Patent Document

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
     This application claims priority of Provisional Patent Application Serial No. 60/244,874 filed Oct. 31, 2000. 
    
    
     TECHNICAL FIELD 
     The present invention relates to material handling bins in general. More specifically to a bin that is fabricated of reinforced double-walled thermoplastic and is capable of being disassembled for storage and shipping. 
     Bin History 
     The General Forklift Handling Problem 
     Material handling by forklifts has always been the biggest problem affecting storage bin longevity, bin repair and bin replacement regardless of bin style and type. Customer supervision has been lax in demanding greater care and safety in the handling of all items by forklift operators. Also, the operators are driven by supervision to speed up the handling and moving of materials. Consequently, the “haste makes waste” caution goes out the window to meet schedules and/or cut labor costs by trying to do more with fewer operators thus resulting in serious damage by forklifts to buildings, pallet rack, floor mounted equipment, other forklift equipment, pallets, bins and a general hazard to other personnel. 
     Storage Bins in Industry 
     Large containers, that can be handled by a forklift, have generally been made of steel, wire, wood, corrugated paper (or combination thereof) and various versions of plastic, injection molded, structural foam, rotationally molded, vacuum formed and fluted plastic sheet. The Agriculture (AG) Industry, with the advent of fresh-cut packaged produce, has been forced to improve their handling of produce relative to the use of wood bins due to government regulatory agencies and consumer complaints of wood splinters and bacteria in edible products, some of which have resulted in illnesses, deaths and law suits. Wood bins cannot not be suitably sanitized. 
     The USDA has increased it&#39;s involvement in this industry similar to the meat and poultry industry establishing suitable standards for bacteria control. The AG industry has accelerated it&#39;s rate of conversion into using plastic containers as one of the alternatives to comply with government and consumer standards relative to elimination of wood splinters and sanitation. Individual companies are establishing control programs to secure certification of compliance by agencies that provide that service. 
     Wood bins are much stronger than plastic bins and will take a lot more abuse. In an effort to strengthen the wood bin in the forklift vulnerable areas of impact, the wood bin manufacturers resorted to adding galvanized sheet metal reinforcements nailed or bolted-on in the critical areas and large “U” shaped bolts to secure the panels to the corner posts. Consequently, in addition to the wood splinters and bacteria entering the vegetable process system the processors ended up with metal pieces falling off bins due to forklift damage and into processing equipment resulting in damaged machinery. 
     Metal detectors reject packaged product with metal particles. There is no suitable automatic means to detect wood splinters or bacteria, it has to be controlled by visual inspection and good processing procedures. 
     Plastic Bin Handling 
     The AG Industry fresh-cut processors&#39; eagerness to convert to plastic bins was destined to happen. However, little attention was addressed to the necessity to retrain the forklift operators in the handling of plastic bins. Plastic bins introduced a whole new set of operating problems as they cannot be handled in the same way as wood bins. Plastic is slippery and the bins will slide off the forklift forks if the operator does not slow down. The longevity of the plastic bin concept was very short when they were introduced to the AG industry. Plastic bin replacement cost went up over wood cost not to mention the significant difference in initial cost of plastic bins compared to the wood bins being replaced. Also, labor cost went up because forklift operators had to slow down or lose the load. 
     Again, plastic bins are not as strong as wood bins and it is doubtful they ever will be. Plastic bins did solve the wood splinter problem and bacteria problem providing bins are routinely washed. Wood bins were rarely, if ever, washed. 
     Present Plastic Bin Market Review 
     Some of the manufacturers who make plastic bins are AC Buckhorn, Orbis, Macro, Arca(Perstorp/Xytec), Ropak, Carson, OTTO, Stratis, Nucon, Ultra Poly, Pacific Bin, Bonar Plastics, American Rotoform, RMI, and others. 
     Plastic Bin Designs 
     Some of the bin designs are (1) a one-piece single-wall bin where the legs are hollow, (2) a two-piece bin where the bin has a replaceable pallet base, (3) an injection molded structural foam collapsible bin where the bin is made up of five sections, a pallet, two sides and two ends that readily fold down or up, (4) a rotationally molded single-wall bin and a double-wall bin. Item (3) has gained popularity in that it is economical and parts can be easily replaced. 
