Bottle crate made of plastic

Abstract

 A plastic bottle crate is provided with upright walls (6, 7) fitted inside the crate to form compartments for accommodating bottles. One or more side walls (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate are provided with window apertures (10). The compartments situated next to the side walls provided with window apertures and opposite the window apertures are provided with flexible bottle fixing elements (11). Each fixing element (11) is connected to the upright walls (6, 7) and stands free from the bottom (1) of the crate. The fixing elements (11) are preferably shaped as a side wall part of a truncated cone or pyramid; so that in the vicinity of the bottom of the crate the fixing elements cooperate with the outside of the bottles placed in the compartments of the crate. Thus, the bottles in the crate are prevented from turning during transportation, while the risk of damage to the lables on the bottles is small.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to a bottle crate made of plastic, with upright walls fitted inside the crate, going up from the bottom to form compartments in which the bottles to be placed in the crate can be accommodated, and with window apertures provided in one or more side walls of the crate.

[0002] Such a bottle crate is known and is also described by the term "display crate".

[0003] In this known crate the window apertures in the side walls of the crate make it possible for the labels on the bottles placed in the crate to be seen from the outside. This means that the product in the crate and its brand name can be recognized immediately from the outside. One requirement for this is that the bottles have to be placed properly oriented in the crate, with the labels facing the window apertures. Equipment for oriented positioning of bottles in a crate is known. A second requirement is that during transportation of the filled crate the bottles in the crate, and in particular the bottles which are placed opposite the window apertures, should remain in the correct position and not turn. The bottles in question therefore have to be fixed in the compartments in which they are placed. It is known to fit centering elements in bottle compartments for centering bottles in the bottle compartments. However, these centering elements grip the side of the bottle at a distance from the bottom of the crate. The disadvantage of these centering elements is that there is a risk that when the bottles are being placed in the crate the label, which in most cases is still damp and therefore liable to sustain damage, will be damaged by the centering elements. Such centering elements are thus not suitable for securing bottles against turning in a so-called "display crate".

[0004] The object of the present invention is to provide a crate of the abovementioned type in which in particular the bottles opposite the window apertures are secured against turning, and in which the risk of the label being damaged during placing of the bottles in the crate is slight.

[0005] This object is achieved according to the invention in that at least the compartments situated next to the side walls of the crate provided with window apertures and opposite the window apertures are provided with one or more flexible bottle fixing elements, for preventing the bottles placed in the particular compartments from turning, said fixing elements each being connected to one or more of the walls forming a compartment and cooperating at least in the immediate vicinity of the bottom of the crate with the outside of a bottle placed in the comnartment.

[0006] This means that the bottle fixing elements grip a bottle placed in the compartment on the outside below the label, so that the risk of damage to the label is very slight while, on the other hand, the force exerted on the bottle by the bottle fixing elements is sufficient to secure a bottle placed in the compartment against turning.

[0007] The bottle fixing elements are preferably formed in such a way that, viewed in a plane parallel to the bottom of the crate, the space available for a bottle in a compartment increases continuously from the bottom of the crate to the mouth of the compartment. This ensures that a bottle is easy to place in a compartment, while also tolerances in the diameter of the bottle can be compensated.

[0008] The compartments in the crate are expediently essentially square, and a bottle fixing element is provided in at least one of the corners of at least the compartments situated next to the side walls of the crate provided with window apertures and opposite the window aperture, said bottle fixing element being formed as a slanting wall part which stands free of the bottom of the crate and is connected to the walls meeting in the corner of the compartment.

[0009] In such a crate the bottle fixing elements do not take up any useful space, and the bottle fixing elements are easy to form in the crate. Since the bottle fixing elements stand free of the bottom of the crate, these bottle fixing elements can be given the correct flexibility to permit easy placing of the bottles in the crate and still ensure optimum securing of the bottles against turning.

[0010] Further preferred embodiments of the bottle crate according to the invention are laid down in Sub-claims 4 to 10.

