BACKGROUND TO THE INVENTION

THIS invention relates to a racking arrangement, and more particularly but not exclusively to a racking arrangement that is adapted to be reconfigurable once the existing configuration has become obsolete. The invention also relates to a corner connector suitable for use in constructing the racking arrangement, and in particular a corner connector which is configured for releasably receiving a corner post.

Racking systems are ubiquitous in trade and industry, and are used to store anything from containers, devices to components. In many instances, racking arrangements (e.g. the shape and configuration of the shelves or other receiving formations) remain the same throughout their lifespan. However, there are cases where there is a need to reconfigure a racking arrangement when it is to be used for a new application, or at least a modified application. The use of racking systems is, for example, very important in the automotive industry, where bespoke steel racks are used to store components and parts associated with a specific vehicle manufactured on an assembly line. The lifespan of these racks usually significantly exceeds the lifespan of the particular automobile model that is being manufactured, which results in a large quantity of used racks becoming obsolete if they are not reconfigured for use with the new parts and components associated with the new automobile model.

Rebuilding existing racks into newly configured racks tends to be a complicated and costly exercise, which means that it does not make commercial sense to reconfigure racks at this time. This is due to a number of reasons, some of which are discussed below.

The automotive manufacturers and/or their part suppliers generally do not allow subcontractors to perform hot work on their sites, i.e. work which could include welding / grinding and/or procedures which might cause sparks, as this kind of work poses a significant risk of fire, accidents, production disturbances etc. Very few of these automotive players are willing to accept such risk at their production site, as the cost of a short period of potential downtime will easily exceed the cost of an entire consignment of racks to be re-built. In order to perform rebuilding outside the premises of the manufacturers, the rack suppliers are compelled to gather old racks and send them to a third part rebuilder, which is costly and difficult from a logistical point of view.

A further challenge relates to the rack surface treatment. If a rack is powder coated, the heat process associated with disassembling and reassembling the rack will damage the paint, and re-painting can only take place after the entire rack has been sandblasted. If the rack is spray painted, some touch- up painting can potentially take place, however the whole rack still has to be sent to paint shop even though the actual welding involved is minimal. Many racks are also galvanized, and all forms of galvanization (in general hot dip) will cause trouble in several stages due to the release of dangerous emissions during welding / grinding processes. As such, these operations are not acceptable from a working environmental point of view in many industrial countries. In addition, such processes will damage the galvanization in the heat affected zone, and possible re-galvanization will be required. Re-galvanization is, however, very costly and tricky from several points of views, and many manufacturers and shelve suppliers avoid galvanization due to the problematic maintenance caused by the challenge of finding maintenance contractors willing to weld in galvanized steel.

Due to the above, many automobile manufacturers simply scrap their old racks when a new automobile model enters production. This is expensive and wasteful, but is still regarded as more beneficial than the alternative options currently available in the market, and which are associated with the disadvantages described above.

There is also a need for existing racking configurations to be easier to assemble, and to be more flexible in terms of changing the height of the shelves.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a racking arrangement that will, at least partially, alleviate the above shortcomings.

It is also an object of the invention to provide a racking arrangement which will be a useful alternative to existing racking arrangements.

It is accordingly an object of the invention to provide a corner connector suitable for use in constructing the racking arrangement that will, at least partially, alleviate the above shortcomings. It is also an object of the invention to provide a corner connector suitable for use in constructing the racking arrangement, which will be a useful alternative to existing corner connectors.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the invention there is provided a corner connector suitable for use in a reconfigurable racking arrangement, the corner connector including:

a body having two substantially perpendicular distal end zones, and a corner zone located between the two distal end zones;

the distal end zones including external surfaces suitable for receiving ends of sides of the racking arrangement; and

the corner zone including a receiving formation for releasably receiving an end of a corner post assembly therein, wherein the receiving formation is in the form of a recess formed in the corner zone of the body.

The recess may be substantially square in cross-section, and may have two adjacent open sides, and two adjacent substantially solid sidewalls.

Securing apertures may be provided in the sidewalls of the receiving formation in order for a corner post assembly, in use, to be securable to the body of the corner connector by way of a threaded securing means, for example a threaded bolt.

Securing voids may be provided in the body adjacent operative inner ends of the securing apertures, with the voids configured and dimensioned for, in use, receiving part of the threaded securing means therein.

The securing voids may be accessible from outside of the body, in order for the part of the threaded securing means located inside the void, for example an end of a threaded rod / bolt and a nut located thereon, to be accessible from the outside of the connector when installed.

There is provided for the securing voids to be located between the corner zone and an adjacent distal end zones of the corner connector.

