Patent Publication Number: US-8978912-B1

Title: Collapsible shipping tote

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61,612,700, filed Mar. 19, 2012. 
    
    
     INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE 
     The entire disclosure of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61,612,700, filed Mar. 19, 2012, is incorporated herein by reference. 
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention is generally related to collapsible shipping containers and, more specifically, to collapsible shipping totes. 
     BACKGROUND 
     It is known for shipping containers to be used in shipping components to manufacturers, and then for the shipping containers to be collapsed and returned to be reused in shipping additional components. Preferably 100% of the containers are returned for reuse, but it is common for return ratios to be less than 100% for a wide variety of reasons. 
     Whereas a variety of shipping containers are known, there is always a desire for improved shipping containers that are efficient to make and use, durable, lightweight, and seek to provide high return ratios. 
     SUMMARY 
     One aspect of this disclosure is the provision of a collapsible shipping tote. Very generally described, the tote may have a generally tubular body for extending around an interior space of the tote while the body is in an erected configuration. The body may have body panels that are respectively foldably connected to one another, so that the body can be reconfigured between the erected configuration and a collapsed configuration. 
     In one embodiment of this disclosure, the shipping tote has end assemblies that each have an end panel and one or more flaps foldably connected to respective edges of the end panel. Each of the end assemblies may be configured for being moved between open and closed configurations. In its closed configuration, each of the end assemblies at least partially closes a front and rear end of the erected body. In contrast, while each of the end assemblies is in its open configuration, the respective end of the erected body is at least partially open. 
     Fastener parts may be respectively mounted to the flaps and corresponding portions of the body for releasably securing the flaps to the body so that the end assemblies releasably securing the body in the erected configuration. For example, the fasteners may be hook-and-loop fasteners, such that the fastener parts are strips of textile material respectively comprising hooks and loops. These strips of textile material may be respectively sewn to the body and flaps. 
     Optionally, at least one divider panel may be positioned in the interior space of the tote and foldably connected to the tubular body for dividing the interior space into cells that are open at both of the opposite front and rear ends of the erected body while the end assemblies are open. In one embodiment, each of the panels comprises at least one piece of textile material and a stiffening panel that are at least partially secured to one another by way of one or more sewn seams. For example, a stiffening panel may be contained within a pocket formed by sewing textile material and/or a stiffening panel and textile material may be sewn directly together. Similarly, connections between the body panels, and between the divider panel(s) and the body, may be provided by one or more sewn seams. Optionally, one of the flaps of each end assembly may be sewn to the body. 
     The erected totes may be used, for example, in shipping components to manufacturers, and then the totes may be collapsed and returned to be reused in shipping additional components. For example, the components may be loaded and unloaded through front ends of the totes. As a result, the totes may be conveniently used, for example, in association with flow through supply racks on assembly lines. The totes may be used in any other suitable manner. 
     In one aspect, a substantial portion of each shipping tote is constructed of sewn textile material, so the totes may be lightweight, and their designs may be easily customized to accommodate different components to be shipped. 
     The foregoing presents a simplified summary of some aspects of this disclosure in order to provide a basic understanding. The foregoing summary is not extensive and is not intended to identify key or critical elements of the invention or to delineate the scope of the invention. The purpose of the foregoing summary is to present some concepts of this disclosure in a simplified form as a prelude to the more detailed description that is presented later. For example, other aspects will become apparent from the following. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Having described some aspects of this disclosure in general terms, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings, which are schematic and not necessarily drawn to scale. The drawings are exemplary only, and should not be construed as limiting the invention. 
         FIG. 1  is a top, front, right pictorial view of a shipping tote in an erected configuration with its ends closed, in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment of this disclosure. 
         FIG. 2  is a bottom, rear, left pictorial view of the erected shipping tote of  FIG. 1  with its ends closed. 
         FIG. 3  is like  FIG. 1 , except that the front end of the shipping tote is open. 
         FIG. 4  is generally like  FIG. 3 , except that the rear end of the shipping tote is also open. 
         FIG. 5  is bottom view of the shipping tote of  FIG. 1  in a collapsed configuration. 
