Patent ID: 9440770
Filing Date: 2016-09-13
CPC Classification: B65D

Claim Text:
1. A plastic pallet for taking up flexible bulk containers, comprising a base plate defining a plurality of apertures, the plurality of apertures including a plurality of bottom air gaps; a plurality of vault ribs, each vault rib comprising a first end fixed to the base plate, a second end fixed to the base plate, and an intermediate portion extending therebetween, wherein the intermediate portion of each vault rib extends across and above one of the bottom air gaps defined by the base plate; the base plate including a plurality of bottom rib portions, each bottom rib portion extending between a first bottom air gap defined by the base plate and a second bottom air gap defined by the base plate, each bottom rib portion being disposed below a vault air gap, each vault air gap being defined between a first vault rib extending above the first bottom air gap and a second vault rib extending above the second bottom air gap; the vault ribs and the base plate defining four tunnel-shaped receptacles for receiving tines of a fork of a forklift apparatus, with the tunnel-shaped receptacles being arranged in pairs crossing each other and connecting two mutually opposite sides of the plastic pallet, in which a tunnel bottom of each tunnel-shaped receptacle is defined by the base plate, and a tunnel vault of each tunnel shaped receptacle is defined by vault ribs spaced from each other by vault air gaps; the base plate defining a first crossing air gap that extends under a first tunnel-shaped receptacle and a second tunnel-shaped receptacle at a location where the first tunnel-shaped receptacle and the second tunnel-shaped receptacle intersect each other; and the plastic pallet including a first crossing rib, the first crossing rib having a first end fixed to the base plate, a second end fixed to the base plate, and an intermediate portion extending above the first crossing air gap.