Patent Number: 048225550
Section: description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. This is an embodiment of a container for use in placing plate-like objects 1 therein which are produced by cutting used fuel channel boxes as mentioned above. FIG. 1 is a longitudinal section of the embodiment, and FIG. 2 is a horizontal section thereof. Referring to these drawings, reference numeral 5 denotes a container body which consists in this embodiment of a cross-sectionally rectangular box having a height of 412 cm, a width of 227 mm, a length of 300 mm and a wall thickness of 6 mm and made of SUS304 stainless steel. Reference numeral 6 denotes two plate springs each of which consists of a double plate material and extends diagonally in the lengthwise direction of the container 5. The upper end portion of each plate spring is fixed to the wall of the container 5 by welding or by suitable means, such as screws or rivets, and the lower end portion thereof is positioned near an inner surface of the container 5 or contacts the same lightly or urges the same with a suitable level of resilient force. The lower end of each plate spring 6 is preferably in the position which is not higher than the middle of a total height of the container 5. In this embodiment, each plate spring 6 is made of SUS304 stainless steel, and its fixing point is on the portion of the inner wall surface of the container 5 which is vertically about 170 cm away from the lower end thereof, the lower end of the plate spring 6 urging with a force of about 1 kg the portion of the opposite inner wall surface of the container 5 which is vertically about 100 cm away from the lower end thereof. These numerical values are shown as examples, and may be set to suitable different levels as necessary. A container 5 of the above-described construction is set in a storage pool 2 in the same manner as shown in FIG. 5, and a plate-like object 1 produced by cutting a used fuel channel box is brought above the container 5 in the same manner as mentioned above. When the plate-like object 1 is lowered from a position in the upper portion of FIG. 1 into the interior of the container 5, it is pressed by the plate spring 6 as it is guided into the container. The plate-like object 1 is thus placed in the container 5 with the former contacting the inner wall surface of the latter. When a subsequent plate object 1 is then lowered in a suspended state into the container 5 in the same manner, it is placed therein in close contact with the preceding plate-like object through the same actions as described above. The plate-like objects 1 are thus placed successively in tight contact with one another until the last plate-like object 1 is placed in the position shown by a broken line in FIG. 2. In a conventional container of this kind having no plate spring 6 therein, only thirty pieces (corresponding to fifteen channel boxes) at most of plate-like objects 1 can be held, while, in the above embodiment of the present invention, which has the same dimensions as the conventional container, thirty-six (corresponding to eighteen channel boxes) plate-like objects 1 can be held even if the elongated rod referred to in the statement under "Description of the Related Art" is not used. FIG. 3 is a horizontal section of an embodiment of the present invention in which flat plate-like objects, not angle-like objects, are to be placed in tight contact with one another, the construction and operation of this embodiment being similar to those of the first embodiment previously described. In this embodiment, the plate-like objects 1' can be inserted in a tightly laminated state until the last plate-like object 1' is placed in the position shown by a broken line in the same drawing. In the above-described embodiments, two plate springs 6 are arranged in the widthwise direction of a container. One plate spring may also be provided at the widthwise intermediate portion of the interior of the container, or not less than two plate springs at horizontally symmetric portions of the interior thereof. In the above-described embodiments, only one or only one horizontal row of plate springs are provided in the container. The plate springs may also be provided at vertically spaced portions of the interior of the container. The form of the springs may be modified in various manners. The present invention has been described on the basis of its embodiments used as containers for plate-like objects produced by cutting fuel channel boxes taken out of a nuclear reactor. The use of the present invention is not limited to this. It can, of course, be used as a container for general plate-like objects. According to the present invention, plate-like objects can be placed in a container with a high operation efficiency with the former tightly contacting one another and the inner surface of the latter, by merely lowering the plate-like objects successively into the interior of the container. The container according to the present invention is capable of holding a larger number of plate-like objects as compared with a conventional container of this kind of the same dimensions. Therefore, the space utilization rate of the container can be improved. Moreover, the construction of the container is very simple. The present invention is not, of course, limited to the above embodiments; it may be modified in various ways within the scope of the appended claims.