Pallet made of corrugated material for cargo handling and storing

The subject of the invention is a pallet made of corrugated material for transporting and storing loads, with high strength and resistance to breaking under load and during manipulation under load conditions.

Pallets are widely used for the transport and storage of goods. These goods, usually packed in boxes or bags, are stacked on a pallet and attached to it by means of a tape or wrapped for dispatch as a single set. Loaded pallets are stored in warehouses on substrates or on shelves in adjacent, single or multi-level layers.

Conventional pallets are usually made of wood. Wooden pallets show satisfactory strength parameters for moving and stacking materials placed on them. Decreasing stocks of easily obtainable wood increase the cost of such pallets, and in addition wooden pallets are heavy and inconvenient to transport.

The use of pallets made of corrugated cardboard and similar materials replacing wooden pallets has gained limited acceptance in certain applications. Such pallets of corrugated material are lightweight, require no maintenance and are easy to remove or recycle. They can be transported and stored in a folded form for maximum use of space when not loaded and can be unfolded on-site for loading. After use, they can be crushed for disposal or recycling, as can cardboard boxes and other products of corrugated material.

One type of known pallets of corrugated material is disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 2,466 914.2 728 545, 3 464 371 and 3 477 395. The pallets of these patents contain a plurality of longitudinal longitudinal base members, or longitudinally so-called longitudinal members, held in parallel and appropriately spaced by means of a top and bottom cover sheet to form skids with open channels intended for the insertion of a fork lift.

Other known pallet designs, such as those disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 3,131,856 and 3,683,822, increase the degree of lateral stability by using multiple parallel cross members, called cross members, arranged perpendicularly and connected to base members, i.e., with side members. to create a rectangular lattice structure. Crossbars connecting the base elements, i.e. stringers, are in elevated positions without the possibility of contact with the floor, leaving free channels for the teeth of the forklift.

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Although known corrugated material pallets provide lightweight, low-cost alternative constructions for conventional wooden pallets for certain applications, their strength and stiffness at both static and dynamic loads is insufficient to be widely used in transport and storage applications for all types of goods. The use of a base element structure such as disclosed in U.S. Patent Nos. 3,464,371 and 3,477,395 having wrapped, adjacent sides of the thickness of the corrugated fiber material placed in the vertical corrugation direction is not known in pallet constructions of the type of intersecting elements as disclosed in U.S. Patents 3,131,856 and 3,683,822. The latter type of pallets made of corrugated material, with interconnected perpendicular elements of the base and deck elements, is implemented from weak and open cores of supporting elements. Skid-type structures do not have lateral support elements at all, and the lateral elements of the lattice-type structure do not touch the floor in the areas between the longitudinal members, thus ensuring only the capacity to support the weight on the side suspension. Structures such as the truss shown in Patent 3 683 822 are moreover prone to instability when swaying with elevated cross-links, capable of rotating the base elements under dynamic load. Skid-type pallets, known from U.S. Patents 2,466,914, 2,728,545, 3,464 371 and 3,477,395, only provide bi-directional front and rear insertion of the lift teeth into the space between the base elements delimited by the upper and lower sheets.

The pallet lattice types known from US Pat. Nos. 3,131,856 and 3,683,822 also provide bi-directional insertion between the base elements into the area below the deck elements, and additionally provide optional four-way access using cutouts or pockets at floor level in the deck element (on example of a palette from Corpal Systems, Inc., Jacksonville, Florida). Four-way insertion of forklift teeth is also possible with pallets disclosed in U.S. Patent No. 3,666,165. However, such weak, by principle, open core component designs do not have sufficient strength at critical points, and are torn apart at intersections intended for insertion of forklift inserts if the transferred goods exceed the permissible weight.

The strongest of the known 1.2 mx 1.2 m pallets made of corrugated material withstand a static load of 2720-3630 kg. These values ​​are only allowed for careful stacking and only for pallets intended for bi-directional insertion of lifting teeth. In virtually occurring road transport and stacking conditions, the strength of such pallets is much lower. The addition of cut-outs in order to obtain a four-way fork insertion option further reduces the maximum load capacity of known pallets.

The task of the invention is to construct a pallet of corrugated material, having increased strength and resistance to breaking under both static and dynamic loading.

