This invention relates to display packages or systems designed for displaying and selling of consumer products, and more particularly to a reclosable display package.
The present invention generally relates to packaging, and more specifically to recloseable blister packaging. Blister packages have been widely used for displaying products in retail stores. A typical blister package includes a three-dimensional thermoformed (usually thermoplastic) blister shell for receiving articles of merchandise, and a cardboard backing connected to the blister to close the shell with the merchandise inside.
Blister packages may be particularly convenient when used for displaying a quantity of relatively small individual articles, such as batteries, razors, toothbrush attachments, bolts, screws, and the like. These and the like products are typically used one (or several) at a time, while the rest of the products remain in the package. It is desirable, therefore, that the package can serve not only to display the merchandize, but also as a reclosable storage container.
There have been multiple attempts to create a reclosable blister package. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,200,193 is directed to a reclosable blister-card container having a hingedly attached closure flap including a locking tab. U.S. Pat. No. 5,899,333 is directed to a blister package wherein a blister member, having a product-holding cavity, is secured to a substrate member by a bond line extending generally about the product-holding cavity. A tear strip, defined in one of the blister member and the substrate member has an opening tab, is devoid of fixed bonding to allow for easy activation thereof to open the package. U.S. Pat. No. 6,244,444 is directed to a battery package having a thermoformed thermoplastic clam-shell container with a lid that snaps closed on a battery-containing body. The lid has a peripheral skirt portions defining shoulders facing downwardly. A lower segment of a paperboard card is clasped between the lid and the body. The package includes a tape extending from the body onto the lid to close the package during display. After the purchase, the tape can be broken and the card removed. U.S. Pat. No. 6,308,832 is directed to a display package including a reclosable container. The package includes a housing defining a compartment to house a product and a lid for engaging the housing to close the compartment. The package further includes a planar display card having a tear portion therein adapted to allow for removal of the container from the display card. Once removed from the display card, the reclosable container may be used without the display card to house the product. U.S. Pat. No. 6,364,115 is directed to a product-display package for housing generally cylindrical products, such as batteries, and preventing rotation of the products. The package comprises a container including a plurality of parallel pockets configured to receive a product. Inward protrusions are formed in first and second ends to hold the products in place and prevent their rotation, and additional protrusions are formed in the package to contact side walls of the product to further prevent rotation. U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,986 is directed to a battery package for holding a battery dispenser and batteries including a backing and a battery holder. The backing has a closed position for displaying the battery dispenser and the batteries and an open position allowing a user to read the instructions. U.S. Pat. No. 6,736,267 is directed to a product-display package comprising a display card having a reinforced, closed-loop, hanger hole that is resistant to tear. The display card has a tape reinforcement layer adhered to the main body in a region adjacent to the hanger hole. U.S. Pat. No. 6,016,914 is directed to a blister package with reclosable card, wherein a center portion of the card comprises a closure panel pivotable between an open position providing access to contents of the package and a closed position, and a locking tab extending upwardly therefrom and positioned for folding into and out of the slot and sized for an interference fit with the slot to releasably maintain the panel in a closed position. U.S. Pat. No. 7,506,761 is directed to a (drug) display card for displaying a product on a hanging support, wherein the card has a fold line separating an upper section from a lower section of the card such that the upper section is folded downwardly to lie parallel to and in contact with the lower portion. The upper portion is integrated with the lower portion to secure the upper portion in place. The upper and lower portions include hanging holes that are in alignment with one another to form a single through passage when the card is folded. U.S. Pat. No. 7,571,813 is directed to a battery package comprising a backing having a first area with an extending first compartment and a second area with an extending second compartment, both compartments containing batteries. The backing has a first position in which the compartments are closed and a second position in which the compartments are open.
Some of the above attempts are believed to have at least one of the following shortcomings: sensitivity to wear and as a result lost ability to remain closed after being repeatedly opened (e.g., caused by deformation of interlocking means); a relatively high cost of the materials used and/or tools needed to form the packaging; a relatively large number of components, and complexity of the packaging and a number of steps necessary for the conversion of the display package into the reclosable container and the associated lack of convenience of the conversion (at least for some less dexterous consumers); and the failure to utilize the “display” elements, such, for example, as a hanger hole, more universally, for multiple purposes including the original “display” function and the subsequent “storage” functions.
