Device for handling baby chicks and the like

Claim 1

A device for handling baby chicks or the like comprising a bottom part molded of plastic material of generally rectangular configuration in plan, said bottom part including a generally horizontally extending bottom wall portion and a peripheral wall portion extending generally upwardly and outwardly from the periphery of said bottom wall to permit a plurality of similar bottom parts to be nested one within the other, said bottom part including vertically spaced upwardly and downwardly facing nesting stop surface means operable when said bottom part is disposed in nested relation with similar bottom parts to engage the downwardly and upwardly facing nesting stop surface means of the similar bottom parts disposed respectively above and below said bottom part to thereby insure a free nesting relationship, a cooperating top part molded of plastic material of generally corresponding rectangular configuration in plan, said top part including a horizontally extending top wall portion and a peripheral wall portion extending generally downwardly and outwardly from the periphery of said top wall portion to permit a plurality of similar top parts to be nested one within the other, said top part including vertically spaced upwardly and downwardly facing nesting stop surface means operable when said top part is disposed in nested relation with similar top parts to engage the downwardly and upwardly facing nesting stop surface means of the similar top parts disposed respectively above and below said top part to thereby insure a free nesting relationship, the peripheral wall portions of said parts including cooperating peripheral edge structures adjacent the free edges thereof operable to engage in response to the vertical movement of said parts together and to support said top part on said bottom part against relative horizontal movement to thereby form a relatively stable transporting container, said top wall portion having opening means therein of a size sufficient to permit baby chicks to be lowered into the interior of the container, the bottom and top wall portions of said parts being spaced vertically a distance sufficient to retain baby chicks within the container against escape through said opening means, each of said parts having a plurality of correspondingly horizontally spaced stacking elements adjacent the peripheral wall thereof operable in response to the formation of a vertical stack of similar containers to provide supporting interengagement between the stacking elements of the bottom and top parts of adjacent containers, said stacking elements providing surfaces having a vertical component of extent operable when a plurality of similar containers are disposed in vertical stacked formation to provide horizontal stability to the stacked formation, the vertical extent of the stacking elements of said top part from the top wall portion thereof being different than the vertical extent of the stacking elements of said botTom part from the bottom wall portion thereof so as to maintain the chick loading opening means in the top wall portion of each container when in stacked formation substantially unrestricted to the flow of air therethrough by the bottom part supported thereabove in the stacked formation, the peripheral wall portion of said top part including a plurality of openings therein for supplementing the passage of air into and out of the interior of the container.

Claim 2

A device for handling baby chicks or the like comprising a bottom part molded of plastic material of generally rectangular configuration in plan, said bottom part including a generally horizontally extending bottom wall portion and a peripheral wall portion extending generally upwardly and outwardly from the periphery of said bottom wall to permit a plurality of similar bottom parts to be nested one within the other, said bottom part including vertically spaced upwardly and downwardly facing nesting stop surface means operable when said bottom part is disposed in nested relation with similar bottom parts to engage the downwardly and upwardly facing nesting stop surface means of the similar bottom parts disposed respectively above and below said bottom part to thereby insure a free nesting relationship, a cooperating top part molded of plastic material of generally corresponding rectangular configuration in plan, said top part including a horizontally extending top wall portion and a peripheral wall portion extending generally downwardly and outwardly from the periphery of said top wall portion to permit a plurality of similar top parts to be nested one within the other, said top part including vertically spaced upwardly and downwardly facing nesting stop surface means operable when said top part is disposed in nested relation with similar top parts to engage the downwardly and upwardly facing nesting stop surface means of the similar top parts disposed respectively above and below said top part to thereby insure a free nesting relationship, the peripheral wall portions of said parts including cooperating peripheral edge structures adjacent the free edges thereof operable to engage in response to the vertical movement of said parts together and to support said top part on said bottom part against relative horizontal movement to thereby form a relatively stable transporting container, said top wall portion having opening means therein of a size sufficient to permit baby chicks to be lowered into the interior of the container, the bottom and top wall portions of said parts being spaced vertically a distance sufficient to retain baby chicks within the container against escape through said opening means, each of said parts having a plurality of correspondingly horizontally spaced stacking elements adjacent the peripheral wall thereof operable in response to the formation of a vertical stack of similar containers to provide supporting interengagement between the stacking elements of the bottom and top parts of adjacent containers, said stacking elements providing surfaces having a vertical component of extent operable when a plurality of similar containers are disposed in vertical stacked formation to provide horizontal stability to the stacked formation, the vertical extent of the stacking elements of said top part from the top wall portion thereof being different than the vertical extent of the stacking elements of said botTom part from the bottom wall portion thereof so as to maintain the chick loading opening means in the top wall portion of each container when in stacked formation substantially unrestricted to the flow of air therethrough by the bottom part supported thereabove in the stacked formation, the peripheral wall portion of said top part including a plurality of openings therein for supplementing the passage of air into and out of the interior of the container.