Patent Application
20210053747
The present invention relates to a pack for a tobacco industry product such as smoking articles. In particular, the invention relates to a hinged-lid pack having a base containing a bundle of smoking articles and a lid mounted to the base for rotation between open and closed positions to enable access to the bundle of smoking articles to be obtained.
Smoking articles, such as cigarettes, are sold in packs. Known packs often comprise an outer carton made from cardboard which has a base and a hinged lid. The base contains a bundle of smoking articles. The smoking articles are wrapped in a flexible barrier layer having a section to define an extraction opening to facilitate removal of a smoking is article from the pack by a consumer when the lid is open. The opening is closed by a flexible label which extends over, and is attached to, the removable section and to the lid so that the label is peeled back by a consumer simultaneously on opening the lid to reveal the extraction opening. A peripheral region of the label may be coated with a non-permanent re-sealable adhesive where it overlaps the barrier layer around the edge of the opening so that the label can be peeled back and replaced a number of times to re-seal the pack and maintain freshness of the smoking articles remaining in the pack.
In accordance with embodiments of the invention, there is provided a pack comprising:
The intermediate portion may comprise a reduction in the cumulative width relative to the first region, measured perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the label.
The intermediate region may progressively narrow from the first region to the second region.
A cut out in the label may form a window in the intermediate region.
The intermediate region may comprise recesses extending from edges of the label so that the cumulative width of the intermediate region is less than the cumulative width of the first and second regions.
The cumulative width of the intermediate region of the label may be between 80% and 50%; or between 80% and 60% of the width of the first region of the label.
The cumulative width of the intermediate region of the label may be about 70% of the width of the first region of the label.
The intermediate region of the label may comprise shaped cuts which define a portion of the intermediate region that is free to move independently of the rest of the label, such that, as the lid is rotated towards its open position, said portion of the intermediate region remains in the plane defined by the second region of the label.
The portion of the intermediate region defined by the shaped cuts may be permanently adhered to the lid so that, as the lid is rotated between open and closed positions, said portion of the intermediate region remains in the plane defined by the front wall of the lid.
The label material of the intermediate region may be weakened relative to the first and second regions.
The intermediate portion may comprise lines of weakening that extend across the intermediate portion, between longitudinal edges of the label.
The lines of weakening may comprise score lines and/or embossed fold lines and/or lines of perforations.
Also in accordance with embodiments of the invention, there is provided a label comprising first and second first regions and an intermediate portion extending between said first and second regions, wherein the intermediate portion of the label is weaker than each of the first and second regions.
The intermediate portion may comprise a reduction in the cumulative width relative to the first region, measured perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the label.
The intermediate region may progressively narrow from the first region to the second region.
A cut out in the label may form a window in the intermediate region.
The intermediate region may comprise recesses extending in from edges of the label so that the cumulative width of the intermediate region is also less than the cumulative width of the second region.
The cumulative width of the intermediate region of the label may be between 80% and 50%; or between 80% and 60% of the width of the first region of the label.
The cumulative width of the intermediate region of the label may be about 70% of the width of the first region of the label.
The intermediate region of the label may comprise shaped cuts which define a flap in the intermediate region.
The label material of the intermediate region may be weakened relative to the first and second regions.
The intermediate portion may comprise lines of weakening that extend across the intermediate portion, between longitudinal edges of the label.
The lines of weakening may comprise score lines and/or embossed fold lines and/or lines of perforations.
Adhesive may be applied to the first and second regions.
The adhesive may be applied to a first surface of the label forming the first region and to a second surface of the label forming the second region, the first and second surfaces being on opposite sides of the label.
Also in accordance with embodiments of the invention, there is provided a method of weakening an intermediate portion of a label extending between first and second regions, comprising subjecting the intermediate portion to a laser cutting and/or scoring process.
Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:
The label 9 is made of a flexible thin sheet of material and comprises a first region 10 overlying the extraction opening 8 and section 5 a, prior to a first opening of the pack 1. This is shown most clearly in
A part of a first surface formed by the first region 10 of the label 9 facing the barrier layer 5, and section 5a, is coated with a re-stick adhesive. For the avoidance of doubt, the first surface of the label 9 is the underside of the label, that is, the side of the label 9 facing the barrier material.
Alternatively, a permanent bonding adhesive may be applied to the portion of the underside of the first region 10 of the label 9 that overlaps section 5 a but does not extend beyond it, with a coating of re-stick adhesive applied to the peripheral portion. In use, the label 9 is peeled progressively from a lower edge 27 away from the bundle 6 to reveal the extraction opening 8 as described below. If re-stick adhesive is used to stick the label to the removable section 5a, the strength of that adhesive is selected so that the label will always remain adhered to the removable section 5a.
The lid 2 hinges with respect to the base 3 along a lower edge 13 of a rear wall 14 and further comprises a front wall 15 disposed opposite the rear wall 14 and separated by side panels 16, 17. Lower edges of the front wall 15, rear wall 14 and side panels 16, 17 define an opening through which the protruding part of the bundle 6 is received when the lid 2 is in its closed position.
A part of a second surface formed by a second region 12 of the label 9 is permanently adhered to the inside surface of the front wall 15 of the lid 2 so that the label 9 is peeled away from the barrier layer 5 simultaneously with opening of the lid 2. It shall be appreciated that the second surface of the label 9 is the opposite side of the label 9 to the first surface, so that the second surface faces away from the barrier layer 5.
When the lid 2 is pivoted about its hinge into its open position, the label 9 is also pulled due to the connection between the second region 12 of the label 9 and the lid 2. This results in the label 9 being peeled back or rolled away from the extraction opening 8 with the section 5a of the barrier layer 5 also being lifted away from the extraction opening 8 together with the label 9, as most clearly illustrated by
On first opening, the edge 7 of the extraction opening 8 separating section 5a from the remainder of the barrier layer 5 may be defined by lines of weakening in the barrier material 5 or by actual cuts so that, when the label 9 is pulled back, the section 5a of the barrier layer 5, which remains adhered to the underside of the first region 10 of the label 9, separates from the remainder of the barrier layer 5 along the lines of weakening or cuts to open the extraction opening 8. The consumer is then free to remove cigarettes 4 from the bundle 6 through the extraction opening 8. To reseal or close the extraction opening 8 the consumer moves the lid into its closed position and the label 9 is rolled back over the extraction opening 8 so that the peripheral portion of the label 9 re-adheres to the barrier layer 5 in a region surrounding the periphery of the extraction opening 8. The section 5a of barrier layer 5 formed by the separation when label 9 is peeled back is returned to its previous position within the extraction opening 8. Although there is a line of separation in the barrier layer 5, it is covered by the adhered peripheral portion of the label 9.
To ensure proper adhesion, an inner frame 18, as shown in
In the present embodiments, because the second surface of the second region 12 of the label 9 is attached to the lid 2, an intermediate portion 11, which extends between first and second regions 10, 12 of the label 9, forms an S shape fold when the lid 2 is in a partially opened state, as show in
The S shape fold exerts a force on the lid 2 which acts to resist rotation of the lid 2 away from its closed position. This makes the lid 2 quite tricky to open during initial rotation between its closed and partially open state shown in
It is one objective of the invention to provide a weakening in the intermediate portion 11 to reduce the force required to form the S shaped fold. Therefore the force required during initial rotation of the lid 2 is reduced making it easier to open.
More specifically, the weakening in the intermediate portion 11 reduces the bending stiffness of the label 9 so that the force applied to the lid by the intermediate portion as a result of the label's bending into an S-shape is reduced. Bending stiffness is defined as proportional to a product of the label's second moment of area and Young's modulus.
