Monolithic pallet

Abstract

A pallet includes a deck and a frame coupled to the deck to support the deck. The frame includes four sides and each side is formed to include a pair of apertures that are configured to receive a pair of forks included in a fork truck therein.

1 . A stack of pallets comprising
 a first pallet arranged to set on and be supported by ground underlying the first pallet and   a second pallet stacked on the first pallet, the second pallet including a platform and a first lift-unit anchor arranged to extend downwardly away from the platform toward the first pallet,   wherein the first pallet is formed to include a first cavity and the first pallet includes   a top wall arranged to face toward an underside of the second pallet, the top wall is formed to include a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first cavity to admit the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet therein,   an exterior side wall arranged to extend around the top wall of the first pallet, the exterior side wall is formed to include a first fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first cavity to admit a first fork included in a fork truck, and   a first partition arranged to divide the first cavity into a first upper chamber communicating with the first anchor-receiving aperture and a first lower chamber communicating with the first fork-receiving aperture, the first upper chamber is configured to receive the first lift unit anchor of the second pallet therein, the first lower chamber is configured to receive the first fork of the fork truck therein, and the first partition is configured to provide means for separating the upper and lower chambers to cause the first fork of the fork truck to be received into the first lower chamber when the first fork extends through the first fork-receiving aperture without contacting the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet located in the first upper chamber.   
     
     
         2 . The stack of  claim 1 , wherein the platform of the second pallet includes an inner deck and an outer frame coupled to the inner deck to extend around the inner deck and the inner deck and the outer frame cooperate to establish a support surface arranged to face upwardly away from the first pallet and adapted to support goods thereon. 
     
     
         3 . The stack of  claim 2 , wherein the outer frame of the second pallet includes first, second, third, and fourth corners spaced-apart from one another so as to define four sides of the second pallet and a first lift-unit register positioned to lie between and arranged to interconnect the first second corners. 
     
     
         4 . The stack of  claim 3 , wherein the first lift-unit anchor is coupled to the first lift-unit register and arranged to extend downwardly away from the first lift-unit anchor toward the first pallet through the first anchor-receiving aperture and into the first upper chamber. 
     
     
         5 . The stack of  claim 1 , wherein the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet includes an anchor-perimeter wall and a floor coupled to the anchor-perimeter wall and positioned to lie in spaced-apart relation below the platform, the floor is arranged to lie in the first upper chamber of the first pallet and is arranged to mate with the first partition of the first pallet to cause the second pallet to be supported by the first pallet there below. 
     
     
         6 . The stack of  claim 5 , wherein the anchor-perimeter wall is arranged to extend upwardly away from the floor of the second pallet and the anchor-perimeter wall includes an outer wall formed to include the first fork-receiving aperture, an inner wall positioned to lie in spaced-apart relation to the outer wall and formed to include a second fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first lower chamber to allow the first fork to extend through, in series, the first fork-receiving aperture, the first lower chamber, and the second fork-receiving aperture, a first side wall arranged to interconnect the inner and outer walls, and a second side wall positioned to lie in spaced-apart relation to the first side wall and arranged to interconnect the inner and outer walls. 
     
     
         7 . The stack of  claim 6 , wherein the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet further includes a support tab appended to the first side wall and arranged to extend away from the first side wall toward the second side wall while laying in the upper chamber of the first pallet. 
     
     
         8 . The stack of  claim 1 , further comprising a third pallet stacked on the second pallet to cause the second pallet to be located between the third pallet and the first pallet, the second pallet is formed to include a first cavity, the second pallet includes a first partition arranged to extend into the first cavity to cause the first cavity to be divided into a first upper chamber and a first lower chamber, the platform of the second pallet is formed to include a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first upper chamber to admit a first lift unit anchor of the third pallet therein, the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet is formed to include a first fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first lower chamber to admit the first fork of the fork truck, and the first partition is configured to provide means for separating the upper and lower chambers to cause the first fork of the fork truck to be received into the first lower chamber of the second pallet when the first fork extends through the first fork-receiving aperture of the second pallet without contacting the first lift-unit anchor of the third pallet and the top wall of the first pallet. 
     
     
         9 . The stack of  claim 8 , wherein the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet includes an anchor-perimeter wall, a floor coupled to the anchor-perimeter wall and positioned to lie in the first upper chamber of the first pallet when the second pallet is stacked on the first pallet, and a support tab coupled the floor and to the anchor-perimeter wall to extend upwardly into the first lower chamber formed in the second pallet. 
     
     
         10 . The stack of  claim 9 , wherein the first lift-unit anchor of the third pallet includes an anchor-perimeter wall and a floor coupled to the anchor-perimeter wall and the floor is positioned to lie in the first upper chamber of the second pallet. 
     
     
         11 . The stack of  claim 10 , wherein the first partition of the second pallet is formed in response to mating the support tab included in the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet with the floor included in the first lift-unit anchor of the third pallet. 
     
     
         12 . The stack of  claim 1 , wherein the first pallet includes, in series, a first side, a second side, a third side, and a fourth side, and the first, second, third, and fourth sides cooperate to establish an exterior wall of the second pallet and has a rectangular shape. 
     
     
         13 . The stack of  claim 12 , wherein the first side of the first pallet includes a first corner, a second corner positioned to lie in spaced-apart relation to the first corner, and an outer section arranged to lie between and to interconnect the first and the second corners, and the first cavity, the first anchor-receiving aperture, and the first fork-receiving aperture are formed in the outer section between the first and the second corners. 
     
