POZZOLI, Aldo (Via Cascina Perina 43, Inzago, I-20065, IT)
| CLAIMS 1. A tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu- Ray disks and the like, comprising a bottom layer (3), at least one intermediate layer (4, 5) with a hollow (6) for accommodating at least one disk-like element (7) and an upper layer (8) with an opening (9) for extracting said at least one disk-like element (7), said layers (3, 4, 5 and 8) being mutually superimposed and made of paper-like material, characterized in that it comprises, at said extraction opening (9), an element (15) for retaining said disk-like element (7) which is connected to two separate and mutually spaced regions (17) of the edges of said extraction opening (9) and has a longer extension than the distance between said two separate and mutually spaced regions (17). 2. The tray according to the claim 1, characterized in that it comprises, on said bottom layer (3), a crease (10), which protrudes with respect to the plane of arrangement of said bottom layer (3) and is adapted to engage the peripheral region of said disk-like element (7). 3. The tray according to the claim 1, characterized in that said retention element is constituted by a strip (15). 4. The tray according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said strip (15) defines, on said opening for extracting the disk-like element, a free region (18) in cooperation with the lower edge of said extraction opening (9), and an extraction region (19) which is defined on the opposite side. 5. The tray according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said extraction region (19) has a recess (20) which protrudes with respect to the region affected by said disk-like element (7). 6. The tray according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said strip (15) has, in a central portion thereof, a region (30) which is removed at the hole provided in said disk-like element (7). 7. The tray according to one or more of the preceding claims, characterized in that said strip (15) has a convex shape on the side directed toward said recess (20). |
Technical Field
The present invention relates to a tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like.
Background art
As is known, in the multimedia disk sector, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu- Ray disks and the like, container trays are currently used which are, usually, connected to covers that are made with a printed plastic material.
The current need to make ecological products has led to the manufacture of container trays that are made with layers of paper-like material such as, for example, the tray disclosed in US 6092653, in which a tray is disclosed which is made by superimposing a plurality of layers of paper-like material, and more specifically a base element on which intermediate layers are superimposed which define the hollow that accommodates the disk and on which an upper layer is then superimposed which is provided with a portion that overlaps the disk in order to keep it in place.
The portion that overlaps the disk, in this embodiment, is constituted by a retaining edge which in practice reduces the upper opening in such a way as to overlap the disk.
With this embodiment we have the situation where, in order to take the disk out of the tray, inevitably the disk is made to flex, since the retaining edge, which is connected continuously to the edge of the opening, substantially behaves like a rigid element and so the disk must necessarily flex in order to be able to exit from the region affected by the retaining edge.
Another problem consists in that, in this operation, the surface of the underneath of the disk is made to scrape against the base element.
The embodiment illustrated above, which has shown to be validly useful for disks like CDs and DVDs, is not suitable for Blu-Ray disks, because the medium on which the recording is made is particularly delicate and, consequently, flexion and scraping of the disk could cause damage to the sensitive surface, making the disk impossible to use.
Disclosure of the invention
The aim of the present invention is to solve the above mentioned problem, by providing a tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like, that makes it possible to subject the disk to no stress at all, and thus being suitable for use for particularly delicate disks as well, such as Blu-Ray disks and the like.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a tray in which the disk is stably held and can be easily extracted, without facing problems of scraping the sensitive surface, which carries the recording, and without deforming the disk.
Another aim of the present invention is to provide a tray that, thanks to its features, is capable of offering the widest guarantees of reliability and safety in use.
A further object of the present invention is to provide a tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like, which can be easily made from elements and materials that are readily available on the market and which, moreover, 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 tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like, according to the invention, comprising a bottom layer, at least one intermediate layer with a hollow for accommodating at least one disk-like element and an upper layer with an opening for extracting said at least one disk-like element, said layers being mutually superimposed and made of paper-like material, characterized in that it comprises, at said extraction opening, an element for retaining said disk-like element which is connected to two separate and mutually spaced regions of the edge of said extraction opening and has a longer extension than the distance between said two separate and mutually spaced regions. Brief description of the drawings
Further characteristics and advantages of the invention will become better apparent from the description of a preferred, but not exclusive, embodiment of a a tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like, illustrated by way of non-limiting example in the accompanying drawings wherein:
Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of the die-cut sheet for obtaining the tray;
Figure 2 is a view showing the superimposition of the layers that make up the tray;
Figure 3 is a view of the tray before the step of die-cutting the edges; Figure 4 is a sectional view taken along the line IV-IV in Figure 3;
Figure 5 is a sectional view schematically highlighting the step of extracting the disk;
Figure 6 is a perspective view highlighting the tray connected to a cover, with the disk exploded;
Figure 7 is a perspective view highlighting the tray applied to a cover, with a disk inserted;
Figure 8 is a view highlighting the tray applied to a cover, with a disk inserted;
Figure 9 is a plan view of the tray, applied to a cover, during the step of extracting the disk.
