JP7538643B2 - Storage container - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a storage container that can store a large number of items, such as tissue paper, and allows the items to be removed from a drawer hole.

Instead of disposable paper boxes, box-shaped storage containers made of hard synthetic resin or the like are sometimes used as storage containers for storing sheet materials.

Patent Document 1 discloses a box-shaped storage container that uses a ratchet mechanism that changes and engages a first multi-stage ridge provided on the outer surface of the container body with a second multi-stage ridge provided on the inner surface of the lid, making it possible to adjust the relative distance between the lid and the container body, i.e., the storage depth of the sheet material.

JP 2017-56947 A

In the storage container of Patent Document 1, in order to change the locked state, the lid is pressed downward, which causes the lid to deform and the second ridge to expand, thereby changing the locked state and changing the height of the storage container. When the height of the storage container changes in this way, there is a problem in that it is difficult to adopt a storage container that has illustrations or patterns on the entire outer surface to enhance its interior design.

In addition, even if the lid is pressed to the lowest position, the height of the storage container cannot be lowered below a certain level, so there is also the problem that when the remaining amount of sheet material becomes extremely low, it becomes difficult to remove the sheet material.

The object of the present invention is to solve the above problems by providing a storage container that does not deform its outer shape, does not cause difficulty in removing the sheet material even when only a small amount remains, and can easily be decorated with illustrations and patterns on the entire outer surface to enhance its interior design.

The object of the present invention to achieve the above-mentioned object is a storage object which comprises a box-shaped main body part which is open downward and has a pull -out hole on the top surface, and a bottom plate part which can be engaged at any height position within the main body part, and which stores a large number of storage objects inside, and on each of the opposing inner wall surfaces of the main body part, a plurality of engagement stepped parts which are parallel to the top surface along the vertical direction of the main body part are provided, and on the bottom plate part, engagement pieces which engage with the engagement stepped parts of the main body part are provided, and when the bottom plate part is pressed into the main body part, The locking piece is movable only during the process of pushing the bottom plate into the main body, and by pushing the bottom plate into the main body, the bottom plate can be fixed at any height position within the main body.The main body, the bottom plate, the locked step, and the locking piece are all made of hard synthetic resin, and the locking piece is flexible due to its thin portion.The locking piece and the locked step can be released from their locked state by pulling together the tab and rib arranged opposite each other with the thin portion in between .

The storage container of the present invention allows the bottom plate to be adjusted to an appropriate height according to the amount of sheet material remaining in the main body without changing the external shape, and the bottom plate can be moved up to the very top surface of the main body, so that even if the remaining amount of sheet material becomes extremely small, it is not difficult to remove the sheet material. In addition, because the external shape does not change, it is possible to add illustrations or patterns using the entire container to the exterior to enhance the interior design.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the storage container as viewed from above. FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of the storage container as viewed from below. FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the storage container as viewed from the bottom side. FIG. FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of a storage container according to another embodiment.

The present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the illustrated embodiments.
FIG. 1 is an exploded perspective view of a storage container as viewed from above, and FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view as viewed from below.

The storage container 1, made of synthetic resin or the like, is roughly rectangular and can store a large number of objects inside. These objects can be appropriately selected from tissue paper or kitchen paper stacked as the sheet material P, disposable masks stacked, rubber bands, disposable gloves, etc.

The storage container 1 is composed of a main body 2 with an open bottom, and a bottom plate 3 that can be pushed into the main body 2 and the depth position can be adjusted. The top surface 2a of the main body 2 has an elongated pull-out hole 2b for pulling out the sheet material P stored in the main body 2 one by one.

In addition, locking portions 2e and 2f are provided on the inner wall surfaces 2c and 2d of the opposing short sides of the main body 2. Note that, instead of the inner wall surfaces 2c and 2d of the short sides, locking portions 2e and 2f may be provided on the inner wall surfaces of the long sides.

Each of the locking portions 2e, 2f is composed of two rows of strip-shaped support plates 2g arranged vertically with a gap between them, and locking step portions 2h that connect the inner surfaces and inner wall surfaces 2c, 2d of these parallel support plates 2g and are formed at equal intervals in the vertical direction.

Each of the latched steps 2h is a roughly trapezoidal plate parallel to the top surface 2a, and is located at a total of four corners of the support plate 2g. The size of the latched steps 2h is determined to be appropriate for the size and strength to withstand the pressing force of the latching piece 3c (described later) and to allow the latching piece 3c to bend easily.

In the bottom plate portion 3, a pair of slits 3a, 3b are cut out at a gap on each of the short sides, which are the sides on both sides, in a direction perpendicular to the short sides, and the support plate 2g of the main body portion 2 can be inserted into these slits 3a, 3b.

Between the slits 3a and 3b, a planar locking piece 3c is formed to lock onto the locking step 2h of the main body 2. A pair of outer surfaces 3d at the tip of the bottom plate 3 of this locking piece 3c form the inner surfaces of the slits 3a and 3b.

