US20130277388A1 - Tissue paper systems - Google Patents
Tissue paper systems Download PDFInfo
- Publication number
- US20130277388A1 US20130277388A1 US13/878,899 US201013878899A US2013277388A1 US 20130277388 A1 US20130277388 A1 US 20130277388A1 US 201013878899 A US201013878899 A US 201013878899A US 2013277388 A1 US2013277388 A1 US 2013277388A1
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- United States
- Prior art keywords
- dispenser
- package
- tissue
- stack
- dispensing opening
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Abandoned
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Classifications
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47K—SANITARY EQUIPMENT NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TOILET ACCESSORIES
- A47K10/00—Body-drying implements; Toilet paper; Holders therefor
- A47K10/24—Towel dispensers, e.g. for piled-up or folded textile towels; Toilet-paper dispensers; Dispensers for piled-up or folded textile towels provided or not with devices for taking-up soiled towels as far as not mechanically driven
- A47K10/32—Dispensers for paper towels or toilet-paper
- A47K10/42—Dispensers for paper towels or toilet-paper dispensing from a store of single sheets, e.g. stacked
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- A—HUMAN NECESSITIES
- A47—FURNITURE; DOMESTIC ARTICLES OR APPLIANCES; COFFEE MILLS; SPICE MILLS; SUCTION CLEANERS IN GENERAL
- A47K—SANITARY EQUIPMENT NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; TOILET ACCESSORIES
- A47K10/00—Body-drying implements; Toilet paper; Holders therefor
- A47K10/24—Towel dispensers, e.g. for piled-up or folded textile towels; Toilet-paper dispensers; Dispensers for piled-up or folded textile towels provided or not with devices for taking-up soiled towels as far as not mechanically driven
- A47K10/32—Dispensers for paper towels or toilet-paper
- A47K10/42—Dispensers for paper towels or toilet-paper dispensing from a store of single sheets, e.g. stacked
- A47K10/424—Dispensers for paper towels or toilet-paper dispensing from a store of single sheets, e.g. stacked dispensing from the bottom part of the dispenser
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
- B65D5/00—Rigid or semi-rigid containers of polygonal cross-section, e.g. boxes, cartons or trays, formed by folding or erecting one or more blanks made of paper
- B65D5/42—Details of containers or of foldable or erectable container blanks
- B65D5/54—Lines of weakness to facilitate opening of container or dividing it into separate parts by cutting or tearing
- B65D5/5405—Lines of weakness to facilitate opening of container or dividing it into separate parts by cutting or tearing for opening containers formed by erecting a blank in tubular form
- B65D5/542—Lines of weakness to facilitate opening of container or dividing it into separate parts by cutting or tearing for opening containers formed by erecting a blank in tubular form the lines of weakness being provided in the container body
- B65D5/5425—Lines of weakness to facilitate opening of container or dividing it into separate parts by cutting or tearing for opening containers formed by erecting a blank in tubular form the lines of weakness being provided in the container body and defining after rupture a lid hinged to the upper edge of the container body
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- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B65—CONVEYING; PACKING; STORING; HANDLING THIN OR FILAMENTARY MATERIAL
- B65D—CONTAINERS FOR STORAGE OR TRANSPORT OF ARTICLES OR MATERIALS, e.g. BAGS, BARRELS, BOTTLES, BOXES, CANS, CARTONS, CRATES, DRUMS, JARS, TANKS, HOPPERS, FORWARDING CONTAINERS; ACCESSORIES, CLOSURES, OR FITTINGS THEREFOR; PACKAGING ELEMENTS; PACKAGES
- B65D83/00—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents
- B65D83/08—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents for dispensing thin flat articles in succession
- B65D83/0805—Containers or packages with special means for dispensing contents for dispensing thin flat articles in succession through an aperture in a wall
Abstract
A moist dispenser, the moist sheet dispenser including a receptacle housing for receiving a stack of moist sheets, the receptacle housing including a dispensing opening through which a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack, the dispenser including a lid that has an open position to provide access to the dispensing opening so that a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack through the dispensing opening and a closed position covering the dispensing opening, wherein the lid defines a periphery and the receptacle housing defines a periphery and the peripheries of the lid and the receptacle housing meet when the lid is in the closed position.
Description
- The present invention is concerned with tissue paper dispensing systems, packaging for tissue paper sheets and interfolding arrangements for tissue paper sheets. The present invention is concerned with absorbent tissue paper sheets of all kinds, including toilet tissue paper sheets/hygiene paper sheets/non-woven absorbent sheets, facial tissue paper sheets, kitchen paper towel type tissue paper sheets, hand towel type paper sheets, paper napkins, moist wipes, etc.
- Various types of tissue paper packages are known in the art. There is toilet tissue paper, which is generally provided as a roll of tissue paper. The toilet tissue paper is in the form of a continuous web of tissue paper divided into sheets, each about the length of a hand (but smaller and larger sheets are also known), by a perforation line across the web. The web of toilet tissue paper is wrapped about a tubular core. Kitchen tissue paper for wiping up kitchen spills is often also provided in the form of a roll of tissue. It is also known to provide toilet tissue paper as a stack, rather than as a roll. The sheets of toilet paper are interfolded so that as one sheet is pulled out, the next sheet comes with it to protrude partly through a dispensing opening of a holding wall mounted dispenser holding the stack. The stack may be wrapped in a thin paper that has to be removed before the dispenser is loaded. Coreless toilet tissue paper stacks are also known, which are discussed below.
- There is also known facial tissue paper, which may be provided as a stack of interfolded tissue paper sheets. A box containing the tissue paper stack has a dispensing opening through which the facial tissue paper sheets can be withdrawn, one-by-one. Interfolding the tissue paper sheets allows the withdrawal of a succeeding sheet to partly pull out a preceding sheet. A partly pulled out sheet thus sticks out from the dispensing opening for ease of grabbing and withdrawing. The box is disposable in that it is made of biodegradable materials such as cardboard.
- The present inventors have noted a flaw in a tissue roll design in terms of hygiene. A roll of tissue paper generally has to be handled by both hands in separating a sheet or sheets from a roll. This means that a prior user has handled the tissue that a next user uses. From a hygiene perspective, this is sub-optimal, especially in the context of toilet tissue paper. There is also a problem in that rolls of tissue paper can not be transported and stored in a perfect stack. That is, the tubular core of the roll and poorly nested rolls mean that space is wasted that could otherwise be taken up by tissue paper.
- Facial tissue paper boxes and toilet tissue paper stacks are in some ways a more hygienic option than tissue paper rolls. The boxes provide a relatively closed structure, whereby access is only given to the uppermost sheet in the stack in the box, which is the sheet that the user uses him/her-self. There is, however, room for improvement in present tissue paper packages. They are normally designed so that a cut-out formed by perforations is torn away to reveal the dispensing opening. A more intuitive, less fiddly way to open a tissue paper package is desirable. Also, dispensing tissue from a conventional tissue paper box is usually a two handed process. One hand holding the box down and the other hand pulling a tissue paper sheet out. One handed tissue paper dispensing is preferable.
- A stack of toilet tissue paper sheets may be provided for dispensing from a permanent dispenser. Refill packs of toilet tissue paper sheets are provided to fill the dispenser. Paper towel dispensers are also known in the art. Such towels may be designed for hand or face drying. These can be provided in the form of wall mountable containers that are loaded with a stack of paper towels or toilet tissue paper sheets. To load, the paper towels or toilet tissue paper sheets are removed from a wrapping, which may be plastic or paper, and loaded into the container. One design of a container for paper towels has, at a bottom end, a slit aligned with a longitudinal axis of the paper towels so that the towels can be withdrawn from the container, one at a time. The container and paper towel stack are commonly configured such that a paper towel is tugged in a direction of a transverse axis of the paper towel to pull it from the container. The present inventors have noted that the short axis of the paper towel is thus presented to the user, which often then gets rotated so that a long axis of the towel is aligned with a long axis of the face. One design of the toilet tissue dispenser and stack of toilet paper tissue has interfolded sheets so that as a sheet is withdrawn from the dispenser, it partially pulls the next sheet to be dispensed with it through the slit for ease of grasping the next sheet. Interfolded toilet tissue dispensers have not taken off in the domestic context, although they are used in business or away from home environments. One reason for this is perhaps because the bulk of toilet tissue dispensers make them unsuitable for domestic use. Perhaps another reason for this is that the dispensers are not easy to load. Another reason for it may be that the present designs of the dispenser do not fit with what people expect or want in a domestic environment.
- As with the stack form toilet tissue paper dispenser mentioned above, it should be apparent that improvements can be made to make the loading and use process of the container or dispenser closer to a one-step operation. Likewise, the tissue loading and dispensing process could be more ergonomically friendly.
- Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention in, its various aspects, and preferred embodiments to address the above issues and provide improved tissue paper systems.
- In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets, wherein the package comprises at least one line of weakness that has an unbroken configuration and a broken configuration and wherein the package is configured to be able to be flexed to pull apart the line of weakness when the line of weakness is in the broken configuration to open the package to allow a sheet in the stack to be withdrawn through the open package.
- Preferably, the stack of tissues is elongate and the opened package reveals a longitudinally central region of the stack of tissues, while the longitudinal ends of the stack remain covered by the package. Preferably, the package and the line of weakness are configured so that the line of weakness is broken by flexing the package.
- A package so designed provides an intuitive, even satisfying, way of opening it to get at the sheets. For a package to be configured in this way, it needs be able to be flexed without strain for most adults, including the elderly and young adults. There is a certain feeling of gratification in cracking open a package in this way.
- In an alternative embodiment, the line of weakness defines, at least partly, a tear away strip that is configured to be pulled in a direction of extension of the line of weakness to break the line of weakness. The tear off strip could be implemented by way of a pair of spaced apart lines of weakness with a protrudable pull tab at one end of the tear off strip, whereby the pull tab is pullable in the direction of extension of the pair of lines of weakness to break the at least one line of weakness so that the package can be opened.
- Preferably, the package is sized so as to be grasped by the full hands of a user in order for the flexure to be carried out. That is, the package is sized so that the palm (at least partly), the fingers and the thumb of one hand fit about the package (such that the package fills the hand) on one side of the line of weakness and the palm, the fingers and the thumb of the other hand fit about the package on the other side of the line of weakness (such that the package fills the hand). The hands can be manipulated so as to flex the package and thereby break open the line of weakness. The package is sized so as to be suitable for being opened in the manner. In practice, a user may prefer to apply the counter rotational forces using one hand at one side of the line of weakness and using a work surface, for example, as a counter resistance. Other single-handed ways of breaking the line of weakness can be imagined by the skilled person.
- Preferably, the package is elongate. The at least one line of weakness may be placed in a central region and extend across the longitude of the package. The at least one line of weakness may, in fact, be at least one lateral line that is centrally positioned with respect to a longitudinal direction of the package. Opposing longitudinal end regions of the package can thus be grasped and a turning force can be applied by the user about a pivot point provided by the line of weakness. In this way, the line of weakness is provided at an optimal line of pivot about which the package can be flexed to reduce the force required to open the package. If the line of weakness was longitudinally extending, then opposing lateral sides of the line of weakness would need to be grasped, which would make it harder to create the required flexure because of the increased turning force.
- Preferably, the package is configured to be flexed about a hinge portion of the package, which serves to keep the package together when the line of weakness has been broken open. That is, the line of weakness may extend about the package such that a hinge portion of the package remains when the line of weakness is broken open. The line of weakness may encompass three of four sides (other than end faces of the package) about the package, with at least part of the fourth side serving as the hinge portion of the package. Put another way, the line of weakness extends about a majority of a lateral periphery of the elongate package so that the minor part of the package that is not encompassed by the line of weakness serves as a hinge portion keeping opposing parts of the package together and allowing the package to open about the hinge portion.
- The package is preferably openable about a hinge portion on one face of the package to provide a dispensing opening on an opposing face of the package.
- Preferably, the package is configured to be flexed from a closed and sealed configuration to an opened configuration in breaking the line of weakness. Preferably, the package can be manipulated back to its closed configuration, whereby opposing sides of the broken line of weakness are in contact. This manipulation is preferably done by rotating the package about the hinge portion.
- The package is preferably stiff enough to maintain the open configuration even when the package is oriented so that the weight of the tissues presses against the hinge portion. Such an embodiment enables the package to serve as a counter top tissue paper dispenser. Put another way, the package is stiff enough that when empty it at least substantially retains the shape it has when it is full. The package may be made of cardboard, paper or plastic. Preferably, the package is made of a biodegradable material.
- In a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets, wherein the package is openable, from a closed configuration concealing the tissues, by moving one part of the package relative to another part of the package, and wherein a cover is moveable with one of the parts relative to the other part so as to cover a portion of the sheets, yet leave uncovered a portion of the sheets to thereby allow a sheet to be withdrawn from the package.
- Preferably, the first aspect of the invention and the second aspect of the invention are combined, whereby the package is configured such that respective parts of the package move apart from one another when the line of weakness is broken and the package is opened and a cover is provided to move with one of the parts relative to the other to cover a portion of the sheets when the package is in an opened configuration and to leave a portion of the sheets uncovered to allow access to the tissues to withdraw a sheet from the package.
- A stack of sheets can be described as having a top sheet providing a top of the stack, a bottom sheet providing a bottom of the stack and a number of sheets stacked between the top and bottom sheets providing sides of the stack connecting the top and bottom of the stack. The cover is preferably configured to cover a side of the stack of sheets when the package is in the opened configuration.
- Preferably, the cover is see-through enough to reveal when the number of sheets left in the stack has reached a depleted state. That is, once there are less than a predetermined number of sheets left in the stack, the user can see this depleted state through the cover by observing the position of the last sheet in the stack.
- Preferably, the cover is combined with the embodiment described above whereby the package has a hinge portion and the package is openable and closable by rotation about the hinge portion. Rotation of the package about the hinge is such as to provide a dispensing opening in the package through which a first sheet in the stack (closest to the dispensing opening in a sheet withdrawal sequence of the stack) is revealed and can be withdrawn, where the top sheet is on an opposing side of the stack to the hinge, and also to provide a side opening through which the stack is revealed in a thickness direction (or stacking direction). The side opening becomes more spread apart from the hinge end to the dispensing opening end. Preferably, the cover is configured to cover the side opening. Preferably, the cover is substantially correspondingly shaped to the side opening. Yet more preferably, the side opening is a triangle shape, with an apex thereof extending to the hinge portion. A base of the triangle at the dispensing opening may be curved or straight.
- Preferably, in the closed configuration, preferably the closed configuration with the line of weakness as yet unbroken, the cover is inside the package. Preferably, the cover is attached to one side of the line of weakness, preferably an inside surface of a wall of the package on one side of the line of weakness, and extends to the other side of the line of weakness in a cantilevered fashion.
- Preferably, the cover is attached to one part of the package and is configured to slide with respect the other part of the package as the parts move relative to one another in opening the package. That is, in the closed configuration of the package, the cover overlaps with the other part of the package and moves into a less or non-overlapping state as the package opens.
- In a third aspect of the invention, there is provided a container for containing a stack of interfolded absorbent tissue paper sheets, the container comprises a dispensing opening for withdrawing a sheet of the stack through the dispensing opening, wherein the dispensing opening has overlapping lips in a direction of withdrawal of the sheet, the lips configured to be opened into a less overlapping or non-overlapping state as the sheet moves therethrough and to return to an overlapping state after withdrawal of the sheet.
- The container may comprise the stack of sheets. The container may be a package comprising a stack of sheets, preferably as defined in the foregoing. The container is able to resist tissues undesirably falling out of the dispensing opening when they are not being withdrawn. In particular, the container may be mounted so that the weight of the stack is directed to the dispensing opening. Despite the weight pressing on the opening, the lips are able to prevent the sheets slipping out of the dispensing opening. This is because the lips have to be quite substantially deflected from an overlapping state in order for any tissues to pass. This is to be compared to known dispensing opening in tissue paper boxes, whereby a film is spread across the dispensing opening and has a slit in it. Although the slit does have a tendency to resist sheets slipping out of the dispensing opening unintentionally, it does not require as great an amount of deflection as overlapping lips as in the third aspect of the present invention.
- In the tissue withdrawal direction, one of the lips is more forward than the other. Preferably, the lips are configured such that they alternate which of the lips is the more forward lip for each sheet that is dispensed.
- Preferably, the overlapping lips are shaped to provide an opening through which a sheet adjacent the dispensing opening can be grasped without having to move the lips. That is, the opening provides a direct path for a user's fingers to the sheets, which is useful when first loading the sheets to pull a first sheet through the lips and the dispensing opening. Preferably, the dispensing opening is elongate and the opening is centrally located between opposing longitudinal ends of the dispensing opening. Preferably, the lips are shaped to provide the opening, whereby the sheet is able to be drawn therethrough free from contact from the overlapping lips on opposing faces of the tissue and whereby on opposing sides of the opening in a direction perpendicular to the sheet withdrawal direction along a face of the tissue, the overlapping lips contact opposing faces of the sheet as it is pulled therethrough. Preferably, the dispensing opening is elongate and the overlapping lips are configured to contact opposing faces of the tissue as it is pulled therethrough and are located at opposing longitudinal end portions of the dispensing opening and the opening defined by the overlapping lips is centrally located between the opposing longitudinal end portions.
- The sheet withdrawal direction is used frequently in this specification. It is a direction normal to the plane of the sheets in the stack. It passes centrally through the dispensing opening of a package, container or dispenser. The dispensing opening is defined by terminating walls about its periphery. The plane in which these walls terminate provides another plane to which the tissue withdrawal direction extends normally.
- In the case of a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets, the sheets in the stack are interfolded and the package comprises a dispensing opening so that as a succeeding sheet is withdrawn from the package through the dispensing opening, a preceding sheet is partially pulled out with it and so that once the succeeding sheet is fully withdrawn through the dispensing opening, the succeeding sheet parts with the preceding sheet, which sticks out from the dispensing opening, yet remains as a leading sheet in the stack.
- Preferably, the sheets are interfolded in an interfolding pattern whereby each sheet is folded at least once so as to comprise a leading panel and a trailing panel, and whereby for any given sheet in the stack, the leading and trailing panels have a trailing panel of a next sheet and a leading panel of a previous sheet disposed between panels of the given tissue in face to face relation.
- Preferably, the interfolding pattern of the stack of sheets and the overlapping lips are configured such that as a leading panel of a sheet closest to the dispensing opening is pulled upon to withdraw the sheet, the leading panel moves through the dispensing opening and the overlapping lips, thereby deforming the lips in a withdrawal direction, and further wherein as the leading panel is pulled, a trailing panel is in face to face relation with a leading panel of an adjacent sheet preceding in the stack so that it pulls the leading panel of the preceding sheet through the overlapping lips and the dispensing opening with it, and wherein once a trailing edge of the trailing panel of the succeeding sheet is released by the overlapping lips, and is thereby out of the dispending opening, the succeeding sheet is released and the leading panel of the preceding sheet protrudes past the overlapping lips for being pulled upon to withdraw the next sheet through the dispensing opening.
- The overlapping lips and the interfolding pattern of the stack of tissue paper sheets are preferably configured such that a first one of the lips is more distal to the stack of sheets than a second one of the lips and such that as a sheet is pulled through the dispensing opening and through the overlapping lips, the overlapping lips deform in the withdrawing direction, and the first sheet is in partial face to face relation with a preceding sheet in the stack so that it pulls the preceding sheet with it, and wherein the preceding sheet comes out adjacent the second one of the lips with the succeeding sheet disposed between the preceding sheet and the first one of the lips, and such that as a trailing edge of the succeeding sheet is pulled beyond the overlapping lips, the succeeding sheet is released from the container and the first one of the lips resiliently drops back in the withdrawing direction so as to be behind the second one of the lips.
- Thus, the interfolding pattern is such that the tissues are dispensed in an alternating manner between first and second sheet withdrawal configurations. In the first sheet withdrawal configuration, a succeeding sheet is located adjacent a first one of the overlapping lips as compared to a preceding sheet that is pulled through the lips with it, as a result of tissue face to tissue face contact, which is located adjacent a second one of the lips (in the sheet withdrawing direction). In the second sheet withdrawal configuration, the succeeding sheet is located adjacent the second lip and the preceding sheet is located adjacent the first lip. Alternation between the sheet withdrawal configurations between each successively withdrawn sheet results in the overlapping lips alternating between first and second lip configurations. The first lip configuration has the first lip more forward in the sheet withdrawal direction than the second lip and occurs as a result of a sheet being withdrawn under the second sheet withdrawal configuration. The second lip configurations has the second lip more forward in the sheet withdrawal direction than the first lip and occurs as a result of a sheet being withdrawn under the first sheet withdrawal configuration.
- In a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dispenser for holding a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets or a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets, wherein the dispenser defines a dispensing opening and a cavity for receiving said stack or said package, wherein the dispenser defines the cavity to follow a path including a v shape whereby an outside edge of a peak of the v shape extends into the dispensing opening such that when the stack or package is inserted into the cavity, and the stack or package is sized to fill the cavity, it must be deformed to have the v or u shape to fit therein.
- The fourth aspect of the present invention aims the stack toward the dispensing opening and requires the stack to be deformed into a bent v shape. This provides a bias so that the sheets protrude from the dispensing opening for convenient tissue sheet withdrawal. An outside edge of a v shape is to be understood in the context of the legs of the v shape defining a relatively narrow angle between them on an inside and defining a relatively large angle between them on an outside. The v shape may be curved at its peak, rather than pointed.
- Looked at in another way, the fourth aspect of the present invention provides a dispenser for holding a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets or for holding a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets, wherein the dispenser comprises first and second walls, the first wall being made at least partly up of first and second wall parts that are angled toward one another to define a point of intersection and the second wall being made at least partly up of first and second wall parts that are angled toward one another in the same way as the first wall part but to define a dispensing opening therebetween where the point of intersection is positioned in the first wall part, the dispensing opening allowing sheets from the stack to be withdrawn, the first and second walls being spaced apart to provide a stack receiving cavity therebetween, wherein a line bisecting the angle between the first and second wall parts of the first and second walls passes through the point of intersection of the first wall and the dispensing opening of second wall.
- Preferably, a first line bisecting the angle between the first and second parts of the first and second walls extends through the point of intersection of the first wall and the dispensing opening defined by the second wall. Preferably, a line perpendicular to the first line will pass through a first point on the second wall and a second point on the second wall (preferably equally spaced from the dispensing opening). The point of intersection and the first and second points thus provide a three point load tending to fold or flex the stack toward the dispensing opening.
- Preferably, the first and second walls are shaped and spaced apart to define a v shaped cavity therebetween such that when the stack or at least one package is inserted into the cavity it must be shaped to have the v shape to fit therein.
- It is envisaged that the package of tissue paper sheets and the cavity may be sized such that the package fills the cavity. It is also envisaged that the cavity may be oversized so that a partially depleted and a full package fills the cavity or so that a plurality, e.g. two packages may be required to fill the cavity. In this way, the dispenser can be tapped-up without requiring the current package being used dispensing to first be removed.
- Preferably, the dispenser includes opposed top and bottom walls defining a thickness of the v shape of the cavity between them, wherein one of the walls defines an inside edge of the v shape and provides an inside peak of the v shape and the other of the opposing walls defines an outside edge of the v shape of the cavity and defines the dispensing opening located where an outside edge of the peak of v shape would otherwise be. The thickness of the v shape of the cavity determines the number of tissues in the stack that can be received therein.
- Preferably, the dispenser includes opposed sidewalls extending between the top and bottom walls to together define a periphery of the cavity.
- Preferably, the dispenser defines legs of the v shape of the cavity to have an angle of between 170° and 100°, 160° and 110° or 120° or 130° or 140° and is preferably about 150°. It has been found that angles such as these are optimal for providing a bias for the sheet to protrude through the dispensing opening, without being so steep as to cause the tissue to unintentionally fall through the dispensing opening under the weight of gravity (particularly as the tissue stack becomes depleted).
- Preferably, the dispenser defines the cavity to be elongate for receiving an elongate stack of tissue paper sheets or elongate package comprising a stack of tissue paper sheets, to have a thickness direction with which the stacking direction of the stack of tissue paper sheets is to be aligned and a lateral direction across a face of the stack of tissue paper sheets. The dispenser defines the peak of the v shape of the cavity at a central location between opposed longitudinal ends of the cavity so as to require, when the stack of sheets is sized to fill the cavity in the sheet stacking direction, the stack of sheets to have a bend line in a lateral direction across a face of the stack and centrally located between opposed longitudinal ends of the stack.
- Preferably, the dispenser defines an elongate cavity for receiving an elongate stack of sheets or an elongate package comprising a stack of tissue paper sheets, wherein the dispenser is open at a front face for loading the stack or package therethrough into the cavity, wherein the dispensing opening and the cavity are oriented so that there are a sheet withdrawal direction and a longitudinal direction of the cavity that are perpendicular to one another and perpendicular to both of these directions is a front back direction.
- Preferably, the dispenser includes the first and second walls defining top and bottom faces of the cavity in a sheet withdrawal direction, which is also in the direction of a first line bisecting the angle between the first and second parts of the first and second walls. The dispenser includes end walls defining end faces of the cavity in a longitudinal direction of the cavity, which is a straight line extending through corresponding points in the sheet withdrawal direction on the end walls. In a front to back direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction and the tissue withdrawal direction, there are a rear wall defining a rear face of the dispenser and an open front face of the cavity for loading purposes.
- Preferably, the dispenser includes an opening or recess for wall mounting the dispenser by way of a wall fastener. Preferably, the dispenser includes a removable wall fastener that is to be fastened to a room wall and a recess for receiving the wall fastener, where edges of the wall fastener and the recess cooperate to attach the dispenser to its wall fastener, and wherein of the edges is bifurcated so that the other edge can be received in the bifurcation in a sliding manner.
- In a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system of a dispenser and a package comprising a stack of absorbent tissue paper sheets as described above with respect to the first to fourth aspects of the present invention. The dispenser has a housing defining a cavity for receiving the package and a dispensing opening, wherein the housing defines the cavity so as to hold the package in an opened configuration, wherein the package is in its flexed form and the dispensing opening of the package is aligned with the dispensing opening of the dispenser so that a user can withdraw a sheet from the stack through the dispensing openings.
- Preferably, the dispensing opening of the package opens about a hinge portion of the package and the dispenser holds the package open in a configuration such that the dispensing opening transverses from 10° to 80° about the hinge portion, 15° to 70°, 20° to 60°, 25° to 50° or 40°, 25° to 35° and preferably about 30°. When the dispensing opening of the package is in the closed configuration, the package is 0° open about the hinge portion. If the opening angle is too great, interfolding of sheets in the stack could come undone.
- Preferably, the package has a hinge portion as described above and the dispenser housing defines a path of the cavity to include a v shape such that the hinge portion of the package is located at a peak of an inside edge of the v shape of the cavity. Preferably, the dispensing opening of the dispenser is located at a position where an outside edge of a peak of the v shape of the cavity would otherwise have been. Preferably, the dispenser is as described above with respect to the fifth aspect of the present invention. The package of sheets is preferably a refill package of sheets and the cavity is for being loaded with the refill package.
- In a sixth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a stack of interfolded absorbent tissue paper sheets. The interfolding pattern is such that each sheet is folded at least once to provide leading and trailing panels with respect to a tissue withdrawal direction in the stacking direction. The interfolding pattern is such that for any given tissue in the stack, a trailing panel of an adjacent tissue subsequent in the stack in the tissue withdrawal direction is in face to face, overlapping relation with a leading panel of the given sheet and a leading panel of an adjacent sheet preceding in the stack in the sheet withdrawal direction is in face to face, overlapping relation with the trailing panel of the given sheet, such that the trailing panel of the subsequent sheet and the leading panel of the preceding sheet are disposed between panels of the given sheet, wherein the overlap of the given sheet with the trailing panel of the subsequent sheet and the leading panel of the preceding sheet is a partial overlap to provide an overlapping region of the given sheet where the leading and trailing panels of the given sheet overlap with the leading panel of the preceding sheet and the trailing panel of the subsequent sheet and a non-overlapping region of the given sheet wherein the leading and trailing panels of the sheet extend beyond the overlapping faces to a fold portion, thereby to define a stack comprising an overlapping region where adjacent sheets in the stack overlap and non-overlapping regions of the stack on opposed sides of the overlapping region wherein adjacent sheets of the stack do not overlap.
- The overlapping and non-overlapping regions of the stack elongate the stack in a first direction of the stack from the non-overlapping region to the overlapping region and to the non-overlapping region, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the sheet withdrawal direction. This elongation may be desirable in certain stack applications and is achieved by the interfolding arrangement. Further, the weight of the stack is biased in the overlapping region, which may provide improved dispensing when the overlapping region is aligned with a dispensing opening of a dispenser or a stack package.
- The sheets may include n multiple folds, such as the forward most panel and the rearward most panel of the sheet in the sheet withdrawing direction that are respectively the leading and trailing panels. Preferably, however, the sheets are single fold, two panel sheets.
- Preferably, a ratio of length of the overlapping region of the stack in the first direction to a length of the stack in the first direction (which is an inverse ratio of length of non-overlapping regions to a length of the stack) is in the range of 0.10 to 0.90, 0.15 to 0.75, 0.2 to 0.6 and most preferably in the range of 0.25 to 0.50. These ranges provide sufficient overlap of the sheets for the withdrawal of a sheet to pull the preceding tissue out from the stack by way of the face to face interaction of the sheets, while the overlap is not so great as to nullify the elongation and weight centring effects. The greater the degree of overlap, the less air there is in the package, which is largely contained in the non-overlapping portion.
- Preferably, the sheets are elongate and the overlapping region extends laterally across the sheets from one lateral side of the sheet to the other. Preferably, the leading panel and the trailing panel are connected by a fold line. Preferably, the tissue is elongate and the fold line extends laterally across the tissue.
- The panels of any given sheet in the stack may be connected by a fold line. The panels may be connected by a line of perforations or other line of weakness to allow a panel to be torn off from its adjacent panel. The sheets may be folded at the line of weakness so that the fold line constitutes the line of weakness.
- In a preferred embodiment, the stack of sheets is provided as a package of sheets as defined above with respect to the first to sixth aspects of the present invention. The stack of sheets may also be provided in a container or a dispenser as described above with respect to the third and fourth aspects of the present invention.
- The combination of the stack of sheets defined according to the sixth aspect of the invention and the package comprising a stack of sheets and overlapping lips for a dispensing opening according to the third aspect of the invention provides a functional complex that can be particularly useful. The overlapping region tends to weigh down on the dispensing opening of the package if oriented so that gravity is aligned with the withdrawal direction of the tissues. The overlapping lips are thus particularly important for avoiding the tissues falling through the dispensing opening.
- In a generally applicable feature, the package or dispenser preferably has a dispensing opening that is substantially the same width or greater than the sheets, with respect to a direction along the face of the sheets perpendicular to the withdrawal direction, such that as a sheet is pulled out from the stack through the dispensing opening and optionally also the overlapping lips, opposing sides edges, in the width direction, of the sheet are able to maintain their lateral spacing. In the prior art, dispensing openings, particularly lips for holding tissue in a protruded state from a tissue box, tend to crumple the tissue width-wise into a more snake like configuration. The overlapping lips are configured so that a passage between them is sized so as to enable a sheet to pass through them with lateral constriction. An advantage of a roll of tissue is that it does not have to be so crumpled to dispense it. The package or dispenser of the present invention is able to provide a stack of sheets that does not crumple upon dispensing.
- In a seventh aspect of the present invention, there is provided a moist sheet or tissue paper sheet dispenser, the moist sheet dispenser comprising a receptacle housing for receiving a stack of moist sheets, the receptacle housing comprising a dispensing opening through which a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack, the receptacle housing being configured to maintain moistness of the sheets, the dispenser comprising a lid that has an open position to provide access to the dispensing opening so that a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack through the dispensing opening and a closed position covering the dispensing opening, wherein the lid defines a periphery and the receptacle defines a periphery and the peripheries of the lid and the receptacle meet when the lid in the closed position.
- The moist sheets preferably include non-woven sheet material. They may be made of non-woven fibres such as paper making fibres including to a major extent polymer fibres. The moist sheets may be a combination of non-woven and woven sheets. In the following, the moist sheets will often be referred to as non-woven sheets, but this is not to be construed as limiting.
- In prior art moist sheet dispensers, the receptacle has a lid and the receptacle lid includes a dispensing opening and a cover for the dispensing opening. The cover for the dispensing opening is provided in a central region of the receptacle lid and is pivotably mounted to it. The two part configuration of the receptacle lid results in a junction between the two parts that tends to accumulate dust and other such debris. Cleaning of the junction area after sustained use proves to be difficult. The one part construction also enables the dispensing opening cover to be relatively large, which may ease opening of the lid for less dextrous users.
- The present invention provides a lid for the receptacle and cover for the dispensing opening that is one part and thus avoids the presence of debris accumulating junction. Preferably, a top surface of the lid (the surface opposed to the dispensing opening side bottom surface) is continuous for ease of wiping clean as compared to a top surface having a discontinuity as with the two part construction of the prior art.
- In order to allow loading of the receptacle with a refill of moist sheets, the receptacle is configured to be bottom loadable. The bottom provides an opposed face of the dispenser to the lid in the closed configuration. Preferably, the dispenser includes a bottom part that is removable to load moist sheets in the receptacle. The bottom part has upstanding sidewalls that friction fit with sidewalls of the housing in order to secure the removable bottom to the receptacle housing. This bottom loading configuration is an independently applicable feature of the present invention as outlined below in the eight aspect of the present invention.
- Bottom loading of the dispenser means that the lid is not required to serve the dual functions of enabling a receptacle to be loaded and to enable a dispensing opening to be covered. Accordingly, the lid can be made a one part device as provided for in the seventh aspect of the present invention. The removable construction of the bottom part and its friction fit mechanism for securing it to the receptacle is advantageous in terms of manufacturing, as compared to hinge arrangements, and also in terms of easing a sheet loading procedure. In prior art moist sheet dispensers as described above, the lid is pivoted away from the receptacle by way of a hinge to load the stack of moist sheets, and the cover has to be pivoted away from the lid about another hinge to thread a tissue sheet through the dispensing opening and then both lids are shut. This is a relatively fiddly operation that can be difficult to perform, particularly for elderly users. In the bottom loading arrangement of the present invention one hinge is not necessary, since the bottom part is removable and mountable by friction fit. Further, bottom loading enables threading of the sheet through the dispensing opening and moving of the stack into the receptacle to be carried out in the same direction.
- Preferably, the sidewalls of the bottom part are part of an upstanding platform upon which a moist sheet stack is to be placed. A platform surface on which the stack is to lay defines a bottom of the receptacle. The bottom part may define a non-flat surface upon which the dispenser stands, where non-flat is to be understood with respect to the flat upper surface of the upstanding platform and the surface of the lid when it is in the closed configuration that is parallel to the upper surface of the platform. Thus, in one embodiment, the bottom part defines a v shaped bottom surface for the dispenser to stand on, which is able to mate with a v shape upper surface as described with respect to the tissue dispenser of the fourth and fifth aspects of the present invention. Alternatively, the bottom part could define an arc so as to stand on a circular toilet roll dispenser. In both cases, the point is that an inter-fitting system of dry tissue paper and moist sheet can be provided, whereby a room surface for the moist sheet dispenser is not required, thereby saving space.
- In a further preferred embodiment, a centre of gravity of the dispenser lies inside the bottom part. This feature provides stability to the moist non-woven sheet dispenser and a feeling of permanence that is not present in prior art dispensers.
- Preferably, the bottom part is made of rubber or a rubber-like material. The rubber material provides good elastic properties for friction fit with the receptacle and also stabilises the dispenser with respect to the surface upon which it stands.
- Preferably, the receptacle housing comprises a platform having the dispensing opening located, preferably centrally, therein. The platform has depending side walls defining a periphery of the receptacle, while the platform defines a top of the receptacle.
- Preferably, the periphery of the receptacle has an upstanding flange for mating engagement with a depending flange of the periphery of the lid. Preferably, the flanges seal with one another so that there is a moisture seal between the lid and the receptacle. Preferably, the upstanding flange is formed about a periphery of the platform.
- Preferably, there is a moisture seal between the lid and the receptacle when the lid is in the closed position.
- Preferably, the dispensing opening is provided with a deformable member that defines a relatively constricted pathway for the tissue paper sheet as compared to the dispensing opening. The deformable member has an opening to define the pathway for the tissue through the dispensing opening, while squeezing the tissue as it passes therethrough.
- In an eight aspect of the present invention, there is provided a moist sheet dispenser, the moist sheet dispenser comprising a receptacle housing for receiving a stack of moistsheets, the receptacle housing comprising a dispensing opening through which a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack, the dispenser comprising a top lid that has an open position to provide access to the dispensing opening so that a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack through the dispensing opening and a closed position covering the dispensing opening, wherein the dispenser includes a bottom part that is removable to bottom load moist sheets in the receptacle, and wherein the bottom part has upstanding sidewalls that friction fit with sidewalls of the housing in order to secure the removable bottom to the receptacle housing.
- The bottom part of the eighth aspect of the present invention may include preferred features associated with the bottom part as described above with respect to the seventh aspect of the present invention.
- Preferably, the seventh and eight aspects of the invention provide a moist sheet dispenser that comprises the stack of moist sheets, which is located in the receptacle.
- In a ninth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a system comprising a dry tissue paper dispenser having a dispensing opening through which dry tissue sheets can be withdrawn and a moist sheet dispenser comprising a dispensing opening through which moist sheet can be withdrawn, wherein one of the dry tissue dispenser and the moist sheet dispenser is configured to sit atop the other so that the dispensing openings face in opposing directions in a combined configuration, thereby defining opposing moist and dry withdrawal directions, and wherein the dry and moist sheet dispensers have cooperating interfacing surfaces when they are in the combined configuration that resist lateral movement of the moist sheet dispenser with respect to the dry tissue paper dispenser in a direction perpendicular to a sheet withdrawal direction of the dry tissue paper dispenser and the moist sheet dispenser, while allowing the dispenser sitting atop the other to move in a direction from the other dispenser's dispensing opening to its dispensing opening.
- The cooperating interfacing surfaces are preferably in the form of male and female cooperating surfaces. The surfaces, preferably, define substantially an entire bottom or top face of the respective dispenser.
- Preferably, the dry tissue paper dispenser includes a recess or hole for receiving a wall fastener therein to fasten the dry tissue paper dispenser to a room wall. The lateral direction is perpendicular to a line normal to the room wall and to the sheet withdrawal direction for the dry and moist sheet dispensers.
- In this way, a dual moist and dry sheet dispensing system is provided. The system has one of the dispenser mounted atop the other, which is space saving and material, as well as being convenient in terms of access of both types of tissue. In the prior art, there is no designated space for a moist non-woven sheet dispenser to be disposed as compared to, for example, conventional toilet tissue roll holders.
- The cooperating interfacing surfaces are preferably in the form of the bottom face of the moist sheet dispenser matching a top face of the dry tissue paper dispenser. Preferably, the cooperating interfacing surfaces are in the form of the bottom face defining a depending V-shape across substantially a whole extent from one side of the bottom of the moist sheet dispenser to an opposing side thereof, wherein the dry tissue paper dispenser has a top surface defining a matching V-shaped recess.
- Preferably, the cooperating interfacing surfaces extend in the tissue withdrawal direction of the moist and dry tissue paper dispensers at an angle thereto or parallel thereto in order to resist relative movement between the dispenser in the first direction, yet the cooperating interfacing surfaces do not resist the dispenser sitting atop the other from being withdrawn in its tissue paper withdrawal direction.
- Preferably, the cooperating interfacing surfaces resist movement of the moist sheet dispenser relative to the dry tissue paper dispenser in first and second perpendicular directions in a lateral plane extending perpendicularly to the tissue withdrawal direction.
- The dry tissue paper and the moist non-woven sheet dispensers of the eighth aspect of the present invention may be according to those previously described in the first to seventh aspects of the present invention.
- The various aspects of the tissue systems of the present invention will be described in the following with respect to the figures as briefly outlined below.
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FIG. 1 shows various views of a package comprising a stack of tissues according to an embodiment of the present invention. -
FIG. 2 shows various views of a dispenser for holding a package of tissues including a dispensing opening through which tissues from the package can be withdrawn.FIGS. 2 c and 2 d show the dispenser with the package respectively partially and fully inserted into the dispenser. -
FIG. 3 shows perspective views of a wall mounting means for mounting a dispenser as shown inFIG. 2 to a room wall. -
FIG. 4 shows respective views of the package comprising a stack of tissues. A closed configuration of the package is shown inFIG. 4 a. An opened configuration of the package is shown inFIG. 4 b. A bottom end view, which shows in plan overlapping lips of the package is shown inFIG. 4 c. -
FIG. 5 shows a package comprising a stack of tissues that has a cover for covering a portion of the stack of tissues that would otherwise be revealed as the front face of the package opens into the dispensing opening of the package. -
FIG. 6 discloses a package comprising a stack of interfolded tissues wherein the interfolding is such that the stack of tissues is elongate and each tissue in the stack is elongate and aligned so that a longitudinal axis of the tissues and the stack are aligned and so that longitudinal end portions of any given tissue overlap with longitudinal end portions of adjacent tissues preceding and succeeding in the stack. -
FIG. 7 discloses a moist non-woven dispenser. The moist non-woven dispenser is in an open configuration inFIG. 7 a and is in a closed configuration inFIG. 7 b.FIG. 7 c shows a removable bottom part of the moist non-woven sheet dispenser on its own. - In
FIG. 8 , there is disclosed a moist and dry tissue dispensing system comprising a moist non-woven sheet dispensing part that sits restingly on a dry tissue dispensing part. - Improved absorbent tissue paper systems are provided by the present invention in its various aspects.
- There is provided a package of tissues that can be broken open by grasping opposing longitudinal ends of the package and applying relative force to a backside of a perforation line positioned centrally between the longitudinal ends and which extends laterally. The perforation line extends about at least three sides of the package so that at least part of a fourth side provides a hinge portion connecting the longitudinal halves of the package together and also allowing the broken perforation line to be brought together for closing the package and to be brought apart for opening the package in a rotational motion about the hinge. In a closed configuration, the package is block shaped. In an open configuration, the package is flexed into a V-shape in a side view, wherein the opposing longitudinal halves and the hinge portion provide an inside edge of the V-shape and bottom surfaces of the opposing longitudinal halves provide an outside edge of the V-shape in combination with a portion of the package opposed to the hinge that has been moved apart by spreading apart opposing edges of the perforation line. The open perforation line reveals a stack of tissues comprised in the package. A tissue can be withdrawn from the stack and the package through a dispensing opening provided by the open perforation line at a side opposite to the hinge portion.
- In the open configuration of the package, a bottom side of the perforation line extends between opposing sides of the perforation line. The opposing sides of the perforation line respectively connect opposing ends of the bottom side of the perforation line to the hinge portion. In the open configuration, the sides of the perforation line become more spread apart towards the bottom side of the perforation line. A stack of tissues is arranged in the package so that a pull tab portion of the tissue most proximal to the bottom side of the perforation line extends through the bottom side of the perforation line. The bottom side of the perforation line thus provides a dispensing opening through which tissues in the stack can be withdrawn.
- The dispensing opening has opposing first and second lip members disposed on respective sides of the dispensing opening, which overlap with one another so as to cover the tissue facing the dispensing opening in all but a central opening through the overlapping lip members through which a pull tab portion of a tissue in the stack most proximal to the dispensing opening can be grasped by a user. The first and second overlapping lip members are movable relative to one another. They are respectively attached to opposing halves of the package so that as one half of the package is moved relative to the other half of the package about the hinge portion, the overlapping lip members move with them and relative to one another. In the opened configuration of the package and in the closed configuration, the lips overlap. As a tissue is withdrawn from the stack and through the dispensing opening, the overlapping lip members deform into a less overlapping configuration so as to ease passage of the tissue from between the lip members in the tissue withdrawal direction.
- The package includes at least one cover member for covering the tissue that is revealed by the package as at least one of the side perforations opens. The dispensing opening reveals a face of the stack of tissues when it is in the open configuration, while the side perforation reveals the layer of tissue in the stacking direction when it is in the open configuration. The cover is transparent so as to allow a level of the tissues in the package to be viewed so that the user gets an idea as to how close the package is to being empty.
- The tissues in the stack in the package are interfolded so that each tissue in the stack is partially overlapped with a preceding tissue in the stack so as to pull the preceding tissue partially through the dispensing opening and the overlapping lips as a result of the face-to-face partial overlap of each tissue with a preceding tissue. The portion of the preceding tissue that was in overlapping relation with a tissue that has been withdrawn from the stack through the dispensing opening and the overlapping lips thus sticks out through the overlapping lips as a tissue that will next be grasped by a user. The interfolding pattern is such that when a first tissue is pulled out through the overlapping lips, the next, second, tissue will be on a left hand side face, for example, of the first tissue and the tissue after that, the third tissue, will come out on a right hand side face, for example, of the second tissue. This alternation of sides with respect to the tissue being pulled out at which the overlapping portion occurs results in the first and second lip members alternating with respect to which of the first and second lip members is more forward in the tissue withdrawal direction than the other.
- The package of tissues is self supporting in that it can hold the opened configuration, even with the weight of gravity in the hinge portion. This allows the dispensing opening to be top up for positioning on a counter top for tissues to be withdrawn from it in a style familiar to that known from a conventional facial tissue box. The package may also be used in an upside down configuration so that the dispensing opening faces downwards. In the latter configuration, the present invention contemplates a dispenser that is wall mountable and has a cavity for holding the opened configuration of the package. When the opened configuration of the package is V-shaped as described previously, the cavity of the dispenser is correspondingly V-shaped, whereby walls defining the cavity are dimensioned so as to fittingly receive the package in the opened configuration. The shape of the cavity as defined by the dispenser prevents the package from moving back to a block shaped closed configuration and thus holds the package in the opened configuration. The dispenser has a dispensing opening on a bottom surface thereof for aligning with the dispensing opening of the package so that tissues can be withdrawn through the dispensing opening and the overlapping lips of the package and through the dispensing opening of the dispenser. The dispenser can be a relatively low complexity structure in that it consists of a back wall for mounting against a room wall and a sidewall protruding therefrom that extends about the cavity in a continuous manner from one side of the dispensing opening, about each side of the cavity defining a V-shape, to the other side of the dispensing opening.
- A dispenser as described above has a V-shaped recess defined by a top surface of the sidewall, where the top surface is opposed to a bottom surface of the sidewall that includes the dispensing opening that is centrally located between opposed longitudinal ends of the cavity defined by the sidewall. The V-shaped recess is so shaped to receive a depending V-shape of a bottom part of a moist non-woven dispenser. Accordingly, the top surface of the dry tissue dispenser provides a specially designed space for a moist non-woven sheet dispenser.
- The moist non-woven dispenser has a bottom part defining a depending V-shaped bottom surface for cooperating and interfacing with the V-shaped top surface of the dry tissue dispenser. The moist non-woven sheet dispenser includes a receptacle for receiving a package of moist non-woven sheets or a stack of moist non-woven sheets and a lid that is mounted by a hinge to a housing of the receptacle. The hinge allows the lid to open so as to reveal a dispensing opening of the receptacle housing through which moist non-woven sheets can be dispensed. The hinge also allows the lid to be closed so as to seal with the receptacle housing to prevent moisture from the tissues escaping from the moist non-woven sheet dispenser. A periphery of the lid mounts with a periphery of the receptacle housing so as to present a continuous easy wipe top surface of the moist non-woven sheet dispenser. A bottom part of the moist non-woven sheet dispenser, which includes the depending V-shape, is removable and is friction fit remountable to the receptacle housing. The bottom part includes an upstanding platform that engages with sidewalls of the housing in a friction fit manner and also provides an even surface upon which the stack or package of moist non-woven sheets sits. Thus, the platform provides a bottom surface of the receptacle housing, which removably mates with sidewalls of the housing. The receptacle housing also includes a top surface having the dispensing opening centrally located therein. The sidewalls of the receptacle housing define the periphery of the receptacle housing, which sealingly mates with the periphery of the hinged lid.
- Various components of the improved tissue system outlined above will now be described in greater detail with respect to the figures.
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FIG. 1 shows a package comprising a stack of tissues according to an embodiment of the present invention. The package 1 has an open configuration as shown inFIGS. 1 a and 1 c and a closed configuration as shown inFIG. 1 b. In the closed configuration, the package 1 is generally block-shaped. The package 1 has first and second major faces provided by respective top andbottom face walls end face walls front face walls - The package 1 comprises a
perforation line 8 extending through the back andfront face wall bottom face wall 3 of the package 1. Theperforation line 8 is located centrally between opposing ends 4, 5 of the package 1 and extends perpendicularly to a longitudinal direction of the package 1. Thetop face wall 2 of the package 1 comprises ahinge 9 connecting the end of the perforation line at thefront face wall 7 and the other end of theperforation line 8 at theback face wall 6 of the package 1. - The package 1 is filled with a stack of
interfolded tissues 10. In a closed configuration of the package 1, the stack ofinterfolded tissues 10 is entirely covered by the package 1. - In an opened configuration of the package 1, the
perforation line 8 is broken apart and opposing halves, in the longitudinal direction, of the package 1 are connected by and rotatable about thehinge 9. The opened configuration of the package 1 can be seen inFIGS. 1 a and 1 c, while the closed configuration of the package 1 can be seen inFIG. 1 b. In the opened configuration, a gap between opposing parts of thebottom face wall 3, which have come apart as a result of theperforation line 8 being broken, provides a dispensingopening 11 through which a tissue can be withdrawn from thestack 10. The back andfront face walls hinge 9 in the opened configuration of the package 1. The gap between the back and front face parts comes to nothing at thehinge 9 at a top edge of the back andfront face walls front face walls - The back and
front face walls end face walls stack 10 and thestack 10 itself is elongate and the tissues and thestack 10 are longitudinally aligned with the longitudinal direction of the package 1 when the package is in the closed configuration. The distance between theend face walls front face walls bottom face walls stack 10. An interfolding pattern of the tissues in thestack 10 is such that a pull end of a tissue, which is a laterally extending edge of the tissue, is located at the dispensingopening 11 of the package 1. The thickness direction of the package 1 is dimensioned to be convenient for grasping in the hands of a user at opposed longitudinal ends of the package 1. Typical dimensions of the thickness direction of the package 1 are from 5-10 cm, preferably about 7 cm. - To use the package, a user grasps opposing longitudinal ends of the package 1 so that the fingers and thumbs are positioned in contact with the top and
bottom face walls walls hinge 9 tending to pull theperforation line 8 apart. Theperforation line 8 is thus broken to reveal a stack oftissues 10 in the stacking direction by viewing through the gap made by thebroken perforation line 8 in the front orback face wall bottom face 3, which gap provides the dispensingopening 11. A tissue can be withdrawn from thestack 10 through the dispensingopening 11. - When the package 1 is first opened, a forward most tissue in the
stack 10 relative to the dispensingopening 11 is designed to have an edge portion that protrudes through the dispensingopening 11. This edge portion of the tissue can be pulled upon to withdraw a tissue from thestack 10 through thedispending opening 11. The interfolding pattern of the tissues of thestack 10 is such that as one tissue is pulled through the dispensingopening 11, a subsequent tissue is partially pulled through the dispensingopening 11 to protrude through the dispensingopening 11 to provide a subsequent end edge of a tissue for withdrawal from thestack 10. - The package 1 can be reclosed by rotating the partially separated parts (connected only by the hinge 9) about the
hinge 9 to bring the line ofweakness 8 back together. To dispense a further tissue from thestack 10, the package 1 can be reopened by rotation about thehinge 9. - The skilled person may contemplate various modifications to the specific embodiments of the package 1 shown in
FIG. 1 . - For example, various modifications could be made to the exact shape of the package 1 shown in
FIG. 1 . For functional reasons it has been preferred that the package 1 be elongate and theperforation line 8 and thehinge 9 be provided in a central location between longitudinal ends of the package 1. In this way, a turning moment about thehinge 9 can be utilised to make it feel easy to break theperforation line 8. It is also desirable that the longitudinal ends of the package 1 can be conveniently grasped by a user in order to apply theperforation line 8 breaking force. Thus, a thickness of opposing longitudinal end portions of the package 1 in the direction of thehinge 9 to the dispensingopening 11 should be conveniently graspable and thus of the order of the dimensions of a gap able to be made between the fingers and the opposed thumb by an average human adult. - In
FIG. 1 , a line of weakness is provided in the form of aperforation line 8. The skilled person can contemplate alternatives such as a line of weakness in the form of a cut that passes only partly through a thickness of the wall of the package and thus does not reach the inside of the package 1. That is, the line of weakness could be a score line. Theperforation line 8 could be made in a number of ways. Theperforation line 8 could extend continuously by way of alternating cut and tap portions through thefront face 7, thebottom face 5 and theback face 6. Alternatively, thefront face 7, thebottom face 3 and theback face 6 could be divided by a cut line extending most of the way there around, apart from a few small connecting tab portions that are broken by flexing of the package 1. - The tissues in the
stack 10 of the package 1 are disclosed as being interfolded. Thestack 10 could, however, be made of a continuous web of tissues folded into a stacked arrangement that fills the package 1 and where adjacent sheets are connected by lines of weakness, rather than an overlapping face-to-face interfolding arrangement. Important is that the tissue is stacked, rather than rolled about a central core. - The package 1 has been described as having top and
bottom face walls opening 11 faces downwards in use. In one envisaged use this is correct. The package 1 is, however, configured also to be tipped up so that the dispensingopening 11 faces upwards. The package 1 is configured to operate in this way in that thehinge 9 does not collapse under the weight of thestack 10 when the dispensingopening 11 is faced upwards. That is, the package 1 is sufficiently stiff to maintain the opened configuration, no matter which orientation the package 1 is placed in. The package 1 is closed by a user forcing it closed by rotation about thehinge 9. - The
hinge 9 of the package 1 forms a fold line connecting opposing ends of the line of weakness orperforation line 8. The package 1 is, as described above, designed to rotate about thehinge 9 in opening and closing the package 1. Thehinge 9 may define a fold line as a result of its first use, or the fold line may be prefabricated into the package 1, such as by a coining technique or the like. - The package 1 could have a tear off strip defined by a pair of spaced apart lines of weakness. When a tab of the tear off strip is pulled upon, the lines of weakness tear away to provide a torn off strip. When the tear away strip is fully torn away, the lines of weakness are broken and the package is able to be manipulated from a relatively closed configuration to a relatively opened configuration by rotation about the hinge. Thus, the pair of lines of weakness defining opposing sides of the tear away strip preferably extends around a majority of a lateral periphery of the package in the same way as the break open type line of weakness described above.
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FIG. 2 shows various views of a dispenser for holing a package of tissues. Thedispenser 20 is wall mountable, as will be discussed below with respect toFIG. 3 . Thedispenser 20 has aperipheral wall 21 extending in a normal direction to aback face wall 22. Theperipheral wall 21 and theback face wall 22 together define acavity 23 for receiving a package 1 of tissues therein, where the package 1 is as described above. A front face of thedispenser 20 is open in order to allow the package 1 to be loaded into thecavity 23. Therear face 22 is for mounting to a room wall, as will be described in further detail with respect toFIG. 3 . - The
peripheral wall 21 extends continuously about thecavity 23 and about a periphery of therear face wall 22 except so as to define a gap in theperipheral wall 21, which provides a dispensingopening 24 through which a tissue can be withdrawn from a package dispensing opening from a package 1 as described above. Theperipheral wall 21 of the dispenser defines a V-shape in that atop wall portion 25 and abottom wall portion 26 of theperipheral wall 21 respectively follow V-shaped paths. The V-shape of thebottom wall portion 26 of theperipheral wall 21 can be constructed by imagining thebottom wall portion 26 not defining a dispensingopening 24 and instead continuing to intersect. The V-shapedbottom wall portion 26 and the V-shapedtop wall portion 25 of theperipheral wall 21 are separated byend wall portions peripheral wall 21, which defines a thickness dimension to the V-shape of thecavity 23. - The
peripheral wall 21 of thedispenser 20 is designed to fittingly mate with respective top andbottom face walls face walls dispenser 20, which is from therear wall 23 to the open end face, the dispenser is designed to match with a corresponding depth of the package 1 so that when the package 1 is inserted into thedispenser 20, afront face 7 of the package 1 lies flush with a front end of theperipheral wall 21. - An angle α between legs of the V-shape of the
cavity 23 is preferably in a range from 130°-160° and preferably about 150°. An angle β is defined as shown inFIG. 1( c), which is the angle traversed by the dispensingopening 11 as compared to a 0° closed configuration of the dispensingopening 11. The angle β of the dispensingopening 11 about thehinge 9 is preferably in the range of 20°-50°. The form of thedispenser 20 determines the opening angle of the package 1 by holding the package 1 open at that angle β in the opened configuration. - The package 1 is designed to be flexible so that it can be flexed for a user to break open the
perforation line 8 to open the package 1. Thedispenser 20 is a stiffer, relatively non-flexible flexible structure that is able to better hold the opened configuration of the package 1 and which is able to be mounted to a room wall at theback wall 22 of thedispenser 20 and take the load of the package 1 therein without deforming under the load. Thedispenser 20 may be made of relatively thick molded plastic or metal. The package may be made of a plastic film, cardboard or paper. - To use, the package 1 may first be broken open as described above to put it into the opened configuration. The opened package may then be inserted in the dispenser through the open front face. Alternatively, manipulation of the package into the
cavity 23 will tend to pull theperforation line 8 apart so as to open the package 1. As the package is pushed into thecavity 22 of thedispenser 20, a peak of the V-shape of thetop wall part 25 of theperipheral wall 21 provides a first pressure point against thehinge 9 of the package 1. The bottom wall part 16 of theperipheral wall 21 provides second and third pressure points on either side of the dispensingopening 24 of thedispenser 20 against thebottom wall face 3 on either side of theperforation line 8. Thus, a three point load is applied to the package 1, which will break open theperforation line 8 so as to open the package 1. The package 1 can be pushed fully into thedispenser 20 as shown inFIGS. 2 c and 2 d so that theperipheral wall 21 is in sliding relation with the top and bottom faces 2, 3 and the end faces 4, 5 of the package 1. The package 1 can be slid back until aback wall 22 of thedispenser 20 is contacted flush against aback wall 9 of the package 1. - The package 1 is held by the
dispenser 20 in an opened configuration as shown inFIG. 2 d. The dispensingopening 11 of the package 1 is aligned with the dispensingopening 24 of thedispenser 20 so that a tissue passes through the dispensingopening 11 of the package 1 and through the dispensingopening 24 of thedispenser 20 when a tissue is withdrawn from the stack oftissues 10 in the package 1. The angle defined by thecavity 23 defines the angle of the opened configuration of the package 1 because of the close conformance between top andbottom face walls face walls peripheral wall 21 of thedispenser 20. In the V-shaped opened configuration of the package 1, an angle between the legs is according to the ranges given above, which are such that a sufficientsize dispensing opening 11 of the package 1 is provided, yet the angle is not so great that the weight of the tissues in thestack 10 tends to pull the stack through the dispensingopening 11 without a user pulling a tissue of the stack. - Various modifications could be made to the
dispenser 20 according to that described above. For example, thedispenser 20 could be filled by a stack of tissues that are not provided in a package form. Such a stack of tissues would be interfolded or folded so that a pull end of each tissue occurs at the location of the longitudinalcentral dispensing opening 24. In this case of thedispenser 20 itself forming a package for a stack of tissues, the dispensingopening 24 may be more constricted than that shown inFIG. 2 a in order to avoid the stack of tissues unintentionally falling through the dispensingopening 24. -
FIG. 3 shows a wall mounting means for mounting the dispenser as described above with respect toFIG. 2 to a room wall. In the figure, there is shown a tiled room wall for illustrative purposes. Thedispenser 20 has arecess 30 provided in aback wall 22 of thedispenser 20. Therecess 30 in the back wall is a continuation of the dispensingopening 24 provided in theperipheral wall 21 that extends in a direction normal to theback wall 22. Therecess 30 is open at a bottom edge so that thedispenser 20 can be moved with respect to afastening member 31 already fastened on a room wall to receive thefastening member 31 in therecess 30. - The
fastening member 31 is plate-like and has a peripheral edge defining a thickness direction of the plate that is bifurcated so as to provide opposinglips lips fastening member 31 is received in therecess 30 of thedispenser 20, the opposinglips back wall 22 of thedispenser 20. That is, therecess 32 of thefastening member 31 receives an edge of therecess 30 of theback wall 22 when thedispenser 20 is mounted to thefastening member 31. Thefastening member 31 can be attached to the room wall using adhesive or other means such as screws. - To mount the
