US3019959A - Carton - Google Patents

Description

Feb. 6, 1962 G. v. SKOWRONSKI CARTON Filed July 17, 1959 3,019,959 CART'ON George V. lrowronsini, Neenah, Wis, assignor to American Can Company, Jersey City, N.J., a corporation of New Eersey Filed July 17, 1959, Ser. No. 827,863 1 Claim. (til. 229-45) This invention relates to a reclosable carton the cover of which under initial conditions is restrained in the cartonclosed position. Cartons of the general type here concerned find a multitude of uses, and customarily are formed of paperboard which may be printed, coated, laminated and otherwise variously treated to provide particular characteristics of utility and appearance.

A particular object of the invention is to provide a paperboard carton which is conveniently openable and may be many times reclosed, but which is tamperproof in the sense that initial access to the contents of the carton will be indicated by a readily visible fracture of the material of which the carton is formed. Other particular objects and advantages of the invention will become readily apparent from the following description in connection with the attached drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a paperboard blank for forming a preferred embodiment of the invention,

FIGURE 2 is a perspective view of a finished carton formed from the blank of FIGURE 1, and

FIGURE 3 is a perspective view, similar to FIGURE 2, showing the carton in cover-opened position.

Referring first to FIGURE 1, the carton preferably is formed from an integral paperboard blank A suitably cut and scored to provide receptacle front, bottom and rear and cover main and front walls 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14, respectively connected together along score lines 15, 16, 17 and 18. Receptacle side walls 20 and 21 are connected to the side edges of wall 11 along score lines 22 and 23, and have erection or glue flaps 24 and 25 connected to their respective side edges along score lines 26 and 27.

Cover side walls or panels 30 and 31 are connected to the respective side edges of cover main panel 13 along score lines 32 and 33, and have erection or glue flaps 34 and 35 connected to their respective forward end edges along score lines 36 and 37. A connecting flap 38 which also serves as a tamper-indicating means is integrally connected to the rearward edge of each of walls or panels 30 and 31 adjacent rear Wall 12 along lines of weakness 39. These lines of weakness are adapted to provide a ready means of severance or tearing of flaps 38 from walls or panels 30 and 31 and preferably comprise perforation lines as shown, cut-score lines or the like.

Referring also to FIGURE 2, a carton is formed from the blank A by erecting walls 10, 12, 20 and 21 perpendicularly to bottom wall 11, flaps 24 and 25 preferably being folded inwardly and adhered by glue or other suitable means to the interior surface of walls and 12. Walls 14, 30 and 31 are similarly erected perpendicularly to main wall 13, flaps 34 and 35 preferably being folded to overlie the adjacent interior surface of wall 14 and adhered or otherwise secured thereto. The formation of the carton thus far is conventional and consequently is not further shown or described in detail.

The erected carton may then be filled with any suitable product by hand or by conventional machinery. The cover of the carton is then closed over the receptacle portion as shown in FIGURE 2, and flaps 38 are folded States atent 0 around and adhered to the adjacent exterior surface of rear wall 12 by an adhesive or any other Suitable means. It will be clear that this construction provides a carton in which the cover is securely restrained in the closed position.

The carton is opened by lifting the cover portion at walls 14, 30 and/or 31, which results in a severing or tearing of walls 30 and 31 from connecting flaps 38 along lines of weakness 39. The flaps 38 thus serve as visual tamper indicators when severed. The fact that this severance has occurred is readily apparent, with the result that the original package is tamperproof in the sense that any opening of the carton and tampering with the contents is quite apparent from even a superficial examination of the carton itself. The carton cover may be repeatedly reclosed for convenient and successive instances of access to the contents.

Various modifications in the construction will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, but without limitation, the side walls of the receptacle and cover portions may be connected to the front and rear walls by web flaps to provide a degree of leakproofness, the fiaps 24, 25, 34, 35 and 38 may be connected to the respective walls by glue, heat or pressure-sensitive adhesives, staples or the like, or the carton may in a conventional manner be made in a collapsible form. For this reason, althougha single preferred embodiment has been disclosed, it is to be understood that no limitation upon the scope of the invention is intended except as set forth in the appended claim.

I claim:

A tamperproof and reclosable package made from an integral paperboard blank comprising a receptacle portion containing contents and a cover portion hingedly connected thereto; the receptacle portion including hingedly connected front, rear, bottom and a pair of opposed side walls, means connecting the side walls to the front and rear walls along their adjacent edges, the cover portion including a cover main wall hinged to the upper edge of said rear wall and adapted to close the open top of the receptacle portion, cover front and side walls hingedly connected to said cover main wall and adapted to overlie the adjacent exterior portions of the receptacle front and side walls respectively, and means connecting the cover side walls to the cover front wall along their adjacent edges, and a connecting flap connected to each cover side wall at its end adjacent the rear wall along a line of tearing weakness by which it may be severed from the cover side wall, said connecting flaps overlying and permanently adhered to adjacent exterior surfaces of the said receptacle rear wall, whereby said cover portion is retained in closed position and is adapted to be opened only by hinging said cover portion open on said main cover wall hinge connection and severing said connecting flaps along said lines of tearing weakness, thereby providing visual indication of tampering.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,090,559 Morrison Mar. 17, 1914 2,345,486 Leebov Mar. 28, 1944 2,369,391 Ringler Feb. 13, 1945 2,598,558 Kanty May 27, 1952 2,622,784 Hammond Dec. 23, 1952 2,779,526 Vogt Jan. 29, 1957

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