The pallet of corrugated material for transporting and storing loads, having parallel and cross members along its length, parallel and cross members along its width, according to the invention, each member has a rectangular cross section, having a flat top surface and containing a tightly packed core formed from the first sheet of corrugated material, divided by the first lines of folds and cuts into the first, adjacent rectangular lobes and folded along said first lines of folds and cuts, juxtaposed from adjacent first lobes and wrapped by the first outer covering of the peripherally placed, alternately vertically and horizontally arranged lobes of the first lobes. However, each of the laterally is an element with a rectangular cross-section having a flat upper surface and containing a second tightly packed core, formed from a second sheet of corrugated material, divided by second lines of corrugations and cuts into second rectangular lobes and folded along the second lines of corrugations and cuts, juxtaposed with the latter

170 505 panels, and wrapped by a second outer covering circumferentially placed, alternating vertically and horizontally arranged panels from said second panels. In addition, each longitudinal member has a plurality of longitudinal, parallel and extending longitudinals^about the letter U, which are open from above in the cream of its upper surface, and the crossbars are inserted into the said grooves longitudinally.

The crossbars have inlets of a depth, measured vertically, the same as the depth of the corresponding vertical dimensions of the inlets longitudinally, and the upper surfaces longitudinally and transversely lie in one common plane.

The adjacent first panels of the first, tightly packed core are arranged vertically, and similarly adjacent stacked first panels of the second, tightly packed core are arranged horizontally. Adjacent first panels of the first, tightly packed core are arranged vertically, and further these first panels have their individual vertically oriented corrugations. The vertically arranged second panels have their respective vertically oriented corrugations.

On the upper surfaces a top plate is attached longitudinally and transversely.

In another embodiment, the pallet according to the invention is characterized in that each longitudinal member is a rectangular cross-sectional element having a flat top surface and containing a tightly packed core, formed from vertically aligned panels from said first panels, wrapped by the first outer cover placed circumferentially, alternately vertically and horizontally patches from said first patches, and each rim is an element with a rectangular cross-section having a flat top surface and containing a second, tightly packed core formed of a plurality of second sheets of corrugated material, assembled from the said second panels, wrapped by a second outer covering circumferentially placed, alternately vertically and horizontally arranged panels these second panels, and each longitudinal member is equipped with U-shaped gullies, which are directed openly towards the upper surface of these longitudinally, while the crossbars are provided with corresponding keys fitted into the said longitudinally grooves, whereby after assembling the set longitudinally and transversely their upper surfaces are located in a horizontal plane.

In the next pallet implementation, each stringers is a rectangular cross-section having a flat top surface and containing the first tightly packed core of adjacent and vertically aligned panels of the first panels mentioned, formed from a sheet of corrugated material divided by the first lines of folds and cuts into the first adjacent rectangular panels and folded along said first lines of folds and cuts, which core is wrapped by the first outer covering of the peripherally placed, alternating vertically and horizontally arranged panels of said first panels. These first, vertically aligned and vertically arranged first panels have their individual vertically oriented corrugations, while each non-rail is also a rectangular cross-section element having a flat top surface and containing a second, closely packed core of adjacent horizontally aligned panels of said second panels, formed from a sheet of material corrugated, divided by second lines of folds and cuts into the second, adjacent rectangular and folded panels along said second folds and cuts, the second core being owned by a second outer covering circumferentially placed, alternating vertically and horizontally arranged panels from said second panels, and said horizontally arranged and horizontally arranged second panels individual waves oriented vertically. In addition, each side member is equipped with U-shaped gullies, open towards the top surface of these longitudinally, while each side member has pairs of opposite U-shaped gullies, open horizontally to the opposite vertical sides of the cross member, where the cross member sections are limited the bottoms of each pair of inlets are tightly embedded in the corresponding inlets longitudinally, and after assembling the set longitudinally and transversely their upper surfaces are located in one horizontal plane.

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In the next embodiment of the pallet according to the invention, each of the longitudinally and transversely has upper surfaces located on a common upper horizontal plane to ensure the level of the upper platform and lower surfaces located on a common lower horizontal plane to ensure a stable base in contact with the ground, and, furthermore, each of said longitudinally and transversely is formed from one sheet of folded corrugated material and comprises a full core formed of adjacent, vertically oriented panels surrounded by an outer covering of circumferentially extending horizontally and vertically panels. Preferably, each of the transversely consists of a wall and a beam located along the upper surface of this wall, in which, along its lower surface, there are cutouts defining the lifting surfaces, intended to support the teeth of a forklift, and similarly the lower surfaces of the beams define the lifting surfaces.

