Composite structural board

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11540631-B2
Application number	US-202016946471-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 23, 2020
Priority date	Aug 30, 2017
Publication date	Jan 3, 2023
Grant date	Jan 3, 2023

Abstract

A box is made of structural boards having a face plate (2) including a main body portion (2c) that is substantially in one plane and a peripheral portion (2a) surrounding the main body. The boards further include a base plate (3) having integrally formed protrusions. The lower surface of the face plate (2) is attached to and supported on top of the protrusions. A stiffener (4) connects the peripheral portion (2a) of the face plate (2) and the base plate (3) together. At least a part of the stiffener (4) is fixedly connected to the base plate (3), and at least another part of the stiffener (4) is fixedly connected to at least a part of a lower surface of the peripheral portion (2a) of the face plate.

First claim

I claim:

1. A box having a box body including a front panel, a rear panel, a left side panel, a right side panel and a floor panel, wherein at least one of the panels comprises a composite structural board including:
a face plate comprising a flat main body portion and a peripheral portion around the main body portion, perpendicular to the main body portion;
a base plate having a plurality of protrusions, a lower surface of the face plate attached to and supported on a top surface of the protrusions;
a stiffener adjoining the peripheral portion and the base plate;
the stiffener having a closed shape cross-section; and
a top surface of the stiffener abutting a bottom surface of the base plate, and the stiffener having a vertical surface connected to at least a part of the peripheral portion of the face plate.

2. The box of claim 1 further comprising:
support platforms respectively formed by bottom stiffeners of the front panel, the rear panel, the left side panel and the right side panel;
positioning edges respectively formed by a peripheral portion of the floor panel extending horizontally outwards and respectively located on the support platform of the respective side panels; and
floor panel fixing members configured to pass through fixing holes formed in the positioning edges and corresponding mounting holes formed in the support platforms, to fix the positioning edges onto the support platforms.

3. The box of claim 2 wherein adjacent side panels are provided with a limit post and a limit hole, the limit post is configured to snap into the limit hole, so that the adjacent side panels are able to detachably connect with each other.

4. The box of claim 3 wherein the left side panel and the right side panel are located between the front panel and the rear panel, and the left side panel and the right side panel are provided with limit posts, and inner sides of the front panel and the rear panel are provided with limit holes flared from top to bottom at respective positions.

5. The box of claim 2 wherein a middle portion of the floor panel is recessed downwards relative to the positioning edges and includes a plurality of recessed portions arranged in a pattern.

6. The box of claim 1 further comprising a box lid openable from a top of the box body, wherein a rear portion of the box lid is pivotably connected to the rear panel of the box body via a detachable hinge assembly comprising:
a first hinge member fixed to a bottom of a rear stiffener of the box lid;
a second hinge member fixed into a recess formed at a rear of a top stiffener of the rear panel of the box body; and
a pivot member pivotably connected the first hinge member to the second hinge member.

7. The box of claim 6 wherein the first hinge member and the second hinge member have the same shape, and both comprise a fixing portion engaged with and fixed to the box lid or the box body, and one or more pivot portions extending perpendicularly to the fixing portion, wherein the pivot portions have through holes parallel with the fixing portion for pivotably receiving a pivot.

8. The box of claim 7 wherein the pivot is provided at a proximal end with a flange having a size greater than the size of the through hole of the pivot portion, and the pivot at its distal end is provided with one or more cutouts extending from distal to proximal such that the distal end of the pivot forms a plurality of resilient arms capable of bending radially inwards, wherein a radial outer surface of each resilient arm has a protruding portion configured to pass through the through hole of the pivot portion when the resilient arm is bent, and not to pass the through hole of the pivot portion when the resilient arm is stretched.

9. The box of claim 8 wherein the protrusion portion has a distal guiding bevel and a proximal guiding bevel.

10. The box of claim 6 wherein the box lid and the box body are provided with a locking assembly comprising:
a first locking member fixed to a front portion of the box lid;
a second locking member fixed to the front panel of the box body; and
a third locking member configured to be pivotably mounted to the first locking member.

11. The box of claim 10 wherein the first locking member is attached a bottom of a front stiffener of the box lid via snap-fit, the first locking member has a U-shape, and a top stiffener of the front panel of the box body is configured to be at least partially received in a recess of the first locking member when the box lid is closed.

12. The box of claim 10 further comprising a horizontal connecting rod at a front portion of the first locking member, a hook at a top of the third locking member, the hook adapted to hook onto and pivot around the horizontal connecting rod.

13. The box of claim 12 wherein the second locking member is plugged into the front of the top stiffener of the front panel of the box body via a snap-fit attachment, a top portion of the second locking member is bent rearwards to form a horizontal bent portion located at a step portion formed at the top of the front panel of the box body, and the second locking member and the third locking member are configured to be latched together when the box lid is closed.

14. The box of claim 6 further including a foldable limit member for limiting an open angle of the box lid relative to the box body, and wherein the foldable limit member is an elongated rod-like member including a first end pivotably fixed at a position on an inner side of a side stiffener of the box lid, a second end opposite the first end pivotably fixed at a position on an inner side of a top stiffener of the respective side panel of the box body spaced apart from the pivot portion of the box lid, and a bendable resilient body portion extending between the first end and the second end.

15. The box of claim 14 wherein a length of the foldable limit member is sized such that a maximum open angle of the box lid relative to the box body is greater than 90° and less than 180°, the body portion is a flat strip shape, and the first end and the second end are flat end portions perpendicular to the body portion.

16. The box of claim 6 further comprising a self-positioning assembly configured to hold the lid relative to the box body, the self-positioning assembly comprising:
a holder fixed onto the top stiffeners of the left side panel and/or the right side panel of the box body, the holder having a chute extending along a vertical direction through a top and a bottom surfaces of the holder, and a retaining hole extending along a horizontal direction to communicate with the chute and pass through a side surface of the holder facing the inside of the box body;
a support rod having a first end hinged to a respective side stiffener of the box lid and a second end extending through the chute, wherein the support rod is configured to slide and swing in the chute; and
a fastening assembly disposed in the retaining hole for applying a pressure to the support rod, wherein the fastening assembly is configured to adjust the pressure.

17. The box of claim 16 wherein an inner surface of the retaining hole is provided with an internal thread, the fastening assembly comprising:
a compression block disposed in the retaining hole and being movable along the retaining hole;
a bolt having an external thread which is configured to match with the internal thread of the retaining hole; and
a resilient piece disposed in the retaining hole between the compression block and the bolt, which is configured to apply a resilient force to the compression block.

Assignees

• New Tec Integration Xiamen Co Ltd

Inventors

• Leng Luhao

Classifications

• A47B96/206 Primary

  with laminates comprising planar, continuous or separate layers · CPC title

• A47C7/16

  Seats made of wooden, plastics, or metal sheet material; Panel seats · CPC title

• B32B3/08

  characterised by added members at particular parts {(layer formed of separate pieces of material which are juxtaposed side-by-side B32B3/14, B32B3/18)} · CPC title

• A47B96/205 Primary

  Composite panels, comprising several elements joined together · CPC title

• B65D43/22

  Devices for holding in closed position, e.g. clips · CPC title