There is also provided for a base section to be located at an operatively lower end of the receiving formation, the base section in use configured to act as a landing for a bottom end of a corner post.

There is provided for the base section to include a receiving pocket, configured and dimensioned in use to receive a locating formation extending from a corner post assembly therein.

There is still further provided for a stacking formation to extend from an operatively lower surface of the base section.

The stacking formation may be in the form of a stacking cone that allows the corner post to engage an open end of a corner post assembly of a racking module located below the corner connector.

There is provided for the distal end zones of the corner connector to include supporting formations, suitable for receiving ends of sides of the racking arrangement, protruding therefrom.

A still further feature of the invention provides for the supporting formations extending from the distal zone to be in the form of at least one spigot that protrudes from the distal zone.

The spigot may be configured and dimensioned for receiving an end of a hollow rack component, for example an elongate tubular member. There is provided for each supporting formation to comprise a plurality of separate spigots.

There is provided for the plurality of spigots to define a plurality of usable combinations, each of which defines a supporting formation having an effective outer diameter suitable for receiving a different tubular member.

A further feature of the invention provides for the corner connector to include a plurality of stepped grooves provided in an operatively upper corner section thereof.

According to a further aspect of the invention there is provided a racking arrangement including the corner connector as described above.

There is provided for the racking arrangement to include a corner post assembly which is releasably securable to the corner connector.

There is provided for the corner post assembly to include a corner post and a corner post securing end piece.

The corner post may be in the form of a tubular beam, and the corner post securing end piece may be securable to an end of the tubular beam, for example by way of welding.

There is provided for the corner post securing end piece to include a locating formation extending from an operatively lower end thereof.

The locating formation may be in the form of a tapering spigot, configured and dimensioned to fit inside a complimentary receiving pocket provided in the corner connector.

The corner post securing end piece may include apertures for receiving the threaded securing means therethrough. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A preferred embodiment of the invention is described by way of a non limiting example, and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a top perspective view of a corner connector in accordance with one embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a bottom perspective view of the corner connector of figure 1 ;

Figure 3 is an exploded perspective view of a corner section of a racking arrangement (comprising one pallet configuration elevated above another pallet configuration) utilizing the corner connector;

Figure 4 is an assembled perspective view of a corner section of the racking arrangement of Figure 3 utilizing the corner connector;

Figure 5 is a first perspective view of a second embodiment of a corner connector in accordance with the invention;

Figure 6 is a second perspective view of the corner connector of Figure 5; Figure 7 is a first perspective view of a third embodiment of a corner connector in accordance with the invention; and

Figure 8 is a second perspective view of the corner connector of Figure 7.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF INVENTION

Before any embodiments of the invention are explained in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and the arrangement of components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the following drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced or of being carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology used herein is for the purpose of description and should not be regarded as limiting. The use of "including," "comprising," or "having" and variations thereof herein is meant to encompass the items listed thereafter and equivalents thereof as well as additional items. Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "supported," and "coupled" and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings and are thus intended to include direct connections between two members without any other members interposed therebetween and indirect connections between members in which one or more other members are interposed therebetween. It is noted that, as used in this specification and the appended claims, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the," and any singular use of any word, include plural referents unless expressly and unequivocally limited to one referent. As used herein, the term“include” and its grammatical variants are intended to be non-limiting, such that recitation of items in a list is not to the exclusion of other like items that can be substituted or added to the listed items. Referring to the drawings, in which like numerals indicate like features, a non-limiting and simplified example of a racking arrangement in accordance with the invention is generally indicated by reference numeral 10, with a corner connector of the racking arrangement indicated by reference numeral 20.

The corner connector 20 comprises a body 21 made from a suitable metal. In one example the body 21 is casted from malleable steel with a fixed carbon content rendering the body suitable for welding. Another option would be to stamp or laser cut the parts of the body 21 , and then secure them to one another in a robotized / mechanized process. The material of manufacture and the manufacturing process are, however, not a limiting aspect of this invention.

