DE20114954U1 - Folding box - Google Patents

Description

PATENT ATTORNEYS JANNIG & REPKOW ■ KLAUSENBERG 20 · D-86199 AUGSBURG

JIANNIG

_ & REPKOW

PATENT ATTORNEYS

EUROPEAN PATENT AND TRADEMARK ATTORNEYS

DIPL.-ING. (UNIV.) PETER JANNIG DR.-ING. DIPL.-ING. INES REPKOW

KLAUSENBERG 20, D-86199 AUGSBURG GERMANY

TEL. 08 21/9 8193
Fax 08 21/9 81 95

TELEX 210 352 JUR D EMAIL J-U-R@T-ONLINE.DE

AUGSBURG,

10 Sept 2001

German utility model application

Our sign:

EN/G

Applicant:

Bernhard Kern
Boschstrasse 14
D-8 6399 Bobingen

FOLDING BOX

Description

Folding box

The present invention relates to a device according to the preamble of claim 1, i.e. a folding box with a side wall unit consisting of four wall elements, wherein each wall element forms a side wall of the folding box, and wherein the wall elements are connected to one another via hinges.

Such a folding box is known, for example, from DE 42 309 C2. In the folding box described there, the hinges by which the wall elements are connected have two hinge axes with a middle piece running between them. Such hinges allow the side wall unit to be folded up when necessary.

Such a box proves to be advantageous because it can be folded and unfolded quickly and easily, and because it takes up very little space when folded and is therefore inexpensive to store and transport.

However, there is a small limitation to the first point, i.e. the quick and easy folding and unfolding: very clumsy people may have difficulty unfolding the side wall unit.

The present invention is therefore based on the object of developing the folding box according to the preamble of claim 1 in such a way that it can be folded up and unfolded quickly and easily by anyone under all circumstances.

This object is achieved according to the invention by the box claimed in claim 1.

The box according to the invention is characterized in that the hinges each have a joint and two hinges, and that one of the hinges is a cranked hinge.

Because the hinges each have only one joint, folding and unfolding the box is completely unproblematic; such a box can be folded up quickly and easily by anyone under any circumstances.

Advantageous developments of the invention can be found in the dependent claims, the following description, and the figures.

The invention is explained below using an embodiment with reference to the figures. They show

Figure 1 is an exploded view of the box described in more detail below in the unfolded state,

Figure 2 shows a side wall unit of the box according to Figure 1 in the folded state,

Figure 3 shows a hinge by which adjacent wall elements of the side wall unit according to Figures 1 and 2 are connected to one another, and

Figures 4A and 4B are detailed views illustrating the special features of the connection of adjacent wall elements of the side wall unit according to Figures 1 and 2.

As can be seen from Figure 1, the folding box described below has a base part 1, a side wall unit 2, and a lid part 3.

The base part 1 is a pallet or a part resembling a pallet and consists of wooden supports 11 and a base plate 12 mounted thereon.

The base plate 12 has a length and a width that approximately correspond to the length and width of the space enclosed by the side wall unit 2, or are slightly smaller than these. The wooden supports 11 supporting the base plate 11 protrude laterally and at their ends beyond the base plate 11. When the box is properly assembled, the side wall unit 2 stands on the parts of the wooden supports 11 that protrude beyond the base plate 12, and the base plate 12 comes to lie within the side wall unit 2.

The side wall unit 2 has four rectangular wall elements 21, 22, 23 and 24, each of which forms a side wall of the box. The wall elements can be of different sizes, but the opposing wall elements 21 and 23 and 22 and 24 are each the same size. Adjacent wall elements are connected to one another by hinges 4, which will be described in more detail later.

The cover part 3 is a plate-shaped part, the length and width of which correspond approximately to the length and width of the side wall unit 2. The cover part 3 has elevations 31 on its side facing the side wall unit 2, which, when the cover part 3 is placed on the side wall unit 2, come to lie within the space enclosed by the side wall unit 2 and abut against the inner sides of the wall elements.

In the example considered, the base part 1, the side wall unit 2, and the cover part 3 are made of wood. However, they can

can also be made of any other material, such as plastic or metal.

In the example considered, the size of the base part 1 corresponds to the size of a Euro pallet. However, the base part (which determines the length and width of the box) can also be as much larger or smaller as desired. The height of the box (the height of the side wall unit 2) can also be chosen as desired and independently of the size of the base part 1.

Due to the connection of the wall elements 21 to 24 of the side wall unit 2 by the hinges 4, the side wall unit 2 can be folded up. When the side wall unit is folded up, it has the shape shown in Figure 2. The wall elements 21 and 23 lie next to each other with a certain height offset, the wall element 22 lies above the wall element 21, and the wall element 24 lies below the wall element 23.

For the sake of completeness, it should be noted that the state shown in Figure 2 illustrates only one of several possibilities for folding the box, and that the state shown results when the corner located between the wall elements 21 and 24 and the corner located between the wall elements 22 and 23 are pushed towards each other.

Figure 3 shows a plan view of a hinge 4, by means of which the adjacent wall elements 21 to 24 of the side wall unit 2 are connected to one another.