Also preferably, the stringers have a series of notches forming lateral, aligned holes for placing the forks.

Each of the longitudinally consists of a wall and an adjoining beam, having substantially rectangular shapes in cross-sections, with cutouts in the wall from the bottom side forming openings for placing forks, and the bottom surface of the beam, located on the same height as the upper surfaces of the said cut-outs in the wall, provide support surfaces for the forks of the elevator.

In these embodiments, the top plate is also mounted longitudinally and transversely on the upper surfaces. The height of the cutouts in the side members is smaller than the height of the cutouts in the cross members.

Preferably, the cross members are beams with a square cross section.

In a preferred embodiment, each of the laterally is a multi-element part comprising a square cross-section beam with adjoining wedge elements whose lower surfaces lie in this plane of the lower surface of the beam. Each of the longitudinally has many U-shaped inlets open upwards, and each of the transversely has many opposite open inlets, also U-shaped.

Tests using concrete blocks have shown that the pallet according to the invention is approximately three to four times stronger than known pallets of corrugated material of the same size. The pallet construction according to the invention provides good weight support and good material handling capacity with proven stacking capacity under load and fracture resistance equal to that of pallets made of soft wood.

The subject of the invention will be described in detail on examples of the pallets shown in the accompanying drawing, in which Fig. 1 shows the pallet according to the invention from corrugated board, in perspective view with partial breakout, Fig. 2 - fragments of the longitudinal and cross member for the pallet according to Fig. 1, in the positions ready for mutual locking, in perspective views, Fig. 3 - fragmentary section of the crossmember for the pallet according to Fig. 1 in a perspective view on its lower side, Fig. 4 - sheet of corrugated blank, in an exploded view, intended for forming a pallet cross member, Fig. 5 - sheet of a corrugated blank, in exploded view, intended for forming a pallet longitudinal, Fig. 6 - a pallet in a second embodiment, also in a perspective view with a partial breakout, Fig. 7 - a section of the longitudinal member of the pallet according to Fig. 6 in a perspective view from below, Fig. 8 - a sheet of a corrugated blank, in an exploded view, intended to form a longitudinal member shown in Fig. 7, Fig. 9 - a pallet in a third embodiment, in a perspective view with a partial wrench, Fig. 10 - fragments of a longitudinal member and cross member for a pallet according to Fig. 9, in positions ready for mutual locking, in perspective views, Fig. 11 - sheet of corrugated blank in exploded view intended to form a cross member shown in Figs. 9 and 10, Fig. 12 - sheet of corrugated blank in exploded view intended to form a longitudinal member shown in Figs. 9 and 10, Fig. 13 - the pallet in the next, fourth version, in perspective view with partial pull-out, Fig. 14 - fragments of the side member and cross member for the pallet.

170 505 according to Fig. 13, in positions ready for interlocking, in perspective views, and Fig. 15 is an exploded view of the sheet of the corrugated blank intended to form the cross member shown in Figs. 13 and 14.

As shown below. 1 pallet 10 contains a plurality of longitudinal base elements in the form of longitudinally 11, lying in parallel, spaced positions along the length of the pallet 10 and interconnected intersecting to form a self-supporting load-bearing lattice structure, with a plurality of longitudinal deck elements constituting cross members 12, located in parallel, spaced lateral positions.

In the example shown in Fig. 1, the pallet 10 has four base elements being the side members 11 and four deck elements being the cross members 12, although it is of course possible to use fewer or more of these elements if desired.

The upper surfaces 11 longitudinally and 12 transversely are positioned on a common horizontal plane to provide a platform for stacking goods on it (not shown). An additional top plate or covering 14 (shown fragmentarily) is mounted on these upper surfaces to shield the voids of the underlying lattice frame. The bottom surfaces 11 longitudinally and 12 transversely also lie on one common surface to provide a stable, ground-level pallet base 10. Each of the transversely 12 has bottom cutouts 15 to provide longitudinal channels between the ground and the pallet structure 10 allowing two-way access underneath (at the front and back) for lifting the pallet with forks of a forklift or similar transport equipment.

