Abstract:
The present invention relates to a stackable, nestable pallet for bearing a load on its platform surface, comprising a frame-base ( 1 ) of a generally rectangular shape with one or more rack tubes for structural reinforcement. A plurality of thin and flat foldable members ( 11 ) has three or more pieces of joined plates ( 13 ): A plurality of cavities in the platform are attached with hollow legs which are tapered on two sides. One of the joined plates ( 13 ) in the foldable members is removably affixed to the frame-base ( 1 ) and the other plates ( 13 ) are hingeably affixed to each other by a plurality of attachment points ( 15 ), to allow the affixed plates ( 13 ) of the foldable members ( 11 ) to be folded and unfolded along the affixment ( 15 ) axis to respectively uncover and cover a portion of the upper side of the pallet. The foldable members ( 11 ), in unfolded position forms a platform with a flat surface while in folded position exposes the cavities to create a nestable pallet which is able to receive the hollow legs of another pallet to fit into the cavities.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
       [0001]    The present Application is based on International Application No. PCT/SG 2006/000171, filed on Jun. 23, 2006, which in turn corresponds to Malaysia Application No. 20053105 filed on Jul. 07, 2005, and priority is hereby claimed under 35 USC §119 based on these applications. Each of these applications are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety into the present application. 
     
    
     FIELD OF INVENTION 
       [0002]    The present invention relates to the nestable and stackable pallets used in the shipping and transportation of bulk articles. 
       BACKGROUND OF INVENTION 
       [0003]    In the shipping and transportation industry, pallets need to have a solid, stable platform for them to be easily handled by forklifts and yet be compact enough for return shipment so they could be reused. 
         [0004]    The use of forklifts requires space underneath the pallet deck for the forklift to lift and transport the pallet. As such, most pallets include some form of blocks or legs to elevate the pallet deck from the ground. However, for efficiently returning the pallets after use, it is desirable the volume of cargo space required for the empty pallets be as small as possible. One method to achieve it is having a hole in the pallet deck directly above a hollow leg so as to enable the nesting of pallets one on top of another. 
         [0005]    If the legs or the support-blocks of the pallets are larger, the loaded pallet is more stable to be handled. On the other hand, holes on the deck to nest these legs would interfere with the proper bundling and packaging of industrial articles. 
         [0006]    Therefore there is a need in the transport and shipping industry for a pallet that is sufficiently stable to be handled by forklifts and other equipments while at the same time be able to be stacked compactly for return journey or storage. 
       SUMMARY OF INVENTION 
       [0007]    Accordingly, the present invention relates to a stackable, nestable pallet for bearing a load on its platform surface, comprising a frame-base of a generally rectangular shape with one or more rack tubes for structural reinforcement; a plurality of thin and flat foldable members consisting of three or more pieces of joined plates; a plurality of cavities in the platform attached with hollow legs which legs are tapered on two sides. One of said joined plates of the foldable members is removably affixed to said frame-base and the other plates are rotatably affixed to each other by a plurality of attachment points, to allow the joined plates of said foldable members to be folded and unfolded along the attachment axis to respectively uncover and cover a portion of the upper side of the pallet. 
         [0008]    The foldable members, in unfolded position form a platform with a flat surface while in folded position exposes the cavities to allow the pallet to receive the hollow legs of another pallet fit into said cavities. 
         [0009]    The present invention consists of several novel features and a combination of parts hereinafter fully described and illustrated in the accompanying drawing and particularly pointed out in the appended claims; it being understood that various changes in the details may be made without departing from the scope of the invention or sacrificing any of the advantages of the present invention. 
         [0010]    Still other objects and advantages of the present invention will become readily apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, wherein the preferred embodiments of the invention are shown and described, simply by way of illustration of the best mode contemplated of carrying out the invention. As will be realized, the invention is capable of other and different embodiments, and its several details are capable of modifications in various obvious aspects, all without departing from the invention. 
         [0011]    Accordingly, the drawings and description thereof are to be regarded as illustrative in nature, and not as restrictive. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING 
         [0012]    For the purpose of facilitating an understanding of the invention, there is illustrated in the accompanying drawings the preferred embodiments thereof, from an inspection of which, when considered in connection with the following description, the invention, its construction and operation and many of its advantages would be readily understood and appreciated. 