     New Bin Features 
     Reinforced Double-Wall Knock-Down Bin 
     It appears the one-piece (or two-piece) bin is the least desirable. What customers prefer is a bin that has replaceable panels, is strong, has good longevity, low in-bound freight cost, at the lowest cost per bin. That is why the collapsible bin concept is so popular. My Reinforced Double-wall Knock-down Bin invention described below meets the requirements for greater strength and longevity and exceeds that of existing bins. 
     Bin Stack Fork Entry Target Area 
     The most critical area of forklift impact is the entry area where the fork tines must enter under the bin to lift it, move it, and stack it. This is the target area that is speared by the forklifts. The top of the entry way which is the bottom of the pallet deck, and the top of the bin which is the bottom of the entry way of two bins, receives a lot of force from forklift tine impact, by direct hit and/or fork drag. Entry way clearance height is limited to maximize the inside of the usable bin height for product volume. The overall bin height is restricted to suitability of fit for equipment and transporting and any increase in entry way height will reduce the inside height of the bin and volume of product the bin will handle. Forklift operators, when exiting and having stacked one bin on top of another bin, have a tendency to drop the fork tines down onto the top lip of the bin below placing a heavy drag load on the bin top lip. The result of this action will cause either one or both bin top corners to tear-out. This problem is compounded by AG industry use of special fork trucks designed to handle 12 (2 rows of 6) bins at a time. 
     If the terrain, where the 12 pallet fork truck is operating in, has an irregular floor surface and/or if all of the forks are not in perfect horizontal alignment with one another then some of the forks may create greater drag on the bin tops. The thickness of the forks at the back of the tine almost takes up the clearance height between stacked bins and the clearance is considerably less if the bottom center of the bin sags due the load weight within the bin. Limited bin fork entry clearance, bin center load sag, and thick fork tines pose a serious maneuverability problem to the forklift operator. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 is a perspective view of my reinforced double-wall knock-down bin in it&#39;s assembled condition; 
     FIG. 2 is an end elevation view of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 3 is a side elevation view of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 4 is a plan view of the bottom of the pallet of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 5 is a plan view of the top of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 6 is an exploded end elevation view of the bin in FIG. 2 showing the assembly direction of the side panels and pallet attached to the end panels; 
     FIG. 7 is an exploded side elevation view of the bin in FIG. 3 showing the assembly direction of the end panels and pallet attached to the side panels; 
     FIG. 8 is an isometric view of the internal reinforcing support structure confined within the walls of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 9 is an elevation view of the loop-end tie rod shown in FIG. 9 that is molded-in the top portion of each side panel shown in FIG.  3  &amp; FIG. 7; 
     FIG. 10 a  is a top plan view of the loop-end of FIG. 9 showing it in straight form; 
     FIG. 10 b  is a top plan view of the loop of FIG. 9 showing an alternate forming of the loop-end. 
     FIG. 11 is a partial plan view of one end of the pallet bottom showing the tie-rod installed, the end panels are not shown; 
     FIG. 12 is a cross section elevation view of line  12 — 12  in FIG. 11 of the typical recesses in the bottom of the pallet; 
     FIG. 13 is an enlarged partial plan view of line  13 — 13  in FIG. 11 of the left corner end of the bottom end of the pallet; 
     FIG. 14 is a cross section elevation view of one end of the pallet base of the bin in FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 15 is an end outside elevation view of line  15 — 15  of FIG. 14 of the left side of the pallet end outer-leg; 
     FIG. 16 is an end inside elevation view of line  16 — 16  of FIG. 14 of the left side of the center-leg and the inside of the outer-leg on the right of the pallet end; 
     FIG. 17 is an end inside elevation view of line  17 — 17  of FIG. 14 of the right side of the center-leg and the inside of the outer-leg on the left side of the pallet end; 
     FIG. 18 is an end outside elevation view of line  18 — 18  of FIG. 14 of the right side of the pallet end outer-leg; 
     FIG. 19 is a cross section elevation view of line  19 — 19  of FIG. 1 of the pallet end showing engagement of the end panel groove with the pallet tongue and the tie-rod; 
     FIG. 20 is a cross section elevation view of line  20 — 20  of FIG. 1 of the pallet showing the two outer pallet legs and the center leg with the load support bar; 
     FIG. 21 is a partial outside elevation view of the sides of the outer legs along line  21 — 21  of FIG. 20; 
     FIG. 22 is a partial inside elevation view of the sides of the center leg and outer legs along line  22 — 22  of FIG. 20; 
     FIG. 23 is an enlarged partial elevation view of the corner end of the side panel and end panel interleaved showing the formation of the corner notch along line  23 — 23  of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 24 is a partial section top plan view along line  24 — 24  of FIG. 23; 
     FIG. 25 is an isometric cross section of the top corner along line  25 — 25  of FIG. 1; 
     FIG. 26 is a partial cross section elevation view of the side of the pallet and side panel engagement of the side panel bottom tab into the socket on top of the pallet along line  26 — 26  of FIG. 7; 
     FIG. 27 is a cross section elevation view along line  27 — 27  of FIG. 26; 
     FIG. 28 is a partial elevation view of the top of the end panel showing the preferred configuration of FIG. 6; 
     FIG. 29 is an end view of FIG. 28; 
     FIG. 30 is a partial elevation view of the top of end panel showing an alternate option of the preferred configuration of FIG. 28; 
     FIG. 31 is an end view of FIG. 30; 
     FIG. 32 is a partial elevation view of the top of end panel showing a second alternative option of the preferred configuration of FIG. 28; 
     FIG. 33 is an end view of FIG.  32 . 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
     The stackable reinforced bin shown in FIG. 1 is comprised of five primary double-wall rotationally molded plastic components. The double-wall sections are hollow and have a void in between the walls optionally filled with a foam material, defined as an expandable cellular plastic. This method of molding the components offers a lower mold cost and the structures by being double-wall provide added strength. A Linear Low Density Polyethylene resin is used to mold the sections of the bin because of it&#39;s flexibility and resilience to impact and is less likely to fracture and crack than other types of materials. However, any type of resin suitable to rotational molding process could be used for other applications. The pallet-base  40 , and two identical vertical end-panels  41 , and two identical vertical side-panels  42  form the enclosure bin. Although the pallet-base  40  is shown in FIG. 1 as a two-way forklift entry from either end of the bin it is possible to also have the same configuration on the side so as to provide four-way forklift entry which is not illustrated. 
     The internal supporting reinforcing structure shown in FIG. 8 provides substantially increased strength to the structure of the primary components and is composed of two bottom end rods with threaded ends  47  preferably metal however a strong plastic material could be substituted, four vertical corner posts  80  which are tubular but could be solid preferably plastic however could be metal for added strength, two top horizontal side rods with loop-ends  52  preferably made of metal which are molded into the top side-panel  42 , and two top horizontal end bars  81  preferably made of plastic but could be made of metal with two horizontal end rods  47  preferably made of metal but could be made of plastic that are inserted into the end bars  81  and have threaded ends. Each side-panel  42  have a plurality of bottom male extensions and the pallet-base  40  has a number of female receptacles. The bottom male extensions engage within the female receptacles in the pallet-base  40  and each side-panel  42  includes a segmented horizontal end extension on opposite ends. These side-panels have segmented extensions on opposed ends engaging with said end-panel segmented horizontal extensions, and the end-panel and side-panel corner extensions each having at one opening on top and one opening on bottom, which concentrically match in perpendicularity. The end-panels  41  and the side-panels  42  have a series of molded-in vent slots, typically  48  &amp;  49  shown in FIGS. 1,  2 , &amp;  3  respectively which not only provide ventilation for products placed in the bin that require air circulation such as produce, but also provide additional strengthening to the panels. 
     The end-panel  41  and side-panel  42  vent slots show the center group of vent slots at  48  &amp;  49  configured in the center of the panels so that the center of the wall is strengthened in the longitudinal direction to reduce the possibility of outward wall bowing due the outward force of the product loaded inside the bin. The top portion of the end panel wall  41  is thicker than the lower major portion of the wall as shown in FIG.  1  &amp; FIG. 7, the purpose of the slope  51  on the inside of the end-panel  42  at the top as shown in FIG. 1 is to provide the transition to the narrower section below. In order for the inside wall of side-panel  42  to blend in with this transition on the top inside corner of the sidewall  42  at  51  is configured to blend in with this slope. 
