TITLE

PACK FOR ITEMS

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a pack for items according to the preamble to Patent Claim 1 below.

BACKGROUND ART

Packs for items have different purposes at different stages in a distribution and sales chain extending all the way to the final user. In addition to providing protection against damage and facilitating loading/stacking in larger containers for transport, a pack can also serve as a sales aid by being both an information carrier and a display stand. It must also be adapted to permit rational handling in conjunction with the introduction of the items in the course of a packing process.

Examples of a conventional pack include a box with a lid and an insert which forms a frame for the item. Although their basic construction may be simple, it is difficult to keep the manufacturing costs down to a low level, among other things because they usually consist of several parts. Another example is a box-shaped pack with ends that are capable of being opened. Although the casing can be manufactured in a single piece, the insert is made separately and the item is usually pushed in through the open end, which normally requires feeding-in in stages during the introduction process.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

The object of the invention is to make available a pack that can be produced rationally and also permits the rational introduction of items which require to be packed and is able to display the items in a desired manner at the point of sale.

The aforementioned object is achieved by means of the pack according to the invention, the characterizing features of which can be appreciated from the following Patent Claim 1.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

The invention is described below on the basis of a few examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which

Figs. 1-4 depict in various views a first example of the pack according to the invention in the open position in cylindrical form;

Figs. 5-8 depict a second example of a cylindrical embodiment of the pack, which is depicted here in various views in the closed state; Figs. 9-12 depict a third example of an embodiment of the pack, which is illustrated in various views in the form of a box, more precisely having the form of a parallelepiped, and

Figs. 13-16 depict a fourth example of an embodiment of the pack, which is illustrated in various views in a six-cornered, hexagonal form.

MODE(S) FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A feature common to the different examples of the pack according to the invention is that it can be manufactured in a single piece comprising both its casing components and internal part and is held open in one direction, for example upwards, in order to permit the items to be introduced from the side, when viewed relative to the longitudinal direction of the pack, that is to say

appropriately from above. A distinguishing characteristic of the pack is that it is also capable of being held together, without the need for extra measures such as binding means, by integrated end closures in the form of folding locking flaps that are connected in a folding manner to one of the casing components and can be snapped into engagement over the edge part of the other casing component. A further distinctive feature is that the end parts of the pack, including the locking flaps, are so arranged, with the pack in its closed state, as to adopt a concave, inwardly curved form, by means of which a stable supporting surface is created, on which the pack with its item can be positioned on a sales counter.

The essential construction of the pack is described initially with reference to Figs. 1-8, which depict the pack in its cylindrical form. The pack consists of a number of connected pack components 1-5, these being five in number in the depicted example, which are connected to one another in a folding manner by means of folding articulations 6-9 for the rearrangement of the pack between the open introduction position and removal position for the item in question 10 and the closed or shut position. The open position is illustrated in Figs. 1-4, and the closed position for the cylindrical pack is illustrated in Figs. 5-8.

The pack components 1-5 consist of casing components 1-2, these being two in number in the depicted example, which are connected to one another in a folding manner by means of the interjacent folding articulation 6, and in the closed state together create an enclosed, protective casing 11 around the packed item 10 or the items, which can be of various kinds, being a rod- shaped product in the depicted example, such as a pen, which is enclosed within a storage space by means of the casing. Each of the casing components 1 , 2 in the two first examples consists essentially of a semicylinder having a semi-cylindrical envelope surface 12, 13 and two opposing, essentially semicircular end surfaces or end parts 14-17, which for production engineering reasons are slightly convex in an outward direction or

conical, or are at least inclined in an outward direction, when observed in an upward direction. Alternatively, the end surfaces 14-17 can be said to converge towards one another, when observed in a direction inwards into the halves of the pack.

The outwardly curved form of the end surfaces is a consequence of an appropriate manufacturing method, namely the vacuum forming or pressure forming of heated, thin-walled plastic, for example PET plastic, that is to say polyethylene, which possesses a well-balanced dimensional stability at a normal ambient temperature, which is the operating temperature with its centre around room temperature and with normal outdoor temperature deviations to either side of that value. Dimensions which increase in a direction upwards from the mould are all that is required in order to facilitate release from the tool mould.

Apart from the pack components which form the casing, two of the other pack components form locking flaps 4, 5, which are capable of folding or are each connected in an articulated manner to their individual end parts 16, 17 of one of the casing components 2. Each of the two locking flaps 4, 5 has an outer part 18, 19, which essentially corresponds to the form and the dimensions of the end part 14, 15 of the other casing component 1 , that is to say essentially the form of a semicircle in the case of the first and the second example with cylindrical form, and exhibits along its outer edge a collar part 20, 21 , which is so arranged, with the locking flaps in their folded-down position, as to project downwards over the edge part 22, 23 of the casing component 1 and to snap into engagement around it. Both the edge part 22, 23 of the casing component 1 and the collar parts 20, 21 of the flaps 4, 5 advantageously exhibit snap beads 24, 25, 26, 27, which are positioned and dimensioned so as to snap into engagement with one another in order to assure their mutually secure retention in position, that is to say the locking flaps are retained in a folded-down position and thus hold the casing components 1 , 2 against one another and keep the pack closed, as

illustrated in Figs. 5-8.

