BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a display box of the prior art, conventionally made of blow molded plastic.
FIG. 2 is a detail perspective view of a detent on the display box of FIG. 1
FIG. 3 is a detail front view of the detent of FIG. 2
FIG. 4 is a detail side view of the detent of FIG. 2.
FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a display box having features of the present invention.
FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a detent on the display box of FIG. 5.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view from the front of the detent of FIG. 6.
FIG. 8 is a plan view of the detent of FIG. 6.
FIG. 9 is a plan view of another embodiment of a detent on the display box of FIG. 5.
FIG. 10 is a plan view of yet another embodiment of the detent on the display box of FIG. 5.
FIG. 11 is a view of the detent depicted in FIG. 7, showing a tool in position.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS
With reference to the figures which are provided for exemplification only and without limitation, a method and device for shipping and displaying objects of merchandise such as tools is disclosed having aspects of the present invention.
As exemplified in FIG. 5, there is disclosed a display box 40 of the present invention for holding and displaying merchandise such as metal tools that might typically be used in a workshop, such as sockets, pliers, hammers, wrenches, drivers, and the like. In one aspect, the display box 40 has a generally horizontal surface 42 which includes a number of recesses 44, each shaped to receive a tool such as for example one of those mentioned above. In an aspect of the invention, the display box 40 is made of molded pulp material. It will be appreciated that molded pulp, being essentially composed of natural fiber, such as recycled paper, mixed with a glue to bind the composition together, is highly bio-degradable, capable of decomposing to its organic ingredients in a short period of time. This aspect of the invention addresses the problems identified above, where blow molded plastic containers will take many decades to degrade when discarded. It is contemplated that the molded pulp container of the present invention may be discarded shortly after being opened and the tool contents may be removed to a more suitable permanent storage space.
However use of molded pulp to create a display box for the stated purpose introduces problems not encountered by plastic containers. Molded pulp does not exhibit substantially elastic properties when deformed. Rather, deformation imposed on molded pulp tends to be substantially permanent, and there is not substantial elastic shape recovery after the deforming load is removed. Thus, if a detent having the configuration of the detent described above used on a plastic container is used in a molded pulp container, insertion of the tool would simply tend to deform the detent with substantially permanent effect. Thus a tool, pressed into the recess below the level of the above described detent, would not be mechanically well restrained in the recess by structure, and would tend to fall out of the recess should the container be inverted.
Therefore, according to one aspect of the present invention, a detent is configured in a recess of a pulp mold container shaped to receive a tool which is capable of holding the tool to a satisfactory extent during movement of the container. In one aspect of the invention, the detent is configured differently than the plastic detent described above. In the case of the detent of the molded pulp container, as seen exemplified in FIGS. 6-10, the detent 46 is configured so that, when a tool 52 is inserted into the recess 44 (FIG. 11), the detent is dimensioned in relation to the tool such that the tool cannot be pressed downward beyond the level of the detent. Rather, the detent 46 is configured to extend down the side of a vertical wall 48 of the recess 44 so that when the tool comes to rest in the recess, a portion of the detent is still adjacent to and in contact with a vertical tangent of the tool, as exemplified in FIG. 11. Unlike the detent of the plastic container described above, the detent 46 of the pulp molded container is not positioned to be substantially above the tool when the tool is in position within the recess. Thus, although the detent has been permanently deformed to a substantial extent by the tool, the detent is still in contact with the tool when the tool is in position in the recess. It has been found that (particularly if the tool is not removed and reinserted into the recess a second or more times) this contact with a deformed detent is adequate to provide a satisfactory frictional retaining force against the tool to prevent it from falling out of the recess should the container be tipped sideways. Preferably, to produce this effect, a detent may have a substantially uniform cross section from its upper level to its lower level, and may protrude into the recess by an amount between 2 and 4 times the thickness of the vertical wall 48 bearing the detent. In a preferred embodiment of the container of the above invention, the thickness of the molded pulp vertical wall in the vicinity of the detent may desirably be between about 1.5 mm and 3.5 mm thick. Further regarding the preferred shape of a detent, the ratio of the detent's width to the extent of its protrusion (its “aspect ratio”) may be less than about 1.5, and most preferably, about one, to exhibit desirable retention characteristics.