     The pallet-base  40  shown in FIG. 2 is provided with inward stepped sections on the bottom of the legs, on the full length of the left outer leg  56 , the ends of the center leg  57  and the full length of the right leg  58 , to provide positive stacking inter-lock where this recessed section on the bottom fits into the top of a bin when one bin is stacked on top of the another bin. 
     The top of the side-panel  42  shown in FIG. 3 has a molded-in metal rod with loop ends  52  to provide substantial strength to the top side wall and increase the rigidity along the top to reduce the flexibility in of the plastic wall in this area. Plastic by itself is not as rigid as metal or wood. The loop end  77  of side rod  52  shows the preferred configuration of the loop which must accommodate the diameter of the top end bar  81 . FIG. 10 a  straight form &amp; FIG. 10 b  alternate with FIG. 10 b  being the preferred shape show the top view of the loop end side bar  52  which could be either straight or bent at an angle as shown. 
     Referring to FIG.  14  through FIG. 19, end-panel  41  has a first means for securing the bottom end of the end-panel  41  to the end of the pallet-base  40  with a plurality of horizontal tongues  71  on the end of the pallet-base which engage with a first set of corresponding horizontal grooves  82  on the bottom inside wall of the end-panel  41 . The end-panel  41  has a second means for securing end-panel  41  to the pallet-base  40  with a second set of horizontal grooves  72  on the outside of end-panel  41  bottom end directly opposite the first set of grooves  82 . The end-panel is fully secured to the pallet-base  40  with the insertion of an end rod  47  alternately through each pallet-base  40  leg end openings  84  shown in FIG. 15 through 18 concentrically matched with the second set of horizontal grooves  72 . Fastening means attached to opposed ends to the threaded end rod  47  secure the rod. Each end-panel  41  has a plurality of corner extensions, which engage the side-panel  42  segmented horizontal end extensions on opposing ends. The end-panel  41  corner end extensions have at least one opening top and bottom that concentrically match in perpendicularity. Each side-panel  42  and end-panel  41  have means for holding together a corner point. The corner point consists side-panel  42  extensions and end-panel  41  extensions that inter-mesh. Openings in the horizontal end extensions of the side-panel  42  and end-panel  41  corner extensions inter-mesh vertically and concentrically. 
     An alternate top configuration to the preferred embodiment shown in FIG. 28 is illustrated in FIG. 32 which consists of the end-panel  41   c  horizontal top end having a cut out on opposite sides of the end-panel  41   c  area in a center portion thereof forming a stacking land  98  for the pallet-base  40  center leg underside end. This cutout permits stacking a bin on top of another bin thereby exposing the top end bar  81  horizontally on opposite sides of the end-panel  41   c  top center  98  thus reducing possible damage to the forklift access bin to area of the end-panel  41 . 
     The pallet-base  40  has a plurality of molded-in reinforcing recesses  60  on its underside as illustrated in FIG.  4 . The recesses  60  are perpendicular to the pallet-base  40  bottom walls as shown in FIG.  12  and are joined at the top of the underside of the pallet-base  40  top wall providing substantial reinforcing strength to the pallet-base  40  bottom surface to aid in the support of the load within. The pallet-base  40  shown in FIG. 4, includes two horizontal channels  65  on an underside surface between the outer leg and center leg of said pallet-base  40 . The channels  65  are spaced and centered to provide distributed load support of the load within the bin. To further explain the function of the channels  65 , they are recessed within the profile of the pallet-base walls which strengthen and accommodate the support bars that ultimately support the load. 
     The pallet-base  40  shown in the cross section view FIG. 20, has a plurality of openings  85  in the sidewalls of the underside legs with the pallet-base  40 , support bar  66  made of a metal tube having a predetermined length, is inserted into openings  85  and channels  65 . Retaining means comprise a plurality of predetermined extensions  54  at the bottom outer of the side-panel  42  having a suitable size for engaging recesses  69  in the pallet-base  40 . The extensions  54  close off the support bar  66  insertion opening  69  within the pallet-base when the side-panel  42  is assembled to the pallet-base  40 . The pallet-base  40  has a plurality of reinforcing vertical gussets  62  &amp;  67  on the leg walls to add additional to the load The pallet-base  40  to includes a plurality of receptacles  96 , depicted in FIGS. 26 &amp; 27 which form an upper tapered conical structure to accommodate receiving the side-panel  42  bottom tapered extension  70 . Female fastening means  88  are integrally connected to a corresponding vertically concentric downward oppositely tapered conical structure  96  on the underside of the pallet-base  40  outer legs. This arrangement accommodates insertion of male fastening means  92  from the underside of the pallet-base  40 . The combination of tapered inverted vertical concentric conical structures  96  provide substantial reinforcing strength. 
