TRANSPORT CONTAINER

Abstract

The invention relates to a transport container (1) having an interior (4) which is delimited by a container base (2) comprising guide receptacles and by a container cover (3) which is opposite the container base (2) and from which there project guide bodies (6) on the cover outer side (5) opposite the interior. In order to create a transport container of the type described at the outset which can be stacked reliably and quickly with other transport containers, irrespective of their dimensions, for safe transport in such a way that additional transport securing by separate aids can be dispensed with, it is proposed that the guide bodies (6) having latching recesses (7) are arranged at a distance from one another in a grid, in that, for the releasable fastening of an adjacent transport container (1), a latching device is provided which has latching hooks (8) displaceable along an engagement direction for engagement in the latching recesses (7), and in that the guide bodies (6) within the guide receptacles are limited in the engagement direction.

Claims

1. A transport container comprising: a container base comprising guide receptacles and a container cover opposite the container base delimiting therewith an interior; and guide bodies project from the container cover on a cover outer side opposite the interior, wherein the guide bodies are arranged at a distance from one another in a grid wherein the guide bodies have latching recesses therein, and releasable fastening of an adjacent transport container is provided by a latching device that has latching hooks displaceable along an engagement direction engaging in the latching recesses of the guide bodies, and wherein the guide bodies are limited by stops within the guide receptacles in the engagement direction.

2. The transport container according to claim 1, wherein the guide receptacles form guide grooves, arranged in parallel and extending between two opposite end faces of the container base along a guide direction, each guiding a plurality of guide bodies.

3. The transport container according to claim 2, wherein a side wall of the container base extending in the guide direction is perforated at least in sections by the guide groove adjoining said side wall so as to be engaged by some of said latching hooks.

4. The transport container according to claim 1, wherein the latching device forms a latching bracket that can be displaced from a latching position into an open position against force of a return spring, and to which some of the latching hooks are attached.

5. The transport container according to claim 4, wherein the latching bracket is arranged rotatably against the force of the return spring on the side wall of the transport container extending in the guide direction and the latching bracket forms an actuating handle with a lever arm, wherein some of the latching hooks are attached to the lever arm opposite an axis of rotation extending in the guide direction.

6. The transport container according to claim 4, wherein latching hooks have, towards the container base, a displacement surface inclined relative to the cover surfaces of the guide bodies and interacts therewith, so as to displace the latching hooks into the open position when the latching hooks are placed on the guide bodies.

7. The transport container according to claim 4, wherein the latching hooks of the latching bracket have contact surfaces that are inclined both in the guide direction and counter to the guide direction with respect to the engagement direction and also with respect to the guide direction, wherein first and last of the latching hooks in the guide direction have, towards the latching bracket center, a stop surface that extends in the engagement direction.

8. The transport container according to claim 1, wherein side walls of the transport container have sliding grooves receiving sliding rails extending along a sliding direction.

9. A rack having a transport container according to claim 8, wherein the latching device of the transport container projects into the sliding groove, and the rack has a sliding rail engaging in the sliding groove, and wherein the sliding rail comprises a locking device locking the latching device.

10. The transport container according to claim 4, wherein the latching bracket extends in the guide direction.

11. The transport container according to claim 3, wherein the latching device forms a latching bracket that can be displaced from a latching position into an open position against force of a return spring, and to which some of the latching hooks are attached.

12. The transport container according to claim 11, wherein the latching bracket is arranged rotatably against the force of the return spring on the side wall of the transport container extending in the guide direction and the latching bracket forms an actuating handle with a lever arm, wherein some of the latching hooks are attached to the lever arm opposite an axis of rotation extending in the guide direction.

13. The transport container according to claim 12, wherein the latching bracket is arranged rotatably against the force of the return spring on the side wall of the transport container extending in the guide direction and the latching bracket forms an actuating handle with a lever arm, wherein some of the latching hooks are attached to the lever arm opposite an axis of rotation extending in the guide direction.

14. The transport container according to claim 13, wherein the latching hooks of the latching bracket have contact surfaces that are inclined both in the guide direction and counter to the guide direction with respect to the engagement direction and also with respect to the guide direction, wherein first and last of the latching hooks in the guide direction have, towards the latching bracket center, a stop surface that extends in the engagement direction.

