Patent Application
20210122506
Exemplary embodiments of the disclosure relate to packaging products and to methods for implementing packaging products. More particularly, embodiments relate to packaging products with an open side and methods for attaching such packaging products to other fully-enclosed packaging products.
Distributors and sellers of products often package such products in shipping containers before sending such products to their customers. Customers often purchase or order for shipping several different products from a distributor or seller in a single transaction. In response, distributors and sellers often group all products to be shipped to a single customer together and package them in a single shipping container (e.g., in a box large enough to package the group of products). Grouping products in this manner can reduce the cost of shipping materials and other shipping expenses compared to packaging and shipping the products individually.
Distributors and sellers often sell products that they acquire from other manufacturers, wholesalers, distributors, retailers, suppliers, sellers, etc. Some such products include product packaging that is already sufficient for shipping (e.g., provides enough protection to the product for transportation) so that the product does not need to be enclosed in an additional shipping container (e.g., in a box). It is not unusual for a customer to purchase a group of products from a distributor or seller in a single transaction where one or more of the products include product packaging that is sufficient for shipping, while other products in the order require additional packaging for shipping. In such situations, distributors and sellers often package the product that is ready for shipping with all of the other products to be shipped inside of an even larger shipping container. This approach leads to inefficient use of packaging materials because it results in a package that is ready for shipping becoming re-packaged inside of another entirely separate shipping container.
Alternatively, distributors and sellers sometimes package the products that are not ready for shipping inside of an appropriately sized shipping container and ship them separately from the product that was previously made ready for shipping. This approach leads to more efficient use of packaging materials than the re-packaging method described above. However, this approach also leads to inefficient use of packaging materials because the newly packaged product(s) have to be fully enclosed within a shipping container.
The present disclosure relates to a method for preparing a packaged product and one or more unpackaged products for shipping. The method includes providing a shipping container generally sized to accommodate the unpackaged product(s). The shipping container has a plurality of walls and a bottom that define an interior of the shipping container, and each of the walls has an edge that cooperates to define an open side of the shipping container. The method further includes inserting the unpackaged product(s) into the shipping container, and attaching the shipping container to the packaged product such that (a wall of) the packaged product closes or covers the open side of the shipping container.
Other embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a shipping container that includes a bottom surface and a plurality of walls extending from the bottom surface. Each wall has an edge opposite the bottom surface. The edges collectively define an open side of the shipping container. The shipping container also includes one or more flaps extending from the edges. The flaps are sized such that the open side of the shipping container remains substantially uncovered by the flaps when the flaps are folded towards the interior of the shipping container.
In yet another embodiment, a method for creating customized packaging for a plurality of items on-demand is disclosed, the plurality of items including a packaged item and one or more unpackaged items. The method includes accessing an informational store and retrieving, for each of said plurality of items, dimensional information about said plurality of items. The one or more unpackaged items are arranged into one or more model arrangements to determine if the one or more unpackaged items can be arranged to fit within two dimensions of at least one side surface of the package item. One of the model arrangements constituting an optimized model arrangement. The dimensions of the optimized model arrangement are calculated to produce a customized package template sized particularly for the one or more unpackaged items when the one or more unpackaged items are arranged and positioned consistent with the optimized model arrangement. A customized packaging template is designed based on the calculated dimensions of the optimized model arrangement. The customized package template, when erected into a package, has a bottom, a plurality of side walls, and an open side opposite the bottom.
To further clarify the above and other advantages and features of the present disclosure, a more particular description of the invention will be rendered by reference to specific embodiments thereof which are illustrated in the appended drawings. It is appreciated that these drawings depict only typical embodiments of the invention and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope. The invention will be described and explained with additional specificity and detail through the use of the accompanying drawings, in which:
Before describing various embodiments of the present disclosure in detail, it is to be understood that this disclosure is not limited to the parameters of the particularly exemplified systems, methods, apparatus, products, processes, and/or kits, which may, of course, vary. Thus, while certain embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail, with reference to specific configurations, parameters, components, elements, etc., the descriptions are illustrative and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the claimed invention. In addition, the terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing the embodiments, and is not necessarily intended to limit the scope of the claimed to invention.
Distributors and sellers of products often offer for sale products that include product packaging that is sufficient for shipping (“packaged products” hereafter) as well as products that require additional packaging for shipping (“unpackaged products” hereafter). For example, a printer may often be considered a packaged product because printers offered for sale by distributors and sellers are often packaged inside of a cardboard box with foam padding sufficient for shipping. On the other hand, bottles of wine, whether offered for sale as bottles alone or as bottles encased within ornamental boxes, may often be considered unpackaged products because they often require additional packaging before becoming ready for shipping. Other examples of unpackaged products include toys, tools, watches, office supplies, and the like because the packagings for such products do not offer protection sufficient for shipping.
It is not uncommon for consumers to purchase or order for shipping a combination of packaged products and unpackaged products. Existing methods for filling such purchases or orders include packaging all products to be shipped inside of a shipping container (e.g. a six-sided box) with a volume that is calculated to provide enough protection to the products for transportation while trying to maximize efficient use of packaging materials (e.g., minimizing empty space to be filled with additional packaging material). This method is preferred in many instances, particularly when the purchase or order to be filled consists solely of unpackaged products. However, when the purchase or order to be filled consists of a combination of packaged products and unpackaged products, this method leads to duplicative packaging because it results in a packaged product that is ready for shipping becoming repackaged inside of another entirely separate shipping container. Repackaging products leads to excessive use of cardboard and other packaging materials, which increases business costs for distributors and sellers. Furthermore, shipping costs often depend on the size and weight of the object(s) to be shipped. The size and weight of the object(s) to be shipped are both increased by repackaging packaged products inside of a larger shipping container and filling empty space with packaging materials, thus increasing shipping costs and further increasing business costs for distributors and sellers.
Another method for filling such purchases or orders is enclosing all unpackaged products inside of a shipping container (e.g. a six-sided box) with a volume that is calculated to provide enough protection to the products for transportation while trying to maximize efficient use of packaging materials. The shipping container may then be shipped to the consumer separately from a packaged product, or be bundled with a packaged product (e.g., using cords, straps) and then shipped to the consumer. This method, although more efficient than the former method of enclosing all products to be shipped inside of a larger shipping container, also leads to inefficient use of packaging materials because the smaller items still have to be fully enclosed in a shipping container (e.g., in the case of bundling, the sidewall area that is shared between the two shipping containers comprises extra, unnecessary layers of packaging material), and possibly be shipped separately from other products to be shipped to the same consumer.
The embodiments described herein extend to shipping containers and methods for implementing shipping containers which are configured to, for example, promote efficient use of packaging materials by eliminating unnecessary layers of packaging material to reduce duplicative packaging of products to be shipped and/or reduce excessive use of packaging materials in preparing products for shipping. The shipping containers and methods described herein, when implemented, decrease business costs for distributors and sellers by reducing unnecessary use of packaging materials and by reducing the size and weight of objects to be shipped.
In some embodiments, one or more of the dimensions of the shipping container 110 may be determined by a combination of the dimensions of an arrangement of the unpackaged products 104 and at least two dimensions of the packaged product 104. For instance, as shown in
Furthermore, the heights of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 (e.g., the distance between the edges 124, 126, 128, and 130 and the bottom 122) may be determined and manufactured to be at least as tall as the arrangement of the unpackaged items 104. In some embodiments, the heights of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 may be taller than the arrangement of unpackaged products 104 such that the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 extend above the arrangement of unpackaged items 104. For instance, the heights of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 may be 0.25 inches, 0.5 inches, 0.75 inches, 1.0 inches, 1.25 inches, 1.5 inches, 1.75 inches, 2.0 inches, or more taller than the arrangement of unpackaged products 104.
