The invention relates to a packaging article for a stack of uniform, plane gaskets of substantially poly¬ gonal shape, in particular those made of plastic deformable material. Gaskets of this kind, made for instance of rubber cork, are produced as closed, polygonal ring gaskets and as non-closed gaskets, and they are used for many sealing purposes, for instance in ring-shaped design as top cover gaskets for motor car engines. They are generally delivered as a stack of gaskets packed together in a cardboard box or shrink-wrapped.

When a gasket is to be taken from such an unopened packing, the packaging is broken and the whole stack is removed. Since all the gaskets of a stack are not to be used at once, the user will normally have to store part ^• of each unpacked stack within easy reach with a view to later use.

In order to keep these gaskets within easy reach, various categories of users, e.g. motor car garages, store them in most cases by suspending the stack of non-used gaskets direct on a wall with a purely punctual support by means of a hook-shaped suspending element or possibly just a nail.

It has proved that gaskets of this type, already after having been stored in this manner for a relatively short period, are subjected to a plastic deformation as a result of the gravitational action on the only punctually supported gasket, which action may result in a permanent deformation to such an extent that the gasket becomes unsuitable for use according to its purpose. As a typical example, one may mention that ordinary, rectangular top cover gaskets suspended in this manner will be constricted into an hourglass shape.

In the light thereof, the invention has for its

object to provide a packaging article adapted for packing such gaskets, which article itself can, after breaking or ^" opening, serve as a holder for suspending a stack of gaskets in such a manner as to retain their original shape, while at the same time allowing the individual gaskets to be removed easily, said article affording also a good protection for the gaskets during transport and handling of the stack.

According to the invention, this is achieved by designing the packaging article so that a core serving as an inside holder ^' for the gaskets is provided with lateral walls which form at least partly an abutment for each of the inner edge surfaces of the gaskets on all sides of their mainly polygonal shape, and is provided at the front edges of some of the lateral walls with projecting flaps to maintain the gaskets on the core, which flaps are designed and disposed so as to allow the individual removing of the gaskets under- elastic deformation, a back plate of the core parallel to the gaskets projecting so far outside the said lateral walls of the core that it covers entirely the gaskets in the lengthwise and widthwise directions.

When the package is unopened, the stack of gaskets disposed on the core can be packed in a known manner, e.g. shrink-wrapped, or the core with the gaskets may, as a whole, be packed in an ordinary cardboard box. The back plate which covers entirely the gaskets will protect them against damage during transport and handling.

In a preferred embodiment, the core is in all essentials designed as a box-shaped, closed article.

The details of the design of the core and the number and dimensions of its lateral walls can be adapted to the shape and number of gaskets for which it is intended.

The invention will in the following be explained in more detail with reference to the drawing in which

Fig.1 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of a packaging article according to the invention shown

without gaskets,

Fig.2 shows the embodiment of Fig.1 with a stack of gaskets, and

Figs.3-11 various other embodiments of a packaging article according to the invention.

In the embodiment shown in Figs.1 and 2, which is intended for packaging rectangular ring gaskets, e.g. top cover cover gaskets for motor car engines, the packaging article comprises a core having four lateral walls 1, 2,. 3 and 4 which together with a front plate 5 and a back plate 6 form a closed box-shaped article.

At the front edge of the large lateral wall 1 , provision is made in the embodiment shown of two perpen¬ dicularly projecting flaps 7 and 8. Opposite the flaps 7 and 8, provision is made at the front edge of the opposite lateral wall 3 of two perpendicularly projecting flaps 9 and 10. The back plate 6 parallel to the gaskets and situated opposite the flaps 7-10 extends, on the con¬ trary, so far outside the lateral walls 1-4 that is - covers entirely the gaskets in their lengthwise and widthwise directions, as shown in Fig.2. At their back edges the lateral walls 1 and 3 are provided with perpen¬ dicularly projecting flanges 11 and 12, said flanges being secured to the back plate 6 by glueing or stapling. The two other lateral walls 2 and 4 are not provided with projecting flaps at their front edge. Near the lateral wall 2, the back plate 6 is provided with a suspension hole 13.

