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A wheel-shaped suitcase composed of a hard, circular shell with durable canvas sidewalls. The cylindrical shape contains an axle through its center, allowing for attachment of an extendable y-shaped handle so that luggage can be pushed or pulled with ease. The interior of Wheeluggage is separated into
zippered compartments, to keep your things more or less as you packed them. If you have more items than fit into the wheel shape, simply unzip Wheeluggage's sidewalls and fold out its extra storage space (thus transforming Wheeluggage into Balluggage).
Pros:
1. Easier to push or pull than traditional block-style luggage.
2. Save $5 each time you might otherwise rent an airport pushcart.
Cons:
1. Not good for carrying items that can't be shaken up.
2. Requires slightly more careful packing of items, to avoid off-balance rotation.
3. Might roll away.
Also available:
* "Bicycle" attachment, connecting two Wheeluggages in-line and allowing a passenger to ride in between.
* Bouncy-balluggage, for the kids.
* "Hitch" attachment for towing behind your car (good idea, [Twizz]!).
Possible Prior Art?
http://cgi.ebay.com...C293%3A1%7C294%3A50
[21 Quest, Jun 22 2009]
Close
http://cgi.ebay.com...C293%3A1%7C294%3A50
[21 Quest, Jun 22 2009]
Like this but for clothes?
http://www.metaeffi...-water-carrier.html
A water roller close to the above description. [Aristotle, Jun 23 2009]
Handle-bars like this (thanks [Aristotle]!)
http://www.homedepo...fa181a550bf_400.jpg
image of a "lawn roller" -- the handle is similar to Wheeluggages' except that Wheeluggage's doesn't need the cross-bar reinforcement because the handle locks into the axle [swimswim, Jun 23 2009, last modified Jun 26 2009]
[link]
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You left out a major con: wouldn't fit in overhead baggage
compartments, would fit awkwardly at best in a trunk loaded
with other bags, and would be a pain in the ass to lift into and
out of said places if you *did* manage to get it in. This thing
would have to be about the size of a car tire to be worth it, and,
while I can't speak for everyone, I drive a full-size sedan and
can't fit 4 tires in the trunk, but I can fit 4 large, rectangle-shaped
suitcases + 4 backpacks, a diaper bag, and a stroller, in addition
to the full-size spare that sits under the floorboard, a hydraulic
floor-jack, jumper cables, a roadside emergency kit, and a Bucket
O' Bungees. It's a matter of stackability and packability, and a
wheel-shaped suitcase does not fit (pun fully intended) that
requirement for luggage. |
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Why would you fit them into the boot of your car, when you could tow them behind? |
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I like the bicycle idea - perhaps add a motor to one? |
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As a variation of the idea, how about rectangular (21Q friendly) luggage with large diameter inflatable wheels? The luggage space stays upright, the inflatable wheels provide plenty of compliance to rough ground and pack away easily in a pocket on each side of the case. A built in hand pump would complete the system. |
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//wouldn't fit in overhead baggage compartments//
If it was big / heavy enough to need wheels in the first place, it was always going to go in the hold. [+] |
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Water carriers have had this same basic design for ages (see link). |
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[Aristotle]: that's a great picture to illustrate the Wheeluggage concept. The main differences are I that had envisioned Wheeluggage's handle-bar with an additional single bar sticking out from the U-shape, making it into a sort of Y-shape; and that Wheeluggage has expandable canvas side-walls. |
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Sounds like a classic lawn roller handle design. |
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That water roller looks more like a hardsided duffle than
anything, and is a pretty good design. I missed the bit about the
cylindrical shape when I first read it, sorry! You don't really need
an
axle, per se, because you could just have attachment points for
handles located symmetrically on the ends of it. An axle running
through the length of the thing would just add weight and limit
your packing options. Completely uneccessary. Oh, and I found a
nice little croissant here, sandwiched between some clothes in
my duffle. [+] |
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We're still working out the mechanics of the duffle style. But our marketing department has already decided on "Loggage" as the product name. |
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hmm... might I most humbly suggest a "soft" handle like a rope that goes from one side to the other rather than an aluminium frame. |
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I haven't been able to decide about this, but I keep picturing using it as a baby stroller!! hah! |
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//Not good for carrying items that can't be shaken up// |
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An inner cylinder could rotate freely on an axle, keeping it still while the outer rotates. [+] |
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finally a use for all those bald used tires you see at the dragstrip [+] |
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