The side members 11 and cross members 12 and the top plate 14 are formed of corrugated cardboard, plastic or similar materials. As shown in Figs. 2-5, the longitudinal members 11 and pallet cross members 12 have a full core of adjacent, vertically aligned rectangular panels with a vertically oriented wavy orientation, and the outer covering or sheath of the peripherally arranged rectangular panels of the same material alternately, horizontally and vertically around the core of the lobes. The stringers 11 and the crossbars 12 are continuous elements, except for the points 17 at the notches 15 for the forks of the forklift.

The side members 11 and the cross members 12 are interconnected at their intersection points by means of a locking or hooking connection in which the projection or keying of one element fits in close tolerance with the complementary projection or keying of the intersecting element. These joints should exhibit sufficient rigidity to maintain the state of attachment between them under the longitudinal, lateral and axially rotating forces to which they may be subjected when handling a normally loaded pallet.

The recommended arrangement of longitudinal and transverse connection 11 is shown in Fig. 2. The longitudinal members 11 are provided with upwardly rectangular U-shaped grooves 16, each delimited by two vertically arranged surfaces. The crossbars 12 are provided with similar inlets 17, also U-shaped, open from below. Inlets 16 and 17 are perpendicular to the length of individual longitudinally 11 and transversely 12, with the width (distance between opposite walls) of inlets 16 slightly smaller than the width (dimension perpendicular to the length) of the opposite cross member 12, and the width of the inlet 17 is slightly smaller than the opposite width stringers 11. To ensure the required level of the top and bottom surface, equal vertical dimensions of the side members 11 and crossmembers 12 are provided, and the depths (vertical dimensions) of the inlets 16 and 17 are chosen so that the inner horizontal wall of the inlet 17 is at the same height as the top surface of the cutout 15 and the sum the depth of the inlets 16 and 17 is equal to the vertical dimension longitudinally 11 and transversely 12.

As shown in Figs. 2-4, each of the lateral 12 has, as seen in the front view, a shape similar to an inverted L, with the wall 18 pointed down and having the full height (vertical dimension) of the pallet 10 and adjacent to it. a beam 19 of rectangular cross-section, aligned with the top of pallet 10, but extending only partially towards the ground level. The rectangular inlets 17 have a depth equal to the height of the wall 18 of the crossmember 12, which is best seen in Fig. 3, which shows the underside of the crossmember 12.

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The purpose of this configuration is to ensure the continuity of the unbroken surface 20 on the beam 19, which can be affected by forks coming through the cut-outs 15. The bottom surface of the key 16 cooperating with the key 17 also rests on the surface 20. It has been found that this uninterrupted surface 20 increases the fracture toughness of the elements, especially at the corners of the cut-outs 15 that can occur when the pallet 10 is lifted with the forks of a forklift under its full heavy load. The resistance to tearing and deformation of the pallet 10 in the area of ​​the notches 15 when the tape passes through them until the goods on the pallet 10 are also increased.

Figure 4 shows a sheet or blank 21 or corrugated material suitable for use in transverse forming 12 of a pallet 10. Blank 21 is arranged with undulations extending from left to right, perpendicular to the right and left sides of this sheet. The blank 21 is divided into adjacent parallel rectangular panels 22 (22a-22l), as shown, by fold lines 23 (dashed lines) and score lines 24 (solid lines) perpendicular to the direction of the wave. The lines of folds and cuts can be made with the help of a die for cutting or sawing through part of the material, with the lines of folds and cuts made on opposite sides of the blank 21. To form the crossmember 12, blank 21 is folded, adjacent panels are brought together facing each other around the face fold line 23 and are inverted from each other around the score line 24. Cutouts 15 and grooves 17 are made by means of blanking dies in sheets 22a-22e.

