Patent Publication Number: US-2022219415-A1

Title: Agricultural bin column repair kit

Description:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Field of the Invention 
     The disclosed invention relates to a repair kit for repairing a damaged bin. Specifically, the repair kit can be used to repair an agricultural bin column. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Large plastic agricultural bins are widely used for harvesting, storing, handling, and shipping of food products. For example, these bins are often used to harvest oranges, potatoes, cantaloupe, and other large-sized produce. These bins require great structural strength as they are stacked to warehouse height containing several hundred pounds in each bin. These bulk bins are designed to be reusable and durable. However, the bins are not indestructible; they can break. These bins are handled in a very rough manner. They are hit by fork trucks, pushed off the back of flatbed trailers, dropped from high distances, and stacked on uneven ground. 
     These bins are frequently transported by flatbed trucks and often fall or are dropped off the trucks, landing on the lowest corners of the bin fully loaded with agricultural produce. The sharp, sudden impact can cause the bin to break, ruining the inherent structural integrity and column strength of the bin. The bins may also be damaged by forklift impact, by the sharp leading edge of the fork impacting the leg of the bin, again ruining the inherent structural integrity of the bin. The corner of the bin can be damaged to the point that the bin is unsafe, unusable, or useless. 
     The current solution to damaged bins is to remove the compromised bin from service and ship it to a remote facility, possibly in another state. If possible, the bin may be repaired by a plastic welding technique, though often major sections of the bin may have broken away, rendering the bin useless. Also, plastic welding requires costly equipment and training. Further, repairing the bin by welding does not restore the stack strength of the container and poses a safety risk to farmers and others using the bin. 
     Often, these bins are accidently damaged in the critical corners that provide stacking strength. The corners of the bins are designed to withstand the extremely high stacked loads of harvested fruit and vegetables for processing or warehousing. When these critical structural elements are compromised, the containers are rendered useless or pose a safety concern if used without repair. 
     The bins are very expensive and if they get damaged it is a big expense to the harvest operation. Accordingly, there is a need for a bin repair kit which is quick, easy to use, convenient, and allows for a high-quality, durable on-site bin repair such that shipping a bin to a remote facility is not required. There is a desire for a repair kit which is inexpensive and which costs less than buying a replacement bin. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     Disclosed herein is column repair kit for a damaged agricultural bin, wherein the kit comprises a structural tube, and wherein the structural tube is sized to fit within a column. This simple and easy repair kit can restore the structural integrity of damaged agricultural bins, specifically to repair a corner of a bin. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES 
       The drawings and detailed description that follow are intended to be merely illustrative and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention as contemplated by the inventors. The detailed description of specific embodiments of the present invention can be best understood when read in conjunction with the following drawings. 
         FIG. 1  shows an exemplary agricultural bin having no breakage; 
         FIG. 2  shows a close-up of a corner of a bin suffering from an impact failure in the form of a fracture; 
         FIG. 3  shows a close-up of a foot of a bin suffering from an impact failure in the form of a split failure; 
         FIG. 4  shows an exemplary bin repair kit; 
         FIG. 5  shows a top view of a portion of a structural tube as molded; 
         FIG. 6  shows a top view of a structural tube as assembled; and 
         FIG. 7  shows a perspective view of an exemplary collar. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     The inventor conceived of a novel column repair kit that, for the purpose of illustration, is disclosed herein as applied in the context of agricultural bins. While the disclosed applications of the inventor&#39;s column repair kit satisfy a long-felt but unmet need in the art of agricultural bins, it should be understood that the inventor&#39;s column repair kit is not limited to being implemented in the precise manners set forth herein, but could be implemented in other manners without undue experimentation by those of ordinary skill in the art in light of this disclosure. For instance, the column repair kit could also work for other types of plastic bins, not just those commonly referred to as agricultural bins. Accordingly, the examples set forth herein should be understood as being illustrative only, and should not be treated as limiting. 
     An example of an exemplary agricultural bin  10  of the present invention is shown in  FIG. 1 . The agricultural bin comprises a top edge  12 , a bottom edge  14 , a cavity  16 , corners  18 , sidewalls  20 , columns  30 , legs  40 , and feet  50 . Various portions of the bin may be at least partially hollow inside. For instance, legs  40  may comprise one or more inner profiles  42  which define one or more hollow portions  44 . Feet  50  can be forklift straps. While an agricultural bin  10  may encounter various types of damage,  FIGS. 2 and 3  show two of the most common types of impact failures.  FIG. 2  shows a close-up of a corner  18  of a bin  10  suffering from an impact failure in the form of a fracture  52  on a leg  40 .  FIG. 3  shows a close-up of a leg  40  of a bin  10  suffering from an impact failure in the form of a split failure  54 . The leg  40  comprises an interior profile  42  defining a hollow portion  44 . The present invention provides quick and easy repair of an agricultural bin  10  in the field by means of a repair kit  100 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 4 , the column repair kit  100  comprises two parts: a structural tube  110  that fits precisely inside a hollow  44  leg  40  of a damaged bin  10 , and a collar  120  (if necessary) to restore the structural integrity of the lowest edge of the leg  40 . The tube  110  provides the column  30  strength of the compromised leg  40  by restoring the top-to-bottom  12 ,  14  vertical strength and replicating the original, proven, and time-tested geometry of the original bin leg  40 . If needed, the collar  120  returns the lowest edge of the leg  40  to its original profile. No special skills or tools are required to perform the repair. Instructions provided with or on the structural tube  110  may state that no special skills or tools are required to perform the repair. The structural tube  110  is inserted into the leg  40  and up the column  30  of the bin  10  once the feet  50  of the bin  10  are removed. If the collar  120  is required, it is fit over the outside of the leg  40  and then the feet  50  are reinstalled on the bottom  14  of the bin  10 . 