The hinge 4 comprises a joint 41, referred to in technical terms as a joint, a straight band 42, and a band 43 bent or cranked by 90°. In the case of the cranked band 43, the cranking K, i.e. the length of the space between the joint and the point at which the band 43 is bent, is

extending part of the band 43 is approximately 1.5 times the thickness of the wall elements 21 to 24.

The hinges 4 are mounted in such a way that two opposing wall elements (in the example considered, wall elements 22 and 24) carry the straight hinges 41, and the other two opposing wall elements (in the example considered, wall elements 21 and 23) carry the cranked hinges. In the example considered, the hinges are attached to the outside of the wall elements by a screw connection or a rivet connection, but can also be attached to the outside of the wall elements in any other way.

The assembly of the hinges 4 on the wall elements is illustrated in Figure 4A and Figure 4B. Figure 4A shows a sectional view along a section line IV-IV shown in Figure 1, and Figure 4B shows the part of the side wall unit 2 shown in Figure 4A in a plan view of the wall element 21.

The illustrations shown in Figures 4A and 4B are largely understandable without further explanation. Noteworthy are "only" the special features not yet mentioned,

- that the wall element to which the straight band 42 is attached, i.e. in the example shown in Figure 4 the wall element 21, is provided with a recess 211 where the joint 41 of the hinge is located, and that the joint 41 comes to lie in this recess 211,

that the wall element to which the straight band 42 is attached, in the example shown in Figure 4, the wall element 21, when the box is unfolded, meets with its narrow side the side of the wall element facing the box interior, to which the cranked band 43 is attached, in the example shown in Figure 4.

■ ·♦··

·

·

·Φ;

example shown, thus hits the side of the wall element 43 facing the box interior, and

- that of the wall element to which the straight band 42 is attached, in the example shown in Figure 4 therefore of the wall element 21, that side which meets the side of the wall element facing the interior of the box, in the example shown in Figure 4 therefore the narrow side 211 is rounded (preferably has a semicircular cross-section) or is shaped in some other way so that the wall elements connected to one another via the hinge 4 can be moved relative to one another about the joint 41.

In the example considered, the recess 211 is formed by a corresponding cutout in the wall element in question, but can also be realized differently, for example by a corresponding depression in the wall element.

For the sake of completeness, it should be noted that the above statements apply not only to the connection of the wall elements 21 and 24, but also to the connection of the wall elements 21 and 22, 22 and 23, and 23 and 24.

A box constructed as described or similarly can be folded up and unfolded quickly and easily by anyone under any circumstances, regardless of the details of its practical implementation.

List of reference symbols

1 Bottom part 2 Side wall unit 3 Cover part 4 Hinges 11 Stand timbers 12 Base plate

21-24 Wall elements

Surveys

41 joint 42 straight band 43 cranked band 211 Recess in 21 212 Narrow side of 21

side facing the box interior of 24

Crank

Claims (10)

1. Folding box with a side wall unit ( 2 ) consisting of four wall elements ( 21 to 24 ), each wall element forming a side wall of the folding box, and the wall elements being connected to one another via hinges ( 4 ), characterized in that the hinges each have a joint ( 41 ) and two straps ( 42 , 43 ), and that one of the straps ( 43 ) is a cranked strap. 2. Folding box according to claim 1, characterized in that the cranked band ( 43 ) has a cranking which is 1.5 times the thickness of the wall elements. 3. Folding box according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the hinges ( 4 ) are mounted on the wall elements ( 21 to 24 ) in such a way that the straight straps ( 42 ) of all the hinges ( 4 ) are fastened to one of the wall elements ( 21 ) and to the wall element ( 23 ) opposite them, and that the cranked straps ( 43 ) of all the hinges ( 4 ) are fastened to the other two wall elements ( 22 , 24 ). 4. Folding box according to claim 3, characterized in that the wall elements ( 21 , 23 ) on which the straight bands ( 42 ) are mounted are arranged between the wall elements ( 22 , 24 ) on which the cranked bands ( 43 ) are mounted. 5. Folding box according to claim 4, characterized in that in the unfolded state of the box, the narrow sides ( 212 ) of the wall elements ( 21 , 23 ) carrying the straight bands ( 42 ) and the sides (241) of the wall elements ( 22 , 24 ) carrying the cranked bands ( 43 ) facing the box interior meet one another. 6. Folding box according to claim 4 or 5, characterized in that the wall elements ( 21 to 24 ) are shaped at the points where they meet one another so that the wall elements connected to one another via a hinge ( 4 ) can be moved relative to one another about the joint ( 41 ) of the hinge. 7. Folding box according to claim 6, characterized in that the narrow sides ( 212 ) of the wall elements ( 21 , 23 ) carrying the straight bands ( 42 ) are rounded. 8. Folding box according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the narrow sides ( 212 ) of the wall elements ( 21 , 23 ) carrying the straight bands ( 42 ) have a semicircular cross-section. 9. Folding box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the wall elements ( 21 , 23 ) on which the straight bands ( 42 ) are mounted have recesses ( 211 ) at those points at which the joints ( 41 ) of the hinges ( 4 ) are provided, and that the joints come to lie in these recesses. 10. Folding box according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the hinges ( 4 ) are attached to the outside of the wall elements ( 21 to 24 ).