The panels 22a-22e of the walls 18 and 22g-221 of the beam 19 are folded separately on the panel 22f so that each of the ends of the panels 22a and 221 are positioned in the center of the core parts of their respective walls 18 and beams 19 in the finished structure. Lashing is achieved in a known manner, such as gluing or fastening. The finished crossmember 12 comprises a tightly packed core of adjacent, vertically aligned panels 22a-22b, 22c (upper part) and 221-221 optical through outer covering or folding of circumferentially placed panels 22c (lower part), 22d, 22e, 22f, 22g and 22h. Plates 22a-c, 22e, 22g and 22i-221 have all their corrugations in a vertical direction to ensure maximum strength at loads directed down the pallet 10. Only panels 22d, 22f and 22f are horizontally oriented, and only one of these panels (i.e. panel 22d that serves as the floor in contact with the bottom surface) is cut to establish the cutouts 15 for the lift teeth and the grooves forming the groove 17. Although the cut-outs 15 are preferably open towards the ground, since the lift teeth are often lowered by scrubbing the ground before being lifted, it should be considered that a cut of the panel 22d at the cut-out 15 is not required). For vertical panels, cross cutting of the groove will occur only in panels 22a, 22b, 22c and 22e. Plates 22g and 22f-221 remain intact. The horizontal panel 22h provides a continuous surface 20, providing uniform support for the elevator teeth located in the cutouts 15. The uninterrupted horizontal panel 22f provides the upper surface or deck for stacking goods. It should be emphasized that the horizontal surface 22d of each cross member 12 will be in contact with the ground, providing support for the vertical weight against the deck in all places except cutouts 15 and inlets 17.

The stringer 11 is suitably formed from a flat blank by bending similar to the bending of the blank 21 described above to form transversely 12, except that there are no cutouts for the forks of the forklift. Referring to Fig. 5 the rectangular blank 26 visible here longitudinally 11 has undulations extending to the left to the right, parallel to the upper and lower edges of this blank, but perpendicular to the lines of folds and cuts 27, 28, shown with dashed and continuous lines that divide blank 26 into adjacent rectangular panels 29 29a-29i. The grooves 16 are die cut or are formed in a similar manner in blank 26, as indicated, to ensure their proper position in the folded element. Bending begins at the end of panel 29i, bringing the faces of adjacent panels towards each other on the fold lines 27 and from each other on the cut lines 28. The finished stringer structure 11 (see Fig. 2) has a tightly packed core of adjacent stacked vertical panels 29e-29i through the outer covering of the perimeter, alternately vertically and horizontally arranged panels 28a-29d. All panels 29, except panels 29b and 29d, have their corrugations oriented vertically for the greatest load-bearing capacity.

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The illustrated arrangement of corrugations and cuts allows the right edge running along the length with the exposed groove from the right end of the panel 29i to be located in the center of the folded longitudinal member 11. In addition to the upper and lower edges of the blank 26, which form the end of the longitudinal member 11 with a folded structure, exposed grooving appears in this way only at the left edge from the left end of the panel 29a and in a part of the notches of the panels 29a, 29c-29i, which form the grooves 16.

In the stacked pallet 10, all exposed grooves of the stringer 11 are hidden, except for the left edge of the panel 29a. For the crossmember 12, all exposed grooves will be hidden, except for those at notch 15. The dimensions of the grooves 16, 17 of the side member 11 and cross member 12 provide clamping locking between the side members 11 and cross members 12, which can be carried out on site just before using the pallet and is reinforced with glue or other commonly known connection fixing techniques.

The embodiment of the pallet 10, shown in Figs. 1-5, is a version of the corrugated material pallet with a two-way insertion with aligned notches 15 in the crossmember 12, providing a pair of channels extending longitudinally through the pallet and providing both front and rear access to placing the forks of the forklift to raise the loaded pallet. The continuous horizontal panel 22h of the crossmember 12 ensures a continuous surface 20 aligned with the horizontally positioned inner surface of the notches 15 on which the teeth act during lifting. These surfaces support portions of the exposed grooving of the notches 15 to increase the resistance of the pallet 10 to fracture and tear by these teeth.

A modified form of the pallet 10 'according to the invention is shown in Fig. 6. The pallet 10' has a modified longitudinal member 11 ', which provides the pallet with the four-way access of the forks of the forklift.

Figures 7 and 8 show views of the structural details of the modified embodiment of the stringer 11 ', the cross member structure remaining the same as described in the reference to Figures 1-5. Rectangular blank of corrugated material 36 (Fig. 8) having corrugations extending from left to right, is divided by folded lines and cuts 37, 38 (as for previously shown blanks 21 and 26) into adjacent, parallel rectangular panels 39 (39a-39i), which are bent towards each other on folded lines and apart on the score lines to form the folded and glued stringer structure 11 'shown in Fig. 7.

