AU2017235910A1 - Shipping and display carton - Google Patents

Abstract

-8 A shipping and display carton, the carton formed from a blank having portions that, when folded, become side and end walls, the blank also having a perforation line extending 5 across the blank so as to extend substantially around the formed carton for separating an upper portion of the formed carton from a lower portion of the formed carton to display contents contained therein, wherein the carton has a base from which support tabs extend internally of the carton, the support tabs being engagable externally of the carton from beneath the base and configured for interlocking engagement with a support base internal 10 of the carton whereby bringing the support tabs into engagement with the support base elevates the support base to elevate the contents contained therein.

Description

SHIPPING AND DISPLAY CARTON FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a shipping and display carton, for example a shipping and display carton for retail merchandise.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is desirable to provide shelf ready cartons for shipping retail merchandise, i.e. cartons that can be easily opened when placed on a shelf to display the contents therein without having to remove the contents and restack them on the shelf. Such cartons have previously been proposed, however, due to manufacturing equipment limitations, such cartons typically have a base with upwardly extending walls that partially obscure the contents within the base, thereby reducing the visual exposure to the contents, which is undesirable for product manufacturers.

It is also desirable that shelf ready cartons encourage the contents contained therein to tilt forward and/or move forwardly as the contents are dispensed.

Examples of the invention seek to solve, or at least ameliorate, one or more disadvantages of previous shipping and display cartons.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to the present invention, there is provided a shipping and display carton, the carton formed from a blank having portions that, when folded, become side and end walls, the blank also having a perforation line extending across the blank so as to extend substantially around the formed carton for separating an upper portion of the formed carton from a lower portion of the formed carton to display contents contained therein, wherein the carton has a base from which support tabs extend internally of the carton, the support tabs being engagable externally of the carton from beneath the base and configured for interlocking engagement with a support base internal of the carton whereby bringing the support tabs into engagement with the support base elevates the support base to elevate the contents contained therein.

According to preferred embodiments, the support tabs are cut from the base and formed by folding the tabs upwardly from the base.

Preferably, the support base has, for each support tab, a corresponding aperture in which ends of the support tabs can be received for locking the support tab in a folded position.

Preferably, the support base is a sheet of material that lies adjacent the base beneath the contents. The carton can be configured so that the support base is angled forwardly to tilt the contents toward a forward end of the carton.

According to the present invention, there is also provided a method of displaying merchandise in a carton of the above described type, including the steps of: tearing the carton along the perforation line and removing an upper portion of the formed carton to display the contents contained therein; urging the support tabs upwardly to raise the support base and lift the contents; and bringing the support tabs into interlocking engagement with apertures in the support base to fix the support base in an elevated condition.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Preferred embodiments of the invention will be further described, by way of non-limiting example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is plan view of a blank for forming a carton of one embodiment of the invention; Figure 2 is a front perspective view of a lower portion of the formed carton with a support base removed;

Figures 3 to 5 are respective front, side and rear perspective views of a lower portion of the carton;

Figure 6 is a front perspective view of the carton in a formed condition;

Figure 7 is a front perspective view of a lower portion of the formed carton with the support base in a lowered condition;

Figure 8 is a front perspective view of a lower portion of the formed carton with the support base raised;

Figure 9 is another front perspective view of the carton in a formed condition

Figure 10 is a front perspective view of a lower portion of the formed carton with contents therein and the support base in a lowered condition; and

Figure 11 is a front perspective view of a lower portion of the formed carton with contents therein and the support base raised.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

With reference to Figure 1, there is shown a blank 10 for erecting into a shipping and display carton 20 according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention. Carton 20 can be seen in its fully erected state in Figures 6 and 9.

The blank 10 has portions 12 that, when folded, become side and end walls. Flaps 14a become a base 22 when folded and flaps 14b become a carton top when folded. The blank 10 also has a perforation line 16 extending across the blank 10 so as to extend substantially around the formed carton 20 for separating an upper portion 18b of the formed carton from a lower portion 18a of the formed carton to display contents contained therein. Such a configuration is known in the art as a shelf ready carton. Although the perforation line 16 is shown as forming a contoured line for aesthetic purposes, it will be appreciated that the perforation line 16 may also be generally straight or a combination of straight and curved lines and may be formed in segments.

As illustrated in Figure 2, the carton 20 has a base 22 from which support tabs 24 extend internally of the carton 20. The support tabs 24 are engagable externally of the carton 20 from beneath the base 22 and configured for interlocking engagement with a false bottom in the form of a support base 26 which is disposed internally of the carton 20. Bringing the support tabs 24 into engagement with the support base 26 elevates the support base 26 to elevate the contents contained therein. Although the illustrated embodiments have two support tabs 24, it will be appreciated that other embodiments with more than two support tabs extending from the base are also possible. In such embodiments, the support tabs may be spaced apart on the base and can be provided in pairs.

