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The lid is used to cover a utility box which houses a meter such as a water meter. The lid is compression molded from a plastic material such as medium density polyethylene, and has a planar upper surface and a planar lower surface. A plurality of generally parallel spaced apart recesses are formed

The lid is used to cover a utility box which houses a meter such as a water meter. The lid is compression molded from a plastic material such as medium density polyethylene, and has a planar upper surface and a planar lower surface. A plurality of generally parallel spaced apart recesses are formed in the lower surface. The recesses are spaced inward of the outer edges of the lid and have lengths equal to a substantial portion of the length of the lid along which the recesses extend. The area of the lower surface of the lid is greater than the total area of the recesses in the plane of the lower surface.

대표청구항 ▼

The invention claimed is: 1. A lid for a utility box comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge extends around said member next to said lower side and which faces outward of said member

The invention claimed is: 1. A lid for a utility box comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge extends around said member next to said lower side and which faces outward of said member, said lower side comprising a lower surface which is contiguous with said outer edge at least on two opposite sides of said outer edge, a plurality of spaced apart recesses having outer edges at said lower surface which are spaced from said outer edge of said member such that said lower surface surrounds said outer edges of said recesses, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said recesses comprises a surface which extends from its said outer edges into said member, the area of said lower surface being greater than the total area surrounded by said outer edges of said recesses, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 2. The lid of claim 1, wherein: said lower surface is a generally planar surface, said upper side is a generally planar upper surface, a plurality of spaced apart wedges formed on said outer edge of said member which extend outward of said outer edge at said upper surface and taper toward said lower surface. 3. The lid of claim 1, wherein: said outer edges of each of said recesses comprise two spaced apart elongated outer edges and two spaced apart shorter outer edges, said elongated edges of said recesses are generally parallel with each other, said member has a given dimension along which said elongated edges of said recesses extend, the lengths of said elongated edges of said recesses are greater than one half of said given dimension of said member. 4. The lid of claim 3, wherein: said outer edge of said member is rectangular in shape and comprises a first pair of spaced apart edges and a second pair of spaced apart edges with said first pair of edges being transverse to said second pair of edges, said elongated edges of said recesses are generally parallel with said first pair of edges of said member. 5. The lid of claim 1, wherein: said lower surface is generally a planar surface. 6. The lid of claim 1, wherein: one of said plurality of recesses comprises two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter outer edges, a second of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter outer edges of said one recess. 7. The lid of claim 6, wherein: said member of said lid is a solid member molded solely from a plastic material, said upper side comprises an upper surface, an upper recess formed in said upper surface of said lid at least partially in alignment with said second recess. 8. The lid of claim 1, wherein: said plurality of recesses comprises at least three recesses, said outer edges of each of two of said plurality of recesses comprise two spaced apart elongated outer edges and two spaced apart shorter outer edges, one of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other which are greater than the dimensions of said shorter outer edges of either of said two recesses. 9. The lid of claim 1, wherein: said member of said lid is molded solely from a single type of plastic material. 10. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge extends around said member next to said lower side and which faces outward of said member, said lower side comprising a lower surface which is contiguous with said outer edge at least on two opposite sides of said outer edge, a plurality of spaced apart recesses having outer edges at said lower surface which are spaced from said outer edge of said member such that said lower surface surrounds said outer edges of said recesses, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said recesses comprises a surface which extends from its said outer edges into said member, said outer edges of each of said recesses comprise two spaced apart elongated outer edges and two spaced apart shorter outer edges, said elongated edges of said recesses are generally parallel with each other, said member has a given dimension along which said elongated edges of said recesses extend, the lengths of said elongated edges of said recesses are greater than one half of said given dimension of said member, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 11. The lid of claim 10, wherein: said outer edge of said member is rectangular in shape and comprises a first pair of spaced apart edges and a second pair of spaced apart edges with said first pair of edges being transverse to said second pair of edges, said elongated edges of said recesses are generally parallel with said first pair of edges of said member. 12. The lid of claim 10, wherein: said lower surface is a generally planar surface, said upper side is a generally planar upper surface, a plurality of spaced apart wedges formed on said outer edge of said member which extend outward of said outer edge at said upper surface and taper toward said lower surface. 13. The lid of claim 10, wherein: the area of said lower surface is greater than the total area surrounded by said outer edges of said recesses. 14. The lid of claim 10, wherein: said lower surface is a generally planar surface. 15. The lid of claim 10, wherein: said member of said lid is molded solely from a single type of plastic material. 16. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge comprising a first pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite directions from each other outward from said member and a second pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite direction from each other outward from said member, said first pair of outer edges being transverse to said second pair of opposite edges, said lower side comprising a lower surface which extends to and is contiguous with said first and second pairs of outer edges, a plurality of spaced apart recesses formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, one of said recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges, said lower surface having a given side dimension along which said elongated edges extend, the lengths of said elongated edges of said one recess are greater than one half of said given dimension of said surface, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 17. The lid of claim 16, wherein: a second of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said one recess. 