Unlike the longitudinal member 11 of Figures 1, 2 and 5, the longitudinal member 11 'is provided with a series of notches 35 to form laterally aligned holes for placing the teeth in the pallet truss 10', as shown in Figure 6. Plates 39a - 39i are bent along the indicated lines to form an elongate element having adjacent wall 41 and beam 40, as do members 18 and 19 of cross member 12. The blank 36 is folded separately, either simultaneously or sequentially from the end of the panel 39a and the end of the panel 39j to form a wall 41 of panels 39a and 39b and a beam 40 of panels 39d-39i. Both the left and right edges of the exposed groove of blank 36 (i.e. the left edge of the panel 39a and the right edge of the panel 39j) are folded inward so that the groove is exposed only on the notches 35 and the grooves 17.

Plates 39a, 39f (upper part) and 39g-39i form the core of the longitudinal member 11 ', while flaps 39b-39e and 39f (lower part) form the outer wrapper. All, except the flaps 39c and 39e, have their vertically oriented waves extending vertically in order to obtain the greatest strength. The rectangular surface 42 located in the middle of the double fold line 37, between the panels 39a and 39b, provides a continuous platform flush with the inner horizontal wall of the cutout 35 to provide increased support for the 11 'longitudinal member, by increasing the uniformity of the structure adjacent to the gap housing the teeth of the jack, in the same way as the surface 20 provides the platform to interact with the notches for the placement of teeth 15.

In the illustrated embodiment of the pallet 10 ', the depth (vertical dimension) of the cutout 35 is smaller than the cutout depth 15. This is to maximize access to the pallet under normal conditions, although this minimizes the cut-off in the elements along the length of the pallet. The cut-outs 15 are made deeper to accommodate a higher distance from

170 505 tooth bases for heavy lift forklift equipment used for loading / unloading in docks. Two-way front / rear access will usually be sufficient for such fully loaded, high-volume pallets with auxiliary nnMtawionin Wukieria 3 Sen ipHnalcżp wy / efarcyniarn wvsnl «ee ahv 7anpwnir dnetPk directional for placing lower lowered teeth less sensitive for pneumatic forklifts more often used to lift pallets in a given area with low weight, on a pallet basis from a pallet during storage and to be moved for inventory. The smaller height of the cut-out 35 and the smaller width of the two-fold, uninterrupted surface width 42 (relative to the five-fold surface width 20 panel 22h) is considered sufficient for this purpose.

The pallets manufactured according to the above examples of execution have withstood the excess load test of 4536 kg under static and dynamic loading conditions. In one example test, the 1.2 mx 12 m pallet of the two-way entry type shown in Fig. 1 was checked to determine its parameters under load in conditions simulating cross-country travel in the semitrailer of the tractor. The test stand had a table that was tossed to a height of 2.5 cm and fell from 2.5 cm. Based on the size of the load, the speed was set and a test stand was launched for a given period of time to simulate the travel of certain specific kilometers.

The checked pallet was made of corrugated cardboard, normally double-walled with double-arc grooving, no top sheet. This pallet was checked for 50 minutes under a load of 1,143 kg at 180 rpm. This simulated a ride on a road about 8000 km in the most difficult road conditions, during which the pallet was exposed to swaying movements forward, backward and sideways. The pallet of the present invention not only survived, but at the end of the test looked like new and unused. Only a wooden pallet with bottom slats could withstand this test. All known corrugated material pallets would be in poor condition or completely destroyed after the same test.

According to the invention, the increased strength of the pallets is presented with reference to their preferred embodiments showing special advantages compared to corrugated material pallets made according to known constructions, yet providing the same benefits at a lower weight and a lower cost than wooden pallets. The stable shape of the pallet allows a part of this pallet to be damaged without destroying the uniformity and usability of the remaining part. This pallet ensures firm contact with the ground, lateral weight support elements with minimally exposed grooving, and structural reinforcement of all holes for the location of lifting teeth.

