Low depth crate
AssigneeRehrig Pacific Company
InventorsWilliam P. Apps, Suzanne Whitfield Clark
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A crate includes a base, a pair of opposed side walls extending upward from the sides of the base and a pair of end walls extending upward from ends of the base. The end walls each include a pair of spaced apart end columns that act as partial spacers between the three adjacent bottles at that end. The handles are aligned offset from the center of the end wall. The handles are each aligned with one of the end columns so they can be aligned (e.g. centered) between adjacent bottles to provide more space for a user's hand. The handles may extend from one end column, over the other end column to the corner column. In the embodiment shown, the handles may be each offset toward a different side wall to provide better balance of the weight of the crate.
Claims19
A nestable crate comprising:
- a base having opposed side edges and opposed end edges, the base having an array of bottle capture areas on an underside thereof including an odd number of bottle capture areas adjacent each end edge;
- a plurality of side columns extending upward from each of the side edges of the base;
- at least one end column extending upward from one of the end edges of the base;
- and
- an upper band portion at an upper end of the at least one end column, a handle formed in the upper band portion above the at least one end column.
A nestable crate comprising:
- a base;
- a pair of opposed side walls extending upward the base, a longitudinal centerline of the crate equally spaced between the side walls;
- and
- a pair of opposed end walls extending upward from the base, each end wall having a handle formed therein, wherein the handles are offset from the longitudinal centerline of the crate.
A nestable crate comprising:
- a base having opposed side edges and opposed end edges, the base having an array of bottle capture areas on an underside thereof including an odd number of bottle capture areas adjacent each end edge;
- a plurality of side columns extending upward from each of the side edges of the base;
- a plurality of end columns extending upward from each of the end edges of the base;
- and
- an upper band portion extending about a periphery of the crate at upper ends of the plurality of end columns and plurality of side columns, a handle formed in the upper band portion above at least one of the plurality of end columns, a handle opening through the upper band portion at each end of the crate, wherein the plurality of end columns and the plurality of side columns are nestable within an upper band portion of an identical crate, wherein the crate can be cross-stacked on the identical crate loaded with bottles.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.