BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Novel features and advantages of the present invention in addition to those mentioned above will be readily apparent to persons of ordinary skill in the art from a reading of the following detailed description in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts and in which:
FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a hinged lid cigarette box having an integral compressed innerframe of this invention;
FIG. 2 is a right side elevational view of FIG. 1;
FIG. 3 is a pattern layout of the hinged lid cigarette box of FIG. 1 and
FIG. 2 wherein the stippled area is the integral compressed innerframe;
FIG. 4 is a fragmental cross-sectional view in elevation taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a fragmental pattern view showing an “I” cut on the fold line to prevent damage to the innerframe during folding; and
FIG. 6 is a fragmental pattern view of a “V” cut on and around the fold lines.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
An embodiment of the invention will now be described with reference to the drawings.
According to one aspect of the preferred embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1-4, a cigarette pack blank and innerframe are formed of a single component to be used for cigarette packaging.
A cigarette pack blank 10 according to the invention, as shown by way of example in FIGS. 1 and 2, may comprise a main body portion 12 with an integral compressed portion 13 that serves the function of an innerframe, and a lid portion 14, which may be attached to, or integral with, main body portion 12 along hinge line 15. Main body portion 12, including the compressed portion 13, and lid portion 14 may be formed of paperboard, paper, cardboard or other suitable material for use in housing and protecting a plurality of cigarettes.
Main body portion 12 may include a front panel 16, a first side panel 18 adjacent the front panel, a second side panel 20 adjacent to the front panel and spaced from the first side panel 18, a back panel 22 adjacent to the two side panels 18, 20 and spaced from front panel, and a bottom panel 24. Bottom panel 24 may be adjacent to the front panel 16, side panels 18, 20 and back panel 22 to collectively form an interior opening for accepting a plurality of cigarettes. Lid portion 14 may comprise a front panel 26, a first side panel 28 adjacent front panel 26, a second side panel 30 adjacent to front panel 26 and spaced from the first side panel 28, a back panel 32 adjacent to side panels 28, 30 and spaced from front panel 26, and a top panel 34 adjacent the front panel 26, side panels 28, 30 and back panel 32. Back panel 32 of lid portion 14 may be integral with the back panel 22 of the main body 12. Lid retention tabs 35 may be used to secure lid portion 14 in place when the lid portion 14 is in the closed position. Such retention tabs are shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 4,216,898, where they are denoted by reference character 130 in FIG. 7 therein.
FIG. 3 more particularly shows the layout of cigarette pack 10 prior to the folding and gluing process that is used to create the final product. Main body portion 12 may have a compressed portion 13. As shown in FIG. 4, the compressed portion 13 may be thinner in cross-section than the rest of main body portion 12, which may be uncompressed or less compressed relative to compressed portion 13. Compressed portion 13 may serve as the innerframe for the cigarette pack and may have three distinct sections: a first section 36 on front panel 16, a second section 38 on side panel 18, and a third section 40 on side panel 20. The second compressed section 38 and third compressed section 40 may have thicknesses smaller than the first compressed section 36. The thickness of each of the three sections is selected to give a flat and flush finished pack along and sides of the pack after closing the lid. For example, an appropriate thickness range for the compressed and non-compressed sections is 0.011-0.014 inches.
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, main body portion 12 and compressed portion 13 may be formed from the same piece of material. Compressed portion 13 and/or main body portion 12 may be embossed, debossed, or formed by any other suitable technique for creating a region of reduced thickness.
In FIG. 3, the compressed portion 13 is designated using stippling. Also in FIG. 3, folded regions are illustrated by broken lines. Solid lines, other than the solid lines at the boundary of the compressed region 13, denote cuts that are made in the cigarette pack material. The creation and use of such cuts and fold lines to form a pack blank is generally conventional in the art as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,160,024.
Compressed portion 13 may be provided with “I”-shaped radius cuts 42 or “V”-shaped radius cuts 44 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively. With a “V” shaped radius cut the bottom of the “V” is a radius cut as opposed to a sharp angle cut. “I”-shaped radius cuts 42 may be positioned along the fold line and boundary between first compressed section 36 and second compressed section 38 and between first compressed section 36 and third compressed section 40. “V”-shaped radius cuts 44 may have similar vertical cuts 44a and may additionally have cuts 44b along the boundary between second compressed section 38 and the non-, or less, compressed portion of side panel 18 and along the boundary between third compressed section 40 and the non-, or less, compressed portion of side panel 20. Radius cuts 42 and 44 may prevent or alleviate any damage to the package material during pack formation. These cuts may also help to offset the fold line 46 between the first compressed section 36 and second compressed section 38 and the fold line 48 between front panel 36 and side panel 28. Also, retention cuts 50 may be made as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6 to form the lid retention tabs 35 of FIG. 1.
This unique integrated innerframe design may be utilized with the existing innerframe section on a conventional cigarette packer for coupon insertion operation.
If the coupon insert is not used, the present innerframe cutting assembly and innerframe forming and positioning wheel can be eliminated. By eliminating these assemblies there is no inventory or restocking of expensive machine parts. Machine efficiency is increased and downtime due to innerframe set-up and jams is reduced. On the other hand, when coupons are inserted, the current innerframe application station of the packing machine may then be utilized for the coupon insertion.
The embodiments described above are further intended to explain the best modes known of practicing the invention and to enable others skilled in the art to utilize the invention in such, or other, embodiments and with the various modifications required by the particular applications or uses of the invention. Accordingly, the description is not intended to limit the invention to the form disclosed herein. Also, it is intended that the appended claims be construed to include alternative embodiments.
Patent Application
20080060954
