The present invention relates to an arrangement for containers adapted for stacking with an upper container accommodated on top of a lower container.

The main object of the present invention is primar- ily to provide an arrangement of the above-mentionedkind which with simple means enables containers to be pro¬ vided which can be stacked up in a pile without the need for extra intermediate stacking elements etc. and without the need to use complicated and expensive containers. Tke said object is achieved by means of an arrange¬ ment according to the present invention, which is essen¬ tially characterised in that corner pieces with an ar¬ rangement for stacking a corner piece positioned above and supporting themselves on a second corner piece have means for releasably attaching the said corner pieces so that they extend over the corner edge area of the res¬ pective containers with the said upper corner piece ac¬ commodated in the said lower corner piece.

A further object of the invention is to provide an arrangement of the above-mentioned type which with simple means enables containers to be provided which are suit¬ able for receiving goods releasing liquid, such as fish products covered with ice, for example, and which can be stacked to form a pile without the need for extra inter- mediate stacking elements, etc.

The said object is achieved by means of an arrange¬ ment according to the present invention which is shown in Figures 12-15, amongst other places.

The invention is described below by way of a number of preferred embodiment examples, with reference to the accompanying drawings, on which:

Figure 1 shows a corner piece designed according to the present invention, viewed looking from the outside,

Figure 2 shows the said corner piece, viewed look¬ ing from the inside, at an angle from above,

Figure 3 shows the corner piece viewed looking from the inside, at an angle from below, Figure shows the invention being used on contain¬ ers arranged in the stacked state,

Figure 5 shows a single container with a corner piece designed according to the invention attached to one of its corners, Figure 6 shows a sheet of corrugated material or some other suitable material such as a cellulose con¬ taining material, for example, from which it is possible to fold a tray-like container which is open at the top and is adapted to be held together by corner pieces according to the object of the invention,

Figures 7 to 10 show various stages in the process of folding the said sheet material to produce the said- container,

Figure 11 shows a container sheet which is intended to be folded according to an alternative process,

Figure 12 shows a comer piece designed according to the second embodiment, viewed looking from the outside, Figure 13 shows the corner piece viewed looking from the inside, at an angle from above, Figure - shows the corner piece viewed looking from the inside, at an angle from below, and

Figure 15 shows a sheet of corrugated material or som other suitable liquid-resistant material from which it is possible to fold a tray-like container which is open at the top and is adapted to be held together by corner pieces according to the said second embodiment ^• according to the object of the invention.

A corner piece 1 designed according to the present invention and shown clearly in Figures 1 - 3 may consist of a corner piece body 2, for example with a V-shaped cross-section, which has at the upper part 1A and the

lower part 13 an arrangement for stacking a plurality of corner pieces 1, 1 ⁿ , etc. with one corner piece position¬ ed on top of a second corner piece. Expediently, the upper stacking arrangement is formed by a stacking pro- jection 3 which widens out in the outwardly direction from the upper part 1A of the body and which is designed so that it can receive, for example in its interior 3A, a complementary stacking part -V acting as a lower stack¬ ing arrangement and disposed on the lower part 1B of the body.

Extending expediently from the inwardly facingupper part 1A there is a connecting element 5 which projects inwards and is preferably in the form of a plate, on the lower surface 5A of which a preferably channel-shaped arrangement 6 is provided for engaging with the wall of the container; this arrangement is open at the bottom and extends along the inner faces 2A, 2B respectively of the body part 2 of the corner piece 1.

A fixing device 7 _. preferably constructed as an arm which springs at least in the direction away from the base of the container, is provided on the comer piece1 at least on its lower part 1B and extends inwardly from the body 2 of the piece, preferably at right-angles thereto. Expediently, an insertion part 9 is provided, slanting upwards towards the inner accommodating space 8 of the corner piece from the front lower part 7A; the function of this part 9 will be explained later. , A locking element 10, preferably in the form of a protruberance, is provided on the arm 7 _. spaced awayfrom the body 2 of the corner piece and extending preferably upwards from the arm 7; the function of this element is to make it impossible for the container with which it is intended to co-act to be displaced unintentionally re¬ lative to the associated corner piece, across the base of a container.

Other means than the above-mentioned protruberance

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type of locking element 10 for releasably attaching a corner piece 1 to a container so that it extends over the corner edge of the said container with a view to providing a corner support so that containers can be stacked efficiently and securely may consist, for ex¬ ample, of some suitable adhesive medium, such as tape, glue, etc.

The said preferably upwardly projecting protruber¬ ance 10 extends substantially across the body 2 of the corner piece to which it appertains, and can be con¬ structed so that it is suitable for co-acting with a container base on the container 15 with which the said corner piece 1 is intended to co-act.

Expediently, the container 15 which is intended to be equipped with four corner pieces 1 of the kind which is described above and shown on the drawings is con¬ structed as a container tray, open at the top, whichcan be produced from a piece of suitable material, prefer¬ ably corrugated material which can be treated to make it liquid-resistant, at least in the space 16 where goods are to be accommodated in the container 15.

