Information
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Patent Grant
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6270008
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Patent Number
6,270,008
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Date Filed
Friday, May 5, 200024 years ago
-
Date Issued
Tuesday, August 7, 200122 years ago
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Inventors
-
Original Assignees
-
Examiners
Agents
-
CPC
-
US Classifications
Field of Search
US
- 229 151
- 229 152
- 229 153
- 229 902
- 229 906
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International Classifications
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Abstract
A container is formed from a unitary blank of foldable sheet material. The container includes a base wall and a first closure flap foldably attached to the base wall along a first edge thereof. A rear wall is foldably attached to the base wall along a second edge thereof. The second edge has a first end adjacent to the first edge. A top wall is foldably attached to the rear wall. A front wall is foldably attached to the top wall. The closure flap comprises a side wall that is foldably attached to the base wall and a locking flap that is foldably attached to the side wall along a locking flap fold line. The locking flap has a free edge opposite to the fold line. The free edge is arcuate for at least a portion of its length. The arcuate portion is curved inwardly toward the locking flap fold line.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
a. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a container for a food product. More specifically, the present invention relates to a container for a food product that is formed from a blank of foldable sheet material.
b. Discussion of the Related Art
Containers for food products are generally manufactured for the specific product to be packaged. For example, a conventional container for pizza generally has a relatively large square bottom wall portion and a top wall portion that has the same dimensions as the bottom wall Four side walls are hingedly connected to the bottom wall. One of the side walls also is hingedly connected to the top wall so that the top wall can be folded over on top of the bottom wall to close the container, thereby enclosing the pizza. These type of conventional pizza boxes are typically used in pizzerias and are stored as flat blanks or are assembled and stored in an open nested condition or are closed and stored in an assembled condition.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,921,170 to Katchadourian et al., which is commonly owned with the present invention and hereby incorporated in its entirety by reference, is directed towards an apparatus and method for making pizza. This apparatus and method automatically prepares and bakes a fresh pizza. Thus, a need has arisen for a container that can be formed from a unitary blank of foldable sheet material, and stored in a folded, flat position to minimize the space that the stack of containers take up within the apparatus. Additionally, there is a need for a container that can be easily removed from the stack of folded, flat blanks into a predetermined position where the container can be assembled to permit a food product, such as a pizza, to be inserted into the interior of the container. There is a further need for a container whose closure flaps can be automatically closed without jamming so that the package can be delivered to the end user while protecting the food product.
Currently, there are no containers that satisfy these needs. The conventional pizza box is intended to be used by hand, and the hingeable top wall is too large to be reliably handled by automated processes. Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a container that satisfies these needs.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
A preferred embodiment of the present invention that demonstrates various features, objects and advantages thereof, includes a container for a food product. The container is formed from a unitary blank of foldable sheet material. The container includes a base wall and a first closure flap foldably attached to the base wall along a first edge thereof. A rear wall is foldably attached to the base wall along a second edge thereof. The second edge has a first end adjacent to the first edge. A top wall is foldably attached to the rear wall. A front wall is foldably attached to the top wall. The closure flap comprises a side wall that is foldably attached to the base wall and a locking flap that is foldably attached to the side wall along a locking flap fold line. The locking flap has a free edge opposite to the fold line. The free edge is arcuate for at least a portion of its length. The arcuate portion is curved inwardly toward the locking flap fold line.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
The above and still further objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent upon consideration of the following detailed description of a specific embodiment thereof, especially when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein like reference numerals in the various figures are utilized to designate like components, and wherein:
FIG. 1
is a top plan view of a blank for forming the package according to the present invention;
FIG. 2
is a top plan view of the blank of
FIG. 1
with a glue flap in a folded position;
FIG. 3
is a plan view of the blank folded so that the glue flap can be attached to a side wall, thereby forming a container;
FIG. 4
is a perspective view of the package of
FIG. 3
in the assembled position with the closure flaps shown in the open position;
FIG. 5
is a right side view of the package of
FIG. 4
, with the package in the assembled position and the closure flap in the open position;
FIG. 6
is a cross-sectional view taken along lines
6
—
6
of FIG.
