Portable dolly

A portable dolly, has a substantially horizontal platform having an upper surface and a lower surface, a plurality of wheels provided on the lower surface of the platform, and a handle connected with the platform so as to be turnable between a substantially horizontal position in which the handle is located in the vicinity of the platform substantially coextensive with it and a substantially vertical position in which the handle extends substantially perpendicularly to the platform, the platform being provided in the region of the upper surface with a groove formed so that when the handle is in the substantially horizontal position it does not extend upwardly beyond the upper surface of the platform.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
The present invention relates to portable dollies. 
Dollies are used for transporting objects such as, for example, pieces of 
furniture. Dollies are known in many modifications, usually they include a 
platform and a handle attached to the platform. One of such dollies is 
disclosed, U.S. Pat. No. 4,274,644. It is believed that dollies can be 
further improved in the sense of simplifying of their construction and 
manufacture, improving handling of the dollies and making them more 
portable. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a portable 
dolly which is a further improvemnet of the existing dollies. 
In keeping with these objects and with others which will become apparent 
hereinafter, one feature of the present invention resides, briefly stated, 
in a portable dolly with a substantially horizontal platform having an 
upper surface and a lower surface, a plurality of wheels provided on said 
lower surface of said platform, and a handle connected with said platform 
so as to be turnable between a substantially horizontal position in which 
said handle is located in the vicinity of said platform substantially 
coextensive with it and a substantially vertical position in which the 
said handle extends substantially perpendicularly to said platform, said 
platform being provided in the region of said upper surface with a groove 
formed so that when said handle is in said substantially horizontal 
position it does not extend upwardly beyond said upper surface of said 
platform. 
The new features which are considered as characteristic for the invention 
are set forth in particular in the appended claims. The invention itself, 
however, both as to its construction and its method of operation, together 
with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood 
from the following description of specific embodiments when read in 
connection with the accompanying drawings.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
A portable dolly in accordance with the present invention has a platform 
which is identified as a a whole as reference numeral 1, a plurality of 
wheels identified as reference numeral 2 and a handle identified as 
reference numeral 3. 
The handle 3 is turnable relative to the platform 1 between a substantially 
horizontal position in which it is coextensive with the platform, and a 
substantially vertical position in which it extends substantially 
perpendicularly to the platform so that a user can hold the handle and 
move the dolly. The upper surface of the platform is provided with a 
groove identifed as reference numeral 4. The groove extends along three 
sides of the platform and is open upwardly and laterally as shown in FIG. 
1. In the substantially horizontal position of the handle 3, the handle is 
received in the groove 4 so that it does not extend upwardly beyond the 
upper surface of the platform. A lateral projection 5 is provided between 
a lower part of the platform and an upper part of the platform. The groove 
4 is formed between the projection 5 and the upper portion of the 
platform, and the projection 5 extends laterally beyond the lower portion 
of the platform so as to form a bumper for the dolly. It is to be 
understood that the projection 5 can be covered with an elastic material, 
for example, rubber. The platform is provided with an opening 6 in the 
region of the handle, so that in the folded position of the handle the 
dolly can be suspended on a hook or the like. 
In order to turn the handle between the horizontal and vertical positions, 
a turnable shaft 7 is mounted on the lower surface of the platform. In 
particular, the shaft 7 extends through holes 8 formed in bushes 9 which 
are provided on the lower surface of the platform, in particular on 
reinforcing ribs 10 of the lower surface. While the platform can be 
composed of plastic, it is provided with reinforcing metal brackets 11 in 
the region of the ends of the U-shaped handle 3. In the vertical position 
of the handle, the lower ends of the handle are inserted in openings 12 
provided in the platform and in the brackets. In this position the handle 
can be retained, for example, by a chain 13 which for turning the handle 
to the horizontal position can be disengaged by a user. The lower ends of 
the handle are provided with elongated slots 14 through which the shaft 7 
extends. This allows the legs of the handle to move vertically and to 
engage into the above-mentioned openings 12 and then to be withdrawn from 
the openings to be turned to the horizontal position. The handle 3 can be 
reatined in its vertical position by a retaining element 15, shown in FIG. 
6 and elastically engagable with a pin 16. When it is necessary to relieve 
the handle and to turn it to the horizontal position, a user presses with 
his foot the retaining element 15 downwardly and releases the lower end of 
the handle so that the handle can be turned as spring 17 holds the 
retaining element 15 in its retaining position. 
The wheels 3 are formed as wheel casters each having a stem 18 insertable 
in an opening or socket 19 provided on the lower end of the platform and 
retained by a split elastic retaining ring 20. As can be seen from FIG. 
11, each socket is formed at a point of intersection of ribs 21 provided 
on the lower surface of the platform. As shown in FIGS. 11 and 12, the 
wheel can be removed from the socket and placed in a horizontal position 
on the lower surface of the platform. In this position, the stem 18 of the 
wheel is passed through an opening in a bush 22 provided on the lower end 
of the platform, and the wheel itself is supported on a projection 23 
arranged on the lower surface of the platform as shown in FIGS. 13 and 14. 
In accordance with another embodiment, the stem of the wheel can extend 
through a clip 24 provided on the lower surface of the platform, as shown 
in FIG. 15. Finally, in accordance with still another embodiment, the 
wheel 3 can be connected with a turnable L-shaped bracket 25 shown in FIG. 
16. The bracket together with the wheel moves between a position shown in 
solid lines in which the wheels support the platform and a position shown 
in broken lines in which the wheel is turned into the interior of the flat 
platform to abut against its lower surface for storage. The bracket is 
turnable about a pivot 26 and arranged on it with a prestress so that in 
the storage position the bracket is retained horizontally under the action 
of the elastic property of the leg of the bracket interacting with the 
pivot 26. 
Finally, the embodiment of FIG. 9 shows another possibility for holding the 
handle 3 in the vertical position. Here a slider 27 is located in each end 
of the bracket and has a projection 28 engagable in an opening of the 
metal bracket of the platform. The slider is spring-biased downwardly by a 
spring 29 and laterally abuts against an abutment member 30. For moving 
the handle 3 to the horizontal position, it is turned counterclockwise and 
the projection 28 disengages from the opening of the metal bracket with 
overcoming of the resistance of the spring 29. 
It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or two or 
more together, may also find a useful application in other types of 
constructions differing from the types described above. 
While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in a 
portable dolly, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, 
since various modifications and structural changes may be made without 
departing in any way from the spirit of the present invention. 
Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of 
the present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge, 
readily adapt it for various applications without omitting features that, 
from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essential 
characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention. 
What is claimed as new and desired to be protected by letters patent is set 
forth in the appended claims.