After the container 15 has been folded into the in¬ tended shape a corner piece 1 is attached to the said container 15 by means of its connecting device, for example in that the means which comprise the preferably channel-shaped engaging arrangements 6 engage round the upper parts 17 and 18A of the respective containerwalls 17, 18 in the vicinity of the respective corner edges19 of the container, as shown in Figures 2 and 3. After this, the respective cornerpLeces 1 which expediently have an extent such that they can extend over the whole height of the container, are pivoted inwards so that they expediently cover the said comer edges 9 of the container with their body 2. The said arm-like fixing device 7 is thereby sprung out away from the inside 8 of the corner piece so that the locking element 10 can

be moved into a position, for example under the contain¬ er 15 wherein it can be received in a complementary hole 20 which is preferably provided in the base 16A of the container beforehand and extends right through the base 16A. Alternatively, the locking element 10 itself can make suitable holes in the base 16A of the container by acting on it from outside, for example in that it is made with a point or a cutting edge, etc. When the corner piece 1 is being attached to the container, the sloping front surface 9 on the fixing arm 7 causes the arm 7 to spring out under the effect of contact with the periphery of the container, and facilitates the said insertion of the locking element 10 into the desired locking position. The example illustrated shows the locking element and the hole 20 for receiving it with a round shape, but naturally another shape than the round shape shown can be used for the locking elements 10 and the holes 20. After all the corner pieces have been attached to the containers 15, 5 ⁿ _. etc. the said containers are suitable for stacking with the lower stacking parts -V on a container located above being received by the upper stacking parts 3 on a container lying beneath, without the container lying below or the goods in it being squashed or damaged in some other way.

After the containers 15» ^ 5 ⁿ have been used, the corner pieces 1 can be re-used on new, fresh containers after they have been released from the said containers and attached in the above-described way. Expediently, the corner pieces are produced from a plastic material or some other lightweight material _, and their outer faces can expediently be made with longitudinally extending corrugations to form stiffening ribs, as shown in Fig¬ ure 1. In a view looking from the upper face thereof, Fig¬ ure 6 shows a basic sheet 21 in the flattened state

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which is suitable for producing a container 22 such as is shown in Figure 10 in the fully folded state, and for being effectively equipped with corner pieces 1 accord¬ ing to the invention to hold it together at the contain- er corners 23; the other functions of the said corner pieces 1 will be apparent from the above. The basic sheet 21 shown expediently consists of corrugated card¬ board material or some other suitable material which is provided with cut-outs for flaps 24-, 25, 26, and open- ings 27, 28 designed to act as accommodating holes for the said locking elements 10 on the corner pieces 1 and to form handholds for carrying the container, respective¬ ly, together with fold lines 29. The basic sheet 21 is expediently pre-treated with a liquid-resistant medium preferably at least over the surface which is intended to face in towards the space 16 in the container forhold¬ ing the goods; for example, it may be treated withplas¬ tic to make it more liquid-resistant.

The construction of a container 22 is effected ex- pediently as follows, with reference to Figures 7 - 0 in which the various construction stages are shown.

The construction process as shown in Figures 7- 0 is primarily suitable for use with a workpiece 21 which, either before or after construction, is treated with a medium over both the upper and the lower surfaces ofthe sheet, to make it more liqμid-resistant, and it is not so well-suited for basic sheets.which for some reason are treated with such a medium over only one side, since some parts of the basic sheet 21 which lie on the lower surface before the construction process are folded to form inwardly-facing walls on the said container 15 when folding has been completed.

Firstly, the flaps 25 are folded in towards the side pieces 30, and then the side pieces 31 are folded in over the said flaps 25 at the same time as the flaps 2-4- are folded round at the associated fold lines 29 so that the

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flaps 2 stand at approximately 90° relative to the said side pieces 31- After folding up the side pieces 3 so that the flaps 24- which have handhold openings 28 over¬ lap each other with the said handhold openings 28 ar- ranged directly one in front of the other, the short side flaps 26 are folded round the inner associatedfold line 29 so that the said flaps 26 can be folded overthe flaps 24- with a flap part 26A and 26B respectively dis¬ posed on either side of the flaps 24-, and with the hand- hold openings 28 located directly one in front of the other. After the corner pieces 1 have been attachedand fixed in the base holes 27, the container 22 thus pro¬ duced is ready to receive a large quantity of goods which contain liquid which may be released by the goods. The short sides of the containers 22 produced have four layers, and the long sides have three layers over most of their length, which means that these sides are strong.

There is also little wastage of material with a basic sheet 21 of the kind described above and shown on the drawings.

- Figure 11 shows a basic sheet 21 of a similar type to that shown in Figures 6-10, but differing in that only the upper face is treated with a liquid-resistant medium such as a coating of plastic, etc., for example. In this case folding is carried out in another sequence.

