The present invention relates to a container for discs, particularly for optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and the like, and to the respective method of manufacture.

As is known, a current trend is to use paper-like material to provide the trays for containing optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and the like, so as to have a product that is easy to recycle and non-polluting.

In particular, trays made of paper-like material, particularly light cardboard, are known which are adapted to contain a single optical disc and are designed to be provided loose or pasted on a quadrant of a sleeve. Typically, they are obtained by folding the cardboard onto itself so as to obtain a multilayer structure that defines a recess adapted to contain the optical disc.

A drawback of the background art is that cardboard trays are designed to contain only one disc and if there is the need to contain a plurality of discs it is necessary to provide loose trays which are then optionally arranged in a box. This involves significant problems of practicality and portability; it is sufficient to consider the risk of scattering the trays if the box is overturned or if the mutually stacked trays are impacted.

The aim of the present invention is to overcome the drawbacks mentioned above.

Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a container for discs, particularly optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and the like, which is made of paper-like material and is capable of containing simultaneously a plurality of such discs.

Another object of the invention is to provide a container of a plurality of discs, particularly optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and the like, that allows to select and extract individually each disc without interfering with the other discs. Another object of the present invention is to provide a container of a plurality of discs, particularly optical discs such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-rays and the like, which prevents the accidental escape of each disc from the container regardless of the spatial orientation of the container and which at the same time allows to extract any disc without removing any type of lid or protection.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a container for discs that can be obtained easily starting from commonly commercially available elements and materials and is also competitive from a merely economical standpoint.

This aim and these and other objects which will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a container according to claim 1 and by a method according to claim 7.

Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred but not exclusive embodiment of the container and of the corresponding manufacturing method according to the invention, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a schematic view of a die-cut element for providing a tray for containing discs for the container according to a first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 2 is a view of a first step of folding the die-cut element of Figure 1 in order to define the inner edges of the tray for the container according to the first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 3 is a view of a second folding step for obtaining a bottom wall of the tray;

Figure 4 is a view of a third folding step for obtaining a front wall of an adjacent tray to be associated with the multilayer element illustrated in Figure 4;

Figure 5 is a view of a step of cutting the edges of the multilayer element of Figure 4;

Figure 6 is a view of the multilayer element of Figure 4 after the edges have been cut and the shimming layers have been removed;

Figure 7 is a view of the step of mutually pasting a plurality of multilayer elements according to Figure 6 in order to form the container according to the first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 8 is a view of the container according to the first embodiment of the invention;

Figure 9 is a view of the step of mutually pasting a plurality of multilayer elements in order to form the container according to a second embodiment of the invention;

Figure 10 is a view of the container according to the second embodiment of the invention.

With reference to the figures, the container for discs according to the invention, generally designated by the reference numeral 100, comprises a sleeve 101 and a plurality 103 of trays 102, which are adapted to contain a respective disc 104 and are mutually connected at one of their ends so as to be able to rotate with respect to the sleeve 101, particularly about an axis along which the sleeve 101 can be folded, giving the container the appearance of a book.

Each tray 102 consists of a multilayer cardboard element 10 provided preferably so that at least one internal layer of the multilayer element has a recess adapted to contain laterally a disc 104, i.e., defining an inner edge of the tray 102.

In order to obtain such a multilayer element 10, in the preferred embodiments of the invention a die-cut element 1 made of cardboard is folded and pasted onto itself. The die-cut element 1 has a thickness preferably of at least 0.6 mm, for example 0.6 mm or 1.2 mm or with a thickness substantially equal to the thickness of the disc 104 to be contained. The die-cut element 1 shown in Figure 1 comprises a plurality of folding lines 2, particularly creases, which define a plurality of panels 3, 3a, 3b, 3c, which are thus mutually connected by the folding lines 2, 2a. Along the folding lines 2, 2a the die-cut element 1 is folded onto itself in order to form, by mutual pasting of the panels except one, the multilayer element 10 used in the preferred embodiments of the invention.

The panel excluded from pasting during the production of the multilayer element 10 is a first end panel 3a of the die-cut element 1 and is conveniently provided so as to be folded in the opposite direction with respect to the other panels: this can be obtained by providing the crease 2a on the face of the die-cut element that lies opposite the one on which the other creases 2 are formed.

