US3627116A - Shrink wrapped package - Google Patents

Abstract

A package composed of a single rectangular sheet of corrugated pasteboard providing a pair of juxtaposed compartments, the package construction includes a bottom wall, upstanding end walls and a top wall, the top wall being defined by the free ends of the pasteboard sheet disposed in overlapping relation over said brace; at least one integral upright brace formed by folding sections of the bottom wall; means for securing sections of the brace to each other; and a heat-shrunk, transparent, thermoplastic film enveloping the package.

Description

United States Patent [72] Inventor John Paul Cooper -Wilton, Conn. [21] Appl. No. 886,428 [22] Filed Dec. 18, 1969 [45] Patented Dec. 14, 1971 [73] Assignee Borden Inc.

New York, N.Y.

[54] SHRINK WRAPPED PACKAGE 4 Claims, 4 Drawing Figs.

[52] US. Cl 206/45.33, 206/65 S, 229/27, 229/DlG. l2 [5 l] Int. Cl 865d 65/16 [50] Field of Search 206/4533, 65 S, 65 R, 46 PR, 80 A; 229/] S, 27, 37 R, 42, DIG. 12

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2.491.206 12/1949 Potts 229/15 X 2,979,191 4/1961 Kyassay et al. l. 206/4533 3,493,106 2/1970 Galli 206/65 S 3,493,107 2/1970 Markey 206/65 S Primary Examiner-Joseph R. Leclair Assistant ExaminerSteven E. Lipman Attorneys-George P. Maskas and George A. Kap

ABSTRACT: A package composed of a single rectangular sheet of corrugated pasteboard providing a pair of juxtaposed compartments, the package construction includes a bottom wall, upstanding end walls and a top wall, the top wall being defined by the free ends of the pasteboard sheet disposed in overlapping relation over said brace; at least one integral upright brace formed by folding sections of the bottom wall; means for securing sections of the brace to each other; and a heat-shrunk, transparent, thermoplastic film enveloping the packagev WWW mm 14, 1971 BMWAW 26 INVENTOR mam mm. wmwm BY 2* ATTORNEY snruNK WRAPPED PACKAGE BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Heretofore, packages for encasing containers of foodstuffs and other products have conventionally been open-topped comprising integral sidewalls with foldable flaps on the edges; the fiaps are assembled to define top and bottom walls to enclose the contents. Usually, the bottom wall is first assembled and the cartons are positioned in rows in the package; thereafter, the top flaps are assembled to establish the top wall and the filled packages are stacked and transported for use. Dividers are often inserted into the package to separate the stored contents.

To date, virtually no imagination has been exercised in the construction of such packages; lack of selfand semisupporting product packages frequently causes the outer package wall to warp and eventually buckle. In addition, most corrugated boxes lack sufficient columnar strength to build high stacks, i.e., the compressive stresses of stacking cause the package walls to collapse with resultant destruction of the contents.

Another disadvantage of known packages is the difficulty of assembly. The flaps of the top and bottom wall often include mating portions which are difficult to align, and once aligned, require the addition of an adhesive or staples to maintain the assembly. Besides lacking strength and being difficult to assemble, most packages lack aesthetic appeal. Finally, the conventional, fully enclosed package provides no visual access to the interior to view the condition of the contents.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention overcomes the stated deficiencies of the prior art and has as its primary objective a package construction which is simple to assemble, possesses high columnar strength to withstand the forces of loading and stacking and permits inspection of the contents.

The package of the present invention comprises dual compartments, each dimensioned to the size of the encased articles thus assuring a snug fit to take advantage of all support available. This construction establishes a central, integral brace which eliminates the need for inserts or spacers. Though an empty package possesses sufficient strength to withstand normal loads, the filled package draws additional strength from the stored carton walls to preserve the integrity of the sidewalls against stacking loads.

The package is enrobed in a transparent thermoplastic film and subjected to a heated environment to heat shrink the film and thus define a neat, tightly drawn, film-enrobed package.

The package is formed from a single sheet of corrugated or fiberboard or the like. With corrugated sheet, the fluting of the sandwich layer of the sheet is parallel to the longitudinal axis: the sheet is folded along transverse score lines to define the walls of the package.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING The various features of the apparatus of this invention will become apparent from the following detailed description set forth in connection with the accompanying drawing which relates to the preferred embodiment of the present invention and is given by way of illustration.

FIG. I is an isometric perspective view of the preferred embodiment of the assembled package enrobed in a heatshrunk film;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of an unfolded sheet prior to assembly of the package, partially broken away to illustrate the fluting;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the invention partially assembled;

FIG. 4 is a cross section view taken along the line IV-IV of FIG. I.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, an assembled package 10 comprises an integral pasteboard sheet ll folded to define juxtaposed compartments A and B and enrobed in a tightly drawn transparent plastic film.

Focusing first on member 11, shown unfolded in FIG. 2, a rectangular sheet of corrugated pasteboard or the like is used. Sheet llll comprises dimensionally equal layers 13 and 14 of pulp or the like between which is sandwiched a folded sheet of heavy grade paper I5 of ogee cross section to define longitudinally extending flutes. The flutes must be parallel to the length to reinforce the package sidewalls against compressive loading forces when the latter are disposed in the upright position ofFIG. I.

