Patent Application
20210122547
The present disclosure relates generally to packages for point of sale display and, more particularly, to a hanging pocket for displaying a package of trading cards at the point of sale.
Folding pockets for trading cards are known in the art as exemplified by U.S. Pat. No. 9,701,455 and U.S. Publication 2001/0022318. The folding pocket typically comprises two panels, denoted herein as the front and rear panels, that are joined along a fold line. One of the panels typically includes side flaps extending along the lateral edges of the panel. The panels are folded towards one another and the side flaps are folded inwardly to form a pocket for the trading cards, which are typically inside a foil package. The front and rear panels are secured together by adhesive. Additionally, the side flaps on the front or rear panel are secured to the opposing panel by an adhesive. The front and rear panels typically include an aperture for suspending the package on a hanger for display.
A problem with the hanging pockets as described above is that a malicious party can use a knife or thin blade to separate the side flap from the front or rear panel to gain access to the foil pack inside the hanging pocket, remove one or two high value trading cards from the foil package, and replace the tampered foil package back into the hanging pocket. The tampering can be concealed by tucking the side flap back underneath the front or rear panel. An unsuspecting customer may then purchase the trading cards only to discover that one or two trading cards are missing from the package. While the customer may return the package to the point of purchase, the card manufacturer or retailer typically feels obliged to replace the missing cards at far greater overall cost than the loss from the initial theft itself. The losses to the manufacturer or retailer include the cost of the replacement cards plus related expenses such as employee time, postage, materials, etc.
Accordingly, there continues to be a need for a hanging pocket for trading cards having features that make tampering more evident without compromising the visual appeal of the packaging.
The present disclosure relates to a hanging pocket for point-of-sale display. The hanging pocket comprises a front panel, an upper rear panel connected to a top edge of the front panel along an upper fold line, and a lower rear panel connected to a bottom edge of the front panel along a lower fold line. The upper and lower rear panels are configured to fold towards the back side of the front panel to form a pocket with open sides. First and second side flaps connected to the lateral edges of front panel fold inwardly and join with both the upper and lower rear panels to enclose the open sides of the pocket.
The design of the hanging pocket enables better detection of tampering. If the seal between the side flaps and the upper rear panel or lower rear panel is broken, the upper rear panel or lower rear panel will no longer be secured and the tampering will be evident.
Referring now to the drawings, an exemplary embodiment of a hanging pocket indicated generally by the numeral 10 is shown. The hanging pocket 10 shown and described herein is designed for use as a point of display for trading cards. Those skilled in the art will appreciate, however, that the hanging pocket 10 may be used for a variety of goods in addition to trading cards.
In an exemplary embodiment, each side flap 80 comprises a first portion 82 that connects to a lateral side edge 26 of the front panel 12 along the primary fold line 84 and a second portion 84 that connects to the first portion 82 along a secondary fold line 88. When the blank is folded to form the hanging pocket 10, the first portion 82 of the side flaps 80 folds upwardly along the primary fold line 86 into a plane generally perpendicular to the front panel 20. The second portion 84 of the side flap 80 folds downward along the secondary fold line 88 into a plane generally parallel to the front panel 20. Adhesive is applied on an outside surface of the second portion 84 for adhering to the upper rear panel 40 and lower rear panel 60. In one exemplary embodiment, the second portion 84 of the side flaps 80 includes two adhesive areas 90 disposed on opposite sides of the parting line P where the outer ends 42 and 62 of the upper rear panel 40 and lower rear panel 60 meet. The area of the second portion 84 along the parting line P (between adhesive areas 90) is free of adhesive. Adhesive area 90A is for securing the upper rear panel 60 to the side flap 80, while adhesive area 90B is for securing the lower rear panel 60 to the side flap 80.
In some embodiments, the front panel 20 and upper rear panel 40 include apertures 32 and 46 respectively for suspending the hanging pocket from a display hanger. Positioning the apertures 32 and 46 close to the folding line 28 allows for more accurate registration of the apertures 32, 46 when the upper rear panel 40 is folded.
In some embodiments, an adhesive 92 is applied to the inside surface of the front panel 12 or upper rear panel 40 to secure the front panel 20 and upper rear panel 40 and prevent the product inside from shifting. The adhesive 92 is preferably applied to the front panel 20 or upper rear panel 40 in an area adjacent the fold line 44.
Though not shown in the drawings, text and graphics can be printed on the outside surfaces of the hanging pocket 10 for marketing purposes. An advantage of the design is that the entire area of the front panel 20 is free of fold lines or perforations that would interfere with the graphics.
The design of the hanging pocket 10 also allows a product window 94 to be formed in the front panel 20 as shown in
The design of the hanging pocket 10 enables better detection of tampering without compromising the visual appeal of the packaging. The entire area of the front panel 20 is available for graphics and/or a product window. If the seal between the side flaps 80 and the upper rear panel 40 or lower rear panel 60 is broken, the outer end 42, 62 of the upper rear panel 40 or lower rear panel 60 will no longer be secured and the tampering will be evident. In contrast, with prior art designs the side flaps 80 could simply be tucked in after the trading cards are removed, leaving no clearly visible evidence of the tampering.