1 Firstly, the flaps 25 are folded in behind the respec- tive associated side pieces 30 , before or after the

1 1 side pieces 30 , 31 are folded up, after which the res¬ pective side pieces 31 are folded down outside the said

1 1 flaps 25 and the side pieces 30 . The long sides of the container 21 are now disposed in the folded posi¬ tion extending at an angle of 90° to the base surface

16A 1. The short side pieces 261 are folded up at an angle of 90 to the said base surface 16A , afterwhich the outer flap parts 26A 1 are folded round the flaps 24-1 which have previously been folded at 90° relative to

the folded-up long sides. After the corner pieces 1 have been attached and their fixing protruberances 10

* engaged in the openings 27 , the container is obtained in the assembled state, and the inside is designed to have better moisture-resistance, in the event that the containers are intended for holding moisture-releasing goods.

The embodiment of an arrangement which is shown in

Figures 12 - 15 and which, with simple means, enables containers to be produced which are suitable for holding liquid-releasing goods, is now described below andwith reference initially to Figures 12 - 1 . Parts which correspond to parts in the previous embodiment described above have been given the same reference symbols. Internally, there is a rim-like liquid-receiving chamber 11 formed in the locking element 10, from which a drainage duct 12 extends along the arm 7 to the out¬ side and to the lower part 1B of the body 2 of the cor¬ ner piece, where it has its outlet. Expediently, the said duct 12 is situated inside the arm.

A drainage channel 13 is expediently located on the inside 3A of the said upper stacking projection 3 ad¬ joining the projecting part of the connecting element 5, and terminates in a liquid drainage hole 14- leading through the comer piece 1 to the outside thereof.

Expediently, the container 15 which is intended to be equipped with four corner pieces 1 of the kind des¬ cribed above and shown on the drawings is designed as a container tray which is open at the top and which can be produced from a piece of liquid-resistant cardboard material, preferably corrugated cardboard material, or from a piece of some other material which is suitable for receiving liquid-releasing goods such as fish, for example, in its space 16 for holding goods in the con- tainer 1 .

The example shown in Figures 12 - 15 has non- circular openings 20 for receiving the locking elements, but naturally another shape than that shown, such as a circular circumferential shape, for example, can be used for the locking element 10 and the openings 20.

Liquid which is released by the goods being accom¬ modated in the respective containers flows out through the said container holes 20 and is conducted via the liquid-receiving chambers 11 in the associated arms 7 to the drainage ducts 12 which open therein. The liquid from a container 15 ⁿ located above flows out throughthe ducts 12 to the space inside the upper stacking projec¬ tion 3 of the corner piece 1 lying underneath it, andis conducted down further via the outlet hole 14- to the out- side of the said corner piece, to flow downwards over it and to be conducted further in the way described above, to a container which may be lying beneath it. By means of the invention efficient draining of water, etc. from the respective containers is possible in the way described above.

Figure 15 shows a basic-sheet 21 which is suitable for being effectively equipped with corner pieces 1 to obtain efficient draining of water from the container 22 produced, as shown in Figure 10, from the said basic sheet 21, and to hold it together at the corners 23 of the container. The basic sheet 21 shown expediently con¬ sists of corrugated cardboard material which is provided with cut-outs for flaps 24-, 25, 26 and holes 27, 28 designed to act as receiving holes for the locking ele- raents 10 on the corner pieces 1 and for forming hand¬ holds for carrying the container, respectively, and with fold lines 29. The basic sheet 21 is expediently pre- treated with a liquid-resistant medium, for example with plastic, so that its resistance to liquid is improved. In the event that the container 15 is not treated to resist liquid fully, and to prevent liquid from ^'

- 10 -

penetrating into the corrugated material, for example, between the upper and lower surfaces of the sheet of material, the holes 20 can be designed to be sealed around their circumferential edge with suitable means, for example it is possible to protect the edges of the holes by means of cramped rings or the like which are put on the said openings 20 beforehand or when the lock¬ ing elements 10 are pushed in. The actual locking elements 10 can also be formed so that they seal round the circumferential edge so that liquid is not able to leak in between to the space inside the sheet container material, for ^' example in that they are made with a hooked collar, etc. It is also possible for the lock¬ ing elements 10 to be connected to the said arms 7 sub- sequently from the space 16 inside the container, for example in that the locking elements 10 are connected to the respective arms 7 by flexible wire, etc., or for the locking elements 10 to be constructed so that they can be inserted through previously provided holes 20, for example after being compressed before they are in¬ serted from below through theholes 20, for example in the form of a capsule which can be closed up and sub¬ sequently opened if a free passageway through the base 16A of the container is required. A sealing substance can also be used for achieving an effective seal against liquid around the circumference of the holes.

The invention is not limited to the embodiment ex¬ amples described above and shown on the drawings, but may be modified within the framework of the following Patent Claims without exceeding the scope of the inven¬ tion. For example, it is possible to arrange corner pieces in the goods-accommodating space inside the con¬ tainer. In the event that the invention is used on con¬ tainers which are covered over at the top, such as car- tons for example, it is expedient to provide cut-outs

through the covering layer to allow the said connecting means to be received in the said cut-outs to allow co- action with the upper edge parts of the carton. The invention is also suitable for use on containers of various shapes.