US2950078A - Skid-pallet combination - Google Patents

Description

Aug. 23, 1960 W W PHILLIPS SKID-PALLET COMBINATION Filed Sept. 14, 1959 Mi IM,

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WEN DELL w. PHILLIPS United States Patent SKID-PALLET COMBINATION Wendell W. Phillips, Indianapolis, Ind., assignor to Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, Ind., a corporation of Indiana Filed Sept. 14, 1959, Ser. No. 839,749

v4 Claims. (Cl. 248-120) This invention relates to skids such as are used in warehouses and the like to support goods for ready movement by fork lift trucks.

As is well known, skids are used to support a single load in spaced relation from the floor for easy pick up by a lift truck. Double-faced pallets are used primarily for supporting a second load upon a first load, the lower face of the pallet providing extensive bearing surface for resting upon the lower load and the upper face of the pallet supporting the upper load. Pallets having two faces are sometimes used as skids, i.e., with their lower face resting directly on the floor and the upper face supporting the load. Since pallets have two faces, they are generally more expensive than skids which have only the upper face.

In handling quantities of materials for storage, such as in warehousing operations, there is required, of necessity, a relatively large inventory of both forms of material-supporting devices, i .e., both skids and pallets.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a skid which is so constructed and arranged that it may, in combination with another skid of identical construction, be separably interfitted with said other skid to form a double-faced pallet whereby the large inventory above referred to may be substantially reduced.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent from the detailed description and claims to follow.

In the drawings:

Fig. l is an end elevation showing my improved skid loaded and also showing two of the skids assembled together to form a double-faced pallet which is also shown supporting a load,

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of my improved skid in upright position, certain parts being broken away for clearness of illustration, and

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2 but with a skid shown in inverted position ready for the skid shown in Fig. 2 to be slid into cooperative, companion position with it.

Referring now to Figs. 1 and 2, my improved skid includes three spaced-apart, longitudinally extending stringers or runners 1t), 11 and 12 of wood or other suitable material. A series of slats or deck boards of wood or other suitable material extend transversely across the upper edges of the runners and are secured thereto by nails, screws, or other suitable fastening means such as shown at 14. The outer end runner is positioned substantially flush with the ends of said deck boards 13. The inner face of runner 10 is provided with a cleat 15 adjacent the lower edge thereof, the upper face of the cleat lying in spaced relation to the under surface of deck boards 13. Cleat 15 preferably is shorter in length than runner 10 and its fore and aft ends are beveled as at 16. Runner 12 is likewise provided with a cleat 17 similar to the cleat '15, the cleat 17 being secured adjacent the lower edge of runner 12 in spaced relation from deck boards 13. The opposite ends of cleat 17 are beveled as at 18 similar to the bevels 16 provided f. ce

on cleat 15. Runner 12 and its cleat 17 are inset from the opposite ends of deck boards 13 a distance substantially equal to the thickness of runner 10 plus the width of its associated cleat means 15. Intermediate runner 11 is offset from the center of the distance between the inner opposed sides of end runners 10 and 12 an amount substantially equal to the thickness of said intermediate runner. With the structure as just described in upright position as shown in Fig. 2 there is provided a skid which will serve the purpose of the conventional three-runner skids presently commercially available. The materials such as indicated at 19 (Fig. 1) may be stacked for storage upon deck boards 13.

When it is desired to convert the skid into a doublefaced pallet, it is merely necessary to take another skid of identical construction and to invert it as shown in Fig. .3. The forks indicated in dot and dash lines at 20 (Fig. 2) of a lift truck (not shown) are moved under deck boards 13 of the upright skid (loaded or unloaded) and by means of the truck the upright pallet is slid in the direction of the arrows 21 into cooperative, companion position with the inverted skid shown in Fig. 3. The offset intermediate runners serve to guide the sliding together of the two skids and prevent any substantial lateral displacement therebetween. The cleat means 15 and 17 come into vertical alignment as shown in Fig. l and prevent any substantial vertical displacement of the skids with respect to each other as the thus formed pallet is raised for mounting say, upon-the load 19 as shown in Fig. 1. The beveled ends 16 and 18 of cleats 15 and 17, respectively, aid in effecting a smooth slidingtogether action. The opposed ends of each of the runners 10,11 and 12 may be, and preferably are, rounded adjacent their lower edges as at 22 to facilitate the sliding together of two skids to form a double-faced pallet.

It will thus be seen that I have provided a simple and inexpensive skid construction which lends itself to ready conversion into a double-faced pallet by simply longitudinally joining two skidstogether in the manner above described.

I claim:

'1. A skid usable separately as such or usable in combination with another skid of identical construction to form a double-faced pallet; said skid comprising two longitudinally extending end runners and one longitudinally extending intermediate runner; deck boards extending transversely across and secured to the upper edges of said runners; one end runner being positioned substantially flush with the ends of said deck boards; the other end runner being inset from the opposite ends of said deck boards; cleat means extending longitudinally of and secured to the inner side of said flush-positioned end runner and the outer side of said inset end runner in spaced relation from said deck boards; the distance of inset of said inset runner being substantially equal to the with respect to each other during use as a double-faced pallet. I

2. A skid usable separately as such or usable in combination with another skid of identical construction to form a double-faced pallet; said skid comprising two longitudinally extending end runners and one longitudi- 3 nally extending intermediate runner; deck boards eXtend ing transversely across and secured to the upper edges of said runners; one end runner being position substantially flush with the ends of said deck boards; the other end runner being inset from the opposite ends of said deck boards; cleat means extending longitudinally of and secured to the inner side of said flush-positioned end runher and the outer side of said inset end runner in spaced relation from said deck boards adjacent the lower edges of said inset and flush-positioned runners; the distance of inset of said inset runner being substantially equal to the thickness of said runner plus the width of its associated cleat means; and said intermediate runner being offset from the center between the inner, opposed sides of said 4 the two skids and preventing any substantial lateral displacement therebetween and said cleat means serving to prevent any substantial vertical displacement of the skids with respect to each other during use as a double-faced pallet.

3. A skid according to claim 1 wherein said cleat means on said inset and flush-positioned end runners terminate intermediate the ends of said runners and are provided with beveled ends.

4. A skid according to claim 1 wherein the oppose ends of each of said runners are rounded adjacent their lower edges to facilitate the said sliding together of the two skids to form a double-faced pallet.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

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