Collapsible container

Application filed. August 17, 1918. Serial No. 250,276.

To dll whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, Herbert P. Beers and Louis S. Rysdon, citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county 5 of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Collapsible Containers, of which the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompany 10 ing drawings, forming a part of this specification.

Our invention relates to containers,—such as trunks, boxes, cases, crates, etc., and especially to a form of the same made collap15 sible to permit shipping, handling or storing in a very much reduced size.

The principal object of the invention is to provide a simple, practical and advantageous construction of collapsible container 20 of the class specified.

A further object is to permit quickness and readiness of operation in collapsing and expanding the container.

A still further object is to arrange for 25 the easy and expeditious fastening or locking of the device in collapsed and expanded conditions.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a side elevation of a container embody30 ing our invention, in a collapsed condition;

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the device in the condition shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section of the device in an expanded condition;

Fig. 4 is a cross-section taken on line 4—4 in Fig. 2; and

Fig. 5 is a detail of one of the rear corners.

In the drawings we show a container 40 which may be used as a trunk, case, box or the like. It is rectangular in form, but, of course the shape may be varied. It has side walls 1, ends 2 and 3, a top 4, and a bottom 5.

Each side wall 1 is made of two sections or parts, l^a and l^b, hinged together by hinges 6. The bottom 5 is secured to a rectangular frame 7, conveniently made of angle iron material bent to the proper shape.

Thus the bottom is hung or suspended, as it were, by a jointed or articulated connection,—the lower side pieces l^b being connected to the bottom frame by hinges 8, and the top side piece l^a being connected to a similar top frame 9 by hinges 10. 55

The ends 2 and 3 are pivotally connected to the top frame by pivots 11, so that said ends may swing upwardly and downwardly into the positions shown in Figs. 2 and 3, respectively. When in their downward posi- 60 tions, these sides are caught by clasps or catches ' 12, 12, secured on the bottom 5, thereby holding said sides firmly in position.

The upper and lower frames 9 and 7 come 65 together when the device is collapsed, as shown in Fig. 2, and the lower frame is preferably provided with reinforcing corner pieces 13, which extend up to practically the top of the upper member 9 when the 70 device is collapsed. Apertures are provided in the rearmost corners 13 through which pins 14 are passed, so as to lock the top and bottom together when the device is collapsed. The cover is hinged to the top 75 frame 9 by hinges 15, and is provided with a hasp 16 arranged to lock the cover closed. The hasp 16 has a pin 17 which engages an aperture provided in' the lowermost frame 7 to hold the frames 7 and 9 against 80 separation when the device is collapsed.

Thus the container may be collapsed as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, in which condition it occupies but little space, and so can be shipped or packed with obvious advantage. 85 The device may be expanded by lifting the top frame from the bottom and then pushing the ends down until they engage and are held by the catches 12. The device may then be filled, the cover closed and locked, 90 and the device shipped or transported as desired in an expanded and filled condition. On being emptied the device may be readily collapsed, simply disengaging and swinging up the ends 2 and 3, and lowering the top 05 to rest upon the bottom.

It will be understood that changes and modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention.