Claims
- 1. A reinforcing insert for flexible packaging, formed from a single blank, comprising:
- a plurality of facets, each corresponding to a panel in said blank;
- a plurality of fold lines, each corresponding to a score line in said blank for defining said panels; and
- a plurality of alternating projecting tabs and intervening spaces in each of matable edges of at least two of said facets, said tabs being substantially straight and substantially rectangular and said spaces being substantially rectangular, said tabs and spaces being so conformed that the tabs in one of said matable edges substantially dimensionally correspond to the spaces in the other of said matable edges, said projecting tabs in the matable edges being interleaved to form a seam, with each of the projecting tabs forming said seam being substantially unbent and substantially in the same plane as its adjoining facet and the outer ends of the projecting, unbent tabs demarcating said seam.
- 2. The insert of claim 1, wherein said insert is formed from semi-rigid sheet material.
- 3. The insert of claim 2, wherein said sheet material is paperboard.
- 4. The insert of claim 1, wherein said plurality of facets define a regular polyhedron.
- 5. The insert of claim 4, wherein said polyhedron is selected from facets defined by parallel fold lines.
- 6. The insert of claim 5, wherein said polyhedron is a right paralleliped.
- 7. The insert of claim 5, wherein said polyhedron is a triangular prism.
- 8. The insert of claim 1, wherein said projecting tabs in the matable edges are formed by parallel, spaced slits in said edges, with said slits being at right angles to the edges.
- 9. The insert of claim 8, wherein the material intervening between said projecting tabs is bent away from the plane of said facet.
- 10. The insert of claim 9, wherein said intervening materials is bent inwardly with respect to the outline of said insert.
- 11. The insert of claim 9, wherein the material intervening between said projecting tabs is bent outwardly with respect to the outline of said insert.
- 12. A method for producing reinforcing inserts for flexible packaging from a sheet of cardboard or the like, comprising the steps of:
- developing on the surface of said sheet the outline for a plurality of facets defining said insert;
- cutting the developed outline from the sheet, and scoring fold lines thereon for defining said facets;
- slitting each of matable edges of at least two outboard facets of the insert, to define laterally projecting substantially straight and substantially rectangular tabs;
- bending alternate ones of said projecting tabs out of the plane of its facet such that the bent and unbent tabs in the mating edge of one facet are out of phase with respect to the bent and unbent tabs in the mating edge of the other facet; and
- folding said sheet along said score lines and interleaving said projecting tabs at said matable edges to form a conjoint edge, with each of the unbent projecting tabs being substantially in the same plane as its adjoining facet and the outer edge of the projecting, unbent tabs demarcating the conjoint edge.
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION
This application is a continuation-in-part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 717,097 filed on Aug. 24, 1976 and entitled Reinforcing Insert For Collapsible Packages now abandoned.
US Referenced Citations (6)
Continuation in Parts (1)
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Number |
Date |
Country |
Parent |
717097 |
Aug 1976 |
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