When in use, the packaging article carries a stack of, for instance, ten gaskets 14 disposed in the manner shown in Fig.2, so that their inward edge surfaces are, at least partly, in abutment against the lateral walls 1-4 between the flaps 7-10 and the back plate 6'. ^■

The gaskets disposed on the packaging article according to the invention can be delivered to the user with an outer packing of conventional kind, for instance a shrink-wrapping or a cardboard box enclosing completely

the packaging article with the gaskets.

After opening of this outer packing and removing of the packaging article with the gaskets, said article acts as a holder for the gaskets and may, for instance, be suspended to a hook by means of the suspension hole 13.

Ring gaskets of the kind in question, i.e. in parti¬ cular plane, polygonal gaskets for use, e.g., in motor car engines will in this manner retain their original shape even after having been suspended for a long time, and they will not be subjected to the permanent derform- ation, e.g., constriction into an hourglass shape which, solely as a result of their weight, occurs when the gaskets themselves are punctually suspended, owing to their plastic deformabiiity. At the same time, owing to their elastic deformabi¬ iity, the gaskets will be removable individually from the packaging article without being damaged. This removability is further facilitated by disposing the flaps 7-10 projecting from the front edges of the lateral walls 1 and 3 at a distance from the corners with the lateral walls 2 and 4. With a view to further improving the removability it is, as already mentioned, preferable not to provide the two opposite lateral walls 2 and 4 with projecting flaps at their front edge. In the embodiment shown in Figs.1 and 2, the packaging article is made from a folded, punched-out, relatively thin cardboard blank, the flaps 7-10 pro¬ jecting perpendicularly from the front edge of the lateral wall 1 and from the front edge of the lateral wall 3 being produced by means of stippled lines in the lateral walls in question up to the folding lines corres¬ ponding to the respective front and back edges. When folding the cardboard blank, apertures (not shown) opposite the flaps are thereby produced. In the embodiment shown in Figs.1 and 2, the folded cardboard blank is assembled by conventional glueing or stapling of the back plate 6 with the flanges 11 and 12

5 projecting from the back edge of the lateral walls 1 and 3. The lateral walls 2 and 4 may be integral with the back plate 6 and may, by means of suitable flanges, be assembled with the front plate 5 and the lateral walls 5 1 and 3 by conventional glueing on the inside.

Figs.3-11 show a number of different embodiments of a packaging "article according to the invention.

The embodiment of Fig.3 corresponds in the main to that of Figs.1 and 2, but is intended for a bigger stack 10 of gaskets. The lateral walls 2' and 4" are not made in one piece but consist of wall parts which, each separa¬ tely, are integral with the lateral walls 1' and 3", the front plate 5 ^T and the back plate 6'.

Figs.4-9 show various embodiments where the lateral 15 walls of the core which in said figures are designated in general as 15-20 are not in abutment against the inner edge surfaces of the gaskets over their whole extension. As shown in Figs.5 and 7,- the packaging articles are here intended for ring gaskets having non-rectilinear sides, 20 for example, the embodiment of Fig.5 intended for mainly trapezoidal gaskets having curved sides and rounded corners of relatively great radius, or the embodiment of Fig.7 where the discontinuous profile is intended for a specified shape of the sealing surface in question. 25 Finally, Figs.10 and 11 show two embodiments intended for non-closed polygonal gaskets. The embodi¬ ment of Fig.10 is intended for mainly U-shaped gaskets. At the part 22' of the core 22 serving to accommodate the open ends of the gaskets 21 , the front plate 23 pro- 30 jects outside the lateral walls 24 and 25 provided with flaps 26 and 27 and is connected with the back plate 28 by means of wall parts 29 and 30 covering the outward edge faces of the U-shaped gaskets 21 at their~ free ends, which ends are inserted under the part 22' through 35 openings 31 between each of the lateral walls 24 and 25 and each of the wall parts 29 and 30. An effective pro¬ tection of the free ends of the gaskets is thereby achieved.

Fig.11 shows a corresponding embodiment for non- closed, mainly rectangular gaskets, where the opening is situated at a corner. Also in this case the front part 32 has a part 32' connected with the back plate 33 over the wall parts 34 and 35 covering the outward edge surfaces of the gaskets at their free ends. As a support for the gaskets, provision is further made at the underside 36 of the core of a holder 37 in line with the wall part 35 and provided with a flange part 37' having the same function as the flaps 38 and 39.