A central score line 16 and parallel, equally spaced score lines 17 and 18 are provided on sheet 11 transversely to the longitudinal axis. Additional parallel, transverse score line pairs, 20, Eli and 22, 23 are disposed on opposite sides of the central score line I6. The spacing between score lines 18 and 2t) equals the distance between lines 17 and 22; the dimension between 20 and 21 equals that between lines 22 and 23.

In assembly, shown in FIG. 3, the sheet 11 is bent along the score lines to form an interface between the surfaces bounded by lines 17 and H8. The surface between lines 20 and 21 defines one sidewall 25 disposed, preferably, at right angles to bottom wall 26 between lines 18 and 20. In a like manner, a sidewall 27 is defined between lines 22 and 23, positioned at right angles to bottom wall 28. The interface 19 defined between the juxtaposed sections between score lines 17 and I8 is provided with an adhesive or other suitable securing means to establish a centrally positioned unitized interior brace 30.

The sections from lines ZI and 23 bounded by the free edges of the sheet are reentrantly folded and overlapped to define the top wall 3B of the open-ended package, seen in FIG. 4%. In practice, the strongest package is produced by situating a portion of the overlapped section 32 to surmount the upstanding brace 30. Suitable retaining means may be used, such as adhesive or staples, to secure the interface established by the overlapped ends.

The cartons, containing the commodity to be packaged, are inserted in an open compartment position of the package. The score line spacing is based on the dimensions of the product to be packaged and may be uniform or nonuniform to accommodate the cartons. Preferably, rows of product are packed in each compartment. By making scoreliine spacing a function of the carton dimensions, the compartments are fully occupied by the package rows. This reduces the relative movement between cartons in each compartment, package material wasteage and production costs, and wall buckling, since snug fitting product packages impart interior dimensional stability. By this construction, optimal columnar strength is realized.

Once parallel rows of cartons are deposited in the assembled package, the combination is enrobed in a plastic film or wrap, such as paper. Any wrap will suffice, especially if it pos sesses shrinkable properties. In practice, polyvinylchloride or polyethylene has rendered the best results though this disclosure should not be so limited. By subjecting the thermoplastic enrobed package to a heat environment, the film shrinks to clearly define the walls of folded sheet I1 and additionally serves to retain the assembled position by resisting outward flexing of the walls. The package may be completely sealed in the plastic envelope to preclude the entry of water, dirt, and foreign matter and permit visual access to the contents through the transparent film.

The strongest packages have been produced by selecting the number of rows and layers of product packages to be arranged in the compartments so that the following ratios of compartment dimensions based on scoreline spacing may be achieved: height/width from about 0.33 to about 0.625; and depth/width from about 0.! to about 0.025. Generally, loading stresses are related to board strength and product package support. In particular, the positioning of the fluting in the pasteboard to resist the downward compressive stresses of loading has contributed to box strength. It should further be appreciated that a plurality of integral, internal braces may be provided to divide the assembled package into several compartments. This is accomplished by providing additional score lines. In practice, greatest columnar strength is achieved by multiple braces providing multiple cavity packages.

What is claimed is:

1. A package made from a single sheet of material and having at least a pair of juxtaposed compartments adapted to receive a plurality of containers disposed in snug rows to fully occupy said compartments comprising:

a. a rectangular sheet;

b. said sheet being folded to define a bottom wall, upstanding sidewalls and a top wall;

c. said bottom wall including at least one integral upstanding brace established by juxtaposed folded sections of said bottom wall disposed parallel to said sidewalls and being dimensionally coextensive therewith, said brace separating said compartments;

d. said top wall defined by the free ends of said sheet disposed in overlapping relation, at least a portion of said overlap surmounting the top edge of said brace; and

e. means for securing the interface of said juxtaposed folded sections to each other.

2. Package of claim 1 wherein said rectangular sheet is corrugated pasteboard having an integral, flute-folded inner layer whose flutes are parallel to the longitudinal dimension of said sheet.

3. Package of claim 2 including a heat-shrunk, transparent, thermoplastic film enrobing said sheet whereby a stable, compact package is formed to permit visual access to the stored contents.

4. Package of claim 3 including means for maintaining said overlapped free ends of said top wall surmounting the top edge of said brace.

I F i i i

Claims (4)

1. A package made from a single sheet of material and having at least a pair of juxtaposed compartments adapted to receive a plurality of containers disposed in snug rows to fully occupy said compartments comprising: a. a rectangular sheet; b. said sheet being folded to define a bottom wall, upstanding sidewalls and a top wall; c. said bottom wall including at least one integral upstanding brace established by juxtaposed folded sections of said bottom wall disposed parallel to said sidewalls and being dimensionally coextensive therewith, said brace separating said compartments; d. said top wall defined by the free ends of said sheet disposed in overlapping relation, at least a portion of said overlap surmounting the top edge of said brace; and e. means for securing the interface of said juxtaposed folded sections to each other.

2. Package of claim 1 wherein said rectangular sheet is corrugated pasteboard having an integral, flute-folded inner layer whose flutes are parallel to the longitudinal dimension of said sheet.

3. Package of claim 2 including a heat-shrunk, transparent, thermoplastic film enrobing said sheet whereby a stable, compact package is formed to permit visual access to the stored contents.

4. Package of claim 3 including means for maintaining said overlapped free ends of said top wall surmounting the top edge of said brace.

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