Tool box having vertically stackable trays and vertically stackable trays therefore

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12103159-B2
Application number	US-202418418949-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jan 22, 2024
Priority date	Sep 30, 2021
Publication date	Oct 1, 2024
Grant date	Oct 1, 2024

Abstract

A tool box with vertically stacked monolithic trays. Each tray has pockets specifically shaped to receive complementary tools. The trays have upstanding cantilevered posts, which can space apart the superjacent tray. Alternatively, the posts can be received in complementary sockets of superjacent trays to prevent undue lateral movement while in the tool box. The post and socket geometry can be constructed to index the order in which trays are stacked and index how individual trays are oriented for optimal and sequenced access to the tools.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A tool box for making a plurality of hand tools available in a sequence, the tool box comprising:
an enclosed chamber for holding a plurality of hand tools, the enclosed chamber having a bottom functionable as a floor pan and a plurality of sidewalls extending upwardly therefrom to define a cross section and an opening at the top of the enclosed chamber;
a reclosable lid for covering the opening of the enclosed chamber;
a plurality of N monolithic, vertically stacked trays disposed in the enclosed chamber in a predeterminable sequence, each of the N monolithic trays defining an XY plane with corners and a Z direction perpendicular thereto, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray having a first surface and a second surface opposed thereto, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray further having at least one pocket in the first surface configured to receive a complementary hand tool therein, the monolithic, vertically stacked trays comprising a first monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposable on the floor pan of the enclosed chamber, a second monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposed on and above the first monolithic, vertically stacked tray in the Z direction, and an Nth monolithic vertically stacked tray disposed upon all of a plurality of N−1 monolithic, vertically stacked trays and having a first surface facing toward the reclosable lid, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray further comprising a plurality of cantilevered posts upstanding in the Z direction, each upstanding post of the N−1 monolithic, vertically stacked trays being spaced inwardly of the corners and intercepting a complementary convex socket of a monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposed above that monolithic, vertically stacked tray, whereby each monolithic, vertically stacked tray can rest upon the cantilevered posts of a subjacent monolithic, vertically stacked tray in succession until the top monolithic, vertically stacked tray of the plurality of N monolithic vertically stacked trays is reached, whereby the monolithic trays can only be vertically stacked in the tool box in one Z direction configuration, the top monolithic, vertically stacked tray having upstanding cantilevered posts compressively intercepting the reclosable lid when the reclosable lid covers the opening.

2. A tool box according to claim 1 further comprising a plurality of posts upstanding from the floor pan and the first monolithic vertically stacked tray comprises plural sockets aligned with and complementary to the plurality of posts upstanding from the floor pan.

3. A tool box according to claim 1 wherein each tray of the plurality of trays has at least two mutually different upstanding posts.

4. A tool box according to claim 3 each tray has a mutually different combination of upstanding posts.

5. A tool box according to claim 3 wherein at least two posts of the plurality of upstanding posts on a tray have mutually different cross sections.

6. A tool box according to claim 3 wherein at least two posts of the plurality of upstanding posts on a tray have mutually different lengths in the Z direction.

7. A tool box according to claim 1 wherein the mutually different posts are configured such that the trays can only be stacked in a single XY configuration.

8. A tool box according to claim 3 wherein the mutually different posts are configured such that the trays can only be stacked in a single XY configuration.

9. A tool box according to claim 4 wherein the mutually different posts are configured such that the trays can only be stacked in a single XY configuration.

10. A tool box according to claim 5 wherein at least two posts of the plurality of upstanding posts have mutually different lengths in the Z direction.

11. A tool box for making a plurality of hand tools available in a sequence, the tool box comprising:
an enclosed chamber for holding a plurality of hand tools, the enclosed chamber having a bottom functionable as a floor pan and a plurality of sidewalls extending upwardly therefrom to define a cross section and an opening to receive a plurality of trays therethrough;
a plurality of N monolithic, vertically stacked trays disposed in the enclosed chamber in a predeterminable sequence, each of the N monolithic trays defining an XY plane with corners and a Z direction perpendicular thereto, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray having a first surface and a second surface opposed thereto, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray further having at least one pocket in the first surface configured to receive a complementary hand tool therein, the monolithic, vertically stacked trays comprising a first monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposable on the floor pan of the enclosed chamber, a second monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposed on and above the first monolithic, vertically stacked tray in the Z direction, and an Nth monolithic vertically stacked tray disposed upon all of a plurality of N−1 monolithic, vertically stacked trays and having a first surface facing upwards, each monolithic, vertically stacked tray further comprising a plurality of cantilevered posts upstanding in the Z direction, each upstanding post of the N−1 monolithic, vertically stacked trays being spaced inwardly of the corners and intercepting a complementary convex socket of a monolithic, vertically stacked tray disposed above that monolithic, vertically stacked tray, whereby each monolithic, vertically stacked tray can rest upon the cantilevered posts of a subjacent monolithic, vertically stacked tray in succession until the top monolithic, vertically stacked tray of the plurality of N monolithic vertically stacked trays is reached, whereby the monolithic trays can only be vertically stacked in the tool box in one Z direction configuration, wherein at least two posts of the plurality of upstanding posts on a tray have mutually different cross sections and mutually different lengths.

12. A tool box according to claim 11 wherein at least two posts of the plurality of upstanding posts on each tray have mutually different cross sections and mutually different lengths.

13. A tool box according to claim 12 wherein at least two posts of the plurality of posts on a try are not XY aligned with the corresponding posts of a subjacent tray.

14. A tool box according to claim 11 wherein a socket of a tray can accept one of two posts having mutually different cross sections.

15. A tool box according to A tool box according to claim 11 wherein the mutually different posts are configured such that the trays can only be stacked in a single XY configuration.

16. A monolithic vertically stackable tray for removably receiving at least one hand tool, the monolithic vertically stackable tray defining an XY plane having a perimeter and a Z direction perpendicular thereto, the monolithic vertically stackable tray further having a first surface with a plurality of pockets adapted to receive respective complementary tools therein and a second surface opposed to the first surface with a plurality of mutually different sockets therein and configured to receive a like plurality of upstanding posts from a subjacent tray, each pocket being configured to receive the complementary hand tool in a position generally parallel to the XY plane, each of the pockets having a mutually different geometry, the monolithic vertically stackable tray further comprising a plurality of upstanding cantilevered posts, each of the upstanding cantilevered posts being spaced inwardly of the perimeter to be noncontiguous therewith and extending in the Z direction from a proximal end integr

Assignees

• The Government Of The United States As Represented By The Secretary Of The Air Force
• Us Air Force

Inventors

• O'Brien Courtney Jane

Classifications

• B25H3/06

  Trays · CPC title

• B25H3/026 Primary

  by displacement in a direction substantially perpendicated to th base · CPC title