     The bottom of the pallet-base  40  shown in FIG. 4 has have means for ventilation consisting of a series of molded-in vent slots  50  to provide air circulation and added strength to the double-wall of the pallet-base  40 . The strength of the bottom double-wall pallet-base  40  is further increased by the addition of several recesses  60  which are shown as circular but could be any configuration and are further illustrated along line  12 — 12  in FIG.  12 . The bottom of the pallet-base  40  shown in FIG. 4 has two horizontal tubes support bars  66  inserted in the channels  65  and the outer legs and center leg to provide substantial added strength to the bottom center of the bin to minimize the possibility of sagging or downward deflection due to the product load within in the bin. In a stack of two or more bins the bottom bin is resting on the ground or floor surface and the load is distributed along the bottom of all three legs. However, when two or more bins are stacked one on top of the other the center section of the center leg is unsupported leading to the possibility of load sag which will impede the ability of a forklift to pick up the upper bins. 
     The method of bin pre-assembly shown in FIG. 6 is to move the two side-panels  42  toward the end-panels  41  until the corners are inter-meshed with one another. These panels are held in place by the four corner posts  80  shown in FIG. 8 by inserting the posts through holes  86  in the top and bottom of each panel corner member as shown in FIG.  23  and pallet-base  40  corner opening  68 , shown in FIG. 13, from the bottom upwardly. Pin projections  73  on the top ends of the end-panels  41  engage with the holes or recesses  74  in the top end of the side-panels  42 . The pallet-base  40  is then moved upward to engage the end-panels  41  and side-panels  42 . The bottom end rods  47  are then inserted form either side into the hole  84  located in recess  55  of the pallet-base  40  in FIG. 15 passing through the end of the left outer leg of pallet-base  40  then the bottom end rod  47  lays into the channel first groove  72  provided at the bottom of the end-panel then the bottom end rod  47  passes through the center leg end  40  and lays into the bottom second groove  72  of the end panel  41  and finally the bottom end rod  47  passes through the right outer leg of the pallet-base  40  which now secures the corner posts  80  from falling out FIG.  13  and secures the end-panels  41 . Pre-assembly FIG. 7 shows an end view of the grooves  72  at the bottom of the end panel  41 . The three tabs  70  at the bottom of each side-panel  42  shown in FIG. 7 engage into correspondingly contoured recesses  96  shown in FIG. 26 on the top of the pallet-base  40 . The two tabs  54  at the bottom of the side-panel shown in FIG. 7 engage with the recesses  69  to secure the support bars  66  shown on FIG. 4 to prevent support bars  66  from coming out. An underside pallet-base  40  corner outer leg opening  68  in FIG. 13 has a parallel key-slot access channel which enables insertion of an elongated long nose pliers to grab onto the bottom end of the corner post to extract the corner post to facilitate component replacement. 
     The horizontal top end bar  81  is inserted into the molded-in hole  100  in the top corner of the side-panel  42  shown in FIG.  25  and then passed through the holes in the top of the end-panel  41  and then finally through the molded-in hole  100  on the opposite side-panel  42  as shown in FIG.  25 . The end rod  47  has end fastening means  79  disposed on each end to allow concealment of end fastening means within a profile of said side-panel. The horizontal top threaded end rod  47  is inserted into the full length of the top end bar  81  thereafter the fastening means, preferably, but not limited flat washers  78  and lock nuts  79  are attached to secure the top corners. This will be described in further detail. 
     One end of the bottom plan view of the pallet base  40  is illustrated in FIG. 11 without the end-panel  41  installed to show the horizontal bottom threaded end rod  47  inserted through the three pallet legs. Convolutions  63  &amp;  64  illustrated in FIG. 16 &amp; 17 respectively provide additional support to the end rod  47 . The front edge  71  of the pallet-base  40  between the outer legs and center leg is the tongue portion of the tongue and groove engagement illustrated in FIG.  19 . The cross section elevation view of the strengthening recess  60  along line  12 — 12  is illustrated in FIG.  12 . 
