US 6,851,563 B1 · Rack apparatus for storing and handling water bottles

Abstract

Five gallon water bottles for refilling water coolers are stored on a hand truck and on the floor of a user's facility employing three racks. A lower rack stores eight bottles in staggered arrays to be carried by a conventional hand truck. An intermediate rack is formed by bonding a duplicate of the lower rack to a duplicate of the upper top rack. The or rack has bottle supports and dividers for supporting the bottles in the staggered array. The intermediate rack has a lower rack portion the same as the top rack with cylindrical depending members for receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles on the lower rack. The top rack has the depending members for receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles on the intermediate rack. The intermediate rack upper potion is the same as the lower rack for receiving an upper array of bottles. The racks have depending ribs which engage each other in the intermediate rack and wherein the lower rack ribs engage the hand truck support platform rails to preclude shifting of the racks during transport. A total of sixteen bottles are carried. In another embodiment, all three racks are identical and similar to the intermediate rack of the first embodiment, except formed molded as one piece.

Claims24

Dependent claims

A bottled water apparatus for storing and transporting water bottles on a hand truck having bottom rails on which the bottles are to be stored for transport, the bottles having a bottom wall, an annular side wall and a pouring spout on a neck attached to the side wall distal the bottom wall, the apparatus comprising:

a first bottom rack for receiving and storing a staggered first array of bottles in a longitudinal direction upright with respect to the force of gravity, the first rack for storing the bottles in multiple columns in the longitudinal direction and rows transverse to the longitudinal direction in the array, the bottles in each column being aligned longitudinally, the bottles in adjacent columns being staggered with respect to each other so that the rows are aligned inclined to the longitudinal direction;
and
a second top rack arranged to receive the necks and spouts of the bottles in the staggered array.

a first bottom rack for receiving and storing a staggered first array of bottles upright in a longitudinal direction with respect to the force of gravity, the first rack for storing the bottles in multiple columns in the longitudinal direction and rows transverse to the longitudinal direction in the array, the bottles in each column being aligned longitudinally, the bottles in adjacent columns being staggered with respect to each other so that the rows are aligned inclined to the longitudinal direction;
bottle supports and dividers attached to the first rack for aligning and supporting the bottles in said array;
and
a second top rack arranged to receive the necks and spouts of the bottles in the staggered array.

1 more element

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Rack apparatus for storing and handling water bottles

Life of this patent

Rack apparatus for storing and handling water bottles

Life of this patent

Abstract

Claims24