15. The transport container according to claim 14, wherein side walls of the transport container have sliding grooves receiving sliding rails extending along a sliding direction.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] In the drawing, the subject matter of the invention is shown by way of example, wherein:

[0019] FIG. 1 shows a schematic section through a group of transport containers according to the invention,

[0020] FIG. 2 shows an elevated detailed view of a latching bracket with latching hooks and a transport container with guide bodies,

[0021] FIG. 3 shows a transport container group on a smaller scale,

[0022] FIG. 4 shows a rack with transport containers according to the invention and

[0023] FIG. 5 shows a section along the line V-V of FIG. 4 on a larger scale.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0024] A transport container 1 according to the invention comprises a container base 2 and a container cover 3 opposite the container base 2. The container base 2 and the container cover 3 delimit an interior 4 in which transport material can be accommodated. On the outer side 5 of the cover opposite the interior 4, guide bodies 6 are provided which project upwards from this outer side 5 of the cover and are arranged at a distance from one another in a grid. The guide bodies 6 have latching recesses 7, in which latching hooks 8 of adjacent transport containers 1 can engage along a direction of engagement. These latching hooks 8 are displaceable along the direction of engagement between an open position and a latching position shown in FIG. 1.

[0025] The container bases 2 can have guide grooves 9 as guide receptacles extending parallel to one another in a guide direction, which form a stop limit for the guide bodies 6 in the direction of engagement. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the guide grooves 9 may extend between two opposite end faces of the container base 2.

[0026] In order to allow easy engagement of the latching hooks 8 in the latching recesses 7 of the guide bodies 6, the side walls of the container base 2 extending in the guide direction may be perforated by the guide groove 9 adjacent to the respective side wall, so that the groove base 10 thereof directly adjoins the side wall.

[0027] The individual latching hooks 8 may be attached to a latching bracket 11 shown in detail in FIG. 2, which extends in the guide direction. In the embodiment shown, this latching bracket 11 is mounted on a side wall of the transport container 1 extending in the guide direction so as to be rotatable about a rotational axis 12 against the force of a return spring, which is not shown in more detail, wherein the rotational axis 12 also extends in the guide direction. The latching bracket 11 may form two lever arms opposite each other with respect to the axis of rotation 12, one of which comprises an actuating handle 13 and the other of which comprises the latching hooks 8.

[0028] In order to enable automatic latching of the latching hooks 8 in the latching recesses 7 of the guide bodies 6 when a transport container 1 is placed on another transport container 1, the latching hooks 8 can have a displacement surface 14 which is inclined towards the container base 2 relative to the cover surfaces of the guide bodies 6, so that the latching hooks 8 are forced back against the force of the return spring when they are placed on a guide body 6, in order to then latch into the latching recesses 7.

[0029] As described above, the latching hooks 8 of a latching bracket 11 may have contact surfaces 15 inclined both in the guide direction and against the guide direction towards the engagement direction and towards the guide direction, wherein the first and last latching hooks 8 of a latching bracket 11 in the guide direction comprise towards the latching bracket center a stop surface 16 extending in the engagement direction.

[0030] As can be seen in particular from FIGS. 3 and 4, sliding grooves 17 extending in a sliding direction can be provided on the side walls of the transport containers 1, which in a preferred embodiment extend in the guide direction or in the direction of the axis of rotation 12. The rack 18 shown in FIG. 4 comprises a rack base 19 which, analogously to the container covers 3, comprises guide bodies 6 arranged in a grid corresponding to the container covers 3. In addition, the rack 18 comprises a rack cover not shown in detail, which may correspond in construction to a container base 2. The rack 18 comprises a plurality of sliding rails 20 onto which transport containers 1 can be pushed with their sliding grooves 17.

[0031] When a transport container group is inserted into the rack 18, the latching brackets 11 can be displaced into the open position, so that the individual transport containers 1 of the inserted transport container group are released from each other again. In order to connect individual transport containers 1 to the rack, the sliding rails 17 may have locking devices 21 for the latching brackets 11 of the latching devices projecting into the sliding grooves 17, wherein locking bodies 22 of the locking device 21 engage in a locking body recess of the latching bracket 11.

[0032] These locking devices 21 may, for example, form electromechanical actuators.