Connectable suitcase

Abstract

A suitcase connectable to another suitcase includes: a first connecting portion disposed on a front surface of the suitcase, and a second connecting portion disposed on a rear surface of the suitcase. The first connecting portion is operatively associated with the second connecting portion to connect at least two suitcases front to rear. The suitcase further includes a front pair of wheels mounted along a first axis, and a rear pair of wheels mounted along a second axis parallel to the first axis, wherein the front pair of wheels is spaced apart laterally a first distance, and the rear pair of wheels is spaced apart laterally a second distance larger than the first distance, so that when the at least two suitcases are connected front to rear, the front pair of wheels of the rear suitcase nest between the rear pair of wheels of the front suitcase.

Claims

1. A suitcase connectable to another suitcase, the suitcase including: a first connecting portion disposed on a front surface of the suitcase, the first connecting portion includes a bracing plate mountable to an outer surface of the front surface of the suitcase, a locking plate mountable to an inner surface of the front surface of the suitcase, and a lock plug, the bracing plate and the locking plate being connectable together with the front surface of the suitcase therebetween, the lock plug being coupled to the bracing plate such that the lock plug is slidable between a retracted position and an extended position within an aperture defined by the bracing plate, an end wall of the lock plug being flush with front surface of the suitcase to which the bracing plate is mountable when in the retracted position, and the end wall of the lock plug extending outwardly from the front surface of the suitcase when in the extended position; a second connecting portion disposed on a rear surface of the suitcase; a front pair of wheels mounted along a first axis, the front pair of wheels being spaced apart laterally by a first distance along the first axis; and a rear pair of wheels mounted along a second axis parallel to the first axis, the rear pair of wheels being spaced apart laterally by a second distance along the second axis, the second distance being larger than the first distance, wherein the first connecting portion is operatively connectable by the lock plug to a further second connecting portion disposed on a rear surface of another suitcase such that the front pair of wheels of the suitcase nest between a rear pair of wheels of the other suitcase.

2. The suitcase of claim 1, wherein the first connecting portion includes a ring magnet and the second connecting portion includes a complementary ring magnet, the ring magnet being attracted to a further complementary ring magnet of a further second connecting portion disposed on a rear surface of another suitcase.

3. The suitcase of claim 1, further including a handle movable between a retracted position and an extended position, wherein the handle is pivotably connected to the suitcase so that in the extended position the handle is pivotable to an angle relative to the suitcase.

4. The suitcase of claim 3, wherein the handle is pivotable away from the suitcase to allow both the front and rear pairs of wheels to engage ground while moving.

5. The suitcase of claim 3, wherein the handle includes a pair of telescopic arms pivotable hinged to the suitcase.

6. The suitcase of claim 1, wherein the second connecting portion includes a spring locking element biased to engage a portion of a first connecting portion disposed on a front surface of an additional suitcase.

7. The suitcase of claim 1, wherein the bracing plate includes a reinforcement rib.

8. The suitcase of claim 7, wherein the first connecting portion further includes a second lock plug, the second lock plug being coupled to the bracing plate such that the second lock plug is slidable within a second aperture defined by the bracing plate, the first connecting portion being operatively connectable by the second lock plug to a respective further second connecting portion disposed on a rear surface of another suitcase, wherein the reinforcing rib extends between the lock plug and the second lock plug.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

(1) A preferred embodiment of the present invention will now be described, by way of an example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

(2) FIG. 1 is a side view of three suitcases in accordance with an embodiment, in which the suitcases are separated from one another;

(3) FIG. 2 is a side view of the three suitcases of FIG. 1 in which the suitcases are locked together;

(4) FIG. 3 is a front view of the three suitcases of FIG. 1;

(5) FIG. 4 is a rear view of the suitcase;

(6) FIG. 5 is a bottom view of the suitcase;

(7) FIG. 6 is an exploded front view of a first connecting portion;

