GB2066775A - Stackable carriers - Google Patents

Abstract

A carrier comprises a rectangular plastics tray 1 and a pair of generally U-shaped metal carrying bails 2 pivotally connected across opposite ends 4 of the tray, the pivotal connection between each bail being spaced inwardly from a respective end of the tray. The bails 2 include L- shaped legs 6 having heels 12 which protrude above walls 4, 5 of the tray when the bails are folded down (figure 2, not shown) and which can be received in slots (14) provided in a floor 3 of a similar tray stacked thereabove. The bails 2 are maintained in an upright position by resilient wedges 16 so as to provide an alternative stacking arrangement. <IMAGE>

Description

SPECIFICATION Improvements in or relating to carriers The present invention relates to carriers, for example for bread.

Previously proposed bread carriers have been constructed either of metal, orof plastics. Metal carriers have the advantages of rigidity and strength and durability, while plastics carriers provide these advantages adequately at a lower manufacturing cost.

Bread carriers generally comprise a rectangular tray having a pair of carrying bails pivotally connected in the side walls at oppositely disposed ends of the tray. For space saving purposes, the height of the peripheral walls on the tray is minimized and the bails are designed to be folded flat to permit the empty trays to be stacked one on top of another.

According to the present invention, there is provided a carrier, for example for bread, comprising a rectangular plastics tray having floor means, spaced upstanding side walls and spaced upstanding end walls, a pair of metal carrying bails pivotally connected to the side walls and extending along the oppositely disposed end walls, each of the bails being movable between an upright position and a folded position, and each of the bails comprising a pair of spaced generally L shaped leg members having upper and lower legs, the lower leg of each leg member being pivotally connected to the tray at a point spaced inwardly from the end wall such that a heel of the leg member, when the bail is in the upright position, is nested in a corner of the tray and, when the bail is in the folded position, protrudes above the upper edges of the side and end walls, said bail further comprising a horizontal handle member interconnecting the upper legs of the pair of leg members, slot means in the floor means of the tray for receiving the upwardly protruding heels of the leg members of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow in a folded position whereby the perip,heral walls of one carrier rest on the peripheral walls of the other, and locking means on the tray for releasably locking the bails in the upright position.

Further according to the present invention, there is provided a carrier, for example for bread, comprising a rectangular plastics tray and a pair of generally U-shaped metal carrying bails pivotally connected across opposite ends of the tray for movement between folded and upstanding positions, the pivotal connection between each bail and the tray being spaced inwardly from the end of the tray, each bail comprising L-shaped leg members, the heel of which protrudes above the side and end walls of the tray when the bails are folded, and the floor of the tray having slot means to receive the protruding heels of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow with the bails thereof in folded position.

An embodiment of the invention, will now be described by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings, in which:- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a carrier in accordance with the present invention, showing one bail in the upright position and one in the folded position; Figure 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a corner of the carrier, showing the protruding bail of a second carrier stacked therebelow being accommodated in a slot formed in the floor of the first carrier; Figure 3 is a side view, partly in section, showing two carriers in a folded stacked arrangement; Figure 4 is a fragmentary end view of two carriers in a folded stacked arrangement; Figure 5 is a fragmentary end view of two carriers in an upright stacked arrangement; and Figure 6 is a fragmentary side view of two carriers in an upright stacked arrangement.

With reference to the drawings, a carrier A, for example for loaves of bread, comprises a plastics rectangular tray 1 and a pair of generally U-shaped metal carrying bails 2. The tray 1 includes a webbed floor 3, opposed end walls 4 and opposed side walls 5. The height of the end side walls 4, 5 is sufficient to give structural stability to the tray and to provide retaining edges for the bread or other loads to be carried. The height of the walls is also minimized from the point of view of space saving.

Each of the bails 2 includes two spaced generally L-shaped leg members 6 having lower and upper legs 9, 7. The upper legs 7 are interconnected at their upper ends by a horizontal handle portion 8. The lower legs 9 of the leg members 6 are pivotally connected to the side walls 5 of the tray 1 at pivot points 10. More particularly, the lower legs 9 have outwardly directed horizontal portions 11 (Figure 2), which are journalled through the side walls 5 at the pivot points 10 to provide the pivotal connection.

The pivot points 10 are spaced inwardly from the end walls 4 in order to displace the fulcrum point from the load to prevent the plastic tray 1 from tearing or failing at the pivot points 10.

The bails 2 are movable between the upright position shown in Figures 1 (right-hand end), 5 and 6 and the folded position shown in Figures 1 (left-hand end), 3 and 4. As detailed in Figure 1, a heel 12 of each leg member 6 is nested in the corner 1 3 of the tray 1 when the bail 2 is upright.

