Patent Grant
9211974
Not applicable.
1. Field of Invention
The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) relates generally to a container assembly, and more particularly to a container assembly which includes containers selectively movable between a collapsed condition and/or erect condition wherein the containers contain a packaging material. In one aspect, the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) relates to a container assembly having collapsible and/or erectable containers containing a packaging material formed of a plurality of individual strips, strands or units of material which are bondingly connected to a flexible substrate to form a cohesive cushioning unit. In yet another aspect, the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) relates to a container assembly having a collapsible and/or erectable floral container and a flexible, inflatable substrate having a plurality of individual strips, strands or units of decorative material bondingly connected to the flexible inflatable substrate to form a cohesive cushioning unit.
2. Brief Description of Related Art
In the process of shipping an article from one location to another, the article may be placed in a container along with a protective packaging material to fill voids about the article and to cushion the article during the shipping process. One such common protective packaging material includes a plurality of polymeric foam peanut-shaped members which are commonly known in the art as “Styrofoam Peanuts.” An advantage of using the Styrofoam Peanuts is the ease in which they may be disposed about an article positioned in a container by simply pouring the Styrofoam Peanuts into the container.
While Styrofoam Peanuts have been widely accepted in the packaging industry, they are not without disadvantages. For example, the light weight and flowability of the Styrofoam Peanuts result in heavier articles gravitating through the Styrofoam Peanuts to the bottom of the container during shipping, and the receiver of the package is left with the problem of disposing of the Styrofoam Peanuts once the package has arrived at its destination and the article removed there from.
Strips of sheet material formed into tufts have also been used for many years as a packaging material. More specifically, material known as decorative grass has been used in fruit baskets, Easter baskets, picnic baskets, and for other packaging and decorative purposes.
Flowers and other plants have long been grown and displayed in pots, commonly referred to as “flower pots.” Flower pots are generally constructed of natural, earthen materials, such as clay which is in turn glazed and fired to produce a hardened non-flexible ceramic structure. Flower pots have also been constructed of plastic materials which are colored or painted to have the appearance of an earthen material. While clay or ceramic flower pots are both aesthetically pleasing and effectively serve the purpose of containing plant material in a growing medium, inefficiencies are nevertheless experienced in shipping and storing such containers due to their bulkiness and susceptibility to breakage.
To this end, a need exists for a container assembly that can be shipped and stored in a substantially flattened or collapsed condition and readily erected into a container that can protect fragile items, such as figurines, ceramic objects and the like during shipping and/or storage. It is to such containers and flexible packaging materials that the present invention is directed.
The presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) relates to a container assembly which includes a collapsible and/or erectable, shape-sustaining container and a packaging material disposed in the container for supporting articles. In one aspect, the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) relates to a container assembly wherein a packaging material for supporting floral groupings, eggs and other fragile articles is disposed in a connection to the collapsible and/or erectable container.
It is to be understood that while the terms “collapsible” or “erectable” may be used herein with respect to a particular embodiment of a shape sustaining container, one of ordinary skill in the art would easily understand and could easily adapt the containers described herein to be “collapsible,” “erectable,” or both, and therefore such terms should be understood as being used interchangeably herein. As such, collapsible shape sustaining containers, erectable shape sustaining containers, and collapsible and erectable shape sustaining containers are all fully within the scope of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s), and the use of the term “collapsible” should be understood to also include containers that are “erectable,” while use of the term “erectable” should also be understood to include containers that are “collapsible.”
Referring now to
To enhance the movement of the container 10 between the erect condition (
Referring now to
Referring again to
In
The individual strips or strands of material 24 utilized to produce the tuft of material 26 can be fabricated from any flexible material including, but not limited to, paper, crape paper, polymeric film, wax paper, laminates and combinations thereof. For example, at least one clear layer of polymeric material can be laminated to at least one iridescent layer of polymeric film so as to provide an iridescent effect to the laminated polymeric film, and thus the individual strips or strands of material 24 produced from the sheet of laminated material. In addition, the flexible material from which the individual strips or strands of material 24 are fabricated may have printed material and/or one or more embossed patterns on at least a portion of at least one side thereof, and the one or more embossed patterns may be in register or out of register with the printed material and/or each other.
