US2579518A - Container - Google Patents

Description

Dec. 25, 1951 E. G. SCHAEFER 2,579,518

CONTAINER I Filed Dec. 21, 1946 2 Sl-IEETS -SHEET l figwatboraes Dec. 25, 1951 SCHAEFER 2,579,518

CONTAINER Filed Dec. 21, 1946 2 SHEETS-SHEET;

55 FIG FIGJ'iO dwarcl C-ischaefer Saverztor b &% g@ Cipher-neg Patented Dec. 25, 1951 UNITED. STATES PATENT OFFICE Edward G. Schaei'er, News, N. J. Application December 21, 1945, Serial No. 717,640

This invention deals with containers made of flexible material such as paper, cardboard, flexible plastic, and the like. More specifically, it relates to the production of two-piece containers having many advantages over present conventional cartons. j The packages and containers now in use generally consist of one-piece or two-piece units which are shipped in knocked -downcondition and are provided with hooked flaps interlocking withcuts made. in the cardboard (whichis the usual material of construction); The one-piece units, such as the cartons used for individual packing of pies'and cakes, are provided with a folding lid which folds over the top of the box after it has been put together. Two piece boxes, such as those used for packagin mens suits and ladies dresses, comprise a small, bottom half and a larger, upper half to fit over the former. These are also shipped in knocked-down condition and require assembling by interlocking the conventional flap and cut closure. I

In order to expedite packaging of purchased products ,.most stores stack, such cartons in semiassembled condition on shelves, and the assembly is completed when the purchased article is placed therein prior to leavingthe store. In the case of the one-piece units, semi-assembled piles, with lids extended, take up considerable room, and require high shelf space. Ascan be readily seen, pre-assembly of the packages also takes time and the folding of the knocked-down cartons with the flap-cut closure requires careful observation to effect a good closure. Another disadvantage of'present containers is that the four sides do not adequately exhibit all of the productor products contained therein. For example, a container of shirts will show only the uppermost shirt unless theindividual lifts the pile of shirts contained therein for inspection. Also, when a cake is displayed in such a carton, only the ,top of the cake is exposed and the customer has no means for inspecting the side. Still another disadvantage of present containers is that large dies andv paper stock are required and separate dies are needed for two piece cartons, since the tops are usually larger than the bottoms. In the case of conventional two-piece boxes having identical tops and bottoms, it is necessary to press in the corners or sides of the bottom section to' make the top section fit thereover. Hence, considerable manipulation is'required which increases in complexity as the sizes of the boxes increase.

There are many other disadvantages in the use of conventional"containers. For instance, a

5 Claims. (Cl. 229-32) s I 2. customer must lift his purchased product out of the box or else break out the sides of the container. In the case of fragile products such as cakes, etc., there is a chance of breakage and smearing of the fingers with icing and the like.

An object of the present invention is to provide a simple one or two-piece container wherein the top and bottom may be identical, thereby requiring only one die and not involving the confusion ordinarily encountered with mixing or shortages of tops and/or bottoms Another object is to provide a container having an open side, thereby allowing more adequate inspection of the product or products contained therein. A further object is to provide a closure" for the sides which requires no attention or support While assembling and which may be opened or closed by a mere flicking of the thumb or finger. Still another object is to provide a container which takes up little shelf room and requires no pro-assembly or semi-assembly and which can be produced with small dies and small-sized paper stocks. An additional'object is to provide a container which will not necessitate lifting out of products contained therein. 7

Other objects will become more apparent from the following description and the accompanying drawings in which Figure '1 is an isometric view of a glued container of the present invention suitable for window or show-cas'e'displays, while Figure 2 illustrates a covered container for shipping or carrying. A knocked-down container having a flap-hole closure of the present invention is shown in Figure 3, and an isometric view of the assembled and locked container of Figure 3 is shown in Figure 4. Various modifications of the closure of the present invention are shown in Figure 5. In Figure 6 is illustrated a knockeddown container having a double flap-hole lock or closure. When assembled, this container resembles front isometric view 1 and back view 8. Another modification of'a container, in knocked down form, and having differentlocking means is shown in Figure 9. Figures 10'and 11 are the back and front views, respectively, of the assembled back of the container shown in Figure 9. Similar numbers refer to similar parts in the various figures.