         FIG. 6  is an isolated view that is generally representative of each of the body and divider panels of the tote of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIGS. 7 and 8  respectively are isolated plan views of outer and inner sides of an outer piece of a body panel showing fastener strips attached thereto by sewn seams, in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIGS. 9 and 10  respectively are isolated plan views of outer and inner sides of an inner piece of the representative body panel showing fastener strips attached thereto by sewn seams, in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 11  is an isolated plan view of an inner side of a piece of a representative divider panel showing fastener strips attached thereto by sewn seams, in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 12  is a side elevation view showing the item of  FIG. 11  folded over to form a divider pocket precursor, in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 13  is a view of a body pocket precursor formed by sewing together the inner and outer pieces of a  FIGS. 7-10 , in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 14  shows the divider pocket precursor of  FIG. 12  sewn between a pair of body pocket precursors of  FIG. 13 , in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment. 
         FIG. 15  is an isolated front elevation view of an assembled body of the tote with the pockets open and respectively containing stiffening panels. 
         FIGS. 16 and 17  are isolated views of the outer and inner sides, respectively, of a representative one of end assemblies of the tote of  FIG. 1 . 
         FIG. 18  is a top, front, right pictorial view of a shipping tote in an erected configuration with its ends closed, in accordance with a second exemplary embodiment of this disclosure. 
         FIG. 19  is like  FIG. 18 , except that the front end of the shipping tote is open. 
         FIG. 20  is generally like  FIG. 19 , except that the rear end of the shipping tote is also open. 
         FIG. 21  is bottom view of the shipping tote of  FIG. 18  in a collapsed configuration. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     Exemplary embodiments of this disclosure are described below and illustrated in the accompanying figures, in which like numerals refer to like parts throughout the several views. 
     The embodiments described provide examples and should not be interpreted as limiting the scope of the invention. Other embodiments, and modifications and improvements of the described embodiments, will occur to those skilled in the art and all such other embodiments, modifications and improvements are within the scope of the present invention. For example, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that features illustrated or described as part of one embodiment may be used in another embodiment to yield a further embodiment, and that these further embodiments are within the scope of the present invention. 
       FIGS. 1 and 2  show an erected shipping tote  20  with its opposite front and rear ends closed, in accordance with a first exemplary embodiment of this disclosure. The exterior of the erected tote  20  with closed ends is generally or substantially in the form of a rectangular parallelepiped, although differently shaped totes are within the scope of this disclosure.  FIG. 3  shows the erected tote  20  with one end open, and  FIG. 4  shows it with both ends open. 
     The tote  20  includes a generally tubular body  22  that extends around an interior space of the tote while the body/tote is erect. The body  22  includes top, bottom, right and left body panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30  that are respectively foldably connected to one another, as will be discussed in greater detail below. 
     The tote  20  further includes front and rear end assemblies  32  for opening and closing (e.g., at least partially or substantially closing) the front and rear ends of the tote. When closed, the end assemblies  32  cooperatively provide, or serve as, structure for holding the tote  20  in its erected configuration. Each end assembly  32  has an end panel  34  and flaps  36  foldably connected to the edges of the end panel, as will be discussed in greater detail below. Each of the end assemblies  32  is configured for being moved between open and closed configurations. In its closed configuration, each of the end assemblies  32  at least partially closes a respective end of the erected body  22 . In contrast, while each of the end assemblies  32  is in its open configuration, the respective end of the erected body  22  is at least partially open. In the first exemplary embodiment, the empty erected body will collapse under its own weight as soon as/in response to both of the end assemblies  32  being opened, and the tote  20  is shown in its collapsed configuration in  FIG. 5 . 
     In the exemplary embodiment, fastener parts are respectively mounted to the flaps  36  and corresponding portions of the body  22  for releasably securing the flaps to the body and, thus, releasably securing the body in the erected configuration. For example, the fasteners may be hook-and-loop fasteners, such that the fastener parts are fastener strips  38  of textile material respectively comprising hooks and loops. The fastener strips  38  of textile material in and of themselves are conventional, and as an example such fasteners are available as Velcro® hook and loop fasteners. For reasons of convenience, in this disclosure the reference number  38  is used for designating both fastener strips comprising hooks and fastener strips comprising loops. 