The plurality of individual strips or strands of material 24 may also be fabricated from organic or inorganic materials, including leaves, tree bark, branches, dirt, sand, sea shells, Spanish moss or any other type of organic or inorganic material that is capable of forming the tuft of material 26 and/or capable of being bondingly connected to at least one of the closed lower end 14 and/or the inner surface 16 of the container 11 and/or the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 or the flexible substrate 28a supportable on the closed lower end 14 of the container 11 such that the tuft of material 26 is disposed in the object receiving space 20 of the container 10 and thereby provides a decorative and/or cushioning effect for objects supported within the object receiving space 20 of the container 11. Furthermore, when the strips or strands of material 24 are fabricated from a flexible material, additional inorganic and/or organic materials may be attached onto or be incorporated into the strips or strands of material 24 prior to or after forming the tuft of material 26 from the strips or strands of material 24.
As previous stated, at least a portion of at least one side of the strips or strands of the material 24 can be provided with printed material thereon. The printed material on the flexible material from which the individual strips or strands of material 24 are fabricated can be printed in a conventional manner so that when the flexible material is slit and cut to produce the strips or strands of material 24 at least a portion of the strips or strands of material 24 contain at least a portion of the printed material. Further, different colors can be employed to provide the printed material on the sheet of material from which the plurality of individual strips or strands of material 24 are fabricated.
Also, the flexible material employed to produce the strips or strands of material 24 may include one or more embossed patterns which are provided on the flexible material prior to slitting and cutting the sheet of material to provide the strips or strands of material 24. Further, the flexible material can be provided with an embossed pattern as well as a printed pattern, and the embossed pattern may be either in register or out of register with the printed material, which may be in the form of writing, a design, or any other style of printing depicting any message that the user desires.
The individual strips or strands of material 24, as described above, are commonly referred to as “Easter grass” or “decorative grass” and such have been used for many years in filling fruit baskets, Easter baskets, picnic baskets, and for other decorative and packaging purposes. The decorative grass of the prior art has been produced by numerous methods and from a variety of materials, such as those listed above. Typically, such materials are shredded and cut to produce segmented strips having predetermined dimensions. While the prior art methods for making the decorative grass have been widely accepted, new techniques for facilitating the use of decorative grass as a packaging material have been sought in view of the fact that decorative grass and other loose shredded packaging material of the prior art readily fall onto the floor, cling to various objects making them awkward and inconvenient to clean up, and often compact and thereby no longer adequately cushion and/or protect items placed thereon.
By forming the strips or strands of material 24 into the tuft of material 26 (which is composed of a plurality of the strips or strands of material 24) and connecting the tuft of material 26 to the closed lower end 14 and/or the interior surface 16 of the container 11 as herein before described with reference
Referring now to
The flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 for use in the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is fabricated of a first sheet of material 30 and second of material 32. It will be appreciated that the dimensions of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 may be varied and the shape of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 may also, therefore, be varied—e.g., a circle, square, triangle, heart, and animal shape, a floral shape, etc.
The flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 which can be employed as a packaging material in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) can be fabricated of any flexible material capable of retaining a fluid, such as air, in an inflatable chamber 34 formed by the union of the first and second sheets of the material 30 and 32, respectively. Examples of materials capable of being employed to form the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 include, but are not limited to, polymeric materials, laminated polymeric materials, fabrics having a fluid impervious coating, foil and alike.
The flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 which can be employed as a packaging material in accordance with the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) may also have printed material 37 (
It should be noted the printed material 37 may be a pictorial representation with the color or shape of the tuft of material 26 formed of a plurality of the strips or strands of material 24 so that when a small amount of the plurality of individual strips or strands 24 are employed to form the tuft of material 26, and the tuft of material 26 is bondingly connected to the first sheet of the material 30 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28, the printed material fills in the voids between the plurality of individual strips or strands of materials 24 such that it appears that there are few or no actual voids in the tuft of material 26 formed from the plurality of strips or strands of material 24 thereby resulting in an aesthetically pleasing flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28. Alternatively, at least one surface of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28, such as an upper surface 36 of the first sheet of the material 30, can be printed so as to give the appearance of the presence of the tuft of material 26 without the tuft of material 26 being formed from a plurality of strips or strands of material 24.