(8) FIG. 7 is an exploded rear view of the first connecting portion;

(9) FIG. 8 is an exploded front view of the second connecting portion;

(10) FIG. 9 is an exploded rear view of the second connecting portion;

(11) FIG. 10 is a side view of the suitcase with handle stored;

(12) FIG. 11 is a side view of the suitcase with handle extended;

(13) FIG. 12 is a front view of the suitcase with handle extended;

(14) FIG. 13 shows a the engagement process of a first magnetic assembly and a second magnetic assembly;

(15) FIG. 14 shows a sectional view of a first magnetic assembly and a second magnetic assembly disengaged; and

(16) FIG. 15 shows a sectional view of the first connecting portion and the second connecting portion engaged.

DESCRIPTION OF EMBODIMENTS

(17) The figures show an embodiment of a connectable suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C in accordance with the present invention. The connectable suitcases 10A, 10B, 10C can be of different sizes, or alternatively, may be of the same size. Regardless of the size of the suitcases, the construction of each is the same for the purpose of the present disclosure. The following description refers to the suitcase 10A for ease of reference.

(18) As best seen in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3, each suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C can be connected front to back. Whilst the figures show largest to smallest (10A, 10B, 10C) the suitcases 10A, 10B, 10C may be connected in any order. For example, the larger suitcase 10A may be in front of the medium suitcase 10B, or two (or more) suitcases of the same size may be connected together. The suitcases 10A, 10B, 10C are of the hard shell type and each has a set of wheels 12A, 12B, 12C at a base 11A, 11B, 11C thereof for rolling the suitcases 10A, 10B, 10C on the ground. As can be seen in FIGS. 3, 4 and 5, the front pair of wheels 13 of each suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C are positioned closer to centre than the rear pair of wheels 15. This allows the front pair of wheels 13 of the rear suitcase 10A to nest between the rear pair of wheels 15 of the front suitcase 10B such that the wheels 12 are not inhibited when the suitcases 10A, 10B are connected together, and the suitcases 10A, 10B roll easily. The wheels 12 may be detachable and available in aesthetically pleasing colours such as fluorescent yellow, green or orange.

(19) Each suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C has a retractable handle 14, 114 which can be moved by the user of the suitcase between a retracted position (FIG. 10) and an extended position (FIG. 11) in which the handle 14, 114 can be pulled behind a user such that the suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C can roll over the ground.

(20) FIGS. 1 and 2 show a first embodiment of the retractable handle 14 being a T-shape. The handle 14 includes a first portion 16 and a second portion 17. The second portion 17 is extendable generally vertically from a top portion of the suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C and the first portion extends at an angle rearward of the suitcase 10A, 10B, 10C.

(21) A more preferred embodiment of the retractable handle 114 is shown in FIGS. 3, 10, 11 and 12. FIG. 3 shows the handle 114 extended and FIG. 4 shows a rear view of a suitcase 10A with the handle 114 retracted. As seen in FIG. 12, the handle 14 is generally ‘U’ shaped, having a pair of telescopic side arms 116 and a central gripping portion 115 the spans the width of the suitcase 10A. Each side arm 116 is pivotably at each end 117 and is pivotable between a generally vertical position for retraction within the suitcase 10A, and an angled position (FIG. 11) to allow both pairs of wheels 13, 15 to remain in contact with ground for ease of movement, and there is no need for a user to tilt the suitcase 10A to roll it along the ground. Both the front pair 13 and the rear pair 15 of wheels remain on the ground as the suitcase is pulled over the ground. When the handle 114 is in the retracted position as shown in FIG. 10, the telescopic arms 116 are retracted such that the central gripping portion 115 lies flush with an upper surface 111 of the suitcase 10A. When in the extended position as seen in FIGS. 11 and 12, the telescopic arms 116 are fully extended in an upright position. The telescopic arms 116 each include a pivotable hinge 117 at a base thereof. The pivotable hinge 117 allows the handle 114 to be tilted away from the suitcase 10A so that the user can comfortably pull it without having to tilt the suitcase 10A. The wide handle design of this embodiment provides lateral stability to the suitcase that allows multiple connected suitcases to be transported together as a unit without over-stressing the handle mechanism.