     Notwithstanding, those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that when a pair of fastener strips  38  forms a fastener, typically one of the fastener strips comprises hooks and the other of the fastener strips comprises loops. The fastener strips  38  may be respectively sewn to the body  22  and flaps  36 , as will be discussed in greater detail below. Other types of fasteners may be used, such as, but not limited to, conventional snaps, conventional buttons, or any other suitable fasteners. In addition, the flaps  36  may be characterized as being portions of the fastener mechanisms, and the flaps may be omitted if the selected fasteners do not require the flaps for operability. 
     Referring to  FIGS. 3 and 4 , divider panels  40  are positioned in the interior space of the tote  20  and foldably connected to the body  22  for dividing the interior space into cells that are each open at both of the opposite ends of the erected body while the end assemblies  32  are open. 
     The length of the tote  20  may be longer or shorter than its width. Irrespective, a longitudinal direction may be characterized as extending from the front to the rear end of the body  22 , or vice versa, so that the opposite front and rear ends of the body are spaced apart from one another in a longitudinal direction. Accordingly, the divider panels  40  each extend in the longitudinal direction and in a direction crosswise to the longitudinal direction. As shown in  FIGS. 3 and 4 , the crosswise direction extends substantially horizontally. 
     Referring generally to the representative panel schematically shown in  FIG. 6 , each of the body and divider panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 ,  40  is a multi-part panel comprising a stiffening panel  42  that is typically inserted into and substantially fully enclosed within a chamber or pocket formed of textile material. In this regard, in  FIG. 6 , the solid lines are illustrative of the periphery of a representative one of the pockets of the panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 ,  40 , and the dashed lines are schematically illustrative of a stiffening panel  42  hidden from view within the substantially closed pocket. As more specific examples and using the frame of reference of  FIG. 3 ,  FIG. 6  is generally schematically illustrative of both top and bottom plan views of each of the divider panels  40 , top body panel  24  and bottom body panel  26 . Similarly,  FIG. 6  is generally schematically illustrative of both right and left elevation views of the right and left body panels  28 ,  30 . Seams and fastener strips  38  are omitted from  FIG. 6  for ease of understanding. 
     The foldable connections of the divider panels  40  to the body  22  and the body panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30  to one another are cooperatively configured so that, while the end assemblies  32  are open as shown in  FIG. 4 , the tote  20 /body  22  can be transitioned from the erected configuration to the collapsed configuration shown in  FIG. 5 , and the tote/body can be reconfigured between the erected and collapsed configurations numerous times. In this regard, the end assemblies  32  may be fully removed from the body  22  preparatory to achieving the collapsed configuration, or more preferably (e.g., optionally) the upper flaps  36  may respectively remain connected to the opposite ends of the top body panel  24  in the collapsed configuration. In this regard,  FIG. 5  may be described as showing the tote  20  in a collapsed configuration in which the upper flaps  36  are connected to the opposite ends of the top body panel  24 , wherein the tote has been turned over and the flaps have been folded under and concealed beneath the body  22 . 
     In an example of a method of using the tote  20 , erected totes may be used in shipping components to manufacturers, and then the totes may be collapsed and returned to be reused in shipping additional components. For example, the components may be loaded and unloaded through front ends of the totes  20  configured as shown in  FIG. 3 . As a result, the totes  20  may be conveniently used, for example, in association with flow through supply racks on assembly lines. The components may be shipped within the erected totes  20  as shown in  FIGS. 1 and 2 . After unloading contents through an open end of the tote  20  as shown in  FIG. 3 , the opposite ends of the totes  20  may be opened as shown in  FIG. 4 , and the totes may be collapsed as shown in  FIG. 5 . However, the totes  20  may be used in a wide variety of other manners. 
