The invention relates to a blister packaging for a blister sheet according to the preamble of claim 1. Such blister sheets are primarily used for packing drugs in the form of tablets, capsules, coated pills, etc. The blister sheets comprise a carrier foil provided with cups to receive packaging items and a pressure-sensitive flat covering foil. To remove the packaging items, the latter is pressed through the covering foil which, for example, consists of aluminum. It is regularly easy for children to press drugs out of the blister film.
Numerous blister packagings are already known which tackle the problems of child safety. A comparable blister packaging of the generic type is described, for example, by WO 03/076303. The blister packaging has two flat sections which hold a blister sheet firmly. A sliding safety section blocks one or more output openings for the packaging item. By means of pulling the safety section out from the side, the output openings can be exposed. The functional principle of a blister packaging according to WO 03/076303 can be understood relatively easily. Furthermore, this packaging is also less suitable for applications in which it is necessary to comply with the maintenance of a specific order of drugs.
WO 2004/052749 describes a blister packaging having an integrated safety section, which blocks the output openings when in a rest position. The safety section has cutouts corresponding to the output openings. This blister packaging is less suitable in particular because, as a result of sliding the safety section into the open position, all the output openings are exposed at the same time.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,675,972 B2 describes a blister packaging which has strips that can be slid individually and are each provided with an opening. With the aid of a pencil, the blocking strip is guided along a cutout of elongated form and the blocking strip is slid in such a way that the output opening and the opening in the strip lie one above the other. This blister packaging is relatively difficult to handle. Thus, even with this packaging, no accurate order for the removal of drugs can be ensured.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to avoid the disadvantages of the known, in particular to provide a blister packaging of the type mentioned at the beginning which meets high demands with regard to child safety. Moreover, the packaging is intended to be suitable to ensure a specific order of drug removal (what is known as compliance). Then, the blister packaging should also be simple to produce and capable of being processed in an automatic packaging line.
According to the invention, these objects are achieved by a blister packaging having the features of claim 1.
The blister packaging substantially comprises three packaging sections: a blister section, a base section and a safety section arranged between them. The blister section has cutouts to receive cups of a blister sheet. Such a blister sheet substantially comprises a carrier foil, which has a plurality of cups to receive packaging item, and a flat covering foil closing the cups. Such a covering foil can consist of aluminum, for example. A blister sheet is preferably to be inserted into the blister packaging in such a way that the blister sheet is held firmly in the manner of a sandwich between the blister section and the base section. The base section has open or closed output openings, through which the packaging item can be removed. These output openings correspond to the cutouts for the cups of the blister section and have approximately the same dimension. The packaging sections are preferably flat and preferably composed of board or laminated board. Between the blister section and the base section there is arranged a safety section, which blocks the output openings in the base section. The covering tail of the blister sheet can rest directly on the safety section. The safety section has advantageously directly adjacent sliding elements which are arranged one after another, which in each case advantageously can be slid from a blocked position into an open position in a predefined sliding direction, individually or in groups, and the sliding elements being arranged to in such a way that only one output opening is exposed in each case in each open position. A sliding element is in each case advantageously assigned to an output opening or cup. The sliding elements are preferably approximately rectangular. A blister packaging of this type ensures that a plurality of packaging items cannot be removed simultaneously in any open position. Since the sliding elements arrangement is at least partly covered by the base section, the functional principle for blocking and unblocking cannot readily be detected; this applies in particular to children.
Advantageously, the sliding elements are in each case separated from one another by incisions or perforation lines. The sliding elements can therefore be formed in a simple way, with the aid of cutting and/or perforating methods, from a safety section which is preferably in one piece. It is particularly advantageous if at least one part of such a separating line is not covered by the base section or can be reached through the output opening. The separating line can be straight. However, the separating line particularly advantageously has a curved section which is arranged within the output opening.
Particularly advantageously, the sliding elements are in each case separated from one another by incisions and held in the blocked position in the safety section by perforation lines. These perforation lines serve as intended rupture points and preferably have a few retaining points which connect the sliding elements to the safety section. This ensures that the sliding elements can be separated from one another easily when slid. Then, a plurality of sliding elements cannot be slid together inadvertently. By virtue of the perforation lines, the sliding elements are held relatively firmly in the blocked position and can be slid only as a result of action by the user.
The sliding elements can be arranged in at least one row, an empty position for receiving a first sliding element being provided at the start of the row. The sliding elements are preferably substantially rectangular. By means of sliding the first sliding element from the blocked position into the empty position, an open position can be reached particularly simply.
