DESCRIPTION

LOCK SYSTEM FOR FOLDABLE CRATES

Subject of the Invention

This invention relates to a novel lock system that enables the interlocking of the edges used in the folding carriage boxes. With the lock system developed, the amount of physical force required for the activation of the system is minimized, thus a comfortable use is envisaged in a wide range of application environments.

State of the Art

Plastic carriage boxes are entering our lives day by day to a greater extent. The plastic carriage boxes, which may be used in every field from the retail sector to the transportation, are presented with very different size and material options. Plastic carriage boxes are basically examined under two groups. These are fixed plastic carriage boxes and the folding plastic carriage boxes.

Fixed plastic carriage boxes have been in use for a long time. The fixed plastic carriage boxes, which are made of polymers such as polyethylene, polypropylene, polystyrene, may be quite durable and light-weighted due to their solid structure . Folding plastic carriage boxes are newer items as compared to the fixed carriage boxes. In this type of carriage box, the edges may be folded upon the base and thus are enabled to assume a smaller shape, in order to provide the ease in handling and storage at times when the carriage box is not in use. Due to the moving plastic parts they contain, they have a lower physical resistance. However, their physical resistance becomes increasingly greater owing to the studies made .

Due to their strong structure, the fixed plastic carriage boxes are still in use. Nonetheless, since they occupy very big space when empty and since there are difficulties in their handling, they are slowly being replaced by the folding carriage boxes. This replacement becomes increasingly faster with an increase in the durability of the folding carriage boxes, in parallel with the advancing technology.

The mechanisms used for coupling up the edges of the folding carriage boxes have achieved a great improvement within a short time. As the time passes, the lock systems, which were previously in the form of edges fitted by means of the engagement of the fixed parts, are being replaced by the lock systems with moving parts.

In the patent no. US7011225, a novel lock system is described for the folding carriage boxes. In said system, the function of unlocking is provided by means of an actuating arm that is in the form of a single piece comprising tensioned parts. The locks are opened by way of an upward movement of the actuating arm. The tensioned parts serve the function of bringing the actuating arm back to its initial position after the unlocking has been performed. The disadvantage of this system is that in case one of the tensioned parts is broken, it will not be possible to perform the centering function in a reliable manner. Further, in case of even a small break, the replacement of the entire actuating arm is necessary. Another example is the patent application no. US2009/0101640. In said application, the unlocking is provided by means of an actuating arm capable of moving in both directions. The locking mechanism is designed using many small parts, instead of a big actuating arm. The use of a high number of parts is the most significant handicap of this system. Presence of many diverse parts complicates the repair works.

In both of the aforesaid patent applications, the centering of the actuating arm that enables the lock to be opened is provided by means of a single type of tensioned piece. Since the deformation may be very frequently encountered in said types of carriage boxes that are used in cargo transport, the lock system will not be able to serve its function in case the parts that provide centering are broken.

Brief Description of the Invention

The novel improved lock system basically comprises the components of the actuating arm (8) positioned on the short edge (1) and the actuating arm retainer (7) located on the actuating arm.

The lock pins (3) located on two opposite ends of the actuating arm (8) engage into the lock slots (4) located on the long edge (2), thus providing the locking of the short and long edges .

Unlocking process is possible via a downward or upward movement of the actuating arm (8) . The use of two-directional actuation mechanism is designed to enable easy opening for the lock system whenever desired under various conditions of handling . Centering of the actuating arm (8) with the capability of movement in downward or upward direction is provided by two different types of centering members. These are the edge retainers (6) located on the short edge (1) and the actuating arm retainers (7), which are located on the actuating arm (8) to function. Both centering pieces are made of pretensioned material, and they enable the actuating arm (8) to return to its original position after the movement thereof in the downward or upward direction.

The difference of this new developed system from the similar systems is that the unlocking is possible by means of the downward or upward movement of the actuating arm (8) and that two different types of centering members are used. The deformation of the plastic material is a very serious problem in such carriage boxes which are exposed to all kinds of physical conditions. Even if one of the independent centering members being used becomes broken, the other member enables the lock mechanism to perform its function and the carriage box to remain usable under all the conditions. Of the centering members, the actuating arm retainers (7), because they are cheap and small, may be easily replaced when necessary. In addition, the use of a less number of parts reduces the possibility for the broken or deformed small parts to lead to any failure that would render the lock system unusable.