At least one panel 3b of the die-cut element 1 has an opening, so as to define said recess at the layer of the multilayer element 10 constituted by the panel 3b. This opening will allow, in particular, to define a lateral containment wall of the disc 104 after the folding and pasting steps. In the example of Figure 1, the panel 3b with the opening is the other end panel of the die-cut element 1 and is laterally adjacent to a second panel 3c with an opening which is identical to the one of the panel 3b.

The second panel 3c is completely optional if the thickness of the cardboard that constitutes the die-cut element 1 is substantially equal to the thickness of the disc 104 that one wishes to contain in the tray 102. In the example shown in Figure 1 , instead, the die-cut element has a thickness that is substantially identical to half of the thickness of the disc 104, for example 0.6 mm.

The openings of the panels 3b and 3c may have protrusions 5 along the edges, the purpose of which will be described hereinafter.

In the particular die-cut element of Figure 1 , moreover, the openings have been obtained by die-cutting so as to leave a respective shimming layer 4b and 4c adapted to keep the edges of the openings rigidly connected to each other during the folding and pasting steps. The shimming layers 4b and 4c are weakly connected to the edges of the openings, so that they can be removed easily by pulling once the pasting of the panels 3b and 3c with openings on the bottom panel 3 has ended.

Figure 2 shows a first step of folding the die-cut element 1 in order to define the inner edges of the tray 102. In this step, the first panel 3b with opening is folded, with the interposition of a layer of glue, onto the second panel 3c with opening along the folding line 2 comprised between them, so that the respective openings overlap in register and so that a two-layer element with opening is obtained when the glue sets.

Subsequently, in a second folding step, the two-layer element just obtained is folded onto a bottom panel 3 without openings, with the interposition of a layer of glue which, however, does not affect the shimming layers 4b and 4c: in this manner a bottom wall of the tray 102 is obtained which is adapted to contain transversely the disc 104.

A third step of folding the end panel 3a is then performed, which, however, is not pasted onto the multilayer element obtained with the second folding step. The end panel 3a is instead folded along the folding line 2a onto the multilayer element 3-3b-3c, on the opposite side with respect to the face of the multilayer element 3-3b-3c that has the overlapping openings.

In this manner, the end panel 3a constitutes a free flap of the multilayer element 10 used for the mutual connection of two adjacent trays 102 of the container 100.

Subsequently, if this is considered convenient according to the use requirements of the container 100, any edges 6 of the multilayer element 10 that might exceed the required dimensions are cut. In particular, the cutting of the lower edge 6 shown in Figure 5 may be used to adapt the dimensions of the container 100 to the anti-theft frames generally used in points of sale to protect the jackets of optical discs, particularly of music CDs, as better described hereinafter. Finally, after removing any shimming layers 4b and 4c by means of a simple manual traction, the multilayer element 10 of Figure 6 is obtained and is ready to be associated with other identical multilayer elements 10 in order to define the trays 102 of the container 100.

As can be seen from Figure 6, the multilayer element 10 comprises, on one face, a recessed region 11 obtained, as shown, by overlapping in register the openings of the panels 3b and 3c on the panel 3 and by removing any shimming layers 4b and 4c. The recessed region 11 is open on one edge 16 of the multilayer element 10 and is adapted for defining walls 12 for the lateral containment of a disc 104.

Preferably, the recessed region 11 is substantially U-shaped and can also have a second opening 13 centrally on the opposite end with respect to the opening 16. In order to make the container 100 compatible with the anti- theft frames generally used in shops to protect music CD packages against theft, by cutting appropriately the edges 6 shown in Figure 5 the second opening 13 can be spaced from the opening 16 by less than the diameter of the disc 104 to be inserted: in this manner, the disc protrudes slightly from the second opening 13, minimizing the size of the trays 102 and accordingly of the container 100.

The walls 12 of the recessed region 11 may comprise at least one convexity 15 which protrudes within the recessed region, is obtained by the overlapping in register of the protrusions 5 of the panels 3b and 3c with openings and is adapted to fix by interference the disc 104 in the tray 102. A slight resistance to the extraction of the disc from the tray 102 in a radial direction is thus ensured.