The first sheet of material 30 and the second sheet of material 32 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 may be constructed of a single layer of material or a plurality of layers of the same or different types of material. In addition, the thickness of the first sheet of material 30 and the second sheet of material 32 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 may vary widely, the only requirement being that the first and second sheets of material 30 and 32, respectively, have sufficient structural integrity to support objects placed thereon without the weight of the objects causing damage to the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28.
The first sheet of material 30 is bonded via a bonding material (not shown) to the second sheet of material 32 so as to provide the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28. The flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 is further provided with a valve 39 which is in fluid communication with the inflatable chamber 34 and thus provides a conventional method of injecting a gas, such as air, into the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 so as to inflate the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28.
Any type of valve capable of introducing a gas, such as air, into the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 can be employed as the valve 39 in the practice of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s), provided that the valve closes off the inflatable chamber 34 once the inflatable chamber 34 has been inflated. Such valves are well known in the art. Thus, any conventional valve capable of performing the functions described above can be employed as the valve 39 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28.
In place of the valve 39, one may inflate the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 utilizing an exothermic reaction which produces a gas capable of filling at least a portion of the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable assembly 28. In order to provide an exothermic reaction, the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 may be provided with at least two chambers where at least one chamber contains a weak basic composition and at least one chamber contains a weak acid composition such that, upon breaking open the at least one chamber containing the weak acid composition and the at least one chamber containing the weak basic composition, a reaction occurs which forms a gaseous reaction product that substantially fills the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28. The weak basic composition may include a Group I or a Group II element and examples of such weak basic compositions include sodium carbonate, calcium carbonate, and combinations thereof. The weak acid composition may be vinegar. Although certain compositions have been disclosed as being capable of producing an exothermic reaction, any combination of composition that, when placed in reactive contact with one another, produces a gaseous reaction product that fills the inflatable chamber 34 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 can be employed provided that the compositions are not deleterious to the first and second sheets of material 30 and 32 from which the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 is constructed.
Although the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 is shown in
To secure the tuft of material 26 to an exterior surface of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28, such as the upper surface 36 of the first sheet of material 30, at least a portion of the upper surface 36 of the first sheet of material 30 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 is coated with a bonding material, such as an adhesive or cohesive bonding material, whereby the tuft of material 26 is bonded to the upper surface of the first sheet of material 30 of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28 substantially as shown in
Referring now to
Referring now to
The above embodiments of the flexible inflatable substrate assembly 28, as well as other embodiments of flexible inflatable substrate assemblies which may be employed in the practice of the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) are disclosed in copending U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/063,024 entitled Flexible Packaging Materials And Methods Of Making A Using Same, filed Feb. 22, 2005, the entire contents of such application being hereby specifically incorporated herein by reference.
Referring now to
Referring now to
The flexible substrate 28a can be fabricated with any material which has sufficient flexibility to permit the container 11 to be selectively moved to the collapsed or flattened condition, while at the same time having sufficient structural integrity to permit either the printing of the printed pattern 42 on the upper surface 44 thereof or to permit the tuft of material 26a to be bondingly connected to the upper surface 44 of the flexible substrate 28a. Typical materials which may be employed in the construction of the flexible substrate 28a are polymeric film, paper, cardboard, laminations thereof or any other material capable of functioning in the matter herein described.
Referring now to
A packaging material 61 (i.e., a tuft of material 62 formed of a plurality of individual strips or strands of material 64, such as the individual strips or strands 24 herein before described and which may be intertwined with one another), is disposed within the object receiving space 60 of the container 51 for cushioning objects disposed within the object receiving space 60 of the container 51. The tuft of material 62 can be connected to at least a portion of the inner surface 56 of the container 51 so that the tuft of material 62 extends from the closed lower end 54 of the container 51 towards the open upper end 52 thereof; or the tuft of material 62 can be connected to a flexible, inflatable substrate assembly such as the flexible, inflatable substrate assembly 28 herein before described; or to a flexible substrate 28a as also herein before described.