[0011] The invention will now be explained in greater detail by means of the description of an example of an embodiment with reference to the drawings, in which:

Figure 1 shows a schematic top view of a preferred embodiment of a crate according to the invention;

Figure 2 is a cross section of the crate of Figure 1 along the line II-II;

Figure 3 is a detail III of Figure 2, showing a bottle fixing element on an enlarged scale;

Figure 4 is a cross section along the line IV-IV in Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a top view of a bottle compartment of the crate of Figure 1, shown on an enlarged scale, and with a bottle placed in the compartment;

Figure 6 is a cross section along the line VI-VI in Figure 5;

Figure 7 is a schematic top view of another possible embodiment of the crate according to the invention; and

Figure 8 is a schematic top view of yet another possible embodiment of the crate according to the invention.

[0012] The crate according to the invention shown in Figures 1 and 2 comprises a bottom 1 and double upright walls 2 to 5, i.e. two long side walls 2, 3 and two short side walls 4, 5. The bottom 1 of the crate is schematically shown in Figures 1 and 2. Stacking flanges, stiffening ribs and the like are not shown. The crate also has upright walls 6, 7 going out from the bottom 1 and together forming a lattice 8. The bottles to be placed in the crate can be accommodated in the compartments 9 formed by the lattice 8. The long side walls 2, 3 and, if desired, the short side walls 4, 5 of the crate are provide with window apertures 10, which must make it possible for bottles placed in the crate, in particular their labels, to be seen from the outside. A crate with such window apertures 10 is generally described by the term "display crate".

[0013] In such a crate the bottles must be placed in such a way that the labels of the bottles which are placed next to the side walls of the crate and opposite the window apertures face the window apertures 10. Machines for placing bottles in a crate in this way are known and will not be described further here.

[0014] It is also necessary for the labels of the bottles placed opposite the window apertures to be still clearly visible even after transportation of the full crates. The bottles in question must therefore be prevented from turning during transportation of the full crates. This is achieved according to the preferred embodiment of a crate according to the invention shown in Figures 1 and 2 in that bottle fixing elements 11 are provided in the four corners of the compartments 9 situated next to the side walls 2 to 5 of the crate and opposite the window apertures 10, for the purpose of preventing the bottles placed in the particular compartments from turning.

[0015] The shape and operation of the bottle fixing elements 11 will be explained in further detail with reference to Figures 3 to 6.

[0016] In the embodiment shown each bottle fixing element 11 provided in a corner of a compartment 9 is essentially the shape of a side wall part of a truncated cone. Four bottle fixing elements 11 at an intersection of the walls 6 and 7 of the lattice 8 together are essentially the shape of the superficies of a truncated cone. The apex angle of said cone lies between 5^. and 30 °, and preferably between 10 and 20°. The bottle fixing elements 11 are connected in the vertical direction to the walls 6 and 7 of the lattice 8. The bottom side of the bottle fixing elements 11 stands free of the bottom 1 of the crate. Each slanting, curved wall part forming a bottle fixing element is thereby flexible and deformable in such a way that the distance between this wall part and the center point of the compartment in the corner of which the bottle fixing element 11 is fitted can vary. If now a bottle 12 is placed in a particular compartment 9, in which a bottle fixing element 11 is fitted in each of the corners, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the bottom edge of the bottle 12 will come into contact with the slanting wall of the bottle fixing elements 11 at a certain point in time. On further movement downwards of the bottle, the bottle fixing elements 11 will deform, and in the immediate vicinity of the bottom 1 of the crate will grip the side wall of the bottle 12 in more or less clamping fashion. The clamping of the bottle thus takes place in the bottom region of the bottle, below the label placed on the bottle. The risk of damage to the label is therefore very small. The degree of clamping depends, inter alia, on the shape of the bottle fixing elements 11 and the diameter of the bottle 12 placed in the compartment. The shape of the bottle fixing elements 11 is, however, such that even with the minimum diameter of the bottle 12 sufficient clamping can still be achieved to prevent the bottle 12 from turning in the compartment 9 during transportation of the full crate. The clamping force does not have to be great, since in fact no tangential forces are exerted on the bottles.

