Container and locking mechanism thereof

Abstract

A locking mechanism for locking an upper cover of a container to a side plate of the container, the container comprising a base, the upper cover and the side plate, the upper cover being provided with an edge guard; the locking mechanism comprises a lock hole formed on the exterior of at least one of the side plate and a groove formed on the upper cover; an end of the locking element is mounted in the groove; the other end of the locking element is provided with a lock; the lock passes through the edge guard and extends into the locking hole in a direction perpendicular to a direction of the side plate to securely lock the upper cover to the side plate; the driving element is mounted in the groove and used to return element is mounted in the groove and used to return the mechanism, transportation and storage cost are reduced, and labor of operators is saved.

Claims

1. A locking mechanism for locking an upper cover of a container to side plates of a container, which comprises a base, the upper cover and the side plates, the upper cover is provided with an edge guard, wherein the locking mechanism comprises a locking element, a driving element, a return element, a lock hole formed on an exterior of at least one of the side plates and a groove formed on the upper cover, wherein one end of the locking element is mounted in the groove, and the other end of the locking element is provided with a locking head, which passes through the edge guard and extends into the locking hole in a direction perpendicular to the side plates so as to securely lock the upper cover to the side plates, and the driving element is mounted in the groove and used to drive the locking element to be unlocked, and the return element is mounted in the groove and used to return the driving element after being unlocked.

2. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the upper cover is further provided with a locking element hole, through which the locking element connects to the driving element, and one end of the return element bears against the side wall of the groove of the upper cover, and the other end cooperates with the driving element.

3. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the driving element is provided with a top pillar; the locking element is composed of a first portion and a second portion, which are integrally connected and perpendicular to each other, a top pillar receiving hole for accommodating the top pillar is provided on the first portion, and a locking head is provided on a side of the second portion facing to the side plate; and the upper cover is provided with a locking element hole, and the first portion of the locking element passes through the locking element hole and is partially located in the groove.

4. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the upper surface of the upper cover has an upwardly projecting portion, and the locking mechanism is provided on the side plates and the upper cover corresponding to the projecting portion.

5. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein a locking head hole is provided at a position of the edge guard corresponding to the locking head hole, wherein the locking head passes through the locking hole and extends into the lock hole of the side plate when it is required to lock the upper cover to the side plates, so as to lock the upper cover to the side plates.

6. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein the driving element is provided with an anti-theft slot, and the upper cover structure is provided with an anti-theft hole, and the locking mechanism is further provided with an anti-theft element, and the anti-theft element is partially mounted in the anti-theft groove, and partially mounted in the anti-theft hole.

7. The locking mechanism according to claim 1, wherein one end of the driving element is rotatably connected to the bottom of the groove, and the other end of the driving element cooperates with the locking element so that rotation of the driving element will drive the locking element to be unlocked.

8. The locking mechanism according to claim 7, wherein one of the driving element and the groove is provided with a shaft, and the other one of the driving element and the groove is correspondingly provided with a shaft hole, when the driving element is mounted in the groove, the shaft hole cooperates with the shaft, so as to drive the driving element to be rotated around the shaft and thus to be unlocked.

9. The locking mechanism according to claim 7, wherein the other end of the driving element is provided with a top pillar, and the locking element is provided with a top pillar receiving hole, and when the driving element is mounted in the groove, the top pillar is accommodated in the top pillar receiving hole, so as to connect the driving element and the locking element, and the return element is a resilient piece integrally formed on the side wall of the driving element toward outside of the container.

10. A container comprising a base, an upper cover and side plates, the upper cover is provided with an edge guard, and an upwardly projecting protrusion is provided on the upper surface of the upper cover, wherein the locking mechanism of claim 1 is provided on the side plates and the upper cover corresponding to the projecting portion.