           [0013]      FIGS. 1   a  and  1   b  respectively are plan and isometric views of the first embodiment of the invention showing the foldable member, the frame-base and the legs of the nestable and stackable pallet and illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces. 
           [0014]      FIG. 2  shows a generic foldable member with their hinges in an unfolded and partly folded states. 
           [0015]      FIG. 3  shows different embodiments of the foldable members. 
           [0016]      FIGS. 4   a  and  4   b  respectively are plan and isometric views of the second embodiment of the invention showing the foldable member, the frame-base and the legs of the nestable and stackable pallet and illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces. 
           [0017]      FIGS. 5   a  and  5   b  respectively are plan and isometric views of the second embodiment of the invention showing the foldable member, the frame-base and the legs of the nestable and stackable pallet and illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces. 
           [0018]      FIGS. 6   a  and  6   b  respectively are plan and isometric views of the third embodiment of the invention showing the foldable member, the frame-base and the legs of the nestable and stackable pallet and illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces. 
           [0019]      FIGS. 7   a  and  7   b  respectively are plan and isometric views of the fourth embodiment of the invention showing the foldable member, the frame-base and the legs of the nestable and stackable pallet and illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces. 
           [0020]      FIG. 8  shows a few nestable and stackable pallets stacked one on top of the other from their side. 
       
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
       [0021]    The present invention relates to a nestable and stackable pallet. More particularly, the present invention relates to a nestable metal pallet with foldable platform surfaces used for shipping and transportation. Hereinafter, this specification will describe the pallet according to the preferred embodiments of the present invention and by referring to the accompanying description and drawings. However, it is to be understood that limiting the description to the preferred embodiments of the invention and to the drawings is merely to facilitate discussion of the present invention and it is envisioned that those skilled in the art may devise various modifications and equivalents without departing from the scope of the appended claims. 
         [0022]      FIG. 1   a  and  FIG. 1   b  are the first embodiment which illustrates the concept of foldable platform surfaces and a multi-way pallet type of the present invention. The method of contructing the short foldable members ( 3 ) and long-foldable members ( 5 ) is easily described with the help of  FIG. 2 . 
         [0023]    The foldable members ( 11 ) in  FIG. 2  represents both the short and long foldable members ( 3 , 5 ) of the first embodiment. Said foldable members ( 11 ) consists of three hinge-affixed plates ( 13 ) which are connected by hinges ( 15 ). The middle hinge-attached plate ( 13 ) contains hinges ( 15 ) on each side. In the embodiment shown, the hinges ( 15 ) is made up hinge ears welded or fastened to each foldable member ( 11 ). Each hinge ear in turn has a U-shaped stem inserted into the through passage of the hinge ear to enable the first and third hinge-affixed plates ( 13 ) to be hingeably affixed to each other and folded and unfolded along the affixment axis. 
         [0024]    Refering back to  FIG. 1   a , the short foldable members ( 3 ) and long foldable members ( 5 ) have a horizontal length, in relation to the pallet base of  FIG. 1   a , which is a sixth of the horizontal length of the pallet when folded. When unfolded, said length increased by a factor of three. The area encompassed by the folded and unfolded position of the long foldable members ( 5 ) and short foldable members ( 3 ) is clearly shown in  FIG. 1   a . When the foldable members ( 11 ) are folded, two-third of the surface area of the pallet is exposed. When the foldable members ( 11 ) are unfolded, the entire area of the pallet is covered. 
         [0025]    In this embodiment of the pallet also, one of the foldable members of the selected short foldable member assembly is removably affixed on the upper middle of the framebase ( 1 ). Another short foldable member assembly is similarly removably affixed on the lower middle of the framebase ( 1 ) by one of its foldable member. Each unaffixed short foldable members ( 3 ) of the these short foldable member assemblies can unfold outward to cover part of the area of the pallet. Each long foldable members assemblies is removably affixed on the middle of the framebase ( 1 ) by one of the foldable member of each assembly while each unaffixed long foldable members also unfold outward to cover the area of the pallet. 