(22) Referring to FIG. 1, the suitcase 10A has a front surface 20A and a rear surface 30A. The front surface 20A has a first connecting portion 40A and the rear surface 30A has a second connecting portion 70A. As shown in FIG. 2, the first connecting portion 40A of the suitcase 10A will connect with the second connecting portion 70A of a like suitcase 10 to form a single unit for transport. The connection portions 40A and 70A are positioned on the suitcase 10A such that the order of the suitcases is not essential. For example, a larger suitcase 10A may be connected in front of a medium suitcase 10B or vice versa.

(23) FIGS. 6 and 7 show exploded front and rear views respectively of a first connecting portion 40A. The first connecting portion 40A includes a locking plate 102A mountable to an inner surface of the suitcase 10A and a bracing plate 100A mountable on an outer surface of the suitcase 10A. The locking plate 102A and the bracing plate 100A are joined together via fasteners (not shown) such as screws to sandwich the front surface 20A of the suitcase 10A therebetween and to house the connecting components described below.

(24) The first connecting portion 40A includes a lock plug 104A being a tubular housing 41A having an end wall 42A at a distal end thereof having a slightly larger diameter than that of the housing 41A to create a flange 43A. Ring magnet 60A and compression spring 117A are positioned using retainer 50A. Retainer 50A includes a circular base 110A circumscribed by a rim 112A and a conical arm 114A extending from the base 110A. Ribs 116A extend from the base 110A along the arm 114A terminating at a top surface of the arm 116A. The arm 114A includes a threaded aperture 118A. Retainer 50A locates the spring 117A inside the rim 112A and prevents lateral movement of the spring 47A. Retainer 50A also keeps the magnet 60A positioned. A circular rim 117A located on the top surface of the arm 116A has a diameter slightly smaller than the inner diameter of the ring magnet 60A and abuts within the inner diameter to securely position the magnet 60A in place.

(25) To assemble the first connecting portion 40A, the tubular housing 41A is fed through the aperture 106A in the bracing plate 100A, and the magnet 60A and the spring 117A are assembled within the tubular housing 41A. The arm 114A of the retainer 50A is inserted through the spring 47A and is used to locate the magnet 60A so that it abuts the end wall 42A of the cover 104A. A self-tapping screw 108A secures the retainer 50A to the tubular housing 41A. The bracing plate 100A includes a reinforcement rib 120A extending between each magnetic assembly 122A allowing the bracing plate 100A to be load bearing thus taking load away from each magnetic assembly 122A. The bracing plate 100A and locking plate 102A allow for ease of assembly and ensure correct alignment during the closing action.

(26) The compression spring 47A is biased in a rest position at which the cover 104A is in a retracted position in which the proximal end 17 of the tubular housing 41A and the endcap 48A protrude into the front surface 20A of the suitcase 10A and the end wall 42A lies flush with the front surface 20A. Under the influence of a sufficiently strong magnetic force applied to the ring magnet 60A, the ring magnet 60A forces the end wall 42A distally into an extended position, overcoming the spring force of the compression spring 47A and contracting the spring 47A.

(27) FIGS. 8 and 9 show front and rear views, respectively, of the second connecting portion 70A. The second connecting portion 70A includes a brace plate 71A and a face plate 130A. The brace plate 71A and the face plate 130A cooperate to sandwich a rear surface of the suitcase 10A in a similar manner to the first connecting portion 40A. The brace plate 71A and the face plate 130A house a pair of second magnetic assemblies 119A. The face plate 130A has a sunken central recess 72A and two side recesses 144A. Each side recess 144A is adapted to receive a respective cover (not shown) of the first connecting portion 70A. Each side recess 144A is generally rectangular shaped with a bottom curved portion 148A for receiving the cover. A ramp section 150A facilitates a smooth motion when connecting to another suitcase 10.