11. The container according to claim 10, wherein two locking mechanisms are respectively provided on opposite sides of the container.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the container of the present invention;

(2) FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the upper cover of the container according to a first embodiment of the present invention;

(3) FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of part A in FIG. 2;

(4) FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a side plate of the container according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(5) FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of part B in FIG. 4;

(6) FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a driving element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(7) FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a locking element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(8) FIG. 8 is a perspective view of another locking element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(9) FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the upper cover structure according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(10) FIGS. 1012 are cross-sectional views of the locking element during the mounting process according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(11) FIG. 13 is a perspective view of the anti-theft element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(12) FIG. 14 is a perspective view of the anti-theft element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(13) FIG. 15 is cross-sectional view of a locking mechanism provided with the anti-theft element according to the first embodiment of the present invention;

(14) FIG. 16 is a perspective view of the upper cover according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

(15) FIGS. 1719 are a perspective views of a driving element according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

(16) FIGS. 20-21 are perspective views of the upper cover structure according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

(17) FIG. 22 is an exploded view of a locking mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

(18) FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view of the locking mechanism according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

(19) Preferred embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings in order to provide a clearer understanding of the objects, features and advantages of the present invention. It is to be understood that the embodiments shown in the drawings are not intended to limit the scope of the invention, but merely to illustrate the spirit of the invention.

(20) The invention relates to a locking mechanism 5 for locking an upper cover 4 of a container to a side plate 2 of the container. The container 100 comprises a base 1, a pair of opposite side plates 2, a pair of opposite side plates 3, and an upper cover 4. The locking mechanism 5 comprises a locking element 50, a driving element 51, a side structure 52 formed on the side plate, a spring 53 and an upper cover structure 54 formed on the upper cover. Both the locking element 50 and driving element 51 are mounted in the upper cover structure 54. When the upper cover 4 is mounted on the side plate 2, the side plate structure 52 receives part of the locking element 50, therefore locking the upper cover 5 on the side plate 2.

Embodiment 1

(21) As shown in FIGS. 1-15, a container 100 of the present embodiment comprises a base 1, a pair of opposite side plates 2, a pair of opposite side plates 3 and an upper cover 4. The locking mechanism 5 comprises a locking element 50, a driving element 51, a side plate structure 52 formed on the side plate, a spring 53 and the upper cover structure 54 formed on the upper cover. Both the locking element 50 and the driving element 51 are mounted in the upper cover structure 54, when the upper cover 4 is mounted on the side plate 2, the side plate structure 52 receives part of the locking element 50, thereby locking the upper cover 4 on the side plate 2.

(22) FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the container of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the container 100 comprises a base 1, a pair of opposite side plates 2, a pair of opposite side plates 3, and an upper cover 4. A locking mechanism 5 is provided between the upper cover 4 and the side plate 2.

(23) FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the upper cover 4 after the locking element 50 and driving element 51 of the locking mechanism 5 are mounted, and FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the side plate 2 of the container of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of part A of the FIG. 2, and FIG. 5 is an enlarged view of part B of the FIG. 3, and FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the locking element 50, and FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are perspective views of driving element 51. FIG. 9 is a perspective view of the upper cover structure 54 of the locking mechanism 5.

(24) As shown in FIGS. 29, the locking mechanism 5 is composed of five components, which are respectively the locking element 50, the driving element 51, the side plate structure 52 on the side plate 2, the spring 53 and the upper cover structure 54 on the upper cover 4.

(25) As shown in FIG. 6, the locking element 50 has a first portion 501 and a second portion 502. Upon mounting, the first portion 501 is located within the upper cover structure 54, and the second portion 502 is located within the side plate structure 52, and both of the first portion 501 and the second portion 502 have L-shaped body and are integrally connected by their respective short sides of the L-shaped body. The first portion 501 is provided with a top pillar receiving hole 5011 and a latch hole 5012, wherein the top pillar receiving hole 5011 is used for accommodating a spring top pillar 5122 and the latch hole 5012 is used for accommodating a latch 5121, which will be described in detail below. The second portion 502 has a locking head 5021, which extends integrally from the surface of the second portion 502 in a direction of the first portion 501. The locking head 5021 has an inclined plane 5022. When the locking element 50 is mounted on the cover 4 and the cover 4 is mounted on the side plate 2, the locking head 5021 exactly inserts into the lock hole 522, thereby locking the upper cover 4 tightly on the side plate 2, meanwhile when the upper cover 4 is mounted on the side plate, the inclined plane 5022 cooperates with the slope 523 of the side plate 2, so as to facilitate the locking head 5021 of the locking element lock to slip into the lock hole 5422, which will be described in detail below.