Referring again to the drawings, numeral I represents the bottom of the cardboard carton or container, while numerals 2and 3 represent the sides and numeral 5 designates what might be called the back side, or center side, or the back of the container. It will be observed, therefore, from Figure 1'; that the container comprises a bottom I, three sides (2, 3 and and a fiap 8 extending for about inch or 1 inch or so from the bottom at the open side. The juncture of the flap with the bottom is preferably scored, as shown by |2, to facilitate bending upwards of the flap.

In Figure 2 is shown a Z-piece container made up of two identical units such as that shown in Figure 1. Here, a unit such as that shown in Figure 1 is covered by a similar unit which is reversed, placed upside-down, and fitted over the unit of Figure 1, the flap 8' of the upper half projecting over back 5 of the lower half, and similarly, back 5 of the upper half fitting into the scoring for flap 8 of the lower half. Sides 2' and 3 of the upper half are fitted alongside sides 2 and 3 of the lower half, the fittingbeing-haphazard, it being immaterial'as to which side is on the outside or inside, since a good closure on,

the sides is effected by the double wall. Since the back of one unit covers the open side of the other, the flap of each unit serves to cover the open edge which would be otherwise exposed.

It will also be observed that sides 2 and 3 are provided with projections 6 and 1 which are glued to the back of back 5. They may be glued to the front of the back, but this is not as practical and would also cause themto interfere with stacking. Also, it is possible to provide the back with side extensions which would glue on sides 2 and 3, but this has been found less desirable since the double wall so formed would interfere with fitting and slipping over of sides 2 and 3 of the top unit. When the package is prepared according to'Figure 2, it may be carried that way by hand, or preferably, a string is wound .around the flaps, thus providing a strong, leakproof package.

In Figures 3 and 4, the knocked-down container has base [3 scored along lines 23, 25, 28 and 29, providing front flap 24, back flap 22, and

sides l4 and I5. These sides have projections I I6 and I! scored at 26 and 21 respectively. Projection I5 has a rectangular slot 18 punched out,

while projection I! has a portion cut out at 2! leaving projecting flap [9- having an angular periphery 2|. These projecting ends IS and H form the back when the container is'assembled as in Figure 4. In such case, flap 22 is kept within the box to seal off the otherwise exposed edge, I while flap l9 falls in juxtaposition with punched hole I8 and serves as a lock or closure for. the back.

In the closure formed by hole l8 and flap l9, the size of fiap I9 is adjusted so that the angular sections only, extend beyond the periphery of the rectangular hole l8. Locking is accomplished by poking |9 through hole IS with the finger, whereupon the cardboard flap l9 becomes some.- what deformed during the operation but recovers The projecting angular edges of the periphery 2| of flap l9 serve to lock flap l9 in hole Bland thus prevent the container from falling apart. The locking is generally accompanied by a snap when so its form, substantially after the closure is made.

flap I9 is poked into hole I8 with the finger.

ments are identified by numerals 3|, 33, 35 and 31. It is generally preferred to maintain a square or oblong shape for the female element, while the male element may be an extending flap as 30, 32, and 34 or it may be partly undercut into the projecting side, as shown by 33. It is preferred that the fiap have angular projections on its periphery, and the size of the flap is adjusted to be the same as that of the slot, except for the projecting angular edges which extend beyond the periphery of the slot and thus act as looking members.

- I Although one set of locking members is sufficient for small containers, larger containers are more readily handled with two sets as shown in Figures 6-11.v In such case, it is preferred to extend flap 22'. to the; height of the box and to cut slots or holes 49 and in the sides of back flap 22' to engage flaps 52 and 53 extending from projections 42 and 43 of -sides 39 and 4B which are scored at 45 and .48. It will be observed that flaps 5| and 53 are'undercut at 52. I

In assembling the box shown inknocked-down condition in Figure 6,v sides 39 and 40 are bent at the scored boundary with the base, and flap 22 is also bent at scoring 44, after which projections 42 and 43 are bent around back flap 22 until flaps 5| and'53 are in juxtaposition over slots 49 and 50. This is done with one side'i'n each hand, so that'a fiick of the finger of each hand. pokes the flap through the slot, thus ac complishing the locking operation in a simple manner, obtaining the assembled box shown in Figure 7, the back of which is shown in Figure 8. The assembly does not require the attention needed by the conventional flap-cut closure, since sucha cut isdifiicult'to find in a freshly knockeddown package. The locking device of the present invention, on the other hand, can be readily assembled while giving attention to the customer. or while it is under the counter where lighting is poor.

