Interlocking elongate articles and bundles thereof

Claim 1

A VERTICALLY TIERED AND BOUND STACK OF HORIZONTAL COPLANAR UNIFORM HEIGHT LAYERS OF SIMILAR ARTICLES, SUCH AS INGOTS, LONGITUDINALLY INTERLOCKED IN PARALLEL AXIAL ARRANGEMENT IN EACH COPLANAR LAYER AGAINST SUBSTANTIAL RELATIVE LONGITUDINAL MOVEMENT, EACH COPLANAR LAYER CONSISTING OF ALTERNATELY UPRIGHT AND LONGITUDINALLY INVERTED SIMILAR ARTICLES EACH HAVING A WIDE TOP AND A NARROWER BOTTOM SURFACE DEFINED BY SUBSTANTIALLY FLAT PARALLEL SURFACES AND EQUALLY AND OPPOSITELY INCLINED ENCLOSING PLANE SIDE SURFACES, A LONGITUDINALLY CENTRALLY LOCATED LUG CARRIED BY ONE INCLINED SIDE SURFACE OF EACH ARTICLE AND A DEPRESSION IN THE OPPOSITE INCLINED SIDE SURFACE THEREOF IN LONGITUDINAL REGISTRY WITH THE LUG, ADJACENT ARTICLES IN EACH ALTERNATELY UPRIGHT AND LONGITUDINALLY INVERTED COPLANAR LAYER OF THE ARTICLES HAVING A SIDE SURFACE LUG ON ONE ARTICLE DISPOSED ENTIRELY WITHIN A SIDE SURFACE DEPRESSION OF AN ADJACENT ARTICLE IN AXIALLY RESTRAINING RELATIONSHIP THEREBETWEEN AND THE ADJACENT INCLINED SIDE SURFACES OF THE ARTICLES OTHERWISE COINCIDENT IN SIDE SURFACE COPLANAR ABUTMENT, THE SAID COPLANAR LAYERS EACH HAVING A SIMILAR NUMBER OF ARTICLES AND VERTICALLY TIERED SIMILAR COPLANAR LAYERS BEING IN SUBSTANTIALLY VERTICAL REGISTRY WITH THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF THE INDIVIDUAL ARTICLES IN PARALLEL DISPOSITION, A COPLANAR BOTTOM PALLET LAYER OF THE ARTICLES IN UPRIGHT DISPOSITION BELOW AND IN SUPPORTING CONTACT WITH THE SUPERPOSED TIERED ALTERNATELY UPRIGHT AND LONGITUDINALLY INVERTED COPLANAR LAYERS, SAID BOTTOM PALLET LAYER HAVING ITS ARTICLES IN TOP UPPER ADJACENT CONTACTING LONGITUDINAL EDGE-CONTACTING RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF THE ARTICLES IN PARALLEL WITH THE SAME AXES OF THE ARTICLES IN THE COPLANAR LAYERS THEREABOVE, AND AT LEAST ONE BANDING AND SECURING MEMBER ENCOMPASSING THE TIERED STACK IN THE PLANE TRANSVERSE TO THE LONGITUDINAL PARALLEL AXES OF ALL OF THE ARTICLES.