Manufacturing the shipping container 110 so that the dimensions of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 generally correspond to the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102 and so that the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 are taller than the arrangement of unpackaged products 104 can facilitate attachment of the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 110 with the unpackaged products 104 therein. For instance, as shown in
With the side of the packaged product 102 inserted into the open side 112 of the shipping container 110, the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 110 may be secured together to form a single package that may be shipped to the customer. The packaged product 102 and the shipping container 110 can be secured together in a variety of ways. For instance, one or more strips of adhesive tape may be applied across the joint formed between the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 110 (e.g., so that the adhesive tape attaches to the surfaces of both the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 104). The packaged product 102 and the shipping container 110 may also be secured together with an adhesive applied between the overlapping portions thereof (e.g., the exterior surface of the package product 102 and the interior surface of the shipping container 110 that overlap one another).
The additional height of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 above the arrangement of unpackaged products 104 may allow the shipping container 110 to a least partially overlap the packaged product 102. The overlapping portions created by the additional height of the sides 114, 116, 118, 120 can help maintain the alignment of and the attachment between the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 104.
This arrangement of the packaged product 102 and the shipping container 104 can reduce the number of unnecessary layers of shipping material used to prepare combinations of packaged products and unpackaged products for shipping. Embodiments of this configuration allow for the shipping container 110 and the packaged product 102 to be shipped together, without enclosing them all within an even larger shipping container, thus reducing shipping costs and avoiding costs associated with excessive use of packaging materials.
As can be seen in
In some embodiments, a cubing software can be used to determine if the unpackaged products 104 can be arranged to fit within the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102 or an area slightly bigger than the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102. The cubing software may have the dimensions of each of the unpackaged products 104 input or stored therein. The cubing software may use the dimensions of the unpackaged products 104 to determine whether the unpackaged products 104 can be arranged to fit within the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102 or an area slightly bigger than the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102 (collectively referred to herein as fitting within the dimensions of at least one side of the package product). For instance, the cubing software may virtually rotate and arrange the unpackaged products 104 to determine if an arrangement, or an ideal or optimized arrangement, exists that fits within the dimensions of a least one side of the packaged product 102.
If the cubing software determines that the unpackaged products 104 can be arranged to fit within the dimensions of at least one side of the packaged product 102, the cubing software can design a shipping container with interior dimensions that can accommodate the unpackaged products 104 therein and allow for a side of the packaged product 102 to be inserted therein as shown in
Preparing packaged products and unpackaged products for shipment in the manner discussed herein can save significant packaging resources. For instance, rather than creating a shipping container large enough to entirely enclose both the packaged products 102 and the unpackaged products 104 or just the unpackaged products 104, the embodiments disclosed herein can reduce the amount of packaging material used by up to 80%. The significant savings can be achieved because the shipping containers do not have to fully enclose both the package products 102 and the unpackaged products 104. Moreover, the shipping containers do not even have to fully enclose the unpackaged products 104. Rather, the shipping container only surrounds five sides of the unpackaged products and uses a side of the package product to close or cover the sixth side of the unpackaged products.
The embodiments of the present disclosure can also significantly reduce shipping costs associated with shipping the packaged products 102 and the unpackaged products 104. For instance, using less packaging material to package the products as discussed above can reduce the weight of the shipped package, which can significantly reduce the associated shipping costs. Additionally, shipping one package instead of two or more packages can also significantly reduce the shipping costs.
