초록 ▼

Five gallon water bottles for refilling water coolers are stored on a hand truck and on the floor of a user's facility employing three racks. A lower rack stores eight bottles in staggered arrays to be carried by a conventional hand truck. An intermediate rack is formed by bonding a duplicate of the

Five gallon water bottles for refilling water coolers are stored on a hand truck and on the floor of a user's facility employing three racks. A lower rack stores eight bottles in staggered arrays to be carried by a conventional hand truck. An intermediate rack is formed by bonding a duplicate of the lower rack to a duplicate of the upper top rack. The or rack has bottle supports and dividers for supporting the bottles in the staggered array. The intermediate rack has a lower rack portion the same as the top rack with cylindrical depending members for receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles on the lower rack. The top rack has the depending members for receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles on the intermediate rack. The intermediate rack upper potion is the same as the lower rack for receiving an upper array of bottles. The racks have depending ribs which engage each other in the intermediate rack and wherein the lower rack ribs engage the hand truck support platform rails to preclude shifting of the racks during transport. A total of sixteen bottles are carried. In another embodiment, all three racks are identical and similar to the intermediate rack of the first embodiment, except formed molded as one piece.

대표청구항 ▼

1. A bottled water apparatus for storing and transporting water bottles on a hand truck having bottom rails on which the bottles are to be stored for transport, the bottles having a bottom wall, an annular side wall and a pouring spout on a neck attached to the side wall distal the bottom wall, the

1. A bottled water apparatus for storing and transporting water bottles on a hand truck having bottom rails on which the bottles are to be stored for transport, the bottles having a bottom wall, an annular side wall and a pouring spout on a neck attached to the side wall distal the bottom wall, the apparatus comprising:a first bottom rack for receiving and storing a staggered first array of bottles in a longitudinal direction upright with respect to the force of gravity, the first rack for storing the bottles in multiple columns in the longitudinal direction and rows transverse to the longitudinal direction in the array, the bottles in each column being aligned longitudinally, the bottles in adjacent columns being staggered with respect to each other so that the rows are aligned inclined to the longitudinal direction; and a second top rack arranged to receive the necks and spouts of the bottles in the staggered array. 2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the bottles are each of a given diameter, the adjacent columns being arranged so that the transverse dimension of two adjacent columns normal to the longitudinal direction is less than twice the diameter of a bottle.3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first rack is formed with a plurality of depending ribs for mating with the hand truck rails to preclude horizontal displacement of the first rack on the hand truck during transport.4. The apparatus of claim 1 including a third rack comprising fourth and fifth racks having the same respective configurations as the first and second racks the fourth and fifth racks being attached to each other in abutting relation to form the third rack, the third rack for receiving and storing a second array of said bottles in said staggered arrangement on top of the first array, the third rack for engagement with and receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles in the first array.5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the fourth and fifth racks are molded one piece to form a composite rack.6. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the fourth rack has depending ribs and the fifth rack has a plurality of recesses for receiving and mating with depending ribs of the fourth rack.7. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the second rack comprises a substantially planar central portion surrounded by an upright rail at the periphery of the planar central portion.8. The apparatus of claim 7 including a third rack comprising fourth and fifth racks having the same respective configurations as the first and second racks and being attached to each other in abutting relation, the third rack for receiving and storing a second array of said bottles in said staggered arrangement on top of the first array, the third rack for engagement with and receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles in the first array, the first rack having a peripheral recess for receiving the rail.9. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first rack comprises a planar bottom wall, an annular upstanding rail extending from the periphery of the planar bottom wall, and a plurality of upright bottle support members upstanding from the planar bottom wall, the support members defining an axis parallel to the planar bottom wall, the axis being inclined relative to the longitudinal direction.10. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the bottle support members are approximately hour glass shape with opposing concave surfaces for receiving the bottle side walls juxtaposed therewith.11. The apparatus of claim 9 wherein the bottle support members are disposed medially on the planar bottom wall.12. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first rack comprises a planar bottom wall and an annular peripheral rail upstanding from the bottom wall, the first rack including a plurality of spaced bottle support members upstanding from the bottom wall and attached to the rail, the support members being generally frusto-conical in plan view in a direction normal to the planar bottom wall.13. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first rack comprises a planar bottom wall and an annular side rail extending from the planar bottom wall periphery, the apparatus including a plurality of like bottle support members arrayed generally centrally the planar bottom wall in the longitudinal direction and a plurality of side bottle support members arrayed along and attached to the annular side rail and extending from the planar bottom wall.14. The apparatus of claim 13 wherein the planar bottom wall has a plurality of depending ribs for engagement with the hand truck rails to preclude horizontal displacement of the first rack relative to the hand truck rails.15. The apparatus of claim 8 wherein the fourth and fifth racks are bonded to each other.16. A water bottle racking apparatus for use with a hand truck having a plurality of bottle supporting rails, the bottles having a bottom section and a top neck section, the apparatus comprising:a first bottom rack with a plurality of ribs depending from a bottom wall thereof for mating with the hand truck rails to preclude displacement of the first rack relative to the hand truck during transport, the first rack including a plurality of bottle support and divider members extending from the first rack bottom wall opposite the ribs for supporting the bottle bottom sections in spaced relation; and a second top rack including depending members for overlying the bottles and arranged for receiving the top neck sections of the bottles. 17. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the first bottom rack is arranged for receiving and storing a staggered first array of bottles upright with respect to the force of gravity in a longitudinal direction, the first rack for storing the bottles in multiple columns in the longitudinal direction and rows transverse to the longitudinal direction in the first array, the bottles in each column being aligned longitudinally, the bottles in adjacent columns being staggered with respect to each other so that the rows are aligned inclined to the longitudinal direction.18. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the bottles are each of the same given diameter, the adjacent columns being arranged so that the transverse dimension of two adjacent columns normal to the longitudinal direction is less than twice the diameter of a bottle.19. The apparatus of claim 16 wherein the second rack has a plurality of recesses for receiving and mating with the depending ribs in the first rack.20. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the first and second racks are bonded to each other.21. A bottled water apparatus for storing and transporting water bottles on a hand truck having bottom rails on which the bottles are to be stored for transport, the bottles having a bottom wall, an annular side wall and a pouring spout on a neck attached to the side wall distal the bottom wall, the apparatus comprising:a first bottom rack for receiving and storing a staggered first array of bottles upright in a longitudinal direction with respect to the force of gravity, the first rack for storing the bottles in multiple columns in the longitudinal direction and rows transverse to the longitudinal direction in the array, the bottles in each column being aligned longitudinally, the bottles in adjacent columns being staggered with respect to each other so that the rows are aligned inclined to the longitudinal direction; bottle supports and dividers attached to the first rack for aligning and supporting the bottles in said array; and a second top rack arranged to receive the necks and spouts of the bottles in the staggered array. 22. The apparatus of claim 21 wherein the first rack has depending first ribs for engaging the hand truck to preclude horizontal displacement of the first rack on the hand truck during transport.23. The apparatus of claim 22 including a third rack comprising fourth and fifth racks having the same respective configurations as the first and second racks, the fourth and fifth racks being attached to each other in abutting relation, the third rack for receiving and storing a second array of said bottles in said staggered arrangement on top of the first array, the third rack for engagement with and receiving the necks and spouts of the bottles in the first array, the first rack having a plurality of recesses corresponding to and aligned with said first ribs, the second rack having a plurality of second ribs depending therefrom and engaged with the recesses of the first rack.24. The apparatus of claim 23 wherein the second rack has an annular upstanding rail at its periphery.