Patent Application
20120103859
The present invention relates to a container, a blank, and a method of manufacturing the container.
In particular, the present invention relates to a container for consumer products such as fragrances, soaps, jewels, and others besides.
By way of example, and with no limitation implied, the present invention relates to a packet for tobacco products such as cigarettes or cigars.
The prior art embraces containers having a substantially rigid outer wrapper fashioned from a diecut blank.
More exactly, the blank consists in a flat piece of wrapping material foldable along selectively placed crease lines and score lines that serve to mark out a succession of panels, and a number of flaps arranged in such a way as to overlap at predetermined fixing areas when the blank is folded to erect the container.
The method by which these flaps are joined together to erect the container generally involve applying a layer of adhesive to the aforementioned fixing areas, preferably a cold-setting glue, in such a way that when the flaps are paired together they will bond swiftly one to another.
While serviceable, the method in question is less effective when the flaps of the container, or indeed all parts of the container, are made of plastic, plasticized or metallized material.
In effect, such materials are impermeable and unable to retain conventional cold-setting glues, so that the flaps cannot be bonded together by this method.
In prior art manufacturing systems, this drawback is overcome by using hot melt adhesives, which when heated will also enable the aforementioned impermeable materials to be bonded.
Nonetheless, adhesives of this type come with a number of drawbacks and are generally disagreeable to end users.
Firstly, hot melt glues tend to give off unpleasant odours, even after curing, which can render the product unattractive and adversely affect its quality, especially in the case of containers holding cigarettes or fragrances.
Also, hot melt adhesives typically crystallize when cooled, sometimes becoming fragile and liable to fracture.
The object of the present invention is to provide a container unaffected by the drawbacks associated with the prior art, as mentioned above.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a simple and reliable method of manufacturing such a container.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a blank from which the container can be manufactured simply and securely.
The stated objects are realized in a container of which the features are recited in one or more of claims 1 to 6 appended, in a blank of which the features are recited in one or more of claims 7 to 10, and in a method of manufacturing the container, of which the features are recited in one or more of claims 11 to 13.
The invention will now be described in detail, by way of example, with the aid of the accompanying drawings, in which:
With reference to
By way of example, and therefore with no limitation implied, reference is made in the following specification to a packet for tobacco products such as cigarettes or cigars.
The container 1 forms part of the packet, denoted P, and presents an opening 1a through which to introduce or take out the aforementioned products (cigarettes or cigars). The packet P also comprises a lid 4, attached to the container 1 along a hinge line 1b and rotatable thus between positions in which the opening 1a is exposed and concealed, respectively.
The container 1 comprises a plurality of walls 2 connected one to another and delimiting an enclosure such as will hold a plurality of tobacco products, typically cigarettes or cigars. In the example illustrated, the tobacco products are enveloped by an inner wrapper 8 of packaging material.
The walls 2 are made of plastic, plasticized or metallized material.
In other words, the outer walls 2 of the container 1 (indeed of the packet P as a whole) are fashioned from a material substantially impermeable to liquids.
According to the present invention, the container 1 comprises at least a first wall 2a and a second wall 2b interconnected one with another. More exactly, the first wall 2a and the second wall 2b each present at least one respective connecting flap 6, and the flaps 6 engage one with another to interconnect the two respective walls 2.
In accordance with the invention, the flaps 6 consist in a plastic, plasticized or metallized material, that is to say the same material as the relative wall 2. In effect, each flap 6 and the relative wall 2 are fashioned in one piece.
In the example illustrated, the container 1 presents a front wall 3a, a rear wall 3b, two flank walls 3c and a bottom wall 3d.
More precisely, the front wall 3a and the rear wall 3b are disposed mutually parallel and facing one another, the flank walls 3c are disposed mutually parallel and facing one other, and transversely to the front wall 3a and the rear wall 3b, whilst the bottom wall 3d is disposed transversely to the front wall 3a, to the rear wall 3b and to the two flank walls 3c.
Thus, the walls 2 of the container 1 combine to establish a structure of substantially parallelepiped geometry.
Referring to
In the example illustrated, the first wall 2a and the second wall 2b each present a pair of flaps 6a and 6b projecting laterally on either side from the selfsame first and second walls 2a and 2b, respectively. In particular, each flap 6a of the first wall 2a engages with a respective flap 6b of the second wall 2b.
In the example illustrated, accordingly, the two pairs of flaps 6 engage in overlapping contact to create two further walls 2c of the container, positioned between the first wall 2a and the second wall 2b. In practice, the aforementioned further walls 2c coincide with the aforementioned flank walls 3c presented by the container 1 of the packet P.
Numeral 7 denotes a strip associated with each flap 6, presenting a first face 7a secured to the flap 6, and a second face 7b on the side opposite to the first face 7a.
In a preferred embodiment of the container 1, the first face 7a of each strip 7 is coated with a layer of pressure-sensitive adhesive and affixable thus to the respective flap 6.
In other possible embodiments (not illustrated), the first face 7a of each strip 7 could be fixed to the respective flap 6 utilizing different types of adhesive, metal staples or other fastening media.