(26) As shown in FIGS. 78, the driving element 51 is shaped like a seat, comprising a seat back 511 and a seat surface 512. A buckle position 5111 is provided on the side of the seat back 511 facing the seat surface 512, and an anti-theft slot 5112 is provided on the side of the seat back 511 facing back seat surface 512, and a latch 5121 and a top pillar 5122 are provided on the bottom of the seat surface 512, and both the latch 5121 and the top pillar 5122 integrally extends from the bottom of the seat surface 512, and the lower end of the top pillar 5122 has a cambered surface. Though the anti-theft slot 5112 is provided on the seat back 511 in the present embodiment, it should be understood by the skilled in the art that the anti-theft slot 5112 is not necessary if an anti-theft element is not required.

(27) As shown in FIG. 5, the side plate structure 52 on the side plate 2 comprises a locking groove 521, a lock hole 522 and a slope 523. The locking groove 521 is located on the upper exterior of the side plate 2, and the lock hole 522 is located in the locking groove 521, and the slope 523 is located above the lock hole 522.

(28) As shown in FIG. 9, the upper cover structure 54 comprises a surface portion 541 provided on the upper surface of the upper cover 4 and a side portion 542 provided on the side surface of the upper cover 4. In the present embodiment, an edge guard is provided around the periphery of the upper cover 4, and the side portion 542 is provided on the edge guard of the upper cover 4.

(29) The surface portion 541 comprises a groove 5411, a spring slot 5412, a guide trail 5413, a casting lug 5414, and a step 5415. Wherein the groove 5411 is provided at the upper surface edge of the upper cover 4 for accommodating the driving element 51; and the spring slot 5212 is provided in the groove 5411 for mounting the spring 53; and the guide 5413 is provided on both sides inside the groove 5411 for facilitating the driving element 51 slipping into the groove 5411; and the casting lug 5414 is provided on both outside sides of the groove, so as to enclose the groove 5411 from both sides; and the step 5415 is provided in the spring slot 5412, for bearing against the end of the spring 53 and meanwhile leaving a space so that the top pillar 51 can enter into the spring slot 5412 and contact the spring 53.

(30) In the present embodiment, the side portion 542 is provided on the edge guard of the upper cover 4. The side portion 542 comprises a locking element groove 5421, a locking hole 5422, a locking head hole 5423 and anti-theft hole 5424. The locking element groove 5421 is provided on the side surface of the upper cover 4, for accommodating the locking element 50; and the locking head hole 5422 is provided in the locking element groove 5421 and passes through the edge guard of the upper cover 4, so that when the locking element 50 is mounted in the locking element groove 5421 and the upper cover is mounted to the side plate 2, the locking head 5021 of the locking element 50 passes through the locking head hole 5422 and extends into the lock hole 522 of the side plate 2; and the locking element hole 5423 is located in the locking element groove 5421 above the lock hole 522, communicating with the groove 5411 of the surface portion 541, and when the locking element 50 is mounted on the upper cover 4, the first portion 501 of the locking element 50 passes through the locking element hole 5423 and extends into the groove 5411; and the anti-theft hole 5424 is used for accommodating the anti-theft element 6. However, it should be understood by the skilled in the art that if the anti-theft element 6 is not provided, it is not necessary to provide an anti-theft hole 5424 on the upper cover 4.

(31) Though the locking head hole 5422 is used in the present embodiment, it should be understood by the skilled in the art that the locking head hole 5422 may also be instead by a locking head slot, which is provided on the lower edge of the edge guard.

