A wheeled, nestable shopping cart, comprising:
- a rigid base assembly;
- pairs of front and rear wheel assemblies mounted on said base assembly adjacent respective front and rear ends thereof and disposed for supportive and rolling engagement with a floor;
- said base assembly including a first one-piece rearwardly-opening U-shaped base member which is disposed close to but maintained in slightly upwardly spaced relation above said floor;
- said U-shaped base member including a front bight which is disposed at and extends transversely across the front end of said base assembly and a pair of generally horizontally elongate side legs which join to opposite ends of said front bight and project rearwardly therefrom in diverging relation to one another;
- said base assembly including a second one-piece rearwardly-opening U-shaped basket support member which is fixed relative to and spaced vertically upwardly above said first U-member, said second U-member including a bight which extends transversely of the base assembly at a location disposed a substantial distance from both front and rear ends of said base assembly, and a pair of side elements which are joined to opposite ends of said last-mentioned bight and project rearwardly toward the rear end;
- each of said first and second U-shaped members being formed in one piece by being bent from an elongate tubular metal member;
- said base assembly also including a pair of generally parallel and sidewardly spaced rear uprights disposed adjacent the rear end of said base assembly, each said rear upright being fixedly and rigidly joined between a rear end of one said side leg and a rear end of the side element which is positioned generally thereover so that said second U-member is cantilevered forwardly from said uprights;
- an upwardly-opening storage basket fixedly mounted on said base assembly, said basket including a bottom wall which is supported on said second U-member with said basket projected upwardly and cantilevered forwardly from said second U-member;
- and
- a pair of side storage-preventing trusses disposed adjacent opposite sides of said base assembly and fixedly connected between said first and second U-members for permitting transfer of vertical loads therebetween while effectively preventing storage of goods on said U-shaped base member;
- each said truss being an inverted V-shaped one-piece member which is formed in one piece from a single elongate piece of solid metal rod having a cross section substantially smaller than the cross section of the tubular member defining said first and second U-shaped members;
- said truss including a first elongate upright brace extending substantially vertically and having an upper end fixed to said second U-member adjacent one end of said bight thereof and a lower free end fixed to said side leg at a location which is spaced forwardly from the rear end of the respective side leg and is disposed substantially directly under the respective one end of the bight of said second U-member, said truss including a second elongate brace having one end fixed to said second U-member adjacent said one end of said bight thereof, said second brace projecting forwardly and being inclined downwardly so that the other end of said second brace is fixed to said side leg in the vicinity of said front bight;
- said trusses and said side legs defining a region which extends sidewardly therebetween and which is unobstructed to prevent storage of goods therein, and a region which extends vertically between said inclined second braces and the bottom wall of the basket and which is also unobstructed so that the incline of the second braces prevents storage of goods thereon;
- and
- said second U-shaped basket supporting member and said storage basket mounted thereon being supported in upwardly spaced relation from said first U-shaped base member solely by said rear uprights and said inverted V-shaped side trusses.