18. The lid of claim 16, wherein: said one recess comprises two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface defines a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces. 19. The lid of claim 18, wherein: a second of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said one recess. 20. The lid of claim 19, wherein: said line has opposite ends, said one recess comprises two triangular shaped surfaces extending from said shorter edges to said opposite ends of said line respectively such that, said two triangular shaped surfaces extend away from each other from said opposite ends of said line to said shorter edges respectively. 21. The lid of claim 16, wherein: said member of said lid is molded solely from a single type of plastic material. 22. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a single type of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge comprising a first pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite directions from each other outward from said member and a second pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite direction from each other outward from said member, said first pair of outer edges being transverse to said second pair of opposite edges, said lower side comprising a lower surface which extends to and is contiguous with said first and second pairs of outer edges, first and second spaced apart recesses, generally parallel to each other, formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said first and second recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, the dimensions of said lower surface between said first and second spaced apart recesses being greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of either of said first and second recesses, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 23. The lid of claim 22, comprising: a third recess formed in said lower surface spaced from said first and second recesses and from said outer edge of said lower surface and having dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of either of said first and second recesses. 24. The lid of claim 22, wherein: said plastic material has a density range of 0.938-0.942. 25. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a single type of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge comprising a first pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite directions from each other outward from said member and a second pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite direction from each other outward from said member, said first pair of outer edges being transverse to said second pair of opposite edges, said lower side comprising a lower surface which extends to and is contiguous with said first and second pairs of outer edges, a plurality of spaced apart recesses formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, one of said recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges, a second of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said one recess, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 26. The lid of claim 25, wherein: said plastic material has a density range of 0.938-0.942. 27. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a single type of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge extends around said member next to said lower side and which faces outward of said member, said lower side comprising a lower surface which is contiguous with said outer edge at least on two opposite sides of said outer edge, at least one recess formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said one recess being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, said one recess comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, said lower side having a given dimension along which said elongated edges of said recess extend, the lengths of each of said elongated edges are equal to a substantial portion of the length of said given dimension, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 28. The lid of claim 27, wherein: said line has opposite ends, said recess comprises two triangular shaped surfaces extending from said shorter edges to said opposite ends of said line respectively such that said two triangular shaped surfaces extend away from each other from said opposite ends of said line to said shorter edges respectively. 29. The lid of claim 28, wherein: the lengths of each of said elongated edges of said recess are greater than one half of said given dimensions. 30. The lid of claim 27, wherein: the lengths of each of said elongated edges of said recess are greater than one half of said given dimensions. 31. The lid of claim 27, comprising: a second recess formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said second recess has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other which are greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said one recess. 32. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a single type of plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said outer edge comprising a first pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite directions from each other outward from said member and a second pair of spaced apart outer edges which face in opposite direction from each other outward from said member, said first pair of outer edges being transverse to said second pair of opposite edges, said lower side comprising a lower surface which extends to and is contiguous with said first and second pairs of outer edges, first and second spaced apart recesses, generally parallel to each other, formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said first and second recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 33. The lid of claim 32, wherein: each of said lines has opposite ends, each of said recesses comprises two triangular shaped surfaces extending from its said shorter edges to said opposite ends of its said line respectively such that said two triangular shaped surfaces extend away from each other from said opposite ends of said line to said shorter edges respectively. 34. The lid of claim 33, wherein: the lengths of each of said elongated edges of said recess are greater than one half of said given dimension. 35. The lid of claim 32, wherein: the lengths of each of said elongated edges of said recess are greater than one half of said given dimension. 36. The lid of claim 32, comprising: a second recess formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said second recess has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other which are greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said recesses. 37. A lid for a utility box comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said lower side comprising a lower surface, a plurality of spaced apart recesses having outer edges at said lower surface which are spaced from said outer edge of said member such that said lower surface surrounds said outer edges of said recesses, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said recesses comprises a surface which extends from its said outer edges into said member, the area of said lower surface being greater than the total area surrounded by said outer edges of said recesses, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 38. