Horizontally supported planar surfaces – Industrial platform – Having corrugated – grooved – or notched load-contacting surface
Patent
1997-05-21
1999-04-27
Chen, Jose V.
Horizontally supported planar surfaces
Industrial platform
Having corrugated, grooved, or notched load-contacting surface
108 5732, B65D 1900
Patent
active
058968199
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
The present invention relates to a stackable metal-structured pallet and a method for fabricating the same. In its main dimensions the pallet corresponds to prior known standard-size pallets and is intended for similar service.
The prior known pallets used in handling of materials and goods are generally wood-structured. There are also special purpose pallets made of metal and artificial material such pallets have been described e.g. in publications U.S. Pat. No. 2,447,542, FI 26164 and WO 92/14654, SE 413,303, SE 408,046 and FI 69433. Methods used in metal-based pallet fabrication have been disclosed e.g. in the Patent publication SE 446,258.
Dimensionally, the pallets are usually so-called Fin-pallets with the main dimensions of 1000.times.1200 mm or so-called Euro-pallets with the size of 800.times.1200 mm. The height of such pallets is about 100-150 mm.
Major drawbacks in traditional wooden pallets include the facts that such pallets are easily damaged, require a lot of space when stored in unloaded condition, create a fire hazard and have a relatively high production price.
Certain prior known pallet constructions based on artificial materials and metals enable the elimination of the above drawbacks, excluding the manufacturing price. The prior known metal pallets are usually structurally complicated and expensive and this has prevented their widespread use.
A pallet manufacturing method of the invention and pallets produced thereby provide a substantial improvement for the above drawbacks. In order to achieve this, a pallet of the invention is characterized by what is set forth in the characterizing clause of claim 1.
The most important benefit of the invention is probably the fact that it enables the fabrication of a metal-frame pallet, which is only based on working a blank sheet and does not require separate connecting profiles. In various working stages the blank sheet is shaped and designed into a user friendly and safe pallet. The fabrication is based on a simple method of low production costs, which can be preferably automated. One major benefit of the invention is that the metal sheet is shaped without substantially stretching it, which facilitates the use of previously coated, e.g. zinc- or plastic-coated steel sheet without a hazard of damaging the coating.
The features characterizing a method of the invention are set forth in the characterizing clause of claim 5.
The invention will now be described in detail with reference made to the accompanying drawing.
FIG. 1 shows a fabrication method of the invention in principle.
FIG. 2 shows a blank sheet for a pallet of the invention.
FIG. 3 shows a pallet of the invention in a plan view.
Referring to FIG. 1, the metal stock is supplied from a roll of sheet metal 1 and carried through a straightening roller 2 to a punching station 3 for punching a sheet web 15 into an appropriate shape. This shape is depicted more closely in FIG. 2. Downstream of the punching station 3 the sheet web 15 is carried to a roll milling station 4 for pressing a lengthwise profiling 16 on the sheet web 15. This profiling also provides a proper basic position for edges R, R'. Thereafter, the sheet web 15 milled as described above is carried to a shaping station 5 for pressing the sheet web 15 to its precise shape by means of conventional counterblocks followed by cutting the sheet web 15 into pallet blanks 7 by means of a cutter 6.
When the pallet blank 7 is in the above supported position, its skirt portions 13 and 14 are riveted (e.g. by using TOX riveting) to each other and the first stage of shaping the edges R, R' of said pallet blank 7, or bending an edge portion r, r' about 90 degrees downwards, is effected. A conveyor 8 carried the riveted and nearly finished pallet blanks 7 to a finishing station 9 for carrying out additional double-folding of the edge portions r, r' and on the pallet blanks 7 are pressed the final surface profilings required by proper bracing. A conveyor 8' is used for carrying finished pallets 10 to a desired depot, e.g. a warehouse.
The struct
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Turila Sakari
Turila Samuli
Chen José V.
Westem Oy
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