(32) FIGS. 1011 illustrate the process during which the locking element 50, driving element 51 and the upper cover 4 of the spring 53 are mounted to the side plate 2.

(33) Upon mounting, the spring 53 is first mounted in the spring slot 5412, and then the first portion 501 of the locking element 50 is inserted from the exterior of the side plate 2 into the locking element hole 5423 and pushed to the end, and the driving element 51 is set into the groove 5411 from above. Since the end of the top pillar 5122 of the driving element 51 is designed with a cambered surface, when passing through the receiving hole 5011 and inserting into the end of the spring 53, it is able to provide a good guide function. At this time, the latch 5121 of the driving element 41 is buckled in the latch hole 5012, so as to restrict the driving element 51 from disengaging easily. The whole driving element 51 is placed in the groove 5411 of the upper cover 4, so that the distance for the driving element 51 to move outwardly is limited to a certain range.

(34) Upon using, the upper cover 4 mounted with the locking element 50, driving element 41 and the spring 53 covers the container from top to bottom, and the inclined plane 5022 of the locking element 50 firstly contact the slope 523 of the side plate 2, and the lateral component force forces locking element 50 to move outwardly against the thrust of the spring 53 so that when the locking head 5021 of the locking element 50 arrives position of the lock hole 522 of the side plate 2, the locking head 5021 enters into the locking head hole 522 of the side plate 2 because of the spring release so as to locking the cover 4 to the side plate 2.

(35) Upon unlocking, it is required to pull the locking element 51 outwardly and then drive the lock 5021 of the locking element 50 out of the lock hole 522 of the side plate 2, then the upper cover 4 is lifted up, so as to unlock the latch on the present side. The cover 4 is lifted up to a height and then be pushed towards the opposite side plate 2, the locking head 5021 of the locking element 50 of the opposite side plate 2 also can disengage from the lock hole 522 of the opposite side plate 2, thereby unlocking. In this way, the cover can be moved away by unlocking either side, which reduces the amount of labor increased by running to both sides to operate unlocking for the traditional cover.

(36) Though the spring 53 is used in the present embodiment, it should be understood by the skilled in the art that the spring 53 may be alternated with other resilient element, such as elastomeric rubber, with which the purpose of the present invention will be achieved as well.

(37) Preferably, an anti-theft element 6 is also provided on the locking mechanism 5 for preventing the upper cover from secretly opening.

(38) FIGS. 1314 are perspective views of the anti-theft element 6. As shown in FIGS. 1314, the anti-theft element 6 has a totally L-shaped body, which comprises a first portion 61 and a second portion 62. The first portion 61 and the second portion 62 are substantially perpendicular to each other and are integrally formed. Preferably, for convenient of operation, the first portion 61 is provided with a plurality of ribs 611, and the second portion 62 is provided with a rearward member 620 and a high rib 621 having a certain width, and an annular groove 622 which surrounds the rearward member 620, and one side of the annular groove 622 is provided with a thin rib 623 which is easily broken, and the other side is provided with a whole thin wall 624. The rearward member 620 has a V-shaped backrest 6201 and connects to the second portion 62 by the thin rib 623 and the thin wall 624. When the thin rib 623 is torn, the rearward member 620 is separated from the body and overturns to a certain degree with the thin well 624.

(39) FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view of the locking element 50 mounted with the anti-theft element 6. As shown in FIG. 15, when the anti-theft element 6 is used and the rearward member 620 is inserted into the movable space required for the driving element 51, the V-shaped backrests 6201 of the rearward member 6 are respectively buckled into the anti-theft hole 5424 of the upper cover 4 and the anti-theft slot 5112 of the driving element 51, so that the anti-theft element 6 cannot be easily taken away from the anti-theft slot 5112. The high rib 621 is inserted between the driving element 51 and upper cover 4, thereby restricting the movement of the driving element 51, so that the upper cover 4 cannot be disengaged from the side plate 2. At this moment, the protruding piece on the upper cover protects the anti-theft element 6 from being damaged by the accidental lateral force.