Although the hole-type slotfis preferred, a slot cutout of the edges. of the side, extensions may be'employed, as shown" in Figures, 9-11. Here, the edges of side extensions 42 and 43' have slots 56 which, when assembled, are disposed at the upper edge ofv the back, Back flap 4| is provided with rectangular or square shaped flaps 51, cut at sides and having lower corner triangular cut-outs 59 for facilitating the movement of the flap, the cuts terminating at points 58 on the back. When slots 56' are placed in juxtaposition behind fiaps51, the flapsare pokedf out through slots 53,thus engaging sidesj43 of the flaps which act aslo'cking means. The assembled back'then has a'front-view similar to that shown in Figure 11 and aback view similar to that in Figure 10. v

Although square and oblong boxes are the shape types usually made, this invention is not restricted to any particular shapes, since the features can be adapted to practically any shape. For example, 'anoblong hatbox. mayfbe made wherein a little less than half of the side is left open, while the base is intact, extending so that a similar unit, reversed and upside-down, may be superimposed thereon in. the manner outlined in Figure 2,, giving a closed container. A flap may be provided as an extensionfrom the base to fold over or snap onto the side of the unit over which it overlaps. It will be observed that, since each unit has over half of the side portion mounted thereon, the side ends will overlap when the superimposition occurs. Also, itis possible to although such an arrangement is not as preferable as that shown. g

It is apparent, therefore, that this invention provides a convenient, simple container which avoids most of the drawbacks of conventional containers and exhibits many new and novel features.

In addition to those already specified, another valuable attribute is that containers of the present invention allow cutting, as for example, slicing of a cake or pie without removal from the container and thus avoiding concomitant repeated handling. The fact that less die equipment and smaller paper stock are required effects substantial economies over conventional operations. Since there is no need to hold down the top while loading or tying the container, particularly in the case of bakery boxes, manual manipulation is considerably simplified by the present invention. Safety is also emphasized by the use of the new construction herein described.

In the case of the knocked-down containers of the present invention, the folding of the scored sides automatically aligns the locking device and thus provides a speed closure means involving a mere push of a finger to efiect the locking operation.

I claim:

1. In a flexible sheet container available in knocked-down condition comprising a four-sided fiat bottom with a peripheral edge, the improvement comprising twooppositely disposed sides extending from the peripheral edge of said bottom, a short flap extending from the front peripheral edge of the bottom, a fla extending from the back peripheral edge of the bottom, an extension projecting only from the backs of each of the sides, means on one of said extensions for providing a hole characterized by a large open center section, and a flap disposed on the other extension, said flap having some dimensions larger than the hole and in juxtaposition therewith when the container is assembled, requiring only poking of said flap through the hole to form, with the rear flap, an interlocked back for the container.

2. A container according to claim 1 in which the hole has a four sided periphery and the flap has an angular periphery, the angular sections of which extend beyond the periphery of the slot.

3. In a flexible sheet container having a foursided flat bottom with a peripheral edge and three side walls of substantially equal height extending at right angles from said edge, leaving an open edge portion, said side walls having a substantially even upper edge, the improvement comprising an extension of the bottom at the open edge,acting as a short flap extending over the whole length of the open peripheral edge portion and a scoring at the juncture of the bottom edge and said flap to act as an upwardly swinging hinging means for said flap.

4. A container according to claim 3 in which the flap extends for a distance of not over about one inch from the peripheral edge.

5. In a flexible sheet container having a foursided flat bottom with a peripheral edge and three interconnected side walls extending at right angles from said edge, leaving an open peripheral edge portion on said bottom, said side Walls having a substantially even upper edge, the improvement comprising such a unit having a short flap extending over the whole length of the open peripheral edge portion and hinged thereto, and another such unit superimposed upon the first unit upside-down and in reverse to act as a cover for the first unit and the middle side wall of the superimposed unit acting as a fourth side wall to form a totally enclosed container, said hinged short flaps of each unit being long enough only to act as an edge sealing means over the edge of each middle side wall, said flaps being positioned outside of the side walls when the container is assembled.

EDWARD G. SCHAEFER.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,131,075 ODonnell Mar. 9, 1915 1,150,490 Bingaman Aug. 17, 1915 2,004,098 Andrews June 11, 1935 2,226,089 Anthony et a1 Dec. 24, 1940 2,316,457 Royce Apr. 13, 1943.

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