     An example of a suitable method for forming the tote  20  is described in the following, in accordance with the first exemplary embodiment, although the tote may be assembled in any other suitable manner. Very generally described, the tote  20  may be manufactured by cutting pieces of textile material to size, respectively sewing the fastener strips to the pieces of textile material, and then sewing the pieces of textile material together in a predetermined manner, wherein stiffening panels are incorporated into the process at a predetermined time, as will be discussed in greater detail below. 
     Referring more specifically to  FIGS. 7-11 , textile material pieces  44 ,  46 ,  48  are cut to size, and fastener strips  38  are respectively attached to the textile material pieces, such as by sewing. Each of the body panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30  may be generally the same.  FIGS. 7 and 8  respectively are isolated views of outer and inner sides of a representative outer piece  44  of a representative body panel showing fastener strips  38  attached thereto by lateral sewn seams. Similarly,  FIGS. 9 and 10  respectively are isolated views of outer and inner sides of an inner piece  46  of the representative body panel showing a fastener strip  38  attached thereto by a lateral sewn seam.  FIG. 11  is an isolated plan view of an inner side of a textile material piece  48  of a representative divider panel  40  showing fastener strips  38  attached thereto by lateral sewn seams. 
     In accordance with the first exemplary embodiment, each of the pieces  44 ,  46 ,  48  is a piece of textile material, or more specifically a material that comprises fabric. The outer and inner pieces  44 ,  46  of the body panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30  may each be a different type of textile material, with the outer piece  44  being selected with a relatively high emphasis on durability, and the inner piece  46  being selected with a relatively high emphasis on being non-abrasive for protecting the components being shipped in the tote  20 . 
     In some of the drawings of this disclosure, the sewn seams are not shown, and where they are shown, they are shown schematically. For example, lateral sewn seams are schematically illustrated by dashed lines in  FIGS. 7-11 . In the drawings in which sewn seams are shown, only single seams are shown in an effort to clarify the drawings. Notwithstanding, for the body  22  of the first exemplary embodiment, for each sewn seam shown in the drawings there is typically a pair of seams. For each pair of such seams, the two seams are typically spaced apart from one another and substantially parallel. Alternatively, any number of sewn seams may be used, and the sewn seams may be replaced with any other suitable foldable attachment mechanisms, such as seams formed by adhesive material, heat sealing, ultrasonic welding, or by any other suitable mechanism, depending on what type of textile material, or what type of any other suitable material, is used. As at least partially shown in  FIGS. 7-11 , fastener strips  38  and lateral sewn seams preferably (e.g., optionally) extend for substantially the entire width of the respective piece  44 ,  46 ,  48  of textile material. However, the fastener strips  38  and lateral sewn seams may be configured differently without departing from the scope of this disclosure. 
       FIG. 12  is a side elevation view of the piece  48  of the representative divider panel folded over to partially form a divider pocket, wherein the fold substantially closes the rear end of the divider pocket, and the front end of the pocket is substantially closed by the mated pair of fastener strips  38 . In contrast, the right and left sides of the divider pocket are open in  FIG. 12 . 
       FIG. 13  is a view of a representative body pocket precursor comprising the inner and outer pieces  44 ,  46  of  FIGS. 7-10  joined together by a lateral sewn seam  50 . Preferably (e.g., optionally), the inner and outer pieces  44 ,  46  are substantially aligned with one another and the lateral sewn seam  50  extends for substantially the entire width of the outer and inner pieces  44 ,  46  of textile material. However, the fastener strips  38  and lateral sewn seam  50  may be configured differently without departing from the scope of this disclosure. As another alternative, the body pocket precursor may be formed from a single piece of textile material, such that the lateral sewn seam  50  may be omitted. That is, for each of the body panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 , rather than including the two pieces  44 ,  46 , a single, longer piece of textile material may be used, similarly to the divider panels  40 , and vice versa. 