As can be seen from the blank 10 of Figure 1, the support tabs 24 are cut from the base 22. The support tabs 24 are formed by folding the tabs 24 upwardly from the base 22. Figures 9 to 11 illustrate use of the carton 20. In use, a user will separate the lower portion 18a of the carton from the upper portion 18b of the carton 20 by tearing along the perforation line 16, resulting in the configuration shown in Figure 10. A user with then grasp the carton 20, using their fingers to apply pressure to the tabs 24 to urge them upwardly to elevate the support base 26, along with the contents 40 within the carton 20 without having to remove the contents 40. With reference to Figures 7 and 8, movement of the support base 26 can more easily be seen.

The support base 26 has, for each support tab 24, a corresponding aperture 28 in which free ends of the support tabs 24 can be received for locking the support tab 24 in a folded position. The location of the apertures 28 correspond to the location of ends of the support tabs 26 when folded so that the support tabs 26 only come into interlocking engagement when raised. So as to provide interlocking engagement between the support tabs 26 and the apertures 28, ends of the support tabs 26 have recessed corners 30 that form shoulders 32 and the apertures 28 are sized so that only an end portion of each support tab 26 extends through a corresponding aperture 28, with the shoulders 32 abutting the support base 26. It will be appreciated that the support tabs 26 and apertures 28 may take many other conventional forms to provide interlocking between the support tabs 26 and the support base 26.

The support base 26 is a sheet of separate material that lies adjacent the base 22 of the carton and beneath the contents, and is preferably inserted during packaging of the contents 40 into the carton 20. The support base 26 is preferably formed of R flute or B flute board, along with the carton 20, with the grade being determined by the weight of the product. In other embodiments, the carton and support base could be formed of plastics, metals or composites.

In some embodiments, the support base 26 is angled forwardly to tilt the contents toward a forward end of the carton 20. This may be achieved by configuring the support tabs 24 so that a forward edge is shorter than a rearward edge, so that when folded an upper edge of the support tab 24 is angled.

By providing a forwardly tilted support base, flexible products may "fall forward" to remain upright. It may also be possible to encourage contents within the carton to slide forward as contents are removed, thereby reducing manual "facing" operations (bringing stock forward) required in-store.

Previously, shelf-ready cartons have partially obscured the package print or labelling of contents therein due to a forward lip 34, as seen in Figure 2. The forward lip 34 is formed for many reasons, including to contain the merchandise in the carton, to allow taping of the base of the box to the side i.e. securing with adhesive-backed/pressure sensitive tape, to provide opportunity for shelf branding, and it has been difficult to provide a perforation line along or near a fold line. By providing a raiseable support base 26 as described herein, the advantages of providing a forward lip 34 are maintained but contents can be elevated so that obstruction by the forward lip 34 can be minimised and product exposure increased.

To assist with separation of the upper and lower portions 18b, 18a, perforation line 16 also has punch out sections 36 that assist in advancing the line of perforation.

The embodiments have been described by way of example only and modifications are possible within the scope of the invention disclosed.

Claims (8)

1. A shipping and display carton, the carton formed from a blank having portions that, when folded, become side and end walls, the blank also having a perforation line extending across the blank so as to extend substantially around the formed carton for separating an upper portion of the formed carton from a lower portion of the formed carton to display contents contained therein, wherein the carton has a base from which support tabs extend internally of the carton, the support tabs being engagable externally of the carton from beneath the base and configured for interlocking engagement with a support base internal of the carton whereby bringing the support tabs into engagement with the support base elevates the support base to elevate the contents contained therein.

2. A carton according to claim 1, wherein the support tabs are cut from the base and formed by folding the tabs upwardly from the base.

3. A carton according to claim 1 or claim 2, having a plurality of support tabs extending from the base.

4. A carton according to any preceding claim, wherein the support base has, for each support tab, a corresponding aperture in which ends of the support tabs can be received for locking the support tab in a folded position.

5. A carton according to any preceding claim, wherein the support base is a sheet of material that lies adjacent the base beneath the contents.

6. A carton according to any preceding claim, configured so that the support base is angled forwardly or backwardly to tilt the contents toward a forward or rearward end of the carton.

7. A carton according to any preceding claim, formed from a paper based, plastic, metal or composite material.

8. A method of displaying merchandise in a carton according the any preceding claim, including the steps of: tearing the carton along the perforation line and removing an upper portion of the formed carton to display the contents contained therein; urging the support tabs upwardly to raise the support base and lift the contents; and bringing the support tabs into interlocking engagement with apertures in the support base to fix the support base in an elevated condition.