     The exploded partial plan view of the left outer leg corner of pallet  40  along line  13 — 13  is illustrated in FIG.  13 . End rod  47  inserted into the leg of pallet-base  40  shows where the corner post  80  is secured from coming out of the opening  68 . The threaded end of the end rod  47  extends into the recessed area  55  so that when the flat washer  78  and lock nut  79 , shown in FIG. 14, are installed they will not extend beyond the outer wall of pallet-base  40  surface. The indented step  56  of pallet  40  provides the positive stacking. The key slot in corner opening  68  will accommodate an elongated “Long-Nose” pliers to enable easy removal of the corner post  80  when it is necessary to replace either the end-panel  41  or side-panel  42 . 
     A cross sectional elevation view of one end of the pallet-base  40  along the line of  14 — 14  in FIG. 4 is illustrated in FIG. 14, described in detail earlier. Means for supporting a load within the bin at the pallet-base when a bin is stacked on top of another consists of strengthening convolutions  63 ,  64  &amp;  68  that provide additional load support which is directed to the base of the pallet  40 . Flat washers  78  and lock nuts  79  are installed in the recesses  55  to retain the end rod  47  in place. The end rod  47  rests inside the end-panel  41  channel  72  which is between the legs of pallet  40  to secure the end-panel  41  in place. The hole  84  shown in the partial elevation views of the pallet  40  leg ends in FIG.  15  through FIG. 18 accommodates the end rod  47 . 
     A partial plan view of the pallet taken along line  19 — 19  in FIG. 1 is illustrated in FIG. 19 showing the end-panel  41  engaged with the pallet  40  end using the tongue &amp; groove method. The pallet-base  40  has a set of horizontal tongues and the end-panels  41  have a first set of horizontal grooves which engage with the tongues, a second set of grooves opposite said first set of grooves allows the bottom end rod to pass horizontally through said second set of horizontal grooves securing the end-panel  41  to the pallet-base  40 . Hole  83  shown in FIG. 19 is drain hole to prevent moisture from being trapped in between the walls of the end-panel  41 . 
     A cross sectional elevation view FIG. 20 taken along line  20 — 20  of FIG. 1 illustrates the center load support at the bottom of the pallet-base  40 . The support bar  66  inserted at either side of the pallet  40  through hole  85  in the recess  69  and is passed through all of the holes  85  until it is centered. The support bar  66  fits into the open channel  65 . The support bar  66  is substantially supported by the vertical convolutions  67  and  62  which distributes the load to the bottom of the pallet-base  40 . The elevation view FIG. 21 is an exploded view of the pallet-base  40  side in FIG. 3 which illustrates the recess  69  to accommodate the tab  54  on the side-panel  42  which secures the support bar  66  from coming out of either side. The exploded partial elevation view FIG. 22 is a cross section illustration of the channel way  65  for the support bar  66  and the support gusset  67 . 
     A number of vertical gussets,  63 ,  64 , and  68  are located in vertical side walls of the pallet-base  40  legs under the openings  84  for insertion of the bottom end rod  47  thereby providing substantial reinforcement to the bottom end rod. 
     The side-panel  42  corner members and the end-panel  41  end members are inter-meshed as shown in exploded partial elevation view along the line  23 — 23  of FIG. 1 illustrated in FIG. 23 which provides substantial stacking strength in four corners of the bin assembly in FIG.  1  and the corner members are secured by the corner post  80  inserted from the bottom up through all of the holes  86 . A corner notch  46  is formed by the inter-meshed configuration of the outer vertical edge of the corners of end-panel  41  and side-panel  42  as illustrated in FIG. 23 which provides a means for holding a tie-down rope in place to explain, in the process of field harvesting produce, two rows of 6 bins per row are placed on top of an over-the-road flat bed trailer and in order to secure the bins from sliding off the trailer in transit a rope is tied to the trailer front vertical rack, bought back horizontally to the rear of the trailer and then placed across the back of the load placed downward diagonally to the opposite end of the trailer on the rear and secure to the trailer frame, the same is done on the other side without the notches  46  to keep the tie-down rope in place the rope would slide down the corner and create an unsafe load for transporting. 