     Generally described,  FIG. 14  shows the divider pocket of  FIG. 12  positioned between and sewn to two of the body pocket precursors of  FIG. 13 . More specifically, the opposite longitudinal margins of the folded piece  48  are folded about ninety degrees relative to the central portion of the folded piece  48 , and the longitudinal margins are connected to the inner pieces  46  of the body pocket precursors by schematically illustrated longitudinal sewn seams  52 . The longitudinal sewn seams  52  substantially close the opposite sides of the divider pocket. As at least partially shown in  FIG. 14 , the longitudinal sewn seams  52  preferably (e.g., optionally) extend for substantially the entire length of the folded piece  48 . However, the seams  52  may be configured differently without departing from the scope of this disclosure.  FIG. 14  is representative of the pocket portion of each of the divider panels  40  being sewn between opposite inner pieces  46  of the right and left body pocket precursors. 
     With continued reference to  FIG. 14  and as schematically illustrated by the arrows proximate the left ends of the body pocket precursors, similarly to the folded piece  48  of  FIG. 12 , each of the body pocket precursors is folded over to partially form a body pocket in which the outer piece  44  of the body pocket is in opposing face-to-face relation with the inner piece  46  of the body pocket, the fold substantially closes the rear end of the body pocket, and the front end of the body pocket is substantially closed by a mated pair of fastener strips  38 . In contrast, the sides of the body pocket are open. 
     Thereafter and as best understood with reference to  FIG. 15 , the opposite longitudinal margins of the partially formed body pockets are respectively connected to one another by schematically illustrated longitudinal sewn seams  54 . The other sewn seams and fastener strips  38  are not shown in  FIG. 15  in order to clarify the view. 
     The longitudinal sewn seams  54  substantially close the opposite sides of the body pockets. The longitudinal sewn seams  54  preferably (e.g., optionally) extend for substantially the entire length of the body  22 . However, the seams  54  may be configured differently without departing from the scope of this disclosure. 
     For each of the upper two longitudinal sewn seams  54  at each of the ends of the body  22 , the fastener strips  38  of the upper flaps  36  may be respectively attached to the outer fastener strips  38  of the top body panel  24  when the upper two longitudinal sewn seams  54  are formed, so that the upper two longitudinal sewn seams  54  securely connect the upper flaps  36 , and thus the end assemblies  32 , to the opposite ends of the top body panel  24 . For example,  FIG. 4  may be characterized as schematically illustrating that the upper flaps  36  of the end assemblies  32  are sewn to the body  22 , since it is schematically shown in  FIG. 4  that the upper flaps  36  (which are hidden from view in  FIG. 4 ) remain attached to the upper fastener strips  38  of the top body panel  24  when the opposite ends of the body  22  are open. 
     Referring to  FIG. 15 , the tote  20  optionally may include one or more handles  56  formed, for example, by forming strips of textile material into partial loops, and sewing opposite ends of the partial loops to the top sides of the body  22  by way of the upper pair of longitudinal sewn seams  54 , or the like. One or more of the handles  56  may be omitted or provided in any other suitable manner. 
     Immediately after the body and divider pockets are formed and substantially closed as discussed above, and before the stiffening panels  42  are respectively inserted in the pockets, the front opening of each of these pockets may remain substantially closed by the mated interaction of the inner fastener strips  38  of the pocket. As a general example, see the end of the divider panel being held closed by fastener strips  38  in  FIG. 12 , and the front openings of the pockets are schematically shown as being in their closed configurations in  FIGS. 3 and 4 . For completing the assembly of the body and divider panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 ,  40 , the front opening of each of the body and divider pockets may be opened by unmating the inner fastener strips  38  of the pocket. Then, the stiffening panels  42  may be respectively inserted into the interior of the pockets through their front openings, as generally shown in  FIG. 15 . 
     In the first exemplary embodiment, each of the pockets is substantially filled with a single one of the stiffening panels  42 , although more than one of the stiffening panels may be included in each of the pockets, and in some situations one or more of the stiffening panels may be omitted. After inserting the stiffening panels  42 , typically the front opening of each of the pockets is closed by causing mated interaction between the inner fastener strips  38  of the pocket. That is, the stiffening panels  42  are retained in the respective pockets by at least partially closing the front opening of the pockets. 