A first embodiment the invention is disclosed in Figures 1 to 4. In this embodiment, the body 21 includes two perpendicular distal end zones 22 that are offset at 90 degrees relative to one another so as to define a substantially L-shaped body. Supporting formations 24 protrude from the distal end zones, and act as locating formations as well as welding fixation formations for the ends of rack profiles or beams 40 to be secured to the corner connector 20. The supporting formations 24 are in the form of small spigots, and may be in the form of a single spigot as shown in the drawings, or alternatively a plurality of spigots of which the collective outer profile approximates the inner profile of the rack profile 40 to be secured to the corner connector 20. In one embodiment there is envisaged for 50x50 mm square tubing to be used for rack profiles or beams, and for the spigots therefore to match such profile. The provision of the supporting formations 24 will make it easier to hold the profiles 40 in position prior to and while welding, and will also ensure that the profiles are properly aligned and square relative to one another. It will, however, be appreciated that the invention can also be used without provision of the spigots 24, and that the ends of the rack profiles or beams 40 can also be secured to the distal end zones 22 of the distal end zones 22 simply terminate in flat / smooth surfaces, instead of the spigotted surfaces as shown in this example. The provision of spigots makes the corner connector easier to use, but is not a requirement. What is, however, important is for the connector to have the two substantially perpendicular and zones, which allows the connecter to be used as a corner connector.

A corner zone 23 is located between the two distal end zones 22, and connects the two distal end zones 22 to one another. A receiving formation

25 is provided in or next to the corner zone 23. The receiving formation 25, in this example, is in the form of an elongate recess or cavity having a square cross-section, and which has a longitudinal axis that is perpendicular to both the distal end zones 22, and hence is directed along a z-axis if the two distal end zones 22 defines x and y axes.

The receiving formation 25 is configured for releasably receiving an end section of a corner post assembly 50, which may in use be removably secured to the corner post assembly 50. In the embodiment shown in the drawings, the corner post assembly 50 comprises a tubular corner post 51 , and a corner post securing end piece 60 that is securable to an end of the corner post 51 .

In the embodiment shown in Figures 1 to 4, a base 29 is provided at the operatively lower or bottom end of the receiving formation 25, and serves as a landing for supporting a bottom end of the corner post assembly 50. The base also includes a receiving pocket 29.1 , suitable for receiving a complementary configured locating formation 63 extending from the corner post assembly 50 as described in more detail hereinbelow. Part of the body 21 furthermore defines sidewalls 26 of the receiving formation, with the sidewalls of the corner post assembly 50 snugly abutting these sidewalls 26 of the body 21 in use. Securing apertures 27 extend through the sidewalls

26 into the body, and allows the corner post assembly 50 (having complementary apertures) to be secured to the corner connector 20 using threaded connecting means 62. Securing voids 28 are provided in the body 21 adjacent the sidewalls 26, and are configured and dimensioned for receiving ends of the threaded connectors, but also to provide access to the ends of the threaded connectors with suitable tools in order to fasten and loosen the nuts used with the threaded connectors. The securing voids are located between the corner zone 23 and the respective distal end zones 22, and as such do not interfere with the overall structural requirement of the connector (i.e. the securing voids do not impact on the configuration and orientation of the distal end zones relative to the corner zone.)

A stacking formation 30, for example a conical stacking protrusion, protrudes from an operatively lower surface of the base 29, and allows different modules of the racking arrangement to be stacked on top of one another, as shown in Figures 3 and 4. The stacking formation 30 also allows the modules to be stackable when in a flat-pack or pallet configuration - i.e. when no corner posts are installed. Figure 3 and 4 show an example where one pallet formation is stacked in an elevated, vertically spaced apart position above, and on top of, another pallet formation.

Runner or stringer support formations 31 extend from the ends of the corner connector, and provides a guiding and holding formation that allows the runners or stringers 70 to be properly aligned and held in position prior to welding. The support formations 31 are in the form of lip formations having triangular cross-sections. A plurality of interconnected corner connectors 20, rack profiles 40 and stringers 70 combine to define a pallet. These pallets can then, for example, be stacked on top of one another in a spaced apart arrangement using the corner post assemblies 50 so as to define a racking arrangement 10.

Each corner post assembly 50 may comprise a corner post 51 (for example in the form of a square tube) and a corner post end piece 60 that is securable to an operatively lower end of the corner post 51. The corner post end piece 60 has a diameter and outer profile which is the same or substantially similar to the diameter and profile of the corner post 51. An operatively lower end of the corner post 51 can be secured to an operatively upper end of the corner post end piece, for example by way of welding.

An operatively lower end of the corner post end piece 60 terminates in a locating formation 63, in the embodiment in the form of a tapering spigot, which is configured and dimensioned snugly to located inside the complementary receiving pocket 29.1 formed in a base section 29 of the receiving formation 25 of the corner connector 20. There is also provided for the spigot to be formed on the corner connector, and for the receiving formation to be formed in the end of the corner post end piece.