Due to the extremely clever longitudinal and transverse design, the pallet according to the invention can provide support for load when stacking, which significantly exceeds the load for conventional pallets of corrugated material. The design of these pallets ensures that the more supportive elements come into contact with either the ground or the top of the pallet underneath. This ensures better weight distribution, and for stacked pallets, it significantly reduces crushing or creasing of the load (in most boxes) of pallets underneath. Because the base and floor elements support the load by contacting the ground with both longitudinal and lateral elements, the pallet according to the invention can be moved on most roller conveyor systems in every direction. Known pallets, having only a longitudinal floor support, limit their movement to only one direction, since the rollers must be substantially perpendicular to the main support to roll the pallet.

The design of the pallet ensures its ability to absorb and carry sudden impact in all directions. By providing locking elements and making contact with the ground of all supporting elements, this pallet will not break down due to some pressure from lateral movement. Known pallets do not have this capacity and are vulnerable to destruction when used to transport loads by truck or rail on long routes. The pallet version with the option of introducing four-way lift teeth provides increased strength and fracture resistance not achievable in

170 505 similar constructions. The needs of users of pallets of different sizes and with different strength requirements can be met without having to change the overall design. Changes in the dimensions, weight and type of corrugated material used, etc., will not affect the basic characteristics of the invention pallet

The pallet 10 according to Fig. 9 has longitudinal members 11 similar to the longitudinally 11 pallet 10. In this embodiment, the cross members 12 of the pallet 10 are, however, of a two-element structure, and not of a one-element structure similar to the cross member 12.

As shown in Figure 10, each cross member 12 includes a transverse beam 46 with a square cross section (corresponding to the beam 19 of the cross member 12) and a plurality of aligned transverse spaced wedge members 47 corresponding to the wall 18 of the cross member 12. The beams 46 lie in parallel spacing transversely to longitudinally 11. The wedge elements 47 are located adjacent to the beams 46 for their strengthening at the intersection of the beams 46 with the longitudinal members 11. The number 11 longitudinally and 12 transversely 12 may vary and be adapted to individual requirements. The illustrated embodiment of pallet 10 uses three longitudinal members 11 and three cross members 12 connected to them. Additional beams 46 without wedges 47 between cross members 12 are used to increase stability and to fill the common plane of the upper platform. The upper deck of the pallet 10 can be covered by an additional top plate or cover 14 as described above.

Beams 46 are made of sheet or blank 49 (Fig. 11) in the same way as beam 19 of cross member 12 is formed from blank 21 (Fig. 4). Workpiece blank 49 is arranged with undulations running from left to right and is divided into adjacent, parallel rectangular lobes 50 (50a-50n), as shown by fold lines 51 (dashed lines) and score lines 52 (solid lines) that pass perpendicular to the direction of the wave. Stringers 11 may be formed of a blank 26 (Figure 12) similar to 26 (Figure 5) used for longitudinal forming 11. Blank 26 is arranged with undulations running from left to right and is divided into adjacent, parallel rectangular panels 29 (29a-29i) as shown by folded line 27 (dashed lines) and score line 28 (solid lines). The cutouts 16 are die cut or are otherwise formed in blank 26 as indicated. The grooves 16 correspond to the grooves 16 in the blank 26 (Fig. 5) and the connected cross members 12 are fitted into them. The cutouts 16b form intermediate cutouts between the cutouts 16 in which individual beams 46 are fitted.

The stringers 11 have the same general cross-sectional shape and bending pattern as the stringers 11. The stringers 11 has a tightly packed core of adjacent, vertically arranged panels 29e-291 wrapped by an outer covering of the alternating vertical and horizontal panels 29a-29d. All panels 29, except panels 29b and 29d, have their corrugations oriented vertically for the greatest weight support capacity. Similarly, beam 46 has a tightly packed core of adjacent, vertically arranged panels 50e-50n wrapped by an outer covering of circumferentially placed alternating vertical and horizontal panels 50a-50d. All panels 50, except panels 50b and 50d, have their corrugations oriented vertically.

