US 6,206,623 B1Granted

Bulkhead for retaining a cargo in a container

OwnerStephen D. Poddinventor

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Abstract

A bulkhead for use with cargo containers that carry dry flowable cargo. The bulkhead has flaps on the bottom edge and on both side edges. When the bulkhead is installed in a container, the flap on the bottom folds against the floor of the container to form a seal. The side flaps also fold against the sides of the container to form seals. The seals prevent the dry flowable cargo, when loaded in the container, from leaking out of the container. This eliminates the need for a liner in the container to hold the cargo.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A moveable semi-rigid bulkhead for retaining a cargo inside a cargo container, the container having a floor, left and right side walls, and a front wall and a rear opening, the bulkhead comprising:

a central wall member adapted to rest on the floor of the cargo container in a close fit with the floor and side walls thereof;
said central wall member having a first side and a second side, to form a thin flexible but semirigid substantially planar sheet with a substantially rectangular shape having four edges, said four edges including a lower edge adapted to rest on the floor, a right edge adapted to rest against the right side wall and a left edge adapted to rest against the left side wall and a top edge;
said lower edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
said right edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
said left edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
the central wall member and the lower edge flap, right edge flap and the left edge flap cooperate such that, when placed in a container with the first side of the central wall member facing towards the front wall of the container to create a cargo space therebetween, said right edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the right side wall of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, said left edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the left side wall of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, said lower edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the floor of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, the lower edge flap, the right edge flap, and the left flap articulated such that, when installed in a container, they form a substantially leak proof seal between the lower edge flap and the right edge flap and a substantially leak proof seal between the lower edge flap and the left edge flap, wherein said bulkhead creates a barrier to retain cargo placed between said bulkhead and the front wall of the container;
and
bracing means adjacent to the second side of the central wall member, and releasably connected to the container to provide support for the bulkhead and transfer the load of a cargo placed between the bulkhead and front wall from the bulkhead to the container.

5 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

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Abstract

A moveable semi-rigid bulkhead for retaining a cargo inside a cargo container, the container having a floor, left and right side walls, and a front wall and a rear opening, the bulkhead comprising:

a central wall member adapted to rest on the floor of the cargo container in a close fit with the floor and side walls thereof;
said central wall member having a first side and a second side, to form a thin flexible but semirigid substantially planar sheet with a substantially rectangular shape having four edges, said four edges including a lower edge adapted to rest on the floor, a right edge adapted to rest against the right side wall and a left edge adapted to rest against the left side wall and a top edge;
said lower edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
said right edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
said left edge having a flap hingedly attached for movement from a substantially planar position with respect to the plane of the central wall member to a substantially perpendicular position to the plane of the central wall member;
the central wall member and the lower edge flap, right edge flap and the left edge flap cooperate such that, when placed in a container with the first side of the central wall member facing towards the front wall of the container to create a cargo space therebetween, said right edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the right side wall of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, said left edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the left side wall of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, said lower edge flap rests in a substantially sealed fit against the floor of the container at an angle of less than 180 degrees with a plane of said first side of said central wall member, the lower edge flap, the right edge flap, and the left flap articulated such that, when installed in a container, they form a substantially leak proof seal between the lower edge flap and the right edge flap and a substantially leak proof seal between the lower edge flap and the left edge flap, wherein said bulkhead creates a barrier to retain cargo placed between said bulkhead and the front wall of the container;
and
bracing means adjacent to the second side of the central wall member, and releasably connected to the container to provide support for the bulkhead and transfer the load of a cargo placed between the bulkhead and front wall from the bulkhead to the container.

5 more elements