Apertures 61 , suitable for receiving threaded connecting means 62, extend sideways through the corner connector end piece 60. Each aperture 61 includes a counter bored section suitable for housing a head of a threaded connecting means 62. The heads of the threaded connecting means 62 will therefore in use be flush with the surface of the corner post end piece 60, and will conveniently not protrude from the corner post end piece 60. The apertures 61 are in use aligned with the apertures 27 located in the corner connector when the corner post assembly is located in the receiving formation 25 of the corner connector.

An important aspect of the invention is that the corner posts are releasably secured to the corner connector, and can be installed and removed without welding or another permanent attachment method. This is achieved by having a bolt-on configuration, but the provision of the securing voids furthermore negates the need for the securing apertures 27 to be threaded, as the end of the bolt or threaded rod can extend into the void, where a nut can then be secured thereto. The accessibility of this nut means that it will be easier to crack or loosen the nut when there is a need to remove the corner post, which may be many years after it has initially been installed. Further aspects of this invention, such as the provision of the supporting formations (24 and 31 ) and the corner post end piece 60, also makes it easier to align and assemble the various components of the racking arrangement, and results in an all-around easier to assemble racking arrangement.

A second embodiment of the corner connector 20 is now described with reference to Figures 5 and 6. The connector 20 also comprises a body 21 made from a suitable metal as is the case for the first embodiment. The connector 20 of this embodiment also includes the two perpendicular distal end zones 22 that are offset at 90 degrees relative to one another so as to define a substantially L-shaped body, with the receiving formation 25 provided between the two end zones in or next to the corner zone 23. In this case, the connector does not include the base 29 and receiving pocket 29.1 . As was the case in the first embodiment, a corner post is still receivable inside the receiving formation 25, and is secured to the corner connector 20 via the apertures 27 using threaded securing means while utilizing the securing voids 28. In this case, a bottom end of the corner post will be configured to receive a complementary shaped operatively upper end of a corner post of a lower section of the racking arrangement, thus negating the need for a corner post end piece 60, and also reducing the height of the corner connector 20.

An additional feature of the invention, which is specifically exemplified in this embodiment but which is equally applicable to the first and third embodiments, relates to the design of the supporting formations 24. In this embodiment, supporting formations 24 also protrude from the distal end zones, and act as locating formations as well as welding fixation formations for the ends of rack profiles or beams 40 to be secured to the corner connector 20. In this embodiment the supporting formations 24 are in the form of a plurality of spigots (24.1 , 24.2 and 24.3) of which the collective outer profile approximates the inner profile of the rack profile 40 to be secured to the corner connector 20. Importantly, the individual spigots are configured to be used in different combinations in order to receive different rack profiles. For example, spigot 24.1 defines one profile, the combination of spigots 24.1 , 24.2 and 24.3 defines a further profile, and the combination of spigot 24.1 and 24.3 defines yet another profile. This arrangement significantly enhances the versatility of the corner connector 20. In addition, the spigots (24.1 , 24.2 and 24.3) also include grooves 24.5 that facilitate easier welding of the tubular profiles to the supporting formations 24 by providing a space into which a welding seam can extend.

A third embodiment of the invention is shown in Figures 7 and 8, and is similar to the embodiment of Figures 5 and 6. In this embodiment the spigots (24.1 , 24.2, 24.3 and 24.4) are of a different configuration, but are used in conceptually the same manner. An additional feature shown in this embodiment (and which can also be used in the other embodiments) is the provision of stepped receiving grooves 80 in an upper corner zone of the connector 20. These grooves 80 are located on different elevations relative to the body 21 of the connector, and in this embodiment two steps are provided, with a third step being defined by an upper surface of the body 21. These stepped grooves 80 are intended to define landings for receiving an edge of a deck plate (not shown) when located on an assembled racking arrangement, and the variations in height allows for the pallet deck plate to be located on the same plane as a tube, even if different rack profiles 40 are used (when using different spigots or combinations of spigots 24.1 - 24.4).

It will be appreciated that the above are only three embodiments of the invention and that there may be many variations without departing from the spirit and/or the scope of the invention. For example, features of the first embodiment may be used in the second embodiment and vice versa. It is also specifically stated that both the support formations 24 and the landing 31 can be omitted. It is easily understood from the present application that the particular features of the present invention, as generally described and illustrated in the figures, can be arranged and designed according to a wide variety of different configurations. In this way, the description of the present invention and the related figures are not provided to limit the scope of the invention but simply represent selected embodiments.

The skilled person will understand that the technical characteristics of a given embodiment can in fact be combined with characteristics of another embodiment, unless otherwise expressed or it is evident that these characteristics are incompatible. Also, the technical characteristics described in a given embodiment can be isolated from the other characteristics of this embodiment unless otherwise expressed.