The wedge elements 47 can be formed as blanks or can be cut off from the formed pieces of the stringer 11. The cross-sectional shape of the wedge elements 47 is the same as the longitudinal shape 11. The ends 47a and 47c of the wedge elements are formed with one oblique surface 52 and one vertical surface 53 Intermediate wedge members 47b are formed with opposing downwardly slanting surfaces 52a, 52b. The wedge elements 47 are provided with downward U-shaped keyways 17 that match the upward U-shaped notches 16a formed in the side members 11. The longitudinal vertical dimensions 11 and the key elements 47 are equal, and the keys 16 and 17 are made so that the sum of the depth (vertical dimensions) of the 16a and 17 cut-outs will be equal to the longitudinal vertical dimension 11 and wedge elements 47. The height (vertical dimension) of the beam 46 is selected to match the depth of the cut-outs 16a and 16b and so that the upper surfaces of the beams 46 located in the cut-outs 16a and 16b are in the same plane as the longitudinally upper surfaces 11. Width (distance between opposite walls) ) cut-outs 16a are chosen so as to be

170 505 slightly smaller than the sum of the widths (horizontal dimension, perpendicular to their length) of beams 46 and wedge elements 47. The width of the notches 16b is practically slightly smaller than the width of the wedge element 47 The dimensions and inclinations of the wedge element 47 are chosen so that notches 15 between the substrate and the bottom surface of the wedge elements 47, which have approximately the same shape as the cut-outs 15 of the pallet 10 (Fig. 1). The wedge elements 47 provide ground contact and load transfer action similar to the function of the walls 18 transversely 12 of the pallet 10, while the beams 46 provide stabilizing sideways and diagonally, similar to the operation of the beams 19 transversely 12. Continuous bottom surfaces of the beams 46 occurring horizontally extending lobes 50b (Fig. 10), play the role of supporting cut-outs 15.

Another embodiment of the pallet 100 is shown in Fig. 13. The pallet 100 includes a plurality of longitudinally 111 lying in parallel, spaced positions along the pallet and cross-connected to one another with a plurality of cross members 112 lying in parallel spaced lateral positions of the pallet. In this case, pallet 100 has four stringers 111 and four stringers 112, although their number can be chosen freely.

The stringers 111 are formed of corrugated cardboard, as already described above in connection with the pallets 10, 10 ', and 10. Each stringers 111 can be formed from a blank similar to the blank 26 shown in Fig. 5 to provide a folded structure having a tightly packed inner core adjacent stacked vertical panels wrapped by an outer cover circumferentially placed, alternating vertically and horizontally panels, with all vertically arranged panels having their vertically oriented wave. The U-shaped gullies 116 open from above and the width slightly less than the width of the stringer 111 can be formed either by die cutting the blank 26 before folding and gluing, or by cutting off the gully 116 in the already formed stringer 111. If needed, stringers 111 can be provided with additional cut-outs 135 for jack teeth (shown in dashed lines in Fig. 13), similar to the notches 35 described above, to provide four-way access for teeth.

Crossmembers 112 can be made with low financial outlays due to the use of elements with the same cross-sectional shape as used for stringers 111, except that they are placed in a pallet in a horizontal rather than vertical arrangement. Stringers 111 should provide sufficient support in a horizontal position for skid use, even without vertical wave arrangement or additional ground support provided by crossbars 112. To produce transversely 112, whose inner core panels are juxtaposed with a vertically oriented wave, a separate blank can be used when a more robust construction is needed.

The crossbars 112 have opposite U-shaped grooves 117 and 118 that can be die-cut before folding or can be cut off after folding. A corresponding die cut blank 126 to form longitudinally 112 is shown in Fig. 15. The blank 126 may be similar to the blank 26 described above, however, with the addition of additional die cutouts to form the grooves 117. The overall dimensions and longitudinal 111 and transverse 112 can be selected so as to maximize the joint production of these elements. For example, the key 116 and the key 118 may be shaped equally, with the only difference between the longitudinal member 111 and the cross member 112 such that there will be additional keyways 117 on the cross member that can be made prior to bending or can be cut in already formed cross members 112. The smallest distance between the bases of the keys 117 and 118) in the cross member 112 is chosen to be slightly larger than the width of the key 116 in the longitudinal member 111 to perform a interference fit. The depth of the groove 116 is selected to suit the thickness of the horizontally measured cross member 112, and the upper surfaces longitudinally 111 and transverse 112 in the pallet structure are in a common plane that can be covered by the top sheet 14, as in other pallets.

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UP Department of Publications. Circulation of 90 copies

Price PLN 4.00