5
and looking in the direction of the arrows; and
FIG. 7
is a partial perspective view of the closure flap with part of the top wall broken away.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
Referring now to
FIGS. 1-7
, a package or container for a food product formed from a unitary blank
14
of foldable sheet material in accordance with the present invention is illustrated. Container
10
is formed from a one-piece blank
14
.
Container
10
is suitable for protecting, thermally insulating and transporting relatively large food items. Container
10
preferably encloses a relatively large flat food item, such as a pizza, and therefore, container
10
has a relatively large generally square or rectangular-shaped bottom wall and relatively short side walls, as will be discussed in detail below.
Container
10
is formed from a blank
14
that is preferably made from a heavy paper board and/or corrugated paper material. If blank
14
is formed of paper or paper board material, preferably at least the inner and/or the outer surfaces of the formed container
10
are coated with any conventional coating commonly applied to non-plastic food containers. The coating is the type to make the paper or paper board resistant to the penetration of grease or the like. With such a coating, the container surfaces could be used as a support surface while consuming the pizza without the problem of grease penetration. Alternatively, as one skilled in the art would appreciate, the container could be formed from metal foil, plastic sheet material, filmed plastic or any other well known material for fabricating containers for food or the like. Whatever the selected material, it should be somewhat flexible and resilient, but it must provide the requisite strength for protecting the contents of the container.
With reference to
FIGS. 1 and 2
, blank
14
, for forming container
10
, includes a first or base wall
16
. It is apparent from the drawings that base wall
16
will form a lower wall of the completed container
10
. It should be noted that relative terms, such as “lower”, “rear”, “front”, “downwardly”, etc., are used herein for the sake of clarity in describing the present invention with respect to the drawing Figures. Of course, if the container is held in a different position than the one illustrated, the “downward” direction may becom upward or any other direction.
A first closure flap
18
is foldably attached to base wall
16
along a first fold line or edge
20
thereof. A second closure flap
22
is foldably attached to base wall
16
along a third fold line or edge
24
thereof. First edge
20
is located opposite from third edge
24
. A rear wall
26
is foldably attached to base wall
16
along a second fold line or edge
28
of base wall
16
. At one end, second edge
28
is disposed adjacent to first edge
20
. At an opposite second end, second edge
28
is disposed adjacent to third edge
24
. A first tab
30
is foldably attached to rear wall
26
at a first fold line or edge
32
thereof. A second tab
34
is foldably attached to rear wall
26
at a second fold line or edge
36
thereof. First edge
32
is disposed opposite to second edge
36
, as illustrated in
FIGS. 1 and 2
. A top wall
38
is foldably attached to rear wall
26
along a third edge or fold line
40
of rear wall
26
. Fold line
40
is interrupted by a pair of score lines
42
, which when the container is assembled forms a pair of vents for the container and also provides a support surface by which the container may be guided when being handled by machinery during transport from one location to another location.
A front wall
44
is foldably attached to top wall
38
along a first fold line or edge
46
of top wall
38
. Fold line
46
, like fold line
40
, is interrupted by a pair of score lines
48
, which provide the assembled container with another pair of vents and guides for assisting in guiding the container when being handled by machinery. Like rear wall
26
, front wall
44
also includes a first tab
50
and a second tab
52
. First tab
50
is foldably attached to front wall
44
at a first fold line or edge
54
thereof. Second tab
52
is foldably attached to front wall
44
at a second fold line or edge
56
thereof.
A glue flap
58
is foldably attached to base wall
16
along a fourth edge or fold line
60
thereof. As illustrated in
FIG. 2
, glue flap
58
is folded about fold line
60
thereby revealing that one side of glue flap
58
is provided with an adhesive
62
.