     In the first exemplary embodiment, the inner fastener strips  38  of each pocket extend for the entire width of the pocket, although they may extend to a lesser extent, and the stiffening panels  42  may be retained in their respective pockets in any other suitable manner. For example, alternatively the front openings of the pockets may be at least partially closed with sewn stitches or any other suitable fastening mechanisms. 
       FIGS. 16 and 17  are isolated views of the outer and inner sides, respectively, of a representative one of the end assemblies  32  in a flat configuration. The representative end assembly includes one or more layers of textile material, which include the flaps  36 , and to which a stiffening panel  58  is attached by a sewn seam. The seam connecting the stiffening panel  58  to the textile material of the end assembly  32 , and the seams connecting the fastener strips  38  to the flaps  36 , are schematically illustrated by dashed lines in  FIGS. 16 and 18 . In the first exemplary embodiment, the transition between the end panel  34  and flaps  36  is defined by the peripheral edge of the stiffening panel  58  and the seam connecting the stiffening panel to the textile material of the end assembly  32 , and the connection between the end panel and the flaps is by virtue of the continuous nature of the textile material of the end assembly. 
     In an alternative embodiment, the stiffening panel  58  may be positioned in a pocket of the end panel  34 , wherein the pocket may be defined by the textile material of the end assembly  32  and one or more appropriately configured sewn seams, or the like. Alternatively and similarly to the end assemblies  32 , one or more of the stiffening panels  42  may be sewn to their adjacent textile material, such that rather than forming pockets and including the stiffening panels  42  in the pockets, the stiffening panels  42  may be sewn to the textile material of the respective panel. 
     In the first exemplary embodiment, for each of the end assemblies  32 , the stiffening panel  58  is the outermost layer of the end assembly  32 , the periphery of the stiffening panel  58  is about the same size as the periphery of the respective end opening of the body  22 , and the stiffening panel  58  is sufficiently rigid for operating in conjunction with, for example, the rigid stiffening panels  42  to hold the tote  20  in the erected, open configuration shown in  FIGS. 3 . 
     The stiffening panels  42 ,  58  may be any suitable, generally rigid, plate-like pieces of materials. For example, in the first exemplary embodiment the stiffening panels  42 ,  58  are extruded corrugated sheets of polymeric (e.g., plastic) material, although they may be pieces of cardboard, sheet metal, or any other suitable material. The above-discussed pieces of textile material (e.g., fabric) may be any suitable types of textile material, such as, but not limited to, nonwoven or woven textile materials, and the textile materials may be coated with suitable coatings and/or may have suitable films or other suitable layers laminated thereto. In addition, each of the pieces of textile material may consist of a single layer of textile material or multiple layers of textile material optionally in combination with any other suitable layers. 
     As an example that is not shown in the drawings, the bottom body panel  26  may further include a durable outermost layer that is sewn or otherwise attached to the outer piece  44  of the bottom body panel  26  for reinforcement. This outermost layer may comprise textile material, polymeric film, extruded sheet, any other suitable material and/or any suitable combination thereof. Likewise, the other panels  24 ,  26 ,  28 ,  30 ,  40  and features of the tote  20  may be modified. For example and alternatively, in some situations the tote  20  may be made predominately of paperboard, cardboard and/or any other suitable materials. 
     Other variations are also within the scope of this disclosure. For example, the number of flaps  36  can be reduced, the number of divider panels  40  may be increased and/or the divider panels may be configured differently. For example,  FIGS. 18-21  generally correspond to FIGS.  1  and  3 - 5 , respectively, except that  FIGS. 18-21  illustrate a tote of a second exemplary embodiment of this disclosure. The first and second exemplary embodiments are substantially the same except for variations noted and variations that will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art. For example, the tote of the second exemplary embodiment includes less flaps  36 , and additional and differently configured divider panels  40 . The divider panels  40  of the second exemplary embodiment each extend in the longitudinal direction and in directions crosswise to the longitudinal direction, wherein for some of the divider panels the crosswise direction is upright, and for other of the divider panels the crosswise direction is substantially horizontal. 
     The above examples are in no way intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that while the present disclosure has been discussed above with reference to exemplary embodiments, various additions, modifications and changes can be made thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as set forth in the claims.