Patent Publication Number: US-8112851-B1

Title: Casket with retractable handle

Description:
1. FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates generally to burial caskets. More particularly, the present invention relates to a burial handle with retractable handles. 
     2. BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Burial or internment in a casket is the most common method in the United States and many other countries to dispose of human remains. The body of the deceased is placed in the casket which is then placed in a burial vault and buried. Similarly the casket can be placed in a mausoleum or crypt. 
     Caskets come in a standard size, typically having external dimensions of 20″×30″×79″ (H×W×L). In order to avoid the additional cost for non standard or oversized vaults or crypts, the exterior dimensions of the casket must fit within a standard sized vault or crypt. 
     The obesity epidemic facing the United States and other developed nations has presented a new problem to the bereaved and funeral industry as a whole. When an obese individual dies, they often will not fit inside a standard sized casket. This means an oversized casket must be used. If the exterior dimensions of the oversized casket (including the side handles) exceeds the interior dimensions of the burial vault, an oversized burial vault must be used. All of this adds a considerable amount of additional expense. 
     In placing an obese person into a casket and then into a burial vault the critical dimension becomes the width of the casket. This situation is complicated by the fact the exterior width of the casket is increased by the handles located on either side of the exterior of the casket. If the exterior width of the casket is 30″ this will typically leave the prior art casket with an interior width of 22″ to 24″. 
     What is needed is a way to more efficiently use this external width of the casket. Essentially this means finding away to maximize the internal width of the casket while maintaining the overall external width of the casket within the standard internal width of a standard sized burial vault. 
     Prior art teaches various caskets handles which extend and retract. However none of these provide a handle which is flush with the exterior wall of the casket while the handle is in a stored or retracted position. 
     Further the handles in prior that do retract partially into the sidewall of the casket require an increased thickness of the sidewall. This means that while the amount the retracted handle protrudes from the exterior of the sidewall is reduced the interior width is diminished. Thus they do not provide a solution to this problem. 
     What is needed, therefore, is a casket which has handles that maximize the interior width while minimizing the exterior width. 
     BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention achieves its objections by providing a casket with retractable handles which are flush with the sidewalls. The casket comprises a first and second sidewall, a first and second end wall, an exterior bottom, an interior floor, a top connected to one of said sidewall and a reinforcement member offset form one of said sidewall. A first and second opening are linearly aligned and pass through a sidewall and the reinforcement member respectively. An elongated handle with a first end and a second end, extends through and is slidingly received in said first and second opening, said handle having a stored position wherein said first end is flush with said sidewall and an extended position where said handle extends from said sidewall. In the preferred embodiment the first and second opening, and elongated handle are received in between the bottom of the casket and interior floor of the casket. 
     The present invention allows the casket manufacturer to maximize the interior width of the casket while maintaining an outside width capable of fitting into a standard sized burial vault. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
       Preferred embodiments of the invention will now be described in further detail. Other features, aspects, and advantages of the present invention will become better understood with regard to the following detailed description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings (which are not to scale) where: 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention; 
         FIG. 2  is a sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention with the handle in the stored position; and 
         FIG. 3  is a sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention with the handle in the partially extended position; 
         FIG. 4  is a sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention with the handle in the extended position. 
         FIG. 5  is a sectional view of one embodiment of the present invention showing the preferred location of the first and second opening and reinforcement member located between the bottom of the casket and the interior floor of the casket and showing one handle in a stored position and one handle in a extended position. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT(S) 
     Turning now to the drawings wherein like reference characters indicate like or similar parts throughout,  FIG. 1  is a perspective view of a casket  20  according to one embodiment of the present invention. The exterior dimensions of the casket are indicated by H, W and L. The casket  20  has a first and second sidewall  22  and  24 , a first and second end wall  26  and  28 , an exterior bottom  30  and a top  32  connected to one of the sidewalls  22  or  24 . As best seen in  FIG. 5 , the preferred embodiment of the casket  20  also has the interior floor  34  located between the exterior bottom  30  and the top  32 . The sidewalls  22 ,  24 , end walls  26 ,  28 , top  32  and interior floor  34  define an interior volume  36  typically used to contain human remains. 