dispenser 20 to a room wall, thefastening member 31 is adhered to the room wall. Thedispenser 20 is positioned above thefastening member 31 and slid downwardly so that an edge, in the thickness direction of therecess 30 of thedispenser 20, is received in therecess 32 of thefastening member 31 so that thelips rear wall 22 of thedispenser 20. Therecess 32 of thefastening member 31 extends about three sides of thefastening member 31 including a top side portion and side portions extending in a depending manner therefrom so as to correspondingly receive top and side portions of the edge of therecess 30 of thedispenser 20 in therecess 32 of thefastening member 31. In this way, thedispenser 20 is secured to thefastening member 31 and thus to the room wall, in a direction normal to the room wall and in left, right and down directions as one faces the room wall and thedispenser 20. Thedispenser 20 is only able to be dismounted from thefastening member 31, and thus the room wall, by moving it in a direction opposite to which thedispenser 20 is slid onto thefastening member 31 during mounting. That is, to remove thedispenser 20 from the room wall and thefastening member 31, thedispenser 20 must be moved in an upward direction until an edge of therecess 30 comes out of contact, and out of being disposed between, the first andsecond lips fastening member 31. Thus, thefastening member 31 enables thedispenser 20 to be moved into a released configuration so as to be out of contact with thefastening member 31, which may prove useful for tissue loading and cleaning purposes. - Modifications may be made to the specific embodiment shown in
FIG. 3 for enabling thefastener 20 to be mounted to a room wall. For example, thefastening member 31 or indeed thedispenser 20 could have suction cups to secure it to the room wall. Alternatively, a fastening member mounted to the room wall and the dispenser could have a magnetic cooperation for holding them together. In another example, thedispenser 20 could be affixed directly to the room wall by way of screw receiving holes through which screws are drilled into the room wall to clamp thedispenser 20 against the room wall. In another possibility, thedispenser 20 could define at least one channel having an enlarged opening through theback wall 22 of thedispenser 20. The enlarged opening in the channel is sized to allow an enlarged head of a fastening member that protrudes from the room wall to enter into it. Thedispenser 20 can then be moved relative to thefastening member 31 so that the enlarged head of the fastening member slides within the channel to a position where thefastening member 31 cannot pass out of the channel in a direction normal to the room wall, and preferably also in left and right directions as a user faces thedispenser 20 and the room wall. In order to remove thedispenser 20 from thefastening member 31 in such a configuration, the enlarged head must be moved through the channel until it reaches the enlarged opening when thedispenser 20 can then be moved in a direction normal to the room wall to detach it from the room wall and thefastening member 31. - It is, however, preferred that the
fastening member 31 and thedispenser 20 be mounted to one another by sliding thedispenser 20 from a position displaced from thefastening member 31 to a position overlaying thefastening member 31 whereat they cooperate so that movement of thedispenser 20 relative to thefastening member 31 is prevented in a direction normal to the room wall/plane of the fastening member and/or where relative movement is only possible in a direction opposite to the initial direction to slidably mount thedispenser 20 to thefastening member 31. -
FIGS. 4 a, 4 b and 4 c show various views of a package comprising a stack of tissues in accordance with a preferred embodiment of the present invention. The package 1 is substantially as hereinbefore described with reference toFIG. 1 in that it is openable and closable by breaking open aperforation line 8 as the package 1 is flexed in a rotational direction about theperforation line 8. The package 1 ofFIGS. 4 a to 4 c further compriseslip members FIGS. 4 b and 4 c. The overlap is in the tissue withdrawal direction in that a tissuewithdrawal direction line 42 passes through both the first and the second lips. The tissue withdrawal direction line is a line that passes through a centre of the dispensing opening, where centre is to be understood as the centre between the opposed parts of the package 1 in the direction in which they move apart in going from the closed configuration to the opened configuration of the package 1. Looked at in another way, thefirst lip member 40 has a major face that is in face-to-face relation with a major face of thesecond lip member 41 at an overlapping portion of the first andsecond lip members - The first and
second lip members tissue withdrawal direction 42 and as they do so, the first andsecond lip members FIG. 4 b, thefirst lip member 40 is shown to be more forwardly disposed than thesecond lip member 41 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. The first andsecond lip members second lip member 41 is more forwardly disposed than thefirst lip member 40 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. Further, the first andsecond lip members - Referring to
FIG. 4 c, the overlappinglips bottom face 3 of the package 1. The overlappinglips lips lip 41 would be covered by a pull tab portion of a bottom-most tissue closest to the dispensingopening 11 that protrudes through the dispensingopening 11 and thelips opening 11 of the package 1 when the package 1 is in the opened configuration in a longitudinal direction of the package 1. The dispensingopening 11 is provided in abottom face 3 of the package and extends between afront face 7 and aback face 6 of the package 1 to provide adispensing opening 11 that is open along a full width of elongate tissues in the stack oftissues 10 in the package 1 so as to avoid crumpling of the tissues in the width direction of the tissues during dispensing. The overlappinglips opening 11, which is from afront face wall 7 to aback face wall 6 of thebottom face 3 of the package 1. Thelips opening 11, where overlap is to be understood in the context of thelips tissue withdrawal direction 42 into a non-overlapping state. There is thus provided overlappingportions 43 of the overlappinglips opening 11 and a centralnon-overlapping portion 44 disposed longitudinally between the opposing overlappingportion 43. The overlappingportions 43 cover the tissue in atissue withdrawal direction 42 while thenon-overlapping portion 44 leaves the tissue in the package 1 uncovered in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. Thenon-overlapping portion 44 allows a user to reach through thelips opening 11 in order to pull a pull tab portion of that tissue through the dispensingopening 11 and through the overlappinglips - In use, a closed package 1 as shown in
FIG. 4 a is taken and theperforation line 8 is broken apart by rotating opposed longitudinal parts of thebottom face 3 on either side of theperforation line 8 about thehinge 9 in a direction so that the opposing parts of thebottom face 3 are moved apart and theperforation line 8 is thus broken. In the closed configuration 1, the overlappinglips tissue 45 positioned between the moreforward lip 40 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42 and a lessforward lip 41 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. In the closed configuration shown inFIG. 4 a, before theperforation line 8 is broken, the overlappinglips lips bottom face wall 3 on either side of theperforation line 8. Thelips FIG. 4 b. - Referring to
FIG. 4 b, with the package 1 in the opened configuration, thetissue 45 most proximal to the dispensingopening 11 has a portion protruding through the dispensingopening 11 and protruding from between (in the tissue withdrawal direction 42) the overlappinglips tissue 45 for grasping by a user to dispense thetissue 45. The overlappinglips tissue 45 protruding through thelips - As a user pulls on the
tissue 45 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42, the more forwardly disposedlip 40 is deformed in thetissue withdrawal direction 42, which also places thelips tissue 45 being pulled through the dispensingopening 11 and thelips tissue 45 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42 because thesubsequent tissue 46 and thetissue 45 being dispensed are in face-to-face contact. Thesubsequent tissue 46 comes out through thelips tissue 45 is in contact with the more forwardly disposed lip in thetissue withdrawal direction 42 and thesubsequent tissue 46 is in contact with the less forwardly disposedlip 41 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. As thefirst tissue 45 in the tissue withdrawing sequence of the stack oftissues 10 is pulled through the dispensingopening 11 to such an extent that thenext tissue 46 in the tissue withdrawal sequence of the stack oftissues 10 comes into contact with thelip 41, thelip 41 is further deformed in thetissue withdrawal direction 42 to allow thesubsequent tissue 46 to be pulled through the first andsecond lips first tissue 45 is pulled completely through the dispensing opening 1 and thelips tissue 45 is no longer in contact with either of thelips tissue 45 has been dispensed. At this point, thelip 41 falls back to its original non-deformed state at a slower rate than thelip 40 because of the contact of thesubsequent tissue 46 with it. Accordingly, the previously more forwardly disposedlip 40 falls back so as to be behind the previously more rearwardly disposedlip 41 in thetissue withdrawal direction 42. Thelips - The
tissue 46 is now the first tissue in the tissue withdrawal sequence of the stack oftissues 10 and protrudes through thelips tissue 46. This sequence of steps repeats for each subsequently withdrawn tissue with the overlapping lips alternating as to which of the lips is more forwardly disposed. - The overlapping
portions 43 of the overlappinglips opening 11 at opposing lateral portions of the elongate tissue as it is being withdrawn in a longitudinal direction of the tissue. This contact of opposing faces of the tissue being withdrawn by the overlappingportions 43 of the overlappinglips non-overlapping portion 44 of thelips lips - The above description of the overlapping
lips FIGS. 1 and 2 . Such a package 1 is disposable and is thus made of less hardwearing materials such as a thin polymer wrap, paper or cardboard. In an alternative embodiment, the overlapping lips could be applied on either side of a more hardwearing container for a stack of tissues. Such a container could be wall mountable and made of suitably rigid polymers or metal. The overlappinglips FIGS. 4 a-4 c. For a container having a fixed dispensing opening, the description of the overlappinglips opening 11, that is a dispensingopening 11 that is not formed by opposing parts of a container or package that move away from one another, the overlapping lips would not move from a more overlapping configuration as shown inFIG. 4 a to a less overlapping, but still overlapping configuration, as shown inFIG. 4 b. - In one aspect of the present invention, the package 1 comprising a stack of
tissues 10 also comprises acover 50 for covering the stack oftissues 10 in a thickness or stacking direction of the stack oftissues 10 when the package 1 is in the opened configuration, as shown inFIG. 5 . The stack oftissues 10 has opposing major faces provided at least in part by a first and last tissue in a stacking sequence of the stack oftissues 10. The package 1 opens at the dispensingopening 11 so as to reveal the major face of the stack oftissues 10 corresponding to the first tissue in thestack 10. Ahinge 9 of the package 1 is provided across, in a lateral direction, of an opposing major face of the stack oftissues 10 so that the package 1 opens about thehinge 9 to provide the dispensingopening 11. Connecting thehinge 9 and the dispensingopening 11 are opposing front endrear face walls hinge 9 so as to reveal the stack oftissues 10 in a thickness direction of the stack oftissues 10. - The opening in the back and
front face walls opening 11 from thehinge 9 when thepackage 9 is in the opened configuration. The opening is between opposing parts or, in the shown embodiments, halves 51, 52 of the front andback face walls cover 50 is attached to one of theparts front face 7 of the package 1 and extends across the opening between the opposingparts front face 7 to theother part tissues 10 from contamination, such as by dust. Thecover 50 is attached to one of theparts other part front face 7 when the package 1 is in the opened configuration so that it moves with one of theparts other part cover 50 is attached to one of the parts on the inside of the package 1. In the closed configuration of the package 1, before theperforation line 8 is broken, thecover 50 is covered by the package 1 so that thecover 50 is inside the package 1. - The
cover 50 is triangular in shape so that a peak of the triangle is positioned at thehinge 9 side of the opening between the opposingparts front face 7 when the package 1 is in the opened configuration and a base of the triangle defined by thecover 50 is disposed at a dispensingopening 11 side of thefront face 7. In this way, the shape of thecover 50 conforms to the shape of the opening between the opposingparts cover 50 thus provides an effective dust cover for the full extent of the stack oftissues 10 that would otherwise be revealed in the stacking direction when the package 1 is in the opened configuration. - In use, the package 1 is grasped at opposing longitudinal ends thereof with the fingers on a
bottom face wall 3 of the package 1 thumbs on atop face wall 2 of the package 1 and palms contacting opposing longitudinalend face walls hands 54 inFIG. 5 . The thumbs are pushed into the top face of the package 1, while the fingers of thehand 54 are moved apart so as to break a line ofperforation 8 to provide adispensing opening 11 in thebottom face wall 3 of the package 1, ahinge 9 in thetop face wall 2 of the package 1 and front and rear openings in the package 1 that connect thehinge 9 and the dispensingopening 11.Parts hinge 9. Thecover 50 moves with thepart other part cover 50 provides a dust cover when the package 1 is in the opened configuration covering the stack oftissues 10 in the stacking direction of the tissues. - The
cover 50 is preferably transparent so that a user can view through it to determine a level of depletion, which is determined by the number of tissues left in thestack 10, of the package 1. Thecover 50 may be made of a polymer film. - In a modification of the package 1 shown in
FIG. 5 , acover 50 could be provided on opposing faces of the package 1, where those faces extend in the stacking direction of the stack oftissues 10. Thus, in the shown embodiment ofFIG. 5 , acover 50 would be provided that covers an opening between opposingparts rear face wall 6 and thefront face wall 7 of the package 1. - In another modification of the embodiment shown in
FIG. 5 , thecover 50 could be attached on an outside of the package 1. Aesthetically this modification may not be as desirable as that shown inFIG. 5 , where thecover 50 cannot be viewed until the package 1 is opened. - The package 1 of