The flaps 6 on each side of the container are glued together by pairing the second faces 7b of the corresponding strips 7 one with another. The second face 7b of each flap 6 is made of a material able to retain a measure of cold-setting glue having a liquid or paste consistency. In this way, the flaps 6 can be bonded together using conventional cold-setting adhesives.
The second face 7b of each strip 7 consists preferably of a paper material, and in the preferred embodiment illustrated, the first face 7a of each strip 7 consists likewise of paper material. In short, each strip 7 is made entirely of paper material.
The foregoing description of the container is applicable in every respect to the lid 4 illustrated in
The walls 5 present respective pairs of flaps 6′ engageable one with another, as in the case of the container 1, and interconnecting the respective front and rear walls 5.
The description of the flaps 6 associated with the walls 2 of the container 1 is applicable entirely to the flaps 6′ associated with the walls 5 of the lid 4, thus illustrating a further application of the present invention.
With reference to
The blank 10 comprises a plurality of panels 12 joined one to another, each constituting a respective wall 2 of the container 1 and/or a respective wall 5 of the lid 4 as described above.
In accordance with the present invention, the blank 10 comprises at least a first panel 12a and a second panel 12b constituting the first wall 2a and the second wall 2b of the container 1, respectively.
Each panel 12 presents at least one respective tab 16 corresponding to the flap 6 of the relative wall 2, and more exactly, a pair of tabs 16 positioned one on either side.
In the example illustrated, the blank 10 comprises six panels 12 constituting the front wall 3a, rear wall 3b and bottom wall 3d of the container 2, and the front wall 5a, rear wall 5b and top wall 5d of the lid 4, respectively.
In the preferred embodiment illustrated, each panel 12 is connected hingedly to an adjoining panel 12 along a relative crease line 11a. In addition, each tab 16 is connected to the respective panel 12 along a further crease line 11b.
As illustrated in
Each tab 16 is furnished with one of the strips 7 described previously, each positioned with the first face 7a secured to the respective tab 16 and presenting the second face 7b fashioned from a material such as will retain a measure of adhesive having a liquid or paste consistency.
To reiterate, the first face 7a of each strip 7 is coated with a layer of pressure-sensitive adhesive and affixable thus to the respective tab 16.
The present invention relates also to a method of manufacturing the container 1 described and illustrated.
The first step of such a method will be to prepare a blank 10 as described above.
Having prepared the blank 10, a measure of liquid adhesive is deposited on at least one strip 7 associated with each pair of tabs 16 to be joined together (this particular step can be implemented either within the compass of a packaging machine, or beforehand, during the preparation of the blanks 10).
The blank 10 is then folded along the aforementioned crease lines 11a and 11b so as to join the corresponding tabs 16 together, bringing the parts of the respective strips 7 coated with adhesive into contact one with another.
Finally, the folded blank 10 must be held in position for a duration sufficient to dry the liquid adhesive and interlock the panels 12 to fashion the container 1.
In an alternative version of the method disclosed, the step of preparing the blank 10 includes two subsidiary steps.
More exactly, the preparation step is accomplished by procuring a blank without the strips 7 (not illustrated), and subsequently affixing a strip 7 to each of the tabs 16.
Still more exactly, the affixing step is accomplished by positioning each strip 7 on the respective tab 16 and then applying pressure in such a way as to activate the pressure-sensitive adhesive with which the first face 7a of the selfsame strip 7 is coated.
In the preferred embodiment illustrated, the strip 7 is of elongated appearance, that is to say preferably with one only of the two main dimensions predominating, in such a way as to obtain a gluing surface that extends substantially along the entire length of the tab 16.
In other possible embodiments (not illustrated), the appearance of the single strip 7 might be other than elongated; for example, strips 7 of square or rounded appearance might be utilized.
The stated objects are achieved by the invention, which affords significant advantages.
In effect, a container according to the present invention is simple to produce, inasmuch as it can be manufactured on machines widely used for erecting containers from ordinary diecut blanks of paperboard type material.
Thanks to the adoption of the aforementioned strips, in particular, it becomes possible to used cold-setting adhesives even for securing flaps of plastic, plasticized or metallized material, thereby avoiding the fragility problems experienced with hot melt adhesives.
Again, given that there is no need for adhesives to be heated, as in the case of hot melt products, the method disclosed for manufacturing packets of this type offers notable ease of implementation.
Moreover, the use of cold-setting adhesives is instrumental in ensuring that the aroma of products packaged in plastic, plasticized or metallized containers will not be affected by the unpleasant odour associated with hot melt adhesives.
This is a particularly significant advantage in the event that the container should be a packet for tobacco products such as cigarettes or cigars, given that the unpleasant odour given off by hot melt adhesives tends to affect not only the aroma, but also the taste, and ultimately the quality of the product in the packet.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| BO2009A000556 | Aug 2009 | IT | national |
| Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind | 371c Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PCT/IB10/53378 | 7/26/2010 | WO | 00 | 12/29/2011 |
