Portable storage container with integral ramp

Claim 1

A portable storge container, comprising: a plurality of walls, including a top wall, a bottom wall, two side walls and an end wall, said walls defining an oblong, rectilinear, unitary enclosure having two rectangular ends, with said enclosure being closed at one said end and open at the other said end, and said enclosure being freely supported on an underlying stationary surface by said bottom wall; said open end being defined by horizontal upper and lower edges and two vertical side edges; a pair of rectangular doors hingedly connected to said side edges such that said doors are pivotable about vertical axes between open and closed positions, said doors being of substantially equal width and height; said doors in said closed position having upper edges closely spaced with said upper edge of said open end, lower edges closely spaced with said lower edge of said open end, outer edges closely spaced with said side edges of said open end, and inner edges closely spaced to one another, such that said doors substantially entirely seal said open end when in their said closed positions; and a rectangular ramp hingedly connected to said lower edge of said open end for movements between a stowed, upright position and a lowered position, said ramp in said raised position being substantially adjacent to and supported by said doors when in their said closed positions, and said ramp having an outer edge being substantially adjacent to said stationary surface when said ramp is in said lowered position wherein the inner edge of the ramp is substantially flush with an inner floor surface of the container when the ramp is in its lower position; further comprising means for locking the doors in their closed position; said locking means includes outside lock means for locking and unlocking a first one of said two doors to be enclosure from the exterior thereof and inside lock means operable from the interior of said enclosure for locking and unlocking the second one of said doors to said enclosure from the interior thereof; said outside lock means inludes at least a first lock bar slidably mounted to the interior of said first door for movements between extended and retracted positions, and walls defining an opening in said enclosure registered with said lock bar for receiving said first lock bar in its said extended position, and a handle movably mounted to the exterior of said first door and connected to said first lock bar is movable between said extended and said retracted positions by movement of said handle; and means for guarding the means for locking, said means for guarding including a partial enclosure for the means for locking fixed to an external surface of one of the doors.