(28) The brace plate 71A is adapted to be installed at an interior side of the rear surface 30A of the suitcase 10A, and the face plate 130A is adapted to be installed at an exterior side of the rear surface 30A so that assembled the two plates 71A, 130A sandwich the rear surface 30A of the suitcase 10A. A spring locking element 134A is attached within each recess 144A of the face plate 130A. The spring locking element 134A includes a first arm 138A and a second arm 140A which are snap fit together. A torsion spring 142A sits inside the assembled arms 138A, 140A to urge the arms 138A, 140A together. The spring locking element 134A flexes open to receive the tubular housing 41A of the first connection portion 40A and the torsion spring 142A urges the arms 138A, 140A closed to lock the tubular housing 41A in position. The spring locking element 134A provides positive feedback of locking and requires minimal effort to connect. As best seen in FIG. 8, a screw is used to attach a rear housing 141A and ring magnet 119A to the face plate 130A. Fixing holes and fasteners (not shown) are used to attach the face plate 130A to the brace plate 71A.

(29) Referring now to FIGS. 13, 14 and 15, the suitcases 10A and 10B of FIG. 1 are connected by the magnetic connector as follows.

(30) The first connecting portion 40A is installed in a front surface 20A of a suitcase 10A as seen in FIG. 12. The second connecting portion 70B is installed in a rear surface 30B of a suitcase 10B as seen in FIG. 4.

(31) When it is desired to connect two suitcases 10A, 10B together for transportation, the front surface 20A of suitcase 10A is brought into close proximity with the rear surface 70B of suitcase 10B. The first connecting portion 40A of the connector and the second connecting portion 70B of the connector are installed at the same height above the bases 11A, 11B of the suitcases 10A, 10B such that they line up with one another when the suitcases 10A, 10B are placed next to one another as shown schematically in FIG. 13 and FIG. 14.

(32) The magnets 60A and 136A are of opposite magnetic poles such that they attract one another in close proximity.

(33) FIG. 13 shows the first magnetic assembly 122A and the second magnetic assembly 119A of the magnetic connector disengaged. The first magnetic assembly 122A includes a spring driven retracting plug or cover with a locking piece (undercut) 104A and one magnet 60A and magnet retainer 50A. The second magnetic assembly 119A includes a spring locking element 134A, a magnet 136A and a magnet retainer 132A. FIG. 14 shows the first magnetic assembly 122A and the second magnetic assembly 119A. The connecting portions 40A, 70A are located by magnetic attraction and secured by mechanical fastening. Positioning the connections portions 40A, 70A in close proximity results in the cover 104A from connection portion 40A advancing toward the second connecting portion 70A. The spring locking element 134A from the second connecting portion 70A deflects to allow the cover 104A from the first connecting portion 40A to pass through and enter the locked position. The torsion spring 142A allows the spring locking element 134A to flex open and then close as the lock plug 104A enters the locking position. This provides good feedback and less effort to connect the suitcases 10.

(34) To disengage the suitcase 10A from the suitcase 10B, the suitcase 10A is lifted vertically by a small amount to disengage the magnets 122A, 119A. Ramp 150A provides for a smooth unlocking motion.

(35) It will be readily apparent that several suitcases can be locked together in this manner for transportation together such that no luggage trolley is required.

(36) The magnetic connector may be used to lock together other units such as soft shell suitcases, golf bags or other sporting equipment bags or storage units.

(37) Other types of magnets may be used as appropriate.

(38) In an alternative embodiment of the suitcase, the connector is a quick-release connector or latch mechanism.

(39) Although the invention has been described with reference to specific examples, it will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the invention may be embodied in many other forms.