     As best seen in  FIGS. 2 through 5 , one or more reinforcement members  38  are located between the interior floor  34  and exterior bottom  30 . They are also offset from one of the sidewalls  22  or  24 . A first opening  40  passes through one of the sidewalls  22  or  24 . A second opening  42  passes through the reinforced member and is aligned with the first opening  40 . 
     An elongated handle  44  with a first end  46  and a second end  48  extends through and is slidingly received in the first and second opening  40  and  42 . The handle  44  has a stored position as seen in  FIG. 2  wherein the first end  46  of the elongated handle  44  is flush with the sidewall  22  or  24 . The handle  44  also has an extended position where the handle extends from the sidewall  22  or  24  as seen in  FIG. 4 . 
       FIG. 2  shows the elongated handle  44  in the stored position such that the first end  46  of elongated handle  44  is flush with the sidewall  22  or  24 .  FIG. 3  shows the elongated handle  44  in the partially extended position such that the first end  46  of the elongated handle  44  protrudes out from the sidewall  22  or  24 . Finally  FIG. 4  shows the elongated handle  44  in the extended position. 
     The preferred embodiment of the present invention has a retention mechanism  50 . In the preferred embodiment the retention mechanism is comprised of a metal bracket or washer  52  located on the second end  48  of the elongated handles  44 . When the handle  44  is in the stored position the bracket  52  is engaged by a magnetic latch mechanism  54  which holds the elongated handle  44  securely in the stored position as best seen in  FIG. 2 . 
     In order to release the elongated handle  44  from the stored position, the first end  46  of the elongated handle  44  must be depressed inward towards the latch mechanism  54 . This causes the latch mechanism  54  to extend as shown in  FIG. 3 . Thus placing the elongated handle  44  in the partially extended position. While in the partially extended position the elongated handle  44  protrudes from the sidewall  22  however it is held in place by magnetic attraction between the latch mechanism  54  and the bracket  52 . 
     In order to move the elongated handle  44  into the extended position as seen in  FIG. 4 , the first end  46  of the elongated handle  44  must be pulled outward away from the latch mechanism  54 . This overcomes the magnetic bond between the latch mechanism  54  and the bracket  52 , thus allowing the elongated handle  44  to slide outwardly through the first and second openings  40  and  42  until the bracket  52  engages the reinforcement member  38  thus stopping the slide of the elongated handle  44  and thus retaining the handle  44  in the fully extended position. It is preferred the bracket  52  either be sized or located such that will not pass through the second opening  42  in the reinforcement member  38 . This in turn retains the elongated handle  44  in the first and second openings  40  and  42 . 
     In order to return the elongated handle  44  to the stored position, the elongated handle is slid inwardly until the second end  48  of the elongated handle  44  and the bracket  52  engage the latch mechanism  54 . The elongated handle  44  is then pressed inwardly until the latch mechanism  54  is re-engaged with the elongated handle  44  in the stored position. 
     Turning now to  FIG. 5  which shows a cross-sectional area of the preferred embodiment of the present invention. The elongated handle  44  on the right side of the Figure is in a stored position while the elongated handle  44  on the left side of the Figure is in the extended position. The interior width of the casket  20  is indicated by W i . Here it is illustrated that the elongated handles  44  along with the first and second openings  40  and  42  and retention mechanism  50  are located in an area between the plane of the exterior bottom  30  and interior floor  34 . By locating the handles in this area, the present invention avoids using valuable width of the casket to contain the elongated handles  44 . 
     While the preferred embodiment of the present invention shown in the attached figures shows a magnetic type latch mechanism  54  which engages a magnetic bracket  52 , other latch mechanisms  54  could be used to practice this invention. 
     The foregoing description details certain preferred embodiments of the present invention and describes the best mode contemplated. It will be appreciated, however, that changes may be made in the details of construction and the configuration of components without departing from the spirit and scope of the disclosure. Therefore, the description provided herein is to be considered exemplary, rather than limiting, and the true scope of the invention is that defined by the following claims and the full range of equivalency to which each element thereof is entitled.