To form container
10
from blank
14
, glue tab
58
is folded to the position illustrated in
FIG. 2
so that adhesive
62
is facing upwardly. Blank
14
is then folded about fold line
40
to the position illustrated in
FIG. 3
so that the free end of rear wall
44
aligns with the fourth edge or fold line
60
of base wall
16
and glue flap
58
is sandwiched between base wall
16
and front wall
44
. Front wall
44
can now be attached to glue tab
58
via adhesive
62
. The blank is now in a flat, folded position which is suitable for shipping and storing in stacks. When stored in stacks, the top or bottom blank in the stack can be easily removed, manually or by machine, and moved to any desired location. For example, the top flat, folded blank can be moved by machinery into a position where it can be moved from the flat, folded position of
FIG. 3
to the assembled, closure flap open position of
FIGS. 4-6
. This movement can be accomplished by, for example, supporting one end of the folded blank at fold line
60
and applying a force at the opposite end of the folded blank at fold line
40
in the direction toward fold line
60
. This force will cause the blank to move into the assembled, but closure flap open position illustrated in
FIGS. 4-6
.
Referring now to
FIG. 2
, each closure flap
18
,
22
is comprised of side wall portion
62
,
64
and a locking flap portion
66
,
68
, respectively. Sidewall portions
62
,
64
each have a height corresponding to the height of rear wall
26
and front wall
44
. Locking flap
66
,
68
is foldably attached to side wall
62
,
64
along fold line
70
,
72
, respectively. As illustrated in
FIGS. 1 and 2
, each fold line
70
,
72
does not extend to the ends of the respective side wall and locking flap, instead an L-shaped score line
74
is disposed at each end, thereby forming a V-shaped locking ledge portion
76
at each end of the locking flap
66
,
68
.
Each tab
30
,
34
,
50
,
52
has an L-shaped projection or shoulder
78
at its end adjacent to top wall
38
. Each L-shaped projection
78
is defined in part by a first end wall portion
80
that extends essentially linearly and approximately parallel to fold lines
40
,
46
, respectively, which is approximately parallel to second edge
28
of rear wall
26
. First end wall portion
80
extends for approximately a slightly lesser length than the distance that L-shaped projection
76
extends.
Referring now to
FIGS. 4-7
, to move the closure flap
22
,
18
from the open position as illustrated in
FIGS. 4-6
to the closed position illustrated in
FIG. 7
, the respective set of tabs
34
,
52
or
30
,
50
are first moved inwardly to approximately the position illustrated in
FIGS. 4 and 5
. Locking flap portion
68
,
66
is then moved downwardly, by for example, a mechanical finger
84
, which applies a downward force to closure flap
68
,
66
.
As illustrated in the Figures, free end
82
of closure flap
68
,
66
is arcuate for a major portion of its length. This arcuate shaped portion
86
is curved inwardly towards the respective locking flap fold line
70
,
72
. Free end
82
of the locking flap is curved inwardly towards its respective locking flap fold line because, in the assembled position of
FIGS. 4-6
, top wall
38
will, in practice, sometimes sag from the horizontal position illustrated in
FIGS. 4-6
to the exaggerated position illustrated by dashed line
88
in FIG.
5
. Thus, when a closing force is applied by a second member in the direction indicated by arrow A in
FIG. 6
by, for example, another mechanical finger (not shown), closure flap
68
will be inserted inside of container
10
underneath top wall
38
to the position shown in FIG.
7
. Thus, even if top wall
38
sags to some extent, as indicated in an exaggerated manner in
FIG. 5
by dashed line
88
, locking flap
68
will still be smoothly inserted into the interior of the container. The present inventors have found that if folding flap
66
,
68
is not formed with an arcuate free end that curves inwardly towards the respective locking flap fold line, during this closing process the locking flap
66
,
68
will often jamb against the end wall
90
of top wall
38
.
Referring now to
FIGS. 5 and 7
, as the closure flap
66
,
68
is moved into the locking flap closed position of
FIG. 7
, locking ledge
76
of the locking flap will be guided up and over the respective tab, including its shoulder
78
until locking ledge
76
is disposed interiorly of projection
78
, at which time ledge
76
snaps downwardly into the locking flap closed position as illustrated in
FIG. 7. A
similar operation will then be performed to close the opposite closure flap
18
.
