for use in a variety of fields, including for example the storage of grain or agricultural product, cement, coal, woodchips or any other material. The storage system is 20 advantageously easy to assemble compared with conventional systems and set-up involves substantially less costs. Environmentally the storage system also provides advantages as it may provide a suitable option for recycling of used shipping containers. 25 Unless the context requires otherwise or specifically stated to the contrary, integers, steps or elements of the invention recited herein as singular integers, steps or elements clearly encompass both singular and plural forms of the recited integers, steps or elements. 30 Throughout this specification, unless the context requires otherwise, the word "comprise", or variations such as "comprises" or "comprising", will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated step or element or integer or 14 group of steps or elements or integers, but not the exclusion of any other step or element or integer or group of steps, elements or integers. Thus, in the context of this specification, the term "comprising" is used in an inclusive sense and thus should be understood as meaning "including principally, but 5 not necessarily solely". It will be appreciated that the foregoing description has been given by way of illustrative example of the invention and that all such modifications and variations thereto as would be apparent to persons of skill in the art are 10 deemed to fall within the broad scope and ambit of the invention as herein set forth.

Claims (12)

1. A storage system comprising: a support structure; 5 at least two storage bins supported by said support structure; and at least one hopper associated with storage bins and adapted to facilitate the release of material from said storage system; wherein said storage bins are prefabricated and are adapted to 10 be secured to one another.

2. A storage system according to claim 1, including a plurality of storage bins supported by said support structure in an array. 15

3. A storage system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein each of said storage bins is a shipping container.

4. A storage system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein said storage bins are secured to one another by locking 20 mechanisms.

5. A storage system according to claim 4, wherein the locking mechanisms are twist locks. 25

6. A storage system according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein each pair of said storage bins is associated with a hopper at a lower end thereof.

7. A storage system according to any one of the preceding claims, 30 including a support frame disposed between said storage bins and said at least one hopper. 16

8. A storage system according to claim 7, wherein said support frame includes locking mechanisms for securing said storage bins thereto.

9. A storage system according to claim 8, wherein the locking 5 mechanisms of the support frame are twist locks.

10. A storage system comprising: a support structure; a plurality of hoppers associated with the support structure; 10 a support frame associated with said plurality of hoppers; and a plurality of prefabricated storage bins in an array and mounted on said support frame, said storage bins being associated with said hoppers; wherein said storage bins are secured to on another by locking 15 mechanisms and said support frame includes locking mechanisms for securing said storage bins thereto.

11. A storage system according to claim 10, wherein said storage bins are shipping containers. 20

12. A storage system according to claim 10 or 11, wherein said locking mechanisms are twist locks.