It shall be appreciated that, as the force exerted by the label 9 on the inside face of the front wall 15 of the lid 2 is reduced by embodiments of this invention, the permanent adhesive that adheres the label 9 to the inside face of the front wall 15 of the lid 2 is placed under less stress. This confers the further advantage that said permanent adhesive is less likely to fail—causing the label 9 to pull away from the lid—following repeated openings of the pack.
Labels 9 of embodiments of the invention are shown in
The weakening may be provided by a reduction in the cumulative width of the label 9 in the intermediate portion 11 relative to the first region 10. This has the effect of reducing the amount of label material in the intermediate portion 11 that must be bent into an S shape during initial opening the lid 2. As less material is being bent, less force is required to open the lid 2, partially alleviating the feeling of stickiness during initial opening.
In the present embodiments, the cumulative width of the label 9 is measured perpendicular to a longitudinal axis of the label 9, that is, the axis A-A which bisects lower and upper edges 27, 28 of the label 9.
Where the cumulative width of the intermediate portion 11 of the label 9 is reduced relative to the first region 10 by reducing the overall width of the intermediate portion 11, this may be achieved by stepping in opposing parallel sides of the intermediate portion 11 of the label 9, as shown in
It can also be desirable to have a minimum overall width of the second region 12 to ensure sufficient label area is presented for adhering to the inside face of the lid 2. This is achieved by stepping out opposing sides of label 9 in the second region 12 as shown in
Although only rectangular windows 26 are illustrated in the embodiment of
In another embodiment shown in
It shall be appreciated that the flap in the intermediate portion 11 defined by cuts 29 need not be adhered to the inside face of the lid 2 as this is not essential to provide the weakening effect. Instead said flap in the intermediate portion 11 may be free to move independently the rest of the label 9. The weakening effect is still provided as, regardless of whether said flap is adhered to the inside face of the lid 2, said flap does not contribute to the width of the label 9 bent into an S shape during initial opening of the lid 2.
It shall be further appreciated that cuts 29 need not be U shaped. Any shape that demarks a flap, or region, in the intermediate portion 11 for independent movement of the rest of the label 9 will confer the same technical advantage. For example, in another embodiment illustrated by
In another embodiment, the weakening may be provided by lines of weakening 30 that extend across the intermediate portion 11, perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the label 9. For example, in another embodiment shown in
In the embodiments described above with reference to
In the above described embodiments of the invention, the label material itself may be weakened in the intermediate portion 11 so that the material is inherently less resistant to bending. For example, labels of the type described above may be constructed from a laminate having layers of, for example, oriented polypropylene. It is envisaged that a layer of the laminate may be omitted from the intermediate portion 11 to reduce the local stiffness relative the first and second regions 10, 12 of the label.
In the above described embodiments, the lid 2 may further comprise a tuck in flap (not shown). Such flaps are conventional in the field of cigarette packs and represent an additional panel that extends from a lower edge of the front wall 15 lid 2 that is folded back against the inside face of the front wall and adhered thereto. The second region 12 of the label 9 is then adhered to the tuck in flap.
Packs are normally formed from paper card, but in some cases card having a metallised finish on one surface is used to give a shiny attractive appearance. It has been found that labels 9 like those described above do not adhere well to the shiny side of metallised card. In such cases it is desirable to provide an additional panel that extends from the tuck in flap and is folded back again so that the tuck in flap and the additional panel concertina against the inside surface of the front wall 15 of the lid 2. It is envisaged that labels 9 of the above described embodiments may also be used with such packs, wherein the provision of the additional panel presents a non-metallised surface for better adherence to the second region 12 of the label 9. The additional panel and the tuck in flap may be adhered together or may be free to hinge with respect to the front wall 15 of the lid 2 as desired.