In a preferred aspect of the invention, best exemplified in FIGS. 6-8, the detent 46, positioned on a vertical wall 48 of a recess 44, extends substantially over the full extent of the vertical wall, extending from the horizontal surface 42 of the container down to the floor 50 of the recess. Preferably, the interior face 54 of the detent extending to the floor is substantially straight and substantially vertical. These features ensure that when a tool 52, sized to substantially occupy the width of the recess, is completely inserted in the recess, a portion of the detent (although deformed at this point) is certain to be in contact with a vertical tangent of the tool, as exemplified in FIG. 11. Moreover, because the interior face 54 of the detent is vertical, the incoming tool 52 must deform the detent above the tool.
In another aspect of the invention, the recess includes at least a second detent 47 having the same characteristics as the first detent 46, positioned on a second vertical wall 49 opposing the first vertical wall 48. Preferably, the second detent 47 is positioned opposite the first detent ( as is best seen in FIGS. 7, 9, and 10), so that when a tool is inserted in the recess the tool will be held, in effect, by a frictional pincer force exerted by the two detents 46, 47 that have undergone substantial permanent deformation but that retain sufficient shape to apply the pincer force.
In yet another aspect of the invention, best exemplified in FIGS. 7, 9 and 10, where two detents are provided opposite one another on opposite walls of the recess, the detents are configured to have a cross section, when viewed from above, that includes a portion of a circle to exhibit satisfactory retention characteristics.
In addition to the foregoing features relating to the detents which facilitate the use of molded pulp as a material for making display boxes for tools, another problem that may arise from using molded pulp to replace plastic in this context is that tools, being typically rather heavy, may tend to cause the surface of the container to bend out of plane when the container is lifted up by two lateral edges. Such bending makes the container difficult to handle, and may cause some tools to disengage from their positions within the recesses. To solve this problem, one or more laterally extending channels 52 may be molded into the structure of the container to provide a stiffer cross section to resist lateral bending deformation. The channels extend from one side of a panel of the container to an opposite side. In the container 40 exemplified in FIG. 5, panels 54, 56 and 58 are shown, in which panels 54 and 58 may fold inwardly about hinges 60, 62. Such hinged arrangement is preferred, for providing a compactable display case, but panels 54, 58 may be separate from each other, and folded over panel 56 without the need for hinges. Desirably, the depth of the channel may be the same as the depth of the deepest recess, and its width about the same. The channel and the recesses may be positioned in relation to each other to allow the tools that impinge on the channel to span across the width of the channel.
Thus, the molded pulp container as described provides a valuable solution, device, and method, for shipping and displaying merchandise such as tools and other apparatus. The molded pulp container is environmentally friendly, and will rapidly degrade when discarded. It is lightweight, and therefore less expensive to ship, especially when shipped in bulk with thousands of similar containers with tools. It is inexpensive to manufacture, being itself made of recycled paper product that is available in abundance. It adequately performs the function of holding the tools in a stable condition in the container during shipping and display.
The container 40 of the present invention may be manufactured using mostly conventional techniques, with some modifications to take advantage of the novel aspects of the invention. The present invention may, of course, be carried out in other specific ways than those herein set forth without departing from the essential characteristics of the invention. For example, although the invention is well suited to receiving and holding metal tools, it's characteristics are also suited to making feasible the use of molded pulp as the material for display boxes in which receiving and holding the merchandise requires that the merchandise not tip out of a display container when it is moved around. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and all changes coming within the meaning and equivalency range of the appended claims are intended to be embraced therein.
Patent Application
20080083634