The base part of the locking piece 3c that connects to the main body is flexible as a thin part, and the upper surface of the tip of the locking piece 3c is an inclined surface 3e. In addition, both outer sides of the tip of the locking piece 3c are designed to abut against the locked step part 2h.

A rib 3f is provided parallel to the short side on the back surface of the bottom plate 3 near the ends of the slits 3a and 3b, and a gripping piece 3g is provided parallel to the rib 3f on the underside of the locking piece 3c at a distance from the rib 3f. A pair of outer surfaces 3d are connected to both ends of the gripping piece 3g, and both ends of the inclined surface 3e are connected to the tips of the pair of outer surfaces 3d. A number of cutout holes 3h are also provided appropriately in the bottom plate 3 to reduce weight.

When storing sheet material P, such as tissue paper, in such a storage container 1, the main body 2 is turned upside down, and after storing the sheet material P inside the main body 2, the bottom plate 3 is turned from the open portion of the main body 2 so that the inclined surface 3e faces the upper surface of the main body 2, and the slits 3a and 3b are fitted into one portion of the support plate 2g, as shown in FIG. 3.

When the bottom plate 3 is pushed in, the engaged step 2h slides against the inclined surface 3e of the engaging piece 3c, and the engaging piece 3c bends, pushing up and passing through the engaged step 2h in sequence, until it engages.

The locking piece 3c and the locked step 2h function as a ratchet mechanism, and when the bottom plate 3 is pushed downward in the pushing direction K, the locking piece 3c is bent upward by the pressing force each time the inclined surface 3e abuts against the locked step 2h. Then, after the locking piece 3c is bent upward, that is, in the return direction opposite to the pushing direction K, it passes through the locked step 2h that it is engaged with, and is locked by the locked step 2h one step below.

The locking piece 3c does not bend in the opposite direction to the locked step 2h that it has passed, and movement in the return direction is restricted. Then, when the pressing of the bottom plate 3 is stopped, the bottom plate 3 is fixed in the return direction at the position of the locked step 2h that it abuts, and the height position of the bottom plate 3 relative to the main body 2 is fixed.

Figure 4 shows a cross-sectional view of the storage container 1. The storage container 1 contains sheet material P, which is used by pulling out one sheet at a time through the pull-out hole 2b. When a certain amount of sheet material P has been used, the bottom plate portion 3 is pushed into the main body portion 2, and the height is adjusted to make it easier to pull out the remaining sheet material P.

When all the stored sheet material P has been used and sheet material P is to be stored again, the bottom plate portion 3 is removed from the main body portion 2. When removing the bottom plate portion 3 from the main body portion 2, first turn the storage container 1 upside down as shown in FIG. 3, hook the tab 3g on one or both sides of the bottom plate portion 3 and the rib 3f with your fingers, and pull the tab 3g toward the rib 3f.

By pulling together the tab 3g and rib 3f, which are arranged opposite each other with the thin part in between, the locking piece 3c bends upward, i.e., in the return direction opposite the pushing direction K, and the locking state with the locked step 2h, whose height position is fixed, is released. Next, the bottom plate 3, which has been released from the locking state with the locked step 2h, can be removed from the main body 2 by pulling it upward.

In the embodiment, the outer surface of the support plate 2g is clamped by the outer surfaces of the slits 3a and 3b, so that the bottom plate portion 3 can be moved without shifting laterally within the main body portion 2. Therefore, if the bottom plate portion 3 is provided with the slits 3a and 3b, it is not necessary to make the bottom surface of the main body portion 2 and the outer shape of the bottom plate portion 3 approximately coincident.

In addition, it is not necessary to form slits 3a and 3b in the bottom plate portion 3, and the corners of the bottom plate portion 3 located on both sides of the locking piece 3c may be cut out. In such a case, it is necessary to make the bottom surface of the main body portion 2 and the outer shape of the bottom plate portion 3 approximately coincident with each other in order to prevent the bottom plate portion 3 from shifting sideways.

In addition, without providing the support plate 2g, the locking step 2h can be provided by connecting the inner wall surfaces 2c, 2d on the short side, which are the inner corners of the main body 2, with the inner wall surface on the long side that faces perpendicularly to the inner wall surfaces 2c, 2d. In this case, the entire short side of the bottom plate 3 becomes the locking piece 3c. Furthermore, the locking piece 3c can also be provided partially at each of the four corners of the bottom plate 3.

Although the main body 2 is generally rectangular, a box-shaped body with an elliptical bottom surface may be used as appropriate, and the bottom plate 3 may be made to correspond to the shape of the main body 2.

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of a storage container 1' in another embodiment. As shown in the figure, triangles with one horizontal side are formed at equal intervals in the vertical direction on the support plate 2g when viewed from the side, and the triangles with one side being the horizontal point parallel to the top surface 2a form the engaging step portion 2h'.