FIG. 5 has been described above with respect to top, bottom, back andfront face walls cover 50 could, however, be provided for other types of package 1 than that shown inFIG. 5 . Thus, any package that opens in three faces about a hinge provided in the fourth face of the package 1 to reveal tissues in the three faces could desirably include a cover for one, two or three of the faces to provide dust protection for the tissue of the package. Such a cover is attached on a part of the package 1 on one side of the opening and is slidable with respect to a part of the package on the other side of the opening and preferably is attached on an inside of the package so that the package covers the cover when the package is in a closed configuration. Preferably, the dispensing opening revealed by a face of the package opposing the hinge face is not covered or is only partially covered by the cover so that a user is not hindered from grasping the underlying tissues through the dispensing opening. More preferably, the cover is disposed with respect to, preferably only with respect to, covering one or both of the faces of the stack that extend between a hinge face of the package and a dispensing opening. - Referring to
FIG. 6 , an interfolding pattern for the stack oftissues 10 in the package 1 can be seen. The stack oftissues 10 comprises afirst tissue 45, asecond tissue 46 and a sequence of further tissues until thelast tissue 47 that are interfolded to form the stack oftissues 10. For any given tissue in the stack 10 (except for the first andlast tissues tissue 46 is folded so as to provide a leadingpanel 46′ and a trailingpanel 46″ connected by afold 46′″. The giventissue 46 is elongate and thefold 46′″ extends laterally across the giventissue 46. The leadingpanel 46′ is in partial face-to-face relation (along a partial longitudinal extent of the leading panel in the longitudinal direction of the tissue 46) with a trailing panel of aprevious tissue 45 in the tissue withdrawal sequence of thestack 10. Further, a trailing panel of the giventissue 46 is in partial overlapping face-to-face relation with a leading panel of a next tissue in the tissue withdrawal tissue. In this way, as thetissue 45 previous to the giventissue 46 is withdrawn, thetissue 46 travels with it in the tissue withdrawal direction as a result of a trailing panel of theprevious tissue 45 being in face-to-face overlapping relation with a leading panel of the giventissue 46. Likewise as the giventissue 46 is withdrawn, thenext tissue 48 travels with it as a result of a leading panel of the next tissue being in face-to-face overlapping relation with a trailing panel of the giventissue 46. - Referring to
FIG. 6 , the leadingpanel 46′ of the giventissue 46 overlaps with a trailing panel of theprevious tissue 45 in the tissue withdrawal sequence to a partial extent along a longitudinal axis of the giventissue 46. Likewise, a trailingpanel 46″ of the giventissue 46 overlaps partially with a leading panel of thenext tissue 48 in the tissue withdrawal sequence to a partial extent along a longitudinal axis of the giventissue 46. There is thus provided anelongate stack 10 having acentral portion 60 between opposedlongitudinal end portions 61 where the leading and trailing panels of the tissues in thestack 10 overlap with one another in face-to-face relation. At the opposed longitudinal ends 61 of thestack 10, adjacent tissues in thestack 10 do not overlap with one another. Thus, for the giventissue 46, there is a leadingpanel 46′ overlapping with a trailing panel of aprevious tissue 45 in the tissue withdrawal sequence along a first portion of the leadingpanel 46′. Likewise, the trailingpanel 46″ overlaps in face-to-face relation with a leading panel of anext tissue 48 in the tissue withdrawal sequence of thestack 10 along a second partial extent of the trailingpanel 46″ in a longitudinal direction of thetissue 46. There is thus first and second longitudinal portions of the giventissue 46, which are separated by thefold 46′″ that do not overlap with adjacent tissues in the tissue withdrawal sequence that. The overlapping portions of the tissues in thestack 10 correspond to the overlappingportion 60 of the stack, while the non-overlapping portions of the tissues in thestack 10 correspond to the non-overlapping portions of thestack 10 at opposed longitudinal ends 61 of thestack 10. - In a longitudinal direction of the
elongate stack 10, a ratio of a longitudinal extent of the overlappingportion 60 to a longitudinal extent of thestack 10 is about 30%. - The overlapping
region 60 of thestack 10 is a central region between opposedlongitudinal portions 61 of theelongate stack 10. The package 1 is configured so that a dispensingopening 11, and theperforation line 8 that has to be broken to create the dispensing opening, is disposed in the central region of thestack 10. The weight of thestack 10 is thus centrally biased in the overlappingregion 61 so that the overlappingregion 60 weighs more than either of opposed non-overlappinglongitudinal end portions 61 of thestack 10 when a longitudinal axis of thestack 10 is aligned horizontally. - In use, with respect to any given
tissue 46 in thestack 10, as the previous tissue in thetissue stacking sequence 45 is withdrawn through the dispensing opening 11 (as described previously) of the package 1, the slack provided by the longitudinal extent of thenext tissue 45 that does not overlap with thesecond tissue 46 is taken up. Once the slack is taken up, and thenext tissue 45 is withdrawn through the dispensingopening 11 to a major longitudinal extent of thetissue 45, tension along the tissue withdrawal direction of thenext tissue 45 is transferred to the giventissue 46 by way of the face-to-face interaction between a portion of the trailing panel of thenext tissue 45 and a portion of the leadingpanel 46′ of the giventissue 46. Once thetissue 45 is withdrawn through the dispensing opening so that the full longitudinal extent of the overlapping portion of the leading panel of the giventissue 46 protrudes through the dispensingopening 11, thenext tissue 45 is released from the giventissue 46 and is dispensed from thestack 10 and the package 1. The giventissue 46 that protrudes through the dispensingopening 11 may then be grasped by a user for dispensing. The slack in the giventissue 46 where it is not in overlapping face-to-face relation with thenext tissue 48 in the tissue withdrawing sequence can be taken up until it reaches an overlapping portion between a face of the trailingpanel 46″ and a face of a portion of a leading panel of thenext tissue 48. At this point, pulling on the giventissue 46 causes thenext tissue 48 to travel with it because of the face-to-face interaction between the given tissue and thenext tissue 48 at the overlapping portion thereof. This procedure is repeated in order to dispense any given tissue in thestack 10. - The stack of
tissues 10 can be an independent aspect of the present invention. Thus, thestack 10 can be provided in an alternative type of container to the disposable package 1, such as one made of more hardwearing materials like metal or rigid plastics as in a wall mountable container. In such a wall mountable container, the container is preferably elongate so that its longitudinal axis coincides with a longitudinal axis of thestack 10. Further, a dispensing opening of the container is preferably longitudinally centrally positioned in the container and extends laterally across the container as with the package 1 described with respect toFIG. 6 . The dispensing opening preferably extends laterally across the container from one face to an opposing face so as to present a dispensing opening of the container that is at least as laterally large, if not larger than, a lateral extent of thestack 10. This configuration means that thestack 10 will tend to bulge into the dispensing opening in the tissue withdrawal direction when the tissue withdrawal direction is aligned with gravity (that is, the longitudinal axis of thestack 10 and the container are aligned with the horizontal). - The stack may be made up of multiply folded sheets, rather than the single fold shown. In this case, any given sheet will overlap with adjacent sheets along a partial extent of its leading and trailing panels. There will also be at least one intermediate panel between the leading and trailing parts. Further, the sheets of the stack may include a perforation line connecting adjacent panels of the sheet so that the sheet can be divided into at least two pieces at one or more perforation lines connecting panels.
- A ratio of an extent of a longitudinal extent of the overlapping
region 60 of thestack 10 to a longitudinal extent of thestack 10 as a whole has been described above as being about 0.3. The ratio is preferably as outlined above in the summary section, which may preferably be 0.25 to 0.5. -
FIG. 7 discloses a preferred embodiment of a moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is in an open configuration inFIG. 7 a and is in a closed configuration inFIG. 7 b. The moist non-woven sheet dispenser has areceptacle 71 for receiving a stack of moist non-woven sheets. The receptacle has first and second opposed major faces, first and second opposed minor faces and first and second intermediate sized opposed faces. The major faces are provided by top and bottom wall faces 72, 73, the minor faces are provided by opposed end wall faces 74, 75 and the intermediate sized faces are provided opposed front and back faces 76, 77. Thetop wall face 72 is characterised by having a dispensingopening 78 in a central region thereof. Thefront face 76 is characterised by having a recess and catch 79 formed therein for receiving atab 80 of alid 81 therein in order to secure the lid in the closed configuration ofFIG. 7 b. Theback face wall 77 is characterised by having ahinge member 82 extending therefrom so as to hingedly connect alid 81 to thereceptacle 71. The opposed end facewalls walls top face wall 72 and partially define a moist non-woven sheet receiving cavity of thereceptacle 77. A bottom face of thereceptacle 77, as defined by theend face walls walls receptacle 77 through itsopen bottom face 73. - The moist non-woven sheet dispenser has a
bottom part 83 that is removably fittable in the open bottom face of thereceptacle 71. Thebottom part 83 is shown removed from thereceptacle 71 inFIG. 7 c and attached to thereceptacle 71 inFIGS. 7 a and 7 b. Thebottom part 83 provides anupstanding platform 84 surrounded by aperipheral flange 85. Theplatform 84 is sized so as to be fittingly received by the inside of theopposed end walls back walls top surface 86 of theplatform 84 provides a base of thereceptacle 71 upon which a stack of moist non-woven sheets can lay. Depending from theplatform 84 of thebottom part 83 is a triangular prism shapedpart 87, which defines a standing surface for the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. - The moist
non-woven sheet dispenser 70 further comprises alid 81 that is hingedly connected to thereceptacle 71 by way of thehinge member 72. Thelid 81 is movable by pivoting about thehinge member 82 between opened and closed configurations. Thelid 81 defines about its periphery a depending flange that fits over and outside of anupstanding flange 89 extending about a periphery of thetop surface 72 of thereceptacle 77. The dependingflange 88 of thelid 81 and theupstanding flange 89 extending about the periphery of thetop surface 72 of thereceptacle 71 sealingly engage with one another, with the dependingflange 88 of thelid 81 being positioned peripherally outside theupstanding flange 89 of thereceptacle 71. Referring toFIG. 7 b, thetop surface 90 of the moist non-woven sheet dispenser is smooth and continuous for easy wiping. - The dispensing
opening 78 of thetop surface 72 of thereceptacle 71 is partially closed by aninsert 91 that extends around the dispensing opening and has inwardly protrudingflaps 92 separated byslits 93. The flaps are circumferentially distributed about a central hole through which the tissue passes in exiting the dispensingopening 78 and theinsert 91. - To use, the
lid 81 is grasped by a thumb inserted into the recess of the catch andrecess 79 when the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is in the closed configuration. The thumb thus pulls thelid 81 so as to rotate about thehinge member 82, which causes thetab 80 to deform away from a catch at the top of the catch andrecess 79 to thereby release thelid 81 for movement into the opened configuration as shown inFIG. 7 a. Opening the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 reveals thetop surface 72 and a dispensingopening 78. A moist non-woven sheet can be withdrawn from thereceptacle 77 through the dispensingopening 78 in thetop surface 72 of thereceptacle 71 and through theinsert 91 that partially closes the dispensingopening 78. As a tissue is pulled through theinsert 91, theflaps 92 deform in the tissue withdrawal direction, which serves to scrunch the moist non-woven sheet as it is being withdrawn, which may allow any excess moisture on the tissue to be squeezed off and kept inside thereceptacle 71. After a tissue has been withdrawn, thelid 81 can be closed again so that thetab 80 is deformed outwardly to allow it to pass over a catch and then resiliently reforms inwardly so as to be received in the recess of the catch andrecess 79. In the closed configuration, the dependingperipheral flange 88 of thelid 81 sealingly mates with an upstandingperipheral flange 89 of thereceptacle 71. These flanges may be at least partly formed of a resilient or rubber-like material in order to improve the sealing capabilities. Likewise, theinsert 91 can be made of a rubber-like material to allow theflaps 92 to resiliently reform and also for sealing the dispensingopening 78. - When a replacement stack of moist non-woven sheets is to be inserted in the
receptacle 71 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70, thebottom part 83 is removed so that theplatform 84 comes out of engagement with the front, back and endface walls receptacle 71. Thereceptacle 71 can then be turned over so that the cavity defined by the walls of thereceptacles 71 faces upwards. A stack of moist non-woven sheets can then be inserted into the cavity defined by thereceptacle 71 and thebottom part 83 can be inserted so that it sealingly mates with the front, back and endface walls receptacle 71. Atop face 86 of theplatform 84 is thus in face-to-face relation with a bottom tissue of the stack of moist non-woven sheets inserted in thereceptacle 71. The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 can then be turned back around so that thelid 81 and the dispensingopening 78 is faced upwards. In inserting thebottom part 83, theplatform 84 may be slightly compressed by the walls of thereceptacle 71 as it is inserted so as to ensure a fast engagement between thebottom part 83 and the walls of thereceptacle 71, which is also a sealing engagement. Thus, thebottom part 83 is made of a resilient material. Thebottom part 83 may be made of a rubber or rubber-like material. - In the closed configuration shown in
