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US 12,319,470 B2Granted
Stackable crate
AssigneeCreative Plastic Concepts, LLC
InventorsNickolas Reinhart, Jacob H. Whitta
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A stackable crate has a horizontally oriented bottom panel and four vertically oriented side panels that are separately attached at their edges to form the stackable crate. Two straight-line channels, with widths at their tops being greater than at their bottoms, form ribs within the crate. When the channels and ribs of a first crate are aligned with the channels of a second stackable crate, the first crate nests within the second crate even when non-uniform material in the second crate is stored within it, without spilling the material or toppling the stack. When the channels and ribs of the first crate are not aligned with the channels of the second crate, the first crate does not nest within the second crate but instead rests on the tops of the ribs of the first crate.
Claims18
A crate comprising:
- a sidewall, wherein the entire-sidewall is tapered toward the bottom of the crate, the sidewall including:
- a first complementary structure including a first exterior channel and a first interior rib;
- a second structure including a second exterior channel;
- the first interior rib configured to be received by the first exterior channel from another crate in a nested position;
- the first interior rib configured to be received by the second exterior channel of said another crate in a stacked position;
- a flange disposed adjacent to an open end of the crate and including a first reinforced handle opening, a second reinforced handle opening, a third reinforced handle opening, and a fourth reinforced handle opening, each reinforced handle opening disposed through the flange, the first reinforced handle opening and the second reinforced handle opening are positioned as a first pair of opposed handle openings, the third reinforced handle opening and the fourth reinforced handle opening are positioned as a second pair of opposed handle openings;
- the crate being of a shape such that in a nested position of the crate with said another crate, the first interior rib of the crate is aligned with the first exterior channel of said another crate, and a first length of the first interior rib of the crate extends into the first exterior channel of said another crate;
- the crate being of a shape such that in a stacked position of the crate with said another crate, the first interior rib of the crate is aligned with the second exterior channel of said another crate, a second length of the first interior rib of the crate extends into the second exterior channel of said another crate, and the bottom of the crate is above the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of said another crate such that the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of said another crate are unobstructed in the stacked position;
- the second length being shorter than the first length,
- wherein each of the first exterior channel and the second exterior channel extend from a bottom of the crate and along only a portion of a length of the sidewall,
- wherein the flange limits the length of the first interior rib received by the first exterior channel in the nested position.
8 more elements
A method of coupling two crates, comprising:
- providing a first crate and a second crate, each crate having a sidewall, wherein the sidewall is tapered toward the bottom of the crate, the sidewall including:
- a first complementary structure including a first exterior channel and a first interior rib;
- a second structure including a second exterior channel;
- the first interior rib configured to be received by the first exterior channel from the other crate in a nested position;
- the first interior rib configured to be received by the second exterior channel from the other crate in a stacked position;
- a flange disposed adjacent to an open end of the crate and including a first reinforced handle opening, a second reinforced handle opening, a third reinforced handle opening, and a fourth reinforced handle opening, each reinforced handle opening disposed through the flange, the first reinforced handle opening and the second reinforced handle opening are positioned as a first pair of opposed handle openings, the third reinforced handle opening and the fourth reinforced handle opening are positioned as a second pair of opposed handle openings;
- aligning the first interior rib of the first crate with the first exterior channel of the second crate, and causing a first length of the first interior rib of the first crate to extend into the first exterior channel of the second crate, to thereby nest the first and second crates;
- aligning the first interior rib of the first crate with the second exterior channel of the second crate, and causing a second length of the first interior rib of the first crate to extend into the second exterior channel of the second crate, the second length being shorter than the first length;
- wherein when the first crate is placed in the stacked position in the second crate, the bottom of the first crate is above the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of the second crate such that the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of the second crate are unobstructed in the stacked position.
6 more elements
A crate comprising:
- a sidewall, wherein the sidewall is tapered toward the bottom of the crate, the sidewall including:
- a first complementary structure including a first exterior channel and a first interior rib;
- a second structure including a second exterior channel;
- a flange disposed adjacent to an open end of the crate and including a first reinforced handle opening, a second reinforced handle opening, a third reinforced handle opening, and a fourth reinforced handle opening, each reinforced handle opening disposed through the flange, the first reinforced handle opening and the second reinforced handle opening are positioned as a first pair of opposed handle openings, the third reinforced handle opening and the fourth reinforced handle opening are positioned as a second pair of opposed handle openings;
- the crate being of a shape such that in a nested position of the crate with an identical second crate, the first interior rib of the crate is aligned with the first exterior channel of said identical second crate, and a first length of the first interior rib of the crate extends into the first exterior channel of said identical second crate;
- the crate being of a shape such that in a stacked position of the crate with said identical second crate, the first interior rib of the crate is aligned with the second exterior channel of said identical second crate, a first second length of the first interior rib of the crate extends into the second exterior channel of said identical second crate, and the bottom of the crate is above the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of said identical second crate such that the first and second pairs of opposed handle openings of said identical second crate are unobstructed in the stacked position;
- the second length being shorter than the first length.
4 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.