The present invention is directed to a reclosable display package having an improved yet relatively simple and cost-effective arrangement that utilizes the display's parts as multi-functional elements, acting as “display” elements when the package is displayed in a store and/or originally sealed and as interlocking “storage” elements when the package, after being unsealed, is reclosed in a locking arrangement of its multi-functional parts.
A reclosable display package of the present invention comprises a foldable card having a front side and a backside, an upper section and a lower section adjacent to the upper section along a first fold line, and a three-dimensional shell affixed to the lower section of the card to form, between the card and the shell, a container configured to house a product. The shell may have a peripheral flange and be attached to the card with the help of, and along, such a flange.
The upper section of the card has an aperture therethrough, and the lower section of the card has a tear portion formed therein and structured to enable a user to partially separate the tear portion from the rest of the lower section thereby forming an opening in the container. The tear portion can be separated, for example, along lines of weakness formed in the lower section of the card. When separated, the tear portion has a proximate end adjacent to the card and a free distant end opposite to the proximate end. The lines of weakness can be configured to provide variable configurations of the opening. For example, the package can be designed to offer a user at least two alternative configurations of the opening in the package. The opening is sized to allow a user to conveniently remove the product from the package.
The upper section of the card is structured and configured to articulate around the fold line to abut the lower section of the card, thereby at least partially reclosing the container; and the tear portion is structured and configured to be folded back towards the opening thereby at least partially reclosing the opening while engaging, through the aperture, the upper section to interlock the upper and lower sections in a fully folded position and thus reclose the container.
The display package, therefore, can have (a) a display configuration in which the card is unfolded and the container is closed, (b) an open configuration in which the tear portion is partially separated from the rest of the lower section, thereby forming an opening in the container through which the product can be removed, and (c) a storage configuration in which the card is folded so that the backside of the upper section faces the backside of the lower section and the tear portion of the lower section engages the upper section through the aperture in the upper section to interlock the upper and lower sections in a folded position.
Thus, the aperture of the upper section is a multi-functional element of the package's design: it acts as a display aperture when the package is displayed by being hanged from a display hanger inserted through the aperture, and as a locking element when the upper section of the card is folded upon the lower section and the tear portion engages the upper section to secure the card's folded position. The tear portion is also a multi-functional element: it acts as part of the backing card when the package is closed, as an initial opening element when it is being separated and lifted from the rest of the card to form an opening in the container, and as a locking element and a closure when the package is in the folded, storage configuration and the opening in the container is blocked by the mutually interlocked upper section and the tear portion, thereby preventing the product from falling out of the package.
The tear portion can be structured to articulate around a second fold line, formed in the lower section of the card, at the proximate end of the tear section. The second fold line can assist a user in lifting the tear portion up from the lower section of the card and otherwise manipulating the tear portion, for example, when directing it into the aperture of the upper section. The second fold line can be substantially parallel to the first fold line.
The card may be made of any suitable material, such as, for example, a cardboard. The shell may be made, for example, from a polymeric thermoformed material to form a blister. The card or the shell, or both, may be beneficially made of an eco-friendly biodegradable or recyclable material or materials. The card or the shell, or both, can beneficially be at least partially transparent or translucent—that is, at least a portion of at least one of the shell and the card can be transparent or translucent.
The tear portion can include at least one tab formed therein and configured to facilitate partial separation of the tear portion from the rest of the card as well as locking engagement between the tear portion and the upper section through the display aperture. A third fold line can be formed in the tear portion, adjacent to the tab. The third fold line can be substantially parallel to the first fold line or the second fold line.
A vast variety of products can be used with the package of the invention. One particularly beneficial use of the package is to adapt it for housing electrical batteries, such as AA, AAA, and others.