The empty position can be a cutout in the safety section corresponding approximately to the first sliding element in the row. The width of the cutout preferably corresponds to the width of the sliding element, which means that a guide for sliding the sliding element is formed in an advantageous way. The length of the cutout is advantageously the same as or larger than the dimension of the output opening in the sliding direction, which is assigned to the sliding element at the start of the row. Of course, it would also be conceivable to provide the empty position in a section other than the safety section.
According to a further embodiment, the sliding elements are arranged in a straight row. Thus, the sliding elements have the same sliding direction. In this case it is advantageous if the sliding elements have approximately the same width, which means that a guide channel for sliding the sliding elements is defined in an advantageous way. In this embodiment, it is possible to slide a plurality of sliding elements or groups of sliding elements simultaneously. However, even here it is always ensured that, in each open position, only one output opening is exposed. Of course, a safety section can have a plurality of rows of sliding elements. It is possible then to imagine connecting straight rows of sliding elements to one another. Instead of straight rows, arrangements can also be imagined in which the sliding elements are arranged in a curved row. In particular, the sliding elements could be arranged on a circular arc.
In order to define an accurate order, the sliding elements are arranged to be offset from one another in such a way that the sliding directions of adjacent sliding elements run at right angles to one another. Such an arrangement ensures that a plurality of sliding elements can never be slid simultaneously. Thus, a first sliding element or one arranged at the start of a row must therefore be slid from the blocked position into an open position, preferably into an appropriately formed empty position. Only then is it possible for the user to slide the following, second sliding element from the blocked position into the open position. In the open position, the second sliding element is approximately in that position which corresponded to the blocked position of the first sliding element. Because of the comparatively complex arrangement, the child safety is improved further.
The sliding elements can be arranged in a row which has an orthogonal meandering configuration. Arranged between the loops is a separating section joined in one piece to the base section. The meandering pattern advantageously has a first and second sliding element, the second sliding element being elongated in relation to the first sliding element in order to form an interspace between the loops of the meandering pattern. An empty position for receiving the first sliding element in the open position is preferably arranged at the start of the meandering pattern.
Alternatively, the sliding elements can be arranged in a matrix with at least two columns and a plurality of rows. The two columns lie directly beside each other. The columns and rows are preferably formed by perforation lines and/or incisions. The cells of the column-row arrangement of the matrix correspond to the individual sliding elements. The height of the rows is preferably approximately the same. In each row, two different widths of the columns are provided alternately. In this case, each second row has identical sliding elements. The matrix preferably also has an empty position at the start of one of the rows to receive a first sliding element when slid into the open position.
A sliding element can have a sliding aid for sliding the sliding element. Such sliding aids make handling easier when being slid from the blocked position into the open position by a sliding distance. For this purpose, it is possible to imagine ribs and/or concavities, for example, in/on which a user can act simply. To this end, a user will normally use a fingernail as an aid; the use of tools can also be imagined. Since the sliding aid is to be accessible through the output opening, the sliding aid should advantageously be arranged on the sliding element in such a way that it is located at least partly within the output opening when in the blocked position.
It is particularly advantageous if the sliding aid is a cutout which is arranged in the region of a separating line between the individual sliding elements, in particular in the form of a perforation line or preferably an incision. It is particularly advantageous if the cutout is oriented from the separating line in the sliding direction. Such a cutout can have the form of a circular segment, for example. In this way, a user can exert a sliding force particularly simply on the corresponding sliding element.
Since the sliding distance is limited by the output opening, it may be advantageous to slide a sliding element by an additional sliding distance. To this end, the sliding element can have an additional sliding aid. An indentation or a short incision could be provided as an additional sliding aid. This additional sliding aid is in each case advantageously arranged between separating lines of the sliding elements in such a way that, after the sliding element has been slid by a sliding distance, the additional sliding aid is positioned within an output opening and can thus be reached by a user. In this way, in particular the child safety can be increased once more. Instead of an additional sliding aid, it would be conceivable to widen the output openings in the sliding direction, which would lengthen the sliding distance.
Advantageously, in the region of the empty position, the base section has an additional opening in order to permit the first sliding element or the one arranged at the start of a row to be slid again by an additional sliding distance into the empty position.
The output openings of the base section can in each case be secured by protective covers, the protective covers being joined to the base section in one piece and delimited by an intended rupture line. For a manipulation on a sliding element, it is therefore firstly necessary for the appropriate protective cover to be removed. The output openings closed in this way form an additional safeguard in relation to child safety.
Particularly advantageously, cutouts for gripping and tearing away the protective covers are provided in the base section in the region of the protective covers. Such a cutout can again, for example, have the form of a circular segment. It is particularly advantageous if the cutouts for gripping and tearing away the protective covers are arranged at the lower end of the protective cover in relation to the sliding direction. In this way, disadvantageous location of this cutout over, for example, a cutout of the sliding element serving as a sliding aid is avoided.