(40) When the anti-theft element 6 need to be unlocked, the anti-theft element 6 is lifted from the ribs 611 of the first portion 61, and the thin rib 623 is torn, and when the first portion 61 is continued to be lifted up, the V-shaped backrest 6201 cannot be restored and disengaged from the anti-theft hole 5424 and the anti-theft slot 5112 because of a large deformation, or rotating the anti-theft element 6 around the axis of the anti-theft element 6 may also cause V-shaped backrest 6201 to being disengaged. No matter which means is used to unlock, it will cause thin rib 623 to be torn and cannot be reused so that a inspector can determine whether the upper cover 4 has been unlocked.

(41) It should be understood that though the anti-theft element 6 is added in the present embodiment, the anti-theft element 6 may also not be provided according to the actual use. In this case the upper cover 4 is not necessary to be provided with an anti-theft hole 5424, and the driving element 51 is not necessary to be provided with an anti-theft slot 5112.

Embodiment 2

(42) In the present embodiment, what is not described in detail is the same as that of the first embodiment.

(43) As shown in FIGS. 1623, the mainly difference between the present embodiment and the embodiment 1 is that in the present solution the locking element 50 is driven to move by rotating of the driving element.

(44) As shown in FIGS. 2022, the upper structure 54 of the upper cover 4 comprises a surface portion 54B provided on the upper surface of the upper cover and a side portion 542 provided on the side surface of the upper cover. In the present embodiment, the side portion of the upper cover is as same as that of the embodiment 1, which will not be described in detail herein.

(45) As shown in FIGS. 1619, the surface portion 54B comprises a groove 54B1, a shaft 54B2, a rotary stand 54B3, and a stand 54B4. Wherein, the shaft 54B2 is provided in the groove 54B1, and the rotary stand 54B3 is located on the top of the shaft 54B2, and the stand 54B4 is located in the groove 54B1.

(46) As shown in FIGS. 2022, driving element 51B is designed with a buckle portion 51B1 easy to operate, and one side of the buckle portion 51B1 is provided with a shaft hole 51B2, and a limit step 51B3 is provided above the shaft hole 51B2, and the other side of the buckle portion 51B1 is provided with a hook 51B4 and a top pillar 51B5, and the middle of the reverse side of the buckle portion 51B1 is provided with an integral shrapnel 51B6 for return after unlock operation. However, it should be understood by the skilled in the art that the integral shrapnel 51B6 may also be alternated by the other separated elastic element. Preferably, if the anti-theft element is also provided, the driving element 51B is also provided with an anti-theft buckle groove 51B7.

(47) After the rotary shaft 54B2 of the upper cover 4 is installed into the shaft hole 51B2, the shaft stand 54B3 cooperates with the limit step 51B3, so as to restrict outward movement of the driving element 51B. After the driving element 51B is installed on the upper cover 4, the hook 51B4 cooperates with the stand 54B4 of the upper cover 4, so as to restrict the outward movement of the driving element 51B from the other side. The stand 54B4 and the hook 51B4 have an arc shape with the axis of shaft 54B2, so that the driving element 51B does not interfere with other part during operation.

(48) The top pillar 51B5 is inserted into the locking element receiving hole 5011 of the locking element 50, and then drives the locking element 50 to move along the groove 54B1 of the upper cover 4. At this time the shrapnel 51B6 contacts the side wall of the groove 54B1 of the upper cover 4, so as to be able to drive the driving element 51 B1 to the initial position after being operated, thereby ensuring the locking element 50 to be always kept in a lockable station.

(49) Though a shaft hole is provided in the driving element in the present embodiment, and the shaft is provided in the groove, however, it may be understood by the skilled in the art that it is also possible to provide a shaft role in the groove and to provide a shaft on the driving element. The object of the present invention will be achieved as well.

(50) While the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made therein without departing from the above teachings of the present invention. These equivalents are also intended to be within the scope of the claims appended hereto.