FIG. 7 b, the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is substantially sealed and thus prevents escape of moisture from thedispenser 70. Thesealingly mating flanges lid 81 andreceptacle 71, respectively, prevent any moisture from escaping along a path through the dispensingopening 78, in a gap between thelid 81 and the receptacle and thetop surface 72 of thereceptacle 71 and thus out of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. Further, the sealing engagement between thebottom part 83 and the dependingwalls receptacle 71 prevents any moisture from escaping from the open bottom face of thereceptacle 71. - In the shown embodiment, the
bottom part 83 provides a standing surface of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 that is not flat relative to thelid 90. Instead, it defines depending sloped surfaces that meet at a central point. Such bottom surfaces have a function that will become clear in the following. The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 could be made so as to have a flat bottom surface in order to allow it to stand on a counter top so that the plane of thetop surface 72 and the plane of thelid 90 presents a substantially flat surface (relative to the counter top) that faces upwardly to a user. - The
insert 91 is provided in the form of aflap 92 and slit 93 structure where the flaps define a circumference of a central opening through which moist non-woven sheet can be withdrawn. Other types ofresilient inserts 91 are known in the art. Theinsert 91 could be modified so as to define just one slit, which could be straight or wavelike. Similarly, the closing mechanism, which is atab 80 and catch and recess structure in the shown embodiment, could be any known type of closure mechanism. For example, thereceptacle 71 could define a protruding tab in afront face 76 and thelid 81 could have a mating lip that can be resiliently deformed outwardly to pass over the tab and when released resiliently reforms so that the lip catches onto the tab to thereby secure the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 in the closed configuration. -
FIG. 8 discloses a moist and drytissue dispensing system 90 comprising adry tissue dispenser 20 and a moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. The dry tissue dispenser is as described above with respect toFIG. 2 . The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is as described above with respect toFIG. 7 . The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 carries a stack of moist non-woven sheet in thereceptacle 71 thereof. Thedry tissue dispenser 20 carries a package 1 comprising a stack ofdry tissues 10. Thedry tissue dispenser 20 is adapted to be mounted to a room wall by way of aback plate 22. The peripheral wall extending from therear plate 22 in a direction of a normal to the plane defined by therear plate 22 has abottom face part 26 and atop face part 25. Thebottom face part 26 is characterised by having a dispensingopening 24 through which adispensing opening 11 of the package 1 can be accessed so that dry tissues in the package 1 can be withdrawn. Thetop face part 25 of thedry tissue dispenser 20 defines a depending V-shape in an outer surface thereof. The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 has thebottom part 83 that also defines a V-shaped recess as a bottom outer surface. The V-shape of thebottom part 83 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 and thetop part 75 of thedry tissue dispenser 20 substantially fit with one another so that the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is securely received by thedry tissue dispenser 20. The moist non wovensheet dispenser 70 sits atop thedry tissue dispenser 20 and they have cooperating interfacing surfaces, which prevent relative movement of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 along an axis extending between opposing end facewalls face walls - In use, the dry tissue dispenser is mounted to a room wall so that the
rear plate 22 is mounted against the room wall. A normal direction to the room wall and to therear plate 22 can be defined as a Z direction. The moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 can then be placed on top of thedry tissue dispenser 20 so as to provide a moist and drytissue dispensing system 90. A package of dry tissues 1 is inserted through an open front face of thedry tissue dispenser 20, as described previously with respect toFIG. 2 . Thelid 81 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 can be opened as shown inFIG. 7 a so as to reveal the dispensingopening 78. A user can withdraw tissue from the dispensingopening 78 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 and can withdraw dry tissue through the dispensingopening 11 of the package 1 and the dispensingopening 24 of thedry tissue dispenser 20, as needed. The moist and dry tissues are dispensed in opposing tissue withdrawal directions, which can be considered to lie along a Y-axis perpendicular to the Z-axis. An X-axis can also be defined that is perpendicular to the Y axis and the Z-axis and extends in a direction between opposing end facewalls dry tissue dispenser 20 and between opposing end facewalls non-woven sheet dispenser 70. The depending sloped surfaces at the bottom of the moist non-woven sheet dispenser and the depending slopes surfaces of the top surface of thedry tissue dispenser 20 matingly interact so that the sloped surfaces of thedry tissue dispenser 20 resist movement of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 in the X-direction. - The
dry tissue dispenser 20 can be easily refilled by replacing the package 1 therein with a fresh package through an open front face of thedry tissue dispenser 20. The moist non-woven sheet dispenser can be easily refilled by tipping it up and removing thebottom part 83 from thereceptacle 71 and inserting a new stack of moist non-woven sheets in the open face presented by theupturned receptacle 71 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. Thebottom part 83 can then be replaced and the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 repositioned back on top of thedry tissue dispenser 20. The depending nature of thebottom part 83 means that the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 has a centre of gravity positioned within thebottom part 83 and preferably also within an X-directional line connecting opposing sloping surfaces of thetop part 25 of thedry tissue dispenser 20. This provides a particularly stable configuration for the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 which preferably allows a user to withdraw moist non-woven sheets from the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 using only one hand. That is, the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 is not required to be stabilised with one hand so that moist non-woven sheets can be withdrawn from the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 with the other hand. - In a modification of the
dry tissue dispenser 20 shown inFIGS. 8 a and 8 b, there may also be provided front and back upstanding flanges that contact front and back faces 76, 77 of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 so as to resist movement of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 in the Z-direction when tissue is being withdrawn from the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. Similarly, upstanding flanges can be positioned atopposed end plates top face part 25 of thedry tissue dispenser 20, which will thus surround front, back and endface walls non-woven sheet dispenser 70 in position in the X and Z directions when tissue is being dispensed from the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70. As with the cooperating interfacing surfaces shown inFIGS. 8 a and 8 b, such upstanding flanges do not hinder movement of the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 in the Y direction for when the moistnon-woven sheet dispenser 70 has to be refilled. - The moist
non-woven sheet dispenser 70 may have a bottom surface that does not define a depending v-shape such as a flat surface. It may be provided with means for securing it to a room surface such as a counter top. The means could be suction cup means, for example. In this case, the cooperating interfacing surfaces between the moist anddry dispensers dry dispensers dry sheet dispensers system 90 ofFIG. 8 . - The dry tissue paper of all aspects of the present invention is preferably toilet paper, which is characteristic over other kinds of hygiene tissue paper, such as facial tissue paper, as known by the skilled person. It may be embossed, and it may be single-ply or multiply. One characteristic feature of braided paper as compared to other types of hygiene or absorbent paper is its dissolvability. Toilet paper has a characteristic bowl or shortly after flushing. Other types of tissue paper include wet strength agents to reduce their water dissolvability.
- In a preferred embodiment, the feature described above relating to the breakable package of
FIG. 1 , the dispenser ofFIG. 1 , the overlapping lips of the package ofFIG. 5 , the interfolding arrangement ofFIG. 6 and the moist non-woven sheet dispenser ofFIG. 7 are combined in a system as shown inFIG. 8 .
Claims (10)
1. A moist dispenser, the moist sheet dispenser comprising a receptacle housing for receiving a stack of moist sheets, the receptacle housing comprising a dispensing opening through which a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack, the dispenser comprising a lid that has an open position to provide direct access to the dispensing opening so that a sheet can be withdrawn from the stack through the dispensing opening and a closed position covering the dispensing opening, wherein the lid defines a periphery and the receptacle housing defines a periphery and the peripheries of the lid and the receptacle housing meet when the lid is in the closed position.
2. The dispenser of claim 1 , wherein a top surface of the lid, which is the surface opposed to the dispensing opening side bottom surface, is continuous for ease of wiping clean.
3. The dispenser of claim 1 , wherein the receptacle housing is configured to be bottom loadable, wherein the bottom provides an opposed face of the dispenser to the lid in the closed configuration.
4. The dispenser of claim 1 , wherein the periphery of the receptacle housing has an upstanding flange for sealing mating engagement with a depending flange of the periphery of the lid so that there is a moisture seal between the lid and the receptacle housing when the lid is in the closed position.
5. The dispenser of claim 1 , wherein the dispenser includes a bottom part that is removable to load a stack of moist sheets in the receptacle housing, wherein the bottom is to be understood relative to the lid that is located at the top of the dispenser.
6. The dispenser of claim 5 , wherein the bottom part has upstanding sidewalls that friction fit with sidewalls of the receptacle housing in order to secure the removable bottom to the receptacle housing.
7. The dispenser of claim 6 , wherein the upstanding sidewalls of the bottom part are part of an upstanding platform upon which a moist sheet stack is to be placed to support the sheets in the receptacle housing
8. The dispenser of claim 6 , wherein a centre of gravity of the dispenser lies within, in the vertical direction, the bottom part when the dispenser is oriented so that the bottom part is faced downwards and the lid is faced upwards.
9. The dispenser of claim 1 , comprising the stack of moist sheets, which is located in the receptacle housing.
10. The dispenser of claim 1 , including a releasable catch mechanism for releasably securing the lid to the receptacle housing
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
PCT/EP2010/065195 WO2012048726A1 (en) | 2010-10-11 | 2010-10-11 | Moist sheet dispenser |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
US20130277388A1 true US20130277388A1 (en) | 2013-10-24 |
Family
ID=43618294
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
US13/878,899 Abandoned US20130277388A1 (en) | 2010-10-11 | 2010-10-11 | Tissue paper systems |
Country Status (8)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US20130277388A1 (en) |
EP (1) | EP2627231A1 (en) |
CN (1) | CN103249342A (en) |
AU (1) | AU2010362449A1 (en) |
MX (1) | MX2013003950A (en) |
RU (1) | RU2013121580A (en) |
TN (1) | TN2013000124A1 (en) |
WO (1) | WO2012048726A1 (en) |
Cited By (1)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US20130153597A1 (en) * | 2011-12-20 | 2013-06-20 | Robert Michael Hill | Wipes Dispenser with Angled Dispensing |
Families Citing this family (4)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
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CN105813957B (en) * | 2013-12-16 | 2018-05-29 | 3M创新有限公司 | For the container of disposable burner elements |
TW201544418A (en) * | 2014-01-20 | 2015-12-01 | Kimberly Clark Brasil Ind E Com De Produtos De Higiene Ltda | Sheet material dispenser |
CN110893943A (en) * | 2018-09-12 | 2020-03-20 | 广州亮盟环保设备有限公司 | Easy-to-take container |
CN109199619A (en) * | 2018-10-19 | 2019-01-15 | 深圳聚瑞华实业有限公司 | A kind of domestic portable oral waterjet |
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JP2006027694A (en) * | 2004-07-20 | 2006-02-02 | Crecia Corp | Hygienic tissue paper dispenser |
CN2803237Y (en) * | 2005-06-09 | 2006-08-09 | 湖南恒安纸业有限公司 | Improved wet napkin case |
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2010
- 2010-10-11 RU RU2013121580/12A patent/RU2013121580A/en unknown
- 2010-10-11 WO PCT/EP2010/065195 patent/WO2012048726A1/en active Application Filing
- 2010-10-11 AU AU2010362449A patent/AU2010362449A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2010-10-11 MX MX2013003950A patent/MX2013003950A/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 2010-10-11 CN CN2010800705873A patent/CN103249342A/en active Pending
- 2010-10-11 US US13/878,899 patent/US20130277388A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2010-10-11 EP EP10768001.9A patent/EP2627231A1/en not_active Withdrawn
-
2013
- 2013-03-22 TN TNP2013000124A patent/TN2013000124A1/en unknown
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US4416392A (en) * | 1981-02-19 | 1983-11-22 | Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Company | Dispenser for adhesive coated sheet material |
US20050279757A1 (en) * | 2004-06-16 | 2005-12-22 | Bitowft Bruce K | Wipes dispenser with a wide-mouthed dispensing aperture |
US7530472B2 (en) * | 2004-06-16 | 2009-05-12 | The Clorox Company | Wipes dispensing system |
US20060054517A1 (en) * | 2004-09-15 | 2006-03-16 | Rexam Beauty And Closures, Inc. | Wipe storage system |
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US20130153597A1 (en) * | 2011-12-20 | 2013-06-20 | Robert Michael Hill | Wipes Dispenser with Angled Dispensing |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
MX2013003950A (en) | 2013-06-05 |
WO2012048726A1 (en) | 2012-04-19 |
TN2013000124A1 (en) | 2014-06-25 |
EP2627231A1 (en) | 2013-08-21 |
RU2013121580A (en) | 2014-11-20 |
AU2010362449A1 (en) | 2013-05-02 |
CN103249342A (en) | 2013-08-14 |
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Owner name: SCA HYGIENE PRODUCTS AB, SWEDEN Free format text: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST;ASSIGNORS:SCHMIDT, MARCEL;ENGLER, BERTOLD;BREMENKAMP, RALPH;SIGNING DATES FROM 20130403 TO 20130518;REEL/FRAME:030750/0349 |
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STCB | Information on status: application discontinuation |
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