In a further embodiment of the blister packaging, an additional section is arranged between the safety section and the blister section. This additional section has cutouts which correspond approximately to the cutouts of the blister section. The additional section makes it possible for the sliding elements to slide better. In this way, the sensitive covering film of the blister film is likewise better protected. A further advantage of an additional section is the simpler adhesive bonding.
A blister packaging can have a covering section to cover the blister section and to protect the cups. In addition or alternatively, a further covering section could be provided in order to cover the base section.
A blister packaging can consist of a single blank, the packaging sections such as blister section, safety section and possibly securing section and/or covering sections being separated from one another by fold lines. In this way, a blister packaging can be produced relatively simply and economically.
Preferably provided in the blister packaging is a blister film, which is held adhesively in the blister packaging. For this purpose, the packaging sections, in particular the blister section, the safety section, the base section and, if need be, the additional section are advantageously adhesively bonded to one another in such a way that the ability of the sliding elements to be slid remains ensured.
Further individual features and advantages of the invention emerge from the following description of the exemplary embodiments and from the drawings, in which:
a shows a partial cross section through the blister packaging according to
b shows a cross section through a blister packaging according to
c shows a cross section through the blister packaging according to
a shows a partial detail of a rear view of a blister packaging according to
b shows a partial detail of a rear view of a blister packaging according to
As emerges from the cross section (section A-A) of the blister packaging 1 according to
The blister sheet 2, as can be seen, is inserted in the manner of a sandwich between the blister section 5 and the base section 6, a safety section 7 being arranged between them. The safety section 7, the blister section 5 and the base section 6 are advantageously adhesively bonded to one another, it being necessary to ensure satisfactory sliding of the sliding elements.
From the cross section (section B-B) according to
b reveals that, in order to slide the sliding element 12 in a sliding direction designated by e into the cutout 14, a user must grip the sliding element 12 through the output opening 11. To this end, for example the user can insert a fingernail into the incision section 32 exposed by the output opening 11 and then exert a sliding force in the e direction and thus, as shown in
The blister section 5 has two rows each having five cutouts 10 for the cups of the blister sheet 2. The outline of the blister sheet 2 it indicated here by a dashed line. The cutouts 10 in the blister section are circular. Of course, the cutouts can be adapted in accordance with the packaging item. For example, for capsules elongated cutouts 10 would of course be provided (this would of course also apply at least to the output openings 11 in the base section 6). The output openings 11 in the base section 6 have approximately the same dimensions as the cutouts 10. However, the dimensions are minimally larger (e.g. 0.5 to 1 mm).
In the safety section 7 arranged beside the blister section 5, sliding elements 12 are provided. The sliding elements 12 are arranged in two straight rows each having five elements arranged beside one another, corresponding to the cutouts 10 and output openings 11. The sliding elements 12, the cutouts 10 and the output openings 11 are positioned in the packaging sections in such a way that, as a result of folding over the safety section 7 onto the plane of the blister section 5 and then folding over the base section 6 onto the safety section 7, these elements (10, 11, 12) lie one above another. Instead of a straight arrangement, for example annular sliding element arrangements are also conceivable.
The sliding elements 12 arranged one after another are substantially rectangular. They are in each case separated from one another by an incision 16. The incision 16 has a curved section 32 oriented in the e direction and arranged in the middle, which for example can be gripped with the aid of a fingernail and in this way a sliding element 12 can be separated and slid. For this purpose, it must be possible for the section 32 in the blister packaging to be reached through the output opening 11. In each case at the sides, the sliding elements 12 are separated from the safety section 7 by perforation lines. Particularly advantageous for this purpose would be cutting lines which join the sliding elements 12 to the safety section 7 by means of a few retaining points. The start of the row of sliding elements 12 is formed by an empty position in the form of a cutout 14. As can be seen, the width of the cutout 14 corresponds to that of the sliding elements 12.
The output openings 11 according to
A further exemplary embodiment of a blank 25 for a blister packaging is shown in
The packaging sections are put together with a blister sheet 2 in such a way that the blister sheet is retained between the blister section 5 and the additional section 24, and the safety section 7 lies between the additional section 24 and the base section 6.
In order to illustrate the functional principle of the blister packaging 1, a rear view with the base section 6 partly broken out is illustrated in
In
The arrangements according to
In order to ensure an accurate order, however, the sliding elements must be arranged specifically. Such arrangements are illustrated in
By using
To this end, through the opening 20, action is exerted on the curved section 18, for example with a fingernail, in such a way that the sliding element can be slid further in the e direction by a ZVS distance. In
In
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
---|---|---|---|
04030597.1 | Dec 2004 | EP | regional |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
---|---|---|---|---|
PCT/EP05/54479 | 9/9/2005 | WO | 00 | 6/15/2007 |