Patent Publication Number: US-6209725-B1

Title: Expandable basket for holding articles

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to a basket for holding articles, and more particularly to an expandable basket for holding articles. 
     BACKGROUND ART 
     As shown in FIG. 1, a prior art basket  10  has a main body  11  which is provided therein with a plurality of spaces  13  formed and defined by a plurality of partitions  12 . The main body  11  has an open top which is provided with a cover  14 . The main body  11  is provided with a handle  15  fastened therewith. The spaces  13  are intended to hold a variety of articles. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a basket expandable to give an additional space to hold articles. 
     It is another objective of the present invention to provide a modular basket formed of units of standardized size and form, which can be fitted together end to end. 
     The objectives, features, and advantages of the present invention will be readily understood upon a thoughtful deliberation of the following detailed description of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of a prior art basket. 
     FIG. 2 shows a perspective view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 3 shows an exploded view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 4 shows a longitudinal sectional view of the present invention. 
     FIG. 5 shows a longitudinal sectional view of an expanded basket of the present invention. 
     FIG. 6 shows a longitudinal sectional view of two baskets of the present invention which are fitted together end to end. 
     FIG. 7 shows a longitudinal sectional view of four baskets of the present invention which are fitted together end to end. 
     FIG. 8 shows a perspective view of three baskets of the present invention which are fitted together end to end. 
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     As shown in FIGS. 2-5, a basket embodied in the present invention is intended to hold a variety of articles and is formed of a hollow main body  20 , a top box  40 , a cover  60 , and a handle  70 . 
     The main body  20  is provided in the bottom thereof with an annular protrusion  21  and an annular slot  22  defined by the annular protrusion  21 . The hollow main body  20  is provided in the inner wall of the top portion thereof with an annular stop edge  23 , and in the outer wall of the top portion thereof with an outer flange  24  and an inner flange  25  which is provided with a plurality of retaining strips  26  separated from one another and from the outer flange  24  by a space  27 . Each of the retaining strips  26  is provided at one and thereof with a stop body  28  which is connected to the top of the outer flange  24 . The main body  20  is further provided in the outer wall thereof with two protuberances  30 , with each having an opening  29 . 
     The top box  40  is provided in the center thereof with a cylindrical body  41 . Located between the outer wall of the cylindrical body  41  and the inner wall of the top box  40  are a plurality of cells  43  which are formed and defined by the pieces  42 . The top box  40  is disposed in the top portion of the main body  20  such that bottom edge of the top box  40  is stopped by the annular stop edge  23  of the main body  20 . 
     The cover  60  is provided in the outer periphery thereof with an annular wall  61  which is in turn provided with a plurality of retaining bodies  62  separated from one another. The cover  60  is rotatably joined with the top edge of the main body  20  such that the retaining bodies  62  are retained in the spaces  27 . 
     The handle  70  is provided respectively at both ends thereof with a retaining pillar  71  and is fastened at both ends thereof to the main body  20  such that the retaining pillar  71  of each end of the handle  70  is retained in the opening  29  of the protuberance  30 . 
     The present invention is characterized by the main body  20  which is provided in the underside thereof with a recess  201  and a retaining portion  31  which is provided with a bottom ring  32  and a plurality of bottom strips  33  separated from one another. The retaining portion  31  is separated from the underside of the main body  20  by an appropriate distance  34 . Each of the bottom strips  33  is provided at one end thereof with an arresting body  35  which is connected with the underside of the main body  20 . 
     The present invention is further characterized by the cover  60  which is provided with an annular seat  601  and a retaining portion  602 . The cover  60  has a round slot  63  and an inner wall  64  which is provided with a plurality of retaining edges  65  and spaces  66  which are formed between the underside of the retaining edges  65  and the underside of the round slot  63 . Each retaining edge  65  is provided at one end thereof with a stop block  651  which is connected to the underside of the round slot  63 . The retaining portion  31  of another main body  20  is retained in the round slot  63  of the retaining portion  602  of the cover  60  such that the bottom strips  33  of the retaining portion  31  are retained in the spaces  66  of the cover  60 . 
     The cylindrical body  41  is further provided in the inner wall of the bottom portion thereof with an annular body  44  to accommodate an expandable cylinder  50 , which is formed of an outer cylinder  51  and an inner cylinder  52 . The outer cylinder  51  is dimensioned to be received in the interior of the cylindrical body  41  such that the outer wall of the outer cylinder  51  is in contact with the inner wall of the cylindrical body  41 . The outer cylinder  51  is provided in the inner wall thereof with two longitudinal slots  511  opposite to each other. The outer cylinder  51  is further provided with an upper retaining hole  512  and a lower retaining hole  513 . The inner cylinder  52  has a closed bottom and is provided in the outer wall thereof with two longitudinally-oriented guide strips  521 , and two elastic retaining hooks  522  which are located in the proximity of the top of the inner cylinder  52 . The inner cylinder  52  is received in the outer cylinder  51  such that the guide strips  521  of the inner cylinder  52  are received in the longitudinal slots  511  of the inner wall of the outer cylinder  51 . As the inner cylinder  52  is displaced in the outer cylinder  51 , the elastic retaining hooks  522  of the inner cylinder  52  are retained in the upper retaining hole  512  and the lower retaining hole  513  of the outer cylinder  51 . 
     As shown in FIGS. 6-8, the present invention is in fact provided with means to organize the articles held in the basket of the present invention. For example, the main body  20  can be used to accommodate the longer articles, whereas the cells  43  of the top box  40  and the interior of the expandable cylinder  50  can be used to hold smaller articles. In addition, the expandable cylinder  50  can be expanded to accommodate the longer articles. Furthermore, a plurality of the baskets of the present invention can be arranged together end to end such that the retaining portion  31  of the main body  20  of one basket is retained in the retaining portion  602  of the cover  60  of another basket. 
     The embodiment of the present invention described above is to be regarded in all respects as being merely illustrative and not restrictive. Accordingly, the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without deviating from the spirit thereof. The present invention is therefore to be limited only by the scopes of the following appended claims.