The invention relates to a container with a preferably rectangular bottom and upright front and side walls connecting thereto. Such open- op containers, such as crates, are used for, for example, packing and transporting bulk or loose goods, such as tuberous or bulbous plants. Such crates are stacked on top of each other by placing the bottom of the next crate on the open top edge of the previous crate. For the greatest possible stacking height with the most efficient material use possible, combined with the optimum ratio between the internal volume and the external cubic measurements, it is necessary in this connection that in a stack of crates the upright front and side walls run vertically as far as possible, since these walls are subjected to pressure. Such crates with rectangular flat bottom and side walls perpendicular thereto, made of, for example, wood or plastic, have already been in use in large quantities for many purposes for a long time. The disadvantage of these known crates is that when they are stacked empty they take up as much space as when they are full. This is a disadvantage as regards, for example, the required storage space for empty crates or transporting them. The object of the invention is to overcome this abovementioned disadvantage. For this purpose, the invention provides a container with a preferably rectangular bottom and upright front and side walls connecting thereto, in which in at least one front or side wall there is a slit running over at least a part of the height of the container, from the free top edge of the wall concerned to the bottom, which slit is open at the top edge and is provided over the full wall thickness, and which slit is of such width that a suitable part of a wall of a second container which is nestable with the first container can be pushed into said slit. Such containers according to the invention can easily be nested in pairs, with the result that the space taken up by empty containers compared with full ones is almost halved. Despite these nestable properties, the stacking strength and ease of handling of the known container are maintained, without additional measures having to be taken for the purpose. This means that it is possible, for example, to use existing containers and containers according to the present invention with the same dimensions interchangeably for normal applications, such as stacking filled containers on top of each other.

In certain embodiments of the invention it is even possible to

a limited degree to nest a container according to the present invention with a conventional container with corresponding measurements.

The slits preferably extend over approximately half the height of the container, each upright wall being provided with two slits, each in the corners of the container where the side walls connect to each other. This makes it as easy as possible for the containers to fit into each other during nesting.

It is also preferable to provide locking elements on the side of the bottom of the container facing away from the upright walls. These locking elements must be fitted in such a way that it is made virtually impossible for two containers according to the present invention placed with their bottoms against each other to shift relative to each other. This ensures that container pairs which are nested together can be efficiently and reliably stacked on top of each other for, for example, transport and/or storage. For this purpose, such locking elements are preferably made rib-shaped and fitted on the bottom in pairs of concentric annular patterns with the lengthwise direction of the locking elements in the direction of the pattern. Per pair these annular patterns preferably have a space between them which is essentially the width of said ribs. For good functioning, the locking elements for each pattern pair must not lie next to each other. This will become clear from the description of the figures.

The bottom can also be provided with conventional second locking elements for stacking the containers efficiently and reliably with the bottoms on the top edges. The first and/or second locking elements at the same time provide an effective supporting face and provide protection at the bottom, for example when the container is placed on a rough surface.

Nestable containers of the type described in the introduction are known per se. However, such known nestable containers have very sloping side and front walls, which means that the container tapers towards the bottom. Such containers can be nested in virtually unlimited numbers. However, the sloping walls mean that the stacking strength of such containers is relatively low, and the ratio between the internal volume and the external cubic measurements is poor. Moreover, additional measures are necessary to make such containers stackable on top of each other.

The invention will be explained in further detail below on the basis of a non-limiting example of an embodiment, with reference to the

appended figures, in which:

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the container according to the invention;

Fig. 2 shows a perspective view of two containers according to Fig. 1 nested in each other;

Fig. 3 shows a bottom view of the container of Fig. 1. With reference to the figures, the invention is explained further on the basis of a generally known container in the form of crate 1. This crate 1 has a flat, rectangular bottom 2 with upright front walls 3 and side walls 4 connecting thereto. Grips 5 are provided in the front walls 3. This crate 1 is manufactured by injection-moulding, and for this purpose the walls 3, 4 are made double-walled near the corners where they join each other, while reinforcing ribs 6 run in the remaining, single- walled areas. In the corners of the crate, where the front walls 3 connect to the side walls 4, slits 7 are provided in the walls 3, 4, running from the top edge of the crate 1 towards the bottom 2, and extending over the full wall thickness. As shown, these slits run essentially over half the height of the crate 1. The slits 7 of two adjacent walls 3, 4 bound a vertical corner leg 8.

Due to the fact that the crate 1 is provided with slits 7, two crates 1 can be nested in one another, as shown in Fig. 2. In this connection, the side wall 4 of one crate 1 slides into the slit 7 in the front wall 3 of the other crate 1, and vice versa. The crates can be pushed into each other so far here that the bottom 2 of one crate is approximately flush with the top edge of the walls 4 of the other crate 1 (not shown) .

As can be seen in Figs. 2 and 3, the bottom 2 is also provided with rib-shaped locking elements 9, 10. These locking elements 9 and 10, respectively, lie on imaginary concentric annular patterns 11 and 12, respectively, which form two pairs of rings. Each pair of rings is in each case separated from the other by approximately the width of a locking element 9, 10. The fact that the locking elements 9, 10 are disposed alternately on, for example, the outer pair of rings, in a mirror-symmetrical fashion, means that the locking elements 9 of one crate are enclosed by the locking elements 10 of another crate when two crates are placed with the bottoms on each other. Crates stacked on top of each other in this way cannot shift relative to each other.

Of course, variants of the examplary embodiment described here

are conceivable. For example, it is not absolutely essential to provide all front and side walls of the crate with the slits according to the invention. One front wall 3 and one side wall 4 can each be provided with a slit 7, so that a crate 1 has only two slits, these slits lying approximately diagonally opposite each other. Nesting will, however, in that case take longer, due to the fact that the various crates then have to be turned more often into the correct position. It is also possible to omit the upright element 8. The side and front walls then have common slits 7. It is also possible, for example, to make the slits 7 run right to the bottom 2. As a result of this, crates not provided with the slits 7 according to the invention could also be nested together with a crate according to the invention having corresponding measurements. However, such a far-running slit adversely affects the strength of the crate. In order to limit the width of the slit, it is_ρossible, for example, for the appropriate region of the wall which is pushed into the slit to be made thinner.

Variants of the locking elements 9, 10 shown are also conceivable. For example, it is possible to make do with fewer locking elements by, for example, omitting those which lie on the innermost pair of concentric annular patterns 11, 12. The locking elements can also have recesses in the bottom 2, into which projections on a following bottom can slot.

Finally, the side walls 4, for example, can be lowered further in their central region, for example for the storage and transport of vegetables and/or fruit. Moreover, it is not absolutely essential for bottom and wall to be closed, but they can be provided with cutouts (holes) of different shapes and/or dimensions, depending on the product to be packed and the desired degree of ventilation. A crate or container with a round base shape could also be considered for the application of the invention. In addition, it is, of course, not absolutely essential for the front and side walls to be perpendicular to the bottom.

The scope of the invention is therefore determined more by the appended claims.