While the specification concludes with claims particularly pointing out and distinctly claiming the subject matter which is regarded as forming the present invention, it is believed that the invention will be better understood from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
A reclosable display package 10 of the present invention, shown in
The card 20 has an upper section 24 and a lower section 26. One skilled in the art will appreciate that the terms “upper” section and “lower” section are used herein conventionally, in relation to the package as typically displayed in a store when it is hung from a display bracket rod,
The first fold line 25 may be formed using any means known in the art. For example, the first fold line 25 may be embossed to comprise a single uninterrupted linear depression, or a series of depressions in the card 20. Alternatively or additionally, the first fold line 25 may be formed by a plurality of holes, either blind holes or through-holes, or perforations, in the card 20. While not preferred, the first fold line 25 may simply be imprinted or be indicated by using graphics, without being structurally distinguishable from the rest of the card 20. In yet another embodiment (not shown), the upper and lower sections 24, 26 may be joined by a third element structured and configured to function as a hinge, in which instance the fold line 25 will be associated with the hinge. Regardless of the design, structure, and shape of the first fold line 25, or the method of forming it, the first fold line 25 should enable a user to bend the card 20 along the first fold line 25, and then rotate, or articulate, the upper section 24 backwards, towards the lower section 23, to fully fold the upper section 24 upon the lower section 26.
The three-dimensional shell 40 is affixed to the lower section 26 of the card 20 to form, between the shell 40 and the front side 21 of the card 20, a container configured to house a product 41. Non-limiting examples of the shell's material include those comprising: polyvinyl chloride (PVC); polyethylene (PE); polyethylene terephthalate (PET) (e.g., with glycol (PETG), amorphous (APET), recycled (RPET), utility (UPET), co-extrusion of APET and PETG (PETGAG)); polystyrene (PS); orientated polystyrene (OPS); polypropylene (PP); and orientated polypropylene (OPP). The shell 40 may be made of materials including various paperboard, such as, for example, sylvacycle paperboard, solid bleached sulfate paperboard (SBS), solid unbleached paperboard (SUS), and clay-coated paperboard; chipboard; fluted (or non-fluted) corrugate; and bamboo. The shell 40 comprising a composite material, i.e., the shell 40 made of two or more materials, or including portions made of different materials, combined together, is also contemplated in the present invention.
The shell 40 may comprise a thermoformed blister structure and may advantageously be at least partially transparent or translucent, allowing a user to view the product 41 disposed inside the container. Any suitable method of securely attaching the shell 40 to the card 20 may be used.
The upper section 24 of the card 20 can have an aperture 27 adapted to function as a “display” hole when the package 10 is displayed by being hanged from a display hanger, or bracket, inserted through the aperture 27. The aperture 27 may be conventionally structured as a closed-loop hole, or slot, through the card 20 and be supported, or reinforced, by an additional suitable reinforcing element 28, to strengthen an area of the upper section 24 adjacent to or immediately surrounding the aperture 27. The reinforcing element 28 can be made of the same material used for the card 20 and can be affixed to the upper section 24 above or around the aperture 27 by any known means, for example, adhesively. The reinforcing element 28 may be part of a cutout model (
The lower section 26 of the card 20 has a tear portion 30 formed therein and structured to be partially separated from the rest of the card's lower section 26, thereby forming an opening 23 in the lower section 26 of the card 20—and hence in the container formed between the shell 40 and the card 20. As a result, the product 41, disposed in the container, can be easily accessed and removed from (or inserted back into) the package 10 through the opening 23. As used herein, the terms such as “the rest of the card” or “the rest of the lower portion” and permutations thereof are used to describe the card 20, or its lower portion 26, not including the tear portion 30 that has been partially separated therefrom.