         [0026]    Depending on the arrangement of the short foldable member assemblies, there can be at least four cavities ( 7 ) situated at each corner of the pallet in the preferred embodiment. Each of the cavities ( 7 ) have an exposed area which is twice the area covered by each short foldable members ( 3 ). Similarly, the centre-cavity ( 9 ) in the centre of the pallet has an area which is double the area of the long foldable member ( 5 ) in its folded state. It should be noted that the area covered by the cavities are slightly less than two-third the area of the entire pallet, after accounting for the area covered by the frame-base ( 1 ). 
         [0027]    Underneath the cavities or underside the pallet are the hollow tapered-legs ( 17 ) and centre tapered hollow leg ( 19 ), shown in  FIG. 1   b . The hollow tapered-legs ( 17 ) consist of a piece of metal folded in such a way to form a hollow tapered leg. The centre tapered hollow leg ( 19 ) is also tapered and contains a window in the middle when seen from the non-tapered side (X-axis) of the pallet. However, the centre tapered hollow leg ( 19 ), unlike the hollow tapered-legs ( 17 ), consists of two separate tapered metal pieces joined by a single rectangular metal at the bottom. These features will enable the fork of a forklift to be inserted on all sides (X-axis and Y-axis) of the pallet without hindrance while providing a large support area for the pallet. 
         [0028]    When the pallet is to be used for carrying goods, the foldable members ( 11 ) are unfolded over the frame-base ( 1 ) to form a pallet platform or pallet platform with complete surface. While not shown in any of the accompanying drawings, angular support members can be placed on any or all sides of the pallet to prevent slippage of the goods. Rings might be welded to each of the sides so as to lift pallets by hooks and also to tie and secure the goods easily. 
         [0029]    Once the goods are unloaded from the pallet at the receiving end of the shipment, the foldable members ( 11 ) are folded to expose the cavities. In that position, the tapered-legs ( 17 ) and centre tapered hollow leg ( 19 ) of another pallet can be nested into a pallet from the top. If the top pallet also has its foldable members ( 11 ) folded, further pallets can be nested.  FIG. 8  illustrates this. As such, it would require only a much smaller volume or space to store the same number of these pallets. Once arranged in this manner, pallets can be returned to the port of origin in an economic way in a standard container. 
         [0030]    As is the norm in the industry, there are times when a batch of pallets, in such numbers like 10 or 20, need to be nested and the next batch of nested pallets need to be stacked on top of the previous batch. This too is easily accomplished by having the foldable members ( 11 ) in the topmost pallet of a nested batch in unfolded position. 
         [0031]    The first embodiment of the pallet used foldable members ( 3 , 5 ) made of flat metal plates connected by hinges. However, depending on the type of goods transported, different types of foldable members can be used. With reference to  FIG. 3 , four types of foldable members to cover the pallet surface can be constructed. The first two types can be a plated foldable member ( 11   a ) constructed of plastic and metal plates respectively. The plated foldable members are hingeably affixed to each other by hinges or hinge attachment points ( 15   a ), which can be of type described earlier. They can be used on pallets carrying heavy cargo. The metal sheets/plates is preferably embossed or grooved to strengthen them. Plastic can be used in case of the need to resist chemicals or moisture. Furthermore, plastic is easy to clean and are very suitable for pharmaceutical goods. 
         [0032]    A wire-mesh foldable member ( 11   b ) can be created by hingeably affixing each wire-mesh planes or expanded metal planes to each other using helical coil wire hinges or hinge attachment points ( 15   b ). This type of pallet platform is suitable for goods that need ventiliation, such as grains, onions and other kinds of perishable goods. The wire-mesh will also reduce the weight of the pallet. 
         [0033]    Another type of foldable member is the paperboard foldable member ( 11   c ). This type can be constructed by simply hingably affixing corrugated paperboard foldable member with each other by using adhesive tape to act hinge attachment points ( 15   c ). Pallets with a paper-board surface can be used for light-weight goods, preferably less than 300 kg. The pallet thus created will have much less weight and can be used economically in air freights. 