Ways of carrying out the invention
With reference to the figures, the tray for containing disk-like elements, such as CDs, DVDs, Blu-Ray disks and the like, which is generally designated with the reference numeral 1, is made from a die-cut sheet of paper-like material, generally designated with 2, which defines a bottom layer 3, two intermediate layers 4 and 5 which both define a hollow 6 that accommodates a disk or disk-like element, generally designated with 7, and an upper layer 8 that has an opening 9 for extracting the disk-like element.
More precisely, in a manner that is known per se, the different layers are superimposed on each other and are die-cut at the edges.
The bottom 3 has a crease 10 which protrudes from the bottom and which engages the peripheral region of the disk 7 in such a way that its sensitive surface is not in contact with the bottom.
Moreover, at the opening 9, a retaining element is provided, generally designated with the reference numeral 15, which, substantially, is provided by a strip that extends from two regions 17 of the peripheral region of the opening 9 which are separate and mutually spaced.
In this way, on the layer 8 a free region 18 is provided between the lower edge of the opening 9 and the strip 15, as well as an extraction region 19 which is defined on the opposite side and provided with a recess 20 which protrudes with respect to the region affected by the disk.
An important peculiarity of the invention consists in that the strip 15 has an extension that is greater than the distance between the two regions 17.
This ensures that the strip 15, while being able to keep the disk in place, exhibits a certain flexibility and yield during the step of extracting the disk, which can thus be inclined, as shown in Figure 5, during the extraction step, and thus it engages the bottom 3 only at an edge and, moreover, the disk is not made to flex and thus is not subjected to damage.
It should be added to the foregoing that in a central portion of the strip 15 a region 30 is provided which is removed at the hole which is usually provided in the disk 7, so as to facilitate the step of extracting the disk, making it possible to place one fmger at the periphery of the region of the recess 20 and another finger at the hole, in order to be able to easily extract the disk.
With the arrangement described above, the disk, when it is placed in the tray, rests only at the non-recorded peripheral region thereof upon the crease 10 and, during the extraction step, thanks to the yielding nature of the strip 15, the disk is not made to flex but instead is inclined, so that it rests on the bottom only at a perimetric portion, thus preventing damage of any kind.
The yielding nature of the strip is obtained by the fact that it is connected to the edges of the opening only at the two mutually spaced regions and it has a longer extension than the distance between the two connection regions, and so an easy extraction is possible, without forcing.
For completeness of description, it should be added that, typically, although not necessarily, the tray is connected to a cover 40 which has the traditional two leaves, mutually hinged.
Moreover, at the hollow 6 and at the opening 9, diametric enlargements are provided, designated with the reference numeral 25, which are of a type that is known per se and which make it possible to perform the extraction of the disk in a radial direction.
From the foregoing it can thus be seen that the invention achieves the intended aims, and in particular attention is drawn to the fact that the measures adopted of providing a crease that keeps the sensitive surface of the disk from touching the bottom, as well as the presence of a retaining element which is partially yielding due to the fact that it has a greater length than the distance between the points of attachment, make it possible to keep the disk in optimal conditions during storage, since the sensitive surface does not rest on the bottom, and they make it possible to perform the extraction without flexing the disk or scraping the sensitive surface against the bottom of the tray.
The invention, thus conceived, is susceptible of numerous modifications and variations, all of which are within the scope of the appended claims.
In addition, all the details may be replaced by other, technically equivalent elements.
In practice the materials employed, provided they are compatible with the specific use, as well as the contingent dimensions and shapes, may be any according to requirements.
The disclosures in Italian Patent Application No. MI2010A000538 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.