It will be appreciated that a packaged product and a shipping container containing one or more unpackaged products may be secured to one another in a variety of ways. For instance, if the unpackaged products 104 can fit within a shipping container that is substantially smaller than a side of the packaged product 102, the unpackaged products 104 may be packaged in a substantially smaller shipping container, which can then be attached to a side of the packaged product 102. For instance,
The edges 124, 126, 128, and 130 may become affixed to any face of the packaged product 102. The edges 124, 126, 128, and 130 that become affixed to the face 150 of the packaged product 102 may take any position on the face 150, as long as at least a portion of each edge 124, 126, 128, and 130 is attached to the face 150 of the packaged product 102 or an edge of the face 150. Embodiments of this configuration allow the face 150 of the packaged product 102 to which the shipping container 110 is attached to serve as a containing wall for both the packaged product 102 and the unpackaged products 104 placed within the shipping container 110. This reduces the number of unnecessary layers of shipping material used to prepare combinations of packaged products and unpackaged products for shipping. Embodiments of this configuration also allow for the shipping container 110 and the packaged product 102 to be shipped together, without enclosing them all within an even larger shipping container, thus reducing shipping costs and avoiding costs associated with excessive use of packaging materials.
In addition to the adhesives mentioned above, the edges of the shipping container 110 may be affixed to the face 150 (or edges thereof) of the packaged product 102 in a variety of ways. For example,
Some embodiments of the shipping container 210 may include one flap 240 for each edge that defines the open side 212, or may have fewer or more flaps 240 than edges that define the open side 212. For example, a shipping container 210 may have one, two, three, or more than four flaps attached to its edges. Embodiments of the shipping container 210 may contain any combination of edges with or without flaps 240 extending from or attached to them.
The flaps 240 may be specifically designed to facilitate attachment to a packaged product 202. For example, a flap may extend two inches, three inches, four inches, five inches, etc. from the edge to which it is attached. In some embodiments, the flaps 240 of a shipping container 210 may be designed to have a combined surface area (i.e., the combined surface area of one major surface for each flap) that does not enclose the open side 212. For instance, the combined surface area of the flaps 240 of a shipping container 210 may be less than 25%, 20%, 15%, 10%, or 5% of the area of the open side 212.
The flaps described in
The foregoing description pertains to open-sided shipping containers configured for and/or including attachment features that facilitate attachment to a packaged product. Although the foregoing description has primarily concerned shipping containers with a rectangular box geometry, other embodiments may include shipping containers with other geometries. For example, a shipping container may have a pyramidal geometry.
The foregoing description also discloses strips of adhesive tape and other adhesives as means for attaching open-sided shipping containers to packaged products, but the scope of the disclosure is not limited to such means for attaching. Furthermore, the foregoing description describes flaps which could be directed inward or outward and extend along a perpendicular or parallel face of a packaged product. The description shall not be construed as limiting the types of flap configurations that could be implemented into the disclosed shipping containers. For example, flaps may vary in length and size, depending on the size and weight of the products to be shipped, or other considerations.
Elements described in relation to any embodiment depicted and/or described herein may be substituted for or combined with elements described in relation to any other embodiment depicted and/or described herein. For example, a shipping container may include two edges with flaps and two edges without flaps or two edges with inwardly directed flaps and two edges with outwardly directed flaps, and may be affixed to a face of a packaged product by a combination of adhesive tape and other adhesives.
Reference has been made to the drawings to describe various aspects of exemplary embodiments of the invention. It is understood that the drawings are diagrammatic and schematic representations of such exemplary embodiments, and are not limiting of the present invention, nor are any particular elements to be considered essential for all embodiments or that elements be assembled or manufactured in any particular order or manner. No inference should therefore be drawn from the drawings as to the necessity of any element. In the foregoing description, numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. It will be obvious, however, to one of ordinary skill in the art that the present invention may be practiced without these specific details. In other cases, well known aspects of packaging materials, packaging methods and related devices and methods, general manufacturing techniques, and the like are not described in detail herein in order to avoid unnecessarily obscuring the novel aspects of the present invention.
This application claims priority to and the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/560,514, filed Sep. 19, 2017, and entitled OPEN-SIDED SHIPPING CONTAINER AND METHODS OF USE, the entire content of which is incorporated herein by this reference.
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/US2018/049228 | 8/31/2018 | WO | 00 |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 62560514 | Sep 2017 | US |