The pack component 3 is an internal part or a product holder that is connected in a folding manner to one of the casing components 2, advantageously the part to which the locking flaps 4,5 are attached. The folding articulation 7 constitutes the folding connection and extends parallel with the folding articulation 6 between the two casing components 1 , 2. The internal part 3 can have a number of different forms and has the primary objective of forming a product holder with fixing devices 28, 29 for the product 10, which can be positioned in a protected position at a distance from the external surfaces of the pack, at the same time as it can be presented in an appealing manner. The internal part 3 in the example according to Figs. 1-4 has an essentially cylindrical part 30 with an envelope surface 31 , the radius of which is slightly less than the radius of the first casing component 1. The fact that the cylindrical part 30 of the product holder 3 exhibits two mutually opposing end surfaces 32, 33, which in the depicted example are essentially semicircular, and each of which graduates into its own flange part 34, 35, provides abutment or supporting edges 36, 37, which, with the pack in its closed position, rest against the edge of the casing component 2 adjacent to the folding articulation 6. In this way, the product holder 3 also serves as a stabilizing support for the pack and primarily the casing component 1 , which, with the pack in its closed state, is in contact with the product holder externally. In the example according to Figs. 1-4, the fixing devices 28, 29 are formed by moulded recesses in the opposing end surfaces 32, 33 and the flange parts 34, 35, which are dimensioned in such a way that the ends of the product can be snapped securely into the product holder 3, as can be appreciated from Fig. 1 , which depicts a product with a dashed and dotted line.

In order to achieve the object of creating an inwardly-curved, that is to say concave, end surface on at least one end of the pack, the locking flaps 4, 5 are formed so that they are bowl-shaped and inwardly-curved or concave on

their semicircular outer parts 18, 19. This form has been assured by the provision of a reinforcing rib 36, 37 on the outer part having an extent that runs along the folding articulations 8, 9 and having a height that decreases in the form of a curve towards the ends 36a, 36b, at the same time as the rib exhibits a straight upper surface. The folding articulations 8, 9 of the locking flaps 4, 5 have also been provided with an extent in the form of a curve. Through these measures, that is to say the concavity of the locking flaps in combination with the curve-formed extent of the folding articulations, the end parts 14, 15 of the casing component 1 will also be drawn inwards into a concave position in conjunction with the folding down of the locking flaps into the locked position, so that the entire end part of the pack adopts an inward- curved form, which provides a stable supporting surface for standing the pack on a flat base. Provision is made for the height of the rib in this case to be sufficiently low for it not to project beyond the supporting surfaces of the pack, which in this case essentially consist of the annular outer edge part of the pack.

The pack according to the invention can thus be manufactured using rational methods as a single connected unit by the moulding of a flat plastic material, where all the parts can be held open, for example in an upward direction, during a product introduction stage for the purpose of introducing products into the product holder 3, which is then folded through 180 degrees about the folding articulation 7 towards one half 2 of the casing. The other half 1 of the casing is then folded in through 180 degrees about its folding articulation 6 towards the half 2 of the casing, thereby enclosing the product holder together with the product. With the half 1 of the casing folded in, the two locking flaps 4, 5 are then folded in over the half 1 of the casing into a position in which they snap into engagement, which means that the pack is closed with the product contained inside it.

Apart from the fact that Figs. 5-8 depict a cylinder-shaped pack according to the invention in the closed state, this is a variant that also permits it to be

suspended, in addition to being stood on a base. The pack is configured for this purpose with a suspension device 38. This is configured as a disc, which projects upwards from the upper side of the pack and exhibits a hole 39 for passing it onto a holder. The disc 38 in the case illustrated here is cut out from and folded up from one of the locking flaps 4, the function of which is not affected.

The pack according to Figs. 9-12 is in form of a box, but is otherwise constructed according to the same principles as that according to Figs. 1-4. The end surfaces 40 and the locking flaps 41 are essentially triangular here, in conjunction with which the fold line 8 extends between two corners 42, 43. Its curve-formed extent can be appreciated clearly here. Each of the casing components in this case consists of two mutually perpendicular wall surfaces, in addition to the end surfaces.

The pack according to Figs. 13-16 is also constructed according to the same principle, although it is six-cornered in this case, in conjunction with which the curve-formed fold line 8 runs between two opposite corners 44, 45. Here the enclosing sides of the casing components consist of three wall surfaces 46, 47, 48 that are angled towards one another.

The invention is not restricted to the examples described above and illustrated in the drawings. The pack can have different forms, for example it may possess an oval cross-sectional form. The pack can contain a number of products at the same time, in which case they can sit side by side in the same product holder, or additional folding product holders can be present in the same unit. It is conceivable for the product holder to be a separate unit that is introduced together with the product. The product holder can be a sheet of cardboard or some other material. Information surfaces, for example on separate sheets, can also be introduced. The pack is advantageously executed in a transparent, that is to say see-through, plastic material, although it may also be partially opaque, that is to say coloured or partially

paper-covered. The expression item is used here to denote products of a kind that are not a liquid or a bulk material, but are individual items having a distinct form.