     The tie-down ropes are horizontal on the side and diagonally cross one another in the rear of the load. FIG. 24 illustrates a top plan view along line  24 — 24  of FIG. 23 showing the corner post  80  inserted in hole  86  in the center of the corner member. The exploded isometric cross sectional view of FIG. 25, taken along the line  25 — 25  of FIG. 1 illustrates the substantial strength of the combination of all parts coming together at one point. The top corner of the side-panel  42  illustrates the vertical corner post held in place by molded-in hole  101  of the side-panel  42  and contacting the bottom of the molded-in side rod  52  to provide substantial corner stacking strength. Further, the horizontal top end bar  81  coming from the end-panel  41  is supported by the molded-in hole  100  and is substantially secured in place by the loop end of the side rod  52 . Further, the top end rod  47  is locks the corner assembly by the placement of the flat washer  78  and lock nut  79  in the recess  53 . This arrangement provides the ultimate assurance the top corners of the bin will not be broken by the action of a forklift dragging the fork tines across the top of the bin while exiting after having placed a bin load on top of another bin. The bin load will add to the support of the bin in any attempt of the forklift operator to destroy the top corners of the bin even with the fork tines tilted downward short of the operator&#39;s malicious attempt to cause damage. 
     The pallet-base  40  has three conical female receptacles  96  on the top surface of each side with an access port  61  below as illustrated in cross sectional plan view of FIG. 26 typically taken along the line of  26 — 26  in FIG.  1 . The receptacle  96  on top accommodates the side-panel  42  bottom tab  70 . The tab  70  has a socket  93  as shown in FIG. 27 taken along line  27 — 27  of FIG. 26 to accommodate a tab weld nut  88  with a snug fit to keep it from falling out before the side-panel  42  is assembled. The vertical hole  94  in the bottom of the tab  70  is to allow the insertion of the bolt  92  to engage with the nut  88 . In the event the threads of the nut  88  become defective the nut  88  can be extracted by using a common punch placed into the knock-out port  95  and replace the nut  88 . The bottom of the pallet-base  40  has an access port  61  to enable the insertion of a flat washer  90  and a lock washer  91  over the bolt  92  to secure the side-panel  42  to the pallet-base  40  at three locations on each side. The conical receptacles  61  and  96  provide substantial load support to the bottom of the pallet-base  40 . 
     Now the complete bin assembly has been completely secured in all respects. If it becomes necessary to replace one end-panel  41  that has been damaged all that is needed is to remove the lock nut  79  and flat washer  78  on one end of the bottom end rod  72 , slide the rod  72  out, use a long-nose pliers inserted into the corner opening  68  on the under side of the pallet-base  40 , grab the corner post  80  and slide it out of each end of the end-panel  41  and remove the defective panel and install a new panel and replace all of the parts removed. To replace a side-panel  42  the same procedure would apply as previously described but it is only necessary to slide the end rods  47  just enough to extract the corner posts  80  then remove the three bolt  92  assemblies. Also, the two top corner end rods  47  will have to be disengaged as well. The most vulnerable part of the bin to being damaged is the entry end so the end-panel  41  will most likely require frequent replacement. 
     The top of the end-panel  41  has three top configuration options as shown in FIGS. 28,  30  &amp;  32 . The configuration shown in FIG. 28 is the preferred form in that the top sections of end-panel  41   a  on either side of the flat stacking land  98  are contoured  75 , shown in FIG. 29, to form the plastic wall closely over the top end bar  81  which not only offers a slight increase in space above the top horizontal surface to make it easier for the forklift to move the fork tines in and out between two stacked bins but it also provides less chance of the fork tine puncturing the plastic wall of the end panel  41  because the plastic wall will be supported by the close proximity of the end bar  81  should the operator err in attempting to move into the target area for loading or unloading. The mold will be made with removable sections to provide the other options in FIGS. 30 &amp; 32 for applications that warrant either one of the two configurations. Option  41   b  shown in FIG. 30 provides maximum cube utilization of the space in the bin. Option  41   c  shown in FIG. 32 provides greater protection of the top of the end panel  41  having less plastic panel exposure to damage, however, it also reduces the capacity of the bin due to the open area above and below the end tube  81  which may not be a problem where the product to be loaded in the bin is large and would not fall through the openings and affect loss of capacity.

Technology Category: 7