ANIMAL SHIPPING CRATE

• US 3,710,761 A
• Filed: 08/25/1971
• Issued: 01/16/1973
• Est. Priority Date: 08/25/1971
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: LOMA Corporation
• Original Assignee: Frederick S. Gregory
• Inventors: Gregory, Frederick S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Chamblee, Hugh R.
• Application Number:
  US05/174,606
• Time in Patent Office: 510 Days
• Field of Search: 119/19,17,18,15 220/4E,4B,80,31S
• US Class Current: 119/496
• CPC Class Codes: A01K 1/0245 Boxes or cages

Abstract

The specification discloses an animal shipping crate, especially useful for airlines, and which comprises two identical half sections, each of which is formed from a unitary piece of plastic. Each half section has side walls which slope outward from a closed end toward an open end and which may be nested within each other for storage purposes and assembled by coupling together the open ends to form a crate. Formed in the closed end of each section, on the inside thereof, is a water trough and extending through the wall structure of each section is a water passageway. The trough and passage-way of each section are located whereby the trough of one section is below the passageway of the other section regardless upon which end the assembled crate is resting. Each section also has outwardly extending flanges formed on opposite sides adjacent their open ends whereby the two sections may be locked together by elongated C-shaped clamps adapted to fit around adjacent flanges of two sections when joined together. Each flange has a notch formed therein along its associated side to facilitate bending of the flange. The C-shaped clamps are adapted to fit around adjacent flanges outward of each notch. Either pair of flanges coupled together with a C-shaped clamp serves as a hinge to allow the sections to be opened or closed when the other pair of flanges are not coupled together.

Claims

1. An animal shipping crate adapted to be assembled, comprising:

two sections adapted to be coupled together to form a crate, each section having a closed end, an open end, and four sides, the closed end of one section being adapted to fit into the open end of the other section whereby said two sections are nestable within each other for storage purposes, the open ends of said sections being adapted to be located adjacent to each other to form a crate, said crate having at least two pairs of sides which fit together when said open ends are located adjacent to each other, removable coupling means for coupling together said sides of each pair to secure said two sections together, the sides of each pair being adapted to be pivoted with respect to each other when coupled together with its coupling means to allow said sections to be pivoted apart and together when the sides of the other pair are not coupled together with its coupling means.

2. The crate of claim 1 wherein:

each section has a water trough formed inside on the bottom of its closed end and on one side thereof, and each section has a fluid flow passageway on a side opposite its trough and leading from the outside to the inside whereby the trough of one section is below a passageway of the other section of an assembled crate when resting on either of said closed ends.

3. The crate of claim 2 wherein each section is formed of a unitary piece of plastic material.

4. The crate of claim 1 wherein:

at least two opposite sides of each section have outwardly extending flanges adjacent their open ends, the flanges of one section matching with the opposite flanges of the other section to form two pairs of adjacent flanges when said open ends are located adjacent to each other, said coupling means for each pair being adapted to couple together adjacent flanges of each pair to secure adjacent flanges and hence said two sections together, each flange having a flexible portion whereby either pair of flanges with its coupling means will serve as a hinge to allow said sections to be pivoted apart and together when the other pair of flanges are not coupled together with its coupling means.

5. The crate of claim 4 wherein:

each section including its flanges is formed of plastic material, each flange has a notch formed therein along its associated section side to facilitate bending of the flange, each coupling means comprising a member C-shaped in cross-section and adapted to fit around adjacent flanges outward of each notch.

6. The crate of claim 5 wherein:

each flange is elongated and extends along its associated section side, each flange has a projecting edge whereby each flange is L-shaped in cross-section, adjacent flanges having a T-shaped configuration in cross-section, each flanged side of a section having an outwardly extending shoulder on each end of its flange and spaced therefrom forming a pair of shoulder with its flange therebetween, each C-shaped member having a length greater than the length of said flanges but less than the distance between a pair of shoulders, each C-shaped member being flexible for insertion in place around adjacent flanges and between the pairs of shoulders spaced from adjacent flanges.

7. The crate of claim 6 wherein:

each section has four sides sloping away from its closed end towards its open end, each section has air openings formed in at least two opposite sides, the sides in which the openings are formed having outwardly extending flanges adjacent the open ends and recessed portions extending inward adjacent the flanges to form handles.

8. The crate of claim 7 wherein:

the sides of each section in which said handles are formed have male and female projections and indentations formed in their flanges whereby the male and female projections and indentations of one section are adapted to mate with female and male indentations and projections of the other section when coupled together to form a crate to prevent lateral movement of said two sections.

9. The crate of claim 7 wherein said sections each are formed of a unitary piece of plastic material and are substantially identical.

10. The crate of claim 9 wherein:

each section has a water trough formed inside on the bottom of its closed end and on one side thereof, and each section has a fluid flow passageway on a side opposite its trough and leading from the outside to the inside whereby the trough of one section is below a passageway of the other section of an assembled crate when resting on either of said closed ends.

11. A section formed of a unitary piece of plastic to be coupled to a substantially identical section for forming an animal shipping crate, comprising:

a closed end and four sides sloping away from said closed end forming an open end, the closed end of said section being adapted to fit into the open end of a substantially identical section whereby the two sections are nestable within each other for storage purposes, the open end of said section being adapted to be located adjacent to the open end of a substantially identical section to form a crate, said section having a water trough formed inside of the bottom of its closed end and on one side thereof, a fluid flow passageway on a side opposite said trough and leading from the outside to the inside, two opposite sides of said section having outwardly extending flanges adjacent the open end thereof and adapted to be coupled with coupling means to similar flanges of a substantially identical section to secure the two sections together, said flanges on opposite sides having notches formed therein along said opposite sides to facilitate bending of the flanges whereby either flange may be coupled to a similar flange of a substantially identical section with coupling means to act as a hinge when the other flange is not coupled to a similar flange of a substantially identical section, the two other opposite sides of said section having outwardly extending flanges and recessed portions extending inward adjacent the flanges thereof to form handles.

12. The section of claim 8 wherein air openings are formed in at least two opposite sides thereof.

13. An animal shipping crate adapted to be formed from four unitary pieces of plastic material, comprising:

two identical half sections and two identical elongated C-shaped clamping members, each half section having a closed end and four sides sloping away from said closed end for forming an open end, the closed end of a section being adapted to fit into the open end of the other section whereby the two sections are nestable within each other for storage purposes, the open end of a section being adapted to be located adjaCent to the open end of the other section to form a crate, each section having a water trough formed inside of the bottom of its closed end on one side thereof, a fluid flow passageway on a side opposite the trough and leading from the outside to the inside, two opposite sides of a section having outwardly extending flanges adjacent the open end thereof and adapted to be coupled with coupling means to similar flanges of the other section to secure the two sections together, said flanges on opposite sides of a section having notches formed therein along said opposite sides to facilitate bending of the flanges whereby either flange may be coupled to a similar flange of the other section with coupling means to act as a hinge when the other flange is not coupled to a similar flange of the other section, the two other sides of a section having outwardly extending flanges and recessed portions extending inward adjacent to flanges thereof to form handles, each section having air openings formed in at least two opposite sides thereof.