[0017] Since the shape of the bottle fixing elements 11 is such that the space available in a compartment 9 for the bottle increases continuously from the bottom 1 of the crate towards the mouth of the compartment 9, a bottle 12 can be placed in a compartment 9 without problems.

[0018] It is not necessary for the bottle fixing elements 11 to be the shape of a side wall part of a truncated cone. Other shapes are also possible. For example, the bottle fixing elements can be the shape of a side wall part of a truncated pyramid, each bottle fixing element 11 being formed by a slanting flat wall part in a corner of a bottle compartment 9.

[0019] Figure 7 shows a possible embodiment of a crate according to the invention in which a bottle fixing element 11 is fitted in the two corners lying against the side walls 2 to 5 of the crate in each compartment 9 situated opposite a window aperture 10. In this embodiment the bottle cooperates near the bottom of the crate with the two bottle fixing elements 11 fitted in the compartment, on the one hand, and with a wall 6 or 7 of the lattice 8, on the other.

[0020] Figure 8 shows a possible embodiment of a crate according to the invention in which a bottle fixing element 11 is fitted in the two corners lying away from the side walls 2 to 5 of the crate in each compartment opposite a window aperture 10. In this embodiment the bottle engages near the bottom of the crate with the two bottle fixing elements 11, on the one hand, and with a side wall 2 or 3 of the crate, on the other.

Claims

1. Bottle crate made of plastic, with upright walls (6, 7) fitted inside the crate, going up from the bottom (1) to form compartments (9) in which the bottles (12) to be placed in the crate can be accommodated, and with window apertures (10) provided in one or more side walls (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate, characterized in that at least the compartments (9) situated next to the side walls (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate provided with window apertures (10) and opposite the window apertures (10) are provided with one or more flexible bottle fixing elements (11), for preventing the bottles placed in the particular compartments from turning, said fixing elements (11) each being connected to one or more of the walls (6, 7) forming a compartment (9) and cooperating at least in the immediate vicinity of the bottom (1) of the crate with the outside of a bottle (12) placed in the compartment (9).

2. Bottle crate according to Claim 1, characterized in that the bottle fixing elements (11) are formed in such a way that, viewed in a plane parallel to the bottom (1) of the crate, the space available for a bottle (12) in a compartment increases continuously from the bottom (1) of the crate to the mouth of the compartment (9).

3. Bottle crate according to Claim 1 or 2, characterized in that the compartments (9) in the crate are essentially square, and a bottle fixing element (11) is provided in at least one of the corners of at least the compartments (9) situated next to the side walls (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate provided with window apertures (10) and opposite the window apertures (10), said bottle fixing element (11) being formed as a slanting wall part which stands free of the bottom (1) of the crate and is connected to the walls (6, 7) meeting in the corner of the compartment (9).

4. Bottle crate according to Claim 3, characterized in that each bottle fixing element (11) is essentially the shape of a side wall part of a truncated pyramid.

5. Bottle crate according to Claim 3, characterized in that each bottle fixing element (11) is essentially the shape of a side wall part of a truncated cone.

6. Bottle crate according to one of Claims 3-5, characterized in that a bottle fixing element (11) is fitted in the two corners lying away from a side wall (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate in each compartment (9) opposite a window aperture (10).

7. Bottle crate according to one of Claims 3-5, characterized in that a bottle fixing element (11) is fitted in the two corners resting against a side wall (2, 3, 4, 5) of the crate in each compartment (9) opposite a window aperture (10).

8. Bottle crate according to one of Claims 3-5, characterized in that a bottle fixing element (11) is fitted in all four corners of each compartment (9) opposite a window aperture (10).

9. Bottle crate according to one or more of Claims 3-8, characterized in that four bottle fixing elements (11) at an intersection of lattice walls (6, 7) together are essentially the shape of the superficies of a truncated cone.

10. Bottle crate according to one or more of Claims 3-9, characterized in that the apex angle of the truncated cone determining the shape of the bottle fixing elements (11) lies between 5° and 30` , and preferably between 10 and 2ü `.

Drawing