     These repair-kit parts may be injection molded, extruded, or compression molded and may be made from a variety of plastic or metal materials (or a combination thereof). In a preferred embodiment, the structural tube  110  is molded from high-impact polypropylene. This material was chosen for the tensile strength and the ability to feature a living hinge  112  for injection molding simplicity. In a preferred embodiment, the collar  120  is made of stainless steel for rust protection, or powder coated painted steel for the same desired result at a lower cost. However, the invention could be made with other materials and using other methods and may be used with or without a living hinge  112 . 
     The structural tube  110  is molded relatively flat with two living hinges  112 , one on either side of a centerline  114 . In a preferred embodiment, each living hinge  112  is located closer to an end  116  of the tube  110  than to the centerline  114 , as shown in  FIGS. 5 and 6 . In another embodiment, a living hinge may be located at or near the center point between the centerline and the end of the tube. In still another embodiment, a living hinge may be located closer to the centerline than the end of the tube. The structural tube can be any length as long as it fits within the column  30 . In a preferred embodiment, the structural tube  110  is longer than a leg  40 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 6 , when folded along the living hinges  112 , the two ends  116  of the tube  110  meet at the centerline  114 . This operation forms the final shape  118  of the structural tube  110 . The final shape  118  is designed to replicate the interior profile  42  of the leg  40  of the bin  10 . The structural tube  110  thus replicates the interior  44  of the hollow leg  40  using the length, width and height dimensions of the leg interior profile  42  to act as a structural replacement for the damaged leg  40  of the bin  10 . Instructions may be provided by molding instructions onto the structural tube for this component and the collar since the operation is straightforward and relatively simple. There may be other methods and materials used to manufacture the structural tube. As originally conceived, a living hinge was not considered for the structural tube; instead, a solid molded hollow tube was thought to be the best solution. But, by utilizing a living hinge vs a molded hollow tube, considerable cost savings in tooling may be achieved. The structural tube may also be manufactured using a combination of both a living hinge and an extruded tube. While a living hinge structural tube  110  is described and claimed, it is also within the scope of the invention to create a column repair kit comprising a molded hollow tube. 
     Often a bin is accidently dropped from a great height, landing on a lowest corner of the bin. This can occur in the field or in a warehouse. The impact can cause the plastic material to split where the foot is inserted into the leg of the bin. If this area has split, the feet will not stay and lock in place. A collar  120  can restore the geometry of the bin in this area. Metal is chosen as often the plastic on the bin that has split has enough retained memory, where it split, to act as a very strong spring. Plastic may be used for the collar, but the resiliency of most plastics cannot overcome the spring effect of the split on the broken bin. Steel, either stainless steel or powder coated steel, has the tensile strength to overcome this spring effect to return the bin geometry to its original shape. This allows the components that snap inside the hollow leg, such as the aforementioned feet, to be reinstalled as originally designed. 
     The collar  120  comprises sides  122  which meet at corners. A corner may comprise a generally 90 degree angle, a less than about 90 degree angle, or a more than about 90 degree angle. In a preferred embodiment, as shown in  FIG. 7 , a collar  120  comprises four sides  122  which are generally straight, forming three 90-degree angle corners. The fourth corner  126  is rounded. In other embodiments, the collar may be designed to best fit the shape of the leg  40 . 
     In a preferred embodiment, the collar  120  is constructed of metal (stainless steel or powder-coated painted steel for rust protection) to restore the lowest edge of the leg  40  to its original geometry so the feet  50  that snap in place can be restored. This enables the feet  50  (as they are referred to, essentially, in the illustrated preferred embodiment, they are forklift straps) to be snapped in place into the legs  40 . In concert with the structural tube  110 , these components return the bin  10  to the full functionality of a new bin at minimal cost. The collar  120  may be made using different materials. 
     One or more structural tubes  110  may be delivered to a user in a first, unfolded position. This enables more efficient shipping and storing. The user can then configure structural tubes  110  as needed into their folded final shape  118 . For instance, an owner of many agricultural bins may wish to keep a large stack of unfolded structural tubes handy. Having unfolded tubes allows the owner to devote less space to each tube and thereby have more on hand to facilitate fast and easy bin repairs as needed. 
     While the invention describes repairing a damaged bin, there may be situations where the described structural tube and/or collar may be used to provide additional stability to a bin which is not damaged. 
     While specific embodiments of the inventor&#39;s novel invention were illustrated and described herein, variations and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of this disclosure. The present disclosure is for purposes of illustration and not of limitation; it may take many forms other than those explicitly disclosed herein. As such, the claims below shall be read to include all obvious variations and modifications that may be within the spirit of this invention.