When employing a flexible, inflatable substrate assembly or a flexible substrate in combination with the container 51, the flexible inflatable substrate assembly or the flexible substrate are supported within the object receiving space 60 of the container 51 in the same manner as herein before described with reference to the container 11. When employing a flexible inflatable substrate assembly or a flexible substrate in combination with the tuft of material 62, the tuft of material 62 may be bondingly connected to the flexible inflatable substrate assembly or the flexible substrate as herein before described, and the tuft of material 62 may also be bonded to at least a portion of the inner surface 56 of the container 51 which surrounds the object receiving space 60 of the container 51.
As previously stated, the strips or strands of material 64 constituting the tuft of material 62 can be intertwined and bonded together by applying a bonding material to at least a portion of the closed lower end 54 and/or the inner surface 56 of the container 51. Further, the strips or strands of material 64 which constitutes the tuft of material 62 can be formed into a mass of the tuft of material 62 by employing a combination of a bonding material and the mere intertwining of the strips or strands of material 64 constituting the tuft of material 62.
As shown in
Referring now to
A tuft of material 82 is formed of a plurality of individual strips or strands of material 84, such as the individual strips or strands of material 24 herein before described, which may be intertwined with one another and which can be supported within the object receiving space 80 of the container 71 for cushioning objects disposed within the object receiving space 80 of the container 71 when the container 71 is in an inflated or erect condition. The tuft of material 82 can be connected to at least a portion of the inner surface 76 of the container 71 so that the tuft of material 82 extends from the closed lower end 74 of the container 71 towards the open upper end 72 thereof; or the tuft of material 82 can be connected to a flexible, inflatable substrate such as the flexible inflatable substrate 24 herein before described or to a flexible substrate such as the flexible substrate 28a as also herein before described.
When employing a flexible inflatable substrate assembly or a flexible substrate in combination with the container 71, the flexible inflatable substrate assembly or the flexible substrate are supported within the object opening 80 of the container 71 in the same manner is herein before described with reference to the container 11. When employing a flexible inflatable substrate assembly or a flexible substrate in combination with the tuft of materials 82, the tuft of material 82 can be bondingly connected to the flexible inflatable substrate assembly or the flexible substrate as hereinbefore described, and the tuft of material may also be bonded to at least a portion of the inner surface 76 which surrounds the object receiving space 80 of the container 71.
The strips or strands of material 84 constituting the tuft of material 82 can be intertwined and bonded together by applying a bonding material to at least a portion of the closed lower end 74 and/or the inner surface 76 of the container 71. Further, the strips or strands of material 84 which constitutes the tuft of material 82 can be formed into a mass of the tuft of material 82 by employing a combination of bonding material and the mere intertwining of the strips or strands of material constituting the tuft of material 82. As shown in
From the above description, it is clear that the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s) is well adapted to carry out the objects and to attain the advantages mentioned herein as well as those inherent in the presently disclosed and claimed inventive concept(s). While certain embodiments of the inventive concept(s) have been described for purposes of this disclosure, it will be understood that numerous changes may be made which will readily suggest themselves to those skilled in the art and which are accomplished within the spirit of the inventive concept(s) disclosed and claimed.
This application is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 13/015,184, filed Jan. 27, 2011, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 12/694,942, filed Jan. 27, 2010, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 12/287,256, filed Oct. 7, 2008, now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 11/481,732, filed Jul. 6, 2006, now abandoned; which claims benefit under 35 U.S.C. 119(e) of provisional application U.S. Ser. No. 60/697,163, filed Jul. 7, 2005. This application is also a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 13/022,760, filed Feb. 8, 2011 now abandoned; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 12/577,422, filed Oct. 12, 2009 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,906,190; which is a continuation of U.S. Ser. No. 11/063,024, filed Feb. 22, 2005, now abandoned; which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 10/383,413, filed on Mar. 7, 2003, now abandoned; which is a continuation-in-part of U.S. Ser. No. 09/934,301, filed Aug. 21, 2001, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,534,136. The entire contents of each of the above-referenced patents and patent applications are hereby expressly incorporated herein by reference.