To carry out the test a sample pack 1 was oriented so that it stands on a bottom face of the base 3 and secured in place. A hook was placed under the lower edge of the front wall 15 of the lid 3 and retracted vertically upwards to cause the lid 2 to rotate into the is open position. The force exerted by the hook was recorded with displacement: The peak force and the displacement at which peak force occurred were recorded. Referring to
The test results demonstrate that a reduction in the cumulative width of the intermediate portion 11 relative to the first region 10 results in a reduction in the peak force required opening the pack. In a preferred embodiment, the width of the intermediate portion 11 of the label 9 expressed as a percentage of the width of the first region 10 is between 80% and 50%; or, more preferably, between 80% and 60%; or, yet more preferably around 70%. However, embodiments in which the label is between 50% and 60% or between 50% and 70% are not excluded. The selection of the width of the intermediate portion 11 relative to the first region 10 will depend on the particular opening characteristics required.
The width of the first region of the label of the above described embodiments may be between 50 mm and 30 mm; or, more preferably, between 45 mm and 35 mm; or, yet more preferably, between 45 mm and 40 mm. In a particularly preferred embodiment, the width of the first region of the label is 42 mm wide. Said widths are overall widths measured between opposing longitudinal edges of the first region 10 of the label 9 at its widest point.
It shall be appreciated that the width of the first region 10 is largely necessitated by the requirement to cover the extraction opening which must be wide enough to allow a user to extract cigarettes 4.
As used herein, the term “tobacco industry product” is to be understood as including smoking articles comprising combustible smoking articles such as cigarettes, cigarillos, cigars, tobacco for pipes or for roll-your-own cigarettes, (whether based on tobacco, tobacco derivatives, expanded tobacco, reconstituted tobacco, tobacco substitutes or other smokable material), electronic smoking articles such as e-cigarettes, heating devices that release compounds from substrate materials without burning such as tobacco heating products; and hybrid systems to generate aerosol from a combination of substrate materials, for example hybrid systems containing a liquid or gel or solid substrate.
In one embodiment, the tobacco industry product is a smoking article for combustion selected from the group consisting of a cigarette, a cigarillo and a cigar.
In one embodiment, the tobacco industry product is a non-combustible smoking article.
In one embodiment the tobacco industry product is a heating device which releases compounds by heating, but not burning, a substrate material. The material may be for example tobacco or other non-tobacco products, which may or may not contain nicotine. In one embodiment the heating device is a tobacco heating device.
In another embodiment the tobacco industry product is a hybrid system to generate aerosol by heating, but not burning, a combination of substrate materials. The substrate materials may comprise for example solid, liquid or gel which may or may not contain nicotine. In one embodiment, the hybrid system comprises a liquid or gel substrate and a solid substrate. The solid substrate may be for example tobacco or other non-tobacco products, which may or may not contain nicotine. In one embodiment the hybrid system comprises a liquid or gel substrate and tobacco.
Embodiments of the invention are described with reference to tobacco industry products, for example cigarettes. However, it will be appreciated that packages of the invention may alternatively be used for non-tobacco industry related products.
In order to address various issues and advance the art, the entirety of this disclosure shows by way of illustration various embodiments in which the claimed invention(s) may be practiced and provide a superior package for tobacco industry products. The advantages and features of the disclosure are of a representative sample of embodiments only, and are not exhaustive and/or exclusive. They are presented only to is assist in understanding and teach the claimed features. It is to be understood that advantages, embodiments, examples, functions, features, structures, and/or other aspects of the disclosure are not to be considered limitations on the disclosure as defined by the claims or limitations on equivalents to the claims, and that other embodiments may be utilised and modifications may be made without departing from the scope and/or spirit of the disclosure. Various embodiments may suitably comprise, consist of, or consist essentially of, various combinations of the disclosed elements, components, features, parts, steps, means, etc. In addition, the disclosure includes other inventions not presently claimed, but which may be claimed in future.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1801342.5 | Jan 2018 | GB | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/GB2019/050135 | 1/18/2019 | WO | 00 |
