Rectangular freight container for international combined traffic, particularly for flowable bulk goods

Claim 2

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, and wherein several adjacent wall panels consist of a continuous steel sheet strip outwardly cambered section-wise and attached to said struts from the inside.

Claim 3

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resisTant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, stiffeners attached to said wall panels from the outside for reinforcing major bays of the wall panels, and wherein said stiffeners and associated panels form hollow passages and are provided with connections for heating contents of the transcontainer.

Claim 4

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resisTant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, stiffeners attached to said wall panels from the outside for reinforcing major bays of the wall panels, and wherein said stiffeners and associated panels form hollow passages and are provided with connections for heating contents of the transcontainer.

Claim 5

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, and wherein the cambered wall panels at the bottom of said tank are reinforced by curved tension straps.

Claim 6

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, and wherein the cambered wall panels at the bottom of said tank are reinforced by curved tension straps.

Claim 7

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, wherein some said cambered wall panels have margin portions with smaller radii of curvature than those of their camber and extending into the interior of said transcontainer.

Claim 8

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, wherein some said cambered wall panels have margin portions with smaller radii of curvature than those of their camber and extending into the interior of said transcontainer.

Claim 9

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, guide plates leading obliquely towards a discharge port of said transcontainer in order to facilitate the discharging of flowable goods of solid bulk type.

Claim 10

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, guide plates leading obliquely towards a discharge port of said transcontainer in order to facilitate the discharging of flowable goods of solid bulk type.

Claim 11

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting, and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for said openings located within the frame contours, wherein a recess is arranged in an end wall of the tank and a hole is provided in a juxtapositioned lower transverse beam, and a filling and discharge socket is mounted on said end wall in said recess and a hose coupling attached to said socket, through which hole the hose coupling is accessible from the outside.

Claim 12

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting, and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for said openings located within the frame contours, wherein a recess is arranged in an end wall of the tank and a hole is provided in a juxtapositioned lower transverse beam, and a filling and discharge socket is mounted on said end wall in said recess and a hose coupling attached to said socket, through which hole the hose coupling is accessible from the outside.

Claim 13

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, and said frame members are hollow and are of substantially rectangular cross-sections.

Claim 14

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, said frame comprising vertical struts and horizontal beams sub-dividing the wall faces of the transcontainer into individual bays, each bay containing one part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel connected to said frame members so as to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank located within the frame contour, and said frame members are hollow and are of substantially rectangular cross-sections.

Claim 15

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 7, wherein the lower horizontal beams are provided with longitudinal recesses on their lower outer edges.

Claim 16

A rectangular transcontainer for Flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, wherein the bottom of the tank comprises cambered wall panels descending step-wise from horizontal lower beams of said frame to the sole level of said transcontainer and resting on longitudinal bottom stiffeners.

Claim 17

A rectangular transcontainer for Flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, wherein the bottom of the tank comprises cambered wall panels descending step-wise from horizontal lower beams of said frame to the sole level of said transcontainer and resting on longitudinal bottom stiffeners.

Claim 18

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 9, wherein said frame has transverse intermediate beams provided with holes near the bottom of said tank to allow for complete discharge.

Claim 19

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, comprising a manhole socket on top of said transcontainer, an inwardly cambered lid mounted tightly on said socket, and a pressure relief valve and safety valve member mounted in the hollow of said lid.

Claim 20

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame consisting of frame members, part-cylindrical outwardly cambered panels connected to the frame members to form unitarily therewith a tank for the flowable goods in the form of a rectangular box girder resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, openings for access to the interior of said tank, and covers for the openings located within the frame contours, comprising a manhole socket on top of said transcontainer, an inwardly cambered lid mounted tightly on said socket, and a pressure relief valve and safety valve member mounted in the hollow of said lid.

Claim 21

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 11, comprising a flat closeable cover for said lid.

Claim 22

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, two end walls, two side walls, a top wall, a bottom wall, vertical struts connected to said outer frame and spaced to sub-divide the side walls into individual bays, each bay containing a part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel, each of said wall panels presenting a concave surface to the interior of the transcontainer and a convex surface to the exterior thereof, said wall panels being connected to the frame members and the vertical struts to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, at least one selectively closable opening for access to the interior of said tank, and the outermost extent of the wall panels and the at least one opening being all within the contour defined by the rectangular outer frame.

Claim 23

A rectangular transcontainer for flowable goods provided with corner fittings for stacking and lifting, comprising a rectangular outer frame having profiled frame members, two end walls, two side walls, a top wall, a bottom wall, vertical struts connected to said outer frame and spaced to sub-divide the side walls into individual bays, each bay containing a part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panel, each of said wall panels presenting a concave surface to the interior of the transcontainer and a convex surface to the exterior thereof, said wall panels being connected to the frame members and the vertical struts to form unitarily therewith a liquid-tight tank resistant to bending, twisting and buckling, at least one selectively closable opening for access to the interior of said tank, and the outermost extent of the wall panels and the at least one opening being all within the contour defined by the rectangular outer frame.

Claim 24

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein the frame has corner struts which are of circular cross-section.

Claim 25

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein the frame has corner struts which are of semicircular cross-section.

Claim 26

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein the frame has corner struts which are of triangular cross-section.

Claim 27

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein transverse external ribs are provided at the wall panels at the bottom of said tank for engagement by a fork-lift truck.

Claim 28

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, comprising surge baffles arranged in the interior of said container.

Claim 29

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein said panels consist of a corrosion-resistant metal of the group consisting of stainless steel and aluminum alloys.

Claim 30

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein said frame members, at least on their portions exposed to the interior of said tank, consist of stainless steel.

Claim 31

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein said frame members, at least on their portions exposed to the interior of said tank, are covered with stainless steel.

Claim 32

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, comprising stiffeners reinforcing major bays of the wall panels.

Claim 33

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 22, wherein said stiffeners are attached to said panels from outside.

Claim 34

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein the end walls each comprise a plurality of part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels, said wall panels being contained in individual bays formed in part by vertical struts connected to the outer frame.

Claim 35

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 24, wherein one of the end wall panels has at its bottom a recess and comprising a filling and discharging socket for said transcontainer arranged in said recess.

Claim 36

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 24, wherein the top and bottom walls each comprise a plurality of part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels, said wall panels being contained in individual bays formed in part by horizontal beams connected to the outer frame, and wherein said wall panels are also connected to said horizontal beams.

Claim 37

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 26, comprising partition walls arranged between intermediate beams and intermediate struts.

Claim 38

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 13, wherein the top and bottom walls each comprise a plurality of part-cylindrical outwardly cambered wall panels, said wall panels being contained in individual bays formed in part by horizontal beams connected to the outer frame, and wherein said wall panels are also connected to said horizontal beams.

Claim 39

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 28, wherein said horizontal beams extend at right angles to the axes of curvature of the associated wall panels.

Claim 40

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 28, wherein the bottom of said tank consists of panels cambered about the longitudinal direction of the tank.

Claim 41

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 30, wherein said frame has transverse intermediate beams provided with holes near the bottom of said tank to allow for complete discharge.

Claim 42

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 28, wherein the top wall of said tank comprises panels cambered outwardly about the longitudinal direction of the tank.

Claim 43

A transcontainer as claimed in claim 32, wherein upper transverse intermediate beams are disposed perpendicularly to said horizontal beams, said intermediate beams being connected to said wall panels and said outer frame, and wherein holes are provided in said intermediate beams.