Detailed Description of the Invention The novel lock system, the subject matter of our invention, is positioned on the short edge (1) and serves the function of interlocking the short edge (1), on which it is positioned, with the two adjacent long edges (2) . The locking function is achieved by the seating of the lock pins (3), P T/TR2010/000043 which are located on two opposite ends of the actuating arm (8) , into the lock slots (4) located on the long edge (2) (Figure 1, Figure 3) . Owing to the geometric shape of the lock slots (4) , the lock pins (3) pass over the lock slots (4) and are secured thereon during locking. In this way, the movement of the two opposite ends of the actuating arm (8) in different directions and the failures that may form in the system due to said movement are prevented. Actuating arm (8) is an apparatus with the capability of downward and upward movement, which is positioned on the short edge (1) and which controls the locking function (Figure 2, Figure 6) . This apparatus passes between the edge retainers (6) located on the short edge (1) and through the actuating arm slots (5) located again on the short edge (1) and is secured in this manner. The centering of the actuating arm (8) is provided by means of the edge retainers (6) located on the short edge (1) and the "V" shaped actuating arm retainers (7), which are fitted to the actuating arm retaining tab (10) on the actuating arm (8) (Figure 2 and Figure 4 ) .

As seen in Figure 4 and Figure 6, the actuating arm retainers (7) are fitted to the actuating arm retaining tab (10) located on the actuating arm (8) and their arms are passed through the actuating arm retaining slots (11) that are also located on the actuating arm (8).

The actuating arm retaining tabs (10) , to which the actuating arm retainers (7) are fitted, are located behind the actuating arm connection cover (12) . In the rear view of the actuating arm (8) shown in Figure 4, the actuating arm retaining tabs (10) are seen. In this manner, the external intervention with the connection parts is prevented and the risk is reduced for the connection members to encounter physical factors .

Edge retainers (6) and actuating arm retainers (7) are two different types of plastic parts, which are pretensioned and are able to compress upon the application of a force and then to assume their original shape. The edge retainers (6), which are positioned on the portion of the short edges (1) that is close to the long edges (2), are seen in Figure 2. One of the most important innovations in the invention with respect to the other lock system examples is the use of two different types of parts and thus, enabling the lock system of the carriage box to still perform its function in case one of the parts is broken.

The unlocking process is realized by moving the actuating arm (8) in the upward or downward direction, thus enabling the lock pin (3) to come out of the lock slot (4) . During the upward or downward movement, the edge retainers (6) and the actuating arm retainers (7) become tensioned and they bring the actuating arm (8) back to its central position once the lock has been opened. As another method for providing the movement in two directions, there are the retaining tabs (14) located on the short edge (1) and the retaining tab slots (13) on the actuating arm (8) in which slots said tabs engage. With these parts, the assembly of the actuating arm (8) with the short edge (1) is provided in a more secure manner . The actuating arm (8) passes under the carriage box holding gap (9) made to enable the handling of the carriage box. In this manner, both the handling may comfortably be performed and the unlocking process may be performed whenever desired with a very small movement. 10000043

Description of the Figures Figure 1: Short edge and lock system (together with the carriage box)

Figure 2: Short edge and lock system (separate from the carriage box)

Figure 3: Actuating arm and long edge connection

Figure 4 : Rear view of the actuating arm

Figure 5: Actuating arm retainer

Figure 6: Actuating arm with attached actuating arm retainers

Description of the Reference Numbers

1. Short edge

2. Long edge

3. Lock pin

4. Lock slot

5. Actuating arm slot

6. Edge retainers

7. Actuating arm retainers

8. Actuating arm

9. Carriage box holding gap

10. Actuating arm retaining pins

11. Actuating arm retaining slots

12. Actuating arm connection cover

13. Retaining tab slot

14. Retaining tab