Pallet Constructed Substantially From Corrugated Cardboard and Paperboard

Abstract

A pallet constructed substantially entirely of recycled corrugated cardboard and/or paperboard materials, having a top deck comprising a planar laminate of corrugated cardboard and/or paperboard materials, and a plurality of spacers affixed to the top deck and projecting downwardly from the bottom surface thereof. The spacers comprise part-cylindrical portions of wound multilayer paperboard tubes, i.e., wound multilayer paperboard tubes that have been cut along a plane passing through or parallel to the central longitudinal axis of the tube. The part-tubes are affixed to the top deck such that the outer cylindrical surfaces of the part-tubes engage the floor or ground on which the pallet is supported. The pallet has the part-tubes arranged in three straight rows parallel to a first direction lying in the plane of the top deck and spaced apart along a second direction lying in the plane of the top deck and perpendicular to the first direction.

1 . A pallet constructed from recycled paper materials, comprising:
 a top deck made substantially entirely of paper material, the top deck comprising a planar laminate of multiple layers, the layers including at least one of corrugated cardboard material and non-corrugated paperboard material, the top deck having a planar top surface for supporting items, and a planar bottom surface; and   a plurality of spacers affixed to the top deck and projecting downwardly from the bottom surface thereof, the spacers comprising part-tubes formed by cutting wound multilayer paperboard tubes along a plane parallel to the central longitudinal axis of each tube, the part-tubes being affixed to the top deck such that the outer cylindrical surfaces of the part-tubes engage the floor or ground on which the pallet is supported, the spacers spacing the top deck above the floor or ground, wherein there are openings defined between the spacers for receiving lifting members used for lifting the pallet off the floor or ground, and wherein the spacers are arranged in three straight rows parallel to a first direction lying in the plane of the top deck and spaced apart along a second direction lying in the plane of the top deck and perpendicular to the first direction.   
     
     
         2 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein each row is made up of at least one part-tube and has a length spanning at least a majority of a corresponding length of the top deck. 
     
     
         3 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein each row of spacers is made up of a single part-tube forming the full length of the row. 
     
     
         4 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein each row of spacers is made up of a plurality of part-tubes spaced apart along the first direction. 
     
     
         5 . The pallet according to  claim 4 , wherein each row of spacers is made up of three part-tubes spaced apart in the first direction, and the spacers of each row are aligned, with respect to the second direction, with the spacers of the other rows, such that the spacers form a 3×3 orthogonal grid. 
     
     
         6 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein the spacers are affixed to the top deck using adhesive. 
     
     
         7 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein the top deck is a laminate of both corrugated and non-corrugated sheets of paperboard. 
     
     
         8 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein the top deck is rectangular or square in plan view, having two edges parallel to the first direction and two edges parallel to the second direction. 
     
     
         9 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein the spacers have a maximum width in the second direction and adjacent spacers are spaced apart in the second direction by distances greater than said maximum width. 
     
     
         10 . The pallet according to  claim 1 , wherein the top deck further comprises a polymer layer.