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides and an outer edge, said lower side comprising a lower surface, a plurality of spaced apart recesses having outer edges at said lower surface which are spaced from said outer edge of said member such that said lower surface surrounds said outer edges of said recesses, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said recesses comprises a surface which extends from its said outer edges into said member, said outer edges of each of said recesses comprise two spaced apart elongated outer edges and two spaced apart shorter outer edges, said elongated edges of said recesses are generally parallel with each other, said member has a given dimension along which said elongated edges of said recesses extend, the lengths of said elongated edges of said recesses are greater than one half of said given dimension of said member, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 39. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides, said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, a plurality of spaced apart recesses formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, one of said recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges, said lower surface having a given side dimension along which said elongated edges extend, the lengths of said elongated edges of said one recess are greater than one half of said given dimension of said surface, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 40. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides, said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, first and second spaced apart recesses, generally parallel to each other, formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said first and second recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, the dimensions of said lower surface between said first and second spaced apart recesses being greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of either of said first and second recesses, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 41. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides, said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, a plurality of spaced apart recesses formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, one of said recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges, a second of said plurality of recesses has dimensions in two directions transverse to each other each of which is greater than the dimensions of said shorter edges of said one recess, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to said upper side when said lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 42. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides, said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, at least one recess formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said one recess being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, said one recess comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 43. The lid of claim 42, wherein: said lower side has a dimension along which said elongated edges extend, the lengths of each of said elongated edges are equal to a substantial portion of the lengths of said given dimension. 44. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of a compressed plastic material and having spaced apart upper and lower sides, said lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, first and second spaced apart recesses, generally parallel to each other, formed in said lower surface and spaced from said outer edge of said lower surface and from said upper side, said recesses being formed during the molding process to enhance curing of the material and hence the quality of the lid, each of said first and second recesses comprising two spaced apart elongated edges and two spaced apart shorter edges with two generally flat surfaces extending along said two elongated edges respectively and which join each other along a line such that said two surfaces and a plane extending across said recess at said lower surface define a triangle as seen in cross-sections transverse to said elongated edges with said line located between said upper and lower surfaces, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 45. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of compressed plastic material having upper and lower sides and an outer edge; a plurality of spaced apart recesses located in the lower side, the recesses having a depth which is the distance the recesses extend toward the other side; the member having a thickness between the upper and lower side; the depth of the recesses being no greater than two-thirds of the member thickness; the member of the lid having the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of the member. 46. The lid of claim 45 wherein the member thickness is at least one and one-half inches. 47. The lid of claim 45 wherein the recesses are first recesses, the lid further comprising at least one remote reading equipment recess located in the lower side. 48. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of compressed plastic material having upper and lower sides and an outer edge; the lower side comprising a lower surface that is contiguous with portions of the outer edge; a plurality of spaced apart recesses located in the lower side, the recesses having a depth which is the distance the recesses extend toward the upper side; at least some of the recesses being spaced apart from adjacent recesses by a distance that is greater than the depth of the respective recesses; the member of the lid having the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by a means placed around a perimeter of the member. 49. The lid of claim 48 wherein the member thickness is at least one and one-half inches. 50. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of compressed plastic material having upper and lower sides and an outer edge; the lower side comprising a lower surface that is contiguous with portions of the outer edge; a plurality of spaced apart recesses located in the lower side, the recesses having a depth which is the distance the recesses extend toward the upper side; the member having a thickness between the upper and lower sides of at least one and a half inches; the member of the lid having the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of the member. 51. A lid for a utility box, comprising: a compression molded solid member made only of compressed plastic material having spaced apart upper and lower sides, the lower side comprising a lower surface having an outer edge, at least one recess formed in the lower surface and spaced from the outer edge of the lower surface and from the upper side, the one recess formed during the molded process to enhance curing of the plastic material and hence the quality of the lid, said member of said lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 8,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around a perimeter of said member. 52. The lid of claim 51 wherein the member thickness is at least one and one half inches. 53. The lid of claim 51 wherein the recess is a remote reading equipment recess. 54. The lid of claim 51 wherein the member of the lid has the strength sufficient to withstand a load of at least 9,000 pounds applied to the upper side when the lower side is supported by means placed around the perimeter of the member.