In the folded position, the heel 12 protrudes above the upper edge of the side wall 5.

To allow the carriers A to be stacked in the folded position of the bails, the protruding heel 12 of each folded bail 2 is accommodated in a respective slot 14 provided in the floor 3 of the tray of the carrier thereabove. The slots 14, which are rectangular, are spaced inwardly from the end walls 4 of the tray 1, as is illustrated in Figure 2.

The hold the bail 2 in the upright position, locking means 16 are provided on the tray 1. One such means 1 6 is shown as comprising plastics wedges 17 extruded to be integral with the side walls 5 of the tray 1. The wedges 17 are spaced from the end walls 4 to form cavities 1 7a. Being of plastics material, the wedges 1 7 yield sufficiently to allow the bails 2 to be moved past them into the cavities 1 7a, whereby the bails 2 are releasably retained in the upright position.

To help retain a stack of carriers in the upright position shown in Figures 5 and 6, U-shaped lugs 18 may be provided on the underside of the tray 1.

These lugs 18 are positioned so as to straddle the horizontal handle portion 8 of the bail 2 of a carrier A stacked therebelow. The handle portion 8 is preferably bent inwardly toward the centre of the tray 1 as shown in Figure 1. Thus the lugs 18, to receive the handle portion 8, are also spaced inwardly from the ends of the tray 1. in this way, the carriers A, when stacked in the folded arrangement, interlock with one another since the lugs 1 8 of a first carrier are retained inside the end and side walls 4, 5 of a second carrier stacked therebelow.

The following advantages arise in the carrier particularly described above: 1. The advantages provided by using strong metal carrying bails and a relatively inexpensive plastics tray are combined by moving the pivot point between the bail and the tray inwardly from the ends of the tray.

2. The protruding heel of the bails, which arises from offsetting the pivot point, is accommodated in slot means in the floor of the tray of a likecarrier stacked thereon. Thus the height of the side walls can be minimized to provide a space saving carrier.

3. The protruding heel provides a visible target to facilitate stacking of the folded carriers.

Thus the carrier particularly described has metal carrying bails combined with a plastics tray.

To prevent the plastics failing at the pivot point where the bail legs connect with the tray side walls, due to excessive leverage applied to the bails when they are loaded, these pivot points have been moved inwardly from the end walls of the tray. Thus the horizontal legs of the L-shaped leg members are lengthened, and as a result, the heels of the L-shaped leg members protrude above the top edge of the peripheral walls of the carrier. If these heels were to be accommodated within the depth of the side walls, the carrier would have undesirable bulkiness. To overcome this problem, slot means have been provided in the floor of each tray, the slot means are adapted to receive the protruding heels of the leg members of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow in a folded position. Thus a carrier has been provided in which metal bails have been combined with a plastics tray without losing the space-saving advantage of peripheral walls of low height.

Claims (5)

1. A carrier, for example for bread, comprising a rectangular plastics tray having floor means, spaced upstanding side walls and spaced upstanding end walls, a pair of metal carrying bails pivotally connected to the side walls and extending along the oppositely disposed end walls, each of the bails being movable between an upright position and a folded position, and each of the bails comprising a pair of spaced generally Lshaped leg members having upper and lower legs, the lower leg of each leg member being pivotally connected to the tray at a point spaced inwardly from the end wall such that a heel of the leg member, when the bail is in the upright position, is nested in a corner of the tray and, when the bail is in the folded position, protrudes above the upper edges of the side and end walls, said bail further comprising a horizontal handle member interconnecting the upper legs of the pair of leg members, slot means in the floor means of the tray for receiving the upwardly protruding heels of the leg members of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow in a folded position whereby the peripheral walls of one carrier rest on the peripheral walls of the other, and locking means on the tray for releasably locking the bails in the upright position.

2. A carrier as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a plurality of generally U-shaped lugs protruding downwardly from the underside of the floor means, for engaging the bail of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow in an upright position to fix the upper carrier relative to the carrier below.

3. A carrier as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the lower leg of each of the L-shaped leg members terminates in an outwardly directed horizontal portion which is journalled through the side wall to pivotally connect the bail to the tray.

4. A carrier, for example for bread, comprising a rectangular plastics tray and a pair of generally U-shaped metal carrying bails pivotally connected across opposite ends of the tray for movement between folded and upstanding positions, the pivotal connection between each bail and the tray being spaced inwardly from the end of the tray, each bail comprising L-shaped leg members, the heel of which protrudes above the side and end walls of the tray when the bails are folded, and the floor of the tray having slot means to receive the protruding heels of a second-like carrier stacked therebelow with the bails thereof in folded position.

5. A carrier substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying diagrammatic drawings.