The free flap defined by the panel 3 a can move toward the face of the multilayer element 10 that is opposite with respect to the one on which the recessed region 11 is defined. This free flap is used advantageously in order to fix each multilayer element 10 to another identical multilayer element that is adjacent thereto. Preferably, the free flap 3a has such dimensions as to cover completely or mostly the recessed region of the adjacent multilayer element: in order to fix the free flap 3a to the adjacent multilayer element, a step of applying glue on the face 14 is performed, which surrounds and is raised with respect to the recessed region 11, of said adjacent multilayer element.

The free flap 3a of the multilayer element of Figure 6 is then superimposed on said face 14 of the adjacent multilayer element covered with glue, as shown in Figure 7, and accordingly is superimposed on the recessed region 11 of the adjacent multilayer element: in this manner, a wall for the transverse containment of the disc is obtained on the adjacent multilayer element, i.e., a containment tray 102 of the container 100 according to the invention is completed, the inner volume thereof being defined by the bottom of the recessed region 11 and by the corresponding walls 12 of a multilayer element 10 and by the free flap 3a of another multilayer element 10 adjacent thereto. The disc 104 can be thus inserted radially from the opening 16 defined by the recessed region 11 and locked by interference by the convexities 15.

By using this method with a plurality of multilayer elements 10, as shown in Figure 7, a stack of multilayer elements is obtained which, upon fixing to the sleeve 101, defines the container 100 according to the invention.

The multilayer elements arranged at the ends of the stack can be fixed to the sleeve 101 in this manner: the free flap 3a of the last multilayer element of the stack is pasted directly onto a quadrant of the sleeve 101, while the other quadrant of the sleeve is pasted onto the raised face 14 of the first multilayer element of the stack by means of an end paper 106. The end paper 106 is also preferably made of cardboard.

With the end paper 106, the first multilayer element of the stack also can define a volume for the containment of the disc 104 which is similar to the one obtained by the mutual fixing of two adjacent multilayer elements 10.

As an alternative to the end paper 106, in order to obtain the fixing of the stack of multilayer elements to the sleeve 101 , the first multilayer element of the stack could be pasted, by means of its raised face 14, directly onto the corresponding quadrant of the sleeve 101 , defining in any case a volume for containing a disc 104 which this time would remain jointly connected to a quadrant of the sleeve 101 of the container 100 and not rotatable with respect to it.

A second embodiment of the container for discs according to the invention, generally designated by the reference numeral 200 and shown in Figures 9 and 10, also provides a sleeve 201 and a plurality of trays 202 mutually connected at one of their ends 205, in which the trays consist of multilayer elements made of cardboard which can rotate with respect to the sleeve 201 like the pages of a book. The multilayer elements 202 are obtained with the method described above in relation to the first embodiment of the invention and are mutually connected by means of a free flap of each multilayer element, which corresponds to an end panel of a die- cut element made of cardboard folded onto itself.

The difference with respect to the first embodiment is that the disc 104 can be inserted in the respective tray 202 in a direction which is perpendicular to the direction of the first embodiment. This is made possible by using a die-cut element which is identical to the one of Figure 1 and is folded in the same manner but that has the openings rotated through 90° with respect to the openings of Figure 1 and arranged mirror- symmetrically with respect to the crease 2 interposed between the two panels with openings.

In practice it has been found that the device according to the invention fully achieves the intended aim, since it allows to obtain a cardboard container adapted to accommodate a plurality of discs, particularly more than two, three or four discs, which can be extracted and inserted in the corresponding trays independently and without being able to escape unintentionally from the container.

Although the device according to the invention has been conceived particularly for optical discs, it can be used nonetheless, more generally, for discs of any kind, even for vinyl music records, for example 33 or 45 rpm records.

The device thus conceived is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims; all the details may further be replaced with other technically equivalent elements.

In practice, the materials used, as well as the contingent dimensions, may be any according to requirements and to the state of the art.

The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. MI2011A000356 from which this application claims priority are incorporated herein by reference.

Where technical features mentioned in any claim are followed by reference signs, those reference signs have been included for the sole purpose of increasing the intelligibility of the claims and accordingly such reference signs do not have any limiting effect on the interpretation of each element identified by way of example by such reference signs.