     
         14 . The stack of  claim 13 , wherein the outer section is formed to include a second cavity spaced-apart from the first cavity of the first pallet and arranged to lie between the first cavity of the first pallet and the second corner. 
     
     
         15 . The stack of  claim 14 , wherein the outer section is formed to include a second anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the second cavity to admit a second lift-unit anchor included in the second pallet and a second fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the second cavity to admit a second fork included in the fork truck. 
     
     
         16 . The stack of  claim 15 , wherein the first pallet further includes a second partition arranged to divide the second cavity into a second upper chamber communicating with the second anchor-receiving aperture and a second lower chamber communicating with the second fork-receiving aperture and the second partition is configured to provide means for separating the upper and lower chambers of the second cavity to cause the second fork of the fork truck to be received into the second lower chamber when the second fork extends through the second fork-receiving aperture without contacting the second lift-unit anchor of the second pallet located in the second upper chamber. 
     
     
         17 . The stack of  claim 1 , wherein the first pallet and the second pallet are each monolithic. 
     
     
         18 . A stack of pallets comprising
 a first pallet including an inner deck, a first lift-unit register coupled to the inner deck and formed to include a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into a first upper chamber formed in the first lift-unit register, and a first lift-unit anchor coupled to the first lift-unit register to extend downwardly between the first lift-unit register and ground underlying the first pallet, the first lift-unit anchor is formed to include a first fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into a first lower chamber formed in the first lift-unit anchor,   a second pallet stacked on the first pallet, and   a third pallet stacked on the second pallet to locate the second pallet between the first and the third pallets,   wherein the second pallet includes   an inner deck adapted to support goods thereon for transport and storage,   an outer frame appended to the inner deck and arranged to extend around the inner deck, and   a first lift-unit anchor coupled to the outer frame to extend downwardly from the outer frame toward the first lift-unit register of the first pallet, the first lift-unit anchor is arranged to extend through the first anchor-receiving aperture to mate with the first lift-unit register of the first pallet to cause unintended movement of the second pallet relative to the first pallet to be minimized and formed to include a first fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into a first lower chamber formed in the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet, and the first lower chamber of the second pallet lies in the first upper chamber of the first pallet.   
     
     
         19 . The stack of  claim 18 , wherein the inner deck of the second pallet and the outer frame of the second pallet cooperate to establish a top wall arranged to face toward an underside of the third pallet. 
     
     
         20 . The stack of  claim 19 , wherein the second pallet further includes an inner lift-unit anchor positioned to lie in spaced-apart relation to the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet below the inner deck of the second pallet, the inner lift-unit anchor is coupled to the inner deck of the second pallet to extend downwardly away from the inner deck of the second pallet toward the inner deck of the first pallet to cause the inner deck of the second pallet to be supported by the inner deck of the first pallet. 
     
     
         21 . The stack of  claim 20 , wherein the inner lift-unit anchor of the second pallet is formed to include a first inner cavity and a first inner fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first inner cavity to cause a first fork included in a fork truck to be admitted into the first inner cavity after passing through the first fork-receiving aperture and first lower chamber of the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet. 
     
     
         22 . The stack of  claim 21 , wherein the first inner fork-receiving aperture and the first fork-receiving aperture are arranged to lie in collinear relation to one another to cause a fork-travel passageway to be established. 
     
     
         23 . The stack of  claim 18 , wherein the first pallet, the second pallet, and the third pallet are each monolithic. 
     
     
         24 . A stack of pallets comprising
 a first pallet formed to include a cavity, the first pallet including a platform formed to include a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the first cavity and a first lift-unit anchor coupled to the platform and arranged to extend downwardly between the platform and ground underlying the first pallet to support the platform in spaced-apart relation above the ground,   a second pallet stacked on the first pallet, the second pallet being formed to include a cavity and a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the cavity of the second pallet, and the second pallet including a platform and a first lift-unit anchor arranged to extend downwardly away from the platform of the second pallet through the first anchor-receiving aperture of the first pallet, and   a third pallet stacked on the second pallet, the third pallet being formed to include a cavity and a first anchor-receiving aperture arranged to open into the cavity of the third pallet, and the third pallet including a platform and a first lift-unit anchor arranged to extend downwardly away from the platform of the third pallet through the first anchor-receiving aperture of the second pallet,   wherein the first lift-unit anchor of the second pallet includes an anchor-perimeter wall formed to include a first fork-receiving aperture arranged to open into the cavity of the second pallet, a floor coupled to the anchor-perimeter wall in spaced-apart relation to the platform of the second pallet, the anchor-perimeter wall is arranged to extend between and interconnect the floor and the platform of the second pallet, and a first partition configured to provide means for separating the first cavity of the second pallet into a first upper chamber configured to communicate with the first anchor-receiving aperture formed in the platform of the second pallet so that the first lift-unit anchor of the third pallet is positioned to lie in the first upper chamber of the second pallet and a first lower chamber configured to communicate with the first fork-receiving aperture formed in the anchor-perimeter wall so that a first fork of a fork truck is received through the first fork-receiving aperture into the first lower chamber when the first fork extends through the first fork-receiving aperture without contacting the first lift-unit anchor of the third pallet and the platform of the first pallet.