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| 654427 | Jan 1965 | BE |
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| Entry |
|---|
| Speed Cover Brochure, “The Simple Solution for Those Peak Volume Periods”, Highland Supply Corporation, © 1989. |
| “Speed Sheets and Speed Rolls” Brochure, Highland Supply Corporation, © 1990. |
| “Color Them Happy with Highlander Products” ©1992. |
| “Costa Keeps the Christmas Spirit”, Supermarket Floral, Sep. 15, 1992. |
| “Super Seller”, Supermarket Floral, Sep. 15, 1992. |
| “Halloween”, Link Magazine, Sep. 1992. |
| “Now More Than Ever”, Supermarket Floral, Sep. 15, 1992. |
| Le Plant Sac Advertisement, published prior to Sep. 26, 1987. |
| “A World of Cut Flower and Pot Plant Packaging” Brochure, Klerk's Plastic Products Manufacturing, Inc., published prior to Mar. 31, 1994, 6 pages. |
| Chantler & Chantler brochure showing Zipper Sleeve™ and Florasheet®, published prior to Mar. 31, 1994, 2 pages. |
| “Stand Alone Plastic Bagmaking” brochure, AMI, Atlanta, GA, Feb. 15, 1996, 2 pages. |
| “Foil Jackets” brochure, Custom Medallion, Inc., Dec. 1996, 2 pages. |
| “Derwent Abstract” of FR 2610604A. It is noted that the abstract is an incorrect English translation of the contents of the French patent. The French patent does not enable or disclose adhesively attaching the covering to the container. 1988. |
| “Silver Linings” Brochure, Affinity Diversified Industries, Inc., 1986. The Silver Linings brochure shows a floral sleeve with a closed bottom. The brochure shows , in one embodiment, a vase with flowers inside a “cut flower” sleeve with the sleeve tied with a ribbon about the neck of the vase. |
| “Special Occasion Printed Highlophane Bags” Brochure, Highland Supply Corporation, 1990, 2 pages. |
| “Creative Packaging” Brochure, John Henry Company, Sep. 1992. |
| “Make Highlander Your Headquarters” Brochure, Highland Supply Corporation, 1991. |
| New Leaf Brochure by Helgor Marketing Inc., Calgary, Canada; 2 pages. |
| Stainless Steel Steam Basket Produced by Reform-Kocheinsatz aus Edeistahl-Rostfrei. |
| Collapsible Easter Basket from Goffa Int'l Corp. L.I.C., NY 11101. |
| Hat with Labels “Crush and Pack! It Springs Back!” and “Cov-ver Your World”. Purchased from The Village Hat Shop, 3821 4th Avenue, San Diego, CA 92103. |
| Collapsible Easter Treat Bag, Oriental Trading Company, Inc. |
| Felt Stovepipe Hats, Oriental Trading Company, Inc. |
| Plush Halloween Character Baskets, Oriental Trading Company, Inc. |
| Collapsable Trick or Treat Bag, Oriental Trading Company, Inc. |
| Metallic Star-Shaped Boxes, Oriental Trading Company, Inc. |
| Packaging for Rubbermaid® Collapsible Container, UPC #71691 23913, © 2005 Rubbermaid®, Inc., Huntersville, NC, 4 pgs. |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20120240526 A1 | Sep 2012 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 60697163 | Jul 2005 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 13015184 | Jan 2011 | US |
| Child | 13242510 | US | |
| Parent | 12694942 | Jan 2010 | US |
| Child | 13015184 | US | |
| Parent | 12287256 | Oct 2008 | US |
| Child | 12694942 | US | |
| Parent | 11481732 | Jul 2006 | US |
| Child | 12287256 | US | |
| Parent | 12577422 | Oct 2009 | US |
| Child | 13022760 | US | |
| Parent | 11063024 | Feb 2005 | US |
| Child | 12577422 | US |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | 13022760 | Feb 2011 | US |
| Child | 11481732 | US | |
| Parent | 10383413 | Mar 2003 | US |
| Child | 11063024 | US | |
| Parent | 09934301 | Aug 2001 | US |
| Child | 10383413 | US |