The tear portion 30 may be formed, for example, by utilizing lines of weakness 31 formed in the lower potion 26. The lines of weakness 31 can be formed by using perforations or partial cuts, embossments, chemical treatment of selected surfaces, or any other means known in the art. The tear portion 30 has mutually opposite a proximate end 30a and a distal end 30b (
The tear portion 30—and hence the opening 23—may have any suitable shape, which can be dictated by, among other things, the type, size, and shape of the product 41. In the exemplary embodiment of
In the exemplary embodiment of
The lines of weakness 31 in the lower section 26 may be configured to offer variable configurations of the opening 23. In the exemplary embodiment of
To open the package 10 for the first time, the user can partially separate, along the predetermined lines of weakness 31, the tear portion 30 from the rest of the lower section 26 by lifting the tear portion 30 therefrom. A second fold line 35 can beneficially be formed in the lower section 26 of the card 20, to facilitate the lifting of the tear portion 30. Then, the tear portion 30 can articulate around the second fold line 35, up from the lower section 26 to open the package 10, and down towards the lower section 26 to reclose the package 10 and to lock the upper section 24 in a folded position, as explained herein. The second fold line 35 can be formed using conventional techniques similar or identical to those described herein above with respect to forming the first fold line 25. The first fold line 25 and the second fold line 35 may be formed to be mutually parallel.
As best shown in
The aperture 27 and the tear portion 30 are structured and configured to form mating interlocking elements when the card 20 is folded. That is, the aperture 27 and the tear portion 30 are constructed to engage one another when the card 20 is folded along the first fold line 25 and the tear portion 30 is folded back towards its original position (
Thus, in the package 10 of the invention, the tear portion 30 and the aperture 27 provide a reliable yet uncomplicated and economically beneficial arrangement for converting a display package into a storage package—and for subsequent easy opening and closing of the storage package. In the embodiments shown herein, the tear portion 30 and the aperture 27 are structured and configured to ensure a consistent fit therebetween, providing reliable frictional interlocking between the tear portion 30 and the upper section 24, which is not substantially affected by recurring openings and closings of the package 10.
The package 10 may be designed to ensure that the opening 23 can be completely covered by the upper section 24. This, however, is not necessary. The tear portion 30 can be structured to partially reclose the opening 23 in the container 10 after the tear portion 30 has been separated from the lower section 26. Thus, each of the upper section 24 and the tear portion 30 can be structured to cover a portion of the opening 23, and both the upper section 24 and the tear portion 30, in combination, can provide complete closure for the opening 23.
In the embodiment shown in
While the exemplary embodiments of the package 10 shown in several figures herein contain the product 41 comprising electrical batteries, one skilled in the art should realize that any suitable products can benefit from the disclosed design—particularly those which are routinely sold in a display-type package and which are typically removed from the package incrementally, one at a time. Non-limiting examples of such products include: various office supplies such as, for example, writing implements (pens and pencils), pencil erasers, pencil leads/graphite, rubber bands, and paper clips; fastening implements, such as, for example, nails, screws, bolts, nuts, rivets, pins, washers, and the like; relatively small food items, such as, for example, candies, mints, gum, chocolates, snack packs, tea or coffee bags, sugar or sweetener packs, various packed condiments, and food supplements in the form of tablets, pills, and capsules; personal hygiene and grooming items, such as, for example, cotton swabs, q-tips, wipes, sponges, razor blades, oral-care implements, toothpicks, disposable toothbrushes and toothbrush refills, dental floss, paste, condoms, cosmetic products, toiletries, and the like; electronic storage devices, such as, for example, compact flashes, SD cards, USB cards, and the like; game pieces such as chess, dices, and the like; magnets; toys; marbles; cigarettes; tobacco; tapes; films; and many other suitable products.
One advantage of the present invention comprises multi-functionality of at least the tear portion 30. As is shown herein, the tear portion 30 functions as an integral portion of the card 20, maintaining its structural integrity while keeping the container firmly closed when the package 10 is in the display configuration (
The aperture 27 is, likewise, designed to act as a multi-function element in the exemplary embodiment of the package 10 disclosed herein. That is, the aperture 27 functions as a display hole when the package 10 is displayed in a store by being hanged, for example, from a display hanger inserted through the aperture 27 (
While particular embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described, it would be obvious to a skilled artisan that various other changes and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. It is, therefore, intended to cover in the appended claims all such changes and modifications that are within the scope of this invention.
Disclosures of all patent documents cited above are incorporated herein by reference.