Of course, before either the first, second or both closure flaps are closed, machinery may be used to insert a food product, such as, for example, a pizza into the interior of the container. Thereafter, the first, second or both closure flaps can be closed and the container can be delivered to the end user.
Having described the presently preferred exemplary embodiment of a container having a closure flap that includes an arcuate free end in accordance with the present invention, it is believed that other modifications, variations and changes will be suggested to those skilled in the art in view of the teachings set forth herein. It is, therefore, to be understood that all such modifications, variations, and changes are believed to fall within the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.
Claims
- 1. A container for a food product, said container being formed from a unitary blank of foldable sheet material, said container comprising:a base wall, a first closure flap foldably attached to said base wall along a first edge thereof, a rear wall foldably attached to said base wall along a second edge thereof, said second edge having a first end adjacent to said first edge; a top wall foldably attached to said rear wall; a front wall foldably attached to said top wall; wherein, said closure flap comprises a side wall foldably attached to said base wall and a locking flap foldably attached to said side wall along a locking flap fold line, said locking flap having a free edge opposite to said fold line, said free edge being arcuate for at least a portion of its length, said arcuate portion being curved inwardly toward said locking flap fold line.
- 2. The container according to claim 1, further comprising:a first tab foldably attached to said rear wall at a first edge thereof, a second tab foldably attached to said rear wall at a second edge thereof, said first edge being disposed opposite to said second edge.
- 3. The container according to claim 2, further comprising:a third tab foldably attached to said front wall at a first edge thereof, a fourth tab foldably attached to said front wall at a second edge thereof, said first edge of said front wall being disposed opposite to said second edge of said front wall.
- 4. The container according to claim 1, wherein an L-shaped score line is disposed at each end of said fold line.
- 5. The container according to claim 3, wherein an L-shaped score line is disposed at each end of said fold line.
- 6. The container according to claim 5, wherein each of said tabs has an L-shaped projection at its end adjacent to said top wall.
- 7. The container according to claim 6, wherein each of said L-shaped projections is defined, in part, by a first end wall that extends essentially linearly.
- 8. The container according to claim 7, wherein each of said first end walls is approximately parallel to said second edge of said rear wall.
- 9. A container for a food product, said container being formed from a unitary blank of foldable sheet material, said container comprising:a base wall, a first closure flap foldably attached to said base wall along a first edge thereof, a second closure flap foldably attached to said base wall along a third edge thereof that is disposed opposite to said first edge; a rear wall foldably attached to said base wall along a second edge thereof, said second edge having a first end adjacent to said first edge and a second end adjacent to said third edge; a top wall foldably attached to said rear wall; a front wall foldably attached to said top wall; wherein, each of said closure flaps comprises a side wall foldably attached to said base wall and a locking flap foldably attached to said side wall along a locking flap fold line, said locking flap having a free edge opposite to said fold line, said free edge being arcuate for at least a portion of its length, said arcuate portion being curved inwardly toward said locking flap fold line.
- 10. The container according to claim 9, farther comprising:a first tab foldably attached to said rear wall at a first edge thereof, a second tab foldably attached to said rear wall at a second edge thereof, said first edge being disposed opposite to said second edge.
- 11. The container according to claim 10, further comprising:a third tab foldably attached to said front wall at a first edge thereof, a fourth tab foldably attached to said front wall at a second edge thereof, said first edge of said front wall being disposed opposite to said second edge of said front wall.
- 12. The container according to claim 9, wherein an L-shaped score line is disposed at each end of said fold line.
- 13. The container according to claim 12, wherein an L-shaped score line is disposed at each end of said fold line.
- 14. The container according to claim 13, wherein each of said tabs has an L-shaped projection at its end adjacent said top wall.
- 15. The container according to claim 14, wherein each of said L-shaped projections is defined, in part, by a first end wall that extends essentially linearly.
- 16. The container according to claim 15, wherein each of said first end walls is approximately parallel to said second edge of said rear wall.
US Referenced Citations (9)