The inner wall surfaces 2c and 2d of the storage container 1' shown in Figure 5 do not require the horizontally shaped interlocking step 2h shown in Figure 2, and only the support plate 2g provided with the interlocking step 2h' having a horizontal portion is placed thereon.

In order to engage with these engaged stepped portions 2h', a locking piece 3c having a width greater than the length between the pair of support plates 2g is disposed in the center of the short side of the bottom plate portion 3. There is no need to provide slits 3a and 3b in the bottom plate portion 3 on which this locking piece 3c is disposed.

The engaging step 2h' is abutted by the engaging piece 3c of the bottom plate 3, and a pressing force is applied to it, so the side shape of the engaging step 2h' is a right triangle to obtain the strength to avoid damage. In addition, the hypotenuse of the right triangle is parallel to the inclined surface 3e of the engaging piece 3c that abuts against this hypotenuse, making it easier to push the bottom plate 3 in the pushing direction K.

The support plate 2g is of an appropriate thickness so as to obtain the necessary strength. Furthermore, in order to distribute the pressing force of the locking piece 3c that contacts the locked step portion 2h' per step, the support plate 2g may be arranged in three or more rows parallel to the inner wall surfaces 2c, 2d. Also, as long as the horizontal parts of the locked step portion 2h' have a certain level of strength, it is not necessary to make them a right-angled triangle, and any appropriate shape can be used.

In this way, the storage container 1, 1' of the present invention employs a ratchet mechanism in which the locking piece 3c moves only during the process of pushing the bottom plate portion 3 into the main body portion 2, making it possible to adjust the bottom plate portion 3 to an appropriate height according to the remaining amount of sheet material in the main body portion 2 without changing the external shape. Therefore, it is possible to manufacture a storage container 1, 1' with an illustration or pattern that uses the entire storage container 1, 1' on the exterior to enhance its interior design.

In addition, the bottom plate portion 3 can be moved up to the very top surface 2a of the main body portion 2, so that even if the remaining amount of sheet material P becomes extremely small, it is not difficult to remove the sheet material P.

In the examples, the up and down directions are used to explain the drawings, and the actual product is not limited by these terms.

1, 1' Storage container 2 Main body part 2a Pull-out hole 2c, 2d Inner wall surface 2e, 2f Locking part 2g Support plate 2h, 2h' Locked stepped part 3 Bottom plate part 3a, 3b Slit 3c Locking piece 3e Slanted surface P sheet material

Claims (8)

A storage item that is made up of a box-shaped main body portion that is open at the bottom and has a pull-out hole on the top surface, and a bottom plate portion that can be locked at any height position within the main body portion, and that can store a large number of storage items inside,
Each of the opposing inner wall surfaces of the main body portion is provided with a plurality of engagement step portions parallel to the upper surface along the vertical direction of the main body portion, and the bottom plate portion is provided with engagement pieces that engage with the engagement step portions of the main body portion, and the engagement pieces are movable only during the process of pushing the bottom plate portion into the main body portion, and by pushing the bottom plate portion into the main body portion, the bottom plate portion can be fixed at any height position within the main body portion ,
the main body portion, the bottom plate portion, the engaged step portion, and the engaging piece are all made of a hard synthetic resin,
The stored item is characterized in that the locking piece has flexibility due to the thin portion, and the locked state of the locking piece and the locked step can be released by pulling on the tab and rib arranged opposite each other with the thin portion in between . The stored item described in claim 1, characterized in that two rows of strip-shaped support plates are provided in the vertical direction on the opposing inner wall surfaces of the main body, and the engaging step portion is formed by connecting the parallel inner surfaces of the support plates and the inner wall surfaces. A stored item as described in claim 2, characterized in that a pair of slits are provided at a gap between each of a pair of opposite sides of the bottom plate portion, the locking piece is formed between the slits, and the outer surfaces of the slits clamp the outer surface of the support plate. A stored item as described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the interlocking step portion is formed by connecting a first inner wall surface, which is the opposing inner wall surface of the main body portion, and a second inner wall surface that is perpendicular to and opposite to the first inner wall surface . The stored item described in any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the opposing inner wall surfaces of the main body are provided with two or more rows of strip-shaped support plates having a predetermined plate thickness in the vertical direction, and the interlocking step portion is formed on the support plate. The stored item according to claim 5 , characterized in that when viewed from the side, the support plate has a plurality of engaging step portions formed in the vertical direction, each of which is approximately triangular in shape with a horizontal point as one side. The stored item according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that the upper surface of the tip of the locking piece has an inclined surface, and when the bottom plate portion is pushed into the main body portion, the locking piece bends while the locking step portion slides and abuts against the inclined surface, and passes through the locking step portion. The stored object according to any one of claims 1 to 7 , characterized in that the locking piece and the locked step portion form a ratchet mechanism.

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