         [0034]    All the four types of foldable members described above can be interchangeably used in any pallet type; provided their dimensions are the same as required by the pallet. While the pallet type in the first embodiment is the preferred way of transporting cargo, the foldable members can be independently used in any pallet type. It should be noted that the material used in construction of the pallet types need not be the same as those of the foldable members. For instance, most pallet types are made of metal. Nevertheless, the foldable members can be attached to them to provide a platform surface of varying types depending on the type of goods transported. 
         [0035]      FIG. 4   a  and  FIG. 4   b  show one example of using the above-mentioned foldable members ( 11   a ,  11   b ,  11   c ) in various pallet types.  FIG. 4   a / FIG.4   b  is a 9-block pallet type, which consists of three long tapered plates ( 18   a ), each with three pair of protrusions, forming a 9-block pallet. The long foldable members ( 5 ) are removably affixed and located traversely at the two edges and the centre of the frame base so that they are parallel to said tapered plates ( 18   a ). 
         [0036]      FIG. 5   a  and  FIG. 5   a  shows a standard 4-way pallet type which utilises the foldable members as its platform surface. The pallet has another form of three long tapered plates ( 18   b ) which are further connected by three plates ( 20 ). The plates ( 20 ) has good contact with the surface and can enhance the loading strength of the legs considerably. The long foldable members ( 5 ) assemblies are removably affixed by one of its foldable member and is located longitudinally at the two edges and the centre of the frame base so that they are at a right angle to said tapered plates ( 18   b ). 
         [0037]      FIG. 6   a  is another example of using the foldable members, with  FIG. 6   b  showing the single-tapered plate ( 18   c ) construct of the single-wing pallet type. The single tapered plate ( 18   c ) is removably affixed traversely in the centre between the above-said foldable members ( 5 ) to form three tapered hollow legs. Similar to  FIG. 5   b  of the 4-way pallet, the support leg ( 18   c ) has a large area contacting the ground and makes for high stability. Furthermore, the large ground-contact area means a lower pressure exerted by the pallet per area of the ground. This is useful in situations where the goods in the pallet are very heavy and the ground is soft and can be damaged by smaller legs exerting greater force per contact area. The foldable members assemblies are removably affixed traversely by one of the foldable member of each assemblies on the side edges of the frame-base ( 1 ). 
         [0038]      FIG. 7   a  is another example of using the foldable members, whereby the foldable member ( 5 ) assemblies is removably affixed traversely by one of its foldable member on the frame-base ( 1 ) of the Skid pallet type. The three tapered plates ( 18   d ) in  FIG. 7   b  which run in parallel to said long foldable members ( 5 ) can be of very simple construction and assembly, thus reducing the cost of making the pallet. 
         [0039]    As seen in all the above-described embodiments, the invention enables the possibility of having nestable legs which are also very large. In the foldable members ( 11 ) consisting of 3 hinge-affixed plates ( 13 ) as in said embodiments, two-third of the surface of the pallet platform is exposed. Even after accounting for the area covered by the frame-base ( 1 ) and the tapered shape of the tapered-legs ( 17 ), centre tapered hollow leg ( 19 ) or tapered plates ( 18 ), the embodiments have a leg or support area of at least 60% and even more of the area of said pallet. Furthermore, in the first embodiment (multiway-pallet), due to the hollowness of the leg supports, a forklift can engage these pallets from any side. 
         [0040]    The large area available for the leg area also makes it possible to have different types of legs, some of which are shown in the above embodiments. The wide leg areas made possible by the invention results in a pallet that is quite stable regardless of the distribution of the load/goods it is carrying. 
         [0041]    While in the foregoing specification this invention has been described in relation to certain preferred embodiments thereof and many details have been set forth for purpose of illustration, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is susceptible to additional embodiments and that certain of the details described herein can be varied considerably without departing from the basic principles of the invention. 
         [0042]    It will be readily seen by one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention fulfils all of the objects set forth above. After reading the foregoing specification, one of ordinary skill in the art will be able to affect various changes, substitutions of equivalents and various aspects of the invention as broadly disclosed herein. It is therefore intended that the protection granted hereon be limited only by definition contained in the appended claims and equivalent thereof.